Government Gremlins

Most of us remember the 1984 classic movie, "Gremlins". An unsuspecting young man gets an exotic pet from his father. Caring for the pet consists of three rules: Never get it wet, keep it away from bright light, and never, ever feed it after midnight.

Over the past week, there has been a standoff between 200 federal agents and a Nevada rancher named Cliven Bundy. The situation seemed to be poised to become the next Ruby Ridge or Waco...when the involvement of Rory & Harry Reid with a Chinese company about a solar power plant saw the light of day. Within 16 hours, the Bureau of Land Management decided that they didn't want to push the issue. The BLM announced that it was releasing the cattle that they had rounded up, and were not going to steal anymore of his cattle.

As I thought about this development, it occurred to me that the federal government is a lot like the Mogwai. Government seems like a good idea at first. The idea of having a government to keep us safe gives us a warm fuzzy feeling. As a Christian, I understand that God created government, and that it does have a place in our lives. However, government, like fire, is a great servant and a horrible master.

The first rule of gremlins is that you can't get them wet, or they multiply. Consider the rate of growth of our federal government. We now have federal agencies that regulate what kind of toilet (EPA), what kind of light bulb (DOE), and what kind of car we can drive (DOT). Not only do we have multiple agencies, we have so many agencies and laws that they routinely argue among themselves about who has more authority, and who has "jurisdiction" for an issue. If you could bring the Founding Fathers to modern day DC and show them all of the federal laws and agencies, they'd ask us what part of the Declaration of Independence we didn't understand.

Secondly, you're never allowed to feed a gremlin after midnight...no matter HOW much it whines, cries or begs. Sounds just like our government. Year after year, the "public servants" in DC tell us that they have to rob more and more and more and more and more of our hard earned money from our pay because they just simply must have it. Government should be treated like children and pets, that is, it should be trained and taught that there are limits, and that "NO" means "NO". Once a child is allowed to tantrum his way to a treat at the supermarket, he'll continue to do so.

Lastly, government is like gremlins in that it HATES bright light. When government dealings are done in back rooms and in dark alleys, the people cannot be aware of how they are being robbed. Cases such as contracts being steered to companies of sitting US Senators like Diane Feinstein.

The American people must but our government back in the cage our Founders created for it. We MUST remind our bureaucracies and politicians that they work for US, not the other way around. Our government believe otherwise. But as Sir William Wallace said in the movie "Braveheart", "You think the people of this country exist to provide you with position. I think your position exists to provide these people with freedom."