While it is certainly tempting to take pleasure in the defeat of the republicans in congress, it would be incorrect to imagine that something actually important happened November 7, when supporters of the united states government went to the polls. The conventional wisdom may be that there is a real difference between having one party or another as our rulers, but the democrats are just as vicious, acquisitive, authoritarian, and hypocritical as the republicans and have no more interest in individual liberty than those they will replace.
Just look back at the last time the democrats controlled part of the federal government. Clinton did his best to pass his version of the patriot act after the OKC bombing. The american military bombed a pharmaceutical plant in sudan to distract attention from the president’s extramarital blowjobs and later went on to slaughter civilians in serbia. Clinton signed on to the defense of marriage act and reneged on his promise to allow openly homosexually active people into the military. He and his government cozied up to the rulers of china while keeping cuba in poverty with a continued embargo. And they terrorized, murdered, and impoverished the people of iraq with a campaign of bombings and sanctions that softened them up for the invasion that followed when Bush took over.
There is no reason to believe that the democrats have changed since then. While some democrats are mildly critical of Bush’s handling of the war against the people of iraq, they fall over each other in their attempts to demonstrate their admiration for the “heroism” of the troops, the same troops who kill, rape and pillage non-combatants while propping up a nasty police state. None of them support an immediate withdrawal of the united states death machine from iraq or afghanistan. Democrat supporters have puritanically (and hypocritically) castigated Tom Foley as a pedophile and predator because of his boorish emails to 16-year old pages, who could legally have sex with him if they choose. And now Charles Rangel is again calling for a return to the military draft, a form of slavery pure and simple. The democrats have shown no indication they will waver in their traditional support for war and international bullying, opposition to sexual freedom, and contempt for individual liberty.
In addition, the new congressional majority feel as entitled to steal and dispose of other peoples’ money as do their lame duck opponents. While the republicans have been profligately feeding at the public trough during the years they have ruled, the democrats are simply waiting for their own chance to oversee the separation of working people from their money. Although there was plenty of partisan sniping at senator Ted Stevens from alaska for his attempt to make the residents of other states pay for his favored bridges, the incoming regime has no plans to reduce the tax burden on working people or stop redistributing their hard-earned wages to the wealthy and politically connected. As Daniel Inouye, who will inherit Ted Stevens’ committee chair, told an interviewer recently, “I don’t see any monumental changes.” This sentiment is shared by incoming transportation committee chair Patty Murray, who, in defending Stevens’ bridge earmarks, said, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.” Plus ça change…
Those who voted have done nothing to promote freedom and fairness. They have simply helped a new gang of thugs to claim they represent “the people” while they lord over, steal from, and otherwise abuse those who voted for them as well as those who did not, both here and abroad. While we who refuse to take part in elections are often told we have no right to complain, since we do not vote, it is in fact non-voters who are best suited to criticize. By refusing to vote and declare our subservience to the state, we give a clear message: we choose to be free. So when voters try to foist their chosen rulers, policies, and laws on us, despite our best efforts to mind our own business, we are absolutely justified in telling them what we think of their horrid system of regulating human affairs. Democrat, republican, green, libertarian—it makes no difference. Voting for lesser evils will never produce anything but more evil.