The Growing Police State: Someone Fighting Back Edition

The State of Utah has had it.  They've had it, and they're not going to take it anymore.

According to Utah Governor Gary Herbert, the Federal Government was ceded land in Utah when the State entered the Union.  At that time, according to the Governor, the agreement was that the Federal Government would then sell back the land. 

To date, they still have not done so.

So the State of Utah is doing something about it.  First they will be passing some form of a bill that says the land must be sold to the State, or the State will sue.  Then, the Federal Government being the Federal Government, they will sue.  Along those lines, Utah just won a court battle with the Federal Government over land-use decisions.  The Bureau of Land Management has been denying land use permits in Utah without giving any reason why.  In all probability, they are using a law which has already been struck down in court, which would make these decisions illegal.  The courts have just ruled that the Federal Government must provide the documentation showing why they decided not to issue the permits.

Now I don't know anything about the land deal made when Utah became a state, or whether the Federal Government has lived up to whatever agreement was made.  That's not really the point, it's simply an illustration.

The point is this: the States can stand up to the Federal Government.  By reasserting their sovereignty within their own borders, the States can stop the rampant growth of the Federal Government.  If more states would do so, the Federal Government would reverse course quite quickly. 

What we often forget is that the Federal Government relies upon, indeed, requires for its very functioning, voluntary compliance.  From tax law, to land use, to even criminal law, there are simply too many people in the country for the Federal Government to cope with them if they simply refuse to comply.  If everyone simply refused to pay their taxes, for instance, the Government simply has no way to collect from everyone; they don't have the resources.

Now, for an individual to do that is scary.  Just one person is not enough to give the Government any pause whatsoever.  A single individual is easy to force into compliance.  It would require a mass uprising of a kind that is unlikely to arise in the face of any but the most blatant and cruel forms of tyranny.

States, on the other hand, have more power.  Short of sending in armed troops to force compliance, the Federal Government really has no recourse to force a State to comply with their demands.  Where a single individual is easy to coerce, a State- where they willing to make a few sacrifices- could stand for a long, long time against the Federal Government.

And I believe they should.  The Federal Government has grown too powerful, its reach too long.  That the Federal Government even owns land in Utah should be abhorrent to freedom loving people.  The Federal Government has usurped powers it was never granted, and never meant to have.  If we are to have true Liberty again, it is the States who must lead the way.