Why I Spend Millions on the Cause of Liberty

Why I Spend Millions on the Cause of Liberty by John Ramsey

 Libertarian mega donor breaks his silence.

 My peers, associates and supporters often ask me why I have chosen to dedicate my entire life, reputation and millions in personal treasure to the cause of freedom and liberty.  Some say that I’m squandering the great family and personal fortune with which I’ve been blessed, while others accuse me of “buying the system” for personal gain.  Some call me foolish for not engaging with lobbyists and other corrupt bureaucrats and businessmen that game the system to profit off of insider deals, government contracts and wars.  As a case in point, I recently had the opportunity to invest in a government subsidized company which specialized in creating bombs, missiles and other various tools of human destruction.  While this deal would have likely been very financially lucrative, I would not have been able to sleep at night knowing that I would have been investing in the murder of fellow humans around the world; unfortunately, I already contribute far too much to this carnage with the money that is forcibly taken from my businesses via taxation.   I cannot express the frustration and anger that I feel when the money that is taken from one of my businesses goes toward throwing a black kid in jail for smoking a plant, instead of starting a new value creating business or philanthropic endeavor.  So the question remains, why on Earth would someone spend countless hours and millions of his or her own and their generous supporters’ wealth on something that does not yield a financial return on investment?  The short answer is I don’t want future generations to grow up in a vicious system that stifles innovation, throws people in cages for victimless crimes and sends our young men and women to die in unconstitutional wars that only benefit special interests.  The long answer is much more complex and one that only becomes more evident with time.  After another successful year of political and philanthropic achievements, I’ve set out to answer this question, honestly and to the best of my ability, for my friends and detractors alike.

My primary basis for advocating libertarianism revolves around the fact that it is the philosophy that has proven to be most beneficial to the most vulnerable in our society.  Contrary to what some would have you believe, I grew up very modestly, working various odd jobs during the brutal Texas summer heat.  Growing up humbly in a poor community in East Texas, I saw first hand how mom and pop enterprises were constantly driven out of business with punitive regulations.  Although it certainly does not help that East Texas’ rural, agriculturally based economy is one of the most heavily regulated and insider dominated in the country, I often find it quite insulting in my travels to Washington DC (although I stay away from that Hell hole as much as possible), to see just how well the bureaucratic and lobbyist culture is thriving, all at the expense of hard working families across the country.  The solution is to allow local marketplaces to create sustainable environments and communities in which entrepreneurs, small businesses and consumers can thrive with mutually beneficial exchange, as opposed to chummy bureaucrats and politicians picking winners and losers via legislation which is bought and paid for.  Unfortunately, the media and naïve academics falsely, perhaps maliciously, label this type of activity as “free market capitalism”.  Since taking on this endeavor, I have seen first hand the way in which the majority of wealthy people favor big government authoritarianism, particularly when it is beneficial to themselves and/or their businesses.  After all, this is to be expected in a system that rejects individual liberty and economic value creation, in favor of corrupt bribery and elitism.  It is not overly difficult to realize that the big government policies advocated and enforced by the establishment left and right would benefit their corrupt financial backers, while stifling emerging competition, aspiring entrepreneurs and small family businesses.  The undeniable, though non-discussed result of this legislative fraud has been the creation of the tremendous degree of income inequality that we see today; this amplifying disparity will never be solved by government, because it is a direct symptom of the state’s very essence.  The only approach that has ever proven to lift the impoverished, reduce the gap between the rich and poor and increase the quality of life for all, is free people voluntarily cooperating, innovating, trading and empowering one another to succeed.  This is the system that built America into the most incredible place on the planet, with the most thriving cities, the most beautiful women and the most human prosperity and flourishing in history.

One of my biggest sources of inspiration is the brave souls who have rejected participating in the dark, yet profitable opportunities that our current oligarchy offers.  Over the past few years, I have had the pleasure of meeting and befriending a handful of these individuals who have created value for millions of people by building successful business enterprises and philanthropic entities without the help of lobbyists and government manipulation.  These selfless heroes have opted instead, to put their wealth to use in taking down this sinister system, in favor of a truly equitable society which offers opportunity to all individuals, regardless of skin color, sexual orientation and gender.  I feel strongly that it is our role to fill the information gap between well-intentioned, intellectually honest Americans on both sides of the political spectrum.  For example, it is an outrage that many well meaning Christian Conservatives support the likes of Mitch McConnell, John Boehner and Rick Santorum, in spite of the fact that they’ve all voted to expand the size of government time and time again.  Conversely, it is absurd to see anti-war left continually praising Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, in spite of the fact that they’ve embarked upon one of the most war hungry foreign policies in U.S. history.  I can’t exactly blame these well-intentioned people, since the mainstream media has become one of the most unreliable, intellectually dishonest and outright corrupt institutions that we face.  Overall, this battle is one of minds and ideas; the future of our country largely hinges upon our ability to wake up not only the masses, but also the well-intentioned wealthy and influential, which will enable us to reach the masses with this uplifting message of truth and self-ownership.

For those of us who have seen the light of true liberty, it is important to understand that the world is counting on us for legitimate progressive change, not the false promises of progress espoused by the Democratic Party.  Collectivism is by far the most dangerous philosophy that has ever existed, as it has directly resulted in horrific genocides and mass suffering throughout human history.  In the 20th century alone, hundreds of millions were killed based on government sponsored propaganda which motivated groups of people to commit heinous acts of violence against one another in the name of “the greater good”.  The powers that be will continue their attempt to pit us against one another on racial, sexual and religious grounds; and although they have monopolistic control of media, education and financial markets, I am confident that we will rise as Americans to stop this outcry against humanity.  Education, effective marketing and distribution are essential to our ideas prevailing.  For those corrupt individuals who consciously have a malevolent interest in the current system, may God forgive you, because I never will.  For those who are well intentioned, but misguided and misinformed, we must gently, kindly and persistently SHOW them the light of liberty through principled actions.  After all, we were ALL in their shoes at one point or another.

People often ask me what they can personally do to further the cause of liberty.  In my humble opinion, it is imperative that we maintain, grow and start new innovative ventures that create value and improve lives, locally and globally.  The reason that I believe that entrepreneurship and innovation are major foundations to the success of the movement is because it garners credibility, creates financial independence and allows for the creation of well funded advocacy groups and charities which can provide real solutions to the problems that government perpetuates, accelerates or is simply unable to recognize.  After all, we cannot print money, so we must create value in order to finance the distribution of this message.

One of my mentors recently stated to me that this struggle is not one of politics or policy, but very simply a battle of liberty against tyranny.  With monetary policy wreaking havoc on the majority of Americans (while benefiting the wealthiest 1%), the steady deterioration of our God-given rights and corruption trickling down from the federal level all the way down to local municipalities, I have no choice but to side with liberty over tyranny.  To those who may be disheartened by the current socioeconomic situation, please know that solutions to this madness exist and that there are many people actively engaged in this struggle, including some very wealthy individuals who could be profiting off of the current rigged system instead.  This beautiful commitment of selfless devotion to humanity has profoundly inspired much my life and work.  I hope you’ll join me and the other amazing people who are working tirelessly for a free world in which we can all live in peace and harmony.