How to Achieve the Miracle of Poverty

Reason Online ^ | September 18, 2002 | Ronald Bailey

[B.Bumbleberry]

bump

[Republic of Texas]

Too bad this will never see the light of day outside this forum.

[Free the USA]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[muir_redwoods]

I am a libertarian because I recognized a long time ago that governments regularly sicken, impoverish and kill people they pretend to protect. Most governments are indistinguishable from gangs who seem benevolent only because they pose a bigger menace for the other gangs than they do for their members.

[XLurk]

...Most governments are indistinguishable from gangs who seem benevolent only because they pose a bigger menace for the other gangs than they do for their members...

For about the last ten years, when referring to the vast majority of government bureaucrats, politicians, functionaries, etc., I have been using the term 'Territorial Gangster' (acronym: 'TG' for short). Over time, governments always devolve into organized crime syndicates with (temporarily) fixed operational territories.

America's Founding Fathers understood this. We forgot it, and let the monster grow out of control to incomprehensible proportions. We are going to pay a very high price for this mistake. Some say we ARE paying this price now - which is true; but I feel that it is merely a token downpayment on the looming catastrophe I now see immediately before us.

Good day to you.

[Hank Kerchief]

...Most governments are indistinguishable from gangs who seem benevolent only because they pose a bigger menace for the other gangs than they do for their members...

When gangsters compete for territory, the winning gang is called the government.

The Autonomist's Notebook - Government

Hank

[XLurk]

Autonomist's Notebook

Hey, thanks for the link there, Hank.
-> Bookmarked for later reading.

But right now, I gotta make the traditional Saturday homemade pizza.
You know where I can get ground mouse-testicle pizza topping?
(please refer to the Taiwanese fertility thread)
Never mind - I've got top-quality pepperoni in the freezer. I'm sure it works just as well.

A joyous & prosperous day to you!

[fightinJAG]

I experienced what this article is talking about when I was stationed in the Republic of Panama. There was no obvious reason why the nations of Central America should be so poor. The explanation was exactly what this author outlines.

This article needs to be out there far beyond this forum. I am emailing it to friends, in the hope that they will pass it on, too.

[ArcLight]

Dead right. All it takes to dispel the stupid stereotype of lazy Third Worlders is to visit a Third World country. Go to, say, Kenya, a horribly misruled and impoverished country, and you'll see an absolute frenzy of entrepreneurial activity. Practically everybody you'll meet is trying to sell you something. Same thing in Ghana and South Africa. Put these people in a political environment that encouraged free enterprise, with sensible laws, honest judges and enforceable contracts, and there'd be an explosion of wealth in every one of them. But for a variety of social and cultural reasons, these and many other Third World countries have never developed such institutions. And that's the main reason these countries are disaster areas.

[Darksheare]

How to achieve the miracle of poverty?
Vote Democrat.

[prophetic]

Democrat, socialist, communist, libertarian = poverty and more govt control over the masses.

Heck isnt that the spirit of true government /sarcasm/

[Cincinatus]

Great piece and dead on, of course.

Of course, you may find it too tiresome to nationalize everything, in which case it is very important that you establish high tariffs that insulate your country's remaining private industries (usually owned by your cronies anyway) from competition.

Isn't this the policy advocated by Pat Buchanan and his merry band of paleocons?

[Darksheare]

Don't be so quick to write what you said off as a sarcastic comment.
You might be onto something.

[KC_Conspirator]

Can someone explain to me how come Argentina's economy collapsed? I have yet to get a good explanation on that.

[prophetic]

Can someone explain to me how come Argentina's economy collapsed? I have yet to get a good explanation on that.

Ditto here too, I worked as a consultant for a major worldwide bank as a consultant and there were a diversified group of folks including some Argentinians among them, but these guys took the cake for being arrogant & pompous. When I found out that among all the Central & S. American countries that they had the best US $ exchange rates I then concluded that 'yep these folks have money'.
But still I think its must have something to do with a socialist mindset.

I've friends in Jamaica who explained to me ho back in the 1970's the outgoing Labor party (pro American) left approx US$200 Million in foreign exchange surplus, but the incoming Socialist party under the now infamous Michael Manley who was a protoge of Fidel Castro bankrupted the country to the extent where the IMF had to bail them to the amount of $23 Billion.

My friends there tell me that even to this day over 50% of the GDP is allocated to paying off this debt. Back in the 1970's the Jamaica dollar was worth $1.20 US dollars, now it takes $50 jamaican dollars to buy $1 US.
I've personally lost a ton of money due to that Govt greed, corruption and outright incometence

Socialism & Communism sucks donkeys balls....

[Fintan]

"The inhabitants of these countries possess talent, enthusiasm, and an astonishing ability to wring profit out of practically nothing."

Yeah, but if this behavior is encouraged, Katie Couric is out of a job.

[facedown]

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[TenthAmendmentChampion]

I don't know about paleo cons, but compare the list of do's (or don'ts) to the policies of FDR. That is why the 1930's Depression was so devastating and didn't lift for more than ten years among the hardest-working, most honest, most entrepreneurial people in the world. It still makes me angry to think of the thousands of Okies and Arkies FDR killed indirectly with his ideology.

[M-cubed]

as in pure democracies... When the weakest 51% discover they can enslave the strongest 49%...the goal is weakness to remain in power!....Of course the answer to this is Constitutional Republics where (and this is the important part!) the constitution gaurentees "individual rights" over "collective rights"...But how often does that happen...