Breathe the Free Air Again

Dear [Your Representative or Senator]:

Let me begin by introducing myself. I am a Citizen of your constituency, concerned for the continued Prosperity of our Republic and the subsequent Prosperity of my fellow Citizens. As such, I argue that we can no longer stand idly by as blind and irresponsible toleration of misdeeds allows certain villains among us to continually act unjustly toward not only fellow Citizens, but to the world at large, also. For is it not unjust to knowingly engage in behavior that has proved to be both self-destructive and destructive to others, and not only some others, but to all others? Already, to be sure, the necessity of action against this injustice should be perfectly evident, but allow the most beautiful argument to persuade all the skeptical ones and perhaps even some among these unjust villains. Furthermore, I ask that you heed the conclusion of the most beautiful argument, which is the course that our Republic must take in defeating this injustice once and for all.

Before beginning the argument proper, the villainy at hand must be known, already having irrefutably established its gravity, and this villainy is the smoking of various poisons with divers instruments of cruelty, whose offense is bounded only by its diffusion into imperceptibility. It is this imperceptibility, however, that is a particular danger of the injustice, for its pollution, both environmental and ethical, is detectable only briefly and then forgotten. The damage then proceeds unseen and unheeded without intentional attention. Truly, this is a behavior exhibited only by villains in darkness, but the villain is here and now exposed. As a Patriotic Citizen of our Republic, I at least cannot stand for the idle allowance of malicious, traitorous, and seditious acts to manifest without inhibition, filling the air with both the substance and spirit of Death. You, being a Patriotic Citizen of our Republic also, must not stand for this either.

Let us now consider one of the greatest Citizens our Republic has ever known, our twenty-sixth president and a noted asthmatic, Theodore Roosevelt. This is one who devoted much to the Conservation of Life and the defiance of death, and as such can prove a strong historical ally to our cause, a cause of all truly Patriotic Citizens of our Republic. This was a man who, after being shot in the chest, proceeded to deliver the two hour or so long speech through whose text the assassin's bullet was brought to a stop. Before that even, this Patriot was willing to personally lead the Rough Riders in a cavalry charge against the Spanish, which nation had offended our Republic sufficiently cause war. Thus the lesser point of Roosevelt's defiance of death is established. Now we turn to the greater point of Roosevelt's Conservation of Life.

Significantly, it was Roosevelt who made Conservation an interest and an establishment of our Republic. Without him, the natural splendor of our country might be but the dream of a shadow of what it is. It is the assurance that such would not be the case, as it is not, that comes from Roosevelt's intense involvement in setting forth authorities, such as the United States Forest Service, to protect Life and its fine and beautiful nature, ensuring simultaneously thereby that our natural resources are put to efficient use, rather than pillaged with wanton disregard for the complexity of nature whence they are extracted. This was a balanced and rational policy, that of a brilliant and erudite individual, the likes of which are rarely seen in the course of our or any history. It is on similar grounds, following the lead of the great Nobel laureate and President Roosevelt, whose face graces Mt. Rushmore, that we might trust that our policy on this matter is a just one. For Roosevelt would never, knowing what we do about the matter, allow our Citizens do harm to themselves, to their fellows, and to all the world around.

Now we may recall the diplomatic adage of Theodore Roosevelt, "Speak softly, and carry a big stick." This is precisely how we just Citizens must treat the unjust traitors, who ought not be considered Citizens at all. It is my proposal that we Citizens be allowed to deal with offenders with both a soft voice and a big stick. Encountering an act of villainy, with the lead of a soft voice, cessation must be requested according to the most beautiful argument. Failure to cease this offense should warrant a single blow to the head with a big stick. This reverts the degree of harm maximally inward and cuts short the outward damage, and the bulk of the harm, at least in the short term, is not unjustly self-inflicted, but inflicted by another for the sake of justice. A better plan could hardly be conceived, and if one exists, it cannot be far from this one.

In conclusion, I realize that in our Republic, we hold to majority rule with minority rights, and surely the majority is not continually guilty of the villainy at hand. In this rule, however, majority rights cannot be neglected in favor of minority rights, for when minority rights encroach upon those of the majority, majority rule must be employed to grant the majority right over that of the minority. This is exactly the case in this matter. The minority has no right to inhale the substance of death, puffing outward into Nature that same deathly substance, depriving the majority of its right to breathe freely. If the very air is not free, how can we call our Republic free? For the preservation of Just Citizenship, I implore you to pursue the just according to the most beautiful argument. For if some are allowed to harm more without retribution, how far are we from greater manifestations of wanton and thoughtless cruelty?

Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]