Free society vs. controlled one

In 1776, the founders of the United States boldly created a society allowing the maximum amount of liberty for the individual and restricting government activity to the absolute minimum ever seen in the history of the world. Based on the wildest notion ever dreamed of, the founders put the individual at the top of society, not some monarch, dictator, president or legislative body.

The individual was established as king because the individual is the only entity that has any rights. Therefore, in a free society the individual can make whatever decisions about his life as he chooses, so long as the individual does not initiate force against another (i.e., murder, fraud, theft, assault, extortion or coercion of any sort).

A majority vote of the populous cannot decide what is best for society without taking away individual inalienable rights. In a free society, the majority cannot dictate who smokes, ingests drugs, gets married, obtains an education or receives health care without taking away the right of the individual to exercise those activities. Only in a government-controlled society does the majority rule. Democracy is a failed system just like any other socialist system.

The sole purpose of government in a free society is to protect the right of the individual to his life, liberty and property. Government's role in a controlled society is to take from some to give to others in order to create the so-called perfect society.

In the free society, the fruits of one's own labor are the individual's. This means that government has no claim whatsoever on it and has no right to confiscate an individual's income and give it to someone else. In a government-controlled society, the government owns the fruits of one's labor thereby giving the right to government to confiscate that income and do with it as it pleases.

In a free society, government is required to protect the inalienable rights of individuals. In order to pay for such services, a fair tax system is one where all people pay a proportionate share of the essential and very limited services government provides in order to protect the right to life, liberty and property. On the other hand, in the controlled society, government is established as a redistribution center whereby some individuals pay a disproportionate share for essential government services.

In the free society, individuals, families and private charities through voluntary assistance help those who cannot help themselves. But in a controlled society, government coerces individuals to be charitable through an income tax.

In a free society, government does not control the media nor does it control the information disseminated to individuals whether it be print, audio or visual. In a government-controlled society, government officials decide what the individual reads, hears or sees.

In the free society, individuals decide what their children will be taught and what information they are to receive. In the controlled society, government officials decide these issues by majority vote.

In the free society, promises and contracts are made and if violated, the responsible party is forced by government to restitute the offended party. In a government-controlled society, since government either owns or controls many aspects of the individual's life, there is no need to be responsible for any action. Very few individuals are held responsible and pay restitution out of their own pocket when government officials make mistakes, whether it is bridges collapsing, an empty Social Security fund or killing innocent individuals in the war on terrorism.

In a free society, individuals decide who they want to favor or not favor by either purchasing or not purchasing from those they like or dislike. In a government-controlled society, government in fact favors one race over another, one business over another and one special interest over another by means of subsidies, handouts, grants, tax breaks and/or variances to government rules and regulations.

One does not have to look very far to determine that America is not the free society the founders established. It is a government-controlled society with all of the fallout that goes with it: inflation, increased crime, increased pollution, increased inefficiencies and increased costs to do business.

To re-establish the free society in America - with individual liberty allowing individuals to take back control of their own lives - requires a change in the way individuals view government. Government must be seen as if it were fire, a very useful tool, but used with extreme caution. Viewing and using government in this light results in less inflation, less crime, less pollution, increased efficiency and less cost to do business.

As Dr. Milton Friedman put it so succinctly, the free society is one where the individual spends his own money on himself and thereby watches his finances very carefully. The government-controlled society is one where the individual, through taxation, spends other people's money on people other than himself resulting in absolutely nobody watching any finances. The results are all around if government is viewed in any other way.

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Howard J. Blitz is a local libertarian and

president of The Freedom Library Inc.,

2435 S. 8th Ave. His e-mail address is

info@freedomlibrary.org