THE ART OF GOOD GOVERNMENT

The need for, and the purpose of government
can be defined by the adverse effects of its absence.

Society needs government, law and order to provide protection from robbery, violence, and the excesses of individual power, and from dishonesty and deception in commerce and industry. Society needs government to resolve conflicting demands on the natural resources, and to prevent pollution and destruction of the shared environment.

In short, and in the clear concise language of Thomas Jefferson, the purpose of government is to prevent men from injuring one another.

Jefferson also sought to guard against excessively intrusive and dictatorial government, and to ensure that government fulfills its duties effectively without waste and at minimum cost, summarizing these ideals in his first Inaugural Address given on March 4th, 1801:

"A wise and frugal Government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another yet leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and which shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned: this is the sum of good Government necessary to complete the circle of our felicities".

* To prevent men from injuring one another

* To do so productively and cost-effectively


Defining injury in the areas of finance, commerce and industry is not easy given the complexities and conflicting demands of modern life. Yet two issues particularly should be considered.

One  The nation's monetary and financial system represents a vital element – if not the most important element in our infrastructure on which wages, prices, saving and investment all depend. We need to ensure – we have a collective responsibility to ensure, that it is honestly and openly administered, and that its potential to maximize our national prosperity is put to productive and widely beneficial use.

Two  A meaningful relationship between work and reward is essential to ensure a just and socially stable society.

The Evolution of Governance
Monarchy to Minority - Left and Right - Government in Decline

The Search for Right Law
Liberty and the Principle of Liberty

CONSTITUTION
Ideals of Constitutionalism
The Great Charter of 1215 - England after Magna Carta
Constitution in the New World
Constitution: the Supreme Law of the Land.

POLITICAL POWER CHOICES
Which would you choose for a brave new world?
Browse the options and cast your vote.

If any man, any woman, acquires or is granted power over any other or others, this will – not may, but most certainly and surely will – lead to abuse, misuse, corruption and oppression.

The only Power that is competent and can be trusted to regulate the affairs of community and society is the Power of Principle, the Principle that in the pursuit of self-improvement and the exercise of liberty, no-one should injure or exploit others.

This Principle of Liberty is neutral and impersonal. It is a shield, protecting from injury, preventing injury.

Legislators hold no arbitrary or discretionary power. They are simply Interpreters, applying the Principle in terms of everyday events and actions. The process of Interpretation is clearly delineated and circumscribed. If there is Injury, there must be Protection. If there is no Injury, then there is neither cause nor justification for the interference of law and the exercise of its power.

arton