With Liberty For All

Who does this guy think he is?

by Patrick J. Shanahan
02/01/05

It’s official. President George W. Bush’s second inaugural address clearly marks him as a radical. A radical of the highest order. The sort of wild-eyed do-gooder who is naïve enough to believe that all men ought to be free!

The natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on Earth, and not to be under the will or legislative authority of man, but only to have the law of nature for his rule. - Samuel Adams

What the heck is this guy thinking? Doesn’t he understand the reality of the 21st Century? We need to balance our love of freedom against the practical reality of having to deal with unsavory regimes. If we can’t keep the peace, then liberty won’t stand a chance.

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. - Thomas Jefferson

Besides which, who do we think we are? Policeman to the world?

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty. - John F. Kennedy

It’s not our problem if a bunch of Arabs don’t have “democracies.” They can’t hurt us. Let ‘em stew in their own juices.

Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as a heritage of all men, in all lands, everywhere. Destroy this spirit and you have planted the seeds of despotism around your own doors. - Abraham Lincoln

Even if we “force” democracy on them, it doesn’t mean they are ready for it. You can’t expect people to go from tribalism to democracy in one fell swoop. It takes time for the institutions of freedom to become established.

It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon the supposition he may abuse it. - George Washington

I thought that the Cold War was over. When do we get to rest?

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. - Thomas Jefferson

Do we really think that our version of freedom is the answer?

It is the march of freedom and democracy which will leave Marxism- Leninism on the ash heap of history as it has left other tyrannies which stifle the freedom and muzzle the self-expression of the people. - Ronald Reagan

And now we have to put up with this President’s rhetoric!

We are led, by events and common sense, to one conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands. The best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of freedom in all the world. - George W. Bush

All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you. - George W. Bush

How much more out of the mainstream could he be? Thank goodness we at least have “progressives” to help us keep things in perspective.

True to form, Bush delivered a series of disconnected assertions, lies and banalities. He made no coherent argument, but repeated certain key phrases over and over again, centering on the God-given mandate of the US to intervene anywhere in the world to advance the cause of “freedom.” In a 20-minute speech, the president uttered the words “free” or “freedom” 34 times, and the word “liberty” another 12 times. - World Socialist Web Site

It’s all a mater of perspective, don’t you think?