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Drop Out to Tune In;
Don't Shoo Firefly;
Superpower
Defeated;
Happy
Arbor Day!; these articles have their titles and text in
this color and are featured this week in -
Ender's Review of the Web
Web articles of likely interest to individualists found during the week of Apr. 4-10, 2004.
Comments and suggestions on the content and structure of this review
are welcome. To accommodate
such discussion I have created a Yahoo group for it.
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think might be interested, with the
subscription information at the bottom intact.
Political
Liberty
Articles showing a
positive influence of political action on the cause of Liberty.
An Evening With Dr. Ron Paul
by Steven Yates from LewRockwell.com
"The bottom line, for Dr. Paul, is the U.S.
Constitution. He refuses to vote for any piece of legislation that is
not explicitly authorized by the Constitution, and his stinging
critiques of much of the unconstitutional legislation coming out of Rome
on the Potomac are well known.... Of course, Dr. Paul's words often fall
on deaf ears among his colleagues...."
The perfect LP strategy
by Bob Smith from
RationalReview.com
"I could name other victim-oriented
issues that can have excellent results, but fighting the abuse
of eminent domain is about as close to perfect as strategy
gets."
TLE Interviews Michael Badnarik
by L. Neil Smith from The
Libertarian Enterprise
"If Americans were really
interested in promoting our national safety, they would
realize that a policy of constant foreign intervention
directly undermines that stated goal. Our country has military
forces stationed in 135 countries around the world, and we are
influencing their governments and economies either directly or
indirectly in every case. That is the political equivalent of
poking them in the eye with a sharp stick."
Life in
Amerika
Articles depicting
the negative impact of politics on Liberty.
All parents count
by Robyn E. Blumner from St.
Petersburg Times
"In a country where the parents of
about a million children get divorced each year, the welcome
mat at the courthouse door should not depend on custody
arrangements. All involved parents have the right to act in
the best interest of their children, and to right a legal
wrong."
Xtreme Measures
by G. Beato from Reason
"On August 7, 2003, Buchanan
announced that a Pittsburgh federal grand jury had
indicted the Zicaris on 10 counts of violating federal
obscenity laws. Social conservatives hope and civil
libertarians fear that this case marks a new stage in
Washington's crackdown on pornography, a sign that
Ashcroft's Department of Justice is -- take your pick -- a
champion of traditional values or a threat to free
expression."
Lawsuits Beat Working For A
Living
by Larry Pratt from
NewsWithViews.com
"In a socialist society
increasingly suffering from the politics of envy, filing
'Hail Mary' lawsuits for outrageous awards is becoming
as popular as playing the lottery and voting for a
living."
Ordered Liberty
without the State
Some people
say it's Anarchy, some say it's not possible. It is an
interesting topic.
Where's the
Outrage?
by George F. Smith from Strike The
Root
"If conscientious nonvoters can get
organized and form a 'party,' ... or at least be heard, their
position will be seen as a protest. Otherwise, their lack of
participation will be lumped with nonvoters who simply don't
care. ... Keep reminding people the state is founded on force
and compliance rather than persuasion and choice."
Drop Out to Tune In
by Sunni
Maravillosa from Endervidualism
"I don't claim
any great insights into the meaning of life, but I do think
that a fundamental element driving human action is the
desire to be effective. To be an effective individual, one
must first know oneself. Only then can an individual choose
a path that will allow him or her to be genuine."
The Passion of Liberty:
Part Two --Respect One Another
by Richard Rieben from
Strike The Root
"Reciprocal respect is the
most profound, direct and effective means of securing
liberty. It's the active principle of individual
sovereignty. It is what makes liberty tick. It is the
only saving grace that allows human societies function
at all. Today, it is a new idea -- a salvation idea.
Reciprocal respect is an expansive, loving, giving, and
healing message."
Spreading Decentralism
Articles
demonstrating an increase in the dispersal of power.
The
Social Contract Is Null and Void
by Anthony Gregory from Strike
The Root
"The law itself is not sacred.
How could it be, when the government courts have ruled in
favor of warrantless searches and against the Fourth
Amendment, which is supposedly a part of the 'Supreme Law of
the Land.' And if warrantless searches are supposedly
constitutional, then there's nothing vaguely libertarian in
upholding the Constitution as an ideal."
The Quest for a
Monopoly on Violence
by Norman Solomon from
CommonDreams.org
"With warfare escalating
in Iraq, syndicated columnist George Will has just
explained the logic of the occupation. ... '[E]very
door American troops crash through, every civilian
bystander shot -- there will be many -- will make
matters worse, for a while. Nevertheless, the first
task of the occupation remains the first task of
government: to establish a monopoly on violence'."
