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 THE LIBERTARIAN ENTERPRISE Number 675, June 17, 2012 "Giant man-eating ants!"
Send Letters to editor@ncc-1776.org
A Trivial Comment Recently a letter from my friend R.A. Russell brought to mind the classic SF/Horror movie Them. For the two of you who never saw this movie it is about giant man eating ants with a sweet tooth. Them, of course, is also the generic nickname for unnamed enemies, especially enemies who conspire in secret against us (and yes, paranoia has crept deep into our hearts, thank you Stephen Stills). Given the predatory collectivist inclinations of our opponents, Them is a good name for, well them. Thank you, Miss Russell. A.X. Perez
Was that worth reading? Who's Really at Fault Here? About this "African Growth and Opportunity Act"—every year, it authorizes the First Chair-Warmer to send dump-trucks full of FRNs to the sub-Saharan African countries of his choice on an annual basis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGOA Here's the funny thing about the AGOA—it was set to expire in 2008. And then Congress passed the "AGOA Acceleration Act of 2004," which extended it to 2015. Now both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate were held by Republican majorities from 3 January 1994 until 3 January 2007, while the GOP held the White House from 20 January 2001 until 20 January 2009. In short: this welfare-state wealth redistribution scheme was extended and expanded by a "conservative" (Republican-controlled) U.S. Congress, then signed into law by a "conservative" (Republican) president (George Bush). So they could have scaled back the AGOA, if not eliminated it entirely. But they didn't. So let's dump this presumption that candidates with "R" after their names are the Chosen Ones. As far as "[OUR] Medicare taxes" being sent overseas, I'd just as soon not have the FRNs taken from my wallet in the first place. Not only is Medicare a bloated, fraud-ridden welfare-state scheme, the very idea of it (that some people are "owed" goodies provided by others) is a socialist premise. So when the GOP's anointed ones tell you "We're going to fix Medicare" (and "Social Security," too!), they're just stringing you along, like a fish on a line. I keep thinking that I need to create a "Golden Fishhook Award," for people who swallow this sort of thing from the GOP the most. It's the Republicans who campaign with rhetoric about protecting the liberties spelled out in the Bill of Rights. It's the GOP's candidates who promise to show a bit of fiscal restraint and respect for market processes. Then once elected, those same Republicans quite often govern just like "liberal" tax-and-spend-and-regulate Democrats. Better up-front opponents than backstabbers professing friendship. The "GOP uber alles" bunch act more like rowdy drunken sports fans more than offering any sort of rational, facts-based analysis of the issues of the day. They seem OK with whatever the "their team" does, even when it's something they were complaining about when "the other team" was doing it last year. I dare any and all Republican candidates in this election cycle to PROVE ME WRONG. Mike Blessing
Was that worth reading? Through a Fun-House Mirror The link below goes to China's report on the USA's performance in respect to protecting human rights: While this originally came to my attention in other people's comments on China's Orwellian bassackwards take on American gun ownership, it has several other comments that are worth reviewing. Many are in fact fair criticisms of the USA's failure to live up to it's claims of being the earth's freest nation. A lot sound like criticisms contributors to TLE have made on these pages, in their blogs, and on Face Book. Others are hypocritical, and many are disingenuous. For example, there is damn little that can be done to correct ethnic and gender representation in Congress and other elective offices without basically denying people the right to vote as they please and anyone who is aware of the realities of elective politics realizes this. That said, it does give us a partial road map of issues we must correct to live up to our brag of freedom. Yes, there are parts we can disregard, and others we must take with more than a grain of salt. But we do need to fix others, some by bringing under control abuses of power by the Federal, state, and local governments in this nation. However, there are many places in this report where the Chinese are pushing increasing the power of the state and its intrusiveness in American life. It is on us to find free enterprise and private action solutions to these criticisms, before America's "Progressives" force their statist solutions on us. A.X. Perez
Was that worth reading? Immigration Before 9-11 George W. Bush asked Congress to rationalize our immigration policy. The war on terror distracted the US, but arguably a rational immigration policy would help keep out foreign terrorists. Since 2001 Congress ducked this responsibility. This has led to the passage of laws in several states of dubious constitutionality and mixing honest concerns and bigotry. On the 15th of June, 2012 Barack Obama announced an executive order addressing this problem. I think the content of this pronouncement is just. I think that President Obama making this pronouncement is unjust. The injustice is that it is an executive order and not an Act of Congress. Congressional fecklessness has created a situation in which the President essentially had no choice but to legislate by executive degree. The problem is that once the President uses extraConstitutional power once it becomes easier and in fact more likely he will do so again. Eventually he becomes our Caesar rather than a President. And for better or worse, whether the content of this decree was just or not, the fact that it was made remains unjust. A.X. Perez
Was that worth reading?
TLE AFFILIATE
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