Statists assume The State is the same thing as the country. But libertarians make the following observations…
- Russia didn’t disappear when the Soviet Union collapsed
- Germany didn’t vanish when the Nazis fell
- Millions of people love their country, but hate their rulers.
These things would be impossible if The State and the country were the same thing.
The State is not the country. The State is simply a part of the country, not the country itself. As such, The State has no special magic that allows it to make decisions for all members of society. Government’s role should be more limited and humble.
Libertarians believe governments must obey the Zero Aggression Principle. Governments must not initiate force. They must only use force defensively.
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By Perry Willis & Jim Babka
Jim Babka
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Perry Willis
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The confusion between a nation and it’s leaders has been going on a long time. Part of the reason dictators get away with what they do is due to this confusion. Strength is often confused with power and its abuse, so a strong man dictator can often get away with literal murder, as long as he can find a ‘scapegoat’ to blame for all the country’s problems. If any one thinks it can’t happen here, they need to look at the rhetoric of the Statist Left, as reported by Life News:
http://www.lifenews.com/2015/04/27/hillary-clinton-force-christians-to-change-their-religious-views-to-support-abortion/
for a second confirming link:
http://dailycaller.com/2015/04/23/hillary-on-abortion-deep-seated-cultural-codes-religious-beliefs-and-structural-biases-have-to-be-changed
I believe that states are like organs within the body (US Gov). They have different functions within their unified purpose and must be able to attract the cells which they need to fulfill their part in the overall process. If you live within the digestive system, e.g., the banquet enjoyed by the initial participants looks quite different by the time it reaches the stomach or lower intestines! Ditto for circulatory or other systems! We need to think wholistically!
When I read the question my first thought was, No, the state is the government, run by people who want to control the country. People get to used to being controlled and over time, forget that they have a choice. That is why this past election has most people in such turmoil. We haven’t had such a drastic change in leadership for a long time. It will be interesting to see what happens as time goes on.