❝❝A terrifyingly surprising number of police officers also have "incidents of domestic abuse in their background." Not most to be sure, but the field seems to draw some really f…ed up people. Worse, police are legally shielded from the consequences of their own actions.

If the current "red flag law" proposals are any indication, almost all the criteria will certainly be political. Considering that most people including psychiatrists and psychologists are incapable of judging competence, motives, or morality without some intense analysis, that is asking for trouble.

Here's what you do not want to acknowledge. Most people are not criminal. Most gun owners don't casually shoot other people or property. And there is not a single background check that will prevent every possible mass shooter.

Now I could go on and on. I could point out that American gun laws originated to keep guns out of the hands of "blacks". I could list the puppycide incidents. I could point out the militarization of police, especially in the "War on Drugs." All of this overlooks one very simple thing. The Second Amendment exists because the Founders did not trust government.

All your suggestions, all your proposals, everything you've said will arm more government agents while making the populace unarmed. Tell me, do you want Trump's government heavily armed while you are not?❞❞

Tags: Second Amendment ∙ red flag law ∙ background checks ∙ War on Drugs ∙ government

❝❝If government is not a net benefit, then the question “What can government do?” changes to “How do we limit costs?”❞❞

— NeoWayland, liberty question

Tags: maxims ∙ economics ∙ government ∙ costs ∙ libertarian

“Who Inflicts the Most Gun Violence in America?”

Tags: clipping ∙ John W. Whitehead ∙ gun control ∙ guns ∙ government ∙ Ferguson ∙ Missouri ∙ police ∙ America

Why are taxpayer dollars collected by force being spent on a playground? Any playground?

Tags: religious freedom ∙ regulation ∙ Trinity Lutheran ∙ Christian ∙ tax deduction ∙ taxes ∙ government ∙ private sector

❝❝Let's fix problems caused by government with… more government!❞❞

— NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ problems

❝❝Let's break the myth that government is the first, best, and last solution.❞❞

— NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ myth ∙ government ∙ first best last ∙ solution

I'm tired of being lectured to.

Tags: choice & consequence ∙ responsibility ∙ control of the system ∙ government ∙ winners or losers

““By the democratic principles we espouse, government cannot have a right that citizens do not grant it. There are certain things that a person has no right to do. A person has no right to murder or rape another. Therefore, people cannot grant government authority to murder and rape. Similarly, no person has the right to forcibly take the property of one person in order to give it to another. Therefore, people cannot grant government authority to do the same thing. If I forcibly took property from one person, for any reason, most people would condemn it as theft, an immoral act. Theft or any other immoral act does not become moral because it is done by government acting on behalf of a consensus or majority vote just as murder or rape does not become a moral act simply because of a consensus or majority vote.””

— Walter E. Williams

Tags: Walter E. Williams ∙ government ∙ authority ∙ citizens ∙ murder ∙ rape ∙ theft ∙ consensus

“"It's obvious you idiot" doesn't cut it.”

Tags: maxims ∙ libertarian ∙ American ∙ personal freedom ∙ economic freedom ∙ responsibility ∙ government ∙ individual

❝❝A conservative tends to value economic freedom over personal freedom. Usually this means removing government obstacles to business while advocating a common moral belief system to join people together, even if someone has to sacrifice in the name of that system. In it's more extreme forms, that can mean dictating the personal behavior (and occasionally beliefs) of individuals through government actions. The bottom line and results take precedence over feelings.❞❞

— NeoWayland, Pagan•Vigil FAQ

Tags: maxims ∙ conservative ∙ government ∙ economic freedom ∙ common good

❝❝A modern liberal can range from what used to be called a "progressive" to socialist. Roughly speaking, a modern liberal is all for personal freedom but feels that economic freedom and opportunity should be controlled by government action so that everyone "benefits equally" in the name of "social justice." In it's more extreme forms, it can mean that good intentions and lofty goals are judged over results.❞❞

— NeoWayland, Pagan•Vigil FAQ

Tags: maxims ∙ modern liberal ∙ progressive ∙ socialist ∙ personal freedom ∙ economic freedom ∙ government ∙ equality ∙ social justice

❝❝Save us from the crusaders. “Here I come to save the day!”

Whatever form WestCiv and America specifically ends up with, you're still going to have to live with people who disagree and hate everything you stand for. You don't build communities by excluding people you don't like.

Crusading just means "your" side will win for a short while. And the the whole cycle starts again.

---

Unknown today. In his time, his writings were very well known and pretty influential. He wrote Our Enemy, the State among other things

I cited him in the first place is because a top down approach doesn't work for very long, if it works at all. People resent being told what to do, especially if you force them. I don't have a detailed plan because I don't think that any one person or any one group has all the answers. I think a big, big part of the problem is that we usually phrase our social problems in dualities, this or that. Dualities exclude other choices, it's all or nothing. So when I see phases like "save Western Civilization," it tells me that someone is reinforcing the original problem, not finding a solution.

No matter how good their plan may be, anything based on a dual choice and only a dual choice is doomed. That's the point that Nock tried to make in that article. People won't submit to Greater Authority for Their Own Good. The people you might convince won't listen until after the stuff hits the fan.

---

To start with, we could enforce the Constitution. The Tenth Amendment clearly outlaws most of the Federal government.

Given how little the Federal government pays attention to the Constitution and it's own laws, I don't think additional restrictions would work.

---

The Constitution was designed to rein in government. I'd encourage anyone interested to read the Federalist papers and the anti-Federalist papers. Unless the power is specifically granted in the Constitution, the Federal government doesn't have it. Or at least it shouldn't.

The one time that the Constitution was amended to restrict the people was a disaster.

It wasn't until the progressive movement of the late 19th and early 20th that the public perception of limited government turned to expecting an activist government with virtually unlimited powers.

I don't care about SCOTUS in the 20th Century, I'm pretty sure that time travel causes unintended consequences.

---

See, I'm not sure if adding more government is the solution to bad government. Hmm, I might have said something like that before.

And I don't think trading insults is the way to go. Sometimes winning isn't nearly as important as keeping the other guy from reaching the goal.

---

Isn't adding things like term limits and engineering the constraints adding to government?

I wasn't talking about insulting the voters. Imagine a boxing match. Which shows more skill, the ability to take and dish out punch after punch? Or the ability not to get hit while letting the other guy hurt himself trying to hurt you?

Which leaves you better able to go to work after?

---

Yes, the Constitution is a restraint device. But it hasn't worked. Why should another work? This is where you lose me.

Whatever Trump may or may not be, what happens next? Trump is rare, most people can't fight dirty for an extended time. If the only structure we can build depends on fighting dirty for every advantage, how are we better off?

---

No, it hasn't, not for at least 85 years. Although I think a strong case can be made that it hasn't more than a century. What we've been living under is the illusion that the Constitution is working and that more government is a good thing.

I've argued that term limits are meaningless when the major parties control who gets on the ballot. I've also argued that primary elections divert attention away from the real stakes. CGP Grey has a great video explaining why first part the post voting is not a good thing.

I keep returning to this because I think it is critical. We've been indoctrinated for generations to think that the way to fix a corrupt system is through system management. We've moved beyond the black mold stage, the pieces are so radioactive that using them not only risks our health but also could contaminate any new pieces we add. The benefits of "playing the system" and exploiting others and yes, even fighting dirty and ugly so outweigh long term thinking that there are actually severe disincentives to a long term IPD.

Case in point, and this one isn't even a libertarian thing. The US has more military bases in more foreign nations than any other power in history. Our military spending is bigger than the next thirty nations combined. We actively discourage other nations from establishing their own bases. We meddle in their internal affairs and throw hissy fits when people from other nations buy advertising aimed at our own elections. We bully others and tell ourselves that we fight the really bad bullies "for the little guy."

Why?

Do you think that Trump would stand down? Maybe close ten percent of our overseas bases? Do you think that American intervention leads to a safer world? Would you accept it if other nations did the same to the US?

Why is it bad when the deep state does it, but OK when Trump uses the same tools?

---

You misunderstand. I'm waiting for the system to rip itself apart. I don't have to work actively against it, I just don't have to patch it up or compensate for it's failure.

One area we do disagree is that the right is somehow more moral than the left. Another is that a system controlled by the right is preferable to one controlled by the left. The right gave us the USA PATRIOT Act, and the left gave us Obamacare. Hard to say at this point which has done the most damage. As for Trump, well, trade and tariffs alone are balanced on a knifeblade between what might possibly work if we are extremely lucky and what might cause disaster so epic as to make the Great Depression and World War II look like last Tuesday.

---

It's not the voters I don't trust. I don't trust the "options" the voters are allowed to have. You can have your left arm or your right leg cut off, but you must choose one.

I'm willing to let my principles compete without the coercion of the state or what is "morally right." That's more than either the right or the left want, they want to hold a gun to people's heads for Your Own Good.

The right is self-limiting? The War on Drugs. Too big to fail. An ongoing overseas war that for the first time in American history, has soldiers fighting who weren't even born when it started.

While I marginally prefer conservatives, no one and certainly no institution gets a pass because of the label. Branding is a horrific way to govern. What have you done for me lately?

---

The duality is an illusion. More accurately the duality is a condition required for the system to work. But that doesn't mean the system is a good idea or the best idea. Yet that duality by it's nature locks us into either/or and calls it the best choice.

The system wants us to choose the best baseball team when I want to swim.

