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Writer's pictureTom Johnson, PopieTom

Remembering Liberalism & Hayek

Updated: Mar 8, 2023



Today's "progressive liberals", the WOKE, are not building on Liberalism instead they are very often undoing what Liberalism has historically given to US. Five years ago Abraham Lincoln was not a controversial figure among the WOKE. Today, they want to take his name off schools and tear down his statue. REALY!!! WOKE is a lot different from Liberalism. WOKE is tied to Critical Theory which is derived from marxist ideology where you have an oppressor and an oppressed. Liberalism where free speech debate between equals ends with a new progressive win-win agreement/truth. WOKE shuts down free speech allowing only the words of the oppressed to be heard, canceling debate, canceling culture in US, definitely a win-lose for everybody especially any who are actually oppressed.



In 1776, US Government started small, inheriting the Free Market and the We The People culture of the times. We listen to Democrats blame Donald Trump for problems Biden inherited; so we have a recent example of how these young politicians, some teenagers, felt. The culture of the time was based on Religions so there is no surprise that, where required, the Constitution, our managing document, draws on Religions. In fact our Constitution is designed for citizens that are predominantly practicing one of the religious cultures of the time. Otherwise, the young politicians believed in separation of church and state. The business of the times included a market of free people and slave people. World history shows that business markets based on slavery go back to the Roman and Greek empires. A young nation, like any startup business, in survival mode, struggling to succeed, could not deal with the unwinding of business debts and a historical culture of slavery and discrimination practiced at this time in history. It had no such power. However, it is obvious that a nation based on a management document proclaiming equality of all people can not condone slavery and discrimination. Thank-goodness, our Constitution follows Liberalism stimulating free speech debate allowing US to change. Therefore, the US Constitution is a brilliant managing document written by young people, some teenagers, who were very liberal and very progressive.


Constitutional Virtues & Values

The US Constitution, of the greatest nation in the world, is also the shortest but very carefully written Constitution of any major country in the world, 4,440 words long, the original document was only 4 pages long. This is why many scholars, including Dr Martin Luther King, have also used the Declaration of Independence, 1,320 words long, with the Constitution for more meaning. In my opinion one should also read the federalist papers and anti-federalist papers to get a supreme understanding of the design and architecture of our government and how it should function. Many Virtues and Values expressed in these documents parallel Judaeo Christian Virtues Values; a fact that was not lost to our country's founders, Dr King and every Citizen truly prepared to govern our US. It turns out The Bible, a document of over 780,000 words and 1,200 pages provides the definitive meaning to the words of the Constitution. Even so, The Constitution's Establishment Clause prevents the government from mandating a religion and from preventing an individual from practicing his religion or no religion at all. All US Citizens are rulers of their country. Following the Virtues and Values of both our Constitution supported by our religious faith is required to sustain US in the future. For example, a comparison of the Muslim and Christian religions as well as their books, the Bible and the Koran show there is a lot in common and each brings more meaning to what it means to be a ruling citizen. William J. Federer said, "Liberty exists only so long as one’s life is lived balancing Liberty and Virtue. Liberty without Virtue is chaotic evil". So the pursuit of happiness is constrained by a strict set of virtues and values. Freedom is bounded by virtues and values prescribed in the Constitution.


United We Stand - Divided We Fall,

in 1776 We The People did worry about destruction of the US by factions and insurrection from within. If you are interested about what worried US in 1776 read The Federalist Papers 6->10 written by Alexander Hamilton and James Madison Titled: "The Union as a Safeguard Against Domestic Faction and Insurrection". The Constitution put We The People on top of our government governed first by our family until 18 then we are free governed by the community who is governed by the state who is governed by the Federal Government. This was the governing communication structure our Constitution was designed for to deliver the highest level of Freedom and Responsibility to We The People.


In these Federalist Papers you see worry about fractionation and insurrection at the state level. If our Constitution were updated to 2023 we would see that the internet, social media and the 24x7 biased news cycle has created a way for Idealogical factions to ignore Constitutional Government and govern as a Social Government more like Democratic Socialism. Thus the transition of US to Socialism and Hayek was right about Socialism.




