During my most recent business trip I took advantage of my flying time and read “The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Civil War.” It was a pretty entertaining read and confirmed most of what I already knew about the War Against Southern Independence but it also offered some great insight into the individual leaders involved [...]
During my most recent business trip I took advantage of my flying time and read “The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Civil War.
” It was a pretty entertaining read and confirmed most of what I already knew about the War Against Southern Independence but it also offered some great insight into the individual leaders involved in the war, and the vast differences among them.
” It was a pretty entertaining read and confirmed most of what I already knew about the War Against Southern Independence but it also offered some great insight into the individual leaders involved in the war, and the vast differences among them.
One of those leaders, probably the most famous of them, was Robert E. Lee. Scholars debate his tactics to this day, and looking back it is possible to say “well if he only did this” or “if he’d only gone there” but we have to remember that hindsight is 20/20, and the man was able to protect Virginia for four years while facing drastic disadvantages. The US Empire had the advantage of an endless supply if immigrants being forced into military slavery (conscription), as well as the captured slaves forced into combat, as well as supplies and munitions that were a direct result of 30+ years of tariffs on Southern exports.Anyway, the following passage leaped out at me from the book, and it is about a correspondence between Lee and Lord Acton in 1866 (after the war):
Though a reluctant secessionist, Lee understood the cause for which he fought, and it was by no means an ignoble one, as witness a letter he wrote to Lord Acton, the great classical liberal statesman, in 1866. Acton had initiated the correspondence, writing to Lee about his admiration for the Confederacy. “I saw in State Rights,” Acton wrote, “the only availing check upon the absolutism of the sovereign will, and secession filled me with hope, not as the destruction of but as the redemption of Democracy… Therefore I deemed that you were fighting the battles of our liberty, our progress, and our civilization; and I mourn for the stake which was lost at Richmond more deeply than I rejoice over that which was saved at Waterloo.”
Lee replied, “I yet believe that the maintenance of the rights and authority reserved to the states and to the people, not only essential to the adjustment and the balance of the general system, but the safeguard to the continuance of a free government… whereas the consolidation of the states into one vast republic sure to be aggressive abroad and despotic at home, will be the certain precursor of that ruin which has overwhelmed all those that have preceded it.” He outlined his understanding of how the founders had opposed such a consolidation and how secession had been acknowledged as a presumed constitutional right in the past. But, he said, “I will not weary you with such unprofitable discussion. Unprofitable because the judgement of reason has been displaced by the arbitrament of war.” During the crisis of 1861, Lee had been on the side of judgement and reason.
Take a look at the history of the United States since the day Lee wrote those words. I’ve added the emphasis in bold because I think he basically outlined the mode of operation of the federal government for the last 150 years. Look at the point we have come to today:
- The federal reserve controls the money supply, confiscating our property at their whim
- The US foreign policy has been nothing but a trail of tears of interventions and blowback, from WW1 to the present
- The Sherman Act (fittingly) along with stacks of further regulations have destroyed any semblance of a free economy
- The government is blaming its failed social programs on us, and forcing more social programs down our throats
- Race relations are still abysmal, it having taken the federal government 100 years to grant blacks any civil rights
- The national debt is so high that we can’t mathematically ever pay it off
- Neither national party has repealed a significant law since prohibition
- The President writes laws from his desk
- The President has the power to detain US citizens indefinitely
- There are more bureaucrats than there are elected officials, and they have the power to do everything from imprisoning to wiretapping to stealing from US citizens
- The list goes on.
Calling Robert E. Lee a prophet might be a stretch, but it is clear that he was 100% accurate about the direction of the US government following their war of conquest from 1861 to 1865. The policies of the federal government are different in name and detail to the policies of the fallen empires throughout the rest of history, but conceptually they are exactly the same: finance government through debt/inflation, spend vast amounts of money on maintaining entitlements and an empire, then collapse. It’s happened time and time again, and it will happen to the USA.
Check this article out: The United States has rewarded mediocrity and pursued egalitarian policies for over a century — using fiat currency as a tool to manipulate economic conditions at every turn. Its programs create easy credit and cash, pushing asset’s valuations ever-higher with artificial demand, causing bubbles that eventually have no course but to [...]
Check this article out:
The United States has rewarded mediocrity and pursued egalitarian policies for over a century — using fiat currency as a tool to manipulate economic conditions at every turn. Its programs create easy credit and cash, pushing asset’s valuations ever-higher with artificial demand, causing bubbles that eventually have no course but to burst; this is what happens when the state controls currency and banking. Too often, blame is placed on the “greed” of entrepreneurs and business people — but this is little more than sophistry, for how would these “greedy” people pursue their interests were it not for government-sponsored entities like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? No — blaming Wall Street for the housing crisis is like blaming gravity for plane crashes.
