Little Platoons, Big Brother and the Great Reset
The Great Reset is real, and it is taking no prisoners:
With the astounding new power-grab being attempted by Dan Andrews in Victoria, making him and the health minister effectively dictator for life while trashing democracy and human rights, we need to once again learn from the past. Philosophers and political theorists from Aristotle on up have spoken about ways in which despotism can be resisted and kept in check.
The need for organisations and groups which offset the power of the ever-increasing state is a major part of this. The naked individual against an all-powerful state is the dream of every tyrant and the nightmare of every freedom-loving citizen. That is why there is always the pressing need to have something that stands between the individual and the state.
These include the family, neighbourhood, churches, labour groups, voluntary associations, local communities, and so on. These have been referred to as mediating structures or intermediary institutions. Political thinkers have long stressed the importance of these.
Alexis de Tocqueville for example spoke about “the spirit of association” which he found throughout North America as he travelled there, and as he wrote about in his two-volume Democracy in America (1835-1840). And Edmund Burke wrote briefly about the “little platoons” in his Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790).
More recent writers have run with this theme. They include, to name but a few:
Robert Nisbet, The Quest for Community. OUP, 1953.
Peter L. Berger, To Empower People: The Role of Mediating Structures in Public Policy. AEI Press, 1977.
Michael Novak, ed., Democracy and Mediating Structures. AEI Press, 1980.
Charles Murray, In Pursuit of Happiness and Good Government. Simon and Schuster, 1988.
As mentioned, with Victoria looking to strip all citizens of their basic rights, and effectively bypassing parliament, the need to once again affirm the vital importance of these little platoons is crucial. All power-hungry despots want nothing but them and the naked individual. The masses are so much easier to control this way.
But Dictator Dan is not alone in all this. Consider the Great Reset mob who I have spoken about before. See here for example: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2020/11/13/the-great-reset-and-the-rise-of-the-radical-technocrats/
Folks like Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum have been happily using the Covid crisis to further push their nefarious agenda, and are also using ‘climate change’ as another ‘crisis’ to exploit and bring in their dystopian future. And it is all about increasing the power of the state while reducing the power of the individual.
The only mediating structures the WEF want to run with are things like woke capitalist institutions – big corporations that can be harnessed to push leftist causes. One website that thinks there is too much conspiracy theorising on the Great Reset nonetheless has some very real concerns. It says this in part:
The idea of stakeholder capitalism and multi-stakeholder partnerships might sound warm and fuzzy, until we dig deeper and realise that this actually means giving corporations more power over society, and democratic institutions less.
The plan from which the Great Reset originated was called the Global Redesign Initiative. Drafted by the WEF after the 2008 economic crisis, the initiative contains a 600-page report on transforming global governance. In the WEF’s vision, “the government voice would be one among many, without always being the final arbiter.” Governments would be just one stakeholder in a multi-stakeholder model of global governance. Harris Gleckman, senior fellow at the University of Massachusetts, describes the report as “the most comprehensive proposal for re-designing global governance since the formulation of the United Nations during World War II.”
Who are these other, non-governmental stakeholders? The WEF, best known for its annual meeting of high-net-worth individuals in Davos, Switzerland, describes itself as an international organization for public-private cooperation. WEF partners include some of the biggest companies in oil (Saudi Aramco, Shell, Chevron, BP), food (Unilever, The Coca-Cola Company, Nestlé), technology (Facebook, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple) and pharmaceuticals (AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna).
Instead of corporations serving many stakeholders, in the multi-stakeholder model of global governance, corporations are promoted to being official stakeholders in global decision-making, while governments are relegated to being one of many stakeholders. In practice, corporations become the main stakeholders, while governments take a backseat role, and civil society is mainly window dressing. https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/oureconomy/conspiracy-theories-aside-there-something-fishy-about-great-reset/
Thankfully some folks have been warning about this here in Australia. On Sky News two voices at least can be heard sounding the alarm: Rowan Dean and Cory Bernardi. The former has often spoken out on this. In one of his discussions he said there is no “secret agenda” about the WEF’s Great Reset – they are shouting it from the rafters:
“This is the plan by the World Economic Forum to encourage governments to use all the levers they use during lockdown, enforced business closures, 23 hour lockdowns, restricting how far you can go from your home and ridiculously aggressive policing tactics, in order to tackle climate change.” https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/outsiders/no-secret-agenda-about-the-great-reset/video/4efaca3e8a909943919ca7ea942f769e
And a recent post featuring Bernardi said this:
Sky News host Cory Bernardi has slammed the ‘Great Reset’ movement, a plan involving “dramatically increasing the power of the government” endorsed by the World Economic Forum. Mr Bernardi says the plan, termed as a ‘Great Reset of capitalism’, would use “vast regulatory schemes to coerce corporations into supporting left-wing causes”. “It’s not surprising that the likes of the hard-left Biden administration like replacing capitalism for crony capitalism,” Mr Bernardi said. “That way only the ‘special’ people get to make a profit for themselves. The rest of us just become government economic units.” https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/great-reset-will-dramatically-increase-power-of-government/video/0c165316427d97c05bd14a8b8d8fb4b9
Finally, two politicians who often appear on Sky, Matt Canavan and George Christensen, have also been warning about all this. Canavan for example was featured here:
Nationals Senator Matt Canavan says the World Economic Forum’s plan for the Great Reset is “crazy, kooky stuff”. Mr Canavan said the Forum recently released a video clip outlining that by 2030, “they don’t want anyone to own property”. “You’ll own no property and you’ll be happier apparently,” he said. “This stuff is crazy, kooky stuff.”
