An unwise appointment

I wish to express my embarrassment that Princeton University is providing a podium from which a self-proclaimed communist, Van Jones, can pour his “destroy America because it is evil” message into malleable young minds (Notebook, March 17). Unfortunately, most of them have never been taught enough American history to see through the propaganda. They have never been told about the protections from big government that the writers of the Constitution painstakingly built into the document, and the reasons for them.

Two generations of students have not been taught what the founders understood about government and human nature. First of all, that government is the natural enemy of the people and that it must be kept under restraint. Second, you cannot trust people with great power; only the law can be relied upon. Third, that the source of America’s power is the opportunity for a law-abiding citizen to prosper or fail without government interference. This is enshrined in our unique Bill of Rights and has lured the best and brightest from all over the world to come to our shores and become Americans

We are watching the systematic destruction of our liberty and the free enterprise system, on which it depends. This is a proven path to totalitarianism. Labels are meaningless. Whether you call it liberal, progressive, socialist, communist, fascist, Nazi, or any other convenient designation, the end result is the same.

The tools include control of education and the press, forcing people into dependency, creating economic chaos, debauching the currency, setting groups against each other and encouraging class warfare, concentration of government power, lies, propaganda, intimidation, and, finally, installing judges who will declare it all legal. After Marxism fails, as it always has, and living standards are lowered dramatically, most of the people become willing to accept a strong leader to clean up the mess, and to surrender any remaining freedom in the process.

This was successfully used by Lenin and Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, Mao, Castro, and now Chavez in Venezuela. We must not allow our imperial president and his tame Congress to follow in their footsteps. Now we are only one Supreme Court justice and one congressional election away from losing all that has worked so well for over 200 years.

I do not consider this faculty appointment to represent “Princeton in the nation’s service.”