I've been scanning reports, and listening to interviews with the Occupy movement.
As with many things, there is some meat in there I do agree with.
It's not corporate and political corruption I have a specific problem with, as is most often stated by and about the Occupy movement.
Corporate rights and power are definitely an issue with me. Our nation does and should exist for the citizens, not for corporations. The Supreme Court made its biggest and most fundamental error, in my opinion, when it started granting rights and personhood to corporations.
In this, limited, specific idea that corporations are a problem, I agree with the Occupy movement. How and why corporations are a problem I don't think we agree on.
We certainly do not agree whatsoever in politics. The Occupy movement wants to replace representative democracy with mass "consensus" democracy. Pure, undiluted, addictive, mob rule.
Their answer to our current political system isn't to look at what is broken and what has worked for so long, but to chuck the whole thing. In listening to interviews, I have gathered evidence of reasons that vary from a complete lack of knowledge on what our political system is, a refusal to play on a gameboard where individual X doesn't get to make the rules. And, most damning, a Harrison Bergeron styled insistence on forceful inclusion of anyone deemed under-represented by specific social goals, sociological theories, or census.
Many of the most basic points and goals are covered simply in becoming active in local politics- and moving to reverse the Nixon era changes that catapulted NATIONAL level parties to prominence.
Of course, in suggesting this, I have run into the seemingly endless stream of rationalizations. "local parties don't matter" - "local parties won't listen to us" - "we can't compromise with politicians" and so on.
And so, the answer- throw away our current system, from the municipal to the federal level, and play by their rules.
One poor girl stated "this is new, no one knows how big it can grow. Nothing like this direct concensus democracy has ever bee tried before." (she's an organizer of one of Nevada's Occupy movements).
I suggest a reading of history. mid 19th through late 20th, centered in Europe, while incomplete, should suffice to educate.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Will the Patriotic primary candidate please stand up?
An open letter to the primary candidates- incidentally to our sitting President, as well.
We have some issues here to focus on in this election cycle. Jobs, regulation versus environmental protection, the economy. The role of government in creating jobs or commanding the economy. The role of corporations in job creation and commanding the economy (sorry, guys, but that's even worse than the government- corporate "persons" have neither patriotic, nor philanthropic reasons to do anything for the US citizenry as such.)
We're Americans, we can, have, and will argue endlessly on these issues.
But all of you have lost me on one crucial topic.
So I ask you, each and every one-
What is patriotism? How would you answer that in an interview?
How can you demonstrate your own patriotism, civic virtue, and sense of duty to the nation?
What is civic nationalism? Why is it important and how does it differ from ethnocentrism or "national party" versions?
Why do you feel it is your own patriotic duty to stand for election to the office of President of the United States?
I'll be down at the local VFW post 1002 in Fallon, Nevada when you want to come talk about it.
I'm nobody. I don't think the candidates will see this. I certainly don't expect an answer. I'm a knifemaker, a father, a veteran, and a patriot. That's all I am. I'd like to see and hear you - those who do see this- asking these questions, though.
I will tell what I think- my answers.
Patriotism is defined simply by a dictionary as "devoted love, support, and defense of one's country; national loyalty." (dictionary.com)
Mirriam Webster states that the synonym for patriotism is nationalism. (this is wrong)
Samuel Johnson, in probably his most famous quote, stated "Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel." (He was referring to a false- and loud- psuedo-patriotism which translates to "what I want is patriotic. If you are patriotic, you must agree with me.")
George William Curtis wrote: "A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. "
And, because it's sort of the opposite of Godwin's law to bring up The Man- George Washington stated: "Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism. "
Patriotism- possibly only in the US, but certainly in the US- is more than a sense of loyalty to a nation. It is a sense of loyalty to our principles, beliefs, and methods of increasing liberty. With that loyalty comes the civic virtues of responsibility and duty to promote, defend, and enhance these principles.
Nationalism is, perhaps, related. But it is certainly distinct and is commonly used negatively. I believe this is due to a lumping of things like ethnocentrism, fascist Party nationalism, and such with the American civic nationalism.
In the United States, nationalism traditionally has not been state-centric. That is to say, our nationalism doesn't tend to promote the State over the Citizen.
Nor is our variety of nationalism limited to a particular ethnic group or specific religious flavor.
Our nationalism, our particular civic variety, rests on the idea that we, as citizens of a nation that we own- or run- share a common identity as a beacon of liberty.
The Declaration of Independence is one of the leading documents defining civic nationalism.
"We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states...."
The representatives, with the authority of the people.
Our "statism"- our nationalism- is based on this simple premise. The authority of the citizens.
I can't answer why it is anyone's patriotic duty to seek a presidential nomination- I have no desire to seek such a thing, myself. But if the desire is not flowering out of the basic sense of civic virtue, then we need to worry.
We have some issues here to focus on in this election cycle. Jobs, regulation versus environmental protection, the economy. The role of government in creating jobs or commanding the economy. The role of corporations in job creation and commanding the economy (sorry, guys, but that's even worse than the government- corporate "persons" have neither patriotic, nor philanthropic reasons to do anything for the US citizenry as such.)
We're Americans, we can, have, and will argue endlessly on these issues.
But all of you have lost me on one crucial topic.
So I ask you, each and every one-
What is patriotism? How would you answer that in an interview?
How can you demonstrate your own patriotism, civic virtue, and sense of duty to the nation?
What is civic nationalism? Why is it important and how does it differ from ethnocentrism or "national party" versions?
Why do you feel it is your own patriotic duty to stand for election to the office of President of the United States?
I'll be down at the local VFW post 1002 in Fallon, Nevada when you want to come talk about it.
I'm nobody. I don't think the candidates will see this. I certainly don't expect an answer. I'm a knifemaker, a father, a veteran, and a patriot. That's all I am. I'd like to see and hear you - those who do see this- asking these questions, though.
I will tell what I think- my answers.
Patriotism is defined simply by a dictionary as "devoted love, support, and defense of one's country; national loyalty." (dictionary.com)
Mirriam Webster states that the synonym for patriotism is nationalism. (this is wrong)
Samuel Johnson, in probably his most famous quote, stated "Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel." (He was referring to a false- and loud- psuedo-patriotism which translates to "what I want is patriotic. If you are patriotic, you must agree with me.")
George William Curtis wrote: "A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. "
And, because it's sort of the opposite of Godwin's law to bring up The Man- George Washington stated: "Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism. "
Patriotism- possibly only in the US, but certainly in the US- is more than a sense of loyalty to a nation. It is a sense of loyalty to our principles, beliefs, and methods of increasing liberty. With that loyalty comes the civic virtues of responsibility and duty to promote, defend, and enhance these principles.
Nationalism is, perhaps, related. But it is certainly distinct and is commonly used negatively. I believe this is due to a lumping of things like ethnocentrism, fascist Party nationalism, and such with the American civic nationalism.
In the United States, nationalism traditionally has not been state-centric. That is to say, our nationalism doesn't tend to promote the State over the Citizen.
Nor is our variety of nationalism limited to a particular ethnic group or specific religious flavor.
