Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln Part 1

Every honest news outlet talks about the spike in crime! Hoodlums roaming the streets robbing and looting, gang violence destroying young lives, law enforcement, impotent, fearful of taking action, not wanting to be the next poster child of police brutality. Crime rates escalate in all major metropolitan areas. It’s not just the usual suspects, Chicago or Detroit but Minneapolis, Portland and Seattle. Murder, assault, robbery, you name it, it has increased. Some of the citizenry have begun to ponder whether the walls of civil society are being shaken to their foundation. The summer of 2020 saw rioting and looting occur in major urban areas without any fear of repercussions for the perpetrators. In many instances, average citizens attempting to protect their property were attacked and beaten by mobs. Often, law enforcement was nowhere to be found or given orders to stand down by elected public officials. This chaos should not be taken gingerly or as a fleeting phenomenon. Such a manifestation is not new and the greatest thinkers have grappled with these dangerous issues long before. Even in this age of “antireason,” the ruminations of historical sages should be discussed, analyzed and not be taken lightly. In 1838, Abraham Lincoln made his way to the podium and delivered his famous “Lyceum Speech” to a waiting audience. In his remarks, Lincoln warned against lawlessness and he recited numerous contemporary examples of Americans openly violating local and state statutes without any fear of retribution. This violence was not found alone in the wild west, or the slave ridden south, nor in the commercial north. It was a national cancer afflicting the country as a whole. One of Lincoln’s arguments was that America was a civic compact founded by its citizenry, based on liberty, the rule of law and equality for all. The presence of lawless vigilantes undermined the compact and weakened law abiding Americans' resilience and loyalty to the constitutional order causing them to withdraw from public life, leaving the governance of the body politic to demagogues and individuals motivated by their own self-interest. It seems eerie how Lincoln’s words echo in today’s political environment. Defund the police movements have contributed to a decrease in police budgets and an increase in crime. In addition, constant scrutiny of police practices have led to a pullback of policing and a rollout of criminality. Gun sales have increased as citizens believe the only recourse for individual protection is self-defense. Yet, as Lincoln asserts, the solution is here already, as it was present in 1776, 1838, it is still apparent in 2021. The law! Very simple, yet complex. The laws on the books must be applied fairly without discrimination. If laws are unjust, or unwanted, these statutes need to be repealed through the normal legislative process. Law cannot be ignored or avoided or applied unequally without a social cost. Once again the looting and thievery which have occurred since 2020 has been described as “reparations for past sins.” But America was a country founded on the principle that you are not responsible for the transgressions of your ancestors. It is a free republic of free and equal citizens who have agency, whose lives are their own. Therefore, it is paramount for all Americans who value the civic compact to once again affirm the mantle of the rule of law. These worthy individuals must ignore the loathsome demagoguery of racially charged politics and apply the law in a just, uniform fashion. The laws are a byproduct of the people’s will. To ignore the law, is to ignore the will of the people, the constitutional order and the very basis of the meaning of a republic.