Liberty Lines, July 3, 2014

(Published in The State Line Tribune, Farwell, TX/Texico, NM)

I can't believe the arrogance of those who decide to give themselves more power over the lives of people they previously had no "authority" over.

Some people choose to live beyond city limits in order to enjoy a little extra freedom from the intrusive and meddlesome rules that towns are known to make up out of thin air (usually "justified" by "health and safety") and enforce.

Extending a town's jurisdiction in this way is a betrayal, no matter what "state law" may allow. It's really no different than Canada suddenly deciding to control what people in Montana can do on their own property. Sure, governments jealously guard their own tax cows, and Montanans are already claimed, and well milked, by several different levels of government, but people choose to not live under more government than they want for a reason. This status quo is like a truce- live and let live. This proposed expansion of "jurisdiction" is a violation of that implicit truce.

Take a hard look at those pushing for this expansion of government intrusion. Never believe them if they claim to be for "limited government" while seeking to expand government control in such a large way. You now know exactly what they are and how they see you.

Does this mean the Farwell police department is admitting there isn't enough actual, real trouble in Farwell proper to keep them busy, so they feel a need to extend their territory? If so, cut back on employees, put the remainder on part time, and refund the savings to the residents. I can "police" myself- as can almost every other person in town. And together, without any "official help", we can keep the actual aggressors and property violators in line- apparently unless they hold political office or draw their pay from the tax loot.

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Mike Pomper- In last week's Border Banter you wrote "us homies cannot do a blasted thing about" all the new federal regulations which will be imposed on us in the near future. Sure we can! We choose whether to obey or not. I realize you may not want to be an outlaw, but you had better get over it. Soon, all the decent people will be outlaws. Maybe "soon" is already here.

In "Atlas Shrugged", Ayn Rand wrote "There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws." That time is upon us. It's interesting how applicable that quote is to the first part of my column as well.

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Don't crawl in bed with the bad guys and it won't rub off on you

Government is strictly forbidden by the Second Amendment from making up rules regarding guns. Period. That's what "shall not be infringed" means, even though government employees lie about it.

That means courthouses, post offices, cities, and Washington, District of Creeps can't legitimately (or legally) regulate guns in any way. Not without becoming criminals (yeah, I mean in even more ways).

But I think it also means that anyone who gets in bed with government can't either. And, by that I mean those who give up their private business to become a corporation, with government perks and benefits, have given up more than they realize. Those "benefits" have a downside.

(That may even have implications for Hobby Lobby's latest win. Are they really private property, or are they in bed with government/incorporated and therefore seeking to have their cake and eat it, too? And, no, I don't believe anyone is "entitled" to have anyone else pay for their healthcare.)

There's a simple way to avoid this and make up all the anti-liberty rules your little heart longs for: don't prostitute yourself (and not in a good, honest way) and your business by becoming a corporation. Yes, that has drawbacks, but you can't have it both ways. Either you are a free market business and make up all your own rules, or you become a quasi-governmental corporation and have to abide by the rules you willingly signed on for. What? You didn't think that was part of the deal?

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Great minds think alike

So many times I'll be writing something and run across someone else's writings that parallel what I have been thinking and writing.

Or, I will publish something only to have someone else tell me they have been writing about the same topic.

I'm sure events probably trigger thoughts that tend to lead in similar directions to people who reject the institutionalization of theft and aggression. But maybe it's more than that.

Maybe "great minds" just tend to think alike.

We are all endlessly repeating and exploring- and discovering- the same concepts over and over. And that's OK. In fact, it's probably essential. To get an idea into your brain it helps to hear it over and over, and hearing it from multiple sources probably helps even more. Universal truth doesn't get diluted by being presented by lots of people. It gets reinforced.

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History? Their-story.

I have almost no interest in history as it relates to what governments and their militaries did. That's a club I have never belonged to, so their "history" isn't mine.

That's why history in school was so dreadfully boring to me.

The history I am more interested in is what normal people did while simply living. Yes, some of what they did was in reaction to governments, but that's polluted history. Not the real stuff.

I enjoy dabbling in the ways they lived. I have hundreds of thousands of years of human history to experience. Why just focus on the worst bits and the worst thugs and pretend that's the "important part"?

And why limit myself to this current time when choosing what to wear and what to do? Pick and choose the best history has to offer.

The past is deep. Jump in.

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Auction: The very last "Time's Up" shirt

I'm down to the last "Time's Up" T-shirt, so I took it off the website and have listed it on eBay.

If you wanted one, this is probably your very last chance- at least for this design (the Gadsden and Culpeper modified design).

So, if you are interested, Check it out here.

Terrorize the bad guys

Are you a "terrorist"? And, by that I mean do you strike terror into the hearts of bad guys?

I must be a terrorist because I have seen fear in the eyes of bad guys on a few occasions when I went up against them- or more accurately, when they pushed where I wasn't willing to go.

Some weren't smart (or observant) enough to be scared. They never knew how close things came to getting really ugly. (And, no, I'm not foolish enough to imagine the outcome was assured.)

I am no threat to those who are not initiating force or violating property, so obviously anyone who considers me a "terrorist" must be doing something really wrong.

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Statist losers and their desperation

Now, not all statists are necessarily "losers"- some are. Some libertarians are, too. It's a human thing. But sometimes....Oh, the comments my CNJ columns attract... Here's what some statists resort to when they have nothing else:

Statist Tax-Addict Commenter

It's easy to be a freedom loving libertarian when you live in your parent's basement.

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  Me
  

  My parents don't have a basement. They are welcome to come to my house and use my cellar in the event of a tornado, though. Statists are such sore losers. LOL

  
  
• Statist Tax-Addict Commenter

  I heard different. At what age did you move out?

  
  
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  Me
  

  Not that it is any of your business, but just after my 22nd birthday. Decades ago, in other words.
  
  And, it wouldn't matter regardless.
  
  Do you reject scientific discoveries if you disapprove of where the person lives when they make the discovery? Truth is truth, and rejecting theft and coercion is still the only ethical way to live, no matter who espouses it, or where they live. Just like theft and coercion are still evil no matter how you believe you are justifying it with "necessity" or a "job".
  
  I know lots of freedom-loving libertarians, and have never concerned myself with what their living situation might be. Just like I have never considered where a statist lives as relevant to the debate. I don't need to worry about pointless things like that, because the statist ideas are so deeply flawed and self-contradictory it gives plenty of *real* ammo against their position. But it's a pathetic attempt I see dredged up over and over by statists. It's just a diversion to try to find something irrelevant in order to try to discredit liberty, since there's no real foundation with which to attack it. It's a tactic of desperation pursued by people who know deep down that they have no leg to stand on. Can't argue with the truth, so let's find a way to attack those telling it. As if it somehow gives their position credence.
  
  Now, supposed "libertarians" who advocate aggression or theft ("taxation" of any sort, as an example, even a "flat tax") are the ones discrediting themselves, because they are not living up to what they claim to believe.
  
  I suppose I could also point out that statists who don't go around robbing their neighbors (in person, I mean, not just by supporting "taxation") and attacking or kidnapping innocent people are also failing to live up to what they say they believe in, since there is no difference in doing those things in person or by proxy through the State/government. Evil is evil.

