Posted by wgreen on 06/26/09

"The fundamental political question is why do people obey a government. The answer is that they tend to enslave themselves, to let themselves be governed by tyrants. Freedom from servitude comes not from violent action, but from the refusal to serve. Tyrants fall when the people withdraw their support."

-Etienne de la Boetie

Gandhi put this into action.  He called it satyagraha.  I think it is time.  Our government has become opressive. 

But we need coordination.  We need leadership.  Do we have what it takes?  Could the Campaign for Liberty be a vehicle for satyagraha?

"They tell us, sir, that we are weak -- unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot?

Sir, we are not weak, if we make a proper use of the means which the God of nature hath placed in our power."

-Patrick Henry

Posted 09/21/09 m26taylor Plainfield, CT

Posted by wgreen on 08/02/09

Thanks to the Hartford Courant for printing another of my letters:

http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/editorials/hc-digbrflets0801.art2aug01,0,401
7525.story

Posted 08/02/09 m00nmaster Scotch Plains, NJ

Well written and hard hitting. Nicely done.

Posted by wgreen on 07/07/09

Rush wrote this great musical parable about the socialistic mindset.  It is called The Trees.  You can listen to it here.

There is unrest in the forest
There is trouble with the trees
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas

The trouble with the maples
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade

There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
'The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light'
Now there's no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe and saw

Posted by wgreen on 07/05/09

I set up a table for C4L at the Norwich, CT July 4th Tea Party.  The Norwich Bulletin reported 500 attendees to the rally.  We gained 31 new contacts.  Here is the text of my speech: 

I don't know about you, but I feel oppressed.  I feel oppressed by my government.  I feel oppressed by a government that every day takes away a little more of my freedom. 

Louis Carabini says there are two kinds of people in the world:  "There are those inclined to liberty-freedom of the individual to live his or her life in any peaceful way.  And there are those who are inclined to mastery-permitting others to live their lives only as another sees fit." 

Our current government, and those who support it, appear to be the second type.  They are inclined to mastery.  They believe that they can and should be ruled over and rule over others.  These are the Statists, who believe in the power of the state to provide for them and take care of them and run their lives.  And, as Etienne de la Boetie wrote, "they tend to enslave themselves." 

Why do they do this?  Perhaps it is because, as Frederic Bastiat said, "there is a tendency that is common among people.  When they can, they wish to live at the expense of others... Man can live and satisfy his wants only by ceaseless labor; by the ceaseless application of his faculties to natural resources.  This process is the origin of property.  But it is also true that man may live and satisfy his wants by seizing and consuming the products of the labor of others.  This process is the origin of plunder. "

What we are seeing today is what Bastiat called "legal plunder", when the people plunder each other through legislation.  The law should be a tool for the protection of life, liberty, and property, but it has been perverted into a tool for theft.  Maybe this is why some people favor mastery-because they think it will get them what they want. 

Or maybe it is because they know that freedom brings responsibility.  George Bernard Shaw said, "Liberty means responsibility.  That is why most men dread it."  You see, as Robert Welch wrote, "The real freedom of any individual can always be measured by the amount of responsibility which he must assume for his own welfare and security."  And as the author of Dreams Come Due explained, "Any time we seek to avoid the painful parts of responsibility by shifting them to someone else, we automatically surrender, by default, our freedom and thus any chance for rewards."

Folks, this is where we are today.  America is full of people who are running from responsibility and looking to make their living off of other peoples labor.

But there is another type of person.  This is the kind of person who is here today-a remnant among the stupefied and subdued masses.  This person knows he is free.  He knows he is responsible.  And he loves it.  He knows that true fulfillment can only be found in free action and self-determination.  He knows there is no value in forced charity or stolen labor.   As Boetie wrote, "Even if liberty had entirely perished from the earth, such men would invent it.  For them, slavery has no satisfactions, no matter how well disguised."

These are true men and women.  This is what makes man different from beast:  reasoned self-determination.  He is the thinking, acting, individual.  The willing slave has sacrificed his own will and existence and become part of the swarm, a cog in a machine, an unthinking beast.

