[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 4201-4202]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO CAROLINE JOK

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PETE OLSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 24, 2015

  Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to interact with some of the 
brightest students in the 22nd Congressional District who serve on my 
Congressional Youth Advisory Council. I have gained much by listening 
to the high school students who are the future of this great nation. 
They provide important insight into the concerns of our younger 
constituents and hopefully get a better sense of the importance of 
being an active participant in the political process. Many of the 
students have written short essays on a variety of topics and I am 
pleased to share them with my House colleagues.
  Caroline Jok attends Seven Lakes High School in Katy, Texas. The 
essay topic is: in your opinion, what role should the government play 
in our lives?

       It is said: One can never have too much of a good thing.
       While it is certainly true that in many cases it is harder 
     for a good thing to turn bad, it is impossible for this 
     statement to be infallible with the absolute qualifier 
     ``never'' hanging in the balance. For example, though water 
     is essential to life, if one drinks too much of it they will 
     face hyponatremia, otherwise known as water intoxication. 
     While chocolate is undeniably sweet and pleasant, too much 
     chocolate induces contrastingly unpleasant feelings, 
     sickness, and even dangerous health conditions. Even 
     something as wonderful and essential as freedom--the very 
     virtue this great Nation is founded on, the very virtue that 
     our ancestors fought and gave their lives for--can become a 
     negative force if there is too much of it. The statement 
     ``too much freedom'' sounds seemingly absurd, however, this 
     is precisely why our founding fathers, despite the hard 
     fought efforts to escape the oppression of one government, 
     worked to build another. Too much freedom can result, 
     ironically, in oppression, in chaos, in exploitation, and in 
     a bloodbath driven by greed. This is where the role of our 
     government comes in.
       Our government serves as a counterbalance to a good thing, 
     not to control all things; it is the protector of this good 
     thing. It is the role of our government to address and settle 
     conflicts from an unbiased standpoint to the best of its 
     ability. It is the role of our government to compose and 
     enforce legislation that will benefit, protect, and create 
     opportunity for its citizens, to set limitations on freedom 
     so that freedom can be preserved and ensured. It is the role 
     of our government to serve as the voice of the nation to the 
     rest of the world, to serve as our representative, as our 
     ambassador. It is the role of our government to serve the 
     people who elected it. It is essential for our government to 
     be involved in the day to day lives of its citizens, be it 
     through the corporate world, cyberspace and security, on a 
     local level, in education, immigration, in the health 
     industry, and countless other niches, not to control these 
     realms, but to serve as an equalizer, safeguard and creator 
     of opportunity in each of these.
       Professor of Communication at American University, Leonard 
     Steinhorn comments, ``[if many] Americans feel `unease' 
     toward [our] government's role in our daily lives, it is 
     either because they take much of what the federal government 
     does for granted, or because the media tend to give a 
     disproportionate voice to those whose ideological temper 
     tantrums against government make for good copy and sound 
     bites.'' Our government's involvement in day-to-day life 
     proceedings is essential to balance and preserve a very good 
     thing: freedom. This is precisely the role our government 
     plays in our lives.

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