As we await findings and conclusions of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack, let’s take a moment and do our own soul-searching about what is going on.
The House Select Committee is engaged in Washington’s favorite pastime–looking for whom to blame. This pastime has a sidelight: it pretends that complicated things can be made simple.
The other side to the coin of the blame-hunting is the refusal to take personal responsibility.
The latter, unfortunately, is increasingly becoming a hallmark of today’s culture and is exactly the opposite of the personal characteristic that built America.
As I wrote in a recent column, one of the great errors of today’s culture is equating the political process we call democracy to a culture that embodies the principles of a free society.
The triumvirate of protection of life, liberty, and property–the pillars of a free society–are all under siege today. Unfortunately, the democratic process is being used with alarming frequency to undermine these pillars.
The massive expansion of government power through taxation, debt, and regulation amounts directly to an assault on private property rights of American citizens.
The Jan. 6th storming of Capitol Building, regardless of whether or not it was planned, showed disregard for the principles and protection of property that are fundamentally more important than the democratic and politic processes.
Unfortunately, this pathology that causes disregard for the fundamental institution protecting property, respecting and considering what isn’t yours, has spread rapidly. Jan. 6 revealed that this is a widespread problem across all political streams and is not just limited to the left.
Jan. 6’s incident was the latest in a long line of such incidents.
I’m not the only one to point out that the exact same behavior was prevalent in the country prior to Jan. 6, 2021. It was perpetuated by Black Lives Matter, other progressive groups, and justified by the same leaders within the Democratic Party who are now leading the Jan. 6 witch hunting.
In July of 2020, a mob toppled a statue of Christopher Columbus in Baltimore and threw it into Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
When asked about this, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is from Baltimore, responded, “People do what they will do.”
Pelosi refused to condemn mob violence, as the reporters tried to persuade her.
The mob mentality and behavior displayed on Jan. 6 were already rooted in our country, and was justified and encouraged by leaders of the Democratic Party.
Suspections about irregularities in the 2020 election process, which led to the Jan. 6, incident, were and still are justified, given the closeness of this election and the track record for dishonesty in the Democratic Party.
The first impeachment indictment of President Donald Trump was based upon grossly illegal and illegal behavior. The Steele dossier, fabricated evidence that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia, amounted, among other things, to the FBI working together with the Democratic Party to subvert a Republican president. This grotesque incident is still unsolved. All is quiet.
All sense of truth and meaning are being lost as the core values that shaped the founding of the USA are destroyed and purged. This leads to anarchy, which is dangerous.
I appeal to Republicans to return the nation to its core values and take responsibility.
These truths must be promoted in minority communities where the left has for years co-opted the message freedom and personal responsibility with a message about blame and victimhood. These communities can be liberated from the left.
COPYRIGHT 2022 CREATORS.COM
The Daily Signal offers a variety perspectives. This is not intended to be taken as a representation of the views or opinions of The Heritage Foundation.
Do you have a comment about this article? Please email to share your thoughts. [email protected] and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Make sure to include the URL of the article or the headline, as well as your name and hometown.
