What if the Federal Government Just Went Away?

Here's a thought experiment: What if the federal government were suddenly dissolved?  What would happen then?  What would we actually lose?

All the hand-wringing and crocodile tears being shed over the federal "sequester" (with its draconian "cuts" into projected increases in bloated federal spending) would lead one to believe that without the federal government, society would immediately descend into lawlessness, anarchy and chaos - after all what would we do without a government?

But wait a minute... if the federal government closed its doors tomorrow, we would still have, (according to the 2010 census,) 90,740 state and local governments in this country!  And, each of these governments has its own laws and public safety infrastructure.  So would there be lawlessness, anarchy and chaos?  Nope, not at all - far from it actually.  How much "order" does the federal government keep anyway?  We would lose the FBI and Homeland Security, but the 50 states and all the local law enforcement apparatus would stay in place.  They could still share information and extradite prisoners.  So what would we really lose?

Well, what about national security?  Surely we would immediately be vulnerable to attack!  Would we?  Wouldn't we still have National Guard units in all 50 states?  And couldn't these 50 states come to some kind of agreement to jointly fund a combined military if they so desired?  We may lose the capability to strike anywhere in the world at any time - but do we really need that to be safe?  Isn't it more important to protect our own borders and our own shores rather than policing the world for democracy?  Of course we would no longer have the TSA so travel would be more pleasant!  The airlines themselves could go back to providing passenger security.  Other than that, what do we lose?

Yeah but what about the terrorists who "hate us for our freedom"?  Won't they be emboldened and run amok causing untold chaos?  Well, first off, when the federal government goes away, all the troops come home, the CIA closes its doors (and stops overthrowing other people's governments), and the tentacles of US government intervention into foreign affairs are permanently withdrawn.  So the terrorists, who don't really "hate us for our freedoms" but actually hate us for all the crap we do, would have less reason to hate us at all.  Do they hate Switzerland?  Does Switzerland need a leviathan Homeland Security Department aggressively encroaching upon the civil liberties of the Swiss people in order to "protect" them?  Do they need drones in Pakistan and Afghanistan?  No.  If we weren't constantly meddling in the middle east, the terrorists would have little reason to think about America.

But, you ask, what about immigration?  Seriously?  Does anyone think the federal government does a good job with immigration?  Every state and local jurisdiction has its own immigration policy anyway, - many in direct opposition to federal laws - so what would change?  The illegal immigrant population in Arizona might go down, but California will gladly absorb it!

But what about the war on drugs?  Who will stop drugs from permeating society if not the feds?  Again - seriously?  Each state would have its own drug policy.  Maybe - once some states lifted the prohibition and gave us concrete figures to work with - we'd get some definitive answers as to the effectiveness of the war on drugs.

But what about the poor?  What about the safety net?  Well, for one, you mean "the enslaved" not "the poor".  Government programs subsidize and perpetuate a permanent lower class.  But, that notwithstanding, even if the people decide they want to continue government "aid" to the poor - again we'd have 50 states - 50 laboratories - through which to try different approaches to the age old problem of poverty.   All we lose when the federal government goes away is one way of doing things.  The states handle the majority of the actual workings of welfare, medicaid, medicare, etc. anyway.

Which brings me to healthcare.  What would happen if Obamacare, medicaid, medicare, etc. go away?  Well, the hospitals and other healthcare providers would be free to negotiate prices.  That's right: before the federal government asserted its domination over the healthcare industry - with all of its regulations and payment plans - hospitals, doctors and other healthcare professionals were negotiable as to price.  I'm sure you've heard the stories how, in the old days, doctors actually made house calls and were often paid in livestock!  Well, that can't happen today because the government has stepped in to "save" you!  (Imagine if they got out of the way!)

But what about our money?  Who's going to make all the dollar bills?  Well that's another interesting story.  While the federal government still technically coins money (they run the mints and the printing presses) they no longer set its value or determine how much of it there is.  You see, in 1913, our illustrious federal government proved that they have our best interests at heart when they handed that responsibility over to the banking industry!  Yeah that's right, the banking industry (in the form of the Federal Reserve) is in control of the money supply in this country.  What's most interesting about that is: from 1813 to 1913, a US dollar bought exactly the same amount of goods and services.  But, from 1913 to 2013, that same dollar has gone down in value like a Himalayan avalanche!  So, in 1913, if grandma said, "I remember when a loaf of bread was a nickel," all her grandkids would laugh and say, "grandma, a loaf of bread is still a nickel!"  Needless to say, that conversation can't happen today.  Maybe, just maybe, 50 competing currencies would be better.  Heaven knows it couldn't be worse!

