September 13, 2019

The secret history of the monopolization of welfare by the state

fromAIER: Left out of today’s public discourse is the issue that guided classical liberals in the 19th century: should people be free or shall they be coerced to do what others consider to be “the right thing”?

The Welfare State: Promoting Dependency

NRA sues San Francisco over terrorist declaration

fromABCNews: "...accuses city officials of violating the gun lobby's free speech rights for political reasons and says the city is seeking to blacklist anyone associated with the NRA."
2nd Amendment Assaults

Climate change has been a routine scare tactic since the 1930's

fromArmstrongEconomics: It has long been a ploy of the socialist left to demean and destroy the concept of private property with apocalyptic predictions.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

John Bolton left because Trump wouldn’t let him start a war

fromVox: There was always going to be a conflict between Trump’s “America First” and Bolton’s “America Everywhere.”
Defense Versus The War Machine

9/11 Solidified the Destruction of Our Freedom

fromFFF: The saddest thing about 9/11 is how American politicians allowed a band of terrorists to successfully destroy American freedom.
The Government is Not Us

Flynn hearing reveals existence of bombshell DOJ memo exonerating Michael Flynn

fromSaraCarter: A bombshell revelation was barely noticed at Michael Flynn’s hearing, when his counsel revealed the existence of a Justice Department memo from Jan. 30, 2017 exonerating Flynn of any collusion with Russia.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

March 8, 2018

It begins: Seattle cops conduct Nazi-style gun confiscations: no laws broken, no charges, no arrests

fromTheFreeThoughtProject: Using a new law, Seattle police raided a man's home and confiscated his guns with zero due process for entirely legal behavior. 
The Government is Not Us       2nd Amendment Assaults

Age discrimination suit against Dick's Sporting Goods and Walmart for refusing to sell rifle to 20-year-old

fromReason: Oregon law bans discrimination in selling goods based on age, so this lawsuit looks like a winner. 
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

NRA memberships surge in wake of anti-NRA protests, ‘media bias’

fromBreitbart: The Daily Mail reports that Google searches for “NRA membership” rose “4,900 percent” since the Florida attack. 
2nd Amendment Assaults      Media Bias on Parade

VIDEO: Ayn Rand - Phil Donahue Interview 1979

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: Objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand enlightens Donahue on a variety of topics.
Regulation Nation      The Pursuit of Happiness       Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

SF to charge vacant-lot owners for rainwater that runs down the drain

fromCreators: They've finally did it. They are taxing you for the rain that falls on your property. 
Regulation Nation      The Government is Not Us

VIDEO: Stand Straight Up

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: From the Rubin Report, Psychologist Jordan Peterson discusses rule one of his new book, “12 Rules for Life”.
The Pursuit of Happiness

Thomas Sowell: Random Thoughts On The Passing Scene

Musings of a wise man.    Will this November's presidential election come down to a choice between a felon and a pied piper? People who call Barack Obama a lame duck president seem not to have noticed that he is exercising more power than ever, and has turned the Republican Congress into a lame duck branch of government. The best New Year's    ... MORE

Walter E Williams: Isn't It Strange

More inconvenient truths.   There is a letter titled "Isn't It Strange?" making the rounds in email boxes. It asks questions to which our fellow Americans should know the answers, save for those caught up in modernity. It starts off asking, "Isn't it strange that after a bombing, everyone blames the bomber, his upbringing, his environment,  ... MORE

Poll Shows NRA Is 50% More Popular Than Hillary Clinton

Maybe the people are not-so dumb.    We’ve been hearing a lot about this subject in the last few weeks.  Among the list of the “enemies” that Hillary Clinton is most proud of having made, the National Rifle Association is right near the top of the list. This led one of her prominent supporters to declare that the demise of the organization was   ... MORE

Thomas Sowell: The 'Gun Control' Farce

Another crack down on law-abiding citizens.  President Obama's intrusion into the mourning community of Roseburg, Oregon, in order to promote his political crusade for stronger gun control laws, is part of a pattern of his using various other sites of shooting rampages in the past to promote this long-standing ... MORE     The 'Gun Control' Farce: Part II.  

