Thursday, December 24, 2020

Logan’s Lesson

Frederick R Smith has moved to Frederick R. Smith Speaks (substack.com)

Foreword

William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson authored the novel Logan’s Run in 1967. The novel depicts a dystopic future society where the consumption of resources remains sustainable through the programmed death of everyone reaching the age of 21. Called Carousel, [1] this “Rite” keeps the population at the precise amount. No more “useless eaters.” The film holds to the basic premise from the novel, but everyone must die at 30 years of age. It is for the good of society!

Logan’s Run film adaptation was made in 1975, directed by Michael Anderson. He also produced Fantastic Voyage in 1966 at Fox and developed Westworld at MGM. The film, produced by Saul David, a former MGM executive and well-known science fiction supporter, is a prelude to our world today as it links to many aspects of society we live in now. It may very well show us the future in many ways. Logan’s Run may seem like a “B” movie for many viewers because of the technological advances in cinematography. However, the storyline and key points supply a truly prophetic message.

The film won a Special Academy Award. Tied with the remake of the Lion King, Logan’s Run visual and special effects prompted the award. Few science fiction movies had achieved this award up to that time (1976). It also earned six awards at the Saturn Awards to include Best Science Fiction Film.

For your enjoyment, the following narrative is your author’s “CliffsNotes” of the motion picture. Much different from other overviews, your author has the events of recent history in mind. Enjoy!

The Story

In the year 2274, a population consisting of just young people lives in a sterile city-state environment covered under a cluster of geodesic domes. Previously, an apocalyptic “event” occurred with most of the civilization wiped out. The survivors formed a new micro-society and built the domes (NewTopia) [2] to establish a utopian paradise. In this new society, people have no needs nor self-determination, the Overlord Computer System (The System) supplies, and guides. [3] To ensure a pristine environment and support sustainable development, [4] babies are born out of wedlock in a test tube-like nursery. [5] The System’s programming excludes history, [6] and it gives reference to the world outside to be a poisonous environment. [7]

All pleasure imaginable exists to include digital dating services [8] to surf then teleport and meet in person for pure pleasure (no love). Logan (Michael York) stumbles onto Jessica (Jenny Agutter) while surfing the network. She is a member of the underground resistance. [9] She appears in the teleporter at Logan’s flat and materializes much like the Star Trek system. Jessica rebuffs Logan’s advances, a surprise move for anybody surfing for entertainment. He even asks if she “prefers women.” [10] Jessica wears a special charm on her neck called an Ankh. [11] This special icon will become a “key” element of the plot. Stay tuned.

When a person reaches 30 years of age, the Carousel sends them to “renewal.” The belief: Carousel Rite includes a portal to a new life. The reality — death. Logan is an enforcer or “Sandman” [12] who tracks down and kills citizens on the “run” from the Carousel. The runners know about society’s lethal demand, not from the mainstream, but through the underground or alternative sources. [13]

Logan, holding an Ankh from a runner he killed, went to The System Interface [14] for a debriefing. He placed the Ankh in the digital scanner and The System tells him that it is a symbol of the underground resistance and synonymous with Sanctuary [15]. The System directs Logan to go undercover and travel outside NewTopia and destroy Sanctuary to exterminate 1,056 unaccounted runners. [16] During the interrogation, he found out this icon is synonymous with Sanctuary and The System directs him to take it with him. The System code-named the mission “Procedure 033-03” and Logan must keep it a secret from the other Sandmen. The System then changes the 26-year-old Sandman’s palm flower (“life clock”) [17] to show him as approaching “Lastday.” He asks if he will get back his four years upon mission completion. The System, unable to answer, spurns Logan causing him to think something is wrong. Realizing NewTopia is a big lie, he contemplates becoming a runner. Loan now knows the runners are on the right side of history. He reestablishes contact with Jessica to help him plot his “run.”

Jessica’s comrades plot to kill Sandman Logan. However, Jessica breaks from the underground resistance to go with Logan during the pursuit of a runner in the Cathedral [18] dome. The children dregs of society exist in the run-down Cathedral dome and the pair meet a gang of misfits. [19] Logan scares off the gang and meets up with the woman runner. Logan shows he no longer is a Sandman loyalist by setting the runner free. Logan’s enforcement partner, Sandman Francis (Richard Jordan), secretly sees the encounter. Once they leave, he kills the runner. Francis now has knowledge of the breakout plan.

Logan and Jessica return to the “Arcade.” [20] There, Logan goes to a receptionist [21] for a doctor’s appointment to get a new face as a disguise. This procedure is at an automated plastic surgery center. The doctor running the surgical machine is a member of the underground resistance and has instructions to kill Logan. Once in the surgery chamber, Logan realizes the doctor has programmed the machine to kill him. He breaks free and engages in a fight with the doctor. Logan wins the struggle, and the now unattended marauding machine cuts up the doctor.

