Individual Rights: The Battle for 2012

Sylvia Bokor
On January 21, 2011, an article by Thomas A. Bowden, analyst for the Ayn Rand Ce
nter appeared in The Christian Science Monitor entitled, "The Tea Party Will Fai
l -- Unless It Fully Embraces Individualism as a Moral Ideal." The article can
be read in its entirety at
http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2011/0121/The-tea-party-will-fail-un
less-it-fully-embraces-individualism-as-a-moral-ideal
Excerpts:
"By idealistically venerating the founding fathers, the tea party avoids the kin
d of cynical pragmatism that reigned in Richard Nixon's era. By steering clear
of religiously divisive "social issues," the tea party avoids the kind of attack
on the Constitution's separation of church and state that characterized Ronald
Reagan's era. And by stressing that both major political parties are guilty of
expanding government power without apparent limit, the tea party breaks with the
neoconservative, big-government Republicanism that held sway in George W. Bush'
s era. . . .
". . . [H]owever, the tea [party] harbors the same moral impetus that has justif
ied bigger and bigger government since the Progressive Era. The basic idea is th
at some people's needs constitute a moral claim on the lives and wealth of other
s. . . . To satisfy those needs, government concocts regulatory and wealth trans
fer schemes that coercively subject the individual to society. . . . The needs o
f others permanently displace the freedom of the individual. . . .
"The tea party's adherents would need to discover the moral principle underlying
the often quoted but little understood ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness. They would need to argue that all schemes that sacrifice the indi
vidual to society are morally wrong. And they would need to argue that this coun
try's most rational and industrious citizens---including business leaders, docto
rs, health insurers, and taxpayers and productive individuals in all walks of li
fe---are oppressed victims who deserve to be liberated, by permanent repeal of l
aws and regulations that invade their rights."
End Excerpts.
Socialist Democrats and Republicans are opposed to the individual rights of the
able and the productive. Exempting themselves from laws we must obey while conf
iscating our earnings and savings to distribute to others shows this clearly.
On September 12, 2008, Mr. Obama said, "I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan
, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase.
Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not an
y of your taxes."
Then Mr. Obama smuggled into his health care law a mandate declaring that beginn
ing January 1, 2013 ObamaCare will impose a 3.8% tax on "the sale of single fami
ly homes, townhouses, co-ops, condominiums, and even rental income."
This is only one instance of the government's violation of our rights---in this
case the right to liberty, which is the right to move about uncoerced. It is al
so a violation of all our other rights. Not satisfied with violating our rights
, Mr. Obama also seeks to force us to buy products we do not choose and to destr
oy our savings---i.e. the health care law's insurance mandate and the proposal t
o confiscate our 401.Ks, respectively.
A nation without rights, without the power of choice, without savings, is a nati
on of slaves.
In 2012 we should decisively dump Obama and every other socialist Democrat and R
epublican. The challenge in 2012 should not be about taxes. It should not be ab
out drugs, or immigration, or abortion, or any other issue save individual right
s. Individual rights are at the core and foundation of all such issues includin
g limited government and free-markets. If there is going to be a viable future
for this nation, 2012 must be about individual rights.