The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

1972 WELFARE: HIDDEN BACKLASH 381from spineless parents. This iswelfarism of a sort, especiallywhen the panhandling and shopliftingis condoned. Mr. Shumiatcherhas an uneasy feeling thatthe hippie way of life will moreand more spread to the generalpopulation as the politicians, seekinvotes, offer bigger and betterhandouts, thus emulating thespineless parents who have allowedtheir offspring to grow up withthe impression that affluence is nolonger dependent on dedication,training and work.Though Mr. Shumiatcher's bookis limited to Canada, it could, presumably,have drawn upon "southof the border" material to makethe same points. The U.S. has donebadly by its Indians by followingpractices that are very similar tothose instituted by the Queen'scommissioners in Canada. If ourhippie problem has been mitigated,it is largely because many of ourflower children have gone to Torontoand other Canadian cities toescape the Vietnam War. As forour State Welfarism, it growsapace.Will it soon be "Lo! The poorWhite Man"? Read Mr.Shumiatcherand weep.~JOSEPH STORY AND THEAMERICAN CONSTITUTION byJames McClellan (Norman, Oklahoma:University of OklahomaPress, 1971) xvii, 413 pp, $12.50.Reviewed by Gottfried DietzeTHE GREAT HOPE of the AmericanRevolution was that self-govern-.ment would lead to an increasingemancipation of the individual.Fortunately,the Founding Fathers,in what John Fiske called the criticalperiod of American history,also knew that excesses of democracycould be detrimental to freedomby opening the door to majoritarianismand anarchy. Displayingthe kind of common senseBlackstone hoped would prevailamong the members of Parliament- who would consider themselvesbound by the common law and refrainfrom oppressing life, libertyand property - Americans, in orderto secure free government,adopted a Constitution providingfor a more perfect Union. Impliedin this Union was a balance betweenthe rights and powers ofthe states and the nation, actingas mutual checks upon arbitrarygovernment. Since the new nationwas to be formed out of existingstates and since the powers of thenational government were few anddefined, whereas those of the stateswere many and not enumerated,