Do They Know?

That's the way Cassandra closes her latest brilliant post. (Seriously, go check it out - it's a great read!)

The question regards whether Obama supporters realize what he's doing and what his policies actually mean.

And I'm guessing the answer is, largely, a big "NO."

And for the ones who do know, they agree with him that people should have Constitutional rights to, say, other people's money and property, if it means "stuff" for them.

But do they realize what the Constitution means?

Another big "NO."

The real meaning of the Constitution isn't taught in schools anymore. Even Constitutional law courses focus on case law - with precedent actually taking precedence over the text of the Constitution.

Instead, we learn in school that, whereas the Founding Fathers were really bigoted/licentious men, FDR was a great guy - that he helped us out of the Great Depression.

*BZZZZZ*

FDR was evil. Even Wikipedia reads like a list of "accomplishments" that - from a Constitutional perspective - are travesties. (Yes, Our Public School Hero instituted internment camps.) He was so horrid that he was the REASON for the then-customary two-term limit being enshrined in the Constitution - after he was safely dead and gone, of course.

FDR's New Deal not only deepened and extended the Depression in the US, but stole the soul of America, broadly introducing the concept of dependence on the government for our daily bread.

But even he couldn't get the country to accept his "Second Bill of Rights." From VC:

This new Bill of Rights would guarantee the following government benefits by statute:

• A job with a living wage
• Freedom from unfair competition and monopolies
• Homeownership
• Medical care
• Education
• Recreation

In other words, not only are those things natural rights (which I could still argue against), but it's the US Government's constitutional obligation to provide them.

I call FOUL. Very, stinky, FOUL.

But as I said - even FDR couldn't get the people to swallow that. So now Obama's trying.

And since all we know now is the quasi-socialist result of FDR's programs, combined with absolute information overload, it's going to be a lot harder to fight.

So "Go! Confront the problem! Fight! Win! And call me when you get back, darling; I enjoy our visits." (Edna Mode, The Incredibles)