Real masculinity is non-toxic

I notice that many people-- not you, of course-- seem to be really confused about what is "masculine". They complain about something they call "toxic masculinity", but I notice what they describe doesn't seem very masculine to me. Quite the opposite (and the opposite of "masculine" isn't necessarily "feminine"). Often, what they call masculine I call being a jerk.

Somehow they think the guy going around strutting, threatening people, or picking fights is manly. They think being a cop or a "troop" is masculine (unless it's a female doing that "job"). They think impulsivity or loudness or what I've noticed as a habit of spastic movements is what makes someone manly. They even think the jealous guy who puffs up his chest because he thinks "his" woman looked at another guy is exhibiting masculinity. They seem to see aggression as masculine.

Not even close!

It's not masculine to aggress, but to defend from aggression. Archation isn't manly. Living up to your responsibility to not violate the life, liberty, or property of anyone else-- even when it's hard to do-- is masculine. And more. It's the way to be a decent human being, whether you are male or female.

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So close; scared to face the truth

Sometimes statists can get so close... so close! But they won't take that final "scary" step.

They might recognize a problem caused by political government, but instead of facing the root cause, they do whatever it takes to avoid the truth.

Recently I heard one advocating getting rid of teachers' unions. I support this idea, but it doesn't go far enough. It doesn't strike at the root; it's thrashing at a branch. The existence of government schooling is the root problem. Abolish those schools and the teachers' unions are no longer an issue.

It's the same story over and over.

It's not that political government is being used wrong, it's that it is allowed to exist at all and to ruin society. In endlessly varied ways, by millions of wrongheaded people.

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Reasons NOT to wear a mask

If you don't want to wear a mask and you want/need more reasons to not do so, Jim Davies has made a thing-- TinyURL.com/WearNoMask

Personally, I'm not convinced-- even if masks do reduce transmission of the virus-- that it's a good idea to reduce the transmission of The Corona. At least among the general population.

I'm still pretty sure this "pandemic" or whatever will never get under control until just about everyone has had it or has proven themselves immune. As the mortality rate that even the politicized experts accept continues to plummet, it seems important to end this thing sooner rather than later. To take away the State's favorite toy. So add that reason to the list.

But that's just my opinion. YOU do what YOU want.

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Politics reason behind a lot of anger

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for June 24, 2020)

Why is there so much anger in the world?

People fight over statues; over differing opinions on gender, race, and policing. Over masks and whether to end the shutdown or keep society imprisoned until everyone is perfectly safe-- which can never be.

Activists are even protesting to abolish the Fourth of July... without mentioning Independence Day. I guess if they are successful, future calendars will skip from the third to the fifth... unless the activists are confused.

What causes anger over such issues? Politics-- where every win comes at someone's expense.

Politics forces everyone along the same path. Legislation dictates things only our ethics and morals should determine. To understand the anger, notice how politics makes a difference of opinion into a life and death struggle. An unnecessary one.

It's odd that something imagined to be a hallmark of civilized society is instead the root of most antisocial behavior. Trying to form a society around politics is like trying to form a pearl around a pellet of nuclear waste.

If you want to play politics, go ahead, but any results should only apply to you. You shouldn't expect others to be bound by your results. They shouldn't be expected to fund your political institutions or agencies. If you want it, you fund it. I have better uses for my money.

Just as there is no "one-size-fits-all" church, you shouldn't be able to force everyone to participate in the same political system based on location. Or any political system at all. If you force everyone to play your game by your rules, or else, your game is toxic. Society would be better off without it.

Just imagine if no one were forced to fund a park or a statue. If your group builds a park, good for you. If you want to put a statue in the park to honor Willie Nelson, people can choose to visit your park or not. As long as they aren't forced to subsidize it, they aren't harmed.

If, however, you force people to chip in for the park and pay for statues and monuments to things they dislike, it's no wonder people get angry. I do, too.

The way these things are currently done causes strife. It's long past time to give it up and try something better. Something voluntary, based on unanimous consent. If you want to chip in, go ahead. If you'd rather not, go your own way. It's the only civilized way to organize a society.

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Robbed by politicians

I was supposed to be in the New Mexico mountains all this week with the extended family. I would be there now.

It was planned and booked in early February. I was looking forward to some time in the mountains and on some trails-- time I am in severe need of but can't afford on my own.

Then... The Corona.

Or rather, it was politicians who shut down so much stuff using The Corona as their excuse that the family decided to cancel the trip. The fascist/socialist New Mexico governatress proclaimed that any visitors to New Mexico were "required" to quarantine for 14 days, when our vacation would only last a week. Blocked just because I live less than 7 blocks east of an imaginary line.

The part of the vacation I was in need of-- mountain trails-- wasn't shut down but with the parents coming down with coronavirus just weeks ago, and not knowing if anyone else would get it, and everyone else caring that shops and restaurants might be "off-limits" to us, I understand why they and the rest of the family canceled the plans.

I'm trying to not let it get to me. Stuff happens, and all that. Still, I'm pretty unhappy right now. And, yes, I blame the political vermin.

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Starlink and "pollution"

I saw someone complaining about how their long-exposure photograph of comet "Neowise" was ruined by the passage of Starlink satellites.

