Tuesday, September 20, 2005

The Left as Enemies of the Principles of the American Revolution

In this essay we will examine the opposition of the Marxist-Leninist Left to the principles of the American Revolution here in the United States. The American Left, as I will refer to them in this essay, truly despise the radical libertarian principles of the American Revolution and the social impact it has had on the United States and the world. In this essay the principles of the American Revolution are not the current principles of the neoconservative movement, nor that of modern conservatism. The American Revolution's principles are that of Locke, Sidney, the English Levellers, and the American Revolutionaries in opposition to the principles of the Old World of which Marxist-Leninism is a product.

The Marxist Leninist Mindset

The Marxist Leninst mind sees man only in economic terms, much like Old World conservatism. Men in both theories exist only in the context of their economic lives, not in their moral and spiritual existance. The Left claims to be "revolutionary" and set on "freeing" the "proletariat" from the oppression of the upper classes. There is nothing "revolutionary" about Marxist philosophy. Marxist philosophy replaces the king, lords and church with the party, the "leader" and "dictatorship of the proletariat". These are all variations of feudal European thought. For example feudal landownership that the nobility used to exploit their serfs is not much different than Marxist "collective farms".In both instances the workers and farmers have no real interest in the property they work on. One works for the lord, the other for the state. In both cases men become slaves. In both instances men are ruled over by overseers and kommisars who direct them what to sow and reap, dole how much they can earn and prevent them, by coercion and police power, from revolting or seeking redress of any grievences. Men are the slaves rather than the masters of their servants, the polticians.

The American Left, once the proud libertarian patriots of the American Revolution, were replaced in the early 20th century by Marxist revolutionaries and "progressives". These Marxists slowly invaded the Democratic Party ( originally formed as the Democratic-Republician party by Jefferson and Madison) and took the party from it's revolutionary Jeffersonian roots to a socialist and statist political party.
Now the Democratic Party is made up of socialists, diversicrats, "multiculturalists", and outright Marxists. Many in the Democratic Party express genuine hatred for " dead white males" like their party's founders. Affirmative action, multiculturalism, and other racially divisive programs are the norm and the principles of individual liberty and Jeffersonian Democracy are cast aside.

The American Left have completely abandoned any semblence of believing in Jeffersonian principles, as have their supposed "conservative" Republican opponents. Both parties believe in a command-control society with orders given from above, or in the old Tory term, from "their betters". Economic and social life are tightly controlled by the leftist mentality, much as it used to be in a monarchial society. Aristocracy in the form of government bureucrats, politicians, and corporations dominate the landscape. Although most leftists do not believe in organized religion, they substitute it with their own religion of multiculturalism, group thought, and social engineering. This is all enforced by their courts of Inquisition. Hate crimes, set asides, affirmative action, preferences, etc are the new dogma of their new secular religion. This religion is like it's nemesis, the Christian Right. Both demand undying devotion to their religious or secular worldview. Both demand uniformity based upon their tyrannical and fanatical belief systems totally at variance with the principles of the American Revolution. Both reject the Revolutionary doctrine of natural rights, and freedom of all against the tyrannical acts of government, ANY GOVERNMENT.

The American Revolution vs the Modern Left

As I have shown in previous essays the American Revolution was a radical libertarian revolution against power and arbitrary government. Left wing ideology ( of the modern kind) is the epitome of power and arbitrary government. Look at the Soviet regime, China, Cambodia's Pol Pot, and North Korea. Are those poor people free? I think not. They are SLAVES. Slavery doesn't just mean chattel slavery, but more importantly mental slavery. Slavery that enslaves the mind is worse than that which enslaves the body. If one can be made to think a certain way, his slavery is total and complete. Communist regimes, following the old order of the alter and the throne, use people like animals. Brainwashing, slave labor camps, mental indoctrination, etc are all the complete antithesis of the American Revolution. The American Revolution on the other hand stood for the rights of mankind. Freedom of speech, assembly, press, religion, protection of habeus corpus, and jury trial, although ancient English liberties, were improved on and complimented by the Lockian view of natural rights. Natural rights are those rights inhernet to us as human beings. Rights of conscience, person and movement being just a few.
Leftists hate this concept. They hate it because if men have natural, unalienable rights and liberties then their feudal plantation of tyranny is immoral and subject to being overthrown. This, is for them ( the Left), is their greatest fear: loss of absolute power.

