Recently, a stimulus package was proposed and passed by congress.  This package was designed to create more jobs to jump start the economy.

This package has been met with much criticism from people who believe that the government is unnecessarily spending tax payer’s money.

As I contemplate this debate, I reflect on the Louisiana Purchase.  This purchase doubled the size of the United States giving us over 827000 square miles of land (1).  The territory purchased extended from New Orleans to modern day Montana.

Although few people today would call this purchase  a mistake,  at the time,  it was considered  unconstitutional by critics who argued that the president had no right to purchase land without the consent of the senate.   However, Jefferson justified this action by saying, “It is the case of a guardian, investing the money of his ward in purchasing an important adjacent territory; and saying to him, when of age, I did this for your good.” (2)

Through out history, our country has dealt with constitutional dilemmas.  How much power should the government exercise in governing?  We at politiv

ote believe that as citizens, we should not come to think of ourselves as wards of a benevolent government who is acting for our benefit.  It is our right and, moreover, our duty to examine critically the actions of our government.  Failure to do this can lead to a dictatorship.  As citizens, if we allow ourselves to sink into apathy, it will be much easier for the government to rule unopposed.  As mentioned before, the Louisiana Purchase turned out to benefit our nation, and this shows that in many cases, the actions of the government can in fact contribute to the nation’s well being.  We should also remember that government actions which seem ill advised may over time be beneficial.  For this reason, we should be careful and prudent in weighing the possible benefits and costs of our government’s actions.

Resources

1) http://www.nps.gov/

2) http://www.monticello.org/