The Communist Manifesto: a rebuttal

 Part I... definitions & analysis.

The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.

Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a revolutionary reconstitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the contending classes.

In the earlier epochs of history, we find almost everywhere a complicated arrangement of society into various orders, a manifold gradation of social rank. In ancient Rome we have patricians, knights, plebeians, slaves; in the Middle Ages, feudal lords, vassals, guild-masters, journeymen, apprentices, serfs; in almost all of these classes, again, subordinate gradations.

The modern bourgeois society that has sprouted from the ruins of feudal society has not done away with class antagonisms. It has but established new classes, new conditions of oppression, new forms of struggle in place of the old ones.  from 'The Communist Manifesto'

I'll basically go along with this analysis. For an 1848 world perspective, its ok. It doesn't really apply in the american experiment.. at least after the civil war, when all men were recognized as free. And, it doesn't really work in day to day reality, but only as a general principle to base a philosophy on. I would say the deeper issue is the tendency of man to want to dominate or control others. Some want to live off the labors of others. Lincoln stated it like this:

“It is the eternal struggle between these two principles — right and wrong — throughout the world. They are the two principles that have stood face to face from the beginning of time; and will ever continue to struggle. The one is the common right of humanity, and the other the divine right of kings. It is the same principle in whatever shape it develops itself. It is the same spirit that says, "You toil and work and earn bread, and I'll eat it." No matter in what shape it comes, whether from the mouth of a king who seeks to bestride the people of his own nation and live by the fruit of their labor, or from one race of men as an apology for enslaving another race, it is the same tyrannical principle.” ― Abraham Lincoln

This is the more basic struggle of humanity, not class distinctions. Classes are only the groups of the individuals who either work or exploit.

Most revolutions have been, 'Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss'. Very rarely in the history of mankind has there been true altruism or a recognition of the evil nature of man to dominate his neighbor. So we go from one oppressor to another, each promising to serve & promote our liberty. But all they ever do is dominate & take.

You can label them, 'bourgeois & proletariat', 'worker & moocher', 'noble & serf', or 'rulers & subjects'. The names may change, but they are the same throughout all time.

Collectivism, & especially communism, does nothing to end this struggle. It only changes the ruling elite. The 'party' is the new boss, & the proletariat work for them. All it has ever done is shrink the middle class, & widen the gap between the worker & the ruling elite. ..but i'm sure we'll get more into that, later.

The contest, for ages, has been to rescue Liberty from the grasp of executive power. ~Daniel Webster

Part 2: The Communists & the Proletariat.

The Communists, therefore, are on the one hand, practically, the most advanced and resolute section of the working-class parties of every country, that section which pushes forward all others; on the other hand, theoretically, they have over the great mass of the proletariat the advantage of clearly understanding the line of march, the conditions, and the ultimate general results of the proletarian movement.

The immediate aim of the Communists is the same as that of all other proletarian parties: formation of the proletariat into a class, overthrow of the bourgeois supremacy, conquest of political power by the proletariat.
...
They merely express, in general terms, actual relations springing from an existing class struggle, from a historical movement going on under our very eyes. The abolition of existing property relations is not at all a distinctive feature of communism.

All property relations in the past have continually been subject to historical change consequent upon the change in historical conditions.

The French Revolution, for example, abolished feudal property in favour of bourgeois property.

The distinguishing feature of Communism is not the abolition of property generally, but the abolition of bourgeois property. But modern bourgeois private property is the final and most complete expression of the system of producing and appropriating products, that is based on class antagonisms, on the exploitation of the many by the few.

In this sense, the theory of the Communists may be summed up in the single sentence: Abolition of private property.  from 'The Communist Manifesto'

 Here is where this fails, as a social experiment:

1. The communists are NOT the proletariat, but pretend to 'help' the poor, huddled masses. They want to organize them as pawns, to destroy the bourgeoisie, whom they hate with a greater passion than they do the monarchy or any military dictatorship. They pretend to speak for the worker, but they are not the worker.

2. They attack one of the most basic rights of man for all of history: The right of property. Locke said that govt has no other end, but the preservation of property.

"Property is the fruit of labor...property is desirable...is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another; but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built." ~Abraham Lincoln

The appeal to just 'take' the property of another, that they have not worked for is alluring. It is a shiny lure of free stuff, that attempts to deceive the simple into believing the great fiction, that govt can enable you to live off of everybody else. It is diametrically opposed to the American experiment, that of securing the basic rights of man: life & property.

3. They make the bourgeoisie into a boogey man... a scapegoat to blame all of society's ills upon. That is a typical tactic of looters, who do nothing useful themselves, but only want to ride the gravy train of easy living without work. The 'party' becomes the new bourgeoisie, & the new boss is no better than the old one.. most of the time, the communist boss was MUCH WORSE than any monarch or industrialist that ever lived.

4. The russian revolution traded feudal property for party property.. just another bourgeois robber baron, but instead of merely exploiting the workers with cheap pay, made them slaves.

5. The chinese revolution traded imperial & feudal property for party property.. more slavery for the proletariat.

6. Any movement or group that constantly toots its horn about how sincere & altruistic they are should be viewed with skepticism. They are selling something, & they will not be the ones paying for it. You will.

