We all, of course, know that much of that which circulates the Internet is questionable, at best. When I saw this open letter attributed to Hollywood director and actor Ron Howard, I had a passing interest in reading it. The letter, which can be titled “Why I am a Liberal,” outlines a list of principles which I believe actually defines most liberals in this country. The problem is that not only didn’t Howard write this, but that while the principles can be attributed to liberals, most of these principles are not the principles of a free people. Ron Howard, or whoever wrote this, is wrong.
They are not American principles.
As I always try to do, when I saw the letter, I conducted a little research and found that a woman by the name of Lori Gallagher Witt likely authored it. It appears that either the letter was falsely attributed to Howard, or Howard published it as his own, plagiarizing it from Ms. Witt.
I’m not going to address the argument about who wrote it or whether Howard properly attributed the letter for others to deal with. My intent here is to breakdown these liberal principles and to show why not only do they accurately reflect those of liberals, but that those principles are wrong, immoral, and at odds with our core American principles.
Let’s dig in.
“I’m a liberal, but that doesn’t mean what a lot of you apparently think it does. Let’s break it down, shall we? Because quite frankly, I’m getting a little tired of being told what I believe and what I stand for. Spoiler alert: not every liberal is the same, though the majority of liberals I know think along roughly these same lines:”
I wanted to interject here to say that I am going to agree mostly with this first part. Just like Americans have different views but agree on the core principles, liberals have many different views but agree on the core liberal principles.
“1. I believe a country should take care of its weakest members. A country cannot call itself civilized when its children, disabled, sick, and elderly are neglected. PERIOD.”
Right up front, we can see where the head (actually, the heart) of a liberal is. All decent people can agree that we want to see “children, disabled, sick, and elderly” taken care of and not neglected. So this is not a strictly liberal principle, but one that all human beings should share. But as I will say over and over here, liberals take what is a good and honorable principle, and turn it into something ugly, immoral, and unAmerican. You see, countries don’t take care of people. Countries don’t have responsibilities. PEOPLE have responsibilities. People take care of others. When a liberal says a country has such responsibilities, what they are leaving out of that statement is that individuals can be forced to serve others, forced to take care of others on behalf of the country. This is where liberals take a moral and good principle, and sully it to the point that it becomes tyrannical. You will see this seasoned throughout most of the rest of these liberal principles below.
“2. I believe healthcare is a right, not a privilege. Somehow that’s interpreted as “I believe Obamacare is the end-all, be-all.” This is not the case. I’m fully aware that the ACA has problems, that a national healthcare system would require everyone to chip in, and that it’s impossible to create one that is devoid of flaws, but I have yet to hear an argument against it that makes “let people die because they can’t afford healthcare” a better alternative. I believe healthcare should be far cheaper than it is, and that everyone should have access to it. And no, I’m not opposed to paying higher taxes in the name of making that happen.”
This principle, that healthcare is a right, means that liberals are for something profoundly immoral. Oh sure, their heart says it is horrible to “let people die because they can’t afford healthcare.” And on that note, we can all agree. But their prescription for this problem is to force people to serve others. To force doctors, nurses, etc. to provide their services without payment (after all, if it is a right, then a doctor cannot refuse to provide that right). Of course, the liberal would say “well no, we pay the doctors by taxing others.” Well, that just moves the tyranny one step further. So instead of forcing the doctor to serve others, we force the taxpayer to serve others. We force the taxpayer to work a part of his or her day, to serve the interests of someone else. When did we conclude in this country that it was proper to take from one person and give to another who did not earn it? When in this country did we conclude it is moral to say that we have a right to the property of someone else, when we did nothing to earn it? Again, liberals take what we all can see as a problem and their solutions create even worse problems.
Liberals do not understand what rights are. A right is something all human beings have and requires NOTHING of others, except noninterference. Requiring others to help the needy or to provide for the hungry, only means we are a nation of people who are for the enslavement of others.
