When Eugene isn't free enough for you

How about New Hampshire, the Free State?

by Anonymous • 02/06/04

Eugene is full of idealistic social activists, all freedom-loving individuals, who seem ready to stand up for themselves and their neighbors. But when this city votes in elections, it usually seems that not enough are committed to the most basic of peace & nonviolence principles: libertarianism

Many people in Eugene who espouse 'nonviolence' in their life philosophy still seem willing to ask the Government to do violence for them, in the name of a greater good.

Many of these people don't realize they've "delegated" violence to the authorities in the name of their good intentions. It isn't peaceful to pass laws or taxes, which insist on the "Good", then force others to follow them or pay the tax, or else face fines, jail or other punishment. Holding any sort of threat over the heads of others is violence, whether it's a single bully telling you what to do, or the entire State doing it. Sadly, it happens all the time in the name of "We have to... for the sake of the children/helpless/old/sick/poor/everyone."

Government always takes a percentage off the top first to pay for its own bureaucracy. So many have asked for the "Nanny State" to protect everyone (else) from anything and everything, and a bureaucracy was created which continues to fund itself, coming up with new ways to spend money, and stay around longer, keeping themselves working.

Today, you must wear a seat belt or helmet, not smoke, eat or drink anything that someone else thinks might be bad for you, and finally get x-rayed, interviewed, shuffled, labeled, numbered, and/or anything else that someone else is convinced is the 'right way' to be safe, secure, and healthy. The State will make sure you do, even if it takes more staff to do it, which means more taxes to pay for it all.

Taking care of everyone costs money, and someone has to pay for it in the end. When people (all working hard already) balk at paying more taxes, it's the Government who comes in, with growing threats of violence, at the behest of the "rest of the people." Doubt that violence is at the core of tax collection? Just try and not pay, and watch how the system will slowly coerce you, finally ending with men with guns making you pay, taking things from you, or jailing you. Robbing Peter to take care of Paul is very popular with Paul, but eventually Peter is out of money, and whom do you rob then?

I don't like being Peter, but I wouldn't much care for being Paul either. I'd rather be able to take care of myself and those around me without government dictates. But where?

In 2001, a Yale doctoral student, Jason Soren, pondered why libertarians have so few electoral wins and realized that 'dilution' was the problem. If all of the Libertarian voters in a Californian election had just lived in another smaller state, they'd have overwhelmingly won, but in California, they were just a minority voice, ignored by the major parties and media,gaining no representation. What if, he asked, many libertarians from all over the U.S. moved to just one single smaller state? What would happen? Thus was born the Free State Project.

The Free State Project (http://www.freestateproject.org) is a plan in which 20,000 or more liberty-oriented (small L libertarian) people will move to a single state of the U.S., New Hampshire, and work within its political system to reduce the size and scope of government. They hope to show the nation and the world what liberty can accomplish.

The Free State Project is looking for liberty within our lifetime. The Free State Project aims at liberty in a single state as a reasonable goal. They believe that government's maximum role should be to help individuals defend themselves from force and fraud.

"Are you frustrated at the loss of freedom and responsibility in America, while the growth of government and taxes continues unabated? Do you want to live in strong communities where your rights are respected, and people exercise responsibility for themselves and in their dealings with each other?" With these questions, The Free State Project calls out to people ready to take a stand for liberty.

I, for one, am going to answer the call, because Eugene, for all of its great ideals, isn't free enough for me.

The author of this article asked to remain nameless, lest government overlords use this information as evidence that he is a threat to the state and/or himself.

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