“Inurement” refers to the process by which people become accustomed to something unpleasant. For freedom advocates, this is particularly alarming because humans can grow inured to tyranny itself.
An illustrative example emerged from a 1997 New York Times Magazine article on slavery in Muslim Mauritania. “God created me to be a slave, just as he created a camel to be a camel,” stated Fatma, a woman identified in the report. She had become inured.
Boubacar Ould Messaoud, an activist born into slavery, elaborated: “People like my mother think there is nothing wrong with slavery,” he told the Times. “They have no other universe. After 15 or 20 generations, people become totally submissive.” The article noted that rebellion becomes “inconceivable among people who have lost their collective memory of freedom.”
This serves as a warning for Americans too. While we are not enslaved in any literal sense, we have become inured to the erosion of liberty. Commentator Mark C. Ross described this phenomenon: “Sometimes I feel like a frog that’s getting boiled.”
The slow boil is an unnoticed process. A law, regulation, or mandate inherently reduces freedom by dictating what must or must not be done. Consequently, the more such rules exist, the less free we become.
Each year, federal, state, and local governments enact new laws, regulations, and mandates (LRMs) but rarely repeal existing ones. This incremental reduction in liberty leads to a gradual loss of freedom.
Logic dictates that this trend will eventually culminate in totalitarianism or something resembling it. Today, the United States already imposes hundreds of thousands to millions of LRM across all levels of government. The exact number remains unknown — perhaps artificial intelligence could one day calculate it.
It’s not just LRM, though. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch has noted in his 2024 book Overruled: “Our legal institutions have become so complicated and so numerous that even federal agencies cannot agree on how many federal agencies exist.”
As for LRM, while we don’t know their precise number, the ones we do become aware of can be maddening. Commentator Mark C. Ross provided examples: California has outlawed the buying and selling of gas-powered garden tools, such as lawnmowers, blowers, and hedge-trimmers. It remains legal to use them while equipment dealers in western Nevada clean up big time. Some municipalities ban blowers due to noise but still allow motorcycles. California recently banned “non-compostable” plastic bags, which used to be common in grocery stores for shoppers to put green beans, mushrooms, etc., into before checkout. The acceptable bags now are beyond fragile, making it problematic to transport them home without rupturing.
Unfortunately, these LRM cause real damage. Front Page Magazine reported that in California, abundant snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada is blocked by EPA regulations from building new dams and reservoirs. Instead, billions of acre-feet of water are dumped into the Pacific Ocean — partly to protect the Delta Smelt, a two-inch bait-fish considered endangered. During recent wildfires in Los Angeles, this led to fire hydrants and storage tanks running out of water, leaving thousands of homes vulnerable.
Excessive LRM also hinder productivity and job creation. Investigative reporter John Stossel highlighted that occupational licensing requirements have grown dramatically. In the 1950s, about one in twenty workers needed a license; today, over one in three do. New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission requires a $100,000 “Medallion” to own a taxi — a cost that once was $700,000. In contrast, Washington, D.C., charges only about $250 annually for a taxi license.
Critics argue such regulations are well-intentioned. Yet New Jersey’s “single-use” plastic bag ban, designed to reduce plastic usage, has been criticized because the reusable bags it replaces contain 15 times more plastic and are used far fewer times. This counterproductive measure remains in place without repeal.
Moreover, LRM have contributed significantly to high housing costs. Since 1978, regulations have added 50-plus percent to housing costs in certain markets. Yet no candidate has addressed this issue during elections.
The most alarming examples include LRM that lead to children being seized from parents for the purpose of creating an opposite-sex simulacrum.
Can creeping authoritarianism be reversed? The answer lies with a vigilant electorate that cherishes liberty. One proposed solution is the Defense Against Tyranny Amendment, which would set a constitutional cap on the number of LRM. This amendment would require lawmakers to repeal existing laws until the threshold is reached — ensuring freedom remains constant.
Unfortunately, this change is unlikely. As the Mauritanian slaves demonstrate, people are as adaptable as they are corruptible.