I had decided to move onwards from the protection of Life to the protection of Property – but a power outage, which is a fairly regular occurrence here, made me decide to digress awhile, to discuss Time, by which Life is measured.
All through the power cut, I wasted Time. This happens regularly all over India. Power cuts and traffic jams on broken roads waste a colossal amount of Time. Which is Life.
They say that when one person keeps 60 people waiting for one minute, he wastes one man-hour. Billions of man-hours are wasted in India because of our The State. Power cuts, traffic jams, queues and long procedures at government departments, broken highways, slow trains etc.
Yet, Time is the most important “factor of production.” Labour is paid according to Time. Rents on land and buildings are paid monthly. As is interest on Capital. A nation that wastes so much Time wastes all the other factors of production. It remains poor because it can hardly produce.
And there are only two ways of permanently increasing incomes – one, by increasing the amount of Capital employed alongside Labour; and two, which follows from the first, producing more in the same Time, which means increasing Productivity. Neither happens much in India. Hence permanent poverty.
I am therefore of the opinion that what India really needs is a TRANSPORTATIONAL REVOLUTION. Much can be achieved by people themselves buying cars, fast boats, airplanes and the like, but I would like to see the Public Purse invest heavily in a top-class roads infrastructure. Contrast the “common profit” derived from such a public investment to the cheap rice and rural works programmes of our The State.
So don’t vote. Think!
Your Time is your Life – and it is being wasted by The Socialist Democratic State.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
PoCG # 4: The Protection Of Human Life
Continuing on the theme of Civil Government, I was going to write today’s post on Property, when something in the news from Bangalore made me decide to write instead on Life, which comes before property. The news said that a traffic policeman on his motorcycle was knocked down and killed. I doubt whether you would get such news from anywhere else in the world.
Yes, it is true. Our cities are horribly unsafe. Whenever we go out on our pot-holed streets, we risk our lives. Our highways are a shame.
A Civil Government is established with the primary purpose of ensuring the protection of Life – and, secondly, the produce of life, which is Property. But Life comes first – that is, Human Life.
Since such a government is based on the bazaaroo culture, it follows the First Law of MacDonald’s: Thou Shalt Not Shoot The Customer. It is a culture of peaceful voluntary exchanges.
A bazaaroo culture does not go to war. The success of the culture, and the markets upon which it is based, depends entirely upon adding more and more “friendly strangers” to the overall catallaxy. This is how “economic growth” happens. In the bazaars, no one cares whether you are a Muslim or a Dalit: you are first and foremost The Customer – and you are always right. The bazaar seeks to include more and more customers within its fold. This includes foreigners.
Indeed, such an order does not only seek more customers, it also seeks more and more sellers of goods and services within it, because whenever anyone sells something he possesses the means to buy all other goods and services being offered on the market: Say's Law.
The bazaaroo culture seeks economic freedom for all comers, including foreigners – because this is how the market cattalaxy acquires energy. If the dancing ladies of Bombay are allowed to perform, the energy in the markets of Bombay increases. Every other businessman in Bombay prospers when this is so. The fact that foreign goods add to catallactic energy was visible every time we passed a smuggler's shop in the old days. Foreign cars, TVs, music systems, mobile phones, clothes, watches, cosmetics etc. have added to the energy in Indian markets. Kamal Nutt is an "uncivil" politician.
The core concerns of the bazaaroo culture are: Peace, and the peaceful inclusion of all friendly strangers within the urban market order. No one is to be excluded. All are welcome. There is no question of War; there is no question of discrimination. There is no “population problem”: indeed, the maxim is “the more the merrier.” Shopkeepers are happy when the markets are crowded. Buyers are happy when there are lots of shops, and all their shelves are overflowing with goods from all over the world.
This happens when the civil government follows Principles and protects all human Life, including foreigners; when the market order is inclusive.
Note how all the political parties contesting elections are silent on roads and road safety. None are talking about their duty of protecting Human Life within India, within our cities and towns, on our streets and highways. Over 100,000 people die on our unsafe roads every year. That is, more than 300 every day. More people die on Indian roads every day than were killed in the recent terrorist attack in Mumbai.
This would be a disgrace to any “civil government.”
