Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
This may well be the last time I speak on the House Floor. At the end of the year Iíll
leave Congress after 23 years in office over a 36 year period. My goals in 1976 were the
same as they are today: promote peace and prosperity by a strict adherence to the principles
of individual liberty.
It was my opinion, that the course the U.S. embarked on in the latter part of the 20th
Century would bring us a major financial crisis and engulf us in a foreign policy that would
overextend us and undermine our national security.
To achieve the goals I sought, government would have had to shrink in size and scope,
reduce spending, change the monetary system, and reject the unsustainable costs of policing
the world and expanding the American Empire.
The problems seemed to be overwhelming and impossible to solve, yet from my view point,
just following the constraints placed on the federal government by the Constitution would
have been a good place to start.
How Much Did I Accomplish?
In many ways, according to conventional wisdom, my off-and-on career in Congress, from 1976
to 2012, accomplished very little. No named legislation, no named federal buildings or
highwaysóthank goodness. In spite of my efforts, the government has grown exponentially, taxes
remain excessive, and the prolific increase of incomprehensible regulations continues.
Wars are constant and pursued without Congressional declaration, deficits rise to the sky, poverty
is rampant and dependency on the federal government is now worse than any time in our history.
All this with minimal concerns for the deficits and unfunded liabilities that common sense
tells us cannot go on much longer. A grand, but never mentioned, bipartisan agreement
allows for the well-kept secret that keeps the spending going. One side doesnít give
up one penny on military spending, the other side doesnít give up one penny on welfare
spending, while both sides support the bailouts and subsidies for the banking and corporate
elite. And the spending continues as the economy weakens and the downward spiral continues.
As the government continues fiddling around, our liberties and our wealth burn in the flames
of a foreign policy that makes us less safe.
The major stumbling block to real change in Washington is the total resistance to admitting
that the country is broke. This has made compromising, just to agree to increase spending, inevitable
since neither side has any intention of cutting spending.
The country and the Congress will remain divisive since thereís no ìloot left to divvy up.î
Without this recognition the spenders in Washington will continue the march toward a fiscal cliff
much bigger than the one anticipated this coming January.
I have thought a lot about why those of us who believe in liberty, as a solution, have
done so poorly in convincing others of its benefits. If liberty is what we claim it is-
the principle that protects all personal, social and economic decisions necessary for
maximum prosperity and the best chance for peace- it should be an easy sell. Yet, history
has shown that the masses have been quite receptive to the promises of authoritarians
which are rarely if ever fulfilled.
Authoritarianism vs. Liberty
If authoritarianism leads to poverty and war and less freedom for all individuals and is
controlled by rich special interests, the people should be begging for liberty. There
certainly was a strong enough sentiment for more freedom at the time of our founding that
motivated those who were willing to fight in the revolution against the powerful British
government.
During my time in Congress the appetite for liberty has been quite weak; the understanding
of its significance negligible. Yet the good news is that compared to 1976 when I first
came to Congress, the desire for more freedom and less government in 2012 is much greater
and growing, especially in grassroots America. Tens of thousands of teenagers and college
age students are, with great enthusiasm, welcoming the message of liberty.
I have a few thoughts as to why the people of a country like ours, once the freest and
most prosperous, allowed the conditions to deteriorate to the degree that they have.
Freedom, private property, and enforceable voluntary contracts, generate wealth. In our
early history we were very much aware of this. But in the early part of the 20th century
our politicians promoted the notion that the tax and monetary systems had to change if
we were to involve ourselves in excessive domestic and military spending. That is why
Congress gave us the Federal Reserve and the income tax. The majority of Americans and
many government officials agreed that sacrificing some liberty was necessary to carry out what
some claimed to be ìprogressiveî ideas. Pure democracy became acceptable.
They failed to recognized that what they were doing was exactly opposite of what the colonists
were seeking when they broke away from the British.
Some complain that my arguments makes no sense, since great wealth and the standard of living
improved for many Americans over the last 100 years, even with these new policies.
But the damage to the market economy, and the currency, has been insidious and steady.