7. They kill one of the biggest motivating factors for humanity: To get ahead. To improve one's station in life. They offer servitude, not prosperity, to the hard working man. There is no reward for hard work, or smart work, or bettering oneself through innovation & production. They reward party affiliation & political maneuvering. A society full of con men & salesmen cannot sustain itself. But productive work will not improve your lot, only rising in the party hierarchy. So the magnet is not productive work, but looting.

8. Their aim is to overthrow the bourgeois class, & replace it with a new ruling class: The Party. They USE the proletariat to accomplish this, & have continued to use & exploit the working man in EVERY venture that collectivists have done for all of human history. That is why collectivist experiments always fail. They are based on altruistic sacrifice for your fellow man, except for the leaders, who get to mooch off of everybody else & live the high life at your expense.

9. The theory of the Communists may be summed up in the single sentence: Abolition of human rights. Their promises are lies, & they offer servitude & slavery to the working man. Communism is a step backward in the quest for human freedom. They TAKE from the worker & exploit him for their political agenda, which is the same for all time:

There has never been but one question in all civilization-how to keep a few men from saying to many men: You work and earn bread and we will eat it. ~Abraham Lincoln

Contrast the above with the American ideal:

The working man is the representative... self rule is the goal, not a ruling elite.

"All [reforms] can be... [achieved] peaceably by the people confining their choice of Representatives and Senators to persons attached to republican government and the principles of 1776; not office-hunters, but farmers whose interests are entirely agricultural. Such men are the true representatives of the great American interest and are alone to be relied on for expressing the proper American sentiments." ~Thomas Jefferson

And here an American contemporary of Marx says:
And inasmuch as most good things are produced by labour, it follows that all such things of right belong to those whose labour has produced them. But it has so happened in all ages of the world, that some have labored, and others have, without labour, enjoyed a large proportion of the fruits. This is wrong, and should not continue. To secure to each laborer the whole product of his labour, or as nearly as possible, is a most worthy object of any good government. ~Abraham Lincoln

America is a classless society.. at least that is the mission statement. Aggressive exploiters need classes to compete.. so they can avoid work & live off the labors of others. They need & want a ruling class, & a working class. The modern progressives are just the same old exploiters of old, looking to 'help' the poor huddled working man, when all they really do is exploit him & pick his pockets, all the while giving him soothing words, or boogey men to fear.

Govt, from the American perspective, is not to 'give' us anything, but to merely secure our basic rights, so our labors can be protected & preserved. A massive, bloated bureaucracy is a burden on the working man. It is a magnet for moochers & looters, who see 'public service' as a means to live without work.

But we have strayed from our mission statement. American govt now is indistinguishable from collectivist party politics, or the monarchy, or the bourgeoisie. We do not have citizen representatives, but a horde of moochers... leeches on the working man, sucking him dry.

Is a stable currency impossible?

If there is one thing that 'we the people' should educate ourselves about, it should be the nature & source of wealth, money, & currency. It is too important & too all encompassing in our lives to 'trust' it to con men & scoundrels with an agenda. It is not as complicated as the economists like to make out. Go back a few thousand years, & find the source. All we have done is extend & complicate it, but the same principle is in play. You make something of value.. harvest a crop, raise an animal, build a structure, make a spear or a fighter jet.. these are all 'hard' assets. Human labor produced them. Even mining gold, iron, or oil from the ground requires human labor, & those who labor PRODUCE the increase. Others may profit exorbitantly from their labors, but the labor is where it all begins.

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration." ~Abraham Lincoln

A currency does not have to be tied to gold to be 'hard'. It just has to be backed by something. By tying it to the assets of the producers, you get that. Having a scientific formula, that is not 'tweakable' by politicians & con men would stabilize the currency, slow or end inflation, & make money shuffling as a vocation less lucrative.

The PRIMARY problem is the dilution of the currency by QEs & banker money shuffling. THAT is what saps the value from the currency & 'redistributes' it to the non working, non producing leeches of society.

It would not be that hard to put some ELECTED representatives in charge of currency oversight.. with the EXPRESS goal of stability, transparency, & accountability. A mission statement can be drawn up declaring that purpose, & every congressman elected to that committee sworn to uphold it. Punishment for corruption should be swift & severe, with checks & balances to discourage it. Put term limits on that committee as well, & keep the public service concept fresh.

There are normal economic cycles, & the fiat drivers claim that govt manipulation can soothe & smooth these out. But in fact, the opposite is true. Economic contractions are actually worse, under fiat. The great depression can be explained better with simpler economics.. the 'new' dollar made people nervous, but it was mandated by the govt, & alternatives were forbidden under FDR.

The larger problem is the manipulation of the currency by whatever 'powers that be'. They can do this with gold, too, so a simple formula is not enough. '1 oz silver = $1 still bases valuation on a single marketable commodity: silver. Gold hoarders in the 20's.. especially in france, contributed to the world wide contraction in the 30's. But the statist's solution of fiat is using ponzi scheme dynamics to solve a much simpler problem:

How can we have a stable, simple currency?