  
  

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You'll know them by their badges

The badge.

Every time a cop pins one of those metal trinkets on his chest, he is aligning himself with the State and against you. It's no different than when Nazis wore swastikas to show where their allegiance lay.

A badge is the moral and ethical equivalent of a swastika. Those disgusting trinkets should be known as "badgstikas".

Someday, soon, they may be seen in the same light by more than just me.

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Rattling the tin cup

I'm changing this into my generic "I could sure use some donations or subscriptions" post. So, if I have linked to this, it is a quiet request.

Any updated information is below:

I'm sure someone has a few thou$and sitting around they were just gonna toss in a bonfire, but started thinking "How else might I dispose of this stuff?", right? Well, now that you asked...

If you have the desire and the ability* to donate, click on the button over there on the right side.

Thanks!

*And, as always, please DON'T donate anything you can put to better use! Seriously!

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Why "they" can't win

Even if "they" manage to criminalize every liberty, and ban and confiscate every gun in the right hands (yours and mine, not "theirs"), "they" still haven't won.

Because at that point I am perfectly willing to kill a government employee to take his guns and fight for my life, liberty, and property. Maybe not at that precise moment, but it will then become a legitimate path for each and every person to take. Not just on a whim- there may still be better and smarter ways to act at that moment- but if I find myself backed into a corner, and see no better option... yes, I'm willing.

I will also support anyone else doing the same- even if it's before I am forced to act.

And I know there is nothing "wrong" with doing that even now, although it is usually a foolish, suicidal choice.

As long as some of us accept this terrible responsibility, "they" can not win. Not ever. And don't kid yourself- it IS a responsibility. You can accept it, or you can deny it, fear it, and try to hide from it, but you can't change it.

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The cost is too high

If people choose to destroy their own lives with drug abuse, that is their right. The War on Politically Incorrect Drugs is often "justified" by the fact that drug abusers don't just destroy their own lives, but the lives of innocent people around them, too.

Well, guess what- so does the War on Politically Incorrect Drugs.

People who were doing nothing wrong are murdered in their homes by drug enforcers showing up at the wrong address. Or the "right" address when no one there is even accused of initiating force or violating private property in any way.

If those in favor of prohibition were honest they would have to see that those deaths cancel out any supposed benefit of the War on Politically Incorrect Drugs saving the innocent victims of drug abusers. If. But they aren't honest.

Nope. They'll start pulling out numbers and statistics. None of those numbers matter to an innocent baby or grandmother who just happens to be unfortunate enough to become one more number or statistic.

Drug abuse isn't smart. Using your addiction or habit as an excuse for violating people or their property is wrong. Harming an innocent is tragic and incurs a debt you probably can't afford. But the drug war is even worse. In that case innocent people are harmed and it's just "Oh, well. That's the world we live in. It's worth it to fight this plague." No, it isn't.

Support for prohibition is wrong. It's evil. It's disgusting.

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Politicians useless, irrelevant

Politicians useless, irrelevant

(My Clovis News Journal column for May 23, 2014. I can actually say the headline which was written for this one is much more harsh than the tone of my column was intended to be.)

Many people are terribly obsessed over what a tiny minority of rather unimportant and silly people are doing. It would be funny if it didn't waste so much life. So much time and space is taken up by the news media discussing them, and so much time is spent by individuals debating which one is best, which one is worst, who they like and who they hate, and who did what to whom.

No, I'm not talking about Miley, Kanye, or the cosmetically altered Star Trek aliens (oh, wait, that's Kardashian, not Cardassian), although those celebrities are silly and unimportant too. The unimportant people I speak of are politicians. Yet serious people laugh at those who are consumed with celebrities while acting as though those who follow the political realm are more high-minded. It's two sides of the same corroded zinc penny.

I understand why people pay attention to politicians. Somehow things have gotten twisted around upside down and backward so any ill-advised notion which gets into a politician's head can wind up written down somewhere and enforced as though it were law- but nothing which violates human liberty can ever be a real law. Of those real laws, there are only three: don't use force against someone who didn't strike first; don't violate other people's property; do what you say you'll do. Anything else can't be a law, but only a made up rule. It's "mala prohibitum"- which means the prohibited action or thing is not wrong, it's just illegal.

I suppose this unearned power is why people hang on every word politicians utter, and why they pay attention to the ridiculous things they do.

You don't need politicians- they need you. If you stop paying attention to them, stop letting them shrink the boundaries of your life with their silly law tantrums, and start living your Rightful Liberty to its fullest- just as the founders of America intended- you'll quickly see how irrelevant they truly are.

When enough people stop consenting and stop complying, the support will be pulled out from under their feet and the politicians will tumble right over the cliff, like a giant statue topples when the sand supporting its foundation sifts away. This is why they work so hard to fool you into believing they are important to your life and without them society would collapse. If you ever see through the lie you'll have taken away every last scrap of their power.

One of my fondest wishes for you is that you'll eventually see them for what they really are, and in that moment, take back your authority over your life.
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Misguided fears

Are you scared of Muslims? Wake up! (And I hate hearing or saying "wake up!")

Cops and their religion of officer safety, combined with "I don't make the laws, I just enforce them", are much more dangerous to you, personally, than the vast majority of Muslims will ever be.

You will probably never even personally see a dangerously radical Muslim, but how many dangerously radical cops do you run across in a day? You don't know, but since they are all wearing the visible gang symbols- the badge and uniform- you had better assume they have chosen to stand against you.

It frustrates me that people will rant endlessly about some threat from people they'll never encounter, while worshiping the brutal thugs they see every single day.

Worry about defanging the real and present threat, then we can move on to things that are less likely. And, make sure no religious notions are EVER allowed to become "law" or to be otherwise imposed by "government" and the threat shrinks even further- down to as close to nothing as is possible in this imperfect Universe.

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L. Neil, you magnificent ... thinker. ;)

To anyone who knows how to look, what's heartbreakingly obvious—and more painful to me than I can possibly express—is that we, the United States of America, have, by fits and starts, become the very evil that we have always believed we were fighting. Our young soldiers are invaders, villains, no matter how they look or sound, not heroes or liberators, as they claim—or it is claimed for them. By any objective standard, they are being killed by people trying to protect their property, their rights, and the way that they choose to live their lives, no matter how repulsive and abhorrent that may seem to us.

My only quibble is that there is no "we", I am NOT a part of this and it isn't being done on my behalf, and "the United States of America" exists only in certain minds.

I recommend you go read the whole thing in this week's issue of The Libertarian Enterprise.

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"Freedom? Here, let me take that for you."

There are psychological defects that go along with becoming a politician. First of all they think everything is theirs to control and use. And they also think every human activity needs to be regulated.

Just look at this article for example: Commissioner considering land use policy

"Lack of zoning and other regulations have meant that Curry County has little control over what is imposed within its limits."

Yeah, heaven forbid there's a little bit of freedom you perverts haven't yet outlawed.

And, what was that back up there in the first two paragraphs?

"Curry County has little control over what is imposed within its limits."  "...help the county achieve more jurisdiction over its land."

Oh no, the land isn't "its (Curry County's) land" that you seek to violate through control- it belongs to the individual owners, ONLY. Hands (and "laws") off!