It took a long time to consume our wealth, destroy the currency and undermine productivity
and get our financial obligations to a point of no return. Confidence sometimes lasts longer
than deserved. Most of our wealth today depends on debt.
The wealth that we enjoyed and seemed to be endless, allowed concern for the principle
of a free society to be neglected. As long as most people believed the material abundance
would last forever, worrying about protecting a competitive productive economy and individual
liberty seemed unnecessary.
The Age of Redistribution
This neglect ushered in an age of redistribution of wealth by government kowtowing to any and
all special interests, except for those who just wanted to left alone. That is why today
money in politics far surpasses money currently going into research and development and productive
entrepreneurial efforts.
The material benefits became more important than the understanding and promoting the principles
of liberty and a free market. It is good that material abundance is a result of liberty
but if materialism is all that we care about, problems are guaranteed.
The crisis arrived because the illusion that wealth and prosperity would last forever has
ended. Since it was based on debt and a pretense that debt can be papered over by an out-of-control
fiat monetary system, it was doomed to fail. We have ended up with a system that doesnít
produce enough even to finance the debt and no fundamental understanding of why a free
society is crucial to reversing these trends.
If this is not recognized, the recovery will linger for a long time. Bigger government,
more spending, more debt, more poverty for the middle class, and a more intense scramble
by the elite special interests will continue.
We Need an Intellectual Awakening
Without an intellectual awakening, the turning point will be driven by economic law. A dollar
crisis will bring the current out-of-control system to its knees.
If itís not accepted that big government, fiat money, ignoring liberty, central economic
planning, welfarism, and warfarism caused our crisis we can expect a continuous and
dangerous march toward corporatism and even fascism with even more loss of our liberties.
Prosperity for a large middle class though will become an abstract dream.
This continuous move is no different than what we have seen in how our financial crisis
of 2008 was handled. Congress first directed, with bipartisan support, bailouts for the
wealthy. Then it was the Federal Reserve with its endless quantitative easing. If at first
it doesnít succeed try again; QE1, QE2, and QE3 and with no results we try QE indefinitelyóthat
is until it too fails. Thereís a cost to all of this and let me assure you delaying
the payment is no longer an option. The rules of the market will extract its pound of flesh
and it wonít be pretty.
The current crisis elicits a lot of pessimism. And the pessimism adds to less confidence
in the future. The two feed on themselves, making our situation worse.
If the underlying cause of the crisis is not understood we cannot solve our problems. The
issues of warfare, welfare, deficits, inflationism, corporatism, bailouts and authoritarianism
cannot be ignored. By only expanding these policies we cannot expect good results.
Everyone claims support for freedom. But too often itís for oneís own freedom and not
for others. Too many believe that there must be limits on freedom. They argue that freedom
must be directed and managed to achieve fairness and equality thus making it acceptable to
curtail, through force, certain liberties.
Some decide what and whose freedoms are to be limited. These are the politicians whose
goal in life is power. Their success depends on gaining support from special interests.
No More ëismsí
The great news is the answer is not to be found in more ìisms.î The answers are to
be found in more liberty which cost so much less. Under these circumstances spending goes
down, wealth production goes up, and the quality of life improves.
Just this recognitionóespecially if we move in this directionóincreases optimism which
in itself is beneficial. The follow through with sound policies are required which must
be understood and supported by the people.
But there is good evidence that the generation coming of age at the present time is supportive
of moving in the direction of more liberty and self-reliance. The more this change in
direction and the solutions become known, the quicker will be the return of optimism.
Our job, for those of us who believe that a different system than the one that we have
had for the last 100 years, has driven us to this unsustainable crisis, is to be more
convincing that there is a wonderful, uncomplicated, and moral system that provides the answers.
We had a taste of it in our early history. We need not give up on the notion of advancing
this cause.
It worked, but we allowed our leaders to concentrate on the material abundance that freedom generates,
while ignoring freedom itself. Now we have neither, but the door is open, out of necessity,
for an answer. The answer available is based on the Constitution, individual liberty and
prohibiting the use of government force to provide privileges and benefits to all special
interests.