Our nationalism, our particular civic variety, rests on the idea that we, as citizens of a nation that we own- or run- share a common identity as a beacon of liberty.
The Declaration of Independence is one of the leading documents defining civic nationalism.
"We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states...."
The representatives, with the authority of the people.
Our "statism"- our nationalism- is based on this simple premise. The authority of the citizens.
I can't answer why it is anyone's patriotic duty to seek a presidential nomination- I have no desire to seek such a thing, myself. But if the desire is not flowering out of the basic sense of civic virtue, then we need to worry.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
The General Welfare
A friend of mine brought out a quote from Madison the other day:
"If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the General Welfare, the Government is no longer a limited one, possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one, subject to particular exceptions." — James Madison, letter to Edmund Pendleton, 1792
In response, I wrote a little something about what, exactly, the general Welfare means- and which form of it Madison may have been referring to in his letter.
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
Welfare, or "the general Welfare" - doesn't in the terms of the Preamble refer to what we commonly call Welfare in current times.
In the case of the Preamble, it refers to the need to structure the government around protection of rights, liberties, and opportunities- welfare- of everyone, instead of selecting narrow or special groups. Think "commonwealth" instead of Reagan's "welfare queen".
Now, when you get to the clause in the Constitution where the general welfare is mentioned for the second, and only other time:
(Article One, Section 8)
"The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States"
Here you get into territory where different interpretations can be made.
Specifically relating this to the Preamble, it becomes clear that providing for the general welfare could- should- mean defending liberties against transgression or limiting by special interests.
Our founding fathers had a great deal of suspicion and experience around this topic, and structured early corporate law, citizenship, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights specifically to prevent the rise of oligarchal forms. (*cough*)
The Hamiltonian interpretation, which I believe is what Madison was arguing against the letter you quoted, is that the Congress has the right to tax and then spend the money to provide supports- what has evolved into modern welfare entitlements.
In terms of Federalism, the quote from Madison isn't a stand against the third of the four basic core elements of the Preamble, then. The idea that congress can tax, and then spend to support certain groups of persons through subsidy to ensure the "general welfare" does, hoever, seemt o bug him a bit.
***
Madisonian Federalism relies on 3 factors to maintain a balance- separation of powers within the federal government, the existence of state constitutions, and representative (as opposed to direct) democracy.
The first of these is commonly discussed, especially when it comes to items like a push to put congressional oversight onto the Supreme court, or when a President "deems" legislation into law.
Or the creation of law-enacting and enforcing agencies that are non elective and answer not at all to the populace of voters. (Such as the FCC, FDSA, USDA, etc)
We're all, over here on the blog, pretty familiar with the need for a separation of powers within the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches.
The second two legs, though, are a bit less thought of.
The second one- state consitutions standing alongside (and sometimes opposed to) the federal Consitution- this is often covered a bit under the much bandied topic of States' Rights.
But it's more than that. Insofar as the federal US Constitution does state in the Tenth amendment: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." - The states have a whole selection of duties and responsibilities. The federal government has increasingly encroached on these, in my opinion.
To use a basic example, education is a state responsiblity, or a local one (depending on the relevant state constitution) and thus not a federal responsibility.
The third leg is often the most overlooked. A completely direct democracy is a tyranny of the masses.
The Madisonian idea here is that in a direct democracy, the majority has no controls on behavior and can become very "rude" (deadly). A small group or selection of lone symbols can and will be used in a pure democracy as targets- and this is the surest way to develop a majority of minorities when a clear majority is not present.
While representative democracy- republicanism- will "refine and enlarge the public views" through the acto f election to a council or congress. More space and effort will be given to working with other representatives, and this form is less likely to devolve into a messianic mob. (The contrast with this is evident in several European nations throughout the last several hundred years.)
One of the keys to progressivism in general is a desire to switch to more direct democracy when things don't go their way. The idea is that the individual will somehow have more power by voting directly for a president and federal legislation than he will if he votes for a representative. This is great for California, but really SUCKS for a small population state such as Nevada or Montana. The more direct the democracy gets, the less protections you have against rule by density. Take that either way.
"If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the General Welfare, the Government is no longer a limited one, possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one, subject to particular exceptions." — James Madison, letter to Edmund Pendleton, 1792
In response, I wrote a little something about what, exactly, the general Welfare means- and which form of it Madison may have been referring to in his letter.
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
Welfare, or "the general Welfare" - doesn't in the terms of the Preamble refer to what we commonly call Welfare in current times.
In the case of the Preamble, it refers to the need to structure the government around protection of rights, liberties, and opportunities- welfare- of everyone, instead of selecting narrow or special groups. Think "commonwealth" instead of Reagan's "welfare queen".
Now, when you get to the clause in the Constitution where the general welfare is mentioned for the second, and only other time:
(Article One, Section 8)
"The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States"
Here you get into territory where different interpretations can be made.
Specifically relating this to the Preamble, it becomes clear that providing for the general welfare could- should- mean defending liberties against transgression or limiting by special interests.
Our founding fathers had a great deal of suspicion and experience around this topic, and structured early corporate law, citizenship, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights specifically to prevent the rise of oligarchal forms. (*cough*)
The Hamiltonian interpretation, which I believe is what Madison was arguing against the letter you quoted, is that the Congress has the right to tax and then spend the money to provide supports- what has evolved into modern welfare entitlements.
In terms of Federalism, the quote from Madison isn't a stand against the third of the four basic core elements of the Preamble, then. The idea that congress can tax, and then spend to support certain groups of persons through subsidy to ensure the "general welfare" does, hoever, seemt o bug him a bit.
***
Madisonian Federalism relies on 3 factors to maintain a balance- separation of powers within the federal government, the existence of state constitutions, and representative (as opposed to direct) democracy.
The first of these is commonly discussed, especially when it comes to items like a push to put congressional oversight onto the Supreme court, or when a President "deems" legislation into law.
Or the creation of law-enacting and enforcing agencies that are non elective and answer not at all to the populace of voters. (Such as the FCC, FDSA, USDA, etc)
We're all, over here on the blog, pretty familiar with the need for a separation of powers within the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches.
The second two legs, though, are a bit less thought of.
The second one- state consitutions standing alongside (and sometimes opposed to) the federal Consitution- this is often covered a bit under the much bandied topic of States' Rights.
But it's more than that. Insofar as the federal US Constitution does state in the Tenth amendment: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." - The states have a whole selection of duties and responsibilities. The federal government has increasingly encroached on these, in my opinion.
To use a basic example, education is a state responsiblity, or a local one (depending on the relevant state constitution) and thus not a federal responsibility.
The third leg is often the most overlooked. A completely direct democracy is a tyranny of the masses.
The Madisonian idea here is that in a direct democracy, the majority has no controls on behavior and can become very "rude" (deadly). A small group or selection of lone symbols can and will be used in a pure democracy as targets- and this is the surest way to develop a majority of minorities when a clear majority is not present.
While representative democracy- republicanism- will "refine and enlarge the public views" through the acto f election to a council or congress. More space and effort will be given to working with other representatives, and this form is less likely to devolve into a messianic mob. (The contrast with this is evident in several European nations throughout the last several hundred years.)
