George Orwell was so right

I read with amusement the Sacramento Bee editorial in the Jan. 8 paper (“Sessions should butt out of marijuana enforcement”) because it reminded me how prescient George Orwell was in penning the novel “1984” back in 1949.

For the last 70 years the Democratic Party has attacked the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution because it reserves to the people and the various states all rights not expressly reserved to the federal government. Its weapon of choice has been to invoke the Interstate Commerce Clause whenever it has wanted to prevent any state or states from adopting legislation which does not comport with the party agenda, arguing that virtually every aspect of everyday life affects interstate commerce, and thus should be controlled by Washington. Now, since Washington is not doing what the Democrats want, the party has embraced states’ rights with the fervor of the new convert.

Meanwhile, the Republicans profess to honor the 10th Amendment but continually pass legislation that expands the power of the federal government (e.g., No Child Left Behind) to the detriment of the rights of the states.

Conclusion: Orwell was right on with his message, but wrong on the timing. He should have titled the book “2018.”

This story was originally published January 24, 2018 at 8:19 PM with the headline "George Orwell was so right."