The pair now outside the medical office, Francis confronts Logan. Breaking free, Logan and Jessica end up in a slow-motion orgy pleasure chamber. The participants try to seduce the pair, but they make it through the psychedelic-colored smoky haze. Now away from Francis, Jessica shows Logan a secret door to exit the Arcade. As they get to the portal near the perimeter, Logan has second thoughts. He secretly activates his remote alert system [22] thus supplying the Deep Sleep Authority [23] a notification of their location. Francis, a Deep Sleep Authority agent, along with Deep Sleep troops pursue Logan and Jessica.

The running pair meet the Underground Group [24] guarding the perimeter. During this encounter, the plastic surgery office receptionist appears in a disheveled manner. She begins to rat on Logan. Jessica reminds the receptionist that the other Sandman pursued Logan and she recanted. Then, all heck breaks out. The Sandmen army explodes their way into the area and attack. Logan and Jessica escape from the melee but, as usual, with Francis trailing behind.

The running pair make it to the last gate. The remote gatekeeper displays an electronic version of the Ankh and directs Logan to use their key to open the gate. He yanks the Ankh off Jessica but drops it into the shallow water at the gate. Logan remembers the Ankh in his pocket that he took from a runner and uses it to open the gate. The gate shuts closed just prior to the arrival of Frances.

Once past the gate, Logan and Jessica find themselves in an abandoned water farming plant and power system. Meanwhile, Francis sees a reflection of the Ankh under the shallow water, picks it up, and by accident gains access. Francis catches up to the pair and fires his electronic gun. [25] Missing the intended target, the gun’s energy bullet breaks an underwater window causing a flood. The running pair swim to safety but with Francis on their trail (as usual).

As the running pair exit the machinery surrounding the NewTopia, they see scores of earlier runners frozen in a lineup much like a factory freezer. A silly looking and chatty but malfunctioning food processing robot [26] tries to freeze them into the food stock. Logan successfully fights the robot causing the destruction of the frozen food processing center. Once fully “outside,” they find themselves in an alien world, the natural environment. For the first time, they see the sun and feel its warmth. However, they see no people. Looking at their palms, in astonishment, they see the life clocks are no longer functioning.

Logan and Jessica continue the trek “outside” looking for Sanctuary. They end up in the dead city of Washington, DC at the halls of Congress. There, they find only one person an “Old Man” (Peter Ustinov) with his pet cats and ask about Sanctuary. The Old Man has no knowledge of Sanctuary and Logan and Jessica fully realize the dream of NewTopia is a lie too. Francis, the other Sandman, one last time catches up. Francis points his electronic gun to kill. Logan begs Francis to look at his palm to see the blank life clock. Startled by the change to his palm Francis drops the gun, and he engages in a hand-to-hand fight with Logan. After a brutal battle, Logan kills Francis in self-defense.

Logan and Jessica convince the Old Man to go back to NewTopia to show the citizens that they can live beyond 30 to grow old. Along the way, the Old Man teaches the pair about real-life experiences such as the marriage between a man and a woman, natural procreation, the hustle-and-bustle of a thriving society, etc. Walking along an abandoned road, the Old Man whimsically said the people moved about the road on “bits of metal.” He misses a thriving society. [27] As the trio arrives at the periphery of the NewTopia, the Old Man stays outside for safety until they can come back out with the citizens.

Returning to the Arcade to lead a revolt against the mainstream, neither Loan nor Jessica can make anyone believe or listen to them. The Sandmen capture the pair. The System interrogates Logan asking if he found Sanctuary. The information that Sanctuary is a lie makes The System malfunction and self-destruct. Logan and Jessica then flee, along with the citizens now free from the mental captivity of The System. They all travel to the outside and the young citizens are awe-struck seeing the Old Man then touch wrinkled skin for the first time. All the life clocks are dead and that equals more life.

Reflection

As a 19-year-old in 1975 (now you know my age), the Logan’s Run motion picture captivated my imagination, despite the few rotten reviews. As with other movies, watching Logan repeated times over many decades, further details appeared. Logan’s Run is indeed very prophetic given the precarious state of our society today. Below are my honest reflections about my self-proclaimed key points contained in this entertaining flick.

