Food for Thought - The Election

Many say that you are "throwing away" your vote if you do not vote for one of the major candidates... but I say you are throwing away your vote if you do not follow your conscience, opting instead for political expediency.

Voting for the "lesser of two evils" is not an act of good, it is an act of incremental evil. Little-by-little we place evil into office, and little-by-little our rights are eroded; little-by-little our government grows; little-by-little our voices are drowned out by a monstrous evil of our own creation.

We grow complacent with the limited choices we "think" we have, not realizing we have endless choices. We grumble and groan, about how things are versus how they should be, and then like trained sheep we turn and inflict more wounds upon ourselves.

Some believe that if they simply do not participate in the process, that they have somehow done some good. The reality is that tacit consent is consent none-the-less; and those who say nothing are as guilty (if not more so) of inflicting whatever evil comes to pass.

Others believe that if they do not participate in the process they are sending a message of "protest" to the "powers that be"... this is a great ignorance; how effective is a protest against wolves, when it takes the form of sheep and shepherds looking the other way when the wolves come to feed? The Wolves relish such forms of protest... Why shouldn't they, it grants them the ability to feed at will.

If you truly want change... REAL change... you are going to have to fight for it. It is OUR responsibility as citizens to keep a watchful eye on government, and to hold it accountable when it exceeds its bounds and trespasses against us. We cannot make the government fear us if we are the ones quivering.

Get up from your submissive positions in the field. Spit out what you have been spoon-fed. Stand upright as a Human Being and assert your God-Given Rights. Fight by word and deed against the encroachments of our homegrown evil.

How can we expect the government to give us what we demand if we do not speak? How can the government enforce our will if we do not act? How can government remain in check if we sit idly by and allow it free reign? How can we convince the government we mean business if we cannot even convince ourselves that trying is the first step in succeeding?

Stand or be sheared... the choice is yours.

Minarchism

Is it possible to have good government? Anarchists would say “NO!”... Authoritarians and Statist would say “Absolutely!” However, most reasonable people would contend that good or evil, there needs to be some degree of government in order to protect our Natural Rights and prevent Anarchy; the sticking point being... how much is enough?

I contend that government is a necessary evil, that acts much like an illness. A minor outbreak builds up your immune system and eventually protects you, while a major outbreak may well kill you. Governments, much like many illnesses, left unchecked will grow and expand and overtake you. Therefore the burden lies on us, the people, to keep Government in check.

So, the questions may be asked: “What can we do to prevent Anarchy while avoiding a Fascist, Totalitarian State?” “Is there something between Chaos and the Nanny State?” “Can there be government AND liberty?”

The answers lie in the concept of Minarchism.

Minarchism:

Minarchism is the concept that minimal government is required to protect and defend the Natural Rights of the citizenry, prevent Anarchy, and enforce Natural Law. A Minarchist government must stay within the confines of its clearly-defined, specifically enumerated powers; fulfilling the role of “Night Watchmen”.

“What is the 'Night Watchmen' role?” You may ask.

The Night Watchman:
The concept of the Night Watchmen role is that it is the duty and responsibility of the state to stay out of the lives of the citizenry until such time as it becomes necessary to protect the Life, Liberty, and/or Property of those citizens.

In other words, the Government butts out until it is required, via the Constitution and Will of the People, to intervene.

No subsidies; no welfare state; no redistribution of wealth; no abuse of the “Necessary and Proper Clause”, “Commerce Clause”, or “General Welfare Clause”; no nannying; nothing but limited government kept in check by a vigilant populace.

In order for Minarchism to work, the People must have an understanding of their Natural Rights and Natural Law (refer to “Treatise on Natural Order” http://www.denofdragons.net/opinetime/TreatiseNaturalOrder.pdf). Furthermore, the People have to have a clear understanding of the function and purpose of Government, and the Reasonable Powers and Duties of Government.

The Government Exists Solely for the Purpose of...

Preventing Anarchy:
Without some form of government, mob rule (aka Pure Democracy) will eventually come to light, and liberty will ultimately suffer.

