"Government is not reason. Government is not eloquence. It is force. And, like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."
If there be one quote that guides me to an understanding of the government’s place in society, the above quote would be the one I’d choose. I can’t think of a more eloquent illustration nor can I think of a better reason for a government to be limited in its powers than the above quote.
Yes, I have heard of all the arguments for trusting in my government and yes I have had the strings of my heart pulled many times as I have watched my fellow man suffer through the problems that life will bring upon us as human beings. It is only when I remember the words above that I see that no problem that a man may bring upon himself that can compare with the problem that would be inflicted upon him if his government has no restriction placed upon it as many seek now.
From the above quote we can see that government is not only the servant of the people but that government is also the people’s master. It is only by doing for ourselves can we be free of the dangers of this servant. It is only by liberating ourselves that we need not fear the wrath of the master. Is this not reason? Is this not expressing the eloquence so desired in life?
From the above quote we can see that the man who believes himself to be the master of his government will soon be wearing the chains and shackles of his arrogance, his back revealing the scourges of the whip. The servant that government be will be wielding the whip while the master that government be will be holding the key to the locks of the chains.
Now, there will be those who think me a fool for the words I use here this day. They will seek to dispel the words of fear that I feel and am trying to instill. They will downplay the dangers, as if unfounded. But a man who is not fearful of the power of a government is a man already in chains, his will bent to the will of his master.
So, be careful of what you ask of your government, my friends, for it will be given unto you but it will be for a price no man should be willing to pay. And if a man does not pay the price willingly it will be exacted by force.
By the way, the speaker of those words I quoted was none other than Geo. Washington.
WELCOMES YOU to his little home in cyberspace.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
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6 comments:
What entity other than government has the scope to enforce laws and protect society as a whle Griper? Where else can those at the mercy of the powerful go for redress? Tis the season for sure. But I don't think Santa will looking out for any consumers this or any year.
people enforce the laws truth. it is a minority of the people that protect society as a whole.
and it in the seat of government that the powerful reside so you are asking where the weak can go to redress their grieviences against the powerful, it is to the more powerful, if they are sympathetic.
other than the weakness of cowardness, the weak are not as weak as one might think either. that is one of the lessons that the revolution should have taught us.
One of my favorite qoutes as well Griper.
Another of my favorites is "power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutly."
So yes, as the founders, men of the enlightment and the age of reason understood, government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed.
Thus government is to be the servant of the people and the people are rightly the master of a just government.
You are right Griper, we must retain a healthy fear of our government. We therefor must also be fearful of the potential that exists with individuals we entrust to run our government to abuse the power we grant them.
Governmnt is the servant of the people. Duly elected representatives are the engine of government in a republic. So in as much we must fear government we must fear the capacity that resides in men to abuse power.
It seems that for some time now we should have been for fearful and wary of our government.
"Thus government is to be the servant of the people and the people are rightly the master of a just government."
it is statements such as this that is the foundational basis of socialism. Socialism has no chance of being accepted unless the government is seen and accepted as being the servant of the people.
people will only seek to be liberated from their government when they are in the mindset that the government is the master.
we must always remember that it is not the master who seeks to be liberated from the slave. it is the slave who seeks to be liberated from the master.
when we see government only in terms of being the master we then can determine whether or not it is a benevolent master or a cruel master.
your second quote is one of my favorites also and from that we know that only a master has the potential for absolute power. a servant may possess a little power as granted by his master but it can never have the potential of absolute power. and as we know from history and present day politics it is government that has the potential if not the reality of absolute power. the only way for us to declare that the people have the potential of absolute power is to eliminate the need of governments.
Griper - I understnd your point. In this case the difference is more a matter of semantics I believe.
I hold with the founders such as Paine, Franklin, Jefferson, Washinton, Adams, et all and their reasoning as penned by them.
Government remains a necessary evil. It is the individual and their unalienable rights that are, and should always remain front and center. For a government to be considered just it must in fact and above above all protect and insure the rights of the individual (the smallest minority on earth)against the tryanny of the majority.
Sadly many in society do not understand this, and therefor we are slowly losing the gift, won by the blood of a geneneration long gone, and the works of the Founding Fathers.
I believe you do understnd Griper, as do I. Wether we are a dying breed will be left to future generations to determine. Until then the god fight goes on.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
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