I Get By - And High! - With A Little help From My Friends

I have been so happy these months in Delhi with so many of my very old chillum- and daaru-yaars: good MEN, all. Smoking. Drinking. Living it up with hasi-mazaak and gali-galoch.


The joke goes something like this:


I introduce myself as Diwala Singh - adding that I was born on Diwali. Then I introduce my friend the tea-shop owner as Hola Singh - adding that he was born on Holi, which is obvious because his hair is all red with henna. And then I introduce my third friend who drives an auto-rickshaw. This time, all I say is that he was born on Lohri - and everyone has a good laugh.


We are always having good times.


And tonight should be special.


And I hope it is the same for you, too.


We have composed a few ditties over the past few months. The first goes as follows:

Sheher bananay wale,

Aisi sheher kyon banayi?

Kahay ko Garibabad basayi?

Tu ne,

Kahay ko Garibabad basayi?

Then we dream on and on of our Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea - the mountains, beaches, forests, the Great City with its bustling marketplaces, bars, eateries, fun and entertainment and all that.


After which we address the Ruler of this Garibabad as follows:

Abbay! Thujhay apni Rajdhani pe bahut ghamand hai?

Ghoom ke dhek!

Hum sab garib yahan se bhagnay waley hain!

So, party till the break of dawn, folks, as I will,too, with Hola and the rest.


Tomorrow, if I can manage it, an important post on "policylessness" in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea.


The Only Policy there will be:

Take It Easy Policy!

Ha ha ha...

Poverty In Garibabad - By "Deliberate Design"

This Garibabad called Nude Elly is nothing but a deliberately designed poverty trap. Here, our socialist The State operates a host of monopolies that exploit the poor; and, further, reduce effective demand for other market players, who are all private entrepreneurs.


So, the DDA makes land and housing inordinately expensive - so if you spend more on your house you have less to spend on a car. (Say's Law of Markets.)


The monopoly on the alcohol trade makes "quarters" here far more expensive than in, say, Pondicherry or Goa so, when a poor person spends more on his tipple, he has less to spend on other things, like food. A quarter bottle of a totally ordinary whiskey like Seagram's Imperial Blue costs 70 rupees here, while I bought the same for just 40 rupees in Goa a few months back. This also forces a lot of poor people to consume hooch. And the same applies to the illegal ganja-charas trade.


The Delhi Jal Board makes water expensive - and difficult to obtain: theirs is a form of "hydraulic despotism."


The Municipal Corporation of Delhi along with the Dilli Pulis FUCKS all street-level businessmen. Their "surpluses" are stolen - so they have less to save and invest, and even less to spend on other things.


And even the RTO in effect robs poor entrepreneurs of their precious poonji - their Capital. A "licensed" auto-rickshaw costs far more than a modern car! The RTO has also licensed all kinds of strange tuk-tuks like the "Gramin Sewa" which misallocates poonji and also cheats the final consumer of a comfortable ride. And as for the roads and the traffic...


There are others - like the Electricity Department, the Delhi Transport Corporation, the State monopoly over petroleum products (which are all overtaxed and overpriced). Cooking gas, for example, costs a street-vendor 1000 rupees a cylinder while rich domestic consumers pay just 300.


In this socialist State headquarters, everything is State Property: the roads and footpaths, the keekar forests, and all these monopolies, including the new Metro Rail. Why couldn't we have had private tramways eons ago? - like the Calcutta tramway, which began operations in the early 1900s, as a private company, that too.


It is the DDA that is the WORST of them all - for they have DELIBERATELY DESIGNED the roads and the housing, as well as the physical markets. All these slums are a product of their deliberate design - for this is a "new city."


I am therefore fully confident that my call for a mass migration to Karwar, there to build a new city called Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea, where almost everything will be private, a Capitalist City, a Poonjiwadi City, is the right one. There is no hope for the poor in this socialist Garibabad.


Let us look at Hong Kong and Singapore for courage. Hong Kong was full of shanties occupied by extremely poor refugees from China in the 1940s when Sir John Cowptherwaite arrived there - and today it is one of the world's richest as well as freest cities; an example for Communist China.


Singapore be came independent of Malaysia only in 1965 - one year after Nehru's death - and look where they are now.


So, I have NO REASON at all to believe a word of what rahul gandhi is prattering about when he repeats his paternal grandmother's slogan "Garibi Hatao." In this news report, he says he and his CONgress party will "develop" chuttar pradesh - a province, like Delhi, that is so far away from the sea.


Both Hong Kong and Singapore have prospered because of free maritime trade. They both have deep water ports that are efficiently managed. Sir John Cowptherwaite practised "unilateral free trade" in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Dollar was issued by two private banks. And he refused to set up any bureau to collect "statistics." Thus, he ensured that no "planner" could ever get his cotton-picking hands on the Hong Kong economy.


So, we have History on our side.


And all that rahul gandhi is offering is stale rhetoric.

Sociology - And This EVIL Anti-Sociology

What is good, and what is evil? Well, to earn your keep is good - while to steal,  cheat, plunder - these are evil.


So, Sociology ENCOURAGES ALL to earn their keep in the FREE MARKET under the Majesty of the Law of the Inviolability of Property. This yields a moral, peaceful, enterprising, and prosperous CIVILISATION.


Markets are in cities, and towns - not in villages.


"Rural Development" is an ERROR.


Over half of Garibabad's population have abandoned verdant fields to live in SLUMS here.


These people come to Gariababad - and suffer, and suffer, and suffer -ONLY to earn their honest keep in The Market.


Today, they have come to Vasant Kunj's D-2 Market with a BULLDOZER!


If there had been wide footpaths on both sides of the VK Arterial MG Road that stretches from Andheria More to Mahipalpur - some 10 km - and I mean a footpath like in Calcutta's Chowringhee, think how many SMALL ENTREPRENEURS would have been more successful.


This footpath does not exist.


So, these poor entrepreneurs seek out some other "niche" or the other in this urban, market economy "ecological" system - and thus, over the years, there are all these chaps to be found here - dhaba, tea-shops, chholay, momos, Chinese food, barber, cigarettes, flowers and more.


