John Stossel: The harm Obamacare’s already inflicting (keeping unemployment high)

 

President Obama says his health care “reform” will be good for business.

Business has learned the truth.

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Three successful businessmen explained to me how Obamacare is a reason that unemployment stays high. Its length and complexity make businessmen wary of expanding.

Mike Whalen, CEO of Heart of America Group, which runs hotels and restaurants, said that when he asked his company’s health insurance experts to summarize the impact of Obamacare, “the three of them kind of looked at each other and said, ‘We’ve gone to seminar after seminar, and, Mike, we can’t tell you.’ I think that just kind of sums up the uncertainty.”

Brad Anderson, CEO of Best Buy, added that Obamacare makes it impossible to achieve even basic certainty about future personnel costs:

“If I was trying to get you to fund a new business I had started and you asked me what my payroll was going to be three years from now per employee, if I went to the deepest specialist in the industry, he can’t tell me what it’s actually going to cost, let alone what I’m going to be responsible for.”

NRA News: Obama Released Statement Saying He Can Use Taxpayer Money For Gun Control Ads

NRA News: Obama Released Statement Saying He Can Use Taxpayer Money For Gun Control Ads

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Breitbart ^

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 9:11:29 PM by Red in Blue PA

President Obama released a signing statement with the omnibus spending bill that was passed late last week. In that bill, a provision stated that taxpayer money cannot be used to promote or advocate gun control. President Obama released a statement concerning those provisions.

(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.tv …

Buy the vote? Paying cash for recall names targeted

A Republican state lawmaker in Wisconsin, a state torn asunder in the last year by the fight between conservative and left-leaning interests over the state budget and its fiscal future, says he is surprised that anyone would oppose his legislation that would make it illegal to buy signatures for a recall petition.

But Rep. Evan Wynn told WND today he’s already getting pushback against his plan.

Gingrich: Every Reason to Believe Obama Born in U.S. (Avoids Natural Born Citizen)

Gingrich: Every Reason to Believe Obama Born in U.S. (Avoids Natural Born Citizen)

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Fox News ^ | December 29, 2011 | Joy Lin

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 7:22:24 PM by Smokeyblue

Newt Gingrich routinely fields questions during his campaign stops and during the event showcasing Art Laffer‘s endorsement, a woman who had been sititing on stage behind him asked Gingrich for clarification about President Obama’s country of birth.

SNIP

“All I can report is the state of Hawaii has certified that he was born there,” Gingrich continued.

Do Conservatives Want Another Goldwater?

Do Conservatives Want Another Goldwater? Jonathan S. Tobin 12.28.2011

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Some conservative pundits are still mad at the editors of National Review for an editorial in which the venerable magazine urged Republicans not to back Newt Gingrich for president. Though NR didn’t endorse a candidate in the piece, many outraged conservatives who had embraced the former speaker as the leading “not Romney” in the race felt that Mitt Romney was the intended beneficiary of the broadside.

The latest to vent his spleen about this alleged betrayal of conservative principle is Jeffrey Lord who wrote in the American Spectator that the attack on Gingrich was akin to NR’s founder William F. Buckley blasting Barry Goldwater in 1964 or Ronald Reagan in 1980. His point was not just that any of the other conservatives still in the race was better than Romney but that Buckley’s magazine had become the moral equivalent of the old-line GOP establishment that its founder had spent his life battling.

Prison Planet.com » Attack On Paul As “More Left-Wing Than Obama” Is Laughable

Congressman is officially the most conservative politician of the last 70+ years

Steve Watson

Prisonplanet.com

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December 29, 2011

Fox News correspondent Dick Morris appeared on The O’Reilly Factor and Fox And Friends yesterday and attempted perhaps the most ridiculous smear against Ron Paul to date – suggesting that the Congressman is more of a left wing radical than Obama.

Describing Paul as “the most liberal, radical left-wing person to run for president in the United States in the last 50 years,” Morris added, “This guy is no conservative. This guy is a ultra, ultra left-wing radical.”

“I think it’s horrible!” Morris exclaimed. “Nobody else wants to dismantle the military, including Obama, but he does. Even Obama doesn’t want to repeal the Patriot Act but he does! Even Obama doesn’t say that we caused 9/11 and brought it on ourselves. But Ron Paul does. Even Obama doesn’t want to legalize heroin and cocaine, but Ron Paul does.”

