In December, I agreed to extend the tax cuts for the wealthiest

Hear, O children of justice, the voice of Barack Obama, who spoke as leader of a great nation burdened by wealth and want: “In December, I agreed to extend the tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans because it was the only way I could prevent a tax hike on middle-class Americans. But we cannot afford $1 trillion worth of tax cuts for every millionaire and billionaire in our society. We can't afford it. And I refuse to renew them again.” These words, though born in the chambers of politics, carry the weight of ancient truth: that the prosperity of the few must not consume the livelihood of the many.

For from the earliest days of civilization, the great question has remained: how shall the wealth of the community be shared, and how shall the burden be borne? The rulers of old who forgot this question found themselves toppled, not by foreign enemies, but by their own neglected people. Obama’s declaration is an echo of that eternal law—that a society cannot endure when it bends its policies to enrich the already powerful, while allowing the middle-class and the poor to stagger beneath the load.

Consider the fate of Rome, mighty and glorious. In its youth, Rome thrived on balance: land reforms gave farmers a place, laws guarded the dignity of citizens, and burdens were shared. But in its later centuries, vast estates fell into the hands of the few, the treasury emptied into the coffers of the rich, and the taxes fell heavily on the common people. Bread grew scarce, discontent grew sharp, and the empire, mighty in arms, grew hollow within. It is the same warning Obama carried: a society that gives endlessly to its billionaires, while starving its citizens of fairness, sows the seeds of its own decline.

Yet Obama’s words were not only a rebuke but also a stand of principle. He admitted that once he had yielded, for the sake of the middle-class, to extend the tax cuts he opposed. This was a concession, a shield raised against greater harm. But then he drew the line: he would not renew them again, for to continue would be to betray the nation’s future. This is the cry of a leader who chooses balance over excess, stewardship over surrender, the common good over the privilege of the few.

Mark this well: the wealth of a land must serve the people of that land, not only the crowned, the powerful, or the gilded. When wealth pools only in high towers, the valley below withers. But when the river of prosperity flows wide, all drink and thrive. The wisdom is plain: a trillion given to the few may glitter, but a trillion spent upon schools, roads, healing, and opportunity yields a strength no gold can match.

The lesson is clear: never mistake the wealth of the elite for the wealth of the nation. True wealth lies in a society where the farmer may till his field without ruin, the worker may labor without despair, the mother may raise her children without hunger, and the young may pursue learning without chains of debt. When the middle-class thrives, the nation thrives; when it falters, all foundations shake.

Therefore, O listeners, take these teachings into your own hearts. Do not be seduced by the false splendor of millionaires and billionaires, whose riches grow while others toil in shadow. Demand justice in policy, fairness in burden, and equity in opportunity. In your own dealings, share not only with those above you, but with those beside and below you, for the strength of a community is found in its balance.

Thus remember Obama’s vow: “I refuse to renew them again.” It is a call not merely of politics, but of principle, that a nation’s destiny depends upon lifting its many, not indulging its few. Follow this path, and your society shall stand strong; forsake it, and your nation shall crumble like empires past.