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The word "Ponzi" is thrown around with abandon these days, yet few people are likely to be aware of the origin and true meaning of that word - let alone the fact they are probably unwittingly involved in a giant Ponzi scam right now.
"Ponzi" was the name of a real person - Carlo "Charles" Ponzi, who was born in Italy in 1882 and emigrated to the USA in 1903. For 14 years, Charles Ponzi wandered from city to city, and from job to job, but finally settled in Boston in 1917, where he got a job typing and responding to foreign mail. It was in this job he was to discover the mechanism that he believed would make him and his investors very wealthy. The idea was this: he noted that in some of the correspondence he received was included an international postal reply coupon - good for using on the letter of reply.
What Ponzi found was that he could cash this foreign coupon in and obtain local currency - and apparently make a profit (as compared with the cost of the coupon in the foreign currency). For example, he could perhaps buy $100 worth of postal coupons in Italy and cash them in for $600 in the USA. Ponzi became very excited by this "discovery", and soon worked out that he could make more than 400% on funds employed in this manner. However, he didn't take into account the time delays, exchange fluctuations, and bureaucratic "overhead". But that didn't stop him devising a scheme to offer his idea as an investment opportunity to others.
On December 26, 1919, Ponzi filed an application with the local authorities to establish his business as "The Security Exchange Company" and promised 50% interest within 90 days to prospective investors. Well, the flood gates opened and eager investors poured in - with a weekly volume of over $1 million in the early days. People of every type were getting in on the opportunity - snatching up promissory notes from $10 to $50,000 in value. The average investor's stake was $300 - a substantial amount in those days.
By 1920 Ponzi was a very rich man. However, it was not because of his vaunted "stamp exchange" scheme at all. No, he was simply paying out investors (after the 90 day period) from new funds coming in from NEW investors. Everybody was happy - as everybody was being paid on time, and this fact lead more people to climb on to the bandwagon. Even the law, which was aware of what was going on, couldn't fault him as no one had laid a complaint, and everyone was being paid on time. That is, until July 26, 1920.
On that fateful day, a Boston newspaper ran a story questioning the legitimacy of the scheme, and from that day on the writing was on the wall. Ponzi was arrested on August 13. An estimated 40,000 people had invested $15 million into his scheme - a huge amount in today's money. And of course, there was no "investment" and no actual returns on those monies, so the bulk of people's money was gone. Charles Ponzi got five years in jail for his fraudulent actions, and apparently went on to "greater" things when released - with a fraudulent land investment deal in Florida!
Thus the Ponzi scheme/scam was invented and perfected. And it's really simple. Just come up with a plausible investment or business scheme and promise unheard-of returns - and watch while hopeful investors stream in. Make sure to pay out your investors on time (at the beginning) so they are "happy chappies" who tell all their friends and family about their success - and thus ensure a continuing stream of new investors, and new money. In this way, normal, apparently rational people can be fleeced of their life savings. And I guess you can put it down to one fact - the innate greed of most of us. When big dollars show up on our radar screen, it appears our judgement goes out the window.
Well, Ponzi scams are alive and well in the world today. In fact, it's almost impossible to keep up with all the new variations and twists on the old theme. The basic operational principle is always the same: put up a "legitimate" sounding project, business idea or investment - offer extraordinary high returns; pay your early investors on time, and use these people to promote your scheme, usually by way of referral commissions. The advent of the internet has provided a virtual honey-pot of opportunity to latter-day Charles Ponzis. The ability to tap into the power of viral marketing strategies, by paying out referral commissions; the ability to create professional looking websites so people are lulled into a false sense of security; the ability to take in and pay out funds quickly, using some form of internet payment system; and the ability to constantly tap into a growing market of internet newbies.
Modern day Ponzi scams come in all shapes and sizes. Some are disguised as legitimate investment opportunities, like forex or day trading - where high returns are promised. Some are disguised as business opportunities, like the surf-to-earn phenomena - where you can supposedly earn megabucks by spending five minutes a day surfing internet sites. Some are disguised as legitimate, but exotic business ventures. And some are disguised as "bank debenture" programmes. It doesn't matter how it looks on the outside, the under-the-hood mechanics remain unchanged - to rake in the cash and pay out the early birds at the expense of the later-arriving dodo birds. And the end result is always the same. Tears all round.
However, no matter how much exposure such scams receive, it appears there is no shortage of new "suckers" to support the latest offering. In fact, even if you are fully aware of the dangers; even if you've been scammed before and swore never to do it again; you are probably participating in one huge Ponzi scam right now - without even knowing it. I'm talking about the state-sponsored Ponzi known as a social security or pension scheme.
Obviously, different countries may run these differently, and some may have already abandoned them. But for most developed nations the state-sponsored welfare/pension Ponzi scam is alive and well. Just look at the "business" model. You promise your citizens a living wage upon retirement - known as a pension or "super". Citizens are told that when they start work, a small proportion of their earnings will be deducted each week, to contribute to their future pension or social security needs. This sounds feasible enough - until you look closer at the funding mechanism.
What the state does is take in the funds, via the tax system, and use those funds to pay CURRENT pension and social security obligations. In other words, they are taking in money from today's income earners, in order to pay money to yesterday's income earners. This money the state takes in is NOT invested on your behalf, but spent immediately to meet existing financial obligations of those already retired! It's a classic Ponzi scam. And like all such schemes, it can only grow so much before collapsing. You see, in order for the pension or social security system to keep going, it would require ever-greater numbers of 'new' people coming into the system. More babies and more population growth in other words. But that is not happening. No, the population growth in the developed nations is either static or in decline (as in Germany, for example). And this is set to produce the moment of crisis for such state- sponsored Ponzis. The new "investors" are drying up - and that will leave the old investors high and dry when it's their time to draw their income. And the only thing that has kept this state-sponsored Ponzi scam going as long as it has, is the long "life" of it.