After over 100 years we face a society quite different from the one that was intended by
the Founders. In many ways their efforts to protect future generations with the Constitution
from this danger has failed. Skeptics, at the time the Constitution was written in 1787,
warned us of todayís possible outcome. The insidious nature of the erosion of our liberties
and the reassurance our great abundance gave us, allowed the process to evolve into the
dangerous period in which we now live.
Dependency on Government Largesse
Today we face a dependency on government largesse for almost every need. Our liberties are restricted
and government operates outside the rule of law, protecting and rewarding those who buy
or coerce government into satisfying their demands. Here are a few examples:
Undeclared wars are commonplace. Welfare for the rich and poor is considered
an entitlement. The economy is overregulated, overtaxed and
grossly distorted by a deeply flawed monetary system.
Debt is growing exponentially. The Patriot Act and FISA legislation passed
without much debate have resulted in a steady erosion of our 4th Amendment rights.
Tragically our government engages in preemptive war, otherwise known as aggression, with no
complaints from the American people. The drone warfare we are pursuing worldwide
is destined to end badly for us as the hatred builds for innocent lives lost and the international
laws flaunted. Once we are financially weakened and militarily challenged, there will be a
lot resentment thrown our way. Itís now the law of the land that the military
can arrest American citizens, hold them indefinitely, without charges or a trial.
Rampant hostility toward free trade is supported by a large number in Washington.
Supporters of sanctions, currency manipulation and WTO trade retaliation, call the true free
traders ìisolationists.î Sanctions are used to punish countries that
donít follow our orders. Bailouts and guarantees for all kinds of misbehavior
are routine. Central economic planning through monetary
policy, regulations and legislative mandates has been an acceptable policy.
Questions
Excessive government has created such a mess it prompts many questions:
Why are sick people who use medical marijuana put in prison?
Why does the federal government restrict the drinking of raw milk?
Why canít Americans manufacturer rope and other products from hemp?
Why are Americans not allowed to use gold and silver as legal tender as mandated by
the Constitution? Why is Germany concerned enough to consider
repatriating their gold held by the FED for her in New York? Is it that the trust in the
U.S. and dollar supremacy beginning to wane? Why do our political leaders believe itís
unnecessary to thoroughly audit our own gold? Why canít Americans decide which type of
light bulbs they can buy? Why is the TSA permitted to abuse the rights
of any American traveling by air? Why should there be mandatory sentencesóeven
up to life for crimes without victimsóas our drug laws require?
Why have we allowed the federal government to regulate commodes in our homes?
Why is it political suicide for anyone to criticize AIPAC ?
Why havenít we given up on the drug war since itís an obvious failure and violates the
peopleís rights? Has nobody noticed that the authorities canít even keep drugs out
of the prisons? How can making our entire society a prison solve the problem?
Why do we sacrifice so much getting needlessly involved in border disputes and civil strife
around the world and ignore the root cause of the most deadly border in the world-the
one between Mexico and the US? Why does Congress willingly give up its prerogatives
to the Executive Branch? Why does changing the party in power never
change policy? Could it be that the views of both parties are essentially the same?
Why did the big banks, the large corporations, and foreign banks and foreign central banks
get bailed out in 2008 and the middle class lost their jobs and their homes?
Why do so many in the government and the federal officials believe that creating money out
of thin air creates wealth? Why do so many accept the deeply flawed principle
that government bureaucrats and politicians can protect us from ourselves without totally
destroying the principle of liberty? Why canít people understand that war always
destroys wealth and liberty? Why is there so little concern for the Executive
Order that gives the President authority to establish a ìkill list,î including American
citizens, of those targeted for assassination? Why is patriotism thought to be blind loyalty
to the government and the politicians who run it, rather than loyalty to the principles
of liberty and support for the people? Real patriotism is a willingness to challenge the
government when itís wrong. Why is it is claimed that if people wonít
or canít take care of their own needs, that people in government can do it for them?