“The real battle line – in my view – in politics, is between those who want to allow people to take control of their own lives and communities and run their own countries, their own states, their own local councils … the way they’d like to see them run, and those who are pushing for one, unified, global order that takes away agency or sovereignty from any individual.”
“Because if we have one global order, you’re one of about 8 billion people and you can’t control your local environment. When we invest in smaller communities and give power to local governments, to state governments and to national governments, you can have a lot more influence. I think we’ve seen a push back against the globalisation order in the last few years. The more we give power back to local and small governments, the better communities we’ll have, the more investment, the more vested interest people will have in their local community and therefore the better decisions will be made.” https://www.skynews.com.au/australia-news/the-great-reset-is-crazy-kooky-stuff-which-aims-for-no-private-property-by-2030/video/89852f7d31c1960fec83113a60069df7
And on his own site Christensen recently said this about the Great Reset:
The WEF is a group of wealthy and powerful world leaders from politics, big business, and NGOs including Klaus Schwab, George Soros, the Chairman of the International Business Council, the CEO of the Bank of America, the head of the International Monetary Fund, Prince Charles, Al Gore, and even Greta Thunberg.
For years they have been trying to sell and market their agenda for change by influencing the policies of national governments. The great policy reset! In other words, an unelected global elite operating outside the law deciding for ordinary citizens how they will live, work, communicate and do business in the future….
Some of the WEF’s dangerous ideas include having a universal basic wage; “reforming” our democracy, giving away certain legal rights and property rights; and giving more power to unelected and unchecked global bureaucrats.
The now deleted WEF video had stated:
-“You’ll own nothing and you’ll be happy.”
-“Whatever you want, you will rent.”-“You’ll eat much less meat, an occasional treat, not a staple.”
-“Western values will have been tested to the breaking point.”
Remember whenever you hear terms such as ‘building back better’, ‘servitisation’, ‘stronger cities’, ‘smarter cities’ – that is the jargon used to persuade you to get on board with The Great Reset. And if you don’t, it will be done by force and centralised power. https://www.georgechristensen.com.au/reset
In the light of all this, I hope you can see why the concept – and reality – of ‘little platoons’ is so vital. Individuals need protection from the ever-expanding state. These mediating institutions help in this regard. Which is why all would-be tyrants want to see them eliminated or rendered ineffective. Beware!
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Great article once again Bill, thank you for you tireless work.
One thing I need to ask is as we look at this idea of “The Great Reset” is this any different to Isaiah or Jeremiah’s situation? (Babylon is coming and nothing you do or say will stop them from taking control of this land)
I ask this in so far as God has shown through the book of Revelation there will be a one world government, religion and currency so are we kidding ourselves in thinking we can thwart God’s plans by fighting against this.
I am by no means saying we should just give up and accept this as a given.
I like the idea of communities and Churches becoming closer and more vocal against this situation but in the end if this is as God would have it, nothing we can do or say will stop it from happening. Am I wrong?
Thanks Mathew. A few things can be said. Back in the Old Testament Jeremiah and others were divinely inspired canonical prophets, so when they told the Israelites, ‘Do not resist Babylon as it is being used by Yahweh for his purposes to judge Israel,’ that was not something anyone should have argued with. But we do not have divinely inspired canonical prophets today telling us that Dan Andrews (or Stalin, or Hitler) are his instruments of judgment and we must just submit fully.
And even if one is a hardcore Calvinist who may believe everything is ordained by God, only a few of the more extreme ones would deny human responsibility. Thus hardly anyone would have told Wilberforce, ‘Slavery is God’s divine will so if you resist it you are resisting God’! Hardly anyone would have told Bonhoeffer, ‘Do not resist Hitler – he is God’s servant,’ etc.
