Marion McCoskey on Meet the Press

Tim: Our next guest is Marion McCoskey. Welcome to meet the press.

Marion: Thanks Tim.

Tim: Do you think the US should invade Iraq, and take out Saddam Hussein?

Marion No. I favor withdrawing all United States troops to within the borders of the United States. I also think we should make peace with the Arabs by buying their oil instead of stealing it, and by ending our war on drugs.

Tim: Are you saying that the war on drugs is connected with Arab militant terrorists?

Marion: I believe that to be the case. The Arabs smoke pot, and we are pretty much a nation of alcoholics. We need to be more aware of that difference as a source of cultural tension. Also, the same methods and connections that are used to smuggle drugs end up being used for terrorism. And of course, there is the fact that a lot of terrorist activities are supported by drug money.

Tim: And you think we are stealing oil from the middle east?

Marion: I think we're trying. It would surely be cheaper to buy oil than to support the bloated defense department, and we would have a lot fewer enemies and a lot more friends.

Tim: Does this mean you are a pacifist?

Marion: No. I am not a pacifist. I own a gun, and if someone comes in my house and tries to shoot me, I will shoot them first, if I can, but I don't carry a gun when I go out. I think it's wise for people to keep and bear arms and to defend their territory, but I don't think it's wise to have soldiers in foreign countries. I don't think the whole concept of a professional army is wise.

Tim: Sounds like you're an anarchist?

Marion. I wouldn't call myself an anarchist. An anarchist is usually defined as someone who is willing to use force to eliminate government. I think that's a self defeating plan. Forcing one group's will on another is the basic flaw of Statism, and I don't want to fall into that trap. I support non-coercive forms of social organization. I would like to eliminate government by replacing it with non-coercive organizations through teaching by example and using reason and logic.

Tim: OK, if you aren't a pacifist or an anarchist, then maybe you are a libertarian?

Marion: Well. I have been registering and voting libertarian for many years, but that doesn't mean I agree with everything the Libertarian party stands for. The most recent presidential candidate, Harry Brown, is a Statist, and I am not. He would like to greatly reduce taxation. I think it would be easier and more effective to just eliminate it. I voted for him anyway.

Tim: You think it would be easier to eliminate taxes than to reduce them?

Marion: Yes. We didn't reduce slavery, we eliminated it. I would hope eliminating taxation would be easier. Maybe you have heard the story about the man who asked the woman if she would have sex for a million dollars. She said yes, then he asked her if she would do it for a hundred. "What to you think I am?" she replied. So he explained to her that the preceding conversation had established what she was, now they were only arguing about the price. We need to stop thinking about the price, and start thinking about who and what we are.

Tim: Sounds like you don't think much of our form of government.

Marion: I don't think much of the idea of government. A lot of so-called "primitive societies" existed for thousands of years without armies, jails, or bureaucrats. No government has ever lasted for more than a few centuries. Government is a pyramid scheme, and pyramid schemes collapse, and cause a lot of pain while they are collapsing. I think it is possible to build a society that is both stable and fair without government, and I am not the only person who thinks that. After all, what have we got to lose except jails, armies, and bureaucrats.

Tim: But we have one of the best governments in the world, right?

Marion I'm sure that's what you think if you are one of the people that control the government, but I don't think its so great for the rest of us. We have some words written somewhere that says our government is the servant of the people, but that little protection from things like being arrested and jailed, for example. In the US we have 645 people out of every 100,000 in jail. In India, they have 25. That means that we are more than 25 times as likely to be put in jail as the citizens of India. We castigate China for being an authoritarian regime, but the Chinese imprisonment rate is 115 per 100,000. US citizens are more than 5 times as likely to be jailed as Chinese citizens. We are critical of Saudi Arabia's human rights, but you are at least 6 times more likely to be incarcerated in the US than in Saudi Arabia.

Tim: But if you let a lot of people out of jail, you'd have a huge crime wave.

Marion: I don't think so. Criminal activities like those of governments are difficult to measure because of the way governments lie, but there is no evidence to suggest that there is any more crime in countries with low jail populations. As a matter of fact, I believe it is the opposite. Even in the USA the jails hold only 0.645% of the population, only a little more than half a percent. How much can that affect the behavior of the other 99.35%.

Tim: You're obviously from way outside the normal political spectrum. If you had to vote either Republican or Democrat which would you choose.

Marion: Democrat, because they represent the poor. I have been poor most of my life, and I sympathize. But I do disagree with at least 80% of what they do. On the other hand, I disagree with 95% of what the Republicans do.

Tim: Have you ever considered running for political office?

Marion: I did, but I decided I wasn't cut out for a life of crime.

Tim: You think all politicians are criminals.

Marion: I do, and most of the people that vote for them. I don't want to spend my time trying to figure out who to rob, kidnap, or kill. I like building things and getting things to work, and I don't think pushing people around is wise. They tend to push back.

Tim: What I don't understand is how a person like you ever got on Meet the Press?

Marion: Me neither. It's probably some kind of fantasy, or one or both of us are dreaming.

Tim: Could be. I notice there have been no commercial breaks. If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press.