When Charles Ponzi started his scheme, investors were promised a payout in 90 days - so if funds were not forthcoming at that time then alarm bells went off. However, with the state's version, the lifespan is considerably longer - more like 40-45 years. In fact, one of the tricks now being employed is to wind forward the official retiring age, so funds can be withheld (and the day of reckoning held off) for even longer. This problem has been noted in some countries, where they are moving to market orientated solutions - like national super investment plans, where funds are put into real investments. This is what "privatisation" of pensions and super is all about. It's about actually investing the money. This is being done in a number of ways. Sometimes by the state, acting as investment manager - and placing funds on behalf of its citizens. And sometimes the responsibility for such investment decisions is being handed over to those individuals who desire to manage their own affairs.
But all this new-found freedom to invest your own money for your own retirement is a relatively new response to a pressingly urgent problem - the fact that government funded pension and social security schemes are simply unsustainable in the long run. To be sustainable would require an ever-growing population - to build the ever-growing pyramid - in order to rake in the ever-increasing amount of funds needed. The simple barefaced fact is this: if you've been handing over your hard-earned money to your government, in the hope that they will pay you a pension or look after your health at some time in the future - then you are in for a rude shock. Your money is long gone. It was spent the moment the government took it off you to pay for other people's pensions and health care. And by the time you need the same benefits, the cupboard will be bare.
When "investors" in a private Ponzi scam realise they've become victims, they are always angry and aggrieved - and usually bay for blood. I wonder how it will be when the masses wake up to the fact that their own government has scammed them big time - bigger than Mr Charles Ponzi could ever have dreamed of. I guess we'll find out one day - soon.
Yours in freedom,
David MacGregor.
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com
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I recall, back in the early 80s, how I got "hooked" by a number of serious conspiracy theory books. Everything from tomes on the Illuminati and the Freemasons, to a Jewish global financial hegemony and New World Order. There were the small conspiracies. Then there were the large conspiracies. And finally, there were the conspiracies within conspiracies, and even the super-conspiracies. Of the latter much has been written of late - including putting all these "lesser" conspiracies under the umbrella of a super-cosmic one, involving aliens from other planets. Take your pick, or pick them all.
One of the attractions of conspiracies is their claim to be able to explain things - those things that appear unexplainable. They are also exciting, pregnant with looming danger and addictive - as you find yourself moving from lower level conspiracies to higher ones. Of course, on the other side of the fence sit all the perpetual sceptics - those who believe there are never any conspiracies, and that all such talk and theorising is nonsense. And this only serves to fuel ongoing research and belief into exposing ever more diabolical plans.
Regardless of your belief or otherwise in "master" conspiracies, there is no doubt that real conspiracies abound. They are everywhere - although it appears we generally only believe them well after the event. When something happens in the present, the general public seems less inclined to believe it could be the result of some sort of conspiracy. However, if an earlier event is later shown to be the result of a conspiracy, after some digging and historical research, then people are more likely to believe it. We know, from looking at historical facts, that a number of major world events have been the result of conspiracies. We accept this in past events - but mostly refuse to consider such revelations to have any application or relevance to what is going on today.
The Gulf of Tonkin incident was just one such example - where, by the wide publication and repetition of a lie, the Vietnam war was started. It was a conspiracy. Then there's the serious revisionist assertion that officials in the US Government had prior warning of the Pearl Harbour attack - but chose not to react, in order to force the USA into World War II. That would certainly be a conspiracy. History is replete with real examples of conspiracy. It happens all the time. Geez, as we speak, your own government is involved in all sorts of conspiracies - mostly to your disadvantage!
However, if you cry "conspiracy" regarding a current event - like just after 9/11 - you are dubbed some sort of crazy. The fact is, 9/11 was most certainly a conspiracy. There is no argument about that. The argument and speculation is purely about the identity of the conspirators. Yes, conspiracies exist and have always existed. But what is in question is the scope and extent of such behaviour. Most of the conspiracy theories in existence are not content with exposing isolated events, but more interested in finding ways to tie them altogether into one grand unified theory. This is where the going gets tricky and where facts can give way to fantasy. But more importantly, belief in master conspiracies (whether true or false) can have detrimental consequences for the believer.
Back to my original statement, that I got deep into conspiracy books in the early 80s. Yes, I was serious. In fact, it became all I could talk about, and I'd raise the subject wherever I had the opportunity (rather like a religious zealot raising the subject of God). I would bring it up at dinner parties. I would bring it up over a glass of beer. And I would discuss it with my work mates. You see, I had information they needed to know about! It all got to be a bit much. Then one day a thought hit me. If all these conspiracies are in fact true, and all pervasive, then I may as well top myself now, and put myself out of misery!
You see, I came to the realisation that belief in such theories was actually a form of mind-warp - and means of turning off one's sense of personal power. When one is consumed by some theory or other, then its power is all-encompassing. There is no escape. If these shadowy figures are as powerful as you believe they are, then you are at their mercy. By believing, you enter into some murky netherworld - a place where reality becomes elastic, and where paranoia flourishes. A bit like living through your own "Illuminatus Trilogy". It was at that point that I threw all my conspiracy books away. Not because I had proven them wrong, or because I had suddenly rejected their theories outright, but because they were infecting my soul with a sense of powerlessness. I've never looked back. I'm not saying conspiracies don't exist, but that fanatical belief in them is disempowering. It puts you in a place where you are the ultimate cosmic victim.
