Posted by
Gerald R Evans on Saturday, November 15, 2008 12:16:17 AM
I'm currently re-reading Robert A Heinlein's SciFi classic "Starship Troopers" and I'm amazed by Heinlein's insight into the direction this country was taking and what the end consequences may be. "Starship Troopers" was originally published in 1959 and is still highly popular today. There is a quote I'd like to point out for those who have never read this book and for those who have and glossed over the political and psychological/social aspects of the book.
" "This very personal relationship, 'value,' has two factors for a human being: first, what he can do with a thing, its use to him . . . and second, what he must do to get it, its cost to him. There is an old song which asserts 'the best things in life are free.' Not true! Utterly false! This was the tragic fallacy which brought on the decadence and collapse of the democracies of the twentieth century; those noble experiments failed because the people had been led to believe that they could simply vote for whatever they wanted . . . and get it, without toil, without sweat, without tears.
"Nothing of value is free. Even the breath of life is purchased at birth only through gasping effort and pain."... "
This excerpt is taken from Chapter Six of the book during which the main character recalls a lecture given to him during a class called History and Moral Philosophy. This excerpt comes after the teacher completely shatters the concepts of communism and socialism. Isn't it interesting that a SciFi book written in 1959 can fortell the downfall of western democracy
Heinlein warns of people becoming to dependent on governemnt. He also warns of the effects of the lack of effective corporal punishment in society. In Heinlein's future the Terran Federation meets out punishments that fit the crime in a very public manner; lashing. He speaks of law abiding citizens being affraid to enter public parks after dark for fear of being attacked by gangs in the Twentieth Century... that was in the realtively ordered late 1950's. Fourty-nine years later, how far off are we from Heinlein's predicted outcome of people not being able to enter parks after dark for fear of violent attacks?
Americans have just elected a very liberal, very unexperienced junior Senator from one of the most politically corrupt areas of the country. He achieved this by hiding his liberal agenda behind a mask of pseudo-conservatism and managed to convince many that they could get many things for free just by voting for it. Free healthcare.... vote for Barack and you got it, of course someone else must actually pay for it. Free money... vote for Barack "Robin Hood" Obama and he will steal from the rich (those who make over $250,000) and give to the poor (95% of working Americans, most of which pay little to no taxes to begin with). Vote for Barack and get it all free; without toil, without sweat, with out tears....