Obama Not Done With Unilateral Moves On Gun Control

by Michael F. Haverluck.   Unloading his latest round of gun-control legislation, President Barack Obama's executive fiat is poised to stop Americans from buying and selling a traditional form of ammunition that has been one of the country's favorites for generations — the .223-caliber "green-tipped" bullet. It's commonly used in an array of rifles   ... MORE

UK Gun Owners Subject To Warrantless Home Searches

Previews of coming attractions?     Registered gun owners in the United Kingdom are now subject to unannounced visits to their homes under new guidance that allows police to inspect firearms storage without a warrant. The new policy from the British Home Office went into effect Oct. 15, permitting police and constabularies to conduct surprise ... MORE

NY’s NRA Membership Nearly Doubles In Wake Of SAFE Act

by Tom Precious.       As gun-rights and gun-control groups continue to argue over the effects of the New York SAFE Act, one consequence is clear: Membership in the state affiliate of the National Rifle Association has soared since the law was enacted a year ago. Tom King, president of the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, said the NRA     ... MORE

Walter E Williams: Are Guns The Problem?

Examining the inconvenient truth of the matter.        Every time there's a shooting tragedy, there are more calls for gun control. Let's examine a few historical facts. By 1910, the National Rifle Association had succeeded in establishing 73 NRA-affiliated high-school rifle clubs. The 1911 second edition of the Boy Scout Handbook made        ... MORE

Emily Miller: Using Taxes To Threaten 2nd Amendment

Making self-protection unaffordable.      Liberals are trying every tool at their disposal this year to go after guns. They have failed on Capitol Hill to restrict the Second Amendment, so they are moving through the states to enact their agenda. The latest maneuver is to hike the tax on guns and ammunition to dissuade the law-abiding     ... MORE

Shane Clark: Are You Willing To Die For Your Freedom?

Massive loss in freedom vs. minimal gain in security.    Before we even got the whole picture detailing exactly how widespread the government's phone tracking efforts were, we were hit with news of the NSA PRISM program. The details are still being uncovered and debates and questions concerning both programs abound, but the most   ... MORE

The NRA, The NSA And The Politics Of Individualism

A reactive rise in civil libertarians.       Much of the right-wing resistance to the post-Newtown gun control push was animated, not by gun owners’ commitment to hunting or personal defense, but by the idea that an armed society is a fundamental safeguard against government tyranny. For example, in a hearing on gun control, NRA leader  ... MORE

Dave Kopel: Turning Gun Owners Into Felons

Spouse can't even borrow gun for over 7 days.  Public-opinion polls about “universal background checks” for gun sales show widespread support. While President Obama and Mayor Bloomberg talk about “gun sales,” the actual legislation moving through Congress aims to regulate far more than sales. It would turn almost every gun owner into a  ... MORE

Thomas Sowell: Guns Save Lives

An inconvenient truth for the left.   We all know that guns can cost lives because the media repeat this message endlessly, as if we could not figure it out for ourselves. But even someone who reads newspapers regularly and watches numerous television newscasts may never learn that guns also save lives— much less see any hard facts comparing how  ... MORE

Tracie Cone: Bill Would Ban Lead Ammunition In California

Inmates are running the asylum.     Environmentalists are pushing legislation to ban lead ammunition in California to prevent toxins from poisoning scavengers that eat animal remains left by hunters. Final language of the bill was introduced Monday by Assembly Member Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, who said the legislation would remove a    ... MORE

Emily Miller: Concealed Carry Renewed

Pumping oxygen to the 2nd Amendment.       The top legislative priority for gun owners in the previous Congress was passage of a national concealed carry reciprocity bill. The measure sailed through the House on a bipartisan 272 to 154 vote only to die at the hands of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who refused to bring it to the floor. Since President   ... MORE

What The Gun And Marijuana Lobbies Have In Common

Andrew Cohen on embracing states' rights.    Last week, I took a glancing look at some of the most dubious gun measures creeping up from state legislatures all over the country since the beginning of the year. The statutory text may differ from state to state, but the theme of those post-Newtown proposals are essentially the same: Under the banner    ... MORE

VIDEO: Political Correctness And Common Sense

Excerpts from a speech by Charlton Heston at Brandeis University.

Thomas Sowell: Do Gun Control Laws Control Guns?

They do not control crime.    The gun control controversy is only the latest of many issues to be debated almost solely in terms of fixed preconceptions, with little or no examination of hard facts. Media discussions of gun control are dominated by two factors: the National Rifle Association and the Second Amendment. But the over-riding   ... MORE