This state of mental affairs has a counterpart in modern day politic reality - and people's attempts to buck the system in their desire to be free. Just take one example - Echelon. Echelon is the global system of surveillance that can listen into and record all significant communications. If you phone someone and start talking about "bombs" and "bin Laden" or something equally incriminating, then that word or phrase could trigger a chain of events that gets your phone call tagged for further analysis. Take another example. The Financial Action Task Force. This ominous-sounding organisation is deeply involved in setting up strategies and enforcement procedures to enable the tracking and identification of "suspicious" financial transactions. It's part of the war on money laundering, which is seen as part of the wider "war on terror". If you walk into your bank and deliberately seek to transfer funds just under the legal reporting limit ($10,000 in one day in the USA), then your attempt to thwart such a reporting trigger is sufficient to get you reported. You are reported for seeking to avoid being reported!
Now, this - and a lot more - could get you feeling quite paranoid and jittery. In fact, many people become paralysed by fear of such things, and live their lives in constant shadowy attempts to avoid being seen and heard. The dilemma is this: you become aware of the powers that be, and how they are attempting to reduce your privacy and freedom of action in various ways. These powers are real enough, so taking proper precautions is not only sensible, but necessary. However, it's just one small step from taking such steps to becoming a slave of one's fear - the fear of powerful "others". I shouldn't have to say this, but this is exactly what those in authority want. They want you to be in fear of them - because without such fear, they really don't have much else.
There is a paradox here. The state's many conspiratorial activities are rarely designed to benefit YOUR life. On the contrary, you can probably bet your bottom dollar that its actions will lead to personal deprivations of some sort. At the same time, the state depends on "appearances" to maintain its power. It depends on the image it throws out. It depends on "voluntary" compliance - which can only be maintained by lies, propaganda and the generation of fearful emotions. These are the tricks our dear leaders employ to convince us of their necessity to our lives. They are projecting the impression that they all-powerful. But the truth is, they are fundamentally impotent. The way you see them, as all-powerful or impotent, has a direct impact on the quality of your life.
The trap for many a seeker of freedom is to grant the powers-that-be far more respect and fear than they deserve. You must remember that those drawn to public office are drawn by the basest of human instincts - the desire for power over others. Sure, they won't admit this, and will waffle on about "serving" the community. But you and I know that is all tosh. The name of the game is power. Those who seek power over others are drawn to a role in public life as surely as bees are drawn to the honey pot. The paradox is this: even though such people seek to exercise power, they can only be successful to the extent that other people grant them that power. They have no power in and of themselves - only what we give them by default.
What this means for the aspiring freedom seeker is profound. If you seek to be free, then the worst thing you can do is fall into the pit of despair and fear, brought about by paranoia that the state is "after" you. Yes, they are after you - but you are falling into their trap if you grant them far more capacity to exercise their power than they actually have. To be consumed by conspiracy theories and paranoia is not any sort of freedom, but a form of self-imposed imprisonment. If you allow this mindset to develop and flourish, then to the extent its power grows, your own power diminishes. The correct and healthy attitude to have towards one's own freedom, is to come to the realisation that those who seek to exercise power over you are a bunch of lowlifes. They are leeches on the social and economic life of society. They are not movers and shakers - far from it. They are not responsible for the creation of wealth. They are not responsible for rises in general health. They are not responsible for any form of social progress at all. No, all this is done by individuals acting voluntarily with others, in what we call the free market. Our dear leaders are simply parasites who seek unearned wealth, power and influence - and do so by setting up their grand charade, in order to convince us of their importance, so we will support them.
Let me tell you, the world you see every night on your TV news - the world of wars, lies, propaganda, not to mention the minutiae of constant road deaths, petty squabbling, and the nauseous silliness of most stuff passed off as news - is not the real world at all. It's not the world as it really is. It's just a distorted illusion. It's an illusion largely designed to confuse and immobilise people. Now there's a conspiracy of the highest order!
There is a much more interesting and true story going on in the background. World events are not moving according to some grand master plan, run by diabolical politicians and shadowy backers. It's moving forward according to what has always moved it forward - science, technology and business, the strategies devised by individual thinking people, in their quest to make life better. These are the drivers of our world - not politicians, their backers and their plots. Sure, they like to think they can change the course of history, and they can and do change specific events that make up part of history. But they have no real power to circumvent the much larger picture, which is fuelled by the power of individual people acting to improve their own lives. They have no power to prevent "unintended" consequences, and sudden historical shifts caused by radical changes in thinking, perception or technology.
We do ourselves an injustice when we grant our leaders any real significance - like the constant following of their actions and words on the daily news. This facade maintains and supports the illusion that power resides with them. Where the truth is, power resides with you. My advice, if you want a freer life, is this. First dump any sense that you are dependent on what politicians do, or what the state is up to. You have no need to concern yourself with that. Your concern is to be your own prime-mover - to move forward with your life in the sure belief you have all the power necessary to make it what you want. You don't need what the state is offering, as even that which may seem useful can be provided much more effectively by the marketplace.
Yes, take rational measures to protect yourself. Take all the steps you need to make to further your own goals and aspirations. But do not be consumed by fear and paranoia. Do not fall for the illusion that the state is the all-in-all, the all-powerful. Even more, do not allow yourself to be consumed by the idea that "superhuman" beings are running the whole show. If you turn your quest for freedom into a fear-inspired flight from being "found out", or from those you perceive to be in power, then you will have fallen into the ultimate trap - one of your own making.
Yours in freedom,
David MacGregor.
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com
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All of you reading this are in the vanguard - the first wave of troops in the world's next major battle arena. You are on the internet. You are one of the "early adopters", adopting new technologies and new ideas ahead of the majority. Your thinking is being changed and your world view is being radically altered. You may not know this - but it is happening all the same.
