Essays in Idleness

As the pope was speaking, to my ears and the gallery of ears, through the Internet this morning, I felt I did not disagree with him, so much as I could not understand what he was saying. Yes, we Christians are in favour of peace, as a general rule; and opposed to violence, as Christ Himself rebuked the person who used a sword to resist the officer arresting Him. But as a further reading of the Bible, even on this Palm Sunday, would reveal, the opposition to violence is not the end of the story. The account is more complex than even an American pope, or president, will understand, though I do not accuse either of insincerity or dishonesty. It is, strangely enough, a judgement to be made “case-by-case,” on whether to be violent. Christ Himself, in the Temple, took out the whip when violence was called for.

Similarly, on “disownership.” We have been trained, indiscreetly, about owning things, by the socialists who have put themselves in charge of our education systems. Agreed, we only own things while we are biologically alive, and even by hereditary law, as Isaeus could tell you, it is touch-and-go whether your successors may claim anything that belongs instead to the cosmos and always will. You may, for instance, claim to own the water, personally or through your estate, but the water can evaporate. By convention we recognize the private ownership of things we never made (which is everything), and it is up to us to own and protect what is ours, or to give it away. Only in the most extreme circumstances is it up to the civil power to take it: your life for instance; or however much cash the State feels it is entitled to impound for your protection. It goes without saying that I am opposed to most demands of the political protection racket, but I think they may reasonably lay claim to perhaps one dollar in ten, so long as they continue to provide the services that States like Canada no longer provide.

Rather than argue for the precise amount and who should be exempted, I take it for granted that what you own you own. Civilization requires you to acknowledge this. But in charity, it is your call what you choose to give away: it is not for the government, or other gang of thugs. It is, or rather should be, an entirely voluntary act, and it will be, if the world is to remain peaceful.

The same for everything else that is owned, in addition to money; one’s freedom for instance. … Javid Shah!