Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-45B: Europe and Africa – hope?

Posted on 2013-11-26 by TPOL Nathan

Europe’s Hope – Wise People
Switzerland: Three Resounding Nos!!
(Le Temps via PressEurop) Swiss voters rejected three ballot initiatives when they went to the polls on November 24. Some 60.5 per cent voted against a plan to increase the annual motorway fee to CHF100 (€81.30) from its current level of CHF40.

A proposal, submitted by the UDC (Democratic Union of the Centre) to allow parents who care for children at home to benefit from the same tax deductions as those who pay for childcare was rejected by 58.5 per cent.

Last but not least, 65 per cent of the electorate voted against a plan to cap salaries at a ratio of 1:12; which had been proposed by the Young Socialists.

For Swiss daily Le Temps— … the Swiss did not want to introduce illusory government controls that are incompatible with the spirit of a free and democratic State.

Nathan: Outstanding!  Sometimes a strong majority of voters DO stand up for at least a little bit of liberty.  Imagine, they didn’t go along with the Socialists to demand that the government permanently cap salaries of officers and owners and board members.  Amazingly, most European observers were SURE that the Swiss would do this, and thus prove themselves NOT to be the savage barbarians in the middle of the continent (and set an “example” for the rest of the world).  Of course, by the standards of true liberty, the Swiss are well into the statist and liberal (but not Tranzi) mode.  Still, they are better off than Americans today in many, many ways.

African collapse – hope? – Islamic wars
Angola bans mosques
Xibaaru (French) (translation): In early October 2013 the Muslims especially the majority of Guineans living in Luanda in the municipality of Viana Zango were shocked to see the minaret of their mosque dismantled into pieces on the ground that it was done wrong and mounted without permission. On Thursday 03 October in the morning, the Angolan authorities decided to destroy the mosque Zango located in the urban district of Viana 17 km. The governor of Luanda Bento announced in a radio spot that radical Muslims are not welcome in Angola and the Angolan government is not ready for the legalization of mosques in Angola.

And before yesterday, Tuesday, November 19, is the minister of culture of the country that shows the radicalization of the country in the face of Islam. Minister of Culture, Rosa Cruz e Silva said: “As regards Islam, the legalization process has not been approved by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, their mosques would be closed until further notice.” It should be noted as the Angolan government has promised to drop all mosques a priority. The only two mosques are located in Luanda have already received a warning document administration Viana signed by the mayor of the municipality of Viana José Moreno.

Nathan: Thanks to Freedom Outpost for this.  Angola, a former Portuguese colony, is 95% “christian” and 5% all other, including about 2.5% Muslim.  To American eyes, this is shocking, but Angola (or at least a large majority of Angolans) consider Islam in ANY form, but especially in the Wahhabi version) to be nothing but a death cult.  (And is there not ample evidence of that, in 1400 years and around the world, especially in modern times?)  So they see every reason to ban it.  Or at least to ban its outward evidences.  Apparently, they also believe that it is right to retaliate for the way majority Muslim nations generally treat their christian and jewish minorities, much less other religions:  the tenets of dhimmitude are well known:  among others, christian church buildings may not exhibit any outward symbols such as crosses or bells, and pre-existing meetinghouses may not be repaired, at least on the exterior.  Apparently, the law can be interpreted to require that singing of hymns and prayers may not be audible outside the meetinghouses, either.  So Angolans are treating the Muslims as the Muslims treat others.  Compared to much of Africa, Angola seems peaceful these days: no Mugabe dictatorship and starvation, no weekly killing of other religious groups as in Nigeria, etc.

Mama’s Note: Unfortunately, the “banning” of anything merely drives it underground where it can fester and erupt to cause greater damage later. Far better would be a vigorous self defense by the people, with ALL acts of aggression fair game. The radical muslim agenda can’t survive in that environment, especially without support and accommodation for their evil by government.

The “messiah’s” minions – World wars
Kerry Misleads in Saying There’s No Comparison Between Iran and N. Korea Nuke Deals
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This isn’t really news: Kerry misleads when he isn’t outright lying. Politicians are like storm sewers: there is no bottom to them, and no treatment plant:  the sludge just keeps going down, down, down – and gets recirculated for the next generation of gullible voters.  There is nothing to show that the US didn’t get taken by this deal, and much to point out that the US (and Western Europeans) DID get hornswoggled.

Congress in action
‘Do-nothing’ Congress on track for one of the least productive years ever
(NBC News)  With only a handful of legislative days remaining, the current Congress has passed a total of just 52 public laws – setting it up for one of the least productive sessions in modern history.

Mama’s Note: Wonderful! Maybe they can do even more nothing next year!!

Nathan: Of course, the MSM insists that the mark of a “good” Congress be determined by how many laws they pass.  Although it is still too many, I think that many state legislatures that limit the number of bills introduced by each member (and insist that the bills be single-subject) are better for it.  It might also be good to point out that this is NOT the end of “the current Congress” but just the end of the 2013 session: this Congress (worthless for a lot, but NOT for so few laws) goes on into 2014 with the same make up (barring a few special elections) and same leadership (disgusting as that is).  Like Mama Liberty, I pray they do even less next year: especially NO APPROPRIATIONS.  Fond dreams but no chance.

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-45A: Stupidity in the news

Posted on 2013-11-25 by TPOL Nathan

Stupid people
Giant Boeing 747 freighter lands at wrong Kansas airport
(NBC News)

Mama’a Note: I don’t know why, but this strikes me as very strange… very unlikely. It just doesn’t seem possible that anyone so inept would be given control of an aircraft like this! I don’t think this wrong landing was accidental. Even in a blackout, with instrument only control, it would seem impossible to mistake one’s position like this, let alone believe one was landing at a major AFB instead of a local airport. Don’t these pilots use GPS or other location indicators? I just don’t buy it, and I’m certainly no expert.

