The Day After 9/11
09/12/10
It is important to remember
9/11/01 as the day America woke up to the reality that the world
is filled with really nasty and wicked people who want to harm us
because we have what they don't have... freedom. The Day After
(9/12/01) is even more important because after the tragedy and
the shock and the horror came the resolve never to forget, never
to let our guard down, and never let it happen again.
On 9/12/09, Fox News commentator
Glenn Beck held the first 9.12 rally in Washington, DC, that was
to "bring us all back to the place we were on September 12,
2001. The day after America was attacked we were not obsessed
with Red States, Blue States, or political parties. We were
united as Americans." Beck then turned the movement over to
others to run, principally consisting of members of the Tea
Parties that have spontaneously sprung up all over America.
Before he turned over the 9.12
"Movement" to others, Glenn Beck formulated this set of
9 Principles and 12 Values.
The 9 Principles
1. America Is
Good.
2. I believe in God and He
is the Center of my Life.
God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected
on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right
which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George
Washington’s first Inaugural address.
3. I must always try to be
a more honest person than I was yesterday.
Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and
virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable
of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George
Washington
4. The family is sacred. My
spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only
that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we
cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a
family.” Thomas Jefferson
5. If you break the law you
pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our
government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever
state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas
Jefferson
6. I have a right to life,
liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of
equal results.
Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has
a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks
most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas
Jefferson
7. I work hard for what I
have and I will share it with whom I want. Government cannot
force me to be charitable.
Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth
charity; all however, are worthy of the inquiry or the deserving
may suffer.” George Washington
8. It is not un-American
for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal
opinion.
On your right to disagree “In a free and republican
government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every
man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without
thinking.” George Washington
9. The government works for
me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
“I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation
as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas
Jefferson
The 12 Values
* Honesty
* Reverence
* Hope
* Thrift
* Humility
* Charity
* Sincerity
* Moderation
* Hard Work
* Courage
* Personal Responsibility
* Gratitude
As a non-theist, I have
alternatives for principles 2 and 4. Since I do not believe in a
god and such a belief can clearly not be the center of my life,
for principle number 2, I substitute: I believe in myself and in my ability to
cause change. “One person can make a difference and
every person should.” John Fitzgerald Kennedy
As for principle
number 4, I simply substitute "important" for the word
"sacred."
It may seem odd
to others that I have no problem with "Reverence" as a
value. It is not an exclusively religious word, but simply means
"respect and honor."
Finally, when it
comes to "Charity" I have a few rules of my own. Money
is the root of all evil. Therefore, charity cannot consist of
giving money to solve a problem. "Charities" that have
organized to raise money for various good causes are always and
inevitably corrupted by the money they collect. Therefore, the
word "Charity" must always be singular. It is the good
work you do for another. If you choose to take someone
to dinner, charity is not the money you spend on the meal, but
the act of sharing a meal with another human being. If you give
money to others to do your good work for you, you corrupt those
others with the money you have given them and give up your
responsibility to do your own good works.
For those who
argue that sometimes money is the only answer, I respond:
"Teach the person who requires only money as the solution to
his or her problem how to earn that money in an honest and
dignified way, and warn them that 'Money is the root of all evil'
lest they become corrupted by it."
For those who
wonder how I can be a "capitalist" with such ideas, I
respond: "Capitalism is a social system based on the
recognition of individual rights, including property rights.
Under capitalism the state is separated from economics
(production and trade), just as the state is (or ought to be)
separated from religion. Capitalism is the system of political
freedom. Economics may include money, but is not dependent on it.
It is possible to run a government without taxes, but
not by the lazy or uncharitable."