Why the working Vermonter should support the Vermont Campaign for Liberty.

In the media and out on the streets of Vermont and the United States, there is a tendency to portray the growing liberty movement as a conservative movement. This tendency claims that the core principles of the Vermont Campaign for Liberty and its allies in the movement have nothing to offer the average working Vermonter. Yet, the truth is quite the contrary. The Vermont Campaign and the Liberty Movements are not “conservative” groups, but citizen groups who seek to create a political, social, and economic atmosphere that will allow the average person a fair chance to earn a living, impact their community, and have a real say in their government. In fact, the core principles of the Vermont Campaign are perfectly in accord with the needs and concerns of the average person.
Fiscal responsibility is one of the core principles of the Vermont Campaign. We recognize that the dollars that our government spends is the tax dollars of the average person. We know that a spendthrift government ultimately wastes the working persons hard earn money and undermines their economic health. The government does this in three ways.
First, it devalues your wages by devaluing your currency. By turning on the printing presses and churning out billions in corporate bailouts, corporate welfare dollars, and gift giving to overseas interests, the wages of an average person become worth less. For each dollar they print and give away to these interests, your wages (which have not really gone up in over a decade) become weaker. You make the same money, but are able only to by less of the things you need to survive.
Second, the federal deficit weakens the dollar further in overseas markets which translate into higher prices for goods here in America. The once cheap imports are slowly becoming more expensive. Thereby, making it still harder for the average family to make ends meet.
Third and finally, the government’s spendthrift ways will and has caused an increase in taxation. So now for every dollar you earn 20-28 cents goes to your government. In other words, for every eight hours you work, at least 2 hours of labor are for the benefit of the government. Looking at the future unfunded liabilities created by a runaway federal government, our children and our children’s children are looking at paying an even greater share of their wages just to balance the books. And this situation does not take into consideration programs currently under consideration in Montpelier and Washington.
The Vermont Campaign opposes the growth of the American Empire which is caused by Washington’s on-going policy of intervention in foreign affairs. Our core principle of a Non-interventionist position does not mean that we should not defend ourselves from foreign attack. What it does mean is that we should not seek to invade foreign lands to impose our will. We should not declare war or send troops to other regions unless the safety and security of the United States is clearly in danger.
So why is this position pro-working Vermonter? Well the historical truth is that the rich declare wars and the working people fight them. Throughout this nation’s history, it has been the working people and the poor that populate our military, either voluntarily or, more often than not, by being drafted. The cost of war upon the average person, in economic and personal terms, are disproportionally high. Yet the benefits of war and the warfare state tend to be realized by those who have it easier. If we are to suffer these loses in treasure and lives, then the reasons for it must be vital to the continued existence of the nation and not the needs of the select few or interests outside of our own.
We will defend this nation to our final breath, but will not sacrifice one life for the temporary needs of global real politics.
The Vermont Campaign also believes that limited Constitutional Government is the best defense against the power of big business. Today, in Washington, it is not a secret whose viewpoints and needs are being responded to, mega- and multi-national corporations. This is of course not surprising. With such a concentration of power occurring within the 10 square miles along the Potomac, like moths to a flame, big business recognizes the potential profitability of big government. By pouring millions in campaign contributions, lobbyist, and resources, big business has used the power of a centralized government to manipulate the laws and the markets.
When this nation was founded, the Federal Government has certain limited powers in which to oversea the interest of the nation as a whole. Those powers were defined in Article 1, Section 8 of the United States’ Constitution. As the power of the Federal Government has expanded beyond those specific powers and have encompassed almost every aspect of our daily lives, corporate and special interests have seized upon this opportunity and made it their own. Now the United States’ Code is filled with special interest legislation. Our budget is weighted down with pork barrel and special interest projects. Our government intrudes upon the market not for the benefit of all, but for the benefit of the select few. Corporate welfare and bailouts compete with social welfare as the biggest items in our unbalanced fiscal house. And who ultimately pays the bill? The average tax payer pays.
Finally, the Vermont Campaign’s commitment to individual liberty should be very attractive to those who work hard for their livelihood. Everyday, you struggle to achieve the “American Dream” of a good home, a good retirement, and the freedom to earn a living as you see fit. Yet, on a daily basis, the government steps in your way and makes that struggle even harder.
Your land and what you do with it is always at the whim of some governmental board located either in Washington, Montpelier, or your town offices. Just the simple act of building on or changing the use of your property can involve substantial cost and paperwork. None of which serves as a barrier for those who can afford it.
Your retirement is constantly being debased by our fiat currency. It is subject to outrageous taxation after already being taxed once on the funds as you earn them. And with governments help, it can be confiscated without payment by your employer or his investment firm. (Enron anyone?) Right now, most Americans face a life-time of work without hope of real retirement in their golden years.
Adding insult to injury, the government controls how you may organize to fight for better wages and what constitutes a union. Even when you form a union, the government gets to decide who wins the labor dispute, whether you can strike, and what type of labor action is “legal”. The slow and steady death of labor organizing has come about in part by big business’s ability to fill the coffers of Washington politicians and thereby whittle away at the rights of the average person.
Overall it is a rare moment in a working Vermonter’s life when he, the fruits of his labor, and his property are left entirely alone by our intrusive and omnipotent government. For decades this has been the status quo. And now is the time to stop this behemoth and turn back the tide of government for and by the special interests and the mega-corporation.
This movement is about changing the status quo away from a massive government controlled by mega-corporations who use the power of government to get what they want. We want a state and country dedicated to service and obedience to all average Americans, not just some special or money interests. We feel that if we return to the founding principles of this nation and if more of us assume their responsibilities as citizens, that change is not only doable, but inevitable.