Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Not buying religion of government

(My Clovis News Journal column for February 26, 2016)

The Declaration of Independence says "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men..."

How's that working for you? Judging by the current situation, about as well as any superstition does.

You might as well declare "Everyone needs good food-- to guarantee healthy crops, we sacrifice babies to the Volcano Spirit."

Same sort of nonsense, based on the same kind of lies.

Belief in government-- the State-- is a religion- the world's most popular religion. It competes with all other religions, even when the faithful believe otherwise.

You can perform rituals with good intentions, but believing those rituals cause the outcome you want, although unrelated by cause and effect, is an example of magical thinking. You are establishing a government-- the natural enemy of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"-- to protect Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Might government be a "necessary evil"? If it is necessary, it can't be evil. If it is evil, it can't be necessary. Since government can't exist without theft (euphemistically called "taxation" and property codes) and without throwing the first punch (which is what most "law enforcement" is), it can't be good.

Faith in government also shows an utter denial of human nature- although the faithful would gnash their teeth at the suggestion.

People claim that because humans do bad things and can't be trusted, governments must be established to control them. I'm not sure where the people who make up government will come from, if not from the population of people who can't be trusted to behave themselves. If you set up a club where people can steal and attack from behind a veil of legitimacy, usually without consequence, what sort of person do you believe this club will attract?

Or, do you believe human nature will magically be improved by collecting people who are attracted to power into one big group and giving them power?

In America, the Constitution was supposed to set boundaries which could never be crossed as a way to restrain the nature of government. It didn't work. The Constitution was violated almost before the ink was dry. Today there is no prohibition on government power-- as the Bill of Rights was intended to be-- which remains intact. So, what's your next big idea?

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Being disarmed can lead to being soft and useless

Yet another observation from Machiavelli:

"But when you disarm them, you at once offend them by showing that you distrust them, either for cowardice or for want of loyalty, and either of these opinions breeds hatred against you. ... But when a prince acquires a new state, which he adds as a province to his old one, then it is necessary to disarm the men of that state, except those who have been his adherents in acquiring it; and these again, with time and opportunity, should be rendered soft and effeminate..." Niccolo Machiavelli (The Prince, Chapter XX, 1513)

Yes, complying with anti-gun "laws" does often make one contemptible, soft, and effeminate. And useless. And, therefore, easier to control. Is that how you want to be? Not me.

I'm not even sure the US government and its local accomplices attempt to disarm people because they believe the population to be cowardly. In fact, I think their fears may be just the opposite; that the people won't be cowardly, but will be noble and brave and drive out the cowards who want to rule.

Which brings us to the "lack of loyalty" part, which I would agree with. But only an idiot or an evil person is loyal to evil rulers. Loyalty, like respect, is worse than worthless if it is given to those who haven't earned it. Government earns contempt, not loyalty.

So, yes, I am offended when evil monsters try to disarm anyone. It's right to be offended by harmful actions, just as it is silly to be offended by words or opinions.

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