I've wondered for some time now about why government exists in the first place. How is it that we went from stone carvers to government supporters in a relatively short amount of historical time?
And then it hit me...
It's not to make life better for people. It's not to preserve rights. It's not to keep the enemies away. No, dear reader. Government is the outcome of your inability to live and let live.
It's the ultimate excuse.
People don't use government to help anyone. They use government to do the things they won't do themselves. Let's run down a few examples.
If you believe:
- Wealth is Greed
It's easy to hate those that have what you want and don't have. Rather than using their natural talents to think, imagine, and innovate their way to personal success they make up excuses to account for why they don't have those successes. We've all heard the protest rally cry of "the haves and have nots" or the "one percenters". They use these ritualistic chants as a way of getting others to join their jealous pity-party and then seek to change the government to punish those that have what they don't. They vote to use government against others and thus their vote becomes a percieved tool of mob justice. It used to be the lynch mob. Now it's the voting mob.
Yes, there are terrible rich people in the world. But there are also terrible poor people in the world too. Being terrible has no socioeconomic status.
Fundamentally, it's easier to create excuse monsters than it is to work hard for the things you want in life.
- Government needs to provide for the general welfare
Once upon a time, charities were everywhere. Hundreds of thousands of people volunteering their time and labor to provide goods and services to people that really truly needed it. Whether it was medical care, financial assistance, food and supplies, housing, and etc- there was a charity for almost everything you could think of. But what happened to them? Where did they all go?
For armchair saints, it's easier to pull a voting lever than it is to get out and physically help other people. So they march to the polls, pull the lever to take money from someone they don't know, and they immediately feel like they're helping people. It's just another excuse to not get passionate about getting out of the house and donating time and energy. Government becomes their all-encompassing surrogate charity. Pull the lever. Feel better about yourself. Rinse. Repeat.
The result is a culture of people that turn to government to be their personal charity for everything. Want to help the poor? Tax everyone else. Want to build roads? Tax everyone else. Want to house the homeless? Tax everyone else.
I've heard it said that "taxation is the price we pay for a civilized society". But all I hear is, "letting the government take other peoples money is easier for me to support than contributing to society directly."
- Government needs to provide security
The following thought experiment usually, quickly, dispels any belief in the notion that government is required to keep us safe.
Imagine an invading army of 100,000 armed soldiers lands on your native soil. Now imagine that the 250+ million people of your native soil understand their birthright to bear arms. How well do you believe this invading army could possibly fare against a well armed society that not only has the home-team advantage but stands to lose their very way of life?
The revolution-era American colonies is one example of a society that had no formal military training which fought against an invading army with extremely efficient military training and won. No government necessary to fight and win a war.
So why then, do people support a government military?
It's another excuse. It's easier for people to pull a lever and hand the military other people's money in the name of security. The very prospect of having to fight scares most people- rightly so, combat is terrifying. But rather than dealing with it head on and taking steps to preserve their way of life, they turn to the government to fight in their name. And thus, these people have conjured a convenient excuse to explain why they don't own guns or want others to own guns. Am I calling them cowards? No. But actions speak louder than words. If it's easier for you to give up your responsibility to ensure the safety of your family and those you care about, then that says everything that needs to be said.
I could go on with every topic and facet of life government touches. But there's no need here. It's all excuses not to do something for themselves. Protesters that call for government action (as opposed to those protesters fighting to relieve themselves of the government shackles) have fallen for the ultimate excuse and probably don't know it.
This explains the thousands of years of government. We look back and see the excuses of the people reflected in the eyes of the rulers and, without a shred of irony, ask how those people could have allowed such terrible acts to be performed in their name.
If you want a better world... fight to eliminate the individual excuses. Only then will people see how completely obsolete government is and always has been.