If the political parties do talk about “security” it is to do with matters that strengthen the coercive powers of The State. They "play politics" with security - and this is the politics of a very "uncivil government." A good example is Advani's insistence on fencing the border with Bangladesh. It is good for the BSF and those who will get to build the fence. It is bad for India's urban catallaxies. Bangladeshis are friendly strangers. They are consumers. They are cheap labour. They are good for India.
The bazaaroo culture, which seeks to protect Life, is based on Peace – both internal and external – and the consequent extension of the market order. Its primary duties are to protect Life and Property.
Thus, the Congress talking of “protecting the poor” with cheap rice etc. is hogwash.
And as for the BJP, they are fomenting internal wars by making Varun Gandhi their mascot. Recall that Varun’s father, Sanjay Gandhi, did not approve of Human Life. And his mother, Meneka Gandhi prefers animal life.
So Don’t vote. Think!
In the meantime, here’s a quote from a Mises Institute scholar in a ToI story on the gold standard:
Robert Murphy, Adjunct Scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Alabama, USA, says, "A gold standard is essential today because it would force central banks to raise interest rates to their correct levels. In fact, it would work as a very good safety precaution, since it places a firm limit on how much inflation the central bank can create. Also, it's an excellent option for emerging economies like India, since any country with 100% gold backing for its currency would see its own currency appreciating against others, and more capital would begin flowing there.”
So we do not need money supplied by The State.
We need a Civil Government to protect Life & Property sincerely.
Safety, Property and Liberty – and Roads.
And Peace – internal as well as external.
I will continue this series tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Yes, it is true. Our cities are horribly unsafe. Whenever we go out on our pot-holed streets, we risk our lives. Our highways are a shame.
A Civil Government is established with the primary purpose of ensuring the protection of Life – and, secondly, the produce of life, which is Property. But Life comes first – that is, Human Life.
Since such a government is based on the bazaaroo culture, it follows the First Law of MacDonald’s: Thou Shalt Not Shoot The Customer. It is a culture of peaceful voluntary exchanges.
A bazaaroo culture does not go to war. The success of the culture, and the markets upon which it is based, depends entirely upon adding more and more “friendly strangers” to the overall catallaxy. This is how “economic growth” happens. In the bazaars, no one cares whether you are a Muslim or a Dalit: you are first and foremost The Customer – and you are always right. The bazaar seeks to include more and more customers within its fold. This includes foreigners.
Indeed, such an order does not only seek more customers, it also seeks more and more sellers of goods and services within it, because whenever anyone sells something he possesses the means to buy all other goods and services being offered on the market: Say's Law.
The bazaaroo culture seeks economic freedom for all comers, including foreigners – because this is how the market cattalaxy acquires energy. If the dancing ladies of Bombay are allowed to perform, the energy in the markets of Bombay increases. Every other businessman in Bombay prospers when this is so. The fact that foreign goods add to catallactic energy was visible every time we passed a smuggler's shop in the old days. Foreign cars, TVs, music systems, mobile phones, clothes, watches, cosmetics etc. have added to the energy in Indian markets. Kamal Nutt is an "uncivil" politician.
The core concerns of the bazaaroo culture are: Peace, and the peaceful inclusion of all friendly strangers within the urban market order. No one is to be excluded. All are welcome. There is no question of War; there is no question of discrimination. There is no “population problem”: indeed, the maxim is “the more the merrier.” Shopkeepers are happy when the markets are crowded. Buyers are happy when there are lots of shops, and all their shelves are overflowing with goods from all over the world.
This happens when the civil government follows Principles and protects all human Life, including foreigners; when the market order is inclusive.
Note how all the political parties contesting elections are silent on roads and road safety. None are talking about their duty of protecting Human Life within India, within our cities and towns, on our streets and highways. Over 100,000 people die on our unsafe roads every year. That is, more than 300 every day. More people die on Indian roads every day than were killed in the recent terrorist attack in Mumbai.
This would be a disgrace to any “civil government.”
If the political parties do talk about “security” it is to do with matters that strengthen the coercive powers of The State. They "play politics" with security - and this is the politics of a very "uncivil government." A good example is Advani's insistence on fencing the border with Bangladesh. It is good for the BSF and those who will get to build the fence. It is bad for India's urban catallaxies. Bangladeshis are friendly strangers. They are consumers. They are cheap labour. They are good for India.
