Little difference between candidates

 (My Eastern New Mexico News column for November 11, 2020)

I was wrong. I was sure Donald Trump would win easily, in spite of years of political and personal attacks from his various opponents.

I knew there was "Anyone but Trump" sentiment out there, but I just couldn't imagine anyone but a few people on the fringe would actually vote for Joe Biden.

The last time I was this surprised at people taking a candidate seriously was when I discovered that people were actually considering Bill Clinton a credible choice back in 1992. Some of them were even excited about him! You could have heard my jaw hit the floor when I discovered this.

In spite of the polls leading up to this election, I still couldn't believe anyone imagined Biden was less bad than Trump.

Yet, almost exactly half of the voters apparently saw things differently.

After December 14, when the Electoral College votes, someone I don't like will end up as president. Half of the people will say the election was fraudulent; half of the people will say the voters have spoken.

No matter who ends up being sworn in as president on January 20-- Trump, Biden, or Harris-- I was wrong because I thought Trump would win easily and the result would be obvious. That didn't happen.

You might be surprised-- or not-- when I admit it doesn't make much difference to me either way.

There will still be people claiming the imaginary authority to control my life. This control will be the same no matter who holds the office, differing only in minor details.

The political left and the political right work together to destroy liberty a little at a time. First from one angle, then they switch places and nibble away from a slightly different direction. This isn't going to change until they are stopped, and it probably won't be stopped at the ballot box.

Liberty, or anyone who understands and respects it, is never on the ballot.

I need to prepare for slightly different attacks on my liberty under a Joe Biden/Kamala Harris administration than under four more years of Donald Trump. It's the difference between preparing for a hurricane instead of a blizzard. It's probably good that Biden has already indicated which of our natural human rights he intends to declare war on. It gives everyone a chance to prepare in case he's the one who recites the oath of office. A little prior warning is always welcome.

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"How can I fail today?"

That may seem a defeatist way to think, but it actually spurs me to action.

I've never succeeded. At anything. I could either let that fact paralyze me; make me think "What's the point of even trying?" and just stay in bed (I was there 20 years ago for a few months-- don't want to do that again), or I can let it motivate me to try something else. Recently I decided to embrace the second way with enthusiasm.

Every day I get up and ask myself what I can fail at today, and then I do something. Something I assume will fail. But at least I've done something. 

Maybe I also learned from it-- learned what doesn't work-- but I've learned. And maybe, someday, one of those somethings will fail to fail.

This keeps me trying new things. It gives me boldness to not worry that it will fail-- I assume it will. This is freedom. The more failures I can accumulate, the more chance something will eventually succeed. No matter what facet of life I'm dabbling in. If not, maybe I can be the champion of failing. Is there an award for that?

Even if everything continues to fail, at least I didn't just lie in a corner and rot. I stayed busy. Kept trying. That's got to count for something, right?

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Opportunities all around

It may be largely confirmation bias, but it sure does seem like my view of how things work has been really good at predicting what will happen. Yeah, I missed the mainstream-accepted result of the presidential selection, but I never claimed elections were legitimate anyway-- quite the opposite. Still, you can count that as a loss for my prediction abilities.

But as for what's going on with the panicdemic and society and government in general, I haven't been surprised much. 

I'm a little surprised that people who I can't relate to, in big cities far away, are putting up with what's being done to them... but then, they also put up with disarmament rules that I couldn't tolerate. I can't really relate to enthusiastic slaves no matter what the situation is.

Around here, at least on the Texas side, tolerance for the Covid rules is about gone. It lingered a little longer than I thought it would, but I am not surprised that it's pretty much done. I wish my New Mexico neighbors would stand up to the tyrants who pretend to own them, too. But I know it's hard to do. Maybe they'll be inspired by their Texas friends.

I'm happy to see more people getting sick of government, even if it's just because government looks like it's going to be against "their side" for a while. Whatever works. Now, to get them to give up on it altogether while they are susceptible. This may turn out to be an unusual opportunity.

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Your legislation can't alter rights

A nasty politician wants to change Texas' "Castle Doctrine" rule. But she says she's not trying to do away with it, only "require a homeowner to exhaust the potential of safely retreating into their habitation before using deadly force in defense of themselves or their property."

So, like other politicians, she's lying.

That is EXACTLY the same as repealing "Castle Doctrine".

She makes some bad assumptions. She's assuming that the bad guy only wants to steal, not rape, murder, or kidnap. She's also assuming that legislation can change rights.

Politics makes people stupid, and when it gives them power, it makes them commit evil, too.

