Opus 2012-84, Plow and Crown: The Return of the Serf

One of the developments of the medieval period was the social position of serf.  This is the European term.  The position exists in most cultures with different names and slight variations of conditions.

A serf was a person of the lowest level of society.  He was usually a farmer and had few rights.  He was not free to travel without permission from his lord.  The lord did not own him but owned the land he worked.  In a video I show at school the serf explained it this way”

“I don’t belong to the Lord, I belong to the land.”

If the land changed hands he went with the land.  It was obviously very close to slavery but a serf would have a few rights.

A serf was different from a peasant.  To us they might look the same, but they were aware of the differences.  Each one tended to look down on the other and they competed for the same niche in their society.  The serf was tied to the land and could not even marry without permission.  The peasant was free.  The other side of the coin was that in hard times the lord was responsible to take care of the serf while the peasant was free to starve.  Like today it was a tradeoff of liberty for security.

In Europe the position of serf developed from an act of the Roman emperor Diocletian.  He issued an edict that locked people into the career of their father and tying farmers to the land.  No longer were people free to move around and pursue their dreams.

The elites want us to become serfs again.  They want us to be tied down and not free to pursue our dreams.  Millions of Americans have come to depend on the government for their survival.  At the low end you have the people trapped in the welfare cycle.  The system is set up to keep them there.  You need a job that pays pretty well to live better than you can live on government hand outs.  As a result the parts of the country that are on the dole tend to vote for the party of the dole: the Democratic party.  This is true whether you are in the inner city of Los Angeles or the back woods of West Virginia.

At the other end of the spectrum you have people like me, professionals with college educations and certificates that are working on jobs funded by the government.  Once again you find that teachers and government workers of all stripes tend to vote for the party of the dole:  The Democratic party.

Are the Republicans without fault?  No, they want to keep us dependent also but it is a little more low key.

Keep in mind that if you want someone to take care of you and keep you safe that involves at least a little submission and surrender of liberty on your part.  Remember the acronym TANSTAAFL.  It is wisdom and warning.  For those who have never been into science fiction it means “There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.”

Fight serfdom.  Refuse government handouts.  They are addictive.

homo unius libri