And these "crazy"  - in the "pathological sense" of the term - sarkari thugs come and DESTROY both Capital as well as Property.


Don't they themselves, in their hearts if not their minds, know they are doing something WRONG? If these are orders from superiors, are these superiors issuing GOOD COMMANDS? Should anyone with a heart if not a mind obey such superiors?


All this is "anti-social" because what they call by this Noble Word is nothing but Anti-Sociology.


If you despise The Market; if you are a worshipper of State Force and Power; if you think that State Employment and Welfare are MORAL - then all this will inevitably happen.


These Anti-Socials want to TEACH ALL THE CHILDREN BY FORCE PAID FOR BY TAXATION.


At least I dissented way back when - but that's another story, for another post.


When psychologists use the terms "anti-social" or "sociopath" they imply that that person's MIND does not work like that of the rest of us - those possessed of "a natural propensity to truck, barter and exchange."


So, I will ESTABLISH my very own School of Sociology in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. There will be "private lectures" for students as well as "public lectures" for citizens. Attendance will be charged - as in the case of Adam Smith's private and public lectures in Glasgow.


Look forward to seeing some of you there.


Liked the post?


Must be the GREAT CHILLUM or TWO I smoked this morning.

BOOM SHANKAR!

DUSHMAN KO THANG KAR!

On Culture, Civil Society, And Tourism - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

"Travel Broadens The Mind" - an old PROVERB - and I am fortunate that I never ever kept on "kickin' around on a piece of ground in my home town, waitin' for someone or something to show me the way." I travelled.


In Europe, there is a word for "Cheers!" in every language: prost, skol, salute... and so on.


In Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, and many Indian languages, there is NO WORD for cheering a glass of alcohol.


And there are THOUSANDS of salutations to Shiva when lighting a chillum.


An ENGLISHMAN told me the story of how, in Himachal's Parbati Valley, trekkers and locals together say:

CHILLUM, CHAI, CHAPATI,

CHALO PARBATI.

The chillum came long before the chai.

And there are SO MANY nashas, including chai, and including SUGAR, which Indian street-chai is all about. Sugar is a very dangerous nasha. There is a "sugar high." There is also diabetes.


And our "food minister" is a "sugar baron"!


And my Food Minister here on the street market of Vasant Kunj who sells me parathas, rice, and stuff, GOT FUCKED yesterday, when MCD Health officials descended upon the market and destroyed and confiscated much Property of peaceful, private traders, and also DISTURBED THE PEACE.


THE POLICE STOOD BY - IN FULL UNIFORM.


ARMED!


It is called MAINTENANCE of law & order. It is NOT called "law enforcement."


So, the BIGGEST QUESTION is NOT what the new "civil government" will be all about. Rather, the biggest question is what the New Society will be all about: a "civil society"; a "voluntary society." If we can achieve this, there will be no problems about civic order - which is what the Civic Sword is supposed to uphold.


Let us look at Englishmen in the Wild West. The first shop to open in any new town would be the "pub" - a place where locals, passing strangers, and travelling businessmen could meet and enjoy their nasha, which was alcohol, because of their own "culture."


Now, such "public spaces" are the ESSENCE of "civil society." We cannot meet everyone around us in our homes - which are "private spaces." Englishmen meet people in pubs - and rarely in their homes. And they carefully guard their "privacy." This is how "civil society" is created - with Private Property being Inviolable. And Freedom of Contracts. And Relief in Torts.


In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea we will be competing with peaceful Goa for tourists - and we are just 5 kms from Goa's southern border. Some of our beaches are far more attractive (and unexplored) than Goa's crowded places. We have mountains. Forests. A river and a riviera. And a CITY with a GREAT BEACH.


To attract tourists to Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea and to promote a "civil society" as well as our own "traditional culture," I declare that anyone and everyone will be PERFECTLY FREE to establish ganja-charas "pubs" where other stuff can also be sold to cure the "cottonmouth" - in Amsterdam they allow only coffee, and not the coffee correto - BLAST! - and I will give them my personal custom. I hope many DUTCH people come to sell their wares. In Adam Smith's time, Glasgow emerged from poverty to prosperity only because of TOBACCO - which they forwarded entirely to the DUTCH. These are a nation who possess KNOWLEDGE about SMOKE. They also brought hops and gin to England. Till they arrived, there was no lager in England - only ale. Just shows the importance of open borders and free immigration. Knowledge travels through trade and immigration. State Education with closed borders is a DISASTER.


Now, we will make all attempts to promote a "civil society" in the OPEN - and when we do so we will find that this is how we encourage tourism. Tourism is the biggest industry in the whole world - and it is a product of ADVANCED CAPITALISM, because it is all about LEISURE and PLEASURE. 


If we can make Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea a PARADISE for all nashas, while educating people about them, especially our own kids, we will be able to create a NEW CIVILISATIONAL CENTRE. This must be established according to our own CULTURE - because culture and tradition are COMMANDS people willingly accept. The "natural order" will prevail - in a completely free market - without any civic disorder.


So, towards this end, STREET FOOD  in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea will be a HUGE INDUSTRY based on KNOWLEDGE and PROPERTY RIGHTS - in stark contrast to all this STATE PREDATION that I have only just recounted about this Garibabad on the Arravalis.


We are not far from Udipi - so we can have the finest South Indian food - and their breakfasts are very healthy.


We are not far from Mangalore - which has a great cuisine, too.


And Goa is close by.


Nearby, too, is Kushalnagar - where Tibs are getting FUCKED. We can invite them to sell momos, thukpa, and chhung. 

Chhung is a MUST.

We can invite tribals to sell their mahuas, handias, apongs and whatever - and politically contribute to the end of Maoism in India. 

"Our strong, moral influence will pervade the whole."

And Handia the smackie can come along to sell his excellent aloo with his superb chutneys. He's no asshole. He does his WORK extremely well. I love his tikkis. And I have 5 at a time. You just can't stop at one. 

Tourists eat and drink out - and they party, and they shop. They want GREAT HOLIDAYS.


Actually, life is also about holidays. 

