Government actions not surprising

Government actions not surprising

(My Clovis News Journal column for March 27, 2015)

Are you shocked when the “most transparent administration in history” turns out to be the most blatantly secretive, passing new laws to hide behind while going after whistleblowers with religious zeal?

How about when a president who talks a good freedom game enthusiastically signs the anti-American “Patriot Act?

Does it catch you off-guard when a politician backpedals-- that's another way to say he lied-- on campaign promises?

Are you surprised when the new "law" you supported turns out to have the opposite effect you believed it was going to have?

How do you react when a law you support is turned around and used against you in ways you never expected?

Are you disappointed when politicians are caught being corrupt?

Are you a slow learner, or just in denial?

You shouldn't be surprised, because the system is working the only way it can. It's like being surprised gravity caused the plate you dropped to fall to the ground and shatter. It's how it works-- the only possible way it can work.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, but that's not the whole story. Power also attracts those who are already corrupt like a cat-hating allergic person attracts shedding cats.

You have allowed a system to be set up, and to continue to exist, which carefully selects for the very worst among us to take the reins and act according to their nature, to the detriment of us all. And then you are surprised by the inevitable.

How do you really expect governing to turn out?

Some people blame Americans for not keeping government under control, saying if only "we" had enforced the Constitution "we" wouldn't be in this mess today. Obviously, many people like to blame the victim; it takes the pressure off themselves, since it is too late to effectively enforce the Constitution now.

The government has now grown too large and too powerful, and there is too much inertia. Most would balk at immediately eliminating the 99% of the federal government which is illegal under the Constitution. (I could be wrong about that percentage- it's probably higher.)

Exactly how you and I, or our great-grandparents, were supposed to work within the system to enforce the Constitution against politicians and judges who care nothing about it, and benefited by ignoring its constraints, is never adequately explained by those who make this claim. They just don't want to admit things are working exactly as they were designed to work. They delude themselves while trying to delude you.

As I listen to people complain, the same thought keeps running through my head: It's government. What else would you expect to happen?

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Anarchy- almost too mainstream

One sad thing about being an anarchist is that the opportunities to do something really radical and different are so few.

Because, belief in "government" or not, everyone lives their personal lives in a state of anarchy the vast majority of the time. If they didn't, they'd quickly end up dead.

So, people generally don't molest others. They hold the door open for each other. They help out those in need when they can. They try to not crash their car into other cars or pedestrians. They don't rob people. They don't go around trying to force everyone around them to obey their every whim.

In other words, anarchy is so mainstream it's almost boring. The best you can do is point this out to statists and watch them sputter and fume, try to deny it, or claim "that's not anarchy!"

I guess the only really radical thing left to anarchists is to not make exceptions for those who act like jerks as a part of their "job".

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Renovations complete at KentForLiberty.com

 For the past several days I have been re-writing all the pages at KentForLiberty.com. I was a bigger task that I expected, and I am glad it is done.

A lot of the pages were badly outdated. My views have changed. I used to be much more a "constitutionalist" than I am now- although that was years ago. I have come closer to the roots of many things, rather than worrying with the leaves and branches so much. It was time to reflect that growth. (One page that I don't edit is "My Views", since that is an archive. Well, I don't edit anything but the introduction to the page, anyway.)

As always, I found and corrected more typos and misspellings.

I also decided to mirror KentForLiberty in pages on this blog. You can find these new pages under the blog header. I did that for a couple of reasons: I wanted a backup, just in case something happened to the website- such as me not continuing to pay for it, or it getting shut down for some other reason. I also have had technical glitches, while I was in the midst of editing, which have erased pages before. I wanted a faster way of fixing that problem.

I also thought it would be good to have it all in one place, here, so that if anyone is looking around, it would be easy to find.

It was a lot of work- I hope you like the results.

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Belief in "government" makes you weak

Belief in "government" is a crutch for some people. Leaning on it atrophies their muscles and is a self-destructive cycle of decay.

