Ares
19th July 2010, 08:57 AM
The legacy Lincoln left this country after the civil war was not that he held the union together, but that he solidified in everyone’s mind for generations that leaving the union carried violent consequences. Like a battered housewife afraid to divorce her brutal husband, whenever any whispering of secession sneaks into public conversation someone inevitably says something like, “You can’t do that. They’ll just roll in tanks!†It’s never a moral argument or a pragmatic argument. These are the exclusive propriety of the secessionists. Always, it is an argument from catastrophe. Every American on some level understands the union is held together by military force.
Some recent Rasmussen polls illustrate what I’m talking about:
In February 2010 61% of voters nationwide said they don’t believe the government has the necessary consent described in the Declaration of Independence. 18% were unsure, and just 21% believed the government actually enjoyed the consent of the governed. 70% believe that government and corporations collude to hurt consumers and constituents and 50% say they felt random names selected from the phone book could do as good a job in congress.
In April 2009 only 11% of voters said they favored secession, and only 22% said they even believed states had a right to secede from the union. In June 2010 that went down to 10% in favor and 18% who believed states had a right to secede.
So, rounding the numbers we see about 6 in 10 Americans have demand for the product secession in the form of non consent, but only about 1 in 10 would actually buy the product. That’s a rough analysis, but it makes my point.
It’s just a fact, when you prohibit a product or service for which there is demand in the market it inevitably results in black market activity. What happens when independence is a crime? Only criminals will have independence. It is an inescapable law of nature; When force is overt, resistance is covert. If the American people are intimidated and afraid to publicly advocate secession, rising dissatisfaction with government will manifest in black market independence. So, in our analysis, 5 out 10 Americans do not consent, and do not openly support secession. Where’s the black market? I think I found it.
The results of a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) report were released that found (Brace yourself because it is painfully obvious), “When people believe the the taxes they are required to pay are reasonable and the political leaders tend to spend their tax dollars wisely, tax compliance rises, and vice versa.†I don’t know about you, but I’m sure glad tax dollars were spent on that research. When dissatisfaction with government raises, and independence is not an option, the black market response is tax evasion, or economic secession.
The report found that 25.6% of U.S. households were either “unbanked†or “underbanked†whatever “underbanked†means. They also found that the paper currency in circulation, meaning not held in deposit anywhere, has risen 13.3% in two years, while the growth in electronic payment methods should result in a decrease in paper currency and increase in digital currency. These signal an increase in cash only, untaxed, undeclared economic activity. The result being, according to the FDIC, that tax revenues at federal, state and local levels are falling significantly faster than one would predict based on the economic conditions alone. Increases in taxes and onerous regulations only further erode public consent, galvanize public support for secession, and further enrich the black market.
People generally conceive of the black market as the underground sale of “illegal†products, like selling raw milk in Amish country. But increasingly it’s not the product that the government objects to, it’s the transaction itself. It’s being called “the gray market.†Not quite black because the products are generally legal to sell, to buy and to consume, but not quite white, because the sale takes place in an untaxed, unregulated counter economy.
It’s called Agorism, which is a species of market activism more akin to a boycott of the state than to an armed revolution. For example, I make a small amount of money selling art. I work and earn money (minus income tax), which I imagine I own. Then I purchase raw materials (plus sales tax), which I imagine I own. I mix those materials with my time and labor (no tax), which I imagine I own. At the end of this process I imagine that I am the sole proprietor of the resulting product. So, if someone desires, I trade that product to them (no tax) at some small profit. The state imagines that it has some claim to that small profit, which means the state imagines that I am not the sole proprietor of my time and labor. They think they own me, and I disagree. So, I produce my product without any license, without any regulation, and without any taxes. I think I own myself, and this is a crime.
Whether people conceive of this activity as secessionist in nature, that’s precisely what it is. Consent is withdrawn, and the moral legitimacy of the state is questioned one dollar at a time. For many this is a conscious decision, but for considerably more this is born out of necessity. Many bay area flea markets now have family run cash for gold exchanges. In San Francisco increased taxes and regulations have made many restaurants insolvent, and many gourmet chefs now serve top quality food out of rolling carts in the street using twitter and facebook to advertise. Even though city officials have tried to regulate and tax this growing industry, many vendors find the permit process so complicated and expensive that they just don’t comply. When a permit to sell the products you own can cost you $10,000 who wouldn’t opt for the gray market?
