Looking at America, or perhaps the whole planet, I feel like I’m watching a bad movie.  Or perhaps a frustrating movie is a better description.

The government makes life so much harder for virtually everyone than it needs to be.  We have more pain and suffering because people have allowed governments to have such extensive powers.  We are poorer because of it.  Even most government employees, while seemingly benefiting in the short run, are much worse off in the long run with big government.

It is frustrating because there is a small (albeit growing) group of people who see it.  They are trying to tell the other innocent people that they are being taken advantage of, but the people do not want to listen.  It is like a frustrating movie because the villain (the government) is wearing a mask and pretending to be a good guy.

Imagine a Superman movie where Lex Luthor has dressed up as Superman.  He is manipulating Lois Lane into doing all kinds of evil things.  He keeps reassuring her on how caring he is and what a good guy he is.  Meanwhile, Lex Luthor has changed Superman’s identity and made him powerless.  He is trying to tell Lois that he is the real Superman.  He is trying to tell Lois not to listen to Lex.  But this just aggravates Lois more and makes the real Superman look like a bad guy.

It is frustrating for me to watch Americans (and people throughout the world) support the very people who are bringing misery to their lives, and in so many different ways.  Even most people who say they are mad or fed up with the politicians, are still supportive of the government.  They will say bad things about the politicians, but they will keep re-electing them.  And worse, they will keep supporting many government programs, thinking that we would all be in trouble if not for certain government expenditures (when in fact the opposite is true).

It is frustrating for me when I tell someone that we need to drastically cut government spending and they think I am the bad person.  They think I am the one who doesn’t care.  Just because I am against government education, I must be against all education.  Just because I want to end the drug war, I must be in favor of everyone taking drugs.  Just because I don’t believe in government welfare, I must be against all forms of welfare and charity.

Meanwhile, most people don’t understand that when they are supporting government, they are supporting the initiation of violence.  They do not understand that they are supporting their own demise.

How do I know that most people support government, even if they don’t say so explicitly?  It is because there are only 535 people in Congress, 1 president, and 9 people on the U.S. Supreme Court.  Meanwhile, there are over 300 million people living in the U.S.  Even if you count all of the government agencies, the people still outnumber the government employees by a massive margin.

This being the case, there is no way that so few people could rule over so many without the consent of the many.  The government’s power rests on this consent.

I am screaming at the top of my lungs to the masses that they are being swindled.  They can easily throw off the politicians and live free, but only if they desire it.  I try to tell them, but they laugh at me and make fun of me.  They tell me I’m wrong.  Certainly not all people, but enough of them.

What more am I supposed to do?  All I can do is keep repeating the truth and hope that more people listen.  It may be frustrating, but that is all I can do.  That is all that any libertarian can do.