Labour Is Disutility.

It is after the work is over, and the profits counted, that the FUN BEGINS - as a CONSUMER.


In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea it is the Consumer who will be King - whether he is a foreigner or a local.


People will meet people openly in public spaces and enjoy off-work time together. It is this that is the "open society." It means an OPEN PUBLIC SPACE. 


Anyway, here is Vasant Kunj's D-2 Market, I have suggested a STREET PARTY on the night of the 31st. Christmas here was truly miserable - although there is a Church Road nearby. And we have a DJ kind of establishment that supplies speakers and music systems in Islam Colony. The sarkari booze shop can stay open late.

AND WE THE PEOPLE CAN PARTY! 

PS: The picture accompanying this post is of a London street party in 1937. But street parties are a common occurrence in the European Civilisation - like the jolly and merrie' street Christmas parties the Germans call Weinachtenmarkt, where you get spiced, warm wine to drink and all kinds of stuff to eat.

We got FUCKED in Vasant Kunj this Christmas. 

Hope they don't fuck New Year's Eve, too.

On "Party Funds" - For Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

What is "politics'? What is a "politician"? And what is a "body politic"?


All answers emerge from an examination of the career of John Wilkes (1725-1797) the English politician and journalist who FUCKED the House of Commons, who was much HATED by the King, and who eventually became Lord Mayor of London.


By that time, Wilkes was quite broke. His huge political battles with Parliament has wiped him out. And tradition had it that the Lord Mayor of London must live in great style at his own expense.


Bartholomew Rede was one example Wilkes had to follow. In Rede's time, an Italian appeared at his Daily Feast with the offer to sell a precious stone - but the Italian made a mistake: he told Rede that the King of England probably could not afford to buy this stone, which he was selling at 1000 pounds. Rede immediately bought that stone and ordered his servant to grind it into dust and pour it into his wine glass. He then drank the glass in one shot and told the Italian, "Speak honourably of the King of England for thou hast just seen one of his subjects drink 1000 pounds in one quaff."


That is the Lord Mayor of London: A man far wealthier than the King.


Indeed, when Henry V went to battle at Agincourt with his poverty-stricken "longbowmen," he had to pawn his jewels with the then Lord Mayor. Thus, at the ceremony held in the City to bid him good luck, the Lord Mayor sat on his immediate right - after which, tradition holds that the Lord Mayor of London is second only to the King in the official protocol.


Now, John Wilkes FUCKED Parliament. It is only because of him that parliamentary debates are available for all to read in the verbatim. Till then, they were secret. Wilkes caused "parliamentary reform." He was a GREAT POLITICIAN. He won the elections thrice - and each time the House of Commons rejected him as a member. Yet, in the end, he emerged second only to the King; far above the Prime Minister.


History records that Wilkes was BROKE when he became Lord Mayor. Yet, the citizens of London loved him - only because he stood for LIBERTY. There were posters all over London then saying "Wilkes and Liberty." And, history records that the citizens of this fair city unhitched the horses to his official carriage and hauled it themselves to Mansion House.


I intend to follow this example. Wilkes lived in GRAND STYLE as Lord Mayor - on borrowed funds. The King of England, who always referred to him as "that devil, Wilkes" had no choice but to attend his Lord Mayor's Banquet, which he hosted at his own expense. And the King had to be "cordial."


Of course, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea there will be NO KING. The Lord Mayor will be SUPREME. And he will never surrender his Civic Sword to anyone. He will conduct his public office in great style at his own expense. This is what I intend to do. 


Now, I recently received a comment from a regular reader - a comment that I did not publish - saying that he would be happy to arrange for "party funds" provided I gave up my obsession with ganja.


Hey! Manohar! FUCK OFF!


I do NOT need party funds for any "electoral campaign." I have no party. I am standing for this post uncontested. And I will live in great style as Lord Mayor on borrowed funds - which I will repay when my School of Sociology gets going, after my one year of office is over and done with. 


And as far as ganja is concerned, dear Manohar, please note what MY FLAG is all about. I am NOT gandhi - who picked up some salt. I picked up bholay-ki-booti.


And therein lies all the difference.


The difference is NASHA.


Gandhi hated all nashas.


I LOVE bholay-ki-booti.


I do NOT need any "party funds."


When the ball game gets rolling, I will borrow-and-spend - and hopefully return when the going gets good.


So, get my drift, and do NOT fuck with me.

Housing - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

There will NOT be any "public housing" in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea; none of this DDA land and housing monopoly that has created this Garibabad.


I remember the days, 20 odd years ago, when DDA announced they were selling SFS Flats in Vasant Kunj. SFS means "self-financing." So, if you wanted one you had to pay some money upfront and hope for the best in a "lottery." If your number came up, you got the flat - but not before you paid its entire cost upfront. There was no "housing finance" in India those days. These horrible flats are now worth over a crore of rupees (1 crore is 10 million). And as for the really poor - there are only slums, where none possess property titles. Over 50 per cent of Delhi's citizens live in such slums. Garibabad is the right name for this city.


In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea all housing will be Private Property. And for the poor I will encourage "prefabricated homes" - like the one seen in the photo accompanying this post. There are many big companies in this business all over the world - and we will invite them to sell their products to us.


Land, of course, will be "homesteaded." You take over "unowned land" and then install your prefabricated home upon it. Just leave enough space for roads and footpaths, for public parks, and the like.


You pay a flat rate Property Tax in exchange for a Clear Property Title.


And your show is on the road.


So, who's coming with me?

Let Us Leave God OUT Of Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

The Chattarpur area near Mehrauli is entirely taken over by GOD: temples, temples and more temples, each bigger than the other.


So, there is very little space for HUMAN BEINGS.


I do NOT want Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea to be such a city. 


As I have announced, I will establish a School of Sociology there. We will study HUMAN BEINGS, HUMAN ACTION, and HUMAN SOCIETY. This also concerns REALITY: for it is about MARKETS - which is where WEALTH is created. It is also about SECULAR MORALITY: and Adam Smith was a Professor of Moral Philosophy. The Market is a moral social institution: shubh laabh. And the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, "He who makes money pleases Allah." Jains, Parsis, Sikhs... they are all businessmen.