Establishing and Insuring Justice based upon Natural Law:
Law Enforcement and Courts working on behalf of society as a whole to hold accountable those that infringe upon Natural Rights and make offenses against Natural Law.

Insuring Domestic Tranquility:
Acting on behalf of society as a neutral arbitrator between disputing parties, and maintaining peace.

Defending the People against all enemies foreign and domestic:
Protecting our borders and society, acting on behalf of society for the active prevention and defense against intrusion.

Insuring and Protecting the Life, Liberty, and Property of the people:
Defending the minority against mob rule, and holding accountable those that tread upon another.

Promoting the Welfare of the people:
An example of this would be the establishment and maintenance of the public works (such as infrastructure). Another example would be the establishment of minimum standards (see below).

Serving the Will of the people:
Staying within the confines of the Constitution. Good government speaks on behalf of the society it serves... not in spite of it.

Reasonable Powers and Duties of Government:

Minimal Taxation:
For an entity to function on behalf of society, society must fund and maintain that entity. This is most effectively done via MINIMAL taxation. Taxes should not be intrusive, and should only cover the proper and necessary budgetary demands of a frugal government.

Maintaining Public and Official Records:
It is reasonable for government to maintain records of births, deaths, the votes of elected officials, ballot information, real estate titles, court records, etc. This is not to be confused with the issuance of Birth Certificates, or interfering with Real Estate Contracts, etc.

For example:
Let us say that that I want to broadcast an AM radio station. It would be reasonable that I cannot broadcast on a frequency, at a wattage, that would interfere with another person's broadcast. For the sake of argument, let us further say that radio frequencies are treated as real property (as they should be).

With that in mind, it would be reasonable for me to go to the County Clerk and say... “Does anyone own the frequency 870 AM at 500 Watts in [pick a geographical location]?” If no one has claim to it, you could stake claim to it (filing it with the Clerk)... and even if you don't use it, you have exclusive right to it.

If, for instance, another person began broadcasting on my frequency before I had a chance to get set up... I could then take that person to task for trespassing upon my property (or even theft). I could further make my case by the fact that my ownership of said frequency is a matter of public record; and so his “ignorance” would be no excuse.

Establish and Maintain Notary Services:
A Notary Public is an agent who acts as an authenticator, certifier, validator, administrator, and official witness of oaths, documents, proceedings, signatures, identification, and official copies of the same.

Establishing and Maintaining Minimum Standards (including Weights and Measures):
It is reasonable for government to establish minimum standards... but this is not to be confused with “Regulation” or government control of an industry.

For example:
It would be reasonable to say, “Restaurants must keep cooked food at a minimum of 'x' degrees, refrigerated food at a maximum of 'y' degrees, frozen food at 'z' degrees or less, deep frozen at 'w' degrees...” and so on.

This is a societal standard which government is setting on society's behalf, as these standards will prevent injury and death. It does not dictate to the Restaurant how to run their business... just that they must keep a minimum level of sanitary conditions.

Keep in mind... Laws/Rules are there to allow recourse. If a restaurant was in the habit of cross-contaminating raw meat and non-meat items, should we (as a society) have to wait until someone becomes seriously ill or dies from food poisoning before we (as a society) can intervene? Most reasonable people would say “No”.

Minimal Legislation:
Government needs to be able to construct and enforce a minimal amount of legislation to enact its specific Constitutionally defined powers, and to give society recourse for infractions against Natural Law.

Provide and Maintain Public works, and Public Roadways, Railways, Shipping Lanes, and other Transportation Lanes:
Essentially, it is proper for government to maintain that which ALL of society jointly shares and owns in the form of PUBLIC property.

Establishing and Regulating the Militia:
What good would it do to call the militia into action if you had no unified method of operation? It would turn into a self-defeating, demoralizing, chaotic mess. If a militia is going to defend society, then they need to have a degree of cohesiveness.

Establish and Maintain a Minimal Standing Army:
The militia is great for emergency need, but they are also busy with their personal lives and businesses... a small standing army should always be at the ready to defend against invasion or to defend/retaliate against an unforeseen attack.

