Harry Binswanger: Statism Is Deadly Opposite Of Capitalism

Whether fascism or communism, it's statism.      Over the last few years, a new and immensely clarifying concept has entered public discussion:  “statism.” It has been said that he who controls language controls history. The growing use of “statism” may portend a political sea change, because it pierces a major Leftist-created           ... MORE

Jeff Berwick: Jury Nullification - Spread The Word

Learn about the "JUST US" movement.     Last week I was sitting around a table in a beautiful setting, drinking wine, surrounded by eight of the largest names in the freedom movement. I'll get to why we were all there in a moment, but as usually happens with all libertarians the discussion got quite intense. The general theme was that the   ... MORE

VIDEO: Ayn Rand - Morality, Duty And The Individual

UNLIMITED GOVERNMENT --- EPA Stealthily Propels Toward Massive Power Grab Of Private Property Across The U. S.

by Bridget Johnson.       While the country is immersed in Obamacare headlines and a congressional tussle over delays and mandates, the Obama administration is stealthily moving toward unprecedented control over private property under a massive expansion of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Water Act authority. The proposed     ... MORE

3,278 Inmates Serving Life For Nonviolent Offenses

by Jess Remington.       The ACLU released a new report this week examining the growing trend of judges sentencing nonviolent offenders to life in prison without parole. The ACLU found, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the War on Drugs, mandatory minimums, and “tough-on-crime” policies are to blame. The report, A Living Death: A Life Without Parole  ... MORE

VIDEO: Learn Liberty - Free Banking

NY Times On Minimum Wage - A Regression In Reasoning

by Mark J. Perry.      Here are two different New York Times editorials on the minimum wage, with very different policy conclusions: 1. From 1987, “The Right Minimum Wage: $0.00“: Raising the minimum wage by a substantial amount would price working poor people out of the job market. A far better way to help them would be to subsidize     ... MORE

Andrew Napolitano: Freedom And Federalism

Federalism can save First Amendment values.       One of the bedrocks of our governmental infrastructure is federalism. This is the constitutional recognition of the legal origins of the United States as a union of independent states. America started, of course, with 13 colonies, which became 13 states, and gradually added 37       ... MORE

Kyle Becker: The Integrity Of The Liberal Media On Display

As a reporter faces jailtime for protecting sources.     Liberal media enjoy giving themselves accolades and awards for outstanding journalism — so long as the story fits the narrative. Fox News’ Jana Winter shouldn’t expect such praise or support. The New York Times and other left-wing outlets are either not reporting or are under-    ... MORE

Now Human Drug Dogs Sniff Out Weed And Issue Violations

Meet the newest government snoops, Nasal Rangers.     Just when you thought parking inspectors were the most-hated profession around, in come the 'odor investigators'. Pot smokers in Denver, Colorado - where the limited sale, possession and growth of recreational marijuana is legal - have had their noses put out of joint recently by        ...  MORE

VIDEO: John Stossel - The School Revolution

Jacob Sullum: The Name Affordable Care Act Is Bitter Joke

No such thing as free health benefits.       For the millions of Americans who are losing health plans they liked as a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the name of that law is a bitter joke. They do not feel protected, and they often find that the replacement coverage they are forced to buy costs a lot more.   ... MORE

The Difference Between Individual Rights And Privileges

by Kevin Eggers.     Understanding the difference between “individual rights” and government-provided “privileges” is as important as understanding the difference between freedom and slavery. It’s simple to understand: We own our “individual rights,” such as our Bill of Rights. The government owns the “privilege” that the government provides, ... MORE

VIDEO: California Legislature Fights For Porn Safety

John Stossel: The Libertarian Era

Liberty rising?     I didn't know what a libertarian was when I started reporting. I was just another liberal. I knew the Republicans were icky, and Democrats were more like me — except they didn't care about debt. I had no idea there was an actual movement of thinking people who want to honor the principles of the Founders — liberty and limited   ... MORE

Green Ethanol And The Damage It Leaves Behind

Govt mandate does more than drive up corn prices.      The hills of southern Iowa bear the scars of America's push for green energy: The brown gashes where rain has washed away the soil. The polluted streams that dump fertilizer into the water supply. Even the cemetery that disappeared like an apparition into a cornfield. It wasn't     ... MORE

Thomas Sowell: Tea Party At The Crossroads

Just what is in their rational self-interest?      Third parties have had an unbroken record of failure in American presidential politics. So it was refreshing to see in the Tea Party an insurgent movement, mainly of people who were not professional politicians, but who nevertheless had the good sense to see that their only chance of getting their    ... MORE

Walter E Williams: Does Washington Know Best?

Perhaps they know the best way to steal power.      According to some estimates, there are more than 100 million traffic signals in the U.S., but whatever the number, how many of us would like Washington, in the name of public health and safety, to be in sole charge of their operation? Congress or a committee it authorizes would       ... MORE

VIDEO: George Orwell's 1984: Power To The Proles

John Whitehead: Who’s to Blame for Battlefield America?

