THE LIBERTARIAN ENTERPRISE Number 464, April 20, 2008 "One Dollar Gas? Vote Libertarian!" Attribute to The Libertarian Enterprise Years ago Marxists spoke of the Class Struggle, the fight between the drones who enjoyed society's wealth and the workers who created it. Communism collapsed nearly two decades ago, even the nations controlled by nominal communists practice de facto capitalism to various degrees. The concept of class struggle should have been swept into the "dustbin of history." The American Democratic and Republican Parties missed the memo. Actually, it's more like they refused to accept delivery. The result is that the Democrats keep promising to use the tax and welfare system to "take from the rich and give to the poor." The Republicans aver that they will keep the poor from stealing the wealth of the upper classes. They promote antagonism between rich and poor, and act to do everything they can to assure that a privileged elite continues to run America, whether this elite is made up of socialistically inclined bureaucrats picking and choosing who gets jobs and benefits or if it is corporate CEO's who decide who gets raises, promotions, bonuses, etc. for reasons other than productivity. The fact is there is enough wealth to go around, create an America (and world) where everyone is decently fed, clothed, sheltered and provided with health care. We can educate everyone to best use their talents. Maybe it's speeding up the rate of letting new technology hit the market by eliminating or at least reducing government regulatory hoops. Maybe it's the elimination or at least reduction of taxes. Maybe it's actually getting serious about the space program again, if you favor government interventionism. The fact is that there are enough ways to free up existing wealth or creating new wealth that continuing the present politics of class struggle is a waste of wealth. It does keep the Demicans in power, even if it is at the expense of America's productive classes: the workers, entrepreneurs, and investors but that's all class struggle politics accomplishes H. Beam Piper wrote of a world in which the ruling class trashed their productivity to maintain a society based on chattel slavery. Will we continue to tolerate a ruling class that impoverishes the rest of us through taxation and the discouragement of innovation so that the politics of class struggle and invidiousness can be continued?
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