Who Needs God When You Have the State?

The Foundation

"The hand of providence has been so conspicuous in all this, that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations." --George Washington

Faith and Family

"Yet again, President Obama's Thanksgiving message eschewed any direct reference to thanking God, making this the fourth straight year in which the President of the United States has ignored the central message of the holiday in favor of political grandstanding. This year, Obama's central message was that now that he's been re-elected, Americans should agree with all of his policies. His unity routine sounds strangely empty after a campaign in which he focused on dividing Americans. ... No mention of thanking God. None. But, of course, we're used to this. In 2011, there was no mention of God at all. In 2010, Obama was closer, but still missed the mark ('we'll spend some time taking stock of what we're thankful for: the God-given bounty of America, and the blessings of one another'). In 2009, Obama didn't thank God, either. Compare that to Obama's Thanksgiving Day proclamations, which he does not read or speak. Those are filled with God -- at least for the last three years. In his first year, filled with the vim and vigor of his original election, Obama preferred to eschew any direct thanking of God even in his proclamation. Of course, nobody sees these proclamations, so Obama doesn't have to be embarrassed about them. It's no wonder that this President's Democratic National Committee platform tried to remove God. He's not a big fan of the Big Guy. Even on Thanksgiving. After all, what need do you have for God when you've got the state?" --columnist Ben Shapiro

Opinion in Brief

"Why doesn't the Republican-controlled House of Representatives give both voters and President Obama what they wished for? ... Obamacare will be imposed on all Americans by 2014. But so far the Obama administration has granted more than 1,200 exemptions to favored corporations and unions, covering about 4 million Americans. Shouldn't Republicans seek to end all exemptions rather than tackle the improbable task of overturning Obamacare itself? Their motto should be: 'Equality for all; special treatment for no one!' One of the brilliant themes of the 2012 Obama campaign was forcing Republicans, on principle, to systematically oppose most of the things that the administration wanted them to oppose -- thereby shielding itself from the unwelcome consequences of its own ideology while winning political points. Now, in defeat, Republicans should agree to let the chips lie where they fall: Tax only the truly rich; reward only the truly deserving illegal immigrants; and exempt no one from Obamacare. Nothing could be fairer or more equal than that." --historian Victor Davis Hanson

Re: The Left

"In the past four years, this administration has been embroiled in at least three significant scandals: Benghazi, Fast and Furious, and high-level leaks of top-secret intel. All three remain 'under investigation,' yet none of those investigations could be completed before the Americans voted, despite hundreds of people being murdered, and national security being compromised. Such a demonstrable lack of urgency is only possible when the public isn't demanding answers. Yet it becomes next to impossible for the public to demand answers, when most of the mainstream media steadfastly refuses to ask relevant questions. Americans old enough to remember Watergate know it was a hotel burglary followed by a cover-up. What drove President Richard Nixon from office was a relentless media, determined to keep the story front and center until they could ferret out the truth, even when the Nixon administration engaged in similar efforts to keep the public mis-informed. That the same media remains sanguine with regard to murdered Americans in Benghazi, indifferent regarding a dead Border Patrol agent and hundreds of dead Mexicans in a botched gunrunning operation, and unconcerned regarding the compromise of national security intel, reveals an unprecedented level of corruption. And whether Americans realize it or not, the stamp of approval they gave this administration on November 6 extends to that mainstream media." --columnist Arnold Ahlert

Insight

"Do not give in to evil but proceed ever more boldly against it." --ancient Roman poet Virgil (70-19 BC)

Looking for Value

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Reader Comments

"I gave a small donation as a sign of my thanks for all that you do, not only for the cause of Liberty, but also to support those of us who are currently deployed to the far reaches of the Earth in support of our Country. We do not have the luxury of being able to voice our opinions and beliefs, a choice we made when we took our oath, but I can rest easy knowing that you are fighting the good fight for us. Knowing that there are still true Patriots, willing to speak up for us, to speak up for what is right, eases the grief of being away from my family and children. Thank you." --Semper Fidelis, Marine Officer and single mother, currently deployed in support of OEF

"I just provided a small contribution to your year-end campaign. The encouragement of your convictions, and those of your contributors, sustained us through the Clinton years and through the first half of the Obama socialist regime. I pray for our misguided majority brethren who voted for subservience over Liberty. It is by trial that we are strengthened, and this next four years may be the ultimate trial, rivaling those of our Patriot founders. Fight the good fight and keep our eyes on God, for He is our true guide." --Tom

