Vol. 7 - The Sanctity of the Public Purse (Part I)
"Collecting more taxes than is absolutely necessary is legalized robbery."
– Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States
In the lives of the people, wastefulness leads to ruin. The same is true of our Kingdom. A free nation cannot remain free if they treat the public treasury as bottomless, or as a tool for personal gain. Every coin spent by the Kingdom was first taken from the citizens, and any excess is a burden on the citizens of tomorrow.
Do not misunderstand – taxation is necessary – but it must always be justified. When too much is taken than is needed for the defense of the Kingdom, to serve justice, and to provide essential services to the populace, it becomes a tool of control, dependency, and theft.
No doctrine of fiscal responsibility, nor of liberty itself, can survive if public finances become a tool for private gain. The treasury must never be used to reward political allies, buy loyalty, be abused to support scams, or enrich those in power. To do so is not only wasteful, but a betrayal of the public trust.
Those who seek control of the Ministry of Trade and Finance must always be met with suspicion. Those who abuse their power and resources for personal gain must be held to account. The temptation to use economic policy in vain is the oldest and most powerful enemy of honest governance, and it must be resisted.
Let no player come to office seeking treasure. Let them come to serve.
– Veritas