The United States federal government is populated almost universally with self-serving, arrogant men and women who believe it is their right to pervert and distort the U.S. Constitution — a document created not for them, but in spite ofthem. If the elected leaders in Washington cannot respect the rules and regulations to which they are bound by oath, then the individual states should take action — by right — to protect their citizens from the horrific abuses in Washington.
link: The Time has Come for Texas to Secede – Gold Speculator
Conservatives and Republicans are up in arms today about the signing into law of Obamacare, and the rallying cry seems to be: Repeal! In December of 1773, to protest unjust taxation, a group of American colonists dumped tea in Boston Harbor. The punishment for that first Tea Party was a series of intrusive laws passed [...]
Conservatives and Republicans are up in arms today about the signing into law of Obamacare, and the rallying cry seems to be: Repeal!
In December of 1773, to protest unjust taxation, a group of American colonists dumped tea in Boston Harbor. The punishment for that first Tea Party was a series of intrusive laws passed by Parliament that were so oppressive that they could only be described as the “Intolerable Acts.”
Obamacare is today’s Intolerable Act. And just as the colonists banded together to enact change after those acts were passed, so should America respond to Obamacare. This law must be repealed.
link: Morning Bell: Repeal | The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.
Now while I’d like to just jump on the bandwagon and cheer on the “good” guys, I just am not buying it. Why are the Republicans all of the sudden so hell bent on repealing a government program? When was the last time they actually did that? As I’ve pointed out before, there are plenty of progressive government programs in place that the Republicans have failed to do anything about, much less repeal, when they’ve had power. The list is huge, but some of the big ones include: medicare, social security, public education, the federal reserve, the income tax, etc. Why should this time be any different?
In fact, I don’t think it will be different at all. The Republicans are going to win back control of congress and maybe the senate, but they surely won’t have a supermajority. So what are they going to do in 2011? Nothing. They’ll be able to block any new government programs, but who’s to say they actually will?
When 2012 comes along the Republicans may still be riding the wave of the tea parties and they might take back the white house. What will happen then? Do you think they’ll actually repeal Obamacare? What piece of evidence exists in the history of the Republican party that would suggest such a thing?
I think the Republicans are going to win back control in 2012, and I think they’re going to remove some of the legislation piece-meal from this plan while leaving in the vast majority of the fascist regulations and bureaucracy. One thing is for sure: they most certainly will not remove all government regulation of medicine, including medicare, the FDA, the DEA, state-sponsored monopolies, etc.
This is why I am not on the “repeal!” bandwagon. I don’t think it goes far enough, and I don’t think it will actually happen. I am on the “Secede!” bandwagon, because that’s the only way we’re actually going to get this behemoth tyranny off our backs.
The Healh Care Reform Bill has passed. “This is what change looks like,” Obama said later in televised remarks that stirred memories of his 2008 campaign promise of “change we can believe in.” “We proved that this government – a government of the people and by the people – still works for the people.” link: [...]
The Healh Care Reform Bill has passed.
“This is what change looks like,” Obama said later in televised remarks that stirred memories of his 2008 campaign promise of “change we can believe in.”
“We proved that this government – a government of the people and by the people – still works for the people.”
link: My Way News – House sends health care overhaul bill to Obama
The question then is: what people? Stocks for health insurance companies and drug companies are rising this morning on the news of this health bill passage. So underneath the mask of “health reform” and “helping people” what’s actually happened here is the fascist takeover of 17% of the nation’s economy. The government will now pick and choose which health companies succeed and it will force everyone to purchase insurance regardless of if they want or need it. Obviously this is great news for the embedded special interests (the health companies that are favored by the politicians) as they will have a dramatic increase in business from people who otherwise wouldn’t be buying coverage. Also, as more and more people are given coverage that they don’t pay for, they will use health resources at an ever expanding rate. Just ask any doctor from any state that provides health insurance. Their offices are flooded with Vicodin addicts and anyone with a cough or the slightest hint of a cold. What does all this mean? More government money will be flowing to the companies who provide these services and drugs. Make no mistake, the “evil” big businesses are going to make a TON of money as a direct result of this legislation, all thanks to the Democrats who supposedly work “for the people.”
