"Haste Makes Waste" or What's the Rush?

First it was the TARP bill, next it was the “Stimulus Bill,” then came “Cap and Trade,” and now it’s “Health Care Reform”—all bills that had/have to be passed without delay, but no one ever explains why these measures must become law even before Congress and the people they supposedly represent have a chance to read them.

But, folks, the answer really ain’t that hard. In fact, it’s downright obvious. You know the old saying that it’s easier to ask forgiveness than to get permission? Well, the Obama administration has institutionalized that philosoply by presenting—nay, demanding—legislation that is so bad for the us, the citizens of the United States, the last thing he wants is for you, me, or our “representatives” in Congress to know what’s happening to us in time for us to stop it.

That, of course, begs the question...can we stop it? Judging from recent experience, our representatives don’t listen to us anyway. Millions of people have written, faxed, and called Congress telling them to vote “No” on the trillions of dollars of wasteful spending in TARP and “Stimulus”—not to mention the absurd Cap and Trade bill—only to receive “I know better than you what’s good for you” form letters from staffers who never even show our comments to our Senators and Representatives. I guess they figure that, eventually, we’ll realize that they have us by the short hairs and will give up.

But, I digress. The truth is that nothing that permanently affects our lives—be it taxes, income, jobs, health care, or individual rights—is so urgently needed that we shouldn’t be allowed to know what is being done before it’s done unless those in power have something to hide from us. And, if it’s being hidden, it can’t be good for us. Hence, before we fall for the “urgent” assertion again, let’s tell them to slow down, show us what they are trying to do, give all of us the opportunity to know what is going on by actually putting the legislation in writing and publishing it for all the world to see before it's passed.

The effects of so-called global warming aren’t so immediate that we can’t wait a few months to look over the legislation, discuss it publicly, debate it, and decide what, if anything, would be an effective means of countering it. Too, the health care debate has been raging since before some in the Sixties Generation fell in love with European style socialism, so surely “health care reform” will wait a few more months until we can all see what they are proposing, evaluate how it will affect us, and let Congress know whether it is what we want or not. After all, either way, it is we, the people, who will be paying for it, because government only has the money it takes from our wallets.