To The Few and Proud
by Ben Stone
If you were on the cusp of a battle and I handed you a feather to strike your enemy’s face, would you think me a fool or would you stop and examine your enemy?
Please allow me to show you your enemy.
The United States Navy is the only permanent military body the government in Washington DC is constitutionally authorized to control. The Constitution specifically limited funding the Army for only 2 years at a time, and the writings of the framers of the Constitution and other statesmen of the day and the recorded debates regarding the ratification of the Constitution clearly indicate their intent was to limit the US Army’s existence to war time emergencies only and not as a permanent standing army. Only the Navy, and thus the Coast Guard and the US Marines, is constitutionally allowed to exist as a permanent military body controlled by the government in DC.
Defenders of the State make the argument that since the US Congress sets the budget for the US armed forces and regularly reviews and renews that budget; they are in essence, following Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution. However the framers of the Constitution clearly did not intend that to be a valid interpretation. They clearly meant what they said in Article 1 Section 8 and anyone who doubts this is free to read other writings of the day that support the literal acceptance of Article 1 Section 8. Additionally, since we have not legally been at war since August 15th 1945 when Japan officially surrendered, ending WWII, every action the US government has made with regards to the US Army since August 15th 1947 has been unconstitutional and therefore illegal.
The defender of the State may say that we must look at the Constitution though a modern perspective so that it applies to today’s world. But if one is to make the argument that we must translate the Constitution to fit today’s world then one must be open to the political Left’s translation of the 2nd Amendment in order to be morally consistent. The Constitution had built within it a process to adapt it as time and need changed, but this procedure was not utilized in the case of the military. The Constitution was simply ignored and the Federal Government just did as it pleased, as it does today when it ignores the Constitution.
Based on the above, I charge the government of the United States of America as a rogue state operating outside the law. However, that is not the point of this article.
*Editor's note: The link in the original article is outdated. The Wayback Machine maintains a copy of the page quoted below.
The Oath
Every Marine’s first commitment.
Marines pledge themselves completely to the Constitution of the United States. From the day they enlist and throughout their service, the oath every Marine takes is a promise and a reminder of their commitment to the defense of our nation.I DO SOLEMNLY SWEAR THAT I WILL SUPPORT AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES AGAINST ALL ENEMIES, FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC; THAT I WILL BEAR TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE TO THE SAME AND THAT I WILL OBEY THE ORDERS OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE ORDERS OF THE OFFICERS APPOINTED OVER ME, ACCORDING TO THE REGULATIONS AND THE UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE. SO HELP ME GOD.
I have said this before, but it’s worth restating; I am a Quaker. As such I hold to one of the basic characteristics of being a Quaker, namely; I don’t swear oaths of any kind. Period. We Quakers believe that not only is it clearly forbidden in scripture but prohibited by inference, additionally it is a matter of individual honor. If I must raise my hand or any other ritual, and say magic words then I am inferring that when I don’t follow these rituals or say these magic words I may be lying. In contrast, by aligning myself with The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), I am stating to myself and to the world that I reject lies and embrace the truth even when the truth is uncomfortable or in conflict with my best interests.
So then, as someone who refuses to swear an oath or proclaim an allegiance or give honor to an inanimate object, one could ask what right I have to question the oath or allegiance of others. I would answer this charge by saying that since I am not biased by any oath nor is my allegiance encumbered, I am then a qualified judge of those who will attempt to convince me by their oath or their ritual.
Now to the topic of this article:
Some months ago a Marine was murdered by a SWAT team who invaded his home, firing 71 shots from automatic rifles, hitting him 60 times. His wife’s pleas to the 911 dispatcher made no difference as the dispatcher took 10 minutes to act on the call. Meanwhile the killers stood over the Marine in smug satisfaction as he slowly bled to death. Not one of the attackers lifted a finger to help the Marine or stop his bleeding. The ironic part of the story is that the Marine had the tactical advantage and chose not to fire without identifying his target. Had he opened fire when his door was breached he very likely could have stopped the assault or at least made the attacking goons pay a hefty price for their mistake. But he was a better man and, confused by their “good guy” disguise, hesitated to act. In doing so he failed to understand the nature of his enemy and he paid the ultimate price for that ignorance. This is what happens when a Marine trusts his training more than his natural survival instincts. The police then added insult to injury by issuing a string of lies that the media puppets spread as truth.
Now news is spreading about a Marine who was shot in the head* with a teargas canister by Oakland California police. Then when people came to his aid, those same police tossed percussion grenades beside him. News reports are spreading about Marines across the country that are beginning to get tired of the abuse they’re getting from the very nation they served. Anyone paying attention should realize that the mainstream media takes a particular joy in demonizing Marines whenever possible, but whether or not anyone else notices it, Marines notice.
As sure as night follows day, a time will come when more Marines will open their eyes and see the contradiction that they tolerate. The glaring obviousness of the situation we face should be enough on its own, but at some point Marines will awake and a decision must be made. And that moment of decision is what I want to address.
