Must a government of necessity be too strong for the liberties of its own people, or too weak to maintain its own existence? — 1861

My Take – As a voter and a taxpayer, I’m a mean sumbitch to work for.  I want that which the government is supposed to be doing done very well and very efficiently.  On the other hand, I want that which the government isn’t supposed to be doing left undone by the government.  It’s a balancing act, which I know has rarely, if ever, been done.  But it seems that in my lifetime, the government has not only overdone that which it should not do and neglected that which it is mandated to do, but has done so with malice and forethought.

My hope is that we are starting to swing the pendulum back toward the middle, where the government is a minor annoyance in our lives as it conducts its necessary business. It’s a slow swing, and the trick will be keeping momentum without going too far into a state where the government does not have the power to do its duty, but I think we can make it happen so long as we don’t rush to the first strong man who claims to know the way to paradise or tear down the entire structure of the Republic to do it.