Today in 2023,

We The People and our government have enacted a lot of liberal progressive change and unfortunately a lot more "unconstitutional " political Social Government changes have been ordered not enacted. Things are not so simple anymore. Since 1900 the industrial revolution, child labor laws, world wars, depression, social security, welfare, medicare, sexual revolution, Internet, email, texts, social media, MetaVerse, AI, ... . Just a lot has happened. In spite of it all the US emerged least damaged following WWII and currently leads the world economy. Another reason for US rising up to lead the world was its optimum mix of capitalism and Socialism. History has recorded several notable failures of pure Socialism as well as mixes of too much Socialism and too little Capitalism. Along the way a concept of a "Social Government" developed. It first started and leveraged in the Federal Government Bureaucracy as a "Shadow Government" that wanted to grow its job; as President Regan said, "I'm from the government, and I'm here to help." This rise of Socialism is the real existential threat to US keeping its world power, being great again.


In the 1960s,

politicians recognized the vacuum created by Conservatives, especially the Religious Right. The Religious right was not willing to debate issues that challenged it's religious values. This put them against Free Speech and Liberalism, thus the Free Speech buttons worn on the Berkley California campus in the 1960s representing a justifiable fight for Liberalism and Progressivism. In the 1960s, it was the Religious Right that was exercising Cancel Culture. Ultimately, the young, whose brains were still developing, saw the hypocrisy. The young persistently mounted a liberal progressive resistance to LBJ's War in Vietnam. Note, this was Liberalism at work not Idealism, Ideologies.


Religion peaked in 1958

and has fallen sharply ever since, see graph below. We The People lived our daily lives for 182 years based on guide-rails offered by the US Constitution and our shared religious beliefs. We The People can not live without an Ideological/Religious Identity. President Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) was the first and most powerful president to use Political Ideology aimed at attracting votes from those that would benefit, setting a pathway for future Democratic Socialism politicians such as Bernie Sanders.


By the 1970s,

the fallout from LBJ's Affirmative Action and Great Society programs is larger government and more politicians learning from LBJ and making connections to useful "experts" . Meanwhile startup companies are growing and thriving in the Free Market based on political policies on their way to becoming Political Partner Monopolies. This is when that portion of society benefiting from political economic policy, The Social Government, began socially enforcing Political Correctness as a means to enhance their success, power and profits. The Social Government was poised to take a big bite out of the Free Market. There began a funded political effort to find Ideologies useful to attract votes.


By the 1980s,

fallout continued from Political Correctness to Critical Race Theory (CRT). It is now apparent that JFK's and LBJ's The Civil Rights Movement, Affirmative Action and Great Society are working to grow government and win votes but societal improvement is falling short which puts in jeopardy the political gain. Democrats are not seeing the political success they desire. They turn to academia and the Post Modern Theory professors. The plan to change the US means a generation must educated. The Democratic transformation of US must be patient. They start with college students and work backwards to elementary students, brilliant.


By the 1990s,

Big Tech was ready to connect people like never before. In 1979 I was staff to the management of Computer Science Corporation (CSC), the biggest software company in the world at the time, I made the case that email as a new product would fail and I was right, but by the 1990s the world was connected, the internet had arrived. I left CSC and a few years later founded Objective Systems Integrators (OSI) and developed Net Expert, one of the first successful Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, a software product to manage the emerging cell phone and internet networks. OSI went public in 1995 followed by Amazon in 1997. Social connectivity was on fire and growing.


In 2000,

the DOT.com bubble bursts, but nonetheless the work to socially connect We The People over the internet moved forward aggressively. In 2004 Google goes public. In 2006 a new social media called MySpace captures the attention of We The People. In 2007 Steve Jobs announces the Smart iPhone. In 2012 Facebook goes public. In 2013 Twitter goes public. Big Tech is ready to conduct Social Government.


From 2010->2012,

was a time to step up the pace and add more "experts", celebrities and zealots to evangelize We The People. A zealot is a person that is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political, or other ideals. It is a new world based on increasingly ignored Constitutional Government and be more governed by social democratic Ideology. The politicians are designing the next big thing to win votes by stimulating the economy and enabling Political Partner Monopolies that in turn fuel campaigns with generous contributions. The business model for network broadcasters is changing. The major networks fall prey to political partnerships, 80%. Even Fox News is unable to "talk the talk and walk the walk" dropping it "News Fair and Balanced" slogan. Get ready for Trump and the Cancel Culture.


In 2013,

Black Lives Matter (BLM) was formed in response to Travon Martin's Killing followed by acquittal of George Zimmerman, the man who killed him. Google the event. Even today it is some places on the internet this is referred to as a murder even though the Justice Department reviewed the case and let it stand. The entire MetaVerse is biased to favor one sociopolitical Ideology, a cabal, leaving the liberal and progressive on the outside wandering around looking for each other without direction.