The good news is that the states are trying to stand up to this monstrosity. After many states passed 10th amendment resolutions, most rational people asked “so what?” Well now we are seeing. The first step is litigation, and news out of Florida is that several states will challenge the constitutionality of this bill if it is signed into law:
“On behalf of the State of Florida and of the Attorneys General from South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Pennsylvania, Washington, North Dakota, South Dakota and Alabama if the President signs this bill into law, we will file a lawsuit to protect the rights and the interests of American citizens.”
link: Florida says several states to file healthcare lawsuit | Reuters
So, what if that fails? What will we do in the eventuality that the courts uphold the new law? (which of course they will, or nearly every other federal program will come into question) Then we will see just how useless those 10th amendment resolutions actually are, because we will all be forced to live in subjugation to the federal government (as we have for the last 100 years in other issues) when it comes to our health.
Hopefully, the states will then have the gall to nullify the healthcare legislation, and if that fails, secede. I personally think that nothing we do will stop the federal juggernaut and so we ought to just skip ahead to secession before our lives and economies are ruined. Unfortunately I seem to be in a severe minority on this, so we’re all going to have to suffer a long, drawn out death march.
I’ve just completed reading an excellent book about Capitalism, the economic system of laissez faire, individual rights, and freedom. The full title is: “Capitalism Unbound: The incontestable moral case for individual rights” and for such a short read I must say it does fulfill that promise. While I did find some errors with the historical [...]
I’ve just completed reading an excellent book about Capitalism, the economic system of laissez faire, individual rights, and freedom. The full title is: “Capitalism Unbound: The incontestable moral case for individual rights” and for such a short read I must say it does fulfill that promise. While I did find some errors with the historical aspects covered in the book, the overall argument made is fully accurate, and the message contained is of utmost importance to anyone who cherishes liberty and happiness.
Capitalism is a lost idea in the modern world thanks to statists who demonize it at every turn and self-proclaimed “conservatives” who refuse to defend it because of things like “focus groups” who deem the term unpopular. I fully believe that if we are to save ourselves and save our country we must turn all of our attention to the study of Capitalism as well as the failed systems of Socialism and Fascism. In Capitalism Unbound, Andrew Bernstein sets out to initiate such a study.
The book’s stated purpose is to lightly cover the main ideas and the moral issues surrounding Capitalism, giving the reader enough knowledge to understand the subject and enough references to do deeper dive research on topics that they find are important to them. To that end, it is arranged in three parts:
- The Historic Superiority of Capitalism
- The Moral Superiority of Capitalism
- The Economic Superiority of Capitalism
Personally I think this was a very effective method for presenting the author’s thesis as it broke the subject into three easily discernible areas. I will proceed to review each subject as it was covered:
The Historic Superiority of Capitalism
Bernstein’s first task in his discussion of Capitalism is to set out the historic record of economic systems and to compare them to the historic record of Capitalism. In a unique exercise, he lays out the economic conditions and systems of the pre-industrial world, from about 500 to 1500 A.D., and contrasts this with the rapid advancement and increase in the human condition seen during the industrial revolution. It’s a fascinating dive into the economics of the dark ages, something that I have not seen before.
Unfortunately, in describing the economy of 19th century America, Bernstein takes the “official” objectivist stance on the issue: that while not perfect, America’s government supported the free market and it was the lack of a philosophic base and the advent of the progressive movement that caused the government to shift toward fascism and thus create the disastrous mixed-economy that now burdens us. This is something that I’ve read several times in Ayn Rand’s works, that is universally accepted by the organizations devoted to the study of objectivism, and that has recently gotten me kicked off of a list of bloggers covering objectivist topics. It is as if Bernstein and Objectivists reject every statist myth about the American economy post 1870, but accept every statist myth about America pre 1870. It saddens me that this author and such a distinguished group of intelligent people have taken the wrong position and maybe some day soon I’ll do a post on this issue alone.
The reality of the situation is that the American government instituted by the Constitution is a Mercantilistic system modeled after that of Great Britain, where the government hands out favors and regulates free enterprise to accomplish the whims of politicians. This is clearly seen with the “Whiskey Rebellion” that occurred under our very first administration after the federal government decided to place a tax on alcohol – a move that was unjust, amoral, and totally the opposite of capitalism. The United States of America was never setup to protect individual rights and the degree of economic freedom and therefore prosperity that we have enjoyed is simply inversely proportional to the size and scope of the government.
America was founded by rugged individualists who fully believed in their rights to their own lives and their own freedoms. These are the men who carved out prosperous towns and cities from the uninhabited wilderness, the men who fought in the Revolution, and the men who were enslaved by the second handers in Philadelphia at the constitutional convention; only they did’t know it. The only reason we had so much economic success as a country is that our people were forced by nature to live as rational egoists and our government was simply slow to catch up.
That being said, Bernstein argues correctly that it was capitalism in rudimentary forms in Britain and in America that dragged the entire world out of drudgery and backbreaking daily labor. This is the only section of the book that I don’t think is fully accurate, but it is still very informative.
