I've resolved not to waste time "ranting" in the traditional sense, because I'm actually an extremely productive person and frankly don't have the time. But I would like to effect some positive change in society - mostly in the form of fighting what some consider "progress" toward an authoritarian nanny state. What failed in the Soviet Union can only fail here, but as history has shown, doomed governments often wreak the worst havoc on their citizens before they crumble. This nation that once served as a monument to liberty is fast approaching a Dystopia of laws and regulations in which names become numbers and human beings become chattel. But I will not allow this to happen.
Throughout history, the few have always governed the many. This appears to be an intrinsic characteristic of humanity and may never change. For good or ill, only the few possess the requisite characteristics (including the desire) to lead, whereas the majority are generally less concerned with the process of government and more with things that are actually important. Yes, I consider myself in the latter category as well. I have no desire to lead. But neither do I have a desire to be led around by the nose, and that is how I feel this government has treated me from childhood and well into my adult life. Those who would strip me of my basic human rights have incited my consternation frequently enough that I found it necessary to create this web site, that I might share my thoughts and feelings with others rather than become consumed by bitterness.
Most people have heard the expression, "Too many chefs spoil the soup!", or something similar. This is, I believe, a perfect analogy to what's currently happening in the United States. Many well-meaning politicians and lawmakers (and perhaps plenty of less scrupulous corporate lobbyist and a few corrupt politicians) have been piling more and more laws onto the books every year, with little attention to repealing the bad or obsolete laws. The result is that our legal system has become obscenely convoluted, and essentially every man, woman and child is a criminal under some legal definition. This creates all manner of opportunity for abuses of power, from selective enforcement to downright extortion of the citizenry. Many of these laws overstep what I believe to be the bounds of the government's authority, and this is really what motivates me to take action.
Within the last few years, America has spiraled down from being a beacon of liberty and human rights to a sort of concentration camp where its citizens are subject to being spied upon without cause and prisoners can be tortured and held without trial indefinitely. President Bush instituted most of these policies alongside the unpopular foreign occupations, and Obama has so far continued all of his predecessor's worst domestic and foreign policies. Promises of transparency have evaporated, as evidence of prisoner abuses are being suppressed and whistleblowers who exposed blatant war crimes are being persecuted. Meanwhile the government continues to mint currency only to spend it, destroying the value of the dollar while compound interest on the national debt continues to skyrocket and our trade deficit with Asia grows equally ominous. It is a formula for financial collapse at best and a tin-pot dictatorship at worst. When our democratic government collapses from financial ruin, the stage will be set for the wealthy elite to assume the reigns of power and form a sort of plutocracy in the resulting power vacuum. Some have speculated that this is being done intentionally for just such a reason. I won't claim to know why our so-called leaders are deliberately bankrupting our nation, but it does beg the question.
I live in a particularly draconian part of the country in terms of the political climate, so the reminders of the rift between my own political beliefs and the reality of my surroundings are ever present. Here in California, roadsides are littered with signs saying things like "Click It or Ticket" (a threat that failing to buckle your seatbelt will result in a costly fine). I find these signs and the law behind them extremely offensive. First, it is offensive that a government that supposedly works for me would dare to dictate what I choose to do in my own car, when I pay the salaries of all those police officers who might better use their time chasing real criminals. But even if some legal or moral obligation to "buckle up" were to exist, I find the signs offensive because they appeal to the ad baculum fallacy rather than my sense of Reason. It's one thing to suggest that people fasten their seatbelts to avoid severe bodily injury or death in a collision. It's another thing to assume that I am incapable of reaching my own conclusion based on the facts, and merely resort to threatening me into complying. I find this insulting, and I will not object to the destruction of these signs by freedom-loving citizens because I paid for them against my will in the first place.
Another California law that I find particularly unconstitutional and Nazi-ish is the one that makes it illegal to smoke cigarettes in a bar! Yes, residents of other states may find this difficult to believe, but it is actually illegal now to smoke in a bar anywhere in California. Further troubling is the fact that this law effectively deputizes every bartender in the state as unpaid law enforcement officers, by threatening bartenders with fines if they don't stop patrons from smoking in their own establishments! This law, combined with Obama's federal ban on flavored cigarettes and various local ordinances banning smoking within 20 feet of any building, have really shown how far we've fallen from the ideals upon which our great nation was founded. Freedom is no longer a luxury we can idly enjoy but a commodity we must fight for. And I intend to fight!
There are countless other laws to which I object vehemently, but suffice to say that I object to any law that seeks to deprive me of my right to conduct myself as I see fit, so long as I am not harming or endangering others in the process. I have a right to play poker with my friends. I have a right to carry a weapon for my own defense, especially when walking late at night in a gang neighborhood (which I also have a right to do). I have a right to smoke marijuana, or pay a woman for sex, or tear the tag off my mattress, if I so desire (though I personally find all of these things morally reprehensible). I have many more rights than the government acknowledges, so I've set out to teach the government a lesson in constitutional law. And I will accomplish this through public acts of defiance.
You see, laws become meaningless when people can break them with impunity. By publicly exposing the government's inability to enforce its own laws, it will become apparent that there are simply too many to be realistically enforced. As a result, the limited resources of the government will have to be constrained to enforcing only the most important laws; a practice I have advocated all along.
I don't believe in "bitching" or whining ineffectually about the ills of our current system. I believe in taking action. My action will consist of:
* Exposing the inequities in society, including government corruption, unjust legislation and deprivation of basic human rights (e.g. self-defense, self-determination and freedom of speech).
* Proposing better solutions to policy problems when I find the government's current approach unacceptable.
* Defying illegitimate authority figures as often and as publicly as possible, proving their edicts to be both controversial and unenforceable.
* Praising those who do the above, while condemning those who would take my freedoms from me.
Under no circumstances will I use violence or threats of violence to accomplish any of the above. I am a productive member of society and I intend to remain so. This project cannot consume my time to the extent that it interferes with other projects; it is a hobby of sorts. Nonetheless, I feel passionately about this and I intend to utilize asymmetric tactics to ensure that I cause a much greater impact on society than my relatively small time investment would normally allow. I know I can accomplish this, because I have one thing my small-minded, freedom-hating opponents don't have...
imagination.
Please subscribe if you're interested to see what I do next... I guarantee, it will be interesting.
~Pedro
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