Nicely said. We are in the middle of a political Melee. Be cautious, it is hard to affect things when you are “quarantined”. Thanks for helping to sort it all out.

Cheri

Good people oppose unjust laws, because they weaken the necessary laws. We recognize that when a person breaks the law, he does little damage by definition, but when governments break the law, whole societies suffer.

We despise bad cops because they besmirch the good ones. We repudiate “law enforcement” because it has no place in a free society- because when the law is properly respectful of sovereign individuals, no “enforcement” is necessary. Real crimes will be prosecuted by the victims- that is to say an interested party will make the complaint, not some busybody.

When injustice reigns, acts of insanity such as this will erupt. We despise gun control, because when the people are better armed than the government, a state of civilization can flourish- whereas when there is a ruling class capable of oppressing the people, there is barbarism, the constant threat of terror (think IRS, traffic cops, child support bureaucrats, etc.) and instability. This situation can only breed acts such as Joe Stack’s.

Our society is terminally ill. I for one wish to be as light and salt to the world, as wise as a serpent but gentle as a dove. We cannot cure our society, but by carefully quarantining ourselves from it, we may be in a position to comfort the survivors. I have come to realize that I am not really an outlaw, but one with some reverence for truth and justice. And we are living in a world where there is anarchy- no rules except what the connected make for themselves.

Best-
EP

And IMO every human being can be driven to a point where in a sane and rational moment they discern that life, indeed, is no longer worth living.

God have mercy….For ALL.

The objection I received was from someone else who has been through the same sort of wringer Mr. Stack had and has now had to rebuild his life for the eighth time. This gave me considerable pause to think, because my friend is NOT the sort to find himself in difficulties through lack of forethought or preparation. He has been successful in at least three fields I know of and I always respect his opinions and thought processes. He made me see that I had been impatient and we might even say judgemental. I’ve been very lucky in life, and while I have certainly had hard times and heartaches, I have never been anywhere near desperate enough to kill myself in a grand gesture. Just because I cannot imagine–up until the present, at any rate–being so bereft of hope does not mean that Joseph Stack was not pressed beyond his limits and did not genuinely think that sacrificing his life would would be a shock sufficient to arouse his fellow citizens to protest against a government grown too big and two powerful.

The FBI has removed the Stack manifesto from where he wrote it, but I will send my copy to our publisher to post if he thinks this is appropriate. I need to re-read it myself, because context counts. I had been dealing with firebrands who were eager to take up arms in response to my article “The New Secessionists” on W&G. My hope is to work out a sensible, polite, diplomatic solution not start an unnecessary revolution or get a bunch of us put on the “no fly” list! Any such revolt would be repressed ruthlessly and quickly, in my opinion. As I had just said to one of the “Wahoo!” types, the Declaration of Independence begins, “When in the course of human events it becomes NECESSARY…” We have not exhausted ballot and diplomatic solutions, and it is neither necessary nor wise to engage in violence when there are more effective ways to deal with problems.

I saw the episode through pragmatic eyes, and perhaps I should have been more in counselor mode…aren’t we all funny? I am always able to recognize and even understand all sides of an argument, but I continue to hold that most issues are black and white. Even considering that we can all be stressed beyond our ability to function intelligently, poor, tortured Mr. Stack did more harm than good.

Let us know what you think, and I’ll re-read the manifesto and consult the best clinical psychologist I know. She can almost certainly shed insight on Mr. Stack, and may even be able to sort out whether I have been mean-spirited and heartless. And why it bothers me to think I may have been. All we can do is our best, which is quite enough to keep most of us busy. Hugs to all, Linda