Saturday, November 12, 2011

Losing the Mandate of Heaven. Joe Paterno, the Gunwalker Scandal and the crisis of legitimacy.

"Whenever the legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any farther obedience, and are left to the common refuge which God hath provided for all men against force and violence." -John Locke



Say it ain't so, Joe.

In political science, legitimacy is the popular acceptance of a governing law or rĂ©gime as an authority. Whereas “authority” denotes a specific position in an established government, the term “legitimacy” denotes a system of government — wherein “government” denotes “sphere of influence”. Political legitimacy is considered a basic condition for governing, without which, a government will suffer legislative deadlock(s) and collapse. . .

In Chinese political philosophy, since the historical period of the Zhou Dynasty (1046–256 BC), the political legitimacy of a ruler and government was derived from the Mandate of Heaven, and that unjust rulers who lose said mandate, therefore lose the right to rule the people.

The Enlightenment-era British social theoretician John Locke said that political legitimacy derives from popular explicit and implicit consent: “The argument of the [Second] Treatise is that the government is not legitimate unless it is carried on with the consent of the governed.” -- Wikipedia.


As Penn State fans try to come to grips with the outing of their life-long hero JoePa as someone who allowed his football program to become the clandestine recruiting ground of the North American Man-Boy Love Association, turning his back for years on child rape in stadium showers, Nile Gardiner writes in the London Telegraph that opinion polls show that "Barack Obama is facing an anti-Big Government revolution."

It is little wonder that 57 per cent of Americans today “have little or no confidence in the federal government to solve domestic problems” in Gallup polling, with 27 per cent believing “the federal government has become so large and powerful that it poses an immediate threat to the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens”. On both sides of the Atlantic, governments have tried and failed with top down policies that stifle economic freedom while reducing prosperity. It is a foolhardy approach that is both unsustainable and antithetical to the cause of liberty, and faces a growing conservative revolution in the United States.


Perhaps, but don't think that the collectivist Mandarins are going to go away without a fight. They won't. Their dogged defense of the indefensible in the Gunwalker Scandal shows that if nothing else.

Non-Penn State fans look on in mounting horror at the growing revelations and ask themselves what ever could have possessed people in authority like Paterno to turn their backs on a savage predator of innocents like Sandusky.

The answer is simple, and it is the same virus that infects the larger society and that is on full display in the Gunwalker Scandal -- the desire to protect the collective at the expense of the individual. In service to the collective, people will break any law, violate any moral code, tell any lie -- all to maintain their own position, power and security within the collective. The increasing humanism and moral relativism that has crept on little cat feet with Gramscian stealth throughout American culture in the past sixty years has facilitated this collectivism. If all belief systems are equivalent, then the Ten Commandments become the Ten Suggestions until they become the Ten Whatevers, and boys are raped in showers while so-called "good men" stand by and watch.

Without a moral center, without a rule of law based upon the God-given, natural and inalienable rights codified in the Constitution, without the sense of personal responsibility that goes with liberty and the maintenance thereof, we are all plunged back into the jungle, where young boys are raped and governments provide the instruments of murder to godless cartel butchers, all done to the tunes of Dancing With The Stars while the majority of the deliberately clueless chattering monkey class in the electronic trees worry about Justin Beiber and the Kardashians.

History, if it shows anything, shows that a nation cannot endure such a state of collectivist depravity for long. The collapse of the united states of America -- moral, political and economic -- as it has existed since the founding cannot be far away.

The present political system certainly has lost "the Mandate of Heaven." And I mean both political parties, for both are responsible for their own corruption, and for the delegitimization of the government and the destruction of the rule of law. Whether the few righteous men and women within the political leadership, prodded by those of us who see the danger, can retrieve enough legitimacy to survive is at best a dubious proposition, but one that must be attempted. It must be attempted if for no other reason than to buy time for the rest of us who see the danger to prepare for the coming collapse.

It is the very legitimacy of the Founders' Grand Experiment which is at the heart of the Gunwalker Scandal. If the putative adults in the political hierarchy cannot find the will to fix that most monstrous of federal scandals, then the center will not hold and a very rough, bloody and tyrannical beast, its hour come round at last, will slouch towards the District of Columbia to be born.

Citizens who wish to remain free will then have to take their own decisions, defending the ground that they stand on, based not upon the rule of law, but the law of the jungle. We are then, in the words of Locke, "left to the common refuge which God hath provided for all men against force and violence."

Got militia?



THE SECOND COMING by William Butler Yeats (1916)

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: a waste of desert sand;
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Wind shadows of the indignant desert birds.

The darkness drops again but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

One of your best pieces ever. Suggest you push this to American Thinker and other outlets.

Really.

CA

Kitty said...

This is a brilliant connection of the underlying cause of both of these horrendous ongoing scandals. Agree with Anonymous that this needs to appear in many venues. I Tweeted it for that reason, but it needs to be seen in its entirety.

Chris said...

Brilliant Mike!!
CIII

WV:drost. How appropriate indeed!

WarriorClass III said...

Very well said, Mike.

Not only has the Federal Government repudiated our rights, but the Judges at all levels have condoned and even further denied us our rights.

We are not only absolved from any further obedience, but duty bound to eradicate the tyrants from our society.

Let's remember well each judge that has failed to uphold the constitution that none escape the hangman's noose when Justice is restored to America. Too often it is these that are forgotten or not recognized by the public, unless they have had the unfortunate experience of being before them. Everyone already knows who the politicians are, and it is likely to be they that are hanged first.

The failure to prosecute the Federal Gun Runners, in each agency responsible and especially the agency heads, will be the deathnell of the Federal Government and the politicians that allowed that failure.

This government has already lost its legitimacy, but this failure will be writ large across all the world and force direct and bloody action.

WarriorClass
III

Ashrak said...

"One of your best pieces ever."

Damn straight.

The decision to make a real attempt to save the republic must start, in government, with the Speaker of the House. The people's voices, saying the very things Mike brings forth in this wonderfully crafted piece, are not being heard in the halls of government because the Speaker is outright refusing to to speak even the most obvious of truths.

GunWalker is exposing what is so very wrong with our country, and, interestingly, firearms is only a tiny part of what is being exposed. In the larger picture, what is being exposed is indifference, if not outright denial, of the Constitution itself and Constitutional duties tasked of government and its operators.

I will say this - we have one election left to see a wave of "Constitution First" Citizens elected and one term left to see serious action taken before the outright implosion becomes unstoppable. I believe FULLY that the power brokers in Washington know this and understand this and that this vision is why Heller and McDonald happened. It is why "Occupy" has been coddled and why TEA Party has been demonized by media.

Opposing forces are very worried that their long held cabal is imploding, because it is, and they are flailing trying to find ways to stave it off in hopes it just goes away - in hopes Americans just go back to sleep. (Kinda like the Saudi King passes out loot trying to hold on to control.)

If massive and historic reductions in government - both size and scope, do not take place in the next few years, civil war will indeed curse this nation once again. See, Freemen will always stand up and fight in defense of Liberty when it is threatened, accosted and assaulted enough.

More and more people are saying that very thing, Enough is Enough, these days for a whole host of different reasons.

Our Constitution must be restored and it will be - one way or another. We are supposed to be smart enough to accomplish it with the First Amendment and I hope we are able- for the alternative is exercise of the Second.

Divine Creation of FREEDOM cannot be endlessly usurped by government and it is past time for our government to admit that - most importantly to itself among its operators.

CowboyDan said...

Says a lot about a lot of people that the guy who is credited/blamed for the story finally breaking is being threatened with death or worse.

I can only guess that some of the folks making the threats are parents. I wonder why they're so upset. Would they want the story buried & the perpetrator protected if it was their ten year old son being raped in a shower? Would they tell him to "Take one for the team?" I doubt it.

I don't know what I'd do if I came on a scene like that, a grown man having his way with a little boy. It's the sheepdog in me that says I'd just go crazy and deal with the perp as if the child was one of my own.

My guess, and it's only a guess, is that there'd not be a lot of coach pervert left to try in court, and that he'd not be capable of such acts in the future.

The college I went to had a lot of rapes one year in the woods and I knew at least one of the victims. I told people if I ever happened on a rape in progress, that I'd plant my 13D boot where the sun don't shine and keep at it until the cops got there to make me stop. If the cops never showed up, I'd kick 'til I got real damn tired. Again, I'd hope to leave the perp incapable of such in the future.

I'm older now, but my protective instincts are still strong. I hope I never come on such a scene, and I pray that God will give me strength to act righteously if I ever do.

AZVick said...

Outstanding. Thank you.

oldsmobile98 said...

Wow. Best "big picture" post I have seen in a while from anyone. Great work!

Anonymous said...

Mike I believe you are 100 percent correct and yes it may be the best piece you have ever written!

J. Croft said...

bumped: http://freedomguide.blogspot.com/2011/11/sipsey-street-losing-mandate-of-heaven.html

This is but the end result of decades of letting the scum rise to the top and remain there. The scum rose, penetrated every part of American culture and governance and... we have child rapists caught in the act, and left to continue the deed.


To get rid of the scum you have to roil the waters. That means taking a extreme personal risk as the same kiddie f*ckers pretty much run the government and media.

The same perverts who lust after little Billy's behind that also have to contend with the blowback from Operation Gunwalker and it's inbred kin. No it's not in the interest of someone with such a small penis they can only get off in a child to let US have guns. Because we might finally find the guts to use those same weapons against them for what they've done to us all. Which is why there's the FBI, ATF, and so on.

Anonymous said...

Read LRC for more detailed coverage. The legal system creates huge dis-incentives against individuals who want to do the right thing. If Paterno or the grad student had reported the allegation of child rape to police without having video evidence, their career would have been destroyed. If Paterno or the grad student had shot the rapist in the act, they would have been imprisoned.

What, exactly, do you expect Paterno or the grad student to have done, given that the strong duty to themselves and their families, and the slight to zero duty to the child victim? Would you demand they sacrifice their careers and liberty for health of the collective?

Anonymous said...

Quote Ashrak: "In the larger picture, what is being exposed is indifference, if not outright denial, of the Constitution itself and Constitutional duties tasked of government and its operators."

Allow me to make a few changes to give a mirror image to what you said. An image of what took place in advance of the present crisis.: "In the larger picture, what is being exposed is indifference to, if not outright denial of the Scriptures, of the Apostolic Law itself and Christian duties tasked of government and it's operators." In my opinion this had to happen first in order for the latter to take place.

Anonymous said...

"Trust me. I'll only put it in a little bit any you'll still be a virgin." -- Carlos Mencia

Mr Mencia is a comedian. We know to take what he says with a healthy amount of salt. But what about our government that promises to infringe on our rights by "just a little bit, just a few reasonable restrictions, and we'll still be a free nation"?

Anonymous said...

Very good post, Mike. I have copied and linked it over at PAFOA.ORG.

Yes, Warrior Class, you are correct. The judges, the politicians and let's not forget the willing accomplices in media. They all cooked this stew together and should all be hung from the same tree!

KPN3%

Dave said...

The concept of the "Crisis of legitimacy" is so horrible that most folks that I've spoken to immediately dismiss the idea without any attempt to consider it seriously with an open mind. In fact, they resist it, acting as if they don't accept it that it can't exist.

Anonymous said...

I'll not be so anxious - as is the MSM - to condem the "marquee name", Paterno in this scandal. Ask yourself why Sandusky, (the alleged perp), the actual witness to the cited event, the PSAD and its President aren't "front and center" in these MSM stories ?

IAC, I suspect there's far more to this scandal than has emerged at this time. A prosecutor "pulled a Hoffa" circa 2005 and his laptop - sans harddrive - is all that's been seen of him since. Which is also the same time frame Sandusky ( rumored to replace Paterno) also was being courted by several other schools. But he abruptly retired in the prime of his career making any offers moot ! Why ? Yet he still had access to PS's facilities at Happy Valley. And he was still receiving generous checks from the "Second Mile Foundation". And, according to one reporter's allegations continued to "pimp" his protoges for important PSU alumni.....

I strongly suspect Paterno, when he went to his AD and President with his "hearsay" tale well and truely stuck his head into their noose !

Let's wait until the MSM hoopla dies down and some serious investigative police work reveals more of the facts ! >JH

Anonymous said...

Nice Mike.
Kinda troubling the pass that some want to give Joe. So what he made an effort.. went to someone and said something. Joe shoulda kicked Sandusky's ass wouldn't any of us? I mean come on folks it's like fast & furious the trash stinks it's attracting more bugs and somebody (us) needs to throw the trash out.