Nathan: This big DreamLifter is a modified 747 that looks too pregnant to fly, but does.  But the pilots are – well, typical pilots, USAF or civilian.  As I have seen for thirty years, pilots (especially in big aircraft) often have little real sense of the terrain below them.  I’ve seen pilots confuse Detroit for Chicago – I mean, come on, who can’t tell the difference?  One reason why good jet jockeys make bad helicopter pilots, and a big beastie like this makes the ground that much harder to see.  Sure, they’ve got GPS and all the other things, but sometimes all the technology in the world is useless.  Real question here is what on earth the air traffic controllers at McConnell AFB and Mid-Continent Airport were doing – or NOT doing – to notice this bird being so far off course.  (By the way, Wichita GOP types want to rename the airport for Eisenhower, according to the Topeka Capitol Journal, and the state is balking at paying about a half-million for doing so.  Politicians can’t leave well enough alone.  This modern “honor everyone in politics” thing is incredibly stupid.  Even MORE stupid than pilots who can’t tell airports apart.)

Of course Mama Liberty raises a good point: there could have been SOMETHING being transported that could not be shown off at a large, active Air Force Base, and therefore had to be delivered using this silly little game.  Although the pictures show all the media out at the airport, there would still have been several hours to unload a whole lot of stuff, and the fact that the aircraft had no problem taking off from a pretty short runway is an indication that they were not carrying a full cargo – or something equally strange.

Congress in action  – Politics 2013
Reid, Democrats trigger “nuclear” option; eliminate most filibusters in party-line vote
(Washington Post) “The Democratically controlled Senate on Thursday struck down the long-standing filibuster rules for most presidential nominations, voting mostly along party lines to alter nearly 225 years of precedent. The rule change would allow federal judge nominees and executive-office appointments to be confirmed by a simple majority of senators, rather than the 60-vote super majority that has been required for more than two centuries.” (11/21/13)

Nathan: I had intended to comment on this last week, but lost it in the shuffle.  Probably because I am continuing to abstain from talk radio in all its forms, and don’t listen to the news.  Everyone in the blogosphere and media is all hyper about this, but it seems to be very much like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.  It won’t do much good, it wastes time, and it is one more distraction from the real issues.

What are those real issues?  The acceleration in the increase in governmental power, the coup in all but name that the present administration is conducting that is making us an empire in virtually every way internally and externally, and the destruction of the economy and society.  Please name one major item of stupid legislation that the Senate filibuster has prevented in the past five – or even thirteen – years.  Yes, SOME appointments have been blocked, but the persons ultimately appointed have been no significant improvement from the original nominees.

Secondly we KNOW that Harry Reid is a dirty scumbag and has NO honor.  He is cunning, but brainless.  No doubt he figured he could get rid of this archaic procedure and never ever have to worry about anything but a Democratic majority in the Senate forever.

At the same time, this looks just like the Conscript Fathers of the Senatus Romana squabbling over their powers and privileges while Augustus sits back in his chair, listening and unable to decide between a groan of disgust and a “cat-got-the-bird” smile.  He knew that their cherished protocols were nothing but bumps on the road under his horses’ hooves and chariot’s tires.

Stupid economists – Theft by government
Increasing Infrastructure Spending Merely Shuffles Jobs
(Heritage Foundation) Infrastructure projects are capital intensive, not labor intensive; across the United States, just over 300,000 Americans work in highway, street or bridge construction — less than the population of Wichita, Kansas…

Nathan: Heritage is usually pretty careful on their data.  This number strikes me as low but I may be too close to the industry to judge accurately.  I don’t know if this includes “public” jobs at the city, county, and state level, or if it includes maintenance and repair or just new construction.  At the same time, construction does NOT provide “permanent” jobs, and the idea of shuffling them does make sense, especially given the way public infrastructure projects are funded by taxes.

Mama’s Note: One of the saddest and most pervasive myths is the idea of permanent, generational solid employment in any industry or culture. Adaptation and change are one of the most essential attributes of the free market.

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-44D: Home Front – Evil and Corrupt

Posted on 2013-11-24 by TPOL Nathan

Home front
Texas: Man pretending to be cop sexually assaults woman on I-35E
(WFAA TV) Police have asked the public to be on the lookout for the vehicle and if you believe you are being pulled over by someone who may not be a police officer, call 911 and drive to a well-lit location before stopping.

Mama’s Note: Oh sure… and if they are not fakes, you will be shot for your trouble. Catch 22 here. Years ago, I actually did refuse to stop, and they were real cops. This was shortly after a murder of a lone woman motorist just outside of Barstow by a CHP. He was caught and actually sent to prison – where he eventually died… But there were a lot of women who wouldn’t stop for a CHP after that, especially at night. I was coming home from Victorville one night, on that dark, empty road toward Lucerne Valley, and a CHP got behind me. He followed me for miles, then turned on his lights just before I got to town. I was truly terrified. I drove at speed limit into town and turned into the grocery store parking lot. Drove right up to the doors, where everyone knew me (and thank God they were still open!). The cop had turned off his lights at some point… drove slowly across the parking lot behind me, then turned up Hwy 18 and went on. Never had a clue what that was all about, but I didn’t quit shaking for hours. And that was long before they started to shoot at people who don’t stop!!

Nathan: Sometimes, it is not FAKE cops that do this and commit crimes against people, sometimes even at random.  And we know that this short of attack has been attempted even in Wyoming (over by Midwest, as I recall), within recent years. 9-1-1 only works IF (a) the idiots on the switchboard are trained (I think I told you what happened with us about three or four weeks ago), and (b) they aren’t in on the scam or plot.  And if you are in an area where they can respond! As in the next story, we see that this kind of meaningless crime – apparently for the sheer thrill of it and with no “need” (money, vehicle, etc.) but the need to abuse and terrorize and rape.  In the past, we have seen the coddled and privileged scions of the elite, the ruling class, do this sort of thing: since in essence MANY Americans are coddled and privileged today (especially the police forces, but including much of the lower class – free food and housing and entertainment) it should not be a surprise that it is growing more common.