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Selling liberty

You can't sell everyone liberty with the same sales pitch. Everyone has their priorities and they differ from person to person.

You never need to lie about it, but you might have to tailor your message differently depending on the person. No way is wrong, but they are different.

If they are a "Who will build the roads?" type, you would approach them differently than if they are a gun-rights supporter. You don't even need to point out-- yet-- that all liberty is really the same. Let them focus on what appeals to them, then slowly let the rest dawn on them over time. That's how it was for me.

The thing is, liberty matters to everyone, even if they deny it in public. You just have to find the approach which resonates with the person you're trying to reach. If one approach doesn't seem to be getting to them, try something else. And there's no need to hound them. Drop your truths and then give them time to germinate. It helps if you're a living example, too.

Because, in case you need to be reminded, too: liberty always works and it is always superior to the alternatives.

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Rights vs. imaginary "rights"

All real rights are "negative rights"-- no one has the right to get in the way of anyone exercising them. But that sounds so... negative. It's accurate but unfortunate.

It would be better to call them "real rights", or even just "rights".

"Positive rights" which are so popular among various types of socialists sound so much nicer. Unfortunately for those who wish otherwise, they aren't really rights. While they have the advantage of a positive-sounding name, in practice they are often very negative and destructive to actual rights and the people who have them.

A more accurate way to describe these "positive rights" would be as privileges (when by mutual consent) or imaginary rights (when imposed).

As privileges they are contingent on voluntary acceptance by the person who will be providing them to the other person. No consent; no obligation.

Positive "rights" are always going to violate actual rights ("negative rights") whenever they are imposed.

Imaginary rights are, or can easily become, slavery.

In the conflict between rights and imaginary rights, don't side with evil.

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Pondering my Bitcoin experiences

I enjoy watching the price of Bitcoin, and unlike the stock market, the price has a direct effect on me.

Since I first got into Bitcoin, its price has increased by four orders of magnitude. If it does this again in the next decade or two... and I don't spend too much of what I've got... I'll be a millionaire. There's my retirement fund. Ha ha!

I was recently wondering why I didn't buy any Bitcoin when it was really cheap. Then I remembered the reason. It wasn't that I was afraid of losing a few dollars, it was because back then the emphasis was on mining it, not buying it. I wasn't interested in mining Bitcoin so I let it pass me by for a few years. Now I wish I'd been smarter.

The first purchase I made with Bitcoin was an ounce of silver (I think it was only one ounce). Now I realize that ounce of silver cost me over $10,000 (at current Bitcoin prices, anyway). Ouch. But back then I suspected Bitcoin might fade away before long, and if I bought precious metals with it, at least I'd have something tangible.

Multiple times I would wait until my dollar balance increased enough that I felt I had some extra, then buy more metals. And I once bought someone a gift with it-- just before the price of Bitcoin took a big tumble. I was pleased with myself that day, but even that "high" was when Bitcoin was less than half what it costs now.

I have a little (OK, a lot) buyer's remorse over the things I spent Bitcoin on. There's only one thing I might still consider spending some Bitcoin on, but haven't decided whether it would ever really be worth it to me. I don't want to feel that regret again. And, at the moment I barely have enough Bitcoin to do it anyway.

Somewhere out there right now is the "next Bitcoin"-- an opportunity to spend a tiny bit of money today for a huge payoff in a few years. But I don't know what it is, and I doubt I'd trust anyone who said they knew. Not that anyone would have ill-intent, just that the future is too uncertain.

I regret not getting Bitcoin sooner, but I'm really glad I got into it when I did instead of only getting started now.

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Make nice with your neighbors

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for November 4, 2020)

With the election now behind us, you need to find a way to live with the neighbors who supported a different candidate than you did. The neighbor who had a sign in the yard supporting the other candidate; go make up with them. Even if their sign is still there. Don't act as though you're doing them a favor-- it's as much to your benefit as it is to theirs. Don't be a sore loser or a sore winner; be a neighbor. Forget politics for a while.

I know it's difficult, in this time when everything has been politicized, but it's important to try.

This is the trouble with politics-- or at least one of many. It's why I see politics as such a negative, anti-social influence in the world. When everything has been politicized, everything is a threat; a life and death struggle-- which it shouldn't be. Government should have never been allowed to grow this powerful nor have this much effect on our lives.

It makes me sad that people have allowed politics and the government it spawns (or is it the other way around?) to infect society like a cancer. I can't make people stop being political, but I can point out how toxic it is and show them alternatives.