The bazaaroo culture, which seeks to protect Life, is based on Peace – both internal and external – and the consequent extension of the market order. Its primary duties are to protect Life and Property.
Thus, the Congress talking of “protecting the poor” with cheap rice etc. is hogwash.
And as for the BJP, they are fomenting internal wars by making Varun Gandhi their mascot. Recall that Varun’s father, Sanjay Gandhi, did not approve of Human Life. And his mother, Meneka Gandhi prefers animal life.
So Don’t vote. Think!
In the meantime, here’s a quote from a Mises Institute scholar in a ToI story on the gold standard:
Robert Murphy, Adjunct Scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Alabama, USA, says, "A gold standard is essential today because it would force central banks to raise interest rates to their correct levels. In fact, it would work as a very good safety precaution, since it places a firm limit on how much inflation the central bank can create. Also, it's an excellent option for emerging economies like India, since any country with 100% gold backing for its currency would see its own currency appreciating against others, and more capital would begin flowing there.”
So we do not need money supplied by The State.
We need a Civil Government to protect Life & Property sincerely.
Safety, Property and Liberty – and Roads.
And Peace – internal as well as external.
I will continue this series tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
PoCG # 3: Subsidiarity
It is election time in socialist India, and our excursion into the basic principles of “civil government” has already established the fact that something is very wrong with “government” throughout India; this, despite the fact that The State is quite strong.
But The State is just Laputa. It comes From On High. Note that it attempts to “represent” The Collective: The Nation. Wee The Sheeple.
And recall my defence of individualism, in which I had showed how we are all competing individuals in urban catallaxies, serving strangers and being served by strangers, and there is no “we” at all.
Our society is a failure today because the collectivist philosophy is wrong. We need to build local governments where we all matter as contributing individuals. Of course, these can all be run on auto-pilot if Principles are followed.
With arbitraryism, the absence of principles, the consequent entry of the government into areas it does not belong, and its inability to attend to any of its basic duties, coupled with a public treasury that is in disarray, all that The State can do is “firefighting.” Every day a new crisis occurs, every day a new legislation is passed, and another one proposed, and every day it is seen that nothing is working at the level of the City and Town.
Especially The Road.
And it is The Road that holds the key to a bright urban future, the spread of population, widespread settlements all organically linked to cities and their markets, and a betterment of life for both the urban as well as the rural populations.
Note how “rural development” has completely failed despite zillions being spent on it. It failed because it is based on wrong principles. Markets are urban. The winds of commerce must therefore blow from city to the village – and roads are crucial for this purpose.
So our greatest task as a people lies in establishing political arrangements to run our cities and towns, with our own resources. The first Principle at this foundational stage of civil government is Subsidiarity.
The Principle of Subsidiarity states that nothing should be asked of the local government that can be supplied by the people themselves, either as businessmen or charities. Even at this foundational stage, this Principle has huge implications for innumerable tasks that governments have taken on – from supplying money, to education, to healthcare, to ration shops for the poor.
The Principle of Subsidiarity, if strictly applied at the foundational stage of Civil Government – the level of the City or Town – will lead to a small government, one that will require a small public collection to administer. I believe this to be of vital importance: this is the Key to keeping government small and local – that is, “civil.”
Of course, there will be some things we all need but these local governments cannot provide – like, say, trans sub-continental highways and maglev railways – and for these higher levels of government will be required to solve these problems and provide these goods. But if the Principle of Subsidiarity is applied throughout the scheme of building a new civil government, then there will be very little for The State sitting in New Delhi to bother itself about, or bother us about.
Do not forget that in Switzerland, where they have direct democracy and 26 “cantons” that fly their own flags, and three languages, not many people know the name of their country’s president. Such polities are very good. There is no tyranny.
I will continue these discussions tomorrow.
In the meantime, on voting and elections, here is something Tavleen Singh wrote in her Sunday column entitled “Pity the poor Indian voter”:
The BJP manifesto comes as confirmation that it is not a party worth voting for. It is nothing more than a copy of the Congress Party without the royal family. And, with some ugly saffron accoutrements and a very old Leader. In the words of a friend in the Congress Party, “We may not look so good but we know that the BJP looks much worse than us.”
The Congress is happy with the competition it has allowed into this “socialist democracy.”
So Don’t vote. Think!
