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So what is government?... Very simply, it is an agency of coercion. Of course, there are other agencies of coercion - such as the Mafia. So to be more precise, government is the agency of coercion that has flags in front of its offices.

Harry Browne

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Harry Browne
Age: 72 †
Born: 1933
Born: June 17
Died: 2006
Died: March 1
Financial Analyst
Peace Activist
Politician
Radio Personality
Writer
New York City
New York
Harry Edson Browne
Political
Agency
Government
Fronts
Program
Mafia
Front
Offices
Office
Agencies
Simply
Coercion
Courses
Flags
Course
Precise

More quotes by Harry Browne

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I found that I was getting a warm reception for my message of freeing you from the income tax, releasing you from Social Security, ending the insane war on drugs, restoring gun rights, and reducing the federal government to just its constitutional functions.
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Get your money out of the country before your country gets your money out of you
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But, actually, it is only Americans who say that our freedoms and prosperity are the reason foreigners hate us. If you ask the foreigners, they make it clear that it's America's bullying foreign policy they detest.
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When you know that you're capable of dealing with whatever comes, you have the only security the world has to offer.
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The Bill of Rights isn't some legalistic fine print. It was written to make our lives freer, more prosperous, and happier. By forsaking it, America has become no better than any other country in the world.
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For those looking for security, be forewarned that there's nothing more insecure than a political promise.
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Each person is living for himself his own happiness is all he can ever personally feel.
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When people do things for you, it's because they want to - because you, in some way, give them something meaningful that makes them want to please you, not because anyone owes you anything.
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When you give politicians the power to do what you think is right you're automatically giving politicians the power to do what you think is wrong.
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Once upon a time, government budgets were balanced, our money was sound, the streets were safe, and taxes imposed by all levels of government took less than 10% of our income.
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While most people in TV, radio, and the press have treated me wonderfully, some of the most important people want to pretend I don't exist.
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America rules the world - by force.
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Once we realize that government doesn't work, we will stop dreaming that this or that social problem can be solved by passing a law - or by creating a new government program - or by electing someone who will make Washington more efficient or cost-conscious.
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You have only one life, and no one else will live it for you. Shouldn't you take the time right now to figure out what that life is all about?
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The power of choice. You have it. But you forfeit it when you imagine that you can choose for others. You can't. But you can choose for yourself.
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Can you think of a single area of government in which George Bush hasn't already made things worse than Bill Clinton did?
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Once we realize that government doesn't work, we'll know that the only way to improve government is by reducing its size - by doing away with laws, by getting rid of programs, by making government spend and tax less, by reducing government as far as we can.
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Everything we know about human nature and about government tells us that individuals using their own money will achieve far more good for themselves and far more for others than politicians spending money they didn't have to work to earn.
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It's wrong for someone to confiscate your money, give it to someone else, and call that compassion.
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Politicians are notoriously economically illiterate. And even when they know what would be the right thing, we don't really expect them to do it.
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