However, since the BJP platform is centred around a temple, I hereby declare that in the Main City Area of which I will be the first Lord Mayor, there will be NO SPACE for God. 


Citizens will be encouraged to study Moral Philosophy. And keep religion "private."


Citizens will also be encouraged to study the Works of Ludwig von Mises: which will be the Official Holy Books. For starters, do read the long chapter titled "The Market" in Mises' Human Action: A Treatise on Economics.


As Mises says in his opening paragraph, Economics is the "youngest of the sciences." Thus, it has been prone to error - as with Psychiatry, also a very young science.


Central Economic Planning is one such ERROR.


So, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea, far, far away from this Garibabad, let us focus all our attention on REALITY: the city, the roads, the streets, the footpaths, and let us focus on keeping The Market FREE. Let us all enjoy studying Human Action together.


The BJP are all "bholay ke dushman." It is a BJP government in Uttaranchal. It is here that the chaar dhaam yatra and the devbhoomi exist. Gangotri!


When I was walking down Gangotri's main market, someone tapped me VERY HARD on the shoulder. I turned around in anger only to find a tall sadhu with long dreadlocks, who looked me squarely in the face and asked:

Ai bhakt! Tu dum lagata hai?

I assured him I did - and we smoked a few chillums together in the main market square of Gangotri.

What Is Civilisation?: Part 2

Continuing from where I left off yesterday, let us now turn to the Science of Economics, which says that civilisation depends on the "accumulation of capital" while de-civilisation occurs with "capital consumption."


This is not difficult to comprehend.


As discussed yesterday, civilisation is about leisure and pleasure. And these require capital. Without this capital, civilisation cannot happen. And all this happens in The Market. It is in The Market that wealth is created. The State, on the other hand, is a destroyer of capital. The State taxes us - and spends. None of the top personnel of our The State actually create wealth: manmohan, sonia, rahul, advani, laloo, mulayam, mamata... They are all TAX PARASITES.


Now, these fucked-up tax parasites have decided upon a "employment guarantee scheme" by which they intend to make tax parasites of all of us. 


What bloody nonsense is this?


In reality, this is nothing but CAPITAL CONSUMPTION. 


All "welfare" is capital consumption. Nothing is saved. Nothing is invested. All is consumed.


This is the pathway to DE-CIVILISATION.


And that is the highway upon which manmohan has taken the nation.


There will be no money left to build roads, footpaths, highways - and all the money will be spent on this fucked-up welfare that nobody needs.


Indeed, all this money will be STOLEN by their fucked-up bureaucrats.


Therefore, in my opinion, chacha manmohan s gandhi is NOT an "economist." Rather, he is a "diseconomist." He does not know what capital and capital accumulation are all about. Instead, everything he stands for is about capital consumption. He is hell bent upon DESTROYING our civilisation.


And it shows.


It is not just that we have lost our civility. It is not just that we have lost our politeness. The fact is that we are all losing our CAPITAL. They are destroying our poonji - while pretending to help us.


There is samajwadi - and there is poonjiwadi. The samajwadis like manmohan claim to spend our poonji for our benefit. This is false.


Under poonjiwadi, each INDIVIDUAL is the PROPRIETOR of his own poonji - and it is he who will decide how this is to be invested. This is a world of PRIVATE RISK.


Today's world is something else: a bunch of thieves taking over all our CAPITAL. And consuming it, that too.


Recommended read: My "The case for private money," available here.

What Is "Civilisation"?

Edward Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire was published in 1776 - the very same year that saw Adam Smith's An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. Indeed, both these books were published by the same London publisher - and Gibbon outsold Smith. It was an important year - 1776 - the year that America fought for and won its independence from Britain. This was also the year that Clive won the Battle of Plassey. Thus, these two books had a huge impact on all those who, sitting in London, were looking at a new empire in India; particularly, the Honourable Court of Directors of the East India Company.


Interestingly, both Gibbon and Smith had studied in Oxford - and both later agreed that this university was "dead." They were friends. They admired each other. And their publisher, Strahan, loved them both.


In 1776, therefore, the East India Company looked towards India with a view of not making the mistakes that had led to the departure of America from the British Empire. Smith's great book taught them much - and very soon they established their very own Haileybury College in order to instruct their "civil servants" in "political economy," a subject that was then NOT taught in either Oxford or Cambridge. Smith was taught - by Malthus! And many, many GREAT MEN served in India, with distinction, because of Haileybury. Like Sleeman - who fucked all the thughees by Law, without any "extra-judicial killings" of the kind we now have: "encounter deaths." 


Now, Allan Octavian Hume ICS, who made the grave mistake of founding the Indian National CONgress, was a Haileybury Man. If you read all the annual reports of the INC meets during Hume's time, you will not be surprised to find that the INC under his stewardship was thoroughly "classical liberal." A good example is Surendranath Banerjea's Presidential Address in 1895 - an extract of which you can find in my old post here.


But I was talking about "civilisation." Cities. Great Cities. Calcutta. Bombay. Madras... and so on. Not this Garibabad called Nude Elly ruled by an Italian dowager queen.


In Italy, they drink WINE. Michaelangelo's biography reveals that when this great painter was dirt poor, he survived on wine and bread. Even today, in Italy, wine is cheaper than Coca-Cola. Like the Greeks, the Romans too had a God of Wine.


In Greece, particularly in Athens, of which we have records, "drinking parties" were a daily affair for all, rich and poor. Plato's Symposium tells of one such party that Socrates attended - a great party indeed - and it is noteworthy that drunken revellers from the streets gatecrashed this party and it broke up in pandemonium!


This is "civilisation."


Civilisation means "having a good time" - after the day's work is done. It means "leisure" - and "pleasure." It is the "pursuit of happiness."


So, this is what LIFE in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea will be all about.


PARTIES!


Not "political parties."


Fun parties.


Let the Good Times Roll!


