Tonight I had the privilege of hearing Lt. Col. Allen West speak at the Ahavath Torah Congregation in Stoughton, Massachusetts. The subject of his speech was America’s past promises and current realities. Below are some of his observations:

Col. West reminded us that Massachusetts was the birthplace of America. The spirit that gave birth to those documents was born in Massachusetts. The promise was one of limited government whose power rested in the individual. That promise has allowed America to exist for 237 years. The promise included the individual freedom to participate in the free market. Part of the promises of the past was faith in something bigger than ourselves.

We need to protect the promises of the past. In our own homes we need to practice fiscal responsibility. We need to demand that our government also practice fiscal responsibility.

Booker T. Washington described the three pillars of society as education, entrepreneurship, and self-reliance. Right now our children are not receiving the education they need to prepare them to be responsible citizens, the government is taking more control of the economy, and the government is encouraging dependency by actively recruiting people to sign up for food stamps. Our current government is destroying the promises of the past.

We need to bring America back to the promises of the past.  Col. West ended his planned remarks with a question all of us need to ask ourselves, “What did I do today to insure that my children and grandchildren will have a greater America?”

During the question and answer period after his remarks, Col. West pointed out the need for a select committee to investigate Benghazi. He suggested that we tell our Congressmen to support House Resolution 36. He also pointed out some of the areas that we as Americans need to challenge the current politicians. He mentioned that school choice is the number one issue in the black community, yet one of the first things President Obama did after taking office was to shut down a school choice program in Washington, D.C. As Americans who care about our country, we need to learn to frame the issues in a way that shows how those issues impact people’s lives every day. Abstract numbers are not nearly as effective in getting out a candidate’s message as pointing out to a person how something the government is doing directly impacts their standard of living.