But The State is just Laputa. It comes From On High. Note that it attempts to “represent” The Collective: The Nation. Wee The Sheeple.
And recall my defence of individualism, in which I had showed how we are all competing individuals in urban catallaxies, serving strangers and being served by strangers, and there is no “we” at all.
Our society is a failure today because the collectivist philosophy is wrong. We need to build local governments where we all matter as contributing individuals. Of course, these can all be run on auto-pilot if Principles are followed.
With arbitraryism, the absence of principles, the consequent entry of the government into areas it does not belong, and its inability to attend to any of its basic duties, coupled with a public treasury that is in disarray, all that The State can do is “firefighting.” Every day a new crisis occurs, every day a new legislation is passed, and another one proposed, and every day it is seen that nothing is working at the level of the City and Town.
Especially The Road.
And it is The Road that holds the key to a bright urban future, the spread of population, widespread settlements all organically linked to cities and their markets, and a betterment of life for both the urban as well as the rural populations.
Note how “rural development” has completely failed despite zillions being spent on it. It failed because it is based on wrong principles. Markets are urban. The winds of commerce must therefore blow from city to the village – and roads are crucial for this purpose.
So our greatest task as a people lies in establishing political arrangements to run our cities and towns, with our own resources. The first Principle at this foundational stage of civil government is Subsidiarity.
The Principle of Subsidiarity states that nothing should be asked of the local government that can be supplied by the people themselves, either as businessmen or charities. Even at this foundational stage, this Principle has huge implications for innumerable tasks that governments have taken on – from supplying money, to education, to healthcare, to ration shops for the poor.
The Principle of Subsidiarity, if strictly applied at the foundational stage of Civil Government – the level of the City or Town – will lead to a small government, one that will require a small public collection to administer. I believe this to be of vital importance: this is the Key to keeping government small and local – that is, “civil.”
Of course, there will be some things we all need but these local governments cannot provide – like, say, trans sub-continental highways and maglev railways – and for these higher levels of government will be required to solve these problems and provide these goods. But if the Principle of Subsidiarity is applied throughout the scheme of building a new civil government, then there will be very little for The State sitting in New Delhi to bother itself about, or bother us about.
Do not forget that in Switzerland, where they have direct democracy and 26 “cantons” that fly their own flags, and three languages, not many people know the name of their country’s president. Such polities are very good. There is no tyranny.
I will continue these discussions tomorrow.
In the meantime, on voting and elections, here is something Tavleen Singh wrote in her Sunday column entitled “Pity the poor Indian voter”:
The BJP manifesto comes as confirmation that it is not a party worth voting for. It is nothing more than a copy of the Congress Party without the royal family. And, with some ugly saffron accoutrements and a very old Leader. In the words of a friend in the Congress Party, “We may not look so good but we know that the BJP looks much worse than us.”
The Congress is happy with the competition it has allowed into this “socialist democracy.”
So Don’t vote. Think!
Saturday, April 4, 2009
PoCG # 2: For Mayors, Not MPs
In the previous post, the introduction to “civil government,” it was seen that the roots of such government lie in independent cities and towns, which run their own affairs. In Europe, such institutions of urban self-government go back over 1000 years. Their greatest flowering was the Hanseatic League of pan-Europe free trading and self-governing cities – which Toynbee, with regret, called an “aborted civilization.”
While at the German embassy to renew my visa, I was happy to see a EU poster on the wall recalling the lost glories of the Hanseatic League. One of the leading German Hansa cities was Hamburg – which remains a free city till today: it is a separate state of the German federation, and Europe’s greatest port city.
Note that civil government has nothing to do with village republics – the Gandhian vision of panchayati raj. Civil government is about wealthy urban societies who trade in markets and desire to see that their cities, and their markets, always flourish. Cities and towns are where the roots of civil government lie.
Note how the “politics” in our cities and towns today has nothing to do with the “citizenry.” Whenever a “political rally” is held in a city, hordes of villagers are brought in from the surrounds. The citizen stays at home. He hates the traffic jams this “politics” causes.
Therefore, the first “political” task before the India’s urbanites is to set up honest institutions of local self-government in every city and town. There are many alternatives available. Perhaps the easiest is to elect one good man into office and ask him to “contract out” all the tasks expected of the city administration. Thus, he awards garbage contracts, roads contracts and so on, without any big bureaucracy to bother about. Indeed, I was told of a city in New Zealand where this was tried, with great success, and the news was that they have now sold their grand old Mayoral building – which is now a casino. The city managers meet in a café and sort out their affairs over coffee. No permanent office space.