Cancel Culture where I lived, Montreux in Reno,Nevada, in 2014;

I was sitting around a round table, with 6 or 7 others, next to the Golf Club's Pattie Sheehan golf course practice hole, listening the the yearly "Concert on the Green" event. The others at the table were my neighbors, none of whom I knew well. They were taking turns expressing their opinions concerning the Black Liver Matter (BLM) movement. When it was my turn, my opinion resulted in the conversation ending as everyone at the table got up and left me alone. This was my first Cancel Culture experience, but it was not my last. The gist of my opinion was that "all lives madder" which I thought was a liberal progressive and a win-win response to the obviously racial opinions of my neighbors concerning the BLM movement, which were win-loose, in my opinion. Did they considered me a white supremacist who was trying to dismiss their opinions? I was serious and we all missed a learning moment. I will never know as they canceled and left me. Cancel culture cancels debate and therefore liberal progressive learning, Liberalism. I could have said to them that my father was a Texas banker who respected Martin Luther King for his position of judge a man by his character. I watched him turn down many white people for loans, but he loaned an out-of-town black owned business, Motown Records, to buy a tour bus because of their character.


Biased Media

Look at a clip from Fox News Tucker Carlson Show clearly showing the transformation of CNN's Don Lemon from a true liberal progressive to a politically altered "liberal progressive" , just another media fake news person. The former Don Lemon would excel at Fox News.

As we sit today, in 2023,

Social Government is overwhelming Constitutional Government; we are on a slippery slope to Democratic Socialism, Collective Servitude or a Road to Serfdom.

Big Government



Who Has Bigger Private Free Market Capitalistic Economy US/China? Debt? Per Person? As % of GDP?

It is a trick question because they are about equal. Both US and China have a private capitalistic free market that represents about 60% of their respective economies. State Capitalism? No, The Capitalistic Private Sector Was And Is The Main Driver Of China’s Economic Growth. The big difference is the US is moving towards more Socialism and China is moving towards more Capitalism. Global debt, all the world's countries, surged during the COVID epidemic to US$281 trillion last year, leading the overall worldwide debt to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio to rise by 35 percentage points to 355 per cent. US debt is greater than China's debt and growing. China's debt is less than that of the US. China holds a lot of US debt. China has five times the people, the debt borne by each citizen is many times higher per person in US than in China. Who will lead the future world, who will win US or China? Being a Libertarian my bet is on the one that is more progressive-productive liberal, but US is loosing today, 2023. A country in so much debt can not protect it's economy or it's people. See the List of Worldwide Countries from Largest to Smallest External Debt.




China Debt

The exact calculation of China external debt compared to US debt, $s to $s, is hard to nail down due to lack of openness and data. Here are 2 sets of numbers that I found. The truth is somewhere in these numbers. Who holds China's external debt.





The Danger of Socialized Big Government Strings

For the past 70 years Big Government has grown bigger and bigger with more and more regulatory strings on how States spend the money they are allocated. Since 1970 more and more money with strings attached, the strings added to Legislation by the Federal Bureaucracy, are cleverly shifting your tax and borrowed money to The WOKE Social agenda. Today, currently in 2023, the politicians supporting the non liberal non progressive WOKE agenda want to control how your hard earned retirement savings are invested, taking yet another freedom from you. They want you to invest in their WOKE agenda. If Liberalism is the true liberal progressive way to success then WOKE is BROKE or at least not your best investment. This is Socialism feasting on the Free Market, your future profits, your retirement dollars.


Lets Use AI to Analyze WOKE versus Liberalism

I asked "liberal" Chat GPT "What is the liberal progressive WOKE movement?". It's answer is underlined below with my comments are un underlined. I also asked Chat GPT the same about Liberalism ant that follows


WOKE

The "woke liberal progressive" movement is a complex and multifaceted movement, but some of the defining characteristics may include:


Let US just tell it like it is; It is too complicated. Any management document that would yield a successful WOKE Constitution would be way longer than 4 pages and 4,440 words. We would by far have the largest least understood, worthless and meaningless Constitution in the would. US are close to world bankruptcy now. Remember the lower the words to action ratio the more equal, just, fair, successful, effective and efficient a Government is; smaller is better.


Social justice: The movement is focused on social justice, which means promoting equal rights and opportunities for all people, regardless of their race, gender, sexuality, religion, or socioeconomic status.


