Eric you really touched on something here. Many people are lying that global warming does not exist simply because they do not want to have to make any changes in their perceived perfect way of life. All solutions must start with honesty and recognizing the truth. I have faith in mankinds ingenuity and creativity to solve this and give us even a better way of life but first we must be truthful about the matter. It is like lying when you were a child to avoid a spanking. Should I lie now so as not to suffer and if I get caught later about lying how much worse will it be.

I wrote a long answer but it did not post properly. So here is a short version. Archer you are in a fairy tale world. Their are wilderness adventures if you would have them. You are not stuck in the burbs where you think you are cornered by the "government". If you want to live independently subscribe to "Backwoods Country Home". Inheritance is welfare for lazy people you care about. Notoriously gotten wealth has done wonderful things for our country. Tobacco money from slavery paid for the American Revolution. Carnegies abuse of steel workers made him the richest man in the world and he gave it all to charity for libraries. Bill Gates is on the top of the list of "Americans For Responsible Wealth" which campaigns for the retention of Inheritance Tax. Death Tax is a term started by a rich California family who campaigns for elimination of the inheritance tax and a term picked up by Republicans for their dictionary. They have their own you know. The Feds through forsight and manifest destiny purchased and owned and still do the vast portion of this country. Archer have you never heard of Louisiana Purchase or of Alaska. You are my friend in a fantasy world of your own making and going down hill fast.

A few owning everything is not optimal. Property taxes are generally conceived as a way to support public education. Those with the most visible assets that cannot be hidden pay the most tax. If Uncle Sam would glom on to this gig he would not have any tax collection problems or a problem in finding peoples wealth. You may not like paying for your neighbors kids education in the first place but would you prefer living in a society where 90% of the people could not read or write.

Bob I think if you check it out further you will find that Ben Franklin was raised in Boston or its environs. No Quakers there. He and his publishing brother ran afoul of the thought police there and he immigrated to Philadelphia in 1723 at the age 17. He was the most erudite, and urbane of the founders and kind of irreverent when it came to religion, but a known genius even in Europe for science, invention, wit and political acumen. I much prefer the quotations on this post to the rash of "private property worship" posts we have been having. Archer I prefer the public owning the wildlands than have individuals restricting all access. Did you know that you can camp in the national forests free and virtually uninhindered? As far as lifting societal or governmental yokes it is in most peoples own minds. One can march off into the national forests anytime you choose. You only are suppose to move your camp every two weeks. I think that many have lost the ability to think independently or out of the box and often hem themselves in to thinking they are controlled by society and government much more than they really are. Most prefer the comforts and perks of society and the safety of doing what they think everbody else is doing. May a year ago I created and adventure for myself and boated fifty miles up the Chattahoochee River. No one does that. Most anglers go a mile from where they launch. I and my dog saw wild pig and numerous alligators. A sight and an experience few in this country know about or have experienced. It is out there but few go for it. It is great to push the envelope and chart your own course.

People and philosophies that are enemies of the earth I choose to make my enemies. I got all of that stuff too Eric.

All property setups or systems are not practical. For example in the old days, feudalism that is, a very few people owned most of the property and the rest of the folk were serfs. You were somebody if your Daddy was somebody. Then a new property system came into vogue (and yes the nobility and landed gentry considered it immoral or an affront to property rights) and it became known as capitalism. This system was much more democratic (sorry for you folks that blanche at any use of the D word) because anybody could be somebody if they saved and grew their money. But then some capitalists were able to corner markets and create monoplies and the world began looking like feudalism again. So the sacredness of property was attacked by the trust busters in order to restore a "fair" playing field. The point I am trying to make here with this little story is the idea of pragmatic policies may seem to fly in the face of these property right "dogmas". We all know the stories of little towns controlled by a capitalist "dictator". So I only ask how sacred is property? Helorat do you only want people on this site that stroke you? You know we cannot have honest conversations with our friends because our friends are not for that, our friends are for affection. In order to keep the affection flowing we most often have to shut up. Is it affection you are looking for Helorat and someone to stroke your ego. Is this site for friendship or honest conversation? (Because I am honest I must report that I got these thoughts about friendship versus honesty from Marcel Proust.)

"My Father owns the cattle on a thousand hills" on every hill as a matter of fact.

That is not the Constitution. Webster was asking "where in the constitution is such an abomination written" I showed you above. Some on this site complain about conscription while others complain about mercenary soldiers. Many free and admirable countries have conscriptions - Israel comes to mind. I am of the opinion that conscription and living free are not antithetical. Saul Bellow in his story "The Dangling Man" said that "it seems that on occasion some members of society must sacrifice themselves for the common good". When they do this (die) the rest of us hardly give them a thought. He goes on to say that if it was us that died they would harldy give us a thought either. It has been shown that a voluntary military is more professional but it bothers me and I feel that it is not good for the health of the social fabric that the warriors come from lower rather than higher levels of society. Some may look down on the military as mercenaries just out for the public dole. In the current conflict while fighting an expensive war this Prez gave a big tax cut to the wealthiest among us. They used their tax cut to buy US Bonds which are paying them 5%. The young and less wealthy are dying, the richest among us are reaping a War Dividend. But you answered it best Helorat. We do not need to find enough people to serve, all we need to do is FIND ENOUGH PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WILLING TO SUBMIT TO A RANDOM LOTTERY DRAFT.