Conservatives say the government can't end poverty by force, but they believe it can use force to make people moral. Liberals say government can't make people be moral, but they believe it can end poverty. Neither group attempts to explain why government is so clumsy and destructive in one area but a paragon of efficiency and benevolence in the other.
Interpretation
The quote critiques the contradictory beliefs of conservatives and liberals regarding government intervention in morality and poverty.
Harry Browne's quote highlights the paradox in the ideologies of both conservatives and liberals. Conservatives assert that while the government cannot effectively eradicate poverty through coercive means, they accept the government's involvement in enforcing moral behavior. Conversely, liberals argue that while the government cannot compel morality, they believe in its ability to alleviate poverty. The quote questions why the government is viewed as ineffective and destructive in addressing poverty, yet seen as capable and benevolent in enforcing moral standards.
In practice
This quote can be used in a political debate to illustrate the inconsistencies in ideological beliefs.
Asset forfeiture is a mockery of the Bill of Rights. There is no presumption of innocence, no need to prove you guilty (or even charge you with a crime), no right to a jury trial, no right to confront your accuser, no right to a court-appointed attorney (even if the government has just stolen all your money), and no right to compensation for the property that's been taken.
Government seems to operate on the principle that if even one individual is incapable of using his freedom competently, no one can be allowed to be free.
No one ever died from smoking marijuana, but millions of people have died by believing politicians.
When you know that you're capable of dealing with whatever comes, you have the only security the world has to offer.
You can't give the government the power to do good without also giving it the power to do bad - in fact, to do anything it wants.
A great burden was lifted from my shoulders the day I realized that no one owes me anything.
Palestine is the cement that holds the Arab world together, or it is the explosive that blows it apart.
There is nothing so deep and nothing so shallow which political enmity will not turn to account.
The politician attempts to remedy the evil by increasing the very thing that caused the evil in the first place: legal plunder.
Government actually grew during the Reagan years.
All the common people want is to be left alone. All the ordinary soldier wants is to collect his pay and not get killed. That's why the great forces of history can be manipulated by astonishingly small groups of determined people.
We, the Black masses, don't want these leaders who seek our support coming to us representing a certain political party. They must come to us today as Black Leaders representing the welfare of Black people. We won't follow any leader today who comes on the basis of political party. Both parties (Democrat and Republican) are controlled by the same people who have abused our rights, and who have deceived us with false promises every time an election rolls around.
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