Our government imposes on us, much as the British government once imposed upon us

Today we have the 111 Congress actively imposing on us a great many taxes on virtually all aspects of our lives. Our businesses face an overabundance of regulations and taxes. Our school districts are no longer "Independent School Districts," but are over burdened with federal and state mandates. We, the residents of these school districts, no longer have a say in what is taught our children. The rights of the states, once recognized under the Tenth Amendment, have been trampled on by the federal government. The Fifth Amendment has lost its meaning. We are no longer secure in our possessions, citizens continue to lose our property to government entities through unsavory eminent domain practices.

Today our elected officials are busy picking which business will succeed and which will fail. Banks and auto manufacturers are a couple of examples. Next in line is our health care. Doctors, drug manufacturers, and insurers will be told they must succumb to the wishes of our government. And while this is happening, we will be told that it is for our own good. Meanwhile, our taxes go up, our pay goes down or we lose our jobs, and inflation devalues our currency because of the policies of the nanny state.

Three hundred years ago, our country was founded by immigrants who sought freedom in a new land. By the time the colonies were well established and many of the cities grew large and prosperous, they became the victims of a nanny state. Not one of their own making, but that of an overbearing government bent on maintaining an empire. The British government imposed excessive taxes and levy's on imported goods to the colonies. The production of items such as glass and nails was prohibited within the colonies in an attempt to protect businesses in England at the expense of our own people. Foreign troops were quartered in our homes. British ships blockaded our ports.

In 1774, Ben Franklin was living in England representing the interests of the colonies. After the Boston Tea Party, Franklin argued for the compensation to the East India Company as a kindly gesture, but as the British government was insisting, he changed his mind and insisted against it. To a Boston merchant he said something quite prophetic.

"If you should ever tamely submit to the yoke prepared for you, you cannot conceive how much you will be despised here, even by those who are endeavoring to impose it on you. Your very children and grandchildren will curse your memories for entailing disgrace upon them and theirs, and making them ashamed to own their country."

Because of these words from one of our greatest Americans, we are reminded of our duty to defend our liberties against another tyrannical government. This time within our own borders. Witness the disdain with which our officials see us. We are looked down upon as the ignorant masses. We are seen as incapable of comprehending that which they decide for us. No longer are the cameras allowed in hearings. They are working behind closed doors to decide our future while we are kept away. We cannot stand by idly while our government runs up an unpardonable deficit to be paid by our descendants. Can we look our children or our grandchildren in the eye when they ask us what we did as we lost our liberties? Will our descendants tell tales of pride or disgrace and shame when they speak of us? The responsibility for that is ours. The time is now.