lewrockwell--2020-07-31--Nock and Mencken on Democracy and Equality

[ Adapted from “ The Libertarian Legacy of the Old Right : Democracy and Representative Government , ” Journal of Libertarian Studies 23 ( 2019 ) : 5–21 . ]
Albert Jay Nock ( 1870–1945 ) and Henry L. Mencken ( 1880–1956 ) were the two leading libertarian intellectuals of the Old Right , during the thirties of the twentieth century .
Both defended laissez-faire but opposed the New Deal , any connections between big government and big business , the First World War and the American policy of imperialism .
They were also very polemical against various movements for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , such as Prohibition and the battle for public education .
The Myth of a Guilty N ... Nock , Albert Jay Best Price : $ 7.90 Buy New $ 6.69 With Myth of a Guilty Nation , published in 1922 , Nock influenced an entire generation of classical liberals , opposing Wilsonian internationalism and arguing for anti-militarism .
From 1920 to 1924 he was editor of the weekly journal The Freeman .
His writings are mostly elitist , based as they are on the fundamental role of the individual capable of elevating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
His thought is anchored in a strong individualism , explicitly critical of any forms of statism .
Nock has a disenchanted approach to democracy , mainly based on the idea that the lowering of the level of culture and education is related to the democratic ideology .
Enlarging the suffrage would not do any better and its only result would be the destruction of the highest ranks of culture .
The policy , decided on by the government , of universal education is based on the theory that everyone is equally educable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the largest possible group .
But , for Nock , this does not make sense , since we are not all equals in attitudes and capacities .
The only true kind of equality is the equality of liberty and before the law .
But the education system is based on a perversion of the idea of equality and on democracy .
First of all , Nock clarifies , the Founding Fathers chose the republican system as the best way to secure the free expression of the individual in politics .
A republic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a democracy , but considering republican and democratic as synonymous is simply a confusion of terms .
Actually , strictly speaking , democracy is simply a matter of counting the ballots , but it became an ideology .
“ Republicanism ” —Nock writes— “ does not…of itself even imply democracy….Democracy is not a matter of an extension of the suffrage….It is a matter of the diffusion of ownership ; a true doctrine of democracy is a doctrine of public property.
” And this because we are “ aware that it is not , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those who vote that rule , but those who own.
” So democracy , being an economic status , is animated by a strong resentment toward the élite , the socially , economically and intellectually superior persons .
The democratic ideology rejects the simple reality that some achievements and experiences are open only to some people and not to all .
Democracy postulates that everybody has to enjoy the same things .
In a democratic system , therefore , education would be “ common property ” and so what is not manageable by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a low and poor level of education and to the destruction of the higher ranks of culture , art , taste and life itself .
Moreover , Nock ’ s theory of the state , as an enemy institution , founded on exploitation and robbery , sheds further light on his ideas about democracy .
The doctrine of popular sovereignty was a structural alteration to the state , necessary to make people believe that the state was literally the expression of the popular will .
Democratic representation has been an expedient in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state they believed was legitimate .
The most important expedient Notes on Democracy ( La ... Mencken , H. L. Best Price : $ 13.00 Buy New $ 14.00 Henry Louis Mencken was a leading protagonist of the American Old Right .
In the weekly journal American Mercury , he and his colleagues bitterly criticized moral crusaders and the entire Wilsonian politics that considered the United States as the guardian of the world .
Although he was a literary figure and did not elaborate a systematic system of political thought , he can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Murray N. Rothbard and [ Justin ] Raimondo are convinced that there are many good reasons to place Mencken in the libertarian tradition .
Rothbard defined him as “ the joyous libertarian ” for his witty and satirical prose .
Mencken was , in Rothbard ’ s words , “ a serene and confident individualist , dedicated to competence and excellence and deeply devoted to liberty , but convinced that the bulk of his fellows were beyond repair.
” Mencken had a great influence on the Old Right during the twenties , rejecting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ peace and democracy , and defending laissez-faire in economics and in private life .
His liberating force and his writings were not for the masses , but for the intelligent few who could understand and appreciate his message .
Mencken believed that The government “ is a separate , independent and often hostile power.
” Mencken perceived “ the deep sense of antagonism between the government and the people it governs .
It is…a separate and autonomous corporation mainly devoted to exploiting the population for the benefits of their own members… , oppressing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The best kind of government , he writes , “ is one which lets the individual alone , one which barely escapes being no government at all.
” Edmund Burke : The Firs ... Norman , Jesse Best Price : $ 13.00 Buy New $ 16.99 Mencken ’ s individualist perspective gives great consistency to his views on many topics , among the most important of which is democracy .
Notes on Democracy , published in 1926 , contains one of the most scathing critiques of the idea that the great masses of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ govern themselves and that they are competent to do it .
A government is considered a good one if it can satisfy quickly the desires and ideas of the masses , that is to say of the inferior men .
A good and democratic government is based on the idea of the omnipotence and omniscience of the masses .
But , Mencken states , “ that there is actually no more evidence for the wisdom of the inferior man , nor for his virtue , than there is for the notion that Friday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his analysis of democracy examining the psychology of the democratic man and clarifying that “ in an aristocratic society government is a function of those who have got relatively far up the poles….In a democratic society it is the function of all , and hence mainly of those who have got only a few spans from the ground.
” The democratic man contemplates with bitterness and admiration those who are above him .
Bitterness and admiration form a complex of prejudices that , in a democracy , is called public opinion , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something sacred .
But , asks Mencken : The main sentiment of humanity is fear and the main sentiment of the democratic man is envy .
The “ democratic man hates the fellow who is having a better time in this world ” ( Mencken 1926 , 45 ) , this is why , according to Mencken , envy is the origin of democracy .
Politicians are well aware of the psychology of the masses , and those who know how to use the fears of the mob are the most successful .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the discovery , chase and scotching of bugaboos .
The statesman becomes , in the last analysis , a mere witch-hunter ” ; in fact “ the plain people , under democracy , never vote for anything , but always against something.
” Actually politics are not determined by the will of the people , but by small groups with special interests able to use the fears and to excite the envy of the masses .
“ Public policies are determined and laws are made by small minorities playing upon the fears @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who succeed in the realm of politics are not the best and most intelligent men , but are the ablest and cunning demagogues .