But, it's about "protecting" you- or at least the local power-grabbers:

"A land use policy, Bostwick said, can help give an area some protection from federal regulations — of particular concern are those regulations that pertain to the Endangered Species Act or the Environmental Protection Agency."

So, in the name of protecting residents from the feds, you steal more false "authority" for yourselves.

What's worse: the tyrant thousands of miles away whom you can ignore without him even noticing (unless some slimy local statist wants to report you for a chance at a pat on the head), or the tyrant next door who can drive past your property every day?

"A land use policy would also allow the county control over businesses, though Bostwick insists the renewed interest has nothing to do with a recently proposed strip club."

Sure...

"A land use policy allows officials to designate an area’s best use."

"Best use"? Determined by who? Not the property's owners, I am certain. What if your idea of "best use" is wrong, and yet you impose your will on me anyway, when my idea would be better? Or just as good. What if the reality is that there are many different equally good possible uses for a piece of land? Or what if I, as the owner, want to use it in a way you don't consider "best"? Well, in that case you should jump off a bridge into molten lava instead of imposing your will on the property owner.

"There are zoning opportunities in the land use policy,"

"Opportunities"? Does that mean he sees every woman as a "raping opportunity" or every car as a "theft opportunity"? That is only exciting to a control freak.

"Bostwick and Pyle said it will be the residents of Curry County who would have to help determine what the county’s best use actually is under a land use policy."

That's still socialism. Crowdsourcing evil is still evil. I have no more "right" to say what my neighbor does on his own property than does a dictator.

"We’re going to engage the public."

Is that like asking your victim if she'd prefer to be beheaded or drawn and quartered? What if "the public" just says "No!"? 

Interesting word, "engage". In war, the soldiers often say they are going to "engage the enemy"- so I guess "the public" should understand how they are viewed by these control freaks.

So, yeah, just look at how these people think. They are entitled to your property- Oh, they'll still let you "own" it so they can keep collecting the ransom ("property tax"), but the ultimate control, they believe, is theirs.

I think a wake up call for all molesters of this sort is long overdue.

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The inconsistency of statism

Almost everyone, libertarian or not, agrees it is wrong to initiate force.

In case you don't understand the term "initiate force" it means to be the first one to throw a punch. To be the attacker. The aggressor. To be the one who "starts it" by the physical act of "laying on of hands"- or making a credible threat to do so. If someone is calling you names, and you punch him, you are the bad guy. Sorry.

Where some people disagree with libertarians is that they realize it is wrong to initiate force, but they believe they can carve out an exception for people calling themselves "government". Whether that individual is a cop, or in the military, or whatever.

The only way that could be OK is if you have the right to initiate force, and you loan that authority to someone else. But you don't have that right. You can't give away what isn't yours to give. No one, calling themselves "government" or anything else, can have any rights or authority that everyone else doesn't possess.

You have the right to defend yourself. You have the right to defend your property. So does every other person on the planet, regardless of circumstances, "job", location, past, anything.

You do not have the right to point your finger at anyone else and say they can't carry a gun, smoke a leaf, grow some plants, keep a wolf in their living room, drive their own car without getting a license from you, live anywhere they can buy or rent a house, build a house on their own property, travel across property that doesn't belong to you, etc. Since you don't have those rights or that authority, you can't pretend to give someone else those powers on your behalf. And you most certainly can't pretend you give them those powers on MY behalf. I DO NOT consent!!

This is the problem with statism: the blatant inconsistency inherent to it. Consistency doesn't necessarily mean you are right- you can be consistently wrong- but inconsistency is a sure sign you are wrong.

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Money Hate!

In various posts around the internet I witness a lot of hostility against money. Why?

Do people believe that in a world/society/civilization without money they can end up on top of the heap? They can be the new "rich"? Or that everyone will finally be perfectly "equal", economically?

So, I have some questions and observations for money haters:

How do you plan to buy food if the guy who has what you want to eat, doesn't need what you have to trade? Money won't go away because it is what makes trade convenient and easy.

People who don't understand money make it out to be this magical, mysterious Unknown (and generally their enemy), but it isn't. It is simply having something in your pocket that is almost universally accepted in trade for what you want. That's it.

 If you can come up with a way to facilitate trade without "money", you will have invented money. 

A "Resource Based Economy" ("RBE") can supplement money, but never totally replace it. In fact, I see the RBE as making a different type of money. When you assign some "trade value" to something you produce or take, you are making up "money". Unless I can just bake a cupcake and trade it for a new car...

There is no ethical difference between trading beans, goats, shoes, or gold for a cow, but there is a practical difference. I might not need a cow's worth of beans or shoes right now, but if you pay me with money, I can buy shoes, beans, and whatever else I need when I need them. I don't have to try to keep up with who owes me what, if I only needed 1/100 cow of beans this week, but traded you the whole cow anyway.

Money is an awesome innovation that won't go away just because you don't understand it and therefore fear or hate it.

It doesn't bother me if you want to live without money. Personally, I love to trade. I just don't understand the hostility toward people who choose to continue to use money, too. I suspect I would continue to be broke in either system, since I seem to not be producing what many others want- and money or not, that is the root of the problem. I think both ways could happily coexist alongside one another. But, please, don't hate on money- it just showcases your ignorance.

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Killing cops

Yes, I know that is a "provocative" headline.

I got tagged on a post on facebook, about how some libertarians are soiling the "movement" by not condemning the death of those Las Vegas cops shot while eating pizza.

It quickly devolved into people trying to put words in other people's mouths, so I summarized my thoughts:

I would not ever walk up to a cop who was simply eating a pizza and shoot him in the head. I don't know whether it is his first day on the "job", and if so he might still be innocent of committing enforcement and theft. [added: but he would still be guilty of being a cop- there are many layers here.]

However, I will never be sad over the death of any cop- by any means. Bad guys kill bad guys all the time. It's one of the biggest risks of choosing to be a bad guy. It's not my responsibility to stop the bad guys from killing each other- I also don't grieve when cops kill armed robbers or kidnappers.

But, then, a bizarre tangient developed where some were criticizing the self defense killing of any aggressor, and equating it with vigilantism (which I have always condemned in no uncertain terms), so I stated:

Killing someone- anyone- who is currently aggressing/stealing is not wrong- you may quibble about "proportional response" as long as you aren't the target of the aggressor, but I won't second guess your split second decision after the fact. 

I really don't know what else to say about it. You can put words in my mouth or twist what I have written to make me look evil- that's your choice. 

Don't physically attack me or violate my property and you'll never have anything to worry about as far as I'm concerned.

But, I will say again: there are no "good cops"; any encounter with a cop is potentially deadly. You never know what will trigger a cop to go off on you and result in your death. Lethal defense is often justified- even if not "wise". Currently it is mostly "criminals", who have nothing to lose, who recognize the reality of their situation, but as cops make more people feel they have nothing to lose, that will change. And no one will be to blame but the cops.

If you have the ability, check out the link to the Facebook post. I guarantee you will learn... something.

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Get out there and do something Anarchic

It has come back around again, just as happens every year at this time. Yep, it's time for those Random Acts of Anarchy: Anarchy Day.

Have fun.

