Capitol Hill Blue Forums Political Issues Constitutional Issues The Self-Destructive Habits Of Politics

What propose is it that despite all the efforts that the government seeks to implement it will not divert or nullify the laws of economics? Therefore its efforts will ultimately prove futile and it is within that futility that harm, great harm is done to those who can ill-afford such consequences.

First, you state that you put no more trust in the market as you do in government when the truth of the matter is that the current markets have been so distorted by the efforts of the government that there is indeed few places to put faith in such systems. You are making my case for me, though you might not be aware of that fact.

It appears that what we are both advocating is to eliminate the undue influences on the market that are presently held by those in places of power. The way to accomplish such elimination is simply to continue to allow the government to erode the foundations of this country’s economic health it will fall flat. My concern however, is the massive degree of suffering this country will face during such a distressful time when the laws of economic and monetary laws once again press their immutable natures.

If you can call this a proposal then so be it, but I like to think of it as a force that cannot be thwarted over a long period of time. The question then becomes what can the people of this country do about it before these immutable laws press themselves upon our economy? I have to wonder why we continue to accept the same type of political candidates that we have accepted for the last 50 to 100 years, those who seem to be bedded down with the very forces that you and I consider part of the problem in this country. The political metamorphoo that has taken place between the two major political parties has been astonishing, to say the least. Both parties are basically the same with minor cosmetic differences that are basically meaningless when it comes to an actual substantial change in the direction this country is heading. Each of the parties cater to the same powers, the same forces that ultimately cause so much harm to the people of this country that I am amazed that so many continue to keep their rose-colored glasses before their eyes.

We have become a majoritarian democracy where the politicians will always cater to the emotions of the majority-voting block to ensure their own place at the politically powerful feeding trough. We have lost the balance of the Republic, which blunted the power of the majority by layering checks, and balances throughout the system. It is now much closer to a democracy than it has ever been, and therein lays the danger of such systems. Every democracy fails because it caters directly to the majority and the majority will always vote itself the benefits that such power imbues until we find ourselves in the midst of democratic despotism voted into place at the expense of any minority opinion. I contend that the current system, that has been gradually imposed upon this country since the 1860s, is not viable, it is nationalistic and centralized that has been compromised through a very direct assault from a corporatist view point, left without enough checks and balances, once found within the Republic, remaining in sufficient strength to divert the corruption of power.

The Framers of the Constitutional Republic sought to place hoops and hurdles in every layer of government to make it far more difficult for any one group or any one interest to gain or control the reigns of power. The problem is that there have always been those who have sought to subvert or side-step such hoops and hurdles to increase the probability that they could eventually control many if not most elements within the government and therefore control the way in which government disperses power. The Framers of the Constitution wanted to place so many inconvenient layers within our government so that it would make it extremely difficult to operate in ways that most governments operated throughout history. They did this to protect this country from the common pit-falls found in every society throughout history, they wanted to prevent the self-destructive bad-habits that tends to cling to the reigns of power, they wanted to separate it not only on a federal level but also through keeping the States, along with each State Constitution and government, as essentially independent Republics within a Republic.

You are right, the power of the vote is now so insignificant that it has become little more than mere exercise of popular civics but holds no real power to make the changes necessary to ensure that the lives of the people who labor and produce by the sweat of their brows are actually meaningful. We have become little more than a feudal peonage, working for the pittances of a now alarmingly debased currency, unable to fully enjoy not only the fruit of our labors but now it seems that most live to work instead of work to live. Most no longer make a living, they struggle under the overwhelming and mounting weight of an economy by government decree that appears to be purposeful to that very end: a productive peonage whose labors are siphoned off for the benefit of their masters.

I am in total agreement with you concerning the lack of knowledge within the general population, they have, after all, been lured into believing what they are fed on a daily basis not only about government, but about the economy as well. They are generally ill equipped to either understand or cope with the harsh reality that is about to befall this country and therein is a great danger.

Concerning the ideals of the Republic, I have found no other system of government that can come close to providing the broadest degree of liberty and prosperity for the population of a country as a whole while providing a substantial balance to the power of a majority to gain control over the country and its minorities. We have, for decades, seen the ideals and principles of the Republic eroded to the point that democracy governs with a majoritarian political market place. There was once a saying in the early States that expressed this opinion rather well: “Freedom from Mobs as well as Kings”, that expressed the truth behind both the despotism of Monarchy and Democracy, either one have the tendency to use power for purposes other than the general common good of the individual or those who hold a minority place in society. While it is true that in the minds of some of the Founders they didn’t trust the masses with government, the system they settled on was actually to prevent a despotic majoritarian government from gaining the immunity of power.

Every government program, every regulation, every act and ordinance is designed for the purpose of enhancing the power and scope of the government itself. While at one time the purpose of government to provide the protection of an atmosphere where the individual could live his life in the manner of his choosing, taking both risk and reward from his actions, his ingenuity and enterprise. The government was intended to be neutral allowing for the greatest expression of individual liberty possible without devolving into chaotic anarchy. While it is difficult to look at the modern American society without heaving in astonishment at the overt ignorance of the population en masse, I still believe that given the opportunity to live in a country where the government was not so omnipresent and omnipotent, they would choose to do so. Yes, the word Liberty really is synonymous with the word Responsibility, but therein is the catch. We have seen the government gradually promote dependence upon the government, one must ask why?

I suppose the point is that there will come a time when we will face the destruction of our society because we have neglected the principles that were intended to prevent such a collapse. We have fallen prey to the forces of corrupt power and a government that promotes the extension of such power. We can start locally to make changes, at least that is what I have been doing for the last few years. I think it is impossible to attack the head of the system, so we must hack away at the lower portions of government, locally and State governments. It will be much more possible to attack the federal leviathan when you have fifty fighting against it instead of a few activists who are vocal, but lost in the crowd.