I'm very much in favor of Making America Great Again, and think Donald Trump's "MAGA" slogan was well chosen; a large number of people agree, which helped get him elected. The devil, however, is in the detail; what exactly does he mean by "Great"?

There were hints of it in his remarkable rallies, one of which was described in a ZGBlog for 2019, titled State Worship. I noted there the prominence he gave, and the praise he lavished, on cops; and on veterans and the military generally. Evidently, his vision of greatness is about authority and force. He didn't hide it.

His current presidency has confirmed that. He has taken control. He more or less ignores the reservations of the wimps in Congress and the courts, and does what he thinks right... and "Great" for America. He spends money as if it can be created by whim (the fiat kind can) and sinks small ships believed to be carrying drugs for Americans to buy, and kidnaps a head of state! for helping them, and allies with Israel which assassinates another head of state and begins a war against Iran without Congressional declaration. All this tells us us that domination of foreign governments is what he really means by the adjective "Great." People abroad prefer the word "bully."

In so doing, Trump presides over a looming financial disaster; the FedGov relentlessly increases a debt impossible to repay, which eventually must lead to hyperinflation and the collapse of the dollar. That will inevitably result in a massive depression. Happy days are not here again; they lie in the past. While government continues to exist, things will get much worse.

And it's in the past - notably, the 1800s - where America's true greatness is to be found. In that Century was laid all the foundation of prosperity we now enjoy, and which government is now squandering. It was so because laws were few and government was small.

So very obviously, if anyone really wants America to be Great Again, there is no alternative; American government must be small again. As Jefferson noted, "They govern best, who govern least" and "least" means, numerically, zero. Accordingly, the MAGA slogan needs amending at once to MAGSA: Make American Government Small Again.

In the 1990s Carla Howell ran for several offices in Massachussets on the Libertarian ticket. She never won, but attracted vote totals that were highly creditable for a non-R/D Party. Carla was petite - I'd say, around 5 feet tall - and attractive, dynamic and talented. Her very well-chosen campaign slogan was "Small Government is Beautiful."

Let it never be said here that any size of government is beautiful, however small, but Carla's point was well made. In total, governments in the 1800s (Federal plus State plus local) never stole more than 10% of what people earned. If that grab had been zero, the prosperity growth would have been even more phenomenal.

Today they plunder more than 50%, and would take even more but for the Laffer effect. Worse is what they do with the loot. And until they are stopped, it will become worse yet.

I don't see the slightest hope that MAGSA can take place - that is, that government at any level will volunteer to reduce its size, budget or power by four fifths (back to 10% as above.) It is an organism, and the basic aim of every organism is to survive and grow, even to the point that is overgrows and dies - like the Roman Empire, and probably by total financial collapse as above. If it's allowed to go on living, it will go on growing. Therefore, it must be denied life; it must be abolished 100%.

Tell me if you can see another, but to achieve that, I can see only one way: the TOLFA method. One by one with exponential growth, everyone in society must learn what it's about, and so resolve never to work for it in any capacity. Then it will inevitably - but peacefully - implode.

So here's a better acronym: MAGZ. Make American Government Zero.