There is a conflict between the elites and the people. Often, it’s a subtle conflict, but it is real nonetheless.
A couple of weeks ago, when the Senate voted to approve one of its own, Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), some commentators, such as Jimmy Kimmel, sneered that before he had become a senator, he had worked as a plumber. Good heavens. What is this country coming to?
I mentioned that to my wife, and she said, “Isn’t that a more noble profession than being a bartender?” She was referencing the media’s darling U.S. Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14).
But the reality is: The great thing about America is that “we the people” can achieve greatness, given hard work and the right breaks.
My dad grew up as a poor farm boy who became the first one in his family to go to college. And he worked his way up into management at two major Chicago newspapers.
Is this a great country or what?
Meanwhile, the obvious snobbery and lack of respect for others were on display last month at the Oscars.
Although this is last month’s news, I still think it’s worth commenting on. On March 16, the U.S. Sun reported, “GUESTS who were in attendance at the Oscars last night, have been slammed for littering all over the swanky Dolby Theater. Photos of the famous theater after the event show popcorn, bottles and boxes all over the floor after attendees failed to throw their litter in a bin.”
One response to this event was: “Rich people leaving their dirt for poor people as always.”
Another noted that the cleanup crew deserved an Oscar.
Why be surprised by self-serving behavior? Hollywood is “a self-serving business,” says Carrie Underwood of “American Idol,” as noted in MOVIEGUIDE. She adds, “Faith is the thing that can keep you grounded.”
This incident reminds me of the line from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic book, The Great Gatsby, about a selfish and powerful couple in the story —Tom and Daisy Buchanan.
Fitzgerald wrote: “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made.”
It also reminds me of the line, “All are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” This comes from the anti-Communist parable, Animal Farm, by the former “fellow traveler” George Orwell. The snobs versus the hoi polloi.
I remember when Trump surprisingly won the first time, and he delivered his First Inaugural Address, in which he mentioned his professed concern for the little guy.
The president said on that day: “January 20th, 2017, will be remembered as the day the people became the rulers of this nation again. The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.”
The greatness of this country did not just happen.
In large measure, the American story can be traced back to those hearty men and women who rediscovered the Bible in the late 1500s and early 1600s and applied it to every aspect of their lives.
There was an egalitarian rule that the Pilgrims followed. Their goal was to send their congregation, the Pilgrims, in groups to America. Of course, the first who came over were those on the Mayflower. Their long-time pastor, John Robinson, died in 1625 before he could come. Meanwhile, back in 1620, Rev. Robinson wrote a letter for them to read when they came here.
Robinson wrote to his flock in America: "Lastly, whereas you are to become a body politic, using amongst yourselves civil government, and are not furnished with any persons of special eminence above the rest, to be chosen by you into office of government."
The Declaration of Independence, which we celebrate at 250 this year, reminds us that “all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator” with inalienable rights. This view is derived from the Bible’s teaching that teaches human beings are made in the image of God.
We just recently celebrated Good Friday and Easter, based on the Christian view that God loved us so much that Jesus, who was fully human and fully divine, died to take away the penalty and power of sins for those who believe. Then He sealed the deal when He rose from the dead.
And it was He who introduced the famous words to the world, the Golden Rule, the model of human relations: Treat others as you would have them treat you.
What happened in that fancy California theater last month is a metaphor of the bad policies of the left run amok. They just make messes for others to clean up.
Jerry Newcombe, D.Min., is the executive director of the Providence Forum, an outreach of Coral Ridge Ministries. He has written/co-written 33 books, including George Washington’s Sacred Fire (with Providence Forum founder Peter Lillback, Ph.D.) and What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? (with D. James Kennedy, Ph.D.).