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The "Land Of The Free" Ranks 36th In The World For Respecting Property Rights
Submitted by Simon Black via Sovereign Man blog,
In 1863, the United States of America was in the midst of a devastating civil war.
Thousands of people had just lost their lives at Gettysburg, and Sherman was preparing for his march to the sea, laying waste to Atlanta in the process.
New York City was embroiled in the most violent riots in its history.
The southern economy was in shambles with the prices of staple food items skyrocketing, and citizens of the Union were stuck paying income taxes for the first time ever.
Much of the country had still not recovered from the Panic of 1857. And just when it seemed that things couldn’t be any more chaotic, the President would be assassinated soon.
All in all, it seemed that the whole world was on fire. This was United States in the 1860s.
And had you been born at this time amid so much chaos, death, and pessimism, most people would have thought your future prospects would be pretty dim.
But that’s not what happened. Instead, that would have been an incredible time to be born.
Rather than floundering in its rubble, the United States became the wealthiest and most powerful country in the world in the fifty years that followed.
Indeed, the latter part of the 19th century was an extraordinary time to be alive.
Economic freedom abounded in the US. There was no insane government regulation. No income tax. No gun-toting agents ready to kick in your door, shut down your lemonade stand, tell you what to put in your body, or arrest you for collecting rainwater.
Personal responsibility was valued. Everyone accepted that there was danger in the world. And it wasn’t up to the government to ‘protect’ people from every last one of them.
Yet despite so much ‘danger’, this was one of the greatest periods of wealth creation in history, simply because people were free to make things happen.
People were free to enter, compete, and make choices in the market. Their freedom and property rights were protected by a clear rule of law.
However, just 50-years later, this positive trajectory was cut short with the establishment of the Federal Reserve.
It was a remarkable turn of events.
In 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves. Five decades later the Federal Reserve Act placed an entire population under the control of a banking cartel.
The 100 years that followed through today have simply been about tightening the chains and leading the country down a path of gradual decline.
At first, the decline was subtle. The US remained prosperous and relatively free throughout the twentieth century.
According to the newest Frasier Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World Index (released yesterday), the US ranked as one of the world’s freest economies from 1980 through 2000.
Since then the decline has hastened.
The US dramatically slipped to 9th in 2005 and its decline has continued ever since, to the point where the United States is now rated less economically free than Jordan.
This is no accident.
The mushroom cloud expansion of regulation has stifled small business and innovation.
Even more significantly, property rights and respect for rule of law that once defined the country have eroded.
From an alarming increase in government seizure of private property under the guise of eminent domain, to blatant disregard for the property rights of bondholders during bailouts, the US has plunged to #36 in the world in respecting property rights.
The decline of economic freedom in the US has destroyed opportunities, growth, and wealth creation along with it.
Is this as bad as Argentina, Equatorial Guinea, or Venezuela? No. But it’s not about where you’re at. It’s about where you’re going. And the trajectory is clearly negative.
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Was this before or after the Jamie Oliver piece on civil forfeiture?
Emancipation proclomation in 1983 "freed" the slaves.
The "Great Society" of 1965 bred 50 million "slaves" to dept and government dependence.
Hussein for Prez!!!! Or a loley dude from, uhhhh (know one knows) named Barry Soetoro. Either will do. Chains you can believe in!
Number 36? Hmmm, what about police confiscations of money?
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/american-shakedown-police-won-t-charge-you-...
Yeah, they hate us for our freedoms, so let's give them up to make the world more peaceful, LOL.
"Which means a rather stunning 30% of Americans believe it is fine... WTF!?"
As a foriegn leader pointed out after the election of the Kenyan Muzzie homo, "Barack Obama is not the problem; he's the symptom of the problem." (Or words to that effect.)
Plenty of people in the South during the Reconstruction would disagree that eveverything was all rainbows and skittles after the War of Northern Aggression.
The South shall rise again.
Yes, they already did it.... second case of Ebola
It's always about the children .....
Judging by your new avatar, I'd have to agree.
Ky was occupied for 10 yrs after the war it is written, still is occupied in my opinion
My conclusion after studying this situation is that we all would be better off if the Confederates had won their Independence; and that includes the black people
Australia is ranked 12 for property rights and 5 for overall economic freedom. When will you fools in America get over here? Come here and help make it even better.
Saw 12,500 miles of Australia on a bicycle. Liked the people, the weather, and the country.
Unfortunately, Australia is doing what the US did - import too many foragers. Good luck with that.
Still a wanker? You recall the last time we tangoed? You have learned nothing since about our nation Arsetralia.
