Obama Theatrics, Obama RealityObama has been too quiet lately. And when he does speak, he says little of substance. For example, on the looming fiscal cliff that has America panicked, he held a press conference on Nov. 28 to urge people to tweet Congress.
The only hard policy statement included was a reiteration of his well-worn proposal to not to raise taxes on families earning less than $250,000 a year.
Tweets? Really? Why not have a bake sale?
In Everybody’s Autobiography (1937... (more)
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Will Your Office Pool Get You Arrested?I’m not a bettin’ man, probably because I’ve lost every time I’ve tried it. Still, I benefit from those who do. We all do. Betting odds give us information about what others believe, same as stock and bonds prices. And this collected knowledge, backed by real property, tells us more about the real world than we can otherwise discover on our own.
Just recently in the presidential election, for example, I followed Intrade.com’s election markets. Here, the odds are formed by people b... (more)
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The Unfathomable Depravity of the CIAFifty-nine years ago, a CIA bioweapons expert named Frank Olson attended a secret meeting in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, where he was given a drink laced with an experimental hallucinogenic compound now known as LSD. Dr. Olson did not give his consent to be a test subject; the same was true of many others used as human guinea pigs in the agency’s MK-Ultra program.
On November 24, 1953, Dr. Olson announced that he wanted to resign from the Agency. During the Thanksgiving weekend, he... (more)
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Machiavelli and State Power As libertarianism has acquired a higher profile in American life over the past several years, the attacks on and caricatures of libertarians have grown almost as rapidly. Libertarians, we read, are antisocial, and prefer isolation over interaction with others. They are greedy, and are unmoved if the poor should starve. They are naive about our dangerous enemies, and refuse their patriotic duty to support the government’s wars.
These caricatures and misconceptions ... (more)
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The CIA's Murder of Frank Olson Goes to CourtYesterday, the New York Times carried a fascinating article entitled “Suit Planned Over Death of Man C.I.A. Drugged.” According to the article, the children of a former federal official named Frank Olson are suing the CIA for murdering their father in 1953 as part of the agency's infamous MKUL... (more)
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How Government 'Works'There are many theories to explain government. Most are nothing but scams, justifications, and puffery. One tries to put something over on the common man…the other claims it was for his own good…and the third pretends that he’d be lost without it. Most are not really ‘theories’ at all…but prescriptions, blueprints for creating the kind of government the ‘theorist’ would like to have. Not surprisingly, the blueprints flatter his intellect and engage his imagination.
The... (more)
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Hating the RichIn the midst of the extramarital affair scandal involving former CIA director David Petraeus, the mansion which mistress-turned-media target Paula Broadwell is hiding out in was revealed by the Daily Mail. This $2.3 mansion contains seven bedrooms and five bathrooms and is owned by Broadwell's brother. Some are... (more)
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Why Are Brothels Illegal?In contrast to the boring and predictable presidential candidates, there are some unusually colorful candidates who somehow manage to get into office each time there is an election. Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was twice elected to the California governorship. Professional wrestler Jesse Ventura was elected governor of Minnesota. Singer Sony Bono was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives until his life was tragically cut short in a skiing accident. Comedian Al Franken is currently the jun... (more)
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Statist Thugs And The Rocks They Crawl Out From UnderA mass exodus from ignorance and organized opposition to tyranny is the dream of every freedom loving person within the Liberty Movement today. We would like nothing better than to put an end to the expanding establishment police state in the most peaceful manner possible. We dream of a day when a transition back to the Constitutional values that once made America brilliantly unique in the world is possible, and can be accomplished without incredible pain or terrible bloodshed. We long for th... (more)
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Doug Casey on the America That Was -- Now the United (Police) State of AmericaL: Doug, after conversations like the one we had last week, we often get letters from angry readers who accuse you of hating America, disloyalty, and perhaps even treason. These people don't know or understand what I do about you -- that you love the idea that was America. It's the United State it has become for which you have nothing but contempt. Perhaps we should tr... (more)
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Gaza and AmericaWhen Hamas, a quasi-state claiming to represent the Palestinians, launches rockets that predictably kill or maim everyday Israelis, destroy property, and cause fear among civilians, it is committing terrorism. Regardless of the legitimate grievances Palestinians have, it is wrong to use deadly violence in a way that inevitably hurts the innocent. This is the moral principle toward which we should hope all humanity strives.
When the Israeli state, claiming to represent the Isra... (more)
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Ron Paul: You're Not Free If You Can't Secede From An Oppressive GovernmentIs all the recent talk of secession mere sour grapes over the election, or perhaps something deeper? Currently there are active petitions in support of secession for all 50 states, with Texas taking the lead in number of signatures. Texas has well over the number of signatures needed to generate a response from the administration, and while I wouldn’t hold my breath on ... (more)
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Love, Liberty, and the StateLove and liberty are the basic building blocks with which decent people build good lives for themselves.