So have Hope: It can be done. And done well. Millions are doing it.
But the idea must come first: That it is all about our own cities and towns. These are the roots of civilization and civil society, of markets and progress.
I was once lecturing in the district of Chikmagalur, Karnataka, a prosperous coffee growing and hilly district on the western ghats. This district once elected Indira Gandhi. At a local school, in a town that had no footpaths, and where the main street was full of holes, I asked the little boys and girls whether they would prefer to elect someone to take care of their own town or send someone off to far-away Delhi. I am happy to report that the entire class unanimously said that they would prefer to elect a Mayor than an MP.
So Think!
Don’t vote.
And stay tuned: The series continues tomorrow.
While at the German embassy to renew my visa, I was happy to see a EU poster on the wall recalling the lost glories of the Hanseatic League. One of the leading German Hansa cities was Hamburg – which remains a free city till today: it is a separate state of the German federation, and Europe’s greatest port city.
Note that civil government has nothing to do with village republics – the Gandhian vision of panchayati raj. Civil government is about wealthy urban societies who trade in markets and desire to see that their cities, and their markets, always flourish. Cities and towns are where the roots of civil government lie.
Note how the “politics” in our cities and towns today has nothing to do with the “citizenry.” Whenever a “political rally” is held in a city, hordes of villagers are brought in from the surrounds. The citizen stays at home. He hates the traffic jams this “politics” causes.
Therefore, the first “political” task before the India’s urbanites is to set up honest institutions of local self-government in every city and town. There are many alternatives available. Perhaps the easiest is to elect one good man into office and ask him to “contract out” all the tasks expected of the city administration. Thus, he awards garbage contracts, roads contracts and so on, without any big bureaucracy to bother about. Indeed, I was told of a city in New Zealand where this was tried, with great success, and the news was that they have now sold their grand old Mayoral building – which is now a casino. The city managers meet in a café and sort out their affairs over coffee. No permanent office space.
So have Hope: It can be done. And done well. Millions are doing it.
But the idea must come first: That it is all about our own cities and towns. These are the roots of civilization and civil society, of markets and progress.
I was once lecturing in the district of Chikmagalur, Karnataka, a prosperous coffee growing and hilly district on the western ghats. This district once elected Indira Gandhi. At a local school, in a town that had no footpaths, and where the main street was full of holes, I asked the little boys and girls whether they would prefer to elect someone to take care of their own town or send someone off to far-away Delhi. I am happy to report that the entire class unanimously said that they would prefer to elect a Mayor than an MP.
So Think!
Don’t vote.
And stay tuned: The series continues tomorrow.
On The Principles of Civil Government - 1
The release today of the manifesto of the BJP makes it all the more imperative that we begin a step-by-step understanding of the Principles under which Civil Government (not military government, not party government, not bureaucratic government) is established.
The idea of “civil government” implies a government by members of “civil society” – that is, those who survive through voluntary exchanges in the markets. They are not soldiers, they are not aristocrats, nor bureaucrats. They are not necessarily all businessmen – for the free market also sustains all the creative artists, like Sanjay Dutt. It is these people who get together in their respective Cities to form “civil government” – and the word “civil” has its root in the Latin word civitas, which means “city.” Markets are located in cities. There are also lots and lots of people in cities, which makes it necessary to form some institutions for attending to common needs and interests – especially roads, which no individual will build. In Europe, from where we obtain our ideas of Civil Government, mayors and buergermeisters are very old institutions. The institution of the Lord Mayor of the ancient City of London is older than the Magna Carta; that is, older than “constitutional government.”
India is a land of horrible cities and towns – while “government” is all about The State. Advani’s manifesto promises to build a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya when they control The State. Missing from the picture is the Mayor of Ayodhya. There is no “civil government” in Ayodhya. There is no root Their The State From On High has in Civil Society. They are floating on an island far above the people, as in Gulliver’s story of Laputa. Further, temples are built by institutions of piety – not The State.