Why did we ever give the government a safe haven for initiating violence against the
people? Why do some members defend free markets, but
not civil liberties? Why do some members defend civil liberties
but not free markets? Arenít they the same? Why donít more defend both economic liberty
and personal liberty? Why are there not more individuals who seek
to intellectually influence others to bring about positive changes than those who seek
power to force others to obey their commands? Why does the use of religion to support a
social gospel and preemptive wars, both of which requires authoritarians to use violence,
or the threat of violence, go unchallenged? Aggression and forced redistribution of wealth
has nothing to do with the teachings of the world great religions.
Why do we allow the government and the Federal Reserve to disseminate false information dealing
with both economic and foreign policy? Why is democracy held in such high esteem
when itís the enemy of the minority and makes all rights relative to the dictates of the
majority? Why should anyone be surprised that Congress
has no credibility, since thereís such a disconnect between what politicians say and
what they do? Is there any explanation for all the deception,
the unhappiness, the fear of the future, the loss of confidence in our leaders, the distrust,
the anger and frustration? Yes there is, and thereís a way to reverse these attitudes.
The negative perceptions are logical and a consequence of bad policies bringing about
our problems. Identification of the problems and recognizing the cause allow the proper
changes to come easy.
Trust Yourself, Not the Government
Too many people have for too long placed too much confidence and trust in government and
not enough in themselves. Fortunately, many are now becoming aware of the seriousness
of the gross mistakes of the past several decades. The blame is shared by both political
parties. Many Americans now are demanding to hear the plain truth of things and want
the demagoguing to stop. Without this first step, solutions are impossible.
Seeking the truth and finding the answers in liberty and self-reliance promotes the
optimism necessary for restoring prosperity. The task is not that difficult if politics
doesnít get in the way.
We have allowed ourselves to get into such a mess for various reasons.
Politicians deceive themselves as to how wealth is produced. Excessive confidence is placed
in the judgment of politicians and bureaucrats. This replaces the confidence in a free society.
Too many in high places of authority became convinced that only they, armed with arbitrary
government power, can bring about fairness, while facilitating wealth production. This
always proves to be a utopian dream and destroys wealth and liberty. It impoverishes the people
and rewards the special interests who end up controlling both political parties.
Itís no surprise then that much of what goes on in Washington is driven by aggressive partisanship
and power seeking, with philosophic differences being minor.
Economic Ignorance
Economic ignorance is commonplace. Keynesianism continues to thrive, although today it is
facing healthy and enthusiastic rebuttals. Believers in military Keynesianism and domestic
Keynesianism continue to desperately promote their failed policies, as the economy languishes
in a deep slumber.
Supporters of all government edicts use humanitarian arguments to justify them.
Humanitarian arguments are always used to justify government mandates related to the
economy, monetary policy, foreign policy, and personal liberty. This is on purpose to
make it more difficult to challenge. But, initiating violence for humanitarian reasons
is still violence. Good intentions are no excuse and are just as harmful as when people
use force with bad intentions. The results are always negative.
The immoral use of force is the source of manís political problems. Sadly, many religious
groups, secular organizations, and psychopathic authoritarians endorse government initiated
force to change the world. Even when the desired goals are well-intentionedóor especially
when well-intentionedóthe results are dismal. The good results sought never materialize.
The new problems created require even more government force as a solution. The net result
is institutionalizing government initiated violence and morally justifying it on humanitarian
grounds.
This is the same fundamental reason our government uses force for invading other countries at
will, central economic planning at home, and the regulation of personal liberty and habits
of our citizens.
It is rather strange, that unless one has a criminal mind and no respect for other people
and their property, no one claims itís permissible to go into oneís neighborís house and tell
them how to behave, what they can eat, smoke and drink or how to spend their money.
Yet, rarely is it asked why it is morally acceptable that a stranger with a badge and
a gun can do the same thing in the name of law and order. Any resistance is met with
brute force, fines, taxes, arrests, and even imprisonment. This is done more frequently
every day without a proper search warrant.