As Usual, the Wrong
Question Is Being Asked
by Harry Browne
from HarryBrowne.org
"This is probably
because reporters, journalists, and TV experts
are mostly all big-government people. So the
debate is about whether some politician handled
something in the best possible way -- rather
than debating whether the government should have
been involved at all."
The New
World Hegemon
Depictions of the coming Imperial power
Sorrows of Empire -- Mercenaries and Occupiers
by C.G. Estabrook from
CounterPunch
"This policy is in the
interest of the economic elites who dominate both US
political parties, but it's obviously not in the
interest of the people of the region, nor of the
people of the United States."
The Ugly Truth
by Justin Raimondo from
Antiwar.com
"The idea is to get the
American public, and a squeamish elite, used to the
bloodshed, to toughen them up and ready them for the
new era of American global hegemony. Iraq is meant
as a short course in Imperialism for the American
people, who have so far disdained empire-building in
favor of tending their own garden."
That's Funny...
by Mary Starrett
from NewsWithViews.com
"Like why the first
order of business under the category 'Bringing
Freedom and "Democracy"' to countries we get a
mind to 'liberate' includes shutting down
newspapers and grabbing guns."
Politics by Other Means
War, rumors of war, and politicians fomenting war.
by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr. from
LewRockwell.com
"The US believed it could control Iraq without
having to bother with the question of whether
the people of Iraq wanted the US there.
Steeped only in military experience and
lacking all knowledge of the liberal
intellectual tradition, the war planners have
no idea what constitutes a society, and how it
operates. What the US planners did not take
into account is that the ideas people hold are
more powerful than air or land power."
Can Bullets and
Bombs Establish Justice in Iraq?
by Robert Higgs
from The Independent Institute
"Speaking of the
Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ... Bremer
described the preacher as 'a guy who has a
fundamentally inappropriate view of the new
Iraq.' This statement demands close
examination. Here is the resident chief of a
conquering power seemingly speaking as
though he were entitled to say what is
appropriate for Iraq. What has happened to
government by the consent of the governed?"
Does the US
Have the Will to Win?
by Patrick J.
Buchanan from Antiwar.com
"Do we have the
will to impose a pro-Western 'democracy' on
Iraq, no matter the cost? ... For Iraq is
the laboratory of the 'world democratic
revolution' President Bush is preaching as
the new purpose of U.S. foreign policy. And
if Iraq dissolves in chaos and civil war ...
or if we are run out and it reverts to
anti-Americanism, the Bush foreign policy
will be a utopian failure."
Spontaneous Order
Articles
showing decentralized successes.
Globalization and Free Trade
by Richard Ebeling
from The Freeman
"The path to this
bright economic future is a policy of free trade. Governments --
including the U.S. government -- do not have the wisdom or ability
to guide or assist this process. They can only hinder it with
controls and restrictions that slow down progress and serve
special interests who don't want to face the future."
Roads, Cars,
and Responsibility
by Scott McPherson from The Future
of Freedom Foundation
"Like food, computers, housing, and
the many other goods and services that Americans enjoy in
abundance, roads should be built and maintained by the private
sector -- for profit."
Private
Investment Protects Environment Where Government Fails
by Radley Balko from FOX News
"Ever wonder why privately owned
forests don't burn as often? Why do these fires always seem to
start in national or state parks? The answer is that land owned
by the government is generally unkempt. Regulations and pressure
from environmental groups keep much of our parks system
untouched."
Nonspontaneous Disorder
Articles
showing centrally planned disasters.
Abetting Betting
by Jacob Sullum
from Reason
"These companies
have surrendered their First Amendment rights without a
fight, allowing the government to silence speech it doesn't
like by floating a legal theory that almost certainly would
fail if it were tested in court. Their capitulation
illustrates the chilling effect of vague laws in the hands
of ambitious prosecutors."
Modern Oppression
by Jeff Langr from Strike The
Root
"Neither the left nor right
seems to be concerned that we have an obscene amount of
debt. Our government grows in size, power, control, and
greed each and every minute. Our money is backed by
nothing but the promises of central bankers. Someday those
promises will be as empty as those from the politicians."
Don't Forget Mises -- and
Dump the Third Way!
by Michael Chapman from Cato
Institute
"Mises termed it
interventionism: 'a method for the transformation of
capitalism into socialism by a series of successive
steps.' Socialism, in this case, does not mean the Marxist
kind, where the state nationalizes everything. It means
government intervention (and distortion) in the market and
society through taxation and regulation."
War Is The Health Of The State
War is the ultimate State intervention in
society.