Watch Morris’ comments below:

The assertion that Ron Paul is the not only the least conservative candidate in the 2012 GOP field, but also the most liberal is beyond ridiculous. In fact, Ron Paul is not only the most conservative candidate, he is officially the most conservative member of congress and more conservative than any senator or president, not only today but dating all the way back to 1937.

Brzezinski: The Last American Cowboy “Spills the Beans” | Veterans Today

I want to thank Debbie Menon of our Middle East Bureau for landing this on my desk this morning. This is the most important political policy statement made by any American in years.

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Brzezinski, a director of the Council on Foreign Relations, is by far, the “brightest bulb” America has.

This is the only statement of its kind that lays out issues of American and EU security, that speaks honestly about Israel and Palestine and addresses the Pakistani situation.

He goes two steps further, taking America’s political “loonies” as he calls them “to the woodshed” and, avoiding the term “class war,” speaks of the real violence of poverty, of the real extremism from above, the top 1% looting the world and what it will cost us all.

YouTube – Veterans Today -

Catching readers on the underside of the video. Save the article. We are going to be working with this video a bit more this week and I hope to be discussing it on radio and TV, if allowed. If you don’t mind, I would take a minute or two to bring out a few of the issues here that caught my eye.

First of all, over the last week or two, I have been addressing American Jews. VT already has a huge readership in Israel, seen by some as the voice of the anti-Netanyahu political parties and others as excessively pro-Palestinian.

Two points Brzezinski makes fit together too well. Israel is certainly…..

Suspicious Activity Reports From U.S. Malls Being Processed By Police State Fusion Centers

Suspicious Activity Reports From U.S. Malls Being Processed By Police State Fusion Centers

SHTFPlan ^ | 12/29/2011 | Mac Slavo

Image by kevindean via Flickr

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 3:43:54 PM by JohnKinAK

It didn’t take long for the See Something, Say Something campaign initiated by the Department of Homeland Security last year to show promising results. According to a report from St. Paul Minnesota’s KARE11 and NPR, actionable human intelligence is on the rise at the nation’s largest mall, and it’s being cross-referenced with personal information and threat assessments via the recently made public nationwide network of government Fusion centers.

While a mystery to most Americans, the existence of Fusion centers recently made waves when they were brought to the mainstream public’s attention by talk show host Alex Jones and former governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura. As we highlighted in everything you do is monitored, fusion centers are the digital backbone of the modern day domestic spying network and make it possible to track, itemize, aggregate and analyze the personal activities of every American.

Now, those fusion centers have new intelligence assets to draw on for information – your friends, neighbors and fellow citizens – and many of them are delighted to help.

Brad Kleinerman entered the spooky world of homeland security.

As he shopped for a children’s watch inside the sprawling Mall of America, two security guards approached and began questioning him. Although he was not accused of wrongdoing, the guards filed a confidential report about Kleinerman that was forwarded to local police.

Prison Planet.com » Black Man: Ron Paul “Came To My Rescue” In 1970′s

The Revolution Pac

Cover of The Revolution: A Manifesto

Thursday, December 29, 2011

The story that debunks entirely the smear that Ron Paul is racist.

VIDEO

State Says American Flag Violates Law

State Says American Flag Violates Law

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Fox News Radio ^ | December 29, 2011 | Todd Starnes

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 3:42:03 PM by Kaslin

A Maryland community is up in arms after state highway workers removed an American flag honoring military personnel from a traffic circle and threw it into a dump truck.

“We want our flag back,” Rhonda Winkler told Fox News & Commentary. “We are patriots and we love America.”

Donald Trump: “Millions of people” are waiting to hear my endorsement

Donald Trump: “Millions of people” are waiting to hear my endorsement

Hotair ^ | 12/28/2011 | Tina Korbe

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Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 3:47:14 PM by SeekAndFind

Ah, but of course. All those undecided Iowans and unenthusiastic Republicans across the country lack but one thing: The nudge in a particular direction only a Donald Trump endorsement could provide. Never mind that Trump’s attempt to moderate a debate collapsed. Never mind that every time he reenters the discussion, somebody’s bound to bring up his birtherism to the detriment of his broader message. Never mind that, last week, he changed his party affiliation to “unaffiliated” to preserve his right to run for president of himself as an independent. “Millions of people” still look to Trump to decide which of the current GOP candidates they support — at least according to Trump. The Washington Post reports:

“Everybody wants it,” Trump, referring to his endorsement, said in a phone interview. “I have millions of people waiting for me to do it.”

Trump’s outsize confidence in himself as both kingmaker and potential king should make any serious presidential candidate wary of being endorsed by him, some political scientists say.

“Outsize confidence” barely begins to describe it. Just to ascribe that much importance to any endorsement reflects a misunderstanding of the very nature of endorsements, at least according to some polls.

In general, most Americans say endorsements are not important to them in deciding whom to support for president. In a 2007 Gallup poll, the latest numbers on the subject, 61 percent said endorsements from “prominent people” are not important to their decisions, while 37 percent said they were important, including 16 percent who said they were very important. Democrats were somewhat more likely to say endorsements mattered.

Prison Planet.com » NY Times Attacks Ron Paul For Living in the Real World

Gingrich-linked smear specialist Kirchick labels Paul “paranoid conspiracy theorist” for discussing manifestly provable issues

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Paul Joseph Watson

Prison Planet.com

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Gingrich-linked smear specialist James Kirchick is presumably nonplussed that his attempt to regurgitate the 15-year-old debunked non-story of Ron Paul’s ‘racist’ newsletters has had absolutely no effect on the polls, but he is forging ahead anyway with further attacks, this time in the form of a New York Times editorial that labels Paul a “paranoid conspiracy theorist” for discussing manifestly provable issues.

NY Times Attacks Ron Paul For Living in the Real World

As we previously documented in our response to Kirchick’s regurgitation of a story he originally pushed four years ago, the New Republic writer is an apologist for Newt Gingrich and other neo-cons of his ilk.

In final Iowa push, Perry aims to set himself apart as ultimate outsider

In final Iowa push, Perry aims to set himself apart as ultimate outsider

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The Dallas Morning News ^ | December 29, 2011 | Todd J. Gilman

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 12:44:46 PM by altura

RelatedCRESTON, Iowa — Rick Perry began his final push in the Iowa Republican caucuses Tuesday by sharpening his claim to be the sort of leader the country badly needs, and which his rivals decidedly are not.

“You need to ask yourself: If we replace the Democrat insider with a Republican insider, is that going to change Washington, D.C.? No, it’s not,” he told 150 or so Iowans crammed into a coffee shop a week ahead of caucuses likely to winnow the presidential field. “I will go to Washington to be an anti-establishment outsider.”

Prison Planet.com » CNN Poll Fundamentally Flawed: Romney Is Not Leading Paul In Iowa

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Contrary to what the Mainstream media would have you believe today, Mitt Romney is not “surging in Iowa”.

A newly released CNN poll out of Iowa suggests that Mitt Romney is once again in the lead ahead of Ron Paul going into the caucuses. However, it is fundamentally flawed in that it does not take into account independent and Democratic voters.

The poll is making headlines today with other media outlets, such as The Huffington Post, claiming that Romney is once again on top in Iowa, having taken the lead from Paul.

Yet, as Nate Silver of the New York Times points out, the poll was conducted by using a list of registered Republican voters and registered Republicans only, provided by the Iowa Secretary of State

Prison Planet.com » Why We Must Stop SOPA

Right now, there are two pieces of legislation in Congress that would change the Internet forever if they are enacted. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) would give the federal government the ability to potentially shut down millions of websites. SOPA (the version being considered in the U.S. House of Representatives) is the more dangerous of the two. It would essentially be the equivalent of a nuclear bomb being dropped on the Internet. It would give government officials unlimited power to very rapidly shut down any website that is found to “engage in, enable or facilitate” copyright infringement.

Book: Petraeus almost quit over Afghan drawdown

Book: Petraeus almost quit over Afghan drawdown

Associated Press ^ | 12/30/11 | Kimberly Dozier

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 11:42:00 AM by Nachum

WASHINGTON — Four-star general-turned-CIA director David Petraeus almost resigned as Afghanistan war commander over President Barack Obama’s decision to quickly draw down surge forces, according to a new insider’s look at Petraeus’ 37-year Army career. Petraeus decided that resigning would be a “selfish, grandstanding move with huge political ramifications” and that now was “time to salute and carry on,” according to a forthcoming biography. Author and Petraeus confidante Paula Broadwell had extensive access to the general in Afghanistan and Washington

Prison Planet.com » SOPA opponents may go nuclear

The Internet’s most popular destinations, including eBay, Google, Facebook, and Twitter seem to view Hollywood-backed copyright legislation as an existential threat.