Recommended reading: Clive Bell's Civilisation. This little book has been re-published in India by Rupa, and is available here. Flipkart.com says it is currently out of stock, but it is an old book, out of copyright, and you should be able to find an online copy on the internet.


Happy reading.


And happy dreamin' - of CIVILISATION.


PS: This post is continued here.

On "Natural Elites" - Like Me

Islam Colony is a "tough neighbourhood": men are rough; the language is rough; and even the old women use rough language. Yet, after a little over a month here, without any fighting or violence, I have earned the respect of all around me. And, I think, it all began with the dog.


Handia, my smackie neighbour, got himself this handsome little desi puppy - and kept him tied up in his little quarters, forever miserable. His kids would sometimes take him around - but always on a chain, dragging him about. After watching this for a couple of days, I decided to intervene. I liberated the dog permanently from the chain. And I told Handia and his kids that dogs are highly intelligent creatures, that God has given him a brain, four strong legs, a very warm coat of fur, and far more powerful senses of hearing, sight and smell than we humans possess. So, I said, let the dog be - and let him explore his territory and learn. I added that, if this was done, this dog would look after us - and we would not have to look after him. Within a few days, this is precisely what occurred. And respect for me grew by leaps and bounds.


Today, this little pup has charmed all around him. He barks at and shoos away big dogs who enter his territory. He chases squirrels. Even big, fat pigs are scared of him. And when I return from my blogging, he runs up to me wagging his tail and sits at my feet - and he sits with great style, too. I have named him "Rex." The kids and Handia all say that this dog is now MY DOG. Yet, I did nothing for the dog other than liberating him from the chain. I don't feed him. The dog, on its own, has come to love me. I am very fond of Rex, too. Somehow, the entire episode has convinced all around that there must be something special about me, in that I not only "teach the children well"; I also handle animals well.


Other that this, my tough neighbourhood has also carefully observed me. First and foremost, they have seen that I handle my nashas very well. All the old women agree that my ganja-charas is a sattvik nasha - while Handia's smack is gandha stuff. They have seen me drink booze with the big, tough Gujjars - and hold my own. They have seen that my habits are "regular": that I wake up early and retire on time. They have occasionally conversed with me - and found my views surprisingly intelligent. They "look up" to me now - though I never ever "look down" upon them.


George Orwell, who began his career as an officer of the Imperial Police in Burma, was different - and he was a socialist. In his adventures in Catalonia, where he went to fight alongside the rebels - who were all peasants - he revels in the fact that it is here that he found his much cherished "equality." And equality is what socialism is all about, wrote Orwell.


Indian socialism is NOT about equality at all. On the contrary, it is entirely a VVIP culture. In earlier times, some of these VVIPs might have been a "natural elite." Not any more. Nehru and Gandhi "dominated" the scene with their words - both written as well as spoken. Today's VVIPs are but mice in comparison.  They cannot dominate the scene, which is why a havildar like Anna Hazare has gained so much prominence.


Max Weber said that the State must "dominate" - yet, he added that this domination has to be based on "legitimacy." It is here that our VVIPs have failed. They have lost all legitimacy.


Great leaders of the past who have dominated entire peoples were NOT "politicians" looking for "votes." All of them were MORAL LEADERS. This is what gave them "legitimacy": from the Buddha, who was broke, to Mahavira, who was naked, to the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, who could neither read nor write. Natural elites always emerge in society - and they dominate with their minds. It is words - written as well as spoken. Anna Hazare is SILENT: on a "maun vrat." manmohan, sonai, rahul - they are all silent. There are no "political debates" on Indian TV - and only "spokespersons" of various "political parties" are seen and heard.


I write - and I also talk: at the tea shop in Vasant Kunj, with the Gujjar Boys, and with my neighbours. It is these words, as well as my behaviour, that have established me as ELITE. Today, the police have completely stopped hassling me, like they used to.

Of course, Google helped - a lot. The Gujjars were amazed when they found my photo with Baroness Thatcher on their mobile phone! What? This dude is hated by the Indian cops! they thought. Now, every single day, they ask me what I wrote about in my Daily Post - and I tell them. They love it.


Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea - here we come.


With me as Lord Mayor - uncontested.


Natural Elite. 

In The Name Of The Law: Part 2

Continuing from where I left off yesterday, the socialist-democratic State practices "interventionism" through legislation as well as subordinate legislation: and these are all the "rules & regulations" that empower bureaus and bureaucrats to tyrannise businessmen, both big as well as small. Since they do not believe that businessmen should be "left free" - laissez faire - this interventionism is inevitable. Yet, the more the rules and the more the regulations, the worse it is for society, for conflicts increase, especially between the State and the people. It is not unsurprising that it is our The State that is the biggest litigant in the country. And the number of cases pending in the courts is astronomical. All this is UNLAW. It is also TYRANNY.


A pertinent example is the alcohol trade in this Garibabad called Nude Elly. Here, this trade is a State Monopoly - so there are very few shops and, because of taxation, prices are also much higher than elsewhere in India. Now, wee the people are the CUSTOMERS of this The State. But how does this ugly monopolist treat us?


Well, there are no "public spaces" in Nude Elly where people can drink - like beer gardens or bistros or even the little "bar & rest"  establishments found all over Goa. Thus, what happens is that if anyone is seen drinking anywhere in the open, the same police whose salaries are paid for by the high taxes pounce on you! 


TYRANNY!


It is therefore not unsurprising that the Minister for Education is a socialist lawyer. Such lawyers alone teach law here; and only such lawyers become judges. Their view of law is "positive law" - and that is legislation. And subordinate legislation. They do not know the difference between law and legislation - hence all this unlaw, all this tyranny, and all these legal conflicts which lawyers and judges PROFIT from, for they are well paid to resolve these.


Socialist-democratic lawyers are therefore some of the most dangerous people in the world. They are directly responsible for the perversion of law. Almost all the world's greatest tyrants were lawyers - from Abraham Lincoln to Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, Jinnah... Indeed, it is noteworthy that in his The Men Who Ruled India, Philip Mason notes that some of the "worst people to be found in the districts were lawyers, for they had learnt how to exploit loopholes in English law."


