Wrong
A few recent comments and questions from private conversations have provoked this post.
One of the primary philosophies of this blog has been the principle “government is the enemy of the people.” There is no way around it. When this Nation was founded, those men who created it understood as much and went to great lengths to prevent tyranny from happening again. They imposed limits on the government by guaranteeing the people rights to ensure their own pursuit of freedom. But with freedom comes great responsibility, like with most things. The founders knew that democracy would, as it has in every other instance of application, devolve into “enlightened tyranny,” where demagogues promise what is not theirs by using fallacies and emotional appeals coupled with “right thinking” and what essentially amounts to elitism. Ultimately, the 51 oppress the 49. And, slowly, freedom fades through legislation, morality through legisilation, choice through legislation. Left with nothing but a shell without a ghost.
How do fight against this? We voice our opinions, and continually we are told to change the system from within. But we can’t. The system it self is flawed, and changes are impossible, because so many are dependent on the system for their wellbeing. The system feeds itself.
The best society is the one that allows the greatest amount of freedom to every individual. Until people understand the following, freedom will never be achieved:
1) Failure is as important as success
2) Money and Wealth are not evil, but represent an individual’s contribution to society and societies appreciation for the products the individual has provided.
3) Money is only earned by serving societies needs, and by no other means can it actually be earned.
4) One person does not have any right to another person’s money no matter how much legislation can be passed to the contrary. However, any individual van, of his free will, give of his money how he sees fit and without penalty.
5) Any government function beyond protecting life and property is done at the sacrifice of those who have contributed to society above and beyond the norm already.
6) Might does not make right, no matter how many people want that to be the case.
7) Money, and all that it represents, is the only way to obtain freedom–true freedom.
If you disagree with any of the above, please, tell me where I have gone wrong.
True … democracy and even representative democracy is nothing by three wolves and a sheep voting on what to eat for dinner.
I think that point three is the one that sees the most opposition … people refuse to understand the exchange is by it’s nature free. As a result of that free exchange both parties are made better off. People cease to be better off in an exchange when the percieved costs outweigh the percieved benefits.
People cling to the belief that big business is stealing from them, but it is they who demand more and better products from those businesses.