  1. Carousel - Spelled Carrousel in the novel, the push for “universal health care” fits the narrative with end-of-life care (murder). With test tube babies exclusively and the elimination of natural conception, no need for abortion. Oh my, the writers unwittingly dissed a liberal sacrament – abortion!
  2. NewTopia - Your author’s term given to the entirety of the cluster of domes, The System (see No. 3 below), and inhabitants. Just like Utopia, it is a flawed and failed promise.
  3. Overlord Computer System (The System) supplies, and guides - Well, well children (and others), here we have socialism (Communism lite). Big Brother computer will take care of everything – free, it is free! No need to work, robots will build, support, and create for you. The replication machine in Star Trek could also take care of your material needs. This way, no worries about hyperinflation, no money needed. So, my woke friends, with no incentive, who will have the drive and desire to build, program, and support the robots? Will it be ET?
  4. Sustainable development - These are my chosen words to describe the overarching premise. This is the mantra of the United Nations, the big bad New World Order.
  5. Test tube-like nursery - just another dandy population control measure. Heck, it is here today in good old USSA. The more people evolve into gender whatever, no need for natural procreation, hence few conceptions (life). The system will decide the volume of test-tube babies and give the population Bread and Circuses as an alternative to the joys of family life.
  6. Programing excludes history - Those in control know that to erase or revise history gives them a strategy to win a war without destroying the infrastructure. That nondestructive reality is here and now (except BLM/Antifa). For those with children in the school system, just inquire about the history curriculum. Do you even care, and if you dare, is it even possible to make an inquiry? Are you even allowed to sit in any school class? Even with no school-age children, as a taxpayer can you ask to sit in a class? The school system is the ultimate weapon. For more info check out the Nauseating NEA, The Infiltration of Marxism Into Higher Education (Part 1), and The Infiltration of Marxism Into Higher Education (Part 2).
  7. World outside to be a poisonous environment - For decades and more so today, the drumbeat of gaslighting persists whereby the mainstream is deemed to be a bad person for polluting. You shall reduce your carbon footprint or else face doom, like the “event” that triggered the building of NewTopia. Curious, the movie depicts a clean environment at the “outside.” Mother Earth must have rejuvenated herself.
  8. Digital dating services - The movie depicts one aspect of modern dating (and “other” things) as done with the internet.
  9. Underground resistance - Those who know the truth are characterized as fugitives or terrorists. Sound familiar?
  10. Prefers woman - In 1967, the producers were well ahead of their time in a subtle manner. Today, heterosexuals form the oppressed. We are subject to heterophobia.
  11. Ankh - From https://www.ancient.eu/Ankh/ - “The Ankh is one of the most recognizable symbols from ancient Egypt, known as ‘the key of life’ or the ‘cross of life,’ and dating from the Early Dynastic Period (c. 3150 - 2613 BC). It is a cross with a loop at the top sometimes ornamented with symbols or decorative flourishes but most often simply a plain gold cross. The symbol is an Egyptian hieroglyph for ‘life’ or ‘breath of life’ (`nh = ankh) and, as the Egyptians believed that one’s earthly journey was only part of eternal life, the ankh symbolizes both mortal existence and the afterlife.”
  12. Sandman - Akin to police, the Sandmen primary goal is to stop and kill the runners. No arrests and no jails. Just kill. Since work to produce is an unknown quality in NewTopia, The System reward sandmen with certain privileges. The Sandmen are agents of the Deep Sleep Authority. See No. 22 below.
  13. Not from the mainstream, but through the underground or alternative sources - Today the mainstream includes the alphabet mind programming of ABC, NBC, FOX (yes FOX), CBS, et. al. In the movie, just one entity supplies education and information, The System. The alternate or underground today includes web sites and news organizations such as One America News and Epoch Times. The fix, just gaslight people to think these sources are just fake news. In the movie, the underground supplies the truth and any member caught face immediate death. Are we getting there?
  14. The System Interface - The walk-in “Star Chamber” of the automated computer (The System) controlling all aspects of the NewTopia. It is a Big Brother-like apparatus. Think about how we now talk to a computer on the phone for such things as banking transactions. Do you remember the days talking to a real live phone operator?
  15. Sanctuary - The underground believes there is a safe-haven but runners that almost make it to the “outside” get frozen into a food stock. Sanctuary does not really exist, just like today. Our “Sanctuary Cities” are anything but a utopian paradise. Just ask the many thousands of liberals moving out of their very own progressive utopias to the suburbs. They really must believe that they are taking their progressive goodies out with them to remake the rest of society “good” in their intellectual but pea brain thinking, or they are just simply hypocrites. This is no joke as home sales in the progressive city suburbs (and beyond) are ultra-hot.
  16. Exterminate 1,056 unaccounted runners - As a guess, the total number of the young runners who live in the Cathedral section, the runner leaders at the perimeter, and the runners frozen by the food processing robot. It is a wonder how the unaccounted runners like the Cubs (see [19]) avoid remote detection.
  17. Life clock - These crystals were embedded in the actor’s right-hand palm to indicate age. In the Sci-Fi film, a person’s age is revealed by the crystal color. It changes — white from infancy to age 8, yellow from 9 to 15, green from 16 to 23, and red from 24 until Lastday. Ten days before one’s 30th birthday, the crystal begins to blink black-and-red. Today we have such things as Social Security Card, Medicare ID, and Driver’s license.  But of course, we will soon have a Covid-1984 Vaccination Card but no need for a Voter ID (Doublespeak).
  18. Cathedral - Curious why the producers used Cathedral an otherwise solemn location. It is a dead part of NewTopia. Long abandoned by residents of the other Domes, the Cubs, or Gang of Misfits (see below) live in this sector. Clearly, this is an allegory that true religion will be dead in the future. Most religions are now a secular thing.
  19. Gang of misfits - These teens, called Cubs in the novel, somehow have figured out how to live independently from The System. The subtle message (intended or not); to live outside the system will place you in squalor. The reality, we all (except our overlords) will live under a socialist equality Utopia that will be squalor! For critical thinkers, it is so obvious this is exactly what is occurring today under the guise of COVID-1984 precautions. Simply shut down small business just like the USSR did to the Kulaks. Big corporations are partnering with big government to take care of you and me (not). Public-Private Partnerships = el stinko.
  20. Arcade - The main Dome where people meet, play, entertain, and get renewed by the Carousel.  Central planning is a wonderful thing (not).
  21. Receptionist - Not a reflection but this is an interesting tidbit. Here, Farah Faucet Majors appears in a cameo role.
  22. Deep Sleep Authority - Deep State.
  23. Remote alert system - The producers had a good inkling of the modern GPS tracker.
  24. Underground Group - This is a mature version of the Cathedral Cubs who live in the periphery of NewTopia. They use a curious device to hold Logan and Jessica captive. It is a long stick with a glowing white light at one end. It has a trigger to emit a fog-like stun/truth gas. Something the writers prophesied to become a reality soon. (?) With all the commotion about police and guns these days, I say they were onto something!