The Left vs the Sovereignty of the People

Popular sovereignty is a truly radical concept that is rejected by both the right and left. It is the prime ideal of the American Revolution. The Sovereignty of the People is the inalienable right of the people to possess self government and their right to overthrow any government that does not suit their ends. In this ideal all government is instituted for the happiness of the people, and any government that becomes a tyranny or violates the people's rights breaks the social contract with the people who no longer owe any allegience. This doctrine is far more radical than anything a Marxist revolutionary could come up with. This ideal flies in the face of Marxist oppression and despotism. The Left totally and completely rejects this revolutionary ideal. Along with their right wing opponents they rape and plunder the common man through taxes, inflationary banking schemes, regulations, aristocratical privileges for politicians and special interests, and a declining standard of living.
Both left and right are like two Mafia crime families fighting over territory; the territory is the liberty and fortunes of the people..

Conservative Allies

We are taught, or should I say indoctrinated, to believe that the left and right are polar opposites and enemies. This is a falsehood. On the surface, they seem like bitter enemies. Fights over gay marriage, taxes, free trade, budgets, social programs, etc are all surface oriented. Underneath this veneer is the iron hand of despotism. Both camps advocate a powerful centralized government far worse than the British Parliament that the American Revolutionaries revolted against. Now we hear conservatives proposing federal control of marriage, regulating intrastate commerce, preaching total war and empire, and picking and choosing states rights when it benefits them. The left loves this, even though they may hate the conservative social program. More centralized government means more power for when they get into office. Affirmative action, set asides, hate crimes, and other racist measures will be passed at the federal level, further feeding the federal leviathan.
Neither care about Jeffersonian Democracy. In short, there will be a future essay detailing it later, Jeffersonian Demcoracy means rule by the people over their agents. Smaller, local government, and more liberty and freedom for citizens. Jeffersonian Democracy also means preserving and cherishing the natural rights of the people against power centralized government. This is anathema to the left.

Marxism and the Neoconservatives

The current neoconservative movement has it's roots in the left and zionism. Both zionism and Marxist-Leninism are despotic philosophies.
Most neocons: Wolfowitz, David Frum, Donald Kagan, Richard Pearle, Elliot Abrams, William Kristol, have their roots in left wing ideology. Most, if not all, of these neocons are followers of Leon Trotsky and Leo Struass. They totally and completely reject the ideology of the American Revolution. Limited government, individual freedom and liberty, and the sovereignty of the people are alien concepts to these folks. As a matter of fact, many like Bill Kristol overtly have stated that the "Jeffersonian vision" of America is dead. Instead the ideal of a huge imperial Leviathan running roughshod across the globe enforcing what they term "democracy", which is really fascism with the rhetoric of freedom. True democracy is where the people rule, and liberty is secure. Representative democracy or in the language of the American Revolution "republicanism" is not the ruling of the world. Neocons, like their fanatical brothers in Isreal, the Likud, love powerful and centralized government. They are true heretics to the ideals of America and it's revolution.

Marxist Cultural Revolution

I am a supporter of revolution, but only a revolution that secures liberty and freedom. Marxist "cultural warriors" are a different story. Since they hate the principles of the American Revolution and it's radical consequences they are constantly doing their best to engender a cultural revolution within the United States to destroy a once great Western civilization. Below I will outline their strategy:

Destroy the Middle Class

Through high taxes, regulations, and racist affirmative action programs the cultural Marxist begins his breakdown of American Revolutionary principles. Marxists hate the middle class, and strive to drive down their wages and culture. Workers are enslaved by big government taxes like witholding taxes, sales taxes, gas taxes, and a multitude of other inane but no less oppressive taxes. The IRS is the enforcement arm of the federal income tax pillage. Seizures of bank accounts, administrative "hearings" without the benefit of jury trial, and imprisonment are the norm as hard working middle class Americans are fleeced to support politicians in Washington and their privileged lifestyle.