My problem is that I see statists on "both" sides, and the right is no less threatening than the left. Your premise is that the right is a better choice and my premise is that statists (any statists) threaten freedom.❞❞

Tags: Western Civilization ∙ America ∙ disagree ∙ crusade ∙ Albert Jay Nock ∙ top down ∙ dualism ∙ Constitution ∙ Tenth Amendment ∙ restraint ∙ government ∙ Federalist papers ∙ Anti-Federalist papers ∙ SCOTUS ∙ progressive ∙ solution ∙ Donald Trump ∙ term limits ∙ primary election ∙ CGP Grey ∙ first past the post ∙ system management ∙ milirarist ∙ right ∙ Left ∙ voters ∙ statist

This is a page from the original version of Pagan Vigil. There are some formatting differences. Originally published at www.paganvigil.com/C1415225799/E20070520143152

Yahoo pulls the plug on fake profiles used by British police

It's hard to fault Yahoo! in this case.

““INTERNET companies including Yahoo! are hindering police investigations into child abuse by closing down the undercover identities used by officers to trap paedophiles.

British child protection police habitually pose as children online, using false profiles to ensnare abusers trying to groom girls and boys for sex.

But the companies say they will shut down all bogus identities on their sites even if they know they are being run to catch paedophiles.

“Everybody using our service, regardless of whether they are law enforcement agencies, has to abide by our terms of service and if they don’t we will close them down,” said Yahoo!.

Its terms of service state that all information used to make up a profile must be “true, accurate current and complete”.

The stipulations are intended to protect users from exploitation and abuse, but antiabuse campaigners say they are frustrating police sting operations on hardcore offenders.””

Why should police have special privileges not available to the general public? Why should a private company overlook abuses of services just because it is government agents?

Yes, I know it is that old saw about "protecting the children," but without that justification, doesn't Yahoo! owe it's customers protection from frauds online?

Posted: Sun - May 20, 2007 at 02:31 PM

Tags: clipping ∙ Yahoo! ∙ Britain ∙ police ∙ children ∙ pedophile ∙ paedophile ∙ identity fraud ∙ government ∙ agents ∙ protect the children

Then I choose not to follow a Biblical morality.

Tags: Biblical morality ∙ Old Testament ∙ Decalogue ∙ Christians ∙ Jews ∙ New Testament ∙ Jesus ∙ John ∙ costs ∙ benefits ∙ submit ∙ religion ∙ coercive power ∙ government ∙ moral justification ∙ Ethic of Reciprocity ∙ Biblical authority

❝❝When government gets involved, count on costs going up, quality going down, and availability diminishing.❞❞

— NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ costs ∙ quality deteriotes ∙ availability

From FreedomToons

Tags: guest content ∙ video ∙ FreedomToons ∙ libertarian ∙ government ∙ debunk

““I have certain rules I live by. My first rule: I don’t believe anything the government tells me. Nothing. Zero.””

— George Carlin

Tags: George Carlin ∙ rules ∙ believe ∙ government

❝❝Government, government agencies, and agents acting on behalf of governments do not have rights. Governments have powers. Just governments have powers to protect and defend individual rights. Unjust governments have powers to protect and defend privileges.❞❞

— NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ rights ∙ powers ∙ privilege ∙ just ∙ unjust ∙ tweeted

““The very same people who say that government has no right to interfere with sexual activity between consenting adults believe that the government has every right to interfere with economic activity between consenting adults.””

— Thomas Sowell

Tags: Thomas Sowell ∙ government ∙ power ∙ Interfere ∙ consenting adults ∙ sexual activity ∙ economic activity

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: health care ∙ health insurance ∙ health care providers ∙ wage caps ∙ employers ∙ Obamacare ∙ prices ∙ availability ∙ government ∙ manages

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: feminism ∙ dependency ∙ Title IX ∙ James Comey ∙ Arizona ∙ lettuce ∙ medical care ∙ Texas ∙ bullion depository ∙ deficit ∙ government spending ∙ Russia ∙ election ∙ Hillary Clinton ∙ Donald Trump ∙ climate change ∙ government ∙ California ∙ company ∙ economy ∙ Facebook

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: textual differences ∙ new covenan ∙ Judaism ∙ Hawaiian culture and language ∙ Rome ∙ label ∙ deeds ∙ Decalogue ∙ New Testament ∙ tolerance ∙ extreme ∙ Hong Kong ∙ E pluribus unum ∙ Greece ∙ measure a man ∙ faith ∙ government ∙ Amerindians ∙ Jews ∙ Bible ∙ slavery ∙ trade ∙ religious freedom ∙ pluralism ∙ American ∙ religious virtue ∙ Christian ∙ Christianity ∙ Judeo-Christian ∙ Orthodox Jews ∙ Mormons ∙ Christian Scientists

So does that mean that the Decalogue has no value?

Tags: maxims ∙ religion ∙ doctrine ∙ individual ∙ Bible ∙ Christians ∙ slavery ∙ libertarian ∙ government ∙ sponsored ∙ foreign aid ∙ domestic aid

LGBT Splinter Group From Migrant Caravan Is The 1st To Arrive In Tijuana

Tags: Crux Files ∙ freedom ∙ mistake ∙ consequences ∙ government ∙ force ∙ prove himself ∙ choice & consequence ∙ excuse

CNN sues President Trump and White House for banning reporter Jim Acosta

Tags: freedom of the press ∙ access ∙ Jim Acosta ∙ CNN ∙ White House ∙ Donald Trump ∙ government

““…it represents yet another example of the government creating protected classes in order to advance political agendas, and gifting them special rights and privileges which result in ludicrous yet predictable outcomes bringing misery to ordinary people.””

— Tim Newman, Playing with fire

Tags: Tim Newman ∙ government ∙ protected groups ∙ political agenda ∙ special rights ∙ privilege ∙ ordinary people

❝❝There's also climate change. Some treat it very much as a religious issue, right down to attacking dissenters as heretics. Using the law to compel belief is wrong.

After all, if it is Divine Will, how can mere humans dare question it? Which gives non serviam some very interesting implications. By some interpretations, the absolute demands of monotheism may be less about the Divine and more about the political power of princes, potentates, and priests.

It's easy to laugh at those crazy monotheists until you see some demands of the RadFems, the trans activists, the environmental groups, the redistributionists, and anti-hate speech types. Always, Always, ALWAYS there is a Grand Cause that demands total submission and absolutely no denial "for the greater good."

Anytime you see "thou shalt not dissent," it should be a flashing red strobe and a triple siren.

---

Kosher certification for restaurants is one private alternative for food safety that has worked. One author, L. Neil Smith, suggested in one of his novels that insurance companies would do a better job with driver's licenses because they are liable if something happens. Obviously these are not the only possibilities. But with government, we end up with only one Official Solution® allowed.

Personally I prefer the free market and competition. And by free market, I mean no government to pick winners or losers, and no government to give advantages over others. Just voluntary exchanges between consenting adults. Many companies especially international ones owe their competitive advantages to special privileges from governments and/or government regulation and control.

The only times I think government should intervene is to protect life, liberty, and property. Beyond that, the only role I see for government is enforcing contracts and agreements, but even that could be done privately.

But that is just me.

I do believe that Meddling in Other's Lives For Their Own Good is one of the great evils unleashed on humanity.❞❞

Tags: climate change ∙ religious ∙ beliefs ∙ dissent ∙ Divine Will ∙ non serviam ∙ mere unbelievers ∙ monotheism ∙ absolute ∙ princes ∙ potentates ∙ priests ∙ RadFem ∙ trans activists ∙ environmental crusade ∙ redistribute wealth ∙ thou shalt not dissent ∙ kosher ceritificaiton ∙ insurance companies ∙ driver's license ∙ food safety ∙ competition ∙ government ∙ winners or losers ∙ voluntary exchange ∙ consenting adults ∙ special privileges ∙ government regulation ∙ life ∙ liberty ∙ property ∙ enforce contracts ∙ meddle ∙ for your own good

But none of that is a reason to impeach him.

Tags: Jeff Thomas ∙ government ∙ control ∙ desire ∙ pursue ∙ extract ∙ history

Civility 101: James Cromwell Says ‘There Will Be Blood’ if Dems Lose Midterms

State-Backed Digital Currency Offers Nothing for Canadians

Is This Worse Than '68?

Moving The Goalposts: IPCC Secretly Redefines what ‘Climate’ means

Bolsonaro is not a fascist

Dad at McDonald's with kids shoots and kills masked gunman who opened fire

Why Halloween Is America’s Most Neighborhood-Nurturing Holiday

Hillary Clinton Drops Super Racist Comment During Event

The Misguided Rabbis of Twitter

Election predictions

Feds Order Google To Hand Over A Load Of Innocent Americans' Locations

New Research Confirms We Got Cholesterol All Wrong

Warmists and Skeptics Should Agree That This is The Real Scandal in Climate Science

Tags: midterm ∙ election ∙ James Cromwell ∙ cryptocurrencies ∙ Canada ∙ 1968 ∙ IPCC ∙ climate ∙ Jair Bolsonaro ∙ fascist ∙ Dad ∙ McDonald's ∙ self defense ∙ gun ∙ Halloween ∙ Hillary Clinton ∙ racist ∙ Donald Trump ∙ Jews ∙ polls ∙ privacy ∙ Google ∙ cholesterol ∙ food ∙ government

““Tax complexity is a breeding ground for government corruption. It's much easier to add new corporate handouts to a tax code that's already overrun with favoritism, and it's simpler for politicians to justify adding narrowly targeted benefits when the practice is already common. Businesses, in turn, have an incentive to spend more time and resources lobbying the government than satisfying customers.””
     — Veronique de Rugy, Extending the Electric Vehicle Tax Credit Undermines Tax Reform

Tags: Veronique de Rugy ∙ taxes ∙ government ∙ corruption ∙ handouts ∙ tax code ∙ politicos

As an Arizona resident who worked against his re-election the last four times, I wish he had retired years ago.

