In part one of this series we discussed European socialism, Marxism’s second try, bribing people out of their freedom. Franklin D. Roosevelt took advantage of a scared American populace in the 1930’s to do just that.
FDR was shrewd, though. Even though his policies were like pouring gasoline on a fire he managed the perception of the crisis in the country through a host of measures, “fireside chats” being the most enduring in the American memory. In them he told Americans that, although things were terrible, they would be exponentially worse had he not come in to save the country.
Sound familiar? The fireside chats were bedtime stories for a nation that, in temporary reversion to childhood, needed to be tucked in at night.
Capitalism was largely discredited in the American consciousness through relentless liberal PR coming from the media, the government, and academia. People like William F. Buckley and Barry Goldwater did much to bring back the truth of freedom and adulthood (aka responsibility)in markets and life.
Communism fell first, vindicating generations of capitalists who had hated the system from the beginning. Socialism, the kinder, gentler communism, was tried next. It was thought that communism cooked the golden goose of profit-based economy, so socialism would merely enslave the goose, being careful to stop short of cooking it.
The long-term problem with socialism is people are given the right to govern themselves by God and the only way to take it from them outside of brute force (which the USSR proved was ultimately unsustainable) is to bribe them.
The bribes always have dignified names like “Social Security” and “Medicare”. What could be purer? To bribe people out of their freedom you have to have something to trade. Socialism in Europe has had to borrow and borrow to keep it’s populace contently bought-off but the system is now collapsing.
In fact, the kids in Greece are in the street crying and throwing things because Daddy, sitting on 25 maxed-out credit cards and no ability to get another, finally said their allowance needed to be cut. They don’t care. They’ve been successfully made into children, unable to understand how money works. Obama “saved” them by putting pressure on Germany to issue them one last credit card. Obama gave the crying children the big, tasty lollipop they were screaming for, mouths cavity-ridden. That should keep them quiet for six months or so.
Texans have a reputation for being fiercely independent. We don’t want handouts because we know they come at a price. We lose freedom and our economy becomes less fertile every time the legislature takes piece of it away to pay for the always noble-sounding “fixes” for our lives.
Greece legislators “fixed” their way to a totally broken Greece. Let’s make sure we elect Texas legislators fiercely committed to freedom and fiscal discipline, aware of government’s inability to fix social problems.