No Government Monopoly over Initiating Violence
Restraining aggressive behavior is one thing, but legalizing a government monopoly for initiating
aggression can only lead to exhausting liberty associated with chaos, anger and the breakdown
of civil society. Permitting such authority and expecting saintly behavior from the bureaucrats
and the politicians is a pipe dream. We now have a standing army of armed bureaucrats
in the TSA, CIA, FBI, Fish and Wildlife, FEMA, IRS, Corp of Engineers, etc. numbering over
100,000. Citizens are guilty until proven innocent in the unconstitutional administrative
courts.
Government in a free society should have no authority to meddle in social activities or
the economic transactions of individuals. Nor should government meddle in the affairs
of other nations. All things peaceful, even when controversial, should be permitted.
We must reject the notion of prior restraint in economic activity just we do in the area
of free speech and religious liberty. But even in these areas government is starting
to use a backdoor approach of political correctness to regulate speech-a dangerous trend. Since
9/11 monitoring speech on the internet is now a problem since warrants are no longer
required.
The Proliferation of Federal Crimes
The Constitution established four federal crimes. Today the experts canít even agree
on how many federal crimes are now on the booksóthey number into the thousands. No
one person can comprehend the enormity of the legal systemóespecially the tax code.
Due to the ill-advised drug war and the endless federal expansion of the criminal code we
have over 6 million people under correctional suspension, more than the Soviets ever had,
and more than any other nation today, including China. I donít understand the complacency
of the Congress and the willingness to continue their obsession with passing more Federal
laws. Mandatory sentencing laws associated with drug laws have compounded our prison
problems.
The federal register is now 75,000 pages long and the tax code has 72,000 pages, and expands
every year. When will the people start shouting, ìenough is enough,î and demand Congress
cease and desist.
Achieving Liberty
Liberty can only be achieved when government is denied the aggressive use of force. If
one seeks liberty, a precise type of government is needed. To achieve it, more than lip service
is required.
Two choices are available.
A government designed to protect libertyóa natural rightóas its sole objective. The
people are expected to care for themselves and reject the use of any force for interfering
with another personís liberty. Government is given a strictly limited authority to enforce
contracts, property ownership, settle disputes, and defend against foreign aggression.
A government that pretends to protect liberty but is granted power to arbitrarily use force
over the people and foreign nations. Though the grant of power many times is meant to
be small and limited, it inevitably metastasizes into an omnipotent political cancer. This
is the problem for which the world has suffered throughout the ages. Though meant to be limited
it nevertheless is a 100% sacrifice of a principle that would-be-tyrants find irresistible. It
is used vigorouslyóthough incrementally and insidiously. Granting power to government
officials always proves the adage that: ìpower corrupts.î
Once government gets a limited concession for the use of force to mold people habits
and plan the economy, it causes a steady move toward tyrannical government. Only a revolutionary
spirit can reverse the process and deny to the government this arbitrary use of aggression.
Thereís no in-between. Sacrificing a little liberty for imaginary safety always ends badly.
Todayís mess is a result of Americans accepting option #2, even though the Founders attempted
to give us Option #1.
The results are not good. As our liberties have been eroded our wealth has been consumed.
The wealth we see today is based on debt and a foolish willingness on the part of foreigners
to take our dollars for goods and services. They then loan them back to us to perpetuate
our debt system. Itís amazing that it has worked for this long but the impasse in Washington,
in solving our problems indicate that many are starting to understand the seriousness
of the world -wide debt crisis and the dangers we face. The longer this process continues
the harsher the outcome will be.
The Financial Crisis Is a Moral Crisis
Many are now acknowledging that a financial crisis looms but few understand itís, in
reality, a moral crisis. Itís the moral crisis that has allowed our liberties to be undermined
and permits the exponential growth of illegal government power. Without a clear understanding
of the nature of the crisis it will be difficult to prevent a steady march toward tyranny and
the poverty that will accompany it.
Ultimately, the people have to decide which form of government they want; option #1 or
option #2. There is no other choice. Claiming there is a choice of a ìlittleî tyranny
is like describing pregnancy as a ìtouch of pregnancy.î It is a myth to believe that
a mixture of free markets and government central economic planning is a worthy compromise.
What we see today is a result of that type of thinking. And the results speak for themselves.
