At the following link you will find a cartoon called “Make Mine Freedom” which came out in 1948.
http://nationaljuggernaut.blogspot.com/2009/09/this-cartoon-seemed-far-fetched-in-1948.html
I suggest you view the cartoon first, then read as many of the comments as you choose. As of this writing there are over 300 posted comments. Many of them deserve or require replies. I have chosen to reply to only one. I have not posted this at the original site for reasons of my own. Still, it is something that needs to be said and I say it here for all those interested. I have no problem with anyone linking this article to the original site. I will quote the original comment first, then my reply.
On October 25, 2009, Julio said: “Americans who rant and rave against “socialism” obviously want to give up their local and state police departments, their fire departments, their public schools, their state colleges, their libraries, the US armed forces, medicaid, medicare, social security, their state and interstate highway system, the US Postal System, federal law enforcement agencies, unemployment checks and food stamps, and many other beneficial institutions and agencies.”
Yes, Julio. I would like to give up most of the things on your list. I would like to give up all of those items that the Constitution does not give authority for. Now I am talking at the Federal level. Local and state police departments and fire departments should be just that, local and state. That means with no help from the Federal government. Help always comes with strings and strings always mean controls. No help, no interference and no controls.
Personally, I would prefer no public schools at all. However, that is a topic for another session. I will point out that the words “education”, “school”, “university”, and “learn”, do not appear in the Constitution. “College” does appear but only in reference to the Electoral College. My state (Indiana) constitution does promise education. I don’t agree, but at least it is legal at the state level.
I am not aware of any Federal involvement in libraries except the Library of Congress. I suspect many libraries get Federal grants. That is unconstitutional, therefore it is wrong.
The Constitution allows for a navy. It also allows for an army but limits army funding to a two year period. The Founders had a reason for this: They knew, first hand, the potential terror of a standing army. Both the navy and the army were meant for DEFENSIVE purposes, not for empire building. The wrong use of the military is also a topic for another session.
Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Yes, they should all be eliminated. Medicare and Medicaid are major factors in the health care crisis we now face. All three are major factors in the financial crisis the country now faces. When I was in my early twenties I espoused the idea of eliminating Social Security. I never felt those who had paid into it should be left out in the cold. Those already receiving benefits should continue to receive the return on their payments as promised. Those who had paid in for a significant amount of time (but were not yet collecting SS) should receive a pro-rated amount when the time came for them to collect. In the mean time, the money should no longer be taken from the workers (or their employers). The balance of the payments should come from general taxes until SS is totally phased out.
The Constitution allows the Federal government to ESTABLISH both post offices and postal roads. Nothing about maintaining them in perpetuity. Nor should we have any Interstate system set up and funded by the Federal government. The states could decide on where the road between city a in state A and city b in state B could meet so it would be easy to get from one city to another. Then the states could build them (if their state constitutions allowed).
There are very few laws that fall into Federal jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcement. Treason and counterfeiting come to mind. So I suspect a single Federal law enforcement agency should suffice. Most of the Federal agencies with enforcement powers are enforcing unconstitutional laws.
As for unemployment checks and food stamps, I cannot support government charity at any level above the township level. By that I mean the Federal and state governments should not provide handouts to people, corporations or other entities. If a person falls on hard times and cannot find needed private charity from family, friends, churches, or fraternal organizations, then he or she should be able to go to the township for help. This should be the last resort. When the help comes from a higher government level, much of the money available will be lost in the bureaucracy leaving less for its intended purpose. Also, when the help comes from a very local source, it is harder for the lazy good-for-nothing types to game the system. Those who truly have problems will get the help they need, those who won’t try to help themselves will only get it a time or two. Corporations should NEVER get charity from ANY government.
That leaves “many other beneficial institutions and agencies”. Show me what institutions and agencies you are talking about and I’ll show you institutions and agencies that benefit some at the expense of others. And I’ll bet the US Constitution will not support them.
Now for some more general thoughts. True Capitalism has not been in use for a very long time in this country (or anywhere else that I know of). We have had government controls with laws passed to benefit the large corporations at the expense of the small competitors. It is not more regulation on capitalism that is needed. Such regulations makes it difficult for new and/or small companies to enter a market. Take barbers for example. Yes, so far as I know, at present there are no Federal license requirements or regulations for barbers. But there are state and sometimes local requirements. If I can find a barber who does what I want for a fee I’m willing to pay, I don’t care if they have a government approval or not. If they do a bad job, they will lose me as a client and I’ll advise my family and friends to stay away. If they do a good job, I’ll come back. If they do an excellent job I’ll not only come back, but I’ll recommend them to my family and friends.
It always comes back to the Constitution. If the Constitution does not specifically allow it, it cannot be done at the Federal level. As far as lower government levels are concerned, if some states (or cities) are more socialistic and others are less so, let the people vote at the ballot box. If they are not satisfied with the results they can vote with their feet. Of course the states, counties and cities must still protect the rights guaranteed by the Constitution of these united States – including the Bill of Rights.