Statist on Exhibition

I realize this blog post is from a long time ago, but someone recently posted it on Facebook and I made the mistake of reading it.

(I wonder if its author is the same doofus who made a similar comment to me a few days back.)

Anyway, after reading the painfully ignorant post I was thinking to myself "Can statists really be this stupid?"... and the answer, obviously, is yes. Yes they can.

Just one example of the absurdity from the post "...[The Philosophy of Liberty video] illustrates libertarianism with abstract stick figures representing people devoid of race, gender, and historical context."

Well, yeah, because "we libertarians", as opposed to the author, aren't racist, or sexist, nor do we seek to blame and punish people for things they didn't do- such as things done by their long-dead ancestors centuries before the people you would punish for the acts (or their grandparents) were even born.

In other words, I am not an insane bully.

The author spends a lot of time hand-wringing over the rights violations of the past. Yes, slavery of the forcibly imported Africans (or anyone), and the genocide of the aboriginal North American people (or anyone) were wrong. Guess what- no one living today participated in either of those things.

Statist author is upset that "For most American libertarians, if the government taxes rich white Americans, it is theft, but if rich white Americans stole African American labor, time, energy, and talent, it happened a long time ago and accounts should be cleared."

"Taxation" of anyone ever, in any amount, is theft and is wrong. Period.

Stealing labor (which is exactly what "taxation" does, too) from anyone, by any individual, under any pretext, by any name is always wrong. But if you can't make it right since all the thieves and their victims are dead and have been for many years, you really should "clear" the "accounts".

What would the statist suggest instead? Punish people for things they didn't do?

If the author's grandfather murdered someone before he ever had children, and got away with it, should we put Statist Blogger on death row today for the grandfather's violation? I'll assume here that the grandfather's survival and subsequent reproduction "enriched" the author's life in some way- either through existence, property which wouldn't have otherwise been inherited, or just from a family not broken by the imprisonment or execution of a father/grandfather.

And, even in the case of "taxation" being extorted from people (both rich and poor, by the way) in the past - it's the past. There is no possibility of really repairing past damage this long after it occurred. Get over it- and don't do it again.

The past is gone. You and I will never know the whole story (or even more than a few highlights which may or may not even be accurate)- and "minor" details can make a huge difference.

Yes, there is a time when the slate has to be wiped clean and a "from this point forward, never again" path needs to be followed.

My brain hurts from exposure to this level of hypocrisy and inconsistency. I wonder if the author still believes what was written in that post.

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Legal tender

A while back I ordered a couple of Aurum 1/10 gram gold "bills". Very pretty! And I like the idea.

One thing that jumped out at me as I examined one is the statement printed thereon: "Not legal tender".

The first thing I thought was "Obviously! This has actual value!"

Then I got to thinking "Is this a warning or a promise?"

What is legal tender and why would I prefer it?

Well, the definition linked above says that back in the 1730s "legal tender" meant "currency that may be lawfully tendered in payment of a debt". Notice the word "may". Sounds nice and voluntary. I have no problem with that.

Unfortunately, the current definitions all include coercion: "Legally valid currency that may be offered in payment of a debt and that a creditor must accept" and "currency in specified denominations that a creditor must by law accept in redemption of a debt". Note the addition of the rude word "must".

I don't know about you, but my thinking has always been that if you feel the need to use coercion to get people to go along, your idea probably isn't a very good one.

Sure, I'll accept "legal tender" as long as it's around, but I'm always happy to accept money that avoids the "legal tender" trap. It's the polite alternative.

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Pardon me...

Next week I have to make a trip to The Big City for my daughter's doctor appointment. It's not anything too major, but they will be taking blood*, and it would be kinda nice if I had a few extra dollars to spend while there- she's not going to enjoy the appointment ( an understatement)
So, if anyone feels like tossing a small donation my way, it would be appreciated. As I say, this isn't a critical need or anything, so please don't feel bad if you ignore this message.

Thanks.

(* Trying to solve the mystery of her seemingly constant infections of one sort or another- the tentative diagnosis is an IgA deficiency.)
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Liberty Lines- March 6, 2014

The headline in the State Line Tribune says "Texas primary election on tap". Wow! I never thought of it that way before, but I can't argue with the accuracy.

That particular tap is better left alone. Like beer, elections can be addictive and are apparently very intoxicating. When it comes to voting, those deepest into the keg look down upon those who stay sober, sometimes to the point of virulent hatred.

