Opinions of Maria

As I was studying the famous speech by Patrick Henry, entitled "Give me Liberty or Give me death," I was struck by these words in the text: "...Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings. ...it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those, who having eyes, see not, and having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst and to provide for it."
This passage has inspired in me a renewal of my commitment to study the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, The Federalist Papers and all things that will help me to understand my role in this great country which has a Divine heritage.

I can not afford to be ignorant in this regard any longer. While watching conference this past weekend, I was struck by the words which President Packer spoke. He told of the first 24th of July Celebration in the Salt Lake Valley. He told of 3 important things which happenned in that celebration.
1. The young men carried the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
2. The young women carried the Bible and The Book of Mormon.
3. The older and wiser generation were honored.
It is time for me to embrace our countries great heritage, the heritage of Truth, and to study the works that our Forefathers studied, which led to the establishment of this God-given land of liberty. If I have learned one thing in the small amount of studying which I have done, it is that liberty is not free. We are going to have to fight for it as much as any generation past or it will be taken from us, just as history tells over and over again.

These are a few of the sentiments I have had as I have pondered the recent bill passed in Congress to the tune of 700 billion dollars. I feel ignorant in this matter, but everything I have read, leads me to believe that this is fundamentally wrong. Some of my reasons for believing so are as follows:
1. A problem with overextended credit can not be fixed with more overextended credit. There will be a point when we will be overextended beyond the point of no return.
2. It has never been the government's role to meddle in the free market. It is no longer a true free market when this occurs. If it were a true free market economy, the low and high times would balance each other out, and recover in a much shorter time.
3. Ezra Taft Benson in his "The Proper Role of Government" said, and I paraphrase, That the government should have no power that we as individuals do not have. (Do I have the power to take money from all American citizens, and give it to whomever I choose?) Frederick Bastiat calls this legalized plunder.
4. I believe that the majority of people in this nation are against this bill and it was still voted through. There were many other options submitted to our congress and representatives and no other solution was even considered. It was passed through way too quickly without enough deliberation.

I feel so underqualified to share my opinions on this matter. Mostly because I lack the ability to explain what I have learned. However, I would refer you to other great works and sites that have helped to lead me to these conclusions.

-"The Proper Role of Government" by Ezra Taft Benson
- The Law by Frederick Bastiat
-Whatever Happenned to Penny Candy (can't recall the name of the author, but it's a great book that teaches simple economics.)
-The Declaration of Independence
-www.gwc.edu
-www.causeofliberty.com

There are so many more, but these are the ones I can think of off hand. This is not meant to be preachy by any means but as an attempt for me to share some of the things I have learned, so they will be more deeply embedded within myself. I love this country and desire to do my tiny part in preserving it.

Oh, and by the way, Yes, I am past my due date and still no sign of baby. It is the hardest thing in the world for me to be patient, but I can't be pregnant forever and I'm definately not the first to go past the due date, but it is still hard for me, especially considering the fact that my last baby was almost 9 lbs. and she was a week early, and I am measuring pretty largish. Oh well, it will all work out. I am sending out positive affirmations for myself, so if you have any to share it will be much appreciated.