Constitution Day on This Day in History

 

Who Killed the Constitution?

Today in History: Today is Constitution Day. The US Constitution has been considered one of the greatest documents ever written, alongside the Magna Carta and the Gutenberg Bible. The Constitution is supposed to put constraints on Government and assure limited Government. Sounds good. However, what started as the smallest government in the world ended becoming the largest. My frustration with the Constitution mirrors that of Lysander Spooner in the 1800's when he wrote: "But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain - that it has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it." 

Back in Spooner's day it was noted that even Abraham Lincoln committed numerous unconstitutional acts: 

"He started a war without the consent of Congress; illegally declared martial law; illegally blockaded Southern ports; illegally suspended habeas corpus and arrested tens of thousands of political opponents; illegally orchestrated the secession of West Virginia; shut down hundreds of opposition newspapers and imprisoned their editors and owners ... ." He also "ignored the Ninth and Tenth amendments; orchestrated the rigging of Northern elections; introduced the slavery of conscription and income taxation; waged war on Southern civilians and ... created an enormous political patronage system that survives today."~Thomas Dilorenzo

Many have recognized that the lockdowns this years are also unconstitutional (hence illegal), yet, here we are. The Constitution is a great document, but perhaps, too often, an ignored one.

Americans (And Their Politicians) Don’t Know Much About the Constitution

The Communist/Socialist Universe of Star Trek on This Day in History

Examples of Communism in Star Trek

This day in history: The landmark American science fiction television series Star Trek premiered on this day in 1966. When you really think about it, the world of Star Trek is a Communist world. There is no private enterprise (no pun intended), and there is no money in ‘Star Trek’ because the transporter/replicator machine makes anything you need. Spock repeatedly reminds Captain Kirk that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, and he continually sacrifices himself each time a crisis occurs. Star Trek has a 5 year mission, Communists had 5 year plans. 

"The shows Deep Space Nine and Enterprise described the rise of communism on Earth in detail. Of course they do not call it communism. They call it 'The New Economy.' In this economy—with rare exception—the government educates you, employs you, feeds you, and assigns you shelter. They build all apartment, 'commercial,' and office buildings, and factories. The exceptional private employers include nostalgic restaurateurs, generational vintners, and the like. The government will let anyone produce specialty goods or services as a creative outlet. But for all other goods and services, the government provides." Conservapedia

In one episode Lily Sloane asked Picard how much the USS Enterprise had cost to build, he told her, "the economics of the future is somewhat different. You see, money doesn't exist in the 24th century... The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of Humanity." (Star Trek: First Contact)

This is all idealistic utopian nonsense akin to Edward Bellamy's 1888 book "Looking Backward." Socialism/Communism never improved society. Quite the opposite in fact. It has lead to mass deaths and starvation...it has always failed, and failed spectacularly. When you see these large majestic ships in the Star Trek universe, remind yourself that you never really see Russian Ladas and Yugos on the road anymore.

There was one species that was interested in commerce and trade (capitalism), the Ferengi, but they were portrayed in the most negative light.

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Socialism, Communism and Economics

German Philosopher Hans-Hermann Hoppe on This Day in History

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Today in History: German political philosopher Hans-Hermann Hoppe was born on this day in 1949. Hoppe, who can be described as an Austrian school libertarian anarcho-capitalist economist who is best know for his book "Democracy: The God that Failed."

In this book, Hoppe argues that democracy is not an improvement over monarchy. Politicians in a democracy have a very high time preference (they value immediate gratification) because they have to please their constituents in the short span of a term in order to get re-elected. Thus, democracy is short-sighted and favors short-term gains over long-term losses. Monarchy, on the other hand, is the opposite. Monarchs have low time preference for three reasons: (1) their reign lasts for a lifetime (2) they will pass their kingdom on to their heirs, and (3) they have total ownership of their kingdom. Hence, monarchs have a greater incentive to maintain their society over time.

Of course, Hoppe would rather have neither system, but it is food for thought.

Against the Haters: The Brilliance of Hans-Hermann Hoppe

Investor Warren Buffett On This Day in History

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This Day In History: The Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett, was born on this day in 1930. Buffet is an American investor, business tycoon, and philanthropist, who is the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. The Berkshire Hathaway stock is the most expensive in the world (presently at 328,000.00). He is considered one of the most successful investors in the world and has a net worth of $78.9 billion, making him the fourth-wealthiest person in the world, behind Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and Bernard Arnault.

