"... the times that try men's souls".

It happens more and more every day. In my whole life I never expected to hear it and now I hear it with increasing frequency. Predictions of the next American Revolution are becoming common topics of conversation.

• "Armed revolution is coming".
• "It is not going to change in Washington without a revolution".
• "I am making sure I have food and ammo in the house".

These comments and others like them are not being heard from kooks and extremists. The comments are coming from main-stream Americans; solid citizens who have lived in the "old" America that began disappearing during the late 1960s.

What is different today?

• Multiculturalism has replaced a melting pot and thereby divides people rather than uniting them.
• Congress focuses on self-preservation at the expense of the country.
• Major legislation is formulated and passed in secret with citizens told that bills must be passed to find out what is in them. (Obamacare)
• "Star Chambers" are created to pick the winners and losers in the quest for government largess or mercy (see "Super Committee").
• The President is clueless about what it means to live in this country and why it is different than any other. (Obama operates from a belief that the people of the USA want to be pampered by the nanny state rather than risk being poor, sick, or on their own.)
• Economically the world's greatest growth engine is stalled and sputtering. (US credit rating lowered, record debt, record deficit, regulations multiply live mosquitoes.)
• Racial tensions are increasing (see flash mob violence in Philadelphia, Wisconsin, Chicago, etc.).
• Class warfare is the political tool of choice for one of America's major parties. (50% of citizens pay no federal income tax while the top 10% of earners pay 70% of federal taxes.)
• The federal government has expanded its power light-years beyond the vision of the authors of The Constitution. (A test: Name two activities in the course of your day that are not limited, regulated, or allocated by the federal government in some way.)

The list above is representative of the issues that motivated Patrick Henry, Samual Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and the rest of those revolutionary rabble rousers! The President and his advisers are on the "wrong" side of those issues and they rival George III in the contest for how to lose a tremendous resource.

So far I have heard only rumblings. But, today's technologies make "Committees of Correspondence" much easier and broader than they were in 1775. Hopefully we can have the bullet-less revolution envisioned by our founders.

These truly are the times that try the souls of every man and woman in the country who understands our history and values liberty. They understand that their wealth, health, and standard of living along with their personal freedom are unique outcomes brought about by a unique government that forged a balance between

• risk and reward
• freedom and law
• personal responsibility versus dependency.

As the new values collide with the old we will find ourselves in interesting times.

The contest for which vision of the USA will be realized is upon us.

Good luck to us all in the trials to come!