The Key to Prosperity

The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were arguably the greatest collection of minds in the history of politics. One of the main reasons is the fact that they were not politicians.

Because they were not politicians, common sense drove every decision that was made when developing the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. In this collection of great minds there were farmers, educators, clergy, academics, publishers, and scientists.

Politics and the slow leak of common sense started with the development of the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Today common sense is nearly absent in government and politics seems to be driving the Washington Beltway Bandit Train.

"The more people who own little businesses of their own, the safer our country will be, and the better off its cities and towns; for the people who have a stake in their country and their community are its best citizens." ~ John Hancock

Little recognized, but one of the most important things said by our Founding Fathers was the above quote by John Hancock. For the first 150 years of America’s existence, Americans grew and prospered due to the fact that the vast majority of America’s economy was driven by small businesses. I must also point out that America’s economy and prosperity grew, but the government did not, which was a good thing.

These were the days when ordinary people went to serve in the government and then returned to their original real life. These were the days before politics became a professional career. These were the days when most people were business owners and had skin in the United States economy. These were the days when people were much closer together as a community and yet more interdependent. Most important of all, America was an overwhelmingly God fearing society driven by Judeo-Christian values. These were the very values that were the basis for the United States Constitution.

Through the middle of the 20^th century, American children could run free in rural and urban America without fear. Each community watched out for all children, schools were safe, playgrounds were safe, and the streets in general were safe. Sadly, that is not the case in 2024.

So what changed? A significant shift in American society began at the turn of the 19^th century. Industrialization started the collapse of small business and the growth of government. Whereas small businesses were self-regulating, big business were initially unregulated. If a small business put out a bad product or service, they lost customers, a common sense reaction. However, because big industrial businesses began with poor practices and poor labor relations, government stepped in, and the growth of government began.

"Every time that we try to lift a problem from our own shoulders, and shift that problem to the hands of the government, to the same extent we are sacrificing the liberties of our people." ~ John F. Kennedy

Therein lies the problem. Too many problems have been shifted from the shoulders of the states and We the People to the federal government. If we have learned anything, we should recognize that the Founding Fathers were geniuses when they constructed the U.S. Constitution. They recognized that even with only 13 states, one size did not fit all. Although not so stated, they understood the KISS principle: ‘Keep It

These are the things that will come to light when DOGE starts examining the workings of the modern federal government

Simple Stupid'. In designing the Constitution they intended for the bulk of problem solving and most government needed to be at the lowest level possible. The Founders’ position was that problems should be solved by the people closest to those problems. 

By the same token, the Founders designed the Constitution so that most governing would take place at the local and state levels. The size and scope of our 2024 federal government is proof-positive that the Founding Fathers were exactly right in their design. The federal government we have today has exceeded its Peter Principle level of competence. Presently, there are about 2.5 million federal employees, and federal government is at the lowest point of efficiency in American history. This is because 535 men and women in the Congress have tried and failed miserably in their efforts to have a “one size fits all” government.

By adding more government and more regulations on top of the government and regulations already in place has failed over and over again. The gutless wonders who have occupied their chairs in Congress have never bothered to stop and dismantle systems, agencies, and regulations that didn’t work. The government tries to fix their mistakes by piling on more mistakes to cover up previous mistakes. These are the things that will come to light when DOGE starts examining the workings of the modern federal government.

For the last 100 years the states have voluntarily engaged in government load shifting to the federal government

For the last 100 years the states have voluntarily engaged in government load shifting to the federal government or the federal government has simply usurped governmental activities from the states and the people. The time has come to reverse the load shifting and get the federal government back into its own lane. We must also get the states back into their own lane and develop solutions appropriate for the citizens of their state. We the People must get back in our own lane and assume our responsibilities as the Founders saw it. The Constitution is crystal clear about the duties of the federal government and everything else is for the states or We the People to deal with as appropriate for our own situation. DOGE will clarify these issues too.

In the 22 years I worked for federal civil service, I saw firsthand how regulations proliferated. Regulations were perfectly adequate for the agency for which I worked but anytime there was a system failure and a violation of established rules or regulations resulted in an accident or other notable event, the solution was to write a new regulation or rule. Some ego-driven bureaucrat decided that, even though a perfectly adequate rule was in place, he/she could write a better rule that would be followed when the already in place rule would have prevented the event had it been followed. More important, the old rule wasn’t replaced, it was added to, thus the federal government has rules and regulation measured by the ton, not by the page.

The bottom line is that our current federal government is operated by new lies to cover up previous lies

The bottom line is that our current federal government is operated by new lies to cover up previous lies. There is more bureaucracy to cover the incompetence of the old bureaucracies. There are more rules and regulations because that is easier than fixing old rules and regulations. Government never gets fixed; it just gets bigger.

“…people who have a stake in their country and their community are its best citizens." ~ John Hancock

John Hancock had it right. America needs to rely on small businesses to reestablish a prosperous America. The major small businesses today are the independent truckers and franchise holders all over America. But important too are the small one man/women operations and small family businesses. America’s return to prosperity doesn’t lie on Wall Street, it lies in small businesses in small towns and cities all over America. What Americans can do is best illustrated by the TV program 'Shark Tank'. America has the resources if we can get government out of the way.

After a 55 year career as a professional pilot in the military, in law enforcement, in the private sector, and in federal civil service, I am now retired.

In many of these positions I repeatedly took an oath to defend the United States Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic.