Cutting the Pentagon is a question of strategy—as well as fiscal sanity.
In his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama made an attempt to placate critics of his fiscal profligacy by proposing a three-year freeze in federal spending. Republicans immediately cried foul, noting that outlays would remain stuck at the administration’s bloated levels. The more serious among them also point out that Obama excluded the biggest entitlement programs—Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security—making his moratorium no exercise in spending restraint at all.
Yet there were fewer objections to the fourth category of spending Obama exempted: expenditures “related to our national security.” No one wants the federal government to pinch pennies when it comes to its paramount constitutional responsibility, protecting the physical security of the United States. But the Cato Institute’s Christopher Preble and the National Security Network’s Heather Hurlbut argued shortly afterward in Politico that much of what is spent in the name of security serves no such purpose.
Even freezing defense spending at current levels would be an expensive bargain: the Pentagon’s base budget was $548.9 billion in fiscal 2011. That’s not counting the additional $182 billion requested that year for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, conflicts that have already cost the country $1 trillion. Costs can be expected to rise even more: inflation-adjusted military spending has increased by 60 percent over the past decade, prompting Preble and Hurlbut to write, “because our national security rests on our economic health as well as on the strength of our military, a liberal and a libertarian can agree that the Pentagon should no longer get a pass.”
Defense on a Diet
Republican Déjà Vu
Pardon me while I yawn.
I remember all too well in 1994 when the Republicans regained control of not only the House, but the Senate as well. I remember sitting in my car and anxiously listening to Rush Limbaugh’s first radio show after the election. I remember speaking with my Republican congressman at the time on a local call-in radio talk show. I asked him when the new Republican-controlled Congress would begin repealing some of the legislation passed during the first two years of Clinton’s reign. The congressman told me he would have to stand in line to introduce such legislation because of everything the Republicans had planned.
Republicans managed to stay in power throughout the rest of Clinton’s presidency. But what did we get for it? Did Republicans repeal the Family and Medical Leave Act? Did they eliminate foreign aid? Did they repeal the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act? Did they lower overall federal spending? Did they repeal the Motor Voter Act? Did they eliminate any substantial business regulations? Did they repeal the Violence Against Women Act? Did they cut Social Security and Medicare? Did they repeal the Earned Income Credit? Did they eliminate any federal agencies or programs? Did they repeal any significant pieces of legislation passed during any previous administration? Did they shrink the U.S. empire?
Ben Bernanke Hates the Poor
How Ben Bernanke Screwed the Poor and America
Meanwhile, "core CPI" will provide Bernanke cover for awhile longer as he throws the Fed's printing machines into overdrive, floods the market with fake currency, and screws over the masses in general ... particularly the bottom 20% whose "food and energy purchases represent over 50% of their after-tax income."
This is a giant wealth-transfer scheme, transferring wealth from hard-working Americans to a fraudulent government and banking cartel.
Spice!
Unintended Consequences of the War on Drugs
This week in my local newspaper, Florida’s Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp wrote an op-ed reporting that a drug known as “Spice” is becoming “… a nightmare for law enforcement, because it is sold and used openly as a so-called legal alternative to marijuana. Currently, there is no way to test for the use of Spice — making it that much more attractive to would-be users.”
Kottkamp reports, “Spice is, in fact, more potent and more dangerous than marijuana.”
The issue here is not about Spice; it is about alternatives to marijuana. Making Spice illegal would simply open the door for drug entrepreneurs to develop other recreational drugs that are “more potent and more dangerous than marijuana.”
We’ve been fighting a war on drugs for 30 years, and the drugs are winning. There is ample evidence that the harm from illegal drugs comes more from the fact that they are illegal than that they are drugs.
I am no advocate of recreational drug use. Following Nancy Reagan, if someone offers you some, my advice would be to “Just Say No!” But there are two strong arguments in favor of legalization. One is that this used to be a free country, and freedom has to mean the freedom to make what people in the government think are bad choices. Another more utilitarian argument is that the harm from their illegality is greater than the harm from the drug use itself.
Dollar Death Spiral
Glenn Beck on the Dollar Destroyers (VIDEO)
Ron Paul on the Dollar Destroyers (VIDEO)
Glenn Beck does a decent job here of explaining "quantitative easing" (aka printing money, aka monetizing the debt).