The size of the standing army in times of peace should probably not rise above 1/100^th the number of able-bodied males aged 18 to 45. This way, if the government did become tyrannical, and the people were forced to physically rebel against it... the balance (in terms of numbers) would favor the people by as much as 99 to 1.

Provide for the Organizing, Arming, Training, and Discipline of the Military:
What good is a standing army if they are disorganized, undisciplined, untrained, and unarmed?

Establishing Rules of Capture:
Society, through government, needs to have rules established for the capture and treatment of enemy combatants.

Grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal:
This is a tool by which a government could enable a person or group to search, seize, apprehend, or destroy items, people, etc. from ships on the sea or within other nations. Consider it a Search and Seizure warrant enacted against another nation instead of a private citizen.

A simplistic example of when this could be properly utilized:
Let us say that a criminal from a foreign land comes to our country and kills 3 people and steals the original copies of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence. He then high-tails it back home.

His home nation refuses to do anything about it, and will not extradite him even if they knew where he was. A Letter of Marque and Reprisal could be issued to apprehend the criminal, seize the stolen artifacts, and return both to the victimized nation for restitution.

Yes, this could lead to hostilities. Yes, this could lead to diplomatic problems... then again, so could the criminal's actions and his home nation's refusal to act.

Establish and Maintain Elections:
A Democratic Republic protects the minority while maintaining the will of the majority. The will of society is voiced, at least in part, via elections. Society, via government, must make the time, place, and function of elections a reality.

Establish and Maintain Diplomacy and Regulate Commerce/Trade with Foreign States:
Government speaks on behalf of Society, and in that capacity, establishes treaties and relations with the voice of foreign society.

Establish and Maintain a Solid Currency:
A solid currency greatly aids in having a solid economy which strengthens society both domestically and as a trading partner in the world.

Establishing and Maintaining Police/Law Enforcement:
What good are laws if they are not enforced? Private citizens do not have the time or inclination to track down criminals, investigate infractions of the law, etc; they leave that to society as a whole via government.

Establishing and Maintaining Emergency Services (Fire and Rescue):
In order to protect Life, Liberty, and Property society will need assistance in a crisis situation. We protect ourselves as a society, through government, by establishing emergency services that serves ALL of society.

Establishing and Maintaining Courts of Law and Equity and Aid in Enforcing Contracts:
To maintain tranquility, and to adjudicate disputes between us, we establish Courts to act as neutral arbitrators. Once a dispute is settled, society (through government) can assist in seeing that what is decided is enacted.

Example:
A couple gets a divorce. Child visitation can occur at any time mutually agreed upon; but in times in which there is no mutual agreement, the effects of a contract come into play. It is reasonable that if someone shows up to pick up their child at a predetermined, agreed time, that (barring some heinous event or circumstance) the parent should attain possession of the child. If the former spouse denies visitation (due to spite, contrariness, etc.) the visiting parent should have recourse.

In other words, the contract says the parent has the right, and they can fight about changing the contract in court... but in the meantime society (via the police) can intervene and see to it the parent gets his rightful visitation.

Establishing and Maintaining Prisons:
One cannot lose their Life, Liberty, or Property without due process of a just and fair law; however, once due process has taken its course, Society has to have a means with which to enact its punishment when holding someone accountable to Natural Law. Prisons serve all of society, and should be maintained by society via government.

Establish and Maintain Borders:
A Society establishes its dominion and jurisdiction geographically via borders. That which lies within those set borders are considered Sovereign, and under the control of the society therein via government.

Establish and Maintain Rules of Immigration and Naturalization:
A Society has a right to maintain its culture, history, language, organizations, rules, morals, interests, and institutions against encroachment and dilution. Society, via government, can defend their interests by establishing rules of immigration and naturalization so as to preserve their way of life.

Please Note: Open Borders are nothing more than an invitation to unarmed invasion and occupation of a Society.

Is it possible to have good government? The answer is “Yes”; however, it requires the watchful eye, and diligence of society to keep it in check. If Society is negligent, then government, like a cancer, will spread and grow and eventually kill the Society it served.