The Personal Website of Mark W. Dawson

Grandiloquent Statements

Grandiloquent statements, lofty in style and puffed up with vanity, are a staple of politicians, commentators, and activists. In an attempt to propagandize and spur their supporters into action, these statements are often bereft of practical goals or ends that are obtainable. Indeed, these grandiloquent statements often provoke bitter disputations that divide Americans. They often have an attitude of intellectual and moral superiority that postures their opponents as intellectually deficient or morally injudicious.

Grandiloquent statements in politics often encounter resistance from self-interests and special interests, which twist or thwart the objective of the statement. Grandiloquent statements by activists and commentators often muddle understanding of the objectives. Grandiloquent statements often do not consider the impacts, repercussions, and "The Law of Unintended Consequences" of their objectives. As such, they are doomed to failure, and in the attempts to achieve their objectives, they often wreak havoc on America and the world.

Grandiloquent statements in politics and activism often do not account for human nature. They often appeal to the altruistic side of a person or a group but do not account for the self-interest or special interests actions and decisions of persons or groups. Another impact of grandiloquent statements is that the people who believe in the objectives of the grandiloquent statements often believe that they have the moral justification to impose their beliefs on others. This often results in the violation of the "Natural, Human, and Civil Rights" of those persons who do not share their beliefs. In doing so, they also assume that it is possible for human nature to be molded into what they believe is for the better. They have not learned from history that attempting to impose a belief or mold human nature often results in despotism and dictatorial governance.

When these grandiloquent statements are made by Presidents, they often cling to them despite objections and opposition to these grandiloquent statements. Consequently, they are often unwilling to negotiate with their opponents to achieve practicable and mutually agreeable compromises. When these grandiloquent statements are made by politicians, they often are for electioneering purposes without an underlying conviction, and when they are made by activists and commentators, they often have convictions without proper reasoning.

Historically, this is amply demonstrated by President Woodrow Wilson's grandiloquent statements about Progressivism and World War I. President Wilson was every bit the College President (Princeton) he once was. Certain that his beliefs were correct, he projected an attitude of intellectual and moral superiority. He often surrounded himself with worshipers and sycophants and paid little heed to anyone who would disagree with him. He often had a condescending and arrogant attitude toward those that disagreed with him, and he often publicly and privately disparaged his opponents. He could also be vindictive toward his opponents and attempt to demolish them. He was more prone to rulership than leadership, and he often lectured rather than discussed issues and concerns. He also believed that his grandiloquent statements were sufficient to change people’s minds.

President Wilson was a committed Progressive. He believed that Progressive ideology superseded the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and that the United States Constitution was outdated and needed to be fundamentally transformed to accommodate his Progressive ideas (which President Wilson admitted in his many speeches and writings). He utilized grandiloquent statements to advocate and implement his Progressive ideology and Ideas on America, believing that his Progressive ideology and Ideas were the only ideology and ideas that were appropriate for the future of America and the world. In doing so, he ignored the wisdom of our Founding Fathers and others on Natural Rights and the role of government in preserving these Natural Rights in his attempts to fundamentally transform America.

Regrettably, much of this Progressive ideology is baked into modern governance in America, which has been poignantly pointed out in an article by Ronald Pestritto, “Woodrow Wilson: Godfather of Liberalism”, which illuminates the Progressive/Liberal ideology of governance.  

President Wilson’s three grandest grandiloquent statements about World War I were made in three separate speeches. In his speech in New York on September 27, 1918, he espoused five points that represented his Administration’s interpretation of its own duty with regard to peace. In a January 8, 1918 speech on war aims and peace terms, which President Wilson gave to the United States Congress, he espoused Fourteen Points, which were a statement of his principles for peace which he regarded as the only possible basis of an enduring peace and were to be used for peace negotiations in order to end World War I. In his address to Congress on February 11, 1918, President Wilson stressed four principles that were to be utilized in responding to German and Austrian Peace overtures.

Unfortunately, grandiloquent statements about war and peace do not account for the bitterness and enmity that a war or peace provokes. President Wilson’s Grandiloquent Statements did not account for this bitterness and enmity, and thus they had no impact on the peace. Indeed, they had many negative impacts and repercussions on peace, and the failure of his grandiloquent statements resulted in another war—World War II.

The novel Philip Dru: Administrator: A Story of Tomorrow, 1920-1935, is a futuristic political novel published in 1912 by Edward Mandell House by an anonymous author. It was later revealed that the author was Colonel Edward M. House, an American diplomat and politician and eventually foreign policy advisor to President Wilson. According to historians, House highly prized his work and gave a copy of Dru to his closest political ally, Woodrow Wilson, to read while on a trip to Bermuda. This novel was the story of a military and political genius who took over a wealthy, disordered, quarrelsome nation and led it into an era of almost superhuman contentment by persuading the people to make him their supreme autocrat.

From Presidents Woodrow Wilson to Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and now Joe Biden, we have seen grandiloquent statements in abundance to change American society and governance, with themselves cast in the mold of Philip Dru. In this, they have had grandiloquent statements and the support of Democrat Party Leaders and Progressives/Leftists. They believed that their grandiloquent statements are sufficient to transform America into their vision of what America should be without providing the details of who, what, when, where, why, and how they would accomplish this change. They also believe that this should be accomplished under their autocratic leadership, with the exclusion of all who would disagree with their vision. In doing so, they have led America on a path that has weakened our "American Ideals and Ideas" and diminished our commitment to "Freedoms, Liberties, Equalities, and Equal Justice for All". This has been accomplished by their increasing government’s role and power over American society and, indeed, individual Americans.

Alas, during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson, America saw the greatest assault on the Freedoms and Liberties of its people by the government in the pursuit of its Progressive and World War I policies. The First Amendment rights and other Constitutional Rights of the people were often violated, along with a crumbling of Constitutional duties and responsibilities between the branches of government, as documented by historian David M. Kennedy in his book, Over Here: The First World War and American Society 25th Anniversary Edition.

Many of these grandiloquent statements also have an undercurrent of fear against the objectors to the grandiloquent statements, which I have Chirped on, "03/27/21 Nothing to Fear but Fear Itself". This fear drives mob passions, and along with subsequent invectives and pejoratives directed against the objectors, it pits groups of Americans against each other, as I have written in my article on "Divisiveness in America". The supporters of the grandiloquent statements also engage in "The Three D's (Demonize, Denigrate, Disparage) of Modern Political Debate" in an attempt to besmirch the reputation of their opponents so that the public will not give consideration or attention to their objections, and/or to obtain acquiescence or silence from their opponents through fear of being besmirched.

Such besmirching of the reputation of their opponents, and the assaults on the Freedoms and Liberties of their opponents, are common when someone believes in their grandiloquent statements, as they believe that they have a moral justification for imposing their vision upon America. While this besmirching and assaults on the opponents of the Progressive vision have occurred throughout the last hundred years, in the last few years, we have seen a dramatic increase in these assaults, as I have written in my collected Chirps on "The Weaponization of Government".

What we can all learn from history is that grandiloquent statements rarely achieve their goals, and along with the besmirching and assaults on their opponents, they often wreak havoc on America and the world. Thus, we all should beware of grandiloquent statements and look for The Devil is in the Details of all grandiloquent statements. Otherwise, America will be fundamentally transformed, and often not for the betterment of America and its people.