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Friday, July 31, 2020

The Purpose of Government

Right now in Portland, Seattle, Chicago, and other cities across America, anarchists are rioting in the streets demanding change. That change is centered on the concept that the very existence of the United States is wrong; that somehow these rioters know better than did our Founding Fathers; and if they had been around 250 years ago, this would now be a land of “milk and honey” and not a land of injustice -- so they claim. Are their claims valid? Let’s have a look.

Since everyone seems to have problems with government, ask yourself, why were governments established in the first place? Was it to provide housing for the poor, educate the young, build roads for trade, or to build aqueducts for water distribution? Of course, the answer is "no." So, what is government’s purpose?

Governments were established to provide security, to provide for a common defense. During mankind’s prehistoric, nomadic days, it was family against family and tribe against tribe. The only way to protect your family, or your tribe, was to organize for the common defense. Once a large group gathers together, there must be some type of organized hierarchy or nothing gets accomplished. So, someone was designated the military leader, and that person usually became the tribe’s leader as well -- because he was backed by those who did the fighting. The security that ensued from the “common defense” gave stability to society. It allowed tribes to develop civilizations that then built roads and bridges, educated the populace, developed commerce, etc. However, the #1 purpose of government, at all levels, is to provide security and to protect the populace -- that’s why we tolerate the other inefficiencies of government. Without security, trade doesn’t develop because it will only be stolen. Without security, without protection, nothing else matters.

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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Northwest Woodsman: Good analysis, however, the problem is the ever expanding reach of government into our lives. Think about it, I grew up in the 50s and 60s and each year since that time, governments at every level have passed laws, ordinances, and established policies that are only intended to make restrictions on freedom. They have been nibbling away for 50 or 60 years of my lifetime with no end in sight. The expansion of government over those years has been tolerated because it has been incremental. Were we able to jump from, let’s say, 1958s lifestyle to 2020s lifestyle overnight, citizens would find the change unacceptable. I suspect that a large number of us folks in their 60s, 70s, and even 80s, feel exactly the same way. My wife frequently expresses her frustration by stating that she is glad that she won’t live to see the final collapse of our way of life. I’m thankful that we have lived through the best years the country afforded us and I’m sad to watch them evaporate.