“Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is force."

"Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is force; like fire, a troublesome servant and a fearful master. Never for a moment should it be left to irresponsible action." - George Washington

This is a great quote that really captures the essence of government. Indeed, government can only operate and rely on force. Who would actually pay all their taxes if it was truly voluntary? Maybe a few die-hard statists, but besides them, nobody in their right mind would be glad to give up their hard-earned cash for the dubious privilege of being harassed by the state apparatus.

Every edict, every order, every command of the government rests on one premise: the use of force. Don't want to pay your taxes? Want to consume something the government doesn't want you to? Want to raise your children how you see fit? Don't want to be conscripted to slaughter foreigners? Too bad. If you dare defy the state, there will be government employees to ensure that you comply, and if you wish to continue to resist their demands, then you will be most likely shot and murdered.

Force keeps the sheeple in line.

"Do you not see, first, that... physical force is directly opposed to morality; and, secondly, that it... drives out of existence the moral forces?"

"Do you not see, first, that — as a mental abstract — physical force is directly opposed to morality; and, secondly, that it practically drives out of existence the moral forces? How can an act done under compulsion have any moral element in it, seeing that what is moral is the free act of an intelligent being? If you tie a man's hands there is nothing moral about his not committing murder. Such an abstaining from murder is a mechanical act; and just the same in kind, though less in degree, are the acts which men are compelled to do under penalties imposed upon them by their fellow men. Those who would drive their fellow men into the performance of any good actions do not see that the very elements of morality — the free act following on the free choice — are as much absent in those upon whom they practice their legislation as in a flock of sheep penned in by hurdles." - Auberon Herber

Computers cannot act against their programming. They do not have free will. Therefore they cannot do anything morally right or wrong. Humans do have free will, and thus can choose to follow their own conscience, or to not follow it. Whatever the choice is, is theirs. But if we take away that choice, if we force them to perform certain actions, they are no longer doing the moral thing, but the only thing that they are allowed to do. So if somebody chooses to use the government to force everyone to follow some guideline that they feel is moral, they will undermine their own objective, for the action will no longer hold any morality!

"What good does it do me... if an ever-watchful authority keeps an eye out to... ward off all danger, if that authority is also [my] absolute master"

"What good does it do me, after all, if an ever-watchful authority keeps an eye out to ensure that my pleasures will be tranquil and races ahead of me to ward off all danger, sparing me the need even to think about such things, if that authority, even as it removes the smallest thorns from my path, is also absolute master of my liberty and my life; if it monopolizes vitality and existence to such a degree that when it languishes, everything must also sleep; and when it dies, everything must also perish?" - Alexis de Tocqueville



"Here," says government, "let me pry into your business. After all, it's only for your protection! If you have nothing to hide then you shouldn't have anything to worry about."

Wrong answer. If you have nothing to hide, then why should you be illegally searched, hassled, and harassed? Obviously if you are not a criminal then the government will gain nothing by harassing you. So, what's the point?

Let's analyze this just a bit more. If you were a criminal mastermind, why would you bring such nefarious items as too much money onto a plane? If you'e planning something evil, cash is a horrible choice. So, there goes that argument. Also, if you were a madman, would you really do things so obviously stupid as put weapons, etc, into a metal box in your luggage? I think you might try to be just a bit more clever than that. Lastly, although certainly not least, why should we be searched against our fourth amendment right not to be searched without probable cause? Is getting on a plane sufficient evidence that you are a terrorist? I certainly think not.