End the War on Freedom

Steve Trinward at Rational Review - Who are we trying to elect? A critique of the "electability" political model - good exploration of why electing candidates is not an effective way to achieve a libertarian society.

Okay, now put our "typical" libertarian in this context. Most libertarians do not by nature enjoy the civic organizational involvement it takes to develop a reputation with those likely to come out and help in an election effort. No, they'd rather be home cleaning their guns, or writing their treatises, or chatting on discussion e-lists, or ... anything else!

...

I admit that, given the almost two centuries of disfavor in which the concept of "citizen statesman" has resided, and given the fact that the only folks who vote at this point are those who are either: (a) still deluded that it makes a difference to keep the WORST person out of office; or (b) affirming their own integrity, by voting only FOR candidates they support, and blanking the rest of the sheet, just so they can look at their own mirrors every morning ... this is probably our only recourse in the electoral arena. The question remains, is that the only political venue we have available? What if there is indeed a better way to affect the society around us, and move it toward a more libertarian position?

Vin Suprynowicz - California devalues 'dollar' coupons by another 8 percent - part of The Libertarian series. Vin bemoans California's 19th raise in their minimum wage. As well he should.

Meantime, hasn't anyone ever asked why they have to keep doing this every year or two, like rats on a treadmill? Because it doesn't last long, you see. If an hour of unskilled labor is now "worth" seven so-called "dollars" instead of six, all that must really happen, in the end, is that a lot more fiat paper coupons still identified as "dollars" will have to be printed. (See: "Weimar Republic.")

David E. Sanger at The New York Times - Bush, on Offense, Says He'll Fight to Keep Tax Cuts - "Not over my dead body will they raise your taxes," said GW at a speech in California. How about cutting our taxes by a factor of 10, Mr. Bush? Better yet, eliminate the income tax completely, and replace it with nothing. [mind]

The Libertarian Enterprise has a new issue, "The Bright and the Bleak". Articles I liked:

• The issue starts with an image by Lux Lucre. It was too big for me to copy here, click on the link above to see the original. I've copied the text below. Unfortunately, I think Mr. Bush has already been corrupted beyond repair. I'd be happy to be surprised, however. Mr. President,
  Throw the
  Ring into the
  Volcano
  Now!
• Letter from E.J. Totty - Mr. Totty once again drives the issue of the intent of the second amendment "into the ground." And he does so very well.
• Another Letter from Jim Davidson - reveals some of the subtle gems in L. Neil's Henry Martyn and The American Zone.
• The Winter of Our Discontent by L. Neil Smith - it's a bad time for liberty, and yet... it's a great time for liberty. L. Neil announces NetPlanetNews.com. John Taylor has reserved the domain, but there is not yet a web site there.

  The nation's secret police -- FBI, CIA, NSA, DIA, and countless others that have no legal standing to exist, let alone operate under Constitutional law -- pry into the lives and businesses of anyone and everyone, giving a suspicious slant to the most innocent comings and goings of the people they falsely claim they're protecting. Uniformed, machinegun toting thugs have taken over America's airports and use their malign power to grope, fondle, strip, probe, or incarcerate anyone they want, or to deny the right to travel to anyone bold enough to differ with them about what they're doing.
  
  At the same time, owing to the incompetence and ignorance of two administrations in a row, the country finds itself slipping backward, inexorably, into something that can't possibly be a Depression because we don't call them that any more. Meanwhile, brave and glorious entrepreneurs, on and off the internet -- who succeeded in staving off disaster for almost a decade before they fell at last, exhausted by the wayside -- are blamed for what's happening to the economy.
  
  ...
  
  Our best and brightest repeat what Lord Acton told us: power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. For that reason, we shouldn't strive to put our own in office. While I agree with the premise, I disagree with the conclusion, and for a number of reasons.
  
  First, if we ever manage to put our own in office and they turn out to be as bad as those in office now, what, exactly, have we lost? What we've gained is wider public understanding of what libertarianism is all about, and undeniable moral high ground from which the New Media can pelt our new politicians and keep them in line.

• I Just Don't Want to Die Alone by Joel Simon - Wow! A tour-de-force about why Mr. Simon practices shooting, a lot, even though he doesn't much enjoy it. He wants to ensure that when nazi grunts comes to his door to enforce a law with no right to be, that he'll be able to kill at least one of them before they kill him. Wow! Also contains a good account of LAX security post 9/11. He is not optimisitic about liberty's chances in Amerika.
• His Noblest Fantasy Had Little To Do with Elves and Wizards by Vin Suprynowicz - I printed and reviewed this yesterday. If you didn't read it then, now is a good time.
• The Enemy's Greatest Weapon by L. Neil Smith - Why those who love liberty must be willing to shout it from the rooftops.

  After living in this world for 55 years (so far), being active in the freedom movement for 40 years, and writing books for 25, I have finally identified -- and, to some degree, come to understand -- the most powerful weapon in the arsenal of those opposed to individual liberty.
  
  It isn't a matter of small arms. This government doesn't trust its soldiers with anything resembling real guns. Those soldiers came from the people in the first place, after all, and, in the fullness of time, will return to the people. So it issues them .22 caliber rifles and .35 caliber pistols and tries not to issue them any ammunition at all until they're in the right place at the right time to enforce its will on other folks, usually unarmed and helpless troglodytes grubbing out the meagerest possible existence in some Neolithic dumpsite of a country.
  
  ...
  
  Make no mistake, it's ugliness that cops maintain, not civilization. We've now reached a point in this country where individuals are being made to disappear from their very homes or off the street, hidden from their families and lawyers, and tried by drumhead courts with secret evidence. The current administration has stated that it will imprison or execute these people as it likes, without any reference to the Constitution.