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Ron Paul See other Ron Paul Articles Title: A revolutionary for now and then A revolutionary for now and then Posted on January 15, 2016 by Becky Akers benedict arnold Is revolution impending? Our rulers seem to think so, judging by their determination to grab our guns. They have long understood — and loathed — the 2nd Amendment, even as we, their victims, prattled that a “well-regulated militia” merely referred to hunters or to homeowners protecting themselves against burglars. And so, as government increasingly legislates against our interests, favoring corporate cronies and various progressive lobbies, it must and will disarm us lest we rise to defend ourselves. How should we respond? Fortunately, we need not blindly feel our way: The Founding Fathers have already traveled this road. In fact, one of them, whose 275th birthday we celebrated yesterday, provides guidance for our behavior until the revolution begins as well as for our strategy afterward. Alas, most patriots dismiss this military genius because he prized liberty over all else — even the new United States (as I explain here). But Maj. Gen. Benedict Arnold has much to teach us, both philosophically and tactically. First, Arnold’s loyalty lay entirely with political freedom, as should ours. He committed himself to neither a political party nor politicians because they’re inimical to freedom. Yes, both may occasionally sound libertarian; even more infrequently, they act that way, too. But in the end, parties and politicians govern. In other words, they control us — while charging us for the privilege of being bossed. Far too many patriots insist against all evidence that if we vote enough Republicans or conservatives or libertarians into office, we can regain our freedom. Or they elevate one man, whether Ron Paul or Donald Trump, into a savior. Such naivete is akin to clutching a jug of water as the Titanic sinks because its contents might save you from drowning. Yet a subset cannot preserve anything from the whole. Politics’ very nature precludes any politician or party from liberating us because each is by definition a part of the state. Arnold understood this and, even better, acted on his beliefs. For example, eight years before the Revolution’s first skirmishes, he not only dodged taxation; he silenced a rat-fink threatening to turn him in. In the 1760s, Arnold sold prohibited goods that he imported and exported in his own ships. That is to say, he smuggled, as did virtually all merchants then. Freedom to trade is one of liberty’s cornerstones; and when governments infringe it, taxing some products and banning others, lovers of liberty circumvent those dictatorial laws. But just as employers today who violate the IRS’s or DEA’s regulations are vulnerable to employees who know about their transgressions, so Arnold was vulnerable to his. One such “[i]nformer,” Peter Boles by name, “endeavored to make information to a Custom House Officer” after “having been a voyage with” Arnold. But Arnold caught up with him first and “gave him a little Chastisement.” Then he forced Boles to sign a statement agreeing he “justly deserve[d] a Halter for my malicious and cruel intentions.” When the snitch still refused to leave town without tattling to Customs, Arnold and his crew, who’d be out of jobs if Customs seized Arnold’s fleet, “took [Boles] to the Whipping-Post, where he received near forty lashes with a small cord …” Tragically, horse-whipping statists have gone out of fashion. But we can employ other devices against them, such as socially and commercially ostracizing them. What if landlords refused to rent to and restaurateurs refused to serve anyone sponging off us in government? “Work” for the DMV or kidnap children as a member of CPS and presto, no one invites you to dinner or greets you at church. Contrast that with the current attitude: Most Americans shrug at bureaucrats as innocuous, or, even worse, deem them heroic. “Yeah, I’m in tech, but my neighbor’s at the EPA, saving us from global warming or something.” Wrong. What he actually does there is tyrannize us. His agency robs owners of the use of their land while usurping water rights. Yet we socialize with these leeches and exchange cards at Christmas. Why? Arnold would laugh at the idea that we meet, greet and eat with those who prey on us. Then there’s Arnold’s scorn for gun owner control. Of course, there wasn’t much of it in his day, nor was it as sophisticated then. But when “authorities” tried to hamper his access to weapons, he vigorously, repeatedly defied them. Indeed, his very first action in the American Revolution wrested arms from the selectmen of his town. Arnold was living in New Haven, Connecticut, and captain of its militia when news of Lexington and Concord resounded through New England. He and his troop wanted to march for Massachusetts immediately to defend their beleaguered neighbors from British soldiers. But when New Haven’s selectmen met to determine the town’s response, they voted otherwise. They feared that joining in rebellion would draw royal revenge on New Haven. And because they held the keys to New Haven’s armory, Arnold’s men could not help themselves to its contents without their permission. Arnold directed his soldiers to surround New Haven’s politicians until the latter coughed up the keys. The militia outfitted itself, then headed north. Arnold didn’t linger in Massachusetts. He realized that if the Patriots were serious about battling the British Army, the best equipped and most terrifying of its day, they needed bigger guns than municipal armories afforded. Specifically, they needed cannon. He planned and led a hugely successful attack on Fort Ticonderoga to procure them despite the conflict of overlapping authorities — confusion that we’ll confront, too, when our revolution finally comes. Arnold can teach us much about defeating dictatorship. That’s one reason I wrote a historical thriller, “Abducting Arnold,” about him: As our rulers wax increasingly despotic, my novel offers lessons from an original Revolutionary on defending yourself, your family and your liberty from tyrants. Even better, Arnold’s story is one of the most dramatic and enthralling of all American history! Hurry: The Kindle version is now $1.50, half off the usual price for readers of Personal Liberty Digest®. Poster Comment: If they want my guns, they can have them, one bullet at a time. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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