An out-of-control federal government is sowing chaos across the nation in every aspect of our lives with inane policies and utter incompetence. Americans are on the verge of a national anxiety attack because it appears no one can stop the madness..

Democrats continue to disregard the will of the people and are doubling down on their party's extreme progressive policies. Republicans resist, but aside from being in the minority, they are not particularly committed, nor fierce – plus too many are ambivalent about big government, and the GOP is hobbled by enough traitors to save Speaker Nancy Pelosi from her growing weakness. The only real obstacle to total socialist collapse is West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who is simply exploiting his pivotal position to make himself the most powerful politician in Washington.

Amid all this turmoil is the frightening prospect that we are losing freedom – and arguably we have already lost too many liberties. Our ability to provide for our families is also threatened with skyrocketing inflation that is substantially eroding purchasing power, and vaccine mandates are forcing workers out of their jobs solely on the whims of corrupt bureaucrats wielding flimsy science to persecute any who refuse to conform to unconstitutional government edicts.

In what is supposed to be a nation of laws, justice has become elusive and even seemingly impossible. Thousands of ANTIFA and BLM thugs were never prosecuted last summer, and most were immediately released, if they were even charged. They got away with untold violence and billions of dollars in vandalism. While crime generally is spiraling out of control, Socialist Democrats are still trying to defund and impede law enforcement. Although Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty last Friday after a ridiculous witch hunt, our justice system is failing. We have not only lost safety and security in our communities, but even worse: our government withholds justice – they won’t even pursue it.

Our First Amendment rights have been severely damaged. We have, to a disturbing degree, lost our right to express our opinions. Big Tech and social media ruthlessly censor any American who dissents from approved government propaganda. Twitter even banned President Trump, so average Americans who think for themselves are easy fodder. If you post anything contrary to leftist orthodoxy, Big Brother will at least mark your post with a warning, if not delete it or even ban you.

Our rights to assemble or have our grievances redressed are under assault. Concerned parents who have challenged government schools for indoctrinating our children with hateful Marxist “Critical Race Theory” or militant LGBTQ+ dogma have found themselves intimidated by the FBI and designated domestic terrorists. Our First Amendment rights are hanging by a thin thread.

Our Second Amendment rights are under constant siege by a rogue government propelled by insane leftists determined to disarm a free people. Guns and law abiding citizens are routinely blamed for every vile act of violence, while the criminals run amok.

Our personal privacy has been obliterated by a crazy crusade to eradicate the Chinese virus. Under the guise of public health, the government has lied about the origins of COVID-19, withheld practical treatments for it, and misrepresented vaccine effectiveness and safety. Not only is the government insisting you reveal your healthcare status, they are mandating Americans submit to an experimental vaccine or lose their job or be ostracized.

Government is also dictating morality, or more precisely immorality. It demands Americans accept whatever depravity the LGBTQ+ movement insists upon. Leftist bureaucrats are sinisterly slipping homosexuality and transgender nonsense into government schools. If you reject these absurd notions, the government questions your beliefs and motivation. Make no mistake, these efforts are targeting Christianity, the tenets of which are being outlawed as hate speech. We are losing our right to freedom of religion.

While many Americans are hanging on, hoping Democrats will be evicted from power in 2022, we are surely watching the dismantling of our Constitutional Republic. Whether American freedom survives is, at this moment, very much in question. We have already lost many rights, with the remaining rights under attack.

Americans may lose it all, but the Good News remains. The Gospel of Jesus Christ cannot be destroyed. Even under total oppression, the truth of the Bible will survive. Over the past half century, we have kicked God out of our schools and generally banished Him from the public square, but the Lord is still with us – we only need to turn back to Him.

Our government is drunk with power and the American people are disoriented as our traditional values have been maligned and undermined. But perhaps like an addict, we as nation will have to hit rock bottom in order to realize what we have lost. This Thanksgiving – which will cost 14% more than last year – it may seem we have little to be thankful for, but we in fact have much. Our founders gave us a timeless framework for freedom and God created us to be free, but most important, God is still in control. We can lose all our rights in this world, but Jesus Christ has already provided for our salvation. The Good News offers hope for eternity, but the good news here is that if we as a people and country turn back to God, all our blessings of liberty will return. Happy Thanksgiving! In God we trust!

“Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:7).

Pete Riehm is the host of Common Sense Radio heard 8 pm every Thursday on FMTalk106.5 or streaming at fmtalk1065.com. Email him at peteriehm@bellsouth.net or on MEWE @PeteRiehm or read all his columns at http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/riehm