The Election is Over, We Lost, Time For Revolution

This article was originally published at americanchronicle.com on Nov. 1st, 2008.

Yes, I know, the election is still a couple of days away. It doesn´t matter. Perhaps I´m a little cynical, but I believe this election was decided long ago, maybe even as long as two years ago. At the very least, about a year ago we were already hearing about John McCain and this newcomer named Barack Obama as likely candidates for their respective parties. Even as Ron Paul was surging in the polls and gaining support of the masses, we were being told by the corporate media that he was unelectable. We saw others like Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton also put forward as possible candidates. The best choices, those candidates most opposed to war and in favor of preserving government´s recognition of individual rights, were quickly marginalized by the powers that be and their media lapdogs.

Only now, in the closing days of the election, have I started to hear either of the candidates make any kind of argument even remotely relating to the innate human desire for freedom and self reliance. Only recently has John McCain come out to accuse Barack Obama of being a socialist and a proponent of wealth redistribution. This is not an inaccurate description of the Democrat candidate and yet, given John McCain´s voting record, this is like the pot calling the kettle black. Mr. McCain has certainly voted for his share of social programs that steal money from this nation´s working class.

Both the Democrat and the Republican candidates can be classified as collectivists. Both have policies that disregard the rights of individuals in favor of the state. They both seek power over others in order to further their personal agendas. Neither one of these men have any new ideas, just old ones rehashed for the modern American who likely knows little about history and understands its significance even less. It really doesn´t matter which of these two win, assuming one of the two major party candidates win, they were both picked by virtually the same corporate interests and they´re both beholden to those same special interests and not the people of this great nation.

I don´t believe these are the types of men we need in office right now. I believe we need someone who is willing and able to stand up to all special interests. I believe we need someone who puts the constitution above all else. If either of these two major party candidates win, and I believe one will, the American public loses. In fact, I believe the world loses, for the further socialization of the American Empire dims the already fading vision of the beacon of freedom the world used to flock to.

But, as I stated in the title, I believe the election is already over. After all, the media has been telling us who we were going to vote for all along. We´ve been told who to like and who to dislike. We´ve been told whose ideas were good and whose were "crazy," who was electable and who was unelectable, and who others voters were attracted to. In short, we´ve been told what to think and greatly curtailed in our efforts to think for ourselves.

The issues have become secondary. They are no longer discussing relevant solutions to the problems our nation faces so much as they are discussing personalities and how to best lock down government control over our system. These candidates are not talking about getting rid of taxes all together but who should be taxed more and who the stolen money should go to. They are not talking about abolishing the Federal Reserve and introducing a new monetary system, they are talking about the best way to prop up a system destined to fail by its very nature. They are not talking about pulling our military out of all the countries and bringing them home as a way to save money, they are talking about how we can continue our empire and win wars we shouldn´t be involved in. And they are both talking about how to best grow the government to provide for its citizens, as if the citizens of this nation are all children that can´t provide for themselves, rather than how best to shrink the size of government and let the citizens keep what they earn and provide for their own needs. In short, neither the Republican candidate nor his Democrat counterpart are friends of liberty as both want government involved in every aspect of everyone´s lives rather than allowing the citizenry to live free.

The time has come for the citizenry of this country to start the process of taking it back. We may likely have lost a battle, so what shall we do now? Do we simply give up and accept our fate? Do we simply stay quiet and move along to get along while our nation becomes a cesspool of socialistic corruption? Do we silently bow our heads and ignore the police state as our friends and neighbors become victims of bankrupt political policies? I say no. There remains hope. Freedom and self reliance are states of nature men were meant to live in. Deep down, we all know this. Most of us long for independence. The struggle between collectivism and individualism goes on, as it has for centuries now. We are all sovereigns of our own lives, and it´s time we started acting as such. The more of us who recognize this and live our lives independent of government, the better off everyone becomes.

Peaceful revolution is still possible. We still have the basics necessary to put pressure on those in power to do the right thing. While the executive branch of the federal government may be beyond the reach of the common man, and the senate might be equally entrenched, we can still influence the House of Representatives. Take action. Join groups like Downsizedc.org and Ron Paul´s Campaign for Freedom. Get involved. Pay attention. Make your representative accountable for his actions. Or you can try some peaceful activism and non co-operation.

The justice system can be influenced by citizens acting on juries to rid ourselves of tyrannical laws. We need not make crimes of victimless behavior and we should express this view in the jury box by not convicting our friends and neighbors who engage in victimless crimes. Bench judges may tell you that the bad laws cannot be judged, but that is a lie. It was jury nullification that rid us of prohibition and jury nullification can rid us of other unconstitutional laws. When we start living like freemen, behaving like freemen, and demanding to be respected as freemen by those who would exercise power over us, then we will once again become freemen. Otherwise, we are destined to remain the sheeple those in power long for us to be.

Keep educating your neighbors and anyone else who may think poorly of the concept of freedom. The more who awaken to its light, the more empowered we all become. There has been a stirring in the populace as more and more the whispers of these concepts can be heard in the taverns and other places where people gather. A nation of freemen is not something to be trifled with. Don´t let a small defeat like this election cycle bring you down and fill you with doubt. The peaceful revolution is gaining traction. The sleeping spirit of freedom inside us all is once again flexing its muscle, and those who would try to keep it down may soon find out it is a force to be reckoned with.