One of the worst things in conservative politics is suffering members who should be in the socialist party.
First, some perspective points out that today’s liberals are essentially control freaks, a regrettable corruption of the original defenders of individual freedom and limited government. And over the decades, conservatism has evolved from defenders of church, state and upper-class privileges to the protection of the individual, such that the movement now includes tennis moms against corrupted educators under the growing umbrella of patriotism. Meaning patriotic to the constitution and borders that define your country. This reforming movement has been inspired by the unrelenting and disastrous intrusion by globalists posing as liberals.
In-your-face and in-your-wallet government has finally become too much, initially prompting in Canada a “Freedom Convoy” of truckers delivering the most powerful “No!” to an unaccountable governing system. This is now spreading to a growing number of countries.
The Road to Serfdom
As an opposing view is not allowed such protests are condemned as, according to the New York Times, as “violence, racism and spreading misinformation”. Other slams include “insurrection”, when no attempt has been made to forcibly seize control of parliament or of Canada’s state-run media. No, the movement is quite rational in wanting not just less government intrusion but is practical in opposing a non-stop promotion of fear of a disease with a less than 2 percent fatality rate as well as the fear of bad weather.
The Summer of 2020’s record of arson, mayhem and killings was encouraged in Democrat cities, but peaceful truckers and their supporters are now slandered.
The long cooling trend through the 1500s forced a lot of bad weather, crop failures and famine. Enough that learned magistrates convicted and executed thousands of witches for “cooking” the weather.
Nowadays, the equivalent are condemning all, including children, for causing bad weather.
What’s the diff? Severity of penalties.
The subject doesn’t matter, but both fears have been remarkable in transferring wealth and power to the state—in many instances unconstitutional.
During WWII, Friedrich Hayek published “The Road to Serfdom”, which immediately influenced both conservative thinkers as well as classical liberals.
“Rules for thee, but not for me”. Or, “Perks for me, but not for you”
A quote concisely compares the difference between a free economy and a planned one with: “While the last resort of a competitive economy is the bailiff, the ultimate sanction of the planned economy is the hangman”.
Which, of course, describes the problems of imposing unpopular policies rather than programs that would be popular. But popular policies would put government back in the hands of the people.
Wouldn’t it?
And wisely, the book is dedicated to: “The socialists in all parties”, which is one of the problems of reform these days.
Now, America’s Republican Party regards freedom and limited government but the party still includes those who are complacent within the comforts of the governing classes. Whose accomplishments seem to be best described as “Rules for thee, but not for me”. Or, “Perks for me, but not for you”.
In the States, such swamp critters are called RINOs—Republican In Name Only.
In Canada, the equivalent can be condemned as CINOs—Conservative In Name Only.
Bob Hoye (BobHoye.com) has been researching investments for decades, which eventually included the history of financial and political markets. He considers now to be the most fascinating time for both since the Great Reformation of the 1600s. Bob casts a caustic eye on all promotions and, having a degree in geophysics, is severely critical of the audacity that a committee can “manage” not just the economy, but also the temperature of the nearest planet. He has had articles published in major financial journals and, as a speaker, has amused assemblies in a number of cities, from London to Zurich to Tokyo.