It was Google co-founder Sergey Brin who warned that the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act “would put us on a par with the most oppressive nations in the world.”

Cliff Kincaid — Ron Paul Under Fire for Praising Accused Traitor

Fox News is the latest news organization to pick up on the revelation, first reported by AIM, that Ron Paul had praised WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning as a hero and patriot. Directly referring to WikiLeaks and Army soldier Bradley Manning being held in detention, Paul said, “Should he be locked up in prison or should we see him as a political hero? Maybe he is a true patriot—who reveals what’s going on in government.” The comment drew strong applause from Paul supporters.

Video of the event, officially posted by Ron Paul’s Campaign for Liberty organization, also shows the Republican presidential candidate, now rising or perhaps leading in the polls in Iowa, attacking the CIA and its treatment of terrorists.

DEVVY’S EMAIL ALERTS: Attorney Van Irion Files Blistering Opposition to Defendant’s (Obama) Motion to Dismiss in Georgia Ballot Access, Etc…

Attorney Van Irion Files Blistering Opposition to Defendant’s (Obama) Motion to Dismiss in Georgia Ballot Access Challenge

As you will see, this particular challenge stays narrow and focused on the meat of the issue regarding the putative president’s ineligibility.

I almost had to laugh, if it weren’t’ so serious, one of the Defendant’s points in his opposition: That voters soundly rejected citizenship wasn’t an issue since 69+ million allegedly voted for the usurper!

Gunny G’s Old Salt Marines Tavern Weblog: WHAT IS A CONSERVATIVE?

WHAT IS A CONSERVATIVE?

FIVE NECESSARY INGREDIENTS

By: Kevin Tuma

http://etherzone.com/2004/tuma122004.shtml

Click Here

“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”

–Ronald Reagan

A government that is big enough to give you all you want is big enough to take it all away.”

–Barry Goldwater

Barry Goldwater and Malcolm X – YouTube

Barry Goldwater and Malcolm X

Barry Goldwater, A True Conservative – YouTube

Barry Goldwater, A True Conservative

Gurley Martin: Barry Goldwater turned down Nelson Rockefeller offers to US PRESIDENCY if he is VPed – YouTube

Gurley Martin: Barry Goldwater turned down Nelson Rockefeller offers to US PRESIDENCY if he is VPed

obaidkarki

The Two-Edged Sword of Conservatism…

These moral absolutes were instilled into Almighty God’s creation when God created the heavens and the earth. These Divine Natural Laws transcend cultural barriers and social boundaries erected by fallen man.

Bloggers unite to crush SOPA | EUTimes.net

The war over copyright infringement on the Internet might seem like an easy one for some members of Congress, but for supporters of the Stop Online Piracy Act, Capitol Hill is about to battle it out with some big opponents: bloggers.

From micromessages warning of the dangers of the act on Twitter in under 140 characters to affectations manifested in lengthy diatribes ripe with legalese, the blogosphere is brimming with concern over what the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, will do to the Internet. While lawmakers insist that the legislation is necessary to curtail copyright infringement, some users of the Web are writing on their sites that the Internet as we know it will be brought down by the act, weblogs and all.

“If either the US Senate’s Protect IP Act (PIPA) & the US House’s Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) become law, political blogs such as Red Mass Group [conservative] & Blue Mass Group [liberal] will cease to exist,” a blogger on the right-wing website Red Mass Group posted recently.

Ron Paul’s message of truth speaks for itself | EUTimes.net

An economic collapse. An end to American exceptionalism. Out all chaos and unrest. It isn’t a pretty picture, but it could be a very likely reality for the future of the United States — and Ron Paul isn’t afraid to admit it.

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As the congressman from Texas takes the lead in Iowa one week before the state’s caucus is set to start, the libertarian-leaning lawmaker is warning of doom and gloom for the US if the country continues the downward spiral that is dragging almost every aspect of the American way of life. Jobs are leaving, freedoms are crumbling and the US dollar is quickly becoming worthless.

