September 17, 2020

It’s perfectly Constitutional to talk about jury nullification

fromACLU: “Juror nullification is your right to refuse to enforce bad laws and bad prosecutions. Once you know your rights and powers, you can veto bad laws and hang the jury.”
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Abolish qualified immunity

fromReason: This court-invented doctrine shields bad cops from civil liability.
Police State America

White House will cancel racial sensitivity training for all federal employees

fromDailyMail: Trump blasts classes on 'critical race theory' and 'white privilege' as a 'sickness in our country'.
Indoctrination and Censorship             Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

House will vote on federal marijuana legalization for the first time, bill's future in Senate uncertain

fromUSAToday: The House's vote comes as views of marijuana have changed in Washington and increased numbers of Americans support the legalization of the drug, whether for recreational or medicinal purposes.
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

VIDEO: Tucker Carlson - Facebook, COVID and the End of Free Speech

fromSpiked: The social media giants are morphing into a state media that will ban all media that contradicts statist doctrine and, in effect, abolish the First Amendment.  Tucker explains in brilliant detail. 
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

People must have the right to mock Muhammad

fromSpiked: In America, freedom trumps archaic religious demands.
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

March 17, 2020

How Italy's socialized medicine deals with overload: Let the old folks die

fromDailyMail: A crisis management unit in Turin suggested that victims will be denied access to intensive care if they are aged over 80 or in poor health.

Economic Policy: Statism Versus the Free Market             Regulation Nation

End the FISA

fromTownhall: An unconstitutional mess that weakens national security and threatens civil liberties.

The Government is Not Us

How national security surveillance nabs more than spies

fromAPNews: Broad searches for foreign intelligence information flips the Fourth Amendment on its head when the government repurposes those searches for domestic criminal prosecutions

Government is Watching Every Move You Make

This crackdown on a jury nullification activist violates the First Amendment

fromReason: What’s at stake in Michigan v. Wood

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process         Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

VIDEO: Ayn Rand - Those Evil Robber Barons

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: A crisis management unit in Turin suggested that victims will be denied access to intensive care if they are aged over 80 or in poor health.

Economic Policy: Statism Versus the Free Market             Regulation Nation

Things have changed..."at least in wartime, the bars stay open"

fromZeroHedge: "Even those of us who signed up for this trip - that is, who expected a long emergency - may be a little bit in cosmic awe at just how much shit is flying into the ol’ fan."

Economic Policy: Statism Versus the Free Market             The Government is Not Us

February 20, 2020

The socialist delusions of Bernie Sanders

fromReason: Central planning kills economic growth.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market.          Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Financial feudalism

fromReason: The oligarchy uses debt offensively (to increase wealth and power), while the masses must use debt defensively (to survive)...
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

6yo girl taken from school by police without parents’ consent, held in facility for 48 hours for tantrum

fromFreeThoughtProject: After the body camera footage was released, the school responded by claiming that police were not present when Nadia was allegedly throwing her tantrum.

Police State America

WaPo opinion piece calls for elites to have a 'bigger say in choosing president'

fromTownhall: “Democracy Dies in Darkness” may be The WaPos slogan, but many are wondering if it’s actually the paper’s mission statement.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

This crackdown on a jury nullification activist violates the First Amendment

fromReason: Apparently, the majority of Democratic presidential contenders want to parade student debt sob stories around. These stories don't show the full picture.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Cashless agenda? China is scrubbing cash notes to stop virus spreading so its paper money won’t kill you

fromActivistPost: Beyond China, this crisis might also be used by governments in different parts of the world that want to transition to a “cashless society” to justify their actions.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

January 23, 2020

Why medical marijuana research can’t get off the ground

fromNJMarijuana: “They can’t conduct cannabis research until they show cannabis has a medical use, but they can’t show cannabis has a medical use until they can conduct research,” said Rep. Anna Eshoo D-Calif.

