AUSTRIAN ECONOMICS ADDICT

Cover via Amazon

Our Constitutional Republic was brought into existence for one reason and one reason only, to protect the individual from coercion and dominance by other individuals, by foreign countries, but mainly from the coercion and dominance by the very  Government the Constitution created. The constitution clearly defines the powers of Government, protects the rights of individuals, and sets up a process by which the people can give the Government more power or take power away. The key to the Bill of Rights is the ninth and tenth amendments. The ninth states, “The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.” This means that just because certain rights are listed doesn’t mean they are the only rights the people possess. Put differently, listing certain rights doesn’t limit rights. The tenth states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” This means Government’s powers are listed and the powers not listed are set aside for the people and the States. Put differently, listing specific power’s limits power.

Since the Constitution was ratified the meaning of the ninth and tenth amendments have gradually been reversed. This reversal picked up speed with the progressive era in the early twentieth century. The people gave up freedom and gave government power that was not originally delegated to it by the Constitution. In 1913 The Federal Reserve Act passed, which brought about the potential funding of Government through the printing of money. Also in 1913 the Sixteenth Amendment, allowing the Government to tax personal income,  passed with the consent of the people. This gave Government enormous power over the individual that it was never supposed to have. The Seventeenth Amendment also passed in 1913, allowed the election of Senators by popular vote instead of being elected by State Legislatures. Instead of representing the interest of each State, and being held accountable by State legislatures, Senators became representatives of the Federal Government, and held accountable to the 51% of the people they could con into voting for them. The growth of Government, and the corresponding loss of rights, has never moved in the direction of the individual since this Progressive era. It has occasionally slowed down but has never stopped.

This election cycle, and all election cycles are about one thing. Will we stop the growth of, or possibly cut the size of Government, which means we the individual will regain freedom, or are we going to give away more freedom by allowing Government to keep expanding? All of the quotes on this site deal with what happens when we pick the Government over the Market. As Hayek states, “..the first road leads to serfdom and poverty the second leads to freedom and plenty”. No matter who wins this election the heavy lifting will have only started. Government regulations and entrenched Government bureaucracies have to be rolled back if we are going to reclaim freedoms we’ve lost. The only way to roll them back is to get control of Government. The only way to get control of Government is through the political process, which I personally loathe.

This is not a battle between the R or the D anymore. As Hayek states, “..the Socialists of both parties must be persuaded or defeated if they and we are to remain free men.” There are central planners in the leadership of both parties, and it is up to the grass roots majority in each party to purge their parties of these “Socialists”. Human beings are self interested individuals, and they have to be persuaded that it is in their best interest to maintain their freedom, and not give it away to the Government for the low price of promised security through Government largess. The liberty movement has made great strides in the last three years and is committed for the long haul. The entrenched politicians and bureaucrats won’t give up their power easily. We are either witnessing the birth pangs of a new desire for individual liberty, or witnessing the death throes of what remains of our liberty.

This entry was posted on November 5, 2012 at 5:23 am and is filed under Government and Politics. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments.

Tags: Central Planning, Constitution, Individual Liberty, Ninth and Tenth Amendmants, Progressive Era