Our marching orders remain: we are to be salt and light, and that involves – among other things – fighting against evil and injustice wherever it is found. Resisting tyrannical megalomaniacs who are causing so much harm is part of what it is to be a good Christian in a fallen world. So resisting great evil like the Great Reset seems perfectly biblical.
And of course Christians for 2000 years have thought they were in the last days of the book of Revelation. Who knows: the Lord may tarry for a few more centuries. In which case we are to occupy till He comes, and that means – in part – resisting evil.
Thank you Bill, your reply clarified a few things for me and makes your whole article a bit clearer for me.
As I said I think Churches and communities need to get together on alot of issues.
Thank you again Bill
May our wonderful God Yahweh bless you and your family.
Many thanks Mathew.
Yes, YouTube has removed that ridiculous Great WEF Reset video. “You’ll own nothing (sounds like communism) and be happy”. (sounds delusional).
But it is always available from the internet archive.
https://web.archive.org/web/20210316095945/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBBxWtKKQiA&feature=youtu.be
This is absolute rubbish.
The proposed future world of the Great WEF Reset is about as ludicrous as the Great Islamic Reset world.
https://www.memri.org/tv/pro-isis-video-envisions-life-islamic-chaliphate-only-jihad-topple-regime-utopia
Thanks for that John.
Thank you Bill for your article on how crucial having little platoons will be as the evil elite via the Great Reset accelerate their agenda.
Jesus Himself lived in a small platoon of 12. I think other articles you have written about the cost of following Jesus, persecution, growing hostility against the Christian faith etc overlaps with this. I think the characteristics of a little platoon us important because even in a little platoon there can be agent provocateurs aka Judas. The underground church in China seemed pretty tightknit small groups because they had all known derp suffering. In the West Christians for the most part have cruised on Easy Street for so long many don’t know anything but a persecution free life of materialism.
The story goes of KGB agents bursting into a church, forcing them outside to shoot them..’ How many of you are followers of Jesus Christ’? they shouted pointing guns at them. Everyone raised their hands prepared and ready to die for the Lord Jesus.
That’s the kind of Little platoon I’m talking about. Although I realise its very unrealistic in Western Churchianity. Keep the faith.
Nigel Mohammed
Well said Nigel.
I’m an American living in upstate New York, I heard of the “Great Reset” a while ago and have become concerned to the point of now reading anything I can about it. The amount of damage to the US caused by Democrats and the Biden administration in the last 10 months is shocking. Joe Biden and John Kerry are completely onboard with the great reset and Americans are going to suffer severe economic pain because of it.
What’s even more shocking and scary to me is the videos and news I see coming out of Australia, I can’t put into words how badly I feel for our good friends “down under” because of what all of you are dealing with. Tyranny is knocking on all of our doors, but more so in Australia. And I believe the author is 100% correct in saying that COVID and Climate Change are the vehicles being used to usher in this “new world order” if you will. Things are a little more difficult here for the powers that be because of the ARMED population of the US, they’re pushing us and sadly I believe it won’t be long before a boiling point is reached.
Klaus Schwab and the Davos crowd are PURE EVIL and must be defeated and all of us must stand together to do that. Stay well and keep fighting the good fight.
Many thanks Joe.
Mr Mohammed might be surprised. However, I expect the “Great Reset” lot are wiser than to burst into churches with guns. Meanwhile, for us in the UK, please pray for Prince Charles to be converted, or that he does not become king.
Thanks John.
Thanks for this Bill.
I especially love Robert Nisbet’s book.
The basic point being that the power of the State increases in a society where the church has lost its public influence, and the people have become what I call “massified”.
This means that there are fewer and fewer intermediary associations (family, parish, professional groups etc) that have actual influence on society. In those groups, people are an integral part. In the bureaucratic state, people are reduced to sameness and numbers.
That is why parish life an intentionally forming communities is so important.
Civic communities (I.e parishes, Rotary, RSL) have become much less commonplace nowadays as people are less grounded in a place and much more mobile owing to technology. This is especially common amongst young professionals, who have much greater mobility than most.
The problem is that as associations become less common, authority and influence become more centralised and the people are reduced to numbers.
The goal then is to keep on keeping on with the formation of communities.
Tom
Yes quite right Tom.
Something very relevant to the proposed Great Reset is this. You might not be able to obtain a copy of the Bible then since you won’t be able to own things any more. Before then, there is still the spectre of being watched wherever you go. The idea of matching one’s purchases at the shops with Covid data could be used to give fast warning if you’ve been to a place where a person with Covid was detected, so we’re told. Oh, yes, but this data can be misused. Consider the case where QR data was given to police who were not meant to access that information. Adatree has the same dangers. We should find out where to address complaints / concerns. Also see links below:
https://www.technologydecisions.com.au/content/it-management/news/adatree-launches-covid-hotspot-alert-system-931789149
https://www.startupdaily.net/2021/10/open-banking-fintech-adatree-has-created-a-covid-hotspot-analysis-that-turns-contact-tracing-into-real-time-alerts/
Adatree is not well publicised. It is brand new but is already starting to roll out its technology in NSW, Vic and Qld.