Speaking out against politics isn't "being political" any more than warning kids about the dangers of drug abuse is the same as selling them drugs.

I want people to get along. I would prefer if they focused on real things instead of political things. There are enough real problems in the world without being political and creating problems from nothing.

You have a right to your life, liberty, and property. No one's political opinions can change this in any way, although political opinions do cause people to violate you while imagining they are doing the right thing. They aren't.

As long as your neighbors aren't actively violating you, and you aren't actively violating them, you can find some common ground. Just remember this when the politicians you each support start calling for rights-violating legislation aimed at one of you. All legislation violates rights in some way, which is why I never support it and don't support it being enforced.

Maybe next time there's an election you can remember to put relationships ahead of politics. Society ahead of government. People ahead of groups.

Making nice with the neighbors after a contentious election could be a good beginning.

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Christmas parade in the year of Corona

The local Christmas parade of lights was Saturday evening. It was a reverse parade. The floats, decorated vehicles, and giant farm equipment covered in lights parked in the middle of Main Street, and the onlookers drove past and... on-looked.

The Corona-worthy theme was "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (although it seems only two or three participants got the memo. 

There were not many participants this year. I appreciate those who made the effort, though. It's not easy trying to do normal things while psychopathic politicians and their hired guns try to get in the way.

If everyone were as sick of the nonsense as I am, society would be back to "normal" already. I'm not scared of a new variety of cold. No politician is going to be able to make me scared of it. All they do is reinforce and multiply my disgust at their existence.

But, more and more places (on the Texas side) are ignoring the mask mandates. So, maybe some are able to think independently. Six or more months ago I was already seeing opposition to the mandates and some small acts of civil disobedience. Maybe the winds of change are getting stronger now. I'm ready for it to become a hurricane. If that makes me "inconsiderate" so be it.

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In the presence of evil

Well, that was close.

We were in Lubbock, Texas yesterday. We stopped by Walmart to grab a few things since the New Mexico stores are limiting access and you end up waiting 30 minutes or more to get inside.

We chose the one we usually stop at, since it is right on the way home. The receipt says we checked out at 3:37PM. 

At "around" 3:45PM police were called to respond to a fatal shooting.

We only got 3 items; forgot about the fourth thing we intended to get. Which it turns out is a good thing and the only reason we missed being in the store at the time of the shooting.

Nothing happened while we were inside, and even if we were still in the parking lot when the shooting happened-- which is likely-- I neither saw nor heard anything. 

I wonder why the "no guns allowed inside the store" sign beside the door didn't stop the shooter.

It makes you think.

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"Heroes" vs heroes

Living off of theft, bullying people with coercion and threats, and otherwise violating people is a more successful life strategy than respecting people's rights and leaving their life, liberty, and property alone. 

Worse still, those who live the first way are even praised, respected, and seen as the good guys. 

How is that even possible?

It's still only ethical to choose the second path.

Those of you who have chosen the second path, in spite of the sacrifices it requires, are heroes.

Thank you!

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Defund politicians until they end shutdowns

As long as any politician supports shutting down businesses, he/she/it shouldn't get paid. Shut them all down, too.

Obviously, I'm in favor of cutting off every politician's paycheck for any reason or for no reason at all, permanently and without exception. Most people aren't in favor of that.

But, at a minimum, as long as those parasites are going to force other people to do without their income, the politicians' checks should be stopped and all that money returned directly to their victims, and all forms of "taxation" should be canceled at least for the duration. That's the real stimulus that should be implemented.

I would also shut down the "Federal Reserve" to prevent it from making up more "money" to keep government going, handing the victims of government any money that's already in government accounts (and personal bank accounts of the politicians).

Once they relinquish their hold, the "back pay" shouldn't be given to them as a reward for doing the right thing, though. Just like the money their victims lost, it is gone from their hands forever.

The longer the shutdowns last, the more money the politicians lose. It's only right.

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You can experience minarchy NOW

I saw a minarchist praising this congressvermin over his tweet. He said, "I love this guy". There is so much wrong with that tweet, even acknowledging that he is kinda-sorta promoting gun rights a little bit, within government-supremacist parameters. Or is he actually promoting mob rule?

I replied to the minarchist (whom I had previously mistaken for a libertarian) "There shouldn't be FFLs nor v*ting on rights or for politicians."

That set off a storm because I hadn't realized I was going to be interacting with a minarchist.

I was lectured that I should not criticize the "most minarchist" congressvermin, I should embrace "incremental steps" because most people aren't ready for Ancapistan (a condition I've never advocated), etc. You know, all the normal stuff.

