Posted tagged ‘Thomas Jefferson’

Government Is Force.

July 9, 2015

Middle aged prisoners chains and cuffs over a brick wall - stock photo

George Washington: “Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is force, like fire it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.

This quote by George Washington came to mind when I read a couple of articles this week about Greece and China.

GREECE

A Lesson From The Greek Crisis: Safe Deposit Boxes Are Not Safe, by Joseph T. Solerno, at mises.org. The Government will not allow people to withdraw cash from their safety deposit boxes. The Government, with the help of the banks, will then take the cash out of these safety deposit boxes, credit the persons checking account, and put the cash in ATM’s.

In an unrelated story, Home Safe Sales in Greece Have Boomed Over the Last 5 Years, at time.com. Some Greek citizens learned from what happened in Cyprus, and are trying to protect themselves from their Government. Unfortunately home robberies have also skyrocketed. This is the unintended consequence of the unintended consequence.

This brings to mind a quote by Thomas Jefferson: “The two enemies of the people are criminals and Government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first.

CHINA

Chinese stock markets have lost over 30% of their value in the last three weeks. The Chinese government created the stock market bubble in the first place by pumping money into the market through the use of margin debt. These central planners plans have run head on into economic reality, as the market is trying to liquidate and find a bottom. The central planners are now trying to keep this economic reality from happening. The Chinese government is attempting to cure the symptom instead of letting economic forces cure the problem the planners created. They are banning major share holders from selling stock for 6 months, freezing sales of half the companies in the market, blocked fund redemptions among other things.

Now the next step in this article, Utter Desperation: Chinese Police Vow To Arrest Malicious Short Sellers, at zerohedge.com. Yes the Chinese government is threatening to arrest malicious selling of stock. I wonder, what is the Governments definition of “malicious”? Do you think it is not defined because they want Chinese citizens to be afraid of even thinking about selling stocks? Does the Chinese government have a track record of abusing it’s citizens?

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Central planning by communists, socialists, or politicians and bureaucrats in a free market system, doesn’t work as the planners planned.

A quote by Ludwig von Mises comes to mind: : “Many think governments are free to achieve all they aim at without being restrained by an inexorable regularity in the sequence of economic phenomena …they maintain that the State is God.

WHAT ABOUT THE U.S.

Milder versions of propping up equity markets has happened in the U.S. over the last 15 years. Fed money pumping via  zero interest rates and quantitative easing are examples of central planners at work.

In this article, and short video: Rick Santelli Unleashed: China Is Not Doing Anything That The U.S. Has Not Already Tried, at zerohedge.com. Santelli says central planners are in control. But as we see from what is happening in Greece and China, they aren’t. China and Greece can’t even control their communist and socialist economic systems. Will our central planners plans end up any other way except broken?

Related ArticleCentral Planners Don’t See The Consequences Of Their Actions. Or Do They? at austrianaddict.com

Related ArticleA Look Over The Horizon At What Lies Ahead If We Continue Down The Central Planning Road, at austrianaddict.com.

Related ArticlePolitician’s “Affordable” Ideas Must Obey Economic Forces, at austrianaddict.com.

 

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Abuses Of Power By Individuals In Government

April 23, 2015

 

“GOVERNMENT IS NOT REASON, IT IS NOT ELOQUENCE, IT IS FORCE, LIKE FIRE IT IS A DANGEROUS SERVANT, AND A FEARFUL MASTER.” George Washington

This quote is from George Washington, who was uniquely qualified to state the truth about what Government truly is at its core. He fought for the British in the French and Indian War. He signed the Declaration of Independence which spelled out abuses of power that the founders were declaring their independence from. He was the commander of the Colonial army during the Revolutionary War. He was at the Constitutional Convention that set up our Constitutional Republic which the founders thought would give individuals, freedom from government force. He was the first President of the United States, a position he could have held for life. But he walked away from power after two terms, setting a precedent followed by all Presidents, until FDR thought he was more important than “the indispensable man”.

The wisdom of our founders in general, and George Washington in particular, when it came to understanding what government was and what it could and would become unless individuals remained “eternally vigilant”, can’t be questioned. There life experiences gave them a deeper understanding about this subject than any individual could glean from reading and studying their writings. As great as their writing skills were, they probably couldn’t completely communicate in writing their total understanding on the subject of government force.

“FEW MEN HAVE VIRTUE TO WITHSTAND THE HIGHEST BIDDER.” – George Washington.

This is another quote from George Washington which reveals a keen insight into the nature of man. This insight goes hand in hand with his knowledge of what Government truly is. Few if any man can be trusted with the reigns of power. And many times the highest bidder is not an outsider, but the person himself.

“THE TWO ENEMIES OF THE PEOPLE ARE CRIMINALS AND GOVERNMENT, SO LET US TIE THE SECOND DOWN WITH THE CHAINS OF THE CONSTITUTION SO THE SECOND WILL NOT BECOME THE LEGALIZED VERSION OF THE FIRST.” – Thomas Jefferson.

Our founders not only understood that virtuous men would be tempted by the highest bidder, they knew that the worst could and would get to the top. This is why they wanted a limit on the power of government so that there would be a limit on the damage government “criminals” could do to individuals while in a position of power.

“ETERNAL VIGILANCE IS THE PRICE OF LIBERTYAttributed to Thomas Jefferson.

We are responsible for our present state of big abusive Government. We haven’t been eternally vigilant in keeping the chains of the constitution firmly tied around its neck. Trying to get the chain back around the neck of government is going to take a lot of time and effort. Are we willing to do this now, or are most of us still to comfortable and ignorant to act. The longer we put this off the more costly it will be.