Things were different in the "princely states." Here, conflicts were few - and all cases were promptly solved. The ruler usually hired a respected and well reputed retired judge from British India to visit his State once a fortnight and settle all pending  cases. Rulers also held back the judge's salary if too many cases were left pending.


In the Calcutta of Warren Hastings, Sir Elijah Impey was the judge - and, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea I intend to import a good libertarian judge from abroad. I met one once - from the USSA. And I was also told of the "Rent-a-Judge" companies in California, which people who want their disputes settled promptly approach. These rent-a-judge companies have retired judges on their payroll and these "private judges" are possessed with the incentive to settle disputes promptly and fairly for two reasons: first, they cannot use force; and second, they want repeat custom.


However, it is important to note that in a laissez faire economy, there will be very few legal disputes, and most people will go through life without ever entering a court of law.


Socialism is UNLAW as well as ANTI-SOCIAL because of all these reasons: their disrespect for Property leads to "legal plunder"; their hatred of businessmen and the market leads to corruption and tyranny; their selfish motives as lawyers, judges and bureaucrats leads to an explosion of legislation, rules and regulations. 


Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea will be very different. It will be a "private law society." The entire "body politic" will comprise honest businessmen who want to be left alone to "mind their own businesses." The market will be perfectly free. I anticipate very few disputes - and these will be promptly settled.


It is only under such conditions that people turn to the law - instead of "taking the law into their own hands." When they know that the law is to be respected because it offers all of them equal protection, only then will the "natural order" of a Free Market Society prevail. 


Under democratic-socialism today, the very opposite is happening. Even the cops are "lawless." And almost everyone finds himself an "outlaw" every once in a while - like, for example, when sipping a beer bought at a State-owned vend.

In The Name Of The Law

"True law is eternal and universal," wrote the great Cicero eons ago. And true law begins and ends with Property.


Socialism, this very new political philosophy, on the other hand, is UNLAW. Because they do not respect the property of others, socialism is what Bastiat called LEGAL PLUNDER. Our Parliament passed various "Acts" to enable the "nationalisation" of various properties that Indira Gandhi did not own: coal mines, banks, insurance companies, Air India...


Thus, these "Acts of Parliament" are UNLAW. This inevitably happens when socialism combines with "democracy" - and all this NEW LAW called "democratic legislation" is used to interfere in society. Like the legislative ban on Bholay-ki-booti. Sadhus in Haridwar have complained to me about this. Kiran Bedi was a Narcotics Commissioner. Atal Behari Vajpayee lives in Manali. And Advani was his Police Minister. The BJP never says "Jai Bholay Shankar" - and Bhola is our MAHADEV. Hindus and Muslims smoke Bholay-ki-booti together - quite happily.

TRUE LAW IS ETERNAL AND UNIVERSAL, wrote Cicero.

The news today says that the entire Cabinet has passed a Food Security Bill that will soon become another "Act of Parliament" - thereby enabling our The State to misappropriate 1,50,000 crore rupees (1 crore is 10 million). Most of this money will be STOLEN - all in the name of the poor.

THE PREDATORY STATE PRETENDING TO BE A WELFARE STATE

Bastiat used another expression for socialism - apart from "legal plunder" - and that is "FALSE PHILANTHROPY." Indeed, all this socialism, all this nationalisation, and all this central planning was all done in the name of the poor.


In this Garibabad, poor people spend not more that 20 or 30 rupees on food every day - but they spend much more on their nasha. And our The State FUCKS each and every nasha.


Just the other day, hundreds of poor people died after consuming SPURIOUS LIQUOR. This is first and foremost a TORT. The perpetrator should have to first compensate the victims and their families. And this is the ETERNAL LAW that Cicero wrote of, for it existed among the Anglo-Saxon tribes long before the Norman Conquest. All crimes were crimes against individuals - and these were torts. There was no "criminal justice system." And there were no crimes against The State or its Parliament. The Normans changed everything - despite the fact that William the Conqueror was petitioned thus:

WE DO NOT WANT ANY CHANGES IN THE LAWS 

OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS

Property, Contracts and Torts - these form the basis of a JUST and FREE society. Only such societies succeed. It is the "rules of the game" that determine each and every society's chances of success or failure. The English people went ahead of the rest of the world only for this reason. And it is socialism and Keynesianism that has destroyed them.


Keynesianism is also UNLAW. Money must have a LEGAL DEFINITION. One English Pound Sterling must be defined - in terms of a specific quantity of gold of specified quality. Paper money inflationism combined with welfarism is a horrible JOKE on poor people. It erodes their Capital - their poonji. If a poor man saves his paper notes in a bank @ 8 percent interest, he finds the value of that paper depreciating @ 20 percent. Keynes wanted to "cheat the working classes." And socialists claim to "represent labour."


So, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea we will have True Law - and none of this legal plunder, none of this false philanthropy.

BOOM SHANKAR!

DUSHMAN KO THANG KAR!

PS: This post is continued here.

It's Anna Hazare's "Politics" Versus Mine

Anna Hazare is now asking his followers to undertake dharnas (demonstrations) outside the residences of sonia and rahul gandhi - the dowager queen and the crown prince of this garibabad. And, after that, he has decided on a "jail bharo andolan."


So, if you follow this retired havildar, you will end up in JAIL!


And all this for establishing yet another anti-corruption czar - as though the Central Vigilance Commission and the CBI are not enough.


In any case, everything about life in this Garibabad is CORRUPT: the booze trade, the ganja-charas trade, water, electricity, the Municipal Corporation of Garibabad, the Garibabad Development Authority, the Garibabad Pulis - everything.


Will this Lokpal of Anna Hazare change anything? I sincerely doubt it. Cops and judges will get jobs - that's all.


And what am I calling upon my poverty-stricken followers to do?


I am calling upon them to IGNORE all this "politics" and all these "politicians." I am saying, "Forget about sonia, rahul, advani, yechuri, the karats, mulayam, laloo, nitish, modi, mamata, bsy, jayalalithaa... et. al." 


