YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT

YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT

Release Date 2008-07-03
http://www.nomorefakenews.com/archives/archiveview.php?key=3458


JULY 3, 2008. That’s what Ron Paul wrote in a recent essay. He is, of course, not the first to say it. The Founders of the United States said it. No matter what their shortcomings, they managed to put that out there: YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT.

It made sense at the time. It was also a new idea. A surprising number of Americans took to it. The government serves the people, and the people decide what that means. The government doesn’t decide.

Why not? Because all organizations, when they get big enough, turn the tables. They say, “We serve the people, and that means the people obey our orders.” Doesn’t make sense, does it? It’s crazy, in fact. Psycho.

So it seems a lot of people are now considering writing in a candidate’s name when they vote in the presidential election this fall. You know, John Doe, Mary Doe, Ooobladee Smith, Gargantua Jones. Any name. To make it clear this electoral charade is preposterous.

The Democrats and the Republicans are bent on continuing big and bigger government. More invasive and parental government. Crazier government. Government by sound bite and slogan. Who has the best slogan of the day? Who sounds more convincing? Who appeals better to the lowest common denominator? Who makes fewer oratorical mistakes? Who weaves a prettier story? Who sells the used car better?

In light of this, I think writing in a crazy name for president is a pretty good idea.

If you read the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights, which is always a good thing to do, you discover that FREEDOM was something worth struggling for. It still is. Because the government is ALWAYS selling the illusion of security in exchange for your freedom. THAT’S WHAT THEY DO. That’s their business plan. Of course, they don’t come right out and say it. They have cover stories and they are fairly clever about it.

Tomorrow is Independence Day. Independence from what? England? Is that it? Is that all? Or is it independence from oppressive rule in any form, foreign or domestic? We are talking about independence from repression of basic freedoms.

Big and greedy government has been digging us deeper and deeper into economic crises. Listen to McCain and Obama. On even a superficial level, are they suggesting anything that remotely sounds like a policy that will get us out of this current mess? Is there a plan? Is there the vaguest hint of a plan? Or is there just more bullshit?

Essentially, they are claiming the government is the overall solution to everything, because they ARE the government. Or they’re pretending to be. Actually, when the rubber meets the road and melts down, the government steps out of the way and says, “We love freedom. We love the free market. We love individual incentive. We love self-reliance.” THEN, they love it, because they have NOTHING to offer.

The government, at its heart, is a machine geared to stage elections, and after the latest election, it is an obfuscating bullshit machine, until the next election comes up.

That is called a clue. It tells you that, behind the screen, YOU are the government. You are the inheritors of freedom. The Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights are about YOU. And you have the right to figure out how to embody that and express it. All of you. All of us. The history of those key documents is not there for the purpose of nostalgia on July 4. It’s there to learn from so you can do something NOW.

JON RAPPOPORT www.nomorefakenews.com