Our Threatened Freedom

Is Federal Aid Destroying America

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Political Studies

Lesson: 134-169

Genre: Conversation

Track: 134

Dictation Name: Vol. K - Part 04 - Is Federal Aid Destroying America

Location/Venue: Unknown

Year: 1980’s – 1990’s

[Dr. Rushdoony] Is federal aid destroying America? This is R.J. Rushdoony with a report on our threatened freedom.

About an hour ago, a friend was here who has an all too common problem. He lives in hill country, on a minor country road. There’s only light traffic over that road, mostly by people who live there, and sometimes by people going through to fish or hunt in higher country. The county has decided to widen the road considerably and make a highway out of it. My friend has two and a half acres, he will lose one acre to the highway, and about 3/4th’s of an acre will be rendered useless. Some of the residents did more than a little investigating, and they found that the only authenticated need on that road was that an old and very narrow bridge be widened. At the Board of Supervisor’s meeting they asked that the construction be limited to widening the bridge, and their homes and land be left untouched. The supervisor who answered them agreed that the only need was a wider bridge, but he said we can only qualify for a federal grant for this road widening project. In the process the bridge will be widened, but all of us will pay for an unneeded and costly road project.

Incidents like this are commonplace all over the United States. All too many federal grants in aid are an invitation to unnecessary and costly projects. In the process, all of us are overtaxed, local officials are seduced into new and costly projects, and we are pushed further into national bankruptcy. Moreover, the bankruptcy we are drifting into is both moral and financial.

I said that my friend’s problem is not an unusual one, everywhere I go I find people with like difficulties. If you knew the truth about many of the public works projects in your own neighborhood, you would probably find similar examples of unnecessary work and spending.

Is federal aid destroying America? Not exactly. For a people to be ready to go along with such useless and wasteful projects means that there is already something morally wrong with them. The federal government is simply aiding an already corrupt political system to increase the scope of their corruption. It’s a racket in which all hands are cooperating and guilty.

Meanwhile, there are casualties, the financial stability of the country, and the moral foundations of freedom.

This has been R.J. Rushdoony with a report on our threatened freedom.