One of the keys to progressivism in general is a desire to switch to more direct democracy when things don't go their way. The idea is that the individual will somehow have more power by voting directly for a president and federal legislation than he will if he votes for a representative. This is great for California, but really SUCKS for a small population state such as Nevada or Montana. The more direct the democracy gets, the less protections you have against rule by density. Take that either way.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
in reply to a comment on my previous post
Because for some reason right now I cannot make a comment on my blog....
We have shifted from a freeholder/farming/production society to a service and consumer oriented society.
I didn't really try to skirt around it, but I didn't make all of my points very clearly.
Some services are wealth creation, some aren't. We could take the examples of a barber and a landscaper for a starting point, and leave the walmart greeter for later.
You can, and in the past most often have- had a stake in a barbershop by working there. At one point the most common mode was to rent the chair from the barber or stylist who owned the shop. You pretty much "own" your clientele and own your equipment. As it is a job where your clientele numbers and quality directly drive your earnings, the stakeholding factor is pretty high.
Similarly with a landscaper- who may employ any number of people. The service in this case actually can result in wealth creation through the biological health of the property, which is difficult to argue of
a barber.
But the core idea of stakeholding holds better with landscaping than with hair cutting at this point as a lot of the hair industry has been franshised or corporatized. (not all of it, but it's become a major
factor)
With a common landscaper, the employees may or may not have a stakehold, but they certainly can. Bonuses for speed and quality directly impact the business owner's success, so that can be used.
I have worked in the field, and there are plenty of options for increasing your stake. Though as a general rule it requires what I'd term a sense of fairness, a desire to improve the lot of your fellow man, and some... well, civic virtue on the part of the owner.
There's nothing at all wrong with hiring someone to do that which you don't want to do. but as a basis for an economy, it's a shell game. At some level, someone has to be producing something- and we definitely do still produce a lot as a nation, it's just not done nearly as much as it needs to be by owner/workers.
Land ownership, privatization of schools, and small businesses:
Well, as far as land ownership goes- I do think it's a key element in fixing things. I have yet to see a "socialized" housing solution work at all. I'd rather live in a ford pinto (which I have done!) than involve myself in public housing.
I won't claim I have some brilliant idea on how to fix land ownership, nor do I think all land should be private (quite the opposite, actually). But ownership of- or similar rights to your living spaces is
pretty fundamental.
I'm not sure privatization of schools is actually an issue. The Prussian model system is very, very broken- but that's not the only public system possible. The point is the type of education, and the Prussian model is, very much is, a large part of WHY our society
devalues originality, intelligent thought, empathy, and hard work.
That's pretty key- our society is, unfortunately, largely molded by our school system.
With regard to small business- I do actually think it's a huge fix. I think independent businesseses of relatively modest size with a high ratio of ownership to employee can make an immediate and dramatic change in valuing work, originality, intelligence, and social empathy.
But I think that you have to begin to replace the "employee" or "worker" idea with stakeholding and smaller, more limited ventures.
I don't want single payer health care. I don't want a profiteering basis for healthcare, either. There is another set of answers to that- because as long as a group of people, a council, a senate, a board of governors, controls the dispensing of funds on a national scale, there will be badness. Quite a lot of it.
I don't want to be taxed more, but I'm willing to be taxed fairly. I happen to think the government is getting more than enough money right now and that - in light of my views that government providing "jobs"
is a negative- that we need to fix our spending above all.
A society provided safety net is certainly something I approve of. Once again, I have problems with a large governmental control of such structures. Several problems.
It is certainly true that we are advanced enough as a technological civilization that it should not be necessary for anyone to die or even suffer extreme privation due to lack of resources.
And that's definitely a social responsibility. But I'm not clear on how that is a government responsibility.
--
Christof-
Koyote Custom Knives
www.koyoteknives.com
We have shifted from a freeholder/farming/production society to a service and consumer oriented society.
I didn't really try to skirt around it, but I didn't make all of my points very clearly.
Some services are wealth creation, some aren't. We could take the examples of a barber and a landscaper for a starting point, and leave the walmart greeter for later.
You can, and in the past most often have- had a stake in a barbershop by working there. At one point the most common mode was to rent the chair from the barber or stylist who owned the shop. You pretty much "own" your clientele and own your equipment. As it is a job where your clientele numbers and quality directly drive your earnings, the stakeholding factor is pretty high.
Similarly with a landscaper- who may employ any number of people. The service in this case actually can result in wealth creation through the biological health of the property, which is difficult to argue of
a barber.
But the core idea of stakeholding holds better with landscaping than with hair cutting at this point as a lot of the hair industry has been franshised or corporatized. (not all of it, but it's become a major
factor)
With a common landscaper, the employees may or may not have a stakehold, but they certainly can. Bonuses for speed and quality directly impact the business owner's success, so that can be used.
I have worked in the field, and there are plenty of options for increasing your stake. Though as a general rule it requires what I'd term a sense of fairness, a desire to improve the lot of your fellow man, and some... well, civic virtue on the part of the owner.
There's nothing at all wrong with hiring someone to do that which you don't want to do. but as a basis for an economy, it's a shell game. At some level, someone has to be producing something- and we definitely do still produce a lot as a nation, it's just not done nearly as much as it needs to be by owner/workers.
Land ownership, privatization of schools, and small businesses:
Well, as far as land ownership goes- I do think it's a key element in fixing things. I have yet to see a "socialized" housing solution work at all. I'd rather live in a ford pinto (which I have done!) than involve myself in public housing.
I won't claim I have some brilliant idea on how to fix land ownership, nor do I think all land should be private (quite the opposite, actually). But ownership of- or similar rights to your living spaces is
pretty fundamental.
I'm not sure privatization of schools is actually an issue. The Prussian model system is very, very broken- but that's not the only public system possible. The point is the type of education, and the Prussian model is, very much is, a large part of WHY our society
devalues originality, intelligent thought, empathy, and hard work.
That's pretty key- our society is, unfortunately, largely molded by our school system.
With regard to small business- I do actually think it's a huge fix. I think independent businesseses of relatively modest size with a high ratio of ownership to employee can make an immediate and dramatic change in valuing work, originality, intelligence, and social empathy.
But I think that you have to begin to replace the "employee" or "worker" idea with stakeholding and smaller, more limited ventures.
I don't want single payer health care. I don't want a profiteering basis for healthcare, either. There is another set of answers to that- because as long as a group of people, a council, a senate, a board of governors, controls the dispensing of funds on a national scale, there will be badness. Quite a lot of it.
I don't want to be taxed more, but I'm willing to be taxed fairly. I happen to think the government is getting more than enough money right now and that - in light of my views that government providing "jobs"
is a negative- that we need to fix our spending above all.
A society provided safety net is certainly something I approve of. Once again, I have problems with a large governmental control of such structures. Several problems.
It is certainly true that we are advanced enough as a technological civilization that it should not be necessary for anyone to die or even suffer extreme privation due to lack of resources.
And that's definitely a social responsibility. But I'm not clear on how that is a government responsibility.
--
Christof-
Koyote Custom Knives
www.koyoteknives.com
Friday, September 30, 2011
maybe it isn't about jobs. A yeoman's perspective.