Tags: taxes ∙ government ∙ local government ∙ state government ∙ Federal government

❝❝Ever notice when someone picks a scapegoat, it's because they think the scapegoat can't fight back?

---

I agree with you that politics is a source of great evil in the World.

I disagree that the Trump and the Republicans are the cause. Or even most of the cause.

One annoying thing about politics is that people are willing to overlook the misconduct of "their" side even while slinging wild accusations against the Enemy. The accusations may or may not be accurate. But you can count on the Enemy not being quite the Ultimate Horror Unleashed on Mankind. And you can count that your side is not quite the paragon of virtue and self-sacrifice that they claim.

Politics is about controlling the other. Never you, always the other. When government is involved politics is about control backed by force.

Politicians are never on your side. Even as they stand wrapped in the flag clutching holy writ promising that they will be your bestest friend ever no matter what.

---

I'm sorry, but I can't agree. Obama used the IRS and Justice Department against his enemies, among other things. And the Democrats looked the other way.

Rather than get into a long and pointless discussion of who did what worse, I want to point out something that most people overlook.

The politicos NEED you to blame the other party and never question the wisdom of your party's decisions. It's always the other party that is doing things Too Terrible and always your own party that promises to Save The Day. When you buy into that, you perpetuate the system. You're always going to be victimized and you're never ever going to be saved. If you were saved, you'd have no reason to vote the party line.

---

I know I have my political critics on this site, but believe me when I tell you that there are conservatives who are just as threatened by the Democrat leadership as you are by Trump.

Too often today, people make excuses for what their side does by trotting out the disasters from the other side.

I want less government. I think government is a terrible danger to liberty. I think politicos and technocrats complicate things because they don't want you asking questions and they don't want you changing the status quo. They don't want you understanding what they do.

So when I see someone insisting that this flavor of politico is slightly less objectionable, I tell them they are wrong.

---

Accurate, as far as it goes.

*sighs* Look, I know that other pagans think I am simplistic and partisan when it comes to politics. And believe me, I realize how ironic it is for me to denounce mixing paganism with politics while having a political blog called Pagan Vigil.

Politics is one of my darker passions. I'm better at it than any amateur has any right to be. I understand the temptations and lusts because those are my temptations, my lusts, but for a bit of discipline and some promises I made. There's a line from Doctor Who, “Good men don’t need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.” These days I try to use my abilities and urges in a good cause. Mostly I succeed.

I've said that politics is about controlling the other. It's literally "power over." All the processes, all the carefully defined rules to protect democracy, all the blame exists SOLEY to keep people from looking too carefully at "the sausage being made." To keep people from asking how much freedom they are "supposed" to sacrifice for "the Greater Good." To keep them from asking themselves why expecting the other guy to sacrifice and compromise is GOOD but they themselves aren't supposed to sacrifice and compromise. To keep them from accepting that POWER OVER for their principles just might not be as as effective as power with based on things we all share.

Smashing the opposition just makes more pieces that can regrow.❞❞

Tags: scapegoating ∙ World ∙ Donald Trump ∙ Republicans ∙ control ∙ politicos ∙ Barack Obama ∙ IRS ∙ Justice Department ∙ party politics ∙ Democrats ∙ government ∙ technocrats ∙ political flavor ∙ pagans ∙ simplistic ∙ partisan ∙ blog ∙ darker passions ∙ temptation ∙ lust ∙ amateur ∙ discipline ∙ promises ∙ Doctor Who ∙ power with vs power over

I'm not something less, I'm something else.

Tags: bureaucrats ∙ power ∙ government ∙ voters ∙ exploit ∙ government is not your friend ∙ advances ∙ culture ∙ technology ∙ plastic surgery ∙ kidney machine ∙ capitalism ∙ poverty ∙ competition

❝❝No, they are not monopolies.

When I sit down at a computer, I don't have to go through Facebook to check the weather or see what is happening at this site. If I wanted to message someone on my iPod or iPad, I don't have to use Twitter.

With AT&T, if you were in an area covered you had no choice. It was your regional Bell company and AT&T or nothing. The breakup fixed that, you could choose your phone company. And today, if I am not in range of the right cell tower, my phone still works as long as I am in range of a cell tower.

Facebook, Twitter, Google, Apple, all got big by offering something the competition did not have. No one was forced. Competition is the only way to reduce their hold. And the competition, like all competition, has to offer something more than "just as good as."

For a while, iOS and macOSX had software hooks so that Facebook and Twitter had easier access. That's no longer necessarily true, some of Apple's customers didn't want their data shared by companies that weren't trustworthy.

Government intervention is the last thing we need. There are already politicos who complain about "fake news" that isn't fake, it's just not what the politicos want you to think about. From the news in the last couple of days, it seems Twitter is going after conservative and libertarian users. Do we really want a world where government decides what may and may not be said?

Oh, one other thing. Monopolies rely on government support and intervention. Start regulating and you just planted a monopoly.

---

I agree it's a mess.

To get a site, you have to register a domain name. Then you have to get server space. If you use a company like Wordpress, you agree to carry their ads on your site in exchange for a reduced rate or free use on their server space. If you go on your own, you find a web host (like MacHighway) and you have more control over the site and advertising.

Think of it like a storefront that you have to rent. Depending on the terms of the lease, that is how much service your "landlord" provides and how much you provide to your visitors.

If Twitter provides the ability to block people you don't like, I agree that it should be available to ALL users. But the platform is not public property. The "landlord" can block out who they want when they want. But they shouldn't be shielded from the consequences of their actions. They are liable if they provide different services and benefits to their users. If it's a "free" service, then all "free" users should have the same benefits as all other "free" users. The "landlord" can ban conservatives, but if they allow conservatives (or one specific high profile conservative), then that person should have the same rights and benefits.

ETA: The real question is if the platform should ban offensive content and how that should be defined.❞❞

Tags: virtue signaling ∙ Facebook ∙ Twitter ∙ Apple ∙ server space ∙ Google ∙ iOS ∙ domain name ∙ macOSX ∙ competition ∙ government intervention ∙ fake news ∙ politicos ∙ conservative ∙ libertarian ∙ government ∙ Wordpress ∙ MacHighway ∙ lease ∙ offensive

““Weighing benefits against costs is the way most people make decisions – and the way most businesses make decisions, if they want to stay in business. Only in government is any benefit, however small, considered to be worth any cost, however large.””
     — Thomas Sowell

Tags: Thomas Sowell ∙ benefits ∙ costs ∙ decisions ∙ business ∙ government

““It is amazing how many people think that the government's role is to give them what they want by overriding what other people want.””
     — Thomas Sowell

Tags: Thomas Sowell ∙ government ∙ what they want

Samuel Adams delivered this speech from the steps of the State House in Philadelphia on August 1, 1776. This was the day before the famous parchment copy of the Declaration of Independence was signed.

Tags: Samuel Adams ∙ 1776 ∙ forefathers ∙ religion ∙ England ∙ America ∙ France ∙ Great Britain ∙ government ∙ Declaration of Independence

❝❝See, that’s what I mean. No one has all the answers and certainly no group has all the answers.

Let me tell you what I think they see.

First, a nation where some people believe victimhood has become more important than merit. A place where people have been taught that certain groups must be forced to sacrifice so that the unworthy may prosper.

Let me talk about that word unworthy for a bit. In this case it means someone who expects that their desires be fulfilled with minimum effort on their part. It’s one thing to march with fuzzy pink hats. But who shows up to do the work? And no, marching with a hat is not the work. Work means getting your hands dirty. Work isn’t about raising awareness or pointing out injustice. Work is the every day effort to provide for yourself and those you care for. Work is not taking a weekend to show your solidarity.

Because for them, it’s not about skin color. It’s about merit. If it were about skin color, then people like Walter Williams and Thomas Sowell wouldn’t be celebrated. For them it’s about fixing the problem and getting the job done. It’s not about curing past injustices or preventing any possible future injustices (definition subject to change). A hand up instead of a hand out.

Thomas Sowell said “When people get used to preferential treatment, equal treatment seems like discrimination.” And he was right. Too many privileges today are passed off as rights. Temporary measures become permanent. Privileges are sold as rights, despite only applying to certain victim groups.

And when there is criticism of any of this, it’s called racism.

Second, a government that has lied to them repeatedly. And a bunch of politicos who keep promising that government will fix the problems.

And by the way, this crosses the “skin color” barrier. It’s just that we’ve been lectured that you can’t be a “real …” (black, Hispanic, minority) unless you oppose Republicans and conservatives because “the Man” wants to take it away. See the Sowell quote above.

Third, that Democrats exploit the victimhood.

I disagree with your figures about “the young.” I think the media have their own reasons to skew the news (90% negative stories about Trump).

I also think you are making a major mistake focusing on Trump.

