10 Principles How to pick your politician. These are 10 Principles to evaluate a politician without getting into political parties and partisan politics. These ideas compare the big picture against how we know the world really works in our own experience.
- The person who controls how the money is spent is the person who is in control.
- When a representative of the government asks for money it is to be able to increase his control.
- The more money a person can spend the more freedom that person has to do what he wants and to influence others.
- The ideal of freedom then is to enable as many people as possible to earn as much as they can without forcing others to involuntarily give money to them or forcing them to do any particular labor, but leaving them free to choose their labors and find the best price they can for their labor and for what they produce or wish to consume.
- It is true that no one can force another to convert to his way of believing/thinking/acting, and it is also true that in prison or in death a person's tenacious freedom to believe or act a particular way may greatly influence the world, still reducing us all to prison and privation is not our ideal for freedom, but rather freedom's ideal is to give each person as much individual freedom to act on his beliefs as he is able to earn through productive living or as much as others are willing to voluntarily donate.
- Does he believe that we can spend more money than we have?
- A government takes its money by force whether it is doing a good job or not a business can only get money if someone wants to pay it for what it makes or does.
- A government is not a business therefore it can never be run like a business. If the politician claims to run it like a business know he is either ignorant or lying.
- Fundamentalist Liberals
- How to Pick your Politician tip 1 Hey Sam what do you want today?" "Whateva! Fagetaboutit!" He answered with a wave of his hand. "Sorry we don't have a New Yorker any more. It's all washed out. But for you a Brown Sugar and Butter Latte." "Definitely not New York, fagetaboutit, do it! And while your at it tell me if there's a dimes difference between the two candidates."
"Seriously?" "Yeah I tried to follow them but they are both for what's right, both for making us prosperous both for mom and when they talk about the other guy,... well whatevah he is the Great Satan." OK this is your lucky day because I can tell y o in one sentence all you need to know about politics."
"Yeah right you and everyone else. Let me guess you're republican." "Nope. Republicans and Democrats both pray you never figure out the First Principle of Choosing Politicians. You want to hear?" I asked. The latte was almost finished and there was a line forming.
"Why not? Take your shot." He said skeptically." "Hey, you asked." I shrugged, "But the answer is simple: "The person who controls how the money is spent is the person who is in control of whoever's life that money comes from." "So I vote for the guy who I want to spend my money? You call that advice?"
"No, no, no! The more money you control the more freedom you have to do what you want to do. The more money someone can force you to give them, the less freedom you have. So whenever you hear the word money in politics replace it with the word, 'Freedom' and vote for the person who promises to take less money - less freedom - from you. Here's your latte."
"I'd just like a coffee please, large and black." Said the girl next in line. "How do I figure out who that is?" Asked my friend not wanting to leave. I grabbed a large cup and began to pour, "You do it every time you shop. You're always looking for the best bargain, because the more money left over from any purchase the more freedom you have to exercise your freedom of choice on something else. Take at least as much time to check out your politician's spending ideas as you do the clothes you wear."
"So I look for the cheapest politician?" "Hey that's great! I'll add it to my list of how to pick a politician. Look he's spending your money. Your money. Your money, get it? You have to give it to him and the more you give him, the less freedom you have and the more freedom he has because now (not you) he's deciding what to do and has more money to do it with, not you. You have fewer things you are free to decide to do."
I was just finishing ringing up the large coffee when the girl instead of walking away said, "That's pretty materialistic isn't it?" "Yeah, I agreed money is very material. So is the coffee you are drinking and the clothes you're wearing and the school you go to. Wait a sec you asked the best question of the day but I need to ask Mrs. Jones if she wants one or two shot latte this morning?"
"Two. And please answer her question because I think it's important for us to support the poor people who are out of work." said Mrs. Jones. While I ground the espresso I said, "Because you had enough money you were free to choose to come in here to get the best coffee on earth, and the clothes you wear and anything else you buy. But if you were taxed a little more or if government policy drove the price of gas up a little, you might instead have had to go to a gas station for your caffeine at half the cost of this coffee, or perhaps even quit drinking coffee, not because of a choice you were making, but because of a choice that was made for you - someone else is spending your money so you can't."
"Still that's materialistic isn't freedom about the soul and spirit?" She asked "Yes it is." I agreed. Then I stopped and wiped the shot glass I was holding and then looked up at her. "but if you want your free spirit to express itself in a material world it will have more freedom to express itself if your soul has more money to spend and less freedom to express itself if someone takes that money from you."
"I've got to go," said Mrs. Jones "But it sure sounds like you don't want poor people to be helped by the government." Come back and I'l
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