Has the Tri-States Time Come?

Has the Tri-States Time Come?
by Brian Bills - Published: 01.25.01

Back in 1985 I had the good fortune to come into possession of a book titled "Blood in the Ashes" by William W. Johnstone. This book turned out to be just one in a long series of books written about life in a post-holocaust America and the attempts of a group of people to rebuild society. The point that stuck out in my mind the most was that these people, who were called the "rebels" for their desire to break away from the accepted norms of American political ideology, did not want to see America go back to the way it was before the war. These people wanted a return to the constitution and a more common sense form of government.

"Just what is a common sense form of government?" you might ask. The concept is so simple that it seems to have eluded today's bureaucrats and social elite completely. The concept is this; a government must be instituted and laws passed that society must follow or you will have anarchy. The similarity between what we have today and what Mr.. Johnstone envisioned ends there.

In the Tri-States, as the area of the country where the rebels settled was called, a person is responsible for his or her own actions. There are no excuses made for why little Johnny got drunk and mowed down a couple of elderly folks crossing the street. Little Johnny broke the law and must pay the price. End of story. No sobbing about how he wasn't loved enough by his father or the prom queen wouldn't date him or he didn't make first string on the team. The laws in the Tri-States are few and easily understood by all. There is no room for legal wrangling and loopholes. Children are taught both in the home and in the schools that breaking the law is wrong, PERIOD! Values such as respect for others, an honest day's work for an honest day's pay, obeying the law, and upholding the values set forth in the constitution are paramount in the education of the young.

There is no such thing as welfare in the Tri-States. If an adult is physically and mentally capable of working, that person works or gets out. The young, the old, and the handicapped are still properly taken care of but if you are a normal, capable adult, don't expect to sit around waiting for the welfare check because it won't happen.

I have only hit on some of the high points of what has come to be known as the Tri-States philosophy and I apologize to Mr. Johnstone for I feel I have not really done it due justice in this article. I wish, however, to go on to discuss other things regarding this matter.

As the years have gone by and I have seen more and more of the way the government has abused and taken advantage of the law abiding citizens of this country I have begun to wonder, is it time to give the Tri-States a shot? To many of you reading this, the concepts I have outlined here are an echo of your own feelings and ideas of the way things should be. How many times have we all sat down at the coffee shop or the dinner table and talked about the way things ought to be instead of the way things are? How many of us would give it all for a chance to live in a society where you could leave the keys in your car or walk any part of your town at night without fear of being mugged, or worse. Just imagine, if you will, a society where the law abiding citizen has the right to defend what belongs to them without fear of lawsuit or criminal prosecution for the simple act of exercising the God-given rights which have been outlined in the Constitution. Let's look at the pros and cons of setting up such a society today.

On the plus side, as I stated in the last paragraph, it would be wonderful to live in a society where prejudices, hate, and crime have all but been erased. Where everyone is truly equal. Not in fact but in opportunity. Just as I don't have the skills or aptitude to design a skyscraper, I have no doubt there are plenty of architects out there who don't know the first thing about auto mechanics or how to actually build what they have designed. Everyone has a skill which is useful and it is pure foolishness to think that because little Johnny can't perform complicated algebra equations that the grading curve should be altered to make him feel better about himself. Let him find something he's good at and go in that direction. A society such as this would be capable of functioning with an absolute minimum of government interference because the people would be taught what is right and wrong without the need for expensive lawyers and all kinds of legalistic mumbo-jumbo. Money would be saved by not pouring billions into worthless projects such as finding out that most snakes are left-handed, (Yes, this one is for real,) or wasting resources on non-workable social programs. Foreign aid would be drastically cut until, and if, we took care of the problems in our own country instead of turning a blind eye to them. It just doesn't make sense to give another country several hundred million dollars in aid when people on our own soil are starving, homeless, and lacking in even the most basic necessities of life.

Now, for the darker side. Actually setting up such a society in this day would be a monumental undertaking. It would require the efforts of thousands, if not millions, of people all working together toward the same goal. Although I believe there are at least that many folks in this country who would love to see such a society come into being, it is a sad fact that noone seems able to truly get organized enough. You have a few here, a dozen there, a couple hundred over there, all with their own ideas about what should be done and all of them pulling in their own direction. If something like this were to be attempted, everybody who wanted change would have to get together under one banner and work for the same goal.

In Mr.. Johnstone's books, the rebels had the great advantage of having a limited nuclear holocaust wipe out most of the country and the government with it so they were able to gather and build without the feds barging in. The rebels also had the resources of the entire country at their disposal. Since nobody was using the stuff, all they had to do was go around and pick it up. At this time, we don't have that luxury. We have jobs to go to, bills to pay, kids to feed. All the little things in day to day life that make it difficult to gather the resources needed and make the preparations necessary to implement such a grand scheme.

But, with each passing day, as I see our government take another step closer to a totalitarian state and more rights being slowly and covertly stripped from us in front of our eyes, I hope and pray that the people will rise up as one and say "THAT'S ENOUGH!!! THIS GOVERNMENT ISN'T WORKING AND IT'S TIME TO TRY SOMETHING ELSE!" I don't know what the turning point will be. I can envision any number of situations that could precipitate such an occurrence. The Tri-States would work if we allowed it to. The big question for me at this point is how soon and how many will join with me and others like me to build a society that, while not perfect, is at least a good deal better for it's citizens than what we have in place now.

If you wish to know more about the Tri-States philosophy and the ASHES Series by William W. Johnstone I suggest you purchase FROM THE ASHES: AMERICA REBORN. It will tell you more than I ever could. TSC is many things; no one word can describe us or what we are. We are a little bit militia because we are loosely organized and heavily armed. We are a little bit survivalist because we are ready to defend our beliefs and help others in time of need. We are a little bit libertarian because of our strongly held beliefs that every American should accept personal responsibility for what they do and stop this endless whining and complaining.