THE AXIOM OF THEFT

Things of value made available to theft are stolen. 

    That is the Axiom of Theft. Axiom, by definition, is a self-evident truth. If it isn’t self-evident to you, try these experiments: Rest your ultra-light mountain bike outside the local coffee shop out of view and catch up with an old friend inside. Place your laptop conspicuously in the back seat and spend a lazy afternoon at the mall. Order something large and flat- screened in shape and have Amazon deliver it to your porch. It may not happen immediately, but once delivered, the countdown to liftoff is on. Things of value made available to theft are stolen.

    Elections are valuable. Traditionally, they direct resources and priorities with outcomes that serve some but not others. Presently, they also determine the path down which 50-percent of the country will not go: The removal of perceived rights, the advancement of race-essentialism, the desire to reverse climatological trend, the stripping of American heritage and history itself. They represent initiatives of tremendous consequence, and therefore, value. Over time, specific actions have set them on the porch in full view of the pirates.

    In 2005, the Carter-Baker Commission (named for Democrat President Jimmy Carter and Republican Secretary of State James Baker) issued a report on ensuring election integrity. Their findings called on states to increase photo ID, be leery of mail-in voting; maintain voter lists; allow election observers to monitor ballot counting, and to make sure voting machines are working. Since that time, these protections have been deliberately weakened in the name of “voter access”. The most significant roll- back occurred with the 2020 election. The number of mail-in ballots went from 33 million in 2016 (40%) to 86 million in 2020 (69%) (US Census Bureau Voting and Registration in the Election of November 2020). The rejection rate in key swing states such as Georgia, went down by a factor of 10, 2.0% to 0.2% (US Elections Project, Georgia Early Voting Statistics). The front door of your downtown loft is now ajar.

    Because of the Axiom, we don’t need to catch anyone red-handed (although lots of evidence can be pointed to). We don’t need to review the video tape (convincing video exists as well). Republican- appointed judges can dismiss cases on standing or ignore evidence of fraud and malicious intent ad nauseum. We don’t need to wrap our head around how the least popular democratic administration of all time received the most votes of all time. The Axiom tells us what happened.

    A license in Civil Engineering confers certain rights and privileges to individuals who practice the profession. The ability to design a 3-story dwelling, for example. However, the engineer does not affix his license number and stamp to a drawing alone. It is accompanied by calculations – neat and complete such that another professional can follow and confirm the calculations are correct. That’s called transparency. The burden of proof is on the certifier to show why the structure is sound. Not on the homeowner to determine once left standing in the rubble. Certification is meaningless if election procedures aren’t followed, if ballot chain-of-custody is missing, if ballots count after the election is over, or if certification is made under threat of prosecution. All of these happened recently in Arizona.

    The value of elections, because of the country’s intense divide, are at market-bubble highs. Conversely, the value of traditional securities such as civic duty, love of country, fidelity to principal, judicial oath, and journalistic integrity have all fallen to penny stock pricing.

Contributor: Jonathan Kors, January 2023