Tuesday, March 30, 2004

A Suggested Term

“Populist Authoritarianism."

Description:  ”...a term that I think sums up modern regulatory statism in the Western World rather well."

Posted by Perry de Havilland at Samizdata.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/30 at 04:47 AM
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Congratulations Cameron

Greg Swann’s boy, Cameron, has been mentioned here from time to time for his school days adventures.  The adventures typically deal with Cameron’s independence not fitting into the system of dependence that is taught in many schools.  Cameron is as familiar with the principal’s office as I was back in the day.

Be that as it may, Cameron is being inducted into the National Junior Honor Society. Congratulations, Cameron.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/30 at 03:58 AM
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"The Most Sense in the Fewest Words"

Someone once described a speaker’s ability in the words which make up the title to this post.  The description was applied to the ablest speaker. In a post titled “Observable Facts On Demand," Billy Beck makes “the most sense in the fewest words” in regards to the “resurgent Socialist party” in France knocking down Chriac’s door.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/30 at 03:41 AM
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Monday, March 29, 2004

Celebrating Myself

Today, as Billy mentioned, is my birthday.  In celebration of this event, I spent a portion of the day in the basement of my favorite antiquarian bookseller.  I came home with one book.  Ludwig von Mises’ Human Action A Treatise on Economics. It is not the “Scholars Addition,” which you can purchase through the link previous, it is the Third Revised Edition, hardcover, with intact dustcover, published by Henry Regnery Company in 1966, and the copyright is held by Yale University Press.  It is in near mint condition.  Cost, $31.90.

I can’t wait to take my pen to it, but it must wait in line.

Happy Birthday to me.

Link to Amazon pricing of this book via Mises Economics Blog.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 01:44 PM
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I Fail to Understand How Mandating Service Builds Voluntaryism

"As part of his 100 day plan to change America, John Kerry will propose a comprehensive service plan that includes requiring mandatory service for high school students and four years of college tuition in exchange for two years of national service."

And another thing.  I always thought volunteering to serve, well outside of the military anyway, was providing assitance free of charge.  How come it will cost money from your and my pockets to fund volunteers?  Oh, yeah, it’s because it is not voluntary, it’s mandated.

From the Kerry website.

Via The Rule of Reason.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 09:40 AM
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Say What?

The headline.  “Rice urged to ‘rise above principles’."

Who had the audacity to say that?

"There’s a time to rise above principles,” Republican John Lehman told NBC’s “Today” show,..."

You can’t rise above your principles, John, you can only kick them to the curb.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 08:11 AM
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Vacation Safety Tips

Here in Grand Rapids, Michigan, there is a small community radio station, WYCE. At 7000 watts, WYCE’s airwave muscle is more akin to the 100 pound weakling who gets sand kicked in his face at the beach than a Charles Atlas, but they do play an eclectic mix of music, which I enjoy, and you can listen online through the link provided.  I’ve heard many bands on this station that I did not even know existed, and others that I still wish I didn’t know existed.  The best thing about this radio station, is that it receives all of its operating funds from individuals.  Not one penny from the government, in any way, shape or form.  And though some the programmers at WYCE lean a bit far to the left for my tastes, I still listen.

Anyway, Saturday night, driving back to the house I heard a tune by Cheryl Wheeler titled "Don’t Forget the Guns." I loved it.  The tune made me laugh and, I thought the lyrics positively portrayed individuals taking responsibility for their own safety.  So, I Googled up the tune so I could post the lyrics.  When I found what I was looking for, I read that Wheeler supposedly penned the song as a “sarcastic protest” against gun ownership.  I’d say if that is the actual case, she missed wide.

"Now let’s get the kids and pack up the car
Take that vacation we’ve been waiting for
Drive across this country leave our worries far behind
Singin’ four-part harmony to “sweet adeline”

`Cause I got these books and maps from triple “A”
We’ll visit friends and sites along the way
So bring the bikes and toys and diapers
Pay the neighbor’s son
And call to stop the mail and, honey,
Don’t forget the guns

(Chorus)
Now don’t forget the guns you know exactly what I mean
Bring the pistols, bring the uzi and the old AR-15
We don’t look for trouble but by golly if we’re in it
It’s nice to know we’re free to blow nine hundred rounds a minute

We’ll head for Chicago, stop for the night
Hope for good weather hope the kids don’t fight
They’ve never seen mt. Rushmore and they ought to understand
The kind of men who forged our freedom all across this land