Attack on American History and it's Revolution

Most Marxists, unlike the Marxist left of the early 2oth century, spend an inordinante amount of time and energy smashing American libertarian and patriotic icons like Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. The American Revolution is labeled a "capitalist" revolution and one where slaveholders and other wealthy elites simply wanted separation from Britian. Now there is some kernel of truth that some American conservatives hated the social and economic consquences of the Revolution, but as Murray Rothbard points out in his "Conceived In Liberty" series, the Revolution was a mass movement of the people. He correctly points out how a minority may hold a leadership role, but that for a revolution to succeed the masses must be behind it. The radical wing of the American Revolution stood for the rights of the people against government and special interests. Men like Samuel Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Richard Henry Lee and Patrick henry stood at the forefront for the liberty of the masses. Marxist revolutionaries on the other hand used libertarian rhetoric, but enslaved the masses after the Revolution was completed.

Marxists hate the American Revolution due to it's radical and far reaching libertarian results which are at total variance with their worldview of revolution. The freedom of the individual, economic and personal liberty, the diluting of class distinctions, the annihilation of monarchy and nobility, and the separation of church and state were all results that the Revolution produced. This is anathema to the Marxist, the purveyor of Old World centralized power, who hates personal freedom and individual liberty. Now these cultural Marxists wish to uproot and destroy all of our revolutionary foundation by labeling the Founding Fathers "racist", "sexist", "homophobe", "dead white males" and other nihilistic and empty terms. This propaganda must be refuted! We must redeem our revolution against the despotism and hate that the Marxist Left spews.

Marxists and their consevative opponents have a vested interest in downgrading and shunting the aside the American Revolution: POWER.
Both need to destroy the principles of liberty to erect their tyrannies.

Marxist Deconstruction of Society

In the last 40 years Marxists have practiced the "deconstruction" of American history and society. They have infiltrated colleges and schools and through tenure, served for decades slowly engrafting their hateful and anti-American ideals into the curriculum. Many colleges now have ultra radical left groups who riot for affirmative action, scream for more taxpayer subsidies, and openly discriminate against whites and asians.
One of the methods of deconstruction is to indoctrinate people into hating their race ( usually white males) by calling them "oppressors" and
"white racists". Some colleges even have seminars where young left wing "minority" students stand and berate whites and call them names and telling them to be "ashamed" of their race. Also third world cultures and despotisms are elevated to high status as equal with American republicanism. Witch doctors are praised for using "alternative" medicine, and savage societies are considered 'enlightened". The more savage, the better. Within this vein, the curriculum is changed. Men like Jefferson, Thomas Paine, Shakespeare, Milton, Seneca, Aristotle,and other pillars of Western civilization are shunted aside as "dead white males" and not worthy of being taught to a "diverse" student body.
This deconstruction of American History is really a brainwashing of the young into the nilhistic principles of group think, race hatred, and self immolation. This is and will eventually destroy American society.

Expropriation of Private Property

Marxists hate the concept of private ownership of property, no matter how small. The United States is a nation of the middle class. Yes, there is a wealthy aristocracy at the top that uses it's wealth a power to feed off the people through government, but for the most part 85-90% fall in the middle income bracket. Marxists truly despise the middle class or "bougsousie" as they call them. Marxists used the income and other taxes such as property taxes to expropriate the private property of the middle class to drain them of wealth. Once done, they hope to drive them hopelessly into poverty and ignorance, eventually leading to slavery.

Marxists also love property, government property. Look at the current and former leaders of communist dictatorships. Men like Fidel Castro, the leaders of China and North Korea, and the former leaders of Eastern Europe lived lavishly. Personal servants, limos, bodyguards, all the women they want, high diet, alcohol, etc are all on the menu for these despots. These men are truly the nobility of the comunnist world, with the people as their serfs, and slaves. What communists are actually doing is living like the feudal aristocrats of Old Europe, emulating the despots of
the middle ages. While they live lavishly their people starve, suffer from disease and alcoholism, and live lives of ignorance and superstition. They are reduced to what Jefferson called the " the war of all against all."

Folks, this is the true face of Marxist-Leninist/ Left wing ideology. Don't be fooled by their rhetoric. Remember they hate the very concept of America- individual liberty and self government.











Saturday, September 03, 2005

The Radicalism of the American Revolution, Part 2- Extralegal Government

In Part two of the Radicalism of the American Revolution we will examine the radical committees of public safety, correspondence, and inspection that became the de-facto government due to the collapse of the "constituted authorities" as the British and Tories called it.

