The god of dependence
Why have we become so dependent on government to make our decisions?
This was inspired by something I wrote in another forum as a comment.
But then it brings up another point I'm tempted to explore in another forum (my Substack) - why are we depending on government to solve all our problems anyway? Obviously there are some, like border security, where it is their job to solve it, but shouldn't people take some responsibility over their own lives?
After I wrote it, I had the thought about the idea of “rendering to Caesar,” as expressed in several chapters of Scripture. This is the reference in Matthew 22:15-22, KJV.
15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk.
16 And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.
17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
19 Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.
20 And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?
21 They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.
22 When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.
We often hear this phrase in the realm of taxation, for obvious reasons, but my thought extended the idea to a division of responsibility as envisioned by our Founding Fathers.
In a recent response to a Facebook ad put up by my erstwhile Congressman, Andy Harris - who spent between $400 and $499 in the process, by the way - I wrote a number of things regarding what I see as the role of government. But the idea came to me in reading the comments that people have become comfortable with the idea of government making their decisions for them.
Let’s take a look at what people believe are the top issues facing this nation.
In the most recent poll I’ve found, it appears the top eight issues are: inflation, health care, jobs and the economy, the environment, education, immigration, national security, and taxes/government spending.
As a check I found a poll from last June that listed its top eight in this order: inflation, the economy, gun violence, abortion, gas prices, immigration, climate change, and crime. All told, I count 11 different issues here - 12 if you separate gun violence and crime, which I don’t. The common, more longstanding concerns seem to be the economy, the environment, and immigration. (I think gun violence and abortion are topical to when the latter poll was taken. By that same token, perhaps the newer poll with national security was assisted by the China balloon.)
So the question then becomes one of what we have rendered to Caesar, and what Caesar has rendered unto himself. Let’s consider the three common issues I’ve outlined.
Obviously the government has a lot to do with the economy, but is that really accruing to our good? It’s my belief that we can influence the economy in several ways, most particularly living within our means, using our neighbors’ businesses where practical, and helping to support our downtrodden fellow man through charity rather than government dependence.
Living within our means is simple: avoid going into debt for things we can pay for with cash, and if we can’t pay for them in cash hold off on the purchase until you can. And I can hear the objections already: there are some exceptions in order, particularly with appreciating assets (like a home) or for emergencies. As a personal example, we had to buy a new refrigerator when ours stopped working properly. But I had previously invested in a secondhand backup refrigerator when the issue came up before, and I bought the new refrigerator on a “same as cash” deal (ended up paying it off quickly anyway) since I had squirreled enough away for just such an emergency. But the fact that people are relying more and more on credit cards to keep up with inflation tells me others need to learn the lesson.
I don’t want to bash those who invest in or work for those major corporations in our town, but oftentimes it’s better to deal with local businesses where we can. Some of the regional and national businesses understand this too, and the good ones work to benefit the local communities. And this is why I said “where practical” because there are items that aren’t readily available through local businesses.
Finally for this segment, a rising tide lifts all boats. Sometimes I ponder and marvel at what the vast amount of money used to run political campaigns could do in our local churches and charities. Our church has a Deacon’s Fund that assists those parishoners having a hard time - just think what a $10,000 PAC donation could do for that.
Now let’s talk about environment. I live in an area where a vast majority of the people have an interest in a clean environment because they live off what the land can give them (or assist in growing for them, in the case of the poultry producers.) For the last few months, I’ve been looking across the road at a pile of the byproduct of the poultry industry that’s intended to be spread on that field in the early spring, a time when I always say it “smells like Delaware.” But sooner or later that pile will disappear, it will stink a little bit around here for a day, and the crops will be better for it.
The problem I see is that people who sit in an urban office tell those farmers how to run their businesses. In our local case, farmers on the other side of the state line have their methods scrutinized because they’re blamed for fouling Chesapeake Bay when the real culprits are developed areas that don’t properly treat their sewage. Yet there are few farmers and many city dwellers, and no one wants to antagonize the majority because it’s in their political interest not to. So I wouldn’t be surprised if that pile across the road came from a farm a short distance away across the line. It’s a business that government needs to keep its nose out of - no pun intended.
Long story short: I’ve never met a body with more hubris about the environment than government. They believe adopting electric cars and renewable energy will actually change the Earth’s temperature when one volcanic eruption could undo all their so-called “progress.” If you want to put solar panels on your roof and to buy an electric car, knock yourself out. I just don’t believe the government should be paying you for it through subsidies and carveouts.
On the other hand: immigration is a government issue, and it’s something they could properly address if these chose to. Instead, they listen to the Chamber of Commerce types who love to exploit the cheap labor as well as the statists who see a new dependent class. I’m cool with people coming here legally but I’m not down with the illegal aliens. To me, that’s a one strike and you’re out scenario: you can be caught as an illegal alien here once and we’ll allow you to return home and start the paperwork to be here legally, but if we catch you twice you forfeit the right to citizenship. We also should properly interpret the Fourteenth Amendment when it comes to birthright citizenship, but all these are government issues to be rendered unto Caesar.
To close this opinion essay, it’s worth pointing out that when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on the ass appropriated for the purpose, the Jews believed He would become king in a governmental sense, ousting the hated Roman Empire. When it became clear He was only doing so in a spiritual sense, those people were convinced by their authorities to turn on Him and demanded His crucifixion. Now we seem to be ceding our own authority over our lives to the dictates of others because it’s easier to get our sustenance that way. But some of us would rather be free to make our own way down the rocky road of life with a little help from our friends rather than having our rulers tell us how we should go.