The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

The Enemies of Happiness

Posted on | November 9, 2020 | Comments Off on The Enemies of Happiness

Professor Reynolds remarks: “My daughter has already noticed that the folks in her circle who are most into ‘activism’ of various sorts are mostly the ones whose careers and lives seem to be going the worst.” And this is certainly not a coincidence. Political “activism,” as promoted by the Left, is entirely destructive in its goals. An eternal war against an unacceptable status quo appeals to malcontents and misfits.

We can contrast the pursuit of “activism” with the practice of statesmanship. The goal of the statesman — Winston Churchill being an eminent historic example — is to strengthen the nation, to preserve peace and enhance economic prosperity. It should be obvious that prosperity is necessary to peace, and vice-versa; economic resources are necessary to national defense, a strong defense deters aggression, and therefore a wealthy nation is less vulnerable to attack. If we think back to the Reagan era, we see that the vast expansion of the economy helped create the military strength that in turn caused the collapse of the Soviet Union. And the 1980s, not coincidentally, were one of the happiest decades in American history, when a feeling of optimism prevailed.

All this is anathema to the “activist,” whose goals are subversive or revolutionary in nature. In times of peace, the “activist” constantly seeks to provoke social conflict; in times of war, the “activist” becomes a cheerleader for defeat, supporting America’s enemies.

Recall that in our Declaration of Independence, the Founding Fathers named “the pursuit of happiness” among man’s God-given rights. Attempting to make your life better — to acquire those things necessary to your happiness — is a worthwhile endeavor. You get up in the morning and go to work, in hope that your day’s labor will earn enough not merely to pay the bills and fend off starvation, but also provide a sufficient surplus that you may improve your condition. Now a gray-bearded grandfather, I think back to when I first moved to Calhoun, Georgia, to take a job as a newspaper sports editor, and could pack all my worldly possessions in the back of my 1984 Chevette. While I haven’t gotten rich, I’ve managed to improve my situation a bit since 1987, and in general, my children are better off than I was at their age. Certainly, I have no cause to complain about the amount of happiness I’ve attained, and cannot understand the “activist” attitude that disdains “the pursuit of happiness” as an unworthy or, perhaps, impossible endeavor.

Oh, the system is depriving you of your rights, yells the activist. You are a victim of oppression and, also (says the activist, assuming the role of doomsday prophet) the entire world is going to become uninhabitable because capitalist greed causes climate change!

“Activism” is organized misery, and the fact that the Democratic Party is now controlled by such people is an ill omen.




 

 

Category: Liberals

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