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Quote & Word of the Week

Word and Quote of the Week

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commence – begin; start

Quotes of the Week

“Democracy… while it lasts is more bloody than either aristocracy or monarchy. Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There is never a democracy that did not commit suicide.”
― John Adams

“This society [Jesuits] has been a greater calamity to mankind than the French Revolution, or Napoleon’s despotism or ideology. It has obstructed the progress of reformation and the improvement of the human mind in society much longer and more fatally.Letter to Thomas Jefferson, November 4, 1816. Adams wrote an anonymous 4 volume work on the destructive history of the Jesuits}”
― John Adams, The Adams-Jefferson Letters: The Complete Correspondence Between Thomas Jefferson and Abigail and John Adams

“In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

The New Moon is Saturday, May 4, 2019

Cease Your Destructive Behavior

Quote & Word of the Week

Quote and Word of the Week

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Quote of the Week

“A democracy which makes or even effectively prepares for

modern, scientific war must necessarily cease to be

democratic. No country can be really well prepared for

modern war unless it is governed by a tyrant, at the head

of a highly trained and perfectly obedient bureaucracy.”

― Aldous Huxley, Ends and Means

Quote of the Week II

“Those who are capable of tyranny are capable of perjury to

sustain it.” ― Lysander Spooner

The New Moon is Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Word of the Week:

officinal – tending or used to cure disease or relieve

pain: medicinal. Officinal is a word applied in medicine

to plants and herbs that are used in medicinal

preparations.

Local History

What’s The Difference Between Fascism, Democracy & A Republic?

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Democracy is a system of governance by the people and for the people with the decision of rules and rulers made by the citizens of the country, while fascism is a system of governance by one individual or small group with no input from the citizenry allowed.  Democracy values the freedom of speech and ideas, while fascism outlaws any speech or opinions contrary to their central belief.
Encyclopaedia Britannica cites fascism as referring to a bundle of sticks used as an authoritarian symbol for penal punishment in ancient Rome called a fasces.  This is an allegory for the central government in a fascist state: a small group bound together for strength, wielding ultimate control and meting out any judgment they deem fit.  It is a system of total control and violent opposition to dissension or criticism. Rampant nationalism is nearly ubiquitous in fascist states.  Popular votes are for show, if they are held at all.

“The corporative State considers private initiative, in the field of production, as the most efficient and useful instrument of the Nation.”  –  Charter of Labour of 1927
Italian:  Carta del Lavoro

Democracy is nearly the opposite approach to governance.  Rulers are elected by the people, and can be cast out of office by those same people.  The citizens decide which laws they are to live under, and have a say in changing those laws.  Voting and freedom of speech and opinion are central to the democratic process.      reference.com


A Republic (the current Democratic form of government in the U.S.) is a state in which the exercise of the sovereign power is lodged in representatives elected by the people.  Constant vigilance by the public can ensure that elected officials are Representing the Will of the People and not the will of  Corporate Influence.

Opinion

How Business and Trade Organizations Can Railroad the Democratic Process and Restrict Free Market Capitalism

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In what may be a general statement on the history of Louisiana politics, the public tends to take it for granted if (or when) our politicians wind up in trouble.  It makes things that much easier when it happens, because it’s already accepted.  It’s only a question of whether the person is likable or not (they’re a crook, but they’re nice). Regardless, likability and popularity does not justify the acceptance of corruption as a matter of course, or the derision of those seeking accountability.

People who ask for accountability are often ridiculed. “That’s the way it is and you can’t do anything about it.”  You can in fact “do something about it,” it just requires a little research, asking some questions, critical thinking, and then sometimes a few calls to the right people.

An interesting thing I learned in questioning the parish administration on economic development issues was that the specificity of the subject in question determined who the response came from.  If the subject was technical in nature, Parish Government responded;  if the subject was operational in nature, the St. Tammany West Chamber responded.
A real threat to the democratic process in terms of economic development is the private action of non profit corporations, specifically business and trade organizations, because they are not required to disclose their financial activity, even when operating in what should be considered a governmental role.  Such roles, filled in a public realm with no requirement of public disclosure, severely limit any existing concept of a free market.

The idea that a corporation has the same rights as a person is a particular application of the 14th Amendment,  originally intended for slaves that became free persons after the Civil War.  The use of the14th amendment to benefit corporations at the expense of the rights of the public in general is sinister, and it is indicative of a strongly fascist element in the flawed experiment of representational democracy.  If money counts as speech, it is over for the public and true representation.

When asked what has been wrought (at the Constitutional Convention), Benjamin Franklin was said to reply, “A Republic, if you can keep it.”
Go to Meetings.  Ask Questions.
Timothy Achan Gates   985-288-9609    covweekly@gmail

Opinion

Tammany West Needs To Re Evaluate Tactics

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Editorial by Timothy Achan Gates, CW Correspondent

Kevin Chiri wrote in a recent editorial that the perceived battle between St. Tammany Parish Government and CCST needed a “time out.”  First, there are no “time-outs” in debates that concern the health and safety of an entire community.  Whether one is opposed to or in favor of fracking, industrialization is an issue that is a community decision.  A democratically cherished ideal is crushed when the Parish reports to us that St. Tammany has no right to Self Determination with regard to the oil industry.
This sentiment was presented by Covington Weekly in Patrick Courrege’s (LA DNR) suggestion of Changing the Law at the State Level.  While the Parish Government feigned surprise when Helis’ public announcement was made, they sat on e-mails indicating knowledge of a plan years in advance, which were eventually made public.  The business lobbying groups just laughed, continuing to place people in office who will “do what they want.”

Chiri’s editorial goes on to moralize the situation, undoubtedly emboldened by his self-appointed position as referee between the Parish Government and a community advocacy group, relegating the whole thing to a lack of respect for authority.

41_Pied_Piper
Disrespect for the Public and Democratic Principles in General is Exemplified by Public Officials and Industry Colluding to Industrialize A Community Behind the Backs of Their Constituencies. 
There is ample evidence to back the assertion that Parish Administration was aware of the Helis project well before it became public knowledge.  To pretend ignorance, then pursue a lawsuit against a sanctioned project while shaming the public about the amount of money spent on said lawsuit, is absurd.  There are several instances across the parish involving drainage litigation resulting from infringing development where the parish spends a significant amount more fighting its own constituency, as opposed to what it has spent “fighting” fracking.
Disrespect Is NBC Director Larry Rase Berating the Public Due to Their Lack of Appreciation For All  the Oil and Gas Industry Does For the Parish. 
Ironically, the Advocate recently ran a series detailing the amount of tax incentives given away, roughly 1.4 – 1.6 billion dollars, a number that basically equals Louisiana’s deficit.  Oil and Gas is a large recipient of these incentives, so the question becomes, if the Oil and Gas Industry is so beneficial to the state, why is there a budget deficit equal to tax incentives given strictly to big business, while small businesses are consistently asked to pay more and more?      Where Is The Disrespect, Again?

Email:  covweekl@gmail.com