Collectivism and the denial that it exists is bringing us down folks. To believe in collectivism is one thing to deny it for blind faith in an individual or government is dangerous.

Mozart

Lowprone said...

We don't have a tree that big, but we do have a forest or two, and lots of rope.

CowboyDan said...

Mike, I don't generally respond to trolls, but this guy anonymous has yanked my chain nearly to the point of breaking. If you want to edit my post or delete it, I'm okay with that.

"the slight to zero duty to the child victim?"

Anonymous, if you honestly feel you have so little duty to protect the weak that you would watch a ten year old boy get raped and feel no obligation to intervene, I feel truly sorry for you, and for anyone who knows you and thinks you are any kind of man at all.

You are lacking in all aspects of manhood, of courage, decency, charity, or righteousness. It may be that you have a deep voice and a penis; you may call yourself a man, but you are not. You are completely clueless as to what a man is or ought to be.

If you call yourself a man of faith, please have a chat with your spiritual adviser, whoever he or she may be. Send a link to this article so that both sides of our discussion are available to him/her. Better yet, print out this article and take it to your favorite watering hole so that you can get feedback from folks you know. I hope your friends set you straight as to what a man ought to do in such a situation.

I hope I don't know you. I hope I never meet you. I hope that you never find yourself witnessing an attack such as that child suffered and find yourself able to walk or even look away.

I also hope that if someone ever tries to take such advantage of your child or grandchild, that someone like me is around instead of someone like you.

If someone takes..... I was going to say I'd hope a guy like you is around if anyone ever attacks you, but I can't even hope that. I hope if you're ever getting poked in the butt and squealing like a pig, that someone with a sense of right and wrong is there to save your bacon, no pun intended. If I find you getting raped by a larger, more powerful individual, I will do all in my power to make it stop. That's what a man does.

I'm going to church tomorrow, as I do most Sundays. I'll pray for you and those who think as you do.

Not Overly Eloquent said...

Reported that a cinder block was tossed through Sandusky's window. Pussies. When are the .223's going to start flying?

Anonymous said...

Bullseye Mike; there is a real sickness abroad in America today !

Knuck said...

You can say whatever you want about child molesters,but at least they drive slowly past schools. Aw,lighten up! Indignation! Outrage! We lost the right to be outraged and indignant when we permitted the murder of MILLIONS of babies in the womb.We desensitized ourselves and our society so that we could live with the ongoing genocide and holocaust taking place daily in the USA. Perverts,molesters and rapists make up our political stage and enjoy a certain weird type of noterity ie: Barney Frank,Bill Clinton,John Edwards,Weiner.We have allowed this Sodom and Gonnoherea scenario to play out to it's intended audience with the expected and anticipated results.Did anyone honestly think that the Great Demise would be pretty? This is just the start of our descent into the bowels of hell. Toughen the fuck up and start prepping for the shitstorm that is percolating. Nobody gets to wallow in the cesspool and come out smelling good.Get used to the stench and prepare accordingly.

WarriorClass III said...

CowboyDan,

Well said.

WarriorClass
III

Female III said...

Dear Not Overly Eloquent. Why do you whine and cry like a bitch over a cinder block? Not too many years ago Sandusky would have been drug out and hung within hours of the rape in the shower. Truth be told, vigilante justice when it comes to those who were caught doing the unthinkable to little kids, still happens in this country. Usually carried out quietly by the father, an uncle or a really pissed of mother before anybody else even knows what was committed. That is THEIR right, and it comes before the right of "authorities". Some may not like that or even agree with that but tough shit. The only thing I would add to that act of justifiable vengeance would be to include people who might have a problem with that. Get my drift?

Paul X said...

Mike, you rail against collectivism, and well you should. Unfortunately, you at the same time allow collectivism to provide the foundation for your own position:

"The Enlightenment-era British social theoretician John Locke said that political legitimacy derives from popular explicit and implicit consent: 'The argument of the [Second] Treatise is that the government is not legitimate unless it is carried on with the consent of the governed.' "

"Implicit consent"? How collectivist can one get? Read an excellent article about this so-called consent here:
http://mises.org/daily/5343

The beast slouching toward Bethlehem is government itself. Mere anarchy (that is, abandoning our faith in rulers) is exactly the remedy. (Of course, Yeats meant "chaos", not "lack of rulers".)