Reflections on “Independence” Day
By: Shane Radliff
July 4th, 2018
Today, a large majority of Americans will celebrate the 4th of July, a statist holiday dedicated to the declaration of independence from England. This revolution featured the killing of bludgies (cops), civil defiance, and, admittedly, a whole lot of courage. Compared to today, the grievances of early Americans were minute, but many recognized the abstract chains and did what was necessary to cast them off. Unfortunately, though, these individuals did not do the inner work necessary to rid themselves of their internal tyrant; the internal tyrant that, just a mere 11 years later, presented itself in the form of the 1787 U.S. Federal Constitution.
(Learn more about the intellectual battle between the federalists and anti-federalists here.)
Gradually, freedom after freedom withered away, mostly going unnoticed. The State propaganda became more powerful, government indoctrination camps (public schools) ramped up the brainwashing of children, and eventually, Americans began to love and, in some ways, need the shackles keeping them in bondage.
Fast forward 242 years and the results are not surprising in the slightest.
- Instead of being opposed to standing armies (the bludgies and the military), Americans generally support them blindly – “We need more funding for the military,” “We need more tools in the hands of law enforcement,” etc.
- Early on, there was clearly a distrust and fear of big government. Today, many conservatives will express this sentiment, but their policies and positions go completely contrary to this idea. Even worse, some will say that “We are big government.” Scary.
- Many Americans don’t even see the irony in their celebration of this statist holiday: in other words, make sure you have all of the necessary freedom permits (driver’s license to commute to the festivities, the permit to buy/use fireworks, compliance with the applicable rules and regulations of the “public property” that you will be occupying, etc.).
- Key philosophers who heavily influenced the founding era (John Locke, Thomas Paine, etc.) recognized and understood the importance of property rights and self-ownership. Today, these ideas cannot be found in American politics and most Americans advocate against their own freedom on a daily basis.
Clearly, this holiday does not symbolize freedom anymore; rather, it is simply another ritual to aggrandize the State. For this reason, I believe it is high time to re-appropriate this bullshit government holiday into something that self-liberators can get behind: Anarchy Day.
Freedom Holidays: A Proposed Replacement for Election Day
At its core, anarchy simply means the negation of rulers – a world in which no human being has the right to coerce or inflict violence upon another. As a propertarian anarchist, I take this one step further by adding in the foundational principles of self-ownership and non-aggression. Every individual owns themselves and the fruits of their labor, and any transgression of those things can be morally and ethically defended against, even if it is a bluecoat trying to extort you on the side of the road. Think of it as the Golden Rule, only applied to governments as well.
Celebrating Anarchy Day over Independence Day is one way “we” can help to develop “our” own culture outside of the statist-servile society. In other words, it’s another way to help build the new society, not within the shell of the old, but outside of and despite its coercive existence.
Many folks truly do not want freedom, if they even know what the hell the term means. But, that does not mean “we” cannot be free in the here and now.
Do you want to declare your independence from the State and the servile society? If so, I wrote a book telling you how to do just that. It’s available for pre-order now!
WWW.LIBERTYUNDERATTACK.COM/VONUBOOK
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