I told you before that it is not Trump. People are losing faith in institutions because our institutions are failing to deliver what was promised. Trump is a symptom not the cause.❞❞

Tags: victimhood ∙ merit ∙ unworthy ∙ work ∙ skin color ∙ Thomas Sowell ∙ preferential treatment ∙ equal treatment ∙ discrimination ∙ privilege ∙ rights ∙ racism ∙ government ∙ lies ∙ politicos ∙ Donald Trump

❝❝So if elected officials no longer honor the Constitution and rig the game so it isn't possible to elect anyone not approved by national party leadership, what obligations do citizens have to honor and respect the government?❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ elected office ∙ honor ∙ Constitution ∙ national party leadership ∙ obligations ∙ respect ∙ government

❝❝We've not had a "better" government in decades. Good government is not measured by how much government controls, but by how much it doesn't. It's no accident that America's greatest advances come from places that government doesn't regulate.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ better ∙ government ∙ controls ∙ advances ∙ regulate

““What is ominous is the ease with which some people go from saying that they don't like something to saying that the government should forbid it. When you go down that road, don't expect freedom to survive very long.””

— Thomas Sowell

Tags: Thomas Sowell ∙ memes ∙ government ∙ forbidden

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: internet sales tax ∙ Obama Administration ∙ DoJ ∙ illegal immigrants ∙ Facebook ∙ conservatives ∙ New Jersey ∙ taxes ∙ Parkland ∙ deputy ∙ Keystone Cops ∙ Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School ∙ budget deficits ∙ diversity ∙ gun control ∙ secret deals ∙ government ∙ obesity ∙ surveillance

Tags: Congress ∙ Hungary ∙ sociaism ∙ women ∙ Obamacare ∙ Stephen Hawking ∙ Clinton campaign ∙ Fusion GPS ∙ Mit Romney ∙ Obama campaign ∙ retail ∙ shoppers ∙ returning mechandise ∙ database ∙ EU ∙ United Nations ∙ mass migration ∙ House committe ∙ no collusion ∙ television networks ∙ Florida ∙ Iowa ∙ TIGER Program ∙ government ∙ banned ∙ female bartenders

❝❝Government WILL abuse power. The only long term answer is reducing the power that government has.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ power ∙ abuse ∙ reduce

❝❝I have mixed feelings on abortion. The one thing I am sure about is that it should not be paid for by government. There are many reasons, but the main one is that it's always easier to spend someone else's money.

Contraception is less complicated. Sex is (or should be) a voluntary act. You choose to have sex. Your neighbors should no more pay for your contraception than they should pay for your designer shoes. This is an example of what I was talking about. If government gives you benefits at the expense of others, it's privilege.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ abortion ∙ contraception ∙ sex ∙ government ∙ someone else's money ∙ neighbors ∙ benefits ∙ privilege

“Is that what they are saying? Is that right?”

Tags: 2nd Amendment ∙ memes ∙ government ∙ Donald Trump ∙ trust ∙ cops ∙ military ∙ racist ∙ gun free zone

Tags: Calvin Coolidge ∙ people ∙ America ∙ less ∙ memes ∙ government ∙ more ∙ for themselves ∙ rewards

❝❝\s\ In a TOTALLY unrelated fact that has nothing to do with government abuse of power, including weakening 4th & 5th Amendment protections to the point of uselessness, today is the anniversary of the 16th Amendment and the modern American income tax.

Your government needs to know what you are doing so it can protect you. No need to worry, Citizen, government knows what is best for you at all times. \s\❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ sarcasm ∙ Fourth Amendment ∙ Fifth Amendment ∙ Sixteenth Amendment ∙ income tax ∙ government ∙ protect

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: Crux Files ∙ climate change ∙ plant trees ∙ grow a garden ∙ climate alarmist ∙ profit ∙ foreign policy ∙ government ∙ Somebody Else's Problem ∙ Christians ∙ nuclear power ∙ Earth Day ∙ climate gap ∙ UNFCCC ∙ EPA ∙ political coup ∙ prestige ∙ truth ∙ heretic ∙ science is settled ∙ power ∙ money ∙ carbon dioxide ∙ scientists ∙ cascade effect ∙ spreadsheets ∙ consensus ∙ advertising ∙ thou shalt not dissent ∙ science ∙ Earth-centered religion ∙ human influence ∙ volcanos ∙ pollution ∙ water shortage ∙ mass produced architecture ∙ back seat ∙ climate models ∙ suberted ∙ industrial chemicals ∙ greenhouse gases ∙ raccoon population explosion ∙ polar bears ∙ environmental movement ∙ human activity ∙ climatology

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: FedGovs ∙ income tax ∙ spends too much money ∙ immigration reform ∙ regulation ∙ smaller government ∙ occupational licensing ∙ California ∙ pension ∙ shitholes ∙ government ∙ people ∙ Margaret Atwood ∙ Michael Wolff ∙ Donald Trump ∙ truth ∙ Jeff Flake ∙ press ∙ responds and escalates ∙ profit ∙ utilities ∙ loss ∙ shareholders ∙ racist

Tags: net neutrality ∙ Hezbollah ∙ Millennials ∙ Karl Marx ∙ laundering money ∙ used cars ∙ CDC ∙ Uruguay ∙ drug lords ∙ USAPATRIOT ∙ banned ∙ homeless ∙ charity ∙ starup culture ∙ marijuana ∙ Barack Obama ∙ cocaine ∙ government ∙ perverse ∙ sexualization of children

Odd tactic from the Grand and Glorious Imperious Leader

Tags: Diné ∙ oppress ∙ Native American ∙ capitalism ∙ borrow ∙ Voting Rights Act of 1965 ∙ Western Civilization ∙ pluralism ∙ choice ∙ responsibility ∙ clear title ∙ Hernando De Soto ∙ American Dream ∙ government ∙ Amerindians ∙ the Rez ∙ victimhood

“Protectionism at play? Politicians say food trucks are "unfair competition" for restaurants.”

Tags: ReasonTV ∙ video ∙ John Stossel ∙ regulations ∙ government ∙ guest content ∙ food truck

““Conservatives say the government can't end poverty by force, but they believe it can use force to make people moral. Liberals say government can't make people be moral, but they believe it can end poverty. Neither group attempts to explain why government is so clumsy and destructive in one area but a paragon of efficiency and benevolence in the other.””
     — Harry Browne

Tags: Harry Browne ∙ conservatives ∙ poverty ∙ force ∙ moral ∙ government

❝❝Government gets bigger and more oppressive, that is the nature of government.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ oppression

❝❝I distrust the very notion of government. Especially an ever expanding government with no apparent restraints where the only real concern is when “your guys” aren't in charge.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ distrust ∙ government ∙ restraints ∙ your guys ∙ in charge

❝❝That is the tragedy of the “American Century.” We forgot that liberty can't be imposed by the top down, it has to be seized from the bottom up.

As long as our government plays the games of international brinkmanship and global politics, we lose.

We're best when we protect our own freedom and inspire others though our example. People in other nations have to crave freedom and demand their own rights. It's the only way it will take root.

As a nation, we can't take out another government except by invading. Historically, that has not worked out well for America. It certainly destroyed our prestige.

But building trade, private investment in local economies, that delivered wonders.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ American Century ∙ tragedy ∙ freedom ∙ inspire ∙ government ∙ trade ∙ private enterprise

❝❝The best thing that government can do to lower the prices of medical care is get out of medical care and medical insurance. There's a lot of reasons, but at it's core politicos and technocrats have no incentive to contain costs, make a profit, and get a bigger market share. Competition means that companies have to make things cheaper, faster, and more available or they will lose business. Today's smart phones have more computing capacity than the Cray 2 did in 1985, they are more reliable, more capable, cheaper, more available, and a lot more profitable. That's what 30 years of the free market and competition without government interference will give you. Government has shielded the medical industry and the medical insurance markets from the very things that would make medicine better.❞❞

Tags: government ∙ medical care ∙ medical insurance ∙ market share ∙ competition ∙ smart phone ∙ Cray 2

❝❝Always, always, always less government than absolutely necessary.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: government ∙ maxims

❝❝The really strong women don't depend on government to do it for them.

They don't need to.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: women ∙ government ∙ maxims

““Why should a city, state, or federal government put statues in public parks? Doing so addresses no plausible market failure, while using taxpayers funds and, as demonstrated tragically over the past few weeks, generates controversy, polarization, and violence. Thus governments should take down all statues, regardless of their political implications.

This is not “erasing” history but instead leaving it where it belongs, in the hands of private actors and mechanisms. Historians, textbook authors, universities, learned societies, the History Channel, and many other individuals and organizations can all present their own views of history and battle for the hearts and minds of the public. Government statues are government putting its thumb on the scale, which is one step down the slippery slope of thought control.””
     — Jeffrey Miron, Statues

Tags: Jeffrey Miron ∙ statues ∙ government ∙ history ∙ thought control ∙ clipping

Tags: picture ∙ guest content ∙ government ∙ roads ∙ slavery ∙ cotton ∙ memes

❝❝Governments make lousy banks. Politicos want re-election and technocrats are unaccountable. Both measure their success by spending taxpayer's money. There's no incentive to contain costs or make a profit.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ bank ∙ politicos ∙ re-election ∙ technocrats ∙ success ∙ incentive ∙ profit

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: Wisconsin ∙ taxpayers ∙ Foxconn ∙ government ∙ speech wars ∙ politicos ∙ re-election ∙ technocrats ∙ prostitution ∙ cartel ∙ piece of the action ∙ women ∙ Maggie McNeill ∙ New York Times ∙ climate change ∙ Google memo ∙ Democrat corruption

❝❝Let me point out that tax exempt status is at best a "devil's trade." In exchange for the tax deduction, the organizations (and sometimes the officers) lose their political voice and the IRS gets itemized lists of what was donated and who donated it.

