Fodder
The article below was forwarded by my friend, Richard Arrowwood, purveyor of the remarkable Amapola Creek family of award-winning wines. He asked me to give it a read and share my observations. Unable to locate an internet source for - "Fodder" – I will assume the author is Senator Pat Toomey, (R), PA.*
Parsing, one of my favorite indoor sports, is defined by the Business Dictionary as: "Breaking a data block into smaller chunks by following a set of rules so that it can be more easily interpreted, managed or transmitted." With a reasonable grasp of logic, basic analytical skills and a decent appreciation of history, most anyone can benefit from it. When one is also certain to check their preconceived prejudices at the door, the results can be compelling, illuminating, and educational.
So I took a crack at parsing Mr. Toomey's piece…
Sovereignty
While you have time, you should take time to state the obvious. The turmoil in America today seems somewhat trivial when compared to the bedlam that has occupied every civilization in recorded history. Since the beginning, the world has put up with one form of tyranny or another. Along the way, there were exceptions, as the Greeks, Romans, some Scandinavians and, in particular, Native Americans, instituted at least some elements of democratic government. But most of these attempts eventually gave way to various forms of autocracy. Among those, monarchies and their privileged aristocracies confiscated land under feudalism and the rabble worked that land. Other forms of dictatorship, including socialism and communism, professed to liberate the rabble; but instead subjugated them and that subjugation led to genocide in astronomic numbers.
The Big Reveal unmentioned is the source of all these "attempts" – including "democracies" that "eventually gave way to various forms of autocracy" are, simply stated, some form of Government. And while that point could be credited to Capt. Obvious, the reader needs to understand the basic ingredient in Government – all government – is the monopoly on the initiation of Force. The Official Rules, whether enshrined in Charters, Declarations, Manifestos or Constitutions are just words on parchment. Nothing more or less, written, endorsed and implemented by a man or group of like-minded men who have taken it upon themselves to tell you how to live your life. As Daniel Webster put it:
Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority.
While Toomey fails to mention this is accomplished with the assumption of Power, he correctly states this is based on the promise "to liberate the rabble". Historically, it has rarely worked out that way, leading instead to "subjugation" and then "genocide". Why? As Lord Acton famously stated:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."
(That last sentence, while prescient, is usually omitted).
Back to Tommey's "Fodder"
Then along came the American Republic, dedicated to a single doctrine: The Individual is Sovereign. This precept and this precept alone unleashed the most astounding advancement in human history. But, today, for millions of spoiled, ignorant imbeciles, America isn’t good enough. These fools, barren and lazy of mind and body, argue that only Socialism will lead to “fairness” and true equality.
The Individual is Sovereign, the Supreme Ruler of self, his own self-government. America was once described as the great experiment in self-governance. When Individual Sovereignty flourishes, free of government bondage, astounding events have occurred to the benefit of all. But even when Freedom is chained and repressed, the Individual remains Sovereign. Spoiled, ignorant Snowflakes, lazy and entitled louts don't negate Individual Sovereignty anymore than the superimposition of a "Republic" establishes it. A "republic" is just another form of Government, after all, with all the barricades and animosities for Freedom noted above. Their support of Government and its Force infects them with the aggressive ignorance and contagious apathy that has metastasized throughout the American population over the last 100 years.
The shackles of government: taxation, regulation, prohibition, corruption, and incarceration can only suppress the exercise of the Sovereign Individual, not negate the definition and fact. Implying the remarkable productivity thru Individual Sovereignty was due to the arrival of the American Republic is a transparently predictable endorsement of the State; as if the Sovereign Individual would have been incapable of such remarkable accomplishments without the beneficence oozing from State's existence. Even if true, where is that lofty "dedication" today? Or isn't it obvious the "American Republic" is going the way of all previous government entities, devolving to another one of the "autocracies" that "… professed to liberate the rabble, but instead subjugated them…"?
