Take a Step Back – Robert Tronge

Are you too close to the problem to see the answers are there too many trees to understand the forest. I was once told to understand a piece of artwork that I should look at it closely and then take a step back and look at it from a distance and then compare the two.

I’m sure we’ve all heard the statement “walk a mile in his shoes”, but how many people are actually willing to step outside of their comfort zone and do this for a real. Most people are unwilling to see the other person’s point of view, especially when it violates their concept of right and wrong, whether that view of right or wrong is based on past experiences, ethnic, cultural, religious believes or outright bigotry.

Here is the real problem. Sometimes we get so caught up in our own belief system, whatever its based on, that we are unwilling to accept challenges to our beliefs, even when this may be detrimental to us and those we profess to care about. Think of it this way, you go through life looking through a windshield and your belief system are stickers that you placed on that windshield. Some examples might be; “It’s okay to drink and drive, because I know when to quit.” or “I’m doing the right thing because I’m a Christian and have been forgiven.” or “Most Muslims are probably terrorists.” or “It’s okay to break laws and put others at risk because I’m better at deciding what is right and wrong than others are.” Have you got so many stickers on your windshield that you can’t see the road anymore?

Until we are willing to take a look at those stickers that we have placed on our windshield and see if they are damaging our lives and the lives of others, we will not grow as individuals, and our country will continue to crumble under self-righteous indignation.

We seem to be at a crossroads. What lies ahead of us is not just a choice to go left or right or straight ahead, but also the one that brought us to this crossroad. I believe that the only one that we should take is the one that will lead us back to what this country was founded on, what the Bill of Rights and the Constitution were originally based on, small government and the right of individuals to be free from the power of the state.

If those stickers on your window are blocking that vision, then you need to stop and consider cleaning them off. Our Constitution was not based on the rights of a large or powerful group of people to dictate how people must live their lives. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights were based on individual freedoms and every citizen’s right to be free from the control of powerful groups of people. This is what our politicians have sworn an oath to uphold and yet many of them do not do this. They think they are there to represent the large group of people, but in fact their responsibility is to protect the single individual and their rights that have been guaranteed under the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  Individual citizens rights are allowed to exist without the interference from the larger masses of people or the governmental laws and regulations. The same could be said for our judicial portion of the government for it too has strayed away from protecting individual rights.

It is time for clear minded people who believe that this country was made great by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, to take a step forward and ask the hard questions and force our government back out of our lives so that we may once again have justice and freedom in this country, based on individual rights and freedoms. Government has shown that it is attempting to control every portion of our lives by slowly taking away our individual rights. Did you know that during the G. W. Bush administration alone, there were over 50,000 new regulations put into effect attempting to control every aspect of our individual lives and freedoms?

It used to be that people from all over the world wanted to move to the United States, with hopes of having the freedoms that they saw as lacking in their own countries, like the freedom to speak out against their government if they thought it was doing wrong, or the freedom to worship the way they see fit, or the freedom to educate and raise their families the way they believe they should be raised.

Looking back at some of the stickers on your window, if any of those stickers are based on a dislike, outright hatred or bigotry, then you are among those that are allowing our government to take away our individual freedoms. Even if your beliefs are based on your past experiences or religious beliefs, while you are free to express your opinions, but as soon as you attempt to force other people to follow your belief system through legislation, you have stepped over the line. You cannot force other people especially, ones that you feel animosity towards, to follow your path. When you try to give more rights to any single group of people or to the government, no matter what your intent, you go against what the founding fathers based the Constitution and the Bill of Rights on and that is an individual’s right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It has been said in the past “although I disagree with what you say, I will defend your right to say it to the death”, yet I would add to that statement, “that if you attempt to force me and others to support you in the removing of the rights of any individuals, I will fight you to the death.”

Robert George Tronge, Robert G Tronge, Robert Tronge