Buffet is the most mentioned person in financial circles, and when he buys and sells, everyone takes notice. His recent gold acquisition marked to the world a public lack of confidence in the American dollar.

On Bitcoin he stated, "In terms of cryptocurrencies, generally, I can say with almost certainty that they will come to a bad ending."

Buffet bought his first stock when he was 11 years old, and made $53,000 by the age of 16. He also eats like Trump, preferring Cokes and McDonalds.

He reads a stack of books every day, “Read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest.”

Buffettology

Philosopher/Economist John Locke on This Day in History

This Day In History: English philosopher and physician John Locke was born on this day in 1632. Locke was a real “Renaissance Man” who found time to be an expert in, not only medicine, but also metaphysics, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of mind, philosophy of education, economics, the Bible and theology (moving from Calvinist trinitarianism to Socinianism and Arianism, though he is still referred to as a Protestant Scholastic). He would go on to inspire David Hume, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Adam Smith, Imanuel Kant and the founding fathers, particularly Thomas Jefferson.

Locke was the Father of Classical Liberalism (Libertarianism). He stated that each person has a property in himself, and property precedes government. Unlike Descartes, Locke thought the mind was a blank slate (tabula rasa). The earth is given to humans in common. Locke’s doctrine that governments need the consent of the governed is central to the Declaration of Independence. He advocated separation of powers and believed that revolution was not only a right but an obligation at times.

John Locke wrote his major works in his 60's, and never really found time for a wife or romance. He did have an interesting feud with Isaac Newton. Newton would send strange, paranoid letters accusing Locke of trying to “entangle [him] with women.”

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Scottish Philosopher David Hume on This Day in History

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This Day In History: Scottish Philosopher David Hume died on this day in 1776. One puzzle that Hume posed is especially pertinent today in the era of mass lockdowns. In his First Principles of Government, Hume wrote, "Nothing appears more surprising to those who consider human affairs with a philosophical eye, than the easiness with which the many are governed by the few; and the implicit submission, with which men resign their own sentiments and passions to those of their rulers."

200 years prior to Hume, Étienne de La Boétie wrote his "Discourse on Voluntary Servitude" wherein he wonders, "how it happens that so many men, so many villages, so many cities, so many nations, sometimes suffer under a single tyrant who has no other power than the power they give him; who is able to harm them only to the extent to which they have the willingness to bear with him; who could do them absolutely no injury unless they preferred to put up with him rather than contradict him. Surely a striking situation!"

It was however the great H.L. Mencken that figured out how this was done: “The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.”

David Hume: How Easily the Masses are Manipulated by the Few

https://thebookshelf2015.blogspot.com/2018/02/david-hume-how-easily-masses-are.html

Vilfredo Pareto on This Day in History

Marxism is ignorant of the Pareto principle | Jordan Peterson & Bret Weinstein

This Day In History: Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto died on this day in 1923. VP gave us what has come to be called the Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 rule. According to legend, one day he noticed that 20% of the pea plants in his garden generated 80% of the healthy pea pods. Observing this caused him to think about uneven distribution. He then discovered that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by just 20% of the population. He investigated further and found that 80% of production typically came from just 20% of the companies. The generalization became: 80% of results will come from just 20% of the action. An extended analysis tells us that 20% of the sales reps generate 80% of total sales, 20% of customers account for 80% of total profits, 20% of the most reported software bugs cause 80% of software crashes, 20% of patients account for 80% of healthcare spending, 20% of criminals commit 80% of crimes, 20% of drivers cause 80% of all traffic accidents, 20% of the world's population controls about 80% of the world's income.

Also, 20% of farmers produce 80% of the world's agriculture, 20% of your phone apps get 80% usage, 20% of shareholders own 80% of a corporation's stock, 20% of professional athletes cause 80% of ticket sales, 20% of bar liquor is consumed 80% of the time, 20% of your knowledge is used 80% of the time, etc.

If everyone started with an equal amount of money and then started to transact, 80% of the wealth would end in the hands of the 20%.

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