There are people from Eastern Europe who, whenever they think “government,” think labor camps and lakes of blood.
These people are confused. Not all governments are the same. Australian government is not like the Soviet government. My experiences with Australian government have been excellent. And in no case were they being tyrannical or oppressive.
Is government antithetical to freedom? That, once again, depends on the government. Some governments are tyrannical; some are not. In the West, governments are subject to accountability, check and balance. It is correct that they be subject to such things, as government power can most certainly be wielded wrongly. I have come to the conclusion that oversight in Western countries over the governments is adequate, and that I do not need to contribute to that effort.
What I do want to point out – for the benefit of both people in the West and people from Eastern Europe – is that government is not the only power, and that it is not the only thing that can go wrong. There are all sorts of non-government entities that can do terrible things. Corporate crooks. Oppressive religious sects. Corrupt, suffocating communities. Mafia and the gangs. Men who like to beat their wives and rape their children. Governments are subject to adequate checks and balances; these entities are not. Which allows them to perpetrate greater abuses than are allowed the government.
As far as governments go, the ones in the West are quite mild. And many people who work for governments in the West are neither tyrannical nor corrupt. There were many people who answered John Kennedy’s call for public service when he stated, “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.” Many people in the government are there for right reasons. And it is wrong that they be seen as the source of all evil.
Can government go bad? Of course it can. But it is not the only thing that can go wrong. There are adequate checks and balances in the West on the power of governments; there are no adequate checks and balances in the West on non-government power. And for freedom and dignity to actually be a reality, adequate checks and balances need to be placed on private power so that they do not commit wrongs that are not allowed the governments in the West.