Freedom, Capitalism, Limited Government, and the Pursuit of Happiness

• Freedom is an inalienable right of human beings
  • Bible (Exodus)
  • Magna Carta
  • Declaration of Independence
  • Bill of Rights

 

• Freedom is proportional to the control by an individual of ones life choices
• Capitalism is the natural result of people making free life choices with the fruits of their intellect or labor
• People are approximately free to choose and accumulate property to provide for their own life style and security from the amount of their after tax income
• Government has an inherent tendency to grow(and tax) to an increasing percentage of the economy
• The two common characteristics of all powerful and unlimited governments is stealing property(directly or with inflation) & killing people(their own and those of other countries)
  • Roman Empire
  • Nobility of Europe
  • National Socialists (NAZI’s)
  • Communists (Soviet Socialist Republics & Red China)
• History has shown that the only way to limit the size of government is with a Constitution and a very vigilant, educated, and informed population including:
  • Separation of Powers(Executive & Legislative)
  • Independent Judiciary
  • Provisions for local government
• The legitimate roles of a modern national government include:
  • Defense
  • Law and order
  • Protection from Fraud
  • Catastrophic safety net
• The vast majority of wars and tyranny occur between and within countries without basic Freedom and Capitalism
  • Two countries enjoying freedom and capitalism have NEVER had a war with each other
  • No country has ever taxed itself into prosperity
  • Nothing is more fun than spending other peoples money
  • “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”
  • The power to tax is the power to destroy
• Most people given all the choices make better decisions than most government officials in:
• Enterprises
• Investments
• Family and Lifestyle

• Freedom and Capitalism are bottom up with people making choices- CREATIVE

• Socialism and Communism are top down with a government making choices- COERSIVE

• Freedom and Capitalism require the production and distribution of many times any wealth accumulated.(see Dallas Federal Reserve Report)
  • Profits are a small percentage of Total Sales
  • Profits are accumulated at the production level for a quick response to consumer demand
  • Competition provides maximum value to consumers

Monopolies can exist with Freedom and Capitalism for a very limited period of time only with government support and subsidies(Corporate Welfare).  Socialism and Communism ARE government monopolies.

• Freedom and Capitalism require accountability and responsibility. Socialism IS a bureaucracy
• Freedom and Capitalism have diversity with the quality of a consumer driven market
• Freedom and Capitalism require stability including low inflation and no violence
• Freedom and Capitalism are dynamic with incentives for cutting edge technology
• Freedom and Capitalism thrive on information for investment and purchase choices
• With Freedom some people can try and set up a socialized community; Capitalism and/or Freedom are not available to anyone in a socialized or communized economy.
• Freedom and Capitalism produce uniqueness and excellence: Socialism produces average mediocrity in:
  • Housing
  • Healthcare
  • Technology
  • Recreation

• The Law of Supply and Demand works & has never been successfully repealed by any government no matter how unlimited
  • Subsidizing behavior increases the amount of that behavior
  • Scarcity increases price
  • Price increases production
  • Time is Money
  • Incentives motivate people and harness creative energy
  • There will be a (supply) of products for all allocated resources(demand)

• The length of time that socialism or communism can survive is dependent upon the AMOUNT wealth available for redistribution and the RATE at which the government plunders this productive wealth
  • England 1945-1968(trend stopped by the Iron Lady, M. Thatcher)
  • Soviets 1917-1988
  • India from 1945(no war damage & huge natural resources) which has been highly socialized verses

Hong Kong from 1945(total war damage & no natural resources) which is almost pure Capitalism.

• Survival of an individual, family, company, or country is won or lost at the margin by a few percent points per year of savings and investment decisions
• Even without the huge advantage in efficiency, Freedom & Capitalism with a limited government would still provide the greatest opportunity for the pursuit of happiness for most people because of the opportunity of CHOICE..

• Freedom and Capitalism provide a more decent Society with larger charitable contributions
  • People have more after tax money(lower tax rates)
  • There is greater quality of accumulated funds(Carnegie Libraries)
  • People to people donations are much more effective than government to people

This is not an article for totally “unfettered” Capitalism without any regulation which the

Socialists use an excuse to argue for continued government growth.  In fact, pollution regulation

is a good example of the proper role of government to provide a level playing field.

This is about reducing total government spending(Federal, State, and Local) and the associated taxes from over 40% now to about 30% in the future

• 15% Federal
• 10% State
• 5% Local

The Socialist economies of Europe and Asia have and are taxing  to levels almost double this goal which

• Allows only half the individual discretionary spending and CHOICE
• Eliminates middle class independence
• Creates more government dependence and votes for socialists
• Reduces growth so more people are fighting for a reduced piece of the economic pie

Twice in the 20^th  century Freedom and Capitalism have had to rescue a pacifist socialist Europe and Asia from wars started by militant socialists.

• The productive capacity of  Freedom and Capitalism mobilized for victory from

a standing start in WWII and saved millions of people

• Freedom and Capitalism demobilized after victory for one of the first times in history and returned Europe back to its citizenry
• The Freedom and Capitalism continued to subsidize Europe for almost 50 years until the Soviet collapse in 1988
• Freedom and Capitalism continue to provide an umbrella for world wide commerce and security

The first steps to return our country to the greater opportunities of Freedom and Capitalism and a  Constitutional Limited Government  include:

• Campaign finance reform to return honesty to elected officials
• A flat rate income tax or consumption tax to increase savings and investment
• Balance Budget Amendment to insure honest government spending

• People who would trade freedom for security deserve neither” Ben Franklin