-ADY "A Regular Guy On The Issues"
By Daniel de Gracia
Americans are living in what may very well be the most dangerous and troubling era of her 236 years since the Revolution. It takes little imagination for anyone more than twenty years of age to recognize that today’s America is in accelerating decline with a $16 trillion dollar national debt, Congress operating from one debt ceiling increase to another, and an ongoing, liberty-stripping, decade long global war on terrorism with no clearly defined conditions for victory.
While many argue that the problems of our time are an electoral question of left or right, it is really a matter of up or down: up to personal choice, private ownership and protection of individual liberties, or down to government control of all things political, monetary, intellectual and ecclesiastical. Today’s America of security checkpoints, individual mandates, and myriad taxes and fees is a place unrecognizable from her humble beginnings.
Many people across this great country are frustrated that indecision, gridlock and special interests have prevailed more often than not against the voice of the average citizen, who often has barely enough to pay his bills, support his family, and enjoy a modest lifestyle. This is not the America we were promised growing up, and this is not the kind of crisis that our children deserve to inherit.
In 1984 President Ronald Reagan, standing in front of the White House, said, “The kind of future our young people will have is something you never forget when you live here. Their security, their job opportunities, the dreams that they’ll take into the next century all begin with what we do today. When we work hard to ensure a strong economy with inflation and taxes under control, we’re taking care of tomorrow. And in this magnificent house, nothing could be more important than that.”
My generation never truly inherited or enjoyed the fulfillment of that promise. However, the wisdom of that statement compels me to make a choice at the voting booth not just for my future, but for the future of my children to come. For that reason, I will be voting for president the man who represents the clearest alternative and the best hope for change in this election, former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson. As a Libertarian, Johnson represents the core convictions of our Founding Fathers and the closest possible echo of their message of freedom.
Whether you are a Democrat or a Republican, you too should vote for Gary Johnson. I’m reminded of something the Filipino philosopher Jose Rizal said: “The glory of saving a country is not for him who has contributed to its ruin.” Voting Libertarian isn’t a wasted vote, but voting for the same way every election is a wasted opportunity for change.
I believe with all my heart that change begins with a courageous choice. Faith itself is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen. If enough Americans are willing to believe that we deserve better, liberty can once again thrive in our land – and that would truly be a miracle worth voting for.
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