With all due respect, sir, the nature of political rights, the economic and intrinsic value of humanity, morality, and our relationship with G-d are MAN-BASED, not DIRT-BASED.
So, while there are many good arguments against a government holding much dirt, the how a state’s dirt is owned is a small component of Statehood. Alaska versus Rhode Island being fine examples. Is an Alaskan more or less free than a Rhode Islander? More of Alaska is held by the Feds. But there are substantially more restrictions on the behavior of a “citizen” in Rhode Island.
So, I’ll argue that while we should have governments divest themselves of dirt because holding dirt is not their core function, merely holding dirt is not as inimical to freedom and citizenship as bureaucracy, laws limiting behavior, taxes, etc.
I love ya, Jim. And I concur on divestiture of land by governments. I choose to hold that issue lower than more direct assaults on our freedoms.
Pretty much ANY unconstitutional action by the feds is an assault on our freedom. And if we don't stop the seemingly less direct intrusions, we may not be able to stop the direct intrusions.
The people within a state and their sovereign state governments should be allowed to control the land and resources within their state boundaries. Why should the western states not be allowed to commercially exploit their land and natural resources just as the eastern and mid-western states did and do? Timber, coal, oil, gas, minerals, water, fisheries, ranch land, fertile farmland, all locked up forever depriving the states and the people of commercial opportunity? This is not the American way. America was founded on the principles of God-given equality under the law, life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. Our constitution recognizes state sovereignty and guarantees each state self-rule and a republican form of government and states rights. The federals controlling land use on 86% of the land within a state’s boundaries is not sovereignty, not self-rule, not a republican form of government. It’s a dictatorship. And it’s unconstitutional.
This federal dictatorship not square with the founding principles, the Declaration or the Constitution.