Counseling Before A Divorce
Maybe There Is an Exit Door
When marriages fall apart, generally it is preferred that the couple go through some sort of counseling before they part ways. Of course, this assumes there is no physical abuse, or something like that.
America right now is being seen by its citizens through two very separate frames. We are a nation divided. As Lincoln said, “A nation divided cannot stand.” In Lincoln’s day, there were clear rights and wrongs. Slavery was wrong. So, it was relatively easy to rally people to the side of being anti-slavery. There were even some people that lived in the South that didn’t support slavery.
The Civil War tore this nation apart. But, the Union was restored since the North won the war and slavery ended. Yes, racism persisted and Jim Crow made its way into the South, but the broader point is people who didn’t have Constitutional rights now had them in theory, even if it didn’t exactly turn out that way in practice.
In America, we are treading slowly toward another precipice.
Ken Burns, the producer of the highly acclaimed documentary on the Civil War thinks we are getting closer to another one. Quoting from the linked article; “We’re looking right down the muzzle of that gun,” Burns added.
Part of the movement from high tax states to lower-tax states is stimulated by the pursuit of a less intrusive government. For example, New York has a much larger and active regulatory government than Florida. It’s not the main reason people move, but it’s a factor.
The city of Chicago is advertising in Texas these days trying to get people who have uber-liberal value systems to abandon Texas for Illinois. The reverse migration if you will. Because we know from census data that people are leaving Illinois for other states.
My friend Roger Simon penned a column asking if it was time to break up America? To gain a different perspective of this, you can read this blog daily or this blog. The first author is married to one of the most successful venture capitalists in the world. She is uber-liberal and endorses socialist ideas now that they have made their dough. The second author runs that venture capital firm now and is a multi-millionaire too.
It’s easy to dictate once you have what you want as long as you know no one can take it away.
You can see that the framing and two sides are so far apart, there is probably no compromise. There is not one issue that separates the two sides, but every issue.
Here is but one example. President Biden pledged to double climate funding in his UN address. One side will applaud this vehemently. For them, climate change is no different than a Bible-thumping Evangelical religion. Same fervor. The other side thinks this is totally stupid and will tell you any dollar spent on climate change is probably wasted.
The left-wingers want ESG investing to become the norm and they want to force corporations to make it part and parcel of the way they conduct and operate their businesses. Of course, when you look at the data, the money doesn’t flow to the greenest companies and returns are very substandard. There also is no objective way to compare and contrast a company on the basis of any objective ESG metric.
Data and facts be damned though for the religious zealots. They are trying to save us!
The next phase of this movement will be to turn every objective into a health care issue now that they have practiced controlling society with Covid policy.
There is no compromise on any issues. Without compromise, every issue becomes win/lose and you get an extreme policy on each side. States that are dominated by the left create abortion policies that allow parents to murder babies born alive. States dominated by the right create abortion policies that make it almost impossible to get an abortion. You get the picture I hope.
We can disagree about a lot of the founding of America but hopefully, we can agree on these points.
America was founded on the principles of Federalism.
Individual liberty over the collective.
Property rights.
Local not national control.
If you read the Constitution and the Bill of Rights correctly and without modern spin, it’s there.
I will say, there is no compromise between socialism and capitalism. None. No middle ground that is sustainable. There is no compromising with zealots. If that’s where this is going, then there is no non-violent outcome. Socialism can only be administered at the tip of a spear. I would cast my lot with the libertarian capitalists a million times over placing it with socialists once.
If you believe that America was founded on Federalism, there is a way out. If you don’t buy into Federalism, then there is no path out. We are locked in a mortal struggle that won’t end well for either side.
My friend Michael Lotus penned a book back in 2013. It’s called America 3.0. I would highly suggest both sides read it. It suggests a way America can get counseling before a break up which will be very ugly.
No doubt, following through and executing the ideas in America 3.0 would be very difficult and arduous. It is not just human life and sacrifice, but the destruction of property and resources. Read up on the Spanish Civil War for some background. The opportunity cost for the US is in the many trillions of dollars. Another Civil War would bring far more devastation than the first one.
"If you believe that America was founded on Federalism, there is a way out. If you don’t buy into Federalism, then there is no path out." Spot on.