For those inspired by these ideas, step one occurs right now. Right where you’re sitting now. Before you even finish this article. In your heart of hearts, join the 61% of Americans who don’t consent and make the intention to act upon that. Online tools like eBay and Craigslist make it virtually free to start. Joining the counter economy, and beginning your economic independence is as easy as getting paid to do what you love.
http://www.fr33agents.com/3120/black-market-secession/
Some recent Rasmussen polls illustrate what I’m talking about:
In February 2010 61% of voters nationwide said they don’t believe the government has the necessary consent described in the Declaration of Independence. 18% were unsure, and just 21% believed the government actually enjoyed the consent of the governed. 70% believe that government and corporations collude to hurt consumers and constituents and 50% say they felt random names selected from the phone book could do as good a job in congress.
In April 2009 only 11% of voters said they favored secession, and only 22% said they even believed states had a right to secede from the union. In June 2010 that went down to 10% in favor and 18% who believed states had a right to secede.
So, rounding the numbers we see about 6 in 10 Americans have demand for the product secession in the form of non consent, but only about 1 in 10 would actually buy the product. That’s a rough analysis, but it makes my point.
It’s just a fact, when you prohibit a product or service for which there is demand in the market it inevitably results in black market activity. What happens when independence is a crime? Only criminals will have independence. It is an inescapable law of nature; When force is overt, resistance is covert. If the American people are intimidated and afraid to publicly advocate secession, rising dissatisfaction with government will manifest in black market independence. So, in our analysis, 5 out 10 Americans do not consent, and do not openly support secession. Where’s the black market? I think I found it.
The results of a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) report were released that found (Brace yourself because it is painfully obvious), “When people believe the the taxes they are required to pay are reasonable and the political leaders tend to spend their tax dollars wisely, tax compliance rises, and vice versa.†I don’t know about you, but I’m sure glad tax dollars were spent on that research. When dissatisfaction with government raises, and independence is not an option, the black market response is tax evasion, or economic secession.
The report found that 25.6% of U.S. households were either “unbanked†or “underbanked†whatever “underbanked†means. They also found that the paper currency in circulation, meaning not held in deposit anywhere, has risen 13.3% in two years, while the growth in electronic payment methods should result in a decrease in paper currency and increase in digital currency. These signal an increase in cash only, untaxed, undeclared economic activity. The result being, according to the FDIC, that tax revenues at federal, state and local levels are falling significantly faster than one would predict based on the economic conditions alone. Increases in taxes and onerous regulations only further erode public consent, galvanize public support for secession, and further enrich the black market.
People generally conceive of the black market as the underground sale of “illegal†products, like selling raw milk in Amish country. But increasingly it’s not the product that the government objects to, it’s the transaction itself. It’s being called “the gray market.†Not quite black because the products are generally legal to sell, to buy and to consume, but not quite white, because the sale takes place in an untaxed, unregulated counter economy.
It’s called Agorism, which is a species of market activism more akin to a boycott of the state than to an armed revolution. For example, I make a small amount of money selling art. I work and earn money (minus income tax), which I imagine I own. Then I purchase raw materials (plus sales tax), which I imagine I own. I mix those materials with my time and labor (no tax), which I imagine I own. At the end of this process I imagine that I am the sole proprietor of the resulting product. So, if someone desires, I trade that product to them (no tax) at some small profit. The state imagines that it has some claim to that small profit, which means the state imagines that I am not the sole proprietor of my time and labor. They think they own me, and I disagree. So, I produce my product without any license, without any regulation, and without any taxes. I think I own myself, and this is a crime.
Whether people conceive of this activity as secessionist in nature, that’s precisely what it is. Consent is withdrawn, and the moral legitimacy of the state is questioned one dollar at a time. For many this is a conscious decision, but for considerably more this is born out of necessity. Many bay area flea markets now have family run cash for gold exchanges. In San Francisco increased taxes and regulations have made many restaurants insolvent, and many gourmet chefs now serve top quality food out of rolling carts in the street using twitter and facebook to advertise. Even though city officials have tried to regulate and tax this growing industry, many vendors find the permit process so complicated and expensive that they just don’t comply. When a permit to sell the products you own can cost you $10,000 who wouldn’t opt for the gray market?
For those inspired by these ideas, step one occurs right now. Right where you’re sitting now. Before you even finish this article. In your heart of hearts, join the 61% of Americans who don’t consent and make the intention to act upon that. Online tools like eBay and Craigslist make it virtually free to start. Joining the counter economy, and beginning your economic independence is as easy as getting paid to do what you love.
http://www.fr33agents.com/3120/black-market-secession/