Ron Paul on the Dollar Destroyers (VIDEO)
Very informative interview with Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) and Judge Andrew Napolitano on QE2 and the Federal Reserve.
Copyright Jihad
The Copyright Jihad Strikes Again
Well, I know I’ve downloaded my last song from an RIAA-affiliated company after reading this story:
Well, I know I’ve downloaded my last song from an RIAA-affiliated company after reading this story:
What’s the value of a song? Jammie Thomas-Rasset has spent the last few years in court debating that question. The Minnesota mother of four is being penalized for illegally downloading and sharing 24 songs on the peer-to-peer file-sharing network Kazaa in 2006, but how much she owes the record labels has been in question. The jury in her third trial has just ruled that Thomas-Rasset should pay Capitol Records $1.5 million, CNET reports, which breaks down to $62,500 per song. It’s a heavy penalty considering the 24 tunes would only cost approximately $24 on iTunes, which was Thomas-Rasset’ argument, too.Absolutely stupid. Insane!
Human Slaughter as "Stimulus"
The Keynesian welfare state is best described as the mild-mannered alter ego of the totalitarian welfare state. The official alchemists responsible for transmuting debt into political power eventually find it impossible to siphon wealth out of the productive class in amounts sufficient to meet the needs of the political class. When this happens, the ruling elite will inevitably turn to bloodshed as a source of economic "stimulus."
David Broder of the Washington Post scandalized the punditocracy by openly reciting this formula in a recent column as a prescription for both the ailing economy and Barack Obama's increasingly enfeebled presidency.
Read the whole thing here: Slaughter as "Stimulus"
David Broder of the Washington Post scandalized the punditocracy by openly reciting this formula in a recent column as a prescription for both the ailing economy and Barack Obama's increasingly enfeebled presidency.
"Look back at FDR and the Great Depression," advised Meet The Press's resident droning dullard. "What finally resolved that economic crisis? World War II.... With strong Republican support in Congress for challenging Iran's ambition to become a nuclear power, [Obama] can spend much of 2011 and 2012 orchestrating a showdown with the mullahs. This will help him politically because the opposition party will be urging him on. And as tensions rise and we accelerate preparations for war, the economy will improve."
"I am not suggesting, of course, that the president incite a war to get reelected," lied Broder immediately after doing exactly that. "But the nation will rally around Obama because Iran is the greatest threat to the world in the young century. If he can confront this threat and contain Iran's nuclear ambitions, he will have made the world safer and may be regarded as one of the most successful presidents in history"How Iran, or any other country on earth, could threaten the world more than a regime capable of concocting a conflict as an economic stimulus program, Broder didn't explain. His suggestion shocked Washington's jaw-waggers and chin-pullers -- not so much because of its content, but rather because of its candor. It may be obvious to perceptive adults that wars are manufactured in such cynical ways, but it's bad form to offer unvarnished admissions of that kind in public.
Read the whole thing here: Slaughter as "Stimulus"
Dollar Collapse
Bernanke’s QE2 Death Spiral
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced today that the Fed will purchase $600 billion of long-term Treasuries between now and the end of the second quarter 2011. This btw, is on top of another approximately $300 billion in purchases from reinvesting principle payments from its agency debt and mortgage portfolio over the same period.
In other words, Bernanke is going to destroy the dollar. We will see double-digit inflation by the end of next year.
Obama Oil Conspiracy
Center for American Progress Hearts BP
The Center for American Progress (CAP), BP, and the Obama administration are connected in ways the media ignores. Is it a coincidence that CAP president John Podesta's brother Tony, just happens to be a powerful lobbyist for BP?
Let's look at it together and see if we can make sense out of it.
Who determines Obama's policy?
Money vs. Wealth
Money vs. Wealth
When discussing financial matters, people often conflate money with wealth. Although such loose language may be perfectly fine in everyday conversation, it's important to occasionally go over the basics and make sure we are thinking about these issues in the proper way.
In this article, I use a recent National Public Radio interview in order to reiterate the basic distinction between money and wealth.
