Thread by @ThyConsigliori

John Minford #SunTzu 6: 19-23 "By reinforcing his vanguard, he weakens his rear; by reinforcing his rear, he weakens his vanguard. By reinforcing his right flank, he weakens his left; by reinforcing his left, he weakens his right. By reinforcing every part, he weakens every part.

Today's focus is on #SunTzu 6: 21 "By reinforcing his right flank, he weakens his left;"

How did we end up with left and right wings in politics? We might go back to the French Revolution where I'm pretty sure it all started. We might review the history of our parties dating back to Whigs and Tories, whoever they were. Rather, let's look at the constitution.

Today's political left wishes to establish the principle of a living constitution. It breathes in and out. It changes and adapts. We can use it this way or that, as we wish. Thing of your own constitution, your health and wellbeing as you age and change.

The political right leans toward something called "originalism." Justice Antonin Scalia was its great proponent. He believed we have the ability to guess as well as we can by truly serious study. We guess what the founders originally intended, to the best of our limited ability.

It is often commented that @realDonaldTrump stunned the conservative world by publishing his list of Supreme Court candidates during his campaign and establishing originalism as the most important criterion. The left has yet to comprehend the significance of this.

Don't get me wrong. They're shaking in their boots. The idea that one, or hell's bells two more originalists might be added to the bench sends shivers up and down their collective body. What they don't understand is the power and reach of conservatism in this matter.

Every old school Republican squints, clenches teeth and is more than just a bit embarrassed by @POTUS. When called by pollers, they happily speak of their likely defection. Then, in a year and a half when they're in the voting booth...originalism strikes again.

Oh, how many times have I said it? Please, please believe no polls. As the 2020 election draws closer, we'll discuss the data again, to be sure. Right now, simply believe NOTHING, NOT ONE THING you hear about leans this way or that. It's all absolute malarkey.

To date, I have never seen a single poll discuss the position of originalism in the public's purview. I assure you, the left does NOT want such a poll to be published, and most especially not if it was a fair, accurate poll.

Letting go of constitutional debate for now, let's drop down to a deeper level of principles. There is a great war in our society, greater now than ever before. We fight, on the right, for principles and rights, tightly defined. The left fights for benefits and advantages, gains.

It is a great goal of the left to create more and more new rights. Consider the right to healthcare. What an abomination, forgive me, an Obamanation. There is a great lie in all this. The "rights" the left longs for are, in reality, wrongs. It is wrong to force a purchase.

On the right, we tight constitutionalists, originalists, pay great honor to our bill of rights, 10 specific, critical statements. But we reduce rights to just four, which I've often listed: life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, property, only these. We seek no others.

Allow me just one example. In the 1st amendment, we are ensured of free speech, freedom of worship. The one principle of liberty, alone, would cover both of those rights if we were clear on the relationship between general principles and specific applications.

Ever so wisely, and cynically, the Anti-Federalists feared the mighty central government created by the constitution and demanded specific statements of limitations on its power. That's how we got the bill of rights. Yet, all 10 amendments reduce to the four basic rights.

Returning to Master Sun's phenomenal analysis, he is right. If you strengthen your right flank, principles, rights and obligations, you will reduce the advantages and benefits engendered by a mighty government. This is a war. Conservatism seeks to take less, give less.

We have to slice this another quite obvious way. The collective vs the individual. The left believes in us. The right believes in me. We do indeed weaken the collective us when we strengthen the individual me. On the right we say, thank heaven! We don't like the mighty us.

Funny thing, in 1776, Adam Smith published a book that discusses how the nation itself is made wealthy by the very act of individuals asserting their own best interest in free negotiations, unencumbered by government power. Imagine that. Freedom apparently works.

Every innovative right the left creates reduces freedom. Free college? Where does the money come from? Free healthcare? Beware the rationing and please, make sure you don't grow so old that your future taxes are less than the cost of your future healthcare. Stop that. Now.

Master Sun teaches us clearly, there is no such thing as reinforcing the right flank, without weakening the left. I honestly can't imagine where he'd be politically, today. I, however, make my stand on the right. And I, absolutely, intend to weaken the left.

131 verses completed, 291 to go.

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