2012: ‘The Year of the Scare’…

…..Thanks to the embittered Clintons, carping Hollywood stars and all those ready to blame their personal life failures on anyone else, the Enemy of the State was George Bush, who political replacement Barack Obama has done a stellar job keeping blame on for the steady decline of the United States of America.

(“Yes, overwhelming SHAME that our great country has not, cannot and, and seemingly will not rise to defeat this evil which engulfs us.”) ~ Let Us Engage the Real Enemy – Please!| The Post & Email

SHAME!

Yes, overwhelming shame that our great country has not, cannot and, and seemingly will not rise to defeat this evil which engulfs us.

Patriots, believers, Constitutionalists, theorists, researchers and writers, we can do no more. NOT that I would ever suggest for a moment giving up. But, we have done, collectively, all that could ever reasonably be expected of any people to engender and initiate a full and complete investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators of this enormous fraud. We have done ENOUGH; it should be happening NOW!.

Yes, I am deeply ASHAMED of the spineless, self-centered politicians particularly, and ashamed of the Judges, both of the Supreme Court and all of the other Judges in this enormous land. So far, not one of these “so-called” Civic Leaders has the intestinal fortitude to emerge from their pampered cocoons to realize that we, the Country, is in dire distress and action is immediately required!

Prison Planet.com » US Sends Aircraft Carrier Through Strait Of Hormuz During Iran Wargames

Government debated provoking war by creating false flag attack at sea

The US has provocatively sent one of its biggest warships through the Strait of Hormuz amidst Iranian wargames taking place in the region shortly after warning Iran that any closure of the key oil choke point would not be tolerated.

US Sends Aircraft Carrier Through Strait Of Hormuz During Iran Wargames USS John C. Stennis, flight deck 2007May11

“A US aircraft carrier entered a zone near the Strait of Hormuz being used by the Iranian navy for wargames, an Iranian official said Thursday amid rising tensions over the key oil-transit channel,” reports YNet News.

Image via Wikipedia

“US officials announced Wednesday that the ship and its accompanying battle group moved through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow stretch at the entrance to the Gulf that is the world’s most important choke point for oil shipments.”

Imagine There’s No Rockwell (.com) by Brian Wilson

Imagine changing the banner at the top of this page to:

LewRockwell.com

Pro-war, Pro-Government, Anti-Freedom

Sound good? Sound strange? Thematically, it’s damn near perfect for Our Time!

But then we would have to delete “LewRockwell” and insert “Dick Morris“. Then we’d have to get rid of writers like Lew, Ron Paul, Tom Woods, Walter Williams, Gary Barnett and the Stable of Others who write, push, cajole, root, cheer, stomp and advocate for Freedom and Liberty. What a loss and waste of talent that would be! What a giant step backward for rescuing the Republic!

“DickMorris.com”: a total waste of bandwidth!

What brought all this on? Today I received my Talk Show Host Copy of “Newsmax”, the hyperventilating, neo-con cheerleading rag brainchild of Chris Ruddy*, former reporter for an (allegedly) “Great Metropolitan Newspaper”, Richard Mellon Scaife’s Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Screaming headlines of the lead story:

“Dick Morris: Ron Paul ‘Terrifying’”

The reformed advisor to the Clintons and renowned toe-sucking prostitute customer breathlessly informs readers of “horrific consequences for the GOP if he [Paul] wins the GOP nomination”!

Morris’ neo-con outrage is in Full Blown Two-Year Old Temper Fit Mode:

“Ron Paul remains terrifying. He is really the ultimate liberal in the race. He wants to legalize drugs, repeal the Patriot Act, slash our military spending, pull out of Afghanistan… On these issues, he’s way, way to the left of Obama. What makes him a conservative is hard to tell. But, whatever he is, he would be a disaster as the Republican candidate. His bland assertion in the last debate, that ‘anyone’ will beat Obama is both self-serving and inaccurate. He wouldn’t. Anyone who votes for Paul and is not brought up short by his denuding us in our defenses against terrorism and his passivity in the face of Iranian nuclear weapons, has to realize that nominating him is tantamount to re-electing Obama.”

