“The Fine Print”, by Michael Schrader
PRINCIPLES DO MATTER, DON'T THEY?
(Written 04 November 1998. Published in the Neighborhood Journal. Posted 31 July 2009.)
When George Washington ran for the Virginia House of
Burgesses in 1757, his spending consisted of 28 gallons of rum, 50 gallons of
rum punch, 34 gallons of wine, 46 gallons of beer, and 2 gallons of cider
royal. Providing friends with
"cheer" was the customary way of campaigning in Colonial America.
Later, when George Washington was elected to the Presidency,
he was not actively seeking the job. He
was not spending lots of money, handing out campaign literature, or
stumping. Despite this non-campaign,
During this campaign, I have been criticized for refusing to
accept any campaign contributions and for refusing to spend any money. Don't get me wrong--I still had yard signs
and literature; I just made them out of materials I had on hand. Call it a "waste not, want not"
philosophy. I told these critics that if
I was going to criticize government for wasting money, then I had to show that
I was more fiscally responsible than the government, and wasting money on a
bunch of stuff that I don't really need is not a good way to show that I am
fiscally responsible. It's called
practicing what you preach.
One local organization, ACORN, informed me that although
they agreed with my philosophies, they would not endorse me because I was not a
"serious" candidate. Why
wasn't I a serious candidate? Because I refused to spend money. It didn't matter that I attended many more
political rallies and gave many more political speeches than either of my two
rivals. It didn't matter that I had more
yard signs than the other candidates.
Because I made yards signs out of recycled materials while sitting on my
porch, I was not a serious candidate.
If ACORN had existed in 1789, I assume that they would not
have considered Washington a serious candidate, either. After all, he didn't spend any money. He didn't even give any speeches. Surely, he couldn't have been a serious
candidate!
I was told that I just didn't understand was it was all
about. That one person cannot run a
campaign. It take
lots of money and lots of organization, and well, I had neither. But what about principles, I asked? What about conscience? Isn't that what it is supposed to be
about? Principles and conscience don't
matter, I was told.
Here is a news flash for all those groups like ACORN who
believe that money and fame make the person, not principles and conscience--you
are wrong! Principles do matter! Conscience does matter! It mattered to the founding fathers, and I
think it still matters to many of us. Without principles, without conscience, you
are nothing. Period. You are just a bunch of cells using up
precious oxygen.
I respect any person who is willing to risk it all for his
principles, regardless of whether or not I agree with him. It's the convictions that matter. Not the politics.
Take Louis Farrekan for
instance. I'll be the first to admit
that I do not agree with his politics.
But, I respect Mr. Farrekan because he is not
willing to prostitute himself for the sake of political expediency. He preaches black empowerment, black
self-sufficiency, that blacks should fend for themselves, and should not accept
charity from whites. His beliefs are so
strong that he has been willing to alienate fellow black by criticizing those
of his race that he feels are cow-towing to whites, and he has been criticized
for this. He has been called an
"anti-white" bigot for spurning white "do-gooders". You have to admit that he has guts for
walking the difficult path. Like him or
not, you have to admire his courage for standing up for what he believes.
I am an optimist.
Thus, I refuse to accept that principles do not matter. For if they do not, then we, as a society,
are doomed.
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