I try to not alienate minarchists-- I was once one myself. And many minarchists consider themselves libertarians. But, still...

You can basically have all the benefits of minarchy today, without having to wait the rest of your lifetime for it to replace the State which currently exists, by simply ignoring the State now. That's not enough for me, but I'll take what I can get now. I'm not going to beg for a state that "allows" what I can basically already get away with.

I can't support people who violate life, liberty, or property on a regular basis, but from what I see this must be a little harder for most people. A lot of people seem to really like certain archators and seek out exceptions for them. No exceptions exist.

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"Liberty is..."

Just wanted to say I am very proud of this design I just made and added to TeeSpring:

Liberty is...

Libertarians criticizing libertarians

I've seen a lot of online libertarians criticized for things that have nothing to do with being libertarian.

It's not hard to be libertarian.
All you have to do is recognize you have no right to violate anyone's life, liberty, or property. This is what the ZAP puts into words.

Then it's up to you to keep the promise.

As long as someone makes the effort, whatever else they do is none of my business.

Some people are going to make different choices than those I would make. Often some of these choices are just for fun or are tied to attempts to make extra money. 

You might think they are showing libertarians in a bad light, or being frivolous, or even immoral by your standards. You are free to think that, but as long as their actions don't violate anyone you have no right to stop them. You can criticize all you want, but remember you may drive someone away from liberty just as easily with your criticisms as the behaviors you criticize can.

Plus, as has been said, a revolution without dancing is a revolution not worth having. Life needs joy. No one can survive emotionally being serious all the time. I'll defend people just trying to have fun or make honest money, as long as they aren't violating anyone. Even if their choices differ from mine.

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Gridlock best election outcome

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for October 28, 2020)

What do you expect to happen after Donald Trump's election victory? I expect outrage, shock, and denial from the national mainstream media and others who pretended Joe Biden was a credible candidate.

I expect more accusations of Russian interference in the election as an excuse to consider the result illegitimate. Until "None of the above-- leave the office vacant" is on the ballot, no election looks legitimate to me.

I expect violence from those who will use the election as justification for violence no matter how things turn out. Just as certain people riot and destroy their own city after a major sports victory, the chaos lovers aren't going to be cheated out of their riot whatever happens. They'll just change their excuse to fit the outcome.

I expect more impeachment attempts from sore losers.

I expect liberty to be incrementally outlawed even more, although more slowly than the opposing team would have done had they gained the power to do so.

I expect-- I hope-- gridlock will protect the remaining shreds of liberty. The worst possible result is for bipartisanship to break out in Washington DC.

I believe the founders of the United States built gridlock into the system on purpose. The last thing they wanted was for the federal government to do things to Americans. If this weren't the case, they could have simply placed all political power into one office. Instead, they divided it to keep government from having that much power. For various reasons, it didn't work.

For one thing, they never intended for the Supreme Court to do what it does: interpreting and having the "final word" on the Constitution. They stole that power for themselves, in what should be seen as a coup, all the way back in 1803. They've been a serious danger to American liberty ever since.

It's good when Congress is gridlocked, but still able to block everything the president does. It would be good if the Supreme Court never got to consider a case, or was evenly divided and couldn't make a decision-- it's a shame there are an odd number of Supreme Courtjesters. It's good if the president doesn't take Congress or the Supreme Court too seriously.

Gridlock is why Donald Trump may be the best outcome for a less than optimal situation. Unless voters choose the smarter path and vote for Libertarian candidate, Jo Jorgensen, instead. I wish I expected that to happen.

(I missed this prediction, so here's the follow-up: link)

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Kent vs Bad Dogs

The dog that made friends over treats, "Snacky"

I'm not a dog person. I don't automatically like every dog I meet; they have to win me over. And many have done so over the years. But some of them don't even try.

I walk around town for a half-hour or more every day, unless the weather is bad enough that I use the Gazelle machine (but I find that even more boring than walking in town). 

No matter the path I take, I encounter aggressive dogs who don't stay in their yard. Most are either some chihuahua mix or a pit bull (or pit bull mix). I hate the dogs that come after me.

Long ago I started carrying dog treats; to either make friends or at least to buy me time. There was one dog who quickly learned I wasn't someone to attack, but that I offered treats to friends. Until he disappeared a few weeks ago he was always watching for me to pass.

I also carry a big stick in case treats don't work. I have had to use it a couple of times.