If you are unfamiliar with comet "Neowise", well, it's a comet. And if you are unfamiliar with Starlink, it's Elon Musk's swarm of internet-providing satellites.

The various voices chiming in about the horrors of the ruined photograph sympathized with the harm done to the photographer, and the evils of polluting the world for profit. I'm more upset that Elon takes government subsidies and launches government payloads, but whatever.

But "pollution"? I HATE pollution, including litter.

Pollution damages property; without the damage, there is no pollution. I can't think of a way these satellites damage anyone's property. One of the dissenters told me that "damages property" was a strange way to define pollution, so I asked for his definition. He said he'd include harming people. I asked him who is being harmed. Silence. Strangely, I find most of my questions to those on the other side keep going unanswered-- some of them seem to have blocked me.

Sure, people are "forced" to see something they don't want to see, in specific circumstances. Or, perhaps they are forced to accidentally photograph something they didn't intend to photograph. A photobomb of sorts (but one you can avoid with a little prior planning-- at least for the time being). The newer Starlink satellites are getting harder and harder to see, even right after launch. Musk has been trying to make them less reflective to keep ground-based astronomers happy, so perhaps it is working.

Someone said the pollution is the damage done by ruining a little of the beauty of nature for everyone. That's too subjective.

I want to go outside and look at the horizon without seeing any man-made structures or invasive/exotic trees blocking the natural view. Am I being harmed that this isn't possible where I live?

I hate to hear dogs bark. I don't like seeing boys hobbling around with their pants below their butts. Is this pollution?

If I see my neighbor walk to the end of their driveway and they aren't attractive enough for me to want to see them, am I being harmed? I don't think so. A better case for pollution could be made if they were smoking and I caught a whiff of their smoke. Yet I'm not petty enough to make an issue about that. They can smoke cigars as they walk out to the street naked and I can't think of a way this actually harms me.

Yes, "astronomy" pictures taken with a long exposure can be "ruined" by the multiple streaks from Starlink satellites. How many satellite tracks does it take to ruin a photo? One? Three? A dozen? Do planes also ruin photos? Do meteors?

It takes a long exposure-- specialty photography-- to really have a problem with Starlink streaks. I could complain if I use infrared photography to take photos of my neighbor's house and I see them inside doing things I don't want to see, but who has the problem here?

Starlink is intended to fund Musk's Mars missions and Martian colony. I am in favor of getting humans to Mars and to seeing if they can live there sustainably. It takes a lot of money-- profit-- to fund these kinds of things. Either direct profit spent willingly by those who earned it, or profit confiscated from the rightful owner by government through "taxation"-- guess which one I like better.

One of the detractors said satellites are too expensive and it would be cheaper to run wires out to all the remote areas to provide high-speed internet. I think this shows a lack of understanding of how remote some remote areas actually are, and the economics of running wires out there and the people in remote areas being able to actually afford to use such a service. Plus, this only shifts the property damage to actual property. Would these people like to have a path bulldozed for this line-- either underground or hanging on poles-- through their property so they don't have to see (if they look hard) something they don't want to see in the dusky sky?

I have gone out at night and watched Starlink satellites pass overhead. Most of the time they were too dim for me to see. A few times I was able to see the "train"-- a string of satellites following one another across the sky-- with some success. It's rather interesting to see and even beautiful in a way. But, even though I really like antique stuff made of brass, bone, wood, leather, and glass, I'm not a Luddite.

I get it, though. If I had my choice I'd turn the clock back to the Pleistocene or something and wear animal skins and live in a cave. I don't care to see plastic everywhere I look-- I'd rather see mammoths. But I can't pretend someone is harming me just because the world isn't the same as it used to be or as I might wish it still were. There are more important things to fix.

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"War on the suburbs" by Ammo.com

I got this from Ammo.com several days ago.
War on the Suburbs: How HUD's Housing Policies Became a Weapon for Social Change

Reading it just made me mad.

I could point out that I am in favor of people living wherever they like-- as long as they aren't trespassing. I could point out that allowing political government to use sticks and carrots to "encourage" compliance and carry out anti-social engineering is stupid and self-destructive; that if "states" hadn't gotten addicted to "federal" handouts, they couldn't be manipulated by the feral government. I could point out that all DemoCRAPublican politicians are guilty to some extent. I could point those things out, but you already know it as well as I do.

I personally hate cities-- except as an occasional dangerous thrill for a highly limited time. But to live in or near one? No thanks!

I don't really like suburbs or small towns, either. Still too crowded and too many "rules".

I don't mind that people want to live in any of those arrangements. And I do mind when meddlers try to coerce people into living as they believe they "should".

I wouldn't take well to being herded into an urban environment. In fact, I would feel the need to use self-defensive violence against those trying to herd me. I hope others would join me.

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Conservative copsuckers blame leftist politicians

Someone forwarded an email to me full of "memes". In one, it said something like "Did you ever notice that the police leave you alone if you aren't doing anything wrong?" Another showed a 911 operator and said something like "911, what is your emergency? Oh, I see you v*ted to defund the police. We'll send someone to visit you in 3 to 5 business days." While another showed the St. Louis couple guarding their home with their guns, saying something like "This is why you need an AR15".