I have said repeatedly that you must understand who your real enemy is and you must understand his nature and habits if you are ever to have the slightest chance against him. Your enemy is very likely not who you think it is and the most obvious course of action is the worst course of action. Your enemy is the State. And the State cannot be defeated using the weapons of the State. It is beyond foolish to fight an enemy on the battlefield of his choosing, using the weapons of his choosing, and the methods of his choosing. It is the nature of this Beast that violence strengthens it even when that violence is aimed at it! Any aggressive action against the State or against those representing the State can only result in a stronger more aggressive State. Even a complete overthrow of the State will create a bigger stronger State! This has been shown to be the case over and over and it is only through learning this lesson of history that we can begin to move toward the defeat of the State.
The reason I am addressing Marines in this article is three-fold. One being that the USMC is a part of the only constitutionally authorized national military in these united states (intentionally not capitalized). The second being that they uniquely posses the ability to fight on land, sea, and in the air. And thirdly, they have a tendency to take their oath as a Marine and their commitment to their fellow Marines to what some consider a fanatical level. That being the case, the urge to act in a way consistent with their training and consistent with their culture make them a formidable threat to the State and yet its greatest asset. Any action taken by Marines to defend the State will be done with the particular zeal they are known for and any action taken against the State will also tend to be done with that same zeal. Therefore the more Marines in general that become aware of the nature of the State the more important it is to clarify the only method that will work in freeing ourselves of tyranny. With time, the urge to attack the State will be almost more than individuals can resist. With Marines, this urge will be far greater as they tend more towards direct action rather than quiet resistance. Yet these warriors must adapt themselves and adopt the quiet resistance that I propose otherwise their own zeal will fuel the very fires they will seek to extinguish.
The State has many strengths but only a few weaknesses. Seeking and exploiting these weaknesses is the only way to logically address the problem of the State. Before you can discover any other weaknesses you have to understand some underlying facts about the nature of the State. First off, we must never confuse the State with individuals who act on behalf of the State. Governments, corporations, armies, and other groups are made up of individual people but the State only exists in the realm of thought. As I’ve said many times, the State is a man-made god and it is almost an all-powerful god. Its sphere of existence is in the realm of the mind. Humans believe in the State and act accordingly. So the only way to defeat the State is by showing humans that their god, the State, is a figment of their imagination. Once their dependence on the mythology of the State is broken, the State itself will cease to be. Further, the mythology of the State exists to serve two human urges. The first being the urge to control other humans, and the second being the urge to act without consequences. Therefore promoting the principles of liberty, that is to say the Zero Aggression Principle and the principle of Natural Right of Property directly oppose the two urges that create the need for the State. Of course, forcibly imposing the principles of liberty would actually serve to strength the State, as the very act would be in line with the urge to control other humans. And acting aggressively toward individuals who serve the State would in itself be an act of the State since it would be a violation of those principles of liberty. So then the more consistently we can apply the principles of liberty in our own lives the more the State is weakened. As we spread this knowledge of the nature of the State and others understand and begin to voluntarily adopt the Zero Aggression Principle and the Natural Right of Property the State disappears one mind at a time. This is the path to a battle the State has no defense against.
No matter the intent or the temporary result, every act humans do on behalf of the State is based on one or more of the following; theft, lies, and aggression. The opposite of these is the path of liberty and the only useful weapons against the State.
Theft
The State is like a helpless beast who feeds on the stolen plunder provided by its delusional servants. So then we combat theft through private voluntary exchange. The State cannot tolerate or even understand peaceful free trade, therefore it’s a powerful and unstoppable weapon against the theft of the State. And as an added benefit, private exchanges starve and weaken the Beast.
Lies
Imagine a dragon covered all over with scales so hard no weapon could penetrate. That’s not the State. The State is covered all over with the images of scales that appear so hard no weapon could penetrate. But those images are false. Interlocking layers of lies protect every aspect of the State, so truth is like a powerful acid sprayed on the armor of the Beast, exposing its bare nerves and showing its hideous reality.
Aggression
Without aggression committed by the delusional servants of the State on its behalf none of the lies or the thievery of the State would be tolerated. All aggression is ultimately based on a conflict of property. When people understand the Right of Property and choose to react to a conflict of property through peaceful means, the State is excluded and its opportunity to aggress is denied. Therefore the knowledge of the Right of Property and the choice of peaceful conflict resolution causes the State to evaporate like fog struck by the warmth of the sun.
So then we can see that the State is a very simple entity based on the imagination of its believers, perpetuated by the theft, lies and aggression of those believers. And if we aggress upon those believers or their property we strengthen their faith and in doing so we strengthen the State. But by embracing the Right of Property while individually choosing peaceful private voluntary exchange and pursuing the truth in all matters, we kill the Beast one mind at a time. The reason humans no longer sacrifice to Zeus is because people stopped believing in the myth of Zeus. When that happened, Zeus stopped being a god inspiring a nation and simply became a novelty sold to tourists.
Peaceful private exchange is the feather that can strike the death blow and end the State.
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*Dead link in original post updated with alternative source. Original link
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