Devil Deals (Devil Government) by Bill Bonner

Let’s see, if you’re going to get rid of the Bill of Rights, you might as well get rid of the First Amendment as well as the rest of them. Don’t worry; the feds are on the case. Another proposed law – SOPA – would give the feds the power to shut down websites that they don’t like.

(RISE UP AGAINST MARTIAL LAW) Oath Keepers Launches Effort To Recall Members of Congress by Bob Adelmann

Oath Keepers has taken the position that when the President gives an order not in compliance with the Constitution, their members should ignore the order and follow the Constitution. Accordingly, when Congress gives powers that it doesn’t possess or that violate the Constitution to the Executive branch, it must be brought to justice. As Rhodes noted in his announcement, “We consider the NDAA of 2012 to be a declaration of war on the American people, and an act of treason … Oath Keepers … across the nation will lead or assist efforts in their states to remove any member of Congress, regardless of party, who voted for this monstrosity.” He added:

Ron Paul’s Support Is Much More Widespread Than Reported by John Keller

The establishment media and republicans are in a panic that Ron Paul is in a position to win the Iowa caucus, and is gaining momentum in New Hampshire.

Image via Wikipedia

One of the main strawmen put forth is that Ron Paul has a small but fervent set of supporters, perhaps 1 Million, who take over online polls, and have now realized how to organize on the ground. In other words, the establishment argues that Ron Paul’s apparent popularity is really driven by a small group of Ron Paul fans, rather than being reflective of the majority of voters, and in a real election Ron Paul will be unable to win.

Let’s use widely available Internet tools to examine this argument and draw our own conclusions.

A picture is worth a thousand words, and here’s my favorite. It was created using Google Trends, and I invite you to use the tool to replicate what I’ve done here: http://www.google.com/trends (Enter Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney). I changed the default time range to 30 days.

The Case for Austerity by Andrew P. Napolitano

Unlike an individual or a well-run corporation, government is not motivated by how efficient it can be, but rather by how lucrative it can be for those associated with it, and how those who run the government can stay in power.

Image via Wikipedia

Someone who was philosophically opposed to government domination of the housing market wouldn’t perpetuate it by taking one red penny of taxpayer money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, like the former Speaker did, whether he calls himself a historian or a lobbyist. Someone philosophically opposed to government domination of the health care market would never offer up government as the solution to the problem of the uninsured, like the former governor of Massachusetts did, since the problem of the uninsured was created by government’s involvement in the health care market in the first place.

The federal government does not need an efficient manager. That’s a pipe dream based on the noble but flawed premise that government can be made to operate as a business. It cannot. Business is subject to the forces of free choice, supply and demand, and competition. Can you imagine government subjecting itself to the forces of competition? Can you imagine government permitting us to ignore it?

The government’s biggest sacred cow is the Pentagon. The mere thought of reductions in the growth of defense spending has the Washington careerists screaming bloody murder. Yet military expert after military expert, not connected to the Pentagon and not employed in the defense industry, has told us that austerity will force the government to do what Congress lacks the political courage to do. Stated differently, we will keep spending on bases we don’t need, on planes that sit unused in hangars and on military hardware stored all over the world, and not for any national security interest, but simply because a congressman earmarked it – unless we get serious about our future.

A dollar of military spending is not a dollar of military strength, but it is a dollar into the coffers of those who contribute to congressional campaigns. Which is the greater threat to our national security, an impoverished gaggle of Third World revolutionaries 10,000 miles away, or our national debt? The answer is obvious…..

EXCERPT

via The Case for Austerity by Andrew P. Napolitano.

 

Related articles

• The Government as Lawbreaker, Again – Judge Andrew Napolitano – Townhall Conservative (gds44.wordpress.com)
• (“Can Congress make legal something that is inherently wrong, and can Congress take a freedom that is a part of our humanity and make its exercise criminal?”) The Government as Lawbreaker, ~ Again Judge Andrew Napolitano (SEE READER COMMENTS) (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Judge Andrew Napolitano on the Government’s Unconstitutional Assault on Our Freedom to Travel (reason.com)
• Time To Take Out the Meat Axe (lewrockwell.com)
• The government as lawbreaker, again ~ Judge Andrew Napolitano (gunnyg.wordpress.com)

The Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard

What the State Is Not

The State is almost universally considered an institution of social service. Some theorists venerate the State as the apotheosis of society; others regard it as an amiable, though often inefficient, organization for achieving social ends; but almost all regard it as a necessary means for achieving the goals of mankind, a means to be ranged against the “private sector” and often winning in this competition of resources.

