January 19, 2009 - By True Patriot and
Congressman
Ron
Paul
The economic situation continues to deteriorate this week as
past and future bailouts were discussed on Capitol Hill.
The debate was over the accountability of already disbursed
TARP money, and on whether or not to release remaining funds.
Banks that had already been bailed out before are looking
for more money to fill the black holes that are their balance
sheets, warning that they are simply too big to fail. However,
whatever ‘devastating’ consequences these banks
are dreaming up and pushing on Capitol Hill regarding their
own collapse will be nothing compared to the collapse of
our currency if we keep debasing it through these foolish
bailouts. It should be that they are too big to bailout.
The world will not come to an end without this or that bank.
The most troubling thing to me is this rhetoric that only
government can save the economy, and must act. This is so
counter-productive.
We must ask ourselves what strengthens this country, and what
weakens it.
Government is a monumental drag on this economy. Government
at all levels currently absorbs about 35-40 percent of GDP,
which is still not enough for its voracious appetite. While
productivity is already overtaxed, the government routinely
spends more than it takes in and makes up for the shortfall
by constantly borrowing or debasing our dollars through inflation.
It pains me to think of all the opportunities for productive
economic growth we have given up simply because our government
is super-sized instead of Constitution-sized. There are just
a few constitutionally sanctioned activities for government
to engage in, but it is so overstretched with unconstitutional
encroachments that what it is legitimately supposed to do,
it does very badly. And yet we are to believe the solution
to our problems is to make government bigger. On the contrary,
government makes our problems bigger. The central bank’s
meddling with monetary policy led to overheated lending, and
now massive defaults. The government used manipulative tax
policy to distort the housing market which has had many unintended
consequences, and here we are. Government is quick to enact
and slow to correct bad policy. Yet in spite of government’s
failures, it flourishes and grows, thanks to the continual
bailouts from the unwitting taxpayer.
Big government has been tried and has failed miserably. What
we need now is small government, and freedom. We need the freedom
to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps again, as we traditionally
do in this country. But try to start a business or charity
today, and you will understand how little economic freedom
we really have left. Freedom, not government, made this the
land of opportunity. Freedom laid the foundation that catapulted
us to becoming the strongest economic power in the world. The
American people are strong and capable. We can pull ourselves
out of this mess. All we need is for the nanny-state to get
out of the way and allow us to do it. Freedom is our strength,
government is our weakness. Only by recognizing this and unleashing
our strengths will we solve the problems we face today.
Read more Articles by Ron Paul at http://www.house.gov/paul/legis.shtml
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