Frankensteins of Unbounded Power

Submitted by Bill St. Clair on Tue, 05 Jul 2005 12:00:00 GMT

From Calculated Chaos (p. 117):

"Believing that the political process can bring about a significant change in the problems it has caused, is not unlike an alcoholic trying to effect a cure for his cirrhosis by switching to another brand of bourbon." -- Butler Shaffer

and (pp. 117-118):

"If we wish to understand the nature of political institutions, we must be able to observe them with minds that are willing to abandon many of their most cherished illusions. In so doing, we will discover that we have been sanctioning the greatest of irrationalities: placing our lives and well-being at the disposal of men and women with appetites for power over other people, and who amuse themsevles and gratify their egos while others suffer and die. We may learn that the police system does not protect you and me: it protects the established order from you and me; that the courts are not organized to guarantee our freedom, but to enforce our obedience to State authority. The political State represents nothing more than the institutionalization of unprincipled power and naked force. Though we delude ourselves with trying to measure differences between fascism and communism, democracies and dictatorships, conservatism and liberalism, moderates and extremists, authoritatian and totalitarian regimes, the fact remains that every form of government is a police-State, every political system is tyrannical. Every political institution--regardless of its particular form and constitution--suffers from the same defect: the presumption of the right to rule other people. It is the asserted right to make forcibly-imposed decisions for others that unites all governments in a common conspiracy against mankind. It is our concession of such a right that breathes life into these Frankensteins of unbounded power." -- Butler Shaffer

From Publicola:

"The argument that capital punishment degrades the state is moonshine, for if that were true then it would degrade the state to send men to war... The state, in truth, is degraded in its very nature: a few butcheries cannot do it any further damage" -- H L Mencken

"The only good bureaucrat is one with a pistol at his head. Put it in his hand and it's good-bye to the Bill of Rights" - H L Mencken

# rhjunior at LiVEJOURNAL - On this Fourth of July Weekend - good screed. [kimdutoit]

The Constitution was written with the blood of the common man and the period at the end of every sentence was a bullet. It came about because of the unshakeable moral convictions, because of the sacrifice of a handful of men who chose to STAND AND DELIVER. And its perpetual protection ---- by the power of the right to bear arms--- was placed in the hands, not of lawyers and politicians, but of the common man.

There are those among you who who, when the notion that men might bring the matter to blows is aired, proclaim with smug certainty that no civilian uprising could ever withstand the omnipotent might of the government armies. Damn you. Depart from among us, and let none among us call you "brother."

Are you so safely ensconced in your timorous ignorance that you think the American Revolution was a sure thing?

# eclectech - a tribute to charles clarke and his id cards - Flash animation song and dance on Great Britain's proposed identification card. Entertaining. [clairefiles]

# David Codrea - Are you vermin? - "Those who would rule have mastered the time-proven technique that if you dehumanize a segment of society you wish to eliminate, you can treat them inhumanely without a general outcry." And that's exactly what the Brady Bunch do all the time to gun owners. And why we must never give up our guns. [codrea]

# Kim du Toit - Comments on yesterdays post - scroll to the last comment, from Kim, before the "original post". He's not shutting down, just taking a break. [kimdutoit]

Yes, I need the time off--it's only partially business-related. Sometimes, the job just seems too much, too hard.

So just give me a week or so, and I'll be back. What I can promise, however, is that when I'm back, I'm going to be back with a vengeance (sorry, Francis, but the cursing will resume).

And 4RHeritage, I assume that on the day that I set fire to my national ID card on the steps of the Supreme Court building, and resist arrest with a firearm, that you'll be standing next to me? Or are you just another AR (armchair revolutionary)?

I've been jailed for standing against injustice before, and let me tell you, I'm not keen on doing it again. 50 isn't 18.

But if I must, then I must.

# Ron Paul's Texas Straight Talk - Lessons from the Kelo Decision - Separation of powers is dead. Don't expect new judicial appointments to change anything. The only way out of the mess is for individuals to take action locally. Dr. Paul still believes in voting.

# John Perna at The Maryland Militia Yahoo Group - Government authorized ways to celebrate your freedoms this 4th of July - how to have a good time while avoiding assault, imprisonment, and death. Would be funny if it weren't so true. [liberty]

As we go out to celebrate our freedom this 4th of July, let's go over a few things to make your celebration a success.

Before leaving home make sure you check the color coded Homeland Security alert status. Be especially careful if it is orange or red. Don't worry about yellow. It's always yellow.

Don't use any illegal fireworks in your 4th Celebration. It is for your own safety. And the founding father's implemented a government to protect you from yourselves. Didn't they? Besides, fireworks are explosive devices and you might be considered a terrorist with weapons of mass destruction. And although the government can't find any in Iraq, you can rest assured they will find them in your car trunk. But don't worry, getting arrested, imprisoned indefinitely without formal charges, and a 5 year wait before the secret tribunal trial per the Patriot Act is a breeze. It's that secret summary execution that should make you nervous.

