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Freedom under siege: The U.S. Constitution after 200 years [Paperback]

Ron Paul
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)


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Book Description

1987
Here is Ron Paul's political manifesto, a courageous book on civil liberties and the rights of Americans that are relentlessly under assault from government. It was written in 1987, on the 200th anniversary of the Constitution, and is available as an ebook for the first time.

It is here that Dr. Paul provides his most extended thoughts on what it means to be a constitutionalist in the tradition of Thomas Jefferson.

He connects violations of individual rights to an interventionist foreign policy and the supposed needs of national security. Here he blasts the draft and draft registration, impositions on the right of individuals to own guns, restrictions on the freedom to speak and write — and draws out the links between all these policies.

Paul further discusses the tie between individual liberties and sound money. When a nation's money is controlled by the people instead of the state, they retain their essential freedoms. But when money is monopolized by government with no tie to a commodity, the state is in a position to ride roughshod over our liberties.

Other issues discussed include the true meaning of patriotism, the moral law as it applies to politics, the meaning of leadership in a free society, Paul's views on the state in light of his experiences in Washington, and the historic and everlasting conflict between the individual and the state.

To search for Mises Institute titles, enter a keyword and LvMI (short for Ludwig von Mises Institute); e.g., Depression LvMI
--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

  • Paperback: 157 pages
  • Publisher: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education; First edition. edition (1987)
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00071MBPY
  • Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,158,987 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars The Doctor prescribes liberty! November 5, 2007
FREEDOM UNDER SIEGE:
THE CONSTITUTION AFTER 200 YEARS
by Dr. Ron Paul

This book was written in 1987 and when it was being published Ron Paul was running as the Libertarian Party candidate for President of the US. Twenty years later, there is a renewed interest in Dr. Paul as he is the only presidential candidate in the 2008 election who promotes a message of personal freedom and limited government.

We start things off with a brief forward by Mises Institute founder Lew Rockwell, who was Ron Paul's former campaign manager. The essay is basically a tribute to Dr. Paul and his actions spreading the message of Austrian economics and constitutionalism. Rockwell considers Dr. Paul to be "the 20th century's Thomas Jefferson" who encourages the people to free America from its "Moloch state". Rockwell himself has had a long career defending similar ideals and newer fans of Ron Paul would do well to read as much as they can on Mr. Rockwell's website.

The subtitle of this book notes that the anniversary of the Constitution's creation had just passed at the time of the writing. Paul's introductory essay discusses how America's understanding of the proper role of government has morphed from the founders' vision into a mountain of endless regulation. He goes through different examples and invokes James Madison's quote that "It will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read or so incoherent that they cannot be understood".

Chapter I covers the subject of individual liberty. This is the most diverse chapter in that it addresses different arguments about what freedom is. He defines liberty as related to natural rights and the Founders' ideas enumerated in the Constitution, which advises what government's role in our daily lives should be. For example, should the government legislate morality (whether to encourage or prevent certain actions)? What constitutes a "fair trial", and what are the roles of the jurors? There is also a brief section on the 2nd Amendment.

Chapter II is the shortest chapter, but it foreshadows Dr. Paul's popularity today because it is about the crucial issue of foreign policy. The post-World War II foreign policy of the United States is almost the exact opposite of what the Founders' envisioned, namely that war must be declared by Congress and that interventionism endangers Americans rather than protects them. He runs through several examples, including many conflicts from the militarization of the Middle East that are just as heated today as they were in the late 1980s. He criticizes specific policies from the Spanish-American War to Wilson's "safe for democracy" to Reagan's Grenada action. He even questions the Marshall Plan which could be considered a form of political heresy by some!

Chapter III is largely devoted to the issue of forced conscription, or as it is better known "the draft". How much could you say about the draft? You have to remember that this book was written near the end of the Cold War, and the massive arms race was leading some to suggest that mandatory military service could be a measure of America's patriotism. But Dr. Paul points out that as recently as 1980 the official policy of the Republican Party was that the draft constituted involutary servitude. But Ronald Reagan said that "the security of freedom can best be achieved by security through freedom". He tells an interesting story about an incident where Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin was interviewed. Stalin was asked whether it was immoral that he "conscripted" the property of his people for the State to use. The dictator turned the question around and asked why capitalists objected to lifeless property being used but had no qualms with their governments' forced "use" of real humans during wartime. "His American challenger had no answer, because there was no answer" (pg 70).

Chapter IV consists of economic arguments for "sound money". Nowadays Dr. Paul is best known for his foreign policy position, but in the 1980s he was mostly identified with his advocacy of the gold standard (the idea that currency should have a real value backed by gold). In this chapter he recounts what the Constitution has to say about money. The Federal Reserve is attacked as a tool of the banking industry and he also points out how inflation affects the poor. Paul quotes Ludwig von Mises: "inflation is the true opium of the people, administered to them by anti-capitalistic governments and parties". The economic section may seem lengthy but remember Dr. Paul has said many times that it was his interest in economics that led him to a career in politics!

Although there are some thing that date the text here, it is still a great starting point for Dr. Paul's positions as well as for American constitutionalism in general. Of course he has also recently posted 'A Foreign Policy of Freedom' which is easier to read and may seem more relevant to younger readers (btw it deals with much more than just foreign policy). Also note: the photograph above shows the cover of a recent Mises Institute reprint edition, whereas the original 1987 version has a simple blue cover with white type.

Remember remember the 5th of November:
Americans are finally hearing Dr.Paul's message and are willing to put the fruits of their labor behind it!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A brief introduction to freedom September 28, 2007
Freedom Under Siege offers the reader a quick glimpse of Dr. Paul's view of the prevailing attitude of the United States towards individual liberty. In it, Ron Paul makes the argument that the philosophical underpinnings of liberty have eroded during the 20th century and only a revamped understanding of natural rights can turn the tide of the increasing totalitarian state. Dr. Paul highlights just a few of the hypocritical dogmas that plague a free society, such as forced military conscription to preserve liberty and the debasement of currency to stimulate economic growth. This book does an excellent job of introducing the reader to some of the foundations of libertarianism.
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5.0 out of 5 stars He is right about everything December 30, 2011
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"Libertarians are incapable of being a racist because racism is a collectivist idea, you see people in group. A civil libertarian like myself sees everyone as an important individual. It's not the color of their skin that is important, as Martin Luther King said. What is important is the character of the individual." Ron Paul
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