The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants, and it provides the further advantage of giving the servants of tyranny a good conscience.
–Albert Camus
It is a factual misconception that the primary tool of the tyrant is religion. As often, nationalism is listed as weapon of the dictator; but nationalism is an effect, like the dust from a sander, it simply masks the source of its origin. No, as with every Hitler, Mao, and Amin the source of power came from the promise of welfare to the people. That the tyrant, and only his government, could lift the people from their suffering.
I know that we, as Americans, began our slow slide towards totalitarianism around the time of FDR; but for some reason that movement seems accelerated as of late. At least during the Roosevelt administration we had a political party working to preserve democracy. Now we have two parties working aggressively to legislate, regulate, and subsidize democracy out of existence.
Here is, via a light bulb, a great example of the kind of Machiavellian control government tries to have over our lives. If you think life is complicated if you use a light bulb you should try running a small business.
And it only looks to get worse. Universal health care looks like it is coming. If you honestly believe the government has ever done a social program right, think about this:
When Medicare was initially passed in 1965, the politicians projected its cost in 1992 to be $3 billion ” which is equivalent to $12 billion when adjusted for inflation to 1992 dollars. The actual cost in 1992 was $110 billion ” nine times as much.
And when Medicare was enacted, Section 1801 of the original law specifically prohibited any bureaucratic interference with the practice of medicine. Today not one word of that protection still applies. The federal government owns the health-care industry lock, stock, and barrel.
The new program you support will eventually include all sorts of powers and privileges you can’t even imagine right now.
–Harry Browne