Home front
Three “Knockout” Attacks Reported In Philadelphia Area
(CBS Philadelphia)

Mama’s Note: Seems to be increasingly a problem. Of course, all the victims are walking around totally oblivious of their surroundings and totally unarmed. I suspect that if these punks started getting shot for their crimes, it would stop. But of course then they’d be called evil, probably “racist” monsters for shooting these poor, unloved little boys… bleah

Nathan: As we’ve been discussing, this sort of thing is seemingly growing more common.  I personally attribute it to overcrowding (the “too many rats in the cage”) in the big inner city areas, a crackdown on gun ownership, ESPECIALLY in the big urban areas, as well as inbreeding and a total lack of any real moral teaching.  It is, of course, related to the last story and commentary:  the need for self defense is as great (or greater) than it was in 1813 or 1893.  There are many kinds of privilege and much coddling: welfare clients and juvenile criminals enjoy all kinds of goodies and “passes.”  They cannot and will not see the results of their actions as bad – and will not accept responsibility.  “That is someone else’s job.”  But when people allow themselves to become victims by failing to arm and defend themselves, this is the result.

Home front – Self-defense NOT, but good anyway
Alabama: Dollar Store Robbery ends in shooting
(Fox News via Last Resistance) In the process of trying to rob the place, he was taught the finer points of the Second Amendment, getting himself shot five times by a customer.  He did survive, however. For the time being, he’s been hospitalized, but when he’s good enough to be released, it’ll be into a jail cell. The man who shot White is remaining anonymous, … He told Fox’s Mobile affiliate what happened:  [White] had the gun to [a customer’s] head, he had him on his knees. [I] drew my gun on him and I said, ‘Hey, don’t move.’ At that point he swung around, and before he had a chance to aim the gun at me, I fired. An unidentified member of White’s family—probably his mom—reacted this way: If [X’s] life was not in danger, if no one had a gun up to him, if no one pointed the gun at him, what gives him the right to think that it’s okay to just shoot someone? You should have just left the store….[The man who ended the robbery, based on his hands and his voice, appears to be black, as is the hospitalized robber.]

Nathan: Yep, he could have left the store, could have left his unknown neighbor to the tender mercies of this 18-year-old criminal.  And the family member is wrong: young White DID point the gun at the good Samaritan.  But see, SHE is in line with the liberals, the statists, the Tranzi’s, and the peace-at-any-price cops and hoplophobes and hoploclasts:  Only the cops and OTHER thugs like her son can shoot people, or even have guns. I say that part of young White’s problem is the people who raised him to be a would-be murdering thug who believes it is acceptable to steal money from other people.  I also have to admit that it is too bad the good Samaritan’s five rounds didn’t finish the business, and that the taxpayers of Alabama have to pay for medical treatment, trial, and a jail cell.

Mama’s Note: So, what caused you to call this “not” self defense? Looks like it to me. And I agree that the good Samaritan needs more range time. Five shots at point blank range ought to have been more effective than that. Adrenalin is nasty stuff…

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Social Impacts on Government – A lesson in irony

Posted on 2013-11-22 by TPOL Nathan

A Lesson in Irony

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), better known as the Food Stamp Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is proud to distribute (in 2012-13) the greatest amount of free meals (and food stamps) ever, to 46 million people.

Meanwhile, the National Park Service, a part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, asks us “Please Do Not Feed the Animals.” Their stated reason for the policy is because “The animals will grow dependent on handouts and will not learn to take care of themselves.”

(Anonymous, edited by Nathan)
Scott’s comments: Must be why SNAP was reduced this November.

Nathan: I don’t recall who (perhaps Mark Twain?) it was that first said, “You get more of what you subsidize, and less of what you tax.”  We’ve been subsidizing “hunger” and dependence on government-supplied food for more than 150 years on the reservations, and nationwide since LBJ’s “Great Society” (almost 50 years ago).    It started out at 2-3 million, so yes, Virginia, government programs CAN be “successful” for certain definitions of success.  And for certain limited time periods.

Posted in Nathan's Rants | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-44C: Economic Impacts of Government

Posted on 2013-11-21 by TPOL Nathan

Free market – Theft by government
Is USPS ready to be sold off?
(Reuters by Edward Hudgins) “Last month in Britain, her Majesty’s government made an initial public offering of shares in the British post office, raising $5.3 billion. The government is only retaining between 38 percent and 49.9 percent of the shares, meaning that the three-and-a-half century old state enterprise soon will be guided by private hands. The Royal Mail will no longer be so royal. You might think this is a model to rescue the U.S. Postal Service, to help it compete with emails, tweets, and Facebook as means of communications. But not so fast.” (11/18/13)

Nathan: This is an opinion piece, obviously, but chock full of facts about the mess that the USPS is in – AND the entire business of privatization.  And what could make it even MORE a mess.   Despite being an MSM article, he points out that the major item of business is to END the monopolies.  And then the subsidies.  As MamaLiberty has pointed out, Americans demand choice, and monopolies and choices do NOT exist for First Class Mail these days.  In the Priority/Express “SuperFirst Class” categories, the USPS is competing fairly well with FedEx and UPS.  But with the improvements in technology (hint: 3D printing) more and more of THEIR services will be undercut by new technology and local, small, agile and innovative firms.  It is called “progress” and the same reason that there are not huge horse farms or ranches, major manufacturers of buggy whips and harness, and why all the livery stables got converted to garages and filling stations!

Home front – Privacy and liberty
Young people abandoning Facebook in droves
(Last Resistance) Facebook’s recent financial numbers don’t look that great. Apparently, the social media giant is going the way of MySpace and AOL chatrooms. They are failing to maintain the attention of Generation Z (that may or may not stand for “Zombie,” btw). Apparently the younger generation is far more concerned about privacy and real connections—they are currently popularizing private message services like WhatsApp and WeChat.

Nathan: No problem seeing a direct tie between Facebook troubles AND the USPS troubles.

