The Political Wisdom of Barry Goldwater

Among the conser-vative politicians of the 1950s through the 1980s, few stand out as vividly as the late Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater.

In 1964, when Barry Goldwater was the Republican candidate for president running against Democrat Lyndon Johnson, I was just a kid in high school with little understanding of politics. I recall almost nothing about that campaign and election, only that Goldwater lost big-time. One thing I do remember, however, is that Goldwater’s opponent and the news media cast him as a reckless wild man in sharp contrast to Lyndon Johnson’s carefully fabricated media image as a self-restrained and reasonable leader.

History records that Lyndon Johnson, upon his election to the presidency, immediately launched a massive program of social spending that he termed “The Great Society.” Looking back on it now, the only thing that was great about it was that it was a great mistake, for what it actually did was transform an already great society into a mediocre one. It accomplished this by inviting hundreds of thousands of wholly unproductive and semi-productive Americans to become wards of the state, which they were all too happy to do. So I ask you, from today’s perspective, “Who turned out to be the most reckless candidate? Who steered us further away from the safe course set by our Founders and drove us more deeply into the barbed-wire enclosure of government control?”

I suppose as a whole present-day Americans aren’t even as politically astute as the generation that was hoodwinked into choosing Lyndon Johnson over Barry Goldwater in 1964. Nevertheless, I offer a few of Senator Goldwater's beliefs and insights on the proper role of government in the hope that someone, somewhere might recognize their value and take heed.

What follows are random quotes drawn from Barry Goldwater’s book, first published in 1960, entitled The Conscience of a Conservative.

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Surely the first obligation of a political thinker is to understand the nature of man.

The Conservative looks upon politics as the art of achieving the maximum amount of freedom for individuals that is consistent with the maintenance of social order.

We shall return to proven ways--not because they are old, but because they are true.

The framers of the Constitution had learned the lesson. They were not only students of history, but victims of it: they knew from vivid, personal experience that freedom depends on effective restraints against the accumulation of power in a single authority. And that is what the Constitution is: a system of restraints against the natural tendency of government to expand in the direction of absolutism.

The Tenth Amendment is not "a general assumption," but a prohibitory rule of law. The Tenth Amendment recognizes the States' jurisdiction in certain areas. States' Rights means that the States have a right to act or not to act, as they see fit, in the areas reserved to them. The States may have duties corresponding to these rights, but the duties are owed to the people of the States, not to the federal government. Therefore, the recourse lies not with the federal government, which is not sovereign, but with the people who are, and who have full power to take disciplinary action.

Nothing could so far advance the cause of freedom as for state officials throughout the land to assert their rightful claims to lost state power; and for the federal government to withdraw promptly and totally from every jurisdiction which the Constitution reserved to the states.

Government does not have an unlimited claim on the earnings of individuals. One of the foremost precepts of the natural law is man's right to the possession and the use of his property. And a man's earnings are his property as much as his land and the house in which he lives. Indeed, in the industrial age, earnings are probably the most prevalent form of property.

Socialism-through-Welfarism poses a far greater danger to freedom than Socialism-through-Nationalization precisely because it is more difficult to combat. The evils of Nationalization are self-evident and immediate. Those of Welfarism are veiled and tend to be postponed.

The effect of Welfarism on freedom will be felt later on--after its beneficiaries have become its victims, after dependence on government has turned into bondage and it is too late to unlock the jail.

The long range political consequences of Welfarism are plain enough: as we have seen, the State that is able to deal with its citizens as wards and dependents has gathered unto itself unlimited political and economic power and is thus able to rule as absolutely as any oriental despot.

The truth, of course, is that the federal government has no funds except those it extracts from the taxpayers who reside in the various States. The money that the federal government pays to State X for education has been taken from the citizens of State X in federal taxes and comes back to them, minus the Washington brokerage fee. The less wealthy States, to be sure, receive slightly more than they give, just as the more wealthy states receive somewhat less. But the differences are negligible. For the most part, federal aid simply substitutes the tax-collecting facilities of the federal government for those of local governments.

My view is that if State X possesses the wealth to educate its children adequately, but has failed to utilize its wealth for that purpose, it is up to the people of State X to take remedial action through their local and state governments. The federal government has neither the right nor the duty to intervene.

Conservatism, we are told, is out-of-date. The charge is preposterous and we ought boldly to say so. The laws of God, and of nature, have no dateline. The principles on which the Conservative political position is based have been established by a process that has nothing to do with the social, economic and political landscape that changes from decade to decade and from century to century. These principles are derived from the nature of man, and from the truths that God has revealed about His creation. Circumstances do change. So do the problems that are shaped by circumstances. But the principles that govern the solution of the problems do not. To suggest that the Conservative philosophy is out of date is akin to saying that the Golden Rule, or the Ten Commandments or Aristotle's Politics are out of date. The Conservative approach is nothing more or less than an attempt to apply the wisdom and experience and the revealed truths of the past to the problems of today.

I have been much concerned that so many people today with Conservative instincts feel compelled to apologize for them.

Every man, for his individual good and for the good of his society, is responsible for his own development.

If the Conservative is less anxious than his Liberal brethren to increase Social Security "benefits," it is because he is more anxious than his Liberal brethren that people be free throughout their lives to spend their earnings when and as they see fit.

Who will proclaim in a campaign speech: "I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution, or that have failed in their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is 'needed' before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents' 'interests,' I shall reply that I was informed their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can."

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I sincerely hope that some or all of these words have stirred your soul a little. I know they stirred mine. We are way off track, my friends, and I don’t know what it will take to get us back to where we ought to be. But I know this: We won’t get back on course if we remain cowardly and ignorant. Make no mistake about it--any government that is steadily amassing power, as ours is, is doing so by robbing the people of their inherent rights and freedoms, no matter how benevolent or innocent that government pretends to be.