The Star and the Swastika
by Douglas
Herman from Strike The Root
"While we
consider the irony of the star and the swastika in
proximity, let us remember the equal irony that both the
Russians and the Americans affixed a star to the armor
of their tanks as they waged war together against the
Nazi swastika. Truly the forces of fascism, like those
of freedom, fly many flags and no symbol is exempt."
Scarce More Than Apes
by Ryan McMaken from
LewRockwell.com
"Such 'exposés' may be
more or less innocuous in many cases, but when serving
the cause of the Cold War or Manifest Destiny or The
War on Terrorism, the fact that such propaganda
inevitably leads to a great expansion of power for the
American State makes it particularly damaging."
The New Saddam
by Justin Raimondo from
Antiwar.com
"With Saddam captured, and
the U.S. squaring off against a faceless enemy in
Iraq, it was necessary to create a new demon figure,
and the occupiers couldn't have done a better job of
it if they had gone to Central Casting: Moqtada al-Sadr
is a radical, he's got a big bushy beard, and is not
exactly the voice of sweet reason."
Bits of History
The Past seen with a
fresh look.
by Bill
Kauffman from LewRockwell.com
"But
perhaps in its reliance on the public school system
Arbor Day contained the seeds of its own destruction.
States, and later the federal government, could not
resist tweaking Arbor Day. It became Arbor and Bird
Day in some places, which was harmless enough, but
before long it was hijacked by the highwaymen of the
Good Roads movement -- the apostles of progress who
would go on to pave America with your ancestors' tax
dollars."
Rethinking the Pledge
of Allegiance
by
William J. Watkins, Jr. from The
Independent Institute
"If we
want to teach children about this country's
principles, why not teach them about the American
Revolution, the Constitution, and the Bill of
Rights? Instead, each day they mindlessly pledge
obedience to a flag -- the most visible symbol of
governmental authority."
What Brought on the
French Revolution?
by H.A. Scott Trask
from Ludwig von Mises Institute
"By August 1788, the
monarchy was bankrupt and without credit. It could
borrow new funds neither in Paris nor Amsterdam. ...
The king recalled Necker, who was the one man who
had the confidence of investors, was trusted by the
nobility, and popular among the masses. The king
also summoned the Estates General to meet in May
1789."
War and Peace
Articles showing the
nature of War.
U.S. ignores human
rights record of new best friend
by Eric
Margolis from Toronto Sun
"Today,
any group forced to take up arms against intolerable
injustice is automatically branded by Washington,
guardian of the status quo, as 'terrorists.' The IMU,
Nepalese Maoists, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Filipino
separatists are recent additions. Talk about picking
fights where no important U.S. interests are
involved."
Fallujah Revenge and
the War Disease
by Anthony Gregory
from Antiwar.com
"The worst symptom of
the war disease lately, typified by the rabid
reactions to the Fallujah massacre, has been the
propensity of far too many Americans to believe
that the Iraqi people have simply not appreciated
the freedom the United States has brought them,
and must be punished collectively for their lack
of appreciation."
What Have We Wrought?
by Monica Grand Pre´
from Strike The Root
"Now its civilizing,
democratizing and nation building a new Iraq,
which will serve as a convenient springboard to
conquer the rest of the Middle East for democracy.
Even though caught red handed in murderous lies,
America's esteemed leaders refuse to admit their
complete moral bankruptcy in initiating this
unwarranted pre-emptive war and accept defeat."
Great Individuals In History
Some people stand out
from the crowd.
Educator -
Booker T. Washington : Apr. 5, 1856
by Gary Galles
from Ludwig von Mises Institute
"Booker T.
Washington, born a slave, was seven when the
Emancipation Proclamation was announced. At
11, he got his first book and taught himself
to read. He thought to 'get into a
schoolhouse and study ... would be about the
same as getting into paradise.' At 16, he
went to Hampton Institute in Virginia-500
miles away-with but $1.50 in his pocket...."
Rebel - Paul
Krassner : Apr. 9, 1932
from
Loompanics Unlimited
"He covered
the antiwar movement, then co-founded the
Yippies with Abbie Hoffman and Jerry
Rubin. He published material on the
psychedelic revolution, then took LSD with
Tim Leary, Ram Dass and Ken Kesey, later
accompanying Groucho Marx on his first
acid trip."
Troubadour -
Janis Ian : April 6, 1950
from
JanisIan.com
"Through more
than three decades, Ian has managed to
keep her music fresh and inspiring, always
winning praise for her remarkable
songwriting and tender voice."