Check the introduction of smart meters with differential pricing on water bores, check the enviro overlays, ask why property owners are forced by council to have breeding box towers installed for animals that do not use them, ask why "nutrient trading schemes" are being introduced on the great barrier reef, why are pool fencing laws changing every 12 months, why are councils trying to enforce "green retrofit" of buildings and homes (very minor examples)... look into the history of Australian property rights destruction that started decades ago - in fact Whitlam was proud of introducing zoning and controls for TAX purposes.
Then again just try reading... it helps.You do need to put some effort into learning and accept that your world view may change - deal with it, its part of being a grown up and very important for our own and our kids future.
Go search for the WSSD Australian Assessment Report 2002 - our government describes how they are a BEST PRACTICE for the world at getting around property rights and the Constitution... they're open, proud and explicit.
You can then research Howard and the Port Arthur false flag and boost your IQ points to deduce both parties are about the demise and destruction of ALL rights... then again you have probably been asleep while the new onslaught of spying rights currently in the news are enshrined. Do get get that passive Arsetralia is ahead of the USA and UK in loss of rights and it will not show until something goes wrong and people want a say, then its toooooooo late.
http://www.parksleisure.com.au/environs/publications/world-summit-on-sus...
No the Jamie Oliver piece was on civil turnips and how they might make famine a thing of the past. He wept into his mash and had to cast it away.
Private property is a concept that will burn to ashes along with false choices like freedom and/or individualism. A new world is rising upon a foundation of peace and tolerance, you choice is to join civilization or burn with all the vestiges of the past.
You sure are a determined troll. Here, have an upvote for your efforts at undermining collectivism.
That was dripping with sarcasm, right......? I am hoping it was, as I didn't give you a down arrow (but, 200+ down arrows, if it wasn't).
My guess is he's an agent provocateur, but it's kind of wasted around here where there are very few to draw out who would share his 'view.'
If he posted this stuff at HuffPo though, the bites he got would be fucking hilarious. Especially if you keep leading them on toward the cliffs of incoherence.
Perhaps when I retire someday I'll start a troll school in order to help undermine stupidity one false-belief at a time.
And in the event he's serious? Well, he has no power here!
He might be a troll but what he says is happening, how can anyone deny it?
Civil asset forfeiture was the end of property rights. Ameicans just didn't realize it.
No, actually property taxes was the end of property rights. CAF is just the next step.
All the more reason to bug out... Standing in the eye of a tornado is not a smart move...
Bug out to where? America was the last bastion of property rights. Emphasis on "was".
You have property rights long as you pay the taxes and we don't suspect you of this or that.
That's not rights. It's privilege.
Not 1 in 1,000 Americans knows the difference nor even cares.
The animal world has behaviors/concepts of my property and our property, it doesn't have one for YOUR property.
That's where the US is going and the main reason it's failing.
dp...
Yeah, because that's worked so well everywhere it's been tried before.
What you dumbasses fail to recognize is that it may have been tried elsewhere, but not 'Murica. And we gots our murican exceptionalizms....
Do I really need the sarc tag?
Destruction of property rights signals the beginning of the end for a robust economy. You cannot have competitive commerce without a solid system of property rights. Plain and simple.
Unfortunately a society where property rights are respected and enforced impartially by the judicial process seems to be a statistical outlier, rather than the norm.
You nailed it Bro.......if someone has the ability to tax/confiscate your property, then any "right" you think you have is somewhat ficticious.
Why should someone have a right to property that they have stolen?
Who said anyone has a right to stolen property? The issue with civil forfeiture is the seizure of property without criminal conviction. The police can sieze property they merely think may have been stolen - no need to prove to anyone that it actually was. The onus then lies with you to prove it wasn't, something that can be impossible given the inherant difficulty of negative proofs. Not many people have watertight documented proof of ownership for all their posessions, nor should they have to. Not everyone can provide a detailed paper trail showing the origins of evey cent in their wallets or bank accounts, nor should they have to.
When you are accused of committing a crime, the onus of proof lies with the accuser in order to secure a conviction, and in a just society only someone actually convicted of a crime should be relieved of its alleged proceeds.
And of course once stolen property is seized, it should be returned to its rightful owner, not retained by the police department that seized it.
One evening earlier this year Police in Portland, ME refused to respond to a request from a senior citizens only residential complex to remove a middle-aged non-resident male who had threatened a woman in the residents' computer room. Because he had a key to the property the detective who answered the call said it was a civil matter. The key originally had belonged to his elderly father, who BTW was no longer living there. If that's the case how is it that seizing money in civil forfeiture from ordinary citizens, which sure sounds like a crime in itself, IS police business?
