A Knuckle Dragging Neanderthal Asking a Simple Question

by: Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Birthplace of Independent Conservationism

"Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best state, is
but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one; for when we suffer or
are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country
without government, our calamity is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the
means by which we suffer." --Thomas Paine, Common Sense, 1776

Just imagine... this "knuckle dragging Neanderthal independent conservative" reading, and actually understanding, Thomas Paine. Who would have thought?

So progressives, what is your excuse?


Cross posted to LCR

Comments

  1. Jersey McJonesTue Apr 05, 01:42:00 AM EDT

    Paine is wrong.

    Government is a product of society. It is not necessarily good or evil. It simply is a projection of the civilization that produces or creates it. It may seem burdensome, but burden is not per se evil. It is a trade: the more advanced and civilized the society, the more governance it will have. Government is the bones of the body public.

    Power, though, like money and sex, can and usually does corrupt. It's not so much some overall power of government that causes problems, but particular powers can be particularly corrupting. For example, the power of the modern American executive branch to pretty much endlessly wage undeclared wars.

    There are no blessings. That's just silly superstition. Things do happen for a reason, and those reasons are reasonably explainable. We live in a society that is a product of society, history, and change. We have presidents who can endlessly wage wars because we voters are stupidly paranoid enough to believe that we are at constant existential threat from others, each other, and abroad.

    Thomas Paine, anarchist that he was, never imagined things as they are today, let alone how to manage the same sort of hyperbolic rhetoric he himself embraced in such an advanced society.

    That quote is trite today.

    JMJ

    ReplyDelete
  2. Les CarpenterTue Apr 05, 08:02:00 AM EDT

    YADA, YADA, YADA...

    ReplyDelete
  3. SilverfiddleTue Apr 05, 09:25:00 AM EDT

    The left has no excuse, Les. Jersey proves that progressive statism must reject the founders, because the founders' classical liberalism is completely incompatible with modern progressive statism.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Les CarpenterTue Apr 05, 09:33:00 AM EDT

    Agreed Silver. It's a shame really, what modern progressive statism has done to classical liberalism.

    I'm not sure where the greatest responsibility lies. But my best money is on the institutions of higher learning.

    A close second, the lamestream media.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

RN USA is a No Judgement Zone (to steal from Planet Fitness), so please, No Judgement of others. We reserve the right to delete any such comment immediately upon detection.

All views are welcome. As long as the comment is on topic and respectful of others.


Top Posts

The "Scandal" That Won't Go Away...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib erty -vs- Tyr anny CBS - Obama administration officials who were in key positions on Sept. 11, 2012, acknowledge that a range of mistakes were made the night of the attacks on the U.S. missions in Benghazi, and in messaging to Congress and the public in the aftermath. The officials spoke to CBS News in a series of interviews and communications under the condition of anonymity so that they could be more frank in their assessments. They do not all agree on the list of mistakes and it's important to note that they universally claim that any errors or missteps did not cost lives and reflect "incompetence rather than malice or cover up." Nonetheless, in the eight months since the attacks, this is the most sweeping and detailed discussion by key players of what might have been done differently. "We're portrayed by Republicans as either being lying or idiots," said one Obama administration official who was part
Read more

Our Biggest Creditor {China} Tells Us "The good old days of borrowing are over"

Image
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace o Independent Conservatism Liberty -vs- Tyranny As the chickens come home to roast... Unbelievable we have been this stupid. ( Reuters ) - Global leaders on Saturday arranged a round of emergency calls to discuss the twin debt crises in Europe and the United States that are causing turmoil in financial markets . After a week that saw $2.5 trillion wiped off global stock markets, they are under pressure to show political leadership and reassure markets that Western governments have both the will and ability to reduce their huge and growing public debt loads. French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who chairs the G7/G20 group of leading economies, conferred with Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron ahead of a call planned for this weekend by G7 finance ministers and central bankers. "They discussed the euro area and the U.S. debt downgrade. Both agreed the importance of working together, monitoring the situation closely
Read more

Looking To 2016...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation U S A Purveyor of Truth Following last nights rather mundane and short on specifics SOTU by President Obama I started thinking about the future and if there is anyone in the current ranks of the GOP or the Libertarian Party who could possibly be elected to the presidency in 2016. Frankly given the crop of malcontents and loonies(Christie doesn't fall into that group but he has shot himself in the big toe) that seem to be getting attention in the GOP it appears unlikely. Tonight while browsing the net the following article popped up and given the headline was along my line of thinking last it was a must read. Got me thinking again and if the GOP can find the intelligence to act along the lines of thought presented in the article there may just be a real race in 2016 rather than a shoo in for the democrats. NationalJournal - For a party that's accustomed to nominating the next-in-line presidential candidate, 2016 promises to be a very un
Read more

The Ignorance and Arrogance of Obama...