Maybe a careful vote here and there won't really hurt anyone, but each vote makes it easier to do the next time. You forget to only vote against new State power, which can possibly be excused, and end up voting for this or that new "law" or puppetician. For many people, moderation is impossible.

You make excuses about why you drink... I mean, vote so much, saying you need to. It makes you feel better or gives you a sense of importance.

You quickly develop a taste for it, and before you know it you are lying in the gutter with Democrapublicans, incoherently mumbling about "next time".

The current situation, which is what people often say they are voting against, is a result of people voting for those people and "laws" which they believe will control their neighbors, and their enemies, the way they'd prefer. How has that worked out? With everyone subject to innumerable violations of their Rightful Liberty, in every area imaginable, each and every day. The only "winners" are those who do the controlling or profit from the inevitable enforcement and bureaucratic leviathan.

As is often pointed out, it is insanity to keep doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.

Why not try something different? Mind your own life and stop trying to find people and "laws" to control others on your behalf. You'll be amazed at how empowering and liberating that can be.
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Not all opinions are equally valid

I have said it before, and I will say it again: not all opinions are equally valid.

Yeah, I know... this isn't a "nice" thing to say in this era of "everyone is entitled to their own opinion...". Yes, they are. That doesn't automatically make their opinions valid in any way, though. You (and I) are completely within your (or "our") rights to be dead wrong. It also doesn't mean I am required to pretend all opinions are on equal footing.

It may hurt someone's feelings when their opinion that "taxation isn't theft", or that "there need to be reasonable restrictions on guns" is laughed at due to the fact it isn't a valid opinion, but the truth is still the truth, and the truth has no room for feelings.

If it is "necessary", in your opinion, to violate the fundamental human rights of others- for "the children", the "common good", or whatever- your opinion isn't valid. It doesn't matter how many justifications you can come up with. It doesn't matter how passionately you defend it. It doesn't matter how important it is to you, how much you believe it, or who agrees with you. It doesn't matter if you have the numbers on your side to impose your opinions on others in the form of "law"- that just makes you dangerously wrong.

I realize that dismissing your opinions on this basis isn't likely to make you like me, or get you to change your mind. That is why, in casual conversation, I'm not going to burst into laughter when you express one of those empty opinions you hold dear. But, eventually, it comes down to this: opinions which, if put into action, would violate the life, liberty, or property of others are not valid, and if they are put into action or made "law", they may have to be defended against. Violently.

Weigh your opinions and examine them in the harsh light of liberty. And toss them in the trash heap if they don't measure up. You'll be better off.

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Knee-jerk reaction not a solution

Knee-jerk reaction not a solution

(My Clovis News Journal column for January 31, 2014)

How frequently people do the wrong thing for the right reasons.

It is right to care about people who hurt themselves or others through substance abuse. It is wrong to impose prohibition in an attempt to save people from themselves or others.

It is right to care about innocent victims of random violence. It is wrong to impose anti-gun rules which can only affect those who aren't the problem.

Not only is the knee jerk reaction- passing another law or more draconian enforcement of the rules already "on the books"- wrong, it almost always has an effect opposite the one advertised.

Prohibition is the federal government's "narcotics price support program", as well as the biggest excuse for violating every principle America was founded upon; as is the sad continuation of the 1920s-era prohibition: the anti-"drunk driving" rules and police state-style "checkpoints". You can have America, or you can have prohibition. You can't have both.

The same goes for anti-gun rules. Some leftists complain that the reality that criminals aren't affected because they don't obey laws anyway- by definition- shouldn't invalidate anti-gun proposals, but "should" or not, it does.

Anti-gun laws only harm those who have no intention of breaking laws, and would therefore not go on a murder spree to begin with. Advocating, passing, and enforcing those anti-liberty laws only empowers the bad guys.

This is the danger of doing the wrong thing with good intentions. Assuming the intentions are truly good, which is only speculation based upon giving the benefit of the doubt.

You can also do the right thing for the wrong reasons. The recent push for "state's rights" is one example. States have no rights; only individuals do. However, anything which diminishes the federal government's power will most likely boost individual liberty in the long run.

The re-legalization of marijuana which is slowly gaining momentum around the world is another example. It's wrong to fine or arrest people for possessing or using a plant, so anything that results in fewer drug war victims is a good thing, even if the new tax revenues are a stain on the good.

The liberalization of concealed carry, and open carry, rules is another cause for some optimism. The Bill of Rights is the law of the land, so anyone supporting any "law" concerning guns, including the issuing of permits for something which "shall not be infringed", is a criminal. But, even this diluted liberty results in more dangerous conditions for the aggressors among us, and that is a net benefit.
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Backward priorities

Would you want to see your son die saving the life of a dog? Not unless you love the dog more than you love your son. 

What if the dog were an imaginary dog? 

If you would be happy to see your kid join the military- which always includes the possibility of death or dismemberment- then you love the government (not "America", or "our nation") more than you love your kid. And what's worse is government really only exists in your mind. It's an imaginary dog.

The only thing your kid could die for, while in military "service", is the US government. That's the nebulous entity whose interests he or she is protecting and promoting. Not mine, yours, or any other individual's. Well, maybe the president's or most congressvermin's, so no worthy individual. 

Even if your kid dies saving the lives of fellow military members, the politicians benefit- you have saved "government property" as far as they are concerned, and promoted the idea that being in the military is somehow "heroic".

Do you really want your son or daughter to sacrifice life or limb- or mental health- for any politician?

If so, and you encourage them to join the military, or at least not try to dissuade them from joining, then you would sacrifice your child's life for a dog, or the illusion of a dog. Why do you love the State more than your kid?

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Obstacles

Which is more caring: to give a needy person stolen goods, or to remove the obstacles which are keeping them in need?

Even if they are happy that you gave them the stolen goods, or even if you give them a gift of something you got honestly, it's a temporary fix. The same old obstacles will still be there, preventing them from taking care of themselves.

I realize most people manage to do OK even with the obstacles- and the State parasites prosper specifically because of the obstacles they impose against everyone else- but for people on the margins those obstacles can be just enough to keep them from making it on their own. And the margins are growing.

Charity is great, and sometimes the need is so immediate there is no other way to get the help to where it is needed fast enough, but if you have the ability to remove some obstacle, or at least stop propping it up with your acquiescence- or show a person a way around it which doesn't result in them sitting in a cage- doing so is the best kind of charity there is. That will keep on paying off over time, and will benefit everyone.

I happen to think a great way of removing those obstacles is to stop propping up the state with borrowed legitimacy. Stop acting as though its "laws" are necessary, and those who "break" them are bad. Stop asking permission to do what you have a right to do. Stop complying- at least when there isn't a gun pointed at your head. Stop speaking of the State, its employees, and its "laws" as though they have any claim on your life, liberty, property, or time. Point and laugh at the anti-liberty bigots and control freaks every time you notice them- and stop noticing out of habit. Don't bother flipping off cops sitting in wait to rob unsuspecting travelers- that keeps them in your mind. Take note to avoid, and forget. Oh, and flash your headlights at the oncoming cars.

Yeah, I know some of these things may be somewhat contradictory. That's because there is no "only way" to stop helping the State hurt others.

The end of the State's false authority would mean people can take care of themselves without worrying about artificial obstacles- the real, natural obstacles are often bad enough. What would you be doing today if there were no State preventing you by threat of death; only the consequences of violating Natural Law and Rightful Liberty? I think I'd be taking people on survival walks, letting them learn simple techniques for making life better with primitive methods in a relaxed setting without pressure (I had a friend who made a lot of money doing this until The State shut him down to sell his "license" to someone "better connected"). Or, maybe I'd be selling guns out of my living room.

I think just about everyone would be doing better under liberty. (Other than those who can't survive honestly and have always relied on the State- either for welfare or "jobs".)

And then, when there is still a need, do what you can to help.

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Yay, Bitcoin!!

Love it, hate it, or simply USE it, Bitcoin just gained a bit of favor in my eyes, regardless of its current trade value.

When a disgusting congressvermin calls Bitcoin (or anything else) "dangerous", I know it has value. If only to frighten the control freaks and other anti-liberty bigots.

Yep. I like Bitcoin even MORE now.

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Self Ownership

Yes, in spite of any claims to the contrary I own myself and my life.