I should have left it alone, but I replied.

I said that yes, the guy who used an AR15 (or whatever specific type of firearm that actually was) used his gun to defend his home, and then the cops, who will supposedly leave you alone if you are doing nothing wrong, came and stole all his firearms, leaving him at the mercy of other thugs. So much for being protected by police. And that this is why I am in favor of defunding the police and the politicians who control them.

The guy wrote back and said what the cops did wasn't right, but that it is the "leftist politicians" who are at fault.

Conservatives apparently imagine that if you just got the "right kind" of politicians holding the leashes of the police that the police would turn into the heroic saviors the conservatives seem to want so badly for them to be. Nope. That will never happen. Good people don't seek a job that gives them that kind of power over others. Not politics or policing.

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Falsifying liberty

I believe liberty to be worthwhile, to say the least. I also believe it is objectively superior to any alternative. This means I should try to falsify this hypothesis to myself. If I can't think of ways which-- if they held up-- would prove my belief is based on a falsehood if it is, my belief is worthless.

How could liberty be falsified? If I could find one example where liberty-- freedom tempered with responsibility-- fails, that would do it. So far I keep coming up empty.

People have given me lots of examples where they imagine liberty fails: drugs, sex, "immigration", etc. (and even the post office!) In every case, they weren't thinking their position through very well or were trying to argue against liberty by artificially keeping The State a part of the scenario.

Sure, some people neglect their responsibility. This simply means humans are flawed and since they can't always be responsible for themselves they certainly shouldn't ever be put in charge of others.

Sometimes, people want to argue that because exercising your liberty in some essential ways is illegal, it can't work even if it weren't illegal. They imagine this rights-violation shows that liberty would fail even if the artificial barriers they refuse to reconsider weren't there. The "we can't get rid of government border controls because of democracy and welfare" people fall into this category.

That's just dumb. If you want to argue against freedom of movement, you've got to at least discuss it without the artificial constraints of keeping other Big Government programs propped up to make sure liberty fails the way you want it to fail. And if you can get rid of one facet of tyranny you can get rid of the others-- don't pretend otherwise.

Yes, I am biased. I am pro-liberty and I am against theft, aggression, and slavery. I think I am able to consider all claims, however, I don't need to wake up each day and decide anew whether I would be within my rights to go next door and start slaughtering people so I can take their stuff. You can ponder that question with each new day if you believe it's necessary, but I'm done with it. No one has the right to archate and nothing can change that fact.

If, in the course of pondering this question yet again, you come to a different conclusion for reasons no one has presented before, try to convince me you aren't just wallowing in statist superstition. Maybe you're on to something and have discovered a way to falsify liberty, but I wouldn't bet money on it.

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Holster aggravation peaks

This is a topic I don't discuss much... or ever. I've had enough of my current holster. Actually, I'd had enough of it years ago, but I can't design, find, or afford to try something that might be better. But I'm finally reaching the breaking point, to the point that I'm not sure it's worth the pain and aggravation of carrying anymore.

This is what I'm wanting to try:

The link is here: Urban Carry G3

You might be noticing the price and figuring out why I haven't bit the bullet and bought one. My current one is homemade-- as have been the last several. Nice and inexpensive. The commercial ones I've used in the past weren't even as tolerable as the current abomination.

If people would like to chip in toward this new holster, just make a note that this is what the donation is intended for. If not, I'll make do or do without.

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Thinking isn't their superpower

Government-supremacists aren't good at thinking. They imagine they are, but the evidence is clear that they aren't.

Here are some examples:

1-- Chicago has strict anti-gun rules and high crime rates. Does this mean "gun control" [sic] isn't effective, or that high crime rates cause political bullies to impose strict anti-gun rules in response? Which is the cause and which is the effect?

It doesn't matter. It is unethical to impose anti-gun rules no matter whether you believe it "works" or not. No studies needed. No one has the right to impose or enforce anti-defense/anti-tool legislation.

2-- Do police murder more "black" people or more "white" people? We must argue over who they murder more-- and why it might be so-- in order to prove a point.

No, we don't need to. It's not about "race"; it's about police and policing. Police are a criminal gang even if you are scared to live without them, and this fact matters more than who they are murdering, what causes them to murder, and at what rates the murders occur.

3-- Should schools be allowed to re-open in spite of the risk of Covid-19, or should they be kept closed for safety? What does the "science" say?

Wrong approach. Schools shouldn't be part of government, shouldn't be theft-funded, shouldn't be compulsory, and shouldn't be confused for educational facilities. If someone wants to fund a school, they can decide how to run it. Anyone who doesn't like how it is run doesn't have to chip in and doesn't have to subject their kids to that institution.

In each instance, the statists have erected blinders to keep the questions within parameters that limit the possibilities considered in a way which results in a false "answer". An "answer" that empowers them no matter which way it goes. This isn't so much thinking as plotting against society. Apparently, unethical plotting is easier than doing the hard work of rational thinking.