# We the People - U.S. Court Of Appeals Soundly Rejects IRS Plea To Soften Ruling In Schulz v IRS - a little good news from Bob Schulz' on-going fight with the tax goons.

# David Carr at Samizdata.net - Stewed prunes tonight. Your favourite - on the steady decline in the percentage of the population who bother to vote. Some British politicos are even proposing compulsory voting. Mr. Carr explains it well: [samizdata]

If I were being charitable, I might suggest that Mr. Hoon chose his words for convenience rather than accuracy and that it would be unfair to second guess him on this basis. But I actually think that Mr. Hoon was being honest. Furthermore, I am prepared to extend to him the rare honour of actually speaking for the nation, or at least that 'significant' chunk of it for whom voting has become a sullen and thankless obligation, rather like slopping out the bedpan of an infirm and elderly relative while trying not to succumb to the guilt upon contemplation of the unspoken resolution that it would be better for everyone if they would just quickly and peacefully die.

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Quotes

Government doesn't work. Never did. Never will. Can't. But there are lots of good people. Love them.

-- Bill St. Clair

The Atlanta Declaration

Every man, woman, and responsible child has an unalienable individual, civil, Constitutional, and human right to obtain, own, and carry, openly or concealed, any weapon -- rifle, shotgun, handgun, machinegun, anything -- any time, any place, without asking anyone's permission.

-- L. Neil Smith

Reread that pesky first clause of the Second Amendment. It doesn't say what any of us thought it said. What it says is that infringing the right of the people to keep and bear arms is treason. What else do you call an act that endangers "the security of a free state"? And if it's treason, then it's punishable by death. I suggest due process, speedy trials, and public hangings.

-- L. Neil Smith

A Penalty Clause for the Bill of Rights

Any official, appointed or elected, at any level of government, who attempts, through legislative act or other means, to nullify, evade, or avoid the provisions of the first ten amendments to this Constitution, or of the Thirteenth Amendment, shall be summarily removed from office, and, upon conviction, deprived of all pay and benefits including pension, and sentenced to imprisonment for life.

-- L. Neil Smith

Based on 253 journal articles, 99 books, 43 government publications, and some of its own empirical work, the panel couldn't identify a single gun control regulation that reduced violent crime, suicide or accidents.

-- John Lott, commenting on the National Academy of Sciences report on gun control laws.

Who is a libertarian?

Zero Aggression Principle ("Zap")

"A libertarian is a person who believes that no one has the right, under any circumstances, to initiate force against another human being, or to advocate or delegate its initiation. Those who act consistently with this principle are libertarians, whether they realize it or not. Those who fail to act consistently with it are not libertarians, regardless of what they may claim."

-- L. Neil Smith

(Formerly called the "Non-Aggression Principle", or "NAP")

Why Did It Have to be... Guns?

Make no mistake: all politicians -- even those ostensibly on the side of guns and gun ownership -- hate the issue and anyone, like me, who insists on bringing it up. They hate it because it's an X-ray machine. It's a Vulcan mind-meld. It's the ultimate test to which any politician -- or political philosophy -- can be put.

If a politician isn't perfectly comfortable with the idea of his average constituent, any man, woman, or responsible child, walking into a hardware store and paying cash -- for any rifle, shotgun, handgun, machinegun, anything -- without producing ID or signing one scrap of paper, he isn't your friend no matter what he tells you.

If he isn't genuinely enthusiastic about his average constituent stuffing that weapon into a purse or pocket or tucking it under a coat and walking home without asking anybody's permission, he's a four-flusher, no matter what he claims.

What his attitude -- toward your ownership and use of weapons -- conveys is his real attitude about you. And if he doesn't trust you, then why in the name of John Moses Browning should you trust him?

-- L. Neil Smith

Concise

"Tell me," I was once asked, "What do you think about gun control? Give me the short answer." To which I replied, "If you try to take our firearms we will kill you."

-- Mike Vanderboegh

Also from The Atlanta Declaration:

... like going to the bathroom, breathing, eating, sleeping, or making love, it turns out that self-defense is a bodily function one cannot safely or effectively delegate to a second party.

-- L. Neil Smith

This does not mean that "Marijuana should be available by prescription." It means that morphine sulfate should be available in five pound bags at the supermarket for a couple of bucks, like sugar... but probably in a different aisle, to avoid confusion.

-- Vin Suprynowicz

If you refuse to pay unjust taxes, your property will be confiscated. If you attempt to defend your property, you will be arrested. If you resist arrest, you will be clubbed. If you defend yourself against clubbing, you will be shot dead. These procedures are known as the Rule of Law.

-- Edward Abbey

The state can only survive as long as a majority is programmed to believe that theft isn't wrong if it's called taxation or asset forfeiture or eminent domain, that assault and kidnapping isn't wrong if it's called arrest, that mass murder isn't wrong if it's called war.

-- Bill St. Clair