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Government shouldn’t ID for anything

Government shouldn’t ID for anything

(My Clovis News Journal column for May 16, 2014)

The arguments in favor of requiring a photo ID to vote- specifically, I assume, a photo ID issued from some governmental "authority"- center around the assertion that you don't want people voting who aren't entitled to vote.

However, if voting is to have any legitimacy, which is highly debatable, it must be available to anyone and everyone who would be affected by the results. An ID showing the citizenship status of the pictured individual has no bearing on whether a person will be affected by a "law" or the election-winning politician's actions.

You might justify a "your papers, please" law by pointing out in the current society a person is expected to produce government-issue photo ID to do business with a bank, buy alcoholic beverages, buy a gun, or drive a car. Some enforcers even seem to be under the impression ID is required before you are allowed to walk or merely take up space in the USA in the year 2014.

Sure, that is the case, but government shouldn't be allowed to require ID for any of those things.

If a bank wants photo ID before letting you open an account or cash a check, without any prodding by, or data sharing with, any branch of government, that's fine.

If an alcohol retailer or bar wants to see your ID before selling you what you wish to buy, all on their own without any "laws" forcing them to ask, that's their business.

If a gun store clerk insists on seeing your ID before selling you a gun, as long as it's the owner's idea alone, and he isn't being pressured to collect any data on his customers, and isn't informing anyone of who bought what, the burden is on him alone.

Until roads are privately owned there is absolutely no excuse for photo IDs being required for driving. This is a blatant violation of the fundamental human right to travel unmolested, and violates the Ninth Amendment to the Constitution.

On the other hand, elections are strictly a government dog and pony show, so I suppose they can make up whatever restrictive rules they want to. Those rules might include picture IDs, poll taxes, or a loyalty test before being allowed to vote.

I'm not in favor of voting in any case. Liberty can never be subject to a vote. Numbers or majorities can't make wrong right. Nor can "common good", "social contracts", "safety", or overwhelming "need".

Do I want enemies of liberty electing their politicians who'll impose anti-liberty laws? No, but it's been happening that way since long before I was born. I don't expect photo ID requirements to change anything there.
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Anti-gun, pro-cop extremism

Recently, in a discussion about police and guns, the other person said

"Police are needed to corral the evil. Because it is out there. High school dropouts wielding deadly power (keeping and bearing arms)... not a good thing."

Well, there are certainly a lot of assumptions in that.

Police are not "needed"- not for anything. They can't "corral the evil" because they are the most blatant example of the evil among us. Yes, evil is "out there". It always has been and always will be. Police are not the solution.

The biggest result of allowing them to clutter society is to make all bad guys much safer. This is because they enforce so many "laws" against self-defense and defense of property. Of course, cops and freelance thugs have so much in common that to make it dangerous for "bad guys" to operate also makes it dangerous for cops. Too bad.

Then, to assume that "high school dropouts" are somehow unworthy to defend themselves... I don't even know what to say. School is indoctrination. It ruins the mind and is the opposite of education. Dropping out can be the wisest decision when faced with that truth. Cops who graduated high school are not "better" than people who dropped out and have kept honest jobs their whole life. (Cops get all their money from theft, you know.) It's not the person, it is the act. And having the ability to use deadly power is morally neutral. It can be good when used in defense or it can be evil when used for aggression- as it usually is by cops.

Having the ability to use deadly power- which isn't exclusive to guns, by the way- is not good or bad. The way you choose to use that deadly power (which everyone always possesses anyway, regardless) is all that matters.

It's why the anti-gun advocates, and the pro-cop extremists, are wrong. This time and every time.

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Stupid isn't necessarily wrong

Society and "authorities" have muddled right and wrong really badly.

It's wrong to initiate force, to violate the property of others, and to break your word (within reason).

Most of what religion and government- and those unduly influenced by either- claim to be wrong, isn't. Much of it is merely stupid.

What sorts of things might be considered stupid by lots of people under some circumstances? Drug abuse. Promiscuous sex. Early teen pregnancy. All those things that do not harm any third person but might possibly harm the person doing them.

People had gotten used to being punished by "authorities" for doing wrong, but "authorities" wanted even more control. Stupid- when it didn't come with immediate negative consequences- wasn't easy to enforce against people, so authorities convinced people that stupid was the same as wrong, then punished them.

And "they" are still doing it. Maybe I should add "letting them get away with it for so many centuries" to the list of stupid things people do.

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400,000

According to Blogger's count, I just went over 400,000 "all time views" for this blog.

I know that's not many compared to other, more important, blogs. But, it's still got that "round numbers" thing going for it, so I think it's kinda cool. I wonder if I'll ever make it to 1,000,000. LOL

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Aggression isn't the only wrong

The Zero Aggression Principle (ZAP) is essential, but not sufficient.

Theft is a separate wrong from aggression- but of course it often comes hand in hand with aggression.

The ZAP deals with a violation of your person and theft deals with a violation of your property. There are more violations of your property than just theft- there is trespassing or damage to your property, or even just preventing you from using your property the way you want to use it.

I have seen a lot of people justify fraud by claiming "stupid people deserve what they get", but in my mind, if I don't want it done to me, I won't do it to others. I would feel bad about myself for defrauding others- it would damage me, so I won't do it. I do consider fraud a kind of theft, but one divorced from aggression. But, as I say, aggression isn't the only wrong.

The reason I believe it is right to defend your (non-bodily) property with force is that you "spent" some of your life in acquiring that property- you used up some of you. A person stealing your property is taking a part of your life- part you can't ever get back and could have used in other ways if you had known you were only going to have that part go to waste when it was stolen (or damaged etc.).

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Tax addicts vs. the rest of us

Who is doing more? The person who runs for city council or the person who lives by ZAP and minds his own business?

This comes to mind because of two particular things, a "life of service" and the obsession of the mainstream media with government.

I get a "highlights" email from the CNJ- which is usually composed of 3 items each from the CNJ and PNT (sometimes they overlap), and I was just looking at the most recent issue (when I wrote this), and all 5 items (one was repeated for both papers) were about government or its employees. That is disturbing.

It shows how important some people believe these parasites to be.

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Just how free are you?

You are as free as you dare to be.

There will be consequences, of course, just as there are for anything. But in the next moment you can choose to do anything that is physically possible. "Laws" can't affect your freedom; only you (and the realities of the physical Universe) can.

Your liberty is similar. You can choose to do absolutely anything which doesn't violate the identical and equal rights of anyone else- and you have the right to do so.

Of course, enemies of freedom and liberty will be trying to catch and punish you. Bad guys have always been around, and they always will be. Currently, most of the worst of them call themselves government, but they are no different than the thugs of any other era. They don't want you to be free (even if they claim their "system" is "the freest on Earth" LOL), and they certainly don't want you exercising your Rightful Liberty.

Defy them if you want to.

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A "tread on me" timeline

You were warned to not tread on me.

But collectivists have been treading on Rightful Liberty since the beginning. And, no, collectivism doesn't include "humanity", "civility", or "reason", but is the opposite of those. Democracy is mob rule, so yeah, I can see that.

I tried being nice and letting you collectivists know Time's Up. 

But, you collectivists must have a death wish. Not my problem.

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Take back (the meaning of) Liberty!

Where did this nonsense "'Liberty' means 'license'; 'permission'" come from?

