Government Corruption comes from Humanity’s Sin

 “None is righteous, no, not one; … All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” - Romans 3:10,23

Christians (as opposed to someone like Rousseau who claimed people are inherently good) should have an advantage when it comes to discussing economics and politics. After all it’s an easy conclusion that human politicians will inevitably sin. And that sin will inevitably take the form of corruption. Fortunately for us, the founders (whether they were Christians or not) had this understanding of human nature.
“Even under the best forms, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.” - Thomas Jefferson
The founders used this philosophy to write our constitution with its system of checks and balances. Their goal was not to make an efficient machine that “Gets stuff done.” Their intent was to delay, hamper, and impede, all for the sake of guarding against corruption. This makes sense because they had just finished fighting a war to escape a corrupt government.
And yet, despite the foresight and best efforts of our founders, corruption is an ever-present concern in American politics. Examples include using the IRS to impede political opponents(1), [accusations of] insider trading at the start of the pandemic(2), taking gifts and favors from business owners(3), governors and mayors breaking their own lockdown orders(4), and of course the current legal kerfuffle that is the 2020 Presidential Election(5).
And yet, it is with a clear conscience that I say it could still be WAY worse:
The Soviets built the gulags and labor camps for their political opponents.
When transitioning to power, Kim Jong Un had his own uncle executed(6).
And Baasha killed Jeroboam, took his throne and then killed the rest of Jeroboam’s family. Yes, that last one is Biblical and it happened multiple times (7)(1 Kings 15:25).
What separates the United States from these other countries? The limited power and decentralization of government.
It’s a pretty simple equation. When a government has more power, it becomes more important who has that power. And like anything else in life, a higher reward will be used to justify more drastic actions.
And we are seeing these drastic actions today. The disgrace that was the Justice Kavanaugh confirmation is because the Supreme Court can greatly affect the country at the national level. The drama from the last two elections comes from the President and the Executive Branch’s ability to greatly affect the country on a national and international level.
You know what fixes all of these issues? If we can remove the word “greatly” and replace it with “barely.” If we were to reset back to just the constitution and bill of rights, none of us would care whether Trump or Biden won, because they would have almost zero impact on our lives. They would come in and in 4-8 years we would get someone else. Who cares? (😎
Sadly that’s not the world we live in anymore. The power of government continues to grow and so too will the levels of corruption.

Sources:

(1) https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/remember-the-irs-targeting-scandal-no-one-ever-got-punished-for-it 


(2) https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/03/20/senators-accused-of-insider-trading-dumping-stocks-after-coronavirus-briefings/?sh=2761e9af4a45


(3) https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-mcdonnell-idUSKCN0ZD1XS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99IeGqIIHj4 


(4) https://politicodaily.com/gov-newsom-caught-breaking-his-own-covid-19-guidelines


https://rumble.com/vblqgv-restaurant-owner-exposes-la-mayor-in-video-all-of-america-needs-to-see-now.html?mref=22lbp&mc=56yab


https://thefederalist.com/2020/12/02/austin-mayor-threatens-residents-with-lockdown-while-vacationing-in-cabo/ 


https://www.newsweek.com/every-mayor-governor-caught-breaking-covid-restrictions-1552033

 

(5) https://lawandcrime.com/2020-election/what-you-need-to-know-about-trump-campaigns-post-election-day-lawsuits/ 


(6) https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/horrifying-new-details-how-kim-14051008 


(7) https://jesusalive.cc/kings-of-judah-israel-killed/ 


(8)

https://wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/should-the-supreme-court-matter-so-much


https://wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/what-does-necessary-and-proper-actually-mean


https://fee.org/articles/wickard-v-filburn-the-supreme-court-case-that-gave-the-federal-government-nearly-unlimited-power/


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psaki: It’s ‘Unfair And Absurd’ That Companies Would Raise Costs For Consumers Due To Higher Taxes

  Spoken like someone who has never managed the costs of running a business. Profit = price - costs Costs include but are not limited to: employees, certifications, facility mortgages, materials, gas, electricity, and taxes. Profit is becoming a demonized word, but the reality is if a company cannot make a profit then it cannot provide employment opportunities and it cannot provide goods and services to people in the local community. Most companies in the US. only make 8% profit. (1) With such a slim margin, if any of the above costs go up, then the average company has no choice but to raise prices just to stay afloat. It is absurd that the administration does not get such basic economics 1. https://wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/you-just-hate-the-poor...
Read more

Why is the Post Office Terrible?

Image
We are halfway through December. This is the busiest time of year for companies like UPS, Fedex, and Amazon. And the question on everyone's mind is, “Can I get my package delivered by the 25th?” All of this is going on, just like it does every year, and yet….my local Post Office had one solitary person working the front desk. This would have been irritating on its face, but to add insult to injury, an older woman next to me heralded the Post Office’s “efficiency” and assured everyone that we would be in and out “quickly.” While I recognize that patience is a virtue and a Fruit of the Spirit, the Post Office was not efficient and after waiting 45 minutes (with a long line of people still behind me), I can also say it was not quick. Looking into the Post Office’s history reveals a long line of inefficiencies. They haven’t made a profit since 2006 and in 2019 alone the Post Office lost 8.8 BILLION dollars (that’s $8,800,000,000)(1) What’s the deal? Why does this happen? The Foundation...
Read more

How Things Become Politicized

There is a growing lament among centrists and moderates that everything has become political (1). In Luke 11:17 Jesus says, “Every Kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls.” And boy is America divided. From sports, to beans. Ice cream to pillows, politics (and the strife that it brings) seems to have invaded every aspect of our lives.(2) But how did we get here? The latest kerfuffle of the MLB All Star game is an excellent example. Following the drama of the 2020 election, the Republican-controlled legislature in Georgia passed a bill that changed election laws. The stated intent of the bill was to secure the integrity of their elections. Democrat politicians claimed this was a racist attempt to disenfranchise minorities. All of this is pretty typical for American politics. The MLB entered the picture when the Players Association threatened to move the All-Star game out of Georgia. After that it was game over. President Biden announced his support fo...
Read more