What about education?  Who's going to teach our kids if not the feds?  Well, the feds don't teach our kids - they just mandate what we teach them.  The actual teaching is all local (that's what school districts are for).   Sure, we would lose some federal funding, but we would gain local control over what our kids are learning.  In other words, local communities would be free to teach the kids as they see fit - as opposed to how the Department of Education mandates.  Which is more important in the end - money or freedom?

But what about higher education?  Students can't get a college degree without student loans!  Blatantly false.  Student loans, i.e. government regulation of tuition, has only made college more expensive.  Tuition levels are through the roof precisely because institutions of higher learning have a big pot of federal money at the end of the rainbow - not some poor student.   Like with healthcare, if the government were to butt out, the prices would level off via the mechanisms of the market. 

Now I've only covered a few of the bases here.  There's much more to be said and thought about in this thought experiment.  But let me ask the question again: what would we actually lose if the federal government were dissolved tomorrow?  I'm sure someone out there can think of something!

Will Obama Indefinitely Detain Himself?

According to the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the President has the authority to indefinitely detain persons he deems to have "substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces ".  Here's the actual text outlining who the President can detain without trial:

(1) A person who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored those responsible for those attacks.

(2) A person who was a part of or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners, including any person who has committed a belligerent act or has directly supported such hostilities in aid of such enemy forces.

Now the thing is, this administration has been showering substantial support (in the form of weapons and money) upon the "rebels" in Syria and Libya, many of whom, lo and behold, are members of, or closely aligned with al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces!

So Obama can indefinitely detain himself - and anyone else in his administration who has taken part in this fiasco!  Somehow I don't think we'll be seeing the black helicopters swarm the White House anytime soon though.  

From the Fifth Way to Omniscience?

Is it possible to infer from the workings of the universe the omniscience of God?

Thomas Aquinas argues in his Fifth Way that it is impossible to explain the determinations (teleology) exhibited by natural things without appeal to intellect.  My question is – can we go beyond that?  Can we, through examination of observable phenomena, reasonably infer the necessity of an omniscient being?

If we can infer intelligence from the behavior of mindless nature (as Aquinas argues), can we then look at the complexities of nature as a whole and – from that – infer omniscience?

It seems like it should be possible.  If you look at nature, there’s a lot going on.  Pretty much everything is busy doing something that fits into the giant puzzle somehow.  If you take all of it into account – every relation, of every thing, in every system, one to another – and consider the fact that the intelligence required by the Fifth Way would have to know and understand all of it, I sincerely think the case could be made.

What To Do About Gun Violence

We are constantly bombarded with solutions to the problem of "gun violence". Inevitably, these solutions involve "gun control". The problem with this, as I see it, is that there are two things in play when it comes to gun violence: "guns" and "violence". And, of the two, the root cause is not guns, it is violence. So why are we not hearing a public outcry for "violence control"?

Think about this for a minute... Guns are inanimate objects. Millions of people own guns in this country - the vast majority of which will never be involved in a crime. Why? Because they are in the hands of non-violent people.

What gun control does is turn those non-violent people into criminals. Gun control makes it illegal for a non-violent person to own certain types of guns - even if they may have owned them safely and legally for years.

If you really think that guns are the root of the problem, let me ask you one question: If you had been at Sandy Hook Elementary School that morning, and you had a gun with you, would you have been shooting at the kids or would you have been shooting at the guy who was shooting the kids? If you say you would start shooting kids just because you had a gun, then yes, guns are the problem. If however, you would have used your gun to defend the kids, to save innocent lives and to stop the bad guy, then you've just proved my point.

Gun control is typical blanket, one-size-fits-all policy. It reminds me of grade school where the teacher's solution to a few disruptive kids was to make the whole class stay in for recess. It doesn't deal with the root of the problem but rather satisfies the demand to "do something about it".

We live in a schizophrenic society when it comes to violence. On the one hand we campaign against bullying and hate crimes. On the other hand we resist those who would instill notions of morality and "good and evil" into our kids. Then we flock to violent movies and video games.

The "war on drugs" is also a factor in this equation. So much of our legal system is tied up in prosecuting drug users and dealers that we end up with short sentences and plea deals for violent offenders because of prison over-crowding and an overwhelmed criminal justice system.

