If you were

paying attention, you may have noticed that I recently

labeled some gun control advocates

"authoritarians" rather than the commonly used

label, "liberals."

That's

because I think the word "liberal" has lost any

meaning, especially to those who would describe

themselves with that term.

Authoritarians

believe in power, especially government power. They also

are opposed to spreading power around. If an

authoritarian is employed or elected at the local level,

he or she is opposed to allowing individuals, businesses,

churches and other entities to make decisions for

themselves, preferring instead to invest all of that

decision-making power into city hall.

At the

state level, such a person works to make sure that local

counties, cities and school boards must check with any of

a few dozen state agencies before bending to tie their

shoes.

At the

federal level, the authoritarian ignores the Constitution

of the United States and works diligently to increase the

size, scope and power of the federal government to rule

not only the states but also counties, cities and

individuals.

Authoritarians

also are collectivists. They abhor the concept of

individual liberty, individual achievement, individual

autonomy, individual identity. To them, there are no

individuals, only groups.

You say

this doesn't sound like any of the political philosophies

espoused in the United States? Think a minute.

If you're

black, you are required to be "liberal," in the

authoritarian's view. If you're black and vote for

anything other than a Democrat, you must be an uncle tom.

I know a

lesbian who votes Republican. Aren't you shocked? It's

the group that matters, not the individual. That's the

message.

I apologize

right now for all the years that I have called Bill

Clinton a liberal. That's an insult to liberals. I

disagree with most parts of liberal philosophy, but most

of the truly liberal people I know don't spend their

lives trying to figure out how to destroy the freedoms we

enjoy.

Yet the

people that liberals follow (in the blind belief that

having a "D" after your name on the ballot

guarantees a certain mind set) are often authoritarians

in liberal clothing.

I'm

beginning to see that the most difficult task for anyone

trying to persuade people to quit voting for the

Clinton/Carvill/Kennedy crowd is shining the light of

truth on the fact that the national leaders of the

Democratic Party are not liberals - they're

authoritarians.

Yes, it's

true that there are authoritarians in the Republican

camp, too. The difference is that in the Democratic

Party, at the national level, the authoritarians have

achieved iron-fisted control over the party machinery,

and they are served by a panting, sycophantic national

press corps whose members are taken in by the idea that

the only reason these people want to crush our freedoms

under their fists is because they care about us so much.

But, as I

have pointed out in recent columns, the authoritarians on

the other side of the aisle bear watching just as much.

For

instance, I can't tell you how disappointed I am that,

with Republicans in control of Congress for six years, we

haven't made more progress toward a balanced budget

amendment and a flat tax or sales tax to replace the

current, oppressive income tax system. I've been blaming

it on Clinton's Br'er Rabbit tactics ("Please don't

throw me in that government shutdown briar patch!"),

but I can't help but wonder whether the ease with which

the GOP has been distracted from its goals has more to do

with its own love of power than with its powerlessness

against Clinton.

But, back

to labels. I've always called myself a conservative,

though I took the Libertarian Party's test and my scores

showed up as just to the right of center with libertarian

tendencies.

I've looked

at the Libertarian Party platform, and I could support

most of it. I just never voted that way because when too

many people vote for third and fourth party candidates we

usually end up with Democrats.

In the end,

the only way the majority in this country are going to

get what we want is to rise up and demand it.

If the

Republicans don't get on the ball, it's not enough to

simply vote Libertarian or Reform, thus guaranteeing a

return to Democratic authoritarian rule. We've got to get

the nation's leaders, Democrat and Republican, by the

scruff of the neck and make them listen.

With the

Internet now serving as a very speedy conduit by which we

can convey our feelings, I can only hope that people will

start making some demands.

If we don't

get control of this monster government we've created

pretty soon, it's going to be too late.

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