Both the Congress and the BJP are talking of a “right to food” – but it is a matter of record that Lord Mayors of London always took strict measures to discourage beggary. A “civil government” is not a charitable institution. In their private lives, the mayors donated hugely towards charitable causes. But the civil government’s purpose is not charity. The people of Laputa-On-High have got all their fundas wrong.
It is interesting to note that the manifesto of the BJP has nothing in it for people who live through market exchanges. Indeed, they have promised not to allow FDI in retail – a very stupid thing to do. Like the rest, they do not believe in free trade and free markets. They do not believe in Economic Freedom – the end of The Predatory State. This, of course, would be top on the agenda of any truly “civil government.” The idea of a “constitutional civil service,” which we in India are supposed to be possessed of, is not predatory. They have become so because of 60 years of uncivil government. They have become a party bureaucracy – tools of “party government.”
The BJP manifesto offers tax-free status to the armed forces – who are not “civil society.” They have also promised to fight Maoist insurgents using a “Chattisgarh model.” As far as I know, Chattisgarh is not a model for anything but chaos. A civil government in Chattisgarh would be solidly based on the morality of trading in mahua – the local drink. And handia – the local brew. Just as feni and urak are freely sold in Goa.
The manifesto of the BJP makes it obvious that there is no truly civil politics in India, based on cities and markets. For such a bazaaroo hukumat, the top priority would be Roads, Electricity and Water – and the roads would be used to add to the overall supply of urban land, so that all citizens can afford themselves a decent urban accommodation. Roads add to the “common profit of the realm.” They are good for any “commonwealth.” All these ideals are totally alien to our political parties.
In any case, sitting here in sunny Goa, I find nothing in either the Congress or the BJP manifestoes that would strike a common chord with the people here – who need roads and reliable electricity, and not much else from government apart from the proper administration of their cities and towns.
And free trade and free markets. And complete economic freedom. And a rule of law based on the inviolability of private property.
The sad fact is that Goa is lost in the labyrinth of “national politics” – all about Their The State from On High.
I will continue on the Principles of Civil Government tomorrow.
In the meantime, readers are recommend two articles from LRC that are really worth reading.
The first is titled “Gold, Guns and Secession,” and talks about the ideas that are now spreading across the states of the USA, where states have the right to secede.
The second is on the G-20, titled "How Morgan Stanley Says to Sell S&P 500," on what should be called the "new world disorder."
Both these articles were top ranked by LRC readers last week.
Enjoy the read.
And Think!
Don’t vote.
The idea of “civil government” implies a government by members of “civil society” – that is, those who survive through voluntary exchanges in the markets. They are not soldiers, they are not aristocrats, nor bureaucrats. They are not necessarily all businessmen – for the free market also sustains all the creative artists, like Sanjay Dutt. It is these people who get together in their respective Cities to form “civil government” – and the word “civil” has its root in the Latin word civitas, which means “city.” Markets are located in cities. There are also lots and lots of people in cities, which makes it necessary to form some institutions for attending to common needs and interests – especially roads, which no individual will build. In Europe, from where we obtain our ideas of Civil Government, mayors and buergermeisters are very old institutions. The institution of the Lord Mayor of the ancient City of London is older than the Magna Carta; that is, older than “constitutional government.”
India is a land of horrible cities and towns – while “government” is all about The State. Advani’s manifesto promises to build a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya when they control The State. Missing from the picture is the Mayor of Ayodhya. There is no “civil government” in Ayodhya. There is no root Their The State From On High has in Civil Society. They are floating on an island far above the people, as in Gulliver’s story of Laputa. Further, temples are built by institutions of piety – not The State.
Both the Congress and the BJP are talking of a “right to food” – but it is a matter of record that Lord Mayors of London always took strict measures to discourage beggary. A “civil government” is not a charitable institution. In their private lives, the mayors donated hugely towards charitable causes. But the civil government’s purpose is not charity. The people of Laputa-On-High have got all their fundas wrong.
It is interesting to note that the manifesto of the BJP has nothing in it for people who live through market exchanges. Indeed, they have promised not to allow FDI in retail – a very stupid thing to do. Like the rest, they do not believe in free trade and free markets. They do not believe in Economic Freedom – the end of The Predatory State. This, of course, would be top on the agenda of any truly “civil government.” The idea of a “constitutional civil service,” which we in India are supposed to be possessed of, is not predatory. They have become so because of 60 years of uncivil government. They have become a party bureaucracy – tools of “party government.”
