Poverty Spreads Across America as We Celebrate Christmas

By Darrell Castle

Constitution Party National Committee, Vice-Chairman

“The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” (Luke 4:18-19)

This week we pause to celebrate the birth of the one who spoke those words in the temple more than 2000 years ago. While contemplating those words amid the celebration, and preparations for celebration, I am reminded that a deepening poverty is spreading across the nation – the same nation, as we are constantly reminded, that is the richest nation on earth.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, we now have almost 43 million people who subsist on food stamps. That is a little more than 13% of the entire American population that must have assistance from the government just to buy food. In my home state of Tennessee it’s more than 20% and in Washington D.C., the seat of the nation’s government, it’s more than 21%.

Prices of the things people need most to live – or in other words, the things they can’t live without – such as food and fuel, are soaring.  Based on current Federal Reserve interest rates, we are told there is no inflation in the economy, but those of us who must buy food and fuel know better.

This inflation in food and fuel comes at a time when some 15 million people are unemployed according to U.S. Government (USG) figures, which place the unemployment rate at close to 10%. During the depression years of the 1930’s, the USG used a more honest reporting formula for unemployment. If you did not have a job and were not retired, you were unemployed. If we used that formula today, the rate would be pushing 25%. Now, the unemployed are not counted unless they are actually receiving unemployment benefits.  Could that be the reason the administration fights so hard to continually extend the months of eligibility for benefits?

Many people are very concerned about the deficit now, as well they should be. These people tell us we can’t afford to extend unemployment benefits, we can’t afford Medicare and Medicaid, and we can’t afford Social Security which has now gone negative. We can, however, afford about a trillion dollars a year for wars that nobody can tell us the meaning of. Even the Commander-in-Chief can only say “they’re necessary.” If we can’t afford anything but wars of aggression, it seems to me that we deserve at least an explanation of why.

Oh yes, I almost forgot one other thing that we can afford. We can always afford the trillions – yes that’s right: Mr. Bernanke said he gave trillions to foreign banks and corporations – we can also afford the trillions we gave to American banks and corporations. Goldman Sachs, for example, was provided funds 212 times during the approximate year of the TARP period. That’s almost once every business day.

We’ve seen some of the USG’s priorities then, in relation to what we can and can’t afford. We know that the five largest items, often referred to as mandatory, in the fiscal year 2011 budget take up 100 percent of tax revenue. Those items are Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, defense, and interest on the debt. Everything else that is spent must be borrowed. Defense and interest on the debt are clearly affordable, but the others are problematic. The USG has now spent generations creating a totally dependent society and it seems bad form to me for them to then blame the entire mess on the dependent.

All these things taken together add up to a collapsing economy and ultimate doom for the dollar. When the dollar loses reserve status and necessary items, if obtainable at all, skyrocket in price, the picture might not be a pretty one. I wonder if all these economic “mistakes” have occurred purely by accident and stupidity? Aren’t Rhodes Scholars, as well as Harvard, Princeton, and London School of Economics graduates supposed to be smart? If so then, are they fools or knaves?

Those who, through their concerted efforts, have managed in only 100 years to destroy a civilization that took 1000 years to build seem pretty happy and pretty excited right now. Sometimes their gloating is a little hard to take, but I remind you that there is still cause for great joy during this Christmas week. Oh I know they have their dark prince and they hear his voice, but their time and his time are but temporary. The one who spoke the words in the first paragraph of this writing is with us, and he did tell us that he would not leave us or forsake us.

The followers of the dark prince may not realize it, but they are just instruments doing what God has ordained them to do since before the foundations of the world.
Source: Constitution-party.net.