Anticipating Hans-Hermann Hoppe , Mencken states that except for a miracle it would be very difficult for a man of value to be elected to office in a democratic state .
The problem is that people believe that “ the cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy ” or something closer to direct democracy .
The great masses of men , though free in theory , submit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to Mencken , the popular will remains purely theoretical in every form of democracy .
Moreover , there is no reason for believing that its realization would change the main outlines of the democratic process , considering the low level of intelligence and knowledge of the mob .
The Great Debate : Edmu ... Levin , Yuval Best Price : $ 14.05 Buy New $ 18.99 Mencken examines the relationship between democracy and liberty and notes that the democratic man does not fight to gain more liberty but for more security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” he writes , is that liberty , in any true sense , is a concept that lies quite beyond the reach of the inferior man ’ s mind….Liberty means self-reliance , it means resolution , it means enterprise , it means the capacity for doing without.
” But these are not the characteristics of the democratic masses .
Actually , the masses ’ longing for material goods can only be satisfied at the expense of liberty and property rights .
It can not be denied that freedom is an indispensable condition for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ individual , but if we look at the propensities of the masses we discover that frequently they prefer to sacrifice freedom in order to enjoy material or psychological advantages .
The average man wants to feel protected even from himself .
Writes Mencken : The average man tends to consider liberty as a weapon used against him in the hands of superior men but , recalling Edmund Burke , Mencken writes that If one of the main purposes of civilized governments is to preserve and augment liberty of the individual , then surely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other form of government , since “ the aim of democracy is to break all free spirits.
” Mencken describes the tyrannical consequences of the cultural levelling tendencies of democracy .
Like Alexis de Tocqueville he realizes that the pressure of a mass society of men all alike and equal leads to ostracism of those superior individuals “ merely thinking unpopular thoughts.
” “ Once ” a man “ is accused of such heresy , the subsequent proceedings take on the character of a lynching.
” The democratic , egalitarian society is pledged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rigorous homogeneity of way of thinking and of life .
So “ a man who stands in contempt of the prevailing ideology has no rights under the law.
” By the mid-thirties the influence of Nock and Mencken had begun to decline .
The Old Right , after playing an important role opposing the New Deal and in the crucible of the First World War , almost disappeared .
During the years of World War II , government banned any opposition to war , Roosevelt and the New Deal .
“ The Old @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the war and when America emerged from the war a new generation of old style libertarians appeared .
They believed in laissez-faire and nonintervention in foreign policy .
Note : The views expressed on Mises.org are not necessarily those of the Mises Institute .

[Adapted from “The Libertarian Legacy of the Old Right: Democracy and Representative Government,” Journal of Libertarian Studies 23 (2019): 5–21.]
Albert Jay Nock (1870–1945) and Henry L. Mencken (1880–1956) were the two leading libertarian intellectuals of the Old Right, during the thirties of the twentieth century. Both defended laissez-faire but opposed the New Deal, any connections between big government and big business, the First World War and the American policy of imperialism. They were also very polemical against various movements for cultural and moral elevation of the people, such as Prohibition and the battle for public education.
The Myth of a Guilty N... Nock, Albert Jay Best Price: $7.90 Buy New $6.69 (as of 03:44 UTC - Details) With Myth of a Guilty Nation, published in 1922, Nock influenced an entire generation of classical liberals, opposing Wilsonian internationalism and arguing for anti-militarism. From 1920 to 1924 he was editor of the weekly journal The Freeman. His writings are mostly elitist, based as they are on the fundamental role of the individual capable of elevating himself over the mass of the people. His thought is anchored in a strong individualism, explicitly critical of any forms of statism. Nock has a disenchanted approach to democracy, mainly based on the idea that the lowering of the level of culture and education is related to the democratic ideology. Enlarging the suffrage would not do any better and its only result would be the destruction of the highest ranks of culture. The policy, decided on by the government, of universal education is based on the theory that everyone is equally educable and that education has to be extended to the largest possible group. But, for Nock, this does not make sense, since we are not all equals in attitudes and capacities. The only true kind of equality is the equality of liberty and before the law. But the education system is based on a perversion of the idea of equality and on democracy. First of all, Nock clarifies, the Founding Fathers chose the republican system as the best way to secure the free expression of the individual in politics. A republic where everybody votes is considered ipso facto a democracy, but considering republican and democratic as synonymous is simply a confusion of terms. Actually, strictly speaking, democracy is simply a matter of counting the ballots, but it became an ideology. “Republicanism”—Nock writes—“does not…of itself even imply democracy….Democracy is not a matter of an extension of the suffrage….It is a matter of the diffusion of ownership; a true doctrine of democracy is a doctrine of public property.” And this because we are “aware that it is not, never was and never will be, those who vote that rule, but those who own.” So democracy, being an economic status, is animated by a strong resentment toward the élite, the socially, economically and intellectually superior persons. The democratic ideology rejects the simple reality that some achievements and experiences are open only to some people and not to all. Democracy postulates that everybody has to enjoy the same things.
The whole institutional life organized under the popular idea of democracy, then, must reflect this resentment. It must aim at no ideals above those of the average man, that is to say, it must regulate itself by the lowest common denominator of intelligence, taste and character in the society which it represents.
In a democratic system, therefore, education would be “common property” and so what is not manageable by everybody must be disregarded. This leads to a low and poor level of education and to the destruction of the higher ranks of culture, art, taste and life itself. Moreover, Nock’s theory of the state, as an enemy institution, founded on exploitation and robbery, sheds further light on his ideas about democracy. The doctrine of popular sovereignty was a structural alteration to the state, necessary to make people believe that the state was literally the expression of the popular will. Democratic representation has been an expedient in order to submit the subjects to a state they believed was legitimate. The most important expedient Notes on Democracy (La... Mencken, H. L. Best Price: $13.00 Buy New $14.00 (as of 03:44 UTC - Details)
was that of bringing in the so called representative or parliamentary system, which Puritanism introduced into the modern world, and which has received a great deal of praise as an advance towards democracy. This praise, however, is exaggerated. The change was one of form only, and its bearing on democracy has been inconsiderable.
