CONAWAY: Self government is messy, difficult
Each July 4th Americans celebrate the birth of our nation. They celebrate not the cutting of ties with King George, but the moment when a group of men pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to the idea that all men ought to share in the responsibilities and privileges of government. In doing so, these men changed the course of human history and bestowed upon us a birthright of liberty.
As the descendants of these men, each July 4th is an opportunity for us to reflect on how well we are managing that inheritance. At the close of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, an aging Benjamin Franklin neatly summed up our nation’s new government. When asked if we had a monarchy or a republic, he replied simply “A republic, if you can keep it.”
Dr. Franklin understood well what all of our Founding Fathers knew — self-government is a messy, difficult business. It is fraught with partisanship and self-interest, it depends on a multitude of individuals each doing his part, and above all, it requires the constant attention of its citizens.
Presently, we are engaged in great debate regarding a homegrown threat challenging our nation’s future – our national debt. We have reached a financial precipice that we all agree we cannot afford to walk over, but few can agree on how to turn back. We have arrived at this point because of the collective inaction of many.
The national debt carries no weapons, incites no violence, and steals no secrets, yet it poses the same threat to America as an army, a rebellion, or a ring of spies. The national debt is insidious because it robs the next generation of its ability to choose; instead, it creates a generation trapped in servitude, trapped paying back debts they did not create.
We find ourselves at this precipice today because we have put personal needs ahead of the affairs of the nation — we can afford to let this continue. The ideas, rights, and freedoms espoused in the Constitution and Bill of Rights are ultimately protected and guaranteed by us — making it our duty to be informed, engaged and ensure this responsibility never rests.
Our founding documents lay guarded in a great rotunda in the National Archive, not so that we can remember the words on them, but so that we might remember the lives and times that animated their creation, so that we might remember the souls behind the words. Fittingly, there is a statue seated just outside title Guardianship on it is inscribed the great burden of which Dr. Franklin said: “Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Liberty.” It is a commanding reminder that apathy is the thief of freedom.
This July 4th, let us renew our commitment to being earnest citizens. We hold the opportunity to recast our future and the decisions we make in the coming year will shape the course of our nation. Let us do everything in our power to ensure that the next generation looks back at us with gratitude for sparing them the burdens of our failings.
I firmly believe that each one of us is up to the challenge and that we can make a new plan for the future. The difficulties we face are great, but we are greater. As we celebrate this Independence Day, let us renew our vigilance and spare our nation from the greatest threat we face — an apathetic and unengaged citizenry.
Mike Conaway is the U.S. Representative for our area. He is a Republican and can be reached at 511 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20515-4311. Phone 202-225-3605. Fax 202-225-1783. Local offices, 411 W. Eighth St., Fifth Floor, Odessa, 79761, and 6 Desta Drive, Suite 2000, Midland 79705. Email: http://conaway.house.gov/Contact/default.aspx #email