I could keep going with endless examples but you get the picture. Government-supremacists aren't good at thinking, but they imagine they are. That's a dangerous combination.

I think it's time we give their opinions all the consideration they deserve.

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Respecting liberty will still work

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for June 17, 2020)

The world's a bit crazy. Not as bad here as in other places, but we see the effects of those crazy paces even here. Pandemics, riots, gangs of trespassers setting up their own governments... what's next? A volcano spewing out zombies?

Whatever happens next, you can rest assured that respecting liberty will still work. It always does. It would even work against the volcano zombie invasion.

No matter how crazy the world gets, you don't have to be crazy with it.

Aren't you glad to know we had the cure for Covid-19 the whole time? Who knew all it would take to solve the pandemic were riots? Oh, sure, some has-beens are trying to keep the pandemic panic alive. Few people are still listening to them. Their fifteen minutes of fame was over before they were ready. Maybe they'll be happy if the virus comes back for round two this Fall.

Speaking of riots, don't confuse the riots with the peaceful protests. They aren't the same thing and didn't involve the same people. They only happened alongside the protests because parasites saw their chance to make trouble and latched onto an important issue. It seems to have ended when the protesters realized most of us were already on their side, but the rioters were driving away support.

Then the rioters became squatters taking over property they didn't own. Much of the national mainstream media misidentified them as "anarchists". Will they be calling horses "dolphins" next? It would be as inaccurate.

They aren't the only ones who think of socialistic nihilists as "anarchists". This is what they've been taught. Yet, anarchy only means you accept no human master. It doesn't mean chaos, theft, destruction, or aggression. Those who seek to misinform you never define things correctly when a scary lie works better for their purposes.

How can you know the squatters aren't anarchists? They set up a political government in the stolen territory-- this is not "anarchist" by definition. Anarchists wouldn't set up political institutions, nor do ethical anarchists steal property from others. I know this from personal experience.

What's a person to do?

Liberty, which is freedom tempered with responsibility, could solve all these problems to the extent they can be solved. Exercise your freedom to do whatever you want as long as it doesn't violate the equal and identical rights of any other person. There's no better way to live among others. Try it and I think you'll agree.

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Freedom is subjective

If you live in a cage, eat only the slugs and rats you can catch, wrap yourself in newspapers the wind blows in (when the wind brings you newspaper), sit in your own waste, and totally rely on someone else to decide everything that happens to you, and this is exactly how you want to live, you are completely free.

It's not the life I would choose. I wouldn't be free in that situation. But freedom is doing what you want so whether you are free or not depends only on what you want.

Many people are free in a police state. They don't want liberty because the responsibility scares them, or they are too lazy to handle it. This is why they crow and celebrate "freedom" while smarter people look at them in stunned silence, wondering what they've been smoking. But, by their measure, they are free.

So they keep v*ting. They keep supporting cops. They don't mind "taxation" and legislation-- at least in concept. They are OK with anti-gun legislation and policies. They don't think about the licenses and permits they are told they must rent. They don't care about their privacy because they've been convinced that as long as they have nothing to hide privacy doesn't matter. All those liberty violations are fine with them-- they are living the way they want to, so they are free. And they will do whatever it takes to prevent changes they don't want.

Maybe you can convince them to be unhappy in their chains, but maybe you can't. You may need to leave them behind; leave them fighting for their chains and against those who can't live their way. Your destiny may not involve them.

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Masks and oxygen

With all the hysteria over face-masks; those who say masks are starving people of oxygen and those claiming masks can't impede oxygen flow-- and the anger boiling up from both sides-- I decided to do my own experiments.

The argument from the pro-mask cultists is that there is no way the fabric weave of a mask can block the exchange of oxygen or carbon dioxide molecules. They are much too small compared to the weave to be hindered. Which may be true... but I don't believe the flow in and out is instantaneous. This delay does have an effect, which I can feel. The hot, exhaled air lingers long enough to be re-inhaled. Is this a problem?

I bought an oximeter (an over-the-counter unit) right after I was exposed to The Corona. I know wearing a mask causes me to do the face-mask gasp every so often, but is it just due to the heat or due to a lack of oxygen.

I thought I should test this for myself (and for you). So, I did.

Without a face mask, my %SpO2-- oxygen saturation percentage-- runs between 95 and 96 rather regularly. After a few minutes of wearing a mask (an actual face mask and a silk bandana were used separately with the same result), that drops to 93-94. Not a huge difference, but a difference. After a couple of minutes of this I do the face-mask gasp and bring my oxygen back up to maskless levels, but it won't stay there.

Is this really due to the mask? I don't know. Here are some alternative hypotheses...

Maybe I breathe differently while wearing a mask; shallower or less frequent breaths.
Maybe I am too self-conscious of my breathing while wearing a mask.
Maybe the effect is due to the heat build-up.
Maybe this was a fluke and a coincidence that my %SpO2 fell a little just at the time I was wearing the masks.
Maybe my bias skewed the results.
Maybe it was magic, elves, or faeries.
Maybe there's more than one cause.

It seems to me, the claim that masks can't reduce your oxygen levels has been falsified. It's not a big difference, and maybe not enough of a difference to even notice or cause harm. But there was a difference. I now believe all of those saying it can't happen are either lying or are mistaken.

