Rioting is wrong way to protest

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Statist preferences aren't necessarily crazy

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

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

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

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

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

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Obsolete and decaying before our eyes

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

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

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

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

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

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Personal Covid-19 updates

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

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

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Politics (still) makes people stupid

Politics makes people stupid.

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

Those are not the same things.

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

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

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Mask hysteria

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Life on the border

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

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

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

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

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

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Setting people at each other's throats

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

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

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

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

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

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

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President Kanye West?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Never hurts to make preparations

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Changing your beliefs

I used to think people could change their beliefs.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Coronavirus may have hit home (with updates)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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"Mandatory" masks and independence

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

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

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

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

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

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"The slippery slope" mischaracterized

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

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

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

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

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

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Liberty-- mischaracterized by its enemies

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

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

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

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Facing down Goliath?

Have you enjoyed all the pats on the back for not (yet) dying of Covid-19? I'm seeing those kinds of ads... along with the renewed calls to panic more again (since you're so inconsiderate to not be panicking enough to suit the karens now).

Are you buying in to your own heroism?

Some people seem to want to see themselves as heroic survivors for living through the pandemic. As people tend to do, they overstate the strength and danger of their opponent to make themselves look braver and stronger. Soldiers prefer to defeat giants and geniuses instead of regular people, so they'll often magnify the competence of their enemy. Nobody feels good about defeating a butterfly, they want to convince you it was a flying fire-breathing dragon.

It's the same with this coronavirus. No one feels like a hero for surviving a cold, so they'll pretend it's the plague and everyone can then feel good about themselves.

I am fairly certain this virus is highly contagious, but since it is obviously not a fraction as deadly as the fear-mongers want you to believe it is, what does it really matter how contagious it is? Catch it, get over it, and get on with life. It's not nearly as big a problem as the political responses to it are.

The only people I see who really seem desperate to make this virus out to be a bigger danger than it obviously is are those who have something to gain by overstating the danger. Either they get more political power or they get to see themselves as heroes.

It's really kind of sad and odd to me.

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Useful uselessness

I am disgusted by people who imagine themselves to be so helpless and pathetic that they believe this justifies enslaving everyone else.

Whether that's their excuse for cops or political government in general, that's how you make enemies.

Government-supremacists love this kind of person. They need them. Otherwise, there's no way to justify political government. All of society must be engineered to cater to the fears and handicaps of the helpless and pathetic, at the expense of everyone else.

I would be glad to voluntarily lend a hand... but if you're going to advocate enslaving me, that's going to somewhat kill my enthusiasm for the task. My sympathy has limits, and that's where the limit lies. My inner thoughts at this point are that you'll probably deserve whatever you get.

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No idea what government good for

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for May 27, 2020)

Many problems in modern societies happen because people confuse political government for something it isn't. They expect it to do things it can't do and isn't suited for. To do things right you need to use the correct tools.

A hammer is the proper tool for driving nails. A feather isn't a hammer; neither is a shotgun. Even though you might be able to use a coffee cup to drive a small nail-- don't try this with your favorite cup-- it's not a hammer either. Using things for purposes they aren't well-suited for will cause problems.

Even if something looks like a hammer, feels like a hammer, and can be wielded like a hammer, if it is made out of the wrong stuff it's not going to work well as a hammer.

After decades of observation I have yet to find any situation which requires government, or where government would be the best tool for the job. It doesn't seem to be the correct tool for doing anything helpful.

You probably disagree, so I'll stay out of your search for the proper use of political government and instead focus on what I know government isn't the right tool for.

Government is not your doctor. It is not a scientist. It's not an expert on anything other than how to push people around and steal their life, liberty, and property.

Government is not your parent. It is not your educator. It is not your moral guide. It is not your savior. It is not your friend.

Government is not your spouse, nor is it your provider. It is not your leader or your protector.

Government is not a genie from a magic lamp, granting your wishes. It is not your ATM. Anything it gives you has been stolen from someone-- often from your future self. Can future-you afford to support present-you?

Thinking of government as something it isn't won't turn out well for society. It's not healthy to treat it as though it is any of those things.

Even if you get away with using government as a tool, when you mix anything with politics you end up with only politics. It's like mixing poison with food.

As I say, I can't tell you what government is good for; I'll let you ponder the answer to that puzzle for yourself. For me, political government-- which is everything people usually call "the government"-- is an unnecessary evil. It's not a tool I would use even if I had no other.

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Government is a mafia

Very often when I say something about having no need of being governed, some "Jeenyus" will come back with "Then you are free to leave my country". Ignoring the rules about not leaving with your property and the fact that there is literally no free place left to go.

Nope. To government-supremacists, if you don't like the gang that controls your neighborhood, don't try to kick them out, just leave. Leave your property behind, leave your family, leave your friends, leave everything familiar. Because the gang has a better claim to your territory than you do-- according to their supporters. And if you resist, their hit men will murder you.

This is exactly the same option you'd have if the mafia has taken over. I mean, if another mafia has taken over.

Government is a mafia.

If you don't like the way they run the territory they claim-- the archation they commit-- you can leave. Giving up all your land and leaving behind most of your money as an exit fee. And to what gain? You've landed in the territory claimed by another mafia.

Maybe that's sometimes still the best you can hope for, but it's not the solution it's claimed to be by supporters of the government mafia.

So when some brilliant government-supremacist says "Love it or leave it" they are admitting that government is a mafia. Thank them for making your point for you.

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Don't tread on ... anyone

I'm not "Black". I can still tell when "Black" people are being violated, and I don't like it. I can also see when "Black" people are violating others and I don't like that, either.

I'm not conservative. I can still tell when conservatives are being violated and I don't like it. I can also see when conservatives are violating others and I don't like that, either.

It's the same for any other category of people. Who you are isn't the part that matters to me.

For me to only care about violations if I'm the one being violated would be childish. Yes, it's sometimes more personal than other times, but I care if anyone is violating you for any reason, even if it's not going to affect me. Probably even if the claim is made that it will help me.

Your equal and identical rights should be respected and protected from all violators. Your primary responsibility is to not archate. I expect everyone to live up to that responsibility.

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