There was an interesting comment recently on an NPR Marketwatch episode. An economist said - and I'm paraphrasing- something about the differences between jobs and work:
Jobs is a political sound bite. Jobs are paychecks and taxes, and a method for politicians to sound good.
Work is accomplishment and the feeling that you've done something worthwhile.
This brings up a point that I've been mulling over for quite a while- yeomanry.
The word yeoman has quite a history, but in the US it primarily referred in the past to the independent small landholder. Essentially small market and subsistence farmers, who formed the basis of Jeffersonian Democrats, who were then called the Republicans. (Obviously these labels have nothing to do with either the modern Republican or Democrat parties.)
There are a lot of things that go along with the classic yeoman basis of politics-
* Strict interpretation of Article I limiting the role of federal government.
* the idea that the independence of a landowner is the basic unit of honest civic virtue as you are more independent of the government and less likely to aggravate tendencies towards corruption.
* Foreign policy is designed to spread an "Empire of Liberty"
* the Bill of Rights is central to the prevention of tyranny
In modern terms, some changes need to be made to definitions and application, but you'll notice here that the later idea of the worker and the working class are not very compatible.
Let's expand the notion of the American Yeoman to include the cottage industry, the self employed, the small business owner. Yes, we've moved beyond smallhold agriculture as the primary basis for our economy.
Contrast the idea of the independent yeoman- who makes his business, farm, or work a basis for economic independence, with the worker- who demands someone provide a job, with a paycheck.
Often this becomes a situation where the job is demanded regardless of needs for the job, profit, or practicality. The idea is that the job should be guaranteed to exist, and be provided. In a sense, the civic virtue of creating wealth is replaced by the idea of entitlement to a job for support.
I really don't mean to sound harsh about this, most people want to do something productive and make a living. But our training- mandated in our school system- has shifted from making your way to the security of being employed.
To address education in detail at this point would likely not be very useful. But it is necessary to note that our education system has changed in a dramatic way from a largely private, locally oriented system to a Prussian Model government system that was created- openly- to create willing, submissive, workers. If you are a product of that system, some thought and revision of your views may be necessary to accept the idea that a nation of millions of independent yeomen could even operate.
I would like to present and idea, an updated version of yeomanry, some basis for moving forward in a world where industrial and production oriented employee systems cannot compete with the lower labor costs of nations that lack our guarantees of liberty and freedom.
I do think that free and unencumbered ownership of a physical space is a valid basis for a yeomanry. It may or may not be a farm on 1 to 640 acres. It may be a condo, which presents some problems in that you can't independently own a structure and land, but your ownership is a share of a larger conglomeration. It may be a house in a suburb. But some form of ownership does provide a sound foundation for the security and independence of a person or household.
Lacking that, other forms of ownership can form a reasonable basis. Shares in ventures present problems for me due to my views on corporations presented in other posts. But under the current system, they are still a valid basis- provided there is some involvement in the corporation's business. Ownership of a small business is another basis.
The idea here, centrally, is ownership, instead of provided labor.
If you look at times in our history when the various versions of the American Dream are running along with a decent success rate, when standards of living are rising, when the outlooks are positive, you see a large amount of ownership on a yeoman level- a smaller, more independent level.
Startups, small contractors and technical businesses in the 40's and 50s, the hundreds of small ventures in every year of the 19th century. The general store, the craftsman, and still, the farmer.
These also, of course, create jobs. Not everyone is suited to, nor wants to be, a yeoman. That's okay- as long as the opportunity is present to progress, and to obtain even in the lowest manual laborer some secure ownership- be the preference and ability for a trailer or a hobby farm or a urban condo co-op.
The other side is an odd mating of the government dependence to provide a job for, and the corporate idea of ownership by a few who employ in an increasingly serf-like fashion, the public.
**
Here, of course, we run into the problems with the national party platforms.
One the one hand, you have the Democratic insistence that the government provide the meal ticket through any number of avenues from direct government employment to subsidizing jobs in companies the employee can have no stake in.
Even the most ardent pro-union Democrats (those who aren't advocating an actual socialism) don't include the idea of the employee becoming a stakeholder in the company providing the job.
On the other hand, you have the Republicans, who aim for a minimal amount of regulation and taxation in an effort for the corporatocracy to, apparently, become so wealthy they can generously provide jobs to the public. With but the barest passing nod to the idea of independent work and ownership.
***
Our nation is full of stories of the successful yeoman. Doctors, researchers, inventors, ranchers- heroes and villains both, of course. Depending on what they did with their success and how far it went.
We lack, increasingly, this core component of our nation. Oh, it's not gone, far from it! But it isn't being taught as an ideal, a goal, nor is it presented as a way out of the increasing economic trap.
This isn't easy to fix. It has become very core to our educational and social structure in many areas for long enough that no one alive can remember what we had before the Prussian Model of schooling and the factory/company man as employee.
Fix it we must. Our experiment in America isn't to create secure workers, it is to birth free, independent individuals.
I cannot stress how much our perceptions have changed. How much you have to look differently at ideas of consumption, jobs, retirement, and education to see another way. But try. Look sideways at everything- look from the perspective of an owner, a stakeholder, a yeoman. Does this or that thing increase your independence from - or your dependence on- government mandates? Corporate control?
**
A job is a good thing to have. Work is better (whether or not it is a job as an employee). The key to both is to provide an opportunity for stakeholding, ownership, pride, and a sense of civic virtue and duty.
Whether employed or not, give it a shot. Work on something independent- paying off your mortgage early, creating a cottage industry, working for a smaller corporation while owning a chunk of stock that matters. Something. You have nothing to lose but a few episodes of Survivor.
**
Recall the large bailout of the mortgage industry? We could have bailed them out by paying equity on individual home loans and reducing both the debt level and the negative aspects of the loans. But we didn't. We bailed out the banks themselves, directly- while providing governments with short term money to ...... provide jobs.
If I were to present an economic stimulus bill, it would be backed loans (and support for existing loans) for homes (at a reasonable market price, with some provisions for minimalizing profiteering), coupled with backed loans for businesses- without the red tape. Get people 3 or 6 months of security to start doing something- to start creating wealth.
We need to achieve a yeoman's nation. Not a return to a classic and outdated one. We need to create anew a modern yeoman's nation where the economic emphasis is not on increasing consumer spending, but on creating wealth- on the individual level.
We need to create a new, secure, yeoman's nation based on the ideas of individual independence and self-determination, not dependence on the government or large companies to provide support for increasing dependence through jobs and benefits without the liberty involved in ownership.
Jobs is a political sound bite. Jobs are paychecks and taxes, and a method for politicians to sound good.
Work is accomplishment and the feeling that you've done something worthwhile.
This brings up a point that I've been mulling over for quite a while- yeomanry.
The word yeoman has quite a history, but in the US it primarily referred in the past to the independent small landholder. Essentially small market and subsistence farmers, who formed the basis of Jeffersonian Democrats, who were then called the Republicans. (Obviously these labels have nothing to do with either the modern Republican or Democrat parties.)