In conclusion, we need to stop waiting for the government to solve our problems. We need to become a non-violent society in our own houses, our own families and our own schools. And if we are going to push for laws, let's push for laws that punish violence first, and let's push against laws that punish non-violent people and treat them as if they are criminals.

We Live in a Libertarian World

One argument I’ve often heard against libertarianism goes something like this: “we’ve never seen a libertarian government in actual practice, so there’s no way to know if it would even work”. Well, I think I may have an answer (and a big one at that!)

My answer? Well, to understand my answer we first have to lay some groundwork. Traditionally, libertarianism has been all about the individual and the relationship of the individual to the government. But, libertarian concepts also apply as we go up the ladder of the various levels of government. A county government’s relationships to its constituent cities can be libertarian, for instance, if the county gives the cities freedom to do as they choose. Likewise, a state government can be libertarian in its relationship to counties, and the federal government in its relationship to the states. So libertarian principles apply - not only to the individual - but also wherever there is the possibility for one group to have authority over another.

Which brings me to my answer: the world government. But wait, you say, there is no world government! Well that’s kinda the point. Because there is no central government for the entire world (though some are pushing for one) the world essentially runs on libertarian principles between the constituent nations. Now some would say that "no government = anarchy", but that’s not really what we have. There are several “one-world” organizations like the U.N., the W.T.O., etc., but these organization’s power is derived solely from the willingness of the participating nations. In other words they are like private, voluntary organizations that take the place of a strong central government – just like libertarians advocate for. If enough nations decide to ignore a U.N. or a W.T.O. “order”, and if there are a few powerful nations among the dissenters, the order goes unheeded.

So the world basically runs on libertarian principles –chief among them, the principle of a market driven society: If a nation gets along well with other nations and produces things other nations want, their status as a nation goes up – if they don’t get along or are unproductive, their status diminishes. These are libertarian concepts – only “the individual” (the cornerstone of libertarian philosophy) is replaced by “the nation”. Yet we can see working in the macro what could also work in the micro. In the world, nations have to form coalitions; they have to come to agreements and sign treaties, they have to learn to work together without a behemoth centralized government forcing them to do so.

That, my friends, is libertarianism.

Why I’m a Libertarian

I frequent a conservative Christian website called “What’s Wrong With The World” (WWWTW) where my Libertarianism is often challenged on the basis of Natural Law theory, the “common good”, or on some other philosophical footing.  Now I have to admit that their views of Libertarianism are so worked out that most of them describe it in terms completely foreign to me.  I’m often confronted with “doomsday scenarios” where, in some theoretical Libertarian society, all societal structures break down (even the family) and all that is left is individuals battling other individuals in a barren wasteland.  (The only thing missing is the zombies!)  Now, I’m only a recent convert to Libertarian thinking and as such am not well versed in its history or philosophical underpinnings.  I will say this though: the Libertarianism I have learned about from Libertarians themselves differs dramatically from that described by the WWWTW sages – so I’m not sure what exactly they’re against, but I’m fairly certain what I am for…  For simple-minded me, Libertarianism is all about the nature and proper role of government. 

First, the nature of government:  Government is the only entity in society (other than parents) that can legitimately exercise coercive control over individuals.  The government can come to your house, break down your door, confiscate your property, drag you and your family into the street and beat you to a pulp if you resist – all with relative impunity (even if it turns out later that it was the wrong address).  Individuals (even parents) cannot legally do that.  We, as a society, have collectively agreed to submit to an authority with the power of life and death over us.  We do this because we believe in the necessity of government for order and peace.   Everything the government does (and this is important), ultimately resolves in the threat of lawful force if resisted.  Even the most innocent of crimes---say parking tickets---if ignored long enough will result in the government forcing its will upon you.  The nature of government then, is ‘legitimized tyranny’.  Or, in the words of Thomas Paine, “Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one."

So, given the tyrannical nature of government, the question then becomes “over what areas of society should we grant such tyrannical authority?”  In other words: “what is the proper role of government?”   The pure Libertarian answer is that the role of government is solely to protect the innocent from force and fraud.   Coercive force, in a Libertarian society, is legitimate only for keeping the peace and protecting the innocent.  A Libertarian State then, would have departments of Defense, Corrections, Law Enforcement, and not much else.  Other shades of Libertarianism will add other areas into the mix such as Immigration, Environmental Protection, or whatever.  But each area added moves the State one step further from pure Libertarianism.  (Of course you'd still have an independant Judiciary and a Legislative branch - though the legislators would have much less to do in a Libertarian society!)  For me then, the answer to the question of 'areas to grant tyrannical authority over' is: “as few as possible”.  I’m not a pure Libertarian.  I think that a nation should have borders and an immigration policy.  I also think there needs to be environmental protections of some sort.  And, I know that many Libertarians are pro-abortion – I’m not.  I think that the primary function of government is to protect innocent life.  For me, that means life at conception (see: Science, more specifically: Biology, even more specifically: Genetics, for further information).