Ownership of anything includes the right to damage or destroy that which you own. I could harm myself (although I'm not "Emo" and not generally inclined to do so), and I could destroy myself through suicide if the pain of living became more than I could bear. I can also rent out my self- my mind or my body- for a time, if that is what I wish to do. Maybe I could even sell myself, but if I did that, whatever I got in return for myself would then in actuality belong once again to my new "owner", where it came from originally, which means I didn't really get anything for the sale, so I'm not really sold after all, which all seems untenable.

Recently in a thread somewhere I mentioned that "sovereign citizen" is a contradictory condition, since we are all sovereign- self owning- and a citizen is claimed by some State. You may quibble over that assertion, but that's not the main point.

Someone came back with: "You cannot OWN yourself as you are not property. You cannot be divided without ceasing to exist."

Hmmm. "Then how can you donate a kidney?"

He replied that: "A kidney is not a division of YOU. It is simply a part of you. Divide your acre. You get two half acres. Both are land. In your example you have YOU and a Kidney after the donation."

That seems a complicated distortion/contortion to me. A division is, by definition, a "part".

If I divide a car in half, neither half remains a "car". If I divide a raw egg in half, neither half is an "egg". If I take my cell phone apart, none of the constituent parts now qualify as a cell phone. But all of those were property before the division, and continue to be property- albeit, somewhat less useful property- after the division.

If I chop myself in half, neither half is a person anymore.

If I take a seat out of my car, I now have a car and a seat. If I take the back off my cell phone, I now have a cell phone and a back panel. Just like if I donate a kidney, there now exists myself and a kidney.

I am perfectly comfortable being "property" which belongs to the consciousness I identify as "me", which resides inside the brain/body, making the whole, which understands that no one else can own me. Call that what you will- self ownership or something else.

Added: I just found this video by Josie the (Awesome!) Outlaw: Who Owns You?

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Doing the "heavy lifting"

Sometimes, after finding myself to be the only one who posts a comment from the liberty-respecting side, and being piled on by statists, I'll get a little grumpy.  I'll think to myself "Of course statism gets a pass. Liberty lovers don't stand up and offer the alternative when the opportunity is presented."

So statism seems normal and natural; an unquestioned assumption, for most people. Government schools are just one example.

But, then if I draw attention to the problem others will chime in. Of course they do, because liberty lovers are smart and awesome!

I shouldn't even be feeling that silly initial irritation, because I do realize that everyone sees different things that "need" commenting on- I know I miss 99.99999999% (a guess- it might be much higher) of the statist stuff out there to be seen. Stuff on which others probably wish they had some help defending liberty. No one has time for it all- or we'd all be slaves to defending liberty in internet comments. And any kind of slavery is still slavery.

Simply living free, without initiating force or theft is the most powerful pro-liberty commentary there is. That's The Important Thing. Internet comments are nothing compared to that.

So, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for doing the hard work of defending liberty however you do it, wherever you are, in ways obvious and subtle, whether anyone else ever notices or not. You are improving the quality of my life with your efforts.

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Don't be a bully!

A friend sent me this helpful information from a government website:

Signs a Child is Bullying Others

Kids may be bullying others if they:

• Get into physical or verbal fights
• Have friends who bully others
• Are increasingly aggressive
• Get sent to the principal’s office or to detention frequently
• Have unexplained extra money or new belongings
• Blame others for their problems
• Don’t accept responsibility for their actions
• Are competitive and worry about their reputation or popularity

Watch out for kids who act like that! The government says those kids are probably bullies and .... hey, wait a minute!

Let me take a second look... is that "Signs a Child is Bullying Others" or "...You Might be a Cop"?

Of course, if you are a cop, when sent to the principal's office, he pats you on the head and tells you you did nothing wrong, and the person you bullied (or electrocuted, shot, raped, put into a coma, or murdered) had it coming. You may still be sent to "detention" for appearances, but while in "detention" you'll still get paid, and as soon as everyone is looking the other way, you'll be back in the gang as if nothing ever happened; free to bully with even more confidence next time.

What could go wrong?

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Right thing not contingent on legality

Right thing not contingent on legality

(My Clovis News Journal column for January 24, 2014)

I may have hinted in the past that I'm not a big fan of voting. I understand the reasoning behind it, and why some liberty advocates still vote- especially in local elections. They argue that they are morally responsible for doing all they can to avoid a fight- even when they believe the fight to be inevitable. When forced to defend themselves or others from the popularly elected police state, they want to know they did everything in their power to seek an alternate outcome.

