July 13, 2019

Is facial recognition the new fingerprinting—or something much worse?

fromHumanEvents: State DMVs are building a vast national digital identification database for federal law enforcement.

Government is Watching Every Move You Make

A complete list of alternatives to the Google search engine

fromCollectiveEvolution: Using Google as a search engine is no longer giving you access to unedited truth, as admitted by Google exec Jen Gennai. You will see what Google wants you to see.

Indoctrination and Censorship

Citizens now charged with a crime for repairing their own car in their own garage

fromFreeThoughtProject: Another kick in groin to private property rights. In Sacramento, California, residents can now be fined $500 for simply fixing a tire or changing their car's oil in their "own" driveway.

Individual Liberty: America's First Principle               Regulation Nation

Florida sheriff deputy arrested after planting drugs on innocent people

fromReason: Drug war incentives are perverse. Make no mistake, the war on drugs is a war on you.

Police State America                The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange 

Congress votes to block feds from enforcing marijuana laws In legal states

fromHumanEvents: At long last, the federal government is dragged, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century.

The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Judges appear set to rule against Obamacare individual mandate

fromHumanEvents: It didn't satisfy Obama's overlord mentality enough that government could confiscate a large percentage of your earnings already, he was hellbent on dictating what you must buy. 

Regulation Nation

July 9, 2019

Trump’s citizenship question isn’t controversial. Obama deleting it should’ve been.

fromHumanEvents: Barack Obama was the first U.S. President to not include a question on nationality in the decennial census.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Some big farms collect big checks from Trump aid package

fromRiverFrontTimes: Trump's tariff policy is a big help to big farming. Tariffs, bailouts, entitlements and subsidies, at their root, are always about vote-buying.

Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

France has turned into one of the worldwide threats to free speech

fromTheHill: "While our politicians in the United States may applaud Macron like village idiots, most Americans are hardcore believers in free speech. It runs in our blood."

Indoctrination and Censorship

VIDEO: Brendan O'Neill - Political Correct Bigotry

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: British columnist Brendan O’Neil gives an in depth explanation of the sugar-coated tyranny we call political correctness.

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Biden vows to bring back Obamacare’s individual mandate penalty for not having insurance

fromRiverFrontTimes: Candidate insists on dictating how previously free Americans must spend the money government doesn't take off the top.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

The St. Louis County SWAT team blasted a dog. Now the county owes $750,000

fromRiverFrontTimes: Five years after a St. Louis County SWAT Team raided her home in order to conduct a property inspection related to a missed gas bill, Angela Zorich is walking away with a $750,000 settlement. 

Police State America

April 15, 2019

Julian Assange and WikiLeaks deserve our thanks for making governments more transparent

fromReason:  The world is a better place now that it's harder than ever for governments to keep secrets.

The Government is Not Us       Government is Watching Every Move You Make     

The Washington establishment seems pretty happy about Julian Assange’s arrest

fromReason:  Deep state tyrants figure to sleep a little better if they can eliminate Assange.

The Government is Not Us       Government is Watching Every Move You Make 

Assisted dying: The death panels are coming

fromGaryNorth:  Rationing is inevitable in a world of scarcity. You can ration by price: high monetary bid wins. You can ration by standing in line: first come, first served. You can ration by bureaucratic procedure: fill out forms. 
But there is always rationing.

Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Why an internet regulator is a bad idea

fromSpiked:  We should be stripping away curbs on speech – not adding more.

Indoctrination and Censorship

Looking into surveillance

fromProvidenceJournal:  If our government has improperly used its immense power to spy on citizens for political purposes, it is vital that it be stopped, and those involved be punished, lest we become a police state.

Government is Watching Every Move You Make        Police State America

Your Volvo will soon call the cops on you if it thinks you've been drinking

fromZeroHedge:  It is unclear if demand for Volvos will collapse as a result of big brother watching over every move, or if potential customers will welcome this latest incursion of their privacy.

Government is Watching Every Move You Make        Police State America

Dec 17, 2018

District court judge in Texas holds Obamacare is unlawful

fromReason: Do you really care why or are you just going to rejoice?

Regulation Nation

Greedy California politicians eyeball text messaging tax as new resource to mine

fromTheMercuryNews: Millennials favor socialism. They are also the ones who text message most. Perhaps there is a warped kind of justice going on here. 

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery      Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

He ain't no Henry Ford---Elon Musk's taxpayer-funded gravy train

fromDavidStockmansContraCorner: Tesla cars are financed by over $280 million in federal tax incentives, including a $7,500 federal tax break and millions more in state rebates and development fees. Can you say crony capitalism?

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

The EPA wants to get out of puddles and ditches. Environmental activists are outraged.

fromReason: A welcome new federal approach under the Clean Water Act. The Obama EPA defined "navigable water" as basically every ditch, puddle, pond, etc. which made them all fall under its jurisdiction.

Regulation Nation

Three Clinton Foundation whistleblowers to testify about tax Crimes, pay-for-play

fromZeroHedge: Following allegations of sloppy accounting, potential tax fraud and pay-to-play, the Clinton Foundation will be under a Congressional microscope this week.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

The EFF gift guide: What’s creeping us out

fromEFF: Here are some gifts being pushed this year that, from a privacy or security standpoint, are on our naughty list.

