Economic Slavery

Socialistic programs are a form of economic slavery in which there is almost no possibility of release. Slavery, as it existed in the rest of the world in the 17th century, was not necessarily a permanent condition. You could, in most cases, eventually earn your freedom. When slavery was introduced to North America, that concept was changed. A slave had no hope of being released from servitude except by escape or death. Even the offspring of slaves became the property of the slave owner. The slaves had no hope of ever achieving freedom for themselves or their children. Unfortunately, when the American Civil War brought this horrible practice to an end we soon replaced it with a new form of slavery--socialism. We tried it on the American Indians first. Many of the Indian tribes sustained themselves primarily by raiding other tribes and peoples. As this practice was not compatible with our own culture (or anyone else's for that matter) we sought to end it through bribery. If the Indians would just stay on reservations and behave themselves, our government would provide them with food and blankets so they wouldn't have to steal from other people. Of course, the system, being run by the government, was corrupt and inefficient. Food and blankets were illegally sold off by the Indian Agents and the tribes began to starve. When the Indians revolted, the Army was called in to crush them and force them back onto the reservations where they remain today--a demoralized and dependant people living off the crumbs of the federal budget. Since this concept worked so well with the Indians, we soon adopted it for our own citizens through entitlement programs. It began with the elderly with FDR's "New Deal", expanded to minorities by LBJ's "War on Poverty", and is about to be expanded again to all citizens through Obama's "Change We Can Believe In." Once our citizens are enrolled in these programs they are not allowed to leave. They are forever dependent on them. God help us.


Image from The Illustrated London News (Feb. 16, 1861), vol. 38, p.139. (Copy in Special Collections Department, University of Virginia Library) as shown on www.slaveryimages.org