Don't trust me; do your own tests. Listen to your own body.

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"Why have masks been politicized?"

How amused are you over the karens whining about masks and the coronavirus having become politicized? How clueless can someone be?

They politicized it by getting government involved-- forbidding and mandating things-- and then when things don't go exactly their way on every tiny issue they get upset about it being politicized. Looking to shift the blame elsewhere.

It's as though they don't understand what they are talking about.

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Opinions and "opinions"

On Twitter and elsewhere, I see people who express opinions I disagree with. Sometimes opinions I disagree with very strongly. But opinions based on credible information which they interpret in a way I believe is wrong.

I see other people expressing opinions I'm certain are based on fake news, lies, emotionalism, and delusions.

Guess which people I take more seriously.

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Balanced imagination

There are people who have no imagination. They can't imagine anything but what is right in front of them right now.

Then there are those with overactive imaginations. They imagine-- or fall for-- everything, regardless of whether it's possible or realistic.

And many people exhibit both conditions simultaneously, but it depends on what you're talking about at the moment.

Statists can't imagine any way beyond how it's done now. Or how they mistakenly believe it is done now. "Who will build the roads?" is just one example of this trait.

Statists also have overactive imaginations-- they imagine that government actually builds those roads for example.
They imagine just about anything is permissible if it is "legal".
They imagine "taxation" can be ethical.
They imagine that warlords are lurking under every bush, and they imagine the government they support is somehow different than these imagined warlords in an important way.

As with all things, there's a proper balance. You need to have enough imagination to see beyond what is to what could be. Otherwise, you'll stagnate and die.

But your "could be" needs to be based on what's possible. I know some statists will argue that it's "not possible" to get rid of institutional archation... but that's just a lie. Of course it's possible, but you've got to exercise your imagination to find ways which could work without doing wrong to anyone's liberty, then test them. A lack of balanced imagination could make you give up or seek unicorns.

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Encountering a dangerous lunatic

Suddenly last night the above militaristic anti-gun meme started popping up all over Twitter.  Everyone was filling in the blanks with their own fake credentials and acting as though it gave them credibility on the issue of anti-gunism. (Even though, being "copy and paste" I'd be willing to bet money it was all a lie.)

I responded that it was good that no one needed his permission to have a gun. His reply?

"Little NRA punks like you never have the balls to answer the Fatherland's call"

Honestly, I am still bewildered. I keep looking at that tweet and shaking my head.

Does this guy think this was an insult? Could he really be that delusional? Yes. Yes, he could. How did he imagine it made him look? Well, to the festering boils on his side, I guess he looked like a hero because they liked his reply in droves-- just like a good drone should.

But, seriously. "to answer the Fatherland's call"? What is this guy? Yeah, that's a rhetorical question, because he made perfectly clear what he is.

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You can do it!

I have a dreadful flaw: I consider people more capable than they give themselves credit for being.

I don't believe anyone is so pathetic that they "need" political government or its armed thugs.

Really, for me to concede that you need government or police is the worst insult I can throw at you.

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Rioting is wrong way to protest

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for June 10, 2020)

There's a correct way to protest injustice and there's a wrong way. You may have recently noticed people in several big cities doing it the wrong way. Although, perhaps people pretending to side with the protesters were intentionally making the protesters look bad-- it's hard to know which.

I've been writing about, and opposing, police brutality for years. It's an important topic. When someone commits wrong while using the defense "I was just doing my job", I'm among the first to reject the excuse. Don't hide your contempt for human life behind your job. A badge can't grant extra rights and shouldn't shield bad guys from consequences.

Fighting against a wrongful kidnapping-- whether by a freelance kidnapper or by someone committing the ritual euphemistically called an "arrest"-- is not a legitimate reason to be killed. Any protest triggered by such a death is justified.

However, if your protest targets the wrong people by violating the life, liberty, and property of people who weren't the problem, you are behaving no differently than those you protest.

Rioting is the wrong way to protest. Looting, arson, and vandalism are even worse. Blocking traffic will also turn opinion against you. At that point, you're no longer on the side of justice and I want nothing to do with you. I might agree with every point you are protesting, but I will stand against any rioting or looting. You'll lose your chance to have another person on your side. Multiply this effect by thousands and you might see why it's a bad idea to treat everyone as your enemy. 

Don't harm your own cause. Don't drive people away if you want them to agree with you.

You'll also risk wasting your life by forcing people to defend themselves and their property from you.

Your life matters. Act like it matters to you. To be treated as though your life doesn't matter is wrong, whether or not your treatment is recognized as a crime.

Other people's lives matter, too. For someone to take a life when the death wasn't necessary to defend the life, liberty, or property of innocent victims is wrong even if your job allows it or you believe your cause justifies it.

I have no love for police, but they are no worse than the rioters, vandals, and looters. I won't choose sides in that battle but will stand with those who refuse to violate other people in any way. It's the right thing to do.

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Statist preferences aren't necessarily crazy

... it's just how they want to impose them on everyone else that's crazy.

