I was inspired to quote this clear and poignant statement that was put forward by the Scottish Land Movement Party. Its overview of life as we experience it today is undeniable, and evokes within the minds and hearts of many a sincere longing for fundamental change in regard to land monopoly.
The Land Party is a new political party representing the people of the United Kingdom.
The UK is not our nation, we do not own it, the land of the nation is not held for our benefit nor on our behalf.
From the day we are born we are Peasants, with no (exclusive) right to the very essence of our nation. Yet we are extolled to work, pay tax, fight, and if necessary, to die defending it.
We are liable for the debts of our nation, we are the mass of people from whom business extracts its profits.
We live in the 24 million homes on 7% of the land, unable to live by our own means. We have little choice but to take part in economic slavery.
Our basic need for shelter must be provided by market forces supplying our homes to us for as much profit as the market can bear. These homes are not built for us to “live” in, they are built for us to “sleep” in after work. They have no means to make energy, and there is little or no facility to grow our own food. Instead, our food is flown in from around the world, manufactured on an industrial scale using the cheap labour of other Peasants in other lands. Our energy is supplied by hugely profitable multinationals at great expense to us and the Earth. Even the supply of water makes vast profits. Our lives have been reduced to a collection of utility bills and what we do to earn money.
We are educated to take part not to be self reliant: there are no classes in building our homes, growing our own food, dealing with our waste, or making our own energy, even though these things can be done simply and effectively. We are kept like livestock, wholly dependent on our owners supplying our needs. Our laws and institutions are run by and for the few families who do own the land. Six thousand people own 70% of all the land in our nation (there are over 64.1 million people in Britain). Until recently (1914) these were the only people allowed to vote, wield power or hold office.
To remedy these iniquities Peasants must (seek) some form of escape from the treadmill of (relentless) work, tax and exploitation. It is for this purpose that the SLMP exists: to distribute fairly the use of land; to give people their natural right to live on and from it; to remove the need to “work” for our lives and replace it with a “right” to have a life, a life where we look after ourselves, provide for ourselves, and have no need of masters, lords or owners.
The aim is to bring about Landocracy – A political and economic system based on equal rights and responsibilities to land. Free people with their own independent means leading self reliant lives may choose ideologies for themselves; they may trade their surplus, take a job, or buy things they don’t need. In a Landocracy these things will be a choice not a need.
The wealth of our nation is owned by a tiny fraction of our population. The UK has 60 million acres of land – 70% of this is owned by 1% of the population. Just 6,000 or so landowners — mostly aristocrats – own about 40 million acres, two thirds of the UK. 60 million people live in 24 million dwellings. These 24 million dwellings sit on approx 4.4 million acres (7.7% of the land). This imbalance of land and wealth ownership is repeated all over the world. As far as we know there is only one planet that supports life in all of the Universe and we destroy large parts of it to make money for people who already have unimaginable wealth. Are we that stupid, are we the pets of some small group of wealthy families, or are we able to look after ourselves?
Earth is our home and we (should) undertake to make the most of all of it, for all of us.
Here are some relevant quotes voiced by those human beings who were brought to the point of destitution through greed and the unlawful claim and ownership of Mother Earth.
“What is this you call (private) property? It cannot be the earth, for the land is our mother, nourishing all her children, beasts, birds, fish and all men. The woods, the streams, everything on it belongs to everybody and is for the use of all. How can one man say it belongs only to him?” – Massasoit
“One does not sell the land people walk on.” –Crazy Horse
“We do not own the freshness of the air or the sparkle of the water. How can you buy them from us?” – Sealth
“My reason teaches me that land cannot be sold. The Great Spirit gave it to his children to live upon. So long as they occupy and cultivate it, they have a right to the soil. Nothing can be sold but such things as can be carried away” — Black Hawk
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