"Who said anyone has a right to stolen property?"
The police claim they have the right to the property they have stolen (they and you appear to favour "seized"). When does "seized" become "stolen"?
In case you don't know the meaning of "stolen":
"verb (used with object), stole, stolen, stealing.
to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force"
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stealing?s=t
And there's the Constitution weighing in:
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Amendment V
No person shall . . . be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Fin de siecle.
Trajectory...what a scary word..especially now. I don't want no trajectory, stop the bus and let me off!
Simon, what countries can I move to that do NOT have a Rothschild-affiliated central bank?
North Korea?
Iran, Cuba and North Korea are the only three countries on the planet without a Rothschid owned central bank... Ever wonder why they are pariah states?
Cuba
I think I"ll take Cuba over North Korea....
He didn't cite a source. I mean, seriously, the article is basically "The US is going to hell". No shit Sherlock. Care to give us a list of "better" countries. Nope. No sources.
If you want a list, you should check out "What ever happened to Justice" by Maybury. It is almost a kids book, but presents a very insightful and well written summary of how the (old) law in the US came to be and what (new) law is doing to undermine it. A 13 year old could read it. It has a list of countries with strong common law frameworks (of which property rights is a cornerstone) sorted by score. It is a great place to start if you are serious about moving.
SB can be all over the map with his stuff. Not sure why he gets to post here so much ... unless he pays for it. Folks have advice, letters, and what not to sell.
I kind of thought Biderman did the same thing (i.e. pay for the right to post) but eventually bailed when he got tired of the forums giving him a hard time. He still has his link on the left. I still visit there and what his TV time stuff.
Regards,
Cooter
Friend of Tyler?
As for the forum bashing, now you've got me thinking about our old buddy Leo.
It says right in the article "The Frazer Institute". They routinely do a study on economic freedom.
http://www.fraserinstitute.org/research-news/display.aspx?id=21855
Er, "Fraser". Not "Frazer", not even "Frazier" (as in Simon's article -- like the TV shrink?!).
Didn't Iceland prosecute all the bankers that fucked them in '09?
Don't see any of them walking funny, so I reckon they liked it!
Try this private bank: "Bank of Serta, Sealy & Posturepedic"
Available in all countries in the world. Hours = 24/7/365, No Fees, No FATCA, No Big Bro nosiness/tattling, No Haircuts or Bail-Ins.
p.s. Unless you can access your cash online, and the Internet(s) is(are) working when Ebola+ is everywhere, having cash overseas may be a problem. Unless you front-run it, and are there also.
30% of Americans are fine with this because they don't think they have anything left to lose. They see themselves on the receiving end of this theft.
30% of Americans are the thieves class: cops, governments and top 1%.
You are free to STFU and eat your peas, pay taxes and die from Ebola........
"70% Oppose Police Seizure of Property Without A Criminal Conviction. Which means a rather stunning 30% of Americans believe it is fine... WTF!?"
Gee, I thought the FSA was larger than 30% of the population - maybe some of them still believe in rights...NAH!
Snoopy, when that 70% is willing to use JHPs to cause a sudden "Stop, Drop, and Flop" upon said highwaymen, we can see real change.
Only in your dreams.
What will history books say about America?
400 million guns and they STILL let communism take over.
I don't know gatorboat, what history will say, but I do know I'll take my chances ARMED, defending myself, my family, my property, and anybody else I deem a worthy case to defend.
You, nor anyone else is under any obligation to do the same. As far as I am concerned, you and yours are fully welcome to gather in a circle, hold hands, and sing "Coom By Ya" for your security plan.
2A isn't about defending the home front. It's about going where tyranny originates from and stopping it.
Not wait till it knocks on your front door (when it's too late), but proactively going where it originates from and stopping it so it never gets a chance to knock on your door.
GOs in America have abandoned the second amendment. They have no intent of going where tyranny originates from and stopping it.
So they'll have to deal with at their front door (when it's too late).
I know how to get along in a communist country. Look poor and don't make any waves.
People around the world have to do it, and it's here in America now.
GOs can feel good about defending the homefront a while longer. But if tyranny knocks on their door they're going to jail or morgue. As time goes along morgue is more likely.
Good luck.
I must respectfully disagree. Start in the little circle that you can make a difference in, your home first, neighborhood, town/city, county, state, country. There will likely never be change brought about by taking down high level leaders, as there is a large pool of power-hungry, corrupt people ready/waiting to fill the slot.
Rather, by protecting ones listed above from the low-level "working thugs" it's far easier to bring about real change. How many $50-150K per yr Gov. thugs do you think will continue to Go Out to Enforce illegal, immoral, and unjust policies, when they start seeing their co-workers not returning at the end of the day?