Home front – Thuggish cop tyranny
SF Mission Residents Angered By City College Student’s Videotaped Arrest
(CBS San Francisco) Jensen said witnesses at the scene said Williams suffered a broken jaw and other injuries when he was attacked by police. He said when others joined in, it was out of concern for Williams. “People don’t get that upset for no reason. They were upset because they were seeing DJ getting beaten,” Jensen said. Police spokesman Officer Gordon Shyy said the incident started when Williams tried to flee into a residence after plainclothes officers tried to stop him for a vehicle code violation. A hostile crowd then gathered around the officers, two of whom suffered injuries in the scrum. One person tried to hit an officer with a cane while another bit an officer, according to Shyy.

Mama’s Note: I suspect these incidents will increase rapidly now, and become more violent. I wonder how long these cops will be willing to risk it to arrest someone riding a bicycle on the sidewalk.

Nathan: Bloody mayhem, triggered by stupid cops trying to enforce stupid laws that are designed only to bring revenue into city coffers.

Theft by government – Stupid government
Treasury Forced [sic] to Issue $1T in New Debt in First 6 Weeks of FY14

Nathan: Forced by WHOM?  The “messiah?”  The Fed?  The big banks (other than the Fed)?  Occupy DC?  Ron Paul? The Chinese?  Nobody is FORCING the Treasury to do this: they WANT to do this to keep their jobs and perks.  Congress WANTS them to do this because the Congress is filled with spendthrifts – drunken sailors with no concern for tomorrow OR today but to spend and spend and steal and spend.

Mama’s Note: No concern for the fact that it is all theft and coercion. That is the real problem.

Nanny State Tyranny – Holidays 2013
Gov’t Pushing Holiday Recipe Makovers: Nothing Canned or Salty
(CNS.com)

Nathan: So, can we expect a whole slew of additional Executive Orders (decrees) prohibiting us from buying or eating CANNED food!?  Or SALTY food?  But not sugary food or drink?  Hmmm.  Is this the reason there is a shortage of Butterball ™ turkeys in the land?  I’ll probably still stick to my Hormel ™ canned turkey, unless I can find someone who makes a sixteen ounce can.

Mama’s Note: Why in the world should anyone CARE what the cretins in government think or want? Why would anyone take dietary advice from liars, thieves and murderers?

The “messiah” – and his consort
Michelle Obama: ‘Barack Hasn’t Done Any of This Alone’
(CNS.com)

Nathan: Of course not – except maybe for all that singing in the bathroom…  He had millions of gullible, hoodwinked, and mostly very stupid (if cunning) people to do most of his dirty work.  See my commentary on his “handwritten” commentary on the Gettysburg Address (with three times the words?).

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Congress in Action
Rand Paul: Obama’s Attempts to Fix Obamacare Are ‘Unconstitutional’
(CNS.com)

Nathan: Well, since the Abominable Act is unconstitutional, the mere act of trying to “fix” it is also unconstitutional, regardless of the details. But MOST people just do not care – and it’s not like we have a working system to enforce the Constitution.  Any human invention should have a procedure for correcting malfs.

Abominable Act – War on Some Religions
Catholic Bishops ‘Stand United’ to ‘Resist’ Obamacare Rule on Sterilization, Abortion Drugs
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Would it not be miraculous if they would “resist” on the basis that the entire thing violates the concept and gift of human liberty as given to us by the Creator?

Stupid Congress in Action – Politics 2013
Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.) charged with cocaine possession
(Washington Post)Freshman Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.) has been charged with possession of a controlled substance. According to court charging documents, on Oct. 29, Radel “unlawfully, knowingly and intentionally possessed” a quantity of cocaine. The charges are as a result of a D.C. Superior Court Grand Jury indictment.

Nathan: One out of how many?  I strongly suspect that the percentage of drug users on Capitol Hill, especially among the 535 actual elected officials there, is significantly – even outrageously – higher than the national average (which was 5% in 1985 and 2.2% in 2012).  This evening’s news says that Radel pleaded guilty and is taking a “leave of absence” from Congress and donating his salary to “charity.”  No doubt, his sentence will be parole and a token fine (less than 1% of his annual income, or something similar).  The district in Florida deserves better – I agree that normally, people should not be imprisoned, but in this scumbag’s case…  He should resign, and the district should sue him for every dime he “earned” from the first time he shot up or snorted it. The entire nation deserves better that the felons (charged and uncharged) that “work” in DC.  Meanwhile, for only the third time in more than 3 years, a member of Congress was physically assaulted: an Democratic “Asian-American” Congresswoman from Queens, was mugged in a location in DC (East Market) that is avoided by anybody walking by themselves (and unarmed) after dark, no matter how blind drunk they are.  But there is no limit to the stupidity found among this demographic in DC.  Assuming (there are no witnesses) that she really was mugged and didn’t simply fall off the curb because she was two sheets to the wind.  But I suppose I’m being cynical.

Where can we go?  What can we do?  Options are disappearing.  We can no longer coexist with government.

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

O and Lincoln – 150 years of “progress”

Posted on 2013-11-20 by TPOL Nathan

Obama says Republicans are ‘invested in failure’ of health-care rollout
From the Washington Post and other sources:

[Supposedly handwritten by the “messiah” himself – according to the WAPO.  They even provide a scan of the “original.”  Don’t seem to be any revisions: a neat, grade school paper and penmanship.]

In the evening, when Michelle and the girls have gone to bed, I sometimes walk down the hall to a room Abraham Lincoln used as his office. It contains an original copy of the Gettysburg Address, written in Lincoln’s own hand.

I linger on these few words that have helped define our American experiment: “a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”

Through the lines of weariness etched in his face, we know Lincoln grasped, perhaps more than anyone the burdens required to give those words meaning. He knows that even a self evident truth was not self executing; that blood drawn by the lash was an affront to our idealism; that blood drawn by the sword was in painful service to those same ideals.

He understood as well that our humble efforts, our individual ambitions, are ultimately not what matter; rather, it is through the accumulated toil and sacrifice of ordinary men and women — those like the soldiers who consecrated that battlefield — that this country is built, and freedom preserved. This quintessentially self made man, fierce in his belief in honest work and the striving spirit at the heart of America, believed that it falls to each generation, collectively, to share in that toil and sacrifice.

