A friend of mine who is a very respected author in the 'liberty movement' made this post at a private forum, directed primarily at me. Although he's actually in disagrement with me, I concede that he does make a valid point, and one worth mentioning here in light of all the back-and-forth we do.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>The largest single threat to the American Citizen is the American Citizen, the
one with a concept that is ignored otherwise so he seeks a politician who might agree and give that concept the force of law.
The second largest threat of the American Citizen is what I term the true believer. He is a government employee who truly believes that his actions will have some great and lasting positive effect on the population, or will impose some needed control on the population.
The third largest threat to the American Citizen is the fellow Citizen who
says, I can not agree but the law is the law and if we are to have civilization
we must follow the law.
My disagreement was only time period. Today we have a larger segment of the population rejecting the third concept then at any point that I can remember in my lifetime.
The politicians and true believers of today are pikers when compared to their equals of 30 - 50 years ago. I, for one, believe that the situation in these little old states, has imporved in my lifetime and not deteriorated. Yes, there was waco and ruby ridge, but half a century ago it was entire races (Japaneese), entire armies (U.S. Forces in Viet Nam), and entire political parties (Communist Party of the United States). At least in cases like waco
and ruby ridge there was some identifyable conflict involving the government,
but in the three earler cases listed every victum of the government actions
were totally law abiding citizens, serving their government, with not even the
claim that their action was illegal, but only that it was out of favor at the
second.
In World War Two, entire regiments of Philippines soldiers joined the United
States Military to fight and die for America. They did so based on the promase of GI benifits being paid to them on discharge. Nothing special, just if you join the U.S. Army you will receive the same benifits and pay as the American man fighting next to you. These men did not just fight and die in the Philipines, but all through the island hopping campaign of the South Pacific. Those Philippines Citizens are still trying to get those benifits. The United States then spent years and billions of dollars rebuilding our enemy's countries, but never paid those benifits. At the end of the war isolationism was the point of the day and paying the same benifits to little short brown
skined guys, that were paid to the American hero just was not politically correct.
Guys, it may not look like it, but these are the good times. Today we are so involved in individual rights, but fifty years ago the abuse was not individuals but great masses of humanity. Yes, we did take all of the property
belonging to, and did imprison for six years, people who's only crime was being born with at least one grandparent born in Japan. There was not then, and has never been a law to support that action. Now we have a major yell, in the
front page, becasue a few american citizens are held in a military camp as prisoiners of the military. The japaneese camps of world war two were hardly worth mentioning in the news and when menitioned were listed as a positive
action. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
It loses a little outside of the context of the thread, but it is interesting to see a guy with whm I am typically so closely aligned in view refer to today as 'the good times.' But the argument supporting the assertion certainly carries some weight.
Phaedrus
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>The largest single threat to the American Citizen is the American Citizen, the
one with a concept that is ignored otherwise so he seeks a politician who might agree and give that concept the force of law.
The second largest threat of the American Citizen is what I term the true believer. He is a government employee who truly believes that his actions will have some great and lasting positive effect on the population, or will impose some needed control on the population.
The third largest threat to the American Citizen is the fellow Citizen who
says, I can not agree but the law is the law and if we are to have civilization
we must follow the law.
My disagreement was only time period. Today we have a larger segment of the population rejecting the third concept then at any point that I can remember in my lifetime.
The politicians and true believers of today are pikers when compared to their equals of 30 - 50 years ago. I, for one, believe that the situation in these little old states, has imporved in my lifetime and not deteriorated. Yes, there was waco and ruby ridge, but half a century ago it was entire races (Japaneese), entire armies (U.S. Forces in Viet Nam), and entire political parties (Communist Party of the United States). At least in cases like waco
and ruby ridge there was some identifyable conflict involving the government,
but in the three earler cases listed every victum of the government actions
were totally law abiding citizens, serving their government, with not even the
claim that their action was illegal, but only that it was out of favor at the
second.
In World War Two, entire regiments of Philippines soldiers joined the United
States Military to fight and die for America. They did so based on the promase of GI benifits being paid to them on discharge. Nothing special, just if you join the U.S. Army you will receive the same benifits and pay as the American man fighting next to you. These men did not just fight and die in the Philipines, but all through the island hopping campaign of the South Pacific. Those Philippines Citizens are still trying to get those benifits. The United States then spent years and billions of dollars rebuilding our enemy's countries, but never paid those benifits. At the end of the war isolationism was the point of the day and paying the same benifits to little short brown
skined guys, that were paid to the American hero just was not politically correct.
Guys, it may not look like it, but these are the good times. Today we are so involved in individual rights, but fifty years ago the abuse was not individuals but great masses of humanity. Yes, we did take all of the property
belonging to, and did imprison for six years, people who's only crime was being born with at least one grandparent born in Japan. There was not then, and has never been a law to support that action. Now we have a major yell, in the
front page, becasue a few american citizens are held in a military camp as prisoiners of the military. The japaneese camps of world war two were hardly worth mentioning in the news and when menitioned were listed as a positive
action. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
It loses a little outside of the context of the thread, but it is interesting to see a guy with whm I am typically so closely aligned in view refer to today as 'the good times.' But the argument supporting the assertion certainly carries some weight.
Phaedrus