Here are some ideals to target:
1. Stability in value over time. Inflation is a great evil & kills thrift. Spending is good for an economy short term, but without real production to back it up, spending leads only to bankruptcy. This is true on any scale, individual or national.
2. The currency should be difficult to manipulate by bankers, politicians, or other leeches on the producers of the nation. The more formulaic & scientific we base our money on, the less ability there is to manipulate it.
3. Money supply HAS to be tied to actual production. Fractional reserve banking does this, as loans are made on things of value.. collateral is give. Fractional reserve banking increases the money supply but it does so using production as the basis. You build a house, plant a crop, etc, you can take a loan out on it.
4. Predatory interest rates are dark ages practices, & are valid regulatory responsibilities of govt. Look at the interest rate chart. Before the major manipulations from politicians & their banker cronies, there were small market cycles.. but the big swings started AFTER fiat was declared. Since WW2, the birth of american big govt, the interest rate has swung wildly up & down, based primarily on banker manipulation, not real demand or supply, & especially not real production.




If you link the money supply to REAL production, you would not get the manipulations. More production would equate to more money. Normal contractions would bring a natural slowdown, without some bankers or politicians getting rich from the dilution of the currency. Then, as demand went up, so would the money supply. Interest rates would swing less wildly, & reflect actual supply & demand.

I'm probably getting too many charts in here, but if we tied money supply to production, there would be a natural buffering of the contractions, & people's savings would be protected. Economics isn't voodoo, or 'feel'. It is simple arithmetic.


The housing crash is a perfect example of currency meddling.. & govt using its power to try to redistribute. 'Everyone should have a home', was dubya & frank's heartfelt cry, & they tried to mandate it by govt decree. The banks were only too happy to go along with it, because it meant they could hand out money with no restraint or fear of default, since the govt promised to cover any deadbeats. That created the bubble, not the inflation of the currency. It was a false bubble, created by demand without ability. It is a side note of sorts, & illustrates the problems with govt meddling with the currency. 

The housing boom of the last decade 'created' a lot of money. It was partially justified, since it coincided with the construction boom, but the artificial inflation of prices caused by the artificial demand created more than was actually justified. The rampant inflation in the 70's caused primarily by opec & the raising of oil prices, along with the complete abandonment of the gold standard by nixon in '73 created a bubble then, too. Everything was inflating, as the dollar diluted. I knew many old folks then who were unsophisticated savers.. they had a savings account in a bank, & their life savings were there. Year after year they watched as the value slowly diluted. Even Reagan spoke against it. And even with the high interest rates of the time, it was not enough to cover the losses of inflation. The bankers & their political puppets got rich off this scheme, & they plundered the savings of hard working people to do it. They produced nothing, they only took the people's money by diluting it.. just like a drug dealer 'cuts' the drugs with sugar or some other cheap filler.

The currency can only survive, as well as the nation, if it is tied to something of real value. Fiat money dooms any system that uses it. Even now, the euro zone is diluting the euro more, to compete globally with other currencies. It is political manipulation, & the only ones who win are the bankers.. the money shufflers, who produce nothing. All involved in the process are merely stealing from those who actually create the wealth. They don't do it directly, like with taxation, but slowly, by diluting & devaluing the currency. It brings temporary relief, by making imports seem cheaper, but then the fiat pendulum swings the other way, & the temporary price cuts of imports are all lost as the inflated currency buys less & less.

Fiat money is a recipe for disaster, & we have been on that road for decades now. With no restraint on the money supply, the currency can & has been constantly diluted, devalued, & manipulated.. all for political & secret board room deals. Tying the money supply to actual production would limit that, & base it on reality, instead of mandate.

Or, we can let the bankers & politicians relax on the train while they crush production & the livelihood of the workers.


The proper course of action would be so detrimental to a large segment of society that it would spark a revolution. The whole system relies on plundering the producers AND borrowing from future producers to support an ever growing entitled class. It is a ponzi scheme, & we are in the middle of it. But the courageous & RIGHT thing to do would be to stop deficit spending, CUT govt, the welfare state, & make all systems solvent. It would cripple the economy for a while, as it will take a long time to get solvent again. That is why all politicians just kick the can down the road, hoping they can get theirs before the house of cards collapses.

Here are the steps it would take to bring us back to fiscal sanity:

1. Commit to a hard currency.. stability & consistency for all the nation.
2. Index the currency to a group of hard assets.. gold, oil, food, construction, whatever.
3. Provide a formula for the currency that prevents swings in value.
4. This currency could be constructed concurrently with the existing dollar, as a transition occurs.
5. Eventually the old fiat dollar would be phased out, like confederate dollars after the civil war, or the Wiemar marks in Germany.
6. Stick to the plan. Don't let moochers or looters get control of the system, to corrupt it & use it to plunder the treasury.
7. Pay off all public debts with the old dollars.. should be plenty of them around, & all the creditors can have them.

In the long run, this is a better system for a society. It rewards thrift, hard work, & minimizes money shuffling as a vocation.

