What we’ve seen in the last week is the state at work — and by the state, I do not mean a particular set of leaders. If we watch carefully, we can gain insight into what the state is and why our fundamental problem extends far above and below the political party system.
The moment is complicated by the upcoming election, so some people are distracted by the circus of McCain vs. Obama and all the characters associated with that silly little battle. What they are looking at is really the veneer. It is a covering designed to prevent you from seeing what the state is and why it matters. FULL ARTICLE
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Getting people to understand the state as a flawed organism is a very difficult task. This is evidenced by the fervor surrounding elections and the horrified looks I get whenever I tell someone that I refuse to vote. The masses have been groomed to believe that the POTUS is all-powerful, and that simply electing the “right person” for the job will fix whatever they feel is wrong with the country. One of my coworkers is convinced that I hate everyone because he believes that my hatred of government is directed at the people who make up government. While I certainly believe that some are worse than others, I understand that the state will always pursue its own ends, regardless of who is “in charge”.
Let us not go the way of the French:
Is a high road revolution possible? The Mises Institute’s family and friends make reasoning and peaceful cooperation inform their actions.
However, the great unwashed (or a concentrated minority) could let violence rule the day as today’s “Jacques Hébert’s” and “Le Père Duchesne’s” capture and aggravate the common sentiment.
Instead of listening to Lew Rockwell, folks are more likely to choose Michael Savage.
Trying to work with the State apparatus is futile. Without massive amounts of Federal Reserve Notes, you don’t get above lower level functionaries. We, the People, have lost our voice and are searching to get it back. Outlets like Michael Savage and company are about all that is left. We can sign petitions and blog all day long, but in the end, we will still have a massive trillion dollar bailout.
The problem with violent revolutions is that they are fought by people willing to kill to get their way. This is generally not healthy for society and usually results in a worse tyranny than that which was overthrown (since the existing state will defend itself and must be overthrown by even more violent opposition).
But there are other paths to revolution. A revolution of ideas wherein people simply stop supporting a State they do not believe in would be ideal. Unfortunately, Americans have listened to the siren song of Statism for so many generations that they seem now to be true believers in the system that has enslaved them.
Today we see a third possible route to reform unfolding. That change agent is privation and suffering. Hyperinflationary destruction of the currency, economic collapse, wide spread unemployment, and complete loss of savings, investments, and retirement would certainly be painful and unjust, but it would also force comatose citizens to change.
Realistically, if we are going to change the world by persuasion, it will take generations. Financial collapse may be a quick, albeit dirty, way to clear the way for change and awaken people to thinking about sound economics. Severe suffering may teach the lesson.
I can’t help but feel that this current situation was protracted in effort to cause it to come to a head at election time. It is so true that people’s political fervor blurs their logic. So this ‘solution’ is instituted as temporary (2yr), and the new administration then makes ‘corrections’ in the guise of a response to constituents, and the public then believes they have voted for it.
I must make one point, that we cannot vote someone ‘out’ of office. We must vote for some canditate. If only we could. I don’t vote because the Dem/Repub two flavor facism just doesn’t represent me. I feel instead that I should take what actions I can to improve the world within my reach.
I can’t help but feel that this current situation was protracted in effort to cause it to come to a head at election time. It is so true that people’s political fervor blurs their logic. So this ‘solution’ is instituted as temporary (2yr), and the new administration then makes ‘corrections’ in the guise of a response to constituents, and the public then believes they have voted for it.
I must make one point, that we cannot vote someone ‘out’ of office. We must vote for some canditate. If only we could. I don’t vote because the Dem/Repub two flavor facism just doesn’t represent me. I feel instead that I should take what actions I can to improve the world within my reach.
After the overthrow of the state by the “oppressed many” what happens other than the recreation of the state? This is what as known as a “vicious cycle”.
After the overthrow of the state by the “oppressed many” what happens other than the recreation of the state? This is what as known as a “vicious cycle”.
After the overthrow of the state by the “oppressed many” what happens other than the re-creation of the state? This is what as known as a “vicious cycle”.
Usually, the only way to beat some side is to have more numbers on your side. This is why socialists tend to win revolutions, or centralism is the usual winner of such contests. The only way for a libertarian revolution to win would be to persuade every able-bodied adult to join us, and give them all guns and training in how to use them, and train them to think only in terms of local militia, or guerrilla movements- they should not think of themselves as small units of a vast army, but as local armies that are allied with others in a vast multi-armied coalition, with no central command.
Another way is to lessen the reach of the state in other ways- such as something I just thought of, which I call Jury-Dole. If a person applies for the Dole, one of the conditions would be that they are all potential jurors. It should be on a parity basis- i.e., if you serve four weeks on a jury, you could then also be paid for the next four weeks resting from jury duty! (Time you could spend looking for a job.)
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