The Moral Superiority of Capitalism
The second section of Capitalism Unbound is devoted to laying out the moral justification for the system of freedom in practice, something that is not often accomplished by modern writers on the subjects of politics or economics. This justification is central to the entire debate though, for all arguments against Capitalism are made on moral grounds. Even the most staunch enemy of freedom will say that Capitalism does “work” (by increasing the standard of living for everyone) but that it is “flawed” in that it doesn’t care for “those in need.” They use this line of thinking to justify every single rule, regulation, or otherwise fascist imposition on the freedom of individuals. “Unrestricted Capitalism,” they say, “can only lead to an oligarchy of the wealthy and the destruction of the common good.” What is the common good? Whatever “they” say it is.
Bernstein absolutely shatters this flawed morality by setting forth the explanation of Rational Egoism and the side effects of defending the individual against the initiation of the use of force. He explains that only through self esteem and individual rights can we actually achieve goodwill towards others and honest, fulfilling charity. For example, is it “good will” that impels you to pay your taxes, which are then used for the “common good,” or is it the barrel of a gun? I know I wouldn’t pay them if I wasn’t forced to. Is an act of charity actually charitable if it’s not done voluntarily? Of course not. This chapter is very thorough and is extremely important if one is to understand just why the morality of the world is so backwards and why it is driving our economy in the same direction.
The Economic Superiority of Capitalism
In the third and final section of Capitalism Unbound, Bernstein performs a qualitative comparison of varying forms of economy, from socialism (or communism) to fascism to the modern calamity known as the mixed economy, where elements of freedom are arbitrarily mixed with elements of socialism and fascism.
He starts by studying socialism and its obvious and massive failures throughout history. He sheds light onto the inner workings of the Soviet economy and its slaughter of millions of innocents in the name of the “common good.” Again I learned something I’d never heard before in this section, when Bernstein outlined all of the massive amounts of aid, assistance, and intellectual property the USSR received from the western world, and mainly from America. I never learned about
this at school of course, but the fact of the matter is that Communism would have collapsed much earlier if FDR and other Americans hadn’t worked so hard to prop it up. If you already had bad feelings toward the American Progressives of the early 1900s, take a few deep breaths before you read this part of the book, but do yourself a service and make sure you read it.
Next Bernstein moves into the failure of the mixed-economy, the current system of American government that has led to the never ending boom-bust cycle that creates wealth for second handers and destroys the businesses and the life savings of honest Americans. In a relatively small amount of space he manages to pull together a wealth of information from Austrian economists that explains the economic chaos we have all seen in recent history. If you’ve read books like “Meltdown” this section will be nothing new for you, but it is refreshing to see an Objectivist at least honor the works of such esteemed libertarians.
Finally, in the last section of Capitalism Unbound, Andrew Bernstein offers us a “modest proposal” on how to right this ship and save our economy and our freedom:
- Let the United States move to full laissez-faire capitalism, assiduously protecting individual rights in all arenas of human life, including personal morality, as well as economics.
- Let every other nation, without exception, if they so choose, move to partial socialism, to whatever degree each country’s populace wishes.
- Open the borders of all countries, so that every honest person – but not criminals or terrorists – can emigrate to the land he prefers.
- Over a period of decades, even centuries, conduct a “Great Laboratory,” honestly studying the progress of each nation, emigration patterns between nations, and levels of fulfillment/happiness among individual citizens of each nation.
To be honest, I was a little bit disappointed in this conclusion to an otherwise excellent book. The reason: it’s just not rooted in reality. Step 2, for instance, has already happened and will continue to happen no matter what we do here in America. What we need to do is STOP sending foreign aid to countries who decide to do such things. Step 3 would be fine, but we can’t control the border policies of other nations, so it’s moot. Step 4 has already been done. All we need to do is look at history, as in the first part of the book, to learn what freedom will do for the prosperity of individuals.
Most importantly, Step 1 is simply out of the realm of possibilities for America. We are too far gone down the road to serfdom. Hell, we’re already there. The government will never relinquish its power, no matter who we elect or what resolutions we pass.
The proposal that I would have hoped for is simple: peaceful secession of every state from the Union. Have the different states run their own governments as they please, and see which ones are the most prosperous and the most happy. Fight like hell to have your state be one of the few that establishes a truly Capitalist system, having the government perform only one strict role: to protect individuals from the initiation of the use of force, either foreign or domestic.
In summary, Capitalism Unbound is an excellent book and I recommend everyone read it. It’s only about 130 pages and takes a couple of hours to read, and it is extremely informative and insightful. I learned a lot from reading this book and I think you will too.
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