A screwed up Gov, is only as effective as the lowest level workers that follow/enforce orders. New Congress Critters Etc..are a dime a dozen.
It boils down to the Little Circle/ Big Circle plan. Work on the stuff that you can change/control, don't sweat the stuff you can't.
Best of luck to you as well.
"All these governments are bankrupt, and a government should not be conflated with the country, or 'the people.' It's an entity with its own interests, and will always put it's own interest first. It treats its subjects as milk cows and if it has to it will treat them as beef cows." - Doug Casey, October 2010
All these governments are bankrupt. Bear in mind, the rate of decline is against a backdrop were ALL govts are looting their citizens. So many govts look to the US, and use its actions as guidance for how they act. If it's alright for the US to to seize property without due process, detain people indefinitely on suspicion, kill people on suspicion... Then it must be ok for other govts to do the same.
We live in a glorius globally interconnected financial system, and we're all in this together.
Sometimes we have to do distasteful things, like re-hypothecate the segregated customer accounts at Vegan's Custom Slaughterhouse Inc. to backstop bad loans made to Tippy Structural Engineering Ltd. It's regrettable, but we can hardly let the entire global financial system get shaken to the core now, can we? Of course not.
It's all very complicated and involves derivatives of Greek government bonds, but trust us it's in the entire World's best interest.
The 30% need to be executed on sight. They are either evil bastards who don't want anyone ot have any freedom or they are too stupid to get a clue. Either way, they serve no positive purpose so better they are eliminated and not wasting resources for others.
You might want to schedule a Med check.......
Unfortunately, Ebola doesn't discriminate :(
They are likely scarex old ladies or paranoid soccer moms.
You just put yourself squarely in the 30% as you've just made the exact same case they do.
Beware of red-laser dots.
You can add all the gun owners to fucking sheepish to "take America back". They serve no positive purpose so better they are eliminated and not wasting resources for others.
"On sight"? You mean, after a fair trial and a conviction, right? Just as, I'm guessing, you want to see for the asset forfeiture?
Why no link to the list. Please cite source.
http://www.freetheworld.com/release.html
On a bell curve 30% is always completely oblivious.
AKA, "undecided."
Which explains totally how a communist, muslim, anti-American community organizer could be elected President.
Everything is going downhill, just as expected with this accomplished and incompetent liar-in-chief. Another 8 years under Hitllery should get the country ready for mass extermination and repudiation of the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
We Suck!!
Yes, this is a great theme to feature as it is a follow-up to the Civil Forfeiture expose. Everyone must send these essays to their friends and family members so they can have a clue as to just what is going on in "'merika".
"Land of the Free" ?
Free to do as you are told. Incarcerated otherwise.
Pretty much same as it ever was, and ever will be.
You are free to do whatever the government allows you to do.
http://www.justice.gov/enrd/History_of_the_Federal_Use_of_Eminent_Domain...
But it is exceptional.
Of course it is.
Let's talk freedom. Where I live, it's 37 miles to the nearest traffic light. They don't bother posting speed limits since there are no revenue collection agents around to enforce them. The government is represented by the dude who grades/plows the dirt roads, the dude who drives the school bus, and the dude who delivers the mail. Plenty for me.
People leave their doors unlocked and valuable stuff lying around in their yard, which is about 35-40 acres each in size. My guess is that every house has at least one gun, and probably four or five. We don't worry about fluoride in the water, or terrorist poison, since it would be a lot of work to unscrew each and every wellhead and dump something down inside the casing.
You can ask at any door for some help and it will be promptly given without complaint or demand for payment.
Just imagine!!!! Instead of whimpering about where you can go to escape the shit storm you've raised up, you can be free and happy in America tomorrow. It's still here if you want it but none of you actually do despite your protestations to the contrary. Looks too much like work for most of the folks, as Obama refers to them.
All are welcome, just leave the idiotic Eurotrash concepts at the City Limits sign and always remember to close the farm gates behind you wherever you go.
When the USA becomes shit, your kind will rebuild it.
Sounds nice Tarabel. I'd settle for 4-5 acres, at my age that's probably all I could handle. Unfortunately, it's not an option for me. Trapped in a prison of my own making. Maybe someday.
Lean Forward Progtards!
In the land where everything is free, property rights cannot be respected.
Not sure how pertinent this is - but the rather well to do waterfront community we lived in in the states decided to install surveillance cameras. At first it was only on the entrances to the small town. These cameras were great because they were paid for by confiscated funds. Right about the time we sold that property they were installing cameras on EVERY major internal intersection. Don't miss that stuff at all.
http://www.internationalpropertyrightsindex.org/ranking
Has the USA ranked 23rd.