Henry Louis Mencken was a leading protagonist of the American Old Right. In the weekly journal American Mercury, he and his colleagues bitterly criticized moral crusaders and the entire Wilsonian politics that considered the United States as the guardian of the world. Although he was a literary figure and did not elaborate a systematic system of political thought, he can rightly be considered a libertarian. Both Murray N. Rothbard and [Justin] Raimondo are convinced that there are many good reasons to place Mencken in the libertarian tradition. Rothbard defined him as “the joyous libertarian” for his witty and satirical prose. Mencken was, in Rothbard’s words, “a serene and confident individualist, dedicated to competence and excellence and deeply devoted to liberty, but convinced that the bulk of his fellows were beyond repair.” Mencken had a great influence on the Old Right during the twenties, rejecting the idea of a world war for peace and democracy, and defending laissez-faire in economics and in private life. His liberating force and his writings were not for the masses, but for the intelligent few who could understand and appreciate his message. Mencken believed that
government, in its essence, is a conspiracy against the superior man; its one permanent object is to oppress him and cripple him….One of its primary functions is to regiment men by force, to make them as much alike as possible, to search out and combat originality among them. The most dangerous man, to any government, is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regards to the prevailing superstitions and taboos.
The government “is a separate, independent and often hostile power.” Mencken perceived “the deep sense of antagonism between the government and the people it governs. It is…a separate and autonomous corporation mainly devoted to exploiting the population for the benefits of their own members…, oppressing the taxpayers to their own gain.” The best kind of government, he writes, “is one which lets the individual alone, one which barely escapes being no government at all.” Edmund Burke: The Firs... Norman, Jesse Best Price: $13.00 Buy New $16.99 (as of 03:44 UTC - Details)
Mencken’s individualist perspective gives great consistency to his views on many topics, among the most important of which is democracy. Notes on Democracy, published in 1926, contains one of the most scathing critiques of the idea that the great masses of the people have an inalienable right to govern themselves and that they are competent to do it. A government is considered a good one if it can satisfy quickly the desires and ideas of the masses, that is to say of the inferior men. A good and democratic government is based on the idea of the omnipotence and omniscience of the masses. But, Mencken states, “that there is actually no more evidence for the wisdom of the inferior man, nor for his virtue, than there is for the notion that Friday is an unlucky day.” Mencken begins his analysis of democracy examining the psychology of the democratic man and clarifying that “in an aristocratic society government is a function of those who have got relatively far up the poles….In a democratic society it is the function of all, and hence mainly of those who have got only a few spans from the ground.” The democratic man contemplates with bitterness and admiration those who are above him. Bitterness and admiration form a complex of prejudices that, in a democracy, is called public opinion, which, under democracy, is regarded as something sacred. But, asks Mencken:
What does the mob think? It thinks, obviously, what its individual members think. And what is that? It is, in brief, what somewhat sharp-nosed and unpleasant children think. The mob, being composed, in the overwhelming main, of men and women who have not got beyond the ideas and emotions of childhood, hovers, in mental age, around the time of puberty, and chiefly below it. If we would get at its thoughts and feelings we must look for light to the thoughts and feelings of adolescents.
The main sentiment of humanity is fear and the main sentiment of the democratic man is envy. The “democratic man hates the fellow who is having a better time in this world” (Mencken 1926, 45), this is why, according to Mencken, envy is the origin of democracy. Politicians are well aware of the psychology of the masses, and those who know how to use the fears of the mob are the most successful. “Politics under democracy consists almost wholly of the discovery, chase and scotching of bugaboos. The statesman becomes, in the last analysis, a mere witch-hunter”; in fact “the plain people, under democracy, never vote for anything, but always against something.” Actually politics are not determined by the will of the people, but by small groups with special interests able to use the fears and to excite the envy of the masses. “Public policies are determined and laws are made by small minorities playing upon the fears and imbecilities of the mob.” Those who succeed in the realm of politics are not the best and most intelligent men, but are the ablest and cunning demagogues. Anticipating Hans-Hermann Hoppe, Mencken states that except for a miracle it would be very difficult for a man of value to be elected to office in a democratic state. The problem is that people believe that “the cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy” or something closer to direct democracy. The great masses of men, though free in theory, submit to oppression and exploitation. In fact, according to Mencken, the popular will remains purely theoretical in every form of democracy. Moreover, there is no reason for believing that its realization would change the main outlines of the democratic process, considering the low level of intelligence and knowledge of the mob. The Great Debate: Edmu... Levin, Yuval Best Price: $14.05 Buy New $18.99 (as of 03:44 UTC - Details)
Mencken examines the relationship between democracy and liberty and notes that the democratic man does not fight to gain more liberty but for more security and protection. “The fact,” he writes, is that liberty, in any true sense, is a concept that lies quite beyond the reach of the inferior man’s mind….Liberty means self-reliance, it means resolution, it means enterprise, it means the capacity for doing without.” But these are not the characteristics of the democratic masses. Actually, the masses’ longing for material goods can only be satisfied at the expense of liberty and property rights. It cannot be denied that freedom is an indispensable condition for the development of the personality of the individual, but if we look at the propensities of the masses we discover that frequently they prefer to sacrifice freedom in order to enjoy material or psychological advantages. The average man wants to feel protected even from himself. Writes Mencken:
The truth is that the common’s man love of liberty…is almost wholly imaginary….He is not actually happy when free; he is uncomfortable, a bit alarmed….He longs for the warm, reassuring smell of the herd, and is willing to take the herdsman with it. Liberty is not a thing for such as he….The average man doesn’t want to be free. He simply wants to be safe….What the common man longs for…is the simplest and most ignominious sort of peace—the peace of a trusty in a well-managed penitentiary. He is willing to sacrifice everything else to it. He puts it above his dignity and he puts it above his pride. Above all, he puts it above his liberty.
The average man tends to consider liberty as a weapon used against him in the hands of superior men but, recalling Edmund Burke, Mencken writes that
the heritage of freedom belongs to a small minority of men….It is my contention that such a heritage is necessary in order that the concept of liberty…may be so much as grasped—that such ideas cannot be implanted in the mind of man at will, but must be bred in as all other ideas are bred in….It takes quite as long to breed a libertarian as it takes to breed a racehorse.