  25. Electronic gun - Right out of the progressive playbook; only the enforcers (Sandmen) have weapons. You shall have no weapons; the overlords will relegate your rights as a vestigial relic of the past. The Deep Sleep Authority weapon has very unusual attributes. It is like a stun gun but without the messy wire apparatus. And unlike the stun gun of today, it has electric bullets with a lethal kick.
  26. Malfunctioning food processing robot - A cheesy looking robot with a machine-like bottom and a human-like upper torso and head. The robot sure sounds like one of those exhausting computer phone trees we “converse” with these days.
  27. Thriving society - Pre Covid-1984. If you think the Great Reset will bring back prosperity, think again. After all, the good Doctor Fauci says anti-social spacing thresholds and face hiders will endure long after we all get our magical shots. In case you have not figured it out, we currently live in the equivalent of a sci-fi novel, but it is real.

Dear reader, sleep well tonight, and may you have pleasant dreams.

###

Author and Publisher, Frederick R. Smith
Editor, Sean Tinney

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    Wednesday, December 16, 2020

    The Law and Socialism

    Frederick R Smith has moved to Frederick R. Smith Speaks (substack.com)

    Frederic Bastiat (1801-1850) was a French economist, political leader [1], and author. He did most of his writing before and following the February 1848 Revolution. It was during this time that France was evolving into full-scale socialism. As a Deputy to the Legislative Assembly, Bastiat was studying and explaining collectivist ideas. He explained how socialism would degenerate into what we now know as Communism. His compatriots chose to ignore his logic. Like today’s brainwashed people and Woke folk – socialism sounds like a soothing sonata.

    Bastiat’s1850 treatise “The Law” is a seminal work that spells out the true principles that are necessary for a free society. Like our Founding Fathers, he shows us the greatest threat to true liberty is too much government. Unfortunately, most people from all “wings” do not grasp the concepts found in The Law. For example, in the days before the start of the Iraq War in March 2003, former Ohio Democrat Representative Dennis Kucinich teamed up with the now-defunct Global Renaissance Alliance (GRA). The goal, to establish a Cabinet-level “Department of Peace.” Rest assured the GRA would have introduced more socialist programs in the United States. Among the goals for the proposed GRA would be the development of “... new programs that relate to the societal challenges of school violence, guns, racial or ethnic violence, violence against gays and lesbians, and police-community relations disputes.”

    Kucinich’s argument is typical — let us react to the symptom and not the root cause of the problem. Like gun safety (translation — gun control/elimination), more laws will take “care of the problem.” Guns alone kill people while automobile deaths are an “accident.” In other words, automobile accidents are acceptable, but gun accidents (rare) are unacceptable. These controls do not and never will address the root issues. This is the opposite of true classical liberalism. There, religion and civic associations form a just society. No matter how much the liberals and neo-conservatives say otherwise, the big government never was and never will be the answer.

    If we do indeed get a Peace Department, where will the money come from? You got it, from the taxpayers by direct taxation and an indirect tax called inflation. [2] The good congressman from Ohio desired the elimination of the Department of mis-Education to replace it with the Peace Department. The elimination of the Department of mis-Education has merit!

    While the reality is an illusion today, those who can see through the haze know in fact that we have vestiges of a free-market country. We can no longer even pretend that we have a limited government as required under the Constitution. The veneer is wearing thin. The average person is lucky to keep 50% of his or her earnings. Open and hidden taxes feed the appetite of federal, state, and local governments. Yes, the government is a necessity, but the best government is a limited affair. The defund the police trolls might have a free market idea! Of course, this is in jest.

    Given the above modern considerations, it is necessary to take a quick journey into a few salient points from The Law. Bastiat invokes the most important truth at the very beginning:

    We hold from God the gift which includes all others. This gift is life -- physical, intellectual, and moral life. . . Life, faculties, production -- in other words, individuality, liberty, property -- this is man. And in spite of the cunning of artful political leaders, these three gifts from God precede all human legislation, and are superior to it.

