Archive for the ‘Freedom’ Category

The 5 Laws of Decline – (#2) Bastiat’s Law

Posted: August 11, 2013 in Economics, Freedom
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TheLawPreviously we had discussed the first law of decline; Sturgeon’s Law. This law stated that 90% of everything is crud, and showed how you can’t count on 90% of leaders and politicians to do the right thing without some kind of check in place to stop them. 90 percent of them will undoubtedly fall to the second law of decline; Bastiat’s law.

These laws come from Orrin Woodward‘s book ‘Resolved‘ as well as his and Oliver DeMille‘s book ‘LeaderShift‘.

A couple of years ago I read a book by Frederic Bastiat called ‘The Law‘. In this book, Bastiat goes through the concept of having a law; what it is supposed to be used for and what it then actually get’s used for. He shows how laws are supposed to be there to protect a persons property, and thus people themselves, but end up getting used to steal or harm people’s property.

Bastiat’s Law

Bastiat wrote a profound passage that Orrin Woodward takes for his second law of decline, which he first outlined in ‘Resolved: 13 Resolutions for Life.’

Man can live and satisfy his wants only by ceaseless labor; by the ceaseless application of his faculties to natural resources. This process is the origin of property.

But it is also true that a man may live and satisfy his wants by seizing and consuming the products of the labor of others. This process is the origin of plunder.

Now since man is naturally inclined to avoid pain—and since labor is pain in itself—it follows that men will resort to plunder whenever plunder is easier than work. History shows this quite clearly. And under these conditions, neither religion nor morality can stop it.

When, then, does plunder stop? It stops when it becomes more painful and more dangerous than labor. It is evident, then, that the proper purpose of law is to use the power of its collective force to stop this fatal tendency to plunder instead of to work.

– Frederic Bastiat, The Law

Bastiat’s law: Since men are naturally inclined to avoid pain, which labor is itself, it follows that they will resort to plunder whenever it is easier than work. (more…)

The 5 Laws of Decline – (#1) Sturgeon’s law

Posted: August 9, 2013 in Economics, Freedom, Leadership
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Theodore SturgeonIn ‘Resolved: 13 Resolutions for Life‘, Orrin Woodward first introduced us to his five laws of decline; showing how if we are not aware of them, our life, our organisation, and our country, will suffer the consequences.

In ‘Leadershift: A Call for Americans to Finally Stand Up and Lead‘, Orrin and Oliver DeMille go through these laws more in relation to a country. Although these laws apply to everything, and all business leaders should be aware of them for their companies sake, it’s in relation to our nation they really hit home. You may not mind if a company goes under because of these laws, but you will certainly mind if the country does.

As not everyone will go out and get those books, we will go through some of the key concepts; let’s ensure as many people becomes aware of them as we can.

For some of these laws, left on their own, things might not be too bad, even if it’s still a problem. The real issues come when all of these laws are left unchecked; which is often the case since one usually leads to another.

Today we will take a look at the first law of decline.

Sturgeon’s Law

Theodore Sturgeon was a science fiction writer who defended his genre when it was being criticized for being full of crud; that it didn’t keep up with the times and new technology. Sturgeon’s reply was to point out that 90 percent of it was indeed crud… just as it is in everything.

That is Sturgeon’s law: 90% of everything is crud. (more…)

Should The Government Do Something?

Posted: August 4, 2013 in Economics, Freedom
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This might be one of the most important questions you can ask about a problem.

Do you ever feel that the government is ruining your country with its partisanship and inaction? Don’t you wish they would just stop all the bickering and come together to pass the laws, instead of always in a stalemate and getting salaries for accomplishing nothing?

I would say ‘yes’ to that in some situations, while in others I’m grateful they are arguing with each other and, as would seem to the average individual, accomplishing nothing. In most cases accomplishing nothing is actually a great accomplishment in the end.

The thing is, how can you be sure that when the government does come together, that they are actually accomplishing something good?

I believe in equality. I believe in equal rights and equal opportunity; this means that I don’t believe in complete equality (more…)

Freedom Has Arrived!

Posted: July 20, 2013 in Economics, Freedom
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freedomEver since I started on the LIFE subscriptions, I always looked forward to the next talk I would get on the subject of freedom or economics. I have always considered freedom to be one of my core principles, but at the same time I used to be a socialist; I had the wrong information on how the world worked. I had the wrong information on what was right. I thought the socialists ideas helped the poor, helped those in need, while stopping the rich from trampling all over the poor; did I ever have that backwards!

Through many of the teachings on leadership, economics, and freedom from the founders of LIFE, and their subscriptions, I have come to see the error of my ways.

I have come to see the value of free enterprise, and how it actually helps more people get jobs. I have seen how it actually gives people an incentive to get out of poverty and provides paths to do so. I have seen  how governments and big business’ use new laws and regulations to keep people dependent and in poverty; I’ve seen them use regulations to allow themselves to grow beyond where free enterprise would have allowed, at the expense of hard working citizens.

I have seen how important leadership is to bringing back lost freedoms (more…)

A LeaderShift: What we need in our country today

Posted: April 30, 2013 in Economics, Freedom, Leadership
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LeaderShiftIt’s time for power to go back to where it belongs; to the people. With politicians and the business elite making all our decisions for us, we are losing our freedoms each and every day, and our standard of living goes down with that loss.

LeaderShift, by Orrin Woodward & Oliver Demille, is a call for people to stand up and become who they need to be in order to take back our freedoms and prevent it from being lost again. It in no way supports Republicans, nor does it support Democrats; it supports the American people (and Canadian if you read it from my perspective).