Then there is the rest of the Fodder
These parasites represent the same brand of stupidity that in September 1977, motivated California Governor Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown and other prominent CA politicians and community activists to endorse “religious” Marxist Jim Jones, who later would persuade 900+ of his Peoples Temple devotees to drink cyanide-laced Grape Flavor Kool-Aid. After a testimonial dinner for Jones sponsored by Assemblyman Willie Brown, Gov. Moonbeam said Jones is “what you should see every day when you look in the mirror . . . a combination of MLK, Angela Davis, Albert Einstein and Chairman Mao . . .” . A year earlier, Jones was also courted by Walter Mondale and several times met with First Lady Rosalynn Carter. The good news is Jim Jones is permanently domiciled in the Afterlife. The bad news? Jerry Brown astonishingly is once again the big enchilada of the People’s Republic of California. That he was elected again gives you a point blank look into the face of mass insanity. But CA doesn’t have a patent on public madness. Consider the Media’s new political heroine — one Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 29-year-old Marxist Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district. Here’s a tip — don’t move there. Cortez is one of two things — either a knowledgeable communist ideologue or a world class dunce. Likely, she’s both, but definitely the latter. Cortez, along with newly-elected Muslims Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, is touted by the Left as the “wave of the future.” These newcomers to Washington are in a long line of lefties who have a solitary talent — talking the talk. Community organizers like Cortez and Obama before her — promote class envy and victim-hood, on the pretense that, sacrificially, they are devoted to the well-being of society’s downtrodden. What pure bunk. No one on the Left ever admits that the downtrodden always remain downtrodden under Socialism. America’s dummies, young dummies in particular, swill the Socialist Kool-Aid, never bothering to study history, much less believe it. Thankfully, somebody did believe. America’s Founders. They set up a government with checks and balances aimed squarely at the principle of Sovereignty.
Parsing, one of my favorite indoor sports, is defined by the Business Dictionary as: "Breaking a data block into smaller chunks by following a set of rules so that it can be more easily interpreted, managed or transmitted." With a reasonable grasp of logic, basic analytical skills and a decent appreciation of history, most anyone can benefit from it. When one is also certain to check their preconceived prejudices at the door, the results can be compelling, illuminating, and educational.
So I took a crack at parsing Mr. Toomey's piece…
Sovereignty
While you have time, you should take time to state the obvious. The turmoil in America today seems somewhat trivial when compared to the bedlam that has occupied every civilization in recorded history. Since the beginning, the world has put up with one form of tyranny or another. Along the way, there were exceptions, as the Greeks, Romans, some Scandinavians and, in particular, Native Americans, instituted at least some elements of democratic government. But most of these attempts eventually gave way to various forms of autocracy. Among those, monarchies and their privileged aristocracies confiscated land under feudalism and the rabble worked that land. Other forms of dictatorship, including socialism and communism, professed to liberate the rabble; but instead subjugated them and that subjugation led to genocide in astronomic numbers.
The Big Reveal unmentioned is the source of all these "attempts" – including "democracies" that "eventually gave way to various forms of autocracy" are, simply stated, some form of Government. And while that point could be credited to Capt. Obvious, the reader needs to understand the basic ingredient in Government – all government – is the monopoly on the initiation of Force. The Official Rules, whether enshrined in Charters, Declarations, Manifestos or Constitutions are just words on parchment. Nothing more or less, written, endorsed and implemented by a man or group of like-minded men who have taken it upon themselves to tell you how to live your life. As Daniel Webster put it:
Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority.
It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the
people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern.
While Toomey fails to mention this is accomplished with the assumption of Power, he correctly states this is based on the promise "to liberate the rabble". Historically, it has rarely worked out that way, leading instead to "subjugation" and then "genocide". Why? As Lord Acton famously stated:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."
(That last sentence, while prescient, is usually omitted).
Back to Tommey's "Fodder"
Then along came the American Republic, dedicated to a single doctrine: The Individual is Sovereign. This precept and this precept alone unleashed the most astounding advancement in human history. But, today, for millions of spoiled, ignorant imbeciles, America isn’t good enough. These fools, barren and lazy of mind and body, argue that only Socialism will lead to “fairness” and true equality.
The Individual is Sovereign, the Supreme Ruler of self, his own self-government. America was once described as the great experiment in self-governance. When Individual Sovereignty flourishes, free of government bondage, astounding events have occurred to the benefit of all. But even when Freedom is chained and repressed, the Individual remains Sovereign. Spoiled, ignorant Snowflakes, lazy and entitled louts don't negate Individual Sovereignty anymore than the superimposition of a "Republic" establishes it. A "republic" is just another form of Government, after all, with all the barricades and animosities for Freedom noted above. Their support of Government and its Force infects them with the aggressive ignorance and contagious apathy that has metastasized throughout the American population over the last 100 years.
The shackles of government: taxation, regulation, prohibition, corruption, and incarceration can only suppress the exercise of the Sovereign Individual, not negate the definition and fact. Implying the remarkable productivity thru Individual Sovereignty was due to the arrival of the American Republic is a transparently predictable endorsement of the State; as if the Sovereign Individual would have been incapable of such remarkable accomplishments without the beneficence oozing from State's existence. Even if true, where is that lofty "dedication" today? Or isn't it obvious the "American Republic" is going the way of all previous government entities, devolving to another one of the "autocracies" that "… professed to liberate the rabble, but instead subjugated them…"?