Culcha'
Books, Movies, TV,
Media, Music, poetry, etc.
by Bob
Jackson from Strike The Root
"The
most important battle in our fight for political
liberty is the one for the hearts of the
unconverted. But people put blinders on to moral
instruction that intrudes upon the comforts of their
daily lives. However, we can borrow a tactic from
modern educational theory and sneak a lesson in
behind entertainment. Afterwards, you can bring up
the libertarian ideas and relate how situations in
the show are similar to the situations in the life
of the person to whom you are speaking."
Doctor Who and the
Fandom of Fear
by Jesse Walker from
Reason
"Hardcore Doctor Who
fans love to debate the 'canon,' which mostly
boils down to disputing which wings of the new
material 'really' happened. Fans can, in essence,
choose their own Who, with conservatives sticking
to the old series or the more conventional new
adventures and those with a taste for experimental
fare picking up items like these...."
Rebirth of the Spirit
by Edward Hudgins
from The Objectivist Center
"So at this time of
season, let us all renew our commitment to
ourselves and to the best within us, and as the
flowers bloom anew, let our souls follow suit!"
The lighter side
Humor, satire, cartoons,
parodies, food, popular music
and other things to amuse.
Democracy Explodes Over
Iraq - Few Survivors Expected
by Fred Reed from
FredOnEverything
"The White House says ninety-nine and
forty-four one-hundredths percent of Iraqis love us, and
want us to bomb them and invade them, and starve them
with embargos, and only a few soreheads don't like it.
And I believe the White House. You can only lie so long
before you slip up and tell the truth. I figure they're
about due." This is
strong satire
with Fred's often comic style.
Hobbes in Cyberspace
by Jesse Walker from
Reason
"Left to their own
devices, players produced cities like Alphaville. So
is this the world a free people starting from nothing
would live in? Or is it simply the world they'd like
to pretend to live in? Or was this just a matter of
bad design -- of something wrong with the game world's
incentives and structure?"
If Elected, I Will Be
Extremely Surprised
by B. Paul Knefler from The Onion
"Some of you may recognize me as the
guy who runs for office a lot. In the past, I've
sought seats on the school board and in the city
council. Last year, I even ran for mayor. Today, I
cast my hat in the ring once more. The state-senate
run marks my most ambitious, and most absurd, campaign
to date." Compare
this with portions of the second article in the
Political Liberty section.
Deep Thought
Scientific
and scholarly studies, philosophical essays,
in-depth and longer articles.
Emotional Choices
by
Joli Jensen from Reason
"More and more of us have access
to multiple, contradictory ways
of defining the world. We have
more freedom to choose our
beliefs than anyone has ever had
before, but this increasing
freedom comes without
guarantees. We must realize that
truth does not automatically
emerge in a free marketplace of
ideas."
Compensating for Post-45 Erosion
by Gary North from
LewRockwell.com
"Step by step, product by
product, tools are making our
work easier. He who refuses to
keep up is walking away from
one of life's greatest gifts:
improved productivity. Who
wants to retire when work
keeps getting more productive?
... We who live by our ability
to read, think, and take
action can still keep up with
the competition when our peers
are in rocking chairs...."
Life-Saving Incentives:
Consequences, costs and solutions
to the organ shortage
by Alexander Tabarrok from
Econlib.org
"The economics of common
resources provides another
perspective on the shortage of
organs. Resources owned in
common tend to be
under-supplied and
over-utilized. ... UNOS
considers organs to be a
'national resource,' owned in
common. The result, as in
other areas, is a tragedy of
the commons."
Miscellany
Articles not
easily classified.
Free to Not Choose
by Brian Doherty from
Reason
"McDonald's recent decision to eliminate
'supersizing' as a menu option was, Kelly reports, part
of 'an effort to...offer
a balance of choices for customers.' This is somewhere
between the tribute that vice pays to virtue and
newthink: McDonald's knows that its customers want more
choices, so it has to evoke the glories of choice even
while restricting it."
The gift of life --
members preferred
by Alice Hohl from
dailysouthtown.com
"LifeSharers is a
nonprofit group whose members promise to donate organs
to each other first, and then to the general
population. Members say they hope it will encourage
donation, because people will know where their organs
are going, and people will want to join and agree to
donate so they, too, can receive preferential
treatment."
Look, Boys! Now You Can
Fight Like Real Men!
by Jonathan David Morris
from Strike The Root
"The point, though, is
many facts and conflicting opinions were downplayed or
hidden in my education experience .... It's all a part
of the public record, but we'll never learn it unless
we think to ask. Of course, no one asks questions like
this in high school, and believe me: No one asks in
the 'real world,' either. They don't want to sound
stupid. My advice? Dismiss this fear."
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