In the "old" world politics rules. The politics of envy. The politics of power for power's sake. The politics of right and left; Republican and Democrat; Conservative and Labour. The politics of the old world. The world of dinosaurs. But the internet represents a "new" world. A self-organising world without government - a world that poses a real threat to the old world. In this new world, people do as they please. They organise themselves (without being told what to do); they police themselves - to maintain the order required for things to work; they read what they like; they form opinions outside those proscribed by the mainstream media; they say what they like; they trade; they exchange goods, services and ideas - without bureaucratic interference. They live a life outside of imposed, involuntary government.
This is a radical concept, and hardly anyone realises it. The internet is a tool for sure, but it is much more than that. It is a completely new way of doing things. A new way of organising things and a new way of dealing with each other - without the dead hand of the state. That's why the conventional media is obsessed with linking the internet (in the old world's public mind) to such things as pornography, violence, bomb making, death cults, drug trafficking and money laundering. They want to discredit it. They want to portray the internet as something dangerous - rather than liberating. To them, the internet represents anarchy. And that is true, for anarchy means "no government". It doesn't necessarily mean lawlessness - although that is how it is always defined. Anarchy is anathema to the status quo. That's why you always hear about anarchists "throwing bombs" and causing mayhem. But the media dare not talk about how well anarchy works on the net - how much gets done without the force of compulsory government behind it.
This anarchy on the internet is a major threat to the old world. Just think back a few years - to before the Berlin Wall came down. Back then, in the days of the Cold War, information was something that governments had tight control over. Most countries had nationalised media services (like TV and even newspapers). The totalitarian ones (the Soviet Union, China etc.), had sealed borders as far as information and news was concerned. The internet has abolished such controls. Information is in free flow - and the powers-that-be don't like it. Yes, the Chinese government is bending over backwards to control the flow of information. But even they know they cannot abolish the internet - but hope to control the content instead. They will fail. They are already failing. There are multitudes of ways to bypass the clumsy censorship attempts of the Chinese Communist Party. Even learning English achieves this! Sure, some of the information on the net is maybe worse than useless - thereby putting more responsibility on the reader to assess its truth or falsehood. But this is a good thing, not a bad thing. People should bear that responsibility, for if they do not, who will?
What is happening on the internet has never happened before. We are seeing the birth of a completely new world-view, a new culture. We are seeing the true globalisation of the planet - not according to "one-world-government" views, or the "New World Order", but according to the self-interested actions of millions of independent human beings - all going about their business, and creating a revolution while they are at it. This is what's so remarkable. It is not a PLAN. It is not a conspiracy. It's chaos in practice.
If Adam Smith, the great Scots economist and moral philosopher, was alive today he'd recognise the internet as the optimum example of his much quoted "invisible hand". In his book, "The Wealth of Nations", Smith claimed that within the system of capitalism, an individual acting for his own good tends also to promote the good of his community. In other words, when people are given free reign to further their own interests and ambitions, there is the unintended consequence of this also benefiting everybody else. The truth of this claim is proven each time you take a look at the real world.
Take Bill Gates, for example. In his pursuit of his own dream and passion he revolutionised personal computing on a grand scale. He delivered new tools to the masses in such a way that for a couple of hundred dollars, people were able to vastly improve their productivity. Take Steve Jobs of Apple fame. Not only did Apple's original Macintosh operating system become the inspiration for Windows, but Jobs has made a "second coming" with the huge success of the iPod. This little box is delivering previously unheard of musical benefits to millions of people world wide. One man's dream can turn to everyone's advantage. That's the invisible hand. And the internet is now the prime driver and showcase for the validity of this theory.
In previous essays I have said how the money system and education are the two areas of public life that need to be wrenched from state control - as they represent power levers that allow for all sorts of abuses and manipulations. Prior to the internet it was almost impossible to conceive of any realistic challenge to government monopolies in these two areas. But with the net, both education and the money system itself could be radically overhauled. Of course, this hasn't happened yet, but there are clues and signs of the potential for this. Just take the ongoing growth in e-currency systems. Now, while e-gold is still limited in its use because of the need to convert to fiat money, imagine how rapidly it would grow if more and more people decided to treat gold as money - and if shops and merchants accepted it.
Same goes for education. With the capacity and capability of the net growing year by year, and with the new faster download technologies gaining broader acceptance, it's easy to see how "distance learning" could be taken to a whole new level. Just imagine signing on for some educational course or other, to be delivered by internet - using live and recorded lectures and lessons. There really is no limit to what could be achieved using this medium. But the really interesting thing is how this possibility opens up the whole education market to the FREE market in so many innovative ways. And more importantly, it allows new ways of education to gain traction, and to compete head-on with the old, tired state systems that abound.
Another major battle arena will be in the area of privacy - the right to keep your personal and financial affairs private. For the first time in history, technology is making it possible for the ordinary person to outwit the government, to use the latest technology to enhance his own life - on his own terms. It appears that George Orwell ("1984") may have been wrong, when he envisaged a future world where technology gave governments the absolute power they craved - and allowed them to completely enslave the masses. Instead, it appears technology is providing the necessary tools of liberation. But the powers-that-be will not give up their position easily. There will be a real battle. They do not want you to be free. They do not want you to keep your affairs private. They do not want you to get to a point of view where you see THEIR function as not only unnecessary, but downright dangerous.
The "old" world is right now up to its old tricks, with "wars and the rumours of wars" - the oldest tactic of diversion ever known. We have the war in Iraq. We have the threatened war with Iran. We even have rumblings of future conflict with China. And, of course, we have that most ridiculous war of all, the war against "terrorism". This has to be the biggest hoax of the 21st century, a war against an idea, a tactic. A war against nobody in particular. A perfect war with no possible end. And what's really interesting is that the opposition to such wars is coming from the internet world. The free world.