If one of the main purposes of civilized governments is to preserve and augment liberty of the individual, then surely democracy accomplishes it less efficiently than any other form of government, since “the aim of democracy is to break all free spirits.” Mencken describes the tyrannical consequences of the cultural levelling tendencies of democracy. Like Alexis de Tocqueville he realizes that the pressure of a mass society of men all alike and equal leads to ostracism of those superior individuals “merely thinking unpopular thoughts.” “Once” a man “is accused of such heresy, the subsequent proceedings take on the character of a lynching.” The democratic, egalitarian society is pledged to common cultural values resulting in a rigorous homogeneity of way of thinking and of life. So “a man who stands in contempt of the prevailing ideology has no rights under the law.” By the mid-thirties the influence of Nock and Mencken had begun to decline. The Old Right, after playing an important role opposing the New Deal and in the crucible of the First World War, almost disappeared. During the years of World War II, government banned any opposition to war, Roosevelt and the New Deal. “The Old Right went underground for the duration” of the war and when America emerged from the war a new generation of old style libertarians appeared. They believed in laissez-faire and nonintervention in foreign policy.
Note: The views expressed on Mises.org are not necessarily those of the Mises Institute.


lewrockwell--2020-07-31--The Biden Rule: ‘No Men Need Apply!’

The Biden Rule: ‘No Men Need Apply!’

There is a real possibility that , this coming week , Joe Biden will be selecting the 47th president of the United States .
For the woman Biden picks — he has promised to exclude from consideration all men , black , brown , white or Asian — has a better chance of succeeding to the presidency than any vice presidential nominee in U.S. history , other than perhaps Harry Truman .
In 1944 , the Democratic establishment engineered the dumping of radical Henry Wallace from Roosevelt ’ s ticket .
They could see from FDR ’ s physical deterioration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full fourth term .
There are other reasons the woman Biden chooses in August may become our 47th president .
Yesterday ’ s Man : ... Marcetic , Branko Best Price : $ 12.00 Buy New $ 13.46 If Biden wins , he will be 78 when he takes the oath , older than our eldest president , Ronald Reagan , was when he left office after two terms .
Biden would turn 80 even before he reached the midpoint of his first term .
Moreover , Biden has suffered a transparent deterioration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evident when he debated Mitt Romney ’ s running mate Paul Ryan in 2012 .
What are the odds that Biden would serve a full term ?
Of our 45 presidents , nine failed to complete the term to which they had been elected .
One resigned ; four died in office ; and four were assassinated .
All nine were succeeded by their vice president .
John Tyler became president in 1841 when William Henry Harrison died a month into office of pneumonia , following an inaugural address of nearly two hours @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tyler would effect the annexation of the Republic of Texas in his final days in 1845 , fail to win his party ’ s nomination to a full term , back the secession of Virginia in 1861 , and end his days as a member of the Confederate Congress sitting in Richmond in 1862 .
Mexican War hero and President Zachary Taylor died in his second year in 1850 , to be succeeded by Millard Fillmore , who would go on to become the 1856 nominee of the anti-Catholic , anti-immigrant American Party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nothings.
” Andrew Johnson became president after the assassination of Lincoln at Ford ’ s Theater a month after Lincoln ’ s second inaugural .
Accidental Presidents : ... Cohen , Jared Best Price : $ 5.58 Buy New $ 13.49 Johnson would be impeached in 1868 by radical Republicans who wanted a more severe Reconstruction of a defeated and occupied South .
Chester Arthur succeeded James Garfield in 1881 after President Garfield suffered a mortal wound from an assassin ’ s bullet at a D.C. train station , only months into his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ became our youngest president in 1901 when he succeeded the assassinated William McKinley .
In our own time , Lyndon Johnson succeeded John F. Kennedy after Dallas in November 1963 .
In addition to Tyler , Fillmore , Andrew Johnson , Arthur , TR and LBJ , three vice presidents succeeded to the presidency in the 20th century on the death or departure of the men who selected them : Calvin Coolidge on the death of Warren Harding in 1923 , Harry Truman on the death of FDR in April 1945 , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nixon .
Thus , of our four dozen vice presidents , all of whom have been white men , nine have risen to the nation ’ s highest office to fill out a term of the president who selected him .
Yet , with the pandemic crisis , the economic crisis and the racial crisis gripping the nation , what are the unique conditions Biden has set down for the person he would put a heartbeat away from the presidency ?
Biden began his selection process by eliminating and discriminating against whole categories @ @ @ @ @ @ @ men need apply .
Second , no man of any race , color or creed will be considered .
Gender rules them out , though every vice president for 230 years has been a man .
The Accidental Preside ... Baime , A. J .
Best Price : $ 7.39 Buy New $ 10.59 Nevertheless , says Biden , this one has to be a woman .
“ No men need apply !
” automatically eliminated 17 of the 24 Democratic governors who are men , including Andrew Cuomo of New York and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eliminated 30 of the 47 Democratic members of the Senate who are men .
In the aftermath of the George Floyd killing and protests , pressure has grown on Biden not only to choose a woman but a woman of color , and preferably a Black woman .
If that were a criterion , it would eliminate all but a tiny few of the party ’ s senators and governors .
What national interest impelled Biden to so restrict the pool of talent from which a possible presidential successor would be chosen ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ever to serve as president .
He would enter office with visibly diminished mental capacities .
And he has decided to restrict his choice as to who should inherit our highest office by ruling out the vast majority of the most able and experienced leaders of his own Democratic Party .
Is this any way to select someone who could , in a heartbeat , take control of the destiny of the world ’ s most powerful nation ?
Whatever happened to Jimmy Carter ’ s “ Why Not the Best ?
” @ @ @ @ @ @

Shop all books by Pat Buchanan
There is a real possibility that, this coming week, Joe Biden will be selecting the 47th president of the United States.
For the woman Biden picks — he has promised to exclude from consideration all men, black, brown, white or Asian — has a better chance of succeeding to the presidency than any vice presidential nominee in U.S. history, other than perhaps Harry Truman.
In 1944, the Democratic establishment engineered the dumping of radical Henry Wallace from Roosevelt’s ticket. They could see from FDR’s physical deterioration that he would not last through a full fourth term.
There are other reasons the woman Biden chooses in August may become our 47th president. Yesterday’s Man:... Marcetic, Branko Best Price: $12.00 Buy New $13.46 (as of 03:45 UTC - Details)
If Biden wins, he will be 78 when he takes the oath, older than our eldest president, Ronald Reagan, was when he left office after two terms. Biden would turn 80 even before he reached the midpoint of his first term.
