The Ascent of Man

The Ascent of Man

Once there was a great philosopher who suddenly somehow acquired superpowers. Z didn't have the slightest idea who or what had changed him, nor why, nor if the changes were permanent. But making the intellectually wisest and morally best decision he could, Z right away opportunistically decided to try to use his astonishing strength and speed to politically liberate the planet.

He wanted this, by the way, for his own sake. Z wasn't in the least a "do-gooder". But he preferred to live out his one priceless, sacred life in a free society, if that was humanly possible. So he decided to take the chance.  

But Z didn't entirely trust himself with his new super-abilities. All that "power corrupts" business worried him a touch.

So, not willing to risk messing up America, and preferring to work with a simpler people and culture, Z started with the horrific dictatorship of China. Could he ever really make their situation worse? Didn’t seem possible.

Z astonished the tyrants by showing up unannounced on the doorsteps of the Great Hall of the People in Peking. He was dressed entirely in dark purple kid leather with a full facial mask. Z zipped past all security and stood respectfully before the stunned Party General Secretary and Politburo Standing Committee. He politely requested that they immediately pass, and massively publicize, a super-law banning the initiation of force against people and property. They adamantly refused.

Z instantly killed them all, and approached the National People's Congress. He walked up to the podium, gently pushed aside the current speaker, and patiently explained what he just did and why. There was at least thirty seconds of shocked, numb silence in the great hall.

Then Z made the exact same request of the Chinese legislators. When they rather-awkwardly refused, he immediately killed those he judged to be the top ten most powerful and influential. Z sloppily stacked their corpses next to the speaker's podium. "This is a visual representation of what the Welfare State does," he proclaimed flatly. "You must replace it with a free state. You and your laws won't be allowed to attack the people anymore."

The would-be liberator then restated his demand, and when the legislature again stubbornly refused, he offed the top twenty. Then forty. This was getting tiresome, he thought!

Finally, they complied. The Universal Non-Aggression Law was passed by over 90% of the survivors. Those that still voted "no" or abstained were killed.

The t'v' and radio stations, as well as newspapers and magazines, were reluctantly informed of the new political reality by the legislators. Soon word went out all across the country from an amazed and disbelieving media.

The next day Z also made them ban the Communist Party, and start to publicly burn all available books on communism and socialism. They had to delete the same from their computers, and censor them from all public and private promotion "for twenty years -- or until the brainwashing is fully cured." Most of the police were fired, and the military was disarmed, disbanded, and criminalized. All weapons of mass destruction were themselves destroyed.

Then the social hero forced over 95% of everyone over twelve years old to read ten books on political, economic, social, and personal freedom within three months. This was called the Political Education Mandate. These books and ideas were also taught relentlessly on t'v', radio, internet videos, and internet texts. The schools focused most of their lessons on them for those three months. Much was also taught at work places and even retirement homes. Relatively difficult tests were given on the subject matter every week, and anyone who failed, including the parents of substandard kids, was punished with year-long prison terms and immense wealth confiscation.

Former soldiers, local police, legislators, judges, and influential private citizens who resisted were systematically killed at the rate of about a hundred per day -- mostly by the new libertarian police. Those who hid well were hunted down by Z personally. The would-be liberator focused hard on the intellectual, media, and political elite. He left the powerless masses and braindead soulless sheeple alone.

Thruout this whole transformation the dictators of Russia thought of intervening. American political leaders privately encouraged it. But Z secretly visited the head Russian tyrants several times, and advised against it. They decided to take his advice.

By Day Ten after the Universal Non-Aggression Law was passed, there was no more resistance of note.

Nevertheless, a large section of the Chinese people initially complained furiously that Z was "violating their rights" to freely choose their own form of government. The Hero proclaimed:

"There's no such thing as a right to violate rights. So long as any sovereign, independent, adult individual anywhere, in any respect, doesn't want his person or property attacked or compromised, then you are forbidden to do so. And so long as any baby or child anywhere, in any respect, may eventually wish to not have his person or property attacked or compromised, then you are forbidden to assault him as well. People's lives are not yours to destroy."

Chinese laments on this issue systematically faded -- aided by immense propaganda.

But still a few of the Chinese people complained bitterly that the Liberator was not respecting democracy and autonomy. He emphatically replied:

"Majority-rule and self-rule are political values which are grossly inferior to liberty and justice. Individual rights take complete precedence over them. Freedom and the rights of man are absolute and unalienable. They're infinite in size and importance. Democracy and autonomy count for little or nothing next to them. You'll get back your majority-rule and self-rule in the next generation. Partially. Maybe."

Within two months, led by those in their teens and twenties, a constituency for liberty was tentatively, but powerfully, established thruout the land. The foreign-born Hero no longer had to much impose his will.

The economy boomed. The society flourished. The culture blossomed. The Holy Individual triumphed and was thunderously happy.

Voluntary self-help and social-help groups of all types were soon found in every place. They practically took over, and ruled, the nation. The state was virtually nowhere to be found.

Social harmony, cooperation, and friendship rose radically. The culture was stunningly enriched. Individual self-expression and self-realization exploded. By six months, the constituency for liberty was irresistibly and immovably grounded. It seemed impossible to uproot -- or even minutely shake.

The politics of freedom swiftly generated an ethics of extreme individualism and an epistemology of overwhelming rationality. Many new books had to be rapidly written because the world had never seen anything like it. There was a new, radical, and ferocious best-seller every week. The fresh versions of the ethics of individualism and the epistemology of rationality massively reinforced the new political system of liberty. These three seemed to form an interlocking chain and system of ideas which was unbreakable.

China became the most powerful and influential country on earth within a year. Within two years, every country on earth voluntarily copied the Chinese political system.

The Superhero inexplicably lost his superpowers and retired. He then revealed his secret identity, quietly told his story, and was wildly celebrated everywhere.

Individual and collective happiness could not have been higher. Existence was bliss. Life having been mastered and conquered, humans turned their immense and soaring scientific powers to mastering and conquering death.