Government is Watching Every Move You Make

Dec 4, 2018

Without an Obamacare penalty, many are planning to drop health plans. The consequences could be dire.

fromTheHill: Evidence that mandates are only necessary when persuasion has no chance. Premiums, even for a bronze plan with a deductible of more than $6,000, can cost more than $500 a month.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market     Regulation Nation

Census confirms: 63 percent of ‘non-citizens’ on welfare, 4.6 million households

fromWashingtonExaminer: A majority of “non-citizens,” including those with legal green card rights, are tapping into welfare programs set up to help poor and ailing Americans says a Census Bureau finding.
The Welfare State: Promoting Dependency

The aggressive (and subtle) faces of coercion

fromCSMonitor: China today: The portrait is appalling. Obedience is enforced at gunpoint. Fear is widespread. The desire to change others is put above every other consideration. 
Government is Watching Every Move You Make

George H.W. Bush's legacy holds little, nothing for libertarians to celebrate

fromReason: There is little to celebrate and much to criticize.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Our deficits may finally be coming home to roost

fromTheHill: The fact that our government is able to print money means that outright default is extremely unlikely; rather, the cost of excessive borrowing shows up in more subtle ways.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Author's anger after his book about reducing plastic is sent out shrink-wrapped in PLASTIC

fromDailyMail: An eco-friendly author has been left raging after copies of his anti-plastic book were dispatched wrapped in plastic. Hilarious.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

February 24, 2018

Should teachers be armed?

fromLewRockwell: Government is the last place one should look for deciding how to protect school children, how to run schools, how to run police and how to produce law enforcement for its citizens.
2nd Amendment Assaults      The Government is Not Us

Police announce program to Illegally stop people for ‘SAFE driving

fromTheFreeThoughtProject: Safe driving is now a reason for police to pull you over, check the inside of your car, demand your papers, and stomp what is left of the 4th Amendment into the ground.
Police State America

Idaho is ignoring Obamacare rules. That could set off a free market chain reaction.

fromVox: Forget Obamacare's tyrannical dictates. Blue Cross of Idaho said it hopes to start selling noncompliant plans by early March.
Regulation Nation      Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

A high school student faces expulsion for noticing the square root symbol looks like a gun

fromReason: No adults seem embarrassed by this reaction. They should be.
2nd Amendment Assaults      Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

VIDEO: Ayn Rand - Johnny Carson Interview 1967

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: From 51 years ago, a classic interview with Objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand.
The Government is Not Us     Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery   Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

“Cash must not be made the scapegoat”

fromWolfStreet: A rare defense of physical money by an ECB Board Member. “Protection of privacy matters to all of us. Privacy protects people from the risk of a surveillance state and thought police,” he said.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market      The Government is Not Us

November 15, 2017

Financial tyranny: ‘we the people’ are the new permanent underclass in America

from Rutherford Institute: Americans can no longer afford to get sick. That’s because they are struggling to stretch their dollars far enough to pay their bills, get out of debt and ensure that if and when an illness arises, it doesn’t bankrupt them.
The Government is Not Us

Feminization of America is bad for the world

from Creators: Last week, The New York Times published an article, "Sweeping Away Gender-Specific Toys and Labels," that contained three sentences that explain one of the most important phenomena in American life.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Detroit cops posing as drug dealers brawl with colleagues posing as customers

from Reason: Maybe this is how the war on drugs should be fought from now on.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

How the left uses blacks like stalking horses

from Creators: Professor Walter E Williams provides his customary dose of wisdom.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Rand Paul says he will propose individual-mandate repeal

from Breitbart: Rand Paul Tuesday took up President Donald Trump’s challenge to Republicans to include the repeal of the Obamacare individual-mandate in their tax overhaul legislation.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

12-year-old sues Attorney General Jeff Sessions to legalize medical marijuana

from NBC News: A young girl files a lawsuit attempting to educate an old fart.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

October 20, 2017

Cambridge University students given trigger warnings for Shakespeare plays

from Independent: Underdeveloped children protected from using their minds. Ideas and emotions should be challenged, not protected -- particularly in institutions of learning.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

US health care system: A patchwork that no one likes

from Washington's Top News: Overpriced and underperforming, almost all parties agree that the health care system in the U.S., which is responsible for about 17 percent of our GDP, is badly broken.
Economic Policy: Statism vs. The Free Market

Jeff Sessions announces new scheme to strengthen and expand legalized theft

from CBS News: Civil asset forfeiture. Question: If we have a government of consent, why does this practice exist? After all, citizens have no right to simply take the rightful property of others and therefore cannot delegate such powers to politicians.
Police State America

New Orleans D.A. sued for using fake subpoenas to coerce witnesses and crime victims

from Reason: After the media revealed the threatening, fraudulent notices, a lawsuit has targeted the practice. Public servants or public masters?
The Government is Not Us

U.S. judge orders taxpayers to pay for illegal alien abortion

from Washington Post: These politicians -- and make no mistake, judges are politicians -- are very generous and compassionate with other people's money. Are they imposing their agenda or administering justice? You decide.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