    Life, liberty, and property do not exist because men have made laws. On the contrary, it was the fact that life, liberty, and property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws in the first place.

    There have been more than 50,000 laws placed on the books during the last half of the 20th century alone. A moral nation would need minimal laws and police itself.

    The forced “contribution” called Social Security is an example of plunder. If we kept our money and spent it in a wise manner, we would have plenty to live through tough times (e.g., Covid-1984) and enjoy retirement. If people do not lead moral and frugal lives, they will not be able to save for the future. Socialists never promoted solid morals, values, and principles, and they never will.  They look at people as raw material formed into a certain mold. But, we have the right to defend our property from plunder and to protect ourselves:

    Each of us has a natural right -- from God -- to defend his person, his liberty, and his property. . . If every person has the right to defend -- even by force -- his person, his liberty, and his property, then it follows that a group of men have the right to organize and support a common force to protect these rights constantly. Thus the principle of collective right -- its reason for existing, its lawfulness -- is based on individual right.

    Since no individual acting separately can lawfully use force to destroy the rights of others, does it not logically follow that the same principle also applies to the common force that is nothing more than the organized combination of the individual forces?

    While socialists have promoted the concept of a “Utopia,” such a notion is a bankrupt idea, even with the moral citizenry. Nevertheless, what would be the best society? 

    Under such an administration, everyone would understand that he possessed all the privileges as well as all the responsibilities of his existence. No one would have any argument with government, provided that his person was respected, his labor was free, and the fruits of his labor were protected against all unjust attack. When successful, we would not have to thank the state for our success. And, conversely, when unsuccessful, we would no more think of blaming the state for our misfortune than would the farmers blame the state because of hail or frost. The state would be felt only by the invaluable blessings of safety provided by this concept of government.

    As we know, one of the most important building blocks of a society is the concept of property or wealth obtained through challenging work. This is what makes a sound economic system while reducing poverty. Through a desire to succeed, the individuals build a society, which in turn supports a monetary system that has true wealth, a sound backing. Such a free-market economy was the natural result of liberty, carried out in the economic aspect of society. This concept works to enhance individual freedom and not to restrict or reduce the individual right to make economic choices. Individuals were to succeed or fail based on those choices. So, property is the target of the plunderers: 

    Man can live and satisfy his wants only by ceaseless labor; by the ceaseless application of his faculties to natural resources. . . .  But it is also true that a man may live and satisfy his wants by seizing and consuming the products of the labor of others. This process is the origin of plunder. . .  When, then, does plunder stop? It stops when it becomes more painful and more dangerous than labor. It is evident, then, that the proper purpose of law is to use the power of its collective force to stop this fatal tendency to plunder instead of to work. . . But, generally, the law is made by one man or one class of men. . .This force must be entrusted to those who make the laws. . . . Thus it is easy to understand how law, instead of checking injustice, becomes the invincible weapon of injustice.

    As society sheds its morals, values, and principles, a resulting cancer of complacency spreads throughout. With people taking less and less responsibility for their actions and fewer people working hard, the government steps in to take care of the masses. This inevitably causes the redistribution of wealth and a reduced desire to work. A poignant example, as a teen, this author had industrious ambitions during snowstorms. Indeed, snow was money. Joyful work to clear the driveways of my neighbors landed a handsome reward. As an adult, I can think of few occasions in 45 years that a teenager came to my house to offer their services to shovel snow. But we know this “protestant work ethic” today is an anti-Woke poke.

    As the government becomes larger and larger, there is an increased opportunity for people to take advantage of the system. Furthermore, there is increased opportunity for people to take advantage from within the government as greed and corruption takes the form of legal plunder: 

    Men naturally rebel against the injustice of which they are victims. Thus, when plunder is organized by law for the profit of those who make the law, all the plundered classes try somehow to enter -- by peaceful or revolutionary means -- into the making of laws. According to their degree of enlightenment, these plundered classes may propose one of two entirely different purposes when they attempt to attain political power: Either they may wish to stop lawful plunder, or they may wish to share in it.

    Woe to the nation when this latter purpose prevails among the mass victims of lawful plunder when they, in turn, seize the power to make laws! 

    One can argue that socialism is good because it takes care of the people. A good society should take care of those who cannot take part and pick the fruits of their demanding work. However, as society debases itself in moral depravity (e.g., values clarification and relativism) it takes from those who continue to work. It supplies incentives for many to no longer produce. It becomes necessary to plunder from those who continue to labor. What are these programs called? Bastiat says it best: 

    Now, legal plunder can be committed in an infinite number of ways. Thus we have an infinite number of plans for organizing it: tariffs, protection, benefits, subsidies, encouragements, progressive taxation, public schools, guaranteed jobs, guaranteed profits, minimum wages, a right to relief, a right to the tools of labor, free credit, and so on, and so on. All these plans as a whole --with their common aim of legal plunder -- constitute socialism. 

