Fun times

Last night went longer than I had planned as I was out on the town with many of my new friends here in Guatemala. Needless to say, waking up at 6:00 am this morning was difficult. I heard my roommate, Alfonso, open the bathroom door and enter the room. "Levantete!" - the usual morning wake-up call. "And oh," he mentioned on my way to the shower, "don't forget you need to wear a suit today. We are going to Congress." Well, great, I thought. Why do we always go to that place? They hate us. "And did I mention," he continued, "we are meeting with the radical left, so get ready."

Well, that's fantastic. Not only am I gringo to this country as a visitor, I am a gringo in politics as well. I have no clue have the stuff that is said because, well, my Spanish needs help. I sat down at an oval table, embracing the brewing storm. The battle began with formal introductions, an intimidating sound effect of camera snapshots from the press, and a confused gringo in the corner. As opening statements were made for each side, I watched. I observed the manner in which each spokesman dictated the ethos of the room. I soaked in the importance of confidence and genuine belief in a cause.

My ProReforma pamphlet lay in front of me. There, in a language I struggle to understand, in the hands of a political system I find corrupt, on the table of men who could change the condition of their country with one decision-there sat my convictions. There sat a document that diminished the power of a corrupt few and believed in the capability of Guatemalan citizens to make a better life for themselves. There sat a document, a deep, true solution to third-world poverty and government corruption.

For one who has been trained to defend the sanctity of human life, it seems clear to me that this document, the proposal of ProReforma, is the answer to so many global crises. What prevents the decision to follow this document and implement its principles? A friend asked me last night, "If you believe that government is the problem, how do you respond to the fact that the majority of individuals vote for more government? It seems to offer programs at a price the market cannot compete with." I could draw the Keynesian cross, explain the government spending and tax multipliers. I could talk about the "moral hazard," "prisonor's dilema," or the functionality of property rights. But to answer the first question, I recalled Hayek's fifth chapter of Constitution of Liberty and simply stated, "People are afraid to be free, because they are afraid to be responsible." (For more of my opinion on this chapter of Hayek, see "Freedom and Responsibility" at blog.brandoncarmack.com).

So there I sat, witnesseing the battle ground of ideas, asking myself, "How do we convince people that a cost like responsibility is worth the benefits of freedom?" This, I believe, is the cure for poverty, war, and distorted government: to convince citizens that they are capable of being responsible, and to convince governments of that nature of their citizens.

We laughed, we shook hands, and we hoped that liberty had been defended and advanced more than it had been before we entered the room.