They have gotten dependent on leaning on it and now believe that they can't stand on their own two feet. But they can- if they'll just try. It might be difficult at first, and they may falter and stumble, but the alternative is a steady decline.

When a problem crops up, the first reaction of many seems to be to reach out to "government" for assistance.

Do you really wish to sell yourself and your family into slavery that cheaply? Do you want to sell your future and the future of your children? You are worth more than that.

Don't let the belief in "government" blind you to your own abilities and your real value.

You are not crippled; the State-worshipers are.

You can stand on your own if only you will drop the crutch that belief in "government" has hypnotized you into believing you need.

Drop it and stand on your own feet. Then take a step forward, away from the negative goons of the State. While you are at it, tell those goons to take a hike.

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Reluctant bleg

Other than a recent request for some money for something my daughter wanted (which was met- thank you!), I haven't annoyed my readers with a request for money in a while. I have been managing okay.

Well, now things have changed a little and I have to ask.

A while back- in January, actually- I helped someone else out financially. At the time it wasn't going to be a problem. It still wouldn't be, except ... now I need the money I used to help them out and they aren't yet in a position to pay me back. (And if they never can, I'll not make an issue of it.)

The crisis is due to the other person in the household not getting paid for a week of vacation time from last month. Not yet. The money is supposedly still coming through the bureaucratic pipeline at their job, but I'm having my doubts. It won't get here in time to prevent some bad problems, either way. And I don't have enough to meet the shortfall.

If you are a subscriber, please don't respond with a donation- you already do enough. If you don't want to help, or if you can't help, then please don't. If you don't think I provide any value in return for the money, then obviously I am not asking you to donate. I only want voluntary trades of value for value.

If you can, and want to, the "donate" button is over there to the right.

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Ejikashun iz M-por-tint

Government school is the worst thing to ever happen to education.

It cheapened it, and not in a good way.

It also made it feel like punishment to the inmates referred to as "students". It encourages a lot of them to stay as far as possible away from anything which could be considered educational. And, not just during their "school years", but throughout life. That is tragic! It's why v*ting and "government" is still as popular as it is among those unable to truly think.

It teaches "authority" instead of independence. It dumbs down rather than lifts up.

It teaches kids it's OK to steal as long as you use what you stole for something "important"- and some kids get the message loud and clear.

And, rather than educating, it indoctrinates.

Nothing could be worse as far as education goes. In fact, doing nothing would be an improvement.

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Stupid questions

Yes, they do exist:

"Without astrology how can we know what will happen today?" 

"Without government how will we be safe from dangers?"

The two questions, and the sentiments they echo, are equally stupid. Both are based on superstition.

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It's NOT "OK" to support cops

A while back, in a Facebook thread, a cop supporter (I'll refrain from using the more descriptive term) said she had discovered, due to that thread, that people have differences of opinions about cops, and that's OK.

But not all opinions are equally valid.

Supporting cops (or being a cop), and saying that's a valid choice, is identical to saying that rape is a perfectly valid way to have sex, and supporting rapists is just peachy.

No, it isn't.

Aggression is the disqualifying feature of both acts.

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Facebook experiments

Recently, I have been using Facebook to test out ideas and sound bites. I mean, more so than in the past.

Some of those (like today's earlier blog post) end up being blogged here. Others don't.

If you'd like to get in on the fun, feel free to "friend" me- or "follow" me, if the available spots in my friend list get taken up before you get there.

I find it very educational to discover what gets the townfolk riled.

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"Trigger warning"?

If you require "trigger warnings"- about ANYTHING- you have failed as a human.

Sorry if you believe that statement should have come with a "trigger warning". Wait... no, I'm not.

I'm not saying that bad things haven't happened to you in the past. I'm not saying that being reminded of those bad things won't hurt.

What I am saying is that no one is obligated to tip-toe around your delicate feelings and censor themselves to keep you from getting upset. Doing so doesn't help you; it shelters you and allows you to remain broken- and to only get worse over time.

Anyone posting a trigger warning for your "benefit" is slapping you in the face and saying you can't handle being a human. It's an insult to you.

