The Secession will not be Sponsored by Goldman Sachs

The Daily Sheeple

Ron Paul has reared his hoary head again, this time speaking to an excited Mises Institute gathering.  He predicted mass secession by the states.

I liked Ron Paul for awhile, but like many, I ultimately decided he was a crackpot.  I never liked the little dog whistles he threw out to the Stormfront types, 9/11 troofers and America haters, even if he did have a larger point about unbridled federal power and the consequences of meddling in other countries.  Also, I love the Mises Institute.  It is a treasure trove of libertarian thought, but I can't stand Lew Rockwell.  I am more of a CATO/Reason/Kochtopus libertarian.

Anyway, like any good crackpot, Paul starts with some grains of truth and makes some valid observations before going over Sanity Falls in a barrel.

Yes, the federal government has become increasingly oppressive and its powers have grown way beyond constitutional boundaries.  Meanwhile, political pundits and TV leg-crossers worry about constitutional crises and government paralysis. I say bring 'em.

There will be no Revolution

Loose talk centering around the 2nd Amendment and taking the country back by armed insurrection pisses me off. Such talk is dangerous and irresponsible, but it does serve the purpose of revealing the tin-pot wannabes among us.  Real revolutionaries don't stand around talking about it.  I usually ask such nutballs who they will shoot first?  A cop, who happens to be your neighbor?  You gonna go after the National Guard Armory on the edge of town where your Uncle Joe goes for his monthly drill?  Gonna blow up the grocery store?  A courthouse full of your fellow citizens?  Just how would your rebellion against the US government work, anyway?  The answer is, it wouldn't, and we wouldn't want such loonies taking power anyway.

Liberty's Iron Triangle: Gridlock - States Rights - Lawsuits

Still, there is hope, and it lies in four institutions, all of which stem from the people:  The States, and the three branches of the US Government.

Instead of wringing our hands at federal government gridlock, we should be encouraging it.  Gridlock means no consensus, which means no law can be made according to our founding documents.  The more the three branches check and oppose one another, the better off we are.  I admit that my hope in checks and balances among the federal centers of power is a faint flicker.  They're all too chummy now, co-conspirators divvying up the loot, and the 4th Estate is now an official branch of the power elite.

The states are our last best hope.  Lawsuits against the Executive branch for not enforcing Obamacare and immigration law are the last battle lines against federal tyranny.  We are dangerously close to becoming a federal state with an imperial Executive Branch.

Can a president choose which laws to enforce?

Obama has sent SWAT teams into a guitar factory because the owner didn't pay political tribute.  Meanwhile, he has ordered federal, state and local law enforcement to look the other way as undocumented Democrat voters cross our borders and become de facto citizens comfortably ensconced in federally-encouraged safe havens.  The President signed Obamacare, and then immediately ignored the inconvenient parts of the law.  IRS agents break the law to punish Obama's political enemies, and his Justice Department does nothing.  He and the nation's chief law officer stand by and watch states openly flout federal drug laws. 

Do states rights matter?  Do states have rights based upon enduring legal principles, or do they depend upon the whims of whoever sits upon the Imperial Executive Throne?

The courts will decide, but as I write this, I become more skeptical.  Believe it or not, I set out to write a positive post, but I've convinced myself we are too far down the road.  We have already become a Stare Decisis state: Whatever any governmental malefactor can get by with, from the President on down to the lowliest bureaucratic worm, becomes legal precedent, no matter how unconstitutional the act.

The revolution will not be televised, because there will be no revolution... 

For your listening pleasure...