A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
But if that step is in the wrong direction, you might end up 2,000 miles from your goal.
Many believe America took a step in the wrong direction long ago–about the time “progressivism” became popular among political, business, and academic elites in the early 20th century.
If progressivism was a step in the wrong direction, it’s led us at least 2,000 miles from our target.
Modern progressives tell us we need to keep going in the wrong direction and we’ll eventually find what we’re looking for. They seem to forget Seneca’s line:
When you are travelling on a road, there must be an end; but when astray, your wanderings are limitless.
Modern conservatives and libertarians realize that we’re off course, that we’re moving away from the target, and that continuing to wander astray will lead us further from the goal.
But some conservatives and libertarians seem lost, too. They want to wait for a miracle that transports them back to the starting point to begin the journey anew. Or, better yet, they hope to be transported immediately to the target.
The journey home–to the starting point with continuing service to the goal–begins, like the original journey, with a single step. Continuing to wander is idiotic. Waiting for a miracle is stupid.
Wise people just turn and start walking, one step at a time.