One of the most common questions we get asked is, "are you going to provide ______?", with the blank being any one of many possible goods or services that you would expect to find in a typical urban area.
In most cases, the answer is no. That doesn't mean it isn't going to be there, however. We are free market capitalists. What we are providing is a secure, Liberty oriented framework for Patriots to use to build their own life and future. The free market is a far better mechanism for providing goods and services than any other system and is the only system that fits with Rightful Liberty. The goods and services that people want will be provided by our residents who start and operate their own businesses.
We already have a number of individuals that have specific businesses they want to start. Things like a farmer's market, a brewery and an RV park. Others have specific stores they would like to open, such as a sewing or knitting shop or a bakery. We also have medical professionals who want to live in the Citadel and provide our medical services. Wherever there is a demand, there will be someone who is willing to provide the goods or services.
There may be a few specific businesses or services that it would make sense for the Citadel operation itself to provide. A medical center might be one, as it is a rather large undertaking. Something like a resort lodge and/or community center is a possibility. However, even these facilities would probably be better operated as private, independent entities.
The temptation to run other people's lives is always there. You see it all around you in our society and especially in every level of government. You see it in many of our comments where people say, "you HAVE to provide this, or you HAVE to make people do that" in order for this project to work. Even when done with the best of intentions, it is the wrong path to take and eventually leads to tyranny.
Rightful Liberty involves a significant amount of self control and restraint to avoid giving in to that temptation. We will create the framework then let people build their own lives as they see fit.
VJ
Every time I bring up The Citadel in a conversation I'm hit with "How is The Citadel going to support themselves?". I reply that it's no different from any other town when it comes to "support"; if the businesses aren't prospering those businesses will go under. If too many businesses go under, the town will go under. It's called Capitalism. Simple. Look at all the "ghost towns" all over the country whose viability was tied to one big business and when that big business left town the that town was doomed. So I say The Citadel doesn't have to "provide" anything. It's the people who come there to live and provide skills and services that will make it succeed. Simple: Capitalism works. It will at The Citadel, too. ESPECIALLY at The Citadel!
ReplyDeleteLife is risky. It is messy and painful at times, too. True Liberty requires us to recognize this and deal with it. That's why the siren song of government is so powerful. "Give up your Liberty and we will protect you from all of that." Except they can't. All they can do is hide it for a while at the cost of everything that is truely valuable.
ReplyDeleteRun your own life and take the risks or give up and let government own you. Those are your choices.
VJ