The mainstream media have become irrelevant - with their ongoing state-encouraged propaganda and mindless outpourings of car accident data, trivia and sensationalism. Just ask yourself, do you really expect to learn what's really happening by turning on your TV, or buying the daily paper? Of course not. That's not where the real information action is. It's on the net. Whether you realise it or not - YOU are part of this drama. You are caught up in history's writing. Get smart. Be part of the solution. Move now to protect yourself and prepare yourself morally, intellectually and practically. We live in perhaps the most exciting period in human history. It's the end of an age - the death throes of the nation state.
But it's the beginning of something much better - the shift to a new way of social organisation. A way which will encompass a recognition of the rights and power of each individual. You see, contrary to popular wisdom, it's individual people who matter, not those trussed up, pompous idiots who call themselves our leaders. Welcome to the emerging world of the self-governing, autonomous human being - the Sovereign Individual.
Yours in freedom,
David MacGregor.
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com
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The movie, "V For Vendetta", is causing quite a stir among libertarians. Reviews and commentaries are popping up all over the place - mostly to praise the fact that such a movie about ideas was even made at all. Better still, a movie about the ideas that libertarians care about.
It's also causing a stir amongst freedom's enemies - as it's not often they have to confront a popular film that has the potential and capacity to change the minds of those exposed to it. Or at the very least, to cause people to question their presently held assumptions."V For Vendetta" is such a film.
I'm not going to disclose the plot or review the movie here, save to say that it's about a guy who, having suffered terribly at the hands of the state, decides to take revenge on the perpetrators in a rather spectacular way. And more importantly to use his "vendetta" as a catalyst for something even more significant.What I'm more interested in doing is outlining and exploring the major theme of the film - and how it applies to our present day situation.There's no doubt that V is an avenging hero - someone on a moral crusade to rid the world of scum. But it does raise important questions about what means are acceptable in the drive to achieve certain ends.
Some detractors have attempted to portray the film as a mindless glorification of terrorism, and are clearly upset by the moral premises the film explores. And I'm not surprised - as serious questioning of the idea of terrorism is something our dear leaders would rather we didn't get into.However, if terrorism is defined as wanton acts of violence against innocent people - as a strategy for seeking to achieve certain political ends - then V's actions are not those of a terrorist. Firstly, because he does not target innocent people, and secondly because he is not fighting FOR some political cause, but AGAINST the political status quo - the evil system he lives under.
V himself sees his actions as the application of justice - and that those he targets (in a most violent and bloody way) are simply getting their just desserts. He uses force as defence against the initiation of force - and sees himself as totally morally justified.But this does bring up the question as to what is a rightful response to the initiation of force. For libertarians this is not a problem, as we see the initiation of force as evil, while any use of force to defend oneself against such initiation as morally right. Libertarians are not pacifists.However, V's strategy is not to use such force to overthrow the corrupt system directly - but to use spectacular, symbolic acts of force to act as a catalyst for raising the awareness of the masses, so they realise they have the power to simply say "no".
This puts V's strategy into an interesting category. He is not a freedom fighter who is out to replace the bad guys with his own "gang" by all violent means possible. His vendetta is not the equivalent of a violent political revolution, which only ends up replacing the existing violent order with another one - like most such examples in history. No, his violence is extremely targeted. He targets those who were personally responsible for his own tortuous incarceration, and targets the political symbols of their power - like the final denouement involving the Houses of Parliament.Then again, V is not a pacifist. He is not like Ghandi who did not believe in using violence to overthrow violent oppression. Ghandi was a pacifist and believed in the power of non-violent action. And there is an element of truth in Ghandi's position, in that if the masses really do rise up peacefully against their masters, then short of destroying total populations, such a strategy could work.
There is a risk here of course, and that's the assumption that no one is so evil as to wipe out an entire population who has the gall to rise up in opposition. History does not give us such assurances, and pacifists could be accused of having too-rosy an image of human nature - at least the nature of some of humanity's worst examples! What V does is use violence as a wake-up call, a trigger to mobilise the masses. Unlike a typical pacifist or violent revolutionary he understands the power of symbols. He understands the power of the media. He understands the power of ideas. And he understands the archilles heel of those in power - their reliance on the sheep-like behaviour of their subjects.So V is the archetypal "thinking man's" revolutionary. He is well read. He loves books and music and all things cultural. He has a passion for his cause - a passion borne in the crucible of personal pain. He is a totalitarian's worst nightmare. Ultimately, his goal is to make the forlorn citizens of this "future" fascist state wake up and realise their innate power, and in so doing confront those in government with their actual powerlessness.
As V states in the film, "People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people." In a way, that statement encapsulates the theme of the film and the underlying ideas that drive it. And this is what makes the movie so interesting. It presents as its theme the idea that we, the people, should NOT be afraid of our government. That to do so is to invert the reality of the situation. The fact is, they should be very afraid of US. That's a far cry from reality of course. Government in the modern world is intimidating and ruthless. Yes, they smile and kiss babies while seeking election. But once in the seat of power, they willingly tread over all your rights. They bully and cajole. They frighten and intimidate. They blackmail and punish. The smiling face can quickly turn into an Orwellian Big Brother grimace, complete with the totalitarian tools of violence and oppression - if you step over the line. And "stepping over the line" is becoming easier and easier to do.
Are you doing drugs? Are you trying to sell drugs on the side to make money? Are you selling your body for sexual favours? Are you building an addition to your home without permission? Are you doing "cash" business to avoid tax? Are you driving faster than permitted? Are you using inside information to financially benefit yourself? Are you trying to defend yourself against potential muggers and intruders by having a firearm? Are you seeking to end your life because you are terminally ill? Are you seeking to leave your country - or enter another? Are you hiding money in offshore bank accounts to avoid taxation or litigation? Are you trying to protect YOUR property? Are trying to avoid conscription? Are you trying to keep the money that is rightfully yours, and stop it being used for things you find morally reprehensible?
