What Representation?

We've all probably had some version of social studies, civics, and citizenship classes throughout our education, and the media constantly reinforces the necessity of elections and representation amidst an array of hagiographic depictions of politicians. These Great Men and Women strove to give us a just and righteous society, right?

Regardless of the claimed principles of elected individuals, they exercise usurped authority. Do I have the right to compel you by force to do anything? Do I have a right to interfere in your life, liberty, or property? No. How could I then delegate an authority I do not have to some third party who is a stranger to us both simply by marking a name on a bit of paper? Yet that is the essence of democracy.

I am hardly the first to challenge these notions. Lysander Spooner's essay, A Letter to Grover Cleveland, on his false Inaugural Address, the Usurpations and Crimes of Lawmakers and Judges, and the consequent Poverty, Ignorance, and Servitude of the People thoroughly dismantles the claim to electoral representation.

Note to self: restart my series of posts serializing that essay now that payouts can be easily declined again.

Of course, the next justification usually offered is some form of social contract appeal. The social contract theory was invented by people who couldn't otherwise explain the legitimacy of the government, and Robert Higgs explained the failings of this idea best.

. . . In regard to the so-called social contract, I have often had occasion to protest that I haven’t even seen the contract, much less been asked to consent to it. A valid contract requires voluntary offer, acceptance, and consideration. I’ve never received an offer from my rulers, so I certainly have not accepted one; and rather than consideration, I have received nothing but contempt from the rulers, who, notwithstanding the absence of any agreement, have indubitably threatened me with grave harm in the event that I fail to comply with their edicts.

Rejecting political solutions is not ignoring problems, it is recognizing that a non-solution built on injustice cannot be reformed. The problem isn't the people in office, or the people drawn to positions of power, it is the illegitimate nature of those offices. Illegitimate authority draws the corrupt and corrupts those with good intentions. We need real solutions, not mythology.