During the time period surrounding the framing of
the United States Constitution, statism was called utopianism,
communitarianism, and nationalism. The
redistribution of wealth was called “Schemes of Leveling.” The early colonies, seeking a communal answer
to combat the human trait of selfishness discovered early on that systems using
a communal central storage quickly became poisoned by human nature, and
hindered by those who refused to “pay their fair share.”
Through researching history, the framers of the
Constitution also came to the conclusion that a pure democracy, like communal
systems, became a one way ticket to oligarchy – a statist system where a few
political elites rule over the citizenry at large. Under such a system, citizenship and
sovereignty are compromised, and the populace becomes mere subjects to the
ruling regime.
When the Framers of the United States Constitution
debated over the document that would create the federal government in
Philadelphia during the Summer of 1787, among the considerations that greatly
influenced their decisions was human nature.
The natural tendencies of human beings inspired the Framers of the Constitution
to follow Montesquieu's advice about a Separation of Powers, Polybius's call
for a mixed constitution, and the Saxon concepts of a division of powers and of
Natural Rights. Human nature guides the
way we react, the things we desire, and the realization of the insecurities we
possess within us. Self-reliance and
liberty take a lot of work, so we naturally lean towards utopia (statism),
seeking a leader to do the things we feel are out of our hands. But, those same characteristics of human
nature can negatively influence political leaders, moving them in a direction towards
seeking power and wealth while propping themselves up as the all-knowing ruling
elite that must protect freedom by taking freedom away.
Humans crave security, and we know that when left
to our own devices without some kind of system to secure the rule of law, our
rights are in constant danger. So, we
create government knowing that without government there is no freedom. The Founding Fathers understood this reality,
but also knew that limitations must be placed on government, for the
application of too much government historically always limits freedom.
Government cannot Create. Government cannot keep
promises. Government cannot be innovative
if centralized and allowed to become powerful.
Government is operated by man, which means that all of the frailties of
man, all of the shortcomings of man, and all of the other negative aspects of
human nature are a part of government.
Government also does not possess the things that
makes us special as individuals.
Government cannot produce as a result of God-given talents or
interests. Government does not have a
drive to better itself, or to be personally responsible. Government does not have the self-interest to
improve itself, or the desire to profit from its efforts so as to improve its
line of business. The interests of
government, in reality, are at odds with the interests of individualism.
Since government cannot produce, to function it
must confiscate. When government
"takes" from society, and reduces what is left of the fruits of
individual production, it hinders the production of individuals. Under the threat of taking more, the
producers produce less to guard against losing more. The end result is a government that betrays
the means of production, and ultimately driving whole civilizations into
poverty as the leviathan of government takes more and more until eventually,
there is nothing left to take; and only misery remains to be given.
Government seeks to take more and more, and the
production of individual ingenuity and innovative aspirations are reduced as a
result. And as the wealth of liberty
vanishes, the government is left with no other choice than to create perpetual
debt in order to continue to operate.
The debt increases as government expands, until there is no more value
in the system to take. Then, still
seeking more and more power, government begins to print fiat currency to fund
its operations (and to manipulate the economy).
As more money is printed and borrowed, the need to artificially hold up
the economy increases. It becomes a
vicious cycle that continuously devours itself in order to survive. Eventually, as the old saying goes, what goes
up must come down.
The reality of collapse is recognized by the
power-brokers in government, but the system has become too big. The progression of the expansion of
government is addictive, and impossible to let go of. Everyone becomes the enemy, even the members
of the citizenry. The government becomes
paranoid, and they begin to institute security programs to protect their
interests, and their ability to continue to expand. Eventually, criminal activity among the
leadership is considered a necessary step to protecting their power. The ends justify the means. The rule of law becomes nothing more than an
obstacle, and national security becomes a tool that can be manipulated and
milked in order to gain more and more power.
The sickness expands until the population is completely dependent upon
government, and the desire to be an individual producer is killed. Ultimately, bondage is achieved, returning a
society to its beginning, when tyranny ruled over it, and a few idealistic
revolutionaries were willing to put on the line their lives, fortunes and sacred
honor. . . not only for themselves, but especially for their posterity. . . for
those not yet born.
The cycle is always the same. History is our guide. Tyranny always fails, and kills on its way to
its own suicide. Such is the nature of
statism.
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