Welcome to the club! Welcome to the world of the "outlaw" - the world of all those who are made such by the ever-widening definition of "crime". Yes, we're all outlaws now! What keeps governments in power is the facade they present to the public. They talk "service" and act "oppressive". They can make a example of anyone who tries to stand up to them - and inculcate fear into the heart of anyone else considering doing likewise. This is where the movie "V For Vendetta" provides a clarion call and inspiration. It shows the truth of the matter - in a way that only a work of art can. It presents us with truths that evade us when simply stated in words. But when presented using the art of cinema - a gripping story line, a raising of emotions, a building of tension, the release of relief - such truths take on a new meaning. They present themselves in ways that can seep into one's consciousness and take hold.
That is the power of a movie like "V". Not only can it cause those who don't normally think about such things to go home pondering life's bigger questions, but it can cause those who espouse freedom to go home and think about how they can really achieve it. "V For Vendetta" is also "V For Victory" - for that is what it is. It is the story of one man's victory over a vicious, inhuman system - and even more significantly, a victory that's ultimately shared by everyone. The essential and hopeful message of the film is that if one man, with the courage of his convictions (and a vast range of martial skills!), can bring a totalitarian system to its knees - then imagine what the masses could achieve if only they had that same passion, those same ideas, and that same conviction - and the courage to stand up for what they believed in.
V's vendetta is inspiring stuff - the sort of thing to get a freedom loving individual standing up and cheering. There is nothing quite so sweet as to see a political thug finally brought to a place where he is a whimpering mess begging for mercy! If you like a good story. If you like movies that make you think. If you like movies where good triumphs over evil. And more importantly, if you love movies that champion the cause of freedom in fresh and innovative ways - then I thoroughly recommend you get yourself down to your local cinema pronto - and see this movie for yourself. It will inspire you to stand up and be counted.
Yours in freedom,
David MacGregor.
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com
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Make no mistake, the world out there is changing before your eyes. You are witnessing the death rattle of the nation state and the ideas that support it - and cracks are starting to appear everywhere.
The USA is losing the war in Iraq. Just consider that for a moment. The world's greatest high-tech military power cannot beat a low-tech street-smart insurgency. It's David and Goliath all over. The USA is also losing the economic "war" with China. No matter how much their law makers moan and groan about the trade deficit - the truth is China is keeping the USA afloat, and any attempt to start a trade war with them can only end up hurting the USA more.
France is losing the war against even modest economic reform. The French enjoy a coddled welfare state life, so much so that they bristle at any attempt to change it. And such has been the case with this latest attempt to amend labour laws to allow French employers to more easily hire and fire young people. French youth and unions would have none of it, and came out into the streets banners blazing. The government caved in.
China is losing the war against the free flow of information. Yes, they make a lot of noise, censor certain online content and blacklist certain domains - but the savvy Chinese hacker knows how to get around all of that. But the real achilles heel of the Chinese government's information control policy is the English language itself - something they have been actively encouraging their young people to learn. If you're Chinese and speak English, then there is virtually no control over what you can say and read online.
Zimbabwe - that country headed by one of the world's greatest tyrants, Robert Mugabe - is falling apart at the seams. With inflation heading for 1,000% it is in economic free fall, and all that remains is to literally turn out the lights and close the door. Unfortunately, there will be a massive amount of human suffering as a consequence.
I could go on and on. The daily news reads like Armageddon in the making - and I haven't even mentioned the biggest flash point of all yet - Iran. If the USA or Israel attack Iran, then all bets are off as far as global stability is concerned. In fact, such an attack could be the catalyst for a global economic meltdown. Some people are saying that our "leaders" aren't stupid enough to start such a war and trigger all those unintended consequences. But I'm not holding my breath.
Yes, there's plenty of evidence out there for the collapse of the "old" order. And there's only so many fingers that can be put in the global "dike" to stave off various forms of disaster. The world "out there" is certainly changing before our eyes. Trouble is, most people's perceptions about the world aren't changing fast enough, or even changing at all. It's the world "in there", in our heads, that also needs to change dramatically. We need to bring our world view up to speed with what is really happening out there in the real world.
What's a world view? In short, it's the way you see the world. It's the way you were "taught" to see the world. It's the way those in authority want you to see the world. Right from your first steps, to your first day at school and on to adulthood - you have been meticulously fed a particular world view. It changes slightly with your cultural background - but not that much.
And it changes slightly with each generation - but only incrementally. However, this is the first time in history where external reality demands that it undergoes serious fundamental change. The existing common world view is based on a basic assumption - an assumption that is past its "use by" date and is no longer relevant or even helpful. No matter what race or cultural background you come from, what religion you were brought up in, or what country you grew up in - one thing's for sure, you were taught that your life is not your own. You were taught that you owe a debt somewhere. A debt to society. A debt to your race. A debt to your family. A debt to your government. Even a debt to some supernatural power. In other words, your life was already mortgaged from the day you were born - to be paid off by serving the needs of others for the rest of your life. I call that world view the "slave" assumption.
And how were you to repay that debt? By being a good citizen and doing what you were told. By obeying authority and not rocking the boat. By not questioning the status quo. And, of course, by paying your taxes! You see, the "tax" issue is the crux of this problem. Tax is the system that funds the existing world order. It's your financial "contribution" that keeps it all going. Have you ever stopped to think what you really get for your taxes? I can tell you, it's both a lot more and a lot less than you bargained for! Here's a short list of "benefits": roads (often badly designed and maintained); medical care (if you're lucky); education (if you can call it that); police protection (what?) and justice (you hope!); the military (ostensibly to defend you in case of attack, but in reality a means of endangering your life via ongoing war).
