Dear Mr. President,
It appears that you don’t like to
be challenged. And I understand that. Really. I am a parent, and I have spent
time serving in the military. Having your authority challenged sucks. But good
parents, good military leaders, and yes, even good Presidents, all have one
thing in common: the ability to recognize failure and then to discontinue the
actions that perpetuate it. Since you have surrounded yourself with an
echo-chamber of yes-men and a complicit media, I can see how it would be
difficult for you to see the failures with which your administration is
wrought. And since you seem to have forgotten, I would like to take this
opportunity to remind you that I am still your boss. And as such, I do not like
having my authority challenged.
I do not need you to tell me what
kind of healthcare is best for my children. I am an autonomous, thinking human
being who is capable of bearing the responsibilities that come with making my
own choices. Whether I pay for insurance or pay up front for medical care is
neither your choice nor is it your business. It is my responsibility, and I do
not give it to you.
I do not need you to tell me how to
best defend my home and my family. I assert my God-given and Second Amendment protected
right to bear arms and to defend my home as I see fit. I assume the
responsibility to train myself and my family to properly use any weapon I
choose to keep in my home. I assume the responsibility to never do anything as
stupid as firing a shotgun through my front door. That is my right, and I will
not give it to you.
I do not need your wife to tell me
what foods are best for my family. I do not need her to lecture me about salt content and how allowing restaurants to serve it is increasing
obesity nationwide. I don’t need her to count calories for my children, should
they ever be unfortunate enough to step foot in a public school in order to use
anything other than the playground. You will not usurp my authority in regards
to the bodies of my children.
On that note: I do not need you to
educate my children. I prefer to teach history as it happened so that we can
learn from our mistakes rather than attempting to legislate our mistakes out of
existence. I prefer to teach “science” as what it is – a process by which
pieces of the ultimate Truth can be discovered – rather than the truth by which
one can measure all things. You will not usurp my authority in regards to the
minds of my children.
I do not need you to teach my
children tolerance. From family and the Bible, they will learn that loving
people does not mean accepting all behaviors they exhibit. They will learn that
disapproving of an action is not the same as hating a person or group of
people. And they will stand for what is right when challenged instead of
shouting obscenities at those who disagree. You will not usurp my authority in
regards to the souls of my children.
The President of the United States
has long been looked at as the most powerful man in the world. And before
American Presidents started bowing to foreign dictators, erasing “red lines,”
and apologizing us out of our position, perhaps that was true. But even back then,
the President had to answer to the power from whence his was derived: the
people. I am the people, Mr. President. I will not be silenced. I will not be
subdued. And I will not stand for further usurpations of my power.
You're funny.
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