“3. I believe education should be affordable. It doesn’t necessarily have to be free (though it works in other countries so I’m mystified as to why it can’t work in the US), but at the end of the day, there is no excuse for students graduating college saddled with five- or six-figure debt.”
Well, my wife and I have now put three of our four kids through college, with one now heading to medical school. We would love for a college education to be more affordable. But the problem is that government is involved, and its actions have caused higher education to skyrocket. By guaranteeing student loans, instead of students having to qualify for them on the open market, government made it so colleges and universities could raise their prices at will, knowing the government will back the payment of those loans. These institutions rightly understood that since the government was backing the loans, then the amount charged wouldn’t matter. So, college costs have exploded. I agree that there is “no excuse” for these students to be paying off “five- or six-figure debt” for their underwater basket weaving degree. We could go a long way to correcting this by getting the government out of student loans.
“4. I don’t believe your money should be taken from you and given to people who don’t want to work. I have literally never encountered anyone who believes this. Ever. I just have a massive moral problem with a society where a handful of people can possess the majority of the wealth while there are people literally starving to death, freezing to death, or dying because they can’t afford to go to the doctor. Fair wages, lower housing costs, universal healthcare, affordable education, and the wealthy actually paying their share would go a long way toward alleviating this. Somehow believing that makes me a communist.”
So, the liberal says they don’t want your money taken from you and given to someone who won’t work. I agree. But what they are not saying outwardly is that they are for taking your money and giving it to someone who cannot work. What is the difference? Theft is the taking of the property of one person and giving to another who did not earn it. It doesn’t matter if the taking is for a “good” cause or not, it is still theft. It is why President James Madison, the Father of the Constitution stated: “Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government.” He was right. Charity is reaching into my pocket to help another. It is not charity, but theft, for me to reach into your pocket to help someone else. It is immoral, and as stated earlier, it is unAmerican.
Please remember, all powers of government are delegated powers from the people. As such, if the people do not have a particular power, the government CANNOT have that power. Since I do not have the right to force you to help someone else, the government cannot have the power to force you to help someone else. As I stated earlier, our American principles are at odds with forcing one person to serve another. Liberty and unalienable rights come before everything. Which is why liberals, while well intentioned many times, are completely wrong in their approach to acts of benevolence.
“5. I don’t throw around “I’m willing to pay higher taxes” lightly. If I’m suggesting something that involves paying more, well, it’s because I’m fine with paying my share as long as it’s actually going to something besides lining corporate pockets or bombing other countries while Americans die without healthcare.”
That is GREAT! If a person is willing to pay more to help others, then they have the liberty as a U.S. citizen to do so. Go ahead, write the check. Where Americans are going to have a problem though is when liberals want to force others to write the check. Remember, if it is forced, it isn’t charity. In fact, if it is forced, such an action is evil. Countries do not help people, people help people. And when you force people to help others, you do not have liberty. You have tyranny.
“6. I believe companies should be required to pay their employees a decent, livable wage. Somehow this is always interpreted as me wanting burger flippers to be able to afford a penthouse apartment and a Mercedes. What it actually means is that no one should have to work three full-time jobs just to keep their head above water. Restaurant servers should not have to rely on tips, multibillion-dollar companies should not have employees on food stamps, workers shouldn’t have to work themselves into the ground just to barely make ends meet, and minimum wage should be enough for someone to work 40 hours and live.”
And here we dig further into the tyranny of the left. Where do we get the power to force someone to pay a certain amount for something they are purchasing? I mean, if I am going out to buy a hamburger, and the government says “you will buy that hamburger, and you cannot pay less than $15 for any hamburger,” wouldn’t you have a problem? Then why don’t liberals have a problem with forcing an employer (the buyer) to buy labor from an employee (the seller) for more than the buyer believes the labor is worth? This liberal principle is not only nonsensical, it also lacks even a basic understanding of economics or business. If a restaurant worker is having to work three jobs, it is because their labor isn’t worth much. If they want to get paid more, then they need to make their labor WORTH more to an employer. Just as if you want me to pay $15 for a burger, you had best make a burger that is worth that much to me.