It is written in the form of a business parable about the United States, but don’t let that fool you into thinking this is just for Americans. There are a number of proposals put forth in the book that could drastically change the way we run our society, and the principles behind them can be applied to any country.

It all starts with the Five Laws of Decline; If these laws are not addressed in the frame-work of a company or a nation, they will become its undoing. Leadershift will go through the details of how they apply to a nation, but the reasoning will become obvious as you go through them.

1. Sturgeons Law – 90% of everything is Crud (this includes workers, leaders, politicians…) This means that 90% of the people running for office (and being elected) can’t be counted on to do the right thing. Thankfully the other side to this law is that 10% of the people out there are good leaders. We just need to allow them to come forth.

2. Bastiats Law – People will do the least amount of work possible to satisfy their wants. This means that if someone can get what they want without doing anything or by getting someone else to do it for them, they will.

3. Gresham’s Law – When bad behavior is rewarded, more will occur; The good ones will be driven away. Through this law, If you need to be corrupt to get ahead in an organization (or country) those that aren’t corrupt will not even enter the field; if they are already involved, they will likely leave. They do not want to be bad people, and will not be part of something where they feel they will need to do something wrong. At the same time, Those that don’t mind doing something wrong will be much more likely to do so since they will be rewarded for it. (more…)

Why We Need a LeaderShift

Posted: March 22, 2013 in Economics, Freedom, Leadership
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I just finished reading two articles by Orrin Woodward, on the subject of his and Oliver Demille’s soon to be released LeaderShift book, and I just have to share them. The first is an introduction to a book Orrin is currently writing, going through the history of past civilizations and pointing out what can be learned and applied from them. The second is more about what the LeaderShift book itself is going to accomplish.

Enjoy the articles below the awesome trailer for the book!

Why America & Western Society Needs a LeaderShift

The following is a portion of the introduction from a book I am working on about Western Society. LeaderShift is less than a month away from release and Oliver DeMille and I are pumped about it. However, there is much more to share on this important subject than can be contained in one book. The Quest for Concord is as old as Western Societies existence and has been attempted in every society since the Greeks. The LIFE Business intends to educate people on their history so we can ensure we protect the freedoms we enjoy for our posterity. Today’s reading is not light, but I promise if you take the time to read and comprehend, it will help you understand the pressing issues going on in today’s society. (more…)

A LeaderShift is Coming!

Posted: February 28, 2013 in Economics, Freedom, Leadership
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Orrin Woodward recently posted this article on his site. He did a little introduction to an Amazing article by Oliver DeMille about the need for a new party. Although this article is about the United States, I believe this also applies to Canada. Even if we do have more than one party, none are what we truly need; we need a party of small business!

I’m super excited about the book LeaderShift, co-wrote by Orrin Woodward and Oliver DeMille. After reading Oliver’s FreedomShift and 1913, along with Orrin’s Resolved and Launching a Leadership Revolution – There is no doubt this book is going to be a top seller, and a book that will help change the course of our countries; in a positive direction!

Get the book. Mine is pre-ordered!

Enjoy,

Lee Weishar

Orrin’s article:

LeaderShift by Orrin Woodward & Oliver DeMille
LeaderShift isn’t a political party, but it is a freedom movement of productive members in society (of both left and right persuasions), who are concerned about the decline in dialogue, decision-making, and direction of our country’s political leaders. Oliver DeMille and I wrote LeaderShift to provide new thinking to an old problem, using the Five Laws of Decline to describe the process. Governments, by their very nature, tend to centralize and control. Indeed, local leadership and freedoms are inversely proportional to centralized powers and control. (more…)

I am a Producer!

Posted: February 1, 2013 in Economics, Freedom, Success
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Producer

As a follow up to the Entrepreneur Manifesto – I believe this one goes hand in hand!

I am an Entrepreneur!

Posted: February 1, 2013 in Finances, Freedom, Success
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Entrepreneur

A comment made on my Rascal Manifesto post led me to find a few other gems out there, and I just had to share them as well. Here is the first: I am an Entrepreneur Manifesto – and it’s available to purchase as a poster at lifemanifestos.com

The Ends Don’t Justify the Means

Posted: January 17, 2013 in Freedom
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Most of you have probably heard of the IdleNoMore movement now, and probably have an opinion on the validity of the movement’s claims. My question is, what about the innocent people that are suffering from the movements actions when they are not doing anything wrong.

I recently read an article explaining what the movement was, and why we should support it – it being about protecting the earth and protecting woman. I couldn’t help but feel that the message being received by this movement is full of hypocrisy; it is asking people to go out and join the protesters who are blocking roads, bridges and railroads if you believed in the same goals. To be fair, I want to point out that the article didn’t really say to do these activities, it was just raising awareness of the issue. This is one of the ways these issues should be brought to people’s attention, through non aggression. This article did not point out the hypocrisy in the movement’s message though, and didn’t condemn its actions as it should have; that is where my problem lies.

The article said the movement is about the need to help people who are being affected by pollution and the destruction of the land, the need to help women who are being beaten or treated unfairly and the need to put a stop to it. I can agree with that. But what I can’t agree with is performing acts of aggression against innocent people in order to get your message out. On one hand you’re being asked to stand up and help people because they have been wronged, but you’re asked to wrong other innocent people in the process.

Two wrongs might make a right when your bowling (I can vouch for this!), but that is not the case when your dealing with people. (more…)

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