With the rise of democracy, the identification of the State with society has been redoubled, until it is common to hear sentiments expressed which violate virtually every tenet of reason and common sense such as, “we are the government.”

Image via Wikipedia

The useful collective term “we” has enabled an ideological camouflage to be thrown over the reality of political life. If “we are the government,” then anything a government does to an individual is not only just and untyrannical but also “voluntary” on the part of the individual concerned.

If the government has incurred a huge public debt which must be paid by taxing one group for the benefit of another, this reality of burden is obscured by saying that “we owe it to ourselves”; if the government conscripts a man, or throws him into jail for dissident opinion, then he is “doing it to himself” and, therefore, nothing untoward has occurred. Under this reasoning, any Jews murdered by the Nazi government were not murdered; instead, they must have “committed suicide,” since they were the government (which was democratically chosen), and, therefore, anything the government did to them was voluntary on their part. One would not think it necessary to belabor this point, and yet the overwhelming bulk of the people hold this fallacy to a greater or lesser degree.

We must, therefore, emphasize that “we” are not the government; the government is not “us.” The government does not in any accurate sense “represent” the majority of the people.[1] But, even if it did, even if 70 percent of the people decided to murder the remaining 30 percent, this would still be murder and would not be voluntary suicide on the part of the slaughtered minority.[2] No organicist metaphor, no irrelevant bromide that “we are all part of one another,” must be permitted to obscure this basic fact…..

EXCERPT

via The Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard.

 

Related articles

• Why Be Libertarian? by Murray N. Rothbard (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Ron Paul, on Murray Rothbard and Lew Rockwell: “They enjoyed antagonizing people, to tell you the truth, and trying to split people” (reason.com)
• Environmentalists Clobber Texas by Murray N. Rothbard (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Whiskey Rebellion by Murray N. Rothbard (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• My Politico Commentary on Ron Paul and his Racist Newsletters (volokh.com)

Prison Planet.com » Sopa Would DESTROY Jobs and the Economy … So Why are Unions Supporting It?

The promoters of the Stop Online Privacy Act (Sopa) are pretending that it would save jobs and help the economy.

But it would actually destroy jobs and hurt the economy.

No one is going to invest in the next Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Reddit, or YouTube if they know that websites can be shut down after a single unsubstantiated copyright complaint.

The only sector of our economy that’s in good shape is web technology (for example, Google is hiring like crazy right now). Sopa would put a huge dent in the web sector and destroy jobs.

Venture capitalist Fred Wilson notes:

Prison Planet.com » FBI Confiscates OKC Bombing Footage, Refuses To Turn Over

Aaron Dykes Interviews Col. Craig Roberts about what really happened on the day of okc bombing, and how the FBI confiscated all video footage of that days event, and still refuse to this day, to turn over this key evidence.

VIDEO

Prison Planet.com » Michele Bachmann chair defects to Ron Paul

In a shock announcement Wednesday night, Iowa state senator and onetime Michele Bachmann campaign leader Kent Sorenson declared that he is now supporting Ron Paul for president.

Prison Planet.com » Paul Vows To Unite Occupy And Tea Party Movements

Congressman heckled by Occupiers at veterans event

Steve Watson

Paul Vows To Unite Occupy And Tea Party Movements image

After being interrupted by Occupy protesters during a veterans rally in Des Moines, Iowa yesterday, Ron Paul praised the movement, compared it to the Tea Party and declared that he was the only GOP candidate who could bridge the two causes and instill real change in Washington.

Obama needs heave-ho: U.S. economy—&-ours—desperately needs new blood in the White House

Obama needs heave-ho: U.S. economy—&-ours—desperately needs new blood in the White House

The Toronto Sun ^ | December 28, 2011 | Brian Lilley

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 1:28:20 AM by 2ndDivisionVet

Canadians appear pretty smug these days as they watch and comment on the U.S. presidential race.

In some ways I can’t blame them. There have also been a series of candidates on the Republican side who have risen high only to self-implode.

First Michelle Bachman, followed by Rick Perry and then Herman Cain.

That leaves Newt Gingrich as the only challenger to Mitt Romney.