A Culture of Violence
American now suffers from a culture of violence. Itís easy to reject the initiation of violence
against oneís neighbor but itís ironic that the people arbitrarily and freely anoint government
officials with monopoly power to initiate violence against the American peopleópractically
at will.
Because itís the government that initiates force, most people accept it as being legitimate.
Those who exert the force have no sense of guilt. It is believed by too many that governments
are morally justified in initiating force supposedly to ìdo good.î They incorrectly
believe that this authority has come from the ìconsent of the people.î The minority,
or victims of government violence never consented to suffer the abuse of government mandates,
even when dictated by the majority. Victims of TSA excesses never consented to this abuse.
This attitude has given us a policy of initiating war to ìdo good,î as well. It is claimed
that war, to prevent war for noble purposes, is justified. This is similar to what we were
once told that: ìdestroying a village to save a villageî was justified. It was said
by a US Secretary of State that the loss of 500,000 Iraqis, mostly children, in the 1990s,
as a result of American bombs and sanctions, was ìworth itî to achieve the ìgoodî we
brought to the Iraqi people. And look at the mess that Iraq is in today.
Government use of force to mold social and economic behavior at home and abroad has justified
individuals using force on their own terms. The fact that violence by government is seen
as morally justified, is the reason why violence will increase when the big financial crisis
hits and becomes a political crisis as well.
First, we recognize that individuals shouldnít initiate violence, then we give the authority
to government. Eventually, the immoral use of government violence, when things goes badly,
will be used to justify an individualís ìrightî to do the same thing. Neither the government
nor individuals have the moral right to initiate violence against another yet we are moving
toward the day when both will claim this authority. If this cycle is not reversed society will
break down.
When needs are pressing, conditions deteriorate and rights become relative to the demands
and the whims of the majority. Itís then not a great leap for individuals to take it
upon themselves to use violence to get what they claim is theirs. As the economy deteriorates
and the wealth discrepancies increaseóas are already occurringó violence increases
as those in need take it in their own hands to get what they believe is theirs. They will
not wait for a government rescue program.
When government officials wield power over others to bail out the special interests,
even with disastrous results to the average citizen, they feel no guilt for the harm they
do. Those who take us into undeclared wars with many casualties resulting, never lose
sleep over the death and destruction their bad decisions caused. They are convinced that
what they do is morally justified, and the fact that many suffer just canít be helped.
When the street criminals do the same thing, they too have no remorse, believing they are
only taking what is rightfully theirs. All moral standards become relative. Whether itís
bailouts, privileges, government subsidies or benefits for some from inflating a currency,
itís all part of a process justified by a philosophy of forced redistribution of wealth.
Violence, or a threat of such, is the instrument required and unfortunately is of little concern
of most members of Congress.
Some argue itís only a matter of ìfairnessî that those in need are cared for. There are
two problems with this. First, the principle is used to provide a greater amount of benefits
to the rich than the poor. Second, no one seems to be concerned about whether or not
itís fair to those who end up paying for the benefits. The costs are usually placed
on the backs of the middle class and are hidden from the public eye. Too many people believe
government handouts are free, like printing money out of thin air, and there is no cost.
That deception is coming to an end. The bills are coming due and thatís what the economic
slowdown is all about.
Sadly, we have become accustomed to living with the illegitimate use of force by government.
It is the tool for telling the people how to live, what to eat and drink, what to read
and how to spend their money.
To develop a truly free society, the issue of initiating force must be understood and
rejected. Granting to government even a small amount of force is a dangerous concession.
Limiting Government Excesses vs. a Virtuous Moral People
Our Constitution, which was intended to limit government power and abuse, has failed. The
Founders warned that a free society depends on a virtuous and moral people. The current
crisis reflects that their concerns were justified.
Most politicians and pundits are aware of the problems we face but spend all their time
in trying to reform government. The sad part is that the suggested reforms almost always
lead to less freedom and the importance of a virtuous and moral people is either ignored,
or not understood. The new reforms serve only to further undermine liberty. The compounding
effect has given us this steady erosion of liberty and the massive expansion of debt.
