What Is There Left to Celebrate?
By William Stone, III, The Sierra Times, July 8, 2003

PHOTO: Mr. Stone next to his kill --  http://www.sierratimes.com/images/billstone130.jpg
CAPTION: No human being has the right -- under any circumstances -- to initiate force against another human being, nor to advocate or delegate its initiation.

"It would be remiss of me not to wish everyone I regularly communicate with as happy an Independence Day as they can have. However -- as I observed in one of my earliest books -- what the hell is there left to celebrate?" -- L. Neil Smith, 2003, in Correspondence

As eternally optimistic as my friend and comrade-in-arms L. Neil Smith is, I was rather surprised to see him communicate this thought in the discussion forum of the Ad-Hoc Conspiracy to Draft L. Neil Smith For President.

At first pass, Mr. Smith's question seems to be a no-brainer. Indeed, for lovers of individual freedom in this country, things would seem to be bleak:

-- The Federal Constitution has all but been declared null and void by all three branches of government. House Speaker Hastert declared it "irrelevant" in 2002; Supreme Court Justice Scalia announced that the Constitution only enumerated "minimums" and that we can expect accordingly dramatic decreases in our freedom; and President Bush violates the Constitution on a daily basis.

-- The party now in power (the Right Wing of the Boot-On-Your-Neck [BOYN] Party) has almost completely usurped the agenda of the Left Wing BOYNs. Surprisingly, they do this with the full support and aid of those in their own Party who, only a few short years ago, decried this agenda when the Left-Wingers advanced it.

-- The only Party in existence that actually represents the ideals of the Constitution -- the Libertarian Party -- continues to slide down the slippery slope of philosophical decadence. Every year, small bits of philosophy are given up in the interest of becoming more marketable. Some day, the Party will eject the Pledge altogether, at which point they'll be nothing more than Republican wannabes.

-- Most disturbingly, American culture continues to trend away from individual liberty toward socialism. It has now been almost two generations since the term, "Don't make a Federal case out of it," had any meaning, nor does there appear to be any chance that this trend will reverse any time soon.

That's how things appear on the surface. If one digs more deeply, there are some surprisingly positive developments beneath each of these seemingly negative trends.

-- The Federal Constitution was a valiant attempt to limit government. It was doomed to failure from the start for the simple reason that government cannot be limited. Having "a little government" is exactly the same as being "a little pregnant," and with exactly the same eventual outcome.

Lovers of freedom NEED the Constitution to be abolished. We should be grateful that all three branches of government now agree that it is irrelevant. The Constitution defines the Federal Government: without the Constitution, there is no Federal Government.

-- The Right-Wing BOYNs' descent into abject socialism is a wonderful thing. It proves what freedom-lovers have said for more than a generation: that there is no discernible difference between the two.

Since the Right-Wing BOYNs have taken up the Left-Wing BOYNs' agenda, I have had more e-mails and correspondence from former Republicans seeking another alternative than I had in the preceding five years. People used to criticize me, saying, "Once the Republicans are in power, then there'll be some changes." Now the Republicans are in power, and the only change is that they've shown their true Socialist colors.

We NEED the Right-Wing BOYNs to act like the disgusting little Socialists they are down in their souls. They're driving more freedom-lovers into our waiting arms every day.

-- The Libertarian Party's philosophical demise, while tragic, was utterly predictable. Indeed, no political party -- however well-intentioned -- can be counted upon to live up to their principles once they are in power.

A couple of years ago, I wrote what I believe is the absolute final word on this phenomenon: "The Free Mind" (), available in my on-line essay collection, Tales From SYL Ranch. It was far too lengthy to recount here, but suffice to say that Lord Acton's famous quote is entirely accurate:

"Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely."

We NEED the Libertarian Party to betray its own principles. Lovers of freedom need people to understand -- via concrete events -- that no person can be trusted with the awesome power that a central government can command.

-- The trend toward socialism in American culture is only disturbing if you listen to polls and don't do some fairly simple math.

In my essay, "The Fall Of the Republic", I point out that only one-eighth of the American population actually approves of government. One half of registered votes actually vote; one half of the eligible population registers; one half of the total population is eligible. One-half of one-half of one-half equals one-eight.

Everyone else does not approve of government. They're collectively "exercising their pedal franchise," by not participating at all.

The BOYNs decry this. They try to make it sound like this represents a tragedy. In point fact, it frightens the hell out of them. They have no way of knowing what an overwhelming majority of the population might decide to do to them.

For freedom-lovers, this is a wonderful thing. We need as little voter participation as possible. The sooner no one is paying attention to government flunkies and their sycophants, the sooner they'll become irrelevant in our lives.

The only way the present situation appears to be poor is if you look at it in the near term. In any revolution (and this is a revolution, whether there's shooting involved or not), there is pain. In short order, however, the masses of government parasites who subsist by inserting a straw into their victims' throats will open their eyes to discover that their would-be victims have simply walked away.

There is a revolution in progress. However, thanks to technological advancement (particularly the Internet), as well as the complete corruption of government at all levels, this revolution need not be bloody. Much of the problem will be self-correcting without a shot being fired.

American government -- particularly the Federal Government -- is on the way to the same fate as the dinosaurs. This Fourth of July, I invite you to celebrate with me as I commemorate our coming emancipation from Government: our TRUE Independence Day.

Freedom, Immortality, and the Stars!
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William Stone, III is a computer nerd (RHCE, CCNP, CISSP) and philosopher of the Zero Aggression Principle from McCook Lake, South Dakota. He seeks the Libertarian Party's nomination for the 2004 Senate race in South Dakota.