I still have a hard time believing this is happening. Newt Gingrich was last a viable political figure when Kenneth Starr and the investigation into the Monica Lewinsky scandal were leading the nightly news.

Ron Paul : I Am the Most Pro-Israel Candidate

Ron Paul : I Am the Most Pro-Israel Candidate

Arutz Sheva ^ | 29/12/11

Posted on 12/28/2011 10:52:25 PM PST by Eleutheria5

Edited on 12/28/2011 11:18:38 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]

Republican Presidential Candidate Ron Paul said Wednesday night that he is not anti-Semitic, and that he is pro-Israel, despite remarks made earlier this week by his former aide by which Paul would have preferred it if Israel did not exist.

Throw Out the Entire D.C. Establishment

Throw Out the Entire D.C. Establishment

American Thinker via Real Clear Politics ^ | December 28, 2011 | J.R. Dunn

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 3:08:33 AM by neverdem

Crony capitalism is the most serious current danger to the American community, a threat not simply to government or the economy, but to our very way of life. It is the worst such threat since the trusts and monopolies of the early 20th century, and in much the same way. Cronyism is one of the major forces behind the establishment of the corrupt pseudo-aristocracy that has been taking shape in this country over the past two decades, a synthetic privileged class made up in large part of politicians, hustlers, and hangers-on who have become expert in exploiting the rest of us.

The legacy media, for some obscure reason, tends to bury discussions about this group. While the reportage on discrete incidents is there — see the parade of stories on Solyndra, Goldman Sachs, and MF Global for examples — we find little effort to pull it all together. Academics, with the single exception of Angelo Codevilla, who sounded the alarm two years ago in The Ruling Class, appear oblivious, as if they had no idea what’s going on, which may well be the case.

Morning Bell: The Unintended Consequences of Internet Regulation [Stop SOPA]

Morning Bell: The Unintended Consequences of Internet Regulation [Stop SOPA]

heritage.org ^ | Dec 28, 2011 | By Rob Bluey

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 5:20:45 AM by Jim Robinson

Would you be outraged if the Department of Justice shut down The Foundry [1] without any warning and blocked access for more than a year?

That’s exactly what happened to a hip-hop blog called Dajaz1.com [2], which was falsely accused of criminal copyright infringement [3]. The blog posted music from artists promoting their work. But federal authorities viewed it differently. They seized the domain name, then shared virtually no information with its owner for more than year. Only recently did they quietly drop the case [4].

The government’s handling of this hip-hop blog is fueling fears about legislation moving quickly through Congress [5] that addresses copyright infringement and online piracy.

The Stop Online Piracy Act [6], or SOPA as it’s known in the House, and the Senate’s PROTECT IP Act [7] would give the U.S. attorney general the power and authority to block criminal enterprises from trafficking in illegal products online.

Their cause is a noble one. Business incur significant losses when Americans buy counterfeit items. Consumers must also be increasingly vigilant about purchases they make online. Federal authorities shut down more than 150 websites [8] just last month for pirated goods.

But the two bills making their way through Congress are the wrong solution. They pose serious threats to freedom of speech and expression and raise security concerns [9]. With the Senate possibly voting on the PROTECT IP Act in January and the House moving forward with hearings on SOPA, Americans should understand what’s at stake [10].

As the case with Dajaz1.com illustrates, the federal government already has the ability to shut down U.S.-based websites. A growing number of so-called “rogue sites” are located outside the United States, however, limiting the government’s ability to block them.

SOPA would give Attorney General Eric Holder and individual intellectual property holders the ability to sue these rogue sites if they were “dedicated to theft of U.S. property.” The government, through a court order, could take these four steps:

Require Internet service providers to prevent subscribers from reaching the website in question; Prohibit search engines such as Google from providing direct links to the foreign website in search results; Prohibit payment network providers, such as PayPal or credit card firms, from completing financial transactions affecting the site; and Bar Internet advertising firms from placing online ads from or to the affected website. “The legislation addresses a legitimate problem,” wrote Heritage’s regulatory policy expert James Gattuso [9], “but it may have unintended negative consequences for the operation of the Internet and free speech.”

Today’s Toons 12/29/11

Today’s Toons 12/29/11

The Briefing Room ^ | 12/29/11 | pookie18

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 6:12:58 AM by pookie18

Click on link.