There's also the small bit that if there are tax deductions, then by definition taxes are too high.

However, “Religion cannot be allowed the coercive power of government. Government cannot be allowed the moral justification of religion.”

---

The 1st Amendment doesn't deal with subsets. The incredibly ironic bit is the history of churches in American politics, particularly the abolitionist movement.

I didn't say it was a complete list, I said it was an itemized list. It is enough to find "known associates" though.

Tax deductions are evidence that taxes are too high. It's also evidence of diverting capital, taking it away from unapproved activities and moving it towards approved activities. There's more, but it involves a long examination of progressive tax systems and it won't add anything but noise to our conversation.

---

Abraham Keteltas, Samuel West, Jonathan Mayhew, Peter Muhlenberg, and Samuel Cooper were just some of the colonial era ministers. In England for a while, the American Revolution was called the Presbyterian Revolution because so many Presbyterian pastors were involved.

But the abolitionist movement and the American Civil War was when things really got going. Look at names like John Todd, Joshua Leavitt, Benjamin Bradford, Luther Lee, and Samuel Salisbury. Without these men and their churches, the abolitionist movement would never have blossomed. Christians aren't perfect and I am certainly a critic. But it took British and American Christians to end the slave trade, they deserve credit for that.

The 1950s-1960s civil rights movement was heavily rooted in churches, especially in the American south.

As I said, the tax exempt status is a "devil's trade" intended in large part to silence churches.

---

I provided examples which at the very least would have violated the propaganda restrictions of the Johnson amendment if it had been in effect then. Yet those are a valued part of American history and important benchmarks in religious freedom.

A little further examination would have shown that American churches and synagogues have traditionally called politicos out on bad ideas and bad behavior.

---

It's not about "prophesy of the pulpit." It's about moral authority. Ideas like liberty, revolution, and slavery were talked about during worship. In those days more than anything else including the press, worship is where those ideas were set out in detail by men who made their living communicating well and clearly. I admit it's a part of history that is often overlooked, but it exists none the less.

Take a closer look. The Johnson amendment covers both endorsement and anti-endorsement, intervening in political campaigns is prohibited. It also limits lobbying, propaganda, and other political activity.

Pagans of all people know what a bad idea it is when a politico wraps themselves in the flag and waves holy writ as justification.

BTW, I have to give you points for that phrase "prophesy of the pulpit." It's poetic if not exactly accurate in this case.

---

You're right, that part of the law is seldom enforced. I was waiting for someone to bring that up.

So here is my next question. If the law as it exists is so potentially prone to abuse even as it is not enforced, why does the Johnson amendment exist?

My theory is that it was one of Johnson's infamous deals. In the early 1950s, the modern civil rights movement was just getting started, but the split was already there. It's a little inaccurate, but I call the two sides the MLK side and the Malcolm X side. Later the Malcolm X side was dominated by the Black Panthers, but that part of the story isn't necessary for our discussion here.

The MLK side wanted to work within the system making sure that existing law was enforced. The Malcolm X side relied on direct confrontation to create radical change and separate from the US if necessary. There was rivalry between the two sides, and at the time no one was sure which side would dominate. Johnson saw the potential need for what today we would call the nuclear option. As long as everything proceeded peacefully, the government would never need to use the stick. Meanwhile, everything was nicely registered and reported to the government, "just in case."

It wasn't the first time the IRS was used to monitor Americans and it wouldn't be the last.

---

You're right. I should have said existing Constitutional law, that was my mistake.

That wasn't the only operational difference, but it certainly was one of the most important. Bryan Burrough points out in Days of Rage that some "blacks" were disappointed as more moved north and they didn't instantly get more of what they felt had been denied them.

Existing state and local law in the south supported segregation, most Federal law did not. It varied in other states, not so much in the West but heavy in union states. When Truman reversed Wilson's segregation of the armed forces, the writing was on the wall.

---

Under what part of the 1st Amendment is Congress granted the power to regulate free speech?

Under what part of the 1st Amendment is Congress granted the power to regulate religion?

Yet the Johnson amendment does both.

Which tax argument? The fact that deductions mean that taxes are too high? Or that government uses a progressive tax code to encourage some behaviors and discourage others?

Can you show that either argument is BS?

---

Actually it does.

The perception in America is that you are not a "real" church unless you have tax exempt certification. Just like a few years back when conservative groups were having problems getting 503 certification, most people don't want to give money unless they know that the IRS is not going to audit them. The easy path is to do what the government tells you to do. That is not necessarily the right thing. Once a group has the certification, they are bound by the regulations if they wish to keep the majority of their donors. Those regulations are subject to change at any time, and have gotten more restrictive since the Johnson amendment was passed.

Every dollar that the government collects in taxes reduces individual purchasing power. Regardless of what some experts will tell you, the economy is driven by the individual buying goods and services and not by government regulation. More money, more purchases (or savings). Less money, more credit, less purchases and less savings.

Even if you think that only the "rich" pay higher taxes, that means less money for things like jobs, equipment, and expansion. That means less economic growth.

The second order effects of special taxes can be even worse. A few decades ago, Congress put out a luxury tax on high end planes, yachts, high end boats, and cars. All those industries took a major hit. Building and storing yachts and high end boats still haven't recovered.

It gets worse. Thanks to payroll withholding and "standard" deductions, the government effectively gives itself no-interest loans from your money. Multiply that by a hundred million or so and you get into some serious cash.

These are examples from taxes. I haven't discussed currency manipulation (inflation) or spending.

---

"Surely by your argument, there should be no tax exempt organizations at all, because the very existence of them proves taxes are too high."

Yes.

At the very least, no tax exempt organizations would mean fewer bureaucrats to monitor compliance and regulate.

"Government money goes back into the community and absolutely does stimulate economic growth."

It does that by displacing private investment. Private money wants a return on investment, which means maintaining facilities and periodic upgrades. Except for corporatism, companies stay in business by making their products better, cheaper, and more available.

"The rich actually mostly sock money away…"

Um, no they don't. There isn't a money vault or a stuffed mattress, smart people put their money to work. Some buy stocks, some buy bonds, some invest in companies. Unless the money earns a higher yield than the rate of inflation and the tax rate, it's worth less.

"…and pay LOWER taxes than the rest of us…"

According to the National Taxpayer Union Foundation, in 2014 the top ten percent of income earners paid 70.88% of the income tax. The top fifty percent of income earners paid 97.25% of the income tax.

Spending is not the same as taxing. Government at all levels has done a rotten job of maintaining facilities, much less upgrading them. Private ownership does wonders, as things like the Empire State Building show.

Government usually puts money aside for infrastructure and then diverts the money into more "essential" things. It's one of the oldest tricks in government accounting. Then more money is "needed."

What's more, government is a lousy judge of where to spend and what to spend it on. Just as one example, less than a handful of VA hospitals are worth it, but we keep tossing more and more money at the problem.❞❞

Tags: tax exempt ∙ devil's trade ∙ tax deduction ∙ political voice ∙ IRS ∙ religion ∙ coercive power ∙ government ∙ moral justification ∙ First Amendment ∙ capital ∙ unapproved activities ∙ approved activities ∙ progressive tax systems ∙ Abraham Keteltas ∙ Samuel West ∙ Jonathan Mayhew ∙ Peter Muhlenberg ∙ Samuel Cooper ∙ American Revolution ∙ Presbyterian Revolution ∙ abolitionist movement ∙ Civil War ∙ John Todd ∙ Joshua Leavitt ∙ Benjamin Bradford ∙ Luther Lee ∙ Samuel Salisbury ∙ churches ∙ Christians ∙ Johnson amendment ∙ synagogues ∙ politicos ∙ prophesy of the pulpit ∙ history ∙ National Taxpayer Union Foundation ∙ liberty ∙ revolution ∙ slavery ∙ worship

❝❝The message was clear. There are problems but your Government Is Taking Care Of It. You don't have to worry. It's Somebody Else's Problem. You don't have to be responsible. Just put the right people in charge. Give more money. Give more authority. Sacrifice more rights. Repeat until we get it right. And don't ask too many questions.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ message ∙ Somebody Else's Problem ∙ authority ∙ money ∙ rights ∙ questions

Competition drives the free market, to keep customers companies have to make things better than their rivals and better than what they themselves did yesterday.

Competition is what the "single payer" eliminates in the name of efficiency, yet over time competition means that products and services will be better, faster, and cheaper.

There is no incentive to improve under a government controlled system. There is overwhelming incentive to pay off legislators and technocrats for favorable treatment.

---

I'm usually correct.

Except when I'm wrong… *grins*

Jokes aside, you probably agree with me on economics, smaller government and (most) individual rights. We won't agree on religion, personal morality, and sexuality. I hope we can agree on honor.

I hang out here to keep me honest and so I can see how conservatives think. And occasionally to keep you honest *wink* and keep you from taking yourself too seriously.