The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

How to get a jury to ignore the law and do the right thing

fromAbovetheLaw: The basics of jury nullification.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Why LBJ's Great Society flopped—and what it means for the 2020 election

fromReason: Amity Shlaes's new history of the late 1960s explains the failure of the last time the federal government tried to fix all that was wrong with America.

The Welfare State: Promoting Dependency           Economic Policy: Statism Versus the Free Market

No 'insurrection' or violence at Virginia gun rights rally

fromReason: Plus: Clinton says "nobody likes" Bernie, Biden wants Section 230 revoked, Iran takes responsibility for Jan. 8 plane crash, and more...

2nd Amendment Assaults           Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Capitalism seen doing 'more harm than good' in global survey

fromNJMarijuana: A result of crony capitalism having replace laissez-faire capitalism

Economic Policy: Statism Versus the Free Market

Denver Post columnist fired after arguing there are two sexes

fromFreeBeacon: Truth is the new hate speech.

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

October 21, 2019

FISA court ruled that FBI improperly used NSA surveillance data to snoop on Americans

fromNola.com:  In 2017 alone, the FBI conducted over 3.1 million searches of surveillance data

Government is Watching Every Move You Make

A New Orleans man faced a felony marijuana charge; too many potential jurors wouldn't consider it

fromNola.com: Jury nullification. Learn it, love it, live it.

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

The late great state of California

fromMisesInstitute: Are people leaving California? More people are out-migrating to other states than those coming in, but much of that was offset by international migrants resulting in a net population loss of only 38,000 (2018).

The Government is Not Us

Tulsi Gabbard: Canary in the Democratic coal mine

fromAmericanSpectator: The imminent demise of her presidential campaign portends disaster for her party.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Walter E Williams - Intolerance in academia

fromCreators: There's nothing better than the sounds of pocketbooks snapping shut to bring a bit of sanity to college administrators.

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Mentions of government as top U.S. problem near record high

fromGallup: "Government," which includes negative comments about leadership and politicians, has been the top problem in 31 of Gallup's 34 readings since January 2017.

The Government is Not Us

Feb 21, 2019

The United States should legalize prostitution

fromCollegian:  Sex working is the most dangerous job in the country, even more so than logging or oil workers. Despite the general taboo associated with prostitution, legalizing it would benefit everyone more than expected.

The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Houston narc who lied to justify a deadly drug raid had been accused of perjury

fromReason:  There may be a consequence for the lying narco cop responsible for the deaths of two innocent people and the injuries to five other state agents.

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Trump wants taxpayers reimbursed for billions thrown away on California's high speed rail scheme

fromCNBC:  Politicians lied about every aspect of the plan to rob federal taxpayers. The costs, feasibility and speed bear no resemblance to what had been promised.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption         Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Supreme Court to hear biggest gun rights case since 2010

fromReuters:  The U.S. Supreme Court took up its biggest gun rights case in nearly a decade, agreeing to hear a challenge to New York City’s strict limits on handgun owners transporting their firearms outside of the home.

2nd Amendment Assaults

Oregon on track to be 1st state with mandated rent controls

fromAP:  Now Oregon property owners are as helpless to dictate rents as they are to dictate taxes.

Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

How people in 1968 used jury nullification to block unreasonable arrests

fromCATO:  There wasn’t much doubt that the men had been doing what the law prohibited. Yet Long Island juries found them not guilty. That’s a phenomenon often called jury nullification.

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Feb 19, 2019

How 1984 turned into an instruction manual

fromTheDailyBell:  One of the key themes from George Orwell’s dystopic novel 1984 is that the Party can do and say whatever it wants. And more importantly, you must believe it, with all your heart. No matter how absurd.

The Government is Not Us

Wayne Allyn Root: Democrats can't hide crazy

fromCreators:  Why is Donald Trump's approval rating surging? Look at what he is compared to.

Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Walter E Williams: Plunder - An American way of life

fromCreators:  "When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men in a society, over the course of time they create for themselves a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it."

Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Beyond guilt or innocence, should jurors weigh if law is worth enforcing?

fromChristianScienceMonitor:  Because juror deliberations are private, and rarely discussed afterward, it’s unclear how much nullification may be happening even without juries being instructed.

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

VIDEO: Cops smell weed on 16yo boy, so they beat the hell out of him

fromChristianScienceMonitor:  The primary danger of smoking pot comes from police.

Police State America          The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Motive revealed In Smollett case: Actor concocted hate crime after racist letter failed to impress

fromZeroHedge:  Pimping the "Trump and his supporters are racists" narrative at all costs.

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery         Indoctrination and Censorship

Jan 4, 2019

The establishment will never say no to a war

fromNYMag: The question before us is a relatively simple one: What would be the criteria for removing our remaining troops from the Iraqi, Syrian, and more general Middle Eastern conflicts?

Defense Versus The War Machine

Defending a court’s discretion to allow arguments for conscientious acquittal

fromCATOInstitute: Throughout the entire Anglo-American legal tradition, the independence of citizen juries has been understood to be an indispensable structural check on executive and legislative power. Jury nullification!

Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

78-Year-Old man in wheelchair evicted to freezing streets for treating pain with legal medical pot

fromFreeThoughtProject: He had to steer his electric wheelchair half a mile in subfreezing temperatures to get to a homeless shelter.

The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Top 12 debunked climate scares of 2018

fromWaatsUpWithThat: From hurricanes to polar bears, a review of debunked climate change deceptions.

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Google’s Earth: how the tech giant is helping the state spy on us

fromTheGuardian: We knew that being connected had a price – our data. But we didn’t care. Then it turned out that Google’s main clients included the military and intelligence agencies.

Government is Watching Every Move You Make

Feds spend $1,788,748 on virtual reality game for young gay men

fromFreeBeacon: Your tax dollars at work. The study, which began during the Obama administration in 2014, recruited young men over Craigslist and Grindr to practice different ways of disclosing they have HIV. 

Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Nov 15, 2018

Black security guard uses gun to prevent violence, cops show up and kill him

fromReason: "Everybody was screaming out, 'Security!' He was a security guard."
Police State America

Walter E Williams: We have an identity problem

fromCreators: What's an open-and-shut case in biology can become confused in the political/social arena, particularly when one's sex is referred to as one's gender. 
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

The unspoken power of jury nullification in the context of conflicting state and federal law

fromLaw.com: Jury nullification is a legal problem child—serving as a vital check on government power while simultaneously undermining the very premise of our adjudicative system.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

When the government said marijuana made you crazy

fromOzy: A look back at the previous generation of American drug war propaganda.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

The United States Postal Service lost $3.9 billion last year

fromReason: Despite a $1 billion increase in revenue, unsustainable personnel costs pushed USPS' losses to such great heights.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Media shamefully attacking Ocasio-Cortez for being poor—instead of focusing on her terrible policy

fromFreeThoughtProject: Instead of focusing on Ocasio-Cortez's failed policies of "free stuff" for everyone, much of the media is shamelessly attacking her for simply being poor.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

Nov 9, 2018

The West is failing Julian Assange

fromConsortiumNews: Let’s start with the cat. You never would have thought one of these beloved felines would play a crucial role in the Julian Assange case, would you?
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

Three Cheers for the Return of Divided Government

fromReason: Democrats will be able to check the worst parts of Trump's presidency in a way Republicans never would, but will otherwise be very limited.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

America goes to war

fromUNZ: Some critics are beginning to recognize that the United States has become a country addicted to war and one need look no farther than the federal budget, where everything is being cut except military spending.
Defense Versus The War Machine

A grave threat to private property: civil asset forfeiture is really policing for profit

fromWestHawaiiToday: In a legal process known as civil asset forfeiture, government allows police to seize, then keep or sell any property as long as they allege it was involved in a crime. 
Police State America       Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Jury nullification ensures liberty

fromBillingsGazette: Before the Declaration of Independence was written jurors in the colonies were refusing to enforce King George's laws that they considered unjust. Today that is called jury nullification.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Marijuana legalization had a pretty good election night: won 3, lost 1.