Moreover, Biden has suffered a transparent deterioration of his mental capacities that was nowhere evident when he debated Mitt Romney’s running mate Paul Ryan in 2012.
What are the odds that Biden would serve a full term?
Of our 45 presidents, nine failed to complete the term to which they had been elected. One resigned; four died in office; and four were assassinated. All nine were succeeded by their vice president.
John Tyler became president in 1841 when William Henry Harrison died a month into office of pneumonia, following an inaugural address of nearly two hours in the cold without an overcoat.
Tyler would effect the annexation of the Republic of Texas in his final days in 1845, fail to win his party’s nomination to a full term, back the secession of Virginia in 1861, and end his days as a member of the Confederate Congress sitting in Richmond in 1862.
Mexican War hero and President Zachary Taylor died in his second year in 1850, to be succeeded by Millard Fillmore, who would go on to become the 1856 nominee of the anti-Catholic, anti-immigrant American Party known to history as the “Know Nothings.”
Andrew Johnson became president after the assassination of Lincoln at Ford’s Theater a month after Lincoln’s second inaugural. Accidental Presidents:... Cohen, Jared Best Price: $5.58 Buy New $13.49 (as of 03:45 UTC - Details)
Johnson would be impeached in 1868 by radical Republicans who wanted a more severe Reconstruction of a defeated and occupied South.
Chester Arthur succeeded James Garfield in 1881 after President Garfield suffered a mortal wound from an assassin’s bullet at a D.C. train station, only months into his first year in office.
Teddy Roosevelt became our youngest president in 1901 when he succeeded the assassinated William McKinley. In our own time, Lyndon Johnson succeeded John F. Kennedy after Dallas in November 1963.
In addition to Tyler, Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Arthur, TR and LBJ, three vice presidents succeeded to the presidency in the 20th century on the death or departure of the men who selected them: Calvin Coolidge on the death of Warren Harding in 1923, Harry Truman on the death of FDR in April 1945, and Gerald Ford on the resignation of Richard Nixon.
Thus, of our four dozen vice presidents, all of whom have been white men, nine have risen to the nation’s highest office to fill out a term of the president who selected him.
Yet, with the pandemic crisis, the economic crisis and the racial crisis gripping the nation, what are the unique conditions Biden has set down for the person he would put a heartbeat away from the presidency?
Biden began his selection process by eliminating and discriminating against whole categories of people.
First, no white men need apply. Second, no man of any race, color or creed will be considered. Gender rules them out, though every vice president for 230 years has been a man. The Accidental Preside... Baime, A. J. Best Price: $7.39 Buy New $10.59 (as of 03:45 UTC - Details)
Nevertheless, says Biden, this one has to be a woman.
“No men need apply!” automatically eliminated 17 of the 24 Democratic governors who are men, including Andrew Cuomo of New York and Gavin Newsom of California, and it eliminated 30 of the 47 Democratic members of the Senate who are men.
In the aftermath of the George Floyd killing and protests, pressure has grown on Biden not only to choose a woman but a woman of color, and preferably a Black woman. If that were a criterion, it would eliminate all but a tiny few of the party’s senators and governors.
What national interest impelled Biden to so restrict the pool of talent from which a possible presidential successor would be chosen?
Joe Biden would be the oldest man ever to serve as president. He would enter office with visibly diminished mental capacities. And he has decided to restrict his choice as to who should inherit our highest office by ruling out the vast majority of the most able and experienced leaders of his own Democratic Party.
Is this any way to select someone who could, in a heartbeat, take control of the destiny of the world’s most powerful nation?
Whatever happened to Jimmy Carter’s “Why Not the Best?”
The Best of Patrick J. Buchanan


lewrockwell--2020-07-31--The Big Lie: the EU Is Fixed, the Dollar is Dying, and COVID Will Kill You

Dyin ’ ain ’ t much of a livin ’ , boy – The Outlaw Josey Wales The Davos Crowd is desperate .
That much has been clear to me for months .
From the moment they tied COVID-19 to the breaking of the oil markets back in March they have worked like no other time in history to convince us the world we knew was gone .
The latest iteration of this big lie is the all-out assault on the U.S. dollar .
Now for months a few analysts like me have been steadfast in reminding everyone that no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the short run , it is only doing so because of the extreme levels of latent and active dollar demand in the world .
The Anti-Demographic C ... Blessings , Joe Buy New $ 5.99 So , there is narrative and there is reality .
And reality is that today there is huge demand for the U.S. dollar regardless of what the headlines tell you .
That said , that doesn ’ t mean that demand doesn ’ t ebb and flow .
And now that we ’ re on the other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crisis period , marginal dollar hoarding has slacked off .
This is most evident in the dramatic rise in the euro back above $ 1.17 and the British pound breaking back to challenge $ 1.30 .
But in the grand scheme of things these are just relief rallies within primary bear markets .
But in the past couple of weeks , coinciding nicely with a massive rally in the precious metals , there ’ s been a deluge of talk about the end of the dollar .
It ’ s easy to dismiss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ become a parody of himself at this point .
But it ’ s not easy to dismiss it when all of a sudden Schiff is everywhere , taking the bait to be the guy who will tell everyone that the dollar is going to fail because , you know , money printing .
And , as an Austrian economist kinda guy , I agree with Peter , I just don ’ t agree that the dollar is going anywhere anytime soon .
It may gall him and other Austrians that the dollar can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ make up 62 % of total foreign exchange reserves the world over or still dominate global trade ( latest SWIFT Data ) .
But with China keeping its capital account closed and the European Central Bank holding rates below zero destroying any possibility of anyone diversifying their capital reserves into euros , where else can the big pool of capital go at this point ?
2020 1/2 oz Gold Ameri ...
Check Amazon for Pricing .
And just don ’ t tell me gold .
Because while I love gold , own gold @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not and will not resume a central place in our monetary system until the day the dollar fails .
And no one who matters right now really wants the dollar to fail .
And that includes the villain-of-the-day , China .
But it ’ s not just guys like Schiff or Alistair McLeod who are calling the tune right now .
They were joined this week by none other than members of the the International Monetary Fund , the mouthpiece of the Council on Foreign Relations and Goldman Sachs… Goldman ’ s call @ @ @ @ @ @ @ idea that real interest rates have plummeted sending gold higher as the argument against holding it fails .
