Most Americans regard the use of government force as a necessary means to achieve “noble” ends—the “general welfare” or “common good.” But the promised ends are never realized.
For example, the Federal Reserve was allegedly formed to end recessions, with 17 recessions and the Great Depression occurring during its watch. The “War on Poverty” has not ended poverty. The Securities and Exchange Commission, charged with preventing fraud in the financial industry, could not catch swindlers like Enron and Bernie Madoff. An endless string of government programs have been initiated to improve public schools, yet the results have not improved. These schemes—and countless others like them—fail because the means are immoral. These government interventions are impractical because they force individuals to act contrary to their own judgment.
Where force attempts to impose certain values or goals upon individuals, force cannot make them accept and embrace those values or goals. For example, let us say that you are a fervent Boston Red Sox fan. No amount of force or threats can compel you to change your allegiance to the New York Yankees. However, force can be used to make you attend Yankees games, buy a Derek Jeter jersey, and wave pennants. You can be forced to *act* as if you were a Yankees fan, but you can not be forced to actually *be one.* In short, while force can control and regulate your actions, it cannot change what you desire and hold to be important, that is, your values.
No matter the prohibitions or dictates issued by government, individuals will still seek the values that they desire. They will find ways to circumvent the law, either through loop holes (such as with taxes), by using pressure group politics to obtain exceptions or changes to the law, or by simply skirting the law. The widespread existence of “black markets” is one example. When force is used to prevent individuals from acting according to their judgment in the pursuit of their values, they will then use their judgment to find other means for attaining those values.