That the whole free people of any nation ought to be exercised to arms, not only the example of our ancestors, as appears by the acts of parliament made in both kingdoms to that purpose, and that of the wisest governments among the ancients; but the advantage of choosing out of great numbers, seems clearly to demonstrate. For in countries where husbandry, trade, manufactures, and other mechanical arts are carried on, even in time of war, the impediments of men are so many and so various, that unless the whole people be exercised, no considerable numbers of men can be drawn out, without disturbing those employments, which are the vitals of the political body. Besides, that upon great defeats, and under extreme calamities, from which no government was ever exempted, every nation stands in need of all the people, as the ancients sometimes did of their slaves. And I cannot see why arms should be denied to any man who is not a slave, since they are the only true badges of liberty; and ought never, but in times of utmost necessity, to be put into the hands of mercenaries or slaves: neither can I understand why any man that has arms should not be taught the use of them.
–Andrew Fletcher, A Discourse of Government With Relation to Militias [1698]
HORNBERGER'S BLOG
December 11, 2023 Let's Not Forget FDR's Anti-Semitism
In a time in which U.S. officials, especially those in Congress, are tripping over themselves with accusations of anti-Semitism against people who fail to unconditionally support the policies and practices of the Israeli government, this might be a good time to remind ourselves of the anti-Semitism of one of America’s great historical icons, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, as well as the officials who ...
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The following is the first chapter of the new book by James Bovard, Last Rights: The Death of American Liberty. Americans today ...
The Impact of Karl Marx on Classical Economics by Jacob G. Hornberger and Richard M. Ebeling
In this week's Libertarian Angle, Jacob and Richard discuss Karl Marx in the context of the classical ...
Freedom's Greatest Hour of Danger Is Now by John W. Whitehead
We are approaching critical mass, the point at which all hell breaks loose. The government is pushing us ever closer to a constitutional crisis....
The Beginnings of a Reborn Austrian School of Economics by Richard M. Ebeling
Fifty years ago, on October 10, 1973, one of the leading members of the Austrian School of Economics, Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973), passed away ...
Bastiat's Concept of What is Seen and Unseen by Jacob G. Hornberger and Richard M. Ebeling
In this week's Libertarian Angle, Jacob and Richard discuss Frederic Bastiat's famous essay about the broken window ...