Oh, right- from the world's biggest enemy of liberty: government. Particularly from the military's intentional misuse of the word.

It's the same as the enemies of liberty changing the peaceful, voluntary nature of "anarchy" and making it mean (in brainwashed minds, anyway) "death and destruction".

If "they" can fool you into not understanding what a word means, they won't have to worry about what you think- because they will have gotten inside your head to steer your thoughts. You'll not be able to think outside the definition they approved. Or, it will be much harder and you'll need to come up with other words where "old" ones were perfectly fine.

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Springtime fun on the Llano Estacado

Springtime fun on the Llano Estacado

(My Clovis News Journal column for May 9, 2014)

The recent "slightly stronger than average" winds wreaked havoc at my house. My only tree- a big ugly elm with which I had expressed displeasure only 24 hours earlier- decided to fall and tried to take my carport down with it. It was only partially successful.

Within minutes help arrived and the worst of the mess was being cleaned up. I had friends, family, and a stranger who just happened to drive by, all pitching in to get the situation under control. The street in front of my house wasn't even blocked for too long. I'm not sure how all those helpful folks had planned to spend their Sunday afternoon, but I'm pretty sure their plans didn't include helping me cut up a big tree in the midst of face scouring, eye-irritating, teeth-coating, ear-filling dirt and sand.

Contrary to the assumptions of those who dismiss the libertarian philosophy of Voluntaryism, I didn't have to threaten, force, or bribe a single person to help me. It was total anarchy- and I mean that in the proper sense of the word: no one giving orders or using coercion. Just regular people pitching in to help; applying their knowledge, skills, and common sense to a situation- and solving it.

It's not the first time I have been involved in a similar work party.

Even though I would prefer to have avoided the wind damage, I enjoy the almost festive atmosphere that spontaneously erupts when people come together to tackle a problem. It's a satisfying kind of fun.

Throughout it all I never saw any representative of local government. Neither to lend a hand nor to dole out fines or warnings for having my tree block a "public roadway". How would we ever survive without their guidance? Just fine, thank you.

"Sure, but this was only small-scale" you might say. Sorry to disappoint the skeptics, but this is how the world always goes 'round. And I'm glad of it. Countries don't do anything, individual people do. Whether it's helping a neighbor, or being tricked into conducting war against other individuals who are being manipulated by officials of a foreign "government".

I admit that I didn't seek permits, check the "laws", or ask permission of anyone in "authority" before doing what needed to be done. I didn't try to discover whether the EPA had declared the downed tree a critical habitat, or see if the local "authorities" insisted I follow procedure before commencing. Because: "Freedom and Liberty!"

I didn't even officially report the individuals I watched "steal" (or so they apparently believed) some of the cut up tree- I wish they had taken it all.

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Pseudo-racism

It's not "racist" to hate things that are associated (by some people) with a particular "race"- because nothing is really race-dependant. It's culture dependent.

Things like baggy pants sagging below the butt.

Things like NASCAR.

Things like gun ownership.

Things like eating dogs.

Because anyone of any "race", not just the "race"which comes to your mind, could do those things.

You can still hate the behavior, if you want. You can think the culture that values or promotes the thing you think is stupid is ridiculous or "inferior". You can think it's the dumbest thing ever. But don't start pointing fingers at people, just because they are of a particular "race", who aren't doing those things. They may think it's as stupid as you do.

Or people of a "race" not normally associated with that behavior may love it, too.

And others probably think something you do is offensively stupid.

Fortunately, it's not about stupid things other (possibly stupid) people do; it's about initiating force or violating private property. Everything else is just a distraction.

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So... cops...

Yes,  I hate cops. Cops are cowards who cry "Officer safety", when what they are really showing is Officer paranoia. There are No "good cops", but there are some "Nice" cops. Cops are making the explicit choice to be molesters.

No, I haven't really had any bad experiences with cops. At least, nothing too horrible. There have been the usual experiences. But why wait until then? I haven't been murdered and I still know murder is wrong.

And, yes, I have sat down with cops and I have socialized with some. Still, cops are scum. All of them.

I realize cops sometimes save lives. So do farmers, street peddlers, and hamster breeders, sometimes.

Cops are members of an aggressive gang, no better than any other gang of bullies. You can't be a good person and remain "good" while supporting cops. It simply isn't possible; you are being inconsistent if you try.

What you need to realize is that "cop" isn't a person; "policing" is a set of behaviors which involve violating life, liberty, and property. A person can go from being a bad guy (cop) to a good guy in one instant by quitting the gang and never again initiating force or violating property rights- and then I'll have no problem with him. (He may still owe restitution for past offenses, however.)

Of course, as long as there are copsuckers who refuse to see or speak the truth, they'll keep insisting that cops are special and "necessary"...

Or, as Keith Hamburger put it on Facebook recently:

There is an armed gang stalking the streets of America. Festooned in blue and/or black costumes, wearing costume jewelry denoting their affiliations and rank. Brazenly going wherever they please, always armed with at least a sidearm, often staging home invasions with military weapons and grenades. They regularly position snipers with high powered rifles to help protect one another when carrying out their nefarious deeds. This gang regularly gets away with robbery, assault, sexual assault and even murder, using their affiliations with the judicial system to ensure they virtually never face the consequences of their actions. Look around you, it is certain that this gang is highly active and highly visible in your community.

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"Do something" and never mind about the consequences!

Recently I encountered a bizarre saying- one that was chilling in its implications:

"Get up, go out, do something even if it's wrong."

What? Why?

Is this a manifestation of that old delusion that you always must be "doing something" or else you are worthless?

Doing something wrong is worse- much worse- than doing nothing at all. It's even worse than neglecting to do the right thing, in my mind. It is more wrong to shove someone in front of a train than to neglect to save him.

Yet, there are people out there among us who apparently think it's so important to "do something" that it doesn't matter if they do evil. I will try to stay far away from those people!

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The "law-abiding" lie

Any time a politician, a LEO, or a copsucking organization qualifies something they say by prefixing it with "law-abiding"- and especially when they add "citizen"- you know they are lying. The term is utterly without meaning.

First of all, no one is "law-abiding", no matter what they believe.

Secondly, you can go from (supposedly) "law-abiding" to a "criminal" in the blink of a politician's eye. All that takes is for him to make up a new rule.

So, when a police chief or a sheriff says they "support the right of law-abiding citizens" to own and to carry firearms, what are they really saying?

They are saying that if the "law" says you can't carry a gun, you are not "law-abiding" if you do, so they'll not support you.

They are saying that if the "law" suddenly changes to outlaw some of your guns, and you don't immediately turn them in, you are no longer "law-abiding" and are fair game to be killed for lack of compliance.

They are saying your rights depend on permission slips from government bureaucrats, and your "citizenship" status.

They are saying that your rights hinge on what others decide.

They are liars and thugs. Your rights don't depend on "laws", nor on "citizenship". They are immutable. Anyone trying to violate you by using the vile words "law-abiding" is not a friend of liberty.

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Tattoos, with "parental permission"?

The question was whether children who have parental permission should be allowed to get tattoos.

WITH PARENTAL PERMISSION!

The majority of commenters still said "no".

