Where do you go?

The past few weeks have been less than fantastic - at least on the financial and political fronts. It appears as though the U.S. Federal Government is not inching us, but kicking and throwing us headlong toward socialism. I understand that the failure of AIG, Freddie Mac & Fannie Mae would have been devastating to the U.S. and International Economies. However, now the government is REALLY IN OUR BUSINESS. I don't like it. Not one bit.

This, combined with the erosion of private property rights is not a good sign.

I feel the walls closing in. What to do? Well, we could elect people at all levels of government who are more responsible and who will adhere to the U.S. Constitution. That's getting more and more difficult as the media just becomes a louder and larger cheering section for candidates with leftist viewpoints. It makes it hard to get a true understanding of who stands for what and what they will REALLY do once in office. True, there are many more sources for news and reporting via the Internet, but which sources are really reporting objectively? Very few, from what I can see. It's easy to find reporting from a 'right' or 'left' point of view, but rare to read something that doesn't reek of some sort of opinion somewhere in the article.

So, if the U.S. is truly running off the cliff and we're witnessing the death of capitalism and freedom, where do we go? As far as I can tell (I've traveled internationally to some degree), this is still the best country in the world. If this is as good as it gets, what now? What are the options?

A) Fight for liberty
B) Develop an escape plan - get 'off the grid' somehow. Whether that means living in the wilderness, heading to another country with a pile of cash, or figuring out how to 'shrug' (as in "Atlas Shrugged")
C) Go with the flow and live life as best you can

As for me, I'm most inclined to choose Option A. Go down fighting for what's right and let the government pry my gun outta my cold dead hands. Figuratively speaking. At least I hope so!

But I've also often wondered about Option C. What makes people 'keep going' when they live under restrictive governments? Even as a little kid, when I learned about people living in the Soviet Union and behind the Iron Curtain, I thought, "Do they ever laugh or smile?" I suppose not many of them did if they were exiles in Siberia. As I got older and learned about the 'art' of procreation, I wondered why people would continue to choose to have children. Did they just not care? Were they hopeful that they could create a generation who would eventually rise up for freedom and a better way of life? If I were living a miserable, cold gray life and had to stand in line to buy government bread and toilet paper, I'd figure out a way to check out for good. Perhaps that's why so many are/were vodka addicts.

And speaking of standing in line...have you stood in line at the post office recently? (WARNING - RANT AHEAD) Or, have you ever talked with anyone who has dealt with a VA Hospital? This is government provided healthcare people! It boggles my mind that people want the government to 'give' us healthcare. We'll pay through our collective noses for it and have limited choice, longer waiting times, more bureaucracy, and very very bad headaches that won't go away. Why don't people see that!?!?? Idiots. (Rant done.)

It obviously wasn't any great shakes living under Communist rule. I mean, look at how many people died trying to escape East Berlin. How ironic would it be if people began running across the border from the U.S. into Mexico? Or into Canada? That actually gives me an idea. All the people who want government healthcare can go to Canada. All the pot smokers have a choice of going north OR south! Good cheeb comes from Canada and Mexico. Or so I've heard.

What's your escape plan? Where will you go when the bottom really falls out? Unless some major turnaround experts begin taking the reins in D.C. and at the state & local levels, we're sliding down a slippery mountain (not a mere slope).

Stay tuned for next week's blog. I'll have some more ideas about how we can make Option A a reality.