COLUMN: "Just Say No"

From George Allen, Jr.'s "Hey You Kids, Get Off My Lawn," Spring '92.From George Allen, Jr.'s "Hey You Kids, Get Off My Lawn," Spring '92.· Men like Robespierre, Lenin, Hitler, Mao, Castro, Che, Ho Chi Minh, and Bill Clinton were all shown to be bloodthristy ideologues -- or just really annoying politicians -- rather than liberators or idealists. The French and Bolshevik Revolutions are finally known -- like the Nazi Revolution -- as great devastations within human history. Unfortunately, this has not led to the vindication of those truly great heros who have fought and died for freedom, but to a cynical relativist view on everything. This brave new relativist world order is based on the presupposition that there is no good, there are no heros, the status quo is permanent and there are forces of history beyond our control, so we might as well accept our fate. Well, I for one say no. If there is no absolute good and every belief is in some way relevant, it's alright for the Nazis to ship people by mass transit to camps where they're shoved in ovens, because that's just part of their culture. Another example comes from Native American cultures. When the Aztecs met the conquistadors they said, "Cheerio fellows, mind terribly if we cut your hearts out? It is part of our culture." The Spanish wisely declined and proceeded to slaughter them. Maybe there was a bit of overkill, but it's not like the Aztecs were going to invent Nintendo. Generally most people don't buck the system, because it's generally accepted that if you do, you'll get it. Once in a while a true hero will appear who will not kowtow to the status quo or do something really stupid. Of course most so-called "heros" we hear about are eithier terrorists or boneheads who want your money for something like Chesse Rights. Luckily, there are some real heros out there who are both rational and idealistic. People such as Cromwell, Burke, Hume, Smith, Washington, Madison, Lincoln, King, Reagan -- and now Walesa, Havel, Yeltsin and even Fujimori -- have stood up against the status quo and "the forces of history" to just say no. One of these truly great people died on March 22, 1992. His name was Friedrich A. von Hayek, and he was a hero who said no. Hayek was a Medal of Freedom recipient who wrote books on economics, freedom, law, philosopy and ethics. A former socialist, he hated the status quo and realized that socialism, statism and the other "forces of history" would not lead to human liberation, but would take mankind on a "road to serfdom." His book of that title was an attack on state planning and tyranny in all forms. Later books such as The Constitution of Liberty outlined his ideas on establishing and maintaining the rule of law within all liberal states Although his hopes for the destruction of fascism and communism were realized, the rule of law and human liberty are being eroded everyday. New government regulations, special interest groups, bureaucracies and other laws and agencies that inhibit human freedom are created everyday. Somebody must say no. Saying no to the bad guys is difficult to do. My column has been dedicated to attacking the budding Lenin's and Clinton's on this campus who would gladly set up a concentration camp on my lawn and then put me in it. I'm not some cynical relativist -- I'm both an idealist and a pluralist. As an ROTC cadet and future army officer, I'm pledged to defend the Constitution of the United States of America from enemies foreign and domestic, using my future unit, the 82nd Airborne Division of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, as my weapon. But if you want to make a lot of money, take drugs, be a homosexual, be in ROTC, get a neat looking degree in Satan Worshipping, or beat yourself silly that's your business. Of course, if you want me to pay for your foolishness, that's another thing entirely. I'll just say no. · George Allen, Jr. is an intellectual hooligan who has never pistol-whipped anyone, but is always willing to try new things. He is also a senior Intellectual History and Political Science major from Alderwood Manor, Washington. Hey You Kids, Get Off My Lawn appeared alternate Wednesdays.