Libertarian Richard Ebeling Examines the Significance of the Declaration of Independence and the State of Today’s Government InvolvementIn honor of Independence Day celebrations across the United States, Northwood University economist and noted libertarian thought leader Richard Ebeling has penned a new position paper, A Declaration of Independence from Big Government. The whitepaper is the latest addition to Northwood University’s Free Market Library, a comprehensive catalog of thought-leadership essays from university faculty and administrators.
This new essay examines the Declaration of Independence, looking at the history behind this venerable document, as well as the thought processes U.S. forefathers relied upon while drafting it in their ultimately successful efforts to break away from British rule.
“It is the founding document of the American experiment in free government,” notes Ebeling, an economics professor at Northwood University. “What too often is forgotten is that what the founding fathers argued against in the Declaration was the heavy and intrusive hand of big government. The founding fathers were making a revolution against government control, regulations and restrictions on the economic liberty of the people residing in the 13 colonies.”Ebeling brings the reader back to contemporary times, reminding the reader to reflect upon the current state of legislative affairs, one in which he believes might just have come full circle
“The government in our own time continues to weave a network of control and regulation over all we do in modern America,” he says. “We need to ask, indeed, if we, too, need to declare our independence from big government.”Ebeling is a well-noted authority on monetary economics and reform. While serving as vice president for The Future of Freedom Foundation (FFF), he co-edited and contributed to five books published by the FFF and wrote a monthly article and book review for FFF’s publication Freedom Daily. He also lectures widely on the problems of economic reform and change in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Ebeling received his B.A. in economics from California State University-Sacramento, an M.A. in economics from Rutgers University and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Middlesex in England. He is slated to participate in two panel discussions at the upcoming FreedomFest 2014, July 9-12, in Las Vegas.