You should be grateful that people treat you as a fully-functional human rather than as a delicate cracked egg shell.

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Being prepared is common sense

Being prepared is common sense

(My Clovis News Journal column for March 20, 2015)

The water shut off in Portales last week should have awakened a few people. From previous experience, I doubt it did.

For years I have advocated preparing for possible problems. No, I'm not a "doomsday prepper" waiting for a magnetic pole shift, the collapse of civilization, or a solar flare burning out the power grid. And I don't believe in zombies. I simply believe in staying ready for anything which could disrupt normal 21st Century life- things like having the water shut off.

No one should have been scrambling to find water; everyone should have already stocked at least a few days' supply of water around the house or business. This is a dry region, after all. Yet, how many have done so? How many realized their mistake and moved to correct it after this water crisis?

Having the water shut off city-wide for a day or so is nothing compared to many things which could happen.

Being prepared isn't paranoia- it's common sense. Our grandparents knew it. Any preparation is better than none.

Yet suggestions to be prepared are usually countered with excuses and denial.

"I don't need to stock up on anything- I can just walk to the store."
"I live in a good neighborhood."
"I can't afford to buy anything extra to put aside."
"That will never happen here- not to me."

Even after unexpected problems crop up, the response is "I survived okay."

Yes, this time. What if it had been worse, had lasted longer, or had been more widespread? What about next time?

Survival isn't the only consideration. Comfort is another.

It doesn't take "the end of the world as we know it" to make "preps" handy. Many times I have drawn upon my preparations to make minor inconveniences less difficult. In fact, I've had fun during minor emergencies while other people ran around in a confused panic. I am usually the person my friends come to when they find themselves caught unprepared for any small difficulty- and I normally have something which can help. But I can't help everyone other than by telling them they need to take responsibility for their own lives.

You can't count on others- those who saw the wisdom in making preparations- coming to your aid. They have to look out for themselves and their family first. It's not selfishness; it is responsibility. You and your family are your responsibility. Don't shirk. Look at the problems most likely to happen where you live, and find out what you would need most if they do occur. Think of simple, general things you might do. Stop looking for excuses and just start small today.

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"Compromising Good with Evil"- and failing, utterly

(Previously posted to Patreon)

I would still rather be right- be accepting of reality- than be comfortable. I'd rather be right than be libertarian.

If reality doesn't support liberty, then I want to be aware of it and accept it and figure out what the reality is.

I don't want cognitive dissonance or compartmentalization to get in the way. Fantasies about how things are might be comforting to some people, but I don't want to coddle those fantasies.

But, the deeper I dig, the less sense statism makes to me. The more "arguments" I hear in support of "governments", "laws", "States", and initiating force and theft, the more insane they sound. The inconsistencies are simply too glaring to ignore.

But, trying to explore the possibilities to discover reality is why I read things like this: Compromising Good with Evil

Right off the bat he gets something completely wrong, which throws off the entire rest of his screed- he says libertarians think that "There simply can be no middle ground between the two fundamental philosophical opposites of freedom and slavery. Either we are a free society or a slave society, but we can't be both."

While that is a true statement, he goes on to say "This all libertarians agree upon, or they're not libertarians." So, this is the defining principle of libertarianism?

Ummm... wrong. Libertarians know that initiating force and violating private property are wrong. That's what makes them libertarians. The other things logically stem from that, but are not the foundation.

And, he goes downhill from there, just like every single criticism of Abolitionism/voluntaryism/anarchism/libertarianism I have ever encountered does- simply because they utterly fail to understand what they are trying to debunk. They argue from ignorance.

His entire article is based upon an appeal to authority- in this case, Aristotle and his "Golden Mean". The "Golden Mean" works for some things, like Goldilocks' "Not too cold or too hot- but just right". It doesn't work at all where Liberty is concerned. That's because Liberty is self-limiting. Your Liberty can't violate anyone else, or it ceases to be Liberty. And "government" always violates Liberty.