Love takes many forms--in personal relations, in work and other creative endeavors, in charity toward the needy, in spiritual commitments that give deeper meaning to life amid its inevitable challenges and losses. Love gives us a reason to continue despite discouragements and difficulties, to keep trying to make still another comeback after we have been crushed in body or spiri... (more)
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It Isn't a Crime When the Government Does ItSo remember when Chicago police were arresting people for recording them, and charging them with crimes punishable by 10 or more years in prison? Remember the woman who was arrested and charged because she attempted to record Chicago PD internal affairs police browbeating her when she tried to report a sexual assault by a Chicago cop? Remember all that stuff we heard from Chicago PD ... (more)
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The "Fiscal Cliff" Will Be Just the Beginning of SorrowsThe U.S. government is scheduled to arrive at the so-called “fiscal cliff” on January 1, when the Bush tax cuts expire and mandatory budget sequestration kicks in. At the same time, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation will stop offering 100 percent insurance on all bank deposits, and reinstitute the $250,000 deposit insurance limit.
Some analysts believe that this will precipit... (more)
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Killing Iranian ChildrenIt was inevitable. Today the Guardian reported the first death of an Iranian child from the U.S. Empire’s sanctions on Iran. The death of 15-year-old Iranian Manoucherhr Esmaili-Liousi brings to mind the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children from the 11 years of sanctions that the Empire enforced against Iraq during the 1990s.
According to the article, the boy suffered from haemophilia, and he died as a result of a shortage of medicine brought on by the sancti... (more)
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Doug Casey on the Inconvenient Truths of US Foreign Policy L: Hola, Doug. Congrats on calling the election correctly. You got your wish: the global economy should exit the eye of the storm on Obama's watch. Hopefully, leftist ideas will get the blame they deserve this time.
Doug: Well, that's only the second time I've ever called a US presidential election accurately, so I won't let it go to my head. However, al... (more)
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Should Puppy Mills Be Illegal?In October, the city of Los Angeles became the first major city in the United States to ban pet shops from selling dogs* obtained from commercial breeders. The law's purpose is to curb the rise of puppy mills which are breeding facilities known for housing dogs in dirty, cramped conditions. The law's other purpose is to cut down on the amount of euthanasia procedur... (more)
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Stop pretending the US is an uninvolved, helpless party in the Israeli assault on GazaA central premise of US media coverage of the Israeli attack on Gaza - beyond the claim that Israel is justifiably "defending itself" - is that this is some endless conflict between two foreign entitles, and Americans can simply sit by helplessly and lament the tragedy of it all. The reality is precisely the op... (more)
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3 Myths About SecessionI have no illusions about this latest secession petition phenomenon. Nothing will directly come of this, and the people who are behind it are mostly people who would be singing "God Bless America" at the tops of their lungs had Mitt Romney been elected. On the other hand, it sure has a lot of people talking about secession, which shows that the idea of it remains an important... (more)
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Obama's First-Term Track Record on Civil LibertiesFour years after Barack Obama was elected on a platform of "change you can believe in," he’s now promising America that the "best is yet to come." However, on almost every front – fiscally, militarily, politically, socially – the country is in a state of disarray.
Most troubling, however, is the state of our freedoms. Indeed, during Obama’s first term, our civil liberties were utterly and completely disemboweled. The great irony is that this happened with a self-proc... (more)
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American ExpatriationIn 2011, more than 1,800 Americans renounced their citizenships. This figure exceeded the numbers from 2007, 2008, and 2009 combined. The US government is notorious for under-publishing the full list of Americans renouncing though, so 1,800 is likely on the low end. What is known for certain is that the numbers of Americans renouncing their citizenships have become so great in some jurisdictions that the State Department has actually scheduled mass renunciations for rooms full of people. ... (more)
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Are These the End Times?Why all the long faces?
The election results seem to have sent many people into fits of depression, hysteria, and rage. Commentators on the right are proclaiming that the last days are here. The hordes of welfare dependents are taking over. The wealthy will be looted. Business will be destroyed. Demographics and demagoguery have at last come together to create the perfect storm for America. Socialism has at last arrived.
Well, let’s all just settle down a bit.
... (more)
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Will the Police Protect You?For years, I have declared a preference for taking my chances with criminals rather than with the police. Criminals usually want my property, not to control my life or to cage me like an animal. With criminals, I can pull a gun in self-defense. Until lately, however, the average person has scowled my way whenever I voiced that preference.
The situation is changing. A tipping point in the public attitude toward law enforcement is under way… finally! A significant number of people h... (more)
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