The Center Isn’t Holding

by Paul Hein
by Paul Hein

To those connected to the internet, and especially those who read LRC, the problems in our society, and their true causes, are not hidden. The alarming growth of the state and corresponding diminution of freedom, are plain for all to see.

What is not so plain is what to do about it. I addressed this question once before on these pages, suggesting that there was no need to do anything. The colossus would fall of its own weight, tangled up in its own complexities and contradictions.

Now, looking about, I am encouraged to believe that my suggestion was correct.

I remember an episode of The Honeymooners in which Ralph was berating his long-suffering wife. "You," he bellowed, "are nothing. I (tapping his chest) am The Boss!" Alice – the patient wife – merely shrugged. "Big deal," she said. "Boss over nothing." Something like that is happening in America, today.

Our rulers – the State – want what we produce. Our only value to them is as workers in their vineyard. The State is Boss, we are nothing. To bring the State to its knees, we need only stop producing. It’s much like dealing with a counterfeiter: just don’t use his paper. When that happens, there’s simply no point in counterfeiting any more. Federal Reserve: take note – re your dishonest "notes."

There hasn’t been, and probably won’t be, a sit-down strike in the U.S. Most Americans consider themselves free (despite the abundant evidence against that assumption) and regard the government favorably, albeit bumbling and incompetent. But there’s no need for any conscious, deliberate, withholding of production. The collapsing economy is doing it for us. Thousands upon thousands of workers don’t need to lay down their tools in protest; they’ve been laid off. Their production is no more.

Of course, fiat economies always fail eventually. How often do such failures lead to a re-structuring of government? Rarely, if ever. So long as any government remains, the old adage of "power corrupts" applies, and the cycle of government growth and oppression will begin again, but with a different set of faces at the controls. So why should it be different this time?

In a word: the internet. Our rulers have had decades of a compliant media to present their point of view, pass along their lies, and disguise their true intentions. Watching TV, I am amazed that the thesis of man-made "global warming," and the dire effects attributed to it, are never challenged. Similarly, the "green" movement is simply the right, proper, moral, patriotic way to go. Different opinions simply don’t exist – at least on TV. Is Barack Obama a natural-born American citizen? You wouldn’t know there was any question about it from the Ten O’Clock News. You may hear arguments pro and con regarding the bailout of the automobile companies, but when will you hear about government regulations playing a substantial role in causing the problem? About as often as you hear someone point out that government bailouts are unconstitutional. Pundits may argue about the effectiveness of Obama’s health-care plans, but is it mentioned that the government is utterly without authority to act in the field of health care?

So let the economy collapse. It’s going to do so, anyway. Watch the politicians run about, proposing all of the same "solutions" which have failed in the past. As the rulers feel their power ebbing, look to them to become increasingly ruthless toward their critics. (So keep your mouth shut – for the time being.) You’ll never learn it from the media, but there is a remnant in the country, ready and able to bring peace and prosperity out of the rubble.

A specific suggestion? How about this: consider running for local office. The real power is where the people are, and that isn’t Washington D.C. If mayors and governors declined to participate in grandiose federal schemes, and if local sheriffs lived up to their role as protectors of the people, as opposed to protectors of the rulers, this would be a different country. As the economy continues its implosion, and people seek solutions to the problems brought about by Uncle Sam, they will be looking for a white knight. Apparently, in the last election, Obama was so regarded by many. When his feet are revealed as clay, the possibility of REAL change may be what the voters want. Make yourself available!

In the meantime, keep your powder dry, sit back, and wait!

March 20, 2009

Dr. Hein [send him mail] is author of All Work & No Pay, which is out of print, but may occasionally be obtained on eBay.

Copyright © 2009 by LewRockwell.com. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is gladly granted, provided full credit is given.

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