FBI informant "threatened" after offering details linking Clinton Foundation to Russian bribery case

from ZeroHedge: A whistleblower with knowledge of scandal is silenced by the FBI and the Obama Administration.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

September 23, 2017

The treasonous media hates America

from LibertyCrier: Compelling evidence is presented in an 11-minute video of Trump's words and media coverage.
Media Bias on Parade

Unlawful rental registries: Coming soon to a city near you

from The Free Thought Project: Unlike the federal government, local government cannot print money. In order to grow, they have to mine for new revenue sources.
The Government is Not Us

Cop who threw handcuffed man into lake and watched him drown, gets only 10 days in jail

from The Free Thought Project: To prove once and for all that no one is above the law, the state punishes one of its own.
Police State America

Look around! Common law works. government statute doesn’t.

from The Daily Bell: Wouldn’t that be great if you could simply base your actions on common sense and respect for the standards of a community?
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Rand Paul: ‘I won’t be bribed or bullied’ on repeal vote

from The Hill: Rand Paul is one of the few politicians who was actually committed to repealing Obamacare. He has voted to do so each time. But he will not rubber stamp Obamacare Lite.
Regulation Nation

California demands money from Gatorade to protect water from slander

from Reason: California politicians take nitwittery to the next level in order to shakedown a productive corporation.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

September 6, 2017

The maximum price of the minimum wage

from The Washington Times:  When the bill for feel-good economics comes due, only the ignorant scream.
Regulation Nation

When cowards give in to looters, the American people are the losers

from The American Spectator:  Republicans wave the white flag on Obamacare as RINO senators and governors move toward a blueprint for surrender. When they ran for election, the GOP put on their masks. When they failed to act, they took them off.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Wisconsin moves to be first state ever to nullify federal cannabis prohibition through legislation

from The Free Thought Project:  State nullification of federal marijuana prohibition is completely constitutional, with the feds having little, if any, recourse to stop the process. Until now, cannabis has been legalized ONLY through direct initiative of the people, not by our so-called representatives.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Internet censorship bill would spell disaster for speech and innovation

from Electronic Frontier Foundation:  The bill, named the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, would not stop sex traffickers (its stated pretense), but it would chill free expression.
Indoctrination and Censorship

A 2020 Democratic agenda is emerging

from The Washington Post:  Intolerant and unrealistic, the party ditches pretended moderation and will openly fight for their left-wing agenda.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Regulation Nation

Latest Update: August 9, 2017

Innovation drives the small manufacturing boom—if it can survive regulatory meddling
Face first into bureaucratic madness – opening a hot dog stand in California
NYC law that makes dog-sitting illegal without a license
Trump is quietly stacking the labor board with union busters

County sued for requiring 10 page permit application to play Pokemon Go in s public park

Why Is Insider Trading Illegal? It shouldn't be.

California extends water restrictions despite abundant rainfall

Adult women can't consent to sex in Louisiana

VIDEO: Murray Sabrin - Economics & The Federal Reserve

How Obamacare Just Made Filing Your Taxes Worse

by Nathan Nascimento.    It’s that wonderful time of year again: tax season. Some 150 million American businesses and individuals are expected to file taxes by this month, covering thousands of arcane provisions that determine how much you and your family will pay Uncle Sam and state governments this year. But this filing season is the second     ... MORE

VIDEO: Richard Epstein - ObamaCare

23% Of Americans In Their Working Prime Are Unemployed

by Michael Snyder. Did you know that when you take the number of working age Americans that are officially unemployed (8.2 million) and add that number to the number of working age Americans that are considered to be “not in the labor force” (94.3 million), that gives us a grand total of 102.5 million working age Americans that do not have a job right ... MORE

Little Sisters Of The Poor Case Not About Contraception, It's About Gov't Forcing You To Violate Your Conscience

by Stephanie Slade.   This morning the eight justices of Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Zubik v. Burwell. The case will determine whether the Little Sisters of the Poor and six other petitioners (including Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik) can object to an "accommodation" from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that they   ... MORE

VIDEO: The Truth Behind The Affordable Care Act

Michelle Malkin: Obamacare’s Tax-Time Torment

The bumbling Obamacare bureaucracy.   Thousands of taxpayers must do without a form needed to claim a tax credit for their overpriced health-insurance premiums. Where is my 1095-A? This is what it must be like dealing with a government agency in a third world country.” That was the lament on Twitter of just one poor citizen this week trying   ... MORE

ObamaCare: WORSE Than A Complete Waste Of Money

by John Hinderaker.  The findings of NPR and Harvard. National Public Radio collaborated with Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to survey Americans’ recent experience with health care. As to the Affordable Care Act, the survey’s findings are damning. They suggest that Obamacare has been   ... MORE

How the Affordable Care Act Continues To Fall Short

by Veronique de Rugy.     So much for government promises. Of the seven main candidates running for president, only one wants to keep the Affordable Care Act in place: the Democratic kind-of-front-runner Hillary Clinton. Everyone else wants to get rid of it. Most Republicans would replace it by returning health insurance regulation to the states,   ... MORE