“Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.”
~ H.L. Mencken, from Prejudices: First Series (1919)
Joel Bowman with today’s Notes From the End of the World: Buenos Aires, Argentina...
At last count, there are 195 nation states on the planet, covering its habitable surface like a blight on a vital organ.
Each State has its private citizens, mostly benign, largely domesticated. And each has its political class, vile and foolish in varying proportions... and malignant to the core.
To the extent that free and voluntary citizens are able to keep their government “in check” – whether through constitutional restraints, the democratic process... or as Mencken had it, the gnawing temptation to “hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats” – the general population may expect to lead a relatively peaceful and prosperous life.
When the State is allowed to metastasize, to spread its corrupted cells throughout the body politic, to harass and harangue at will, the population might expect to endure times of uncertainty, upheaval, widespread strife... and worse.
This year, your wide-eyed editor visited a dozen or so political chalk outlines across the Disunited States of Europe and America. From storied islands in Homer’s pond to remote Iceland in the North Atlantic, the relatively new (1991) state of North Macedonia to the ancient deserts of Egypt, from the Empire State to the Sunshine State to the Lone Star State… and plenty more besides.
What struck us most about the “developed world” (Egypt excluded, for obvious reasons), was the apparent nonchalance regarding the general growth of the tumorous government. Whether the votes leaned “left” or “right,” there appeared to be little consideration as to whether, ultimately, the State should be shown the scalpel... much less allowed to spread unchecked.
Europe, R.I.P.
In Europe, for instance, the prevailing consensus is that economic suicide by net zero energy policy is preferable to the shame and ignominy of burning fossil fuel. Various governments administer this poison through a never-ending litany of regulation, taxation and, ultimately, free market strangulation.
The French, who remain humbly convinced they can set the planet’s thermostat, would sooner let their elderly perish in severe heat than be seen turning on an air-conditioner. (This, despite the fact that two-thirds of the country’s energy derives from zero-carbon nuclear power, the highest rate in the world.)
Likewise, the neighboring Germans would sooner succumb to industrial selbstmord (self-murder) than be caught deviating from their absurd Klimaschutzgesetz policy. The country’s Federal Climate Change Action Act, among the most aggressive in the world, aims to reduce emissions by 65% below 1990 levels by 2030... down to 88% by 2040... with the goal of achieving net greenhouse gas neutrality by 2045, practically guaranteeing the slow death of a once proud industrial powerhouse.
And up in Norway, where three in ten cars on the road are made in “Evil Elon’s” factories (the highest Tesla ownership rate in the world), people drive their Model Xs with bumper stickers reading:
“I bought this car before Elon went crazy.”
Proud and #brave enough to signal their rear view virtue... the mighty vikings are nonetheless loath to turn off their North Sea oil tap, the profits from which slosh around in the State’s giant Sovereign Wealth Fund (the world’s largest), helping to pay for all those shiny, but suddenly morally ambiguous, Musk-made EVs.
Thus, one rule... one diktat... one corrupted cell at a time... Europe creeps further and further into the shade.
USA, Inc.
Across the Pond, meanwhile, “State Capitalism” [sic] is said to be on the ascendency in the Land of the Free. The latest, from Bloomberg...
Trump Weighs 10% Government Stake in Intel as SoftBank Buys In
The Trump administration is in discussions to take a stake of about 10% in Intel Corp., a move that could see the US become the beleaguered chipmaker’s largest shareholder.
The government’s plan, which would convert grants made under the US Chips and Science Act into equity, is under consideration just as SoftBank Group Corp. announced a surprise bet on Intel’s revival, agreeing to acquire a $2 billion stake in the company.
According to the article, “The US government and the Japanese tech conglomerate both see the potential for a turnaround at Intel, although each likely values different parts of the business.”
Why the US government should be involved in private markets in the first place – especially in individual companies – was not subject to serious questioning. It is simply taken for granted that, when it comes to other people’s money, Government Knows Best.
And really, what is politics if not the business of being in other people’s business?
Comrades in Arms
The lurch toward State ownership in private companies was sweet enough to court the attention and support of a man who never read a government proposal that didn’t make him weak at the knees: Comrade Bernard Sanders. Gleefully did the newswires report:
US Senator Sanders favors Trump plan to take stake in Intel and other chipmakers
WASHINGTON, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Liberal U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on Wednesday threw his support behind President Donald Trump's plan to convert U.S. grants to chipmakers, including $10.9 billion for Intel, into government stakes in the companies.
“If microchip companies make a profit from the generous grants they receive from the federal government, the taxpayers of America have a right to a reasonable return on that investment,” Sanders, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats, said in a statement to Reuters.
Never mind whether American citizens wanted their money invested in Intel in the first place... or whether they would rather have kept it under their own mattress... the State, through taxation, preferential grants and direct market intervention, will make that decision on their behalf... for the “common good,” naturally.
Reuters continued…
The unusual alignment between Sanders and President Trump on government ownership stakes in private companies highlights a marked shift by Trump toward policies of state intervention in the economy that are typically associated with the left.
When the so-called “Left” and the so-called “Right” join forces, they typically do so to unite against a common enemy. We leave it to the reader to decide who that is…
Whether it’s Mr. Biden’s Chips Act or Mr. Trump’s crafty Intel equity maneuver... whether it’s Operation Shock and Awe in Iraq... or Operation Twist at the Fed... Operation Choke Point from the DOJ... Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan... or Operation Warp Speed during the Great Covid Panic... the higher the stakes, the more people seem to put their faith in Big Government as the final arbiter of what is great and good.
Of course, nothing persists forever, not even the growth of the State. Either the cancer is left to spread unchecked, in which case the patient eventually dies… or he realizes in time the need to operate.
Should he leave it too long, however, he may one day wake to find there’s only one operation left: Operation Black Flag.
Stay tuned for more Notes From the End of the World...
Cheers,
Joel Bowman
I raise a feeble hand in celebrating your article on Operation Black Flag....I'm just too burnt-out from all the outrage I've felt over a long time about the political trend in the USA to summon up the energy to actually cheer your take on events. "What will be will be" is my spent attitude, but it still hurts mightily to see what's coming. At nearly 79 years old I'm done fighting it all and protesting it mightily. Let others do it. I'm now enjoying the sunny day and my small life and thankful to God for the days I've lived. To hell with the country and those elected by the many who still trust government. I've stopped giving money to politicians. They are such dufuses. Government is a parasite. Even state government. I'll read about Argentina as you describe it and hope that it doesn't become just another unrealized freedom fantasy. A small ray of hope exists in me that it might not be smothered and crushed by the next group of control freaks.
I see nothing but a black flag for the world. Not only North America. Government of all kinds just run amuck over their citizens, who usually will not wake up until the black flag is raging war. So sad for humanity. Well maybe Argentina has a chance to avoid, maybe.