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October 26, 2006

Even Arrogant Bastards Have to Follow Rules

Howard Rich doesn't like being restricted by rules. Since his early Libertarian activist days, he has continually tried to do as he pleases, everyone else be damned. There is a certain arrogance about it – a sense that rules and procedures are fine for all those less-intelligent schmucks out there who need some guidance, but he's smart enough that no one should be able to tell him what to do. He's right and that's the end of the matter. I've found this is a very typical character trait amongst the "stars" in free-market, limited-government activist circles. And naturally, for the rest of us, it is delightful to see the "stars" fall on their asses once in awhile and be forced to follow the same rules as everyone else. I'm having one of those delightful moments now.

Howard Rich's Americans for Limited Government has funneled at least $2.5 million this year to fund ballot measure campaigns in several states and also hosted a three-day "ALG Action Conference" in Chicago earlier this year. The problem is, during the time the group was dispensing of all that money, it was doing business illegally. Its non-profit corporate status had been revoked. The reason – the organization failed to file an annual report. A mere "clerical oversight," is the response of the organization. Just paperwork. How arrogant.

I won't go into Bill Sizemore and his mess, because I don't feel like it, but I will say he displays the same attitude about "paperwork" and rules. So, too, does Washington's Tim Eyman. If you want a good belly laugh about his paperwork problems with a recent set of initiative petitions he turned in, check this blog out. Eyman has a lengthy history of refusing to follow the campaign finance reporting laws that everyone else seems to be able to follow just fine.

If you want my opinion, all of these individuals are simply displaying a contempt for procedures and rules – a contempt for authority. They truly are anti-government because they truly believe nobody has the right to tell them what to do, demand accountability from them, or discipline them in any way. Fortunately, our system of justice doesn't rely on whether people believe they are subject to it or not.

Posted by Becky at October 26, 2006 09:41 AM