---

I just get very tired of watching people who should know better lump all members of a group into a monolithic block who is out to destroy their way of life and must be Stopped for the Good of Humanity™

The ironic thing is many of the people who complain loudest about it being done to them are only too willing to turn around and do it to someone else.

I've seen pagans do it to Christians, "blacks" do it to "Hispanics," Republicans do it to Democrats, and women doing it to men.

And vice versa.

You know what? It's not the label shouting and doing things, it's the individual person. Until you deal them as individuals rather than as a subset of a label, you have walled yourself off.

Not them. You.

---

Thinking about it just now, that raises a fascinating question.

Which is worth more, a moral code handed to you or one earned through personal experience?

---

I'm not asking you to follow my code.

I'm not even asking you to allow me to follow my code.

I'm telling you that I won't follow your code just as you would tell me that you won't follow mine.

Now we could find what we agree on and work from there, or you could spend effort telling me why your enlightenment requires my sacrifice.

I think the former would be more productive, but I would enjoy your frustration at the latter too.

Tags: competition ∙ make things better ∙ rivals ∙ yesterday ∙ incentives ∙ government ∙ economics ∙ smaller government ∙ individual rights ∙ religion ∙ personal morality ∙ sexuality ∙ honor ∙ honest ∙ conservatives ∙ monolithic block ∙ Christians ∙ pagans ∙ blacks ∙ Hispanics ∙ Republicans ∙ Democrats ∙ women ∙ men ∙ moral code ∙ enlightenment ∙ sacrifice ∙ Crux Files

❝❝Government is reactive. What individuals choose is much more important than the credit that politicos claim. Lasting change only happens when enough people got angry enough to demand change.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ individual ∙ choose ∙ reactive ∙ change ∙ politicos ∙ claim ∙ angry

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: Obamacare ∙ climate change ∙ Venezuela ∙ geoengineering ∙ carbon dioxide ∙ VPN ∙ China ∙ government ∙ internet ∙ Kid Rock ∙ immigration ∙ Jeff Flake ∙ Senator ∙ Arizona ∙ North Carolina ∙ speech wars ∙ Goldwater Instittuie

“There is a war against cars in America. Regulators want Americans out of cars and onto trains, buses, and bicycles. Why? Because of what cars represent -- freedom. Automotive expert Lauren Fix ("The Car Coach") explains.”

Tags: cars ∙ government ∙ CAFE ∙ Barack Obama ∙ electric vehicles ∙ PragerU ∙ car culture ∙ Lauren Fix ∙ video ∙ guest content

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: sex ∙ nudity ∙ love ∙ government ∙ authority ∙ bedroom police ∙ pornography ∙ swimsuit edition ∙ cheerleader uniforms ∙ ban ∙ dislike ∙ outlaw ∙ offends ∙ homosexuality ∙ public sexual acting out ∙ banned ∙ rom-com ∙ soap opera ∙ reality TV ∙ art ∙ classics ∙ bakers ∙ florists ∙ photographers ∙ nonsense examples ∙ nekkid pagan guy ∙ naturist ∙ privacy fence ∙ hidden out of sight

❝❝My mom's family is Louisiana farming stock. My natural father was not around long enough for me to know his family. I was born in Ganado, one of the few bilagáana born on the Navajo reservation. I've lived my entire life in the four state region, and I've lived with casual racism from the very first.

Without exception, the worst racism I've seen has been enabled by government. It could be keeping inner city mothers pregnant and unmarried. It could be hiring "tokens" when they weren't qualified. It could be stealing mineral rights while keeping tribal governments from hiring capable attorneys. But mostly it's keeping certain groups of people dependent on government daily. Always, they're told how they are victims. Always, they are told that only government can give them a fair shake. Always, they are told that Nasty People want to keep them down. And as long as they stay dependent, things never get better for them.

That's the tyranny that is rooted in progressivism and other forms of statism.❞❞

Tags: Louisiana ∙ Ganado ∙ bilagáana ∙ Navajo reservation ∙ four state region ∙ racism ∙ government

I wonder too.

Tags: FindLaw ∙ 14th Amendment ∙ government ∙ public accommodations ∙ exploit ∙ beyond the law ∙ Civil Rights Act ∙ justice ∙ exceptions ∙ racist ∙ reasonable precautions

“The End of Cash; The End of Freedom”

Tags: clipping ∙ Ian Welsh ∙ government ∙ taxes ∙ cash ∙ freedom ∙ India ∙ cash business ∙ France ∙ terrorism ∙ electronic payments ∙ track ∙ control ∙ surveillance ∙ electronically ∙ PayPal ∙ Visa ∙ Mastercard ∙ Wikileaks ∙ Left

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Tags: War on Drugs ∙ opoid crisis ∙ Mexico ∙ military invasion ∙ Afghanistan ∙ drug experation dates ∙ government ∙ Congress ∙ boycott ∙ israel ∙ lawmakers ∙ Constitution ∙ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ∙ CFPB ∙ economy ∙ Donald Trump ∙ Republican ∙ Democrats ∙ establishment ∙ Obamacare ∙ Kid Rock

Our heroes are defined by what they have done and how they inspire us.

Tags: Crux Files ∙ Robert A. Heinlein ∙ Lawrence W. Reed ∙ certainty ∙ perfection ∙ government ∙ promises ∙ good intentions ∙ price distortions ∙ prudent person ∙ Congress ∙ new regulations ∙ second order consequences ∙ third order consequences ∙ feedback loop ∙ politicos ∙ loan game ∙ free money ∙ something for nothing ∙ Second Amendment ∙ neither help nor hinder ∙ Christians ∙ outsourced wages ∙ industrial nations ∙ free to choose ∙ Judeo-Christian ∙ Christianity ∙ Constitution ∙ E pluribus unum ∙ one from many ∙ united we stand ∙ codified law ∙ public morality ∙ religious system ∙ The Moral Authority ∙ personal morality, ∙ multiple faiths

❝❝George Soros wants to disrupt society so government steps in and he can profit. The man is a secret lair away from supervillian territory.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ George Soros ∙ government ∙ secret lair ∙ supervillian territory

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: John McCain ∙ brain tumor ∙ government ∙ Left ∙ words ∙ medical autonomy ∙ rights ∙ Muslim ∙ Jeff Flake ∙ Clinton campaign ∙ Hillary Clinton ∙ Democrats ∙ Republicans ∙ 2016 election ∙ Russ Roberts ∙ George Soros ∙ climate change ∙ campaign finance reform ∙ ICO ∙ Initial Coin Offerings

❝❝Itemized deductions are extortion. Government takes your money. You beg for it back. Government might give it to you.

If you are especially nice and if you do as you are told.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ deductions ∙ taxes ∙ government ∙ nice ∙ obey

Tags: House of Representatives ∙ DEA ∙ regulations ∙ Donald Trump ∙ impeach ∙ NSA ∙ Democrat ∙ email ∙ Middle America ∙ Donald Trump Jr ∙ media ∙ Muslims ∙ Islamist terror ∙ Islamists ∙ VISA ∙ war on cash ∙ Oympics ∙ IOC ∙ International Olympics Committee ∙ stadium scam ∙ Congress ∙ responsibility ∙ George Will ∙ Phoenix ∙ government ∙ private enterprise

❝❝I've seen the arguments in enough other contexts to distrust anyone who claims rationality prevents any opposing view. Even more so when they dismiss any other possibility unheard because they have the Ultimate Truth That Must Not Be Questioned.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ humor ∙ Crux Files ∙ Christianity ∙ Christians ∙ climate change ∙ global warming ∙ distrust ∙ rationality prevents any opposing view ∙ Ultimate Truth That Must Not Be Questioned ∙ government approved line ∙ anthropogenic climate change ∙ The Science Is Settled ∙ criticism ∙ obedience ∙ dogma ∙ government ∙ science ∙ condemn ∙ Science as a Higher Authority ∙ Must Not Be Questioned ∙ advocate ∙ scientific ∙ human rights ∙ gay ∙ woman ∙ Navajo ∙ disabled ∙ politicos ∙ religious freedom ∙ Jewish ∙ Catholic ∙ Muslim ∙ Protestant ∙ Buddhist ∙ atheist ∙ moral relativity ∙ conservative ∙ liberal ∙ homosexuality ∙ religion ∙ guns ∙ virtues ∙ Pagan ∙ thou shalt not dissent ∙ Truth Out ∙ criminal corporations ∙ Republican ∙ no virtue or vice in the label ∙ That's the excuse, not the reason. ∙ race ∙ pedophilia ∙ religious oppression ∙ racist ∙ choice ∙ threat ∙ moral morass ∙ Satanists ∙ totalitarianism ∙ purged ∙ moral superiority ∙ Bible ∙ Pharisee ∙ scripture ∙ Divine

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: clipping ∙ John W. Whitehead ∙ government ∙ language of force ∙ freedom ∙ law and order

❝❝There's a very real question why there should be any government grants, but I will leave that for another time.

Assume for a moment that you ran a bookstore. Should you be required by law to carry the Bible even though you were not Christian and did not believe Christianity was a valid faith? What if someone complained because you didn't have it?

Should a vegan restaurant be required to sell pulled pork BBQ?

Should a health food store be required to sell pipe tobacco?

---

Except we know that government does mandate that some products and services be sold or provided.

Let's take another example or two, shall we?

Imagine you are a lawyer or accountant. You know a specific businessman is crooked and can't be trusted. Should you be required to provided services?

Imagine you are an employer. Should you be required to verify the immigration status of each of your employees?