In my mind this is equivalent to begging a bully to stop hitting you rather than stopping him using self defense. And that's under the best of circumstances. Under the worst, voting is the moral equivalent of ganging up on the unpopular kid to take his lunch money, or force him to be your slave and do your homework. Very few, if any, aspects of life should ever be put to a vote.

Even in cases where voters are allowed to vote themselves a little more liberty, voting avoids responsibility. You shouldn't wait for the laws to change to allow you to do what you already have a right to do, nor to permit you to stop your violators. You should do the right thing now, regardless of permission.

I recently saw someone comparing a national politician's stance on continuing the stupid and evil War on Politically Incorrect Drugs to the Allies in WWII waiting to liberate the death camps until the laws that established them could be overturned. Exactly!

If a person is arrested and imprisoned for something other than aggression or a private property rights violation he is a political prisoner. This doesn't make him bad; it shines the ugly light of truth on those who advocate caging him. Every day he isn't freed, with no conditions put on his release, is another day added to the guilt of those who want him caged.

For the most part, voting led to this situation. If not through an actual vote on the rules that permit political prisoners to languish in a cage, then by electing tyrannical men and women who seek popularity through violating those on some imagined fringe of society.

Liberty isn't generally popular enough to win elections, only fear and hatred seem to have that power. But it is never necessary for the right thing to be made legal before you step up and do it. Waiting for the results of an election to go the right way before you'll do the right thing, especially if you have the power, is cowardly.

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Thank you to all who have helped out this month.  The first of the year has several additional expenses and all help is very welcome.  Thanks again!

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Oh, NOW I get it...

Opinion: "A subjective idea about something, or an objective fact you dislike and therefore disagree with".

Fact: "Objective reality, or a wild assertion you like".

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Herding cats

No, I'm not really talking about getting libertarians to do what I believe they should be doing, I'm talking about literally herding actual felines.

I may not be able to do that, but I sure can lead them around. I can't walk around the house without a herd of cats (OK, there are only 3 of them) following in my wake. And when it's "treat time", there is a stampede.

I wonder what other lessons might be hiding there.

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"I want to hurt you, you resist, so we have a stalemate!"

Tangentially related to yesterday's commie hilarity is this post which was forwarded to me by a friend.

It amazes me that someone can claim to understand economics and still believe such things.

"Economic systems don’t run themselves."
Well, except for those which work. LOL. It's only when you believe economies "need" to be "run" at all that you see a problem you think you can solve with control.

"Even token-trained cellular automata (“capitalism”) needs someone to set up the rules that the components operate by or the individual nodes have no way of knowing whether they are producing desired outcomes or not."
Ummm.... the rules spontaneously organize and evolve just fine without a dictator (even a "capitalist" one) making them up. If you are making enough money to keep doing what you're doing, you are producing a "desired outcome". If you are not making enough money doing what you are doing, and you quit doing it and go to something else to see it that works better, that is also a "desired outcome". It's how the market meets needs, and keeps meeting changing and evolving needs which can't be predicted by anyone.

"there are no 'natural laws' of economics"
Coulda fooled me. I see them in operation all around me- and I also see the disaster which happens when they are ignored. Like, just about everything happening in the "above ground" economy around the world.

"There is no such thing as a 'free market' for example, all markets have rules..."
Well, yeah... all markets have rules, but free markets have rules agreeable to each party in a trade, and no one loses when a trade is agreed upon. Coerced markets (every other form of economic organization has a winner and a loser in every trade- and sometimes- usually- it actually has 2 losers (the people trading) and one winner (the thief stealing "taxes" and profiting from contributing nothing but bureaucracy and interference.

"What we are facing is a huge existential crisis that is going to require substantial changes in how we approach problems and in how we live our lives. Those changes will result in some people having better lives, and other people having worse lives."

"We"? Dictating a worse life for some people isn't within anyone's authority. You don't get to choose the winners and losers according to your preferences and whims. 

"The people whose lives would become worse naturally don’t want that to happen. So we have stalemate."

Well, DUH! A stalemate is usually what happens when you are threatening to harm someone who has gumption enough to say "No, I don't think so!" Good for them, and I hope they shoot you if you continue to insist on molesting them.

So, this is what passes for "socioeconomics"? If this is the sort of people telling themselves (and the gullible) that they are the ones who should be making the rules everyone else will have to live or die by, then it's no wonder things are so messed up.

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A Communist America?

