Thursday, June 26, 2008

Blind to the Guns

This interview of Harry Reid was linked to on HBL. Reid asserts that our tax system is voluntary. He is repeatedly confronted with his logical contradiction, but evades recognition of reality. It's jaw-dropping to watch one of the most powerful men in America talk like -- what? I can't decide if he comes off as an escapee from an insane asylum or a cheap con artist trying to pull a fast one.

He plays the old "semantics" card, saying, "I don't accept your phraseology." He argues about words to evade looking at the facts of reality.

Reid must have a tremendous investment in the idea that our government is benevolent. They're just here to help! They're such nice guys! He can't even admit that taxation is based on the use of force. The state holds a gun to every taxpayer's head, but Harry Reid makes himself blind to the guns. As long as he doesn't see the guns, then he need not face the fact that the government violates individual rights.

Our government is run by people who intentionally detach themselves from reality in order to maintain the illusion that the welfare state is good. It is not good. Taxation is theft, even if it is done by a bureaucracy with countless exemptions and bookshelves full of regulations written in legalistic prose. Behind this vast, sanctimonious Potemkin Village stands a thug with a gun who growls, "Your money or your life."

3 comments:

madmax said...

He even looks like a villain from Atlas Shrugged; beady eyes and all and sounds exactly like James Taggart. Its as if many of today's politicians read Atlas Shrugged when they were young and decided to dedicate their lives to becoming the villains. Depressing.

Matt said...

Wow. I almost said that is "unbelievable", but I know better. That is just horrifying and infuriating.

Myrhaf said...

You're the Quote of the Day, Madmax:

http://ninthstage.com/index.php/2008/06/28/quote-of-the-day-36/