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The Dissident Dad – Tyranny Reigns on July 4th, 2016

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“That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

– Declaration of Independence, July 4th, 1776

Yesterday, the nation commemorated Independence Day. A celebration of freedom and the concept that all men are equal, with a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Looking back at history, it’s clear that this was never really true in North America. Not while the colonies lived under Great Britain, and certainly not since the Americans won the Revolutionary War.

Slavery, taxes, and many other government-sponsored aggressions have hindered sovereign individuals from pursuing their unalienable rights since the founding of the nation. Government power continues to be a very real problem, and the larger governments grow, the more abusive they seem to become. In modern America, the tyranny is extremely efficient and subtle when compared to other governments in history.

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Why I’m Buying a Christmas Tree, Even Though I Hate Christmas

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Christmas and I have some bad blood. No, I don’t hate baby Jesus, or harbor a contempt for Christians. Indeed, I consider myself to be a follower of Christ-like principals. As a self-described anarchist, loving people and doing no harm fits right in at my home.

Growing up as a child in a middle-class home where my dad worked 12-hour days and my mom clipped coupons, I remember all the great things about Christmas. Stockings full of toys hanging over the fireplace, waking up in the morning to presents under the tree followed by a large family gathering later that afternoon. I never received the big gifts some of my friends did, but I was still happy, receiving more than enough, as well as the occasional video game for my Nintendo.

It wasn’t until after my parents were divorced that Christmas and I had a falling out, to the point where as an adult, I didn’t buy a tree until my oldest child turned 5 (last year). Even then, it was in protest.

At 12 years of age, I watched as my mother struggle to buy gifts. After the divorce, my mom lived in a mobile home in Southern California, and every year, I watched her do everything she could to live up to the idea of a “middle-class” Christmas. It wasn’t until then that I realized the damage being done to the poor and lower middle classes during this holiday. The irony, of course, is that the historical Jesus was a man who sought to help the poor, so it was frustrating that the holiday designated to celebrate his birth had become an absolute nightmare to anyone who wasn’t either rich or middle-class.

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The Dissident Dad – Teaching Children to Save in a 0% World

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At the age of 5, I clearly remember walking into my local Bank of America to open up my first savings account. It was almost a thrill, receiving my small, beige deposit book, where my father noted the first entry: $260.

I had found a wallet on the floor of a hotel about 6 months prior to that. After no one claimed it, the hotel mailed me a check. Perhaps it’s because I’ve always had an interest in finance, but opening up that first savings account is one of my earliest memories. It ended up helping me to become a disciplined saver from an early age.

Moving along, in the late 1990s, I remember opening up a 1-year CD at 6% when I was barely an adult. Looking back, depositing money at a bank made sense at the time. Fast forward to today, and I don’t think teaching my children to store their money in a bank is prudent, or even a smart thing to do.

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