It's Not About the Money(totally at least).

In the next few weeks, members of the CWA, which is the call workers union, will possibly go on strike. If the union goes on strike I will be crossing the picket line to go to work, the derogatory term is SCAB. As mentioned in previous posts I did not join the union, and I have, as people have asked at work why this is, explained to them my general position on unions. I am writing this post because the most common reaction that I have been getting, as I have told people that I will be crossing the picket line, is that I am doing it for the money. Though I unapolagetically admit that if I participated in a strike lasting more than about a week we would, as a family, possibly be in trouble financially. If it was only about the money, with no other reason behind my decision, I would take the week off and enjoy the free time with my family. So let me explain the reasons behind my decision to be a SCAB.

In the struggle between liberty and freedom versus tyranny and force I have made a personal decision to always side with liberty and freedom. I believe that this is an eternal struggle that began at the foundations of this earth. This struggle pervades our liturature throughout history, all of the great authors have written about it. As I have studied, read and learned more about this struggle I have realized how ignorant I have been for a long time. I have begun to see this struggle all around me, and I am amazed and anxious at how few people are currently siding with freedom and liberty.

To understand how this applies to my current situation with the CWA, let me have a short discussion about rights. What is a right? I am not talking about the concept that popular culture throws around that is synonimous with entitlement, and means that if I need it to survive I have a right to it. I am talking about natural rights, rights that naturally flow to us, some say from God. These existed before government, and exist even if government attempts to legislate them away, which has occured right here in the US with ever increasing frequency, explicitly in opposition to the Constitution of the US. The natural right is only afforded to an individual and boils down to an individual should be free from force. There is no such thing as a natural group right. This is what is so pernicious about the class warfare that was brought to our shores here in the US, where previously the individual was considered supreme, and was protected by the Constitution and the rule of law, now in its place we have the group, a concept heavily propogated by the followers of Marx and Engels, and accepted more and more among the main stream of American society. We now have the bourgeoisie and the proletariate; we have been divided into upper, middle and lower class; we have been pitted against each other and told that the upper class is evil and would step on the throats of children to make more money. This is a ridiculous assertion, perpetuated by the upper class within the government to increase their own power and wealth, where, in the great majority of business owners, who are demonized every day by polititians and others who benefit personally from this propoganda(including union representation), are providing the means of living for groups of individuals ranging from a single employee to thousands(as is the case with AT&T), and not only providing a comfortable living for them, but paying for their health care, and saving for their retirement. On top of all of this great benefit that these business owners are providing to all of these people, look at the charitable contributions given by the "upper class"; if these evil business owners went away, which is what some seem to be advocating, all private charities, that do so much good in the world, would disapear. Not only would private charities disapear, but government, both federal and state would have a hard time meeting their constitutional responsibilities, let alone all the crap that they are trying to do these days.

The proper role of government is to protect the natural rights of the individual. Unions, and I am talking about all unions, not just the CWA have sought the force of government to compel business owners to sit down and have discussions with the union representatives. They have sought special status as a group, or in other words they are seeking rights that dont exist, and is contrary to freedom and liberty of the individual. They are seeking for the government to say they, as a group, because they have a bunch of people that want it, have more rights than the business owner. All workers of any company have the right to negociate for themselves, or to have somebody negotiate for them for their pay, benefits, etc. They are free to accept or reject the terms of their employment, they are free to show up to work or go on strike. Business owners(also individuals) also should have freedom to do the same with his employees, that is, negotiate directly with or have somebody negotiate with the employees he/she hires. They should be free to keep or fire an employee based on the pre conditioned agreement that was established upon hiring that employee, and if an employee or group of employees dont show up for a scheduled day of work they should be free to fire them if it breaks the original agreement.

Unions in my mind represent almost all that is wrong with the direction of our country at this time. They seek force where freedom should be protected, they seek special "rights" where none exist and equal protection should be the standard.

I AM A SCAB, not because of the money I would lose by not going on strike, but because I believe in something larger than myself, and is more important to me than the few associations I might lose because of ignorance. I am proud to stand on the side of freedom and liberty, and always will be.