 

 WISCONSIN D.A. USES LAW TO PUNISH OPPONENTS

YOU MUST READ this article titled, Wisconsin’s Shame: “I Thought It Was A Home Invasion”, at nationalreview.com. It is about the abuse of power by Milwaukee County district attorney John Chisholm. He used what are called John Doe investigations, in a clear abuse of power, to harass people who were supporters of Governor Scott Walker. Chisholm was on the side of the unions and government employees. His wife was a teachers union shop steward and wasn’t happy about the union reforms passed under Walker. Chisholm felt it “was his duty to stop them”. He illegally used the power of Government to fight political fights. Here is an excerpt from the article.

“For dozens of conservatives, the years since Scott Walker’s first election as governor of Wisconsin transformed the state – known for pro-football championships, good cheese, and a population with a reputation for being unfailingly polite – into a place where conservatives have faced early morning raids, multi-year secretive criminal investigations, slanderous and selective leaks to sympathetic media, and intrusive electronic snooping. Yes, Wisconsin, the cradle of the progressive movement and home of the “Wisconsin idea” – the marriage of state governments and state universities to govern through technocratic reform – was giving birth to a new progressive idea, the use of law enforcement as a political instrument, as a weapon to attempt to undo election results, shame opponents and ruin lives.

IRS TARGETS OPPONENTS OF BIG GOVERNMENT

This is what the IRS targeting to tea party and liberty minded groups was all about. Using the force of Government to intimidate political opposition into ceding ground. Going through the legal process when falsely charged, or going through the process of complying with government regulations, is too high of a price for most people. The entrenched government status quo will use all their power, legally or illegally, to win. And we reach a point where the process itself becomes a punishment for getting involved.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE

Power is being abused at every level of government. We have shown many videos on this sight showing this abuse. Watch the video from this article, Caught On Tape: Cop Grabs, Smashes, Phone Of Women Recording Him, at zerohedge.com. You are allowed to film the police when they are on the job with this stipulation, you can’t interfere with their work. Some cops try to intimidate people from recording their activity by stating , “you are interfering with our work”, but they can’t take away your phone or delete your recording. I know it doesn’t say anything about smashing the phone, but isn’t that a violent attempt to delete the recording, or is it the destruction of property, or both.

This short video from Learn Liberty, gives us a humorous insight into how a persons thought process changes when he gets a chance to wield power.

CONCLUSION

In one of my recent articles titles, As The Number Of Laws Increase, Individual Freedom Decreases, we talk about how the increase in the amount of laws gives Government officials the ability to prosecute literally anyone for violating some obscure law. The process of defending yourself is your punishment, but the government official usually pays no cost for abusing his power. We have to roll back big abusive government because, as I’ve written previously, Individual Liberty Is The Least Contentious Way Of Settling Differences.

 

Related ArticleThe Break Down Of The Rule Of Law, at austrianaddict.com.

Related ArticleThe Result Of The Break Down Of The Rule Of Law, at austrianaddict.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Great Walter E. Williams : The State Against Liberty

June 26, 2013

This is a great video of an excerpt from a speech Dr. Williams gave in March 23, 1991. It was over twenty years ago and sounds like it was given yesterday. The reason for this is that the battle in society has been and always will  be the same. It is summed up in the quote by F. A. Hayek at the top of this web site, which reads, “The coordination of man’s activities through central planning or through voluntary cooperation are roads going in very different directions, the first to serfdom and poverty, the second to freedom and plenty”. Dr Williams gives a great defense of liberty.

Here are a couple of excerpts from the video.

“Large amounts of liberty is the rare occurrence in history, and oppression in varying degrees is the norm….even in the United States, as Thomas Jefferson predicted, he said that “the natural progress of things is for Government to gain ground and for liberty to yield. “

“The average American is inattentive, apathetic, or sometimes or most often a party to the assault on liberties by the state.”

Click here to watch the whole speech titled, Walter E. Williams on Libertarians and Liberty.

Related article, Tyrants and Human Nature, by Walter E. Williams.

Marine Cpl’s Letter To Sen. Feinstein About Her Proposed “Assult” Weapons Legislation.

January 9, 2013

Senator Dianne Feinstein,

I will not register my weapons should this bill be passed, as I do not believe it is the government’s right to know what I own. Nor do I think it prudent to tell you what I own so that it may be taken from me by a group of people who enjoy armed protection yet decry me having the same a crime. You ma’am have overstepped a line that is not your domain. I am a Marine Corps veteran of 8 years, and I will not have some woman who proclaims the evil of an inanimate object, yet carries one, tell me I may not have one.

I am not your subject. I am the man who keeps you free. I am not your servant. I am the person whom you serve. I am not your peasant. I am the flesh and blood of America.

I am the man who fought for my country. I am the man who learned. I am an American. You will not tell me that I must register my semi-automatic AR-15 because of the actions of some evil man.

I will not be disarmed to suit the fear that has been established by the media and your misinformation campaign against the American public.

We, the people, deserve better than you.

Respectfully Submitted,
Joshua Boston
Cpl,
United States Marine Corps
2004-2012

The Government’s continual interventions into the life of individuals is reaching a point where people are starting to push back or threaten non compliance. As Government grows, its tentacles  start to reach more and more areas of our lives. As more people are affected by Government regulations, each individual reaches a point where they decide that they have had enough. It is not the last straw that breaks the camels back, it is the accumulation of all the incremental straws, combined with the last straw that breaks the camels back, this is the law of marginal utility, read more here. Each individual has a different level of tolerance before he will push back against what is pushing against him. (more…)