KISS

25Nov09
"That government is best which governs least." – Henry David Thoreau

That statement is a little simplistic, but its simplicity makes it powerful. A light hand in government is preferable to a heavy hand where freedom is concerned. It's about striking a balance between two extremes, one of absolute freedom but total lawlessness (anarchy), and one of absolute law but total slavery (statism).
The sweet spot is where the state observes the rights of the individual, and the individual observes the laws of the state. Both freedom and law are maximized.

In logic there is an axiom called Occum's Razor:

"entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem"

Entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity. It hold that explanation of any phenomenon should make as few assumptions as possible, and all things being equal, that the simplest explanation or strategy tends to be the best one. Ask any programmer or engineer, the simplest solution to a problem is usually the most effective.

What constitutes simple government? It would be small for one thing, size adds to complexity. It would take into account human nature, rather than fighting it, so as not require additional philosophical constructs for justification. It would be based on natural law, principles so simple as to be self evident.

Evolutionary psychology shows us that the human brain hasn't changed appreciably in the last 500,000 years. Our spirit, like evolution itself, is still driven by competition and adaptation. Self awareness, individuality, property rights, specialized production, mutually beneficial exchange. All of these behaviors are inherent to humans. They are hard wired into us. What form of government holds these principles at its center?

Capitalism.

Our founders knew this, and in establishing our constitutional republic, they created a government based on human nature and in accordance with natural law. They created a capitalist society based on simple principles, not separate from the people, but made up of and run by the people.

But evolutionary psychology also shows us that human beings are envious by nature. We think of wealth in zero sum terms, because we have difficulty in perceiving the abstraction of net wealth increase. We forget about mutually beneficial exchange and assume that for someone to win, someone else must lose. Then when we see someone doing better than us, we feel we lost somehow, even though no exchange took place. We forget that real solutions originate with people and in the marketplace.

So we call for government to step in and right the perceived inequity. But every government solution expands government and increases complexity. A network of supports, subsidies and controls are created to support the solution, that create inequities of their own. So government offers a solution to their solution, until it cycles out of control.

Which is where we finds ourselves today, with a government grown beyond necessity, so large and complex that it dominates our lives. It's time to make life simple again.

Get your free copy of the constitution, read it, and tell your lawmakers to vote against anything that violates its principles.