fromVox: Full legalization won in Michigan, and medical legalization won in Missouri and Utah. Reefer madness still rules in North Dakota.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

October 15, 2018

The $15 minimum wage Is turning hard workers Into black market lawbreakers

fromReason: An in-depth look at New York's car wash industry, and the real world consequences of politicians interfering with a complex industry they don’t understand.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Civil forfeiture may be over In Philly, but abuses abound across America

fromForbes: For more than a decade Philadelphia police and prosecutors ran a civil forfeiture machine that ruthlessly deprived citizens of their property as well as their constitutional rights.
Police State America

Political correctness is widely unpopular with Americans of all ages and races, a study finds

fromInsider: 80% of Americans think that political correctness is a problem. A majority of Americans in all race and age categories felt this way.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Libertarian and police accountability pages deleted in Facebook purge

fromReason: Hundreds of pages and accounts have been purged over accusations that they were "inauthentic." The page operators disagree.
Indoctrination and Censorship

How one privacy-first search engine Is benefiting from Google's mistakes

fromForbes: DuckDuckGo is a pro-privacy company taking an aggressive stance on not tracking people across all corners of the internet. One has to wonder if its product practically markets itself in 2018.
Government is Watching Every Move You Make

Jury nullification key to justice reform

fromQConLine: The courts and law enforcement have an incentive to arrest victims for nonviolent crimes. Here is a strategy to help focus law enforcement on their actual charge: protect society, not threaten it.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process      The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

August 6, 2018

Survey shows shocking percentage of Americans are unable to name a single First Amendment right

fromIJR: Of the more than 1,000 people surveyed in May and June of this year, only one person was able to name all five First Amendment rights. A whopping 40 percent, however, couldn't name any.
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

Trump pumps the brakes on Obama-era fuel standards

fromReason: The administrations proposal will make cars more affordable and save lives.
Regulation Nation

Former federal state prosecutor worries about jury nullification In Manafort trial

fromNPR: Many statists worry the jury could see through their tyrannical strong-arm tactics and blatant political persecution and the judge isn't helping.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Feds spend $1.1 million creating apps for transwomen and gay teens with ‘hooking up simulations’

fromWashingtonFreeBeacon: Your tax dollars at work. You are now subsidizing T3, a "sex-positive" app targeting black men ages 14 to 17 who have sex with men.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery       The Government is Not Us

WATCH: Cop walks up to unarmed man, shoots him in the face then plants a weapon on him

fromFreeThoughtProject: A cop tried to claim an unarmed man tried to rob him but video shows the cop shoot the victim in the face and then plant a weapon on him.
Police State America

Criminal investigation launched against Detroit cop who was filmed beating a naked woman in a hospital

fromDailyMail: The officer is on paid suspension. It was announced that a criminal investigation has been launched.
Police State America

July 16, 2016

The Constitution is not neutral: courts of justice should not act like courts of order

fromTheRutherfordInstitute: We no longer have a representative government, a rule of law, or justice. Liberty has fallen to legalism. Freedom has fallen to fascism. Justice has become jaded, jaundiced and just plain unjust. 
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process     The Government is Not Us

Why a Democratic City council is working with a Republican congress to overturn a minimum wage bill

fromReason:Restaurant workers and bartenders generally opposed the minimum wage ballot initiative, which passed despite their opposition.
Regulation Nation       Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

VIDEO: Walter E Williams - The Collective Value of Individual Self Interest

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: Economics professor Walter E Williams delivers another powerful lesson about intentions and incentives.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Jury nullifies Georgia weed law, finds man not guilty despite admittedly growing marijuana

fromFreeThoughtProject: A marijuana user was found not guilty of drug charges—not because he didn't do what he was accused of, but because the jury disagreed with the law.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange        Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