These are dark times, when the masses seem to be plunging headlong into this abyss of slavery.  And what can be done?  We can educate ourselves and those we know in the principles of liberty-advance the cause of liberty one mind at a time.  This is the goal of the Campaign for Liberty.  You can sign up at our table to get on our mailing list.  We will be holding regular meetings to watch and discuss films, learn and strengthen ourselves and each other.  As Brian Summers wrote:

"When the ideal goal is far from the everyday reality-as in the case of the freedom ideal-the student of liberty doesn't despair. His ultimate goal isn't tomorrow's Congressional vote or next year's election. He is striving to work on the highest possible plane-his own understanding and exposition of the freedom philosophy. Self-improvement along these lines is a full-time job. There is no time to be disheartened when the political winds seem to blow against us. Self- improvement is enormously satisfying. And it is fun!"

And the "Truth will out!"  Truth has a way of revealing itself.  It will not be suppressed forever.

Who knows, maybe we can succeed in cleaning out Washington, voting out every Statist and voting in freedom-loving folks who value the rights of the individual over their own political careers.  And if not, we can still fight.  Mohandas Gandhi led India to independence with peaceful noncooperation and civil disobedience.  He called it satyagraha.  I am afraid it may come to this, this slide toward socialism has gained such momentum.  It may require that the John Galts, the Atlases on whose labor and ingenuity our society rests, withdraw their support, so that the sham of socialism, which cannot support itself, comes crumbling down.   

Whichever path lies before us, a scene from the final movie of the Lord of the Rings trilogy is appropriate.  The men of Gondor and Rohan are assembled before the Black Gate of Mordor, and the dark hordes are pouring out the gate.  They are ridiculously outnumbered.  Aragorn, their leader, stands before them and encourages them with a short speech which I have adapted to our circumstances:

Men and women of Norwich, my brothers and sisters, I can see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me.  A day may come when the courage of men fails, when all men lay down and resign to servitude under the yoke of socialism-but it is not this day.  A day may come when all surrender their arms and submit, like the beasts they have become, to their government masters.  A day may come when man as man is dead, when man is fully and finally reduced to beast, when the age of men comes crashing down, but it is not this day.  And we are not those men!  This day we fight!  By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand Sons of Liberty!

(Thanks to Jen Ezzell for coordinating the Tea Party and allowing me to come and speak.)

Posted 07/06/09 mastiff Clinton, CT

Excellent speech, sorry we missed the event!

Posted 07/08/09 Andrew Sica Woodbury, CT

Great job! How was this received by the audience?

Posted 08/03/09 wgreen Brooklyn, CT

I got some great feedback by individuals afterword, but they were pretty quiet during the speech.

Posted by wgreen on 06/26/09

My latest letter to the Norwich Bulletin:  Are Americans free to make a living?

Are Americans free to make a living?

Suppose Harry gets laid off from his job, has trouble finding a new one, and does not feel right about collecting unemployment benefits. He's a good cook, so he decides to cook foods and sell them from his home. Unfortunately, his kitchen does not meet Health Department standards.
He's handy with tools; maybe he could be a home improvement contractor. Unfortunately, he cannot afford the state registration fee.

Maybe his wife can help. She has a knack for interior design. Unfortunately, a fee of $150 is required. Maybe she could open a day care. She's great with children and has few of her own. No, her house is too small and does not meet state standards - and of course, there's a large fee.

Such regulations violate individual freedom, hurt the economy, and don't make consumers any safer. People still get food poisoning and are still scammed by contractors. Children are still abused at daycare. Interior designers can still make people's houses uglier.

Common law remedies would serve just as well for consumer protection, and would not inhibit enterprise and individual freedom of self-determination.

WILLIAM GREEN
Brooklyn

Posted 06/26/09 Haystacks Calhoun NEW YORK, NY

Can you imagine how slow, boring, and burdensome the game of Survivor would be if the castaways on the show also set up a government and issued all sorts of public welfare regulations and official laws? OMG nothing would ever get done. Our 'fantasy life' in popular culture never involves being totally controlled by an overzealous, aggressive government. And yet somehow our real lives are permeated by this nightmare.

Posted 06/26/09 Isomies Mechanicsville, VA

Great post William.