D.C. Follies

Posted on 2013-10-31 by TPOL Nathan

Nathan:  Just read this from a friend, who has asked to remain nameless.  I find his comments refreshing:

Decriminalize marijuana possession before legalizing it, says a man who wants to be the next mayor of Washington, D.C.
(CNS News)

Nameless: Man, oh, man.  I am a huge supporter of ending the war on drugs and making marijuana as legal as beer, wine, liquor, or all the various forms of tobacco.  (And use none of them, and advocate the USE of none of them, for health and moral reasons.)  But, people, is this REALLY a good idea?

Think about it.  We know that DC pumps stupid juice into the water 24-7.  Including the water they use to serve and prepare all the soda, drinks, and so forth.  And the stupid juice can be absorbed into the skin, no doubt: bathing, showering, skinnydippin’ in the Tidal Pool, you name it!  And we want these idiots: not just Congress and staff and the lobbyists but all the bureaucrats and the cops and the judges and all the rest – to get HIGH?

Really?  We want THEM to have the pleasures LEGALLY that they deny collectively to 300 million of us?  (We know that they do enjoy them illegally, but that illegality does keep the odor down in the SOB and the HOB and the “hallowed halls” of the White House, Capitol, and Supreme Court Building.)  For one thing, we KNOW what their appetites and inability to control their lusts, greed, and desires is like.  We are not talking your ordinary MJ user, especially not your typical MMJ user.  We are talking about people that WILL toke up 24-7, and with warped minds that they will decide on just how much fun it is to torture MORE Americans and foreigners!  And for them, I betcha MJ really IS a gateway drug to everything that they can swallow, sniff, inject, and probably, insert rectally.

Nathan: The solution, for a self-governor, is simple.  Take ALL power away from the District of Criminals and anyone associated in ANY way with Congress, the FedGov, the DC gov, and all these NGOs – and then let them toke to their hearts’ content.  In fact, GIVE them the stuff.  It will be cheap compared to the damage they will be stopped from doing if we take away their power.

Mama’s Note: Those who rule the District of Criminals and, to a little lesser extent, all who “rule” everywhere else, are so drunk with power and stolen loot that a general trend toward cannabis use could only be an improvement. One of the effects of cannabis is a softening of the whole personality, the release of stress and negative emotions. Cannabis users are the least aggressive, least controlling people I know – and I’ve known a great many of them through my long nursing career.

I don’t see a down side myself. Ship boxcars of the stuff to every politician and bureaucrat in the world. We’d all be so much better off. Cannabis could just be the thing to turn off the “stupid juice” factories everywhere. And THEN it would be fairly simple to dismantle the entire state apparatus. The “pot” smokers would no longer care. We’d just have to deal with those who didn’t partake.

But this politician isn’t even talking about “decriminalization,” only a slightly lesser “crime” if users don’t pay the “penalty” – really, just another tax, and probably another boatload of “regulations” to be added as well. The gestapo will continue to harass the mundanes, and reel in all those nasty non conformists. And I didn’t read a word about elimination of all the asset forfeiture insanity.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41C:

Posted on 2013-10-31 by TPOL Nathan

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – State tyranny
25 States, Unfortunately, Expand Medicaid
(The Daily Beast) Twenty-five states, plus the District of Columbia, have now signed on to take part in an aspect of the Affordable Care Act that is both optional and ill-considered…

Nathan: It all depends on HOW YOU DEFINE “ill-considered” – the entire objective is to increase government control, so for the states to participate (much less DC) makes great sense.  To them.  A CNS Story (Jindal: 41% of Louisiana Residents Would Be in an Expanded Medicaid Program) shows the huge impact of this, so it is easy to see just why so many politicians are willing to be gauleiters.

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Politics 2013
The Next Headache from Obamacare
(Politico) On Nov. 1, the health law’s malfunctioning enrollment system is supposed to send reams of data to states so they can begin placing thousands of people into Medicaid, but the transfer system has barely been tested and could be vulnerable to technical failures…

Nathan: Based on the way many states are seeing a slow-motion collapse of their various agencies and regulatory bodies, this could be the stress that REALLY causes a crack-up of the system.  In many states, bureaucratic processes are slowing, no, grinding to a halt – and here we are, adding multiple layers of NEW bureaucracy within a very short time.  Could be fun, people.

Economy 2013 – Energy
Natural Gas Causes Energy Debate
(Forbes) The [switch] from coal to gas is not without its critics, especially those who say that the shale-gas boom is preventing the escalation of much cleaner fuels [sic] such as wind, solar and even nuclear energy, says Ken Silverstein…

Nathan: Well, my oh my, folks.  This is the way the free market is supposed to work. “Clean” is just ONE of several factors that influence buying decisions on the part of individuals and businesses.  And there is “clean” (as in less hassle to use, no soot, etc.) and there is the fancy-Dan “environist” clean (less “greenhouse gases,” less environmental damage in obtaining, transporting, and processing it, etc.)  I am NOT convinced that a TRUE and OBJECTIVE environmental assessment of wind OR solar is going to show it is “cleaner” than natural gas, conventional or unconventional.  And admit it, people, if the government hadn’t stuck its nose in and muddled and messed around for 60 years, no one would probably have ever developed fracking because we wouldn’t NEED it: we’d have reactors – specifically Thorium reactors in every neighborhood.  But because they put Thorium on the bottom of the back shelf in the walk-in freezer, we don’t have the nearly unlimited energy that would let us have a REAL 21st Century economy AND be free of most government.

Government-run, Tax-funded schools (upper level)
Transforming Teacher Colleges
(Wall Street Journal) Four months ago, the National Council on Teacher Quality released a report asserting that approximately 1,100 of the nation’s 1,400 teacher-preparation programs are inadequate…

Nathan: Notice, people, they kept this buried for FOUR months.  Not only that, but notice, this is a bunch of educrats stating that 80% of their OWN schools are “inadequate.”  Imagine just IF – it was a truly objective and neutral group doing this evaluation.  I suspect that the total would be more like 98% – but I’m being generous.  What are the standards to which “teacher colleges” (most of which now claim to be real, honest-to-goodness “universities” now – and don’t even really know what a university is supposed to be!) are compared?  How well they teach the latest teaching fads?  How well they mold the future teachers into robotic dispensers of the party line of Transnational socialism?  How badly they mess up their students’ minds and lives? There is no transformation possible of the evil institution that public schools have evolved into, from PS all the way to 20+.  The best thing is to drive a stake through their hearts and start over.  It is time for truly private and homeschooling of TEACHERS – teachers who can provide technical advice and assistance to parents to teach their own children.  Fourteen HUNDRED of these places?  Graduating what, a thousand teachers a piece, each year?  1.4 million teachers?  One in every 200 people?  How on earth do the med schools give that many lobotomies each year?

Stupid cities – Crash of 2009 – Theft by government
U.S. Cities Grapple with Finances
(Wall Street Journal ) American cities’ fiscal health is lagging behind other sectors of the economy as the recovery slowly takes hold, says the Wall Street Journal…

Nathan: Why?  Because the average city government has been riddled with unionism, cronyism, a belief that they can continue to steal and steal and steal from their voters and visitors and federal and state governments (which is, of course, just more stolen money) and grow and grow and grow.  And most especially because there IS NO RECOVERY.  Economies in virtually EVERY state are still grinding ever slower and slower, descending into a slow-motion death spiral.

Mama’s Note: As I see it, one of the core problems is the ever increasing debt, in addition to what you noted here. The endless round of theft and destruction of commerce with mindless regulations and taxes is second, but just by a hair. The fact that anyone still manages to stay in business, especially in the cities, is a miracle – and one that won’t last much longer.

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – Stupid government
Sebelius: ‘We Do Not Have Any Reliable Data Around Enrollment’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: How very comforting to those who have enrolled, or tried to.  One more reason to kill this program.

Mama’s Note: Someone asked me the other day what I planned to do about this insanity. I told them I had no intention of allowing anyone else to control my health, any more than I would allow them to control my guns. Molon labe.

Stupid government – World wars (2 stories)
Seriously? US Embassy Offering Free Tickets to Movie Exposing US Covert Ops
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This and the next story expose (again!) the stupidity of our intelligence and diplomatic operations around the world.  Free tickets to an expose, and the same agency that worries that crippled grandmothers and tiny children might be coerced into carrying bombs or nasty chemicals on board aircraft isn’t worried about Libyans working in aviation and nukes who probably do have relatives back home, even if their own background is pure as the driven snow!  Can you spell s-t-u-p-i-d?

Stupid government tricks
DHS Proposes Lifting 30-Year Immigration Ban for Libyans Working in U.S. Aviation and Nuclear Fields
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This idea is so incredibly stupid that we KNOW it has to be a political decision.  Yes, we all understand how important the Libyan-American vote is to Democratic efforts to regain control of the House of Representatives, and to their efforts to take “homosexual marriage” nationwide and keep religion out of schools, but surely there is a limit?

Congress in Action – Abominable Act (ObummerCare)
Boehner: ‘We Want to Repeal Obamacare’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: What?  Are we to believe him?  Why should we?  This is just another lying incident in the career of this piece of Republican garbage.

Mama’s Note: Well, of course he is… but heck, if he could figure out a way to dump this stupid pile of horse poop, I’d be cheering.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41B: Federal Evil On Parade

Posted on 2013-10-30 by TPOL Nathan

The War on the West – Stupid government tyranny
Kid Cages at School Bus Stops Spark Outrage
(Townhall) Serious problems with wolves are not limited to their capacity to kill. They are known carriers of disease that can cause severe problems and even death in both animals and humans. In Alaska 300 people have contracted the deadly hydatid disease from encountering wolf scat and tracking it into homes. This disease has been identified in over 60% of wolves in Montana and Idaho. Wolves spread anthrax, brucellosis and other diseases throughout wildlife and livestock populations, causing infertility, miscarriage and death.

Mama’s Note: Incentive for serious SSS. (For those who do not know this acronym, may I suggest a visit to Claire Wolfe’s website. )

Nathan: This is wrong on SO MANY levels.  I and many of my neighbors have to live with the ESA on a daily basis: it costs us money and time and other resources.  The “kid cages” remind me of an incident in Aurora, CO, several decades ago, where they put up wire mesh to keep kids “safe” when going to school and crossing a freeway.  The mesh made the narrow pathway into a bully-haven: older children could trap and bully younger and weaker children as much as they wanted to, unobserved and with no where for the bullied children to flee.  That might not be the case in Catron County (one of the most rebellious of New Mexico’s counties), but it presents many other dangers.

The two most simple solutions for the parents is (1) GET YOUR KIDS OUT OF THESE SCHOOLS, and (2) ARM YOUR CHILDREN.  My own sons, during one of the brief periods we had them in a public school and using a school bus, had a problem with feral dog packs while walking to and from the school bus stop and at the bus stop.  We could arm them and cache the weapons (no weapons on buses, even then, of course).  It seems like if the Sheriff (and the County Commissioners and School Board) are as concerned as they claim, that they could help parents arm their children with more than pepper spray.  In fact, the Sheriff could coordinate teaching the children to deal with wolves with shotguns or pistols…  Yeah, even in Catron County there might be a few liberal parents who panic over armed children – let THEM homeschool to protect their little ones.  But the real issue of the article and the real cause of the problem is the ESA and the huge bureaucracy and special interest community that supports it and drives the abuses it has created and sustained.

The very legitimacy of the ESA is problematic (to use a weasel-word): there is not just NO authority for it, but its real purpose and objectives are suspect and the regulations spawned by it even more so.  It causes millions if not billions in damage, especially to the West.  It has made the FWS and various state wildlife agencies even more thuggish than they started out to be, and this article barely touches on the evils it has caused.  Attempts to protect animal species on federal lands (assuming that the lands in question should be in federal ownership and control) might be only obnoxious, but even by limited constitutional analysis, the ESA assumes FedGov authority over private and state lands and actions which do nothing but confirm the FedGov as the master rather than the servant of the states (and their people).

Understanding this in turn points out the hideous power and growth in power of the federal government in the last 115 years:  The FedGov is more powerful in the states today than it was when they were just territories, and its control of land is an increasing burden on the liberty of the people.  The ESA is just one facet of this evil.  Indeed, the gray wolf is a better symbol of the FedGov today than the eagle: vicious, killing with no need or reason or remorse (or recourse), growing explosively, and protected from the predation it so richly deserves.

Back to MamaLiberty’s suggestion.  Yes, it is possible to deal with the wolves this way – keeping in mind that collared, tracked wolves are pretty common and it takes some imagination to deal with that.  People in South Dakota and Wyoming have shown a bit of ingenuity in dealing with collars on mountain lions.  But the real SSS solution might need to apply to the human predators walking among us, especially in those game refuges like the District of Criminals.  And THAT will take concentrated and coordinated defensive action and very great care.

Mama’s Note: Rope, lamp post, politician… some assembly required.

World wars – Stupid US government tricks
US weighs end to spying on leaders
(Bellingham Herald) “The Obama administration is considering ending spying on allied heads of state, a senior administration official said, as the White House grappled with the fallout from revelations that the U.S. has eavesdropped on German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The official said late Monday that a final decision had not been made and an internal review was still underway.” (10/28/13)

Mama’s Note: I doubt they’ll stop, of course, and ALL governments spy on the mundanes. More kabuki theater.

Nathan: That is the point I made in the comments last week:  everyone freaks out when the “leaders” get spied on but it is business as usual when the hoi polloi are spied upon: like the 60 million phone conversations a year in Spain. Once again, THIS cabal in the WH is making MORE of a mess: surely this has been going on since January of 1942 – and probably before, in Berlin and then Bonn and now Berlin again.  Everyone is willing to conveniently overlook it, but they have made such a fouled-up mess that everyone’s noses are getting rubbed in it.  This “considering ending” comes out as “null content” to anyone with a good meter: the “messiah” is up to his usual tap-dancing campaign trips: appear to promise everything and do nothing.

If there were truly an international or world system of justice, the US action would be seen and designated as what it is: unwarranted AGGRESSION against nations which are NOT threats and against which the US does NOT need to defend itself.  And those other nations – even and especially their individual citizens, have every right to defend themselves against this unprovoked aggression against them by the NSA (and other US government agencies).

How do you get restitution for someone spying on you with no moral (or legal) justification?  Frankly, I don’t know.  It has to be a complex and difficult process.  But I do know what the FIRST necessary action is: Get them to STOP doing it.  And that applies for Americans as well as Germans and Dutch and Schwitzers and anyone else.  That time has come.

Mama’s Note: The tighter the fingers are squeezed, the more leaks out between them. The more the lid is nailed on, the more cracks appear in the body of the containers they are attempting to close. Pandora is NOT going back into the box.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41A: Stupid government

Posted on 2013-10-30 by TPOL Nathan

Government-run, tax-funded schools – Families
Military parents embrace homeschooling
(Associated Press) A growing number of military parents want to end the age-old tradition of switching schools for their kids.

Nathan: Thanks to Debby and MamaLiberty for this.  This is near and dear to our heart, as we barely avoided having to deal with this sort of constant move for our children.  In the “old days” when the school system on large military installations, stateside and overseas, was DoDDS (Department of Defense Dependent Schools) or the earlier single-branch systems, the level of teaching and the curriculum were good quality and the officers and NCOs which coordinated the schools were parents and generally honest and forthright.  Turning the schools on post over to local districts and state educrats meant the same thing as for all other schools: deterioration and decline.  But even though more military families tend to be one-income families in which the WIFE (and mother) is at home mostly, homeschooling was frowned upon as being elitist and antisocial.  That attitude is changing, even though the military is being corrupted ever more rapidly by the administration and societal pressure.  Why home schooling now?  Because of that deterioration and the increasing isolation of military personnel and families, they see a need to share as much as they can with those of like mind, both religiously and politically.

Stupid government
Burned out: Obama’s first land auction for solar goes bust
(Washington Times) So much for the White House dream of solar selling like hotcakes. The first federal auction run by the Bureau of Land Management to sell chances to build solar power projects on public land went completely bust on Thursday. Nobody showed to bid.

Nathan: This cabal in the White House has this oddly naive idea concerning the free market.  They hate and despise it, but they think and act as though it is always there for them to manipulate and use, and that people will buy anything: health care, pollution credits, rights to use empty desert, and such, just because it is “on the market.”  And they won’t learn from this – they’ll go do it again.

Mama Liberty points out the many comments to this story at the Washington Times website.  If you get past the usual fussing and stupid name calling, a lot of people point out the obvious (which BLM and the other minions of the “messiah” carefully ignore):  after the way private operators were treated on federal land during the 16-day shutdown, no one with the money to invest who does NOT already have their hands in the government’s pocket is willing to risk billions with such a fickle partner.  And those who already have their deals sewn up because they are insiders didn’t have to participate in this very bogus auction.

Congress in action – Abominable Act: ObummerCare
Don’t Like Obamacare? It Was the Republicans’ Idea, Says Liberal Democrat
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yes, in large part it WAS: both old parties are to blame.  The GOP tried to (and got) a sweetheart deal for the big Pharma and big Health: especially the insurance companies.  The Dems went along with them on that (they get a rakeoff, too) and then the GOP went along with them and the administration on the rest of this piece of junk. The GOP, based on its history, its attitude, and most especially its leadership for decades, is as tyrannical and evil as the Democratic Party, for the same reasons: greed for money, lust for power, and everything else that government gains for its adherents and the elite more easily than in any other way.

Congress in action – Abominable Act: ObummerCare
$174K-Per-Year Rangel: ‘No Question About It’ Taxpayers Should Help Him Buy Obamacare Plan
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Rangel represents about the worst of Congress in every way: he is an uber-statist who believes that everyone should be required to not just pay taxes (30, 40, 50% directly apparently) but also be a (paid) slave of the state for two years or more, through the reinstitution of that most evil institution, the draft.  But as his attitude in this matter shows, he is also an entitlement and privilege junkie:  it is HIS right to have all these congressional privileges, with more each year.  Keep in mind, Congress HAS health “insurance” – full and free medical treatment and “health maintenance” on your dime.  Applying the subsidies in this case is just frosting on the cake: proof that they are the elite and can demand and get special, worshipful treatment in every way.

The “messiah” – Border jumpers
Obama: ‘It Doesn’t Make Sense to Have 11 Million People Who Are in This Country Illegally…’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Funny how selective he can be.  He uses this argument to urge legalization of all the border jumpers.  Now, apply the same argument to those in prison for federal drug offenses.  Does it make any more sense to imprison millions who used something that was illegal but harmed only them?  By the way, if he believes that people should be able to cross borders without any restraints or concerns, why should those people not be allowed to take (or send) money across borders without restraints, concerns, OR reporting it?  And why should ANY good or service not be able to be brought or sent across borders without restraints?  Once more, the hypocrisy of this man and his puppetmasters is obvious.

War against religion
Army orders stand-down on anti-Christian briefings
(American Family Association) The Pentagon has announced it’s putting a halt to U.S. Army briefings that label evangelicals and pro-family organizations, including the American Family Association, as domestic hate groups. Read the Army’s directive here.

Nathan: Thanks to Darryl for this.  The problem is, the AFA is NOT telling the truth.  That is NOT an Army (or DoD, as the title claims) directive.  And it does not say what the AFA press release/article/fundraising letter says it does, without a LOT of reading between the lines and fond hopes. The “directive” is nothing but a very sanitized version of what appears to be a memorandum probably published by III Corps in Fort Hood, referencing (improperly – probably that part of the memo was stripped off) a FORSCOM directive.  It is NOT a “DoD” directive and absolutely no proof of all the things that AFA is claiming.  It doesn’t apply to anyone but III Corps units: less than 1/10 of the Army, and doesn’t apply to other services at all.  I don’t know who is advising the folks at AFA about military matters, but if someone is, they aren’t listening. I suspect that we will continue to see more and more incidents of shaming and warning and blackballing, on an increasing scale.  This is no indication that either the White House or the Pentagon have changed their basic hostility.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41D: Abominable Act (ObummerCare) and the “messiah”

Posted on 2013-10-26 by TPOL Nathan

Abominable Act (ObummerCare) – The “messiah” in charge
Administration Grants Itself 3-Month Exemption from Individual Mandate
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: So why are we funding Congress?  Is it for the entertainment value?  The “messiah” can do whatever he pleases, and then tell Congress and us. Many folks would LIKE to get a permanent exemption; this is just insult to injury.

Mama’s Note: Indeed… and I’ve heard so many people say seriously that if this is such a wonderful deal for all of us, why are all of THEM exempt? Sort of like all the other “laws” that don’t apply to them.

Nanny-Thug state – Home front
Census: 49% of Americans Get Gov’t Benefits; 82M in Households on Medicaid
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Well, this explains most of my relative’s tenants – every one seems to be part of this 82 million (she doesn’t get a DIME in direct government benefits: no Social Security, no Medicare, nothing, but it seems everyone else in her town does).  And this explains why more and more drop out of the workforce.  You can still lead a pretty comfortable life these days on government benefits:  food stamps, SSI, Social Security, and indirectly via food banks and everything else that government seems to subsidize. Another relative sent out that hoary old joke about the man whose 1040 keeps getting rejected because he claims too many dependents: the 47 million on food stamps, the 3 million getting free drug treatment from the government, etc…

Government-run, tax-funded schools (higher ed) – The “messiah’s” minions
Duncan on New College Ratings System: ‘I Can Promise You, We Won’t Do It Perfectly’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Surely a rare promise from a politician – one certain to come true! What was wrong with having private business (US News & World Report) do this?  Because, in Duncan’s view (and that of his chieftain, the “messiah”), government should do EVERY thing in education, from pre-pre-school to post-doctoral studies, and continuing education, and all the rest.

Abominable Act – Congress in Action
Pelosi: Obamacare’s ‘Going to Be a Beautiful Thing’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yes, in HER view and those of Tranzis and Statists and thug government types around the world.  In the eyes of those who have to live with the mandate (or die because of it), well… beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

World wars – World Thugocracy
U.S. ‘Is Not  Monitoring’ And ‘Will Not Monitor’ German Chancellor’s Cell Phone
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yes, and if you believe this lie, you think that Uncle Adolph was good for Germany. Dozens of other nations’ “leaders” (and tens of millions of other nations’ peons) have been monitored by NSA and other US FedGov agencies.  Along with tens of millions of American “citizens.”  Why not Merkel?  Queen Elizabeth?  The Pope?

Home front – Politics 2013: the “shutdown”
WashPost Poll: 78% Didn’t Miss Government During Shutdown
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: What shutdown?  All 17% at max?  But despite the efforts of the White House to make it as miserable as possible for as many of us as possible, it really did NOT affect 90% of Americans.  WE CAN LIVE WITHOUT GOVERNMENT.  Unfortunately, THAT lesson did not get through: we did not stop paying taxes (remember fuel excise taxes on gasoline and diesel), we did not start disobeying all the stupid federal laws about “discrimination” and education and health care, and we did not go out and rape the environment.  Again, THIS WAS A JOKE.

Abominable Act – The “messiah’s” minions
Sebelius: I’m Not Signing Up for Obamacare
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yes, and of course, she doesn’t have to: she has that incredibly luxurious and full-coverage federal employee health care insurance. NObody in the Executive, Legislative, or Judicial branches of the FedGov need to do so.  Which is ONE reason ObummerCare is such a hideous thing.  But it should not distract us from the fact that government has NO business being involved in the health care business.

Government-run, Tax-funded schools (higher education) – Theft by government
Failing Grade for Student Financial Aid Programs
(ECONOMIC POLICIES FOR THE 21st CENTURY) The U.S. Treasury Department found that for every dollar provided in tax-based aid, scholarships fell a dollar — shifting the burden from students and schools to taxpayers…

Nathan: This is not news, just that the Treasury is WILLING to admit it.  Real observers and real (not government or statist) economists have understood this for years: it is a form of Gresham’s law: government (bad) money drives away private (good) money.  The theft is a vicious circle, and it is students, parents, and the taxpayers (now and future) who lose.  It is college administrators, faculty, contractors, and of course government agents that all benefit.  We know this is going on: a major reason (together with lack of competition) that college prices have skyrocketed such in the past four decades.

Mama’s Note: I had one small student loan in my first year of college, and so many scholarships that I actually had money to give back to the various donors when I graduated. The scholarships I had were only good for education related expenses, not for cost of living, but I was able to work part or full time while I studied and never worried about it. I paid off the one, small student loan within a few months of graduation. That was in the 1980s, before this became such a scam.

Stupid people tricks
New Mexico: Chili powder cloud brings out the hazmat team
(CBS via MSN News) Habanero devotees would have you believe that if you’re not wearing a hazmat suit, you’re not cooking chili. But the high heat wasn’t a laughing matter to workers in the Santa Teresa Industrial Park in Las Cruces, N.M., who finally called 9-1-1 when a cloud of chili powder began gave them bloody noses, irritated eyes and breathing problems. The hazmat crew discovered the particles emanated from Deli-Food Chile and Spice LLC, which grinds habanero pods into powder, and lingered in the air long enough to get into ventilation systems. One woman with a previous breathing issue went to the hospital and 30 others were treated on the scene.

Nathan: What CAN I say about this?  Panic and fear over nothing?  Or a serious and real problem.  Oh, for some common sense: if something doesn’t seem right DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.  Don’t just depend on government!

Mama’s Note: One of these days I’ll have to tell you the funny story about my very first experience with growing Jalapeño peppers – and the miracle cure for the burning.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41C: Stupid people

Posted on 2013-10-26 by TPOL Nathan

Abominable Act (ObummerCare)  – Politics 2013 (Stupid people)
ObamaCare ACA website broken – GOP to blame:
(Politico via the Last Resistance) Facing such intense opposition from congressional Republicans, the administration was in a bunker mentality as it built the enrollment system, one former administration official said. Officials feared that if they called on outsiders to help with the technical details of how to run a commerce website, those companies could be subpoenaed by Hill Republicans, the former aide said. So the task fell to trusted campaign tech experts. Read more here.

Nathan: Well, stupid is as stupid does, and the White House continues to be stupid.  How much of a stretch is it to blame the GOP by claiming “we were afraid of them?”  Like Bush, the Dems and the White House treat and use the GOP as a boogeyman who will eat all the little children, give cancer to all the old folks, and re-enslave anyone of color.  You know, I have even run into a few Democrats who are sick of this and ticked off by it – but not many, I admit.  Modern Democrat voters are one of history’s biggest arguments against democracy.  Ole Woodrow must be tickled pink that he helped make the world “safe for democracy.”  But keep in mind, it ain’t only Dems that are stupid.

Stupid People – World Wars
Adelson: Obama should fire nuke to send message to Iran
(Washington Post) Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire who extensively funded numerous Republican campaigns in the 2012 election, said at a forum Tuesday that President Obama should fire an atomic weapon into the middle of the desert to send a message to Iran.

Nathan: Insanity and loose cannonballs! Some GOP types (quite a few) fit the traditional stereotypes as warmongers and idiots, like Sheldon here.

Mama’s Note: One must assume this person inherited his wealth. He doesn’t sound intelligent enough to maintain a piggy bank on his own. Probably needs someone to feed and dress him, what with all the mindless drooling…

Nathan: My thought too, but here is what Wikipedia has to say: “ Adelson was born and grew up in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Sarah (née Tonkin) and Arthur Adelson.  His family was Ukrainian Jewish. His father drove a taxi, and his mother ran a knitting shop. His business career began at the age of 12. He began to sell newspapers at the age of 12 and started a candy-vending-machine business at the age of 16. He attended trade school to become a court reporter but later joined the army. He is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the parent company of Venetian Macao Limited which operates The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino and the Sands Expo and Convention Center. He also owns the Israeli daily newspaper Israel HaYom. As of October 2013, Adelson was listed as the 12th richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of $34.4 billion.”

So (assuming Wikipedia is reporting truthfully)  it isn’t inherited insanity: senility maybe.  Or maybe he is a prodigy: super intelligent in a very small area, but an absolute idiot in every other way.  Some media suggests he was using hyperbole to make a point about taking action: others figure he is just an evil monster that wants to help the world get destroyed sooner or later.  I figure he is just one more example of why it is a bad idea for governments to be allowed to play with dangerous toys.  And why it is a GOOD idea to allow peaceful and private people to have weapons to keep things like someone dropping a nuke on their heads from happening.  Fortunately, most of us just have to worry about the random terrorist or carjacker or burglar or mugger – as the next person seems to understand.

Hoploclasts and hoplophobes
Interpol chief raises question on armed citizenry
(Freedom Outpost) INTERPOL Secretary General Ronald K Noble “What I’m saying is it makes police around the world question their views on gun control. It makes citizens question their views on gun control. You have to ask yourself, ‘Is an armed citizenry more necessary now than it was in the past with an evolving threat of terrorism?’ This is something that has to be discussed. For me it’s a profound question. People are quick to say ‘gun control, people shouldn’t be armed,’ etc., etc. I think they have to ask themselves: ‘Where would you have wanted to be? In a city where there was gun control and no citizens armed if you’re in a Westgate mall, or in a place like Denver or Texas?’

Nathan: So, the “world’s top cop” is in favor of gun freedom?  Or at least something less than the total gun control that is the Tranzi and liberal and statist goal?  Or is he just blowing smoke up our noses?  We’ll see how long he lasts. Note he doesn’t say the police and citizens MUST or NEED to change their views – just question them.  Right.  Well, stupid people don’t realize that they are doing the same thing over and over, which is why they seem insane to many of us.

Mama’s Note: I found it encouraging that this person even mentioned the fact that armed individuals are the best defense against “terrorists.” Whether or not his tranzi masters will allow him to remain in the post will be interesting to watch. For now, I give him the benefit of the doubt.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41B: Guns and government stupidity

Posted on 2013-10-24 by TPOL Nathan

Guns are part of American culture and life: part of what MAKES us Americans, and gave us more liberty than anyone else on the planet for a long time.  Today, as with all things “American,” guns are hated.  By many but not all people.

Hoplophiles – Former Republic of Texas
Gun Rights Rally at Alamo Successful?
(JPFO) The “Come and Take It San Antonio!” rally was intended to draw attention to a right Texans already have — to carry long arms publicly so long as they don’t do it in a menacing manner. Organizers thought it necessary to offer a reminder after several open carry advocates were threatened with arrest at a Starbucks in the city two months ago. The problem remains that a local ordinance effectively limits the open carrying of firearms to police and security guards. That ordinance was not enforced Saturday. San Antonio Police Chief William McManus mingled in the crowd that police estimated at about 300 to 400, but the larger police presence remained around the perimeter of the Alamo plaza. “There are too many issues associated with trying to enforce every ordinance here today,” McManus said. He said his priority was that people be able to exercise their constitutional rights and that everyone remain safe. Volunteers walked through the crowd placing red plastic straws in rifle chambers, a visible assurance they were not holding a round.

Nathan: Brave and good words to hear from an appointed police chief – or even an elected sheriff these days.  These SHOULD be the priorities of peace officers: rights and safety, with rights coming first.  The business with the red straws is understandable, but NOT a good idea.  We MUST educate the public that an empty weapon is a useless weapon, and that loaded guns are NOT a safety hazard any more than gasoline in a fuel tank or antifreeze in a radiator.  The fact that no one requires the idiots in blue or black uniforms (yes, I know that they are not ALL idiots) to empty their chambers and go around with unloaded weapons, and the fact that it is IMPOSSIBLE to force the gangbangers and hold-up artists and hitmen to empty THEIR weapons should mean that an unloaded weapon should be viewed with as much distaste as a “wardrobe malfunction” that reveals a private body part.  Until we regain this mindset, the thugs (both “private” – gangbangers and crooks – and “public” – corrupt politicos and cops) will rule the streets.  Even in Texas.  Even at the Alamo.

Mama’s Note: Amen, Nathan. It was painful to watch all those people working so hard at being essentially UNARMED. The real disaster of the day, however, was the uninvited assault on everyone present by Alex Jones. Whoever let that cretin get hold of the microphone needs to spend the next month listening to his rants, nonstop. Not even bathroom breaks…

Self-defense/Defense of others – Home front
Arizona: Mass shooting thwarted by CCW defending friends
(Freedom Outpost)

Nathan: The entire point of this (and other incidents) is that we CANNOT depend on ANY government agency to defend people against attack.  We all know how long it would and DOES take police to respond to ANY 9-1-1 call.  A major second point is that if this party had been at a bar or restaurant (several years ago, before THAT law was dropped), this defender would have been unarmed IF he obeyed the law.  The deaths of perhaps a dozen or more people were avoided, and can be avoided in most cases.  Not all, but many, concealed carriers of weapons are very much aware of their environment and too many of us have a hyperdeveloped sense of duty (love) for others bred and taught and hammered into us:  we WILL go towards the sound of the guns.  And no, this doesn’t mean gunfight at the OK Corral. In this case, a single shot ended the wild, random shots of the attacker.  If anything, we should deplore the fact that a single shot was enough, and that the attacker DID NOT die as an immediate “reward” for his aggression.  If the attacker had gone ahead, unresisted, and entered the building, we would have had a standoff and the SWAT would have come in and killed a few more.  Compare this to the middle school shooting in Sparks, Nevada:

NO self-defense – Government-run, tax-funded schools
Classmates Recall Nevada Middle School Shooting Events
(Arizona Daily Wildcat) [Follow-up story to a Monday incident in Sparks, NV where an angry, bullied student showed up, killed a popular teacher, wounded a student, threatened other students and then killed himself all before cops arrived.]

Nathan: One dead teacher, because he tried to talk the angry student out of it, instead of having a weapon (and the backing of two or three other teachers or staff with weapons) to use to reinforce a command to “STAND DOWN.”  Or, worst case, to shoot the attacker down like the rabid dog he so resembles. Yes, there were “two dead” because the rapid dog killed himself.  Frankly, that doesn’t count: he should have never had the chance to kill himself; someone should have done it to him.

One more point of comparison:  in both cases, the media used the word “shooter” to describe the man who defended his friends at the house party and the dog who killed a teacher and himself.  Because in the media’s eyes, it seems that the two are morally equal.  The defender didn’t have a badge and a uniform, so he is just as evil as the kid, in their eyes.  How much longer will we put up with this?

Mama’s Note: Now, Nathan… let’s not cast aspersions on dogs here. 🙂 The person who shot the teacher was evil… dogs are almost never evil. But I agree. As tragic as it would have been for that teacher to kill what most would consider a “child,” we would all have been better off. And that is, of course, if this story is truly as reported. There are just so many lies these days, that one becomes cynical and distrusting of everything in the media.

Stupid people – California nuthouse
California: People sign petition for police state
(Freedom Outpost)

Nathan: A great video, as always.  He has such a wonderful straight face.  People hear what they want to, and do NOT know history or philosophy in the least.  And then, there are the ones who WANT a police state to “protect” them and keep them safe and secure, as well as housed and fed and entertained.  (Are we sure there isn’t some sort of genetic reason for this instinctive desire to be enslaved?  Are some people genetically actually slaves, after generations of breeding in which the rebels were killed or driven out?  If homosexuality can be “genetic,” then why not slavery?)

Mama’s Note: Not “slavery” as such, of course. This police state stuff is, for these people… SO FAR… quite comfortable – more like being cattle in summer. Real slavery isn’t at all comfortable, as these idiots are bound to discover at some point. Winter is coming…

Islamic war: Syrian-Canaanite front – Mainstream Media
British Press Shill for Syrian War
(Conservative Action Alerts)

Nathan: As the story points out, this smells like the Kuwait “throw the babies out of the incubator” story from 1990 or 1991.  Or stories about the US stealing African and Asian children for organs.  But this is the Brit media, still trying to drum up support for yet another war.

Mama’s Note: Forgot where I saw it… but the phrase is: “Let’s you and him fight…”

Stupid cop tricks (2 stories)
Teen Faces Felony Charges For Possession Of A Loaded Tackle Box
(Freedom’s Phoenix) 17 year old Cody Chitwood was busted during a random sweep of the Lassiter High School parking lot by police and this student who has never been in trouble before now faces prosecution, large fines, prison time, and the loss of his plans to join the Air Force in the future due to a hysterical overreaction that has resulted in his arrest. – See more at: http://www.thedailysheeple.com/zero-tolerance-lunacy-teen-faces-felony-charges-for-possession-of-a-loaded-tackle-box_102013#sthash.j7USakOy.dpuf Read Full Story

Nathan: Cops can decide when and when not to take action, and obviously, this was and is intended to push a lesson: make sure that the children are taught that they must be slavishly observant and obedient to all authority.

Mama’s Note: Well, we can look on the bright side. If all goes well, it will prevent him from becoming a drone in the US military. Maybe he can grow up and learn to do something useful, or even understand liberty and justice at some point.

NYPD Mistook Jolly Ranchers For Meth Rocks
(Freedom’s Phoenix) A New York City man arrested this summer for possession of methamphetamine was actually carrying Jolly Rancher candies that cops mistook for a controlled substance, according to a federal civil rights lawsuit. Love Olatunjiojo was busted in late-June after being searched by cops who approached the 25-year-old and a friend as they walked on a Coney Island street.

Nathan: The stupidity of NYPD cops has to be at least in part the result of hiring policies: heaven forbid that they hire someone with the brains to tell the difference.  But the DAs and others SHOULD have been able to tell the difference if they hadn’t been after this guy for “walking while black,” as near as I can tell.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-41A: Government-ruined schools and society

Posted on 2013-10-23 by TPOL Nathan

Travel and work have delayed commentary-writing this week, but here is a hodgepodge of stories to share (and shudder about):

Home front – Stupid cops – Local Tyranny
Shocking Russian Travel Alert Warns About US Cops
(TheTotalCollapse.com) A shocking report prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) for the Federal Assembly (FA) is urging a new law be passed giving to all Russians traveling to the United States a “warning” that American police officers have entered upon an“unprecedented killing spree” that in the past decade has seen nearly 5,000 innocent civilians gunned down without benefit of either charges being filed, or being convicted of a crime. Two of the worst American cities for police abuse likely to be visited by Russian citizens, this report says, are Chicago, which was condemned by the United Nations for its practice of widespread police torture, and New York City whose government paid out over $1 billion between 2000-2010 in lawsuit claims related to police abuse, and last year, 2012, had to pay out another $131 million to settle civil rights and police abuse claims too.

Nathan:  As with so many other things, we have to ask if this is just more noticeable these days because it is easy to get news at the local level across the nation and world – or if this really is a massive increase that seems to be taking place across the nation.  You can search and find a dozen cases of cops killing – or just attacking, beating, and wounding – innocent people nationwide seemingly every week. Chicago and NYPD cops seem to be in the news every week, but it can include small town police in Missouri or Oregon or South Carolina just as easily. Again, take into account that the website with this data has known veracity problems but the documentation seems to be complete and accurate.

Home front – Economics
580 US pets die after eating jerky from China
(Daily Telegraph)”Almost 600 pets have died and a further 3,000 have fallen ill in the US after eating meat jerky treats that have been linked to China. The US Food and Drug Administration has asked pet owners to contact them after receiving multiple reports of pets falling ill. Since 2007, it has received reports involving 3,600 dogs and 10 cats. Of those, 580 have died.” (10/23/13)

Nathan: Thanks to Scott and his correspondents for this.  As Scott pointed out, this is very likely due to diethylene glycol, a poisonous substitute for glycerin and a known problem.  You can read about it athttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19586352: Most of the documented cases of DEG poisoning have been epidemics (numbering over a dozen) where DEG was substituted in pharmaceutical preparations. More often, these epidemics have occurred in developing and impoverished nations where there is limited access to intensive medical care and quality control procedures are substandard. TOXICOKINETICS: Following ingestion, DEG is rapidly absorbed and distributed within the body, predominantly to regions that are well perfused. Metabolism occurs principally in the liver and both the parent and the metabolite, 2-hydroxyethoxyacetic acid (HEAA), are renally eliminated rapidly.

Nathan: It is NOT a new problem: FDA sent out warnings in 2007 and 2011

I suggest that if you HAVE a dog (or have friends with dogs) that you be very careful, but also notify local retailers (pet stores etc,; I know that Walgreens carries a lot of various pet jerky products made in China) so that they can take action to protect their customers’ pets (AND the company’s liability).  The point should be made that this kind of nonsense comes out of China several times a year: pets, children, even adults have died because of shoddy, contaminated, poor or even counterfeit products coming out of China.  Since China is STILL a police state and still a Communist state with a large and bogus trapping of supposed capitalism (“State capitalism” would be more accurate), it is fairly certain that the Chinese government knows and condones this, and is using it as one way to “get back” at the West for perceived enmity and past actions.  And we are, as consumers, stupid enough to accept this without checking.  We expect OUR government (FDA, USDA, BCE, etc.) to work against them to “protect” us, when we know that our government(s) are incompetent and incapable of doing so.

Mama’s Note: I make my own dog treats. The commercial ones are too expensive, and often have ingredients I don’t want to give to my pets. I’ll post a recipe for them as soon as I can. Leftover or scrap meat and fat, freezer burned vegetables and cracked eggs… lots of otherwise wasted food can be used to make dog treats that will be good for them, and satisfy their need for treats.

Home front – Abominable Act (ObummerCare), etc.
US Physicians walking away from Medicare practice
(Surgery Center of Oklahoma Tumbler Newsletter) See if you can make any sense out of what is below.  Don’t feel bad if you can’t.  Neither can the physicians who must comply with this stuff.  This regulatory maze, combined with notoriously low rates of pay from Medicare, combined with the severe penalties for non-compliance (jail time) serve together to achieve the rationing of care the government thinks will help balance their books.

Nathan: More and more are dropping out.  And not just from Medicare and Medicaid, but from practice in general.  According to one report, the medical care industry has FIRED over 40,000 employees this year: it is likely that many of these are due to physicians or other lead professionals ending their practices or resigning.  I assume this will continue until the government tries to start drafting them to force them to continue to work.

Mama’s Note: Don’t know how “drafting” doctors or nurses would work… you can force someone to pick cotton, though not efficiently. How would you force someone to perform surgery or make a careful diagnosis? How would one force young people to spend the years of careful study and dedicated practice to become health care professionals. Not likely.

Stupid Government
Pentagon to sell bunker busters, cruise missiles to Gulf monarchies in $11bn deal
(TheTotalCollapse.com) The Pentagon plans to sell $10.8 billion worth of advanced weaponry to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The hardware includes bunker buster bombs and cruise missiles.

Nathan: Why do we do this?  Why do we NEED to do this?  (I use the “generic” we meaning the FedGov supposedly representing and serving Americans.)  The gang lords that are the rulers of Saudi Arabia and the Emirates are NOT our friends: they are evil and monstrous slavers and tyrants who happen to sit on top of oil that has held the world at their mercy for five decades, but need no longer be coddled or catered to. Again, take into account that the website with this data has known veracity problems but the documentation seems to be complete and accurate.

Government-run, theft-funded schools
Zero Tolerance in Schools As Usual
(Freedom Outpost) This week, Kristin Tate reported that an autistic student in Greenville, South Carolina was suspended for a picture of a bomb (the suspension was lifted) and last week an Alabama high schooler committed suicide after facing criminal charges for streaking at a football game.  The incidents join a number of similar school disciplinary actions which have received nationwide attention this year.

Nathan: I suppose this kind of thing really isn’t news anymore, at least not to those of us who pay attention.  Parents, get your children out of these places. Friends of families with children in school: help wean them away from the state’s institutions:  evil things happen to children there, and they become evil as a result of being indoctrinated for 13+ years.  I see that the preferred term is no longer K-12 for public schools, but P-12 (for “preschool”) and saw one conference talking about P-20 (apparently for preschool through graduate school!) as being the realm of government and the “professionals” and parents are NOT wanted.  Each week, more and more stories DO come out, and more and more lives are ruined by these institutions.  As the next story shows.

Government-run, theft-funded schools
Idaho: Collective punishment deals with bomb threats
(Jonathan Turley.com) It appears that the school officials at Bonners Ferry High School have learned to appreciate the concept of collective population punishment. After a series of faux bomb threats scrawled in the boy’s bathroom, school officials have placed large areas under continual surveillance and reportedly withheld food from all boys to try to prompt them to turn in the culprits. (Idaho)

Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention: “No persons may be punished for an offense he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.” The association of collective punishment with terrorism is worth noting.

Nathan: Turley fails to address the root of the problem: it is letting the state educate the young, run the schools, and steal money to do it.  This sort of tactic IS totalitarian in nature, and is going to be seen more and more.  Such collective punishment can be found used back for decades in public schools.

Home front
Brooklyn white couple attacked by black teen gang
(Freedom Outpost) Brooklyn, NY. The confrontation began when Ronald Russo, who is White, was driving with his wife Alana and audaciously beeped at a pack of Black jaywalking juveniles. Evidently, Russo was unaware that these weren’t typical teenagers. These “youngins” proudly wear defiance on their sleeves and intentionally disregard the laws that govern civilized society.

Nathan: Like the last story, this really isn’t news anymore.  While most black-initiated violence in this nation is against other black people (hmm: prejudice or bigotry against your own, there is a LOT more black-on-white violence than white-on-black, despite claims otherwise by the media and Tranzis.  These teens seem to fit one man’s definition of “ni**ers” as being an evil ethnic group and culture which is no more typical of standard “black culture” than the KKK or skinheads are typical of Anglo or “white culture.”  IF NYPD were an effective police state force, they’d have these rounded up, but instead, the NYPD and other city and state (and federal) organizations enable and facilitate this sort of gang and gang violence.  Expect it to get worse.

Technology – Home Front
Google files patents for gesture-controlled cars
(Raw Story)

Nathan: Scary, scary, especially for those of us who like to keep time to the classical music radio station or make rude gestures at stupid drivers.  I have my doubts (as do Gareth and Matthias) that these technologies (based on computer gaming technology) really are patentable, but understand that Google is trying to protect its turf and future (and yes, fault Google for doing so: they are becoming like a government themselves).  Supposedly this will help improve road safety, but so far, all I see is more threat to safety on the highways.

Mama’s Note: Beware the terror of the unintended consequences.

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Food Stamps – An American Evil – part 3

Posted on 2013-10-20 by MamaLiberty

[Continued from an earlier article] By Nathan Barton

Food stamps are a way to hide hunger:

Remember, the reason we DO NOT have soup lines today like in the First Great Depression is because they get their food from the same grocery stores as the rest of us, with the money magically transferred to their little plastic cards electronically.  We don’t worry about what we don’t see: we don’t know whether that piece of plastic is a debit card, a credit card, or an EBT (welfare) cared.

Food stamps discourage personal action, in two ways:

For the hungry: “I don’t have to work: I may have to eat Ramen six days a week, but Uncle Sugar will pay for it, so I won’t starve.”  Food Stamps are EASY, and without the personal embarrassment of standing in a line to beg a meal from a nice Salvation Army or Hope Mission lady, or even worse, having to listen to some prayer and sky-pilot shouting to get a meal.

For the not-hungry: Food Stamps discourage personal action by those who otherwise WOULD HELP fight hunger and feed the needy:  “The government is paying them to eat, I don’t have to spend my time and my money (well, more of my money) since I’m paying taxes and the government is providing it.  Out of sight, out of mind:  we’d be far more bothered by seeing people in a soup kitchen line three times a day than even if the people getting EBT had to stand in line at the local welfare office outsiden where we could see them.

Food Stamps breed dependency:

And NOT just in those who get them, but in those who can shirk their christian (or other faith) responsibility to care for the hungry, because the government is doing it.  And more dependency ON THE GOVERNMENT means more power TO the government.  We ALL give up personal responsibility.  And at the same time, liberty.

It even applies to the middlemen:  to those who take from the “rich” and give to the “poor” – more taxes to collect, more people to collect them. And more businesses to take the stamps and provide the goods and services, at the same rate they sell to everyone else. More mouths to feed: more hands to feed them.  More paperwork, more people and pens and computers.  More fraud: more people to investigate and do the rituals to claim to control it.  In the old days, if you were hungry, well, the Lord told the farmers to leave some of the harvest in the corners of the fields so that the poor and hungry could glean the fields.  You had to WORK to eat – even if the food was “free” – not the “work” of filling out some forms and trudging down to the local welfare office.  The hobo who begged for a meal from a housewife EXPECTED to do some work for it: painting a fence, chopping weeds, picking up trash.  When the charity came from your local church (or a local church), YOU had to ask, and YOU had to justify why you couldn’t work and pay your own way – or at least part of it.  And more likely than not, it wasn’t straightforward charity too: in those days people remembered Paul’s admonition: “if a man does not work, neither shall he eat.”  Today, “if a man does not work, find a way to classify him as disabled or whatever and give him all you can.”  So my last point:

Food Stamps make governments bigger and more powerful.

While there appear to be many factors in why there are such differences in states, I suspect that the KEY factor is the mental attitude of dependency versus personal responsibility.  If I am in trouble, am I going to do something about it, or am I going to run to some government agency and demand that they take care of me?  Too many Americans choose to do the second: their society, in places like DC and Oregon and Rhode Islan are BUILT around “government will take care of it.” Although food stamps are a measure and the result of this dependency, they are also a convenient, even attractive way, to increase dependency and be pulled from personal responsibility. Their governments were already bigger than most: increased food stamps mean bigger government.  The Russian military have a phrase for it: Reinforcing success.  Government WANTS and NEEDS more dependency, less personal responsibility, and to hide reality from those it controls. Food stamps fit perfectly.

COMMENT:  Literally just minutes after I finished this commentary, I received the following link from a correspondent: Foodstamp Program Shutdown Imminent

It contains what looks like a real letter, dated 11 OCT 2013, from USDA FNS (Food and Nutrition Service) (which runs SNAP) to all state SNAP agencies telling them NOT to submit reports that are necessary to have funds transferred for food stamps for October.  The people who saw this letter (who are in Utah) are fearful that this is an early warning that there will BE NO FOOD STAMPS in November, even if the “shutdown” is ended before then.  Given lead times and other factors, this COULD be a possibility IF and ONLY IF the White House and their minions WANT IT TO HAPPEN.  Apparently, FNS is one of the few (maybe the only) part of USDA deemed essential.  As my analysis suggests, ending food stamps is NOT something that the current regime would want to do in the normal course of events: it presents the government as weak and ineffectual and encourages – nay, forces – people to start taking some more responsibility, and weakens their dependence on government.  (The national park fiasco was NOT, for 99.5% of the population, a critical closure problem: not a “life and death” or even close to that kind of situation.)  Food stamps WILL be deemed such, and most states will be unable to fund SNAP without significant changes – including constitutional violations (state constitutions).  States doing so will further distance themselves from the Federal government and may take extraordinary measures, including seizure of federal funds to pay for it (unlike the situation with several states where they are PAYING the FedGov directly to reopen the parks).

So I do NOT think that they will allow the SNAP program to dry up.  I think that the Utah folks are panicking unnecessarily.  But panic has a way of reinforcing itself and taking on a life of its own.  There are two kinds here: those dependent on SNAP who are fearful that they will have nothing to eat (or even, to trade for drugs), and those fearful of what will happen when the first group panics: the bureaucrats, the private charities, and… the law enforcement.  This could lead to more calls (as from that idiot Sheila Jackson Lee) for martial law, or even some kinds of preventative measures like issuing script to supermarkets (AND convenience stores – remember those awful “Food Deserts”) and the like or even attempting to seize supplies to “protect” them against panicking rioters.  Such items are high on the list of things to turn a bad situation into a nightmare that could, indeed, engulf much of the nation in a “hard” economic shutdown.  A real one, not a bogus one dreamed up by the White House to bash their opposition in Congress and the streets.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-40C: Lies and MORE Lies

Posted on 2013-10-19 by TPOL Nathan

Lies and more lies – Economics
Has Income Inequality Really Risen?
(Manhattan Institute) A variety of approaches show that inequality between the bottom and middle has not grown since the 1980s…

Nathan: That we are getting more and more unequal in our income and our life styles is one of the MANY, MANY lies that Tranzis and apologists for the state make: It is not only untrue as shown by the various methods that the Manhattan Institutes (and others) have used, but by simple observation.  Whether we look back just 30 years to 1983 or 50 years to 1963, we see that virtually ALL Americans are immensely better off.  Yes, there are always those who are the billionaires who have gotten richer.  Just as there are ALWAYS those who homeless without even a shopping cart to put their possessions into, and who make NOTHING a day.  But we will always have those with us.  We will ALWAYS have greed and corruption, stinginess and lack of even basic necessities, for a very tiny percentage.  Those of us who believe that government is evil and dangerous see that the slips and slides are due MORE TO government, than being balanced or offset or corrected by government, because of the very nature of government.  And all too often, those who are most down and out are there because of government: laws like minimum wages and proof of residency and licensing, and events like wars (foreign and drug and poverty and terrorism) which leave damaged people on the streets and in our houses and buildings, to name just two.  But that is precisely WHY Tranzis and Statists in general demand wars of aggression against those who DO succeed and wars on poverty that create MORE poverty even while they create more government jobs and more contractors dependent on government:  Their power and wealth grows even faster.  The Robber Barons of the 1880s and 1890s did not exist because there was too LITTLE government, but because there was already too MUCH government: government they could buy and control, government which created conditions which let the Robber Barons isolate and minimize competition and destroy the power of anyone to resist them.  If we believe the Tranzis we will never see poverty go away, and the wealthy will be ever more wealthy.

Mama’s Note: Too many of the early industrialists and entrepreneurs are lumped in with these “Robber Barons.” To those who think all free markets are evil, there is no difference, but companies like the Great Northern Railway were built without government subsidies. My father worked for Great Northern in 1890, when they built the rails across the top of the country. He was a hunter, bringing in game to feed the crews, and always proud of his part in that epic endeavor.

Lies and more lies – Health care
A Look into Canadian Health Care
(The American) The average Canadian family of two parents with two children pays approximately $11,320 in taxes for hospital and physician care through the country’s tax system…

Nathan: We are told how wonderful Canada and Canadian health care is: ANOTHER Tranzi lie.   Just when we are sure that we are really bad off, someone points out something like this.  Of course, Canadians can claim that they don’t have to pay extravagant fees  and insurance premiums – NO, they just run their money (stolen as taxes) through yet ANOTHER middleman.  How stupid can you get?  Nearly a thousand a month whether you have a cold in a year or NOT.  Add this to VAT and all the other taxes, and Canada looks like Sweden once did.

Mama’s Note: As I tell people who complain about the cost of health care today… Just wait and see how much it costs once it is “free.”

Lies and more lies – Liberty
Free Market Falsehoods
(The Freeman) An “ideal” economic system is not one in which no one ever makes a mistake; it is one in which the mistakes that people inevitably make are corrected as effectively as possible…

Nathan: There are many ways of lying. Claiming that economic systems are supposed to be PERFECT, and that only a PERFECT economic system should be used are the kind of second-layer lies that underlie the more obvious lies that politicians, including Tranzis and Statists, love to use to build their power and wealth.  We KNOW from centuries of experience that ANY economic system which involves ANY important decisions made by government agencies at ANY level is as chockful of mistakes as my wife’s fudge is of pecans and other nuts…  believe me, that is a LOT of mistakes.  Whether it is “national socialism” or “international socialism” (Communism) or mercantilism or a (barf!) mixed economy, government is so unaccountable to reality that it makes more and more mistakes as time goes on AND IT DOES NOT LEARN from its mistakes: there are no consequences to the people who make the decisions.

Mama’s Note: And that would be true no matter how wonderful the intentions of the politicians and bureaucrats. Unfortunately, much they do is no mistake at all, but deliberate destruction of other people’s lives and property.

Lies and more lies (Stupid people) – Politics 2013: shutdown
Shutdown: Bush’s Fault?
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan:Well yes, according to the folks (mostly black or mixed race) that were interviewed in DC, and who should know better?  Of course, these are the same folks that help Jay Leno and Glenn Beck be so entertaining, who think that World War Two was between us and the Brits, that the capital of Afghanistan is Blanketville, and that Obama was born in Hawaii. Is it any wonder the Founding Fathers distrusted “democracy” so much.

Stupid government – Politics 2013: shutdown
DOD Bars 50 Priests from Administering Sacraments, Locks Up Eucharist; Priest Sues
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This is, of course, both a contract AND a moral issue.  It would seem that the DoD wants to try and get rid of ANY religious observance and was using the shutdown as an excuse.  Of course, that drives those pesky religious folks out of even joining up, much less staying in. And so the morals of the force takes another nosedive.

Lies and More Lies – Culture wars: Homosexual “marriage”
Gov. Christie: Same-Sex Marriage [sic] Should Not Be Imposed By New Jersey Court
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Courts should not impose ANY kind of marriage.  We are to blame: when we allow government to start defining (and redefining) words, we have (by definition – pun intended) given them too much power.  Christie is fine with letting government have a LOT of power, but now he has reached his (very high) limit and is squawking.  At least in public.  Who knows how he might go if he gets MORE power.

This is the problem with “democracy” unless that democracy is either L. Neil Smith’s “hyperdemocracy” (that is, unanimous agreement) OR very heavily constrained within a REPUBLICAN (NOT “GOP”) constitution which very specifically prevents (AND PUNISHES) government for about 99% of the things that they want to and do perform.  (And I may be low on my estimate at 99%.)

What about the lies?  Supposedly 10% of the population is “homosexual” BY NATURE:  Not nurture, not willful decision, but supposedly “Because God made them that way,” or (for you atheists and agnostics and “State IS God” people), “Because they EVOLVED that way.”  Right.  Neither mindset can come up with a way that evolution OR God would create this sort of “unchangeable” nature in humans (or any other species); genetic defects do not account for that.  More accurate (and honest) studies indicate that the REAL numbers (at least until recent years) are well under 1% – and due primarily to “nurture” not nature.  But the more that the culture changes the “nurture” portion of the equation, the more common the “defect” and the more the culture is changed.  But the changes are built on lies, just as in Communist or other societies.  Ultimately, it collapses.

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