There are a lot of things that go along with the classic yeoman basis of politics-
* Strict interpretation of Article I limiting the role of federal government.
* the idea that the independence of a landowner is the basic unit of honest civic virtue as you are more independent of the government and less likely to aggravate tendencies towards corruption.
* Foreign policy is designed to spread an "Empire of Liberty"
* the Bill of Rights is central to the prevention of tyranny
In modern terms, some changes need to be made to definitions and application, but you'll notice here that the later idea of the worker and the working class are not very compatible.
Let's expand the notion of the American Yeoman to include the cottage industry, the self employed, the small business owner. Yes, we've moved beyond smallhold agriculture as the primary basis for our economy.
Contrast the idea of the independent yeoman- who makes his business, farm, or work a basis for economic independence, with the worker- who demands someone provide a job, with a paycheck.
Often this becomes a situation where the job is demanded regardless of needs for the job, profit, or practicality. The idea is that the job should be guaranteed to exist, and be provided. In a sense, the civic virtue of creating wealth is replaced by the idea of entitlement to a job for support.
I really don't mean to sound harsh about this, most people want to do something productive and make a living. But our training- mandated in our school system- has shifted from making your way to the security of being employed.
To address education in detail at this point would likely not be very useful. But it is necessary to note that our education system has changed in a dramatic way from a largely private, locally oriented system to a Prussian Model government system that was created- openly- to create willing, submissive, workers. If you are a product of that system, some thought and revision of your views may be necessary to accept the idea that a nation of millions of independent yeomen could even operate.
I would like to present and idea, an updated version of yeomanry, some basis for moving forward in a world where industrial and production oriented employee systems cannot compete with the lower labor costs of nations that lack our guarantees of liberty and freedom.
I do think that free and unencumbered ownership of a physical space is a valid basis for a yeomanry. It may or may not be a farm on 1 to 640 acres. It may be a condo, which presents some problems in that you can't independently own a structure and land, but your ownership is a share of a larger conglomeration. It may be a house in a suburb. But some form of ownership does provide a sound foundation for the security and independence of a person or household.
Lacking that, other forms of ownership can form a reasonable basis. Shares in ventures present problems for me due to my views on corporations presented in other posts. But under the current system, they are still a valid basis- provided there is some involvement in the corporation's business. Ownership of a small business is another basis.
The idea here, centrally, is ownership, instead of provided labor.
If you look at times in our history when the various versions of the American Dream are running along with a decent success rate, when standards of living are rising, when the outlooks are positive, you see a large amount of ownership on a yeoman level- a smaller, more independent level.
Startups, small contractors and technical businesses in the 40's and 50s, the hundreds of small ventures in every year of the 19th century. The general store, the craftsman, and still, the farmer.
These also, of course, create jobs. Not everyone is suited to, nor wants to be, a yeoman. That's okay- as long as the opportunity is present to progress, and to obtain even in the lowest manual laborer some secure ownership- be the preference and ability for a trailer or a hobby farm or a urban condo co-op.
The other side is an odd mating of the government dependence to provide a job for, and the corporate idea of ownership by a few who employ in an increasingly serf-like fashion, the public.
**
Here, of course, we run into the problems with the national party platforms.
One the one hand, you have the Democratic insistence that the government provide the meal ticket through any number of avenues from direct government employment to subsidizing jobs in companies the employee can have no stake in.
Even the most ardent pro-union Democrats (those who aren't advocating an actual socialism) don't include the idea of the employee becoming a stakeholder in the company providing the job.
On the other hand, you have the Republicans, who aim for a minimal amount of regulation and taxation in an effort for the corporatocracy to, apparently, become so wealthy they can generously provide jobs to the public. With but the barest passing nod to the idea of independent work and ownership.
***
Our nation is full of stories of the successful yeoman. Doctors, researchers, inventors, ranchers- heroes and villains both, of course. Depending on what they did with their success and how far it went.
We lack, increasingly, this core component of our nation. Oh, it's not gone, far from it! But it isn't being taught as an ideal, a goal, nor is it presented as a way out of the increasing economic trap.
This isn't easy to fix. It has become very core to our educational and social structure in many areas for long enough that no one alive can remember what we had before the Prussian Model of schooling and the factory/company man as employee.
Fix it we must. Our experiment in America isn't to create secure workers, it is to birth free, independent individuals.
I cannot stress how much our perceptions have changed. How much you have to look differently at ideas of consumption, jobs, retirement, and education to see another way. But try. Look sideways at everything- look from the perspective of an owner, a stakeholder, a yeoman. Does this or that thing increase your independence from - or your dependence on- government mandates? Corporate control?
**
A job is a good thing to have. Work is better (whether or not it is a job as an employee). The key to both is to provide an opportunity for stakeholding, ownership, pride, and a sense of civic virtue and duty.
Whether employed or not, give it a shot. Work on something independent- paying off your mortgage early, creating a cottage industry, working for a smaller corporation while owning a chunk of stock that matters. Something. You have nothing to lose but a few episodes of Survivor.
**
Recall the large bailout of the mortgage industry? We could have bailed them out by paying equity on individual home loans and reducing both the debt level and the negative aspects of the loans. But we didn't. We bailed out the banks themselves, directly- while providing governments with short term money to ...... provide jobs.
If I were to present an economic stimulus bill, it would be backed loans (and support for existing loans) for homes (at a reasonable market price, with some provisions for minimalizing profiteering), coupled with backed loans for businesses- without the red tape. Get people 3 or 6 months of security to start doing something- to start creating wealth.
We need to achieve a yeoman's nation. Not a return to a classic and outdated one. We need to create anew a modern yeoman's nation where the economic emphasis is not on increasing consumer spending, but on creating wealth- on the individual level.
We need to create a new, secure, yeoman's nation based on the ideas of individual independence and self-determination, not dependence on the government or large companies to provide support for increasing dependence through jobs and benefits without the liberty involved in ownership.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Jobs
No, not Steve. But jobs- employment. Why the problem is both not nearly as bad- and much worse- than reports indicate.
The reason for both starts out the same- self employment.
Why is the problem is so much worse than reported?
1: We have a school system, and a culture for children, that is designed to create safe, dependent factory workers.
Never mind that the Prussian model schools are completely out of date- among the primary goals of the Prussian model are obedience- submissive compliance - taking orders, relying on an authority to some degree for security.
In an economy with a dangerous level of consumer dependence (70%!) all you have is work and spend. There's a very limited amount of creation, innovation, real change.
2: We have a legal and regulatory environment that makes it very difficult to bridge the gap between a "gray" one person cottage industry and a business capable of providing any number of jobs.
3: People are dependent on- or at least expect- the government to "provide jobs." The idea of making jobs is not central in any way to government (beyond getting votes), business (unless it increases profit far beyond the other benefits of creating the job), or society (go look for a job, instead of go make a job.)
4: Our economy is largely- 70% again- based on consuming things, not creating wealth and goods.
Wow, this sucks. Doom and Gloom.
But- why do I say the employment situation isn't as bad as reported?
Well, it boils down to independence. I once asked a friend, "Do you want a job, or do you want to make money?" She is now one of the more popular sheath makers for custom knives.
