by Leonard E. Reed, Foundation for Economic Education, Irvington-on-Hudson, NY

 I am a lead pencil — the ordinary wooden pencil familiar to all boys and girls and adults who can read and write.

Writing is both my vocation and my avocation; that's all I do.

You may wonder why I should write a genealogy. Well, to begin with, my story is interesting. And, next, I am a mystery—more so than a tree or a sunset or even a flash of lightning. But, sadly, I am taken for granted by those who use me, as if I were a mere incident and without background. This supercilious attitude relegates me to the level of the commonplace.

This is a species of the grievous error in which mankind cannot too long persist without peril. For, the wise G. K. Chesterton observed, “We are perishing for want of wonder, not for want of wonders.”

The founders of the American Republic were not saints.

Nor did they entertain any illusions about the perfection of human nature.

As an advance over the ancient belief in the divine right of kings however, the American founders proposed an ideal of civil government, conducted of, by, and for the people.

Given the instrument of the law, and public institutions charged with following and directing the use of those laws, ordinary citizens were presumed capable of conducting the high affairs of state.

The authors of the Constitution recognised in themselves and others the familiar vices of vanity and greed, but they preferred the risks and uncertainties of a civil democracy, to the false assurance of a benevolent monarchy.

It is estimated that every person in this country is presently catalogued, indexed, and cross-referenced in an average of 300 computer databases¹.

In the aftermath of reports revealing that government agencies are engaged in the sale of thousands of drivers license photos and other personal information, this number is a little disturbing.

Your name, your address, your income and expenses, your medical history, your assets, your friends and associates, your buying habits, where you've been and what you did there, are all available to the "right people", all at the touch of a button.

A new crime, called "identity theft" is increasingly common. With a little knowledge, a criminal can literally usurp your identity and conduct business, or commit crimes, in your name, leaving you with the bill, or worse.