The Federal Reserve
Cass Sunstein’s Conspiracy Theory: The Federal Reserve
The major push for a central bank began with a speech by Jacob Schiff, head of Kuhn, Loeb, and Company in 1906, where he stated that the "country needed money to prevent the next crisis." Working with his partner Paul Warburg, and Rockefeller-owned National City Bank of New York's Frank Vanderlip, they created a commission and delivered a report to the New York Chamber of Commerce calling for a "central bank of issue under government control."
The major push for a central bank began with a speech by Jacob Schiff, head of Kuhn, Loeb, and Company in 1906, where he stated that the "country needed money to prevent the next crisis." Working with his partner Paul Warburg, and Rockefeller-owned National City Bank of New York's Frank Vanderlip, they created a commission and delivered a report to the New York Chamber of Commerce calling for a "central bank of issue under government control."
Internet 'kill switch' for President
Absolute Internet Authority
Bottom line is that our Washington Overlords don't like the free-flow of news, information and opinion that the Internet offers. It really throws a monkey wrench in their propaganda ploys.
If they can't control the information, how will they control you?
Bottom line is that our Washington Overlords don't like the free-flow of news, information and opinion that the Internet offers. It really throws a monkey wrench in their propaganda ploys.
If they can't control the information, how will they control you?
Human Dignity
Human Dignity
Today, society seems to have turned from caring about “persons”—your extended family, friends, neighbors—to caring for “people” in general. When you merely care about “people,” you may want help for those in your community that need it but you are removed from any responsibility or obligation and simply expect the government or someone other entity to provide help.
Today, society seems to have turned from caring about “persons”—your extended family, friends, neighbors—to caring for “people” in general. When you merely care about “people,” you may want help for those in your community that need it but you are removed from any responsibility or obligation and simply expect the government or someone other entity to provide help.
Viral Marketing
The 6 Most Insanely Misguided Attempts at Viral Marketing
The goal for marketing types in the Internet age is a "viral" ad campaign. You pull off some publicity stunt, there's tons of coverage on the internet, you wind up with millions of eyeballs for virtually no cost.
But viral campaigns are all about pushing the envelope. You have to shock people to get their attention, and this is where the potential for disaster lies.
Awful, hilarious disaster.
The goal for marketing types in the Internet age is a "viral" ad campaign. You pull off some publicity stunt, there's tons of coverage on the internet, you wind up with millions of eyeballs for virtually no cost.
But viral campaigns are all about pushing the envelope. You have to shock people to get their attention, and this is where the potential for disaster lies.
Awful, hilarious disaster.
Sharron Angle
Sharron Angle
Since winning the Republican primary to challenge Sen. Harry Reid, Sharron Angle's name keeps popping up accompanied by all sorts of wild accusations. "She's crazy" seems to be the standard meme.
This says to me of course, that there's probably a lot to like about Sharron Angle, so let's take a look.
Since winning the Republican primary to challenge Sen. Harry Reid, Sharron Angle's name keeps popping up accompanied by all sorts of wild accusations. "She's crazy" seems to be the standard meme.
This says to me of course, that there's probably a lot to like about Sharron Angle, so let's take a look.
NRA Sells Out
NRA Cuts Questionable Deal with Democrats
And frankly, this craven deal by the NRA will damage our gun rights and our free speech rights. After you read up on the facts, I ask you to give the NRA an earful by calling 1-800-672-3888 and insist they renounce the deal with Pelosi and Reid. Believe me, it is not too late if you will get involved.
And frankly, this craven deal by the NRA will damage our gun rights and our free speech rights. After you read up on the facts, I ask you to give the NRA an earful by calling 1-800-672-3888 and insist they renounce the deal with Pelosi and Reid. Believe me, it is not too late if you will get involved.
The Ethanol Trap
The Ethanol Trap
The oil blowout will mean more subsidies for the corn-fuel industry. That's bad news for consumers.
The most disgusting aspect of the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico isn't the video images of oil-soaked birds or the incessant blather from pundits about what BP or the Obama administration should be doing to stem the flow of oil. Instead, it's the ugly spectacle of the corn-ethanol scammers doing all they can to capitalize on the disaster so that they can justify an expansion of the longest-running robbery of taxpayers in U.S. history.
The oil blowout will mean more subsidies for the corn-fuel industry. That's bad news for consumers.