The real question is: if it is liberty we seek, should most of the emphasis be placed
on government reform or trying to understand what ìa virtuous and moral peopleî means
and how to promote it. The Constitution has not prevented the people from demanding handouts
for both rich and poor in their efforts to reform the government, while ignoring the
principles of a free society. All branches of our government today are controlled by
individuals who use their power to undermine liberty and enhance the welfare/warfare state-and
frequently their own wealth and power.
If the people are unhappy with the government performance it must be recognized that government
is merely a reflection of an immoral society that rejected a moral government of constitutional
limitations of power and love of freedom.
If this is the problem all the tinkering with thousands of pages of new laws and regulations
will do nothing to solve the problem.
It is self-evident that our freedoms have been severely limited and the apparent prosperity
we still have, is nothing more than leftover wealth from a previous time. This fictitious
wealth based on debt and benefits from a false trust in our currency and credit, will play
havoc with our society when the bills come due. This means that the full consequence
of our lost liberties is yet to be felt.
But that illusion is now ending. Reversing a downward spiral depends on accepting a new
approach.
Expect the rapidly expanding homeschooling movement to play a significant role in the
revolutionary reforms needed to build a free society with Constitutional protections. We
cannot expect a Federal government controlled school system to provide the intellectual
ammunition to combat the dangerous growth of government that threatens our liberties.
The internet will provide the alternative to the government/media complex that controls
the news and most political propaganda. This is why itís essential that the internet remains
free of government regulation.
Many of our religious institutions and secular organizations support greater dependency on
the state by supporting war, welfare and corporatism and ignore the need for a virtuous people.
I never believed that the world or our country could be made more free by politicians, if
the people had no desire for freedom.
Under the current circumstances the most we can hope to achieve in the political process
is to use it as a podium to reach the people to alert them of the nature of the crisis
and the importance of their need to assume responsibility for themselves, if it is liberty
that they truly seek. Without this, a constitutionally protected free society is impossible.
If this is true, our individual goal in life ought to be for us to seek virtue and excellence
and recognize that self-esteem and happiness only comes from using oneís natural ability,
in the most productive manner possible, according to oneís own talents.
Productivity and creativity are the true source of personal satisfaction. Freedom, and not
dependency, provides the environment needed to achieve these goals. Government cannot
do this for us; it only gets in the way. When the government gets involved, the goal becomes
a bailout or a subsidy and these cannot provide a sense of personal achievement.
Achieving legislative power and political influence should not be our goal. Most of
the change, if it is to come, will not come from the politicians, but rather from individuals,
family, friends, intellectual leaders and our religious institutions. The solution can
only come from rejecting the use of coercion, compulsion, government commands, and aggressive
force, to mold social and economic behavior. Without accepting these restraints, inevitably
the consensus will be to allow the government to mandate economic equality and obedience
to the politicians who gain power and promote an environment that smothers the freedoms
of everyone. It is then that the responsible individuals who seek excellence and self-esteem
by being self-reliance and productive, become the true victims.
Conclusion
What are the greatest dangers that the American people face today and impede the goal of a
free society? There are five.
1. The continuous attack on our civil liberties which threatens the rule of law and our ability
to resist the onrush of tyranny.
2. Violent anti-Americanism that has engulfed the world. Because the phenomenon of ìblow-backî
is not understood or denied, our foreign policy is destined to keep us involved in many wars
that we have no business being in. National bankruptcy and a greater threat to our national
security will result.
3. The ease in which we go to war, without a declaration by Congress, but accepting international
authority from the UN or NATO even for preemptive wars, otherwise known as aggression.
4. A financial political crisis as a consequence of excessive debt, unfunded liabilities, spending,
bailouts, and gross discrepancy in wealth distribution going from the middle class to
the rich. The danger of central economic planning, by the Federal Reserve must be understood.
5. World government taking over local and US sovereignty by getting involved in the
issues of war, welfare, trade, banking, a world currency, taxes, property ownership,
and private ownership of guns.
Happily, there is an answer for these very dangerous trends.
