Post by Floyd Looney on Apr 10, 2010 13:06:05 GMT -5
Federal Service.
It sounded like a good idea at the time.
We had all seen how the system back on Earth was screwed up where those who paid no taxes were outvoting those who did.
We thought we would fix that on our new colony. After some furious debate the new Constitution was made the law of the land. It stated that citizenship was gained through federal service.
It seemed simple at the time.
Somehow as soon as it was enacted all government employees were deemed to be doing their Federal Service. Government employees have a vested interest in a larger, more expensive, more powerful government. It was the first inkling I had that we had been had.
I spent three years in a frozen wasteland, in crowded wasteland setting fire to icy water tanks so we could flush the toilets to get my “right to vote”. Tens of thousands of us did, I saw men learn to follow orders and see the government as their masters. I didn’t like that.
As soon as my “duties” were completed I returned to Home City to find that the government had created dozens of new projects, even art projects that counted as “federal service”. They had figured out a way that pretty much everyone had the right to vote no matter how little effort they put in. All of these programs emphasized fealty to the state.
It was the State Party that dominated the television and radio broadcasts, apparently many of the channels available were operated through some Federal Service program.
Government expands. That is what it does with the littlest bits of power.
Somehow the government had grown to enormous proportions, those in these various “federal service” programs and employed by the state almost outnumbered the rest of us. Sadly the state also operated most of the schools and media outlets. Their propaganda encouraged many who should have been with us to vote for them.
So the State Party won the elections on the platform of expanding government and expanding Federal Service. The Liberty Party leaders looked dismayed as if they hadn’t known for years that they had been had. The Liberty Party shook up its leadership as the new government raised taxes on those without the right to vote. They said the Constitutional limit on taxation did not apply to those people, or private business, or private property.
Somehow we ended up with something worse than we had fled from.
It sounded like a good idea at the time.
We had all seen how the system back on Earth was screwed up where those who paid no taxes were outvoting those who did.
We thought we would fix that on our new colony. After some furious debate the new Constitution was made the law of the land. It stated that citizenship was gained through federal service.
It seemed simple at the time.
Somehow as soon as it was enacted all government employees were deemed to be doing their Federal Service. Government employees have a vested interest in a larger, more expensive, more powerful government. It was the first inkling I had that we had been had.
I spent three years in a frozen wasteland, in crowded wasteland setting fire to icy water tanks so we could flush the toilets to get my “right to vote”. Tens of thousands of us did, I saw men learn to follow orders and see the government as their masters. I didn’t like that.
As soon as my “duties” were completed I returned to Home City to find that the government had created dozens of new projects, even art projects that counted as “federal service”. They had figured out a way that pretty much everyone had the right to vote no matter how little effort they put in. All of these programs emphasized fealty to the state.
It was the State Party that dominated the television and radio broadcasts, apparently many of the channels available were operated through some Federal Service program.
Government expands. That is what it does with the littlest bits of power.
Somehow the government had grown to enormous proportions, those in these various “federal service” programs and employed by the state almost outnumbered the rest of us. Sadly the state also operated most of the schools and media outlets. Their propaganda encouraged many who should have been with us to vote for them.
So the State Party won the elections on the platform of expanding government and expanding Federal Service. The Liberty Party leaders looked dismayed as if they hadn’t known for years that they had been had. The Liberty Party shook up its leadership as the new government raised taxes on those without the right to vote. They said the Constitutional limit on taxation did not apply to those people, or private business, or private property.
Somehow we ended up with something worse than we had fled from.
