Fifth of November Irony

Today commemorates the 403rd anniversary of Guy Fawkes' attempt to blow up the British parliament. Though today he is considered a villain for attempting to subvert the British authority, his resistance of coercive power has recently gained him a heroic reputation amongst libertarians and other anti-authoritarian factions. The 2005 movie V for Vendetta even makes Fawkes into a symbol of resistance to oppressive rule, saying that "people should not be afraid of their governments, governments should be afraid of their people."

To learn more about this unlikely hero, check out this article from today's Time. Ironically, Fawkes was a last-minute add to this plot, yet his is the personality most remembered in connection to what has become to be known as the "Gunpowder Treason." Even more ironic, however, is the fact that this year, the holiday takes place the day after the election of our new president - a man who has promised to institute a plethora of new "egalitarian" measures. Yet in trying to promote equality, he will effectively be denying some individuals of their hard-earned property in order to redistribute it to those who did not work to earn said property. This idea of "egalitarianism" sounds just a little unjust to me...