Free trade is really simple: a willing buyer and a willing seller agreeing on a price and transaction terms, without outside coercion.  This concept is the foundation of capitalism.  Note the bedrock concept in free trade and capitalism is the individual’s right to choose.  Not surprisingly, emphasis on the individual is the foundation of our nation.

If we look more closely, free trade mandates individual freedom to choose.  And that requires negligible outside forces — coercion in our definition.  Since this world is a duality, there is an opposing force, and in this definition, it is coercion.

Consider how the “outside force” manifests in the first place.  Whenever there are three or more individuals, there is a tendency toward imbalance: two individuals decided what is best and force the third to go along.  That is democracy.  It’s not individual freedom...

The vast majority of our founding documents attempt to prevent the imbalance inherent in democracy.  Hence, our form of government is a constitutional republic, with an occasional dip into democratic voting.  The function of our Constitution is to restrict the natural tendency of one group to control the other.

One might wonder how we got from free trade to the Constitution.  There is an innate, and subconscious, desire by individuals to travel in herds.  It is safe.  The herd rightly believe they are protected.  But this safety also comes with a price: eternal vigilance and representative governance to prevent one group from subverting the other group’s freedom.

When individuals combine into a group, and eventually a nation, the problem is less the outside threat, like a saber-toothed tiger or rival tribe.  The real danger comes from within.  There has to be a leader, and that leader will coalesce a majority around him to stay in power.  Herein lies the problem.

That leader will establish a government to protect his interests, at the expense of the individual.  Those governments will also form coalitions to protect themselves like the WEF, U.N., WHO, WTO, etc.  These global governments establish more restrictions on free trade simply to protect their own self-interest.  But it’s the individual consumer who ends up paying the tax or tariff.

And we come full circle to free trade — specifically the concept of the individual implied in free trade.  Regulation, taxes, federal spending, and tariffs are all examples of the manifestation of the threat within, exerting control over the individual.

Our Constitution, when followed, controls the tendency by government to overpower, and it balances the rights of the individual by controlling the government.  If left to its own devices, government will overpower everyone.  Every politician becomes tainted with power.  It’s up to us to see that our own government is controlled. 

Although our form of governance is not a democracy, we do have a powerful tool through the democracy of voting once every two, four, and six years.  This is the time to right the wrongs of past and remove those politicians who vote to increase the government’s control though taxation, regulation, laws, and especially federal spending. 

Nobody’s perfect, so choose the lesser evil when supporting a politician.  Base your decision on which candidate best protects your individual freedom from excessive federal power.  After all, you’re not paranoid when they really are out to get you...

Jay Davidson is founder and CEO of a commercial bank.  He is a student of the Austrian School of Economics and a dedicated capitalist.  He believes there is a direct connection joining individual right and responsibility, our Constitution, capitalism, and the intent of our Creator.

Image: geralt via Pixabay, Pixabay License.