Liberty and Optimism: Why Freedom will still Flourish

            by KEVIN CZARZASTY

            Faith in our leaders
is dwindling.  As families and governments drown deeper in debt, our never-ending spending spree persists.  Worse, we continue entangling alliances, our
welfare state is neither well nor fair, and our currency is currently
crumbling.  All of this is reason to
believe that something terrible is coming to America.  However, despite the grim conditions, I am
optimistic for three reasons.

            First and foremost,
Americans are smart.  Etched into our
culture are common sense, innovation and problem-solving.  Friedrich von Hayek wrote of Spontaneous
Order, the tendency for societies to organically solve issues not because of
central planning, but by individuals sorting things out on their own.  Americans are well-equipped to handle hardships, and moreover, the internet�s gift of easily
accessible information suggests that not only is the potential for
an American revival possible, but already in the works.  America is the fertile land for freedom, and
Americans are the ideal people to grow and harvest freedom.

            Secondly, I am
optimistic because government is not slightly mismanaging�they are blatantly
incompetent in centrally planning our affairs. 
If they were only partially failing, perhaps they�d be able to get away
with it, but this is fortunately not the case. 
Most of the current leaders behave so farcically, the problem of control is finally
out in the open.  In short, part of my
optimism is born out of a pinch of pessimism.

            The third reason I�m
hopeful is that, while failing leaders have on their side poor economic
understanding and tyrannical tendencies, we have the United States
Constitution.  Every day, I am filled
with a deep satisfaction because not only is liberty both moral and practical,
but it is the legal law of the land.  I am
humbled by the historical breakthrough that is our founding documents, and I�m
confident that if we repetitively preach Life, Liberty, and Property as
prescribed by our founders, we will one day, no matter what, win. 

            Victory, however, is
not yet ours, and as you read this, a targeted assault on the blessings of
freedom is being waged.  While
legislative battles continue, the central war is in the field of
information.  The real fight is forged
with the weapons of media and education. 
The Free to Choose Network hopes an uprising emerges that not only shows the people understand liberty, but also displays the we are able to share, teach and spread freedom throughout the land.