The Dignity of Private Property

Hard work pays great dividends. When one commits himself to working hard and saving, they will one day be in a position to buy and own property. Listen to Solomon: “Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth” (Proverbs 10:4). Becoming debt-free and owning your own home, car, or even your own business brings about the dignity of independence. It gives you a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. As Christians, we give God the glory for allowing us to work and own property. For example, when you own your own home, you are no longer dependent on the borrower or the government. You no longer pay interest to use someone else’s money: “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). You owe no one, and you have achieved the dignity of owning private property. This can only be achieved in a system that rewards hard work and allows ownership of private property. Socialism and Communism are systems that empower the government to own everything. The government becomes the master of everyone. They dictate the terms of work. They tell you where you will live and what you will and won’t have. The government places the limits on your potential.

Socialism is really a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It declares that it will defend the little guy. It will give you housing, medical care, and retirement. In short, it promises to take care of everyone from the cradle to the grave. That sounds good to the young person who doesn’t have much. They are glad to hear that Socialism promises to take from the rich and spread the wealth. What they don’t realize is that the government will eventually own the means of production and commerce, and everyone will be treated as equals. That is true—everyone will begin a journey toward poverty, both the rich and the poor. One thing is for sure: Socialism takes away the dignity of hard work and owning private property because the government owns everything. The motivation to work hard disappears because you have no reason to work hard. Work as hard as you like, you will still wind up in the same place.

In the United States, the Socialist Party has come out of the woodwork in preparation for our coming election this November. They are promising free childcare, free healthcare, free transportation, free housing, and some even free universal income. This is a lie! None of these things can be achieved because the country will become bankrupt in the process.

It is a good time to mention a few places where this grand experiment of Socialism has been tried: The Soviet Union under Stalin, China under Mao, North Korea under Kim Jong Un, Cuba under Fidel Castro, Venezuela under Maduro, Nicaragua under Daniel Ortega, Cambodia under Pol Pot. Need I go on? I ask you why anyone would consider Socialism or Communism a viable government option after the blatant failures of so many places where it has been tried. Each of these countries called itself some form of “People’s Republic,” all the while being cruel totalitarian states.

Those who promise these wonderful things want power, so they promise the world, but they can never deliver on their promises, and they know they can’t. When poverty comes to the country, they do not experience it. They continue to live lives of opulence and power, not affected by the disastrous economy they created. Socialism and Communism bring poverty: “Poverty will come on you like a thief, and scarcity like an armed man” (Proverbs 6:11).

The Absurdity of Doing The Same Thing…

The absurdity of doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is beyond comprehension. This happens in people’s lives, organizations, and governments. 

Having the ability to see what is going on before it actually happens is a rare gift; it is called insight. Winston Churchill had the insight to see that Hitler was a dictator intent on conquering the world. At the same time, Hitler appeared to people like Charles Lindbergh and Lady Astor as a gifted world leader. Lady Astor hated Churchill for his criticisms of Hitler, so once she said to him, “If you were my husband, I would put arsenic in your tea.” Churchill responded, “If I were your husband, I would drink it.” There were plenty in the world media who praised Stalin for his transformation of the Soviet Union while ignoring the atrocities that were so common. They said that Stalin was a man of the people who really cared about lasting and meaningful change.

George Orwell saw through the lies and deception of the purported utopia of Communism by Comrade Stalin before most of the world did. Orwell wrote an allegory of what Stalin’s Communism really was in the short book, Animal Farm. It was published in 1945, though it could have been published earlier; publishers were afraid to do so.

The book describes a rebellion led by a pig named Napoleon, who took over the farm owned by Mr. Jones. Napoleon made many wonderful promises to the animals—all animals would be equal; all animals would have an equal share. Life would be better on Animal Farm now that Napoleon was in charge. But, life didn’t turn out to be too good for the animals—except for Napoleon, of course, and the rest of the pigs and his dogs who served as his guards. Napoleon took care of himself and frequently changed the rules to benefit himself and his fellow pigs. I highly recommend the book because it is relevant to what we see happening around us today, with the fascination with Socialism and Communism.

Socialism and Communism order everyone to be, act, and think alike. They do not tolerate any diverse thought. Totalitarians always have a strawman—someone who is responsible for the chaos. For Hitler, it was the Jews; for Stalin, it was the wealthy, educated classes. Their arrows are pointed at someone. Anyone who does not endorse and affirm everything they espouse is targeted and harassed, and even harmed. Search the world over, and you will not find a country with a better justice system or less prejudice than the United States. Yet, there are people intent on overthrowing our system of government. This revolution is about Napoleon and his fellow henchmen taking over the farm. Napoleon will constantly change the rules and lie to his followers. Still, it’s the animals that really get hurt —and it’s we, the ordinary people, who are losing our freedoms.

