From Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand:
When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing; when you see that money is flowing to those who deal not in goods, but in favors; when you see that men get rich more easily by graft then by work, and your laws no longer protect you against them but protect them against you….you may know that your society is doomed
Being both a Christian and a Libertarian, I was thrilled to stumble upon this gem (HT to Lew Rockwell’s Political Theater). Here is a sample:
It is truly unfortunate that modern American churches seem to think the state’s means of “spreading democracy” through aggressive war is more important than spreading the peaceful message of the Gospel of Christ.
I couldn’t agree more.
Having finished, ‘Confessions of an Economic Hitman‘, I find this article very believable. Sad and believable.
If Christmas is going well, avoid the following story.
Now that the good Doctor leads in Iowa, the media is finally paying attention. And desperately trying to uncover the skeletons in his closet. Gay lovers? Nope. Multiple mistresses? Nope. Tax-evasion? Nope. Racist letters from 20 years ago? I guess so. This is an old-story, but they needed something. His fans can see through the smears.
And should the good Doctor win the Presidency, Gary North has been kind enough to write his speech. Awesome. Some highlights:
I will run my office with these rules:
First, I will veto any bill that I think is not authorized by the Constitution. If Congress overrides my veto, that is Congress’s responsibility. They call me “Dr. No.” That’s who I am.
Second, I plan to close hundreds of American military bases in foreign nations. They will be auctioned off, with the money going to reduce the federal deficit. I will announce the first action no later than March 1 of this year.
Third, I will ask Congress to mandate a complete audit of the Federal Reserve System annually by the Government Accountability Office. I want to know where the government’s gold is and who has legal title to it.
Fourth, this afternoon, I will order the Joint Chiefs of Staff to plan the removal of all troops from Afghanistan this year, preferably by June 30.
Fifth, I remind the voters and the world that anyone with the power to fix the nation by political action has the power to destroy the nation by political power. I am not here to make America better. I am here to veto laws that will hinder American citizens from making America better. I am here to help keep the federal government from making America worse.
When I became a Christian, in essence I gave my allegiance to Christ. When I married my wife, we exchanged vows of allegiance to each other. As each of our children were born I made a commitment to care and provide for them. As I mentioned in a previous post I offer my allegiance to our Bible Study Tribe. And working from the bottom up my allegiance belongs to my extended family-wherever they reside, the church of which I am a member, and finally to the city in which we live. But how much more allegiance is honestly expected of me?
If you ask me to choose between the US and Christ, I choose Christ. I would do the same with my wife and the aforementioned examples. Without exception. As a matter of fact I can easily think of about a dozen things that are of more import to me than my US citizenship.
This is what it means to “go tribal”, that is to re-evaluate what is in fact important or valuable to you and what isn’t. How many of us parrot the pledge and not even realize what words mean or imply? “And to the Republic for which it stands”? Many of you were probably under the assumption that our country was a democracy, when in fact it is not, but rather a republic. “Indivisible”, now this one really bothers me since I fully endorse the right of secession by any state, community, and/or city (as is consistent with my tribal ethos). Would it surprise the reader to know that Francis Bellamy (the author of the US pledge) was a socialist and the original salute was mirrored by the Nazis and thus changed to the current hand-over-the-heart in 1942? History majors help me out here…or do they not teach this in class any longer?
You want to parrot the pledge, fine, if that is of value to you and your tribe than so be it. But not for me. My allegiance will grow from the most intimate outward, not the most abstract working backwards.
The sad part about this story is it appears the former pastor is more concerned with skin color than the Gospel. By and large the most effective attacks on Christianity have come from within…no from the outside.
I talked with a guy at length about the inflationary policies of the Federal Reserve, but sadly he just didn’t believe me. I wonder if printing $7,000,000,000,000 in greenbacks can constitute inflationary policies. But what do I know? I wonder what exactly the Dems are hoping to find in this investigation. Until an actual audit of the Fed is completed, this will be much ado about nothing.
How do you know the president is allowed to kill you without a trial? Because his lawyers said so, that’s how! At some point you have to wonder if we would have just been better off under King George III.
I love to see this coming from Washington State. If you believe in private property, than you can’t rightfully believe that people should be imprisoned for growing a plant in their backyard. A plant. That God made. I have zero interest in smoking weed, and I have even less interest in throwing your @#$ in prison if you like to smoke weed.
Radley Balko is doing a great job of keeping our “public servants” accountable. This guy is a real piece of work. Probably about time to give Mike Mermel a lifetime achievement award. Or the Nobel Peace Prize. Something right?
My question is, will they have to show the jury the actual literature he is accused of trying to tamper the jury with? How many more rights can the state take from this guy?
The pro-public education haters should be afraid of Salman Khan. After all, he does their job, and more…and does not charge a dime for it!
Had to see this one coming. You can’t get blasted (and shut-out) by your cross-town rival and still expect job security. Bye Rick.
I love to read Prof. Boudreaux and his open letters.
We all know that monopolies are evil, few people realize that monopolies can’t really take place in a true free-market. They can however take place when the government intercedes. Two examples for you…our nations monetary policy and public unions.
Added this to my wish list, guess I am not alone in my observations of our decliNATION.
From his book, Boulevards of Paradise:
Dr. Alexander Whyte loved to tell of a commercial traveller named
Rigby who, when in Edinburgh, used to stay at the Waverley Hotel, and,
on Sunday, always made his way to St. George’s. He could not preach
and always found it difficult even to discuss spiritual themes with
others. But before leaving the hotel for the church he always looked
around for somebody whom he could invite to accompany him. One
morning, on approaching a man with this invitation, he received
something like a rebuff. The stranger at first refused, but finally
consented, and was so moved by the service that he asked Mr. Rigby to
go with him again in the evening. That night, at St. George’s, he
found Christ.Next morning, in the course of his business, Mr Rigby chanced to pass
the home of Dr. Alexander Whyte. Acting on a sudden impulse, he made
up his mind to call and tell Dr. Whyte of his experience on Sunday.
Dr. Whyte was deeply moved. “I thought,” he said, “that last night’s
sermon fell very flat, and I have been feeling very depressed about
it. But what did you say your name was?” Mr Rigby repeated it. ”Why,”
exclaimed Dr. Whyte in delight, “you are the man I’ve been looking for
for years!”He then went to his study, and returned carrying a bundle of letters,
from which he read such extracts as these: “I was spending a week-end
in Edinburgh some weeks ago, and a fellow commercial called Rigby
invited me to accompany him to St. George’s. The message of that
service changed my life.” “I am a young man, and the other day I came
to hear you preach, at the invitation of a man called Rigby, and in
that service I decided to dedicate my life to Christ.”Dr Whyte went on to say that twelve of the letters were from young
men, of whom four had already entered the ministry.
The Good Doctor is leading in Iowa, with momentum growing
I like where Godin is going with this
Bradley Manning finally gets a day in court, even if it is only a pre-trial hearing
“The Body” on the decliNATION of America
About the myth that everything Americans consume being “Made in China”
