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You're a Victim of the State – Don’t Call 911

Recently by Sean Covell: When the State Pushes, Will You Push Back?

The state has done a wonderful job at one thing. It continues to do it every single day and most are not aware that it is happening. It’s not hard to see it really. All one has to do is look at the unemployment statistics, household savings numbers and the growing obesity epidemic to understand what has happened. Still, some have blinders on to the reality that the state is responsible for breeding generations of failures. It may be the only thing the state does well and it’s getting better at it by the minute. It should be treated as a medical epidemic. It should have it’s own class action commercial like those seen on cable news. If there was a commercial for a class action lawsuit against the state it may look something like this:

"Do you or somebody you know suffer from being a failure? Have you taken a dose of Statism ever in your lifetime and now suffer from any of the following;

Obesity – You have followed the food pyramid like a good little boy or girl. You didn’t take those nasty supplements, you ate "a balanced" diet and you took your prescribed medication like you were supposed to. You learned in school and from your doctor that you only had to eat less calories than you burned. Now, you are obese and diabetic. You continue to eat wheat, grains, high fructose corn syrup and of course breakfast cereals because you have to get those vitamins in your Cookie Crunch. You can barely move. You have three chins. You couldn’t do a push up or pull up to save you life.

The state has clearly misled you about what it takes to be healthy. Throw out everything you know. You must unlearn what you have learned. Cut the sugar, cut the wheat and most other grains. Cut the soda, the juice and actually do some research about the drugs you are taking. Stop looking for answers from the USDA, the FDA and all other state organizations that are shills for Big Pharma and farmers who are subsidized by the state. Stop eating a "balanced" diet and instead eat foods that make you healthy and have nutritional value. Above all, stop listening to fat doctors, nurses that smoke, or any other professional who reeks of hypocrisy.

Debt – You, like our government, are mired in debt. This is clearly your own doing, but it’s not entirely your fault. You went to public school and then college where you were told that you have to spend to keep the economy growing. You took President Bush’s advice to go shopping after 9/11. You took out a second and third mortgage on your house, (for which you received a government backed loan to buy) to purchase a new American made car because Detroit was in trouble. Now you have no savings and likely have to file bankruptcy. You are not alone. Millions are in your predicament. The good news is there is somebody to blame for your financial woes. Blame the state! You were simply doing what they do. By doing your part and spending everything you had, you were creating jobs, right? If you believe that, you are a Keynesian to the core. Please read anything by Mises, Hayek or Rothbard. Or, just read a Gary North article. You’ll begin to understand what money is and how wealth is created. His recent articles on Tax Loving Conservatives have been especially phenomenal.

Unemployement – Nearly 13 million Americans are out of work and 43% of those have been unemployed for over a year, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. You may be one of these poor souls. Perhaps you got a liberal arts degree from a very reputable college, but you still can’t find work. You even got a folding chair and occupied Berkeley, New York and Los Angeles to let the world know that you can’t find a job. You also made it very clear you believe Capitalism is to blame and that the government should spend more and forgive your student loans. Although better time would have been spent looking for an apprenticeship, updating your resume, gathering capital from friends and family to start your own company or just reading about how the division of labor and the marketplace is the reason for the greatest improvements in civilized life in the history of humanity, I understand your complaints. It was state interference in the marketplace that led to tuition rates skyrocketing. It was Keynesian and Marxist curriculum that you were taught. (Trust me on this one. I can still remember clearly embarrassing my professors when I had to school them on how private property, capital accumulation and savings as well as an intense desire to improve one’s standing in life ultimately led to wealth and job creation for many people in the marketplace He was stating it wasn’t fair that a watchmaker could charge $100 for a watch when the worker only made $8.00 an hour.) Maybe you believe, like my professor, that the workers should own the watch factory and the profit from the sale of the watch. If you do, you are a certified Marxist and that is why are unemployed. Your state education has failed you. I suggest writing a letter to your Alma Mater asking for a full refund. Then, take the refund check, buy some gold, silver, a personal trainer (remember you are obese), a copy of the Primal Blueprint, The Road to Serfdom by Hayek, listen to a Ron Paul speech for free on YouTube, and then find a wise place to invest your money where you can bring value to the marketplace. Your income is related to your value in the marketplace. Make yourself more valuable and you will make more money. If you become very rich, I don’t want any of your money, but I would suggest you buy a firearm to protect your assets and your family. There are some fine articles and videos here on LRC about which firearm is suitable for you.

Depression – Let’s face it, if you are obese, unemployed and in debt, there can be no doubt you are also depressed. Your doctor prescribed you Zoloft, Xanex and Ambien to sleep. Now, you’re still depressed and as energetic as a slug. While you have every reason to be depressed and to blame the state for your unhappiness, I have news for you: sometimes life is hard. This is especially true if you make bad decisions. It’s worth noting that life is easier in the current era than every previous era in human history. Even the poor have a higher standard of living thanks to what remains of the free market. If you don’t believe me, pick up a book on the Dark Ages. Or, read about the millions killed under the fascist rule of Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Lenin, Pol Pot. If you think you have it bad, remember you still have choices in life. Choose to be productive and not a parasite. Choose to promote freedom and not fascism. Choose to be grateful that you’re still sucking air and above ground. College taught you that your biography is your destiny. You’ve learned that your perspective on life is based on economic class. Let me tell you that Marxist philosophy will result in the death of whatever personal freedoms you have left. You have a mind, so use it and stop focusing on how unhappy you are. Go make someone else happy, thus making yourself more valuable to others and improving your own self image.

Conclusion – If you suffer from any of the ailments above do not call 911. They will prescribe you more antidepressants, feed you more sugar, offer you food stamps and unemployment thereby creating more debt and making us all less free. If you are a failure, the state has likely been complicit. Therefore, to be a success you must accept the state cannot have any major role in your life. You must avoid it at all costs. Limit contact with it, do everything in your power to shrink it. Do not rely on it for money, food, healthcare information or anything else. After all the state has failed you already. Why would you trust it again? To be a success, you must rely on yourself and your own ability to produce something of value. You must take action. As Mises put it "Mans striving after an improvement of the conditions of his existence impels him to action. Action requires planning and the decision which of various plans is the most advantageous." You must make a plan. Plan the work, work the plan and don’t stop working until your plan becomes reality. You don’t have to be a failure despite what your college professor taught you.

June 28, 2012

Sean Covell [send him mail] is a certified personal trainer and owner of Liberty Labs Nutrition and Fitness System health club chain. He is an ardent supporter of liberty, Austrian economics and freedom for personal choice in health and supplementation. Visit his website.

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