But when you have this many big stories planted in the media at the same time just ahead of an FOMC meeting , something is up .
They have all now called into question the U.S. ’ s central role in the global economy .
This is a concerted effort to push this narrative during a period of extreme dollar weakness .
They have tied it to the extraordinary measures taken by the Fed and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year and the likelihood of another massive stimulus bill and/or bailout package between now and the election .
And it ’ s not even that I disagree with them , because I don ’ t .
I just don ’ t agree that 2020 is the Year the Dollar Failed , no matter how tempting that title is to write .
Because , as always , you have to ask yourself the questions , “ Why this ?
Why Now ?
” The Last Gold Rushu202 ... Haynes , Bill Buy New $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in my opinion , is simple .
They are timing this with the fundamental change to the European Union via the EU ’ s bright new shiny budget and COVID-19 relief plans which were agreed upon by the EU Council last week .
It ’ s a simple enough narrative that also neatly coincides with everything else we ’ re being bombarded with daily .
And it goes something like this .
The EU is Fixed , The U.S. is Fucked .
So given that gold and silver are the most manipulated markets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think it ’ s strange that silver , of all assets , explodes more than $ 8 per ounce over a three-week period ?
Climaxing into the end of a delivery month on the COMEX ?
Really ?
After nearly twenty years of watching the silver market I can tell you that when we see behavior this out of the ordinary it ’ s because the people who wag the tail of the market dog want it to happen not because they ’ ve lost the script .
Everywhere we look there is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ themselves , like the fiasco hearing with Attorney General William Barr or the pathetic grandstanding over the size and scope of the next massive stimulus bill which will rob savers and future generations of even more wealth .
It ’ s Mayor Jenny Durkan in Seattle throwing out the Federal troops there while issuing orders to her police chief to not escalate the violence as the violence on the streets escalates .
It ’ s the relentless propaganda trying to create a ‘ second wave ’ of COVID-19 to scare us all into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ screaming obscenities at people who won ’ t wear a useless mask .
Europeans will play soccer but the baseball games are cancelled because a few players tested positive for COVID-19 .
Meanwhile in Europe , everything is fixed now that they ’ ve given the European Commission tax and spend powers they don ’ t legally have .
But Trump is shredding the Constitution by sending Federal troops to defend Federal property after 50+ days of rioting , looting and trying to set the Federal Courthouse on fire in Portland , Oregon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sees the game here ?
A rising euro , a falling dollar , gold touching $ 2000 , Merkel ’ s “ Alexander Hamilton ” moment , U.S. cities burning and the ones not on fire are under siege from his incompetence in handling the virus .
Economic depression mixed with incompetent leadership is supposed to lead you to lose faith in the currency of that government .
That ’ s the big lie .
It ’ s like that scene in Minority Report where they find the guy who supposedly kidnapped Anderton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ quote , “ orgy of evidence.
” The sheer volume of it is supposed to make you believe a lie because how can you argue with such a vast array of evidence , right ?
2020 1/4 oz Gold Ameri ...
Check Amazon for Pricing .
And in the curious case of the collapsing dollar I ’ m Tom Cruise .
I ’ m not throwing the dollar out the window to its death .
I ’ m calling bullshit and saying , “ Nope I ’ m not buying what they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ story in a couple of years but I won ’ t today .
Just like I ’ m not buying that I ’ ll die from the Corona-chan , that hydroxychloroquine and zinc won ’ t protect me from it or that the EU doesn ’ t have a whole lotta real work to do before anything in Europe can be reasonably described as ‘ fixed.
’ Look , not to be too blunt about it but the U.S. is approaching screwed in the long run .
And that ’ s nothing but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world and I ’ m not seeing a whole lot of rule of law or even nods to constitutionally-protected individual rights .
When I talk with readers they uniformly weep for what ’ s happening in the U.S .
So , while we may be at a low ebb in this cycle , there ’ s still a way back from which doesn ’ t involve complete collapse .
That choice has yet to be made .
Butt forces have been unleashed to make that choice for us , to destroy the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , of that I have zero doubt .
But not all forces are irresistible .
Some objects are immovable and when your currency dominates 86 % of all global trade that ’ s not something moving .
So , ignore the big lie of The Davos Crowd because when there ’ s this amount of pressure to manufacture a false reality it is more indicative of desperation than omnipotence .
And there ’ s a lot more distance along this road to travel .
The Best of Thomas Luongo

Dyin’ ain’t much of a livin’, boy
– The Outlaw Josey Wales
The Davos Crowd is desperate. That much has been clear to me for months.
From the moment they tied COVID-19 to the breaking of the oil markets back in March they have worked like no other time in history to convince us the world we knew was gone.
The latest iteration of this big lie is the all-out assault on the U.S. dollar. Now for months a few analysts like me have been steadfast in reminding everyone that no matter how much money the U.S. prints in the short run, it is only doing so because of the extreme levels of latent and active dollar demand in the world. The Anti-Demographic C... Blessings, Joe Buy New $5.99 (as of 04:54 UTC - Details)
So, there is narrative and there is reality. And reality is that today there is huge demand for the U.S. dollar regardless of what the headlines tell you.
That said, that doesn’t mean that demand doesn’t ebb and flow. And now that we’re on the other side of the first wave of this crisis period, marginal dollar hoarding has slacked off.
This is most evident in the dramatic rise in the euro back above $1.17 and the British pound breaking back to challenge $1.30. But in the grand scheme of things these are just relief rallies within primary bear markets.
But in the past couple of weeks, coinciding nicely with a massive rally in the precious metals, there’s been a deluge of talk about the end of the dollar.
It’s easy to dismiss the perma-bears like Peter Schiff who has become a parody of himself at this point. But it’s not easy to dismiss it when all of a sudden Schiff is everywhere, taking the bait to be the guy who will tell everyone that the dollar is going to fail because, you know, money printing.
And, as an Austrian economist kinda guy, I agree with Peter, I just don’t agree that the dollar is going anywhere anytime soon.
It may gall him and other Austrians that the dollar can still be so thoroughly debased and still make up 62% of total foreign exchange reserves the world over or still dominate global trade (latest SWIFT Data).