Then there is the rest of the Fodder
These parasites represent the same brand of stupidity that in September 1977, motivated California Governor Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown and other prominent CA politicians and community activists to endorse “religious” Marxist Jim Jones, who later would persuade 900+ of his Peoples Temple devotees to drink cyanide-laced Grape Flavor Kool-Aid. After a testimonial dinner for Jones sponsored by Assemblyman Willie Brown, Gov. Moonbeam said Jones is “what you should see every day when you look in the mirror . . . a combination of MLK, Angela Davis, Albert Einstein and Chairman Mao . . .” . A year earlier, Jones was also courted by Walter Mondale and several times met with First Lady Rosalynn Carter. The good news is Jim Jones is permanently domiciled in the Afterlife. The bad news? Jerry Brown astonishingly is once again the big enchilada of the People’s Republic of California. That he was elected again gives you a point blank look into the face of mass insanity. But CA doesn’t have a patent on public madness. Consider the Media’s new political heroine — one Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 29-year-old Marxist Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district. Here’s a tip — don’t move there. Cortez is one of two things — either a knowledgeable communist ideologue or a world class dunce. Likely, she’s both, but definitely the latter. Cortez, along with newly-elected Muslims Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, is touted by the Left as the “wave of the future.” These newcomers to Washington are in a long line of lefties who have a solitary talent — talking the talk. Community organizers like Cortez and Obama before her — promote class envy and victim-hood, on the pretense that, sacrificially, they are devoted to the well-being of society’s downtrodden. What pure bunk. No one on the Left ever admits that the downtrodden always remain downtrodden under Socialism. America’s dummies, young dummies in particular, swill the Socialist Kool-Aid, never bothering to study history, much less believe it. Thankfully, somebody did believe. America’s Founders. They set up a government with checks and balances aimed squarely at the principle of Sovereignty.
Unfortunately, this principle was sucker punched a long time ago. You never
hear about it and probably don’t know what it means. Congress and the Supreme Court certainly have forgotten, if they ever knew. Listen up, class. America is sovereign, protected from encroachment by other nations. The Federal Government is sovereign, protected and limited by the provisions of the U.S. Constitution. The States are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the Federal Government. Counties and Cites are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the States. And every American citizen is sovereign, endowed by his/her Creator with certain inalienable rights (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness), protected from the tyranny of all governments. All very well, class, but sorry to say Sovereignty is a thoroughly mutilated doctrine. America’s vital principle is rapidly decaying. Illegals pour across America’s sovereign borders. The Fed completely subjugates sovereign States and sovereign Individuals. States abdicate their sovereignty granted by the Constitution. States meddle in the sovereignty of local governments. Conclusion: the swamp has sucked the life out of the Founders’ immaculate work.
Only a tiny minority would listen and give credence to this kind of exaggerated gloom and doom — to this death knell. All the rest will think it’s a pile of tedious whining. No one believes a rich country like America would willingly commit suicide. Jim Jones might. He was a good teacher.
Frankly, I got somewhat confused with Toomey's predictable political rhetoric, citing old and new villains (mercifully omitting references to Hitler), blaming them and their kind for all our current ills. But no mention of Government, the stage on which these Bad Actors perform. At one point, he appears to champion several logically unsustainable, factually incorrect clichés while praising all levels of Government:
America is sovereign, protected from encroachment by other nations. The Federal Government is sovereign, protected and limited by the provisions of the U.S. Constitution. The States are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the Federal Government. Counties and Cites are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the States. And every American citizen is sovereign, endowed by his/her Creator with certain inalienable rights (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness), protected from the tyranny of all governments.
With all due respect, this paragraph is laughable. It would appear Toomey is unaware of current events on the southern border. Moreover, for decades technology has provided antagonistic governments with the means to "encroach" to the point of decimating the entire world population. The Federal Government only uses the Constitution to protect its "Sovereignty" while expanding its tyranny in size and power, ignoring Constitutional restraints. With impunity. One could successfully argue the Federal Government was originally cast as a Public Servant, not Public Sovereign, charged with protecting inalienable rights with the consent of the Sovereign Individual. States, Counties, and Cities aren't actually "Sovereign" either, as they are happily, willingly Greenmailed by an overreaching Leviathan that buys its power and influence over the States with extorted taxpayer funds, just it uses Foreign Aide on Allies and Enemies alike to expand and sustain the Empire. By definition, all Individuals are sovereign. All individuals are created with inalienable rights. But none are "protected" from the tyranny of government by government – not even Americans.