Some of my personal preferences are the same as the personal preferences of most statists. Like them, I prefer peace, comfort, and safety. I don't like chaos, problems, theft, or aggression.

However, I'm not willing to impose my ideas of peace, comfort, and safety on others by breaking their peace, comfort, and safety.
I realize my ideas of what constitute chaos and problems may not be the same as other people's and I'm not willing to impose my standards on them.
I won't endorse institutionalized theft and aggression in order to combat freelance theft and aggression. Not a chance!

While they believe one form is OK, to the point where they often even deny what they advocate is theft and aggression, I don't.

I don't believe it's possible to throw an orgy to promote chastity. They seem to believe it is. I consider this convincing evidence that statists are delusional.

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Obsolete and decaying before our eyes

Politics is obsolete.
Conservatism/liberalism, Right-Statism/Left-Statism are obsolete.
Statism is obsolete.

Those who continue to live in that world are clinging to an obsolete way to live among others. They are tragic.

Their archaic "system" is rotting before our eyes. It has been failing for 5000+ years, and the decay has accelerated in the past couple of centuries. Yet they keep pretending it's salvageable.

Statists remind me of those pathetic monkey mothers who will carry their dead infant around until it falls apart in their arms. They aren't to be hated, but to be pitied.

It's only when they try to force others to hold the rotting corpse and coo over how beautiful it is that I feel hatred for them. I don't want the diseased corpse in my life or in the lives of those I care about. I don't even want it in the life of anyone I might hate, unless they beg for it. You don't have to give it up, but keep it to yourself.

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Personal Covid-19 updates

If you're interested in following my family's coronavirus adventure, I keep updating the original post: link

All is well, and no further developments. I guess that is all unless something else happens.

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Politics (still) makes people stupid

Politics makes people stupid.

So stupid, in fact, that those engaging in politics can't tell the difference between their old run-of-the-mill obsolete "left vs right", "your side is killing us all" politics and warning people of the dangers of engaging in politics while refusing to engage in politics yourself.

Those are not the same things.

If warning people of the dangers of engaging in politics is politics, then-- to paraphrase a saying from another sphere-- not collecting stamps is a hobby.

They can do what they want. They don't even have to care how stupid it makes them look (or, actually become). It's their life; their choice, but the facts remain the same. They'd be smarter if they paid attention to the facts instead of having a knee-jerk reaction to being called out for ignoring them. No one can force self-awareness on them.

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Mask hysteria

As I've repeatedly said, I'm agnostic on masks. Wear one or don't, I don't care. Even though I usually wear one, I don't get bothered in the slightest by those who don't. Or by those who do. It really doesn't bother me either way. I'm always against "mandatory" anything-- either requiring masks or forbidding them.

Those who equate not wearing a mask to shooting randomly into a crowd are hysterics. Maybe it's more like shooting a marshmallow gun into a crowd of people who have gathered for a marshmallow battle instead of choosing to stay home. Sure, if someone is deathly allergic to marshmallows they might die if hit, but shouldn't those people have stayed home in the first place? Reasonable people aren't going to lose their minds over the perceived risks. But hysterics? Even if this virus is highly contagious, it just isn't that deadly anymore, and it's getting less so as time goes by. Getting the vapors over it is like having a conniption over rain. Yes, rain can kill you, too, and it almost took my house out once, but it's just not that big a threat.

People are also getting bent out of shape over whether or not masks can starve you of oxygen ("cause hypoxia"). They cite tests and quote "experts". I don't need tests, I know what my body is telling me-- too much mask wearing makes my body crave oxygen in many situations. It's just like hiding under the covers in bed when you're a kid trying to hide from monsters (or siblings). You know you'd eventually get low on oxygen and need to come up for air. Masks have the exact same effect.

Maybe it's mainly due to the cloth causing the temperature behind the mask to rise. The warmer the air, the less oxygen it contains in a given volume. It's just the way it works. Only someone religiously devoted to the cult of masks could deny this reality.

As with most things, masks only become a problem when politicized. I'm non-political so I can be more objective about it.

Yes, my dad has the Covid-19 coronavirus. His tests came back positive (I am aware of the false positives, but he is sick with something). Everyone in the family, with few exceptions, has now been exposed. How many of us will come down with symptoms severe enough to be noticed? I don't know. Either way, it's not worth being a jerk over masks. That is just stupid-- it's politics.

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Life on the border

Cars with Texas slave-plates are suddenly unwelcome in New Mexico due to "The Corona". Armed and masked state police are now stopping cars and asking why the occupants are coming into New Mexico.

That's not a huge problem for people who don't have to cross imaginary government lines routinely and who imagine that cops are not a criminal gang, but living on the border like I do makes it a problem for me. I'm less than 7 blocks on the Texas side of the line.

I avoid badge-thugs of any variety if at all possible, so I don't really feel like risking an encounter. Any encounter with a cop is a mortal threat. But everywhere I go on a regular basis is on the New Mexico side of the line. This small town doesn't have many businesses-- there are some real gaps. The closest stuff in Texas is much farther from me than the closest stuff in New Mexico.

But it looks like I'm going to have to deal with the added expense and inconvenience of doing all my business in Texas, since the New Mexico political gang has declared me and others unwelcome on their side of the imaginary line.

