Republicans are descending on Florida for next week's GOP convention. We'll hear lots of speeches on what politicians can do for you.
What I'd like to see and hear are more Republicans -- and Democrats -- reminding us that we are largely responsible for ourselves. The founders wanted government to be limited and the people unlimited. They called it liberty. Who talks about liberty anymore? Politicians dispense goodies in hopes that the receivers will vote for them and then be addicted for their voting lives.
This isn't what the founders intended and it's why government has become so dysfunctional. It is doing things it was not designed to do and not doing things it should do.
Though government doesn't do much well, politicians and too many people want us to turn to it as a first resource, not a last resort. And that's the problem. It would be nice to hear about this misapplied faith at the two political conventions. One is more likely to hear it in Tampa than Charlotte.
In West Palm Beach, I'm Cal Thomas.
Publication date: August 24, 2012