The BJP manifesto offers tax-free status to the armed forces – who are not “civil society.” They have also promised to fight Maoist insurgents using a “Chattisgarh model.” As far as I know, Chattisgarh is not a model for anything but chaos. A civil government in Chattisgarh would be solidly based on the morality of trading in mahua – the local drink. And handia – the local brew. Just as feni and urak are freely sold in Goa.
The manifesto of the BJP makes it obvious that there is no truly civil politics in India, based on cities and markets. For such a bazaaroo hukumat, the top priority would be Roads, Electricity and Water – and the roads would be used to add to the overall supply of urban land, so that all citizens can afford themselves a decent urban accommodation. Roads add to the “common profit of the realm.” They are good for any “commonwealth.” All these ideals are totally alien to our political parties.
In any case, sitting here in sunny Goa, I find nothing in either the Congress or the BJP manifestoes that would strike a common chord with the people here – who need roads and reliable electricity, and not much else from government apart from the proper administration of their cities and towns.
And free trade and free markets. And complete economic freedom. And a rule of law based on the inviolability of private property.
The sad fact is that Goa is lost in the labyrinth of “national politics” – all about Their The State from On High.
I will continue on the Principles of Civil Government tomorrow.
In the meantime, readers are recommend two articles from LRC that are really worth reading.
The first is titled “Gold, Guns and Secession,” and talks about the ideas that are now spreading across the states of the USA, where states have the right to secede.
The second is on the G-20, titled "How Morgan Stanley Says to Sell S&P 500," on what should be called the "new world disorder."
Both these articles were top ranked by LRC readers last week.
Enjoy the read.
And Think!
Don’t vote.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
On the G-20 April Fool Joke etc.
Actually, Vipin has made a mistake in understanding how China has its surplus. Vipin commented that this was because they taxed their people. Not so. China exports billions worth of goods to the USA and lends all its earnings back to the US government by investing in US Treasury bills. The critical problem is that the US government does not have the ability to redeem these bills in anything but devalued paper dollars.
Do watch this video of Ron Paul on the floor of the US parliament during the debate on the US budget. He says that the actual deficit will be much more than the forecast. The US budget deficit is likely to be over 2 trillion dollars. Ron Paul says that this is “unsustainable.”
Ron Paul adds that governments do not go bankrupt: they simply default on their debts and repay them with bad money. This has the effect of reducing the real debt – via inflation. Of course, this penalizes savers and subsidizes borrowers. But this is all that the US government can do. If inflation rises by 25 per cent, the US reduces its debts by 25 per cent.
Therefore, all this talk of the G-20 “stimulating” the world economy to the tune of 1 trillion dollars is nonsense. It is a big April Fool joke on the world. Most of these governments are broke. This is the end game.
Of course, under a classical gold standard none of these problems would arise. If China had a trillion dollar trade surplus with the USA, a trillion dollars of gold would be transferred from the USA to China. This would raise prices in China, gradually offsetting China’s export advantage. China would export less and import more. The US would import less and export more. The system would be capable of achieving balance naturally.
Ron Paul laments the fact that the USA has become a “welfare-warfare state” and that the American people need to ask themselves the fundamental question once again: For what purpose have they constituted a government? Does the government exist to bail out entrepreneurs who make losses? Does the government exist in order to take over the rightful sphere of private charity?
Yes, we too need to ask ourselves fundamental questions of this kind. The critical problem of our time is not that capitalism has failed. On the contrary, the real problem is that Big Government – the “nanny state” funded by fiat paper – has failed. We need to get back to the drawing boards and redesign government. For this we need Principles. I will write on these Principles tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Do watch this video of Ron Paul on the floor of the US parliament during the debate on the US budget. He says that the actual deficit will be much more than the forecast. The US budget deficit is likely to be over 2 trillion dollars. Ron Paul says that this is “unsustainable.”
Ron Paul adds that governments do not go bankrupt: they simply default on their debts and repay them with bad money. This has the effect of reducing the real debt – via inflation. Of course, this penalizes savers and subsidizes borrowers. But this is all that the US government can do. If inflation rises by 25 per cent, the US reduces its debts by 25 per cent.
Therefore, all this talk of the G-20 “stimulating” the world economy to the tune of 1 trillion dollars is nonsense. It is a big April Fool joke on the world. Most of these governments are broke. This is the end game.
