The inscription on the Statue of Liberty, one of the
great symbols of the United States of America reads in part; “Give
me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” You’ll
find nowhere in the full text anything about those seeking a government hand
out or those looking for others to pay their way, just a simple statement about
the desire to be free from government shackles. FREEDOM…what a concept.
In his new book, Don’t Hurt People and Don’t Take Their
Stuff: A Libertarian Manifesto, Matt Kibbe, the president
and CEO of the grassroots organization Freedom Works makes the strong case for
freedom and posits the concept that the answer probably does not lie with
either of the two current parties.
Six
Rules For Liberty
Kibbe details a straight forward set of six basic rules
for liberty; they are as follows:
1.
Don’t
Hurt People – The concept seems pretty clear that it is
wrong to use violence or the threat of violence against others.
2.
Don’t
Take Their Stuff – Property rights, again seems like a pretty
fundamental concept, but even recent Supreme Court decisions that should have
been a pretty easy decision to make, have clouded the issue.
3.
Take
Responsibility – Personal responsibility; shouldn’t we all
be ultimately responsible for or lives and our actions?
4.
Work
for It – As the size and scope of government grows, so to does
the number of able bodied Americans who simply no longer get up and go to work!
5.
Mind
Your Own Business – As long as you remain within the law,
liberty means that everyone should be free to pursue happiness in their own
way.
6.
Fight
the Power – Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts
absolutely; freedom comes with the price tag that includes the continuous need
to stand up and fight against those that seek to usurp freedom.
There is an almost simple, fundamental quality to all
of Kibbe’s rules and yet there seems to be an undeniable need to teach these
basic concepts to a society that appears to have turned its back on what
equates to some of this nation’s founding principles, that he bases them on.
This is truly one of the most important books not only for 2014, but for the
future of this once great country.