Essential Liberty

"In a word or two, the founders knew that a democracy would lead to the same kind of tyranny the colonies suffered under King George III. Our founders intended for us to have a republican form of limited government where political decision-making is kept to the minimum. Alert to the dangers of majoritarian tyranny, our Constitution's framers inserted several anti-majority rules. One such rule is that election of the president is not decided by a majority vote but instead by the Electoral College. Nine states have more than 50 percent of the U.S. population. If a simple majority were the rule, conceivably these nine states could determine the presidency. Fortunately, they can't because they have only 225 Electoral College votes when 270 of the 538 total are needed. Were it not for the Electoral College, presidential candidates could safely ignore less populous states. Two houses of Congress pose another obstacle to majority rule. Fifty-one senators can block the designs of 435 representatives and 49 senators. The Constitution gives the president a veto that weakens the power of 535 members of both houses of Congress. It takes two-thirds of both houses of Congress to override a presidential veto. To change the Constitution requires not a majority but a two-thirds vote of both Houses to propose an amendment, and to be enacted requires ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures. Today's Americans think Congress has the constitutional authority to do anything upon which they can get a majority vote. We think whether a measure is a good idea or a bad idea should determine its passage as opposed to whether that measure lies within the enumerated powers granted Congress by the Constitution. Unfortunately, for the future of our nation, Congress has successfully exploited American constitutional ignorance or contempt." --economist Walter E. Williams

Government

"A lesson plan in schools across Texas depicts the Boston Tea Party, the historical protest against taxation without representation and a seminal event leading up to the American Revolutionary War, as an act of terrorism. The lesson plan, designed for world history and social studies classes, remained available to teachers as recently as January of 2012 ... and was promoted by the Texas Education Service Center Curriculum Collaborative. 'A local militia, believed to be a terrorist organization, attacked the property of private citizens today at our nation's busiest port.... Although no one was injured in the attack, a large quantity of merchandise, considered to be valuable to its owners and loathsome to the perpetrators, was destroyed. The terrorists, dressed in disguise and apparently intoxicated, were able to escape into the night with the help of local citizens who harbor these fugitives and conceal their identities from the authorities. It is believed that the terrorist attack was a response to the policies enacted by the occupying country's government. Even stronger policies are anticipated by the local citizens.' The controversial lesson plan is a product of the Texas Education Service Center Curriculum Collaborative -- or CSCOPE -- a nonprofit K-12 educational curriculum provider that has become widespread in Texas. ... CSCOPE received $25 million in state funding last year." --The Daily Caller's Eric Owens

For the Record

"Hamas understands the value of terror. When it can send hundreds of rockets slamming over the border, when it can force Israelis to listen constantly for the siren that means they have just 15 seconds to find shelter, Hamas inches toward its goal. And when Israel finally retaliates and only then does an international uproar ensue, Hamas inches closer still. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton headed to the Middle East on Tuesday. The UN secretary-general called for a cease-fire. President Obama's spokesman insisted that 'the best way to solve this is through diplomacy.' But what can diplomacy achieve with an enemy that rejects the basic norms of international behavior? That is not only indifferent to the suffering of its own people, but welcomes it for its propaganda value? That rejoices in suicide terrorism, and runs TV spots promising more of it? Any cease-fire now means a win for Hamas, which will go on fomenting violence, hatred, and death. Diplomacy cannot solve the problem of terrorist regimes. Neither can unilateral concessions or UN resolutions. The only solution is to deprive the terrorists of power. So long as Gaza remains a Hamas-ruled tyranny, peace will remain but a dream." --columnist Jeff Jacoby

Culture

"Interesting that Israel is pressured to treat the terrorist leaders as if they were heads of state but the Palestinians are never expected to concede that Israel has a right to exist. In fact, Hamas's reason for existing is to destroy Israel by violent jihad. ... There are no ceasefires other than in the diplomats' Islamophilic imaginations. Hamas is at permanent, existential war with the Jewish state. So are the region's other Islamists. These 'ceasefires' are just periodic lulls that allow Islamists to catch their breath and rearm for the jihad's next round, while the diplomats browbeat Israel into more concessions -- assuring the jihadists that their barbarism works. The war will continue until one side decisively wins, meaning the other decisively loses. With all that is stacked against them, with the perverse way the supposedly civilized world averts its eyes from the unabashed savagery of Israel's enemies, it is a marvel that Israelis remain so strong and so decent." --columnist Andrew C. McCarthy

The Last Word

"Recently, nature punished us for our fossil fuel burning with hurricane Sandy; ask any science enthusiast, like Meghan McCain. Some people deny global warming exists, but that is foolish. It's been proven. It is settled science. Globes have been warmed in science labs. And now we're getting hit with massive hurricanes because... warming. It's science -- you don't have to understand it, you just have to fear it. If we continue to pump carbon into the air, we will be hit by frequent hurricanes, flooding of the coasts, and men in white lab coats yelling at us and calling us dumb. It's a doomsday scenario, but can we realistically stop it? Probably not. I mean, look at how Mike Bloomberg flies around in a private plane and Al Gore sits around in a giant mansion that uses as much electricity as a small town, counting his carbon credit money. These are the people absolutely certain global warming is going to kill us, and they won't even change their lifestyles to fight it. ... And if those most concerned and those least concerned about the environment won't change their ways, then all those predictions of environmental doom are basically a foregone conclusion, and we're all about to be overrun by angry penguins who shoot lasers from their eyes, or whatever it is scientists say global warming causes." --columnist Frank J. Fleming

Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!
Nate Jackson for The Patriot Post Editorial Team