The founders warned us against a standing army.       It’s hard to pinpoint what exactly is responsible for the growing spate of police shootings, brutality and overreach that have come to dominate the news lately, whether it’s due to militarized police, the growing presence of military veterans in law enforcement, the fact that we are a      ... MORE

George Leef: Minimum Wage Alchemy

Not just economically bad, philosophically cancerous.    The driving force behind Obamacare was the absurd belief that through legislation and regulation, the government could make many healthcare consumers better off without making any of them worse off.  As we are now discovering, the truth is the reverse of that – hardly anyone ... MORE

VIDEO: Ben Swann Announces "JUST US" Jury Nullification

Glen Harlan Reynolds: A Look At Medicaid's Awful Results

Incentives against doctors and high quality medical care.   As the Obamacare debacle rolls on -- looking even worse than it did a week ago, if that's possible -- there's a separate but related issue involving Medicaid expansion. And, as with Obamacare, people who oppose the expansion risk being called heartless murderers for "denying sick  ... MORE

Give "Capitalism" A Chance

by Shanmuganathan Nagasundaram.     The prevailing majority opinion in the country and the world over is that the crisis of 2008 was caused by greedy speculators and unregulated capitalism (the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in the US, unfair lending practices, etc). But that’s not so, and it’s probably best to start by defining what       ... MORE

J.D. Tuccille: Why Not "Opt Out" Of Government Control?

It's getting ever-easier to exit the system.      Balaji Srinivasan, a Stanford Universty instructor and genomics entrepreneur, recently offered some radically individualistic advice to aspiring tech innovators. Speaking at at this year's Startup School, sponsored by tech "seed accelerator" Y Combinator, he warned members of the audience  ... MORE

U.S. Police Have Killed Over 5,000 Civilians Since 9/11

Death by cop 8X more likely than death by terrorist.    Though Americans commonly believe law enforcement’s role in society is to protect them and ensure peace and stability within the community, the sad reality is that police departments are often more focused on enforcing laws, making arrests and issuing citations. As a result of this as     ... MORE

VIDEO: John Stossel - Minimum Wage Rage

ObamaCare Leaves Docs On The Hook For Deadbeats

More incentives not to be a doctor.        Tucked inside nearly 11,000 pages of the Affordable Care Act is a little-known provision that doles out three months of free health care to individuals who choose to default on their premiums. People who receive the federal subsidy to be part of Obamacare will be allowed to incur a three-month      ... MORE

Judson Phillips: Laws, Damn Laws And Regulations

Stop the dictatorship.       There are laws, there are damn laws and then there are regulations. America is awash in laws, many of them bad. We are drowning in regulations, almost all of which are stupid, illogical and simply bad.  How many laws are there? Well, it is tough to get an exact count. There are over three thousand criminal laws in the  ... MORE

VIDEO: Chicago's Mobile Vendors In An Epic Food Fight

Mark Steyn: The Drift Toward Despotism

Our rulers reflexively see the citizenry as a threat.       At a time when over 4 million people have had their health insurance canceled, it’s good to know that some Americans can still access prompt medical treatment, even if they don’t want it. David Eckert was pulled over by police in Deming, N.M., for failing to come to a complete ... MORE

The FDA's Ill-Conceived Proposal To Ban Trans Fats

by Baylen Linnekin.         On Thursday the FDA made the surprise announcement that it would move to ban artificial trans fats, which are found in foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. The ban would not apply to naturally occurring trans fats, such as those found in meat and dairy products. Adoption of the proposal, which is     ... MORE

WASHINGTON TIMES EDITORIAL: Nullification By Jury

Sometimes the courts need to be told who's boss.        Federal prosecutors are furious at a Montana-based group that posted signs at the Judiciary Square Metro stop reminding District of Columbia residents of their rights under the law. The offending message, sponsored by the Fully Informed Jury Association, says simply, “Good jurors nullify bad  ... MORE

Jonah Goldberg: Trust Us - This Will Be Good For You

The government thinks you're stupid, or at least ignorant.     This isn't just an indictment of the current government or an indictment of government itself. It's simply a statement of fact. At its core, the government exists to do certain things that people aren't equipped to do on their own. The list of those things has gotten longer and      ... MORE

VIDEO: John Whitehead - A Government Of Wolves

NH Man Sues; Argues DMV Violated His Free Speech Rights

He was just saying ...    A New Hampshire man told the state's highest court Thursday that denying him a vanity license plate that reads "COPSLIE" violates his political free speech rights. David Montenegro, of Farmington, said he wanted the plate because he feels it epitomizes government corruption.  The policy prohibits vanity plates        ... MORE

Silk Road 2.0 Resurrects Online Drugs Marketplace

Black market site adds new security measures. Silk Road, the online drugs marketplace which was shut down by the FBI in October, has been resurrected by a group of the site’s former moderators and users. Dubbed Silk Road 2.0, the new site taunts the authorities from the start with a login page that features a pastiche of the FBI’s seizure.    ... MORE

VIDEO: I, Pencil - The Movie

Imagine If President Obama Ran Disneyworld

by Jeffrey Dorfman.       The federal government is moving closer and closer to taking control of the entire health care sector. It already controls close to half of all health care transactions and it might reach two-thirds soon. The federal government has also expanded its role regulating and controlling the food industry, the automobile      ... MORE

Woman Who Championed ObamaCare Loses Her Insurance

How a fool and her health plan were soon parted.     President Barack Obama is apologizing to Americans who are losing their current health insurance plans. Millions of people are getting cancellation notices, including about 250,000 Coloradans. For years the president said that those who like their current plan would be able to keep it,  ... MORE