Thoughts From Abraham Lincoln

       As we go thru this year we are going to be bombbarded by politcal ads trying to sway our vote in one direction or the other. We have politicians that regard themselves as "Reagan Conservatives", "Tea Party Conservatives" and our President seems to think of himself as Abraham Lincoln reincarnated. Whether you are Democrat or Republican, I think we can all agree that this is the greatest country on the planet. Sure we have a long ways to go, but we're the best there is right now. Yes, our economy is in the toilet and good paying jobs are hard to come by. Gas prices are too high and home foreclosures seem to be the new trend. Through all this tho we must remember that it is we the people that make this country what it is. It is our own code of living and moral ethics that are being shown in mass. We have fallen away from the standards pf our grandparents and have fallen into a trap of entitlement. We want to have 6 weeks of paid vacation and then when we do work we don't put our best work into the product.  There was a time when American made was equal to quality. There was a time when you wouldn't think of buying something made in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, or any other Oriental country. There was a time when if you bought something from Europe then that meant that you had accumulated some wealth. There was a time when you referred to something of great quality as the "cadilac" of that product. Now cringe at the thought of buying something that is simply assembled in America. After all most the components in your "American made" product were made over-seas.
       One would almost say that I have a problem with American made products. No I don't. I would love to buy truly American made things. Unfortunatly that seems nearly impossible these days. We have out sourced not only tech support, but also, manufacturing, production, food growth, and soon even the transportation industry will be outsourced.
       January 27th, 1837 infront of a young mens group in Springfield, IL. a young aspiring attorney made a speech about "The Perpetuation of our Political Institutions". It was a rather long winded speech in which he covered alot of topics. Many more than just politics. I would like to reveal some quotes of this young lawyer that we all know and most of us adore, Abraham Lincoln. You can judge for yourself if anything he said in 1837 might apply to todays world that we live in. You decide if it might show the hint of a different standard of living. I will try to present these in the context that they were meant to be in.

       "At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, If it ever reach us it must spring up amongst us; it cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be it author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time, or die by suicide."
       In regards to a few atrocious acts of violence in the world at that time, (the hanging of gamblers, the burning at the stake of a suspected murderer, and slaves and strangers being lynched for conspiricy of running to freedom) the future president had this to say. "When men take it in their heads to-day to hang gamblers or burn murderers, they should recollect that in the confusion usually attending such transactions, they will be as likely to hang or burn someone who is neither gambler nor a murderer as one who is, and that, acting upon the example they set, the mob of tommorow may, and probably will, hang or burn some of them by the very same mistake."
      And he also said, "By such examples, by instances of the perpatrators of such acts going unpunished, the lawless in spirit are encourage to become lawless in practice; and having been used to no restraint but dread of punishment, they thus become absolutely unrestrained."
      He was concerned that the country that he loved was in such danger 175 years ago that he warned them exactly what would happen. His warning was worded this way, "I know the American People are much attached to their Government;—I know they would suffer much for its sake;—I know they would endure evils long and patiently, before they would ever think of exchanging it for another. Yet, notwithstanding all this, if the laws be continually despised and disregarded, if their rights to be secure in their persons and property, are held by no better tenure than the caprice of a mob, the alienation of their affections from the Government is the natural consequence; and to that, sooner or later, it must come."
     Future President Lincoln had the answer to this problem tho. It was really quite simple. I think he covers the bases rather well. "The answer is simple. Let every American, every lover of liberty, every well wisher to his posterity, swear by the blood of the Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws of the country; and never to tolerate their violation by others. As the patriots of seventy-six did to the support of the Declaration of Independence, so to the support of the Constitution and Laws, let every American pledge his life, his property, and his sacred honor;—let every man remember that to violate the law, is to trample on the blood of his father, and to tear the character [charter?] of his own, and his children’s liberty. Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe, that prattles on her lap—let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges;—let it be written in Primmers, spelling books, and in Almanacs;—let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice."
     I think that these are some very fine points that he made all those years ago and I think that we are facing a similar problem with our country today. We have not been vigilant in keeping our standards high. We have lost the pride of simply being an American. When our ancestors came to this country they couldn't wait to learn to speak english. They brought their own flavors and customs to this great melting pot, but they worked long and hard to earn their citizenship. Those of us that were born here and many of the immagrants that come here today have forgotten the sacrifices that made this country great. It was the personal sacrifices that each person made for the betterment of this country. From the soldiers of the revolution, to the brothers fighting each other in the civil war, to the Rosie the rivaters that helped here at home during World War II. These are OUR people. These are the great Americans that loved liberty and sacrificed for it. What have you done to keep your freedom. They earned it for us, now we have to work to keep it. Ask yourself, "Is the country going in the direction that I want it to?" If that answer is no, then its up to you to change it. One voice among many can catch like wildfire.
     If you'd like to read more of Lincolns speechs then find a copy of  Abraham Lincoln, complete works, comprising his speeches, letters, state papers, and miscellaneous writings.  I found it on google books and I'm sure you could too.
                                                                                                     -Chuck