Introduction: Freedom and the Pursuit of Happiness

Thanks to an ever-expanding, and misrepresentation of, the meaning of “pursuit of happiness”, our government has systematically deprived too many of our most vulnerable citizens this vital right.

Upon the founding of the United States of America, the framers of the constitution recognized and identified a very limited set of inalienable rights: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Furthermore, they charged the U.S. government with an equally simple, and limited, task: to defend these inalienable rights of our citizens against outside forces that would attempt to deprive us of them.

No doubt over the last 225 years, our government has done an excellent job of protecting our lives and liberties. However, thanks to an ever-expanding, and misrepresentation of, the meaning of “pursuit of happiness”, our government has systematically deprived too many of our most vulnerable citizens this vital right.

To most of us, the emphasis falls naturally on “pursuit”. We understand that the constitution guarantees that all of us have a right to the pursuit of happiness. It does not guarantee that we will achieve it. American citizens were once expected to build their lives on their own volition, their own motivation, and their own desires. Families conquered Nature to serve their needs, and built a great nation along the way. As long as you did not interfere with the rights of another man, you were not expected to answer to anyone. You were left alone to pursue your happiness. If something got in the way, you either overcame it, or succumbed to it. The government was not available to bail you out for bad decisions, or bad luck.

Over the 20^th century, however, politicians and elected officials shifted the emphasis to “happiness”, leading many Americans to believe that happiness itself is a right, to the detriment of the original intent of our Founding Fathers. Today, our founding fathers would be shocked and dismayed to see how the very means of happiness- wealth derived from productivity- is being deprived of the many to secure the happiness of the few, via the vast welfare state and entitlements.

Too many Americans each year fall below the poverty line because their taxes are raised, local fees escalate, and prices on goods skyrocket because our Government needs the money to make sure others are happy with healthcare, good schools, and “fair” wages. These Americans are being denied their right to pursue happiness while others live off of their hard-earned income.

It’s time for our Government to stop protecting our right to happiness, and start taking seriously its task of securing our right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.