It's a rough road- especially for the 3rd through 5th generations of the Prussian model of education- but it's doable. As the economy worsens, or lags, more and more people are breaking out and making money in ways not tied to a boss/owner/workplace.
Yeah, if you make a "thing"- it has to be purchased- consumed. There's a level of balance in there somewhere. But it's not something you have to worry about anytime in the next generation. (I promise to dig into abundance economics and unlimited growth someday.)
Yeah, you have to be good enough to sell what you've made- or your services- and competitive. You have to deal with customer politics instead of office politics (and you've been trained from kindergarten on to defer to others. Yikes!)
But - the silver lining in our economic cloud- thousands, tens of thousands, or persons are breaking out of employee lives. Hopefully they won't jump back in first chance they get.
Open suggestion to our government representatives at all levels- by all means, SPEND A BUTTLOAD OF MONEY on infrastructure projects. Pork it up- but do it locally. no multi-state operations get contracts. No national or multinational corporations. Get the money as close as possible to the individual shoveling the gravel.
Then, deregulate small business. There's no way in hell I can produce enough pollution to match one unregulated chip factory or foundry. Let me be.
There's no way I can owe enough on taxes to make it worth the effort of full business tax accounting and audits, permits and special papers. Let me be.
The reason for both starts out the same- self employment.
Why is the problem is so much worse than reported?
1: We have a school system, and a culture for children, that is designed to create safe, dependent factory workers.
Never mind that the Prussian model schools are completely out of date- among the primary goals of the Prussian model are obedience- submissive compliance - taking orders, relying on an authority to some degree for security.
In an economy with a dangerous level of consumer dependence (70%!) all you have is work and spend. There's a very limited amount of creation, innovation, real change.
2: We have a legal and regulatory environment that makes it very difficult to bridge the gap between a "gray" one person cottage industry and a business capable of providing any number of jobs.
3: People are dependent on- or at least expect- the government to "provide jobs." The idea of making jobs is not central in any way to government (beyond getting votes), business (unless it increases profit far beyond the other benefits of creating the job), or society (go look for a job, instead of go make a job.)
4: Our economy is largely- 70% again- based on consuming things, not creating wealth and goods.
Wow, this sucks. Doom and Gloom.
But- why do I say the employment situation isn't as bad as reported?
Well, it boils down to independence. I once asked a friend, "Do you want a job, or do you want to make money?" She is now one of the more popular sheath makers for custom knives.
It's a rough road- especially for the 3rd through 5th generations of the Prussian model of education- but it's doable. As the economy worsens, or lags, more and more people are breaking out and making money in ways not tied to a boss/owner/workplace.
Yeah, if you make a "thing"- it has to be purchased- consumed. There's a level of balance in there somewhere. But it's not something you have to worry about anytime in the next generation. (I promise to dig into abundance economics and unlimited growth someday.)
Yeah, you have to be good enough to sell what you've made- or your services- and competitive. You have to deal with customer politics instead of office politics (and you've been trained from kindergarten on to defer to others. Yikes!)
But - the silver lining in our economic cloud- thousands, tens of thousands, or persons are breaking out of employee lives. Hopefully they won't jump back in first chance they get.
Open suggestion to our government representatives at all levels- by all means, SPEND A BUTTLOAD OF MONEY on infrastructure projects. Pork it up- but do it locally. no multi-state operations get contracts. No national or multinational corporations. Get the money as close as possible to the individual shoveling the gravel.
Then, deregulate small business. There's no way in hell I can produce enough pollution to match one unregulated chip factory or foundry. Let me be.
There's no way I can owe enough on taxes to make it worth the effort of full business tax accounting and audits, permits and special papers. Let me be.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
What is Progressivism?
Progressivism- what is it? What was it? And what has it done throughout history?
Progressivism is defined by Wikipedia as follows:
Progressivism is a political attitude favoring or advocating changes or reform through governmental action.
Wikipedia has a fairly good article, though it missed several areas. It does make some acknowledgement of the particular US form of Progressivism- but oddly equates Teddy and FDR.
Progressivism developed in the late 19th Century as a response to what I would describe as an advent of an American aristocracy- and even in some respects feudalism- that was a result of the Westward Expansion and Industrial Revolutions.
Researching Progressivism gets really difficult, as it's very hard to find objective writing. People polarize rapidly and strongly on this subject.
Two important sources to look at are:
The Heritage Foundation paper
A Georgetown course paper on the early history of Progressivism in the US
I'd also suggest looking at the Wikipedia article on Contemporary Progressivism (and follow the link to cosmopolitanism!)
The Heritage Foundation has an obvious bias, but it's a useful one.
Squaring the HF paper with Teddy Roosevelt is difficult at best- Teddy's Progressivism involved, yes, a strong case for the common (citizenry, through the government) ownership of wilderness. He saw government roles in preventing abuses - whether on the job or through anti-competitive means- of American citizens in the business.
This is a sore point all around our current debates, and stems from the idea that a corporation is a person (usually through application of the 14th Amendment.) I will, briefly, digress enough to state that I do not consider regulation of corporations as necessarily progressive, conservative, or classically liberal- it's a fundamental question of what a corporation is, which I'll explore more in depth later. (I touch on it briefly in this post.)
Accepting that corporations have a reason to be regulated- at least in terms of humane treatment of workers and allowance for fair competition in business, let's move on.
There are several major issues with TR - or "Bull Moose" Progressivism, but as it was corrupted nearly from the beginning and it is impossible to describe the pure form, let us look at Progressivism after the Roosevelt years.
In the Georgetown paper, you see Progressivist reform divided into 4 main areas: Democracy, Efficiency, Regulation of large business, and Social Justice.
The idea of more direct democracy is touchy. It sounds good- every vote, instantly, counts on every subject. The ultimate power of the sovereign franchise!
However:
"The natural aristocracy I consider as the most precious gift of nature
for the instruction, the trusts, and government of society. …May we not even say that that form of government is the best which provides the most effectually for a
pure selection of these natural aristoi into the offices of government?"
--Thomas Jefferson
"...All men are Created Equal...."
-- Thomas Jefferson
These wonderfully contrasting phrases are key to the problems inherent in moving away from our founding documents and ideas and towards the Progressive ideal of direct democracy (in some things, not all!) ---- the idea of a natural aristocracy, of a purpose in representation.
An aristocracy based on wealth, birth, and nepotism, according to Jefferson, is different from the natural aristoi. The government by the ideal persons of Jefferson- government by elected representatives- is different because:
1: The people- the common man- get to recognize and elect the leaders.
2: The difference, in Jefferson's philosophy, between the natural aristoi and the common man is a difference in degree, not a difference of type.
Thus, in a representative system, persons who have the patriotic, service, duty, and ability- the "elective spark"- serve, and the common man votes for or against and communicates with, the representatives of government.
In an aristocratic system, the difference of type is predominant- it is assumed that the aristocrat is better, different, born to rule. That a given man, by birth, is inherently different and greater than another man whose circumstances of birth are different.
Thus, the elective leadership, coming from the whole of the sovereign citzenry and not from a specific class.
