Five-laws-of-decline

=**The Five Laws of Decline**=

**American changing dramatically:**
(Reflection 1) Goals of Secular-Progressivism media type="youtube" key="_oG80ertMLo" width="560" height="315"

(Reflection 2) National Debt in the 21st Century media type="youtube" key="LFoNRY3boN8" width="560" height="315"

(Reflection 3) Is America in Decline? media type="youtube" key="_lfJ9_RnUBA" width="560" height="315"

Post-Laws of Decline Current Events: In November 2012 Barack Obama won re-election against Mitt Romney. This election was largely over the role of the government in the economy. Bill O'Reilly analyzes President Obama's re-election. Obama ran on advocating a large government to be heavily involved in the lives of the people. Such an idea is called Progressivism in which Progressives believe the government is the solution to all of the nation's problem and largely involves major federal spending on massive federal programs largely funded by high taxes especially on those who earn a lot. Watch the analysis and reflect as to how the growing mentality of the government providing is part of America's decline. [|Click here]

In Sept. 2012, candidate for president Mitt Romney (Republican) said many Americans wouldn't vote for him since they rely on government, which President Obama, as a Progressive, largely supports. Bill O'Reilly analyzes the growing entitlement mentality in America (it's important to understand that some have a real need...but others take advantage of the system...altogether, all of the government spending is becoming less and less affordable). [|Click here]