The great weakness, but a longterm strength, of a liberal progressive document like the US Constitution is We The People have the freedom to politically challenge Government Rule of Law. However, the challengers are not allowed to spin the social outcome, the facts, and take action without Legislative Action. No matter how much the Biased Media and the Political Partner Monopolies cancel culture and spin, they cannot change the facts. US, We The People, are not happy with the outcome of a freedom altering experiment by a shadow government.


Intersectionality: The movement recognizes that different forms of oppression are interconnected and intersect, meaning that people can experience multiple forms of discrimination at once.


If there was ever an example for the need for simplicity it would be this. Any political identity group that feels oppressed requires language in our Constitution. The simpler liberal progressive solution is to treat all We The People equally, the same. Government more than any entity should be blind to differentiating We The People by sex, gender, race, LGBTQ+, non-binary people, religion, culture and politics. These traits are personal and there should be no need to share with your Government, take such facts off all Government forms and questionnaires. Only then will We The People truly have equal opportunity.


What does Government need to know about We The People? Because the Constitution calls for providing Welfare, Socialism, it needs to know economic status but not socioeconomic status. Knowing socioeconomic status leads to identity politics which leads to Government spending on identity rather than need. More spending raises need and you have an inflationary spiral. Also, any Government spending must be accompanied with effort by the individual helped to become self sufficient, if physically and mentally able, in the Free Market.


Identity politics: The movement emphasizes the importance of individual and group identities in shaping experiences of oppression and privilege.


For the same reason the 1776 Constitution called for separation of church and State, we must have separation of identity politics and the State. Individual identities and group identities are formed in the Free Market. In 2023, Ideologies have their Zealots, Biased Media and Political Partner Monopolies enabled by Politically "Unconstitutional" Acts to form a shadow government that takes government action in the absence of Constitutional Legislation.


A Free Market depends on value established and exchanged through merit and not identity. In the 1960s John F. Kennedy, a Democrat, challenged US to "send a person to the moon and return that person safely to Earth". That highlighted US strength, when people are encouraged to compete where only the best win, based on their merit. This is the "Make America Great Again" that Donald Trump talks about. Unfortunately, JFK was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson, a Democrat, started the deep dive into greater racism, identity politics, with Affirmative Action. He created the Great Society . Great Societies are always built on merit, not by guaranteeing equity.


Anti-racism: The movement is committed to fighting racism and promoting racial equality, often through initiatives such as anti-racist education, diversity and inclusion programs, and affirmative action.


CRT or anti-racist education is not required. All that is needed is a mixed racial class divided into 2 or more competing mixed racial teams the compete to master the subject of the class. It is amazing how common good old competition makes race disappear as multiracial teamwork erases race. This is also a great preparation for the real world. For an example, look at mixed race sports teams or mixed race military groups. Putting a person on the moon brought US together recognizing the best no matter the race. We forgot about race following 911. The Critical Race Theory (CRT) that I have heard about where reversed roles of oppressor and oppressed are performed does more harm by creating racism where none existed before.


Affirmative Action and equity; both are "unconstitutional" for multiple reasons. Both actions involve treating We The People unequally, unequal opportunity. Hiding or eliminating value, recognition of merit, wrecks the Free Market and makes US weak; thus Government has failed it's most important job, protecting US. Oh, you can forget about US leading the world.


Gender and LGBTQ+ rights: The movement supports gender equality and the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals, including transgender and non-binary people.


There are no special rights for gender and LGBTQ+. They have the same rights as We The People, all of US are treated equally. Parents rights come first and the Government has no right to teach a child anything without parent's consent.


The MetaVerse promises US an augmented reality where We The People can recreate ourselves (identity), construct your avatar, publish your pronouns and interact with others in a augmented-virtual reality. You have complete control over your identity in the MetaVerse. This does not mean you can change your race, your merit (value), or sex. You can not compel others to recognize your virtual identity. We The People are 24x7 selling ourselves in a Free Market. At the end of the day the MetaVerse is just another tool to support social connection.


Being a progressive liberal means you are grounded in a physical reality.


Environmentalism: The movement recognizes the importance of protecting the environment and fighting climate change, often through advocacy for sustainable policies and lifestyles.


The green movement fails to be liberal and progressive. We The People should have asked more questions when "Global Warming" became "Climate Change" with little or no real detailed scientific explanation. The "experts" have not presented the facts and debated in public the logic justifying the either movement. Energy is the one thing US can not do without; it controls US. My grandfather would have said, "They got the cart before the horse", but I say it is a very dangerous and reckless political manipulation creating more crisis like the Covid Virus where Democratic Socialism can politically come to grab control of the Free Market. Where is the plan that all of US, can justify, see and firmly believe in. We The People need to be sold.