The Collapse of British Authority in America

From 1764 to the total collapse of British regal authority in America in 1774/ 1775 the American colonists undermined the "constituted authorities" in colonial America. British authority was uprooted and destroyed by extralegal means. These extralegal means generally took the forms of committees of correspondence, committees of public safety, congresses like the Stamp Act Congress, and the first and second Continental Congresses. Conservatives of the time ( mostly the wealthy aristocrats, royal government officials, and military leaders) were appalled by these methods of nascent revolution. They denounced the colonists as "factious", "disaffected men", "seditious", "democrats" and "downright republicans" who were intending to "overthrow all government."

With the advent of the Stamp Act crisis, the colonists formed into "Sons of Liberty" who directed resistance to the Stamp Act by petitions to Parliament, petitions to their Assemblies to resist the tyrannical act, and in the case of the Connecticut and New York Sons of Liberty entered into military alliances. Stamp collectors were threatened, effigies of royal officials and stamp agents were burned in public, and newspapers denounced the act as unconstitutional. Supporters of the act were declared "enemies of their country." Royal officials denounced the protests as "mobocracy", " mobs of the lower sort", and "dangerous and designing men". Due to this, extralegal resistance newspapers in Connecticut, New York, and Massachusetts, continued their publishing without the stamps. Courts in Rhode Island and Massachusetts stayed open and ships with stamps were not permitted to land. All of this was in defiance of the Stamp Act and the "constituted authorities".

Petitions, Remonstrances, and Declarations

Other extra legal means used were the use of petitions to Parliament, and remostrances and declarations stating the rights of the colonists and declaring that supporters of the British were "enemies of their country".
Town meetings, public gatherings and secret meetings of organizations like the Sons of Liberty were used to apply pressure to Britian.

The words of the Virginia Stamp Act Resolutions ring out resoundingly:

" That the General Assembly of this colony have the only and sole exclusive right to lay taxes and impositions upon the inhabitants of this Colony, and that every attempt to vest such power in any person or persons whatsoever other than the General Assembly aforesaid has a manifest tendency to destroy British as well as American freedom."

And again:

" That any person who shall, by speaking or writing, assert or maintain that any person or persons other than the General Assembly of this Colony, have any right or power to impose or lay any taxation on the people here shall be deemed an enemy to His Majesty's Colony."

These ringing words were the opening salvo of the American Revolution, a revolution for liberty against arbitrary power. Sound like conservatism? Hardly. Conservatives have generally been the defenders of strong government, "law and order", and hierarchy. Back to the colonists. Effigies of royal officers, stamp distributors, and Tories were burned, hanged and given mock funerals to frighten and intimidate the government and rouse the populace.

The Destruction of Property

This may sound like a shock, but the revolutionaries frequently incited crowds to destroy the property of tories, royal officials, and ships of the royal navy. Governors Bernard and Hutchinson of Massachusetts had their homes ransacked and destroyed by revolutionary mobs incensed by the tyrannical acts of the British government. In Rhode Island ,royal navy ships were scuttled and in the case of the Gaspee in 1772, burned to the ground. The captain of the Gaspee was assaulted and shot ( he survived) and no prosecution was ever attempted. In Massachusetts the Boston Tea Party in December 1773 destroyed the tea belonging to the British East India Company by throwing it into Boston Harbor . Government stamps during the Stamp Act crisis were seized and burned , and revolutionary mobs threatened the stamp distributors with death if they accepted their commissions. There were many, many other incidents of violence, property destruction and confiscation, all of which further radicalised the colonists.

Economic Coercion

As the Revolution progressed committees of safety, and inspection were formed in addition to the committees of correspondence. These committees were designed to enforce the economic boycotts proposed in each colony and the Continental Congress. Committees of Inspection forced merchants and businessmen to boycott British goods, and to enter into nonimportation and nonexportation agreements. All merchants who refused the boycott agreements were labeled as "enemies of their country" and "tories". Committees demanded the merchants to turn over their records to the committee for inspection to ensure the agreements were being adhered to. Merchants not in compliance were boycotted and
advertised as "traitors".