He claims, using the idea of the "Golden Mean", that good and evil are not opposites along a single axis, but good is in the middle, with evil at either extreme. With regards to Liberty, "too much" is anarchy, and too little is tyranny. As if anarchy is a bad thing. His superstitious belief in "limited government" is, of course, his "Golden Mean" of juicy goodness. He is wrong. Probably because he doesn't understand what evil is.

Evil is doing intentional harm to those who don't deserve to be harmed right now. Harm isn't on either side of good- it is the opposite of good no matter what justification you use. And, if it doesn't harm people, it isn't evil even if you think it wouldn't be the best path. Statism- the belief that governing people is a legitimate human endeavor- is evil because of the harm it inevitably causes to individual life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, and property. You can't violate people "for their own good" no matter how passionately you make that silly claim.

Originally I intended to show how and why the author was wrong, bit by bit. Piece by piece. Paragraph by paragraph. Because he is wrong. In fact, either he is intentionally lying, or he's an idiot.

But the article is so incredibly long and full of fail that I realized quickly that to dissect it would require one of those multi-part blogs addressing slavery-apologists (statists) I have done in the past. I just don't feel like it. Besides, cutting through the BS of his "Golden Mean" idea of good and evil is probably all that is necessary to bring down his whole house of marked cards.

Feel free to read that article for yourself, and notice all the mistakes he makes- even if you don't get far into it, I'm confident you'll see more wrongness than you can keep up with. His flawed assumptions; his mischaracterizations; his non-sequiturs. The list is almost endless. Statism is a fail. From beginning to end. It is based on a superstition.

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Would you stop a bank robbery?

Would I intervene to stop a bank robbery?

I'm not so sure.

I suppose if innocent people were in danger, I might. But if it was just to stop a theft... probably not.

Banks have become a tool of the State. From their compliance with all the vile "Patriot act" nonsense to "fractional reserve" banking (which I consider fraud), they are totally controlled by the State and its "laws". They have become nothing more than a branch of "government"- complicit in violating their customers for the benefit of that gang of thugs calling themselves "government".

At least they can't (yet) force you to do business with them against your will.

That doesn't mean I would steal from a bank, but I certainly wouldn't risk my life to stop someone else from doing so.

If it were a free market bank the story would be different. In that case I would look upon a bank robbery as I would any other violation of property, and would do all I could to stop it.

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4-19: "Patriots Day"

I used to get all worked up over 4-19. "Patriots Day".

It has sorta lost its appeal to me. I now see it as people fighting over which masters they want. A silly and self-defeating thing if there ever was one. And considering what most people think of as "patriotic" makes me ill.

So, sure, use 4-19 as an excuse if you need one and exercise your liberty today. And the next. And next week and beyond.

You don't need an example; you don't need a leader. Just do it. You know what you need to do right now- opinions of the local goon syndicate notwithstanding. Ignore them as much as possible, sneak behind their backs if you must, and do what you need to do.

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A wrinkle in "A Wrinkle in Time"

I read "A Wrinkle in Time" when I was in ... either late elementary school or early junior high. Strange that I can't pin it down, since it is usually easy for me to remember where I lived when I first read something- and I moved constantly. Maybe my timeline has wrinkles I am not aware of.

But, anyway, I remember feeling a bit disturbed by the book. Just a sense of unease. Some of the images stuck with me, and still do, but at the time I didn't enjoy the book. I need to read it again.

Well, a new passage has recently been discovered.

In it, the heroine is asking how Camazotz was taken over by evil. Her father explains that evil can take over through totalitarianism, but also from a desire for too much security. He says “Security is a most seductive thing...I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s the greatest evil there is.”

Dead on!

Now, if only he had pointed out that all "governing" will inevitably lead to the same place.

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Read the WSJ's take on the new passage here.

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Do professional rapists protect you from freelance rapists?

The excuse that "some people do bad things" as justification for your belief in "government" is the same as saying that it would be best to allow professional rapists to prey on people rather than to risk freelance rapists.

