Similarly, everyone has had the experience of dealing with a few salespeople who knew the qualities of what they were selling and took care that their customers received what they needed. Most, however, simply sell what customers believe will satisfy their needs, whether that product will do that or not. And then there are those who can’t seem to be bothered to do their jobs, leaving customers to wait while they pursue other, non-business interests on their cell-phones or in some other self serving activity.

While almost every adult has had the experiences noted above, the majority have elected a President and a Congress which promise to do everything for them: run their banks, manage their industries and care for their health. But “government” doesn’t do anything. People working for the government do things. Governments do not pass or enforce laws. People pass and enforce laws. 

Are people working for the “government” different in kind than those we know as teachers and sales clerks? Not in my experience, which began with my return from combat in Korea when I tried to get a driver’s license in Missouri. The people in the St. LouisCity Hall pointed out that I had to have a receipt for income tax to obtain a driver’s license. When I pointed out that men in combat were not required to file income taxes, they said I would simply have to get one. (This problem was resolved when my father telephoned a union president whom he knew who was also a prominent Democrat.)

I spent eleven years working for the government. Many of the people there were like those at the St. LouisCity Hall. They enforced the rules they wanted to enforce to their own advantage. In fact, in mass, they were lazier and less competent than the workers I have known in civilian jobs. There is good reason for this as we found out when we tried to fire a drug addicted secretary from a position that required secret clearance.  It is almost impossible to fire a federal employee. (It took a year to fire our drug addicted secretary and it helped that she was in jail.)

Of course, I also met many hard working, dedicated men and women in the Federal service. But that doesn’t mean they were perfect. Just as all people make good decisions at times, all people make bad decisions at times.

This is the problem with the federalism or socialism or Communism – whatever you wish to call government control of businesses and lives - the greater the distance between the persons in a position to pass and enforce laws, the less possible it is to correct bad decisions.

Living in Cumberland Furnace, if I don’t like some action taken by the Community Center or Historical Society or Volunteer Fire Department, I can go to one of their meetings and tell them so – and why. If they agree with my reasoning, they will change; if they disagree, I can lump it. Similarly, it is easy to telephone or visit the CountySheriff, the County Tax Assessor, or any of my other local officials. So can all of us. If they don’t satisfy us, or if they make too many wrong decisions, we can vote them out of office. It is more difficult at the State level, but I have found my Senator and Representative and their secretaries helpful when needed. Recently a friend, Dee, angered by the insistence of local veterinaries that dogs receive rabies shots every year when the manufacturer says the shots are good for three years, managed, with considerable effort, to get the State to issue a public policy of three-year vaccinations.

But now consider the federalization of our industries, banks and health care. Does anyone really believe that some worker, regardless of status as clerk or executive, in Washington D. C., is going to be as knowledgeable or as helpful to people in need of help as their next door neighbors in places like Cumberland Furnace or, for that matter, St. Louis or Dallas or Seattle? I don’t.  They don’t even help the children in DC obtain a good education. They simply send their own children to private schools.

I have lived long enough to be aware of and read about other leaders who have decided to “change the world.” Some called themselves Communists and some called themselves Socialists, which has always struck me as different labels on the same can of beans. In both cases, the leaders of a powerful federal government decide what is best for other people.   

The first of these in modern times was Lenin, and he did change his country, he effectively destroyed a fledgling democracy. His word was Communism, an idea in which all the power belonged to the people, but in reality rested in him and a powerful, privileged, leadership. Then he was ousted by Stalin, who used military power to take over Russia and much of Eastern Europe. In the process, he killed hundreds of thousands who opposed him. As his power spread in Europe, the number killed increased to millions, mostly among the working middle-class. But the indolent and the criminal classes did not profit either, he established re-education camps in Siberia, where they learned to work for a living – or starve.  

A second person who set out to change his country and the world was Hitler. His dogmatism was Socialism. (Nazi stood for “National Socialist Party.) Following his election to leadership in the then Democracy of Germany, he used his goon squads to silence dissidents: early victims, who were imprisoned and executed, included the handicapped, Masons, peace loving Christians such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and more than 800 Protestant ministers. Finally he turned his attention to the Jews. It was all for the good of the nation. He and those about him knew what was good for all. The consequence was catastrophe for Europe.

Mao knew what was best for the people of China. He executed over twenty million Chinese and, over the years, led the nation into poverty. It was only after his death, with the slow introduction of capitalism, which permits people to decide for themselves what is best for them, that prosperity returned for many, but it has been slow. 

Castro promised change. He was young, handsome and an excellent speaker – like Hitler. The people of Cuba needed change, and supported him. It was only after he gained control of the nation that they realized they no longer enjoyed the freedom to determine their own lives. Castro knew what was best. More than a million fled the nation and the others now live in poverty. Not, of course, the leadership. As in all Socialist (Communist) nations, the leaders live privileged lives in prosperity. 