I am saying, "Abandon this Garibabad and flee with me to Karwar, where we will build a Great City called Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. Bring along your poonji in gold. The economy there will be perfectly free. We will establish an honest civic corporation under my leadership, and I will be the first Lord Mayor, for just one year; that too, at my own expense, following the traditions of the Olde City of London and the example of John Wilkes."


I am saying: Let us form this honest "body politic" and raise the Civic Sword. And I am an authority on "civil government."


Civil government is based on a Market Society - which is why it has to be honest. The proverbs "Honesty is the best policy" and "Cheats do not prosper" both originated in the market. 


Anna Hazare initially claimed to be a "civil society movement" - but all his top supporters are actually members of "political society": like Kiran Bedi, the cop; like Kejriwal of the Income Tax Department; like Santosh Hegde, a socialist judge; like the Bhushans, who are socialist lawyers. And his "movement" is therefore "political."


My "mass movement" is NOT political: it is simply a peaceful, internal migration. Raising the Civic Sword will, of course, be a political act - but a perfectly legitimate one, based on History and Law.


And I have only just written two posts on how little politics will pervade life in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea - unlike life in this Garibabad called Nude Elly, the political capital of this socialist State. The first of these posts can be read here; the second, here.


Read these. Then think. And decide.


With Anna - you volunteer to go to JAIL.


With me - you ESCAPE SOCIALISM and its "politics."


An Honest Civic Corporation will be established.


Corruption will not be tolerated.


There will be NO Lokpal in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. We will follow the illustrious example of the Olde City of London, whose corporation is over 800 years old - and completely "without scandal." It is the best example of "civic independence" in the entire world. 


So, as the song goes:


Mister, look at the mountain,
Missus, look at the sea,
That's where I am heading,
Who's coming with me?

Politics - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea: Part 2

The Lord Mayor of Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea will encourage enterprise and actively discourage beggary. My edition of Samuel Smiles' Self-Help: With Illustrations of Perseverance and Conduct - the book that fired Japan's catch-up with the West in the 1860s - will be recommended for the entire citizenry, especially the kids. This book tells of innumerable great men who started off poor - and is therefore a GREAT MOTIVATOR. In either case, the Theory of the Vicious Circle of Poverty is false - and poverty itself is a great motivator. People who are poor work hard to succeed - while the children of the wealthy who lead soft, mollycoddled lives, usually sink into idleness and vice: The Vicious Circle of Prosperity. And I am leading the poor out of here to Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. They are all the BEST people we have - while, if we look at this socialist The State, it becomes obvious that Hayek's prophecy in his The Road to Serfdom - that socialism would lead to "the worst getting on top" - has come true. The people are THE RESOURCE, while this The State is THE PROBLEM.


Thus, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea, the Lord Mayor will institute PRIZES for worthy enterprises that make the city proud. In his time, in his native Scotland, Adam Smith instituted prizes for all kinds of things - from the "best hogshead of ale" to the best timber farmers. Such prizes will also be instituted in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. Surely, the best brewer, the best ganja farmer, the best sandalwood farmer and so on all deserve to be recognised. The Western Ghats of India are extremely fertile - and many high-value "cash crops" can be grown. Fantastic fruit, fantastic flowers, fantastic spices, medicinal plants, stevia, fantastic timber: sandalwood, ebony, mahogany, teak, rosewood... In time, the best in these areas will be recognised by the City for their talents and efforts. Excellence in any field will be rewarded.


Socialism, welfarism, inflationism, compulsory schooling - all these will be kept out of Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea.


Remember: The "politics" of the Lord Mayor of London has always centred around astounding the King with his wealth. English kings were always poor warlords and nothing more. These merchants were always incredibly rich. The kings could fight - but many of these Lord Mayors could not even ride a horse. The Lord Mayor's golden carriage, the splendid barge to take him down the Thames, the pageants, the pomp - all these were a celebration of wealth. It is for this reason that the Lord Mayor, during his year in office, has to live in great style at his own expense. This "one square mile of liberty" is what made the British Empire - and we will follow this illustrious example. History - not Theory.


PS: The first part of this series can be read here.

Politics - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

Unlike this Garibabad called Nude Elly, there will be very little - and only essential - "politics" in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. After all, the City Slogan is "Jai Vyapari" and the City Motto is "mind your own business." So, all the "liveried, worshipful companies" meet in a ritual to appoint their Lord Mayor, after which it is "business as usual" - for all, except the Lord Mayor, who has to neglect his business in order to run civic affairs. 


The office of Lord Mayor of London has never been an "office of profit" and many refuse this office because of this reason, and the added fact that living it up in the lavish lifestyle required COSTS MONEY. Many have therefore refused the office - and they were heavily fined. It is said that Mansion House, the official residence of the Lord Mayor, was "built for those who wanted to be Lord Mayor at the expense of those who did not."


John Wilkes was one Lord Mayor who was broke - but he did manage the means to live it up in the splendour required. He, of course, had founded the "Hellfire Club" in an abandoned monastery! Because of his writings, there were posters saying "Wilkes and Liberty" all over London. And the King hated him, always referring to him as "that devil, Wilkes." Yet, Wilkes hosted a Lord Mayor's Banquet at his own expense - and the King had to attend, and be "cordial." A portion of Antarctica is named after John Wilkes; Lincoln's assassin was also named after him. Great man.


So, if you get my drift, there will be none of these socialist "political parties" in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. Instead, there will be a "body politic" comprising the human bodies of the citizenry, united under the intellectual and moral leadership of their Lord Mayor.


Lord Wellesley, the "glorious little man," sitting in Calcutta, said "let our strong moral influence pervade the whole." The whole included thousands of little princes, from Mysore to Manipur, who were trained by "residents" from the Political Service. We will attempt to re-create that magic by setting a good example. Running cities requires "local knowledge." There is no other way.


Remember, of the British Empire it was said that it was "an empire of laws and not of men." And all that liberalism desires is to unite the world in law - not the creation of empires.


Finally, all my "politics" will be in the OPEN. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, while at Medina, was always accompanied by scribes who noted down every thing he said or did. I do NOT want any "official secrets." It is the people, who are all private citizens and businessmen, who will enjoy PRIVACY.


