ON JUST GOVERNMENT

ON JUST GOVERNMENT
©Chippy's Dad

The LAW precedes all government. My views on government start with my dedication to Jesus and the Christian God. Based on my faith, all law can be boiled down to 2 basic laws that precede all others and that precede man made government. (I note that other people with similar views on just government start with an atheistic or even an agnostic faith, to wit: Ludwig VonMises, Doug Casey.)

THE TWO LAWS:

1. HONOR THE LIFE AND PROPERTY OF OTHER PEOPLE (1).

2. ABIDE BY YOUR COMMITMENTS (2).

The problem for just government resides in the fact that people are greedy. In particular, some people are greedy for power. When that power manifests itself in the form of power over other people, the first law is violated. Since people with a greed for power over people tend towards government office, where they can satisfy their craving; government necessarily tends towards injustice.

People who lust for power over other people see an opportunity in civil government to realize their goals. Government is a technology or tool for the domination of people. As long as there are greedy people, government will tend towards tyranny.

The founders of the USA tried twice (the Articles and the Constitution) to develop a government that would be limited so that greedy people could not become tyrants. From day one, the government of the USA has become ever more militaristic and tyrannical, gradually and continuously, until the life blood has been sapped from the very marrow of our community.

From the militaristic point of view, first the greedy ones launched an ill-fated invasion of Canada. To follow on, they subjugated the Native Americans and attacked Mexico in order to take possession of Texas and California. Then they expanded overseas by overthrowing the government of Hawaii in 1893, by attacking and annexing certain territories of Spain in 1898, by attacking independence minded Filipinos in 1899, by participating in WW1 and the Versailles Treaty, etc., etc. In the twentieth century, overseas military adventures became too numerous to list.

From the tyrannical point of view, the early history is complex beyond the scope of this post but a major turning point was the year 1913. In that year, the income tax was established, the direct election of senators was established, and the Federal Reserve was established. The income tax gave the greedy ones in the central government direct knowledge and control over individual Americans and their finances. The direct election of senators assaulted the sovereignty of the states by removing the one strong control the states had over the central government after their right to withdraw from the union had been eliminated by the War of Northern Aggression otherwise known as the Civil War. The Federal Reserve socialized money. With socialized money, the government of the USA rejected the free market. The Federal Reserve has provided the greedy ones with the ability expand the scope of the government for intrusion into the lives of Americans almost beyond limit. Since we live under socialized money, what market freedom remains is severely degraded and has become ever more degraded since 1913.

The Constitution has been interpreted gradually until constitutional limits no longer apply. Who is doing this interpretation? Why those people in Washington who are greedy for power; that is who. These people have a deep seated conflict of interest. They each have a personal interest in increasing their own power.

One way that might have provided for a more just government (maybe) would have been to include in the Constitution an explicit provision that, as sovereign entities, states can withdraw from the union. More importantly, a provision should have been included that, as sovereign entities, individual citizens can withdraw from participation in the government. Such an individual could live, travel, and hold property in the USA without harassment; would pay no taxes; would be subject to no restrictions other than to conform to the two laws; but would not be eligible to stand for public office; or to vote; or to receive any service offered by the government, such as fire fighting, without paying a fee. Individuals who have withdrawn would be free to form associations to provide alternative services such as fire fighting.

The two provisions allowing secession of states and individuals, respectively, would enhance just government in that as the government tends towards increased tyranny, which it must because of the greedy ones, individuals would withdraw. As the numbers of individuals who have withdrawn increases, the greedy ones would have ever less power. In their own greedy interest, the greedy ones would need to leave more liberties to the people, so that they would want to participate in the government.

This concept becomes the definition of just government. A just government is one that subjects itself and its agents to the two fundamental laws and that allows citizens and provinces to secede from the government without loss of personal freedoms or property.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(1) The first law has been stated: "Love your neighbor as yourself." – Jesus, and also "Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law."– Lock

(2) The second law has been stated: "Thou shalt not bear false witness." - Exodus 20:16.