Reform, Repair, Reject or...Reset.

Anytime a politician at any level of government utters the words “reform or fix,” jump on your pony and head for the hills. You have probably heard the old bromide that “the cure is more deadly than the disease.” How about another old saying to set the tone for our discussion: “Too many cooks spoil the broth.” First of all, I am absolutely opposed to dictatorships, but on the other hand, how can we expect 535 senators and house members to legislate fairly and reasonably for 300 million people? Inevitably, oxen are gored. Our society has functioned as a mobile one in the sense that an individual could through his/her own efforts change his station in life. It seems, therefore, to attempt to legislate for the greater good of the majority is a doomed proposition. Today’s majority may become tomorrow’s toothless minority. In addition, the ponderous process leading from idea to enacted law often puts government response behind the curve. Meanwhile private sector entities that might be equipped to solve the issues addressed by Congress stand down while waiting for the legislative process to runs its course…and the problem either becomes worse or goes away.


Obviously there are government programs or aspects of our lives that could benefit from reform or repair, but when the government attempts to implement the necessary tweaks, they often use a sledgehammer approach. Consequently, the result is less efficiency, more cost, more frustration and less personal freedom. Another old cliché states that a camel is a horse designed by a committee. That is an apt illustration of most government attempts to fix a problem…usually a problem that had initially been created by government ineptness. Tweaking—the fine tuning of an apparatus—could be considered a form of repairing. Reforming is a make over, and repairing is changing the eyeliner. The heavy hand of government, however, often attempts to repair something by using an ice pick to apply the new eyeliner. The result is usually blindingly inefficient and unworkable.

At the present time, public opinion polls would suggest that citizens prefer rejecting the massive number of “reform” proposals that are swirling around the U.S. Capitol. The people seem to be encouraging legislators to follow the medical rule, “first, do no harm.” I have designed and executed polls, and I am generally suspicious about the reliability and validity factors of polls reported in the popular press. But still (another cliché) “where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” In other words, the level of skepticism and discontent that is demonstrated in the polls may not be accurate, but “the natives are clearly becoming restless.” So, rejection of any effort to “reform” may be a reasonable approach to many of the measures before the Congress.

There is a fourth approach to the bevy of issues that confront the nation at this time. It is the one that I prefer. I know, however, that it is the least likely to be applied. Reset…fold the tent, rebuild the foundation, and erect the structure to fit the foundation. Our Founders provided us with a foundation that provided for more personal liberty than at any time in the history of human governing, and we blew it. We have allowed our sloth and our utopian fantasies to lead us down the path of voluntary servitude. We have ignorantly placed our trust in “leaders” whose primary motivation was not the well-being of the nation, but in their own accumulation of power and their insatiable thirst for reelection. They buy us off with baubles. We take the trinkets and give them our “Manhattans.” At the end, we have some cheap costume jewelry, and they own the island. So, my dream, my prayer is that we have the courage to reset. I fervently hope that we have the wisdom to rebuild on the foundation of freedom that they built for us. I long for a nation--actually a people—the loves personal liberty. I wish that I can live long enough to witness the reset of the U.S.A., but if not, I ask for the courage to die for it.

Please respond if you wish, or email me:  cnpearl@woh.rr.com