Most importantly, why should prior marginalization get a higher priority when it comes to the rule of law? Doesn't that lead to abuse of it's own when the formerly victimized class games the system?

---

Ah, so you are going to stick to "class of people." That's the problem. People aren't their labels. Or at least they shouldn't be.

Someone doesn't have higher moral authority because their group has been marginalized in the past.

And just in case you hadn't noticed, "American identity politics" is all about oppressing everyone else. All of which is predicated on the guilt of the former oppressor.

---

Black Lives Matter. All too ready to go after "white" cops, but doesn't want to address the problem of "black on black" crime. Nor does it want to address the major underlying problem, single parent families. Something that was encouraged by government, effectively relegating inner city families to poverty. Nor do they accept any criticism of their movement.

Much of third and fourth wave feminism. Apparently feminism is no longer about equality, it's about forcing men to sit down and shut up. And if a man complains, he's accused of rape.

The recent kerfuffle over the "redesigned" rainbow flag that put black and brown stripes at the top so that "people of color" had "representation." Literally "my victimhood is more important than your victimhood."

Identity politics is built on a carefully maintained hierarchy of victimhood. You're not allowed to speak unless you rank high enough with your victimhood or have demonstrated sufficient "compassion," usually by drawing attention to the "problem." But never actually solving anything.

And you are not allowed to question the victimhood.

---

Stop.

Step back. You are excusing their behavior.

Look at what has been done, not at the justifications.

Look at what is allowed within the groups.

Your enabling is just one example of what has locked people into their victimhood.

---

What you've given is excuses why people can't be held accountable.

Black Lives Matter is pushing a narrative that all police interactions with minorities but especially with "blacks" are racist. That's not true. And as I said, they overlook "black" on "black" crime that does not fit with the narrative.

It's victimhood I don't like, especially when perpetuated by bad government policy and "community outreach" that exploits the victims by keeping them victims.

---

And the courts were wrong.

Not because interracial marriages were wrong (they aren't). But because government can't be trusted to make individual moral decisions for you.

If you didn't choose your morality and if you do not commit to your morality, is it really yours?

Or did it just get sacrificed for the greater good?

---

Remember, most of the complaints against the current President are because he is doing the wrong moral things. Or at least, according to some people. Such as pulling out of the Paris accord.

Frankly there are people I want to discriminate against. There are evangelical Christians I want nothing to do with. There are radical feminists that I also don't want anything to do with. My list also includes some of the climate alarmists, the man-boy love crowd, anyone associated with a child beauty pageant, the extra-devout followers of Silver Ravenwolf, pretty much any organized political party, and a few dozen others.

Should government protect those people from my discrimination?

---

Actually we don't know that pulling out of the Paris accord is dangerous for the planet.

Here's what we do know. The "debate" about climate change has been heavily weighed on one side. A recent study has some of the most prominent climate alarmists admitting that the predictions didn't match the reality. President Obama committed the US, but the G20 and Obama didn't call it a treaty so it wouldn't have to go to the US Senate for approval. These aren't exactly moral actions.

Commerce is based on voluntary economic transactions between consenting adults. There's no “public service” about it. A company improves it's product or service (and lowers the price) because it wants to keep business from the competition. The "moral good" is based on pure greed. Nothing government demands from a business won't impose greater costs on the customer. Government relies on force. When government acts against people, it distorts the economy and morality.

It's not about public service, and commerce shouldn't answer to corrupt politicos.

---

The data was fudged. The people who fudged it knew it. The people who sought to make it a political issue beyond the control of any single government knew it.

If it's not about "saving the planet," then you have to ask what it is about. Especially when there is an everchanging deadline and No One Is Allowed To Question the failed predictions.

The entire movement is built on computer models, not science. I can't emphasize that enough. Models, not science. If the models have bad assumptions and/or if the data has been changed, the models aren't accurate.

But, "the science is settled." So you aren't allowed to dissent. You wouldn't accept that from a Creationist, why accept it from people who benefit financially and politically from forcing their agenda?

---

That wasn't what I said.

The models haven't been accurate in more than a dozen years. Even before that, the models had to be "goosed" to show a link between the past and the present.

I've said before that I can create a spreadsheet that makes me a millionaire in a week. That doesn't mean that the spreadsheet is accurate. And it sure doesn't mean I should wave cash around.

If the model isn't accurate, if we know it's not accurate, and if the people pushing the model hardest know that it's not accurate, don't you think it's time to ask why we should use the model?

---

No, that is what you have been told that the model is.

I strongly urge you to take a closer look. And I would remind you that there is no science in history that has ever been considered holy writ and beyond criticism.

For example, if I wanted to know the average global temperature right now this very minute, I'd have to accept that most land based measuring stations are in developed areas, many in highly urban areas that influence the readings. Satillite measurements are better, but don't go back further than about sixty years. And most of the ocean is a mystery below a mile deep.

So what exactly is the global average temperature?

---

I'm not shy about it. I don't approve of their life choices. I especially don't approve when *insert group name here* demands that it is not enough for to acknowledge their words and actions, it must be celebrated as the only accepted truth.

I don't want them on the ballot. I don't want to do business with them. I don't want them in my town.

And I think they are corrupting society.

Again, should government protect them from my discrimination?

---

I may not be a pure libertarian when it comes to the Zero Aggression Principle, but I don't usually initiate force. It's sloppy and takes too much energy.

“How many NAMBLA neighbors do you have, anyway?”

One.

Once.

---

I've been a corporate VP and I've run my own business.

Can you point to the spot in the Constitution where it defines the powers of the Federal government to control who I can and can't do business with? How about the spot where it defines that I must do business with everyone who wants to do business with me? Because under the Tenth Amendment, there isn't one.

If government isn't defending my ability to choose as long as I accept the consequences, then government has failed.

Even if my neighbors don't approve of my choice.

Especially if my neighbors don't approve of my choice.

If I am not free to discriminate as I choose, then government is discriminating against me. And that is what we see now. Some choices are more equal than others.

---

Not really.

That clause is the most abused in the Constitution, largely because it does not place significant restrictions on the Federal government. By some interpretations, the government can do what it wants when it wants and despite what people want. When you consider that everything from FDA approval to requiring transgender bathrooms is shoved through that loophole, it's a wonder that there is anything left of the rest of the Constitution.

Even in your flawed interpretation, public accommodation only applies in certain cases. Some are more victimized than others, remember?

---

Volumes have also been written against it. For generations in fact, right back to to the Anti-Federalist Papers

And then there is always the practical common sense approach. Here's the clause straight from Article 1 Section 8.

“To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;”

I can tell you know many Diné, Hopi, Havasupai, and White Mountain Apache who think that "Great White Father speaks with forked tongue." Just look at what the Interior Department did when it came to mineral rights.

You've tried to tell me what the consensus says, but you haven't disputed my conclusions. The commerce clause has been used to expand Federal power far beyond the scope of the rest of the Constitution. The only other comparable Federal power grab in American history has been the USA PATRIOT Act and the open-ended declaration of hostilities that happened after 9-11.

---

Or we could just stop handing out government grants and do something radically different like lower taxes, reduce government spending, and let people decide what to do with their own money.

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Church playgrounds aren't national religious issues unless government is funding them.

The First Amendment is very clear: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”

Neither help nor hinder. It's the only way to win this particular battle. Otherwise you have things like a Faith Based Initiative (for certain faiths approved by law) and school prayer.

---

I think we do. And it's right there in the First Amendment.

Don't.

If there is one thing worse than a politico wrapping themselves in the flag, it's a politico standing on religion wrapping themselves in a flag.❞❞

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ grants ∙ religion ∙ business ∙ bookstore ∙ Bible ∙ vegan ∙ pulled pork BBQ ∙ health food store ∙ pipe tobacco ∙ government mandate ∙ immigration ∙ marginalization ∙ rule of law ∙ moral authority ∙ Black Lives Matter ∙ third wave feminism ∙ fourth wave feminism ∙ equality ∙ rape ∙ rainbow flag ∙ victimhood ∙ victim hierarchy ∙ identity politics ∙ compassion ∙ interracial marriages ∙ moral decisions ∙ greater good ∙ Paris accord ∙ Christians ∙ RadFem ∙ climate alarmist ∙ man-boy love ∙ beauty pageant ∙ Silver Ravenwolf ∙ discrimination ∙ G20 ∙ Barack Obama ∙ Senate ∙ commerce ∙ commerce clause ∙ improves ∙ competition ∙ voluntary economic transactions between consenting adults ∙ computer models ∙ global temperature ∙ climate change ∙ Zero Agression Principle ∙ NAMBLA ∙ neighbors

I want a government that is smaller than absolutely necessary.

I believe that people are perfectly capable of making their own choices and that society is the better if people do exactly that.

I believe that faith and religion can be a tremendous source of individual morality and a dangerous tyranny in society.

There is more but that will do for a start.

---

And there you go, presuming to speak for the Divine in regards to my fate.

I'm sure that makes you feel important. Worthy. Superior.

Do you think you would take offense if I did the same thing to you?

Or do you think your faith supersedes mine?

Just in case you've forgotten:

It always seems to come down to whose belief comes first, who presumes to speak for the Divine, and what happens when someone disagrees.

---

I think you're the first one here who asked me what I believe. You deserve a good answer. But this really isn't about me, it's about us finding common ground.

