On the Trail to "Ameritopia" with Mark Levin

    Mark Levin is a lawyer, constitutional scholar, and radio show host who recently completed his newest book, “Ameritopia: The Unmaking of America.”  This is the companion book to his previous work, “Liberty and Tyranny,” which emphasized how Statism has led us to a huge, central government to the detriment of the states and our U. S. Constitution.  One of the more interesting aspects of Liberty and Tyranny” was Levin's ability to popularize the term "statist" which means someone who believes in the supremacy of the state over the individual.   This new book builds upon that framework to describe how statists seek to achieve Utopianism. 

    “Ameritopia” is a history lesson, a philosophical treatise, and a political science lesson.  Levin takes a step back from the everyday world of partisan, electoral politics to examine the fundamental foundations of today's politics. He lays out a philosophical foundation and makes the argument for conservatism over liberalism.

    In the first part of “Ameritopia,” Levin examines the works of four historical figures: Plato, Thomas More, Thomas Hobbes, and Karl Marx. Levin shows how each one promoted what was considered an ideal society and how each one of these ideals is no more than tyranny. In each case, the ideal society contains a highly centralized government which controls the masses through various means--persuasion, deceit, coercion, eugenics, euthanasia--and therefore tears apart the family, community, and faith.   He connects the dots from Plato, More, Hobbes, and Marx straight to what every day Americans are experiencing not simply with life in the Obama-era but with the very essence of liberalism itself which Levin says is more properly called statism.

     Levin notes that the famous Greek philosopher, Plato, wasn't the first to enthuse about a utopian society, but he is surely among the most prominent. Plato's “Republic” was all about the construction of what Plato called an "ideal city" filled with "Guardians" who decide who gets what.   Levin says that there are modern signposts of utopia including Obamacare, the stimulus, the EPA, drastic cutting of the military budget among others   Statists insists that these will all lead to Utopia in America, or Ameritopia.

    From Plato, Levin moves on to Sir Thomas More's famous novel from 1516.  More's novel “Utopia” gave title to the concept of a world where, as Levin notes, a society exists "in which every need is answered and every want is either met or made resulting in near-perfect existence."  Levin points out that More anticipated Obamacare by almost 500 years. In More's Utopia there is free health care.

    Levin continues his critique of various utopias and the always present authoritarian mindset. On through Thomas Hobbes and his “Leviathan,” and finally that most influential utopian of modern times -- Karl Marx and his utopian vision of class struggle: “The Communist Manifesto.”

    Plato, More, Hobbes and Marx all come down on the side of "collectivist" or "utopian" states whereby individuals must necessarily become subservient to the interests of the state. In such an environment, individuals "must be managed and suppressed by masterminds for the greater good." There is no tolerance for individual self-interest or even self-preservation. A person's labor and property belong to the state or are controlled by the state. Citing lengthy excerpts from the extensive writings of each of these individuals, Levin points out the obvious flaws in this line of thinking.  Levin describes the philosophical underpinnings of the modern day statist/liberal.  Levin demonstrates how the thinking of today's liberal has been shaped by the works of these philosophers.

   Part Two of "Ameritopia" hones in on the writings of John Locke, Charles de Montesquieu, and Alexis de Tocqueville who all champion a much smaller, less intrusive government. Levin shows how each one viewed human beings as autonomous individuals with God-given abilities and rights.

    With his lawyerly precision, Levin details the many examples of how both Locke and Montesquieu influenced the founders of the United States and how Tocqueville spread Americanism to the European culture of the 19th century.  Montesquieu warned of "the dangers of a republican government attempting to transform a civil society--including superseding the effects of religion, family, commerce, traditions, customs, mores etc. through legal coercion."

    Locke in particular had an enormous influence on our Founding Fathers as they went about the challenges of fashioning the U. S. Constitution. For most of the history of the world, mankind has been ruled by despots and repressive governments. The Founding Fathers wanted something much different. Locke wrote that "laws made by men and governments without the consent of the government are illegitimate and no man is bound to them."  It was Locke who insisted on understanding the true nature of man, says Levin, as opposed to utopians and their lust for "insensate societies based on their own prejudices and fantasies." And that true nature is, among other things, imperfect. Therefore, Utopia is unobtainable.

    In the third section of "Ameritopia,” Levin explains how the statists have advanced their agenda over the past eight decades and why the 2012 elections stand as a watershed in American history. Levin explains how the America built upon Locke, Montesquieu, and Tocqueville is at risk of being taken over by the statists’ utopian ideology in the 21st century.  Levin describes Ameritopia as it appears in every American home where the federal government regulates washing machines, toilets,  light bulbs, baby cribs, latex balloons, matchbooks, mattresses, televisions, radios, cell phones, iPods, batteries, garage door openers, lawn mowers, lawn darts, pool slides, toothpaste, and almost everything found in the modern home.  Homebuilders must comply with the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act and the National Historic Preservation Act. With the entitlements of Social Security and Medicare, there is not an area of American life untouched by the insatiable government mandates of Ameritopia.

    Levin concludes by saying that America is on an untenable path towards destruction.  Unless we embrace the principles of the Founders and men like Locke and reject the teachings of Marx and other statists, America will fail as the most successful experiment in human history.  Levin ends by asking the reader if we will reinstitute the American Republic faithful to our U. S. Constitution or trend further down this failed Utopian idea.

    This book is not light "beach reading."  Levin's specialty is constitutional law and there can be no denying his academic credentials. While you may not agree with his politics or perspective, there is still no denying that this book is written by a man who is passionate about his country and fears that the Republic for which our forefathers fought is on a path to a statist, socialist, and post-constitutional state.