We’ll hike up a trail and ride down a street
Stand by Old Faithful and watch her blow off steam
When we pack picnic lunches that’s not all we’ll bring along
`Cause we’ll be packing 45’s case anything goes wrong

(Repeat Chorus)

Oh riding along we’ll follow the sights
Over the mountains under the pines
Up to boot hill where they got what they gave
In the land of the free you’ve got to be brave"

(Repeat Chorus)

2/11/89

(P) August 17, 1997
Penrod And Higgins Music / Amachrist Music ACF Music Group International Copyright Reserved

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 05:14 AM
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Single Gun Theory

No, no, no.  I’m not thinking about the band Single Gun Theory, and I’m not thinking about the happenings in Dallas in 1963.  I’m thinking about an article posted at the online magazine Liberty for All, written by L. Neil Smith, titled “Why Did it Have to be … Guns?"

Smith states, in the article, that the gun issue is the only determining issue for himself when he votes for a political candidate.  I think he’d be better off not voting, but that’s another topic in and of itself.  From Smith’s piece.

"If a politician isn’t perfectly comfortable with the idea of his average constituent, any man, woman, or responsible child, walking into a hardware store and paying cash—for any rifle, shotgun, handgun, machinegun, anything—without producing ID or signing one scrap of paper, he isn’t your friend no matter what he tells you.

If he isn’t genuinely enthusiastic about his average constituent stuffing that weapon into a purse or pocket or tucking it under a coat and walking home without asking anybody’s permission, he’s a four-flusher, no matter what he claims.

What his attitude—toward your ownership and use of weapons—conveys is his real attitude about you. And if he doesn’t trust you, then why in the name of John Moses Browning should you trust him?

If he doesn’t want you to have the means of defending your life, do you want him in a position to control it?"

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 05:06 AM
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Give Me That Old Time Religion

So, John Kerry is quoting scriptures. Shouldn’t all the liberals be clamoring about how “evil” this is?  I mean he’s a presidential candidate, for Christ’s sake, and when Bush was running the liberals were yammering almost non-stop that Bush’s religion was a damning enough reason for him not to be in office.  Bless me father for I have sinned.

Ho, hum.

My favorite line from the above linked article follows, and I am wondering why John Kerry doesn’t put James 2:14 into action, you know, those “deeds” and “works” he states are missing from "our present national leadership."

"Kerry told worshippers in the largely black congregation that the country’s leadership has served the privileged while ignoring people across America who live in neighborhoods like theirs."

C’mon John, be a leader who practices “deeds” and “works.” Sign over a two or three of those fine properties you and Teresa own to those poor unfortunate folk you were preaching to "who live in neighborhoods like theirs." I bet you could almost attain sainthood.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/29 at 04:47 AM
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Sunday, March 28, 2004

The Thinkers versus The Feelers

Is this the battle that is ongoing around us?  A letter writer to the AnalPhilosopher ponders just this question. From the letter.

"As I fast approach my 60th year I cannot help but reflect upon our apparent agreement that there is a struggle between Thinkers and Feelers. More important is whether this has been an eternal struggle or is it now reaching critical mass. Likely all who have walked upright age with the notion that the succeeding generation is heading in the wrong direction. But in MY last quartile of life I seem to be bombarded with more and more proof that the feelers are winning . . . and we have reached a point of no return. Hence a constant struggle against depression ensues. I guess I seek some perspective, some rational evidence that I am wrong."

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 01:26 PM
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Digging Around in Electronic History

On the homepage of my ISP provider, there is always a blurb about some historical happening for the day in history.  For example, today in history, in 1979 to be exact, the Three Mile Island incident occurred.

What I am going to link to did not happen on March 28 in history.  The link points to an article published on June 18, 2001. The article is titled “Preparing for The Next Pearl Harbor Attack."

Gary Cruse, at The Owner’s Manual, dug this up and excerpted the following from the article, in a post titled “Not So Asleep at the Wheel."

"After years of dithering under Clinton, say defense specialists, the Bush White House is taking the matter seriously. “Virtually every vital service: water supplies, transportation, energy, banking and finance, telecommunications, public health - all of these rely on computer and fiber-optic lines, the switches and routers that come from them,” notes National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice. These are vulnerable.

In the short time since his inauguration in January, Bush has instructed government offices to coordinate for homeland security and defense, and assigned Vice President Richard Cheney to head a group to draft a national terrorism-response plan by October 1."

