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Bullied by Clowns
by Paul Bonneau
z<dot>z<dot>paulbx1<at>dfgh<dot>net

Attribute to L. Neil Smith's The Libertarian Enterprise

Look at the following photo of storm troopers in Boston:

It's by now a familiar photo; this one was found on a slate.com web page.

The people who designed the symbols and attire for the minions of the Third Reich certainly had a sense of style for their thuggish ends; but our own state bullies seem to have had their attire designed by a committee of practical jokers. Here we see an unruly formation of overfed bureaucrats and other such functionaries; the kneepads are an inspired touch, even though it's doubtful they would ever get down on their knees to do any actual work. Here comes the Donut Squad! Marching proud in their clown outfits...

It's hard to decide whether to laugh or cry at that picture. The loss of liberty in the house-to-house searches is distressing, but hardly worse than the cheering of the masochistic Bostonians who suffered that loss. On the other hand, if you are going to have a boot planted on your neck, a clown boot is preferred.

This article is not going to be one that bewails the sheep-like behavior of Bostonians. Certainly, a single bullet into one of these clown-thugs would have changed entirely the nature of the search, if not stopped it altogether - perhaps it would have been taken as a suggestion that the powers that be had really gone too far this time. But it didn't happen, and that is not surprising. Most people take a lot more provocation before they can react at that level. There's nothing wrong with that. We have to hit bottom first. It's long been a recognized feature of human nature: "Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed." The clown-thugs are safe for the moment.

But as we all know, those in power never stop until their depredations, like poison, are finally vomited back up by the victims, in one great and usually violent eruption. Some day those clown-thugs will have to sadly put their clown suits away, and attempt to hide themselves in the population of normal but angry people—if they have any sense (which seems doubtful). The clown-thuggery will then enter the hallowed halls of American History.

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