The direct democracy of the progressive is highly susceptible to the voters limiting their view to immediate (and selfish) interests. It is also, demonstrably, susceptible to corruption (and provably breeds its own artificial aristocracy of professional controllers near instantaneously.)
Now, this isn't all bad- Progressives brought us a broader base of voters- enfranchising ALL citizens. Barring an argument I am philosophically tempted by- the timocracy of military/civil service veterans- I cannot see how a restriction of the franchise is a good thing. Recalls, secret ballots, and direct primaries are also a legacy of early Progressivism.
Yet..... Progressives don't operate on the basis of direct democracy- they push a professional class of persons to take care of real and imagined ills. Politicians, social workers, regulators.... the idea of direct democracy fails when you run into the progressive's non-elected bodies. Social services and the concomitant enforcement, rules, restrictions- the FCC - encroaching federal law enforcement agencies- executive branch councils on numerous industrial and business issues. The list is long, and most of us have been bitten at one time or another by an agency whose authority and management- and regulations- are not voted upon.
(Please note here, that I'm not labelling a particular party. Both the Democrats and the Republicans have at various times been under the influence of greater or lesser degrees of Progressivism. Hell, TR was a Republican!)
Thus, the representative has- in a working local political system- a set of controls based on his electorate, having his views and actions made public, and in having to be constantly reminded of an oath to care for more than his own selfish interests.
In a direct mass democracy, all things are subject to the whim of a mob- including the very legality of my existence as a member any one of several contentious groups. But because of the very nature of the whimsical structure, a "secret" class of oligarchs is necessary for actual operation of the government.
Efficiency.
One of the Progressive ideals is an efficient government. Aside from the never ending battles against corruption in any human affair, these efforts follow the primary platforms of centralisation and creating professional classes of actors in government.
I'm not sure where to start with how wrong this is. A government of, for, and by the people cannot be operated by a class of persons who are removed from- in essence are not- the people.
I would, for example, vastly prefer an inefficient government many of whose members come from rural areas (where I live) than a professional, highly urbanized class who will happily regulate my life without having ever washed an egg, butchered their own meat, nor harvested an orchard.
Of course, the definition of efficiency comes into play. Efficient at what, exactly? Efficient at operating government machinery and growing their authority, or efficient at enhancing and enabling my liberties?
Centralization is just another facet- when you take away the power of my county, or district, in favor of some hopefully more rational and efficient central authority- you remove my access to that authority, my supervision of that authority, and the relevance of the office or agency to my particular life.
And, in the end, it's about me. And you. And all the other individual, sovereign, citizens.
Third - and most laudable- in the Progressive dynamics is the regulation of large business.
Due to the acceptance of the idea of "corporate personhood" and the removal of the restrictions and checks on corporations and larger business- said concerns were able to be very abusive. Child labor laws, woman labor laws, the 40 hour work week, minimum wages; these are all a result, a direct result, of messing up with the idea of businesses as having rights in the first place.
I can't argue with the solutions. While they have obvious flaws, some sort of solutions are needful. Had our governments as a whole kept the necessary restriction on business in the first place, they may not have been.
(Then there's modern progressivism, which seems to think that corporate feudalism is okay as long as it's "nice".)
Fourth, and most dangerous, are the ideas of social justice and temperance.
I have no qualm with full and complete application of freedoms, liberties, and the guarantees of the Bill of Rights to every person- regardless of color, creed, or identity. In fact I think it is necessary.
On area where the Progressive movement seems to go wrong is with the idea of enforcement, creating governmental systems and professionals to enforce the (current) definition of social justice.
The most infamous example of Progressivism in this arena is the 18th Amendment. Production and consumption of alcohol was outlawed for our own good. (Yes, it was an Amendment, but it's instructive to examine how it came about)
Another primary factor in the area of social justice where the Progressives seem to do more damage- to liberties and freedoms certainly, to social cohesion most probably, and to actual social good possibly- is in the idea that social programs should be removed from churches, foundations, lodges and clubs. Entrusted instead into- again- the professional class of administrators and funded by mandatory taxation.
It is difficult to describe the exact methods of harm in this. But harmful it is. It leads to profiteering by way of governmental contracts, inequalities in service since no centralised authority can be familiar with local needs to the necessary level of granularity. It leads to decisions by government officials- non elective and not removable by nor answerable to the citizenry- of who gets what share, when.
In the modern sense, Progressivism has adopted several socialist and cosmopolitan aspects.
On the surface, the idea of cosmopolitanism sounds good- global equality in resources and prosperity under a shared morality.
Wait. Whose morality? I can't tell, and cannot seem to find a concise, clear statement. The UN Rights of Man isn't it- and the UN is too politically corrupt in its application for that to be trusted. So. Well, What is it?
It appears to NOT be a fundamental protection of rights. It appears to NOT be a fundamental increase in liberty. It is obviously NOT a fundamental increase in the ability of persons to operate independently in free associative groups (as regulation of what is and is not permissible is always a first factor in cosmopolitanism.)
What's the basis of the morality? Christian? Muslim? Hindu? Functionalist? "Anything but WASP?"
A shared morality means that you don't get to choose. Someone else is doing the choosing.
It's a reverse of the approach we adopted in the 18th century in America. You could call it top down- someone will determine what is fair, what you deserve, what is right and wrong.
Our nation was founded on the principles that you should be left to make those decisions- insomuch as it is possible within the bounds of a nation of states- on your own. For yourself. With the utmost in liberty and opportunity to try things for yourself.
Progressivism is defined by Wikipedia as follows:
Progressivism is a political attitude favoring or advocating changes or reform through governmental action.
Wikipedia has a fairly good article, though it missed several areas. It does make some acknowledgement of the particular US form of Progressivism- but oddly equates Teddy and FDR.
Progressivism developed in the late 19th Century as a response to what I would describe as an advent of an American aristocracy- and even in some respects feudalism- that was a result of the Westward Expansion and Industrial Revolutions.
Researching Progressivism gets really difficult, as it's very hard to find objective writing. People polarize rapidly and strongly on this subject.
Two important sources to look at are:
The Heritage Foundation paper
A Georgetown course paper on the early history of Progressivism in the US
I'd also suggest looking at the Wikipedia article on Contemporary Progressivism (and follow the link to cosmopolitanism!)
The Heritage Foundation has an obvious bias, but it's a useful one.
Squaring the HF paper with Teddy Roosevelt is difficult at best- Teddy's Progressivism involved, yes, a strong case for the common (citizenry, through the government) ownership of wilderness. He saw government roles in preventing abuses - whether on the job or through anti-competitive means- of American citizens in the business.
This is a sore point all around our current debates, and stems from the idea that a corporation is a person (usually through application of the 14th Amendment.) I will, briefly, digress enough to state that I do not consider regulation of corporations as necessarily progressive, conservative, or classically liberal- it's a fundamental question of what a corporation is, which I'll explore more in depth later. (I touch on it briefly in this post.)
Accepting that corporations have a reason to be regulated- at least in terms of humane treatment of workers and allowance for fair competition in business, let's move on.
There are several major issues with TR - or "Bull Moose" Progressivism, but as it was corrupted nearly from the beginning and it is impossible to describe the pure form, let us look at Progressivism after the Roosevelt years.
