POST SCRIPTS

A government can be considered genuinely constitutional only if it
operates under the following minimal constraints: (1) The legislature
cannot be dismissed by any body or person other than itself. (2) The
courts are independent of the legislative and executive branches. (3)
The executive branch cannot appoint ministers without the approval of
the legislative branch. (4) Only the legislature can pass laws.

The failure of communism in the Soviet Union, and its eventual demise,
opened the door to freedom and democracy and marked a moment of great
hope for the people. By 1993, however, a fledgling parliament in Russia
was dissolved by presidential decree. Now all ministers are appointed by
the president and pass laws only under his authority. The courts remain
independent, but are in fact subordinate to the executive.

Dr. Illarionov describes the gradual, subtle erosion of systems
resulting in the destruction and loss of freedom.

MANY RUSSIAN PEOPLE THOUGHT IT WAS NOT THEIR BUSINESS:

...to defend the freedom of the people of Chechnya...(they) lost
their independence, their political rights-and many of them-their lives.
Many Russians lost their lives as well.

...to defend the freedom of the media. As a result the media lost
it's independence-first television channels, then radio stations and
newspapers. And now the censors are turning their attention on the
internet.

...to defend the freedom of private business. So private business has
lost it's independence and has become subjugated to the caprice of the
executive power.

...to defend the independence of political parties. As a result
independent political parties ceased to exist.

...finally some people tried to defend the freedom of these
organizations (non-governmental and religious organizations), but it was
too late. And now even those who want to resist have neither the
resources nor the institutions required to fight back.

The government of Russia is reportedly forming internal "storm troopers"
trained to "harass and beat' dissenters. Internationally the government
provides economic, financial, political, intellectual and moral support
to other non-free countries such as Belarus, Uzbekistan, Venezuela,
Myanmar, Algeria, Iran, and Palestinian Hammas. The government is also
attempting to destroy neighboring free countries.

War is the basic commonality of non-free countries according to Dr.
Illarionov. "War," he says "in which governments take away property and
destroy society, in which they send people away to camps or kill them
solely because they have a different perception of the world, of faith,
of law, and of their homeland. Only through hatred, fear and electoral
violence can these governments hold on to what is dearest to
them-absolute power."

New political lines are being drawn around the world. New associations
are forming. Those of us who value freedom would be wise to notice, with
eyes clearly opened, acknowledging the threat that these associations
pose. As Dr. Illarionov so elegantly expressed in his speech, it is
absolute power won through oppression and war that dictators desire. We
have witnessed a similar presidential course by Hugo Chavez in Venezuela
in recent months:

Mr. Chávez further intensified worries with his request for vastly
enhanced presidential authority from his Congress. If successful, those
new powers would allow him to decree measures into law for one year,
bypassing any debate in the legislature, where in any case all 167
deputies are his supporters. On top of that, he made a request to
abolish the autonomy of Venezuela's central bank. New York Times
Jan. 10, 2007.

The commonality of war and absolute power can make for strange
bedfellows. Under normal circumstances the atheist/communist Hugo Chavez
would seem an unlikely ally of the fascist radical Islamist Ahmadinijad
of Iran. But as a recent New York Sun editorial explains:

That the left makes common cause with the Islamists is one of the
bizarre facts of modern geopolitics. The only thing Marxists like
Messrs. Chavez, Ortega, and Correa have in common today with the likes
of Mr. Ahmadinejad is a hatred of America. That is the foundation on
which the Marxist-Islamist scheme is formed and the motivation behind
any actions it carries out.

This explanation, although accurate, proves too easy however, and I
found a more foundational explanation in a piece by Dr. Jack Wheeler at
"To The Point":

Yet the common bond between the two is far, far deeper than a simple
emotion of hate. The bond is as deep as you get. It is metaphysical.
That is because Marx and Mohammed share the same view on the nature of
reality.***Their fundamental bond - thus that between Chavez and
Ahmadinejad - is a denial of the Law of Non-Contradiction. *** That
reality is contradictory is the basic tenet of Dialectical Materialism -
the philosophy of Marx, Engels, and Lenin - and of philosophical Islam,
for which it is blasphemous to claim Allah is subject to the Law of
Non-Contradiction as that would limit and bind him in the "chains of
logic." ***If reality is contradictory and logic is an illusion, then
you are left with only one way to resolve conflicts and disagreements:
violently. For Marxists and Moslems, change in the world consists of
contradictory opposing forces - exploiters and exploited, believers and
infidels - overcoming or being overcome.***Thus both Marx and Mohammed,
Chavez and Ahmadinejad, are advocates of apocalyptic totalitarianism.

I realize that one heck of a lot of folks in America are upset, angry,
or disillusioned with President Bush and his commitment to the war. Many
wish it would just go away...but I'm here to say...it just may be that
President Bush knows what he's doing. If I can see a dangerous gathering
storm from my limited view here in Chico, California, what more might I
see as president of this great nation? What information might the secret
documents and daily reports bring to add color and depth to my
perceptions? And how strongly would I feel the responsibility to defend
and protect my country and her people and the freedom we all treasure
and enjoy.

As Dr. Illarionov said in his speech, "Freedom is not a luxury. It is a
very powerful instrument, without which no person and no country in the
world can have sustained prosperity, security, development, or respect."
I'd say those things are worth defending and protecting in this changing
world where dark forces threaten in relentless measure.

Dr. Andrei Illarionov is president of the Institute of Economic Analysis
in Moscow. He was the driving force behind the adoption of the 13% flat
tax as chief economic advisor to President Vladimir Putin. He resigned
in protest of government policies in December of 2005.