The most disgusting aspect of the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico isn't the video images of oil-soaked birds or the incessant blather from pundits about what BP or the Obama administration should be doing to stem the flow of oil. Instead, it's the ugly spectacle of the corn-ethanol scammers doing all they can to capitalize on the disaster so that they can justify an expansion of the longest-running robbery of taxpayers in U.S. history.
The Great Links of Michigan
Michigan Links (June 14, 2010)
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. — Milton Friedman
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. — Milton Friedman
Rightwing Links
Rightwing Links (June 9, 2010)
The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others. His own good, either physical or moral, is not a sufficient warrant. -- John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) Economist and Philosopher
Michigan Links
Michigan Links (June 5, 2010)
Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience. — C. S. Lewis
The Manly Art of Grilling
The Other Side of Grilling
The afternoon sun pounding down your back, smells of fresh cut grass and charred meats in the air, a cold beer in one hand and a spatula in the other. At last . . . summer grilling season has arrived. I’m convinced that one of life’s most primal experiences is standing over raw meat and an open flame.
In my family, when it comes to cooking, mom has always been somewhat of a miracle worker. Her ‘kitchen space’ is her own world, and if you have any hope in getting one of her famous meals, you’d best stay out of her kitchen. The grill, however, is always dad’s domain. Rain or shine, dad tends the flames. As men, it’s in our nature to take charge of the fire.
Men Should Avoid Birthing Classes
Men are better off building the cot than going to antenatal classes
The modern insistence that men attend antenatal classes is ridiculous, says Tom Sykes.
The modern insistence that men attend antenatal classes is ridiculous, says Tom Sykes.
As a father of two children aged four and three, I envy my male forebears
whose responsibilities when their wives were pregnant were limited to two
important tasks. They had to put the cot together, and they had to make sure
that the motor car was filled with petrol in case of an emergency late night
run to the hospital. And that was it.
But since the 1960s, when just 5 per cent of men attended the birth of their
children, the notion that men should be there for the great event has become
such an article of faith that 95 per cent of births are now attended by the
father. Now, however, new research has appeared giving males an opt-out from
the nonsense of being forced to attend antenatal classes and birth.
According to Dr Jonathan Ives of the Centre for Biomedical Ethics at the
University of Birmingham, men who are obliged to attend antenatal classes
and be present for the birth of their children can actually become
“deskilled” at parenting.
Woodrow Wilson
How Woodrow Wilson Changed America
for the worse ...
If you want to restore constitutionally limited government, then you must confront Woodrow Wilson, the Progressive theory of human nature and institutions, and the Progressive critique of the principles of the American Founding and our Constitution.
for the worse ...
If you want to restore constitutionally limited government, then you must confront Woodrow Wilson, the Progressive theory of human nature and institutions, and the Progressive critique of the principles of the American Founding and our Constitution.
Bilderberg Group 2010
Bilderberg Group’s Top Secret Meetings
What is the Bilderberg Group and why are they so secret?
It's big players with big influence who attend the Bilderberg Group meetings who can (and do) wield a disproportionately large amount influence over both our federal legislation, and our political process itself. In fact, the Bilderberg Group has direct influence over many of the largest governments through various commissioned "studies," training and direct other influence.
So you see ... A conspiracy doesn't require a cabal of puppet-masters secretly controlling the world. All they need to do, is have enough influence (commissions, reports, trusts, lobbying, etc.) to accomplish (or attempt to accomplish) the same goals.
Benevolent angels ... or does power corrupt?
What is the Bilderberg Group and why are they so secret?
It's big players with big influence who attend the Bilderberg Group meetings who can (and do) wield a disproportionately large amount influence over both our federal legislation, and our political process itself. In fact, the Bilderberg Group has direct influence over many of the largest governments through various commissioned "studies," training and direct other influence.
So you see ... A conspiracy doesn't require a cabal of puppet-masters secretly controlling the world. All they need to do, is have enough influence (commissions, reports, trusts, lobbying, etc.) to accomplish (or attempt to accomplish) the same goals.
Benevolent angels ... or does power corrupt?
TASER Policy 2010
A Critical Look at TASER Policy and Effects
With the recent Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Bryan v. McPherson, 590 F.3d 767 (9th Cir. 2009), law enforcement heads across the nation are gradually revising their use of force policies surrounding TASER deployment.
