Our Parliament... And Theirs

It was good to read that Aristotle the Geek “agrees with everything” I have just written against Amartya Sen’s idea of Justice; and also what I have written on Eminent Domain.

That puts the two of us against three major league editors.

Note that this debate is occurring in a “para-parliament.” This is where actual people are speaking – not their representatives. This is where the real action happens. What people think on issues is the focal matter of “politics”; and real “political influence” is nothing more than the ability to influence public opinion on these issues.

It is here that the ideas of Liberty, Property and Justice – as expounded by the great classical liberals of yesteryears, which form the bedrock of modern libertarianism – are gaining ground.

And these twin debates – one on Amartya Sen’s idea of Justice and the other on land acquisition – are a welcome opportunity to spread these ideas.

The reason why these eminent editors have got it wrong is that they are not consistently “liberal” – in the classical sense. They hold views that do not consistently uphold the inviolability of property because they have not thought things through for themselves, in their own minds. I recommend to them Frederic Bastiat’s The Law.

Private property is what the entire ball game is about. We make India a great piece of real estate.

Which is why we stress land records, not ID cards.

[Jug Suraiya warns that compulsory ID cards will lead to police excesses.]

While all this action is happening in our para-parliament, Chacha Manmohan is going to bare all about Pakistan and terrorism in the Lok Sabha – of which I don’t think he is a member.

Recently, the Lok Sabha passed 8 bills in 17 minutes without debate. Parliament met for just 32 days last year. And almost every day the proceedings ended in an uproar.

Read the news here.

Cha Cha is going to talk to this parliament. A political leader must talk to the people.

Anyway, I am fed up about Pakistan and terrorism. I demand Liberty Under Law for all immediately. What matters is how you survive – which is The Free Market. Yeah, there may be some terrorists, Maoists or other violent creeps out there, but we trust in luck, in god, and in our own .45 Magnums to tackle such creeps. If Mumbaikars had been armed, they would have themselves eliminated the entire Kasab gang in a few hours. The State took a few days. And remember, a gun in the hand is better than a cop on the phone.

So let us forget about Cha Cha and the Lowk Sabha and Pakistan.

Let us think of Liberty.

Spread the news in your own para-parliament.