In the Georgetown paper, you see Progressivist reform divided into 4 main areas: Democracy, Efficiency, Regulation of large business, and Social Justice.
The idea of more direct democracy is touchy. It sounds good- every vote, instantly, counts on every subject. The ultimate power of the sovereign franchise!
However:
"The natural aristocracy I consider as the most precious gift of nature
for the instruction, the trusts, and government of society. …May we not even say that that form of government is the best which provides the most effectually for a
pure selection of these natural aristoi into the offices of government?"
--Thomas Jefferson
"...All men are Created Equal...."
-- Thomas Jefferson
These wonderfully contrasting phrases are key to the problems inherent in moving away from our founding documents and ideas and towards the Progressive ideal of direct democracy (in some things, not all!) ---- the idea of a natural aristocracy, of a purpose in representation.
An aristocracy based on wealth, birth, and nepotism, according to Jefferson, is different from the natural aristoi. The government by the ideal persons of Jefferson- government by elected representatives- is different because:
1: The people- the common man- get to recognize and elect the leaders.
2: The difference, in Jefferson's philosophy, between the natural aristoi and the common man is a difference in degree, not a difference of type.
Thus, in a representative system, persons who have the patriotic, service, duty, and ability- the "elective spark"- serve, and the common man votes for or against and communicates with, the representatives of government.
In an aristocratic system, the difference of type is predominant- it is assumed that the aristocrat is better, different, born to rule. That a given man, by birth, is inherently different and greater than another man whose circumstances of birth are different.
Thus, the elective leadership, coming from the whole of the sovereign citzenry and not from a specific class.
The direct democracy of the progressive is highly susceptible to the voters limiting their view to immediate (and selfish) interests. It is also, demonstrably, susceptible to corruption (and provably breeds its own artificial aristocracy of professional controllers near instantaneously.)
Now, this isn't all bad- Progressives brought us a broader base of voters- enfranchising ALL citizens. Barring an argument I am philosophically tempted by- the timocracy of military/civil service veterans- I cannot see how a restriction of the franchise is a good thing. Recalls, secret ballots, and direct primaries are also a legacy of early Progressivism.
Yet..... Progressives don't operate on the basis of direct democracy- they push a professional class of persons to take care of real and imagined ills. Politicians, social workers, regulators.... the idea of direct democracy fails when you run into the progressive's non-elected bodies. Social services and the concomitant enforcement, rules, restrictions- the FCC - encroaching federal law enforcement agencies- executive branch councils on numerous industrial and business issues. The list is long, and most of us have been bitten at one time or another by an agency whose authority and management- and regulations- are not voted upon.
(Please note here, that I'm not labelling a particular party. Both the Democrats and the Republicans have at various times been under the influence of greater or lesser degrees of Progressivism. Hell, TR was a Republican!)
Thus, the representative has- in a working local political system- a set of controls based on his electorate, having his views and actions made public, and in having to be constantly reminded of an oath to care for more than his own selfish interests.
In a direct mass democracy, all things are subject to the whim of a mob- including the very legality of my existence as a member any one of several contentious groups. But because of the very nature of the whimsical structure, a "secret" class of oligarchs is necessary for actual operation of the government.
Efficiency.
One of the Progressive ideals is an efficient government. Aside from the never ending battles against corruption in any human affair, these efforts follow the primary platforms of centralisation and creating professional classes of actors in government.
I'm not sure where to start with how wrong this is. A government of, for, and by the people cannot be operated by a class of persons who are removed from- in essence are not- the people.
I would, for example, vastly prefer an inefficient government many of whose members come from rural areas (where I live) than a professional, highly urbanized class who will happily regulate my life without having ever washed an egg, butchered their own meat, nor harvested an orchard.
Of course, the definition of efficiency comes into play. Efficient at what, exactly? Efficient at operating government machinery and growing their authority, or efficient at enhancing and enabling my liberties?
Centralization is just another facet- when you take away the power of my county, or district, in favor of some hopefully more rational and efficient central authority- you remove my access to that authority, my supervision of that authority, and the relevance of the office or agency to my particular life.
And, in the end, it's about me. And you. And all the other individual, sovereign, citizens.
Third - and most laudable- in the Progressive dynamics is the regulation of large business.
Due to the acceptance of the idea of "corporate personhood" and the removal of the restrictions and checks on corporations and larger business- said concerns were able to be very abusive. Child labor laws, woman labor laws, the 40 hour work week, minimum wages; these are all a result, a direct result, of messing up with the idea of businesses as having rights in the first place.
I can't argue with the solutions. While they have obvious flaws, some sort of solutions are needful. Had our governments as a whole kept the necessary restriction on business in the first place, they may not have been.
(Then there's modern progressivism, which seems to think that corporate feudalism is okay as long as it's "nice".)
Fourth, and most dangerous, are the ideas of social justice and temperance.
I have no qualm with full and complete application of freedoms, liberties, and the guarantees of the Bill of Rights to every person- regardless of color, creed, or identity. In fact I think it is necessary.
On area where the Progressive movement seems to go wrong is with the idea of enforcement, creating governmental systems and professionals to enforce the (current) definition of social justice.
The most infamous example of Progressivism in this arena is the 18th Amendment. Production and consumption of alcohol was outlawed for our own good. (Yes, it was an Amendment, but it's instructive to examine how it came about)
Another primary factor in the area of social justice where the Progressives seem to do more damage- to liberties and freedoms certainly, to social cohesion most probably, and to actual social good possibly- is in the idea that social programs should be removed from churches, foundations, lodges and clubs. Entrusted instead into- again- the professional class of administrators and funded by mandatory taxation.
It is difficult to describe the exact methods of harm in this. But harmful it is. It leads to profiteering by way of governmental contracts, inequalities in service since no centralised authority can be familiar with local needs to the necessary level of granularity. It leads to decisions by government officials- non elective and not removable by nor answerable to the citizenry- of who gets what share, when.
In the modern sense, Progressivism has adopted several socialist and cosmopolitan aspects.
On the surface, the idea of cosmopolitanism sounds good- global equality in resources and prosperity under a shared morality.
Wait. Whose morality? I can't tell, and cannot seem to find a concise, clear statement. The UN Rights of Man isn't it- and the UN is too politically corrupt in its application for that to be trusted. So. Well, What is it?
It appears to NOT be a fundamental protection of rights. It appears to NOT be a fundamental increase in liberty. It is obviously NOT a fundamental increase in the ability of persons to operate independently in free associative groups (as regulation of what is and is not permissible is always a first factor in cosmopolitanism.)
What's the basis of the morality? Christian? Muslim? Hindu? Functionalist? "Anything but WASP?"
A shared morality means that you don't get to choose. Someone else is doing the choosing.
It's a reverse of the approach we adopted in the 18th century in America. You could call it top down- someone will determine what is fair, what you deserve, what is right and wrong.
Our nation was founded on the principles that you should be left to make those decisions- insomuch as it is possible within the bounds of a nation of states- on your own. For yourself. With the utmost in liberty and opportunity to try things for yourself.
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