Government is the Problem

[WatertheTree]

The law sometimes takes its own part. Sometimes it accomplishes it with its own hands, in order to save the parties benefited the shame, the danger, and the scruple. Sometimes it places all this ceremony of magistracy, police, gendarmerie, and prisons, at the servic of the plunde3rer, and treats the plundered party, when he defends himself, as the criminal In a word, there is a legal plunder, and it is, no doubt, this that is ment by Mr. Montalembert.

This plunder may be only an exceptional blemish in the legislation of a people, and in this case, the best thing that can be done is, without so many speeches and lamentations, to do away with it as soon as possible, notwithstanding the clamors of interested parties. But how is it to be distinguished? Very easily. See whether the law takes from some persons that which belongs to them, to give to others what does not belong to them. See whether the law performs, for the profit of one citize3n, and, to the injury of others, an act that this citizen cannot perform without committing a crime. Abolish this law without delay; it is not merely an iniquity-it is a fertile source of iniquities, for it invites reprisals; and if you do nbot take care, the exceptional case will extend, multiply, and become systematic. No doubt the party benefited will exclaim ludly; lhe will assert his acquired rights. He will say that the State is bound to protect and ecourage his industry; he will plead that it is a good thing for the State to be enrighed, that it may spend the more, and thus shower down salaries upon the poor workmen. Take care not to listen to this sophistry, for it is just by the systematizing of these arguments that legal plunder becomes systematized.

And this is what has taken place. The delusion of the day is to enrich all classes at the expense of each other; it is to generalize plunder under pretense of organizing it. Now, legal plunder may be exercised in an infinite multitude of ways. Hence come an infinite multitude of plans for organization;tariffs, protection, perquisites, gratuities, encouragements, progressive taxation, free public education, right to work, right to profit, right to wages, right to asistance, right to instruments of labor, gratuity of credit, etc., etc. And it is all these plans, taken as a whole, with what they have in common, legal plunder that takes the name of socialism.

-Frederic Bastiat 1850

 

[Douger]

WRONG. The people that vote for those in govt. are the problem.

 

[WatertheTree]

WRONG. The people that vote for those in govt. are the problem.

Look I know your a 'cant provide for myself' liberal, but do us all a favor and refrain from voicing your opinion without giving even the most minor attention to the thoughts of others.