All the above are the "poster boys" of the tax system - what you are told your money is used for. However, there are also all the "hidden" extras like: military build-up and war mongering; welfare transfer payments to support families other than your own; financial support for causes you may not agree with; grand schemes to bolster your leader's status; massive and wasteful bureaucracy; invasions of your privacy; erosion of your rights; interference in business; meddling in other nation's affairs; fiddling and corruption on a grand scale.
In fact, if you really think about it, what you get for your taxes - just the "poster boy" stuff - is pathetic, and the rest of the "package" is downright scary. But, like sheep, most people don't protest - because tax is built into their world view. The injustice of tax is not even noticed, because its justification has been drilled into the subconscious corners of everyone's mind. You must pay tax because you "owe". It forms part of some "social contract" that you never signed up to - but are expected to comply with. You don't believe me? Well, consider this:
Imagine you have a neighbour called "Joe". Imagine that one day he turns up on your doorstep and says, "Hey listen pal, I'm having trouble making ends meet - and I've noticed that you seem to do okay money wise. Well, it's simply not fair. So I want you to give me 40% of your income each week - so I can get by with some self-respect! And don't even think of not giving it to me, or I'll bring round some of my heavy friends to lean on you!" Of course, you'd call this extortion. And you'd be right.
So, ask yourself this question: what makes the above scenario "extortion" when ONE individual demands your money because he needs it, but "social responsibility" when the same demands are made collectively by ALL the "Joes" out there - via a third party called the state? Morally there is simply no difference. So the next time you get a twinge of guilt about paying as little tax as possible - remember you are simply responding according to the world view you were indoctrinated with. It's a knee-jerk reaction, that's all.
But change is in the air. The idea that your life and your cash is not your own is undergoing a revision. People are standing up and questioning this primitive morality. The very existence and growth of the offshore industry and more private forms of online commerce and communication is proof that individuals are taking their money and privacy seriously - and guarding it accordingly.
More and more people are questioning the authority of governments. More and more people are beginning to see the light - that they don't need what most governments are offering. The poor service and shoddy goods priced like an extortion racket, and the swathe of hidden and unwanted "extras".
The internet is making such thinking even easier to act on. Not only does it provide for the spread of information that liberates people - it also provides the means of achieving the personal and financial freedom that beckons those with the courage to step outside their old world view. The old world view is one which sees you as a slave - a slave to a system that claims your life and property, and does this by taxing your effort, ambition, success, persistence and creativity.
The new world view is one which sees you as an autonomous individual - a unique person who should be free to lead your life as you wish (provided you leave others alone to do likewise), and to keep the results of your efforts and creativity. It's a world of unlimited possibility - a world of increasing wealth.
And that's precisely why those in power don't want you to achieve such freedom. If you are autonomous, wealthy and free, then you simply don't NEED them. And what would they do then? If you're standing on the fringe, fascinated by the possibilities of asserting your own sovereignty, but haven't taken the plunge - then don't wait too long. Don't become a spectator, simply watching events unfurl around you and being carried by the tide of history. Change your world view. Become a participant in the "new order". Make your own history!
Yours in freedom,
David MacGregor.
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com
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It is interesting to note how the "space" between nations has been managed. The space I refer to is, of course, the sea. And I guess it was pretty important to find some way of managing it, as it represents the largest percentage of the earth's surface.
And so, over time, there has been developed what is known as the "law of the sea". It is a codified system of rules that are designed to deal with the obvious need to find common ground between nations, as to how to treat the sea - and what goes on in and under it. The current Law of the Sea developed from an older concept known as "freedom of the seas", which dates back to the 17th century. Under that earlier system of codes and rules, a nation's territorial rights only extended 3 nautical miles (6 km) - leaving the rest as "international waters".
In the 20th century, these territorial limits have been extended to allow greater control of such things as fish stocks and mining rights for minerals - and have been codified by the United Nations. The most well known "laws" are those which grant certain rights to coastal nations, like the 12 nautical miles of "extended" sovereignty given to such nations. Then there is the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which extends up to 200 nautical miles from the coast - for the purpose of economic exploitation. A full disclosure of these laws can be found at: http://www.un.org/Depts/los/index.htm
What's interesting, of course, is the fact that such sovereignty has proscribed limits - 12 and 200 nautical miles respectively. And both of different degree. Once you are "outside" such limits - then you are no longer subject to the sovereignty of any particular nation. In other words, the sea is considered beyond and outside such control. That is why, when ships go to sea, you can enjoy such things as duty-free goods and gambling - unhampered by silly national laws.
A similar phenomenon is seen while flying - hence the offer of duty-free goods while in-flight between earth-bound destinations. Such cooperative agreements as the "law of the sea", are inevitable - as a means of settling potential disputes, and stopping any one country from claiming more water-based sovereignty than is their right. The only way any one nation can "stop" another nation from monopolising the oceanic resource is to agree that ALL nations will give up such a claim. In this way, the sea is a law unto itself. Professional seafarers know this of course - as do those who live their lives at sea. The sea has always been equated with "freedom". When you are at sea you are under no national jurisdiction - and for a short time can enjoy the benefits that such freedom brings. Which brings us to the other "C" - Cyberspace.
It is helpful to view the internet (cyberspace) as of similar "kind" as the sea - a territory outside of any individual nation, common to all, but not beholden to any one in particular. It is obvious that ONE country cannot "claim" sovereignty over the whole internet. So, while trying to grapple with economic issues arising out of the cyber-economy, these nation states are going to have to accept that apart from "traffic" within their own "space" - the internet is very much like the oceans of the world - or the space above the world. Common to all - and owned by none.