And, of course, in the mind which operates like this, it would be wrong to resist or shoot the professional rapists because they protect you from the other rapists.

That's insane. Don't be insane.

Don't advocate professional rape because amateur rapists are out there. Just shoot the rapists.

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Pardon my mess while I evolve

I just read "The Most Dangerous Superstition" by Larken Rose: A very good book which I highly recommend. (And FINALLY available in a Kindle edition, too!)

This "most dangerous superstition" is the belief in the imaginary trait known as "authority"; something that doesn't exist because it can't exist. Without the belief in it, bullies are just bullies, and theft is just theft- something I have tried to get across, but without understanding the root problem.

I was always said to "have a problem with authority", but now I am seeing that you can't have a problem with something imaginary, except by believing in it.

My only complaint with the book is that I think a Reader's Digest version might have more impact, because some things are repeated more times than I think necessary- on the other hand, repetition gets things to stick in your mind.

Anyway, I feel myself evolving again. As is always the case, it is toward more Liberty, with fewer inconsistencies. Once again I feel like more heavy baggage has been tossed aside, and I always like it when that happens. Not sure if anyone will notice a difference, but I can sure feel a difference.

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Compromises between bad guys

"National borders" represent compromises between thieving thugs. Really, that's all they are.

Buying into them is propping up those thieving thugs on both sides of the "border".

"Borders" have no more legitimacy than the line separating the turf of the Blips and the Cruds- actually, even less. They only indicate the probable loyalty of the particular thug whose boot is on your neck right now.

Why would you want to keep propping up such a harmful superstition?

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Honorable people don't

Is it honorable to hire yourself out to a gang?
To employ yourself, and spend your time, imposing the gangleader's wishes on others?
Molesting, aggressing, killing and violating property in the course of your employment?
Can you be a good person while doing so?

No. It isn't honorable. Not ever for any reason.

Military and cops are not "honorable".

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Lawmakers much like rabid hyenas

Lawmakers much like rabid hyenas

(My Clovis News Journal column for March 13, 2015- However, I'm NOT just talking about "lawmakers" as the headline states- I'm talking about government employees of every sort.)

Why does so much news revolve around the individuals who call themselves "government"?

It's because they impose themselves in our lives. They make it necessary to know, in self defense, what they are up to. Through their actions they are a real and present danger to your life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, and property.

If a rabid hyena made its home under your porch you would think about it a lot; probably to the point of obsession. You couldn't afford to ignore it.

It's the same with those who believe they have the authority to interfere with your life. They are newsworthy only because of the damage and inconveniences they cause- although they fool some into believing they are helpful.

If they were no danger to your person or property who would want to waste any time thinking about them, much less reading or hearing about them? Without the media coverage those who fawn over them might suffer withdrawal, but the rest of us would be spared the constant parade of petty tyrants, their endless nannying, and their despicable deeds.

I would love to see a week where nothing done by government was reported in the news at all; just one week when they were all completely ignored.

Of course, that's dangerous. They would use the opportunity to attack your life in secret. Laws don't stop them. The only reason they restrain themselves as much as they do is because they know they are being watched. Not by everyone, but by enough people, and particularly by those who don't like what they see; those who look beyond what the politicians and bureaucrats say, and see what they actually do and observe the consequences.

It doesn't always work, as was frustratingly illustrated by the recent (and misnamed) "Net Neutrality" fiasco.

So watching them is necessary if you allow their make-work jobs to exist at all- which is the root of the problem.

During the heyday of America a person could go about their business for a lifetime and, as long as they weren't a thief or aggressor, never encounter government. It wasn't a constant presence. How many times have you been meddled with just today- through taxes, licenses, permits, laws, or by automatically altering your behavior to comply with some nonsensical rule to which you have become habituated?

As long as the popular addiction to allowing other people to control their lives exists, I'll be glad there are people reporting on what those in government are doing- even if reporters often coddle them by pretending government jobs are helpful or even necessary. I hunger for the day when they can be safely ignored.
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