The data clearly shows the direction that inflation & fiat monetary policy have brought us, & we have many examples in different scales of economic collapse to choose from. Rome was large scale, at the time, & it collapsed, primarily because of fiscal mismanagement. Russia, Argentina, England in the 60's.. many examples of corrections & failures to correct bad monetary policy. The US will face this, if we continue down this path. If we can arrest the spending, shore up the dollar, increase production, & revive a strong work ethic, we can have it all.. prosperity, affluence, world hegemony status. But, if we keep running the charge cards, despise production, encourage dependency, dilute the dollar... then we will follow in other footsteps of failed nations.

Show me the Money. Hard vs Fiat

Almost all of our collective, national problems are related to money. Yet it is probably the most misunderstood concept. You cannot print real wealth, only currency, which is just a symbol of wealth. Our whole economic system hinges around our currency, which we rely on the govt to manage. But they have shirked that responsibility & delegated it to an independent, non-elected board known as the federal reserve.

Historically, the United States has been a hard money country. Only [since 1913] has the United States operated on a fiat money system. During this period, paper money has depreciated over 87%. During the preceding 140 year period, the hard currency of the United States had actually maintained its value. Wholesale prices in 1913... were the same as in 1787. ~Kenneth Gerbino

For 140 years, while the US had a 'hard' currency, prices remained relatively constant. There were normal cyclical ups & downs, but values remained steady. The currency was stable, savings were safe, & hard work was rewarded with increase.

Then, in 1913, with the creation of the federal reserve, the slow erosion of the currency began, culminating in 1973 when the US currency became completely fiat. Since then, 'value' has constantly changed, savings were diluted, & inflation became a tool of govt manipulators. It is so common now, we hardly think of it.

With the exception only of the period of the gold standard, practically all governments of history have used their exclusive power to issue money to defraud and plunder the people. ~Friedrich August von Hayek

Inflation is not sustainable. Eventually, the currency pyramid scheme collapses. It may take 100 years, but it will collapse. We can witness the slow deterioration of the american dollar, with its beginnings in 1913.  A govt that uses its power to plunder the people has failed in its basic duty, & should be replaced & reorganized.

In the absence of the gold standard, there is no way to protect savings from confiscation through inflation. ... This is the shabby secret of the welfare statists' tirades against gold. Deficit spending is simply a scheme for the confiscation of wealth. Gold stands in the way of this insidious process. It stands as a protector of property rights. If one grasps this, one has no difficulty in understanding the statists' antagonism toward the gold standard. ~Alan Greenspan

All that fiat currency does is rob the producers.. the wealth creators. It dilutes the actual value, enabling money shufflers to skim the wealth without doing anything. They print more money, shuffle it around, & everybody gets a cut.. except those who actually produced it. They are being systematically robbed.



It will not be easy to turn this trend around. A return to the gold standard is impractical in our modern economic times, but a 'hard' currency is the only safe, moral, & equitable solution. The QEs & banker manipulated dilution of the currency will only lead to collapse, and the working man will return to his historical place as a serf. This is not what 'We the People' want. This is not what America is about. A hard currency, tied to actual production restrains the money shufflers & diluters, & prevents them from fleecing the people. The current fiat system is heaven to them. They can keep fleecing the working man, even raising his wages, yet taking it back by inflation of goods & currency dilution.

1. Return the direct management of currency to elected officials.. specifically, congress.

2. Let them issue currency, based on the ACTUAL production of the nation, not the phony GDP money shuffling numbers they bandy about. Tie it to food, manufacturing, construction, & any REAL wealth building enterprises.

3. Do NOT include financial sectors, or any non productive sectors such as govt, entertainment, academia, etc, as they do not produce actual wealth.

4. Provide clear, transparent accounting of all the currency.

5. All collective activities should be paid for by taxation of the citizens. No debt or shady interactions with bankers or electioneering dealers.

6. Stop all theft from the producers. End redistribution policies, foreign aid, military meddling, & the welfare state. Encourage production & a work ethic to build a sustainable, healthy, lasting society.

Without a stable, consistent currency, no society can last. A system that breeds corruption, graft, & plunders the public treasury never lasts long, & dooms any culture to a byword of history.

Is govt the solution, or the problem?

The short answer is 'Yes'. Govt is BOTH the problem AND solution. Extremists want to push one extreme.. the anarchists say that ALL govt is evil & needs to be destroyed. The big govt progressives, socialists, etc, say that MORE govt is good, as it can mandate equality, justice, & fairness for all.

But reality is somewhere in the middle. SOME administration of the human collective is necessary.. an expense for the citizens to protect themselves from foreign aggression & domestic criminals. But TOTAL govt control is tyrannical.

The ideal solution is to have minimal govt interference, while securing our basic rights and providing efficient, cost effective national security. Those details is where the debates should be.. what level of govt interference do we want?

The problem is not the system.. it is man himself. If a society is moral, charitable, & has a strong work ethic, they will prosper in almost any philosophical system. But if greed, corruption, & selfishness become the dominant characteristics of the culture, it will decline, regardless of the ideals of governance. A nation in decline can only stop the downward spiral by promoting & elevating moral values. The family must be held in high esteem. Policies that protect & encourage strong families should be the goal of a wise governing system, not those that tear down the family & destroy the social fabric of the culture.

