Are they Playing Dungeons and Dragons with our country?

Are they Playing Dungeons and Dragons with our country?

We must change the game of politics before it permanently changes our country into something it was never created to be. I believe our country is changing for the worse and I believe we are quickly approaching the point of no return. To prevent this from happening I would like you, the reader, to consider what exactly must be changed and why.

Years ago I played a game called Dungeons and Dragons. D&D was a role playing game. D&D departs from traditional war gaming and assigns each player a specific character to play instead of a military formation. These characters embark upon imaginary adventures within a fantasy setting. A Dungeon Master serves as the game’s referee and storyteller, while also maintaining the setting in which the adventures occur and playing the role of the inhabitants. The characters form a party that interacts with the setting’s inhabitants (and each other). Together they solve dilemmas, engage in battles and gather treasure and knowledge. In the process the characters earn experience points to become increasingly powerful over a series of sessions. Please tell me you see the similarity to D&D and modern day politics, it is actually quite frightening.

In days gone by the players in the game of politics were on one of two sides with ONE objective. The ONE objective was to protect the individual liberty of the citizens of the newly created republic and collectively protect the new United States from enemies foreign and domestic. The two sides of this debate were the federalist and the anti-federalist. The Federalist believed that a strong centralized government was not only necessary, but vital to the success of the republic. The anti-federalists believed that it was the strength and sovereignty of the individual states that was critical to the success of our republic. During the constitutional debates the main topics for and against were about the size, strength and authority of the centralized government vs. the individual sovereignty of the individual states. Secondly, the debates surrounded the protection of the sovereignty of the states, the individual rights of the citizens in those states, and the prevention of a centralized government’s authority from becoming too overreaching.

Throughout the drafting, passage and ratification process the Federalist and the Anti-Federalist continued to work towards a Constitution that equally provided for the creation of a centralized government with its requisite checks and balances and protection for the sovereignty of the states and individual liberty. Finally, after long debate, a compromise was reached and the Constitution with the recommended provisions in the ratifying instrument included that the Constitution would be amended with a bill of rights. Of course there is much more to the story but this is the basic information necessary to this discussion. So just for simplicity sake the game objective was to Protect the Republic and the Individual States while collectively protecting the Liberty of the individual citizen.

Now look at what is happening today. There still are two sides of the debate however the citizen has been duped to believe the two sides are the Republicans and the Democrats. Unfortunately when you look at the fundamental beliefs of both parties you will learn they are on the same side, Federalism!  Now, the ONE objective is to protect the centralized government (federalism) and use the government to protect their (Republicans & Democrats) side. And, just like in the game of D&D they play the game by trying to solve dilemmas to gain treasure and knowledge and gaining “Experience Points” which helps them become more powerful and influential. Again, note the similarity to the game of politics today.

There are some Anti-Federalists out there but they are seriously outnumbered. We absolutely must change the game of politics back to its fundamental principles, Less Government-More Liberty. I know we have heard this in campaigns all across the country and both parties have learned “Liberty speak”, but at the end of the day the federalists still vote for and support policy and legislation that continues to grow and expand government all the while harming states sovereignty and individual liberty. The answer is easy; it is the solution that will be very, very hard. We must start by first choosing which side we are on. Are we on the federalist or anti-federalist side? Do we actually want smaller government and more Liberty or do we want politicians who vote for our causes instead of the causes the other side supports? When we recognize that over the course of time we have elected “good” people into office but have failed miserably at electing the “right” people in office, we will begin the process of changing the game. Conservatives are just as guilty when they elect people who will use the power and authority of the government to advance their causes just as much as liberals who do the same. We must start seeking and advocating for candidates who are anti-federalists and who believe that the sole role of government is to protect the states and individual liberty and not to provide for the states and for the individual. WE WIL NEVER end this political tug of war until we the people recognize and establish this criteria in finding, supporting and electing Liberty candidates over Liberal and Conservative candidates.

Finally, going back to D&D the Dungeon Master is currently the president and this also must change. The anti-federalist was extremely concerned that the federalists were creating a monarchy. Our government was established to be led by the will of the people and not the will of either three of our branches of government. We the people must once again assume our role as head of our government and we must also define the “game” as a battle between federalist and anti-federalist ideology. I want to be clear that there must always be a battle, a proverbial tug of war between the two in order to ensure an effective government. So to all my friends here is my suggestion. First declare your allegiance to which side you are on. Second, speaking to my anti-federalists, start defining who you will support based on anti-federalist thought i.e. stronger states, less redistributive policies and more Liberty. Then work very hard to elect and support these individuals and remember they will begin in a minority. Third share with every one you meet these thoughts and let’s hope and pray it is not too late!