Government-- making life harder and more expensive since at least 3000 BC.

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Setting people at each other's throats

Anytime you politicize anything-- by letting government dictates and legislation force a one-size-fits-all path on everyone-- people get angry. And who can really blame them?

People on both sides are likely to flip out instead of being civil and letting people make their own choices.

Then you'll have the clueless ask "why are people so partisan?"

Well, if you didn't threaten people with the guns of the state they wouldn't feel they have to be partisan. It's viewed as necessary for self-defense... by both sides.

If you have a good idea, talk people into going along. And if you can't, let it go. Don't demand "a law". Don't demand stronger enforcement. If your idea relies on either of those your idea is probably garbage and you-- by insisting on government intervention-- are a failure.

I have room in my Being to not try to control other people, even if I think they are doing something stupid. I may say something, but I won't force them to adopt my path. If I think it might harm me, I step back to a safer distance, and I may warn others, as well. I won't try to encourage others to molest you with "laws".

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President Kanye West?

Kanye West can't fix the presidency. Neither can anyone else.

It's not who holds the office that's the problem; it's the existence of the office that's the problem. Along with the existence of the political system which necessitates or enables something like that office.

If the person in the office mattered, you'd want me there. But it's not nice to place anyone into any political office (even if they believe they want it).

If I were inclined to v*te, I'd try to choose whoever I thought would collapse the political system the hardest and the fastest. I'm not sure Kanye would be best for that purpose, and I know Jo, the LP candidate wouldn't be.

At this point, it's difficult to justify dragging the collapse out longer. Or, at least the excuses don't convince me anymore. We'll never be better prepared than we are right now.

Get a chair, pop some popcorn, and watch it all burn.

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Never hurts to make preparations

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for June 3, 2020)

As the panic over coronavirus loses steam, and everyone who isn't a political power junkie gets back to normal, remember the lessons you learned over the past few months.

The virus wasn't as dangerous as the fear-mongers wanted to scare you into believing, but it did kill some people. While it hasn't gone away, it has lost much of its power to frighten people. This is bad news for most politicians.

The virus is likely to surge again this Fall, if not sooner. This may trigger a new cascade of overreactions by politicians and more panic by their followers. Maybe people got smarter from experience and won't fall for the hype this time, but don't bet your life on it. Be ready, just in case.

Remember those supplies you couldn't find in stores? Stock up now. Just a little here and there-- even one extra item each time you shop will help. You may end up wishing you'd stocked up more, but anything will be better than missing the opportunity to get ready when you had the chance.

The preppers weren't the ones to blame for the empty shelves. Those who weren't prepared and went into "panic and hoard" mode caused the trouble.

You might not like the expense of buying extra things you don't need today, yet as long as you only buy things you will eventually use anyway, you won't waste money. In fact, buying in bulk could save you money in the long run. It's worth checking out.

It won't hurt you to be ready, even if the virus doesn't come back.

That's the philosophy behind "prepping". Being prepared isn't going to hurt you, and it could help you. If not during a pandemic, then during a blizzard, water shortage, or power outage. Wouldn't you rather be ready than feel as helpless as you did last time?

Prepare your mind, too. Be ready to reject the fear-mongers next time around. Don't trust them to tell you the truth or to even know the truth. Don't tolerate another round of shut-downs. Don't allow them to make you feel helpless. As I reminded you when this first began, you know best how to protect your own health. Do what you know you need to do. You have the power and the ability. Use it to your advantage.

Maybe we'll be lucky and none of this will be needed, but wouldn't you feel bad if you ignored the warning and got caught unprepared?

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Changing your beliefs

I used to think people could change their beliefs.

I thought if people were presented with better information which showed the flaw in their belief, they would change their belief to fit the new information. I thought the process would be almost automatic.

After all, I've done it many times over the course of my life. I've also seen it happen in people I know. I know from personal experience that it can be done.

Sadly, it seems this isn't as common as I had assumed.

In spite of overwhelming evidence, people still believe cops (and political government) are good and necessary-- or, at least a "necessary evil" [sic]. They fear or hate anarchy without even understanding what it is. They imagine there's such a thing as "too much liberty" and see it as a threat.

No amount of information, logic, or evidence to the contrary will budge them from their belief. They believe it, and that's the end of it.

I realized the problem: even flawed beliefs based on bad information can still "work". It's not as dangerous to hold an erroneous belief as it seems it should be. So, as long as the belief isn't causing them immediate agony or death, it's less painful to hold onto it than to change it.

Therefore, I no longer expect better information to influence anyone, but I still put it out there so they'll have no excuse. And I'll still make fun of them for believing such ridiculous things.

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Coronavirus may have hit home (with updates)

My dad, who is 79, has come down with a fever of 101, feels bad, and has lost his sense of taste. His heart doctor has recommended he head to an emergency room to be checked.

My parents self-quarantined really strictly during the first part of the panic, but-- like everyone else-- they "got over it". I tried to continue to keep my distance from them, but they just stopped going along several weeks ago.

