It’s hard to avoid the problems that beset life. Most people I know try to focus on positive things. That eases the mind and steers one away from contemplating the troubles. Yet if we are to resolve the problems we and our nation face, we must address them forthrightly. If we don’t, things will not improve. Indeed, they will get worse. We are seeing a lot of that lately.
In recent decades, America has utterly failed to deal effectively with what began as salutary neglect—looking the other way toward illegal behavior—and resulted in massive uncontrolled border crossings that flooded the country with illegal aliens. Historically, salutary neglect was an unofficial British policy in the 18th century that permitted, indeed enabled, the American colonies to neglect enforcing trade regulations. The King’s government condoned loose enforcement and supervision of the law by being unemphatic. I’m glad they were, as that set the stage for greater resistance, which ultimately led to the American Revolution, a very positive outcome.
The current iteration of this form of neglect, however, is laying the groundwork for a very different kind of revolt. While our revolution sought self-determination, a natural right, over tyrannical rule, those who support lawlessness are fomenting a revolt that undermines our nation. More to the point, it is delusional to think that you can avoid tyranny by implementing it through lawless behavior. Indeed, it is counterintuitive. The form of government we fought to establish through our revolution elevated the rule of law over the rule of man. Yet those who violently support illegal immigration among us are imposing anarchy on all of us, despite the lawful statutes that our Congress has passed to order our society.
For example, the protestors in the streets today who are expressing anger and violence over the apprehension and deportation of criminal illegal aliens are enabling a direct assault on the law. It does not simply resemble anarchy; it is. The acts of the anti-ICE cabal—well financed by far-left radicals—threaten the very foundations of the rule of law. The irony of their behavior defies elaboration. It is lawlessness opposed to law enforcement, indeed laws long on the books, backed by judicial rulings, and widely supported by the people of this nation. Yet some echo the voices of these anarchists in the media. Left-wing news outlets are a threat as well, not because they have a right to speak as they wish—they do—but because of how they choose to frame their views.
It is said that the most potent tool the media possesses is not reporting what they select from the smorgasbord of troubling issues that beset us, but rather what they willingly and knowingly exclude. This is accomplished by editing the written and video records of protesters associated with lawlessness. The media paints a different picture that omits the deliberate agitation and incitement that provokes the very violence they assert comes from law enforcement agencies.
Sadly, violence, like lies, spreads like an aggressive cancer. Law enforcement agencies must exercise extraordinary care in such an environment, not to be enticed by or overreact to the taunts, violence, and deliberate and hateful actions by those who despise the rule of law. Indeed, the police must also follow the law. Recently, that difficult balance has been tested. Some of those who are provoking violence and disorder have lost their lives in confrontations that ordinarily wouldn’t have resulted during peaceful protests. The media suggest overreaction. They should also suggest this. If you are peacefully protesting and not creating a cauldron of foul-mouthed and violent behavior, such tragedies are unlikely. Put another way, if you are bound and determined to make trouble with the police, you will likely find it. As one of the protesters’ parents warned him, “Don’t do anything stupid.”
It’s time to address the trouble. First, lawlessness must not be condoned, nor should elected representatives—all of whom swore an oath to uphold the law—encourage lawbreakers. That includes both those who have entered the country illegally and those delusional people who excuse it.
Second, Congress and the President must act to reassert Federalism, a foundational principle of the Constitution that establishes the supremacy of Federal law over states. No state, and no vulgar spewing politician, has the right to ignore or oppose those who are enforcing the rules that have been constituted. The days of sanctuary cities designed to evade federal law must now end promptly. So too must judicial activism that undermines law.
The bullies of the radical left and their acolytes in the media like to refer to those who support the law as fascists. They need a mirror. Nothing could be more fascist than those who would oppose the duly enacted laws that are designed to bring order to our society.
0 Comments