Common Sense quotes for our day

So in addition to Atlas Shrugged I am also reading Common Sense by Thomas Paine, and Benjamin Franklins Auto-biography. As I was reading Common Sense today I ran in to several very powerful quotes from the book that like Atlas Shrugged apply extremely well to what is going on in our day. Please, feel free to comment, I entertain all view points.
This first one that I am posting is a great call for all men in our day- "O ye that love mankind! Ye that dare oppose, not only the tyranny, but the tyrant, stand forth! Every spot of the old world is overrun with oppression. Freedom hath been hunted round the globe. Asia, and Africa, have long expelled her-Europe regards her like a stranger, and England hath given her warning to depart. O! receive the fugitive, and prepare in time an asylum for mankind." Powerful words from an American Patriot.

This next one speaks to national debt and government spending. How did the founders view leaving government debt to our children?- "Debts we have none; and whatever we may contract on this account will serve as a glorious memento of our virtue. Can we but leave posterity with a settled form of government, an independent constitution of its own, the purchase at any price will be cheap. But to expend millions for the sake of getting a few vile acts repealed, and routing the present ministry only, is unworthy the charge, and is using posterity with the utmost cruelty; because it is leaving them the great work to do, and a debt upon their backs, from which they derive no advantage. Such a thought is unworthy a man of honor, and is the true characteristic of a narrow heart and a peddling politician."

When Paine talked about ensuring checks and balances on the different branches of government he said- "When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember, that virtue is not hereditary."

I love how bold Paine is in this next quote. He is speaking of the inclination of some to believe that rights emanate from government and are not natural/God given. He starts out quoting Sir John Dalrymple of England- "'it is very unfair in you to whithold them from that prince, by whose NOD ALONE they were permitted to do anything.' This is toryism with a witness! Here is idolatry even without a mask: And he who can calmly hear, and digest such doctrine, hath forfeited his claim to rationality- an apostate from the order of manhood; and ought to be considered- as one, who hath not only given up the proper dignity of man but sunk himself beneath the rank of animals, and contemptibly crawl throught the world like a worm."

I will continue to post applicable quotes from all of my reading and look forward to additional discussion here on the blog.

Atlas Shrugged-Quotes for Our Day

I have recently started re-reading the great book Atlas Shrugged. Almost from the first pages I began to see parallels between the story, written as a fiction book in the 1950's by the author and philosopher Ayn Rand, and what is going on today here in the United States. The first time I read the book, a few years ago, I thought that the laws passed, and the way people acted in the book were exaggerated to illustrate the principles Ayn understood and tried to teach through her writings. To my surprise as I began reading the book this time, what I had thought were exaggerations I have witnessed occurring, and I have seen the characters come to life over the last several months in the form of politicians, bureaucrats, and media. In this article I am going to post some quotes from the book that I have found particularly applicable in our current situation. I invite all who read this to offer their thoughts.

This first one is the "Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule". If you replace the words railroad systems with banking or finance systems, or even auto company, it is like hearing an echo of what is currently going on in those industries, and our governments plan to subsidize failing companies with the money they loot from successful companies.
-"Then it was said that large, established railroad systems were essential to the public welfare; and that the collapse of one of them would be a national catastrophe; and that if one such system had happened to sustain a crushing loss in a public-spirited attempt to contribute to international good will, it was entitled to public support to help it survive the blow"

This next quote addresses all of these "victims" of bad investments. The people who lost their life savings in "investments" they didn't understand, and claim no personal responsibility in. This is part of the story when Dagny confronts Francisco about the "failed" copper mine that was just nationalized by the Mexican government that her brother(James) and others had lost a bunch of money in.(see in place of copper-mining, investment.
-"I don't find it amusing. Your brother James and his friends knew nothing about the copper-mining industry. They knew nothing about making money. They did not think it necessary to learn. They considered knowledge superfluous and judgment inessential."

This last one is a continuation of the argument mentioned above. See here in place of the conversation of the copper mine, the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae debacle and in place of roast of pork, a house for everybody that wants one. "The government of the People's State of Mexico has issued a proclamation," he said, "asking the people to be patient and put up with hardships just a little longer. It seems that the copper fortune of the San Sebastian Mines was part of the plans of the central planning council. It was to raise everybody's standard of living and provide a roast of pork every Sunday for every man, woman, child in the People's State of Mexico. Now the planners are asking their people not to blame the government, but to blame the depravity of the rich, because I turned out to be an irresponsible playboy, instead of the greedy capitalist I was expected to be.

I am only on page 122 so I am sure that I will find many more, and I will continue to update this list as I come to them. Please add your thoughts so we can have an exchange of ideas. All points of view are welcome.