America Said Yes!

"Freedom Flying High"

Watercolor

What an historic week this has been in the United States!  The results of the national election are now realized.  America said "yes" to a whole new direction for the country!  

*Americans said "yes" to life!

All citizens, including the unborn, are included in the right to life.  Hopefully Supreme Court justices will now be selected that reflect the heart of the American people.

*Americans said "yes" to limits!

A country without borders is no longer a sovereign nation.  The laws of the land and the requirements to live in this land are to be upheld.  The safety of the country's own citizens and the needs of the veterans and homeless must be given a priority.  When a country can operate from a position of strength and flourishing, it is better able to care for the needs of a hurting world.  America welcomes legal immigrants who understand what made this country great and wish to assimilate and contribute to that culture.  As for the world chaos that has created a refugee crisis, there are better ways to care for those people groups closer to their countries of origin.  Americans are rejecting massive immigration without proper vetting of peoples' backgrounds and intentions for entering the country which endangers the safety of U.S. citizens.

Americans also said "yes" to limits to big government and it's overreach into our lives. The voters said "yes" to less taxation and more fiscal discipline in government."A Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of Government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess of the public treasury. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that Democracy always collapses over a loose fiscal policy..." Professor Alexander Fraser Tyler writing when the states were still colonies of Great Britain, explaining why democracies always fail.  They said "yes" to limits on globalism and corporate agendas that do not serve the best interests of America.

*Americans said "yes" to liberty!

Our U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights is a cherished living document that safeguards our rights as free citizens.  Our elected officials are sworn into office promising to uphold the Constitution and abide by its laws.  "In a government of laws, the existence of the government will be imperiled if it fails to observe the law scrupulously. Our government is the potent, the omnipresent teacher. For good or for ill, it teaches the whole people by example. Crime is contagious. If the government becomes a lawbreaker, it breeds contempt for the law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy." Justice Louis Brandeis

One final thought about the recent election is this:  no government or leader on this earth is perfect.  The effects of the fall and sin corrupt all of us, from the halls of government all the way to our own hearts.  Let us pray for wisdom for our leaders and for ourselves as citizens of a nation that we will all work for what is true and right and beautiful...that is art!  We ultimately look forward to what George Frederick Handel wrote in his masterpiece oratorio, The Messiah, :

Hallelujah!  

for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth

Hallelujah!  Hallelujah!

The kingdom of this world is become the Kingdom of our Lord

and of His Christ

And He shall reign forever and ever

King of Kings and Lord of Lords

Hallelujah!

Now for a little bit of presidential trivia...my family has had numerous encounters with Presidents of our country.  My second cousin Audrey had President John F. Kennedy speak at her college commencement address.  My older brother, Gordon Whitbeck, met with President George W. Bush regarding small business administration.  Here's a photo of my brother with President Bush:

And finally, I got to see President-elect Donald Trump on May 7th this year at a huge campaign rally in which I heard Mr. Trump speak.

(from my sketchbook that day)

Live bravely and beautifully!