COLUMN: Protecting Yourself, Protecting the Country

From Gregory Pavik's "Idols of the Theater," Fall '93 From Gregory Pavik's "Idols of the Theater," Fall '93It may be one of the last bastions of the American Right. After attending its fourth annual meeting in sunny San Mateo, California last weekend, I think the John Randolph Club may have hit the nail on the head. It's not too difficult, for instance, to pick up on the fact that the U.S. Constitution and most, if not all, of our Anglo-Saxon legal tradition have been willfully twisted or more simply ignored. The body count of genuine victims produced by the enemies of the real America in Washington can be derived from a quick review of the news: David Koresh, Randy Weaver, John Demjanjuk, Denny's Restaurant, Stacey Koon . . . the list goes on and on. What was once a self-governing republic has succumbed to what Samuel Francis called "anarcho-tyranny." What is anarcho-tyranny? It's a condition under which the state fails to perform its necessary and proper functions of maintaining some type of basic protection of communities, and instead picks on harmless and mostly normal people going about their mostly normal business. While everyone listed in the preceding list is a victim of this type of unjustified state aggression, there is one example that Francis used that illustrates the problem precisely. He pointed out that in the Los Angeles riot of 1992 the police would drive right by people happily looting and burning buildings, only to arrest Koreans who were carrying guns in order to protect their property, and indeed, their lives. People run berserk killing and stealing while the state makes it easier for them. It's like the rooster giving the fox the key to the hen house and holding the door open courteously. The solution is probably to arm the populace against the hoodlums and the state. But a citizenry that allows this chaos to occur without overturning the entire fetid establishment has degraded its national character to a point where it may be beyond recovery. All of this begs for an examination into what if anything is left of the national character. During his opening speech, Thomas Fleming, the editor of Chronicles magazine, pointed out that just about the only thing left of the real America is the "red neck mentality." Fleming mentioned that there are still some pockets of the country where everyone carries a weapon, they take care of themselves, and if you stare at some one too long, they stick a shotgun under your nose and ask you if you think there is something amusing about their face. Better a country like this than what we have today. In the old America, men were actually men. They took care of themselves. They protected their families. They knew that police existed to investigate crime – when the community couldn't take appropriate actions with a rope – and they certainly did not exist to prevent crime. You also see this mentality in the public men. Fleming mentioned the case of Andrew Jackson who, after digging a bullet out of his backside, delivered it to his adversary on the floor of Congress with a note that read something on the order of "I believe this belongs to you." Jackson received the bullet back with another note that read: "No, it belongs to you by right of long possession." Contrast this with the time I met House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich. When I shook his hand, I got the distinct impression that I had been handed a dead fish. Leaders like this are only manly enough to deliver divorce papers to their wives while they are near death in the hospital. Put these types in charge of our bloated leviathan state, and you question why they are on out-of-control power trips? They are perhaps the most significant part of the war on the real America. Stop the destructive power of Washington, allow real people – not government – to take care of their safety, and you're half way to home from the ugly ride through anarcho-tyranny territory. If any of this resonates with you at all, buy an assault rifle to improve your stay in West Philly. If not, you're a sheep, and don't be terribly surprised when you are sheared. Gregory Pavlik is a senior Materials Science and Engineering major from Delran, New Jersey. Idols of the Theater appears alternate Tuesdays.