Lessons In Liberty, Democracy, and Eternal Vigilance
Here are some important lessons in liberty, democracy and civil rights:
From the eloquence of Captain Jean-Luc Picard
(Too bad our politicians, pundits and intellectuals typically lack such uncommon common sense)
On the 75th anniversary of VE Day, the day we defeated fascism in Europe, 75 years ago, we should be aware, though few are, that we are facing fascism again.
The Western oligarchs of Davos, the billionaire class that effectively rule the world, are consolidating their power. Few realize yet what is going on. They had better realize it soon.
Solidarity must be balanced with freedom, or we will not have a loving, compassionate society, but a brutal and ruthless gulag, where all life has no value, but the state is the sole value.
Here are some eloquent, extremely important words, on what it means to be free, and what it takes to stay that way.
JTR,
May 8, 2020
“That’s how it starts. The road from legitimate suspicion to rampant paranoia is very much shorter than we think.”
– Captain Picard
“With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably.” – Captain Jean-Luc Picard
“The first time any man’s freedom is trodden on, we’re all damaged.” – Captain Jean-Luc Picard
“We think we’ve come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches – it’s all ancient history. Then, before you can blink an eye, suddenly it threatens to start all over again.” – Captain Picard
“Villains who twirl their moustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged.”
– Captain Picard
“She, or someone like her, will always be with us, waiting for the right climate in which to flourish, spreading fear, in the name of righteousness. Vigilance: that is the price we have to continually pay.”
– Captain Picard
(From, The Drum Head)
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Writings of J. Todd Ring 
May 9, 2020 at 3:06 am
An investigative journalist asked, What is the level of your fear or anxiety about the future? I felt the question was too vague. I chose a more precise answer. It is this. I think it is well-founded.
Fear of natural viruses: 0
Fear of biowarfare: 3
Concerns over war and nuclear war: 6
Concerns about ecology: 9
Concerns about fascism: 10
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May 9, 2020 at 3:47 am
A few words on covid and basic sanity – an open letter:
I strongly agree, first of all, with your statement, John Anderson, that we in the West need to develop some principles in terms of how we handle such crises. I have set out some clear, systematic thoughts, guidelines and principles, in recent essays over the past four months, and in two books and 300 essays over a longer period. Central is the need to balance the values of solidarity and freedom. We are being told we must value the former, and that requires abandoning the latter. But that is the argument of all fascists and authoritarians; it is the argument of the Chinese totalitarian government, and now, the Western oligarchy of neo-feudal corporatists, represented by Davos, who effectively rule over the governments and states of the West and most of the world, and who also control 80% of the major media in the world. We must resist, of course. I do believe that my essays and books can be of help, in terms of both clarity and also inspiration. I want to thank you and Peter Hitchens as well. Thoughtful voices are urgently needed now, more than ever. Remember, those who are willing to sacrifice a little freedom for a little security, deserve neither, and will lose both. This is what Huxley and Orwell warned us about. This is the end game showdown between oligarchy and democracy. We must not fail.
– jtr, may 8, 2020, in response to john anderson video in discussion with peter hitchens on covid crisis
Another person’s comment to the video mentioned above:
“The kind of people who are rabidly supporting this are same kind of people who would put their neighbours in a cattle truck if they were told to. I can’t stand all the moral posturing and the pretense that people suddenly care about saving lives. Unless people are told by authority that certain deaths are for some reason sacrosanct and intolerably tragic, they will shrug their shoulders. Millions die in wars, millions of children die from lack of clean water, old people die of cold in the winter, thousands have committed suicide over universal credit – the same people who tell you with tears in their eyes that people are dying of Coronavirus never said a fucking word about any other deaths. They morally posture on demand, they clap like morons on demand – if you question this too much the same fuckers will happily round you up on demand. They are full of shit and they are drawing us into totalitarianism.”
Well said.
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