Of course, under a classical gold standard none of these problems would arise. If China had a trillion dollar trade surplus with the USA, a trillion dollars of gold would be transferred from the USA to China. This would raise prices in China, gradually offsetting China’s export advantage. China would export less and import more. The US would import less and export more. The system would be capable of achieving balance naturally.
Ron Paul laments the fact that the USA has become a “welfare-warfare state” and that the American people need to ask themselves the fundamental question once again: For what purpose have they constituted a government? Does the government exist to bail out entrepreneurs who make losses? Does the government exist in order to take over the rightful sphere of private charity?
Yes, we too need to ask ourselves fundamental questions of this kind. The critical problem of our time is not that capitalism has failed. On the contrary, the real problem is that Big Government – the “nanny state” funded by fiat paper – has failed. We need to get back to the drawing boards and redesign government. For this we need Principles. I will write on these Principles tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Gone To The Dogs
The news that Jagdish Tytler, Congress goon and Sanjay Gandhi crony, has been given a clean chit by the CBI in a case pertaining to the anti-Sikh pogrom in Delhi in 1984 – exactly 25 years ago – is shocking, to say the least.
Tytler will be contesting the Lok Sabha elections from New Delhi, on a Congress ticket.
In the meantime, Sanjay Dutt has been debarred.
And the BJP is playing politics with Varun Gandhi.
Does anything seem right in this picture?
Is this the “rule of law”?
Or is this arbitraryism, the hallmark of tyranny?
A clear case of unprincipled government.
And what is our dear prime minister, Chacha Manmohan S Gandhi, doing? Yeah, he is in London, advising the G-20 to shun protectionism – while it was his trade minister, Kamal Nutt, who single-handedly scuttled the WTO: Nutt is politely referred to as "the one-man roadblock" in WTO circles.
And Chacha is a Sikh!
Following him into 10, Downing Street was Chela Montek – another Sikh!
Chela is an IMF man. Chacha has demanded more funds for the IMF (and the ADB).
Chacha has also given an interview to the Financial Times of London where he was asked: What is the future of capitalism, especially in India?
Chacha’s reply: “Capitalism with a human face. We are a mixed economy. We will remain a mixed economy. The public and private sector will continue to play a very important role. The private sector in our country has very ample scope and I am confident that India’s entrepreneurs have the capacity, and they will to rise to the occasion.”
In other words, capitalism in India will continue to have an inhuman face – Nehru’s. And we will remain a “mixed-up economy.”
What is the right word?
Hypocrisy?
Mendacity?
Don’t vote for the Congress.
Don’t vote for the BJP.
Don’t vote period.
Think!
The country has gone to the dogs – the dogs of democratic socialism.
Tytler will be contesting the Lok Sabha elections from New Delhi, on a Congress ticket.
In the meantime, Sanjay Dutt has been debarred.
And the BJP is playing politics with Varun Gandhi.
Does anything seem right in this picture?
Is this the “rule of law”?
Or is this arbitraryism, the hallmark of tyranny?
A clear case of unprincipled government.
And what is our dear prime minister, Chacha Manmohan S Gandhi, doing? Yeah, he is in London, advising the G-20 to shun protectionism – while it was his trade minister, Kamal Nutt, who single-handedly scuttled the WTO: Nutt is politely referred to as "the one-man roadblock" in WTO circles.
And Chacha is a Sikh!
Following him into 10, Downing Street was Chela Montek – another Sikh!
Chela is an IMF man. Chacha has demanded more funds for the IMF (and the ADB).
Chacha has also given an interview to the Financial Times of London where he was asked: What is the future of capitalism, especially in India?
Chacha’s reply: “Capitalism with a human face. We are a mixed economy. We will remain a mixed economy. The public and private sector will continue to play a very important role. The private sector in our country has very ample scope and I am confident that India’s entrepreneurs have the capacity, and they will to rise to the occasion.”
In other words, capitalism in India will continue to have an inhuman face – Nehru’s. And we will remain a “mixed-up economy.”
What is the right word?
Hypocrisy?
Mendacity?
Don’t vote for the Congress.
Don’t vote for the BJP.
Don’t vote period.
Think!
The country has gone to the dogs – the dogs of democratic socialism.
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