Through cold war and world war, through industrial revolution and technological transformation, through movements for civil rights and women’s rights and workers rights and gay rights, we have. At times, social and economic changes have strained our union. But Lincoln’s words give us confidence that whatever trials await us, this nation and the freedom we cherish can, and shall, prevail.

Nathan: It DO sound really pretty.  It’s homely (dare I say Lincolnesque?) and even pithy in places.  If we didn’t know the man, didn’t know what he’s done, what he’s tried to do, what he’s said, and how he lives and whom he emulates, we might even admire these words and honor him somewhat.

Instead, he brands himself as a hypocrite of the first water, and I suspect that if we knew who REALLY wrote this (how many speech writers and editors), we’d find even more self-service, two-faced hypocrites.  I wonder if they set up a teleprompter in the Lincoln Bedroom or the Oval Office so that he could copy the words from it for the “original.”

Anyone who read and remembers Mark Twain’s The War Prayer will understand the kind of hypocrisy exhibited in this little fantasy piece.

Like his “inspiration” Lincoln, the “messiah” actually is an impressive orator – as was Adolph Hitler and more than a few other tyrants down through the ages.  There were many things that Lincoln said and wrote that were in total opposition to his actions, and which blinded a good many people to his intentions, his goals, and his actions.  Fifty years ago, we had another man compared to Lincoln, but the current “imitator” exceeds even THAT man’s hypocrisy and malice and behavior.  Therefore, do not be surprised that I pray that nothing will cause harm to the present occupant of 1600, lest he, too, be made more a demigod than either Lincoln or Kennedy.

Posted in Nathan's Rants | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-44B: Tranzis, Communists, Tyrants

Posted on 2013-11-19 by TPOL Nathan

East Asian Front – Tranzis and Communists
Coercion and Abuses Remain at Core of China’s Birth-Limitation Policy
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: What WOULD be a proper “birth policy” for any nation or government to have?  “Let  them alone.”  Let the parents decide to have sex and therefore to have children, hold them responsible for their children (unborn and born).  It is not a right or power or privilege of the state to regulate birth or conception.  It is a HUMAN, God-given right.  Which is one of the reasons that the Chinese leaders fear letting people run their own lives.  Sick as it is, this is what many Tranzis in the United States want, like the nut job who wants to make abortion mandatory for 30 years or so.

Politics 2013/2014
Scott Walker: 2016 GOP Nominee Should Be a Former or Current Governor
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This comes as no surprise: looking at the last century, it is clear that overall, ex-governors (Reagan, Nixon) have done considerably less damage to the body politic (even counting GWB) than those who have been ex-Senators (Truman, Kennedy, Obama) or ex-Housemembers (LBJ, Ford) or ex-bureaucrats (FDR, Bush I). Not perfect, of course: Clinton and Carter show how bad they can be.)  The only group that MIGHT be better is ex-military (Eisenhower).  That is relative to EACH OTHER only. Frankly, they are ALL a  danger to liberty and NONE has been truly successful from the points of view of liberty, economics, or defense.  They ALL have blood on their hands, even Harding and Coolidge and Reagan, all darlings of modern minarchists.  So just getting a slightly better “quality” of candidate is NOT going to reform the presidency.  Indeed, it may not be possible to reform the presidency.  If we MUST have a federal government (not my position as a rational, free-market anarchist), we’d do better with a Swiss-style federal council in which the duties of the executive branch are split between three or five people.  Yes, committees are bad – but emperors and tyrants are worse.

Mama’s Note: You do know what a camel is… A horse built by a committee.

Theft by government – Abominable Act (ObummerCare)
$174K-Per-Year Congressmen Will Get Special Obamacare Subsidy
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yup.  Some animals am jes more equal than other animals.  Of course, compared to the subsidies that their staff people will be able to get, this is small potatoes indeed.  It is the principle of the thing, of course, not the actual dollar amount.  People periodically circulate these proposals for new constitutional amendments to make Congressmen and women subject to the same laws they inflict on the rest of us.  Folks, here is what would happen across the board if that were part of the Constitution:  these thugs and theives know how to rob us blind, and will keep doing it UNTIL we remove their power to tax and spend.

Mainstream Media – The “messiah”
Obama Blames ‘the Balkanization of the Media’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: I’m sure that he prefers the imaginary “old days” in which the administration told the “senior White House correspondent” (usually the WaPo reporter) what to put out, and they did it.  This is like Marie Antoinnette, who wished that the people of France had but one neck to be sliced at will.  I am sure that this “messiah” feels the same way: he HATES and FEARS the bloggers, the Breitbarts and Examiners and Blaze and – yes, even maybe WND.  There is only so much the dying hardcopy papers and other mainstream media – even NPR and CPB – can do to support their beloved “messiah.”

Culture wars: the annual holiday war – Government-run, tax-funded schools
South Carolina: School Cancels Xmas Toy Drive for Fear of Litigation
(Townhall.com) A South Carolina charter school has canceled its annual Christmas toy drive after a group of self-described humanists complained that the project violated the U.S. Constitution and accused them of bribing children to convert to Christianity.Renee Mathews, the principal of East Point Academy in West Columbia, S.C., said the annual Operation Christmas Child project was halted because the American Humanist Association threatened to sue the school.

Nathan: This is distressing, first because a good cause should be axed because a group of fanatics put their religion ahead of a good thing to do for children.  Humanism IS a religion – one of the religions favored by the State – the FedGov and especially the Nazgul.  Second, the school administrators probably rightly figure that the courts, the Nazgul, (as well as the media and the DOJ and all the usual Tranzis) will support and sympathize with these humanists.  And third, these school administrators (remember, a charter school is STILL a government-run, tax-funded institution) either do not have the courage of their convictions OR they are also aligning themselves with the courts and the humanists to drive other religions out of the public forum.  If they had the guts to stand up for something as small but kind as this,… but they don’t.