There is a yard I sometimes pass where two pit bulls live. One of them was a puppy this summer. I was nice to the puppy every time I went by, trying to avoid future trouble. The grown dog usually stayed inside the fence (the gate is often open) and glared or barked. As the puppy has grown it has gotten more aggressive. I have tried offering treats but neither of them was smart enough to ever notice the treats. (I have a very low opinion of pit bull intelligence based on every pit bull I've ever met.)

A couple of months ago the two of them charged my daughter and me as we walked by and I whacked the puppy on the head with my stick. He yelped and ran back to the yard. For weeks afterward, he would bark from his yard but didn't come after us. Sometimes he would actually run back inside the fence before starting to bark. 

Then a few weeks ago he decided to go for it again-- it's always when the grown dog is with him. That time I held my stick out to hold them off, and a passing motorist charged his pickup at the dogs and they ran home. The motorist had some unkind things to say about dog owners who let their aggressive dogs roam, and I agreed.

Yesterday, they came at me again-- it was as though they were waiting to ambush me. It's a good thing I'm alert! I held them off with the stick and told them "No! Go home!" They turned and ran but as soon as I tried to walk they came at me again so I went at them swinging. A motorist who was sitting at the stop sign put his car in reverse and distracted the dogs by driving backwards at them as soon as he saw the situation. I was glad my daughter wasn't with me this time.

The people who own the dogs are sometimes in the yard. I wave at them. I suspect they don't speak English but they wave back. I don't want to dislike them, but they aren't making that easy.

Once they had a dead rabbit hanging by a rope in the yard, high enough the puppy could barely nip at its feet if he jumped high enough. I wondered if this was some sort of training, but I don't know.

I've tried other routes, but as I say there are other dogs who do the same sort of thing. A huge bulldog came at me one day and almost got me even while his owner yelled at him. And I almost kicked a tiny terror back into his yard a couple of times. I've made a crazy winding route around town trying to avoid the aggressive dogs and have realized it simply isn't possible. I'm going to walk my preferred route and the bad dogs along the way are just going to have to learn to leave me alone.

I don't want to get into trouble for shooting a dog-- I don't have a license to kill like the Blue Line Gang does. If I get arrested for shooting a dog, you'll know why.

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A politics-free holiday

Amazing! No one brought up politics in any confrontational way over Thanksgiving.

My family is made up of Right-Statists, Left-Statists, virtual world dwellers, and me. The Right-Statists and Left-Statists never mentioned politics to each other in my presence. Neither side tried to get me to take a side because they didn't talk politics.

The biggest surprise is that for the first time in years, I didn't hear the Left-Statists insert snide comments about Trump into every conversation, even those which had nothing whatsoever to do with him. That's a miracle. And a welcome change.

Maybe it is better to just give the loudest complainers what they want.

From now on, instead of the election automatically going to whoever cheats the hardest, it will go to whoever makes the biggest threats of what they'll do if they don't get what they want.

The LP is still out of luck in this new paradigm as long as they embrace non-aggression. You can't threaten the courts into giving you the office if you won't hold society hostage (whether or not you manufacture v*tes). But the other parties still have an almost even chance (I still believe the Left-Statists have a bit of an advantage).

Politics may have fundamentally changed this year. I wonder where that will lead.

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Happy Th... well, you know.

 

"Listen to the science"

This is what we are told, and I agree.

But, those who say this usually believe "the science" is defined as that which agrees with their Left-Statist government-supremacist opinions. When there are two scientific trains of thought (as there often are), they only want you to listen to the one they agree with. Ignore the other.

And sometimes "the science" isn't even the right factor to consider.

Do masks work? Do lockdowns work? I don't know and I don't really care. It's entirely the wrong question. The right question would be "Who has the right to order you to do either of these things?" The answer is "No one".

I recently went with the family to Mexican food restaurant. No one was requested to wear masks to walk through the door. (Some people did anyway.) No one was scolding anyone for not wearing a mask. People were friendly and relaxed. It was almost just like a normal pre-panicdemic evening out.

The next day I went to PlastiCrap world. They were only letting 75 shoppers at a time in the store. It was cold, breezy, and misty and I waited in line for over half an hour to be allowed into the store. In this line, I was the only person-- outdoors, standing at least 6 feet apart-- who wasn't wearing a mask the whole time. I did pull up my bandana to enter the store (without being asked).

Why such stark differences? Because the restaurant was in Texas and the store was in New Mexico. Texas politicians aren't going insane about this cold virus, while New Mexico politicians seem to be competing to see how insane they can be. 

Pretending that the virus is an actual risk, I am willing to put up with some added risk for a little more liberty. I don't demand you do the same, but stay out of my way.

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