    The institution of legal plunder is like malignant cancer, once it starts it never stops. The slightest attempt to stop any socialist program, no matter how wasteful or destructive brings on the howls of the few who profit. The majority who do not even have any perceived stake in a program simply remain silent. As the old saying goes, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. Legal plunder (socialism) is like a monopoly, but it has a certain advantage: 

    Socialists desire to practice legal plunder, not illegal plunder. Socialists, like all other monopolists, desire to make the law their own weapon. And when once the law is on the side of socialism, how can it be used against socialism? For when plunder is abetted by the law, it does not fear your courts, your gendarmes, and your prisons. Rather, it may call upon them for help. 

    Socialism has a seductive lure with its warping in a humanitarian guise. We hear many mantras such as “it’s all about the children,” “compassionate conservatism,” and “sustainable development.” Sounds nice, but Bastiat writes: 

    Here I encounter the most popular fallacy of our times. It is not considered sufficient that the law should be just; it must be philanthropic. Nor is it sufficient that the law should guarantee to every citizen the free and inoffensive use of his faculties for physical, intellectual, and moral self-improvement. Instead, it is demanded that the law should directly extend welfare, education, and morality throughout the nation. This is the seductive lure of socialism. 

    I cannot possibly understand how fraternity can be legally enforced without liberty being legally destroyed, and thus justice being legally trampled underfoot. Legal plunder has two roots: One of them, as I have said before, is in human greed; the other is in false philanthropy. 

    The person who honestly believes that socialism is goodwill reject any argument made by this author or Bastiat. This is unfortunate because the precept of a truly moral society with a desire and a drive to succeed will simply produce on its own momentum. There will be less poverty and those who succeed will have more to give to the poor. The more socialism, the less the people must give which in turn reduces the resources available to the truly needy. Specifically, the otherwise unnecessary bureaucracy that is in place to redistribute the wealth absorbs resources. Once again, Bastiat says it best: 

    You say: “There are persons who have no money,” and you turn to the law. But the law is not a breast that fills itself with milk. Nor are the lacteal veins of the law supplied with milk from a source outside the society. Nothing can enter the public treasury for the benefit of one citizen or one class unless other citizens and other classes have been forced to send it in. If every person draws from the treasury the amount that he has put in it, it is true that the law then plunders nobody. But this procedure does nothing for the persons who have no money. It does not promote equality of income. The law can be an instrument of equalization only as it takes from some persons and gives to other persons. When the law does this, it is an instrument of plunder. 

    With this in mind, examine the protective tariffs, subsidies, guaranteed profits, guaranteed jobs, relief and welfare schemes, public education, progressive taxation, free credit, and public works. You will find that they are always based on legal plunder, organized injustice. 

    “The Law,” written over 150 years ago, has eternal truth as the precepts are the same. Despite what our postmodern secular Darwinist friends may say, today we have the same needs, desires, and temptations that existed thousands of years ago. Like many other important writings, academia long forgot and banished Bastiat’s treatise. For sure it would be anti-Woke and incite the clarion call of racism. Nevertheless, one can in one sitting read The Law. You will conclude that this literature is even more applicable to today’s world than to that in which it was originally written. All the above aside, if one is a hard-core Darwinist Bastait’s writing means nothing, like our “living breathing Constitution.” 

    For balance in writing, the other big brother deserves a mention. Like the leviathan government, big business has its problems too. Crony capitalism can crush the lifeblood of society — small business. Powerful people seek favors from the government. Thus, they make more money creating extreme inequality. The politicians and government officials use state power for “legal” privileges in return for financial and political support. The huge rewards reaped upon by the super-rich during the Covid-1984 events are legend. Think about how many super-rich proclaim to be “liberal.” Enough said. 

    In closing, it is prudent to mention that Bastiat writes negatively about Montesquieu: [3] 

    Those who are subject to vulgar infatuation may exclaim: “Montesquieu has said this! So it's magnificent! It's sublime!” As for me, I have the courage of my own opinion. I say: What! You have the nerve to call that fine? It is frightful! It is abominable! These random selections from the writings of Montesquieu show that he considers persons, liberties, property -- mankind itself -- to be nothing but materials for legislators to exercise their wisdom upon.  

    Notes: 

    1. The computer application used to write this blog suggests a more inclusive term. It is Woke!
    2. For more information about the hidden tax called inflation check out Creature From Jekyll Island.
    3. Charles Louis Joseph de Secondat, the Baron of Montesquieu of France (1689 – 1755) was often cited by the Founding Fathers from his best-known work, “The Sprit of Laws.” He taught in French universities during the time of enlightenment and because of this many writers say he was a Deist. However, Montesquieu was born a Catholic and died a Catholic. In his works, Montesquieu showed that he believed that all law has its source in God. In The Spirit of Laws, he declared that “. . . a modern government is most agreeable to the Christian Religion, and a despotic Government to the Mahommedan.” James Madison often referenced Montesquieu in his many contributions to the Federalist Papers.
    Author and Publisher, Frederick R. Smith
    Editor, Sean Tinney 