Politics are the public actions of free people. It is a "civilising activity" meant to bring about a "moral consensus." And it is a moral consensus, which is a "common recognition of the same rules," that brings about a "body politic."


"Leviathan bears the body of the citizenry," wrote Thomas Hobbes.


PS: This post is continued here.

Education - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea: Part 2

Continuing from where I left off yesterday, it was a Lord Mayor of London who coined the expression "The 3 R's" - Reading, Writing and Arithmetic - and it was another Lord Mayor who established the school in Stratford-upon-Avon where Shakespeare later studied. It was the widow of a Lord Mayor who set up the elite Radcliffe College for women in the USSA. In an age when printing had not been invented, Dick Whittington bequeathed a library to Guildhall. And as the word "guild" implies, each "worshipful company" carefully guarded its own "knowledge." After their 3 R's, youngsters joined one company or the other as an apprentice - and learned something useful in THE MARKET. Children were "busy."


As far as the 3 R's are concerned, I advocate the English language in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. I also advocate teaching kids how to use a calculator. Why burden one's mind with maths? All official documents will be in English.


For those who wish to become serious "scholars" when they grow up, I will advocate learning Latin and Greek, too, so that all the republican literature of the ancients are studied in the original. We must invite serious scholars to set up such schools - like the "gymnasium" is Vienna where both Mises and Hayek studied.


My own School of Sociology will train trainers in the subject areas. They will spread The Light.


Another important aspect of "knowledge" that Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea will encourage is knowledge about nasha. Indeed, nasha will be considered a very serious human pursuit. As I observe in this Garibabad, all men spend less on food than they do on their nasha - and this Gandhian socialist The State FUCKS all their nashas. You get ganja adulterated with chemicals, you get alcoholic drinks that are unfit for human consumption, gutka-shutka, bidis, and so on. 


So, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea, the populace will be encouraged to STUDY NASHAS. People who possess "knowledge" about ganja-charas, about alcohol, about magic mushrooms, about cocaine, about opium, about tobacco or whatever, will deliver their knowledge in the public arena and our citizenry will be very well informed in these matters.


It is my intention to make Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea the "Amsterdam of the East" - and while The Ganja Leaf will be its flag, the Official City Drink will be Draught Beer. There are "beer gardens" in Munich - as the picture accompanying this post shows. There will be many such beer gardens in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea. You gotta see the HORRIBLE place in Garibabad where I was FORCED to consume my beer an hour ago.


We will make every attempt to make Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea a happy city, where people have fun, a place that tourists will enjoy visiting, and come again and again. Our "population policy" will be:

THE MORE THE MERRIER

So, let the tourists come in droves. 

Education - In Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea

I have just walked through Masoodpur - and this is NOT "civilisation," a word that has its root in civitas, which means "city." And in this Garibabad there is a Delhi School of Sociology just opposite the Delhi School of Mathematical Economics & Statistics. Their buildings and facilities are all DECREPIT.


This is KNOWLEDGE FAILURE.


So, I will teach - Sociology, the Science of Society, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea.


It all begins with SPECIALISATION - the "division of labour" accompanied by the "fragmentation of knowledge." These are not theory; they are the data. We SEE this around us in every city and town bazaar. 


And then there is the Law of Association - by which all the problems socialists have with "inequality" are sorted out. My old column on this law can be read here.


After that, there must be an understanding that COMPETITION is an excellent thing, while the absence of competition is nothing short of TYRANNY - on the consumer, who is, as they say, "your wife."


People must understand that in any market, there are more businessmen who do NOT compete with you than there are those who do - and this is the basis of Jean Baptiste Say's Law of Markets.


Every single child must also learn to appreciate his or her mind - and get to grips with its "logical construction." They must all thank heavens for their "natural propensity to truck, barter and exchange" - which differentiates them from the apes, their closest cousins. They must be taught to appreciate their "mental categories" - like Capital and Income, like Property, like Arithmetic. They must all memorise Bastiat's famous slogan:

TO BELIEVE IN LIBERTY IS TO BELIEVE IN GOD - 

AND HAVE FAITH IN HIS CREATION: MAN

I will teach all of these - and I have told the kids to learn English from the television.


I will discourage metaphysical speculation on the nature of God - and encourage the citizenry to learn about REALITY: that is, about markets and the uniqueness of the human mind.


The works of Ludwig von Mises will be our Official Holy Books.


Socialist Sociology is actually "anti-social." It is a Worship of State Power and nothing more - while in the Market Society there is a "natural order" without any coercion.


They do NOT understand that specialisation and the division of labour are maximised in cities - so they destroy cities and foolishly pursue "rural development." Why have villagers abandoned their green fields to live in slums like Islam Colony? Obviously, there are no markets in sparsely populated villages. You cannot even run a tea-shop in one.


They do NOT understand civilisation, cities, markets, and the importance of transportation. They do NOT understand human society. 


Yes, in Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea, we will build a GREAT CENTRE OF CIVILISATION - and we will build it on KNOWLEDGE.


In my public utterances as Lord Mayor I will teach the citizens The Law - that is, Property, Contracts, and Torts. This is vital because civic order is the entire purpose of the Civic Sword. If there is public disorder, all shops must close down - and Daulatabad-upon-the-Sea aims to be a 24-hour economy, where "the city never sleeps."


Finally, I will also instruct the populace that our great city is NOT about "community" - but that it is a CATALLAXY, in which we all welcome peaceable strangers, like TOURISTS. We are just 5 km from the southern border of Goa, and we have many pretty beaches, mountains, islands, jungles, a riviera and so on to attract them. A great city would also be an attraction - because the Goan cities are all quite shabby today. You can read my old column on "catallaxy" here.


Remember that William Hardel, Lord Mayor of London then, was on the Committee of Barons that forced King John to sign the Magna Carta. What were such men like - these wealthy city merchants of whom it was said that "the people of London would have no other king than their Lord Maior"? 


Think!


The title "Lord" was never given to the Mayor by the King. It is a title bestowed upon that civic office by the people.


Think!


This post is continued here.