Don’t be Fooled
Lost on far to many among us is the fact that the most treacherous, the most vile, the most egregious acts perpetrated in the name of progress, are perpetrated outside the view of most political observers. In the case of any controversy, we humans are inclined to align with one side or another according or our personal biases, values, thoughts, and emotions. Labels are applied to us, further fueling our need to identify with a particular set of perceived values. Conservatives are bound to a misguided view of patriotism, correctly realizing that anti-American sentiment is widespread for all of the wrong reasons, yet incorrectly concluding that, as a corollary, all of America’s bureaucracy inspired actions abroad are honorable because of our virtuous military and our country’s traditional principles. Liberals are bound to kindheartedness, blind to the fact that liberty is not bestowed on individuals by fiat law, but is natural, that one is not virtuous because he robs his neighbor with intentions of distributing the loot to those most in need. Indeed, we could all be more generous. We could all stand up more strongly for our values. Yet, the increasingly divisive conflict between the conservative and the liberal is also increasingly an argument over how loot should be squandered, what natural rights should be trampled upon, and what methods the state should use to usurp individual liberty as opposed to whether the usurpation of liberty is a valid concept to begin with.
In modern times, debate between conservatives and liberals in America seems more fierce than ever before. Indeed, Obama ran on a platform of ending the old and divisive ways of Washington, and bringing about some sort of a new tone. The trouble is, the divisive tone is essential to both parties, and to both ideologies. Without it, people may take notice of the real dangers that we face.
First, Americans and those in countries subsidized by America for half a century now should realize that socialist, fascist, and communist regimes have been propped up by the prosperity of the United States. Any state funded assistance to foreign nations necessarily goes to the rulers of those nations, and is therefore used in the way that those rulers see fit. Just imagine America, land of the free and home of the brave. Here, votes for an awful healthcare reform are literally being bought with taxpayer dollars, as they can be gained in no other way. Corruption is rampant in this sweet land of liberty. What happens to the dollars that are robbed from us and sent to countries run by thug dictators, countries bridled by coercive socialist regimes? Those systems are propped up for a time, they ride on the backs of hardworking Americans, and systems that nonetheless fail every time they are tried seem a bit more practical.
Second, the American military presence around the world is draining our country of resources at an alarming rate. The United States currently has over 700 military bases in 130 countries across the globe. Patriotism fuels the fire of our interventionist policies, yet what are we still occupying every country that we have ever had (or not had) military business in before? If it is the conservative’s claim that we should be fiscally responsible, that we should watch every dollar we spend, why are we blowing money sustaining military bases in Germany, Italy, and Japan, half a century after the end of WWII? If it is the liberal’s claim that America is overbearing and arrogant in its preemptive and interventionist militarism around the world, why do we not hear outrage from the left over this abhorrent waste of resources?
A final point, though not the final point, is that of our central planners. We Americans are taxed to death. Our “progressive” system punishes the accumulation of wealth, discouraging production, thus discouraging the creation of real, sustainable jobs. It also encourages idleness, or near idleness, as those who work menial jobs and pop out children actually make money for laziness and fornication. Yet, as complicated and ridiculous as our tax system is, it is all irrelevant in the end, as we have no control over our money supply. Literally, our government has empowered a cadre of bankers (the Federal Reserve) to control our money, thus empowering that cadre to destroy our money at the pace they choose. As we print and borrow as a country, the dollar’s demise becomes more imminent. Many countries before us have embarked on the path of fiat monies, and many countries before us have seen their currency turned to fire fuel. Think of the Weimar Republic. It is called hyperinflation.
We must stop arguing over the color we will paint the walls when the house is burning down. Only through dedication to individual liberty can a populace be truly prosperous, generous, and able to aid those in need. America became the most prosperous country on earth for a reason; because it was founded on a unique set of ideals that asserted man’s liberty to be natural, not a privilege granted by the state. It is no coincidence that America’s prosperity and dominance has so far surpassed all other countries for so long. Nor is it coincidence that America’s decline has been coupled with the ascendancy of socialist ideology, the idea that central planners can steer an economy so large and complex as ours, and the notion that there is an achievable utopia to be found if only we can manage to coerce enough of our populace the right way.