After the dog told the cops it was ok to perform a warrantless search, they find some pot and toss the guy in jail for contempt charges because he won't unlock his phones and give cops evidence of drug possession

fromTechDirt: There's a Fifth Amendment case developing in Tampa, Florida revolving around cellphones, passcodes, and contempt charges.
Police State America      The Government is Not Us

Place your bets: legal sports gambling is coming to these six states in 2018

fromForbes: Before this year, you could only place legal wagers on single sporting events in the United States in one place: Nevada.
The War on Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

May 31, 2016

How to get on a jury

fromReason: And, what you do once you're there is up to you.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Trump to sign 'right to try' bill next week

fromTheHill: President Trump will sign legislation next week allowing terminally ill patients to access experimental drugs not yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle       Regulation Nation

Europe plans ban on plastic cutlery, straws and more

fromCNN: In the tradition of California, Europe's PC politicos continue to lower standards for their citizens. Ever drink through a paper straw?  Yuk.
Regulation Nation

The current status of prices in Venezuela

fromEconomicPolicyJournal: A sneak peek at what the Left is pushing America towards.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Britons rage over Robinson arrest as mass protests break out worldwide

fromZeroHedge: The UK is no longer a free country and awakening citizens are freaking out. And, they should be.
The Government is Not Us

John Stossel: How junk science sends innocent people to jail

fromReason: It’s time to reform our criminal justice system.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

April 23, 2016

14 Years Ago Today, Pat Tillman was killed and gov’t covered up the truth to his death to sell war

fromTheFreeThoughtProject: On this day 14 years ago, former NFL player Pat Tillman was shot and killed by his fellow soldiers in Afghanistan, and the events surrounding his death still remain a mystery.
Defense Versus The War Machine

The rapid rise of San Francisco's surveillance camera network

fromSFGate: What started out as a pilot program with six privately-owned cameras around Union Square has morphed into a highly coordinated surveillance network of 350 cameras that share footage with police.
Government is Watching Every Move You Make

In defense of cash

fromReason: Around the world, governments are trying to kill paper money. It's a terrible idea.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Bipartisan coalition emerges to support jury nullification appeal

fromTheLibertyConservative: First Amendment: Congress can make no law abridging free speech. They don't have to. The courts do it for them.
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle       Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Andrew Napolitano: President Trump and the Attorney-Client Privilege

fromCreators: Records of whatever work Michael Cohen has been doing for him in the past 10 years will soon be in the custody of federal prosecutors who expect it to be evidence of wrongdoing on the part of the president himself.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Media war on Trump continues around the clock, and other proof of media bias

fromCreators: Every hour of every day, somewhere a major media outlet is attacking the president. It might be with a news show. It might be on an entertainment program.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption      Media Bias on Parade

April 13, 2016

John Stossel: The great American tax ripoff

fromReason: The many taxes you pay without knowing.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

Jury nullification: The evolution of a doctrine

fromCATOInstitute: The Founding Fathers guaranteed trial by jury three times in the Constitution-more than any other right-since juries can serve as the final check on government’s power to enforce unjust laws.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Zuckerberg 'optimistic' AI tools to flag, remove hate speech on Facebook will be here in 5-10 years

fromWashingtonExaminer: The politically correct thought police look to savage the First Amendment.
Indoctrination and Censorship     Media Bias on Parade     Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery

Cruz grills Zuckerberg on Facebook's censorship of conservatives

fromTownhall.com: Zuckerberg, not testifying under oath and despite voluminous evidence to the contrary, committed to a free exchange of ideas.
Indoctrination and Censorship      Media Bias on Parade

Handing out pamphlets is not a crime

fromReason: A Michigan jury tampering case strikes at the heart of the First Amendment.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

VIDEO: Tucker Carlson - The Trouble with Facebook

fromLibertyPen/YouTube: From Tucker Carlson Tonight, a look at the revelations from Facebook that have users rethinking social media.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market