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      Monday, December 7, 2020

      Totalitarian Tolerance and Demented Diversity

      Frederick R Smith has moved to Frederick R. Smith Speaks (substack.com)

      “A lineage of kings, saints, and heroes is ignored by its heirs, who stoop to boasting about their ancestors who were criminals, usurpers, and seditious traitors: never has falsification reached the point of such incomprehensible perversion, and it is evident that the desire to artificially create such ancestry is the necessary premise for the barbarization of the offspring, which is now practically accomplished.” -- +Carlo Maria Viganò

      Your author snapped the photo at the top of this blog in November 2020. This scene at an international airport terminal illustrates a laughable but tyrannical reality. The young lady wearing this overcoat with the inane script has no worries. She has the Politically Correct Mobocracy (PCM) on her side. She can tout her right and freedom to display this “diverse” [??] message. Meanwhile, sweep aside how much an embarrassment this would cause for parents. Think about when their young child asks for an explanation. This author, when showing the photos to select adults, sees the deer in a headlight look. Then they ask me for an explanation!

      Given the tolerance that the diversity crowd pretends to invoke, it should be a non-issue to accept alternative views. The young lady can virtue signal using a vile curse word with no remorse. But we know better, giving an alternate view ignites the PCM flame thrower. Many, like the young lady, use the tic-like F-word without thought and void of any contextual meaning. A bar of soap is a suitable remedy. Those with an uncontrollable F-word tick, please consider not acting like a leftist Pavlov's Dog.

      Meanwhile, this author proposes to have an overcoat embroidered with “Heterosexual Pride.” Sad to say, having proposed such a slogan in the past, the reaction is “you cannot do that.” The typical Pavlov Dog explanation – this proposed slogan is homophobic. But those with critical thinking skills know these alternate lifestyle slogans are hetero-phobic! In a daunting display of non-logic thought, the PCM considers my slogan hateful and offensive. It is an assault against the tolerant inclined people. The diversity and tolerance broadcast by the PCM pertain to their leftist ideology exclusively. Nobody else needs to apply. The pinnacle of hypocrisy. If you think this is nonsense and not a problem, then think Norway. There, make ‘hateful comments about transgender people, when in private, and spend up to a year in prison. Prediction - coming soon to the USSA.

      As a disclaimer, this author has no animosity toward any individual who may be a member of the growing cadre of other than heterosexual orientated peoples. This includes their otherwise straight (uh oh, hate the word?) sympathizers. Forgive them for they know not what they do. In fact, I would be happy to stand side by side with a person holding a “gay pride” sign – if that person gives me the same right. As we know this is an impossibility, because of the anti-diversity of the PCM. Free speech is only applicable to those who hold a woke consciousness.

      So, do all those people who flaunt their woke slogans really believe this crapola? They are pawns of the Malthusian [1] evil elite (more on that later). Or might they be looking for some special recognition? Citizens of the world look at me, I am so special (gag me with a spoon). Here is a nifty example. As a biological senior citizen, my outlook is that of a 20-year-old. So, I take offense to anybody that may call me an “old man.” I hereby declare age fluidity. Hate speech, hate speech! People with gender proclivities have the protection of hate speech laws. As such, I demand that our leaders [??] craft hate speech laws to protect those of us proclaiming age fluidity. Hetero-phobic activities need punishment too — after all, we are all equal under the law (not).

      The PCM broadcast the drumbeat about tolerance and diversity by gaslighting a never-ending narrative. The gassing organs include: “As Seen on TV,” schools, academia, many religious institutions, media, medical, science, legal profession, government, non-governmental organizations, philosophy, businesses, and the military. Did we miss any? Thus, the logical conclusion; every element of society has a mental infection diabolic in nature.

      An example of a non-infected organization is a good college absent Kool-Aid in the kitchen. Rejoice, PCM! Rejoice! This will be under the final assault under the upcoming (maybe?) Biden regime. These higher institutions refusing to bow to the PCM Philosophy shall face punishment. Take away their accreditation!

      Academia, the quintessential example, deserves special mention. This PCM organ is the height of hypocrisy. Unrelenting advertisement of tolerance and diversity. They pontificate about the need to include diverse elements in their educational programs. The mantras include a diversity of thought, races, sexual orientation, nationality, morality, economics, and religions [??]. Academia, the pinnacle of peace.

      As we know, freedom of thought means the promotion of liberal (Communist) ideals. Firsthand experience seeing a young lady post-graduate programmed to Marxist ideals is a frightening ordeal. Many sources document the profound one-sided worldview of Academia's Marxism. These paragons of diverse thought squelch anything traditional or conservative. From dis-inviting conservative speakers, protests, or shouting down speakers. The very height of hypocrisy. They claim diversity of thought while ensuring only one philosophy — progressive. Any person with an ounce of thought contrary to the PCM mental therapy gets a virtual target on their back. The incoming rounds include engraved shells. The engravers use homophobic, racist, gender fluidity phobic, environment polluter, xenophobe, etc.

