Rebellion and Government Size

Young Soldier: Home! The English are too many.
William Wallace: Sons of Scotland. I am William Wallace... and I see a whole army of my countrymen, here in defiance of tyranny. You've come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight?
Veteran Soldier: Fight? Against that? We will run and we will live.
William Wallace: Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you'll live--at least for a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our FREEDOM!
--Braveheart

A commonly held belief is that the larger the size of government, the less likely it will be that the governed will rebel. As government grows so does its capacity for force. In the eyes of many, large government is too big to take on, leaving the citizenry compliant.

A plausible rival hypothesis is that larger government increases the likelihood of rebellion. In order for government to grow, it must take resources from the people. As people become relatively poor vis a vis government, the liberty preference of more individuals becomes engaged. They are more willing to resist state aggression and defend their property.

Government size is really a proxy for degree of government plunder. As plunder increases, citizens become more resolute, not discouraged, in acts of rebellion--acts of self-defense against state aggression.