For decades, progressive ideology has been systematically eroding family values. Morality & traditional family structure have been ridiculed, mocked, & undermined by civil servants who are supported by the society they serve. Academia, govt, & entertainment have sabotaged the very society they pretend to promote.

The problem is anti human ideology, empowered by govt. The solution is pro human ideology, empowered by govt. Govt is not the problem, but the ideology behind it.

The idea of some new, altruistic man is always needed to populate an altruistic fantasy ideology. I mostly hear the anarchists and the progressives humming 'Imagine' as they present their ideologies. Most people see the world as violent, greedy, unjust, filled with oppression, death, war, & bullies. So they long for a NEW world.. one that is filled with peace, harmony, love, & fairness. The progressives think that more government power can usher in this condition, while the anarchists think the state is the CAUSE of the problems. But neither is true, completely. More govt power, using corrupt, greedy, self serving humans only furthers corruption, greed, & selfishness. Less govt power, or eliminating it, only diminishes the deterrence for these same kinds of people to exploit others with no restraint. That is the quandary we are in. Corrupt, greedy, aggressive humans build a system of corruption, greed, & selfishness. So we need a 'New Man'.. a new human that somehow voluntarily restrains himself.

Big govt progressives want govt to usher in an age of peace & harmony, which they cannot do, as they merely reflect the people they represent. That is why america has become so corrupt.. as the nation's values have declined, our governance has followed. But eliminating all collective restraints or justice does not create a new man. You will not suddenly have everyone holding hands & singing kumbaya. You can 'imagine' this all you want, but the observable reality is that humans are selfish & greedy, & will exploit each other if they have opportunity. The power of our collective justice system is even a feeble deterrence, as the rate of crime & incarceration shows.

In the history of the world, a religious people with strong morals & tenets of altruistic care for their fellow man have brought the most 'fairness' to man. In places where these people form governments, those values are reflected in their collective system. Even monarchies, where the king is benevolent, god fearing, & sees himself as a nurturer & protector of his people, has more justice & approval from the people than a corrupt democracy.

As long as there are humans in the world, & they retain their historical humanity, there is little hope for a utopian dream. We are stuck playing 'Imagine' over & over, hoping some day the others will join us, & together we can live as one.

And of course, this just addresses the fantasy of anarchist ideology.. that of voluntary harmony & peace. The REALITY of anarchist ideology is more violent. Anarchists do NOT hold hands & sing kumbaya, they throw bombs & destroy things. They are filled with rage & hate cops, the govt, & any form of authority. So the conflict between what they say, & what they actually DO, is very similar with those who worship the state. Both pretend to want peace & love, but both are filled with hate towards the american system of self rule & limited govt.

HUMANS are the only 'entities' capable of infringing people's rights. Any criminal, any lawbreaking cop, any unjust bureaucrat, any corporate cog can violate people's basic rights. Those rights are only 'protected' by the power of those in control. If it is no one, then only your individual power can protect your own rights, unless you organize & form an alliance which people would do in any breakdown of law & order.

Even an unjust law does not violate anyone's rights, until & unless it is enforced. And it takes HUMANS to enforce it. No social laws enforce themselves.

What most people want is a fair, efficient, impartial system of justice. It has taken millennia for us to arrive at where we are. Reverting back to 'might makes right' only moves us backward in our social evolution. People wish to be free to live their lives, & keep as much as their property as possible, not wasting it on unnecessary protection & nanny state mandates. But anarchy does not deliver justice. It brings chaos & disorder. People prefer despotism to chaos & disorder.

Humans have lived in bondage & oppression from kings, dictators, generals, parties, caliphs, juntas, & as many governing systems you can name for millennia. Most of history man has not live with much 'liberty' as we in america know it. It is a fading memory, to be sure, but it is real, for now.

Societies have formed from time immemorial WITHOUT the concept of individual liberty. Freedom is not a privilege, nor is it something given by anyone. It is something that a determined people decide to TAKE. That is what we did in america, & if enough of us can keep the flood of socialists & anarchists from destroying the nation from within, we can keep it alive for a while longer.

No one who sits on their butt pontificating about their right to be free is ever free... only those who fight for it. Even then there is no guarantee.. many people have lost their lives in the fight for individual liberty, & it has taken thousands of years for us to arrive at a system where it can even live. Why? Because fighting for liberty does not pay. It is a battle for the altruistic.. those who will give of their lives to see their children, neighbors, & countrymen free.

Self absorbed, self seeking opportunists will not fight for human liberty. Nor will rogue males outside of mainstream society. These types only look out for their own selfish interests. Individual liberty is not one of them.

Liberty and power are in eternal enmity. Liberty is defensive and power is offensive. Power is an armed aggressor. Liberty stands empty-handed, in need of unselfish champions at all times. Power is alluring and inspires both fear and worldly reverence... Those who rise to power, and in power ride rough-shod over the rights of men, seem always to stand in marble on our public squares while those who carry the torch of liberty rest in unmarked graves. ~R. Carter Pittman

Extremes sees govt as the solution OR the problem. Those who are more practical see govt is BOTH the problem & solution.