My comment was:

Who has the supposed "authority" to tell parents and kids (in other words, other self-owning people) what they can do tattoo-wise? How did they get that "authority" and where would it have come from?

So, a guy took offense at that apparently radical opinion and asked:

... is there anything in this world that you think might possibly be wrong or is it just open season for any and every act committed against another human being. animal, plant etc....?

I replied:

So, acknowledging that I have no authority over other peoples' lives means I don't think anything is wrong, and I advocate "open season"?`Using aggression against people is wrong. Violating private property rights is wrong. I also believe you should do all you say you'll do ("keep your word").
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLUSWhtPOEo

He responded:

Where do you draw the line Kent and by what authority do you decide where the line should be drawn?

And my answer:

I outlined the "line" above. And I don't claim any authority- that would be those trying to make up rules they want to force everyone else to obey.

Truthfully, I don't even like tattoos very much, but I'm not delusional enough to believe I have the right to dictate to other people about things that can't possibly harm me or any other third person in any way.

And so it goes... check out the other comments at the link if you have a Facebook account and can see them. I seriously have a very hard time understanding how some statists "think".

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Someone else made another comment after posting his opinion to the negative:

Why do people want to mess up what our Wonderful Loving Father In Heaven Has Made???????????????????????

So, I guess that would rule out planting flower gardens, surgery to correct a heart defect, or wearing clothes. Sigh.

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Your shrinking opportunities to be "law abiding"

Law pollution gets worse daily.

The sphere of being "law abiding"* is getting smaller and smaller.

"Sometimes to do the right thing, you have to break a law." ~ Edward Snowden

"Sometimes"? Almost all the time anymore. But that's only a problem if you don't want to be an outlaw. Why would anyone care about that anymore? That you have to break "laws" to do the right thing says nothing bad about you, but exposes those idiots and evil monsters who are responsible for all the "laws"- and those evil monsters who enforce them.

Bad "laws"? Break 'em.

You are already a criminal "in the eyes of the Law", whether you like it or not.

It doesn't bother me at all.

Resolve to not initiate force and don't steal or otherwise violate private property and you are already doing better than anyone who is imposing those "laws" on you.

Then, just perhaps, it won't bother you, either.

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*I'll have more to say about that disgusting term another day. Update: here it is

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Drunken driving fixes abound

Drunken driving fixes abound

(My Clovis News Journal column for May 2, 2014)

I hate drunk driving- and the "checkpoints" and patrols excused as attempts to stop it.

The legalistic approaches inevitably violate the rights of all other drivers while trying to catch some of the guilty. The rights violations increase out of proportion to the "success" of combating "drunk driving".

A much better solution would be to prevent the drunk driving from happening in the first place, while leaving everyone else alone.

Don't think it's possible?

I believe that the stigma attached to driving drunk has done more to keep people from driving drunk than the draconian enforcement that is so popular with big-government advocates. With "laws" the guilty always believe "I won't get caught", but you can't as easily escape your own shame. Obviously, this doesn't work with everyone because some people don't listen to their conscience.

There will always be those who slip through the cracks and there will always be tragedies. There is no Utopia. However, there are ways to approach the problem, using reality and human nature as your guide, to reach a better place than anything possible along the current path.

Eventually self-driving cars will make "drunk driving" a moot point. You can't be driving drunk if you aren't driving- some enforcement blunders to the contrary. Until that happens, collision avoidance systems could become standard to reduce the risk for everyone, even beyond the drunk driving issue.

What else might help?

-End zoning "laws" which keep bars out of neighborhoods so drinkers won't "need" to drive.

-Allow home delivery of alcoholic beverages.

-Don't penalize people for realizing they are too drunk to drive and deciding to sleep it off in their car or walk home.

-Don't ration "taxi licenses", and let anyone with a car or rickshaw be hired to haul people around for money.

-Set up a charity that rewards known "drunks" for not driving when they have been drinking (the charity would decide what sort of proof they want).

-Remove the incentives for cops to arrest every drunk instead of simply driving them home (without their car, obviously).

I'm sure others can think of more ideas that reduce the impaired drivers' likelihood of driving, while not violating anyone's rights.

When everything fails and someone is harmed by a drunk driver, restitution (or self defense if harm is imminent) becomes appropriate. Since restitution is a punishment rather than a preventative measure, it is less helpful.

These suggestions won't be popular with those who simply hate alcohol and never want to see, or hear of, anyone drinking, but for those who actually want to make things better, they should make some sense and be a starting point for real solutions.
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"Deserter!"

So, the "prisoner of war" purchased in exchange for other prisoners of war (sounds like "human trafficking" to me) turns out to be a "deserter".

They used to call them "run-away slaves".

If you can't quit and walk away, you are a slave. And those who would heap scorn on you for trying to escape your slavemaster are supporters of slavery, along with the worst of the same from history.

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Fame? Success?

I don't want to be famous- I want to be successful. Only... I'm not quite sure how I would define "success" for myself.

When I see my Time's Up flag design used in places completely unrelated to me, often completely unexpectedly from sources who don't have a clue who I am or that I came up with the design, I feel a sense of success.

When I get donations, or get a check in the mail for my newspaper columns, I feel somewhat successful.

When I get supportive emails- and sometimes even when I get hate mail- I feel like I am succeeding. Not that I enjoy the hate mail...

When I run across someone quoting something I have written- whether it is attributed to me or not- I feel a warm glow of success. My words are having an impact!

So, perhaps my standards are rather low.

But, when I try to imagine what "real success" would be, I am not sure. It is hard to imagine more success than I have so far found- maybe actually being able to afford a car again might qualify, but it's not all about the money. (Much to the dismay of some people around me.) I think it has a lot to do with how I feel about myself- whether I think I am doing all I can to promote liberty and making people hunger for it, and making the world a better place. And, I think I am doing that in the best way I know how right now- while always looking for better ways. So, yeah, I do feel somewhat successful.

Thank you for helping!

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Boundaries enforced by the power-crazed

In an exchange online with a relative of mine, over the "necessity" (or lack thereof) of cops, she made this comment: "Ever been around a toddler without any boundaries? ... Society, to me, is similar to a toddler."

I replied that what she is advocating is putting some toddlers in charge of the other toddlers, and that this won't ever work well.

It reminds me of the Robert LeFevre quote:

"If men are good, you don't need government; if men are evil or ambivalent, you don't dare have one."

Just where do supporters of cops think the police recruits come from, if not from among the rest of the individuals in "society"? And just how do they believe cops are "better" than the "society" from which they come?

If cops are "good" enough to do the right thing, then so are the majority of people, and since "we" vastly outnumber the bad guys, "we" don't need cops.

However, the sad truth is that cops and freelance bad guys share the same kind of personality, as multiple studies have discovered. They are much worse- less ethical and more prone to aggression- than most people. The power and illusion of "authority" that goes with the "job" attracts psychopaths who see the "job" as an opportunity to molest you without much risk of facing real consequences.

So, yeah, lets give them power and bow to their imagined "authority" to set and enforce our "boundaries"- and see how it works out.

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Emotions drive away reason

Is there any issue that makes you get really emotional?

I'm sure there is- and that should be a warning to you. Emotional issues are difficult to think rationally about. Maybe even impossible.

Almost everyone has been hurt, emotionally, in some way.