Tim:	Our next guest is Marion McCoskey. Welcome to meet the press.
Marion:	Thanks Tim.
Tim:	Do you think the US should invade Iraq, and take out Saddam Hussein?
Marion	No. I favor withdrawing all United States troops to within the borders of the United States. I also think we should make peace with the Arabs by buying their oil instead of stealing it, and by ending our war on drugs.
Tim:	Are you saying that the war on drugs is connected with Arab militant terrorists?
Marion:	I believe that to be the case. The Arabs smoke pot, and we are pretty much a nation of alcoholics. We need to be more aware of that difference as a source of cultural tension. Also, the same methods and connections that are used to smuggle drugs end up being used for terrorism. And of course, there is the fact that a lot of terrorist activities are supported by drug money.
Tim:	And you think we are stealing oil from the middle east?
Marion:	I think we're trying. It would surely be cheaper to buy oil than to support the bloated defense department, and we would have a lot fewer enemies and a lot more friends.
Tim:	Does this mean you are a pacifist?
Marion:	No. I am not a pacifist. I own a gun, and if someone comes in my house and tries to shoot me, I will shoot them first, if I can, but I don't carry a gun when I go out. I think it's wise for people to keep and bear arms and to defend their territory, but I don't think it's wise to have soldiers in foreign countries. I don't think the whole concept of a professional army is wise.
Tim:	Sounds like you're an anarchist?
Marion.	I wouldn't call myself an anarchist. An anarchist is usually defined as someone who is willing to use force to eliminate government. I think that's a self defeating plan. Forcing one group's will on another is the basic flaw of Statism, and I don't want to fall into that trap. I support non-coercive forms of social organization. I would like to eliminate government by replacing it with non-coercive organizations through teaching by example and using reason and logic.
Tim:	OK, if you aren't a pacifist or an anarchist, then maybe you are a libertarian?
Marion:	Well. I have been registering and voting libertarian for many years, but that doesn't mean I agree with everything the Libertarian party stands for. The most recent presidential candidate, Harry Brown, is a Statist, and I am not. He would like to greatly reduce taxation. I think it would be easier and more effective to just eliminate it. I voted for him anyway.
Tim:	You think it would be easier to eliminate taxes than to reduce them?
Marion:	Yes. We didn't reduce slavery, we eliminated it. I would hope eliminating taxation would be easier. Maybe you have heard the story about the man who asked the woman if she would have sex for a million dollars. She said yes, then he asked her if she would do it for a hundred. "What to you think I am?" she replied. So he explained to her that the preceding conversation had established what she was, now they were only arguing about the price. We need to stop thinking about the price, and start thinking about who and what we are.
Tim:	Sounds like you don't think much of our form of government.
Marion:	I don't think much of the idea of government. A lot of so-called "primitive societies" existed for thousands of years without armies, jails, or bureaucrats. No government has ever lasted for more than a few centuries. Government is a pyramid scheme, and pyramid schemes collapse, and cause a lot of pain while they are collapsing. I think it is possible to build a society that is both stable and fair without government, and I am not the only person who thinks that. After all, what have we got to lose except jails, armies, and bureaucrats.
Tim:	But we have one of the best governments in the world, right?
Marion	I'm sure that's what you think if you are one of the people that control the government, but I don't think its so great for the rest of us. We have some words written somewhere that says our government is the servant of the people, but that little protection from things like being arrested and jailed, for example. In the US we have 645 people out of every 100,000 in jail. In India, they have 25. That means that we are more than 25 times as likely to be put in jail as the citizens of India. We castigate China for being an authoritarian regime, but the Chinese imprisonment rate is 115 per 100,000. US citizens are more than 5 times as likely to be jailed as Chinese citizens. We are critical of Saudi Arabia's human rights, but you are at least 6 times more likely to be incarcerated in the US than in Saudi Arabia.
Tim:	But if you let a lot of people out of jail, you'd have a huge crime wave.
Marion:	I don't think so. Criminal activities like those of governments are difficult to measure because of the way governments lie, but there is no evidence to suggest that there is any more crime in countries with low jail populations. As a matter of fact, I believe it is the opposite. Even in the USA the jails hold only 0.645% of the population, only a little more than half a percent. How much can that affect the behavior of the other 99.35%.
Tim:	You're obviously from way outside the normal political spectrum. If you had to vote either Republican or Democrat which would you choose.
Marion:	Democrat, because they represent the poor. I have been poor most of my life, and I sympathize. But I do disagree with at least 80% of what they do. On the other hand, I disagree with 95% of what the Republicans do.
Tim:	Have you ever considered running for political office?
Marion:	I did, but I decided I wasn't cut out for a life of crime.
Tim:	You think all politicians are criminals.
Marion:	I do, and most of the people that vote for them. I don't want to spend my time trying to figure out who to rob, kidnap, or kill. I like building things and getting things to work, and I don't think pushing people around is wise. They tend to push back.
Tim:	What I don't understand is how a person like you ever got on Meet the Press?
Marion:	Me neither. It's probably some kind of fantasy, or one or both of us are dreaming.
Tim:	Could be. I notice there have been no commercial breaks. If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press.

Marion McCoskey on Meet the Press

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