Any civilization, nation, business, or organization of any type that is in decline follows the five laws of decline.
 * The Five Laws of Decline**
 * **(1) Sturgeon’s Law:**
 * Comes from Theodore Sturgeon who said “90% of anything is crud.”
 * In terms of leadership, only 10% are true leaders, while the other 90% have a personal agenda – ever wonder why there’s political corruption or why something that seems so obvious isn’t done?
 * It’s possible for a person in a leadership position to grow into being part of the 10%. However, when a nation, or business, or any organization with leaders that are part of the 90%, this starts decline.
 * **(2) Bastiat’s Law:**
 * Based on Frederic Bastiat who taught that the fatal tendency existing in man’s heart is to satisfy his wants with the least possible effort. Man naturally tries to avoid pain. Labor (work) isn’t easy, so it’s avoided as much as possible, since work is pain and man tries to avoid pain.
 * As long as avoiding work is less painful than working, people will try to avoid working.
 * Every society or community must ensure that people carry their own weight rather than riding on the backs of others’ labors/work.
 * This is the fatal flaw with communist theories – the 90% will do as little as possible if given an opportunity, while the 10% will be driven to despair because they aren’t rewarded for their productive efforts.
 * Look at the American culture and the increase in the number on the government dole. Even look inside the workforce – see who’s putting in effort beyond what is required and who is doing as little as possible but still expects the paycheck.
 * Site that shows hourly wage equivalent of payouts in the welfare system by state (as of Sept. 2015): [|Click here]
 * **(3) Greshem’s Law:**
 * Comes from English financier Thomas Gresham who originally developed this law to be applied to monetary policy. When government overvalues one money and undervalues another, the undervalued money will leave the country or disappear into hoards, while the overvalued money will flood into circulation. Throughout history, when inflated paper money flows into the marketplace, real gold and silver coins are removed.
 * Bad money drives out good money just like poor character drives out good character. This happens in the workforce when those who play politics are promoted (because of who they know, not necessarily results) ahead of productive leaders. When poor behaviors are rewarded, the community/company/entity is quickly filled with others exhibiting the same nonproductive activities.
 * Whatever is rewarded will increase and whatever isn’t will decrease.
 * **(4) Law of Diminishing Returns:**
 * This law affirms that to continue after a certain level of performance has been reached, the result will be a decline in effectiveness. An example is fertilizer – helps grow tomatoes – more fertilizer brings more tomatoes – eventually too much will burn the plant.
 * Same goes for society or the workplace. Take education – the more and more people attempted to get the benefits and special privileges of education, the less such people taught themselves and the less education actually took place (you all get the same diploma whether YOU earned it or not).
 * Take our government – most Americans (if not all) agree that government is necessary for several reasons, including keeping us safe. But as government grew and grew and got more and more involved, it became more oppressive. This is the nature of decline in civilizations. This is also part of the cycle of democracy.
 * Look at what all our government has overdone that burden’s people today – welfare was to help those in need, now it’s out of control; regulations were meant to keep businesses from harming people, now it’s tough to be in business or start one; environmental laws were to protect, now we have to depend on foreign nations for energy.
 * **(5) Law of Inertia:**
 * Sir Isaac Newton said an object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion. The longer the current of decline is in motion, the harder it is to change and reverse it.
 * This is the major reason that companies as well as civilizations decline even when they know they’re in decline.
 * This is why it’s difficult to get America under fiscal discipline. We’ve been in a force shift for 100 years and it’s become normal to Americans. Balancing a budget and bringing down the debt means cutting – something many voters scream about.
 * The worse it gets, the more difficult it is to stop or reverse that decline. It’s possible, but it gets tougher and tougher year by year.
 * **Examples of the Five Laws of Decline in America today:**
 * Sturgeon’s Law
 * 90% of those in leadership positions aren’t truly leading – 10% are à not enough votes to pass something. So, you have the 90% crowd making decisions.
 * Bastiat’s Law
 * Politicians learned how to get votes – money talks and get votes à  promising more spending in an area will get that area’s citizens’ votes…example: teacher’s union will endorse the candidate who promises more money for education (as if more money will make me do better or will make you learn better!!!).
 * Greshem’s Law
 * Such politicians are constantly being rewarded with re-election – not all and not everywhere, but enough to keep the current of decline in motion.
 * Law of diminishing returns
 * At first politicians promised to bring more money to where he/she represented. Debt was small and manageable and no one minded…voters started to equate good politician as one who brought in the money over anything else
 * …so, more politicians started promising more programs, with more expenses, with more debt increases…and here we are!
 * …and alls they have to do is print more money to keep the spending…inflates the currency and increases prices, which you all pay, but you can’t afford stuff, so the government says we’ll get it for you and prints more money to pay for that stuff, which further inflates the currency, which further increases prices, which…
 * Law of inertia
 * It’s in motion…doesn’t seem to be slowing up.
 * **Alexander Tytler’s Cycle of Democracy:** bondage à spiritual faith à courage à liberty à abundance à selfishness à complacency à apathy à dependence à back to bondage…
 * Bondage merely means a position of opposition to the conditions that are taking place. At first, colonists didn’t necessarily see themselves as being in bondage. However, as the king/parliament became more oppressive of the rights of the colonists, then the idea of bondage led the colonists through the cycle.
 * The Great Awakening of the 1730s in the colonies was a time of revival and spiritual longing. Jonathon Edwards, considered by many to be America’s greatest mind at the time, led the revival with Biblical sermons and a fire for truth. He learned from George Whitefield and also taught that all were equal in the eyes of God.
 * Spiritual faith leads to great courage because one develops convictions for which sacrifice is deemed worthy. A person who does not stand for something will fall for anything. Think of the true heroes in history. One of the uniting principles that all heroes have is a willingness to stand fr truth and convictions in a world of untruth and apathy. The founding families had great courage to stand for the truth against tyranny and oppression. They did this because they knew the Bible, which says “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
 * The colonial defeat of the British was not a defeat of military as much as a victory over British will. The colonists were fighting for their deeply held principles for which they were willing to risk their life, wealth, and sacred honor. The British were fighting for some extra taxation in one of their many colonies. The American will defeated the British will.
 * The abundance generated by free enterprise and limited government was one of America’s biggest blessings, but also one of its biggest challenges. One of the few standing economies after WWII was that of the U.S. American products flowed to nearly all foreign markets creating the wealthiest society in the world’s history. It takes incredible discipline to remember where blessings come from when abundance is heaped upon further abundance. Over time, people forget the principles that created the liberty because they become too captivated enjoying the fruit of that liberty. Seeing the inequalities in the blessings of individual citizens, an envy of others begins to germinate. People begin wanting equality of results instead of equality of opportunity. The fruit of this unholy thinking is a desire to take the abundance of our brothers and sisters and give it to those “less abounding.”
 * The 1960s were a decade of self masquerading as care of others. Free love, destruction of society’s norms, and a drug culture prevailed in the youth – no moral judgments, do what feels good because “that’s what makes me happy” regardless of the consequences attitude. The 1960s were a rebellion against the plastic society of abundance without the belief in the principles that created the abundance. Instead of returning to the Biblical principles and the God that created the blessings, society entered into the worship of self and self-actualization. Materialism began to take over spiritual truth.
 * Without Biblical foundation the rebellion in America was bound to produce worse fruits than the plastic culture it attempted to replace. With no firm convictions to stand upon, the rebellion dissolved into the pursuit of peace and personal affluence. The loss of Biblical absolutes is bound to lead from convictions to surrender to complacency as no one is sure what the truth is. What is the use of standing for anything if we are not sure that what we are standing for is truth. The 1970s saw this complacency as the youth joined the “system” and pursued peace and affluence with little understanding of the original principles upon which America was founded. This time person saw the continuing push of secularism in schools and society. LBJ’s Great Society increased government-reliance.
 * The 1980s were a brief slowing of the cycle. Under President Reagan America stood its ground against Communism and proved that Communism was a paper tiger. This slowing was short lived because a president can’t educate the public on Biblical truths. This is a function of the church. The 1990s saw a near complete surrender to apathy…the “me” generation underway. With a rejection of absolute values people defined their own values and pursued fulfillment in the myriad of choices available to them. People didn’t care who was running the government as long as they were left alone to pursue their own personal feel good agenda. The government began forming focus groups to ascertain what the people wanted and focused more than ever on giving it to them, surrendering all leadership responsibilities to the wishes of the people. Government began giving the people “stuff” for votes. The 1990s also saw an increase in lawsuits…some necessary, but many frivolous.
 * The 2000s will be remembered as the submission to government largesse. The American citizens depend upon government for their welfare, health care, social security retirement, disability, food, and for many…jobs (bloated bureaucracy). It would be unthinkable for most Americans to live without the direct involvement of our beneficent Big Brother. The price of dependency is submission of our freedoms to the dictates of Big Brother. The old saying of how to boil a frog is coming to pass. Americans are now boiling in our dependency on government.
 * Examples: elections:
 * Candidate A – spiritual truths
 * Candidate B – stuff
 * B will win statewide and definitely nationwide…or is in the best position to win…so A will also promise some stuff.
 * Today???

Clip from 2012 on the growing entitlement mentality in America. [|Click here]

Legalization of Marijuana - good, bad, freedom, or selfishness? media type="youtube" key="U9q233v5weA" width="560" height="315"

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