Anarchy: 'Govt is the problem, therefore eliminate the state & there will be no problems.'
Progressivism: 'Greedy capitalists are the problem, therefore empower the state to take their stuff, divide it evenly & there will be no problems.'
American: 'Man is the problem. Make a system of checks & balances to minimize corruption & thereby minimize the problems'.


But balance is boring. Extreme measures, with dramatic overtones are more exciting. Massive explosions, shocking values, & radical departures from social norms have more appeal than minor tweaks. As the culture has declined, so has the system. It merely reflects the values of the people.

'Term limits & balance the budget!'

I think it is a matter of focus & determination. If we allow the state worshippers to constantly distract us & befuddle us with deflections, we will lose. But if every question is answered with 'Term limits & Balanced Budget!' eventually they will lose.

'What about ISIS?!? What can we do about them?!?'
Term limits, & balance the budget.

'Global warming!!!'
Term limits, & balanced budget.

'There are potholes in the road!!'
Term limits, & balanced budget.

Revolution usually results in tyranny, not freedom. For this reason, it is all the more important to keep america together, & salvage what we can of human liberty, rather than hope that some rises from the ashes.

Most of the time, it FEELS hopeless. But this is a call for intelligence, reason, & action.. We can use the feelings of dread & doom to motivate us to action, rather than fall into a defeatist stupor. We can make logical, tactical moves to preserve & further the american ideal.. the 2 big ones already have wide public support.

IMO, this is a time for focused, determined words & actions, not surrender.

"Many free countries have lost their liberty, and ours may lose hers; but if she shall, be it my proudest plume, not that I was the last to desert, but that I never deserted her" ~Abraham Lincoln

"If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide." ~Abraham Lincoln

In a time of great national despair, lincoln kept hope. In one of the most depressing settings you can imagine.. a bloody battle at gettysburg, he ended his address with these words:

It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Do we not also have a 'great task before us?' Have not many of our ancestors died to preserve the freedom we have enjoyed? Is this nation not ready for a new birth of freedom? It is too important.. too rare.. too precious in the annals of humanity to let it slip away from fools with no perspective & no concept of reality. WE the PEOPLE are the caretakers of american liberty, & we can take it back, if we want to. Where are the leaders, calling for action? Where are those who have sworn an oath to protect & defend the constitution from ALL enemies? Freedom is the life blood of americans. If we do not live free, we are not alive. We must WAKE UP to the slow tyranny masquerading as caretaking, seize our freedoms, & tweak our system so this does not happen again.

Almost every problem in american politics can find its source in the elite ruling class. Almost every thing good about america can be found in the principle of citizen representative. It's not a 'liberal or conservative' issue. It IS a statism vs individual freedom issue, as statism NEEDS a ruling class. But even classic liberals decry the loss of personal liberty, which is the constant push from statism.

Here is an interesting way to contrast the american principle of citizen representative. Read any quote or founding document.. or any speech by an american statesman. Anywhere you see 'people' or 'citizen', replace it with 'ruling class'. Here's what you get:

We the ruling class of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. 

that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the ruling class, by the ruling class, for the ruling class, shall not perish from the earth. 

When the ruling class fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the ruling class, there is liberty. 

The ruling class reign over the American political world as God rules over the universe. It is the cause and the end of all things; everything rises out of it and is absorbed back into it. ~Alexis De Tocqueville 

"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the ruling class themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but inform their discretion." ~Thomas Jefferson

This is absurd, of course, and any american would shrink from these statements in horror. Yet this is EXACTLY what we have become. We have a 2 party system of a good old boy power network dominating national politics. It HAS been going on for years, yet we seldom talk about the problems it has caused, or the intent of the founders, or the violation of the BASIC PRINCIPLE of american governance:
Citizen Representatives. It is distinctly anti american.. contrary to ALL the principles of the founders. Politicians & statesmen give lip service to it, yet work tirelessly to prevent it. They have built a monopoly.. a cartel of power where all the money, influence, & decision making is NOT available to the people's review, but is dictated. The only restraint over the years has been public opinion, which is shaped by media propaganda. .. and who controls that, now?

Libs should like this..

"We are bound by ideals that teach us what it means to be citizens. Every child must be taught these ideals. Every citizen must uphold them.... I ask you to be citizens. Citizens, not spectators. Citizens, not subjects. Responsible citizens building communities of service and a nation of character."

Sound good? Of course! Who said it? Dubya, in his inaugural address, 2001. Is there anyone who illustrates 'ruling class' any better than the Bushes? ..ok, maybe the kennedys.. but this still shows the corruption of the current system, & the departure from the principle of citizen representatives.

Public service is a magnet for scoundrels. Slimy characters like anthony weiner can worm their way into the political network, then get elected. He was not a businessman, or a working man.. a leader in his community. he got a job as an aide to chuck schumer, then ran for office himself. He never did a lick of honest work in his life, yet was promoted by the political machine & ends up 'representing' new york. What did this route give him? Fabulous wealth.. & he didn't have to work for it, unless you call sleazing around the political network, 'work'.

