Carnival is an Antiguan tradition, and people here take it very, very seriously. They prepare for months, rehearsing dances and music, preparing costumes, and all manner of wonderful things.
I, unfortunately, cannot go to carnival because shelf exams are coming up (on the 12th!). However, I have come up with another way to celebrate.
Carnival is a celebration of the end of slavery in Antigua; I can think of few better reasons to celebrate. Human liberty is a splendid thing.
I am fond of brining up the notion of slavery when discussing government, because it is both vivid and accurate. Ayn Rand once characterized the future of the freedom movement as “setting man free from men.” We are in the midst of an ideological battle that is every bit as important as those of the past. One thousand years ago, it was accepted that individuals ought to be bound to their lords. Most people were serfs. This was a form of slavery. Several hundred years ago, it was commonly accepted that men derived their rights from the permission of the King. Only two hundred years ago, it was still accepted that men can own other men as possessions.
Reason prevailed in each of these cases. Ideologically, we are closer than ever before to men living as free individuals in a rational society. We have set man free from specific other men. Now, we must set man free from men. We must promulgate and advocate for the idea that men derive their rights from their very nature as rational beings, and not from membership in a group, culture or society. The natural conclusion of this is that men, i.e. society, i.e. Hobbes’ Commonwealth, must never presume to be the source of man’s rights, and must never violate them.
Collectivism was the ideological basis of slavery, and its abolition represented a tremendous step forward. Let us celebrate by working towards taking the next step forward in the grand ideological battle for freedom.
How? In honor of the end of slavery in Antigua, I’m going to make a contribution to Bob Barr. I can’t afford much, what with being a medical student, but I can afford something. Bob Barr may not be perfect, but his campaign is a vehicle through which we can reach millions of people with rational ideas. Let’s fund this vehicle so that it can reach as many minds as possible.