Committees of Safety were extralegal bodies which organized communities to defend themselves against the British military and American Tories. These committees forced accused tories and traitors to appear before them to explain any suspected behavior. Any person judged guilty by these committees were usually banished and their property confiscated. Lists of tories were published in public places declaring them as "traitors", "enemies of their country", and calling for them to depart. These committees also assisted in organizing local militias and appointing militia officers. These committees, while elected by the people, were a virtual revolutionary dictatorship.

Nullification of Unconstitutional Laws

In every colony the eventual nullification of British authority took place. Some, like Massachusetts and Rhode Island, were displaying this radical doctrine early on, and others, like Georgia and Pennsylvania came around near the end of the Revolutionary War. This doctrine of nullification was as radical then as it is now. All governments despise challenges to their authority and particularly challenges that defy the "legitimate authorities". Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and other New England colonies were the first to use this doctrine and appeal to the "natural rights" of the colonists. Mobs of angry colonists would confront tories such as stamp distributors, customs offciers, and other royally appointed officials and threaten them with hanging, and other forms of violence. These officials would be forced publically to renounce their office or the policies of the British government. This is in direct contravention of the "consensus" and "conservative" historians which to this day maintain that the American Revolution was a mild, and really non-revolutionary event. The theory of a "conservative" revolution is a fraud perpetrated by conservative elements in the United States to justify their anti-republican views and policies.

Lessons for Today

What do we learn from this radicalism? Is it proper for our society today?
I believe the answer to both questions is yes. All people have a natural right to defend their liberties and freedom from government or private entities. A short example would be the Alien and Sedition Acts during the late 1790's. Just twenty two years after the end of the Revolutionary War, the Federalists passed the most tyrannical acts in the history of the United States. The Alien and Sedition Acts were passed by rabid conservatives, many old Tories and Tory sympathizers, to destroy free speech and opposition to their centralizing policies and schemes. The Federalists used the same rhetoric used by the British governement during the Revolution calling their opponents "disorganizers", "enemies of government", "reptiles", "jacobins", and "traitors". The Federalists, like the modern day conservative movement, loved power and "order". They exaulted then President Washington into a monarchial and almost God-like firgure who should be above political attack.

President Adams, long a believer in aristocracy and "balanced" government was a staunch supporter of the Alien and Sedition Acts. Adams relished in having his opponents ( the Jeffersonian editors) prosecuted and seemed to embrace a British view of government, by maintaining that people could not critisize their "leaders" or "governors".
The response to this tyranny was Jefferson and Madison's Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions. These libertarian resolutions declared the states to be independent and only united in compact for federal purposes. Jefferson's version stated that the States had the authority to "nullify" a unconstitutional federal law, and that such laws were "void" and "of no force". This was the spirit of the American Revolution. As shown above the colonies used such language in the revolution against British authority. The nullification and voiding of unconstitutional federal laws is a radical and revolutionary ideal worthy of the enlightened patriots of the American Revolution. The Alien and Sedition Crisis shows that a populace should be ever vigilent to defend their liberties. Men in power, and who make their living off of that power will normally not part with it without violence or revolution. A revolution, as Murray Rothbard has correctly pointed out in his "Conceived in Liberty" series, must have the support of the mass of the populace to succeed. Violence used by the American revolutionaries was to throw off tyranny and oppression, while violence used by the British was used to defend the oligarchy and their interests, separate frome the people.

In today's climate to oppose the policies of the Federal government, question the Iraq war, or openly critisize President Bush is met with derision and ad hominem attack by reactionary forces. Fanatical right wingers have elevated President Bush to near God-like status, to be held above reproach. Christian Rightists have even admonished their opponents with the tyrannical thoughts of St Paul in Romans 13 to obey government since all are appointed by God. This IS NOT THE DOCTRINE OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION! In the United States the PEOPLE are sovereign, not the government! Howard Phillips of the Constitution Party constantly states that in America "God is the sovereign". No, Mr Phillips, in the United States the PEOPLE are the sovereign as stated in the Declaration of Independence. Government is only valid when having "the consent of the governed".

What we need is a revival of the Spirit of 1776 and Jefferson's Revolution of 1800. We must be on constant watch and jealous of any power delegated to government, especially the central government. As Jefferson stated "free government is founded in jealousy, not confidence."

Confidence in government will result in slavery and the annhilation of the natural rights of the people. Let us harken back to the American Revolution and utilize the path our Founders have laid for us before it is too late.