Earlier this year, KOMO News did a program called Seattle Is Dying. It looked at the cultural upheaval that’s destroying what used to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. What’s causing the societal breakdown? KOMO News focused on the permissiveness of the local government. In fact, Seattle doesn’t just allow drug addiction and homelessness; it promotes such behavior. Portland, San Francisco and other cities run by so-called progressives are no different. They’re on a mission.
Modern progressivism’s main goal is to get rid of personal responsibility so that the government can control every aspect of our lives. After all, without consequences for our actions, there’s no reason for anyone to restrain their impulses. This means anything goes. In such an environment, it doesn’t take long for people to surrender their freedom for safety. Like Benjamin Franklin said, “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become more corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” Without personal responsibility, there’s no personal freedom.
It’s not incompetence; Seattle’s progressive leadership engineered its homelessness and drug addiction to gain more power. Consider that King County gives out needles to drug users. That’s right, the county’s own website says, “Needle exchange is a disease prevention program for people who use illegal drugs. It provides new sterile syringes in exchange for used ones.” Instead of helping these addicts, the county is allowing them to continue their behavior. By definition, that’s enabling.
Unbelievably, King County is proud that their program “has been successful in keeping the rate of HIV very low among people who inject drugs in King County.” Apparently, it’s a good thing to help people use highly unsafe drugs in a slightly safer manner, or something. Despite King County’s hype, there have been several HIV outbreaks in Seattle. The Seattle Times stated the obvious, noting, “People who are homeless, people who use drugs intravenously, and men who have sex with men are at greater risk of contracting the virus.” Well, all these behaviors are encouraged in Seattle.
By the way, Seattle banned plastic straws because they’re supposedly bad for the environment. At the same time, they hand out syringes, which are often found in parks, playgrounds and near schools. That’s probably not good for the environment. To add to the hypocrisy, King County filed a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, blaming the pharmaceutical company for its syringe problem. You can’t make this stuff up. The county hands out syringes to drug users, the drug users leave the syringes in public places and the county doesn’t blame itself or the drug users for the dangerous litter. It blames a pharmaceutical company which had nothing to do with the problem.
Seattle’s progressive leadership refuses to take responsibility for their actions to set an example. They want us to blame others for our problems because people with a victim mentality are easier to enslave. Such individuals refuse to acknowledge their sinful nature might be the cause of the problem, so they don’t see God as the solution. They refuse to repent; believing the lie that they’re a victim is more comfortable than acknowledging the truth. Society is the problem for making them the way they are and the solution is government intervention.
Here’s the deal. Satan hates you. He wants you to curse God and then die. Naturally, the more influence he has in your life, the easier it is for him to accomplish this. An oppressive government is ideal, but in the meantime, there’s always drugs. Why do you think Seattle has banned straws but hands out syringes? Likewise, why does Seattle have no problem with marijuana but makes it difficult to use tobacco? It seems rather inconsistent, but there’s a reason. Marijuana alters your state of mind and smoking a cig doesn’t. Of course, recreational drug use opens a door for demonic spirits to enter your life.
Unfortunately, if people can enjoy their sinful behavior in comfort, without condemnation, they will accept slavery. Ultimately, progressivism promotes freedom from responsibility because it destroys all other freedoms. Under the guise of empowering victims, the progressive agenda creates dependency. This permissiveness towards sin leads to a gradual progression of government control, to combat the corresponding criminality. It’s all about power. With all due respect to KOMO News, Seattle isn’t dying; it’s being murdered by progressives.