A Journal for Western Man-- Issue VIII
G. Stolyarov II
But this, in order to assume an aura of philosophical consistency, must also be applied to the domestic policies of the United States. Usury laws, the mild version of the Biblical precept against interest, possess no objective validation and are an immense impediment to creditors and their debtors, barring the former from obtaining money to afford homes, medical bills, and a myriad of other commodities at a price that does not discourage the lender via the fear of incurring a loss. It would be prudent for states possessing them to undertake a prompt repeal, also for the sake of remaining competitive with states that set no ceiling on interest rates. Opposition to stem cell research, in a country where no one is forced to receive an organ transplant, but which can result in a life saved, a disease averted, or, in the remote future, a healthier, more intelligent child, perhaps a future Rand or Jefferson, born, must not assume the form of a coercive legislative prohibition. The sole justification employed by genetic research opponents from the right is the alleged prohibition by God of human beings manipulating “His creations”. But what of those who reject the existence of a God or worship one more lax in regard to the behaviors of his progeny? Moreover, because schemes of philosophy and production derive from a common and mutually reinforcing root, both must be permitted to exist and compete, or else neither will remain a possibility and stagnation will ensue. Prayer in public schools must also be permitted at students’ leisure, for who is the government to dictate how an individual should pursue the free market commodity of Heaven? It is necessary to grant parents who are displeased with the quality of public education vouchers and tax credits to provide religious instruction of their choice to their children, for none should be forced to endorse ideas with which one disagrees, or barred from endorsing ideas which one supports. Additionally, states such as California must abolish mandatory recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance while still permitting religious students, believers that this one Nation is under God, to possess the opportunity to proclaim its message, much like the current law in Illinois, which appeals to theists and atheists alike, fellow citizens of no irreconcilable animosity in a land of freedom. Only through these reforms will the United States become a fully stainless enforcer of religious liberties worldwide.
To counter the Fundamentalist, anti-rational schemes of barbarian clerics, it is prudent to refer to what would be Space Age wisdom compared to their Paleolithic ramblings. Thomas Jefferson, the great advocate of the separation of Church and State, wrote: “The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.” Let us remember these words of guidance, words that had endowed upon our nation liberty and justice for all.
Source:
McKenzie, Glenn. “Nigeria Calls for Death of Writer.” YahooNews. Associated Press. 26 Nov. 2002: <http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20021126/ap_on_re_af/nigeria_miss_world_6.>
G. Stolyarov II is a science fiction novelist, independent philosophical essayist, poet and Editor-in-Chief of The Rational Argumentator. He is also a writer for Objective Medicine, a philosophical forum for advocating the right of physicians to freely practice their trade, at http://www.objectivemedicine.org. Mr. Stolyarov can be contacted at gennadystolyarovii@yahoo.com.