Why There's Intrusive Government in America

One reason for intrusive government in America is that intrusive government is supposed to be unpopular. As a result, people who want society to go in one direction will tell people who want it to go in another direction “You can't achieve your goals unless you create a totalitarian regime!” The intent of this is to convince the opposition (who are are regarded as people who don't actually want a totalitarian regime) to surrender. It rarely works. The ethic of “Yes we can!” is even more deeply engrained in Western Civilization than “Don't tread on me!” If you tell people they have to create a totalitarian state many people will try to do so.

As a result… fans of chemical paradises will say “You can't enforce drug laws without jackbooted thugs breaking down doors of houses” and then act surprised when jackbooted thugs break down doors of houses. Or people might say “You can't abolish racism without schools banning hate speech!” followed by speech codes on campus. Or “You can't enforce intellectual property without a Federal censorship authority” and then … actually we turned aside from that disaster (for now) but it might recur. There are other cases.

To my fellow pro-lifers, when you see similar rhetoric aimed at you, please ignore it. (I was reminded of this by a controversy involving a slightly different pro-lifer from the usual kind.)