So where are we at in this country?  Well, currently in this country, we have allowed the government tyrannical access to so many areas the list is dizzying!  (For a list of just the federal departments of government see here.)   We have collectively agreed that we are willing to submit ourselves to coercive force in the areas of health care, transportation, agriculture, retirement, education, commerce, the environment, housing, wages, labor relations… the list goes on and on and on!  And, if you doubt that these departments would ever use force against us, think again.  Many of these departments have “enforcement divisions” consisting of armed officers.  The Department of Education, for instance, has its own law enforcement arm (the “U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General” or “OIG”) that, on June 7, 2011 broke down a door to a Stockton, CA residence, dragged a man and his three children out of their home, handcuffed the man and detained all of them for several hours in squad cars for the “crime” of living in the previous residence of the man’s ex-wife (who was wanted on some warrant having to do with student loan fraud).

Such is the nature of government.  Something as seemingly innocuous as the Department of Education can, when provoked, turn quite ugly!

Interestingly, the one area from which the government has voluntarily withdrawn its tyranny is in the area of the US currency.   This, in spite of the constitutional mandate stating that “only Congress” can coin money and set its value!  So who does the government trust to create currency and set its value?  Believe it or not it has given that power over to the banking industry!  Yes, the Federal Reserve Bank (a private bank over which the government appoints officers – but oddly refuses to audit) is in charge of the money supply in this country!  It’s a little like letting the fox guard the hen house.  (Of course that's another issue worthy of its own thread!)

So - build a house without a permit: the government steps in, condemns your house and kicks you out on the street; forget to pay your parking tickets long enough: they haul you off to jail; arbitrarily devalue the US dollar so your buddies in the banking industry can profit: government winks, extends their open hand and looks the other way! 

This then, is the nature and role of government in this country.  It’s time people, to think Libertarian thoughts and get ourselves free!

Racism 101

Listen to this radio ad put out by aRicherLife.org (a public awareness campaign developed by the National Fair Housing Alliance) and see if you can spot the racism.  (I'll wait)

Did you hear it?  If not, then I'll spell it out for you.  Here's the dialog: 
First guy: "I grew up in an all white neighborhood."
Second guy: "I grew up in a diverse neighborhood."
First guy: "Everyone I knew was just like me."
Second guy: "Everyone I knew brought something different to the party."
First guy: "They looked like me, thought like me, acted like me - so my neighborhood always stayed the same."
Second guy: "They introduced me to different tastse, different ideas, different ways of doing things - so my neighborhood always got more interesting."
Together: "They definitely helped shape the way I look at things"
Second guy: "and they prepared me for the future."
First guy: "They did?"
Second guy "They did."

The announcer then goes on to tell us how great diversity is.

So, if you still don't get it, here's the racism: the implication that all white people look, think and act alike simply because of their skin color.  That, my friends, is textbook racism.

Think about this for a minute...  Do all white people really act and think alike?  Think about all the white people you know.  There are white people who are liberals, and white people who are conservatives - white Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Independants, Greens...  There are white Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, atheists, agnostics... and even within the white Christians there are Catholics, Lutherans, Episcopalians, Pentecostals, Seventh-Day Adventists... There are white Packer fans, Bronco fans, Laker fans, Celtic fans...  white soccer fans, baseball fans... white scientists, white vegetarians, meat lovers, broccoli haters...  well you get the picture.

If all white people thought and acted alike, they'd all be Libertarian Ron Paul supporters and Black Sabbath fans whose favorite football team was the Denver Broncos.  (I'm pretty sure that's not true.)  And that's because diversity is not due to the color of one's skin - diversity comes from our uniqueness as human individuals.  So not all white people think and act alike, and not all black people think and act alike (and I'll save you the suspense; neither do all brown, red, yellow or any color in between).  There is no race that thinks and acts alike simply because their skin is the same color. 

To think otherwise is to be a racist.