Mama’s Note: The reason for this action is wrong, of course, but I have to say I’m sick to death of all these “toy drives.” There might be a few children in this country without a room full of toys, most broken or unused for some reason, but there aren’t many of them. Remember that even those people with the lowest income have homes, plentiful electricity, gas, water, etc. They almost all have color TV (often many of them), microwave ovens, cars, internet, smoke, drink alcohol, eat fast food constantly (not cheap at all) and indulge in every other expensive habit as a matter of course. And suddenly they can’t “afford” a few plastic toys for their children? What nonsense.

There is simply zero reason to collect truck loads of plastic crap so millions of children can have even more junk to wade through. If these people spent the time, effort and money working to build solid families, honest work opportunities and healthy environments for those same children… involving themselves in their lives with love and integrity, they would have the blessings of God hands down.

Nazgul – Freedom from fear and spying
SCOTUS declines illegal NSA phone spying case
(CNN) “The U.S. Supreme Court will allow the National Security Agency’s surveillance of domestic telephone communication records to continue for now. The justices without comment Monday rejected an appeal from a privacy rights group, which claimed a secret federal court improperly authorized the government to collect the electronic records. The Electronic Privacy Information Center filed its petition directly with the high court, bypassing the usual step of going to the lower federal courts first.” (11/18/13)

Nathan: Once more we see the naivety of even organizations like EPIC who are constantly disappointed when their fantasies of the Nazgul-in-Chief rescuing liberty from the tyrants and thugs are shattered.  But you can be sure that they (and others) will try again to figure out the magic words necessary to get back to Kansas.

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-44A: Abominable Act – ObummerCare and more

Posted on 2013-11-18 by TPOL Nathan

Abominable Act (ObummerCare)
Students at historically black college in Maryland lash out at Obama
(The Blaze)

Nathan: They don’t blame him for having the Abominable Act written and signing it into law, they blame him for not doing something NOW to keep them from losing their $50/semester medical insurance  (wonder how much the school pays INDIRECTLY and collects from them via tuition, other fees, and how it steals (indirectly, I understand) from the taxpayers of Maryland?  These young black students, like too many others, probably do not even RECALL that the Abominable Act was passed in 2010 – or care.  Meanwhile, I am reading garbage from “progressives” who attack people for clinging to their cheap, “substandard,” “get-sick-and-die” health insurance policies and refusing to accept the “messiah’s” gracious offer of better coverage even at a “slightly” higher price.  Where DO these idiots breed and proliferate?  I am surprised that this kind of idiocy is not weeded out of the gene pool by playing in the street, plugging forks into electrical outlets, and drowning in street gutters.

Mama’s Note: Indeed, and the whole tone of entitlement just screams from this. Remember that “black” students are more equal than other students…  Just imagine if a large group of Caucasian, Hispanic, or Korean students complained about this. Why, they’d be “RACISTS.”

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Politics 2013/2014
Pelosi says Democrats will ‘stand tall’ in 2014 in support of Obamacare
(NBC News) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Democrats are not losing confidence in President Barack Obama’s ability to make the Affordable Care Act work and don’t fear Obamacare’s effect on their chances in next year’s elections.

Mama’s Note: Of course not… why should anyone expect these people to see or accept reality now, after all this time doing otherwise?

Nathan: This sort of wild claim is of course an essential part of the various spells that this witch is casting;  some sort of symbolic magic in which perception replaces reality.  Sadly, we know that she has many people, especially in her own district and state, who believe these lies.

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Federal tyranny
The Fourth Obamacare Shock Wave Is About To Reach Us
(Forbes) Obama might try to intimidate doctors like he intimidated Chief Justice John Roberts into switching his vote to uphold Obamacare.  Doctors should brace themselves for the same kind of venomous denunciations that Obama has aimed at millionaires and billionaires. Since Obama is an avowed progressive, and previous progressive presidents have given us compulsory measures like government monopolies, income taxes and military conscription – he might consider using force with doctors.  Perhaps an executive order establishing a doctor’s mandate to serve a minimum number of Obamacare patients as a condition for renewing their medical licenses.  Obama could cite the fact that we’re in a state of emergency, originally declared by President George W. Bush on September 23, 2001, renewed in 2012 and most recently extended by Obama on September 18, 2013. But this could backfire, because the average age of doctors is about 56, which means the most likely outcome would be a surge of doctor retirements.

Mama’s Note: Very good analysis, and from a fairly reliable source. I can just see this administration attempting to draft doctors and other professionals into total involuntary servitude. Oh yeah… Atlas is shrugging.

Nathan: Sadly, a lot of people over the years have misunderstood the willingness of the American public (and various elements of the population) to accept abuse of the sort he expects DC to put on the medical profession.  If they DO put in draconian “conscription” of doctors, the retirement status of those doctors will be ignored. This is particularly true of ANY medical personnel who had military service, especially as an officer.  There is NO limitation on calling someone back to “active duty” – just more hoops that have to be jumped through by the bureaucrats to do so – regardless of age.  And that is all without having to pass new laws – assuming they even care.  Otherwise, just another Executive Order (Decree from the “messiah.”)

Mama’s Note: From the military, maybe. I suspect there are not too many of those. But just remember how unpopular the military draft is and always was. Think about the relationship people have with their doctors and how fragile that already is in most cases. No, I don’t see this going anywhere. In any case, the destruction of the dollar and the melt down in the big cities and metro areas will come first.

But in any case, do you want to trust your medical care to someone who is being FORCED to practice? Someone who is virtually a slave? If you think medicine is error prone, unsafe, uncaring and expensive now… just wait until it is “free.”

I keep telling people to learn NOW how to safeguard and promote their own health, to find alternatives for care regarding existing health problems, and most of all to find ways to stop taking the chemical medicines. There will come a time when they are simply not available. One can only stockpile so much and most need regular medical assessment and adjustment anyway. There are alternatives for almost everything. You just have to do some sleuthing to find them.

Politics 2013
Conflict between Pro-PETA Rocker and South Dakota Ranchers Enlivens Thanksgiving
(The Blaze)

Nathan: This singer condemns South Dakotans for politicizing an “entertainment event” like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade – yet she and her ilk have done the politicizing of their entire careers in “entertainment” by doing massive propaganda and brainwashing of her fans, as have hundreds of other “celebrities.”

