Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Frustrated by Hope
I've never been so frustrated by other people's 'hope' so much. People seem to think Obama will ride in on a golden chariot powered by winged horses to create jobs, fix the healthcare system, slay the evil profitmongers of Wall Street, and usher in world peace. I've got bad news for them - it ain't gonna happen. All he can do is more of the same things that caused these problems to begin with.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
If You Didn’t Vote, You Can Complain
(I posted this two years ago on my Myspace blog.)
I hear it all the time, and I heard it just the other night: If you don't vote, you can't complain about the government.
It doesn't take much time to show that practically the opposite is true.
If you did vote, you have given the government a mandate. You have essentially stated, "I will accept the decisions of those I have chosen to represent me." You can't complain about what the government does with your property, whether it be theft by taxation or slavery through regulation. You can't complain about the state of the economy when you elected someone to ruin the market - on your behalf! You can't complain when you are told what you can and cannot do with your body; you asked for drug laws and all the other laws designed to protect you from what's 'bad'.
How did you ask for it? By buying into the system. You wanted representative government. Whether or not it produced the results you expected (as it most certainly did not) is immaterial. You wanted one solution for everyone. You wanted that solution decided by a vote. If your vote went to the losing solution, tough luck - you wanted 'democracy'. So you can't complain.
What about those who didn't see the point in voting? What about those who preferred to use whatever time and effort it would have taken to drop a ballot in a box to do something that directly served their interests? Do they have a right to complain? Most certainly! They can complain that system didn't (and can't due to fundamental flaws) offer the solution or the candidate that best represented their views. They can complain that representative government exists in the first place to place the values of the vote-winners above those of the remaining members of society.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: You don't own other people. Supporting a 'democratic republic', whether it be by voting or running for election or lobbying or some other means, is just an attempt to assert ownership over others. It's wrong at its core.
And if you did vote, remember this before you complain: You asked to be owned.
UPDATE - Some relevant links:
Building Bridges Between Anarchists and Non-Voters
I highly recommend anything by Marcel Votlucka. Read his other stuff in the archives.
Other People's Politics
Cat Farmer has a unique way of putting things.
Not Voting and Proud
This Reason article contains a theme I barely touched here.
Don't Vote (It Makes More Sense to Play the Lotto)
I'm too lazy to makes sure the math is right here... just roll with it.
Strike-The-Root Non-Voting Archive
I got these links from STR, so here's their archive. Enjoy!
UPDATE 2:
The Myth of the Rational Voter
Bryan Caplan's FAQ introduced me to a lot of ideas. Here he introduces me to another: What you think you know about the economy is wrong, and you will fuck things up if you vote based on this perceived knowledge. I plan to buy this book when it comes out!
I hear it all the time, and I heard it just the other night: If you don't vote, you can't complain about the government.
It doesn't take much time to show that practically the opposite is true.
If you did vote, you have given the government a mandate. You have essentially stated, "I will accept the decisions of those I have chosen to represent me." You can't complain about what the government does with your property, whether it be theft by taxation or slavery through regulation. You can't complain about the state of the economy when you elected someone to ruin the market - on your behalf! You can't complain when you are told what you can and cannot do with your body; you asked for drug laws and all the other laws designed to protect you from what's 'bad'.
How did you ask for it? By buying into the system. You wanted representative government. Whether or not it produced the results you expected (as it most certainly did not) is immaterial. You wanted one solution for everyone. You wanted that solution decided by a vote. If your vote went to the losing solution, tough luck - you wanted 'democracy'. So you can't complain.
What about those who didn't see the point in voting? What about those who preferred to use whatever time and effort it would have taken to drop a ballot in a box to do something that directly served their interests? Do they have a right to complain? Most certainly! They can complain that system didn't (and can't due to fundamental flaws) offer the solution or the candidate that best represented their views. They can complain that representative government exists in the first place to place the values of the vote-winners above those of the remaining members of society.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: You don't own other people. Supporting a 'democratic republic', whether it be by voting or running for election or lobbying or some other means, is just an attempt to assert ownership over others. It's wrong at its core.
And if you did vote, remember this before you complain: You asked to be owned.
UPDATE - Some relevant links:
Building Bridges Between Anarchists and Non-Voters
I highly recommend anything by Marcel Votlucka. Read his other stuff in the archives.
Other People's Politics
Cat Farmer has a unique way of putting things.
Not Voting and Proud
This Reason article contains a theme I barely touched here.
Don't Vote (It Makes More Sense to Play the Lotto)
I'm too lazy to makes sure the math is right here... just roll with it.
Strike-The-Root Non-Voting Archive
I got these links from STR, so here's their archive. Enjoy!
UPDATE 2:
The Myth of the Rational Voter
Bryan Caplan's FAQ introduced me to a lot of ideas. Here he introduces me to another: What you think you know about the economy is wrong, and you will fuck things up if you vote based on this perceived knowledge. I plan to buy this book when it comes out!
Every parent eventually asks his child, "If all your friends jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge, would you?" I have an even more loaded question for those who refuse to second-guess the wisdom of the average voter: "If the majority said we all had to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge, would you push people who refused to jump?"
A Powerful Message
A Slap to the Face of Anarchists Everywhere
On my way out of work today, I saw two guys peddling shirts that said "Remember | Remember | The 5th of November" on the front. I paused, excited, then I saw the back - "Obama | Biden | 2008".
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