So to start with:

I call myself pagan because I don't have a better term. I'm polytheistic and pantheistic. On alternate Thursdays and every third Tuesday I might admit to being panetheistic with an animism bent as well. On the 13th of the month, I'll tell you (truthfully) that the label isn't really all that important, only the manifestation.

====================
My path involves recognizing and celebrating the natural cycles in ourselves, in the world around us, and in the worlds we touch in our dreams. I seek the Divine in human, Nature, and machine. I want to find the synthesis between mankind and ideas, between faith and technology, between what was and what will be.

I believe that all things have a Divine nature. Life is the universe's attempt to understand itself. I know that the totality of the universe is too vast for me to comprehend. So there are godmasks that I turn to for understanding, guidance, and strength when mine is not enough. I know that these godmasks are only representations and gateways to Divinity, not Divinity themselves.

---

I'll let you in on a secret.

I try to treat people online as they have treated me. I'm nice until someone shows they don't deserve it.

For life in general, I have three rules.

THE GOLDEN RULE - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

THE SILVER RULE - Do for yourself at least as much as you do for others.

THE IRON RULE - Don't do for others what they can do for themselves.

---

I am totally for live and let live. It's the core of my most deeply held beliefs.

I really don't care about someone else's beliefs or politics unless they want to impose those on everyone else.

Going back to my original post on this thread, if the choice is between the absolute on the left side or the absolute on the right, I am going to pick freedom despite both.

I respectfully disagree with you on that.

---

There is a technopagan addendum to that.

"Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology."

Personally I don't think the two are as far removed as it would seem.

Tags: Crux Files ∙ government ∙ smaller than absolutely necessary ∙ choice & consequence ∙ faith ∙ religion ∙ Divine ∙ fate ∙ offensive ∙ believe ∙ Golden Rule ∙ Silver Rule ∙ Iron Rule ∙ live & let live

““Government is the only institution that can take a valuable commodity like paper, and make it worthless by applying ink.””
     — Ludwig von Mises

Tags: Ludwig von Mises ∙ government ∙ value ∙ commodity ∙ worthless ∙ paper ∙ ink

❝❝I do not trust in the wisdom of government.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ trust ∙ government ∙ wisdom ∙ banner

❝❝If government doesn’t trust you, why should you trust government?❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ trust ∙ government ∙ banner

Which raises the question why should care be publicly funded?

Tags: healthcare ∙ health insurance ∙ public funding ∙ politicos ∙ technocrats ∙ prices ∙ competition ∙ government ∙ free market ∙ libertarian ∙ Obamacare ∙ insurance ∙ private sector ∙ Milton Friedman ∙ direct primary care

❝❝Government authority tends to be used against those least likely to resist.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government ∙ authority ∙ resist ∙ banner

Tags: DEA ∙ cash ∙ billions ∙ asset forfeiture ∙ authority ∙ government ∙ gay pride ∙ rainbow flag ∙ victimhood ∙ victim hierarchy ∙ progressive ∙ Tea Party ∙ Illinois ∙ Russia ∙ Team Obama ∙ Team Hillary ∙ Trump campaign ∙ lawyers ∙ crony capitalism ∙ Carrier ∙ unholy allliance ∙ Mexico ∙ Indiana

❝❝Government is not your friend. Even when the "right" people are in charge.❞❞
     — NeoWayland

Tags: maxims ∙ government

For length reasons, this entry appears on it's own page.

“We let generations be victims when they deserved to be heroes.”

Tags: revolution ∙ generations ∙ Republic ∙ black & white ∙ government ∙ media ∙ passion ∙ reason ∙ biggest guns ∙ Founders ∙ politicos ∙ choice & consequence ∙ mind control ∙ racism ∙ law and order ∙ no knock warrant ∙ unaccountable police ∙ Eric Garner ∙ taxes ∙ Declaration of Independence ∙ rule of law ∙ personal responsiblity ∙ free speech areas

Headlines that don't merit their own entry

Tags: F.A. Hayek ∙ history ∙ government ∙ government beast ∙ just society ∙ tribal society ∙ social justice

Another classic that I've used in the sidebar for years.

Tags: Crux Files ∙ reform ∙ politicos ∙ government ∙ other guy ∙ collapse ∙ not our fault ∙ system ∙ Sara Palin ∙ John McCain ∙ Star Parker ∙ Christianity ∙ Christians ∙ for your own good ∙ vice law ∙ Tammy Bruce ∙ Chris Matthews ∙ government screw-up ∙ submit ∙ conservative ∙ virtues ∙ libertarianism ∙ Constitution ∙ rights ∙ taxes ∙ Daniel Webster ∙ Frederick Douglass ∙ rulers&masters

And this would be a bad thing how?

I know what CNN is saying.

But realistically, why would a government shutdown be bad?

We know what Milton Friedman said.
Pretty much everything else could be done better by the states or the private sector.

If your local grocery store closed because they forgot to order, you'd go somewhere else. If the plumber you called couldn't come because his truck got repossessed, you'd call another. If your favorite coffee place had no one to work and was closed, well, there are other options.

But with government services, there aren't options.

Government doesn't like competition.

Every year, statists tell you How Important Government Is and how the "other party" is about to screw up your life.

It's political theater.

There isn't even a budget.

The last time there was officially a budget was 2009. But it was pretty much a budget in name only. Even if there was a budget, it would be several thousand pages long, incredibly detailed on some things and disturbingly vague on others. It's meant to be abused. I don't want to examine the Federal budget process here but I will tell you that even if Congress makes no changes, each agency gets the same amount it had the previous year plus an automatic increase. This is the so-called discretionary spending.

That's right. It takes an act of Congress to keep spending at the same level it was in the previous year.

The default setting is more government and more spending.

Then there is the mandatory spending which isn't part of the budget process. Congress may revisit the rules every few years on mandatory spending qualifications, but it usually rolls along on it's own. Mandatory spending is about two-thirds of the budget, Social Security alone is about one-third.

And I haven't even gotten to earmarks.

Government doesn't like competition so it locks private interests out of the services it provides. It manipulates you into blaming the other party so it can tax and spend more of your money. And it expects thanks for it's hard work.

Government shutdown.

This would be a bad thing how?

Tags: government ∙ government shutdown ∙ Milton Friedman ∙ picture ∙ competition ∙ Congress ∙ budget process ∙ political theater ∙ budget ∙ discretionary spending ∙ mandatory spending ∙ Social Security ∙ earmarks

The problem is that the best intentions can lead to the worst results.

Tags: government ∙ solution ∙ maxims ∙ resist

Thoreau wrote in protest of slavery and the Mexican-American War to reveal great truths. He places the individual over the state.

Tags: Henry David Thoreau ∙ 1849 ∙ government ∙ civil disobedience ∙ guest content

““Anything government touches turns to crap. Good thing government won't touch liberty with a 10-foot pole!””
     — Kent McManigal, "Diversity"

Tags: government ∙ Kent McManigal

Almost nobody bothers to ask if the screws should exist in the first place.

Tags: Constitution ∙ right vs. left ∙ Donald Trump ∙ Hillary Clinton ∙ Bill Clinton ∙ Robert A. Heinlein ∙ attacks ∙ government ∙ none of the above ∙ IRS ∙ DOJ ∙ Clinton Foundation ∙ charity ∙ parity test ∙ companion

Are people better if they are more free or more controlled?

Tags: government ∙ right vs. left ∙ smaller government ∙ bureaucracy ∙ Western Civilization ∙ Ethic of Reciprocity

Which means under the 10th Amendment, Obamacare is illegal.

Tags: ballpoint pens ∙ Lasik eye surgery ∙ heirloom tomatoes ∙ government ∙ capitalism ∙ free market ∙ ballpoint pens ∙ iPad ∙ NASA ∙ moon shot ∙ groceries ∙ Milton Friedman

There's no incentive to make it better

Tags: government ∙ choice ∙ Milton Friedman ∙ three primary funtions ∙ military defense ∙ enforce contracts ∙ protect citizens ∙ good intentions ∙ referee

We can argue whether the law is morally right or not.

Tags: immigration ∙ rule of law ∙ election ∙ government ∙ Democrats ∙ Republicans ∙ short

Tiny Homes Banned in U.S. at Increasing Rate as Govt Criminalizes Sustainable Living

❝❝As the corporatocracy tightens its grip on the masses – finding ever more ways to funnel wealth to the top – humanity responds in a number of ways, including the rising popularity of tiny houses.

These dwellings, typically defined as less than 500 square feet, are a way for people to break free of mortgages, taxes, utility bills and the general trappings of “stuff.” They’re especially attractive to millennials and retirees, or those seeking to live off-grid.

But government and corporations depend on rampant consumerism and people being connected to the grid.

Seeking actual freedom through minimalist living should seem like a natural fit for the American dream, but the reality is that many governments around the country either ban tiny homes or force them to be connected to the utility grid.❞❞

Tags: skimmed ∙ sustainable ∙ tiny houses ∙ government ∙ corporatism ∙ consumerism ∙ grid ∙ stupid laws ∙ minimalist ∙ freedom ∙ clipping

❝❝Religion cannot be allowed the coercive power of government. Government cannot be allowed the moral justification of religion.❞❞
     — NeoWayland, United We Stand

Tags: government ∙ coercive power ∙ religion ∙ moral justification ∙ maxims

When both choices are bad…

Tags: enforce ∙ government ∙ ideas ∙ idiotic ∙ H.L. Mencken