We could go through all the senators.. MOST of them just 'networked' their way into power. Some were rich before, & increased it. Some were not, but are now. How do most of these people get elected? They choose a 'career' of politics. They do NOT do anything productive, or anything that relates to the working man, but they pursue a career that is inherently elite. They go the route of obama, make connections in some city political machine, get elected state representative, then senator, then build a coalition & backing to go national. It is a pursuit of lordship, it is no wonder these people think themselves superior to everyone else. The system is rigged to attract these kinds of personalities.

It seems very clear to me, that to return to citizen representative principles would be easy. Take away the lifetime draw, the money, & the ascent of power, & we'd get a much better class of people doing it. This is probably the simplest, most basic principle of america, & would be easy to fix. It would have support from both liberals & conservatives. But not the ruling class! They will oppose it.. not openly or directly, but if the subject comes up, they will nod in assent to the problem, then change the subject. 'Yes, we need to address term limits.. look! a squirrel!'

1. Term limits for everyone.
2. Minimum wage.
3. Strict, enforced corruption laws.

I challenge anyone to find any changes to our system that would have a more dramatic effect, & for the good of the people, than these simple things.

Saving the Dream of America

The American Experiment defined.

1. All men are created equal.  There is no ruling elite or divine ordination.

2. The central & only purpose of govt is to provide justice & secure the rights of the people.

3. SELF RULE.  The people themselves are the only safe caretakers of our collective organization.

4. To accomplish these goals, we have established a system of self rule, with checks & balances in a governing system consisting of Legislative, Judicial, & Executive branches, all codified under constitutional law.

5. If the govt does not perform its basic duties, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, & institute one that does.  The PEOPLE are in charge, not some ruling elite.

These foundational definitions are not clearly in mind for many americans these days, & are very foreign to proponents of state centered ideologies, but they are the basis of America.

Analysis of problems.  Failures in the American dream.

1. Massive waste of public resources in unconstitutional military actions throughout the world, Govt corruption, misguided & immoral redistribution programs, & expansion of govt intrusion into the citizen's lives.

2. The decay of citizen representation, & the growth of an elite power structure.  A ruling class that has built a system or network of power. Influence has become centralized with favor providers, electioneers, lobbyists, & a 'good ol' boy' network of political favoritism. A pecking order of power has grown in the culture of a ruling elite.  Politics as a career has become a goal & a magnet for the corruptible.

3. Undue influence of special interests & the moneyed elite.  This is tied with the decline of citizen representatives, & the growth of corruption.  The 'revolving door to riches' where elected representatives become enriched by special interests, cronyism, & the use of law as an instrument of plunder.

4. Massive & dangerous debt, that will take years if not decades to get under control, if it does not collapse the nation.

5. Overreaches of power by the public servants, who are charged with defending & upholding the constitution.  They have exploited their position as stewards of the public trust for personal gain or to promote their personal agenda. Executive overreach & judicial activism are the most common examples.

6. The corruption of justice.  Crime is too rampant in crowded urban areas, & justice is not served.  The justice system has become self serving, self propagating, & a financial burden on the producers.  It no longer provides efficient justice for the people & needs reform.  There are too many conflicting, convoluted laws, too many citizens incarcerated, & too little deterrence for criminal behavior.

7. The growth of statism.  State centered regulations that nanny & restrict the freedoms of the people are systematically increasing under the guise of caring for us.

Adjustments to be made.  Can the current system be saved?  Can we 'tweak' things to salvage the experiment?

1. Term limits. This is probably THE most important thing we can do, & is one of the major things that has corrupted our system. Life time politicians worm their way into power, & curry favor with the network, & grow in the system that perpetuates itself, rather than being stewards of the public trust.  'Career Politician' should evoke the same feeling in us  as 'Career Criminal', as they become leeches & sponges.. looters of the people they pretend to serve.

2. Enlightened electorate.  If the people do not involve themselves & take responsibility for their governing process, it will fall to scoundrels, & swindlers who are drawn to 'public service' as a way to become rich without working.  The PEOPLE must embrace the american dream, & believe in the foundational principles of self governance, & not be fooled by the hucksters & con men who see govt as a means of self enrichment, living off the labors of others.  This SHOULD be the goal of public education, instead of the state centered dogma that is currently being pushed on young citizens.

3. Balanced budget.  Power follows the money, & money follows the power.  The taxpayers would have revolted years ago had they been taxed in accordance with the spending by the representatives.  But through deficit spending, they have burdened future generations with the irresponsible, corrupt spending of the current one.

4. Subsistence.  To keep honest, sincere public servants, there must not be a draw for riches. Elected representatives should be compensated minimally.. perhaps minimum wage, for their service. SERVICE is the key word here, not compensation. They are stewards of the public trust, & do not produce ANYTHING by their labor. They have no right to huge recompense & a luxurious lifestyle on the backs of the working man. It should not be a 'revolving door to riches' nor should public service provide other means to wealth. Conflicts of interest, graft, cronyism, nepotism, & other corrupting practices should be severely punished.

There is more, i am sure, & i welcome additions & corrections to this list.  The goal is to salvage the american experiment, even though some are working to destroy it.  But if we lose it, mankind will be set back centuries or even millennia in our quest for human freedom.

