Posted on 02/19/2005 10:17:00 AM PST by The_Eaglet
America Not Among Top Ten Freest
By Chuck Baldwin
February 11, 2005
In a recent column, I noted how Americans have lost numerous freedoms since George W. Bush became president. Of course, the reality of the situation is, the federal government has been increasingly encroaching upon the liberties of the American people for decades. Unfortunately, that trend only seems to be escalating.Now, a new report states that the U.S. is not even among the top ten freest economies.
According to the Heritage Foundation, "The United States is tied for 12th place with Switzerland in the 2005 Index of Economic Freedom. The world's second largest economy, Japan, ranks 39th in the survey. The United States has dropped out of the world's top 10 'freest economies.'"
The Heritage report also said, "Perhaps the greatest surprise in this year's index is the failure, for the first time, of the United States to make the top 10."
Most Americans would probably be stunned to hear that their country is not even among the top ten freest nations. However, this should not come as a surprise.
For all intents and purposes, neither major party in Washington, D.C., gives a flip about securing God-given liberties. Both Democrat and Republican administrations (including the current one) have consistently led the charge against the Bill of Rights.
Furthermore, Congress and a majority of federal courts have been trampling constitutional protections of our liberties for most of my adult life. Therefore, how can we be surprised to learn that the United States is no longer anywhere close to being "the land of the free" that it once was?
In fact, an American missionary to China recently told me that America's laws and regulations are, on the whole, more restrictive than the laws and regulations of Communist China. That is an astounding statement to make, but he insists that it is true!
Then again, when one considers the innumerable permits, fees, federal taxes, state taxes, local taxes, property taxes, assessments, zoning laws, land-use regulations, building codes, animal protection laws, environmental laws, ad nauseum, ad infinitum that are part of America's everyday life, it becomes easily apparent that the American dream has become an American nightmare!
America can only be "the land of the free" as long as it is also "the home of the brave." Unfortunately, bravery is one thing that appears to be absent from the character of most pastors, businessmen, fathers, and politicians today!
Until God raises up some modern day Patrick Henrys and John Witherspoons, it seems that the United States will continue its collapse into ever increasing servitude. Therefore, don't be surprised if when the next Heritage report comes out that America is not even among the top twenty freest nations on earth. The only surprising thing would be if anyone noticed.
© Chuck Baldwin
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I think not.
Nice critique of the study from the Ludwig von Mises Institute.
I have noticed that an increasing number of materialists here worship money over all else.
They see real freedom as something you buy with money.
And if you don't have money, your $hit out of luck.
"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Hong Kong
Singapore
Luxembourg
Estonia
Ireland
New Zealand
United Kingdom
Denmark
Iceland
Chile
Most are high density populations, where real freedom is not a birthright, but something you must have money to buy.
It appears that this article used the term "economic freedom" to mean those guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.
The Heritage Foundation on their web site identifies what they mean.
They are not the same.
The rights prescribed by our Declaration of Independence as coming from God - have it's own consequences - the Ten Commandments. Liberals ignore the consequences.
When the commandment says "Thou shall honor their father and mother." It has no exception.
Freedom of Speech that certain liberal professors profess as guaranteeing their rights should have consequences.
"Freedom" to this author means 'freedom' from responsiblity and accountablitity.
He would pretend there are no earthly consequences for these "freedoms".
Assuredly, he finds the Netherlands 'most free', due to lack of restrictions on:
drugs,
sex,
abortion,
Dr. assisted suicide,
family directed murder of the elderly and infirm,
nursing home and hospital staff directed murder of the inconvenient,
restrictions on free speech AGAINST any of the above.
(did I miss anything?)
Is that the "freedom" the author advocates for the U.S.?
Good point. I think the best test of an economy is the amount of wealth it produces per person. By that measure, I think the U.S. is at or near the very top.
We're not as free as we should be, Lord knows, and I hope we keep working on that. But overall things are pretty good, and I wish more of the world would manage their own economies better (i.e. more like ours) -- that would be a benefit to the whole world.