“7. I am not anti-Christian. I have no desire to stop Christians from being Christians, to close churches, to ban the Bible, to forbid prayer in school, etc. (BTW, prayer in school is NOT illegal; *compulsory* prayer in school is – and should be – illegal). All I ask is that Christians recognize *my* right to live according to *my* beliefs. When I get pissed off that a politician is trying to legislate Scripture into law, I’m not “offended by Christianity” — I’m offended that you’re trying to force me to live by your religion’s rules. You know how you get really upset at the thought of Muslims imposing Sharia law on you? That’s how I feel about Christians trying to impose biblical law on me. Be a Christian. Do your thing. Just don’t force it on me or mine.”
What the liberal doesn’t understand is that he or she wants their principles, their beliefs, legislated into law (see the whole list in this article outlining where liberals want their morality legislated), but doesn’t want a Christian to have the same opportunity. So, let’s take the author’s final word here by telling liberals “Be a liberal. Do your thing. Just don’t force it on me or mine.”
“8. I don’t believe LGBT people should have more rights than you. I just believe they should have the *same* rights as you.”
I’m not going to delve to deeply into this. They have had the same rights as anyone else. But societies can decide on the morality of behaviors. They can decide what behaviors they find to be immoral and what behaviors they find to be moral. And deal with them accordingly. Like I said, a discussion on this topic is for another time, as it is a long study. I am basically stating… they have already had the same rights as others.
“9. I don’t believe illegal immigrants should come to America and have the world at their feet, especially since THIS ISN’T WHAT THEY DO (spoiler: undocumented immigrants are ineligible for all those programs they’re supposed to be abusing, and if they’re “stealing” your job it’s because your employer is hiring illegally). I believe there are far more humane ways to handle undocumented immigration than our current practices (i.e., detaining children, splitting up families, ending DACA, etc).”
The humane way is to send them home. If we need or want people to immigrate, then let them come through the front door, legally. When they do that, I say “WELCOME!!” I am all for legal immigration, but I am never for people who enter without permission. As I stated, send them home. And while sending them home, let all peoples know that if you enter illegally, you will never be able to come here legally. You will be banned. In the meantime, look at our legal immigration system and adjust the numbers of people allowed into our country, if needed. No one outside of Americans have a right to be here. Seek permission.
“10. I don’t believe the government should regulate everything, but since greed is such a driving force in our country, we NEED regulations to prevent cut corners, environmental destruction, tainted food/water, unsafe materials in consumable goods or medical equipment, etc. It’s not that I want the government’s hands in everything — I just don’t trust people trying to make money to ensure that their products/practices/etc. are actually SAFE. Is the government devoid of shadiness? Of course not. But with those regulations in place, consumers have recourse if they’re harmed and companies are liable for medical bills, environmental cleanup, etc. Just kind of seems like common sense when the alternative to government regulation is letting companies bring their bottom line into the equation.”
What is greed? Only the other guy is greedy, right? Yes, governments are to protect our unalienable rights. That is their purpose, and if we didn’t need government to do that, we wouldn’t need government at all. That means, regulations and laws that protect us from the actions of others are proper. Yet, our governments have almost countless laws and regulations which do not protect rights, but instead deny rights.
“11. I believe our current administration is fascist. Not because I dislike them or because I can’t get over an election, but because I’ve spent too many years reading and learning about the Third Reich to miss the similarities. Not because any administration I dislike must be Nazis, but because things are actually mirroring authoritarian and fascist regimes of the past.”
This is not only moronic, but shows the words of an uneducated person. Nothing going on in Washington with the current administration can even remotely be attributed to fascism, authoritarianism, or the like. No more than the last administration. Do I like all of the things this administration is doing or has done? Of course not. I have many concerns. But, when liberals start in with this fascism nonsense, then they can be discounted out of hand. Concern about some things going on in Washington should not lead us to utter nonsense.