Absolutely!
What really was the difference between the Nazis and the communists? The main difference was who they decided was the enemy, either the Jews or the aristocracy, but the end game was essentially exactly the same. The Nazis may have co-opted the industry leaders into the party while the communists replaced them with their own party members but the end result is the same – everything controlled by party members. Either using the SS or the Stasi to control the populous.
Neither system is actually opposed to aristocracy – just the particular aristocracy that they currently don’t like and have little or no control over. The end result of both right and left wing socialism is inevitably simply a serfdom in disguise and what we know from repeated history and what any half-ways reasonable economist will tell you, is that property rights are absolutely essential for the advancement of society. Ordinary people these days now live much better lives than the feudal lords of the past because Christianity promoted justice for all and freedom and property rights mean society was able to advance.
You will never get anywhere near the advancement, innovation and standard of living under a totalitarian regime as you will under a free one but the overriding principle has to be justice without which no system works properly.
As for Matthew Skilling’s comment above, I know this is a common view but I don’t believe it is what the prophecies actually predict. What we see in prophecy, whether it is the conflict between the king of the North and the king of the South or the small Horn overcoming the other horns or the kings hating the whore, etc., is conflict between differing forms of evil. The worshipping of the image of the Beast, I believe, starts with the idea that government control is what is required and then the Second Beast simply manipulates what that image of government control looks like. When people worship that image, instead of God, they are inevitably blaspheming God.
An often-overlooked aspect of democracy is the power of lobby groups over politics and government. The worst example is Washington DC which has entire office blocks full of them, mostly in K Street.
Canberra’s Parliament House is crawling with lobbyists on sitting days. They’re not properly regulated and they can have enormous influence over policy of all parties. The industries and corporations with the big money have the most clout. This system of influence makes a mockery of democracy since the ordinary people who vote have little say over policy and legislation.
There is good and bad in this Warren. For example, I can lobby politicians, write letters to them, go to Canberra, raise my concerns, and so on. I can band together with others to do the same. We can form lobby groups. We can work as groups to have an impact. All of this has a place and it is good that we can do this. But as you say, there are also very powerful and very wealthy groups doing lobbying. One simply thinks of Big Pharma for example as but one group with seemingly an enormous influence on our politicians and how they might vote on things, especially in the light of Covid.
And it is not just big corporations that can be problematic here. There are various activist groups that have heaps of financial backing and plenty of political clout. The left especially has so many of these. Simply think of all the left-wing activist groups that billionaires like Soros are funding. Think of the leftist Big Tech and their funding and support of the Democrats and Democrat causes. Crony capitalism and woke capitalism is also a real worry here.
The question is, where do we draw the line on all this? In the US there are political action committees and the like as well. There has been long-standing debate about the power of lobbyists and how much influence they have – or should have. Then there is the issue of campaign donations and the like. Should there be limits on how much a party or a politician can get by way of financial donations and so on? Many questions arise, and democracies are always fragile affairs. The freedom of an individual or a group to lobby a politician is generally a good thing, but how far can and should all this go? Small libraries have already been devoted to these subjects of course.
Thanks guys, and see this very important piece by Ramesh Thakur:
https://spectator.com.au/2021/11/the-unresolved-debate-on-covid-vaccines/
Mathew Skilling the end times will happen regardless of man but man does not have to be complicit. In many ways doing nothing to fight against the enemy is as bad as helping. In both cases you are complicit in their evil but fighting against them is doing your master’s work. Many a soldier has found himself fighting losing battles but doesn’t stop till his commander says to. We aren’t fighting against God’s plan as we are playing our part in it.
I had not consciously, known about the great reset until 20 months ago ….bit of a shock n a long story.
Now like so many I follow closely, because I follow Jesus.
Without Him I would not choose to be aware, it’s just too terrifying to allow myself to comprehend…understanding brings the call to thought, prayer n action for those of us who love Him along with the consequences of exercising these gifts.
Thank you Bill n all who dwell here.
John Sampson. Hi John, thanks for your reply of 12 Nov. I gave the example of KGB agents under hard totalitarianism to highlight the point that it might get to the stage where knowing who we can really trust will become a major issue. In no way was I implying that a militarized police force would burst into churches with guns….Mostly because churches aren’t that much of a threat to Statism… Rather, they easily submit to it. However, I believe the time to form tightknit little platoons is now. The LORD bless and keep you.