Richmond, 16 october, 2009
            Moses Sands, in his still-to-be-published book on the blueprints of the common man's House, said that one of the cornerstones of the House is gratitude.
            We've written a lot about gratitude here, "the shoulders we stand on", as Moses called it, especially as it pertains to the ingratitude of American youth since the 1960's.
             In a long essay earlier, The Mother of Liberalism, I traced the "modern liberal's" world view to a "hole in the soul" that began first with the ancient Greek philosophers, then through Marx, to modern academe, thence to just about every 90-pound weakling who has read a book, as being largely based on an anger and jealously that the majority of the world holds high attributes of human achievement that are lesser than their own. The contorted logic of that view is that if the majority (the masses) favor athletic heroes, self-made millionaires, or girls whose gams runs all the way up to their magnificent behinds, and can be seen by all...then the majority should be denied any say in the matter. Since free markets give the masses that sort of vote, be done with it. Since the Constitution and modern ideas of Liberty give the masses those kinds of choices, be done with them. Then we will be ruled, in the words of Mr Shunderson (People Will Talk, 1951) by men and women who may also be small of stature, but always of character. I give you Robert B Reich, as jealous a man ever walked.
             It's that simple. When you condense all that anger the Greeks felt about the Romans taking the beauty out of their observations by actually building things with them, you come up with a deeply felt anger, a hole in the soul, that transcends all politics. Indeed, as I pointed out, it is the mother of all politics Left.
            Bernie Chumm called me after I finally posted that essay, and asked me if I thought they (the Left) felt no shame in pissing on the shoulders they were standing on, since we all...we all...even John Kerry, arose out of some pretty ordinary loins. As the French might say, "How dare we take on such airs, the children of dustmen, garbage collectors, slaves, dirt farmers, and a few Irishmen to boot."
            I thought about that and decided they do not feel shame about peeing on their ancestors shoulders, but do feel shame, nonetheless. In fact, they are ashamed of their ancestors. Besides a general violation of the 5th Commandment (who heeds those anymore, anyway?), stop to ponder the enormity of this craven sin...to be ashamed, out of hand, of the persons who first laid the place for them the sleep out of the cold and wind, who first laid the place, and the plate, for them to eat, who first insured they would not have to go out of the door armed with a knife or gun...since, almost every American House, every set of shoulders, bears the scars and pangs from a wont of these simple treasures at some time.
           For years I have reminded plant and corporate managers that "gratitude" is not passed on genetically, as they complain about the growing indifference of each new generation of worker. It must be retaught, and that teaching, as with so many other things should be taught first, at the parent's knee. We've written of those things as well. But what we now see, sadly in hindsight, as this hole-in-the-soul hatred and shame has almost completely engulfed three generations, is that this sense of gratitude, this honor-the-shoulders-thou-standest- upon, is the only salve, the only preventative of such that bile rising in the bright child's stomach, as he grows to find out that he has neither the size, speed or temperament for athletics, or he hasn't the best house in the best neighborhood, the best labels on his clothes, best looks...or worse, likes books, or history or math, or gad!, engineering or poetry....and maybe not so much, girls.
          Today, the institutions of the state, the schools, advertising, film and television, music, all are arrayed against that gratitude seed ever taking root, for in each case, what they are selling today sells best to an incomplete, unfulfilled, ungrateful, audience. Their meat and potatoes is our failures as parents.

          But this isn't about philosophy, or ideology, it is about politics; specific political strategies. It is easy for me to say to you what must be done to a child when he or she is seven. It is impossible for me to say to you what must be done when that child is thirteen, or seventeen or twenty..if your intent is to restore the proper harmony to your House.
          But what I can say is that if the Constitution is to preserved, and free markets and Liberty saved, those people must be isolated. They must be cast out if they cannot be saved, and the public has neither the time, the money, nor, quite frankly the duty to try and save them. If there is a to be a guerrilla war in this country, let's try to make sure it is them, not us, who are the guerrillas, for we are less than a year (yes, less) to being on the outside looking in.
         I wrote earlier about three steps, political, institutional and cultural, that the concerned citizen must keep in mind as this long, long war to restore Liberty plays itself out. Restoring this sense of gratitude is a perfect example, in that it requires a changing of course in the House and in the public streets (cultural) as well as the institutions, such as schools. But it also involves politically isolating the Hole in the Soul Gang, and driving a wedge between them and the thugs, the brown shirts, the rent-a-goons, they use to carry out their policy...for if those goons only knew what their bosses really felt about them, as people, they may think twice about choosing that side just for a few bucks. Even thieves like the freedom to be able to choose their own marks.
Vassar Bushmills