Their church just started having in-house services again a couple of weeks ago, and then yesterday it was reported that the preacher's wife tested positive for Covid-19. So they were going back to online services again, but it may have been too late.

I don't try to control anyone else. I will give my advice and suggestions, but I don't force my ideas on anyone (sometimes this is really hard).

As I've said from the beginning, I'm not panicked over the virus, but I take it seriously. (And, I'm opposed to mandates.)

It may not be coronavirus. With his age and condition, it's a risk no matter what it turns out to be.

Update: I wasn't told the whole story. It may be his heart rather than any virus. (Update 1.1: It wasn't his heart. That seems fine.)

Update 2: 7-9-2020-- As I said in the comments, he did test positive for "The Corona". He's not doing too bad. At least his lungs seem OK; his oxygen level is good. He still has a fever which stays at around 100. And he's napping a lot more than normal and has little energy when he's awake. He did come to the door (we were separated by the length of the garage) yesterday and we talked for a few minutes.
Today his fever went away for a while (without medicine) but came back later.
My mom is still feeling healthy, as is everyone else in the family. Everyone was thoroughly exposed last Friday when my sister and her husband come to town to visit and we all spent the whole day at my parents' house. I'm still feeling fine, too.
We shall see how this plays out.

Update 3: 7-10-2020-- As of today, my mother has symptoms, as does my brother-in-law. That's 2 out of the 8 who were exposed to my dad. I'm expecting this means my sister will probably be getting it, too-- if not from my dad, then from her husband.

Update 4: 7-12-2020-- My dad seems to be doing better. He has more energy and his fever has gone down. My mom still feels the same-- drained after even a little activity. She hasn't been as affected as my dad was, though. My brother-in-law is similar to my mom. Everyone else still seems healthy.

Update 5: 7-13-2020-- My dad is definitely on the mend. Just in time. My mom is worse and is staying in bed. I delivered an oximeter to them at the end of last week, so they are watching their oxygen levels. My dad's is improving; my mom's has stayed good. No news on the b-i-l.

Update 6: 7-17-2020-- My brother-in-law got a Covid test and it came back negative. He got coincidentally sick with something else-- or it was a false negative. My dad's fever has gone away and he's feeling good. My mom is still down, but feeling better. I'm still healthy.

Update 7: 7-20-2020-- Both of my parents have now recovered from Covid-19 and are feeling good. No one else in the family has developed any symptoms.

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"Mandatory" masks and independence

I'm agnostic on face masks-- medical science (real medical science) is unclear on whether they are a net benefit. It's not political for me.

 I'm against "mandatory". Every time. This is how some bad guy makes it political.

I'm told this stance makes me an awful person. I should just do what I'm told. "What's the big deal?" I'm asked. And if I don't do as I'm told, it's OK to fine me. Or kill me if I resist. "It's not violence..." to threaten people with government. Then I was pigeonholed with "some white people", and when I said this was a racist comment, the person suffered cognitive dissonance and babbled a bit.

Happy "Independence Day", in your mandated masks and under your fireworks ban, surrounded by anti-gun government-supremacists who claim they don't understand why you don't simply comply with their plans for you. They hate independence with a passion and most of the population agrees with them.

Added: I went to PlastiCrap World today and while there saw a young couple wearing Guy Fawkes masks. I told them I had thought about wearing mine during the mask mandate. I probably would if it weren't for the fact that glasses don't work with it and I kind of need to be able to see.

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"The slippery slope" mischaracterized

One example of the mischaracterization that I talked about yesterday is Scott Adams* and his automatic mischaracterization of "the slippery slope".

He says there is no such thing as the slippery slope because "nothing continues forever". Things only continue until they meet enough resistance to stop them. Fair enough.

However, no one claims that the slippery slope has to continue forever; only that it has to continue far enough to hit certain intolerable levels. To become worse than the current situation. That something stops at that level because it has become intolerable isn't a solution. Not when it shouldn't have begun at all. Anti-gun legislation being a perfect example. No amount of "gun control" is ethical or OK. I am not worried that it will continue forever until guns are nonexistent and can't be re-invented, I'm angry that it went too far the first time some perverted power-mad anti-gun bigot imposed the first anti-weapons policy.

The slippery slope is real, even though it can't continue forever. It doesn't need to continue forever to be a real problem. It's vital to prevent the slippage from ever beginning.

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*It's always interesting to me to see how an intelligent person mischaracterizes things they don't like to try to make them seem wrong and to make it seem smart to be on the other side.
It's discouraging to notice how often it works.

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Liberty-- mischaracterized by its enemies

Enemies of liberty-- and of all the various parts of liberty-- mischaracterize it. Every time. They have to. It's their only path forward. They can't be honest in their criticism or they have no point to argue about.

Frequently, their argument is actually against freedom, which can be bad depending on what you want to do. So they argue against unlimited freedom, carefully avoiding the topic of liberty, which is freedom tempered with responsibility, since this lets the air out of their scary balloon.

Even if you exercise your liberty to the fullest, you will not violate any other person's rights. Not ever. Any fear-mongering to the contrary is based on mischaracterizing liberty. Perhaps out of ignorance, but perhaps out of a desire to enslave you. They look the same.

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