Really?

OK, let's take a little closer look at this Utopia.

"Everyone would receive free, comprehensive universal health care."

So, who will provide this service? Will you pay them? How? If not, since everything will be "free" in your Communist America and they wouldn't need to pay for anything they need, why would they ever show up for work? If they realize they don't need to go to work to get food, housing, or whatever, would you force them to go anyway so others can take advantage of all that "free, comprehensive universal health care" they are laboring to provide? If so, you are talking about enslaving doctors, pharmacists, nurses, and all the support staff and technicians "health care" requires.

"Housing would be affordable, safe, and available to everyone."

Who will build these houses or, more likely, apartment blocks? The same questions apply to these laborers as to those you would expect to provide health care. And why is housing only "affordable" while health care is "free"? Is a roof over your head of less importance than a health concern? I also question the assertion that all this "affordable" housing would be "safe". My idea of safe might differ from yours. A concrete block house might be less prone to fire, and thus more "safe" by one definition, but it would be cold and likely to crumble in an earthquake. Or, are you speaking of the neighborhoods the houses sit in? Would you impose universal anti-gun rules to disarm me so that my less nice neighbors could prey on me safely? Why not let me weigh the risks and choose my own particular level of "safety"? Or do I get to dictate my preferences on your life?

"Food would be healthy, fresh, and freely available."

Once again, who will bother doing all the work to grow, process, and distribute this food if there are no benefits to going to all that trouble? If someone is handing you a hamburger with no strings attached, will you automatically show up to paint their house if you get the hamburger no matter what you do? If there are strings attached, then what you are doing is buying that hamburger, and it doesn't matter if you are using dollars, silver, or labor as your money- it isn't "free". And who gets to decide whether something is "healthy" or not? The "food pyramid" and it's various iterations and evolutions illustrates the folly of an imposed standard. And, peanuts might be healthy for me and deadly for someone else. Does this mean one of us has to suffer for the "good" of the other?

"Everyone would be entitled to a quality education, without cost."

I guess the communists believe everyone will just give up a huge percentage of their life, out of the goodness of their heart, to provide what others want. Including professors. But, I wonder what good an education would be if you can get everything you need by sitting on your butt. Sure, you might be smarter, but most college education is aimed at finding a career that will provide you a way to buy housing, cars, health care, food, and all the things you might need to live. If you really want education for its own sake, why bother with the mundane stuff? Learn fascinating stuff with no regard to its economic potential. That's pretty much what I have done anyway.

"Seniors would retire comfortably, in dignity and respect."

Not sure where this claim comes from. From all the free stuff available to everyone? Doesn't seem very dignified to me- except I suppose if everyone is getting everything free, at least there wouldn't be any stigma attached. I really question the "comfortably" assertion. Comfort requires other working to keep the lights on, the heat or air conditioning running, food coming, and the infrastructure in good repair. But who do you imagine will do all that work for you?

"Veterans would receive the treatment they deserve for the sacrifices they made for this country."

Who determines what they deserve? And who pays, or works to provide? How about "we" stop creating veterans, instead?

"Workers [sic] Rights would be fully protected, and they would receive the full value of their labor."

So taxation would end? Or do you consider that the way you plan to pay for all the "free" stuff, so it would be what the "full value" is based upon? But, since there would be no workers unless you forced them at gun point (and wouldn't the enforcers also be getting forced to work?), which would violate their rights more than anything else, I guess that's irrelevant.

"There would be equal pay and benefits for men and women."

Who's being paid, for what? Where does that money or those benefits come from? So, if I'm a man, working at a job I am incompetent in- or just napping the hours away, I can celebrate the fact that I am getting paid the same as the woman who's been doing this job at expert level for 10 years? I'm sure that will make her very happy, too. If either of us bothered to get, or keep, a job, that is. And I sure wouldn't. Of course, "equal pay" can be zero... I would prefer to be paid based upon my ability (or lack thereof) and the value of my work than just because a woman (or a man) is making a certain amount, so I must, too. Yes, it means the other guy isn't earning more than I am, but it also means I can never earn more than her. 

"There would be no wealth inequality anymore, and the class system would be abolished."

That is probably true, as far as wealth goes, unless you look too deeply. If no one has anything, there is no wealth inequality. Of course, I have knowledge that would let me survive without modern conveniences more comfortably than someone else might- so my knowledge would be my wealth, and the only way to equalize that is to kill me. If you get to make that decision, then you obviously are of a "higher class" than me, or I could choose to kill you instead. I guess this one falls apart under examination pretty quickly.

