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— updated 2007-11-11
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— updated 2007-11-11
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Herbalist Review, Issue 2007-#3:
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Subtopics on this page…
Strategy for health freedom activistsWithin the past few years, we've seen repeated assaults by the FDA on the rights of individuals to access natural health products. (See previous issue of Herbalist Review.) Health care costs continue to escalate as the value of the U.S. dollar disintegrates and the economy suffers shocks from the ongoing mortgage crisis and from irresponsible lending practices that have allowed speculators to loot our economy (outsourcing, hostile corporate takeovers, etc.). Problems in Social Security and the health care system have led some politicians to promise a fix by even greater increases in government management of health and social services. During the past year, I was briefly involved with a group hoping to promote a Health Freedom Act in my state of Montana. Certain members of the group stated their involvement was motivated by a perception that alternative and natural health practices needed to be "legalized", as the language of the medical practice act and other health professions seemingly prohibited many aspects of natural health care. (To learn why this in not quite true, read "The right to practice herbology, legal history and basis".) Having studied constitutional law for over 20 years as a personal interest, I recognized that fundamental misconceptions about our system of government have led people to lose their rights through a combination of ignorance, inattention, and apathy. The explicit wording of statutes is merely the superficial evidence of a long process of deterioration in attitudes and beliefs about what our rights are, who has the responsibility for maintaining them, and proper response when these are violated. Our system of government and the entire idea of a nation founded on the rule of law are at risk, because for so many years, both politicians and their constituencies have increasingly tolerated violations of our Constitution when it seemed to their momentary advantage. Washington, Jefferson, and Madison would have been appalled to witness the general welfare (infrastructure and institutions that benefit that nation as a whole) clause of the Constitution being stretched, twisted, and distorted to justify a vast welfare state that doles out subsidies and benefits to both individuals and favored corporations. The rule of law has degenerated to such an extent that our President and his Attorney General now justify torture and indefinite imprisonment without accusation of a crime, because, according to them, the Constitution is "just a god-damned piece of paper". If our elected officials behave as if they can do anything that suits them, then making piecemeal adjustments to statutes in an attempt to protect our rights to freedom of choice in healthcare and any other rights is a futile exercise. What is required is a fundamental change in our own attitudes. The first change required is to recognize that we are in grave danger of losing our rights, because most Americans have no idea what these rights are! How many of you can answer the following questions?
Sadly, U.S. public schools no longer rarely teach any of the preceding. High school and college graduates are woefully ignorant of such matters. If we choose to remain ignorant of these issues as adults, it should come as no surprise that we are ripe pickings for shyster lawyers and venal politicians. Each of us must consciously choose to seek out information about our rights, to study them, and to understand how to use this information in protecting them. Some might label this a spiritual crisis, and these people would be close to the truth. Whatever one labels our current predicament, the solution begins inside our own minds. Ron Paul updateFor the previous few months, I've been personally involved with the Ron Paul campaign for U.S. President. I am continually surprised and impressed to discover how many of his supporters have educated themselves for years in matters of law and constitutional rights. Meeting these people and networking with them by phone and email has restored my hope that it is possible salvage this nation from the brink of collapse. Of the small minority of people I've met who are adamantly opposed to Ron Paul's philosophy of government, some still adhere to the notion that government's role is to serve as a platform for punishing their perceived enemies, whether on the left or the right, domestically or abroad, and for enforcing some particular brand of political correctness. Some of these people have insisted that it is acceptable for our government to use torture, to lie, to poison large regions of the world with depleted uranium, and to violate people's Constitutional rights, all for the elusive goal of punishing foreigners and Americans who do not adhere to their worldview. After several decades of punishing nations that interfere with the expansion of American Empire, it is no accident that the U.S. has become one of the most hated nations on earth. Instead, Ron Paul proposes that we return to influencing other nations by our example (hopefully, a healthy one in the future) and by international trade, reserving the threat of violence primarily for invasions of our borders. Wilhelm Reich, the author of The Mass Psychology of Fascism described what he called "little" men, abused and repressed by a tyrannical leader, who, like abused children, learn to deny the pathology of abusive and sociopathic leaders, channeling their rage by abusing their pets and children, people less powerful than they, and people who are different from them. Thankfully, a global political and spiritual awakening seems to be occurring, and many are consciously recognizing these sociopathic attitudes for the first time; many foreigners support Ron Paul for President, as the future course of the U.S. will affect the entire world. It is no accident that Ron Paul attracts supporters from among conservative Christians, constitutionalists, moderates, and Democrats, because the Constitution protects the rights of all of us. An increasing number of people recognize that if we do not hold our government responsible for adhering to the rule of its own laws (and the U.S. Constitution is the master law that all other U.S. laws must obey), there will be no law, only brute force. Then, like in many Third World countries, we will be continually buffeted by dictatorships of the left, the right, and the sociopathic fringe. Ron Paul has stated that he was originally reluctant to run for President and agreed only after repeated pleas from his fellow citizens. He knows that he will not achieve his goals, if the American people do not understand what needs to be done and why. His goals will require understanding and cooperation, as that is the only way in which our Constitution can work effectively. Our system of government was designed for an educated, literate population of adults who accepted responsibility for their lives. Will we meet the challenge? Please consider helping out any way you can:
If you like Ron Paul's philosophy, but remain skeptical that he has a chance of winning, check out the straw poll results from around the country. He currently dominates the straw polls, debate polls, web traffic, and grass roots networking, and his fund raising continues to expand even while donations to other Republican candidates continues to drop. Also, check out the votefraud.org website for information on how to stop electronic vote-counting fraud, which has plagued our nation for at least the past 20 years. Roger Wicke is a volunteer coordinator for Ron Paul's campaign in Sander's County, Montana. A skeptical Independent voter for many years, this is the very first time he has actively supported any U.S. Presidential candidate. As a health practitioner and herbalist, he feels that one of the most effective ways to promote health freedom in the U.S. is to back Ron Paul for President.
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