In the pursuit of liberty ... !

The following appeared in an article by Mick Hume, editor of Spiked:

“Behind the grim warnings of global destruction (in the Stern Review published this week), there was a discernible sense of relish in the way that government ministers seized the opportunity to propose green taxes and similar measures to police our personal habits.

“This seemed to have less to do with their shaky grasp of the science of climate change than their firm belief in what has been labelled ‘the new politics of behaviour’.

"The job of government today is seen not as formulating any grand vision of how to run society and shape the future, but telling people how to run their lives. Usually this is done in the name of promoting personal and public health. Now it can also be done under the banner of saving the planet.”

These items also appeared in the media at some stage this week:

A committee of MPs found that the presence of speed cameras on our roads has resulted in a fall in the number of road traffic police, meaning that drunk and dangerous drivers etc. stand more chance than ever of getting away with it.

BUT, they still demand that more cameras should be installed! Why?

Ministers plan to force everyone in the country – through the national census to take place in 2011 – to declare their income. Why? What possible business is it of theirs? What’s more, if you fail to fill in the form, you can be fined more than £1,000.

Also, plans are in train to recruit an army of inspectors who will have unprecedented access to our homes to judge how much council tax we have to pay.

They are looking at taking into account the area you live in, the view from your house, how well-off your neighbours are and lifestyle to assess the level you have to pay. Why? Again, if you refuse access to these people, another £1,000 please. Tear down those conservatories and bathroom extensions now!

And I am not going to even mention ID cards …

What can we do then to turn the tide of this increasingly oppressive and worrying Government intervention in our lives?

Well, a small step is to sign up to the basis tenets of libertarianism!

A libertarian is really an old-fashioned liberal. In the nineteenth century, and especially in revolutionary America, a liberal was someone who mistrusted government and wanted as little government intervention as possible.

Libertarianism is a philosophy based on the principle that individuals should be allowed complete freedom of action as long as they do not infringe on the same freedom of others.

Libertarians support a limited government that engages in the minimum amount of initiatory force (such as levying taxes to provide some public goods such as defence and roads, as well as some minimal regulation), because they believe it to be necessary to ensure maximum individual freedom.

Doesn’t sound so bad, does it … think about it. You never know it might catch on!