I’m sick of myself today as I missed an opportunity to speak up to a micro-tyrant. Not only that, but it took me weeks to realize how badly I blew it.

On January 4, I went in to the Fremont County motor vehicle department to register a car I bought. That was the first work day after New Year’s Day weekend, and the deadline for registering the car. I would have incurred a late fee had I not registered the car that day.

Fremont County offices are closed on Friday. They started doing  that a few years ago to save money. Since Friday was January 1, they decided to close on Thursday December 31 for New Year’s Day. The end of the month is a deadline for registrations to be renewed.

The guy sitting at the desk next to mine was going to be charged a non-nominal (though I don’t remember how much, maybe $20) late fee for having missed his December deadline. He explained that he had come on Thursday, and their offices were closed. He complained to the clerk, and she called over a higher-up to explain.

The higher-up said she had to charge a late fee to several people in his situation that day, and told them to take it up with the county commissioners for having declared December 31st a day off.

Here’s what I should have said:

Hey man, she’s just doing her job. Just like the Nazis who shoved the Jews into the ovens were just doing their job. She checks her conscience at the door every day and thinks that having a government job entitles her to rob people.

Ma’am, you can’t push the blame for your willingness to steal off on the county commissioners. Your job consists of forcing people to run the bureaucratic gauntlet of an evil, antichrist government. You produce nothing of value. You will stand before the Lord and give an account some day for every penny you’ve stolen.

None of the theft this government commits is possible without regular people like you making it happen. The Nazi guards didn’t get away with killing Jews by blaming their superiors. Neither will you get away with stealing by blaming your superiors. So at least be honest and say that YOU are enforcing these wicked rules and evil registration fees. You can’t blame anyone but yourself, and it’s not happening without you or someone like you.

If the commissioners had chosen to take Monday off rather than Thursday, I would have been in that guy’s position. We need to stand up for each other, and speak up for each other. There is no other weapon we have at this point other than to boldly speak the truth. Lord, give me the words to say and the courage to say them. Help me to not be so self-absorbed as to not think of others when they’re facing injustice.