Community Defense
Citizens in small Georgia town help catch robbery suspect
(Bay News 9) “We didn’t have no leader of it all, we just went all our separate ways. And the people in Rhine they knew they are going to get that rascal,” he said.  Lowery ended up tracking the suspect down roughly 200 yards away from the store. He fired a warning shot from his deer rifle and said the suspect stashed his gun and money and hid in a nearby shed, where he was arrested by deputies.

Mama’s Note: And this story was just rocking along wonderfully… until the “warning shot.” Not good. I can’t think of any situation that would justify that.

Nathan: Sadly, warning shots are seemingly indelibly a part of American culture, considered to be “fair play” and without appreciation of the dangers and risks involved.  Warning shots are related to the traditional coast guard/pirate “shot across the bow” but in those cases, the sight distance beyond the object of attention is clear and easily inspected: such a shot is very unlikely to hit an unintended target.  Not so on land, and especially NOT so in any built up area.  Shots fired into the air have killed innocents, and will continue to do so.  Shots intentionally missing a valid target are too likely to hit an unintended target, and are wrong.  Often, dead wrong.

Mama’s Note: Indeed, which is why the best sort of “gun control” is hitting what you aim at…  Every bullet hits something… and the person who fires the gun is held responsible for all of them. Unless they are government employees, of course.

Freedom of speech – Politics and Nazgul 2013
Internet Kill Switch Plan is Killed…For Now.
(Jonathan Turley)   The Electronic Privacy Information Center recently won the first round of a court action asking that the Department of Homeland Security be required to disclose its plans to pull the plug on regional or national mobile telephone and internet communication systems pursuant to its Standard Operating Procedure 303….

Nathan: The headline is correct and a warning to all: this can change in a heartbeat.  But more important, there is NOTHING to prevent the administration from going ahead and doing whatever it wants to, regardless of all the laws and all the court decisions in the world.  What CAN protect our communications, especially the internet, from the evil actions of government are two things: one, technology which can detour around “kill switches” and other problems, and two, people who are courageous enough to refuse to do what the thugs try and make them do.  This is about freedom and liberty, but more and more about life as well:  tens of millions of people need the power of the internet and related communications systems to survive.  We cannot afford to let government create a permanent noose around our necks.

Mama’s Note: Sadly, all any government entity needs to do to destroy our internet communications is pull the plug on our electricity! They don’t need to kill the internet, and indeed wouldn’t do so. THEY depend on it too much, but they can and do have all the electrical power they want, anywhere and any time. We might give some thought to that.

Posted in Commentary on the News | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

ObummerCare and Politics 2013

Posted on 2013-11-14 by TPOL Nathan

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Politics 2013
Bill Clinton, other Democrats distance themselves from Obamacare
(Washington Times) In a startling rebuke to President Obama, former President Bill Clinton and other Democrats picked apart Obamacare on Tuesday as privacy concerns about the program’s website multiplied and a video investigation suggested fraudulence among volunteers helping people enroll for government subsidies.

Nathan: “Fraudulence?”  I like some of the old-fashioned words:  dishonesty, deception, or deceit.  Typical government.  For a different view of this:

Clinton urges Obama to yield on “health” law
(New York Times)  “Former President Bill Clinton on Tuesday joined the intensifying criticism of the botched health care rollout, urging President Obama to accept a change in the law that would allow all Americans to keep their current health insurance plan. In an interview published on Ozy, a web magazine, Mr. Clinton said that Mr. Obama should make good on the promise that he and his administration repeatedly made to the American public.”

[Tom Knapp, FND, editor: We need to get past the illusion that Obamacare is a “health” law. It’s a corporate welfare law; it has nothing to do with health, and its effects on health will undoubtedly, if measurable, be negative – TLK]

Mama’s Note: Of course, none of them are addressing the real problems, or the fact that the entire idea is one of force, fraud and theft… but it is still remarkable.

Nathan: Do you think that they might just be using this as an opportunity to push for a Brit-style single payer plan?

Mama’s Note: No idea if that was the intent, or the intent of all of them, of course… but I think it is clear that this is the desired direction. A number of pundits have noted that this goal would have been much better reached in far more gradual increments. Medicare and Medicaid were doing a terrific job getting people to accept the government regulation and limitations…

What they did not calculate, evidently, or even recognize at all, is that people continue to insist on having a choice… even if it is a choice among less than optimal things… and that’s the one thing Obummercare destroyed, pretty much across the board. Even the “welfare” types, with subsidies, suddenly lost their choice of doctors and providers, a lot because so many of the providers are quitting!

All this about Obummer restoring the choice, of “allowing” people to “keep the plans they like,” is sheer nonsense because those providers and the “plans” are vanishing. You can’t “keep” a doctor who has retired and moved to Belize. You can’t keep a policy that no longer exists… or from a company that just folded or was absorbed by a larger one.

And there simply isn’t any way for a “Brit-style” plan to get traction here… The British basically took a vast array of local practitioners and small hospitals… and nationalized them overnight. The small town and local medical groups retained their power, just under the umbrella of the more or less indifferent government – following the “rules,” which didn’t much change. The less the regulators had to mess with them, the better they liked it. The only thing that has kept it going so long is the usual citizen’s reluctance to buck the tide, to rock the boat, to DO something positive instead of whine. The “average” Brit has tolerated, even encouraged being controlled and regulated for centuries.

The US has had medical facilities and providers centralizing and consolidating into small, tight consortiums for many years, and they will resist anything that doesn’t add to their bottom lines immediately, and ongoing. But that is quite separate from the average American attitude toward whatever it is they want.

The average American, even those in a total lip lock with welfare, fanatically demand their “choice” in just about everything. I’d like to see any government entity attempt to limit their “choice” to only one or two fast food outlets, one or two soft drinks, or much of anything else they deem important. Of course, that’s the key, what they think is important, but once choices start to narrow, a surprisingly large number of Americans seem to be able to spot it fast, even in unexpected areas. When they finally understand that none of this is intended for their benefit… well, the end is near.

