Soap Box

I sometimes wonder what would have happened had Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. lived and retained the helm of the civil rights movement, this compassionate man who advocated a non-violent approach to civil disobedience and challenged all people, by example, to grab their bootstraps and pull, to get an education and accept responsibility for their own lives.

I believe Dr. King realized that the only way true equality would come was through true racial harmony, a mutual understanding between the factions in America, the breaking down of the walls of fear, doubt and old taboos that drove the staves of separation between us, the realization that, as he so eloquently put it, it is the content of character, not the color of skin that determines the measure of a man.

I believe that Dr. King would have felt truly fulfilled by the election of America's first black president, the success of black businessmen like Herman Cain and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Colin Powell, television mogul Oprah Winfrey, the black coaches and front office personnel in high profile sports professions.

But I believe that Dr. King would have been absolutely appalled at what has happened in the family and social life in much of the black community.

The disregard for education, the unwed pregnancy, the perennial entitlement families, the gangs, the drugs, the black on black violence and the insistence of the so called racial leaders of the day that all the ills facing the African American community are caused by a white majority intent on keeping them pinned down in ghettos and menial jobs.

I believe Dr. King would have promoted the value of getting an education, of keeping the nuclear family together, the gravity of parenthood and the responsibility that goes along with it, the importance of doing the caliber of work that sets one on the path of upward mobility of being a good citizen who vets the political candidates they vote for and refuses to fall into the generational trap of government subsidies.

I don't think he would have had much respect for political correctness and the empty rhetoric that goes along with it, I believe he was a truth seeker who would have looked past the empty promises and deceptive practices of politicians and demanded action instead of words.

I believe he would have held President Obama accountable and questioned his lack of leadership and truthfulness and would have been against an immigration bill that would basically, overnight further depress the job market that so many entry level black workers are dependent on.

Unfortunately many segments of American politics and American society are lacking the kind of bold and capable leadership that can pull the nation together and move it forward. It seems today most leadership roles are more about the leader than the people.  

The recent events in Ferguson, Missouri have shown how short the fuse to the powder keg really is and how the self appointed black leaders seem to be more interested in fanning the flames of unrest than quelling a potentially dangerous situation.

It's really scary to think that there are scores of volatile situations out there and scores of trouble makers who are just waiting to exploit them and the reticence of the powers that be to deal with them in a meaningful way, and most dangerous of all, no sensible and capable leader who is willing to stand up and tell the world that destroying neighborhoods and burning police cars only serve to widen racial division and enforce stereotypes.

Dr. King would have.

When he went to the top of the mountain and looked over into the promised land, I'm sure he did not see the kind of divided nation America has become.

God help us.

What do you think?

Pray for our troops and the peace of Jerusalem.

God Bless America

Charlie Daniels​