As Prince Charles and his wife Camilla were on their way to the theater, their car was attacked by student protesters in London. A group of about twenty students surrounded the car, hitting it with fists, sticks, bottles, and paint. A window was broken in the vehicle, but the couple was not harmed.
While London police are investigating how this sort of security breach could have happened, it is important that we understand why it happened. Why was this group of students so upset that they would carry out this brazen attack against the Prince and his wife?
Tuition increases.
Yep, that’s it. They were protesting the government’s recent decision to raise the cost of college tuition. Granted, the increase tripled the cost of college for the students. No one having to pay for college would be happy with this. But responding with violent protests? That’s how these students chose to respond. Unfortunately, this is not the first time for something like this to happen. Recently we have seen the news of riots in France and Greece in response to the government finding ways to reduce spending.
How does this affect us in the United States?
The United States is growing deeper in debt while the federal government continues its wasteful spending, expansion of bureaucracy, and unsustainable entitlement programs. Enough Americans have noticed this that a good number of fiscal conservatives were elected to Congress last month with the mandate to get spending and the federal budget under control.
What does that have to do with the attack by student protesters on Prince Charles’ car? The reason why the cost of tuition was being raised in the U.K. was because government spending was out of control and cuts had to be made (just as the case is here in the U.S.).
So if the newly elected Congress is serious about reducing spending, cuts will have to be made here, too. Many of these cuts may not be very popular, but they will be necessary to help preserve the future for our children and grandchildren. We will have to wait and see if Congress will actually take the steps necessary to get our spending and debt under control.
But what if they do? What if Congress actually cuts spending significantly, reducing the funding for entitlements or eliminating certain programs altogether? Will we see the same type of violent protests and riots that have taken place in Europe?
No one knows the answer to that question. Only time will tell. But when people come to believe that they are “entitled” to receive education, health care, retirement income, etc., from the government, and the government stops providing these things (either by choosing to make spending cuts or by simply not having any more money) the temptation will exist for people to get angry and possibly to become violent (and there are certainly people willing to fan the flames of civil unrest).
We need to remember that all we are entitled to is life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These rights are not given by government, but by God. Government’s job is to preserve these rights. It is our responsibility, as individuals, to use the freedom that we have and the blessings we have been given to provide for ourselves and help others who cannot help themselves.
The other option is to make government responsible for our care and well-being. Many people are choosing this option. But remember: government cannot give unless it first takes, for government has nothing of its own to give. We can let the government take care of us, but not without being willing to surrender our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
So, spending cuts are likely coming. How will we respond? Anger? Protests? Violence? Riots? Or will we use our freedom to provide for our own and help others? I hope that the American people learn a lesson from these events in Europe rather than repeating their mistakes.