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 12:12 PM
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Physics and Psychics - Oil and Vinegar or a Blend?

In a paper titled “The Speed of Thought: Investigation of a Complex Space-Time Metric to Describe Psychic Phenomena," researchers Elizabeth A. Rauscher and Russell Targ present,

"In this paper we present a geometrical model of space-time, which has already been extensively studied in the technical literature of mathematics and physics.  This eight-dimensional metric is known as “complex Minkowski space,” and has been shown to be consistent with our present understandings of Newton, Maxwell, Einstein, and Schrodinger.  It also has the interesting property of allowing a connection of zero distance between points in the complex manifold, which appear to be separate from one another in ordinary observation.  We propose a model that describes the major elements of experimental parapsychology, and at the same time is consistent with the present highly successful structure of modern physics."

At 33 pages long, and in a PDF format, the paper is a long read.  I’ve tried to picture in my mind the Bay Research Institute in Palo Alto, CA, where the researchers, I would think, research, to no avail.

Via J. Orlin Grabbe.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 09:34 AM
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Hold on a Minute There George Will

George Will has an op-ed in the Washington Post titled “Running On Ideas. Will’s piece looks at Rep. Jim DeMint (R), who will be running to sit down in Sen. Fritz Hollings’ (D) overheated chair.

DeMint speaks a good line or two,

"America is in, he says, “an eleventh-hour crisis” of democracy because it recently reached a point where a majority are “dependent on the federal government for their health care, education, income or retirement.” Tax reforms, from Ronald Reagan to George W. Bush, have removed many Americans from the income tax rolls: “Today, the majority of Americans can vote themselves more generous government benefits at little or no cost to themselves.” DeMint asks: “How can any free nation survive when a majority of its citizens, now dependent on government services, no longer have the incentive to restrain the growth of government?"

which I can appreciate, because what he says is true.  But what George Will states, as he encourages the sheep into the polling pens of DeMint, negates the whole idea DeMint propounds.

"In the context of a welfare state devoted to assuaging the insecurities and augmenting the competencies of its citizens, conservatism’s challenge is to use government—collective action—to promote individualism."

I don’t think that is the approach to take, George.  Collective action cannot promote individualism.

Via PrestoPundit.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 07:25 AM
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He Ought to be Ashamed of Himself

What is Denny Hastert proud of?  Taking over 17 billion dollars from the pockets of Americans and giving it to United Airlines, the state of Illinois and the Pentagon.

Radley Balko has some additional details.

The depths of political depravity know no bounds.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 07:02 AM
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Oh What a Tangled Web is Weaved

The alleged evidence; high electric bills, trash put to the curb on day of collection, a dog’s sniffing around.

The above are judged sufficient reasons to invade a home in search of drugs.  Let’s review the allegations and determine what other nefarious activities could be associated with the above actions.

High electric bills.  What could cause this?  Here’s what the cops “think.”

"Investigators subpoenaed utility records, which showed the Dagys used 1,584 kilowatts of electricity in February, and 1,616 kilowatts in January, the affidavit states. That’s three to four times the amount used in neighboring homes during the same period, according to the affidavit."

Of course it couldn’t be an individual has high electric bills because,

"Dina Dagy admits her family could do better when it comes to conserving energy.

Her children don’t always shut off the computers when they’re done. The family of five leaves its outside lights on so that their runaway boxer might find its way home. And it’s not uncommon for them to do two or three loads of laundry each day."

Trash put to curb on day of collection.  What could cause this type of suspicious behavior?  Here’s what the cops think.

"Also, surveillance of the home showed that the Dagys placed their trash cans on the curb outside their home the morning of the Thursday pickups.

Why is that a big deal? Some narcotics offenders wait until the last possible moment to put their trash on the curb because they know that investigators retrieve evidence from trash, the affidavit says."

Lesson.  I guess put your trash to the curb one or two days prior to pickup.

A sniffing dog’s interest.  What could cause this?  I think you know what the cops “think” that means.

"He noted a drug-sniffing dog showed interest in the home when it was taken there before Friday’s search."

What dog doesn’t show interest in a house or property that isn’t its master’s or is outside of its marked territory?

From this article titled “Carlsbad family seeks apology in fruitless pot raid."

Via Claire Wolfe.

Posted by John Venlet on 03/28 at 05:07 AM
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