Laws are to tell you what you can't do that they can do.
You do not OWN property in USA. You rent it from Fedgov.
As a Brit, when I read many articles on ZH and guest posts from Simon Black, Mike Krieger, Brandon Smith and many others, I find it astonishing and almost unbelieveable at just how much damage the corrupt slimeballs in Washington/Wall Street have done to the most successful country the world has ever known.
Most of us know that the only successful model for any country is a Constitutional Republic with limited government, yet Obama, the political elites and their utterly corrupt cronies in Wall Street have trashed the Constitution and are turning America into a fascist, socialist police state kept alive by dependency on the state.
Like the guy who wrote The Pig Trap, I cannot see serfdom being tolerated for much longer.
From past articles, I actually know that this article is probably a lie because countries where cops can legally take whatever they want, for as long as they want don't stay free long.
I get what Simon is trying to say, but 50 years after the War of Northern Agression, the United States was hardly the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth.
The notion that the dollar was (or would later become) the world's reserve currency would have been laughable in 1913. The British pound sterling was still the undisputed heavyweight for another decade or two... and at the time, the British Empire positively ruled the seas, and European armies far outclassed the American military of the time... period.
The illusion of "victory" created by the cowardly late entry of the U.S. into the Great War still lingers today.
The Pound Sterling all but collapsed in 1917. By 1920, the US became the greatest creditor nation in the world. The British Empire began its long descent directly tied to its virtual bankruptcy due to WWI.
Except that it was. In 1912 the USA had the world's largest economy and had been the world leader in imports exports and manufacturing since 1870 or so. The USA had no FedGov, Military or Foreign Policy at that time, and low taxes and overhead.
It was only from 1914-1945 that this economic might was converted into military might and empire.
In 2014 China surpassed the US in being the world's largest economy. How long will it take them to convert economic might into military might and empire? And will it take -just like in the case of the US- a devasting world war for them to become nr 1.? (rethorical question).
IMF says this happened yesterday or over the summer. UN, WB and CIA all say it is longer. The Chinese block the story, of course, and insist both at .gov and people level that this is not true nor will it ever be.
The Chinese will deny this, forever. It plays to them being a weak victim, which they no longer are.
Many think China will split up, again. Repeat the age old pattern.
But all China has to do is stay together for another 15 years and the USA defacto mindset will force a conflict because the USA has an unspoken policy that no nation is to have a larger economy than the USA, and one that does is an existential and military threat to the USA.
This is why the USA keeps Mexico unstable on purpose. Having a strong Mexico on the border, leading CA and SA, would not be in the USA's interests. Mexico is a large nation, big population, could be a hemispheric leader.
A conflict could be the final straw that collapses the USA, could be the straw that pitches China back into the chaos it lives in most of the time.
I believe this time is the amazing time to be alive. People exist in their own bubble worlds, math has reached its zenith and counting has never been faster, we have access to more information then we know what to do with, and the best is we know more about this marval called reality then at anytime in hystory.
Economics may just be fantasy without any connection to reality but its this fantasy that makes so many people rich or poor based on shadows on the wall that is more amazing then anything since platos cave. If this is not a dream time i dont know what would be.
People have chosen fantasy over reality. Amazing.
Stop whining . Do something .
See
http://andreswhy.blogspot.com/2009/02/rome-vs-china.html
http://andreswhy.blogspot.com/2011/10/paradigm-of-plenty.html
http://andreswhy.blogspot.com/2011/10/hysterical-focus-and-ostrum-common...
If you become in the Hysterical Focus of an Ostrum nature , things will go hard with you .
These years will be the Good Old Days .
See http://andreswhy.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-good-old-days.html
T hat;s the most sobering aspect of the whole situation; t hese years will be the good old days.
We have property rights? Miss a couple tax payments and see what that gets ya, no rights, none, zilch. I guess if we call paying for
property to have the right to live there a legitimate right, then ok....
You are just renting your land and house from the government. Anybody who doesn't believe it should stop paying their property taxes and see what happens.
Where is a link or cite to the claim in the title?
36th in the world respecting property rights? I find nothing.
http://www.freetheworld.com/release.html
It shows the US ranked as No.36.
But it also shows the UK ranked as No.9 for "property rights" and No.2 for "sound money". These must be a joke since the UK police also have powers to confiscate a person's assets (mostly money) without conviction. As for sound money, well, the UK has been doing Ctrl-P and borrowing willy nilly.
Welcome to the NWO.