In the end, Toomey throws up his hands:
"...the swamp has sucked the life out of the Founders’ immaculate work."
As well as the life, brains, and fortitude of those "elected officials" who readily avail themselves of the fruits of the Founder's "immaculate work". And then some. It's unfortunate Sen.Toomey didn't expand his formidable intellect to offer a solution or even the encouragement to readers to explore history, human nature, philosophy, objectively with the curiosity, ability, and intellect to reason on the appreciation and pragmatic application of the principles of Freedom. But ultimately, that would require the elimination of Freedom's biggest, most voracious enemy: Government. And that wouldn't serve Mr. Toomey's employment status very well. But unless we solve this terminal problem of "Government", all we will have left is the perpetual drama of empty rhetoric and a very, very dark future.
What to do about that?
*Note: After the fact, I learned the "Toomey" referenced is not the PA politician but one of many bloggers somewhere in cyberspace.
hear about it and probably don’t know what it means. Congress and the Supreme Court certainly have forgotten, if they ever knew. Listen up, class. America is sovereign, protected from encroachment by other nations. The Federal Government is sovereign, protected and limited by the provisions of the U.S. Constitution. The States are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the Federal Government. Counties and Cites are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the States. And every American citizen is sovereign, endowed by his/her Creator with certain inalienable rights (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness), protected from the tyranny of all governments. All very well, class, but sorry to say Sovereignty is a thoroughly mutilated doctrine. America’s vital principle is rapidly decaying. Illegals pour across America’s sovereign borders. The Fed completely subjugates sovereign States and sovereign Individuals. States abdicate their sovereignty granted by the Constitution. States meddle in the sovereignty of local governments. Conclusion: the swamp has sucked the life out of the Founders’ immaculate work.
Only a tiny minority would listen and give credence to this kind of exaggerated gloom and doom — to this death knell. All the rest will think it’s a pile of tedious whining. No one believes a rich country like America would willingly commit suicide. Jim Jones might. He was a good teacher.
Frankly, I got somewhat confused with Toomey's predictable political rhetoric, citing old and new villains (mercifully omitting references to Hitler), blaming them and their kind for all our current ills. But no mention of Government, the stage on which these Bad Actors perform. At one point, he appears to champion several logically unsustainable, factually incorrect clichés while praising all levels of Government:
America is sovereign, protected from encroachment by other nations. The Federal Government is sovereign, protected and limited by the provisions of the U.S. Constitution. The States are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the Federal Government. Counties and Cites are sovereign, protected from encroachment by the States. And every American citizen is sovereign, endowed by his/her Creator with certain inalienable rights (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness), protected from the tyranny of all governments.
With all due respect, this paragraph is laughable. It would appear Toomey is unaware of current events on the southern border. Moreover, for decades technology has provided antagonistic governments with the means to "encroach" to the point of decimating the entire world population. The Federal Government only uses the Constitution to protect its "Sovereignty" while expanding its tyranny in size and power, ignoring Constitutional restraints. With impunity. One could successfully argue the Federal Government was originally cast as a Public Servant, not Public Sovereign, charged with protecting inalienable rights with the consent of the Sovereign Individual. States, Counties, and Cities aren't actually "Sovereign" either, as they are happily, willingly Greenmailed by an overreaching Leviathan that buys its power and influence over the States with extorted taxpayer funds, just it uses Foreign Aide on Allies and Enemies alike to expand and sustain the Empire. By definition, all Individuals are sovereign. All individuals are created with inalienable rights. But none are "protected" from the tyranny of government by government – not even Americans.
In the end, Toomey throws up his hands:
"...the swamp has sucked the life out of the Founders’ immaculate work."
As well as the life, brains, and fortitude of those "elected officials" who readily avail themselves of the fruits of the Founder's "immaculate work". And then some. It's unfortunate Sen.Toomey didn't expand his formidable intellect to offer a solution or even the encouragement to readers to explore history, human nature, philosophy, objectively with the curiosity, ability, and intellect to reason on the appreciation and pragmatic application of the principles of Freedom. But ultimately, that would require the elimination of Freedom's biggest, most voracious enemy: Government. And that wouldn't serve Mr. Toomey's employment status very well. But unless we solve this terminal problem of "Government", all we will have left is the perpetual drama of empty rhetoric and a very, very dark future.
What to do about that?
*Note: After the fact, I learned the "Toomey" referenced is not the PA politician but one of many bloggers somewhere in cyberspace.
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