"Everyone would have equal rights and freedoms regardless their orientation."

Everyone already has equal rights. That's the realization that drives libertarians. And, everyone also has equal freedoms- it's just that government employees always restrict those freedoms, and exempt themselves from those restrictions they enforce on the rest of us who are not so connected. Zero freedom (which isn't really possible) is still equal freedom. I would rather see everyone's liberty respected, than focus on freedoms.

"Women would have full reproductive rights upheld by law."

Which "law"? Real Law- Natural Law- is discovered; counterfeit "law" is made up in the minds of flawed humans and then written down. Whose beliefs get to be written into "law"? I have noticed that "full reproductive rights" tend to only mean one very narrow thing: unlimited access to "free" abortions. While I don't believe this to be an area that any third party should be sticking their nose into, others disagree. Who do you allow to make up the rules? I'd rather not let the State stick its camel nose under that particular tent at all. It leads to Sharia Law either way.

"Everyone would receive equal protection under the law, and an end to racism and racial profiling."

"Equal protection under the law" is a libertarian concept, not a communist one. As I say, everyone has the identical rights as everyone else. The real Law respects that- written "laws" never can. You can never dictate an end to racism. That's because it lives in the mind. The more you "prohibit" it, the more it will fester and grow- but it will do so secretly and cause more harm than if it were in the open. Your efforts will not "end" it, but will wind up increasing it. I think racism may some day fade away, on its own, but trying to forcibly crush it only keeps it propped up long after it would have otherwise died. And "racial profiling" is not a problem unless you have counterfeit "laws" and enforcers imposing them. That has a libertarian solution, too.

So ends my observations on this silly little poster. Communists are so cute- or would be if their poorly thought out ideas weren't so attractive to stupid people who can't think beyond the sound bites. 

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Avoid consideration of liberty at all costs

I wrote this to be this week's CNJ column- it was rejected. So here ya go- a freebie.

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I always enjoy reading the polls in the Clovis News Journal, but I rarely answer them. I can't. They don't offer an option I could choose.

The current question as I write this is: "If an airline offered passenger service to Dallas-Fort Worth would you be more or less inclined to fly directly from Clovis?"

I am offered the options of "More", "Less", or "Depends on the cost".

How about "None of the above"?

Taken in a vacuum, I could say I would be more likely to fly if there were direct flights, if the cost were affordable, and if I ever had any reason to go to Dallas or Fort Worth, but that would give a false impression. The truth is I won't ever fly again unless it is a life or death situation, or unless the airport security silliness which is currently forced upon airline passengers dies a well-deserved death.

Yes, I will be "inclined to fly" again once the TSA and its security theater dog and pony show have gone the way of the dodo, have not been replaced by anything, and I am allowed to fly while appropriately armed. And no, a bullet hole in the skin of a plane will not cause a catastrophic decompression as movies would have you believe, but if you (or the airline) are concerned about it anyway, there is always "frangible ammunition".

Back to the subject of polls, I have noticed that there is rarely an option that provides for the absence of regulatory or confiscatory action, along with the ever-present threat of enforcement, by The State.

I am asked what level of taxation I agree with, or how I want to see tax money spent, but not whether I want my friends and neighbors' money left with those who earned it rather than being taken from them under some pretext.

Or I am asked "Have you signed up with the New Mexico Health Insurance Exchange?" Where's the "I won't" option? Once again, "None of the above" would suffice.

As in all things political, I am given the option to choose between statist choice A or statist choice B, while the option to choose liberty is never offered. Fortunately, no one needs permission to begin to exercise their liberty- just courage and determination.

This is why I have been informed I am an "outlier", and my opinions- the only opinions which actually respect your inalienable human right to control your own life and property- don't count in the political arena and are hidden from view to avoid confusing the people.

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Review: PMC 9mm ammo from AmmoForSale.com

A while back AmmoForSale.com asked me if I'd like to do an ammo review for them. I have never done anything of that sort, but it sounded like it might be fun, and with the price of ammo- and my financial situation- I haven't been able to shoot as much as I'd like recently, so I accepted the offer. (Yes, I received some free ammo, but no other perks or considerations for this review.)

