But then, as I’m fond of saying, the world has no shortage of windmills to tilt at. Idealism isn’t a bad thing, nor is (always) extremism; as Barry Goldwater said, “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice.” However, politics can always use a dose of realism to go along with idealism.

You Can’t Always Get What You Want

Were I to have all my pipe-dream druthers in politics, I could put together a pretty good list. Here are a few key items:

• Repeal of all federal gun-control legislation, back to and including the 1934 National Firearms Act. The Second Amendment is very clear – “shall not be infringed.” As a law-abiding taxpayer, it’s none of the government’s business what I own.
• Elimination of all federal agencies not directly authorized as an enumerated power in the Constitution. Commerce, Energy, Education, a whole mess of others – gone. Fire the workers, send them back out into the economy they’ve been working to destroy. Return Washington to its constitutionally defined limits.
• Repeal the 16th and 17th amendments. Income tax is a disaster. Tax consumption, not production. Return the Senate to being representatives of their state legislatures, not just more elected hucksters auctioning off their votes with promises of Free Stuff.
• Return the Department of Defense to being the War Department. That’s their business. No more semantic games. War is what they are about; say it out loud. It’s a dangerous world, and there’s nothing wrong with sounding a little badass.
• A constitutional amendment restricting the franchise to those adults who have actually paid federal taxes in the calendar year preceding any election. If you’re on the dole, no vote. If you have no skin in the game, you get no say in how things are done.

Oh, and just for fun:

• A constitutional amendment restoring tar and feathers as an authorized punishment for government officials, be they elected, appointed, or employed, who are convicted of any crime at any level.

I’ve resigned myself to the idea that we just can’t have those things. I’m in a tiny minority of people who think all those things are good ideas. I want them – I think it would make the nation a better, more prosperous place if they happened – but they almost certainly won’t. That’s just how things are.

Still, if we push, and work at it, and make that wheel squeak, there are a few things that might be able to see the light of day.

But if You Try Sometimes

Some good things could be accomplished just by having the right person in the right seat, someone with enough of the right masculine dangly bits to ignore the cries of the perpetually outraged and implement good policy. For example, here’s something a good Secretary of War (oh, all right, Secretary of Defense) with those qualities could do overnight to address the issue of active shooters on military bases: Make it policy that every military officer, warrant officer, and non-commissioned officer (NCO) at or above the grade of E5 – I’d be willing to go to E7 if that would make it happen – shall be issued a sidearm and ammunition, trained in their use, shall fire for qualification no less than monthly, and shall have said sidearm on their person at all times while on duty. Ideally, they would also be allowed to carry said sidearm concealed when off-duty and in civilian attire. These people are in the business of arms; it’s ridiculous how little we trust them with arms. I don’t suppose we’d get away with issuing them swords and making them carry those as well, although it would be really cool.

I would also like to see implemented another new military policy: If you are permanently non-deployable for any reason, you’re out. Back on the block. Done. If you’re suffering from a service-connected injury, you get a pension. If you are non-deployable for some other reason, you’re discharged. Period. We need soldiers who can serve in combat zones, not to serve as posters for the latest hip social trend.

There are a few things that would be useful, desirable, and good for the country. Seeing Rand Paul’s push to audit the Fed would be a good start, and honestly, I’d like to see Rand Paul as Secretary of the Treasury.

Speaking of Rand Paul, he recently introduced SB 2425: “A bill to prohibit Federal employees and contractors from directing online platforms to censor any speech that is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and for other purposes.” While I’m generally in favor of handling things at the lowest level of government possible, this has been a problem with federal politicians and bureaucrats, so Senator Paul’s bill is probably appropriate to deal with the issue. This is manifestly a good idea, and if the GOP takes the White House and ends up running Congress in the near future, this should be able to happen. (I grant you that’s a big “if.”)

Speaking of the states: It’s highly desirable and certainly possible (not sure about how likely) to have at least most states do some comprehensive election reform, as in: Show up on Election Day, your ID in hand, confirm your identity, be checked against voter rolls which are regularly scrubbed, fill out your ballot, drop it in a box. If you’re bedridden or out of the country, you can apply for an absentee ballot; otherwise, you show up. In person. No early voting. No ranked choice or other dodges; one day, one voter, one vote.

There are myriad other cases, but these are good examples. And the forces of liberty have seen some wins recently, which is heartening.

You Just Might Find, You Get What You Need

Sometimes we can win one for the Gipper.

Not only are those of us who are tired of agitated thugs burning and looting speaking out about it, we’re offering unpleasant consequences in return should said thugs try their hand at looting and burning in small towns and rural communities; and we’re not backing down. This is just one sign that the culture is moving, if slowly, in our favor.

As it has turned out, locking down the whole country tighter than Dick’s hatband during the COVID scare was a bad idea. Now, even some in the wide, wide world of social media are admitting that they were running interference. No legislation or policy changes were involved here; just committed people searching for facts.

Nineteen states have now banned the surgical genital mutilation of children. Twenty-seven states are now Constitutional-Carry states, meaning that concealed handgun carry by the law-abiding requires no permit. Citizens are still voting with their feet, moving from blue states to red ones; there is an obvious conclusion one can draw from that.

The last few months have seen some encouraging Supreme Court decisions. New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen eliminated “show cause” or “may issue” control over concealed carry permitting. “Shall-issue” is now the law of the land, meaning that if you pass the criteria, local law enforcement must issue you a permit. Michael Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency yanked the reins on the EPA’s previously near-unlimited power to regulate what property owners can do with their own land. Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina ended racial discrimination in admission practices, although several universities are vowing to fight the ruling; no win is 100 percent, but this is still a win. And last, but certainly not least, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned Roe v. Wade and put the regulation of abortion back with the states, where it belongs.

So the forces of liberty are winning some.

Politics is the art of the possible. Effort must be placed where it is most effective, and we must accept that things can only move in increments, almost never all at once. Policies that move towards liberty should be supported; policies that move against liberty should be opposed. In such matters, a policy or law doesn’t have to be Michelangelo and the Sistine Chapel; it just has to work.

While it’s fun to kick around the ideal, it’s important to stay focused on the possible. Then, as things move, one step at a time, we can move closer to getting what we need.