Whether it’s Minneapolis or Charlottesville, rogue school boards, feckless legislatures, or city councils removing statues that offend them, the consequences are predictable. A loss of our liberties and an erosion of those permanent things that leave us often voiceless, frustrated, but ready to fight back. Enough is enough. But where does one begin? It’s a legitimate question that rest upon the anticipating lips of millions, who are awakening to the irrevocable fact of the physics of liberty; it’s not self-perpetuating. It requires a force. We are that force.
It’s inarguable that the moral landscape of this country has been drastically altered, to the extent that it bears little resemblance to its former self, especially to those who grew up in the 1950’s. It wasn’t a perfect time. However, it was a time of consensus on moral absolutes, fostering as assurance that there was a “Guiding Hand” on our existence. It pervaded most institutions, serving as a cohesive factor in the American experience, unlike the divisive culture that reigns today, seemingly unalterable.
Until recent years, the knee-jerk reaction was to “throw up one’s hands” and surrender is no viable option. One must be willing to act decisively, timely, and justly to engage this culture. In 2021, we are seeing a shift in the mood of those who understand that our Constitution and individual liberty are in jeopardy. Most aren’t in the D.C. Beltway, or major urban war zones. In Wyoming, organic liberty minded groups are springing up in many counties, that has moderates nervous about 2022 midterms, after their repeated amendments torpedoed the Freedom Caucus efforts to provide relief from vaccine mandates. Sadly, the Special Legislative Session was a dismal outcome for liberty, and the bill that survived is toothless.
A handful of states are fighting with the threat and force of Nullification. Texas legislators and Governor are on record to ignore any OSHA mandates. Florida’s Governor DeSantis is up for that fight standing against Biden’s mask mandate. Sadly, the Cowboy State’s Governor Gordon, who joust with vacuous verbs and adjectives, but unwilling to call for a special session that would have protected healthcare workers statewide. In his usual slight-of-hand, his rhetoric eclipses action.
Signs and wonders are appearing on the horizon. Last week political neophyte Glenn Youngkin sent Democrat Terry McAuliffe packing. He’ll take the Governor’s office in Virginia. Pugilistic parents nationwide, are angry and won’t be muzzled by rogue school boards or be hoodwinked by elitist teacher unions. Progressives underestimated the response of “momma and poppa bear” when “their cubs are at risk.” In Minneapolis the referendum to replace cops with social workers was roundly rejected. It was during the silence and reflection of those in voting booths, reminding themselves of a choice-a cop with a gun-or social worker, when trouble knocks at one’s door.
Has a dose of common sense penetrated the senses of some voters? In Colorado parents ran for the school boards and ousted many progressive members who had ignored their right as parents. Liberty’s highlight last week was the story of a conservative truck driver, Edward Durr, from New Jersey, who unseated Democrat Senator Steve Sweeney, the longest serving legislator in the state’s history. Durr’s war chest was $153. He ran as a pro-life Christian. His winning motto, “All they have to do is have a heart for people.” Durr said he’s a numbers guy. He knew Sweeney had never broken 32,000 votes, in a district with 150,000. That meant if the Senator can’t get half, he knew the votes were out there. Durr just had to go out and get them. He did.
Political wizards tell us these events are a referendum on Biden’s dismal performance at every level. Perhaps. Some believe it’s the long awaited spirit of individual liberty, awakened at last. This groundswell movement is in response to the rise of threats against our Constitutional God-given rights, and the onerous Socialist Marxist policies coming from our White House. Crazy talk about cancelling Christmas due to COVID doesn’t rest well with Americans who hold fast to such traditions, and those underpinnings they know aren’t negotiable. Loss of cultural memory has wreaked havoc on timeless values and principles of yesteryear. One can’t recall what one doesn’t know. With the passing of prior generations, it has been virtually eradicated from the American consciousness. Multitudes are rising up, shouting, “No more!”
Many who love liberty’s renewing vigor, are convinced that Iran or North Korea’s external threat isn’t as dire as our internal one of federal tyranny and unelected agency’s over-reach. We can’t stop there. That small flicker of liberty has turned into a roaring inferno in some pockets of our American landscape, fanned by their anger at the assault on our way of life. In our nation, we prattle on about issues that are innocuous, exerting little consequence on things of substance. While the Left focuses on “bogey man shadows,” like “Too many guns” or “dangerous Confederate Flag” and ignoring the killing fields in Chicago, liberty minded patriots must be engaged. Let them shadow box, and usher in their abbreviated reign of adumbrated sophistry and hypocrisy. Our call to defend liberty isn’t obviated by radical ideologues.
Whether it’s shadows from Baltimore, Berkeley, Charlottesville, Minneapolis, Portland, or Watts in 1965, they’re all symptomatic. Cajoling, soaring rhetoric, and more laws won’t extricate us from this desultory cul-de-sac. Liberty loving patriots understand the disastrous outcome when the righteous and co-belligerents remain muted by fear, intimidation or apathy. In Wyoming, liberty minded citizens are once again a formidable force who understand the battle’s never on one front.
Are there not substantial issues to engage? Aren’t the unborn still being slaughtered in the name of “women’s health.” Too often we’re hamstrung by confronting global battles, that transcend our scope of influence, overlooking the painfully obvious, where one’s efforts may have significant sway. Rarely does one discover them gazing out the kitchen window. Bemoaning has limitations. Confront hypocrisy where it lurks, offering a principled alternative. There’s pivotal house and senate seats up for grabs in the 2022 primary, in Wyoming. It’s overdue to oust the political malingers in Natrona County, driven by careerist impulses, whose love of occupancy is a threat to liberty.
Only so many days are allotted to all. Redeem them wisely. John Greenleaf Whittier’s resplendent quote is worth repeating, “For all the sad words of tongue and pen. The saddest are these, ‘It might have been.’” Daunting issues remain. Move beyond the shackles of banality. Discover your passion. Your fingerprints should be all over it. There’s risk in combating wrongdoing, opposing evil, and doing good. Proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to an increasingly secular culture. Liberty isn’t grasped by proclamation, but heroic exertion by a few brave souls. Lest we forget, liberty’s our guardrail against government tyranny and oppression. What do you think?
Mike Pyatt’s a Natrona County resident. His email is mikepyatt44@gmail.com