The Bryan Court dealt with a 21-year-old Carl Bryan who exited his vehicle at a distance of 20 to 25 feet away from Officer Brian McPherson who had pulled Carl Bryan over for a traffic violation. Standing on the asphalt ground Carl Bryan was wearing tennis shoes and boxer shorts and was positioned with his back facing Officer McPherson. At that point, Officer McPherson deployed his TASER causing Carl Bryan to suffer a non-minor injury as a result of falling face first onto the asphalt fracturing four of his teeth and damaging his face ...
With the recent Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Bryan v. McPherson, 590 F.3d 767 (9th Cir. 2009), law enforcement heads across the nation are gradually revising their use of force policies surrounding TASER deployment.
The Bryan Court dealt with a 21-year-old Carl Bryan who exited his vehicle at a distance of 20 to 25 feet away from Officer Brian McPherson who had pulled Carl Bryan over for a traffic violation. Standing on the asphalt ground Carl Bryan was wearing tennis shoes and boxer shorts and was positioned with his back facing Officer McPherson. At that point, Officer McPherson deployed his TASER causing Carl Bryan to suffer a non-minor injury as a result of falling face first onto the asphalt fracturing four of his teeth and damaging his face ...
Destroying Liberty
The Insidious Encroachment by Men of Zeal
Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis warned, "The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in the insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well meaning but without understanding." The freedom of individuals from compulsion or coercion never was, and is not now, the normal state of human affairs. The normal state for the ordinary person is tyranny, arbitrary control and abuse mainly by their own government. While imperfect in its execution, the founders of our nation sought to make an exception to this ugly part of mankind's history. Unfortunately, at the urging of the American people, we are unwittingly in the process of returning to mankind's normal state of affairs.
Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis warned, "The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in the insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well meaning but without understanding." The freedom of individuals from compulsion or coercion never was, and is not now, the normal state of human affairs. The normal state for the ordinary person is tyranny, arbitrary control and abuse mainly by their own government. While imperfect in its execution, the founders of our nation sought to make an exception to this ugly part of mankind's history. Unfortunately, at the urging of the American people, we are unwittingly in the process of returning to mankind's normal state of affairs.
Conservative State Aggression
Conservative Euphemisms for State Aggression
Every season there is a new contender for the conservative mini-treatise of the day. Usually written by the newest would-be Buckley, it offers readers a new way of understanding the ideological climate and a new perspective on how conservatives should fit within it. National Review used to publish these all the time in the 60s and 70s, and the conclusion was always the same: feel no guilt about your support of big government in such and such an area because conservative philosophy can be twisted and re-rendered to make that not only permissible but necessary.
In more recent years, the cause has been picked up by other publications. The American Conservative calls for supporting the protectionist state. The Weekly Standard calls for supporting the national-greatness state. The Wall Street Journal is all for boosting welfare for warfare. Many formerly libertarian writers have seen the light and come to support the interventionist state in foreign policy. Innumerable e-zines call for tearing down the Democratic Party–ruled state in order to support the Republican Party–ruled state. And vast numbers of religious right outlets see a rationale for the moralizing state.
Ford Cuts Mercury
RIP: Mercury 1938-2010
Well, another can brand died today. Ford announced that the Mercury brand will go to that show room in the sky in the fourth quarter of this year. Here’s some coverage from Automobile Magazine.
Theodore Roosevelt and the "personalization of the presidency"
How Theodore Roosevelt Changed America
In 1896, Brooks Adams wrote a book called The Law of Civilization and Decay. Like most late-19th-century commentators, he believed that his country was nearing a watershed in its history. But unless America rallied around a strong leader, the center of world power, which he thought might be about to shift from England to the United States, would shift instead to Russia. In many ways, Theodore Roosevelt — who read Adams's book with interest — would prove to be this leader, invigorating the executive branch in both the domestic and the foreign arenas. In so doing, he became the first modern president.
Roosevelt was well suited for this role. Philosophically he was the consummate Progressive, determined to bring efficiency and coordinated intelligence to bear against the trusts, against despoilers of the natural environment, and against international disorder. He was, as one historian put it, "the first great president-reformer of the modern industrial era."