The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

1972 STATUS: END PRODUCT OF WELFARE 315tion of new skills, the generationof positive motives, and the enlightenmentof the human mind.The only true emancipation of theIndian can come with his developmentand growth as an individual.This kind of change requires time- many decades of it - and patienceon the part of the Indianand the white man, and the kind ofunderstanding that rejects simplesolutions and instant answers.Because of his own experiencewith the welfare state, no' one inCanada today can testify more eloquentlyto the depressing resultsof that state than the Indian. Attractivethough it might seem, itis the trap that ensnares the unwary.It promises the ideal. ofegalitarianism to the poor; it holdsout the prospect of fair shares forall. The Indian, in his naivete andignorance, succumbed to theseblandishments.The rest of us, however, willhave no excuse for our self-debasement.If we anow the Ministerof National Health and Welfareto ensnare us further into the welfarestate, because it is easier tocomputerize twenty-three millionpeople for' guaranteed incomesthan it is to face up to the need ofexciting Canadians as individualsto the joy of earning their ownincomes and guaranteeing theirown futures, we will be skiddingdown the same sticky, tricky roadthat the Indian started down acentury'ago. We will end up in.thesame morass, the same dreadfuldecay. If this does happen, thewhite man will have walked intothe slough of despond with hiseyes wide open. He will learn thatthe blandishments of the great nationalbonanza can become only thebars of the new national Bastille.The Indian knows this road onlytoo' well. His history is its map,and every trap bears witness tohis suffering. At this juncture inour joint history, it is we whoneed the help of the Indian morethan he needs ours. He canwa,rnus that there will be no good huntingin a country whose governmentofficials multiply faster thanjack rabbits, for it will be foundthat all the cabbages we grow inthis green and pleasant land willnever be enough to satiate them.f)IDEAS ONLIBERTYSecurity May Betray UsAU grants, all subsidies, all rewards for services not rendered havea deleterious effect on character; and if character is not of foremostconsideration, what is?ARCHIBALD RUTLEDGE