“12. I believe the systemic racism and misogyny in our society is much worse than many people think, and desperately needs to be addressed. Which means those with privilege — white, straight, male, economic, etc. — need to start listening, even if you don’t like what you’re hearing, so we can start dismantling everything that’s causing people to be marginalized.”
Please show me the systemic racism in this country (hint: there is no systemic racism in this country). This is another level of nonsense by the left. Are there racists in this country? Of course, on all sides. But this “systemic racism” and “privilege” nonsense just shows the lack of depth most liberals have in understanding what actually goes on in this country. Stop putting people into groups. Start looking at U.S. citizens as Americans. Stop the nonsense.
“13. I am not interested in coming after your blessed guns, nor is anyone serving in government. What I am interested in is the enforcement of present laws and enacting new, common sense gun regulations. Got another opinion? Put it on your page, not mine.”
So, the liberal is not for taking my guns. Just for more regulations on my guns, what I can own, where I can carry it. What’s the difference? Sorry, you don’t get to deny me my rights. My owning a firearm hurts no one, denies no one their rights. Ever. What liberals believe to be “common sense” is almost always NOT common sensical, and is almost ALWAYS tyrannical.
“14. I believe in so-called political correctness. I prefer to think it’s social politeness. If I call you Chuck and you say you prefer to be called Charles I’ll call you Charles. It’s the polite thing to do. Not because everyone is a delicate snowflake, but because as Maya Angelou put it, when we know better, we do better. When someone tells you that a term or phrase is more accurate/less hurtful than the one you’re using, you now know better. So why not do better? How does it hurt you to NOT hurt another person?”
I’ll be short with this. Bruce Jenner changed his name to Caitlyn Jenner. If I meet him one day, I will call him “Caitlyn.” That is his name now. He had the freedom to change his name to any name he wants. But, if Caitlyn or anyone else wants me to call him a “she,” then I am not going to do that. Caitlyn Jenner is a male human being. The proper pronoun for a male is he/his/him. Caitlyn cannot change his gender. Not with surgery. Not with words. So, liberals can choose to do what they want. But they cannot force Americans to follow suit.
“15. I believe in funding sustainable energy, including offering education to people currently working in coal or oil so they can change jobs. There are too many sustainable options available for us to continue with coal and oil. Sorry, billionaires. Maybe try investing in something else.”
So liberals are for forcing people to pay for sustainable energy. How is that proper? I talked about theft earlier… and this is also theft. If there are renewable energy alternatives that make sense, work to meet our needs, and are affordable, then I GUARANTEE billionaires will invest their money in such. Forcing them to do so is tyrannical and unAmerican.
“16. I believe that women should not be treated as a separate class of human. They should be paid the same as men who do the same work, should have the same rights as men and should be free from abuse. Why on earth shouldn’t they be?”
This goes to some of the discussion above. Women are not treated as a separate class of human beings. They have the exact same rights as men. There is not a pay gap between men and women. Not in the way that liberals want to portray it. Pay differences mostly have to do with career choices, and with personal choices. This again is a long study, so I will leave it alone here with stating that as usual, this liberal is feeling and not thinking. The ignorance of most of the left is what drives almost all of its agenda.
“I think that about covers it. Bottom line is that I’m a liberal because I think we should take care of each other. That doesn’t mean you should work 80 hours a week so your lazy neighbor can get all your money. It just means I don’t believe there is any scenario in which preventable suffering is an acceptable outcome as long as money is saved.”
We are back to the beginning. Yes, we all agree that we should take care of each other. Where we disagree is that the liberal believes that it is proper to force one person to serve another, to force one person to help another. No American believes in such evil.
In the end, what we need to know about liberals is that they feel rather than think. Thinking with your heart always leads to disaster, always leads to immoral and evil acts. We are Americans. Our core principles include liberty and unalienable rights, and those should be protected at ALL costs. Unfortunately, far too many people in this country today have never been educated in our core principles, in our history. Which leaves us with the evil and unAmerican agenda of the left in this country.
