Broke: The Plan to Restore Our Trust, Truth and Treasure Book

Another book in true Glenn Beck form. Once again, he's fighting to save America.

The book is written in a somewhat 'textbook' format, with lots of little diagrams and inserts on each and every page to better illustrate and provide little bits of info, quotes, and facts on related topics.

The first part of the book focuses on the American PAST, the Founding Father's intent, various presidents, our Constitution and Declaration of Independence, etc.
Then he discusses the ever-growing financial debt, budget, pay-as-you-go spending, and the cover-up of the sorry state of the federal government's finances.
Finally, THE PLAN, his suggested EIGHT steps that must be be followed to lead us on our way out of this national decline. He discussed our rights as man, faith in America, separating federal from state governments, etc.

He maintains that the title of the book "Broke" is not simply a reference to our financial situation; it's a comment on our entire society.
Quite a lot of effort on his part. If only our lawmakers and politicians spent this much thought on the state of our country!


Favorite Quotes:

"Why would we think our spiritual neglect today will get some sort of free pass from God when no other generation throughout history ever has? IF you believe, as I do, that the Founders' work in creating this nation was divinely inspired, then you should also believe that God is not going to look kindly at the dismantling of what He created.
If we want a different result than other civilizations, then we need to make different decisions. Virtue must replace vanity; godliness must replace greed and gluttony, fear and trembling must replace power and arrogance.
God set this nation apart and God expects us to take care of the gifts we are given. But don't expect to see punishment through fire or flood if we don't---God allows us to reap the rewards or suffer the consequences of our own decisions. To God, none of us is too big to fail.
The path toward healing does not begin with some unnamed hedonistic progressive activist---it begins with you.
Now, at this point you may be saying to yourself: 'This is a cool story and all, Glenn, but isn't this a book about fixing our economy?'
Yep, it sure is---but our financial renewal cannot begin without a spiritual renewal. We are broke because we are broken. We are like a ship lost at sea, bobbing in the waves and moving in whatever direction the prevailing wind blows. To reach our destination we need a North Star---a fixed object that can lead us in the right direction.
And that North Star is God." p 248

"State governments were free to put as much or as little separation between themselves and religion as they desired---it was only the power of the federal government to mandate a 'national' religion that concerned the Founders.
So where does the famous 'separation of church and state' line come from? It was actually in a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptists in 1802. The Baptists, concerned that the government might interfere with their right to worship, had appealed to Jefferson for advice.
In assuring them that their rights were as unalienable as the rights of any religion, he wrote the Baptists and told them that the first amendment ensured their freedom and that there was a 'wall of separation between church and state'...that would prevent the government from ever interfering in their right to worship the way they pleased.
Like many of the words of our Founders, the meaning of Jefferson's letter has been completely changed over the years to suit the agenda of those who would prefer that he was talking about religion infiltrating our government instead of the other way around." p 251-2

" We all know that famous phrase from the Declaration of Independence, but it's funny how, over the years, people have lost sight of four important things about it:
1. We are 'created' equal. We don't live as equals or die as equals; we are only created that way.
2. We have the right to 'pursue' happiness, not a guarantee of it.
3. Our rights are 'unalienable' which means they cannot be taken or given away by any man or government.
4. Only five words were capitalized: Creator, Rights, Life, Liberty, and Happiness. I don't believe that was an accident---the Founders were ensuring that everyone understood that those words deserved a common level of respect. Our rights come from our Creator, and those Rights provide us with access to Life and Liberty and the ability to pursue Happiness. " p 219-20

" Ayn Rand once pointed out another great way to distinguish whether a right is in accordance with the constitution: simply ask the question 'at whose expense?' after the right is proposed. For example, try asking that question after someone proposes a universal right to a college education. 'At whose expense?' Asking that same question about individual rights yields an entirely different answer. Your right to life and liberty does not come at the expense (financial or otherwise) of anyone else." p 225-6

"Those who push so-called positive rights are really pushing the idea that people have a right to things like health care, welfare, affordable housing, etc. In other words, the things that government attempts to provide through entitlement programs. The reason they use the term 'positive rights' is that it implies the opposite 'negative'. What they don't tell you is that negative rights are also commonly known by another name: 'natural rights.' Those are the unalienable rights that come directly from the Creator. Positive rights, on the other hand, don't come from your Creator, they come from man and, consequently, can be taken away by man.
Take government-mandated health care, for example. That is clearly a positive right because it immediately fails the Ayn Rand test (...at whose expense?) But, there's another big difference between positive and natural rights: responsibilities. Positive rights don't demand any. Natural rights, like the right to life, for example, imply that we all have a duty upon us to not take that right away from someone else." p 228