The title of this article is extremely misleading, because the list refers only to "economic freedoms". While economic freedoms are extremely important, many of the countries listed above the United States have much less in the way of other freedoms, such as the right to keep and bear arms, the right of free speech, the right to be secure in their houses and effects, the right to a jury trial, etc.
I hate it when "reports" weave back and forth between two distinctly different phrases for presumably the "same" things.
Which is it? "Economic freedom"? or "Freest Economies" (ambiguous term, at the least).
Can anyone provide a brief history of the Heritage Foundation?
As an aside, Most if not all of Europe's legal system differs from ours in that in legal matters, one is considered guilty until proven innocent. To me, that disqualifies any European country from any pretense of being "free".
Singapore, where you go to jail for littering and executed for possession of drugs. I guess it all comes down to the meaning of the word "free".
None of the top ten, except Britain, and possibly Switzerland has any appreciable military, and none, except Britain, Switzerland, and Singapore has a large minority presence or could be called "multicultural." Those are two big reasons why government grows: big military establishments require high taxes government expenditures, and in ethically diverse countries, various groups scramble for government aid, and any number of programs can be accepted on the theory that they keep the country together.
For a third reason, there are probably practical limits to how high the salaries are that corporate executives can vote themselves in small countries like Estonia, Denmark, or Switzerland. Executives may take less in salary or benefits, expecting that the envy factor will be less than in some other countries, and taxes lower.
It's striking how a country like Britain or New Zealand, Denmark or Estonia could become appreciably freer in recent decades, though. It is worth noting that the in top tax bracket in Denmark taxes are still higher than in the comparable bracket here in the US.
Something by this name got zotted last week...
Poor reporting! The subject is the top 10 freest, the reporter only mentions 3 countries, and does not specify any country which made the top ten list.
Second, this list is a good thing (unless you are an ultra-nationalist who enjoys the suffering of others.) The U.S. has not gotten less free since the last list -- it's just that several other countries (none of which in population -- except for the U.K. & Chili -- would rank in our top eight states) have gotten more free.
Ireland is in the top five. But I'm not sure what this study means.
Ireland's come quite a way economically in recent years, but our tax rate is still quite high.
Not exactly the most eloquent of columns, but its substance stands.
America has lost freedoms during the four years in which George W. Bush has been president. There's no argument about that, and it's not worth contesting. What's worth contesting is the claim, often tossed around by the left, that freedom has taken some sort of unusually devastating blow during these four years.
As the writer points out, liberty has been getting blasted away for quite a while now; there's nothing unusual about this latest four-year block.
Further, the responsibility lies not at the feet of President Bush, or of any one president. The responsibility lies with the American people.
The problem, ultimately, is democracy. Democracy is necessary in a free society, of course, but it's best described as a necessary evil. As many of the country's more prescient founders warned long ago, democracy can be liberty's most dangerous threat. Its danger is particuarly potent because it is stealthy and often unseen.
Voting allows groups of individuals to pillage the rights of other individuals. That this pillaging is executed by elected representatives doesn't make the representatives themselves directly responsible; they are, after all, merely representing.
Indeed, it's quite telling that so many people mentally assign this kind of power and responsibility to the office of president. That itself is symbolic of Americans' increasing failure to properly understand liberty.
If a president is stripping rights from Americans, it is because Americans, via democracy, have asked him to strip those rights. They have empowered their representatives -- whether President Bush, President Johnson or Sen. Whoever -- to assume this kind of authority. It is inaccurate, for example, to say that "the president raised taxes." The accurate way to express it is, "My fellow citizens and I have decided to take money from each other."
Nothing will change unless Americans suddenly grasp just what they've done to themselves over time. The story of the past two centuries is a tale of increasing self-imposed tyranny, interrupted only occasionally by moments of increased liberty (e.g., the abolition of slavery).
The most important goal for conservatives in this new century is to help turn back the most damaging product of democracy: the elevation of "equality" over liberty. Democracy will always be one of freedom's most dangerous enemies, but with awareness and deliberate purpose can also be employed for a good cause.
I read through this study - taxation is only one element of it; the amount of red tape and having a reliable system of property laws is another.
To be fair to America, I think their ratings are skewed by the blue states.
Regards, Ivan
Yes, it reeks. Especially heavy at post 17.
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