So I received 150 rounds of PMC Bronze 9mm 115 grain FMJ from them a while back, but waited until the weather was a bit nicer to actually hit the "range". As it turned out my son came to visit and brought his Hi-Point C9, so things worked out really well.

We went out Saturday, early afternoon. The temperature was close to 80, and there was a light west wind. Which got less light later.

As you see, our target was really high-tech. This photo is facing south. 

Top is my son's Hi-Point C9 and his 8 round magazine (yes, he needs more!), and below that is my Ruger P95DC and my 10 round (Ruger- came with the gun), 15 round (unmarked, manufacturer unknown), and 18 round (Ram-Line "Mag 9085") magazines.

I marked off 10 paces and 20 paces, and with my extra long legs, that's more yards than you'd think. 

I let my son take the first shots, and he emptied the magazine from the 20 pace mark with no problems and variable accuracy.

Then it was my turn. I was using the 10 round magazine for the test. The target was spared. Completely; not a scratch. Hmmm. So I moved up to the 10 pace mark with similar results. Not encouraging. But there were no problems with the ammo. I soon discovered my shots were all going to the left and slashing the left wall of the box- I didn't have an allen wrench to adjust my sights, so I just compensated with much better results. The wind was picking up as well, coming from the right, which may have added to the problem, but there was no other safe direction to fire, so I didn't get to test that wishful theory.

The first firing problems occurred when my son and I traded firearms. He was getting failures to eject and failures to feed with every shot. I took my gun back and had no problems at all, so I suspect it was an unfamiliarity with the pistol more than anything else.

However... After the first box, things got "interesting". In almost every magazine I was experiencing a failure to eject and/or a failure to feed. Or two. 

My son had one failure to eject/feed in his pistol- but only one out of an entire box.

Wanting to check every possibility I put some old ammo I had brought along for comparison in the magazine and shot it. No problems. (I was still having to compensate for my shots all going left, though.) I put the test ammo in different magazines and had the same experience. Then I fired my old ammo from those same magazines and didn't have a single failure. I tried every combination possible and kept having the same results. The new, test ammo was having failures and the old stuff I had on hand didn't have a single failure to either eject or to feed.

I was trying everything I could, because as I told my son "I want to be able to say really good things about the ammo..."

The first box performed much better in my gun than the other box (we both shot out of the third box). 

My conclusion is that this ammo was having some problems ejecting- or my pistol was having trouble ejecting it. I believe the failures to eject were the primary problem and the failures to feed almost always followed a failure to eject (but not always).

The accuracy from my son's pistol was quite acceptable, and is was very consistent with the accuracy I was getting from the ammo in my gun.

Cleanup was nice- the ammo seemed to shoot pretty clean. I should have taken a picture down the barrel, but there really wasn't anything to see. And the same goes for the surrounding areas. Not much fouling. So that was a plus.

For a plinking ammo, I'd say it is a decent deal. I wouldn't want to depend on it for personal protection- at least not in my Ruger. 

All in all, I'm thinking my Ruger just didn't like the ammo that well, while my son's Hi-Point seemed to like it just fine. I'm glad I had more than one gun to test it in.

I'd really like to thank AmmoForSale.com for the opportunity to review this ammunition. We had a great day and got in some much needed practice.

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Begging enforcers to molest you no further

I have said before I don't believe in "magic words"- the incantations which will make thugs calling themselves "authority" drop you like a hot potato covered in fire ants infected with plague, and back away to let you live in peace.

A while back, somewhere, I saw a suggestion of the only thing recommended to say to an enforcer who tries to get you to speak. I don't know... maybe it is a good idea. I present it here, along with my parenthetical comments, for your consideration.

"With all due respect, officer ['all due' being zero], I [they inserted 'wish to' here. No, I don't 'wish' anything of the sort. I either do or I do not] assert my 4th and 5th Amendment rights [and, obviously the inalienable Human Rights those are a weak reflection of]. I do not answer questions from 'law enforcement' without my attorney present, nor do I agree to a search of my person or property. I would like to go now. Am I free to go?"

It sounds like groveling and begging to me, which leaves a bad taste in my mouth. But blood toasted by high voltage might taste worse. Anytime you are dealing with a power-mad coward who is consumed with paranoia, and armed, the slightest hesitation to lick his boots can result in summary execution. Decide for yourself what you are willing to do to survive another day.

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