This was originally posted on Live Oaks on July 13, 2010. Comments have not been migrated.
In March I pointed out that David Crossley, head of Houston Tomorrow (HT) thinks that he is smarter than you:
HT advocates, among other things, “smart growth” and “public transit”. On both of these issues–and many others–HT advocates the use of government coercion to achieve what it regards as “rational” ends. To HT, compelling you to act contrary to your own judgment is ultimately for your own good…
If you conclude that your money is best spent on a private automobile, Crossley doesn’t care–he knows best and he intends to take your money to prove it. If you conclude that a particular use for your property is best, Crossley doesn’t care–he knows better and he will force you to include green space, set backs, and whatever else he deems necessary to create a “livable” development.
Now Crossley provides us with a peek into the back room dealings that he uses to impose his vision upon the rest of the city. (HT: blogHouston) In late June he gathered a dozen like-minded individuals to map out a plan for the city’s transportation. Which means, how you will be forced to spend your money. You see, David Crossley is still smarter than you and he knows the best ways for your money to be spent.
Crossley tells us that the group developed a set of principles to guide regional transportation, one of which is “Go to places that are nameable.” At the risk of sounding sarcastic, the tequila must have been flowing pretty freely for the group to regard this as a principle. What place isn’t nameable? But lest I forget, David Crossley is smarter them me. This “principle” must have some meaning that escapes us ordinary folk.
Crossley states that his motivation for this rendezvous was a fear that regional transportation planning will not be based on “rational service goals.” On this I concur with him. However, my reason is different: No government agency can ever develop “rational service goals,” unless those goals are the protection of individual rights. And that is certainly not what Crossley proposes.
Government is an agency of force. Its goals are achieved by coercion. Its plans are implemented by compelling or prohibiting certain actions. Everything it does is backed up with a gun. Crossley wants to use government to impose his vision of regional transportation upon all of us, and he has the audacity to call this rational.
Man’s rational faculty does not operate under compulsion. Nobody–including Crossley–can force another man to think, or to accept an idea as true. But individuals–including Crossley–can use force to compel individuals to act contrary to their own judgment. And this is what Crossley seeks. He wants to use the coercive power of government for his purposes. He wants to force you to act as he chooses, rather than by the dictates of your own mind. You see, David Crossley is, and always will be, smarter than you.