Now Chavez has decided he knows what is best for Venezuela. Young, handsome and an excellent speaker, he won leadership. At first, the country prospered as Chavez reaped the profits of capitalism, now it is sinking into economic despair as industry after industry is taken over and directed by the government, but Chavez and the elite with whom he has surrounded himself still know what is best – and prosper.

Now we have Obama. Like Lenin, Hitler, Castro and Chavez, Obama is young, handsome and a marvelous speaker. He has been quoted as saying he will change the nation and the world. All of the major media supported him, and he won the Presidency. This has made me wonder how he might be expected to change the nation – and the world. This worries me.

Change the World?

By

William D. Dannenmaier

In a speech given during the primaries in New Hampshire, Barack Obama said, “We won’t just win in New Hampshire. We will win this election and, you and I together, we’re going to change the country and change the world.” (Toby Hamden, Telegraph.co.uk) Do we really want that?

I have lived long enough to be aware of and read about other leaders who have decided to “change the world.” Some called themselves Communists and some called themselves Socialists, which has always struck me as different labels on the same can of beans. In both cases, a powerful federal government decides what is best for all people.   

Probably the first of these was Lenin, and he did change his country, he effectively destroyed a fledgling democracy. His word was Communism, an idea in which all the power belonged to the people, but in reality rested in him and a powerful, privileged, leadership. Then he was ousted by Stalin, who used military power to take over Russia and much of Eastern Europe. In the process, he killed hundreds of thousands who opposed him. As his power spread in Europe, the number killed increased to millions, mostly among the working middle-class. But the indolent and the criminal class did not profit either, he established re-education camps in Siberia, where they learned to work for a living – or starve.  

A second person who set out to change his country and the world was Hitler. His dogmatism was Socialism. (Nazi stood for “National Socialist Party.) Following his election to leadership in the then Democracy of Germany, he used his goon squads to silence dissidents: early victims, who were imprisoned and executed, included the handicapped, Masons, peace loving Christians such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and more than 800 Protestant ministers. Finally he turned his attention to the Jews. It was all for the good of the nation. He and those about him knew what was good for all.

Mao also knew what was best for the people of China. He executed over two million Chinese and, over the years, led the nation into poverty. It was only after his death, with the slow introduction of capitalism, which permits people to decide for themselves what is best for them, that prosperity returned for many, but it has been slow. 

Castro promised change. He was young, handsome and an excellent speaker – like Hitler. The people of Cuba needed change, and supported him. It was only after he gained control of the nation that they realized they no longer enjoyed the freedom to determine their own lives. Castro knew what was best. Millions fled the nation and the others now live in poverty. Not, of course, the leadership. As in all Socialist (Communist) nations, the leaders live privileged lives in prosperity. 

Now Chavez has decided he knows what is best for Venezuela. Young, handsome and an excellent speaker, he won leadership. At first, the country prospered as Chavez reaped the profits of capitalism, but now it is sinking into economic despair as industry after industry is taken over and directed by the government, but Chavez and the elite with whom he has surrounded himself still know what is best – and prosper.

Now we have Obama. Like Lenin, Hitler, Castro and Chavez, Obama is young, handsome and a marvelous speaker. He has been quoted as saying he will change the nation and the world. Currently all of the major media, all of whom have supported him, predict he will win the Presidency. This has made me consider how he might be expected to change the nation – and the world.

For starters, I believe all lawsuits against ACORN for its corruption and millions in tax evasion will be dropped, Unlike Hitler’s Gestapo or Mussolini’s adherents, ACORN members will not start wearing black shirts or brown shirts to identify their allegiance – at least not immediately. A few hundred dollars cash will be thrown to the poor and the welfare careerists, much as the emperors of Rome and the nobility of Medieval Europe threw coins to the poor as they rode by, to ensure their allegiance. Higher taxes will be imposed on the workers, but not on the wealthy who already have their money, so the Pelosis, the Reids, the Kerrys, the Gores and other important, wealthy, friends will be spared. Health care will be nationalized, creating a new, privileged, bureaucracy in WashingtonDC. The “fairness” doctrine will be passed and imposed on radio, one of the two current means by which average citizens can express their wishes and communicate with each other. It will not be extended to newspapers and major media, as yet, as they are Obama supporters. If, however, they stop to think and analyze where Obama is leading the nation, it can be extended to them, as happened in Germany and Cuba and is currently happening in Russia. I also expect some sort of fairness doctrine to be imposed on the Internet, the other current media by which average citizens can express their thoughts and communicate with one another. In general, all power will be concentrated in WashingtonDC, where politicians, such as Biden and Kennedy, millionaires who have never worked for a living, know what is best for all of us. We may not like this, although many will. It is easier to obey than to accept responsibility for yourself. He will change our world, if not the world.  As indicated, others have succeed in one and attempted the other.