The fact is that Obummer and company may well try to institute a nationalized health “plan,” a “single payer” deal that warms their hearts, but the very powerful insurance companies won’t play along, and neither will most Americans. I can pretty much guarantee you that most health care professionals will not willing play that game either.  So, their goals and intentions are pretty much moot. They lost control of the actual game some time ago. Now they are umpires blowing their whistles while the fans walk out of the stadium.

Nathan: It doesn’t mean that the politicians (like the Clintons and Pelosi and the “messiah” are able to understand this, even if they were not completely dedicated to their own power and wealth and “philosophy.”  And part of this Clinton rejection of Obamacare may be even MORE simple:  striking out at a lame duck and his piece of the Democratic Party to improve their chances of taking the nomination in 2016.  By distancing themselves from this fiasco (see next story), they can still see a path to increasing their own power.

Mama’s Note: I’m sure that’s the intent, but they have seriously underestimated the American passion for choice, and that’s the one thing that is completely incompatible with Obummercare OR “single payer.” It’s a house of cards, and if the “anti-choice” card is removed, the whole thing falls down. It was designed to run on coercion and central control/planning. It can’t function otherwise, if it could function at all. Now liars like McCain are actually switching horses and calling for a complete repeal. This could get interesting.

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Politics 2013
Administration: 106,000 enrolled in health insurance in first month of HealthCare.gov
(Washington Post) Slightly more than 106,000 Americans signed up for health plans in the first month of new state and federal insurance marketplaces, the Obama administration reported Wednesday. The figure, which was far lower than the administration predicted, points to the steep challenge ahead as the White House tries to overcome public and congressional frustration with the program’s problem-plagued rollout.

Nathan: Besides pointing out that this IS failure, we have to ask are even THESE numbers real?  The government lies so much, that the only reason that we have any confidence in these numbers is that if they were going to lie about it, they’d surely come up with higher numbers than this.

At the same time, people are still pushing ObummerCare.  Just read a print article (not available on-line that I can find yet) urging enrolled tribal members to “drop” Indian Health Service and voluntarily join ObummerCare.  Talk about a disconnect with reality!  And just yesterday, I heard the story of a family whose medical coverage was canceled by their insurance company because it did not meet ObummerCare standards, just days before one of their children was badly injured and had to be medevaced by air 250 miles – humongous costs and no insurance!  Just one of many stories we are hearing constantly, even in frontier areas.

Mama’s Note: Actually, the failure of the website and the refusal of most people – especially healthy young people – to sign up is actually a victory for freedom. Each person who refuses to join is demonstrating that he/she did not swallow ALL the lies.

Posted in Mama's Rants, Nathan's Rants | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Anthony Gregory’s “Fictionalized Surveillance State”

Posted on 2013-11-14 by TPOL Nathan

The fictionalized surveillance state
(Independent Institute, by Anthony Gregory) “Public attitudes toward government spying have correlated to popular cultural trends ever since the 1821 publication of The Spy: A Tale of Neutral Ground, the first American spy novel written by James Fenimore Cooper, the first prominent American novelist. … Spies were further elevated in a slew of American novels in the late nineteenth century, and became central heroes in the English-speaking world in the twentieth century thanks largely to films such as those in the James Bond franchise. Whereas in early American history, government spying faced a largely negative public perception, the professionalized modern spying of our era has been glorified in the vast bulk of TV and movies featuring government agents using their omniscient technological gizmos to apprehend the bad guy just in the nick of time.”

Nathan: Yes, commentary.  But not as good as I would expect from the Independence Institute or Anthony Gregory.

He has oversimplified and demonized a complex history and understanding.  I don’t know why he does this – except that his slanted view supports his point (if I understand his point: that people are conditioned or propagandized to accept what the NSA and CIA does).

But he’s got the cart before the horse:  Cooper’s “Birch” did not make people like spies – he wrote the novel because people already DID like spies: at least, spies for their side.  People like CAPT Nathan Hale and Paul Revere, and many others in the War for American Independence were heroes well before 1821.

Both South and North used and honored spies forty years later, not because of Cooper’s novel, but because of what they DID.  The same thing can be said for Ian Fleming’s great creation: people didn’t love spies (for their side) in the Cold War because James Bond was a hero: they liked 007 because they liked spies.  The same movies and many more ALSO portrayed spies as villains: German and Japanese and Russian and more.  Why not argue that movies caused us to HATE and FEAR spies?  Spies working for the wrong side, of course.  As soon argue that Mad Magazine (or Get Smart) caused us to treat spies as incompetent clowns.

And still do: listen to the voices calling for allowing the NSA to keep doing what it is doing:  they include both neocons AND true conservatives, as well as messiah-apologists and liberals.  It is a dangerous slander to assume that all these people got their moral view out of a popcorn box in the cinema.

Right now, it is we self-governors (yes, and libertarians, civil and otherwise) that are the most outspoken.  It is not WHAT spies do – how they do it, that makes them good or evil in the eyes of most people – it is WHY they do it and WHO they do it for (or against).  A spy is a human tool, just like a gun or a rocket.  They can be used for good or for evil: the tool is (mostly) totally neutral, even amoral (not necessarily itself a good thing).  It can be used in the cause of tyranny and oppression, to cause terror in innocent people, or it can be used in the cause of liberty, for self-defense against thugs and tyrants and predators.

Even with his shading of the truth of history, Mr. Gregory sounds a true and needed alarm.  But he not only over-simplifies the problem, he whitewashes the solution on the wall of the problem with a bone-dry paintbrush.

Mr. Gregory points out “government spies” are his focus, in the last paragraph, but his solution to the problem is as weak as his argument.  “We know it is propaganda, but we’ll watch it anyway and just tell ourselves it isn’t real.”  That doesn’t work in real life:  the more we listen and watch, the more we believe.  The surveillance state is NOT fiction, fictionalized as it may be:  it is deadly real, and hundreds die each week around the world as a result.  The TRUTH is the only antidote to fiction: and only if you stop feeding your brain (and those of the children of the planet) the fiction.

Posted in Nathan's Rants | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment