Libertarian Commentary on the News #13-06C: Hoploclasts and Schools

Posted on 2013-02-06 by TPOL Nathan

The sheer number of stupid incidents in which school teachers and administrators (and cops) overreact seems to have reached a peak this last week or so.  I started a large table of those I’ve heard about, and with more than 50 that I can verify, it is an impressive listing of children and families whose lives have been disrupted (and in some cases, severely disrupted) by the insanity of government-ruined, theft-funded (public) schools.  A few new ones are added in this commentary, together with a lot of stupid blather from Congress on various things.

Government-run, Tax-funded schools – Hoploclasts
Arizona: Florence student suspended over picture of gun on computer
(ABC News via Freedom’s Phoenix) A high school student in Florence said he has been suspended because of a picture of a gun. Daniel McClaine Jr., a freshman at Poston Butte High School, said he saved the picture as his desktop background on his school-issued computer. A teacher noticed it and turned him in. The picture shows an AK-47 on top of a flag. McClaine said the school initially suspended him for three days Friday.

Nathan: A picture is now illegal?  Next, the very words “gun” and “pistol” and “rifle” will be forbidden.  This teacher is worthy of the proletariat or the emperor, certainly.  Yes, we can argue that the computer didn’t belong to him but to the school, and they can set the rules as they wish – as the owner.  Except that in turn the school is supposedly owned by the people (well, the state) which is supposed to be in existence to protect the rights of people – even snotnosed little 14-year-olds who like guns.  And pictures of guns.

Mama’s Note: And how dare he do any thinking for himself! Of all the nerve. (Sarc off) And this is in Arizona, supposedly awash with righteous zeal for the second amendment? I really don’t think so.

Self Defense
Shotgun Wielding Ex Boyfriend is Disarmed, Comes Back With 2nd Shotgun,Is Shot & Killed
(Guns Save Lives) The occupants of the home called 911, but before police could respond the suspect returned with a second shotgun. This time, the homeowner and another male inside the home were armed with handguns and shot the suspect multiple times. He died of his injuries at an area hospital.

Mama’s Note: Slow learner. Bet they’re glad they didn’t have to wait for the cops to come…

Nathan: Thanks to her for this. In a sense, these folks DID turn the other cheek, in a deadly situation.

Hoploclasts – Self defense
U.S. Gun Owners Outnumbered Hunters by 5 to 1 in 2011
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Of course, it wouldn’t matter if EVERY gunowner were a licensed hunter – the right to carry weapons has NOTHING to do with hunting, and everything to do with defending ourselves against thugs, whether in zoot suits or gang colors or uniforms or business suits, whether they have allegiance to Costa Nostra or a king or a president or just greed.

Mama’s Note: I was scratching my head over this one earlier. “Hunters” are by definition usually gun owners, so the comparison is pretty silly. Sort of like saying “furniture” outnumbers chairs or beds…  Anyway, I used to do some hunting, but finally quit because I can’t keep up any longer. I still carry my handgun all the time. It’s usually my only “jewelry.”

Culture wars: killing babies
Archbishop Chaput: Facing Obamacare Mandate, Catholic Bishops Must Take ‘Right Action, Whatever the Cost’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Of a bad lot, Chaput (who was bishop in Rapid City and then Archbishop in Denver) is one of the better ones.  He might actually believe not just in the Pope and tradition and power but in the Bible – at least some of the time.  He is still part of a corrupt organization which is far too willing to accommodate tyrants and evil, and count on God and confession and penitence for their future.  There are MANY things in which those bishops must take “right action” and I fear almost none are being addressed.  At the same time, perhaps the ObummerCare mandate was the wakeup call for them as the gun ban plans have been for many other Americans:  for too long, virtually ALL Americans, individually or in groups, have compromised with evil government.  We can afford no more.

Congress in action – Islamic wars: Arab street revolts
Sen. Lindsey Graham: ‘There Are More Benghazis Coming’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Of course: the empire must contract, and that means blood.  But if Graham and others had any loyalty even to their Constitution, the contraction would come quickly and the blood would be shed where it needs to be: here in the US, and NOT messing with people’s lives in some far off land.  Unlike Tripoli – and unlike El Alamein – Bengazi and the entire Libyan disaster are matters of shame: not defending liberty and justice.

Congress in action
Harry Reid: ‘I’ve Got Lots of Guns’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Too bad you won’t use them to make the world a better place.  Too bad you don’t want the vast majority of your constituents to have them for self-defense.  Of course, you realize that even if you can hookwink a majority of the voters of the State of Nevada (or at least hookwink enough that SEIU and the other unions can steal, buy, make out of thin air, or force their members to get the rest of the votes you need), that as long as someone who doesn’t like you or has been harmed (or his family or friends harmed) by you, that ONE of those guns may have a bullet with YOUR name on it.  You poor, foolish man, don’t you know that more tyrants have died at the hands of their “supporters,” like bodyguards, than have ever been killed by their known enemies?

Congress in action
McCain Jokes Ahmadinejad Wouldn’t Be First Monkey in Space
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: There may be reasons to be glad that McCain didn’t win in 2008.  This kind of arrogance and rudeness does no one any good at all.

Mama’s Note: I suppose, though the comic relief afforded by Obama and Biden makes the whole mess a trifle less grim. Not that arrogance and rudeness is any rarity in politics, of course.

Congress in action
Sen. Menendez Says Prostitution ‘Smears’ Are ‘Absolutely False’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Sorry, but when it comes to these “Conscript Fathers” I don’t believe their protestations.  Consider Gary Hart, Teddy Kennedy, and a whole bunch of others.  They don’t keep their oath to the Constitution, why do we expect them to keep their oath to their spouses?  Or obey the law and not turn down what these girls offer or had offered to them?

Culture wars: religious freedom
Oregon AG Investigates Baker’s Refusal to Make Wedding Cake for Lesbians
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Obviously in a Tranzi nation like Oregon, there is no room for religious liberty.

Mama’s Note: Should not everyone have a perfect right to trade, or NOT trade, with anyone they please – for any reason, or for no reason at all? This has to do with the right of association, not just religion.”

World wars
Turkey’s Leader Eases Talk of Joining Asian Bloc as an Alternative to the EU
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Why chain themselves to a sinking ship?  Of course, their choices are limited: Israel might make the best partner, together with some of the old Soviet republics, but they’ve burned their bridges with those folks.

Home front – Self-defense
Background Checks Ease in January; Drop 10.5% Nationally
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: I understand that a major part of the reason for this happening is a very simple one: NOBODY is selling much in the way of weapons!  Certainly not good personal defense weapons.  You want a single-shot .22-cal Chipmunk, sure.  Stocks are very low, for good reason.  Same for shot-out Romanian WW1-era bolt-action rifles.  But anything with a good round and able to hold more than five rounds – good luck.

A friend passed this on – unconfirmed info:

  • Smith & Wesson is running at full capacity making 300-plus guns daily, mainly military and police pistols.
  • Ruger plans to increase production from 75 to 100 percent.
  • FNH (FN Herstal in Belgium) moved from 50% production to 75% by February 1 and plans to be at 100% by March 1.
  • Remington and Armalite brands are both maxed out.
  • DPMS (Defense Procurement Manufacuring Services) can’t get enough parts to produce any more firearms.
  • Colt is increasing production weekly but is bottle-necked by Bolt carriers.
  • LWRC (formerly Land Warfare Resources Corporation) is making only black guns, is running at full capacity but can’t get enough gun-quality steel to make barrels.
  • Springfield Armory is the only company meeting demand but is running 30 to 45 days behind.
  • Ammunition is at a nationwide shortage of all calibers over the next nine months.  All plants are producing as much as possible with one billion rounds produced weekly.  Most is for military, then law enforcement and finally civilians.
  • Magpul, which makes firearms accessories, is behind 1 million magazines, so don’t expect any large quantities anytime soon.
  • Reloaders – All Remington, Winchester, CCI and Federal primers are going to ammunition first.  There are no extras for reloading purposes, and it could be 6 to 9 months before they get caught up.

Europe’s collapse
Let Brussels manage our development projects
(Dilema Veche) Structural funds for 2014-2020 are at the top of the agenda of the European Council meeting on February 7-8. Management of these development projects is left to member states but Romanian journalist Ovidiu Nahoi suggests it may be time to hand over responsibility to the EU Commission.

Nathan: The Romanian press are obviously as STUPID as the Mainstream Media anywhere else on the planet.  I’ve seen several articles proclaiming the EU as the new USSR because of its power, stupidity, and centralization – as well as its dedication to socialist (Tranzi) dogma.  How about the weird idea of letting private citizens and businesses decide what money to spend on what development, and letting a free market be the way to do that?

Commentary on advertising (no url)
A report by Stansberry Associates, concerning the economic and political reasons and examples that the current resident of 1600 Pennsylvania might get a third or even fourth term has been circulating for over a year, and did predict a 2012 election victory.  They provide good historical examples.  They make a lot of excellent points, but also point out that there are many ways in which a “third” and “fourth” Obama term could be implemented.  The repeal of the 22nd Amendment (limiting presidents to 2 terms) has been again urged by many, including several in Congress.

Personally, I think that there are several reasons that the 22nd Amendment will not be repealed and that the way will not be opened for this “messiah” to stay in office in his own “right.”  Here are some:

(1)  It requires three-quarters of states to ratify: that means 38 of the 50.  Unless the ratification is done with the legislatures of at LEAST a dozen states at gunpoint (virtual, probably not real) not going to happen.  At least not in under four years.

(2)  It requires two-thirds of both the Senate and House.  I don’t think that either 67 senators or 318 representatives could be gotten to support it – even WITH guns pointed at them.

(3)  I don’t think there would be enough time to get this passed and ratified even if there WERE majorities available, because I don’t think the Federal government – or most of the state governments – are going to last that much longer.  I don’t necessarily agree with one or two relatives who think that the Collapse is within weeks, but certainly within months: 16-24 months perhaps.

(4)  If the Federal government only partially collapses (a good possibility), then this “messiah” will suspend the Constitution anyway, claiming a more serious threat even than Lincoln (and people do not realize how close Lincoln and the GOP came to suspending elections in both 1862 and 1864, or how corrupt those elections were).  So he could retain power “for the duration of the emergency” – perhaps by firing (or killing) Biden and appointing some GOP politician (bought and paid for, of course) as VP.

But it honestly does not matter WHO is president anymore: he is at best a figurehead who provides a certain “flavor” or personality to the federal government.  They figure everyone is and will continue to back down and surrender what little liberty we have left.  Look at too many of our own brothers and sisters in the church: they are more eager to “cooperate” and be allowed to be left alone than ever.  Too many of them have become nothing but cheerleaders for each and every foreign adventure, and have brainwashed themselves into believing that as long as the police or bureaucrats don’t come and drive us out of our meetinghouses that we must obey the government and live in a land of freedom – of religion if nothing else.

Forlorn hope – Legislature in action
New TN office of ‘repealer’ would target useless or unreasonable laws to sweep away
(The Tennessean/Tennessee Business Journal) Two Middle Tennessee lawmakers hope to use the government to slash the size of government. State Rep. Glen Casada and state Sen. Jack Johnson, both Franklin Republicans, have filed a bill that would create an Office of the Repealer, whose job would be to identify potentially unnecessary rules and regulations. The repealer would offer recommendations to the governor, the state legislature and the secretary of state. “We’re using bureaucracy to cut bureaucracy,” Casada said. “We’re using government against itself.”

Nathan: Thanks to Steve for this one.  It is too much to hope that this might WORK.  The new officer needs power to at least force an up or down vote – or perhaps take the sticks off the badge of the sergeant-of-arms (from off the axe) and use it on them.

Government-run, tax-funded schools – Stupid people
Colorado: 2nd-grader suspended over imaginary grenade
(Fox 31/via Yahoo) “A seven-year-old boy was suspended from his elementary school for using an imaginary grenade while playing “Rescue the World” on the playground. Second-grader Alex Evans pretended to throw a grenade into a box full of, in his words, ‘pretend evil forces.’  “Unfortunately for Alex, his exploits (heroic as they were) went against Mary Blair Elementary School rules. Those rules include no fighting (real or pretend) and no weapons (real or pretend).”

Thanks to Bear for this: Someone alert Feinstein! Do you realize what the imaginary kill radius from an imaginary grenade is? He could have killed every child’s imaginary friend on the playground.

Nathan: It was a pleasant surprise that Fox treated this as the stupid act (on the part of the school, not the child or parent) it was.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News #13-06B

Posted on 2013-02-06 by TPOL Nathan

Once more this week, the gun bans and various incidents seem to dominate news and commentary.

Home front – Self defense
Chicago police changing response to 911 calls
(Fox News) “The Chicago Sun-Times reports that starting Sunday officers won’t respond in person to lesser crimes. Those include vehicle theft or incidents where the victim is safe and doesn’t need medical attention. Deputy chief-of-patrol Steve Georgas says law enforcement agencies want to be more efficient.”

Thanks to Bear for this: Forget it, Jake. It’s Chi-town

Nathan: “Call 911 and die.”  Well, not officially, but probably practically, when the 9-1-1 operator has to decide in a few seconds whether or not the victim(s) are “safe” and based on how “safe” is defined.  Same thing on medical attention:  we are now turning 9-1-1 operators into remote EMTs – while at the same time people are decrying remote medicine and on-line diagnosis.  Arm yourself, people of Chicago!  Chicago has been a cesspool since before Lincoln got his law license, and won’t change like this.  This is the equivalent of a “snow emergency” where you just call in; indicative that crime has gotten so out of control in Chi-town that there is no hope, except to arm yourself and get out as soon as possible.

Mama’s Note: Don’t think there was such a thing as a “license” to practice law when Lincoln polluted the planet, but I may be mistaken. There probably was soon afterwards. And, yes indeed, leaving the cesspools is the only rational solution. For many, however, it is probably much too late.

Self defense – Culture wars
Washington: Arm women at home, not on battlefield
(KNBZ News) “Gayle Trotter, a tax attorney and only woman on a five-member panel at a gun violence hearing in the Senate Wednesday afternoon, argued women need guns to physically defend themselves from larger, stronger male criminals. ‘For women, the ability to arm ourselves for our protection is even more consequential than for men because guns are the great equalizer in a violent confrontation,’ Trotter said. ‘As a result, we protect women by safeguarding our Second Amendment rights. Every woman deserves a fighting chance.'” (01/30/13)

Nathan: The headline is Liberty News Digest’s but accurately seems to summarize the testimony.  This attorney is WRONG – women need to be armed EVERYWHERE, even on the battlefield.  Women should not be sent intentionally into combat, but they always seem to end up there – civilian if not military.  Most of what Trotter said is correct, however.

Mama’s Note: Unfortunately, any place – at almost any time – can become a battleground. Both men and women, in countless situations, can find themselves faced with “combat” in the blink of an eye. It is too easy to fool oneself into thinking that one’s own town, home or business is “safe,” and therefore no defensive tactics or tools are necessary.

Owning, and even knowing how to use a gun is indeed very important, but successful self defense depends on so much more. Acceptance of personal responsibility, and the willingness to do whatever is necessary to carry that out, must be the foundation.

Stupid government – Islamic war: Arab street revolt
Someone’s Wrong: CIA and State Dept. Accounts of Benghazi Contradict Gen. Dempsey’s Explanation for Why DOD Sent No Help
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Oh, yeah, what EVER gave you the idea that someone was wrong.  Betcha they ALL are lying and wrong.

The “messiah” – Theft by government
Obama’s Not Through Raising Taxes: ‘No Doubt We Need Additional Revenue’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: The incredible greed should come as no surprise, but it still shocks me.  This man makes Midas, Nero, and Louis XIV all together look like careful money managers.

Mama’s Note: Well, yes… but it’s not as if he’s doing this all by himself. At least half of the population is involved in the theft and redistribution, one way or another.

Culture wars: religious liberty
Obama: Boy Scouts Should Expose Homosexuals to Opportunities and Leadership
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Seems to me the problem is homosexuals exposing the Scouts to things that are not appropriate, not exposing homosexuals to opportunities and leadership.

Mama’s Note: It is pretty obvious that homosexuals or anyone else could set up their own clubs and programs, then “expose” the children to anything they wish. It is equally obvious, and has been from the start, that the only real goal is to take over and destroy the Boy Scouts, originally formed around religious belief and practice – however imperfectly they have managed to do so. This makes no more sense than trying to force Roman Catholic convents to admit men (or ponies) to religious orders. The only result would be the closing of the convent.

Crash of 2009 – The “messiah”
Investment Banker Says 2012 May Have Been Economic ‘High Point’ of Obama’s Presidency
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Like Gettysburg for the Confederate States?  We’ve had five years of depression now, and we can expect that we are barely past the halfway point – and that ONLY if we could get rid of this administration.  Tighten your belts, folks, it is going to really get ugly.

Mama’s Note: And what makes anybody think that a different “administration” would make any particular difference? The entire political spectrum is wedded to the idea that they can, should and must control both the people and the economy. Minor variations will not change the outcome.

Government-run, tax-funded schools
In NJ, Talking About a Classmate’s Head Lice Is a Bullying Offense
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Talking about a classmate’s HAIR COLOR can be a “bullying offense” but not automatically: it is all about how it is done.  But then, we can’t expect a “profession” that can’t tell the difference between a soap bubble gun or a paper or Lego gun from a real gun to understand how to use the English language and how to read body language.

Hoploclasts – Congress in action
Sen. Hatch: National Database for Gun Owners ‘Flies in the Face of Liberty’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Too bad that Senator Hatch doesn’t understand how many things he DOES support also fly in the face of liberty.  And too bad he didn’t fight harder for liberty, even for gun owners, in the past couple of decades.

Home front
Gallup: Conservatives Outnumber Liberals in 47 Out of 50 States
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: I don’t believe it – not based on election results: unless the election results were bogus.  Of course, these are all “self-identified” – I suspect that few of them would rate as real conservatives on the Nolan chart.  The following table shows the five “most conservative” states and it is obvious that the rating has nothing to do with reality to ANYone who has lived or worked in ND or NE, to name just two.  To say that Wyoming is tied with North Dakota is to ignore the most obvious observations that can be made about the states.

Mama’s Note: Again, any distinction between “liberals” and “conservatives” is a matter of degree, not kind. They all believe they are entitled to control the lives of others and steal their property, even if for slightly different reasons.

Culture wars: religious liberty
Obama Administration: We Will Still Force Christians to Act Against Their Faith
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: And this is different how?  For too long, “christians” as a large group in this nation have exhibited their willingness to separate society and church and to bow down to the false god(s) in DC and the state capitols, and now they have little choice but to fight and die or submit to even this.

Mama’s Note: This is no different than the choice everyone has to face when presented with tyranny. Fight or submit.

Culture wars: religious liberty
Catholic and Religious Liberty Leaders Denounce Latest Obamacare Contraceptive ‘Compromise’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: It IS not really a compromise, but these people did it to themselves: they allowed government to take over more and more sectors of the economy, they accepted government grants and loans and regulations, and now – now they are paying the piper, or starting to.

Mama’s Note: Even Catholic organizations are saying that something like 97 percent of sexually active Catholic women use a method of contraception banned by the hierarchy. Each individual and family must be free to decide for themselves. Pressure from either government or religious institutions is not the path to freedom. As far as I’m concerned, the question isn’t “faith” or contraception at all, but a matter of who decides and who pays for it.

Crash of 2009 – Abominable Act
Gallup: 61% of Small Business ‘Worried’ Over Healthcare Costs — 30% Not Hiring, Fear Going Out of Business
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: I suspect that the numbers will climb quickly: the total costs still have not sunk in.  Many ARE going out of business, and even before the new taxes and “fees” kick in: because we are STILL in the depression which started in 2009, and lies and fancy statistics will not hide that fact.

Mama’s Note: Interestingly enough, the “black” and even the “gray” markets are booming, and the number of people who participate, both buyers and sellers, grows exponentially. Add to that the many new ways to conduct business in private, and the growing acceptance of alternate forms of “money,” this painful interlude may well be the introduction to a whole new world dominated by the free market.

Hoploclasts – Self defense
DC v. Heller Attorney: NY Gun Law ‘Clearly Unconstitutional’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan:  Yes, it is, but how long will it take to get it decided – IF this court does decide it is unconstitutional?  Nullification and outright refusal to obey a law that is unconstitutional in the both Federal and State Constitutions is needed, and I don’t think New York has a baker’s dozen of honest people willing to do so.  I’m hearing rumors of angry scenes at public meetings and of a few businesses making it clear that they will not comply, but there is no REAL grassroots campaign.

Hoploclasts – Stupid state government
Utah governor: Utah will adhere to the law and obey gun laws
(The New American) Taking a position of opposition to both his past statements regarding challenging federal laws that he deemed unconstitutional and harmful to the state he is sworn to protect and defend, the current Utah governor ALSO is opposing the bills being introduced into the state’s legislature and the position taken by Utah sheriffs as being “emotional” and in violation of the Federal Constitution and laws – apparently he sees himself as working for the Federal government and NOT for the State of Utah.

Thanks to Scott for this one.  He said: We [LDS] believe in being subject.

Nathan: That does not seem to match, in this particular case, with what  the Bible (recognized by LDS as well as “Pearl of Great Price” quoted above), which says:

Acts 5:29:  “We must obey God rather than man.”

1 Timothy 5:8: “But if anyone does not provide for his own, that is his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

The God-given RIGHT of self-defense and defense of others is coupled with an obligation to do so.  Not just in spiritual matters, but in physical matters as well.  If a government refuses to recognize the God-given rights of the people, it has declared itself in rebellion to God, as did Saul and many others.  One questions whether we owe ANY obedience to human kings – since they usurp God’s position (Isaiah 33:22)and certainly not to presidents or governors who are themselves in rebellion against the people whom they work for: the people of their state or nation.  When a government which is supposedly by, of, and for the people – when the people themselves reject God and His laws and seek to impose their own laws which are contrary to those of God (such as refusing to allow self-defense or free speech), then we have no obligation to obey that government.  It is no different than if the government said we had to sing hymns of praise to Hitler or offer sacrifices to Stalin or kill our children:  the obligation is to DISOBEY.

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“Messiahs” and guns and photoshopping

Posted on 2013-02-05 by TPOL Nathan

A special treat this weekend was all the fun people had with the latest White House spin about how their beloved leader (not mine), the “messiah” goes shooting all the time, and then published photos to prove it – right!

Bear not only had fun himself, but pointed to other people who were enjoying themselves, showing the emperor has no clothes, like this:

Sipsey Street Irregulars

Having all sorts of fun with photoshop.

Obama goes ‘skeet shooting all the time’? Hardly ever, sources say
(Fox News)
…after he crashed the first two Predators.
“The only time he shot skeet was for President’s Cup,” said the source, referring to a shooting competition tradition involving the presidential Marine guards. “I was there. He stayed for about five minutes, and couldn’t leave fast enough.”

And finally, he reports: There’s a Skeet Shooting Photoshop Contest running now:

Nathan: While it is a lot of fun and helps relieve frustration to do this sort of thing, it is important – more important – to remember that even if the election now three months behind us was cooked, and even if the Manchurian Candidate has been shown to be real life, that far too many people we have to share this land with DO support him, and many of them DO worship him as a deity or demigod.  And that, through the foolish actions of past generations, the power given to this “messiah” and his lackeys is insanely high.

Lost liberty is not restored through writing or publishing satire and sly digs and exposes, nor speaking pretty words in courtrooms or on television or in the town square, although these are all useful and often important adjuncts to the real process of resisting tyranny and facing down evil men (and women) who believe that THEY deserve and have power over us, that THEY are better and wiser and stronger and smarter and prepared by birth and education and “experience” to rule – and that the rest of us are merely tools and fools.  Liberty can be won only through blood.  Sometimes a little, sometimes a lot – and this time, the bleeding hasn’t really begun.

Posted in Nathan's Rants | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Libertarian Commentary on the News #13-06A: Weapons and more government silliness

Posted on 2013-02-05 by TPOL Nathan

Starting off with a bang – pun intended – here is Bear’s “Juxtapositions” (Weapons):

Juxtapositions.
Not a random mix. Just something, for those who can still give a d***, to think about.

Iran Smuggling Weapons to Allies
(Fox News)
“Outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says Iran’s paramilitary is smuggling antiaircraft weapons to allies in the region, threatening both military and civilian aircraft.”

Nathan: Funny, I seem to recall something about Iran-Contra years ago, and getting Stinger missiles to muhadi’s in Afghanistan, and airdropping Sten guns to French Partisans (who probably used them for things we don’t even want to THINK about) and …  Look, smuggling is about as American as apple pie, which has been smuggled now and then.  But like the rest of the “messiah’s” sleazebag shills, Panetta is so two-faced it makes Harvey Dent likable.

Mama’s Note: “…smuggling weapons to allies.” Well, yeah. You wouldn’t expect them to smuggle anything to their enemies. And, of course, the whole idea of “smuggling” implies that someone else has a legitimate right to dictate what they sell or give away.

New York Bans Assault Weapons
(NPR)
“Lawmakers in New York are getting tough on guns. They passed a new law expanding the state’s ban on assault weapons.”

Nathan: This was last week, of course, but remember how Bloomberg responded by denying that his bodyguards should disarm, or even DOWNarm?  Hmmm.  Is Bloomberg one of the allies that Persia is arming?

US sending 20 more F-16s to Egypt, despite turmoil in Cairo
(Fox News)
“Instability in Egypt, where a newly-elected Islamic government teeters over an angry population, isn’t enough to stop the U.S. from sending more than 20 F-16 fighter jets, as part of a $1 billion foreign aid package.”

Nathan: Just kind of drifting here, but the same administration that wants to disarm all of the US population not in uniform or with a fancy government title WANTS to a government led by a man who thinks he is Pharaoh and thinks women are pretty much just really smart animals?  Of course, it sometimes appears that most Tranzis feel the same way.  Certainly, they SHOULD fear their own population more than the Arab mobs that are gaining control of Egypt.  Or for that matter, the Egyptian military: unless they use Coptics or Janissaries, I assume that the fighter pilots will use the “pray and spray” method of target acquisition, and the ground crews will do their work “As Allah wills.”

Fontana, Calif., schools get high-powered rifles
(Yahoo news)
“The high-powered semiautomatic rifles recently shipped to school police in this Southern California city look like they belong on a battlefield rather than in a high school, but officials here say the weapons could help stop a massacre like the one that claimed the lives of 26 students and educators in Connecticut just weeks ago.”

Nathan: Actually, EVERY high school should have “high-powered semiautomatic rifles” available to at least the following:  (a) the shooting club and shooting teams – lets say we only fund them at 10% of the football and basketball teams.  Shooting and its related sports are year-round, not seasonal like basketball or track or football: indoor AND outdoor events.  (b) Shop classes:  what?  You don’t like black composite stocks?  Make your own out of cherry or walnut! Same for gun racks. Learn how to get that trigger to work better, learn how to mount/dismount scopes and laser designators.  (c) Home Economics classes:  How to protect your family and home from invaders, 24-7.  (d) Leather and cloth crafts classes:  holsters, even those for saddles and cars and trucks.  I am sure that there are more.  The problem is, these guns are in the hands of cops – a deadly combination in California.

Culture wars: Homosexual “marriage”
SF Archbishop: Legalizing Gay Marriage Is Like ‘Legalizing Male Breastfeeding’

Nathan: I do like this analogy.  Homosexuals can marry someone of the opposite (physical) sex just like anyone else can – and have for centuries. If people want to call their partnership an orange, or an empire, or whatever, fine – just don’t demand anyone else do so.  A rose is a rose is a rose: calling a tail a leg doesn’t mean a cat has five legs!  As soon as we let government get into this mess, it became just that – a mess.

More guns!!!
South Carolina: Expulsion Reversed for Girl Who Brought Toy Gun to School
(WLTX TV)

Nathan: Interesting things about this: the local police department intervened and said that the school district (up to and including the board of education) was wrong about the state law, that the clear plastic Airsoft gun was NOT covered under state law as being a “look-alike.”  Even so, the scumbag of a superintendent tried to make the school district out to be the victim, NOT the six-year-old girl, even while backing down, claiming that threats to the district caused them to back off and just “suspend” the girl.  The ONLY threats this district should receive is a flood of withdrawals of students and a demand that the budget and taxes be cut, to make it easier to fire the superintendent, principal, and teacher, and recall the board.  Parents, get your children OUT of these insane asylums.

By the way, this is the fourth nationally-known incident of this type in less than a week:  we had the little girl at the school-bus stop with the My Little Pony bubble gun; we had the kid with the paper pistol; we had the kindergärtner with the Lego-block pistol; and now this.

Mama’s Note: I’ve been reminding people of this when they ask me what I’m so afraid of that I think I need a gun. Who is afraid of what?

Detroit: Coach defends teammembers by shooting two attackers
(WXYZ)

Nathan: Thanks to Kathy Johnson at “Cornered Cat” for this one.  70 year old coach escorting two of his girl’s basketball team players to their cars and attacked by two young men, at least one with a gun: he shoots both, one dies.  Too bad the other one is being treated at expense of the City of Detroit.

Sandy Hook Father:  You’ll Have to Take My Gun from My Cold Dead Hands
See video!
(Freedom Outpost) [Stevens quoted the Connecticut State Constitution] “SEC. 15. Every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state.” …“There’s no registration,” he said. “There’s no permitting. There’s no background checks. It’s quite clear.”…“These rights are inalienable and are endowed by our Creator, not you politicians, to all citizens regardless of gender, race., or creed.” … “My guns are not dangerous,” Stevens said. “They are at home, locked up, collecting dust and cat hair. But criminals and tyrants,” he continued, “tyrants especially, beware, ‘lock down’ is not an option at the Stevens’ residence and 911 will be dialed after the security of my home has been established!” Stevens asked, “Why is that same security that my daughter enjoys at home with her dad not available at school in Newtown? That is what you should be considering, not making her dad a criminal.” “Charleton Heston made the phrase, ‘From my cold dead hands’ famous,” Stevens thundered. “And I will tell you here today, you will take my ability to protect my Victoria from my cold dead hands!”Stevens slammed his fist on the desk and walked out to applause from the citizens listening.

Debby: Wow, we need more people like him.

Nathan: Indeed, and it will take hundreds of thousands more like him to regain liberty in this land.  Have we finally roused the sleeping beast?

Mama’s Note: I actually had tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat after seeing this, especially his rational, calm and unbending attitude. Bravo, indeed. And yes, we need to see this fire and resolve from hundreds of thousands more.

Nathan gets mail:
The following is an extract from the draft of a weekly column written by a friend, whom I hope I have dissuaded from publishing this:

“I agree with those who view arming schoolteachers as unintentionally inviting accidental shootings.  They are professional teachers, not firearms experts.  Can the U. S. do as Israel reportedly does?  Professional marksmen and women patrol Israeli school grounds so that teachers can teach and students can learn.  School boards can decide how they’ll be compensated.”

Here is my response:

I believe that you are completely wrong on this.  For one thing, the Israelis armed in schools are NOT “professional marksmen and women,” but real teachers.  I don’t know where you got this wrong impression.  They DO use security personnel, but ordinary teachers carry weapons.  As do teachers in Utah.  And have for a decade or more – and NO “accidental shootings.”  No accidental shootings at the school where the Obama girls go to school, either – or at XXXX Christian School in XXXX for at least two decades when there were staff and teachers who carried… You are very, very wrong on this, my friend.  You don’t need to be a “firearms expert” to safely carry a pistol and protect your church congregation, your family, your children, or your students.  I agree that there are some “professional teachers” who are too stupid to be allowed to carry a pocket knife – and should not be allowed to teach children.  But we need to get rid of them with or without guns.  Even IF it were necessary to train teachers to use concealed weapons safely – or if school boards want that – a very good concealed carry training class can be conducted in less than 8 hours.  Another friend, in Wyoming, a retired nurse, teaches those classes 8-10 times a year, mostly to women.  She teaches not just how but when and when NOT to, and a lot more.  My younger son, now 21, took a standard national concealed pistol permit class and passed the test when he was 14.  I know one man (in Utah) who offers free training to all teachers and school staff to pass the Utah test (a rather tough one, actually) to hundreds of teachers a year, and has for a decade.

This is NOT an issue.  What IS an issue is that we in this nation have made schools and many other places gun-free human hunting preserves, in which thugs and drugged-up idiots know they have little to worry about until the cops arrive, and can kill and kill and kill…

School swimming pools create opportunities for unintentional, accidental drownings – so lets fill in all the school swimming pools.  School baseball diamonds create opportunities for unintentional head injuries by high-speed baseballs and flying bats, so lets plow up all the baseball diamonds.  Hot stoves in home economics classrooms create opportunities for unintentional burns – so lets rip them all out.  After all, we don’t need sports or home ec classes.  Students HAVE been backed over and injured or killed by school buses and private cars in school parking lots – so let’s ban all that, too.

A recent DHS video recommends that teachers in schools with an “active shooter” should hide under their desk and have a pair of scissors to defend themselves and their students with – though why a pair of blunt-nosed scissors should be a defensive weapon is beyond me: all the sharp-pointed scissors have already been banned from schools.  But of course, we’ve gone well beyond that, as I was just writing.  In the past two weeks we have seen a six-year-old girl expelled from school for having a clear-plastic Airsoft gun in school for show-and-tell, a six-year-old boy suspended from school for several days because he made a “gun” out of a piece of paper, a five-year-old boy “disciplined” and warned that one more violation would result in his expulsion because he made a “gun” out of Lego blocks, and a five-year-old girl disciplined for using a pink “My Little Pony” bubble gun to shoot bubbles at her friends while waiting at a school bus stop.

Actually, my friend, maybe you ARE right – maybe ALL (or almost all) school teachers and administrators are TOO STUPID to be allowed to even own a gun, much less have one while they are being “professional” at school.

Mama’s Note: Thanks for mentioning my classes. The 2013 schedule is starting to fill already. Have guns, will travel! If you’d like to have a two day course or a four day marathon of basic pistol and self defense, please contact me at the email address below.

I’ve written a book to supplement those classes and the first chapter is the story of the man I had to shoot to save my life. Also included is the rationale I teach for armed self defense, and detailed instructions for many of the practical exercises I use to gain both proficiency and confidence.

The book is called “I Am NOT A Victim.” I offer that book free to anyone who will write to me and ask for it. Send your request to mamaliberty at rtconnect dot net – replacing the at and dot with appropriate symbols and no spaces. Put “self defense” into the subject line so your message will go into the proper filter for prompt response.

Our right to self defense
Wisconsin:  Sheriff urges residents to arm themselves
(Politico) Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke Jr. says in a 30-second commercial aired the radio in the area. “With officers laid off and furloughed, simply calling 911 and waiting is no longer your best option. You can beg for mercy from a violent criminal, hide under the bed, or you can fight back. But are you prepared? Consider taking a certified safety course in handling a firearm so you can defend yourself until we get there.” The radio spot suggests Milwaukee-area residents should learn to handle firearms so they can defend themselves while waiting for police. Personal safety “is no longer a spectator sport,” the sheriff warns.

Nathan: What, this is Wisconsin?  A Scandinavian state with Tranzi leanings?  What is the world coming to?  Total collapse can’t be far off!

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Libertarian Commentary on the News #13-05F: Theft and other evil government trucks

Posted on 2013-02-03 by TPOL Nathan

Long week, huh?  Time to get rid of these people, isn’t it?  Government is bad, no matter where in the world we go.  Among other things, government cannot protect people from being attacked or robbed: we must do it for ourselves.

Theft by (non-US) government – Africa’s collapse
Zimbabwe: Regime claims its accounts are bare
(ABC News)  “Zimbabwe’s finance ministry said it has just $217 left in its accounts after paying the nation’s civil servants and government employees earlier this month. Finance Minister Tendai Biti said the monthly salaries cleared out government earnings and tax revenues in January when he made an appeal Tuesday for foreign donors to help raise some $200 million for a constitutional referendum and elections later this year.” (01/30/13)

Nathan: Could it happen to a better bunch of thugs? Let the civil servants see what is is like to starve like the millions of their “fellow citizens” who have suffered under Mugabe.  As for begging, well, maybe the world would be better off if MORE politicians and political appointees and civil servants had to beg for a living instead of forcing others to beg.

Mama’s Note: Mugabe “begging,” that’s rich. He’s stolen millions, if not billions from the people of his country and, I’m sure, hidden them well. He’s in no danger, unless the people find a way to apply the rope and lamp post solution.

Self-defense
Louisiana: Homeowner shoots armed burglar in the buttocks
(WAFB News) “According to the homeowner, the aggravated burglar, 20-year-old Richard Falcon Stewart Jr., was wearing the homeowners clothing and had several of the homeowner’s firearms in tote. According to deputies, the homeowner had Stewart at gunpoint when he told the homeowner that he was not going back to jail. That is when Stewart drew a pistol from his jacket and shot at the homeowner. The homeowner returned fire and shot Stewart in the buttocks. Stewart then ran into the wooded area. Deputy Matt Dean and K9 Nitro arrived on scene shortly thereafter. The deputies and K-9 Nitro found Stewart a short while later in a wooded area. They were able to subdue Stewart who was still armed.” (01/28/13)

Nathan: Ah, the wonders of modern reporting and writing:  I’ve seen sixth-graders that could give a better report.  But if I understand right, we have a clear case of a prepared homeowner and self-defense:  a cowardly thief and attacker, and for once a police dog not into drugs.  Not a bad combo.

Mama’s Note: Indeed. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the phrase “aggravated burglar.” While I suspect getting shot in the butt would aggravate anyone, I’m not sure what the “reporter” was trying to say here. Probably nothing, really. They are not capable of actual thinking, remember, let alone analysis.

Self-defense
Nevada: Suspect shot by employee during jewelry store robbery
(Source: News 3) “Around 4:50 p.m. on Thursday, McClelland and another suspect went into the jewelry store located at 7385 W. Sahara Ave. near Tenaya Way, Metro Police said, and demanded cash from the cash register. McClelland, who police said was wielding a gun, was shot multiple times in the arm by an employee and the suspect returned fire. That’s when the two suspects fled. About 30 minutes later, police said, McClelland was admitted to Sunrise Hospital with apparent gunshot wounds to his arm.” (01/27/13)

Nathan: Apparent?  What, they might be mistaken for a very large icepick?  It sounds like maybe the jewelry store employee needs a handgun with a bit more power:  was this a .22 or .32?  Understand, his aim could have been off a bit in the heat of battle, and I assume the arm he was hitting was NOT attached directly to the hand holding the attacker’s weapon.

Mama’s Note: At that range (I’m assuming within 5 feet or so) it should not be difficult to hit something close to center of body mass. The boss needs to treat his employees to range time once a month or so. And yes, a decent caliber gun would help a lot.

East Asian front
South Korea launches rocket from its own soil
(CTV [Canada]) “South Korea said Wednesday it successfully launched a satellite into space from its own soil for the first time, a point of national pride that came weeks after archrival North Korea accomplished a similar feat to the surprise of the world. The South Korean rocket blasted off from a launch pad in the southwestern coastal village of Goheung. Science officials told cheering spectators minutes later that the rocket delivered an observational satellite into orbit.” (01/30/13)

Nathan: Keep in mind, Korea is not a big place, and the people in Seoul seem to be bearing in mind the cares and concerns of their neighbors (unlike Pyongyang) about untested rockets falling on someone: they have launched their rockets from other places (Woomera, I think) in the past.

Home front – Stupid government – American collapse
NYC area still without power after Hurricane Sandy
(Fox News via Political Outcast)  For months Donna Graziano has been traveling from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, to Staten Island every day to provide a tent with heaters and food to folks in New Dorp Beach who are still struggling with the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy. The food is donated from people who live and work in the area. Early Thursday, the fierce winds damaged the tent. Now she says there isn’t anywhere for people to go locally for food and warmth.

Nathan: Thanks to Chris Graham for this one.  He points out that this is an example of how FEMA is (a) completely out to lunch, and (b) given a free pass by the media.  It’s been, what THREE MONTHS – and this isn’t some remote shoreline village in Jersey, this is in NEW YORK CITY.  Look it up:  one of the oldest towns in America, established by Dutch colonists in the 1600s and part of one of the biggest and most advanced urban areas on the planet.  And as Chris points out, this really isn’t supposed to be FEMA (federal agency) responsibility: it is supposed to be state (Cuomo the Clueless) or “local” (NYC: Bloomberg the Nanny) duty. To me, this is another clue to the fact that society – or rather, government, is pushing closer and closer to collapse.  (I have one family member that is expecting that collapse to take place as soon as THIS MONTH.)  It is more than just government’s inability to care for people – a duty it claims but has no authority for.  It is that government PREVENTS private and voluntary assistance from being provided, or makes it more costly, less effective, and less timely.  AND that none of the politicians and bureaucrats really CARE.

Stupid government – Theft
Government Gave 4,317 Aliens 2 Social Security Numbers a Piece
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Encouraging double-dipping, I suppose.  Do you think I could get a second one?  We have joked about a friend who has no Social Security retirement “becoming” a border jumper by moving her place of birth from New Mexico to Old Mexico, so that she can get SSI or other government handouts.  As for these border jumpers, this is just another way of stealing from government, and therefore from taxpayers (since the government steals from them).

The “messiah’s” stooges – Islamic wars: Arab street revolt
Clinton: ‘Very Important Reasons’ Why State Dept. and ‘Other Gov’t Agencies’ Were in Benghazi
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Yes, but she won’t tell you, ’cause it is a (whisper) secret.  And honestly, folks, the “very important reason” is because Americans let the people  that supposedly work for them go all over the world doing stupid things like killing people who are no threat and are not attacking them, and spending money stolen from us to get foreigners to do stupid things like study prostitutes and homosexuals.  And because these American “leaders” are so stupid that they send a homosexual to deal with Arab Muslims!

Theft by government
Gov’t Doles Out $10.3 Billion in Improper Unemployment Payments – In 1Year
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Chump change, to them.  What is that, an hour’s spending?  Double-SSAN-holding border jumpers, people fired for being idiots, scam artists, permanent underclass dolists, and the rest.  Meanwhile, people laid off from jobs because their businesses (employers) were PUT out of business by government regulations or conditions created by the stupidity of government get nothing.  It all works together for evil, doesn’t it?

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Who Said This?

Posted on 2013-02-02 by TPOL Nathan

Who said this?

“Absolutely, I mean if you look at the Second Amendment it was that you would have militia to protect yourself in case the government came and attacked citizens.”

“First of all, if the government were to come to disarm you, you would not be able to use an automatic weapon to defend yourself. Let’s be serious. We’re in a world of drones now so the Second Amendment would not help you in that area. It is absurd to try to cite that.”

“People do not have the right to unregulated rights in this country.  And I think that for those that use the Second Amendment [they] are conceding that they have no argument on why you need a magazine with 100 rounds of ammunition or 30 rounds of ammunition.”

Answer: Al Sharpton. Stupid is as stupid does, and it is hard to get more stupid (at least in public and giving the appearance thereof) than this.

Imagine: no “right to unregulated rights”   Seriously, people, why is this man not in an insane asylum so that he won’t hurt other people?  First off, thanks in large part to people like Sharpton, the government DOES come and attack you for no honest reason or purpose: we read about it every day.  As anyone familiar with the history of Philadelphia or DC or NYC knows.  Second, if being “a world of drones” makes the Second Amendment absurd, why don’t all those “nasty folks” over in Afghanistan and Pakistan and Yemen give up?  Because even in a world of drones, adequate weaponry CAN help you defend yourselves and your family and neighbor from being attacked by government or other thugs.  Sharpton’s comments about “unregulated rights” should be enshrined next to his buddy’s comments about Guam tipping over.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-05D: Crash of 2009, Faith, and Fun

Posted on 2013-02-02 by TPOL Nathan

Stupid people – Crash of 2009 – Theft by government
Krugman: No Debt Crisis
(Political Outcast)  Krugman, the liberal economist who has found a home at the New York Times writing columns about how everyone else is an idiot, recently responded to a question on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” about Paul Ryan’s statement on the debt and deficit. Ryan stated that we’re spending a trillion dollars more than we take in, and that if we continue down this path, we’ll have a debt crisis. He said that the debt crisis will be manifested when our financial system has collapsed and our economy has stalled.

But Krugman laughed at such assertions:  “There’s a whole bunch of reasons why that’s not true. First of all… that trillion-dollar deficit is overwhelmingly the result of a depressed economy. And when the economy’s depressed it’s good to run a deficit. You don’t want the government to try and balance its budget right now.”

Nathan: Stupid is as stupid does.  This man is a mirror of the stupidity and idiocy of DC politicians.  Even Ryan does not seem to understand (or is afraid to admit) that we are in a “DEBT” and “DECIFICIT” and “SPENDING” crisis which is beyond solution at this time with politics as usual.  You don’t give an imbecile control of a one-ton car or a submachine gun – or even a 90cc scooter or a bb-gun!

Hoplophobes and Hoploclasts – Government-run, tax-funded schools
Massachusetts: Boy, 5, warned by school for making Lego toy gun
(Fox News)  “A 5-year-old boy in Massachusetts may be suspended after he reportedly built a toy gun out of Legos during an after-school program. Joseph Cardosa, the student, is part of the after-school program at Hyannis West Elementary School,  on Cape Cod, MyFoxBoston.com reported. A few days ago, his parents received a letter that said the boy has received his first written warning for using toys inappropriately, and that upon a second written warning, he will be suspended from the program for two weeks. The boy’s parents, Shelia Cruz and Octavio Cardosa, say the school is taking things too far.” [editor’s note: Ya think? – SAT] (01/29/13)

Nathan: This is one of several stories which illustrate the sheer funk and panic of the educrats and the various hoplophobic groups and people of this nation.  Years ago, I pointed out that the way “gun safety” is taught by 99% of schools and too many people is stupid.  It would be like teaching water safety by making it illegal to let children go into a pool, a stream, or the ocean until they are 18, and requiring that no fountain, pond, pool or five-gallon-bucket of water (such as a fish tank!) be allowed around a school.  but we’ve gone beyond that: this is equal to not allowing a bottle of water to be in school, lest someone might mistake it for a 55-gal drum of water enticing little children to come drown.

Our right to defend ourselves
Arkansas: Senate OKs concealed guns in church
(USA Today) “The Arkansas Senate has passed a bill lifting a ban on carrying concealed weapon in church. The proposal, which goes to the Arkansas House for consideration, would allow churches to decide which, if any, worshippers with concealed carry permits can bring their firearms inside.” (01/29/13)

Nathan: This is total garbage.  Not only is it NOT the business of the Arkansas legislature, but it is not the business of the elders or preacher – even with the trumped up title of “pastor” or “bishop,” to decide.  If the right to keep and bear arms is subject to a property owner’s whim, then so is the right of free speech, slavery, and right to a fair trial.  GOD gives us those rights: no one who claims to be His follower has ANY right to take them away.  If we have someone present on our property that we do not want to trust with a weapon or free speech or anything else, we DO have the right to demand that they leave or forbid them to enter our property, but not to take their freedoms away just because they are on our property.  And when someone is a member of a church (as with a family), it has to be one way or the other.  The entire congregation MIGHT be able to agree (stupidly and insanely) to disarm themselves, but no more.

Self Defense
Florida: Man fatally shot after clinging to top of car for 10 miles
(South Florida Sun-Sentinel)  “Nikki Y. McNeil, 33, was trying to leave an Ocala residence Saturday evening when Lamark D. Tucker Sr., 36, her ex-boyfriend — and father of her three children — took away both McNeil’s car keys and cell phone, according to a news release from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. McNeil then used spare keys to leave, but as McNeil pulled away, Lamark jumped onto the hood of the car and held on while continually threatening McNeil as she drove nearly ten miles, the release stated. McNeil, deputies said, stopped at least twice asking people for help. Finally McNeil fired a bullet once through the windshield which struck Tucker, who was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the report.” (01/28/13)

Nathan: First off, I believe this was clearly self-defense, but it was NOT necessary except that people refused to help.  Were they obligated to?  No, but it was the right, moral thing to do.  Was there NO one in ten miles in Florida willing to even call for assistance?  No one armed to demand that the man stop?  Of course, this was also the result of stupid choices:  two unmarried people making three children together? A woman that could not – in South Florida – find a sheriff’s suboffice or police station to drive to?  A pair of irresponsible people ruining their own lives and those of three innocent children should be a caution tale for all.

Self-defense NOT – Faith
Woman orders hold-up man out “in Jesus’ name”
(News4Jax.com) LAKE CITY, Fla. – …Lake City police say Derek Lee, 24, entered a house on Lakeview Avenue where the homeowner had 14 women over for a jewelry party.  Police say Lee was wearing a dark ski cap on his head along with a bandana (sic) across his face. He allegedly showed a gun and ordered the women to hand over their money and phones.  One woman who thought it was a party gag pushed his hand aside while laughing saying, “It’s only a water gun.” Police say Lee held the gun to that woman’s head and said, “I’m not joking, I’m going to shoot someone, give me your money.” Jacquie Hagler, who owns the house, says she then put her faith into action. “When I realized what was going on, I stood up and said, ‘In the name of Jesus, get out of my house now.’ And he said, ‘I’m going to shoot someone.’ And I said it again, real boldly,” Hagler said. “Everybody started chanting, ‘Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,’ and he did a quick scan of the room, and ran out the door as fast as he could go.”

Nathan: Thanks to Darryl for this one. Incredible faith, incredible stupidity on the part of the robber, but obviously he figured none of those women would be armed and that he was in a perfect situation.  The point of commenting on this story:  they SHOULD have been armed; someone should have been.  I have discussed this problem with many religious people about this, and am often told that carrying a weapon shows I do not have enough faith in God.  The argument that seems to work best is this one:

We are told to pray for our daily bread and trust in the Lord that He will provide it, but that does not mean we are not supposed to go out and WORK for a living.  We can pray to be protected from robbery and thieves and housefires, and we are to trust in the Lord that we will be (if it is what is needed), but that does not stop us from having and using locks and fire extinguishers – nor are we accused of not having enough faith in God when we buy and use those things.

Mama’s Note: I wrote something about that very thing a number of years ago.

Trusting God – No Greater Love

St. Paul said that those who will not work should not eat. He admonished everyone to live quietly, peacefully, as long as it depended on them. He wrote a great deal about what it means to love your neighbor and the grace of hospitality, charity and hard work.

So, if we “pray for someone,” we are asking God to help them – trusting Him – but if we do not offer anything of ourselves with it, what does it mean? Do we pray and then forget them? Or do we also visit the one in the hospital or the jail or the nursing home? Do we only pray for a family having a hard time, or do we also show up with a box of groceries or to help fix the roof?

There seems to be a great deal more to trusting God than just wishing for everything to be good and ignoring our own part in it. We know that God will provide food, yet we don’t sit around an empty table expecting the food to appear like magic.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-05C: Milk, food fights, and media lies

Posted on 2013-02-02 by TPOL Nathan

More examples of stupid government, theft by government, our “justice” system, “public” schools, and worse crimes against humanity and liberty.

Stupid government – Theft by government
Louisiana: Store chain stopped from selling cheap milk
(Daily Caller)  Louisiana state regulators recently cracked down on a supermarket chain’s weekly promotional deal because it was selling milk too cheaply — which violates state law. The upscale Fresh Market was selling gallons of milk for $2.99 as part of a weekly promotional deal. Louisiana requires that retailer price markups be at least six percent above the invoice and shipping costs of the product.

Nathan: I am SO glad that we have government to protect us from evil scams like loss leaders on milk and other things that save families a few bucks.  Aren’t you?

Nazgul – Government-ruined, theft-funded schools
Arizona: Teen not guilty in food-fight assault
(AZ Family via Freedom’s Phoenix) After reviewing cell phone video and hearing from witnesses, a judge ruled that a teenager involved in a food fight at Horizon High School did not assault a teacher.

Conner Floyd was a freshman when the food fight — a senior prank — broke out in June. He was tackled by a teacher as he tried to leave the cafeteria. That teacher claimed Conner assaulted him. With that allegation and support for the teacher from the school, the teen was charged with aggravated assault — a felony. “I was in defense mode, I was in fetal position, I was shocked… I’m on my back getting hit in my left side right in the gut,” Floyd, who now attends a different school, told Carina Sonn in September…. “During trial the Court heard not only eyewitness testimony but also reviewed the video of the incident and still photos which appear to depict the Assistant Principal kicking Conner while the Teacher had Conner pinned to the ground with his knee dug into his shoulder,” wrote Jason Lamm, Conner’s lawyer, in a news release.

Nathan: So, when are the charges being filed for aggravated assault against the vice principal? And how long will he spend in prison for filing a false police report and false accusation?  Of course… not now, not ever.

Home front: killing children – Culture wars: killing babies
Rep. Franks: Obama Made Case for Ending Abortion at Sandy Hook Prayer Vigil
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: But you must remember, Obama and the rest of the people who want to kill in the womb DO NOT THINK THAT the unborn are HUMAN.  Some would say that anyone under the age of 1 (or 2, or 3) is NOT human: which leads to the result that if this had been a preschool and 20 children died, not 1st and 2nd graders, that they would not have cared.  If they really do care about children other their own elite children now, they certainly don’t care about Afghani or Pakistani or Egyptian or Libyan or Syrian children.  Just like their predecessors (and spiritual ancestors) didn’t care about AmerInd children (“nits make lice”) or Filippino or Cuban or German or Japanese children.

Hoploclasts – Mainstream media lies
Five common misconceptions about gun mass shootings
(The Blaze) “We tracked 62 mass shootings wherein 5 or more people were either shot or killed from the early 1980’s to now; 41 times pistols were used, 12 times shotguns or some type of hunting-styled rifle was used, and 9 times semi-automatic rifles were used (14 percent),” Hunter told TheBlaze.

“Of the 62 incidents that we were able to track, 42 of the shooters had some kind of mental illness or mental illness history of some kind, 16 of the shooters had unknown or unclear history of mental illness, and only 4 of the shooters had no mental illness history.

“According to the FBI’s website, during the time period between 2007 until 2011, there were 8,967 people that were murdered with knives or cutting instruments; during that same time period, there were 3,918 people that were murdered with either rifles or shotguns,” Hunter told TheBlaze.

“According to the FBI’s website, during the time period between 2007 until 2011, there were 2,918 people that were murdered with blunt objects (baseball bats, hammers, etc.),” Hunter reminds us. “During that same time period, there were 1,874 people that were murdered with rifles.”

“Another gun law isn’t the answer,” Hunter flatly states. “Nationally, there are currently 243 pages of federal gun laws and 480 pages of state gun laws in effect.”

Nathan: I am quoting a lot more than usual from this story, because this is valuable information that lovers of liberty can use to counteract the lies filling the airwaves and the printed pages and web pages today.  People kill other people: they use anything and everything they can.  People can defend themselves against other people trying to kill them, and do so every day.  An eighty-pound child or ninety-pound grandmother can’t really defend themselves against a 250-pound man with a baseball bat or fists. The most effective way to do so is WITH A FIREARM.

Hoplophiles – Hoploclasts
Buy Guns On The Cheap At Gun Buybacks »
(Personal Liberty) Seattle gun enthusiasts, realizing that Americans willing to hand over their firearms for such little money often don’t know what they have, were drawn to a recent gun buyback.

Nathan: Hmm.  This seems like a very good tactic, used with plenty of people and recording equipment to protect against the rage of cops and hoploclasts who will be insanely angry over losing the chance to destroy guns.  I’ve decided that these buyback/destruction events have become to the anti-gun movements what abortion is to the Tranzi “feminist” and “pro-choice” movements: something akin to sacrificing children to Moloch or burying food and treasure with their dead monarchs.  Sick, and so I’m glad to see people fighting back.

Home front – Stupid government
DHS warns of hack threat to network gear
(Reuters via Freedom News Daily)  “The Department of Homeland Security urged computer users on Tuesday to disable a common networking technology feature, after researchers warned that hackers could exploit flaws to gain access to tens of millions of vulnerable devices. The U.S. government’s Computer Emergency Readiness Team, on its website, advised consumers and businesses to disable a feature known as Universal Plug and Play or UPnP.” [editor’s note: The usual DHS over-reaction; sensible users pay attention to what is being downloaded, while their virus-protection programs warn them of dangerous downloads – SAT] (01/29/13)

Nathan: Gee, is DHS getting hard up for ways to prove its relevance?  Not only is this an over-reaction, as Steve T. points out, but it is NOT in their mission statement, and is a bad idea to boot.

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Libertarian Commentary on the News, #13-05B: More Stupid

Posted on 2013-01-31 by TPOL Nathan

By Nathan Barton

Winter storms and roads and travel often do not mix, and although state budgets seem to be climbing, and the FedGov demands more and more money – supposedly to provide “essential services” through grants to states and local government for things like roads – more and more services such as snow-plowing and pothole-filling just are NOT getting done. Wyoming legislators seem to want to raise fuel taxes 10 cents a gallon, whinging about their poverty; they are not alone in that. Things are collapsing, folks, and the entire situation is going gradually more and more negative.  We all need to be prepared.

Meanwhile, the stupidity of those around us, especially our “political leaders,” seems to grow as things worsen.  Is there a correlation?

Mama’s Note: Not to mention the fact that every government agency seems to have plenty of money for more guns, ammunition, tanks and so forth… and grand plans in many cases to escalate the war on everything when/if the new prohibitions are issued against certain guns, magazines, and probably other things as they get bolder.

Senate in Action – Stupid people (D)
Feinstein: ‘NRA Is Venal, They Come After You’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: This is the idiot who puts her finger on the trigger and waves the muzzle of a semi-auto rifle at her staff and reporters, while calling for their ban.  This is the idiot that corruptly ensured that her husband’s businesses benefited from (or were exempted from) federal laws.  This is… an idiot.  Honestly, I’m feeling better about the NRA than I have for a long time – they are still saying and doing stupid things but don’t seem to be quite as bad and compromising quite as much this time.  But I’m not joining up, or allying myself with them.  Even if they do go after Feinstein.  We are indeed fortunate that the Second Amendment recognizes that we have the right to defend ourselves against stupid people like her.

Senate in Action – Stupid people (R)
Sen. Ted Cruz to House GOP: ‘Stop Reading the ‘New York Times’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Oh, sure, easy for you to say – you have a higher reading skill level than most of your colleagues do.  It isn’t the READING that is the problem, it is the BELIEVING that is the problem.

The “Messiah” – Islamic wars: Arab Street Front
Obama Recalls His Response to Libya Crisis as One Marked by U.S. Leadership
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Is he just lying to us, or is he lying to himself as well?

Mama’s Note: I’m afraid he’s believed his own lies for so long that he probably has no idea.

Congress in action
Rand Paul: ‘Right and Wrong Have Become Subservient to Hedonism of the Moment’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: Especially in the Senate and House of Representatives.  But we’ve seen it coming for a long time.

Stupid Government Tricks – Culture Wars: Women in Combat
Joint Chiefs Chairman: ‘We Can Figure Out Privacy’ for Young Ladies in Frontline Combat, Including in Navy SEALS and Delta Force
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: NO, THEY CANNOT.  Once more, this man proves he is a political general.  He may have once been a good officer, but now he is sucking up to the “messiah” and all the Tranzis, and just lying through his teeth and telling them what they want to believe and want the nation to believe.  Parents, as I just told the mother of two, keep your children OUT of the military.  Get them private, personal military training if needed (and it is), but DON’T help them to enlist if you value their soul, their morals, their values, and liberty.

Stupid government – Stupid people – Our right to self-defense
Biden: 1994 Assault Weapons Ban ‘Worked Too Well’
(CNSNews.com)

Nathan: YET ANOTHER stupid man, but then, we’ve known that for a LONG time about Uncle Joe, batty Uncle Joe.  And a liar – if he really can tell the difference between right and wrong.  Data from nearly a decade ago showed that the AWB gave a lot of profits to a lot of people but didn’t do a THING for crime rates and protection:  lifting it resulted in reduced crime rates almost nationwide, even in the big ugly urban trash heaps.

Mama’s Note: Indeed, Biden is one scary idiot. The ONLY problem I have with impeaching Obama alone is the fact that this idiot would then occupy the throne. Impeach all of them. That’s the only way.

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The Second Amendment: Constitutional Right or a Governmental Wrong?

Posted on 2013-01-30 by MamaLiberty

By Robert Greenslade
© Nitwit Press

The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School has once again thrust the Second Amendment into the spotlight. Supporters of the Amendment claim they have a constitutional or Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Opponents counter that even if that were the case, the federal government was granted the general power to place restraints on the right. Both of these assertions are based on a misconception concerning the intent of the document known as the Bill of Rights.

When the Bill of Rights was submitted to the individual States for ratification, it was prefaced with a preamble. As stated in the preamble, the purpose of the Amendments was to prevent the federal government from “misconstruing or abusing its powers.” To accomplish this, “further declaratory and restrictive clauses” were being recommended. The Amendments, when adopted, did not create any so-called constitutional rights or grant the federal government any power over individual rights; they placed additional restraints and qualifications on the powers of the federal government concerning the rights enumerated in the Amendments.

If the Second Amendment is read through the preamble, we find it was incorporated into the Bill of Rights as a “declaratory and restrictive clause” to prevent the federal government from “misconstruing or abusing its power” to infringe on the people’s right to keep and bear arms.

Another way to understand the original intent of the Second Amendment is re-write it through the preamble:

“Because a well-regulated Militia is necessary to the security of a free State, the federal government is expressly denied the power to infringe on the people’s right to keep and bear Arms.” (EN 1)

In the author’s opinion, the preamble and original intent of the Amendments has been suppressed by the institutions of government because it would expose their usurpation of power and perversion of Amendments contained in the Bill of Rights.

By advancing the myth that the Amendments grant the American people their individual rights, the federal government has been able to convert enumerated restraints and qualifications on its power into legislative, executive, judicial and administrative power over individual rights. The federal government claims it was granted the constitutional authority to determine the extent of the individual rights enumerated in the Amendments and/or impose “reasonable restraints” on those rights. This assertion is absurd. The federal government does not have the constitutional authority to ignore, circumvent, modify, negate or remove constitutional restraints placed on its power by the Amendments, or convert them into a power over the individual right enumerated in the particular restraint.

A denial of power or an enumerated restraint on the exercise of power is not subject to interpretation or modification by the entity the restraint is being imposed upon. The restraints imposed by the Amendments, which were adopted 4 years after the Constitution was ratified, override the legislative, executive, judicial or administrative powers of the federal government. If this were not the case, then the restraints would be meaningless because the federal government could simply circumvent, modify or remove them. Why would the States have requested and adopted enumerated restraints on federal power, subsequent to their ratification of the Constitution, if the federal government possessed the authority to nullify them?

When the federal government infringes on one of the rights enumerated in the Bill of Rights it is not violating anyone’s constitutional rights; it is violating the additional restraint or qualification placed on its power by the particular Amendment where the right is enumerated. The distinction between rights and restraints is critical.

As stated in the Declaration of Independence, the American people have unalienable rights that come from a higher source than government or a written document. By acknowledging that people have natural rights, which are bestowed by a creator, the Founders laid the foundation for the principle that government does not have the lawful authority to take away or infringe on those rights. This principle was incorporated into the preamble and structure of the Amendments to secure individual rights from government encroachment; that is why they were designed and imposed as restraints on the exercise of power.

If the individual rights of the people had been created by the Constitution or an amendment to the document, then they would cease to be unalienable because the right would depend on the existence of a document. If the document or a provision of the document disappeared, so would the right. The belief that individual rights were created by a written document has opened the door for the federal government to claim the power to define the extent of any right enumerated in an Amendment. This has transformed constitutional restraints placed on federal power into subjective determinations of individual rights by the institutions of government. By failing to understand the difference between amendments that create rights and amendments that impose restraints on government, the American people are watching their individual rights vanish as they are reduced to the status of privileges bestowed by government because the constitutional restraints placed on federal power are being replaced by government decree.

Opponents of the Second Amendment always try to diminish the right enumerated in the Amendment by asserting that rights are not absolute. This is just another straw man argument because the Amendment is about imposing a restraint of the powers of the federal government concerning a right: not granting a right or defining the extent of a right. In addition, a review of the Second Amendment shows that the restraint imposed by the Amendment does not contain any exceptions.

If firearms owners continue to use terms like “constitutional right” or “Second Amendment right” to describe the right to keep and bear arms, the federal government will continue to violate the restraint and assert the power to impose general restraints on the right. In order to begin correcting the perversion of the document known as the Bill of Rights, supporters of the Second Amendment need to use the term “Second Amendment restraint” to describe the purpose and effect of the Amendment.

By using correct terminology, supporters of the right to keep and bear arms can change the dynamics of the debate. For example. What would be the response if the firearms community made the following statement when discussing the issue: “We do not have a constitutional or Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. We have the right to keep and bear arms and that right was secured from federal encroachment by the additional restraint imposed on federal power by the Second Amendment.” Not only is this statement constitutionally correct, but it could also transform the debate into a teachable moment that goes beyond the Second Amendment.

The preamble to the document known as the Bill of Rights is the key to resurrecting the original intent of the Amendments. Since the stated purpose of the Second Amendment was to place an enumerated restraint on federal power, that government does not have the general authority to impose restraints on the right enumerated in the Amendment because the Amendment placed a constitutional restraint on the federal government.

Endnote 1-The word “because” can used at the beginning of a sentence to introduce a dependent clause. The first part of the Second Amendment is a dependent clause because a well-regulated militia is dependent upon the people’s right to keep and bear arms not visa versa. Therefore, it is, and would have been acceptable to use the word “because” at the beginning of the Amendment This change maintains the intent and sentence structure of the Amendment but makes it read in a manner that is more in tune with modern sentence structure.

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