Spencer Heath Archive

Item 1125

Penciling by Heath on small notepad pages

No date

 

 

 

 

In all their private and non-governmental affairs, civilized men among themselves tolerate no relations but the relationship of giving and receiving services by voluntary exchange and upon terms fixed and agreed by themselves.

 

     In all their public and governmental affairs, the individual man is coerced by constituted political authority into giving up his property and services and submitting to their disposition and use in such ways as political authority finds expedient and prescribes — all without reference to any agreement or consent on the part of the individual. This is equally true whether the political authority be self-constituted by force or ruse or by the emotional upheaval of revolutions or of popular elections or whether the coercive authority be lodged in one or in many persons, in a compact oligarchy or a government of limited and divided powers.

 

     It is the waging by government of virtual warfare against its citizens and against special economic groups of its citizens for the supposed benefit of all or of other economic classes that disintegrates all economic relationships. Before any society can become progressive and permanent, its public business must be lifted from the level of coercion and raiding for its revenues to the plane of merchandizing all its public services for revenues voluntarily paid in exchange for them.

 

The institution of property in land merchandises equitably to the users of land at a price called rent all of the public services there are, as distinguished from anti-social favors and privileges which destroy public values and for which no proper recompense is paid.

The redemption of the whole Society rests in the raising of rents and land values by organized land owners through service to land and capital users in protecting them against depredations by public authorities. These services to land users by liberating the production of wealth will so increase the demand for the public services afforded by land occupancy as to increase the rent fund many times faster than the tax raids are reduced. Land owners will thus be enormously recompensed for this protective service to land and capital users by reduction of taxes, and by their supervision of public expenditures and economy will at the same time greatly diminish the need for public revenues. This will so greatly expand the margin between the increased revenue to land and the reduced needs of public finance as to establish for such enlightened land owners