      Of course, the PCM wants to make us all equal. For example, they claim nobility to lock down the entire nation to save one person (and kill the unborn at the same time). We all shall be miserable just like a socialist Utopia. Honorable mention goes to the elite like our leaders [??], professional sports players, left mob protesters (this includes rent a mob), and media mental giants with a pea brain (dopes). These woke folk continues along unfettered. Just like Orwell’s’ Animal Farm, all animals are equal, but others are more equal.

      Now a bold statement that will make the PCM go into orbit. I hereby claim the above useful idiots are puppets under the Malthusian evil elite masters. A Malthusian thread spans through all the PC-Woke philosophy [??] – population reduction! This people reducer strand is a seamless garment woven through the following PC Centric pogroms or sacraments:

      • Abortion, an obvious human eliminator. No discussion, no compromise by the PCM.
      • Environment, really? The earth shall experience a renewal where few humans remain in accordance with the Georgia Guidestones. Make global warming (oops climate change) a never-ending calamity so all the useless eaters will bow to the god of Gia. The sheepeople already folded like a tent giving up freedoms to travel, reduced food consumption, and end the use of fossil fuel consumption. We also forget that carbon-based resources are a critical ingredient in medicine manufacturing, heating/cooling homes, and crafting plastics into lifesaving medical devices. The renewal energy mantra (aka Green New Deal) will not deliver but introduce new environmental problems down the road. Ask Greta Thunberg, she can enlighten you further.
      • COVID [2] is a tool to affect the population by use of excessive “heath” measures that make people even sicker. What else can supply a suitable explanation for the LA Mayor’s order prohibiting walking? The CCP virus and its resulting Corona Virus Disease (Covid) is a brilliant crisis to use and tear down the economy of the entire world and usher in the Great Reset (aka New World disOrder). And while we are at it, the leaders [??] imposing draconian and sometimes unnecessary orders, as well as their puppet cheerleaders, should not have food delivered to their doorsteps. They need to protect the delivery workers from CCP Virus exposure. But we know, it is all about control and population reduction.
      • Socialism (Communism lite) sounds wonderful to the brainwashed masses. It has an advertised goal of wealth equality for all! The evil Malthusian elitists penned an articulate nexus to bury the dreadful history of socialism and Communism with a veneer of utopia. Fits the agenda to reduce the population under Communism.
      • Gender whatever. Programing humans to reject heterosexual relationships is an ideal way to reduce the population. Same-gender copulation offers zero offspring. Oh right, there is an exception. Science has a way to make same-gender couples procreate. Just wonderful.

      There you have it sports fans. Just a partial list of the PCM rituals. Amazing what just one photo does to stir the brain. Frankly, for many a sleep time, a nightmare painted the prospect of living in post-USA. Waking up today one realizes a nightmare no more. Previously my dear home USA presented the gift of work and security. That allowed me to contribute to society for half a century. It is with deep sorrow to say the perfect storm is upon us. Behold the reality of the Twilight Zone before us today — the PCM declares you to be an Obsolete Man [3]. No matter what I say, something evil [4] has indeed invaded our nation. Behold, America’s Critical Point in Time.

      True diversity and tolerance are the foundational elements of a flourishing society. The PCM really has nothing to do with that. I have written about it many times, beware of  The Creature From Jekyll Island (fiat money) caused by the PCM philosophy (and Neo-cons). All the things that the young lady [5] in the photo with the overcoat likely desires will cost a lot of money that does not exist. Creating this ghost currency to fill the void will result in hyperinflation.

      Notes:

      1. Definition of Malthusian: of or relating to Malthus or to his theory that population tends to increase at a faster rate than its means of subsistence and that unless it is checked by moral restraint or disaster (such as disease, famine, or war) widespread poverty and degradation inevitably result. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Malthusian
      2. Covid is not a hoax. However, it is the prime example of the Hegelian Dialectic. The thesis = it is a hoax. The antithesis = we are all going to die. The synthesis = the perfect tool to usher in the New World disOrder. It is another virus added to the mix and yes Virginia, we have a sensible and compassionate anti-COVID strategy
      3. The inquisitor from Obsolete Man (left), broadcast date June 2, 1961, vs. 2020 (right). The similar podiums are a hoot.
      4. For the woke reader it is all about that evil man Donald J. Trump. Be careful what you wish for, the replacement is worse, much worse. Beware, the Cultural Revolution. You say the 2020 election was fair and all the junk about election fraud is fake news. Yet, the same media that relentlessly pushed the Russian narrative now has a case of amnesia. Voter fraud 2020: Here’s the proof. If not convinced, perhaps the infographic “What Happened in Atlanta on Election Night” might be the ticket. If still blinded by CNN, try this: Video Shows Chinese Professor Talking About American “Elite” Traitors Who Work for Beijing. 
      5. Maybe I am confused.

      Author and Publisher, Frederick R. Smith
      Editor, Sean Tinney 

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