"But the glory of the present is to make the Future
free. . .
We love our land for what she is and what she is to
be."
"...and
what she is to be." Thoughtful words from "America For Me" written
by Henry van Dyke (1852-1933) early in the 20th century. They stick
in my mind because I had to memorize the whole poem for a patriotic school
program many years ago. It wasn't all that difficult because there
was a lilt to it that fits comfortably in the memory,
"Oh, it's home again, and home again, America for me!
I want a ship that's westward bound to plow the rolling sea
To the blessed Land of Room Enough beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of
stars."
Pretty corny by today's
standards. But there was a time long ago when school children
memorized lots of patriotic poems and got many an earful of patriotic
speeches on the 4th of July, Armistice Day, and other patriotic
holidays. Politicians with bullhorn voices would wax poetic about
this great land of ours and the need to forever defend it "for
posterity." There appeared to be a lot of interest in what the
future held, and speeches seemed to contain a kind of envy for the
wonderful world posterity would inherit thanks to the hard work and
sacrifices of the present generation.
Well, that script certainly
changed! In 1976 Professor Henry Steele Commager noticed that
posterity had become almost entirely neglected. He noted that Thomas
Jefferson believed no generation had a right to impose its debts on future
generations, and quoted Henry Clay who said the Constitution "was
made not merely for the generation that then existed, but for posterity -
unlimited, undefined, endless, perpetual posterity." Those ideas have long since flown out the window.
By the time the
United States celebrated the bicentennial of the Declaration of
Independence the nation no longer felt any genuine obligation to
posterity. Politicians would occasionally remark that Social
Security was sound for a few more decades, but there were no qualms about piling up
enormous debt that would have to be met by future
generations. When Professor Commager expressed his concern in 1976
the federal debt was $577 billion. On November 21st, 2006, it was
$8.613 trillion! This does not include the un-funded
liabilities of the federal government which must be paid by taxpayers in
the future; our unsuspecting posterity.
So, how did citizens of the
present acquire permission to run up bills to satisfy their current wants
and send the tab far into the future for today's children and the unborn
to pay? Individually, we can not do that. One cannot, for
instance, borrow large amounts of money and force his or her descendants
to be personally liable for that debt. Unpaid debt will be
subtracted from the assets of one's estate, which will have a negative
effect on the proceeds going to immediate heirs, but one's personal debt
does not linger beyond the probate court. If the estate can't pay it
the creditors must absorb it.
Collectively, however, we have
learned to live the good life now and send the bill to posterity.
This abuse of future generations is far worse than it was when Professor
Commager remarked on it in 1976. Children of today have not yet
discovered the low blow they have been given. They cannot perceive
how a staggering debt will force upon them a standard of life that is
inferior to what the present generation enjoys. And the present
generation doesn't care. In fact, it presumes that the government
will always produce money from somewhere to keep the economy
humming. Not many people believe the Great Cornucopia in
Washington, D.C. will ever run dry. Deep in their hearts they
believe the mightiest nation the world has ever seen will never go
broke. They may know about the famous collapses of mighty empires of
the past but "That was then. We're too clever to let that happen
today!"
There is one segment of the population
that often tucks the word "posterity" into its writings. Environmentalists. Arthur Coulston, co-founder of Energy
Action, puts it this way:
"It is self-evident that in a
democratic political system the short-term interests of the present
generation can pose a threat to the long-term interests of their
posterity. Without a systematic or constitutional means of balancing
potentially conflicting interests, posterity is represented only as a
tenuous secondary interest of a handful of citizens who must balance and
blend their representation of future interests with their own present
interests."
Mr. Coulston's remarks have not ignited a
great deal of sympathy for posterity. The political system is not
operating for the benefit of the young and unborn. In fact, it is
sending them out of colleges and universities with heavy personal debts
strapped to their backs - chiefly loans for their education - and
they have been taught that debt doesn't really matter because in time
inflation will make the debt load less burdensome. It has worked
that way for more than sixty years. Why would it ever stop?
We sing our old refrain: No
inflation in the history of human kind has ever not stopped.
And when it does the economic landscape will undergo a massive
change. Our posterity will notice they have been made indentured
servants to the national debt accumulated by their forebears. And
they won't like it.
* * * * * * *
Epilog
(Reporter
to passerby) "Ma'am, a survey question: Are you concerned
about the financial
burdens society is placing on posterity?"
(Passerby)
"Heavens, no! Posterity has never done a damned thing for
ME!"
(To 2nd passerby)
"Sir, what about the financial burdens society places on posterity?"
(Man)
"Nobody should put a burden on prosperity, especially
government.
Government should guarantee our prosperity."
(Reporter)
"No, we're talking about POSTERITY."
(Man)
"Oh. Umm....what's a posterity?
