Column by Emmett Harris.
Exclusive to STR
Ten years ago the United States government was a poorly restrained leviathan, consuming vast amounts of wealth at home and meddling higgledy-piggledy in the affairs of others around the world. While the size of the state loomed large, the voices sincerely espousing liberty were few and, amid the burning debris of September 11th, they would become fewer still. This was the environment when the founder opened the cyber doors of Strike The Root.
At first glance, the ensuing decade has not been kind to the liberty-minded. The size and scope of government at all levels grew continuously. Foreign meddling morphed into endless, bloody wars. Domestic spying and intrusive violations became the norm. Police forces were further militarized. So-called entitlements ballooned. Bailouts, quantitative easing . . . the list of items to lament could go on and on, ad nauseum. And yet, the embers of sanity and hope still smoldered.
The Editor, Supporters, Guest Editors, Root Strikers, and you, the readers, have kept the fires of liberty burning. Though the state exists on a scale to make the mightiest sequoia seem a spindly sapling by comparison, those fires have been eating away at the foundations of statism -- striking at the root of evil, to borrow from the Thoreau quote that gave the site its name.
Ten years of prodding, poking, and striking have had an effect. The edifice of government remains, but its inner core is hollowing, made weaker by the relentless exposure of its lies and inner contradictions. Rot has set in. Now, we are witnessing the first visible cracks in its façade. More and more people are awakening from their protracted mental slumber, realizing, perhaps for the first time, that the savior they were taught to worship and obey has always been the enemy of their interests.
Ten years of cutting, carving, and exorcising have worked to draw the demon out into the open. There the light of truth could be shined upon it. It shuns the light. For eons it managed to thrive in darkness, hidden by the bulwark of apologia put forth by its willing accomplices. However, it was always weak. Having been exposed to the light of reason and ridicule, it has little recourse but to wither away as the truly impotent creature it is.
While the state may be faltering, life still lingers. Thus, it becomes incumbent that we continue striking at it, refusing to let it scurry back into the darkness for resurrection. We must remain ever vigilant in our assault. Strike-The-Root.com has provided a canvas for such vigilance.
Ideas are more powerful than armies in the long run. That is why we will win. Ten years of proselytizing for freedom has taken us farther down the path to that end. Here’s a toast to ten more.
Happy Tenth Anniversary, Strike The Root. Keep spreading those ideas.
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