Image
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Liberty -vs- Tyranny In my opinion the President, in his attack on the United States Supreme court belies both his basic ignorance of our republic as well as his arrogance. His last uttering in and of itself is enough to deny the man, and I use the term loosely in this case, another term as President. Forgive me my rational liberal friends but his recent statement is more telling of his statist leanings than anything he has heretofore said. With this last he has proven beyond any doubt he is indeed clueless. The Washington Post - There was something rather unsettling in President Obama’s preemptive strike on the Supreme Court at Monday’s news conference. “I’d just remind conservative commentators that for years what we’ve heard is the biggest problem on the bench is judicial activism or a lack of judicial restraint — that an unelected group of people would somehow overturn a duly constituted and passed law,” Obama said. “Well, here’s a
Read more

The ObamaCare Divide Creating Two America's...

Image
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Purveyor of Truth Red and blue state map, based on returns in last four presidential elections. (Wikimedia Commons/ Angr) This site is not a supporter of the mechanisms of ObamaCare and questions whether it in fact will ultimately make health care either more accessible r affordable. Except for those receiving a subsidy or are getting it free. All that aside I do agree with following Moyers & Company article stating that ObamaCare is widening the gap between red America and blue America. Something needed to be done with our health care and insurance system. Most agree that the pre ObamaCare system needed some work. Unfortunately reason failed American politics and what we have achieved is an ever more polorized country with no end to the polarization. Perhaps it is time to officially form a Blue United States of America and a Red United States of America. Because in reality we are moving ever closer to the breaking point. Th
Read more

Spoken Like a True Dyed In the Blue Statist...

Image
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation U S A Purveyor of Truth Ever hear of or read Mother Jones ? Well I just did, and as near as I can figure she must be Woodrow Wilson's or Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Mother. I say this because she sure as hell is pro statist and pumped up for growing the government bureaucracy. The article is short so it is being reproduced here in full. This site appreciates Mother Jones candor in expressing the statist credo and the desire on the part of the left for an ever larger and more intrusive presence in our daily affairs and lives. January's job numbers were fairly dismal, but the bad cheer wasn't equally spread. Private sector employment, as usual, increased—by 142,000 jobs last month. At the same time, public sector employment declined. Government employment at all levels was down 29,000 in January. Aside from the brief census blip in early 2010, this has been the usual state of affairs for the past four years, ever since the rece
Read more

Race Baiting at the Highest Level of the Federal Government...?

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny I listened to the full Presidential news conference this afternoon. Obama said some things that made sense. Then he made the following remarks that IMNHO told the nation in full agenda with respect to said issue. Having a in depth discussion of race relations might very well be appropriate and a general discussion is something that MOST American's would welcome. Using the Zimmerman verdict ks simply the WRONG event at possibly the right time. However, don't expect the President, the Department of Justice, or the liberal media or ultra liberal populace to understand what this means. If I can find a video of the full and complete news conference it will be posted later. Via: Memeorandum     Update : via You Tube.    Your views and thoughts are most welcome. Left and or Right leaning...
Read more

Humor in Truth...

Rational Nation U S A Purveyor of Truth Eleven days into 2016 and still recovering from the hustle and bustle of the preceding year end holidays I was looking for something to get me back to normal and give me a great belly splitting laugh. But that laugh needed to be a laugh caused by something that was funny because of the great truths it held. Today that great belly splitting laugh happened. June 28, 2015 Jeff Landry, an aide to Donald Trump, scratched the back of his right leg with his left shoe, stalling. You have to answer just right , or he goes apeshit . Jeff remembered grimly what a pleasant change he’d thought this job would be, but now he looked back on those six harrowing weeks working for Harvey Weinstein like a long-ago Hanukkah. The question Trump had put to him was “How do we close this?” Jeff played it safe: “I say go big.” Trump lit up. “I can do big,” he said. “This whole thing, which was my idea, incidentally, and a very good idea, really a very gr
Read more