But with China keeping its capital account closed and the European Central Bank holding rates below zero destroying any possibility of anyone diversifying their capital reserves into euros, where else can the big pool of capital go at this point? 2020 1/2 oz Gold Ameri... Check Amazon for Pricing.
And just don’t tell me gold.
Because while I love gold, own gold, advocate for gold, gold cannot and will not resume a central place in our monetary system until the day the dollar fails.
And no one who matters right now really wants the dollar to fail. And that includes the villain-of-the-day, China.
But it’s not just guys like Schiff or Alistair McLeod who are calling the tune right now. They were joined this week by none other than members of the the International Monetary Fund , the mouthpiece of the Council on Foreign Relations and Goldman Sachs…
… but I repeat myself.
Goldman’s call is certainly reasonable, based on the idea that real interest rates have plummeted sending gold higher as the argument against holding it fails.
But when you have this many big stories planted in the media at the same time just ahead of an FOMC meeting, something is up.
They have all now called into question the U.S.’s central role in the global economy. This is a concerted effort to push this narrative during a period of extreme dollar weakness. They have tied it to the extraordinary measures taken by the Fed and the U.S. Treasury dept. earlier this year and the likelihood of another massive stimulus bill and/or bailout package between now and the election.
And it’s not even that I disagree with them, because I don’t. I just don’t agree that 2020 is the Year the Dollar Failed, no matter how tempting that title is to write.
Because, as always, you have to ask yourself the questions, “Why this? Why Now?” The Last Gold Rushu202... Haynes, Bill Buy New $28.00 (as of 04:04 UTC - Details)
The answer to those questions, in my opinion, is simple. They are timing this with the fundamental change to the European Union via the EU’s bright new shiny budget and COVID-19 relief plans which were agreed upon by the EU Council last week.
It’s a simple enough narrative that also neatly coincides with everything else we’re being bombarded with daily. And it goes something like this.
The EU is Fixed, The U.S. is Fucked.
So given that gold and silver are the most manipulated markets on the planet doesn’t anyone think it’s strange that silver, of all assets, explodes more than $8 per ounce over a three-week period? Climaxing into the end of a delivery month on the COMEX?
Really? After nearly twenty years of watching the silver market I can tell you that when we see behavior this out of the ordinary it’s because the people who wag the tail of the market dog want it to happen not because they’ve lost the script.
But I digress.
Everywhere we look there is another instance of U.S. lawmakers fighting among themselves, like the fiasco hearing with Attorney General William Barr or the pathetic grandstanding over the size and scope of the next massive stimulus bill which will rob savers and future generations of even more wealth.
It’s Mayor Jenny Durkan in Seattle throwing out the Federal troops there while issuing orders to her police chief to not escalate the violence as the violence on the streets escalates.
It’s the relentless propaganda trying to create a ‘second wave’ of COVID-19 to scare us all into staying home, canceling elections, and screaming obscenities at people who won’t wear a useless mask.
Europeans will play soccer but the baseball games are cancelled because a few players tested positive for COVID-19.
Meanwhile in Europe, everything is fixed now that they’ve given the European Commission tax and spend powers they don’t legally have.
But Trump is shredding the Constitution by sending Federal troops to defend Federal property after 50+ days of rioting, looting and trying to set the Federal Courthouse on fire in Portland, Oregon.
Am I the only one who sees the game here?
A rising euro, a falling dollar, gold touching $2000, Merkel’s “Alexander Hamilton” moment, U.S. cities burning and the ones not on fire are under siege from his incompetence in handling the virus.
Economic depression mixed with incompetent leadership is supposed to lead you to lose faith in the currency of that government. That’s the big lie.
It’s like that scene in Minority Report where they find the guy who supposedly kidnapped Anderton’s son. There was a quote, “orgy of evidence.”
The sheer volume of it is supposed to make you believe a lie because how can you argue with such a vast array of evidence, right? 2020 1/4 oz Gold Ameri... Check Amazon for Pricing.
And in the curious case of the collapsing dollar I’m Tom Cruise. I’m not throwing the dollar out the window to its death. I’m calling bullshit and saying, “Nope I’m not buying what they are selling.”
I’ll buy that story in a couple of years but I won’t today.
Just like I’m not buying that I’ll die from the Corona-chan, that hydroxychloroquine and zinc won’t protect me from it or that the EU doesn’t have a whole lotta real work to do before anything in Europe can be reasonably described as ‘fixed.’
Look, not to be too blunt about it but the U.S. is approaching screwed in the long run. And that’s nothing but a shame because when I look around the world and I’m not seeing a whole lot of rule of law or even nods to constitutionally-protected individual rights.
When I talk with readers they uniformly weep for what’s happening in the U.S.
So, while we may be at a low ebb in this cycle, there’s still a way back from which doesn’t involve complete collapse. That choice has yet to be made.
Butt forces have been unleashed to make that choice for us, to destroy the United States and its most productive people, of that I have zero doubt. But not all forces are irresistible. Some objects are immovable and when your currency dominates 86% of all global trade that’s not something moving.
So, ignore the big lie of The Davos Crowd because when there’s this amount of pressure to manufacture a false reality it is more indicative of desperation than omnipotence.
And there’s a lot more distance along this road to travel.
Reprinted with permission from Gold Goats ‘n Guns.
The Best of Tom Luongo


lewrockwell--2020-07-31--The Provincial vs. the Cosmopolitan

The Provincial vs. the Cosmopolitan

Not only , as some would say , because it is “ peaceful , pleasant , and at one , ” but because it is often quite the opposite .
Unlike with our friends and acquaintances , with family we don ’ t get to choose .
We think of the cosmopolitan , travelling to four corners of the world , choosing what he does , who he sees , with whom he spends time , how he spends time .
The provincial has much of this chosen for him : The Three Apologies of ... Chesterton , G.K. Best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 19.63 In a big society , we can form cliques .
We can choose , and the field from which we can choose is as large as we make our circle – even as large as the entire world , for those whose reach is almost unlimited .
Hence , the big society forms narrowness .
Those who live in a big society are free to associate with – or not associate with – whomever they choose .
Mostly , people just like them .
Our neighbors .
Yet this is the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ escape .
He invents modern culture and modern imperialism ; he goes off on wild adventures .
He is fleeing from his street , not , as he claims , because it is too dull , but because it is too interesting .