Fighting for Freedom

In just four months, we all can vote in this country. It is a privilege that most of us take seriously. For good reason, some frightening things in the United States are chipping away at our freedom. There are threats to our right to free speech. Our freedom to own a gun and defend ourselves is at risk. The Biden administration has joined the bureaucratic state with social media to create a form censorship to coerce people to do what the state wants.

The left is obsessed with the transgender movement, and the Biden Administration is fighting to get as many boys and girls to change their gender. In fact, they say that gender is not something we are born with but rather something we choose. This same gender movement is robbing girls and women of the right to compete with only other girls and women. Biological men identifying as women are entering their sports and unfairly winning. Women and girls are being placed at risk in bathrooms and lockers.

Inflation is out of control because of reckless spending. The price of energy is rising constantly because the Biden Administration refuses to use our own fossil fuel. They would instead import it from the Middle East and Venezuela. We have 35 trillion in debt and no concern to address it. Home sales are plummeting because of sky-high interest rates.

We are on the edge of a world war because of a weak leader. Russia, China, and Iran, with their proxies, are taking advantage of this moment to act when they know there will be no consequences.

The lawfare or weaponizing of our legal system to go after a political opponent is unbelievable. Whether you are a trump supporter or not, this is wrong and obvious to anyone with common sense. The Biden Administration has used the justice system to indict, bankrupt, convict, and jail, eliminating political opponents and conservatives such as those protesting abortion. January 6, people still remain in prison almost four years later.

Biden has circumvented the Supreme Court and handed out billions of dollars dismissing student debt to buy votes. His Administration has allowed somewhere around 10 million illegal migrants to come across our borders. He is giving free health care and other financial support. This border mess has encouraged human smuggling and drugs to flow across the border. Billions are given away in social programs. Under Biden, some people can make enough money to live on, which is tax-free.

Biden has appeased and subsidized Iran, leading to the rise of terrorism in the Middle East. His Administration has refused to deal with crime, which has fueled an increase in crime in our cities. Biden has emasculated the military by changing the standards of promotions to standards of race, gender, and sexual orientation to determine promotion and commendation. It is time to vote for freedom and common-sense values!

A New Birth of Freedom

The battle of Gettysburg was a meeting of engagement, neither General Robert E. Lee, General George Meade nor President Lincoln expected this battle to happen when and where it did. The two armies just ran into each other at this little town in southern Pennsylvania. 

The engagement resembled a three-act play, growing as more and more actors converged on Gettysburg. General Meade, commander of the Army of the Potomac, had only been in his position for three days when the battle started. Before these three days ended, 165,000 soldiers descended on these few acres in the bloodiest battle of all of North America. More than 50,000 men fell as casualties in this brutal battle.

Like the unpredictability of a game of poker, the first day’s battle went the way of the South on July 1. If Lee could have withdrawn, he would have been declared the victor, but the next two days took the victory away. On July 3, 1863, General Lee put all his cards on the table when he sent 13,000 soldiers into the Union middle. The result was a crushing defeat and a massacre for the South. Lee retreated toward Virginia in the rain. Unfortunately, it took 10 days for General Meade to mount a pursuit against the Army of Virginia and by that time, Lee and his men had crossed the Potomac. Otherwise, the war might have come to an end much sooner than it did.

A few weeks after the battle, David Wills, a Gettysburg attorney, coordinated plans for a national cemetery. Up until this time, men had been buried where they fell. The date was set for November 19, 1863, Edward Everett would be the main speaker, and the President would be the secondary speaker at the dedication ceremony.

Edward Everett spoke for 2 hours and eight minutes while Lincoln’s address was a mere 272 words that were delivered in about two minutes. The speech stirred the nation and continues to speak to us today.

Lincoln started his speech with a look back at the founding of the nation with the words, “all men are created equal.” Was this proposition true, and did it really mean anything? Lincoln thought that it did. In 1776, the nation experienced a birth of freedom, and now 87 years later, it was experiencing a second birth of freedom. The first birth brought freedom from tyranny from abroad, and the second birth brought freedom for those still living under oppression at home.

Lincoln made a comparison with what “we say here and what they did here.” He pointed out that though this was a dedication ceremony, “we can not consecrate— we can not hallow— this ground.” The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract.” Lincoln finished the speech pointing out what the nation’s part was—“to make sure these brave men did not die in vain.” We must make sure we preserve this freedom—freedom that endures— “and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Now 243 years later, we see what has been given us in our freedom. We must ask for God’s help to preserve these liberties. We need insight to not be beguiled by enemies within and courage to defend our freedom that came at such a high cost. We are hearing that socialism will bring us such prosperity. Can we not remember those failed political attempts? There have always been demagogues who have promised a paradise they could not deliver. But, in pursuing these utopias, those poor people lost their freedom. God help us to hang on to what we know to be dear and precious—our freedom!