We have before us a stark reality: Push the federal government out of our lives or be overtaken by it. Delay strengthens the enemy. Take a stand today!

The Oil Spill

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has gener-ated a lot of bad news. The spill is said to be the worst catastrophe of its kind in history. The company responsible for the spill, BP, is receiving much criticism, and rightly so. But who else shares responsibility for this unprecedented environmental disaster?

Let me suggest that the government of the United States, particularly the Department of the Interior, and Americans in general also are to blame.

Let’s begin with the government.

The U.S. government, through the Department of the Interior, granted to BP an offshore lease which permitted the company to drill for oil 5,000 feet below the surface in the Gulf of Mexico. This was done even though the DOI itself admits that drilling for oil even 1,000 feet below the surface is a pretty dicey undertaking, one fraught with risks. So why does our government issue permits to oil companies wishing to drill at those extreme depths?

They issue them because big oil companies, whether domestic or foreign, wield enormous power and influence. In fact, it might be said that their power is exceeded only by the world’s central banks, our own Federal Reserve being among them, when it comes to behind-the-scenes manipulation of the world’s governments and economies.

You see many people--the vast majority, in fact--still fail to recognize that our government is no longer entirely in our hands. It is for the most part in the hands of those who, by hook or by crook, have managed to corner vast quantities of the world’s wealth, thereby gaining for themselves almost limitless power. At the moment, these shady figures prefer to operate behind closed doors and undercover. They get their traitorous work accomplished by purchasing and grooming puppet leaders to fill important offices within government, people on the make who are willing to promote the cabal’s interests while luring ordinary citizens into captivity by offering them a “helping hand” and doing what’s in their “best interest.” How do you suppose, for example, that an obscure nobody like Barack Obama rose from out of the blue to become president of the United States?

But enough said on the government’s unsavory involvement. Now let’s turn our attention to why the American public also is to blame.

The publics’ complicity in this boils down to just one thing: we have an insatiable appetite for oil. Consider this. Daily oil consumption in the U.S. roughly matches the daily combined consumption of the next four leading consumers of oil: China, Japan, Russia and India. And here’s another interesting comparison. The U.S. consumes nearly ten times more oil per day than our neighbor Canada does.

When I was a kid, the average American family owned one car and used it sparingly. Now everyone in a family who possesses a driver’s license owns a vehicle, not to mention all the motor homes, quads, dirt bikes, snowmobiles and watercraft many families also have. Some of these vehicles are on the move day and night.

I would dare say, and I’m sure many would agree, that most Americans wish to continue living in the fashion they’re accustomed to. Most of us, even so-called environmentalists, show little interest in altering our present lifestyle. Therefore our government permits oil companies to reach out further and further into previously unexplored regions of the earth in search of more oil, oil we all are willing to buy and consume voraciously, thus increasing the wealth and influence of corporations that already have us by the throat.

In other words, BP was drilling, and the government was allowing them to, because there is a huge worldwide demand for oil. And without question American consumers are demanding the lion share of it.

So next time a hot surge of righteous indignation towards BP and the mess they’ve created wells up inside of you, remember that you and the government you support also are to blame. And if you really want to make a difference, if you really don’t want to see anymore pelicans smothering in black goo, sell two or three of your automobiles and start taking the bus to work. And put your teenagers on bicycles. They probably could use the exercise.

And one more thing. If we don’t cut back voluntarily, the government will take the opportunity--indeed, jump at it--to create insidious new laws and regulations that will force us to, thereby further undermining the power of the people and expanding the power of the government.

BP screwed up, and it’s going to cost them. It may even fall by the wayside. But in the long run the world’s largest oil companies, like the world’s largest banks, will continue to grow and prosper and consolidate their power and influence, irrespective of any dog and pony shows staged by President Obama and members of Congress.

You can count on it.

The Bill of Rights

When the Bill of Rights initially was considered by the Consti-tutional Convention and the First Congress, it was a controversial topic. Many, even among the Founding Fathers, saw no reason for one. They believed the re-straints imposed upon the federal government by the Constitution were sufficient. However, we now recognize what a great blessing the Bill of Rights is, and realize that those who insisted upon its adoption were endowed with an extraordinary degree of foresight.

The Bill of Rights serves as a clear and unmistakable boundary between the limited powers delegated to the federal government and the almost limitless rights retained by the people. The Bill of Rights is, in effect, a “NO TRESPASSING” sign to over zealous and designing politicians.

If you haven’t read the Bill of Rights recently, please take a moment to do so. Every true American should be thoroughly acquainted with the first ten amendments to our Constitution. They all are important, but please pay particular attention to IX and X. You may on some occasion wish to bring these to the attention of our current president or to those who represent you in congress.

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Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Amendment II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

Amendment III
No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Amendment V
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Amendment VI
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

Amendment VII
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

Amendment VIII
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Amendment IX
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

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Too often we take these rights for granted. That is because we always have had them. But if they were ever taken from us, overnight our lives and the lives of our posterity would be dramatically altered in ways we can hardly imagine.

The turncoats in Washington recognize that in order to abolish these rights without creating too great a stir, they must make us believe that the challenges currently facing America and the world are so great that they can be solved only by granting additional power to government. But remember: No matter how challenging or complex the affairs of the world may seem to be, requiring free men and women to surrender their rights certainly will not make things better.

Anyone possessing even a modicum of commonsense realizes that the world cannot be improved by enslaving vast quantities of people, if for no other reason than it would seriously reduce the number of honest and capable minds that could be set to work solving problems.

We have a treasure in the Bill of Rights. Guard it with your life.