We are not told to find random people to love ; we are told to love our neighbor .
We don ’ t get to choose our neighbor ; he is chosen for us .
We are told to love him because he is there , right next to us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Instead , the modern goes to the four corners , thinking that he is finding people much different than himself .
Instead , he is finding others who are quite like him – who just happen to speak a different primary language .
So , returning to the family .
It is to be commended for precisely this reason – the same reason that the institution of the nation or the city are to be commended : they all force him to contend , not with something outside , but something inside .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ your own choosing , but others chosen for you .
If that doesn ’ t force you to contend with your inside , nothing will .
World Made by Hand : A ... Kunstler , James Howard Best Price : $ 1.10 Buy New $ 10.56 Step out of this , and you step into a narrower world .
The cosmopolitan is not broadening his horizons , he is limiting them ; he is not growing , he is shrinking .
He is suffering a delusion .
And the day our children were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a new neighborhood , or our new neighbors moved in .
It is romantic because it is random , because it is arbitrary .
Life can only be a story if a great portion of it is “ settled for us without our permission.
” Would we want the author to come out on stage and ask us to tell him how the next act should go ?
Does that make a story ?
It would be easy to point to Jesus here .
Instead , I will point to one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a poor facsimile : Tony Stark wasn ’ t a hero because of what he could control ; he was a hero because of what he could not control .
The mistake of the moderns , as Chesterton puts it , is to believe that life is at its most romantic in a complete state of liberty .
They are after a world of no limitations .
To really feel the joy in life You must suffer through the pain Until you struggle through the dark You ’ ll never know that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ win Or you can make the universe as weak as you are .
But from which type of man will the foundations of liberty be built ?
The weak cosmopolitan , or the strong provincial ?
The Best of Bionic Mosquito

The family may fairly be considered, one would think, an ultimate human institution.
Heretics, Gilbert K. Chesterton (eBook)
Not only, as some would say, because it is “peaceful, pleasant, and at one,” but because it is often quite the opposite. Unlike with our friends and acquaintances, with family we don’t get to choose. We think of the cosmopolitan, travelling to four corners of the world, choosing what he does, who he sees, with whom he spends time, how he spends time. The provincial has much of this chosen for him:
The man who lives in a small community lives in a much larger world. He knows much more of the fierce varieties and uncompromising divergences of men. The reason is obvious. In a large community we can choose our companions. In a small community our companions are chosen for us.
The Three Apologies of... Chesterton, G.K. Best Price: $18.88 Buy New $19.63 (as of 04:28 UTC - Details) In a big society, we can form cliques. We can choose, and the field from which we can choose is as large as we make our circle – even as large as the entire world, for those whose reach is almost unlimited. Hence, the big society forms narrowness. Those who live in a big society are free to associate with – or not associate with – whomever they choose. Mostly, people just like them.
If we were to-morrow morning snowed up in the street in which we live, we should step suddenly into a much larger and much wilder world than we have ever known.
Our neighbors. Yet this is the world from which the modern has decided to escape. He invents modern culture and modern imperialism; he goes off on wild adventures. He is fleeing from his street, not, as he claims, because it is too dull, but because it is too interesting.
We make our friends; we make our enemies; but God makes our next-door neighbour.
We are not told to find random people to love; we are told to love our neighbor. We don’t get to choose our neighbor; he is chosen for us. We are told to love him because he is there, right next to us, without our doing or choosing.
Instead, the modern goes to the four corners, thinking that he is finding people much different than himself. Instead, he is finding others who are quite like him – who just happen to speak a different primary language.
…if what he wants is people different from himself, he had much better stop at home and discuss religion with the housemaid. …if he wants to conquer something fundamentally and symbolically hostile and also very strong, he had much better remain where he is and have a row with the rector.
So, returning to the family. It is to be commended for precisely this reason – the same reason that the institution of the nation or the city are to be commended: they all force him to contend, not with something outside, but something inside. Do unto others – not others of your own choosing, but others chosen for you. If that doesn’t force you to contend with your inside, nothing will. World Made by Hand: A ... Kunstler, James Howard Best Price: $1.10 Buy New $10.56 (as of 10:30 UTC - Details)
Aunt Elizabeth is unreasonable, like mankind. Papa is excitable, like mankind Our youngest brother is mischievous, like mankind. Grandpapa is stupid, like the world; he is old, like the world.
Step out of this, and you step into a narrower world. The cosmopolitan is not broadening his horizons, he is limiting them; he is not growing, he is shrinking. He is suffering a delusion.
The best way that a man could test his readiness to encounter the common variety of mankind would be to climb down a chimney into any house at random, and get on as well as possible with the people inside. And that is essentially what each one of us did on the day that he was born.
And the day our children were born, and the day we moved to a new neighborhood, or our new neighbors moved in. It is romantic because it is random, because it is arbitrary. Life can only be a story if a great portion of it is “settled for us without our permission.” Would we want the author to come out on stage and ask us to tell him how the next act should go? Does that make a story?
A man has control over many things in his life; he has control over enough things to be the hero of a novel. But if he had control over everything, there would be so much hero that there would be no novel.
It would be easy to point to Jesus here. Instead, I will point to one of the hundreds of examples that man invented as a poor facsimile: Tony Stark wasn’t a hero because of what he could control; he was a hero because of what he could not control.
The thing which keeps life romantic and full of fiery possibilities is the existence of these great plain limitations which force all of us to meet the things we do not like or do not expect.
The mistake of the moderns, as Chesterton puts it, is to believe that life is at its most romantic in a complete state of liberty. They are after a world of no limitations.
They say they wish to be, as strong as the universe, but they really wish the whole universe as weak as themselves. Lost in Thought: The H... Hitz, Zena Best Price: $12.10 Buy New $14.22 (as of 03:47 UTC - Details)
Conclusion
To really feel the joy in life
You must suffer through the pain
Until you struggle through the dark
You’ll never know that you’re alive
– Illumination Theory, Dream Theater
You can fight
Without ever winning
But never ever win
Without a fight
– Resist, Rush
Or you can make the universe as weak as you are. But from which type of man will the foundations of liberty be built? The weak cosmopolitan, or the strong provincial?
Reprinted with permission from Bionic Mosquito.
The Best of Bionic Mosquito