Quote of the Day: Minority Rights
The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights, cannot claim to be defenders of minorities.--Ayn RandModern US politics is all about pandering to certain groups based on different demographics whether they be Christians, Jews, blacks, Hispanics, women, men, fathers, mothers, and the list can go on from there. The idea behind this pandering is making these groups feel like they are victims of some social injustice, some rightly and some wrongly, and then make promises to fix the alleged injustice that has occurred or is occurring against them to garner their support in an upcoming election. In no way am I saying that any or all of these groups do not suffer some sort of discrimination for other individuals or groups, just simply making a point about modern US politics.
Often times politicians will even play one group off of another to gain the favor of another demographic. Care to take a guess? Give up, well I am talking about class warfare, blaming the rich for the problems of the poor. This is the most heinous and dangerous form of political positioning and pandering today in contemporary American politics.
The tactic of making victims of certain groups is a tool that is most often used by the left in this country and to a lesser extent Republicans. In either case it is wrong. But the one commonality between the pandering to specific demographic groups is the neglecting of individuals in society.
Individuals are the smallest minority in the world as every person is unique. But individuals are the most neglected minority in the United States. Lets take a brief look at some of the policies of this country.
- Tax System: Individuals who work hard, work two or three jobs, and have success are persecuted by higher tax rates. I am not in favor of a regressive form of taxation and those who have the ability to pay should pay but taxing productivity, hardwork and success is counterproductive which is the reason I favor the Fair Tax. Politicians like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have promised the poor higher taxes on those individuals who have success for the purposes of redistributing income. With the FairTax politicians will no longer be able to do this.
- Nationalized Health Care: Once again instead of favoring policies that will remove regulations that push the cost of health insurance out of reach of many Americans, many politicians favor punishing individuals who have achieved success through higher taxes for the purpose of buying the votes of the uninsured. They have made these people believe they are victims of corporate greed instead of governmental over-regulation.
- Affirmative Action: This is a policy that I believe to be totally backward in thinking. How are you ever going to solve a problem like racial or sexual discrimination if you continually focus on those characteristics? Instead of promoting individual achievement and inspiring the individuals of these groups to take a stand to overcome, politicians continually make victims of these groups. Individuals who have achieved success such as Clarence Thomas, Jessie Lee Peterson, and the like who do not buy into the constant victimization of these groups are then ostracized for their positions. If this is not a clear demonstration of discrimination against individuals I do not know what else will convince you.
I eagerly await the day when a politician comes forward and stops making victims of certain groups like Democrats and Republicans, but I more eagerly await the day when politicians adopt policies that do not hinder individual Liberty by punishing success or limiting what they may deem immoral that does not affect the rights of others. This is why I am a Libertarian.
People are victims of their own accord through poor decision making, laziness, or following leaders who place them into this category. Individuals have the ability to overcome anything through sound decisions, hard work, dedication to success, and by standing up for themselves.
The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights, cannot claim to be defenders of minorities.--Ayn Rand
Post a Comment