"We Own This Country!"

Let's talk about ownership.  Clint Eastwood spoke at the 2012 Republican National Convention on August 30th and said, "We own this country."  It threw a switch in my brain.  What does it mean to own something?  What are the ramifications if I do?  Why is it important?  Does God think it's important?  Did the Framers of our country think it was important?

ownership
noun
1.  The state of being an owner.
2.  The legal right of possession; proprietorship.

The legal right of possession.  That means if I have a legal right to something, I do in fact own it, i.e., have responsibility for it, may take pride or despair in it, must keep it up, repair it, cherish it, clean it, care for it, show it off and protect it.  That's the meaning and the ramification all rolled into one.

Why is it important?  Well, because God does think it is important.  He is the one Who commanded-- not just suggested-- "do not steal," "do not covet."  He thus implies that some things belong to someone and not to you, and that some things belong to you and not to someone else.  How kind of God!  He is protecting our property rights!

Speaking of property rights, the Framers also thought it was important.  I read an article this morning that quoted John Adams as writing the following: 
"The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it anarchy and tyranny commence. If “Thou shalt not covet,” and “Thou shalt not steal,” were not commandments of heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free." 

Madison added, 
"Government is instituted to protect property of every sort; as well that which lies in the various rights of individuals, as that which the term particularly expresses. This being the end of government, that alone is a just government, which impartially secures to every man, whatever is his own."

Property rights are mentioned or implied in Amendments two, three, four, five, seven and eight of the Constitution, over and above (according to the above-mentioned article), " “religion,” “speech,” “press,” “privacy,” “newspaper,” “vote” (by citizens), or “suffrage,”".


So, the million-dollar question: do I act like an owner of this country?  Do I take responsibility for it?  Do I take pride in it?  Do I keep it up, repairing and caring for it, cleaning it up, protecting it, cherishing it and showing it off?  Good parents tell you you can't have a puppy till you can prove you can take care of a frog or your room or your bike.  Because you want that puppy you learn what it means to be an owner, or, more accurately, a responsible adult.  Growing up in the Me Generation I feel like I'm one of a million "frog neglectors."  I want to learn how to be trusted with that puppy.

I'm going to start by voting for a "business man" and not a "an attorney," and by getting off the computer and cleaning the house. 

Because it's mine.