"Government is the great fiction through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else." ~Frederic Bastiat

"Our public economy is such as to offer drudgery and subsistence only to those entrusted with its administration--a wise and necessary precaution against the degeneracy of the public servants."~Thomas Jefferson

"This human struggle and scramble for office, for a way to live without work, will finally test the strength of our institutions" ~Abraham Lincoln

"The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government -- lest it come to dominate our lives and interests."  ~Patrick Henry

"My idea was that if they might be re-elected, they would be casting their eye forward to the period of election (however distant) and be currying favor with the electors and consequently dependent on them. My reason for fixing them in office for a term of years rather than for life was that they might have an idea that they were at a certain period to return into the mass of the people and become the governed instead of the governor, which might still keep alive that regard to the public good that otherwise they might perhaps be induced by their independence to forget." ~Thomas Jefferson

"Whenever the legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any further obedience." ~John Locke

Anarchy as governance?

The central duty of government is to provide justice. At its very basic form, it is a cop. That is all the people need. A cop to deter & punish aggressors, foreign or domestic. The american system of citizen representatives is just a means to hire cops. We also hash out the details of the law, through the elected representatives, at both the local & national level. Then the cops enforce it. The legislative branches do NOT enforce the law, they only tweak it & codify it, in our stead. They are NOT supposed to act on their own, or in their own interests, but in the interests of the general public. This is just a collective process, that we have evolved from the authoritarian, 'might makes right' systems of the past.

Anarchy destroys this process. There is no citizen representative to tweak the laws, or codify it in our stead. Anyone can do it, & if they have the juice, they can enforce THEIR vision of the law. This is merely a return to 'might makes right', & strips the people from having any influence in the law making process. History is full of cultures being oppressed & plundered by tyrants, parties, coalitions, kings, juntas, or caliphs all using LAW as an instrument of plunder, to take from the working man the fruits of his labors. The ONLY HOPE the working man has if if he can control the process, or have major influence, which is the goal of the american experiment. Anarchists wish to end this experiment, & return us to the dark ages, or worse. The power of the process of law making is too important & too easily abused to leave it to the aggressive, the strong, the rich; & this is what anarchy does, by stripping the people of their collective power, that we have built into this system.

Pretending there can be 'no rulers' or no system of law is the most absurd fantasy in the history of human governance. Laws are constantly crafted.. some good, some bad, & need constant supervision & enforcement. Everything from traffic laws, to patents, to property rights gets more complex, the more dense the population gets. More regulations come with more population. That is inevitable. To try to summarize every detail of law into some general platitude is madness & folly. An accident in a busy intersection cannot be adjudicated by the non aggression principle. The property rights of a patent need more legal examination than some sense of 'common law' can provide.

Why is this so hard to understand? Why do anarchists plug their ears & stubbornly repeat their mantras of non aggression? Why is this even an issue for thinking, rational people? It is calling evil, good. Madness, wisdom. Destruction, order. It is a model for disaster, nothing else. It has no basis in history or reason. ALL anarchist ideology has resulted in destruction & chaos, from as far back as you want to follow this bizarre thread of human ideology. It is just as absurd.. perhaps more so.. than the convoluted progressive, leftist ideology that pretends the state can be a benevolent taskmaster, if we relinquish all control of it to the experts. BOTH of these ideologies KILL the concept of self rule, & citizen representation in the lawmaking process.

Why would we want to do either of these things? How can we believe the lies that either of these could be valid, useful tools in our collective governance? Both of them lead to despotism & oppression. THAT is where we are going, if we do not rescue the american ideal of self rule.

In times past, anarchists contented themselves with 'propaganda of the deed', or blowing stuff up. Talk & reason isn't really their thing.. action & explosions are more satisfying to them. Logic gets stuck in their beards, & they long for some blast echo against their faces.

It is a peculiar ideology.. i suspect popular more for seeming to be 'hip', or 'trendy' or 'avantgarde'. IMO, it is a rogue male thing, who seem most drawn to its philosophy. But i don't get the attraction of progressive thought, either...  Both seem so irrational & fantastic.. i can't really see how someone arrives at that thinking. I was raised in progressive indoctrination, too. But a few years of real history study, reading classics, studying philosophy, & especially the american founders, & the 'dream' of america captured my imagination. But i have to credit my grandmother.. she gave me a parchment copy of the declaration of independence when i was 7.. i had fun trying to decipher the f's into s's.. & even years later, the words were deep in me, & resonated in my mind. All men created equal. Endowed with unalienable rights. Govt to secure these rights, or be altered or abolished. As a model or mission statement for human governance, i have still not read anything to match it.

But that is old fashioned. It is not cool or trendy, like the regurgitated 'isms' of today. So we will be sold out for fashion, & an illusion of hipness, for the usual standard of human society: despotism.

Important point:

Libertarian does NOT equal anarchy. Most libertarians are for limited govt, that does not intrude into personal decisions.. they might be for drug legalization, but they do not advocate anarchy. They might disagree with some points in the constitution, but they basically agree with the concept of rule by law, instead of 'no ruler' or despotism.
Just like some progressives like to hide in republican garb (rinos, they are called), some anarchists hide in libertarian clothing, ready to destroy ALL hierarchies & any semblance of organization.