The pioneers were the men and women of the 18th
and 19th century who settled the American frontier in search of a
better life. Independent, resourceful, and determined, they rose to the
challenge of a free people in a new nation founded on liberty. They did
something that was restricted in the Old World of authoritarianism: They ran their
own lives and controlled their own destiny.
As the towns of these early settlers and their successors grew into cities, and manual trades became mechanized, America produced an explosion of new industries and products—oil refineries, electricity, steel, automobiles, airplanes, telephones, etc.—creating abundance on a scale never before imagined. The enterprising people of America became legendary—from the early settlers to the great industrialists to the ambitious individuals on every economic level who dreamed big and worked hard to better their lives. The pioneer spirit became the proud symbol of America. The personal initiative to improve one’s life, unencumbered by the state, achieved worldwide fame as the coveted American Dream.Thanks to the ambitious achievements of
pioneer-spirited Americans, the hardship so prevalent in daily existence
vanished, and by the 20th century prosperity became the new normal, raising the standard of living of
virtually everyone and creating a thriving middle class. All of this was
accomplished in a mere century or so when capitalism and freedom prevailed.
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| The Pioneer vs. the Welfare State by Gen LaGreca |
Fast-forward to today, and we see a different
country. We see an ever-growing government with a myriad of welfare-state
programs that claim to take care of us. We see Americans hampered from seizing the
reins of their lives and driving their chariots toward the sun. Instead, they’re
conditioned to look to the government to take care of them. From free food and
housing to free cell phones and contraceptives, many of our citizens think they
have a claim to a guaranteed existence provided to them by taxing and
redistributing the earnings of others. Many people think that restricting economic
freedom and entangling business in tighter and tighter knots of regulations with
give them security against life’s risks. Decades of the paternalistic welfare
state have changed the character of the people, causing a growing passivity, insecurity,
and dependency—so antithetical to the pioneer spirit.
In the pre-industrial world of hardship, the American
pioneers created plenty. In the modern world of plenty, the welfare state
creates, nurtures, and perpetuates hardship.
The pioneer
and the welfare state represent two
opposite views of life and government. The conflict between them is the most
important battle of our age. On the one side are the individualists, who cherish personal liberty and want to run their
own lives their own way. On the other side are the statists, who want the government to provide for their welfare and
who ignore or make light of the coercion by the state and the violation of
individual rights that their system entails.
Which side will win in this struggle for the
soul of America? The goal of my new book of essays, "The Pioneer vs. the Welfare State," is to influence the outcome. Available on Amazon Kindle.