Cultural sensitivity: The movement emphasizes the importance of cultural sensitivity and respect, often through practices such as avoiding cultural appropriation and using inclusive language.


Merit first and then you can select based on diversity. If you are truly liberal and progressive this is how you act. US has its own identity beyond our Constitution, Rules of Law and language. Diverse legal immigrants are welcome and are free to apply to become a self sufficient citizen adhering to our Constitution, rules of law and language while adding their cultural diversity to US.


It's worth noting that the "woke liberal progressive" movement is not a monolithic group, and different individuals and organizations may prioritize some of these values more than others. Additionally, some people may criticize the movement for being overly focused on identity politics or for being too politically correct

Diversity, Inclusion and Equity = DIE (the economy)

Higher Taxes Will NOT Pay Debts - Lower Taxes = Higher Revenue


LIBERALISM

In a Free Market an individual is free to have whatever values and opinions they desire as long as they ... (see below)


Individualism: Liberty and freedom of the individual are of primary importance, allowing individuals the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of their own interests.


Equality: The basic principle that all individuals should be equal before the law, with rights and liberties that cannot be denied due to social class, race, gender, sexual orientation, age, or religion.


Limited Government: The belief in limited government interference in the lives of citizens and the economy, as well as the delegation of authority to multiple areas of government.


Rule of Law: Liberalism upholds that laws should be applied and enforced consistently through adherence to predetermined standards, guaranteeing certain basic rights and freedoms that cannot be denied.


Economic Freedom: The belief in the protection of private property, the right to trade, and the unfettered operation of a free market.


Interdependence and Globalization: Liberalism recognizes that global economic, political and social interdependence can bring greater opportunity and progress for national economies and societies, if managed properly.



The Left and the Right are Challenging Our Constitutional Government & Our Free Market

There is nothing wrong with The US Constitution. Liberalism is the answer. Hayek was right. The conservative Religious Ideology (The Right) and the WOKE Ideology (The Left) both are NOT liberal and NOT progressive. Both lean heavily on Cancel Culture and shut down Free Speech. The doctor's advice to US is to restore our true history. Conduct Critical Liberalism Training (CLT) to all Government politicians and employees. Enact legislation to prevent social media and news from limiting free speech and debate of issues that We The People want to debate. They should not take a political position, but allow unfettered debate, report and clarify debate points that are articulated. Maybe all social media and news organizations should go through CLT as well. Finally, maybe the process of Constitutional Republic Democracy needs to be updated for the Big Tech era.


The factions that resists Government support of Religion are well organized. For example Freedom From Religion foundation.However, I am unaware of a Freedom From WOKE foundation as of yet although in 2023 WOKE is a much larger existential danger to US than any climate change or the Religious Right ever was. Ronald Regan's son is a spokesperson for Freedom From Religion foundation. Listen to Ronald Regan's goodby speech in 1991. It is my opinion there is no reason for the left and the right to cancel each other. Open up Fee Speech and seek win-win solutions that offer rewards, not penalties. Please do not let millions of US play the victim card to shame US into bankrupt Socialism. Lets move US into the Constitutional Liberalism our young founding fathers envisioned for US.


We The People live in a new world where a political change cycle of 2 to 4 years does not work for US anymore. In 1776 the news cycle was months, if not years. Contrast that to today where the news cycle is hours to days. The Constitutional political cycle is too long. This gap enables transforming Constitutional Government to Social Government. If we could change the Constitution to close this gap, would that help ? We make decisions in weeks and expect change in months, not years. My opinion, politicians should serve with the constant threat of a "no confidence vote" from We The People.

Last Word - AI Speaking for Friedrich Hayek

Friedrich Hayek, an Austrian-British economist, wrote in his book The Road to Serfdom, “The more the state ‘plans’ the more difficult planning becomes for the individual.” His argument was that the more the government intervenes in the economy, the less freedom and independence the individual has. He also argued that government intervention can lead to a “Road to Serfdom”, where citizens are no longer able to make their own decisions and are instead subject to the whims of an authoritarian state. Hayek argued that the only way to prevent this from happening is to limit the powers of the state and to maintain a free market economy. His ideas were influential in the development of the liberal economic theory of the 20th century and are still relevant today.


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