I have had dear friends murdered by people using a gun as their tool of death. Should my emotions at losing my friends override my rational brain and cause me to advocate against gun ownership? That does seem to be the standard reaction.

I hate litter so much I can almost lose reason when I see it. Do I support "laws" against litter? No. If your litter ends up on my property, I may consider you a trespasser of sorts, but that is for me to deal with. Advocating for more "laws" will only litter my world worse.

Other people's emotional triggers can be things like rape, drunk driving, or protecting the helpless or damaged.

This seems to be one of the "buts" that trip up many people. Coercive government and its "laws" are wrong, "but I'll support the government's enforcement against [emotional issue] because I hate it!"

That plays right into the bad guys' hands.

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Take the first step

People are always saying they want to fix this or that, but they are rarely willing to take the first step. If you really love and understand liberty, and you want there to be more of it, and a safer environment in which to live it, then there is a first step: Abolish police- replace them with nothing. Or at least stop thinking of cops as "good" and "necessary", and begin seeing them as the standing army you were warned about, and as the gravest threat to your individual liberty.

Sure, you can exercise your liberty now, with the police/bad guys all around you. There will always be bad guys trying to violate you in one way or another- if you are scared to live in liberty now, you'll probably always find an excuse.

But... cops are "special" in that they are mistaken for "the good guys" by so many of your friends, family, and neighbors. If you fight back when they come to molest you- or worse- most of the people around you will blindly think of you as the problem. Do what you can to solve that mental glitch, and the war will be half won.

Cops are where the boot-heel meets the face. There is no excuse for them. Abolish police and replace them with nothing.

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What kind are you?

What "kind" of libertarian am I? The "me" kind, I guess.

Thick, thin, brutalist, bleeding heart... I don't try to figure out which I am because I don't care. I don't even bother keeping up with the debates about it. It seems a very silly distraction, and a dangerous way to divide people.

Follow the ZAP, and don't violate private property. Do that and you are a libertarian. Don't do that and you're not.

Beyond that: be nice, but that doesn't make you libertarian or not- it just keeps you from being an insufferable @ss#ole.

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So, you're already against the next war?

Congratulations.

I'm already ignoring the next president.   

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Violating individual rights inexcusable

Violating individual rights inexcusable

(My Clovis News Journal column for April 25, 2014.)

I've seen some amusing illustrations going around the internet showing 1920s era prohibition enforcers, or their freelance supporters, smashing barrels of stolen "contraband" alcohol. The photos compare and contrast the earlier alcohol Prohibition with the current drug prohibition. The caption reads "Imagine how silly you'll look in ten years".

Silly, yes, but that's not the worst of it. It's much more serious than that.

In fact, just like the slave traders and those who enforced fugitive slave laws of the 19th century, the current prohibitionists will also eventually look downright evil to practically everyone. It may not be ten years, but it will happen.

Brave drug warriors in the same category as vile human traffickers? How is that possible? Because the "laws" they enforce are no more legitimate than the "laws" that made escaping slavery illegal. You can't excuse a violation of individual rights no matter how many "laws" you pass or how long you get away with enforcing those "laws".

In the name of health and safety, the earlier prohibitionists added poison to alcohol and killed thousands of people; around 50,000 died as a direct result of the government's unpublicized poisoning program. Many more were blinded or paralyzed. Actually, prohibitionists are still poisoning alcohol for the same perverted reason- that's what "denatured" means. Their crusade also created a culture of organized crime, and brought about police corruption that is still pervasive, and getting worse, in America today.

In the name of health and safety the current prohibitionists kill uncountable numbers, enslave many times more than that, and trample the rights and liberty of each and every one of us. Their crusade has fostered gang violence and a culture of police brutality. There is almost no part of the Constitution which hasn't been violated in the name of fighting the War on (Politically Incorrect) Drugs. This war is actually a war on Americans and their Rightful Liberty.

It's disturbing how many believe it's worth it.

When slavery was legal the excuse against abolition was often phrased as "But without slaves how will the cotton be picked?" Today it is "Without drug laws, who will protect society from drug users?" Well, if it is really necessary (which the experience of Portugal shows as a lie), then you'll just have to find a way which doesn't use made up rules which violate the human right of self determination. Prohibition, just like slavery, is an idea whose time has passed.

Why is opposing prohibition so important to me? Because it is the main justification for the police state which endangers liberty today. On a daily basis prohibition may even be worse than the war on terror.
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Statism is all about inconsistency

All forms of statism are based on granting exceptions to some people at some times. They are not consistent.

Murder is wrong...unless you are a cop and can claim you just wanted to make it home at the end of your shift. So, statists grant the murderous cop an exemption while he's "on duty". His victim "deserved" it, you know.

Theft is wrong...unless you call it "taxation" and let some people take what isn't theirs while in the performance of their "job". How else can government afford to keep running (and ruining) our lives?

Kicking in someone's door while they sleep is wrong... unless you are an enforcer looking for scary little plants or chemicals. Or guns. Then, as long as you are doing the home invasion "on the job", you get an exemption for doing wrong- oh, you can't call it "wrong" either. And if the residents of the house manage to blow your worthless brains right back out the door, they get kidnapped and called murderers. So, even the defenders in this case get an exemption, but it's a bad one. They are told they are exempted from Natural Law and that they have no right to defend themselves from aggressors.

Statism is based on illegitimate exemptions, granted- or forced upon- some people in some circumstances. Consistency is statism's silver bullet- something it just can't abide.

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A Government Day message

The foam on the sewage

Sure, I hate all cops, but some I hate more than others.

I hate traffic cops the most because almost every encounter I have ever had with cops involved them. Most cops won't "engage" you unless you call them- or someone else calls them on you. They are fairly easy to avoid in most cases.

Not so with those who prey on travelers.

There are innumerable ways you can attract their unwanted attention. Drive too fast, too slow, or "too cautiously". Don't stop "enough" at stop signs. Have something about your car that gets them excited about robbing you- and then maybe even finding an excuse to murder you while they think up other ways to violate you.

So, while I applaud the deaths of those badgethugs who kick in doors in the middle of the night while looking for "drugs", I am just as happy about the deaths of those who get justice while robbing and molesting travelers. Bad guys need to pay a price for their acts.

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Extreme? Hardly

It amuses me when liberal/progressives get up in arms over Tea Party folks (whom they often call "Teabaggers"*). They act like those guys are so extreme.

But the truth is they are just barely- almost imperceptibly- "different" than the rest of the mainstream DemoCRAPublicans.

Just imagine if those upset "progressives" discovered the rest of us who are actually "radical" and thought we were a threat. They'd get the vapors, for sure!

-

*I don't get this either- why do the liberals use a term associated with homosexual behavior as an insult? Isn't that like claiming there's something wrong with it? It's like me insulting someone by calling them a "Shooter", a "pothead", or, yes, "gay".

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Helping others

I want to help people. That led to my presidential campaign. It is also part of the reason I eventually rejected politics. It is why I write now. And it is why I live by the ZAP- the best way to help often begins by not making things worse.

I want to be the best I can be. I'll always keep looking for more ways I can help.

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Bend over and be serviced good and hard

A recent story I read was praising a mother and her daughter for both pursuing "careers" with government; one in the military and the other as a cop. It claimed they had a "legacy of service".

