An essential threat to US liberty

I was applying recently to a D.C. based journalism internship, and one of my essay questions was on the description of was the biggest threat to liberty is today. Despite the numerous things that could have been named, here is what I came up with, not to the surprise of many:

I believe the greatest threat to liberty today does not come from outside our borders, but from within. The apathy of the public, which has allowed the corruption of the Congress, are our greatest threats today which will have long-ranging consequences well into my generation’s future. This corruption is made possible by a people that have failed to hold their leaders accountable.

All too often, I have seen my generation and those just starting college fail to vote or take part in the democratic process because they have not become informed, involved and productive citizens in our society. After all, there is nothing sexy about prudence, thrift and responsibility in our culture. Unfortunately, gone are the days where a well informed, studious population takes place in the democratic process.

Today, we still have a high level of passion from both the political Right and Left, but it seems as though the last two election cycles for the U.S. presidency have been largely a personality contest. The political party that promises x benefits will do so in order to stay in power. A political party made up of a coalition of special interests — albeit the winning electorate coalition — is not representative of the people as a whole.

The people and the Congress have been corrupted because it has become evident in recent years that the people want all the benefits of a large government without paying for any of it. With the promise of a wealthy minority of the people paying for the larger, lower-income factions, what is not to like if you are in the lower income brackets of that society?

To state the wise words of Alexis de Tocqueville, a Frenchman and champion of American liberty: "The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money."

That day might be upon us. Although it has also become evident what the U.S. is doing with its long-term credit rating through unfathomable amounts of borrowing, the apathy and (often) greed of the public has allowed politicians to keep our nation on this road. And we keep electing them.

The only way to turn this around is to put party affiliation and partisan bickering aside and to turn the reins of power back to men and women who have made the nation’s long-term well-being their top priority as our leadership.
Unfortunately, I believe things might have to get worse before they get better.