What a wonderful world it would be if everyone accepted the simple moral premise of rejecting
all acts of aggression. The retort to such a suggestion is always: itís too simplistic,
too idealistic, impractical, naive, utopian, dangerous, and unrealistic to strive for such
an ideal.
The answer to that is that for thousands of years the acceptance of government force,
to rule over the people, at the sacrifice of liberty, was considered moral and the only
available option for achieving peace and prosperity.
What could be more utopian than that mythóconsidering the results especially looking at the state
sponsored killing, by nearly every government during the 20th Century, estimated to be in
the hundreds of millions. Itís time to reconsider this grant of authority to the state.
No good has ever come from granting monopoly power to the state to use aggression against
the people to arbitrarily mold human behavior. Such power, when left unchecked, becomes the
seed of an ugly tyranny. This method of governance has been adequately tested, and the results
are in: reality dictates we try liberty.
The idealism of non-aggression and rejecting all offensive use of force should be tried.
The idealism of government sanctioned violence has been abused throughout history and is
the primary source of poverty and war. The theory of a society being based on individual
freedom has been around for a long time. Itís time to take a bold step and actually permit
it by advancing this cause, rather than taking a step backwards as some would like us to
do.
Today the principle of habeas corpus, established when King John signed the Magna Carta in 1215,
is under attack. Thereís every reason to believe that a renewed effort with the use
of the internet that we can instead advance the cause of liberty by spreading an uncensored
message that will serve to rein in government authority and challenge the obsession with
war and welfare.
What Iím talking about is a system of government guided by the moral principles of peace and
tolerance.
The Founders were convinced that a free society could not exist without a moral people. Just
writing rules wonít work if the people choose to ignore them. Today the rule of law written
in the Constitution has little meaning for most Americans, especially those who work
in Washington DC.
Benjamin Franklin claimed ìonly a virtuous people are capable of freedom.î John Adams
concurred: ìOur Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other.î
A moral people must reject all violence in an effort to mold peopleís beliefs or habits.
A society that boos or ridicules the Golden Rule is not a moral society. All great religions
endorse the Golden Rule. The same moral standards that individuals are required to follow should
apply to all government officials. They cannot be exempt.
The ultimate solution is not in the hands of the government.
The solution falls on each and every individual, with guidance from family, friends and community.
The #1 responsibility for each of us is to change ourselves with hope that others will
follow. This is of greater importance than working on changing the government; that is
secondary to promoting a virtuous society. If we can achieve this, then the government
will change.
It doesnít mean that political action or holding office has no value. At times it does
nudge policy in the right direction. But what is true is that when seeking office is done
for personal aggrandizement, money or power, it becomes useless if not harmful. When political
action is taken for the right reasons itís easy to understand why compromise should be
avoided. It also becomes clear why progress is best achieved by working with coalitions,
which bring people together, without anyone sacrificing his principles.
Political action, to be truly beneficial, must be directed toward changing the hearts
and minds of the people, recognizing that itís the virtue and morality of the people
that allow liberty to flourish.
The Constitution or more laws per se, have no value if the peopleís attitudes arenít
changed.
To achieve liberty and peace, two powerful human emotions have to be overcome. Number
one is ìenvyî which leads to hate and class warfare. Number two is ìintoleranceî which
leads to bigoted and judgmental policies. These emotions must be replaced with a much
better understanding of love, compassion, tolerance and free market economics. Freedom,
when understood, brings people together. When tried, freedom is popular.
The problem we have faced over the years has been that economic interventionists are swayed
by envy, whereas social interventionists are swayed by intolerance of habits and lifestyles.
The misunderstanding that tolerance is an endorsement of certain activities, motivates
many to legislate moral standards which should only be set by individuals making their own
choices. Both sides use force to deal with these misplaced emotions. Both are authoritarians.
Neither endorses voluntarism. Both views ought to be rejected.
I have come to one firm conviction after these many years of trying to figure out ìthe plain
truth of things.î The best chance for achieving peace and prosperity, for the maximum number
of people world-wide, is to pursue the cause of LIBERTY.
If you find this to be a worthwhile message, spread it throughout the land.