Ha!

A government "job" is not "service"; it is a drain on society. Parasitism.

Want to serve people? Get a real job where people have a choice to use your service, or not, and every cent you are paid is given voluntarily instead of being collected at gunpoint.

It is so tragic that people mistake this kind of thing with "service" and doing good, when it is the polar opposite. I guess government school is succeeding in dumbing people down where they believe this nonsense and stumble over each other in the rush to honor their violators.

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Walmart beggars... and me

Is my asking for donations just like someone sitting at an intersection with a "will write for money" sign?

Because, to me, it often feels that way. (Not that I could stop writing anyway.)

Every entrance and exit at the local Walmart is usually occupied by someone holding a sign asking for money. I also know someone who works there who says those same people come in and buy alcoholic beverages as soon as they collect enough- although one guy did buy a sleeping bag once because he said his was stolen.

And one of her co-workers' adult offspring also sit there with their signs. Even though they actually have a home in town, their signs often give the impression they are traveling and ran out of money.

One guy even sits there with a gas can.

You'll see the same person trying different signs on different days; I guess that's "A/B Testing".

As long as they aren't holding a gun (or threatening to do so) against people's heads, I am not too bothered by the begging. Although it would be nice if they were honest about their situations and what they are spending the money on. I actually used to give money to some people like this, even suspecting they would just buy booze- but knowing too many of the behind the scenes stories has made me lose sympathy for the Walmart beggars.

I don't want to be seen as being too much like them, either.

So I try to provide something in exchange for the donations, and I try to not ask unless things get really sticky. This is my job, such as it is. And, if I ever ask and you want to tell me exactly what you think of my request, I don't delete any comments, so everyone could see what you have to say on the matter. I hope it seems like a "fair" deal.

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Liberty maximizes prosperity

Liberty maximizes prosperity

(My Clovis News Journal column for April 18, 2014)

Many times over the years I have been asked some variation of the question "I don't understand; what is it you want?"

Well, what is it most humans want?

I think most of us want health, safety, and prosperity- let's call this combination "happiness"- for ourselves and our loved ones. I want the same things! Since there's no disagreement there, what we have is a common goal.

Like most goals, it can probably never be achieved perfectly in every way, but should serve as a North Star to let you know whether you are moving in the right direction or not. The question comes down to "How best to get there?"; which system works best for moving relentlessly toward your goal.

Your choice is between self determination and being controlled by someone else. Can I trust myself and my decisions to get what I want or should I trust someone else's judgment and decisions? It's a matter of "Do It Yourself" or rely on others to do it for you.

Not everyone is an expert chef, yet just about everyone manages their meals just fine, and if you prefer to leave your food preparation to someone else- a professional, perhaps- it is no one's business but your own. However, just because you prefer to hand off your food preparation responsibilities to others doesn't give you any right to demand everyone else follow your example.

The same goes for every other aspect of life.

Liberty- the absolute right to do anything which doesn't violate the life, liberty, or property of anyone else- is the best system ever discovered for allowing each and every individual to maximize his own health, safety, and prosperity. It even leaves enough left over so you can help others who might be having trouble of their own.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has helped out when I had an abundance and the opportunity presented itself.

But government, that anti-social institution, always gets in the way. It's a vehicle used by those with the most influence to force you to do everything the way they prefer you do it, regardless of your wishes or the more accurate information you may be operating under. It takes away choice and volition and replaces it with fiat.

There are a few people who benefit from this arrangement: those who work for the government and those who are utterly dependent upon it due to refusing to take responsibility for themselves. I don't know about you, but I don't think it's a good idea to let the most dysfunctional people in a society have a say in how I live my life.
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An honest monument to government

So, Oklahoma's "Statehouse" is getting a new Satanic monument.

Seems redundant to me.

A "statehouse" is already a Satanic monument. So is a capitol building, a courthouse, a DMV office, or any other government building. Even a library or a zoo run by government is. And I love libraries and zoos.

But theft isn't ever the right thing to do. Not even if you really, really want something.

Now, I don't really know enough about Satanism to say whether it advocates theft or aggression- I am just playing off the common perceptions here to make a point. And I might be wrong about details of the religion. Government is something we all know advocates theft and aggression, so it may be the only actual evil here, in which case the Satanists should reconsider whether they really want to be associated with such a place.

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Whose news?

The "mainstream media", those outlets that people often look to for "the news", are not telling you the truth. They are telling a skewed version of the truth, which may not be exactly false, but it isn't really true, either.

I know, that's not "news" to you.

Even most of those which allow a lone libertarian (or other) voice of truth only do so to appear "balanced" or "fair". Or as a curiosity. The rest of what they spread is simply government-approved propaganda which various government employees want placed into your mind. It saves them work to allow a government employee to hand them their "news" rather than working for it themselves, or to only think what they are told to think about an issue the State is involved in. If nothing else, options (and opinions) are limited.

So, while they may allow an opinion to be shared that points out government is nothing but theft and aggression, the bulk of their daily message is that government is normal, necessary, and good- as long as it is done right by the "right people" in "the right way". It's the vast majority of what they print and broadcast- government did this, official spokescritter said this, etc.

It's difficult to counter that constant drumbeat.

The "journalists" are propping up the very evil they should be exposing. It's like the exterminator feeding the rats in your house. Possibly for much the same reason.

A free society would not have as much opportunity for the "mainstream media" to feed- things would go too smoothly for their comfort. So, by propping up The State they can be assured of a constant supply of scandal and trouble. The exterminator feeding the rats instead of killing them is protecting his market- just like the "journalist" who keeps preaching subliminal (or open) support for The State.

Plus, most journalists seem to be government extremists, themselves. It's an incestuous relationship, but you and I are the ones getting screwed.

Now, I realize that truth isn't popular. When the majority of people have been trained to clap and perform tricks for The State- and have been made psychologically dependent on its continuation, and sometimes physically dependent on its handouts- they don't want to hear that they are supporting a systemic evil. They want to feel good about themselves. Anything or anyone that exposes them to reality will be hated and vilified.

But truth is needed anyway.

And that's where the internet comes in, to fill the holes. Sure, you have to keep your brain engaged. There is probably even more deceptive content on the internet than on TV, radio, and in newspapers and news magazines. But YOU control what you are exposed to this way. And you can talk back. Please do.

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Death to cops?

A couple of days ago I got into a discussion with a cop on Facebook. He took it personally that I pointed out that any honest depiction of cops will seem like a "slam" to those who believe there are "good cops".

Among the various comments he made was that I gloat over the deaths of cops who are just trying to make life better and safer by catching people who don't "act as they should". (Yeah, I'll ignore the numerous falsehoods, faulty premises, and outright delusions in that assertion for now.)

It's not just cops.

When I hear of the death of anyone engaged in aggression or theft I count it as a win for each and every individual who makes up society. If a cop can do his "job" without becoming an aggressor or thief I will not gloat if he dies "in the line of duty". If not- good riddance to bad trash.

The problem is that even that cop on Facebook knows that simply isn't possible. He knows he's a bad guy- he just expects others to pretend otherwise and worship him and his "brothers" based upon their imaginary "necessity".

Not gonna happen from this end.

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