Bob McEwen – Freedom or Statist Control
Posted by Orrin Woodward on November 19, 2008
Bob McEwen spoke to a fired up MonaVie Team in Louisville recently. His message of economics/politics was thoughtful and challenging to each individual. Bob is one of the best at taking complex ideas and describing them in simple metaphors and stories to capture the main principles. It is very important in any discussion to be able to listen and reason with various opinions without immediately getting offended. It is hard to learn when the first response is offense. One of the keys is to determine whether the opinion is backed up by experience. Like the old saying goes, “A person with the facts is never at the mercy of a person with an opinion.” Don’t be threatened by opinions, but study to determine the validity of each opinion from your own experiences. This is why people with results over the long term are the people that I listen to and respect. They have proven that their thoughts are more than just opinions. For example, Abraham Lincoln’s opinion weighs heavier in my mind than many others because of his proven leadership and ability to reason through the issues.
“We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing. With some the word liberty may mean for each man to do as he pleases with himself, and the product of his labor; while with others, the same word may mean for some men to do as they please with other men, and the product of other men’s labor. Here are two, not only different, but incompatible things, called by the same name – liberty. And it follows that each of the things is, by the respective parties, called by two different and incompatible names – liberty and tyranny.”
The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln edited by Roy P. Basler, Volume VII, “Address at Sanitary Fair, Baltimore, Maryland” (April 18, 1864), p. 301-302.
I love reading about economics, but the only way to truly get the facts in economics is to go and experience them in your own life and businesses. My views have certainly progressed as I witnessed people making economic choices. I believe strongly in the right for all people to be economically free. Without economic freedom, there is no true freedom. Here is a video from part of Bob’s talk from the Louisville weekend. Enjoy. God Bless, Orrin Woodward
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBpAicVVhSQ&w=425&h=344]
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