The Price of Authority
by Robert Russo
Let's say a tourist enters one of our many Virginia towns dependent on tourism, not knowing what he wants to do first, looking only to himself, because he is on vacation from the burdens and considerations of life. He says and does whatever pleases him, if anything is not to his liking he summons the management. A local Virginian sees thousands of these indiscretions in his homeland and does nothing, if there is a disagreement it is the outsider who can't let it go. He reports his dissatisfaction expecting things to be rearranged to suit him, not because it has merit, but because they want his money. This tourist, this coward, asks what his country can do for him. It's like Kings Dominion to him. The natives will turn on their own in a second because they don't want to be standing alone when it's their turn to take a break from accountability. Has this ever happened to you? Calling the detractor a foreigner against our noble native sons makes it easy to draw a line, doesn't it? Actually I've met people who move here from abroad to restore condemned buildings into landmarks while our local interests want to level them. What if cowardice is seated in a group that's uncomfortable for us to hear, like parents? Or the older generation? Have you ever seen authority for authority's sake suddenly manifest in a community you thought were your friends?
"Young People: Menaces to Society or Our Future?" is an excellent article posted on the LLA site. Jeremy writes of attending his local neighborhood watch meeting: "I was struck by how kids were singled out as problems, not residents with interests and perspectives of their own. …generally, the younger generations were seen as nuisances, and their side of the story and their interests were not represented. Certain households of minority racial demographics were also singled out for scrutiny." I too had recent experiences where the only people with the time and drive to run fulltime public programs were disciplinarians in their sixties, even rigorous physical programs. Our society's image of superman should have white hair and wrinkles. Jeremy adds "Moderating a significant portion of the meeting… was an officer with the local police department. …He encouraged people to call often on the slightest of suspicions, urging them to leave sorting out the good guys from the 'bad guys' (a phrase often invoked) to the professionals. He singled out kids as a big problem, stressing that once their names are in the police system, they track them for life. …He even said… that his officers 'like arresting people' and urged attendees to give his department opportunities to catch kids."*
As a child I was a constant victim of authority based on the guise that it is earned with merit and experience. Now in my prime I am close to the point where most of the merits and experience are on my side, but not the authority. I've watched them take a back seat to authority based in cowardice and inexperience. We libs must fan out and raise the difficult questions no one is willing to pose at the risk of losing their constituency. How many parents are libertarians in public but authoritarians within the home? How many of us want the younger generation to prevail but aren't enabled to do anything about it until later in life? How many conservative libertarian groups act like the major parties when they put down more radical libs? How many libertarian committees gang up on one member with radical ideas? Our doctrine is universal and it must spread into every nook and cranny of society where we are all brothers. For more on Richmond's war on young people go to http://saverichmond.com/?p=405.
*http://richmond.leftlibertarian.org/
Question of the Week: Age, weight and height are said to be the last publicly acceptable discriminations left. Weight and height could be considered minority traits, but we were all once little nonentities. Do you consider your childhood a part of your political thinking or is it something best forgotten? Are all libertarians made young? Send your opinions to henrico@richmondliberty.org.
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