What this means is that cyberspace must be "neutral" and apart from the nations of the world. In other words, an independent territory just like the ocean. A place where certain agreed rules are applied - but NOT the rules of individual nations. So in cyberspace, as when at sea, one can imagine buying goods WITHOUT duty or taxes, and gambling WITHOUT state interference. And so it is - right now! What's more, as with the sea, one can imagine earning a living on the net - without the crippling burden of a national income tax.
One of the built-in protections against supranational monopoly is the very fact that we have nations in the first place. And not only that, but an increasing number of nations each year - which all have their own interests and territory to protect. The advantage in this is that while delineating their own "sovereign" territory - they are also excluding all that which cannot be included: such as the oceans, the air above the oceans and space itself. And cyberspace can claim the very same extra-nationality.
Which brings me to the issue of the increasing pressure nation states are being brought under - regards their tax policies. This doesn't just apply to "tax havens", but all countries which are perceived to have low tax rates. The well-established welfare statist countries are all concerned by the issue of "tax competition" - where lower tax countries can siphon off both capital and labour, for obvious reasons. This has lead the OECD to call for "tax harmonisation" - which is simply another word for everyone increasing their tax rates so they equate with Germany or Denmark! What the "big-brother" countries are really saying is, "We don't want to have to compete taxation-wise with other countries. We don't want other countries having different tax rates to ours." Now, imagine how this idea would work out in other areas.
Say you live in a country that produces computers. It's like saying, "We don't want you selling computers cheaper than us." Of course, in many cases countries DO try to limit such ordinary competition through the use of tariffs (taxes on imported goods to increase their local market price - so they don't out-compete locally made goods of similar nature). But this doesn't justify the practice.
Let's move the idea to another area - pay rates for various skills. Imagine one country saying to another, "You can't pay your computer programmers $300 per hour when we are only paying $50. It's not fair, you will attract all our best programmers!" The usual and correct response would be - "Tough!" So let's take our imaginary computer programmer - and look at his options. He is working in country "A" for $50 per hour - and is offered a job in another country for $300 per hour. Naturally, he is tempted to take the offer and move. This is normal practice. It goes on all the time - people moving somewhere else to improve their lot in life.
Okay, let's look at another scenario: This time our computer programmer is earning $150 per hour in Country "A" - and paying tax at the rate of 35%. He gets an offer of work in Country "B", with the same hourly rate - BUT a lower tax rate - 15%. He is tempted to take this offer, for the very same reason he is tempted to take the first offer - because it will put MORE money in his pocket! And that's it. In essence, whether you get paid more, or simply get taxed less, it's all about what's left in your pocket at the end of the day. And "competition" in tax rates is every bit as legitimate as competition in wages and conditions - and anything else for that matter!
The dangerous notion of "tax harmonisation" is that somehow it is "right" to have everyone paying a uniform rate of tax - to prevent the movement of people and capital outside a country's borders. It's dangerous because it is in effect a "slave" notion - that you have no right to seek a better environment for your life - and that no other country has the right to try and offer such an environment to you. On the face of it, it looks bleak - knowing that the high-tax countries are fighting a "war" with the low-tax ones. However, human nature doesn't change. People will always seek ways to preserve what is theirs - and if one door is closed, then that simply provides an opportunity for someone else to open a new door.
I expect that, just as some tax-havens and low tax jurisdictions may give in and comply with the "big-brother" directives from other countries, others will see a golden opportunity to increase their market share! I also expect to see the arrival of much more sophisticated ways around the taxes levied by these "slave states". And the increasing pressure on existing low tax countries can only make new options all the more profitable and likely. What's happening is more and more people are discovering the benefits of securing financial privacy - and the demand for such services can only increase.
As far as I'm concerned, the "noisy complaints" of the old established nation states are emerging proof of their tax-base decline - and impending panic! This, in my opinion, will be particularly evident in the rapid emergence of China and South East Asia as the world's next major economic power bloc. They have already well-established low income tax rates,like 17% in Hong Kong and China, and 15% in Singapore. These countries impose a very low tax overhead on their people, and as a result, entrepreneurship is on the rise. Not only that, but there is already a skills and capital influx into these countries - due to such financial incentives. This naturally impacts on the taxation bottom line of the higher tax countries. And long may it continue!
On one hand all this tax harmonisation stuff could be seen as "bad" news - for if all such low tax countries were to disappear, then what could we do to protect ourselves from the outrageous protection racket called "tax"? On the other hand, it's a sign of the times - that all is not well in "high-tax" land. I believe technology will come to the rescue - in the form of cyberspace (already), and perhaps even "real" space in the future.
If cyberspace can be delineated and "outside" the sovereignty of any one nation - then it is only a matter of time before such a territory will be able to deliver economic services from WITHIN cyberspace - in other words, not beholden to the laws of any one nation. As an example, we could see the deployment in space of special purpose "economic" satellites - carrying the full ability to offer banking services for example - and managed from earth-bound cyberspace. A "bank" in space is not such a far-flung idea. It's only a matter of time before full wireless internet will be the norm - and the ability to bank with "SpaceBank" will be a real possibility. And as space, as well as cyberspace, belongs to no particular nation, then jurisdictional rules would not apply. In other words, while "behind-the-eightball" nations are fighting each other over their various tax rates, technology could provide the ultimate solution - one permanently outside the control of any one (high tax) nation. And that day may arrive sooner than you think!
Yours in freedom
David MacGregor
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David MacGregor runs an information service designed for those who seek more practical and financial freedom. http://www.sovereignlife.com/
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