As a listener of every Martin Luther King speech available to me, I believe that his great power stemmed from the concept of “love your enemies.”

I can’t help but notice the overabundance of editorials stating that Republicans “hate poor people,” and so we should hate them. Supposedly, the Republicans “work for the rich,” so we should envy them. Then the hateful and envious are to demand that the Legislature do something.

Hate and envy are not only harmful to our souls, but also harmful to society. Karl Marx’s “Communist Manifesto” uses the formula of blame, hate, envy and then control. The truth is that love is the most powerful force in the universe. That was not only the message of Martin Luther King, but also of Jesus.

One point that gets overlooked in the MaineCare expansion debate is that there is a difference between giving and taking. Giving is done with love. Taking is done with force. Communism is when the government takes from all the people by force with the idea of creating “income equality.”

History consistently shows that this “income equality” equates to everybody being poor with overbearing government control in their lives. I do not believe the government has to force people to help each other. I do not believe we can make positive changes with the negative forces of hate and envy. I do believe that policies that result in more government taking also cause more poverty. Causing more poverty does not seem like the right thing to do, from my perspective.

I believe that we will see great prosperity when we recognize that we wrestle not with flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Tobey McAfee, Augusta


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.