It is high time that financial markets reign in the American government's profligate spending.
Foreign investors must begin to demand an interest rate premium for owning dollars.
Better yet, perhaps foreign investors, saddled with increasingly worthless dollars, ought to dump them on the open market.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Racial Diversity and Elite Educational Institutions: Duke’s Meltdown
William L. Anderson:
Racial Diversity and Elite Educational Institutions: Duke’s Meltdown - Although Michael B. Nifong is out of prosecuting the Duke non-rape, non-kidnapping, and non-sexual assault case, the monster remains in the hands of the entity that helped to make it a monster: the State of North Carolina. Thus, Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans are not safe until someone finally drives a stake into the heart of this thing, but that moment surely is coming, although I might add that it cannot come soon enough. In one sense, this could have happened anywhere. False rape accusations have landed men into prison before, and college campuses tend to be ground zero of the "take back the night" culture in which all Caucasian men are considered to be rapists or about-to-become-rapists and secret members of the Ku Klux Klan. Yet, I would add that the volatile mix of people at an elite university like Duke is a much more fertile ground for a major hoax than would be a typical lower-tier state university. There is a special situation at these types of institutions that plays well to the kind of moral theater we have witnessed this past year. To further stress this subject, I first need to point out some the social and academic dynamics of an elite university like Duke. Like many other academically elite universities, Duke’s student body is overwhelmingly white and Asian. (The dominance of Asian students is a relatively new phenomenon, as they tended to be excluded in the past, as well as non-white students.) Once upon a time, the demographics of the students did not bother the powers that be at elite institutions. Some, like Duke until 1961, did not admit blacks at all, while others admitted them, but did not have very many black applicants and even fewer black students...
Racial Diversity and Elite Educational Institutions: Duke’s Meltdown - Although Michael B. Nifong is out of prosecuting the Duke non-rape, non-kidnapping, and non-sexual assault case, the monster remains in the hands of the entity that helped to make it a monster: the State of North Carolina. Thus, Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans are not safe until someone finally drives a stake into the heart of this thing, but that moment surely is coming, although I might add that it cannot come soon enough. In one sense, this could have happened anywhere. False rape accusations have landed men into prison before, and college campuses tend to be ground zero of the "take back the night" culture in which all Caucasian men are considered to be rapists or about-to-become-rapists and secret members of the Ku Klux Klan. Yet, I would add that the volatile mix of people at an elite university like Duke is a much more fertile ground for a major hoax than would be a typical lower-tier state university. There is a special situation at these types of institutions that plays well to the kind of moral theater we have witnessed this past year. To further stress this subject, I first need to point out some the social and academic dynamics of an elite university like Duke. Like many other academically elite universities, Duke’s student body is overwhelmingly white and Asian. (The dominance of Asian students is a relatively new phenomenon, as they tended to be excluded in the past, as well as non-white students.) Once upon a time, the demographics of the students did not bother the powers that be at elite institutions. Some, like Duke until 1961, did not admit blacks at all, while others admitted them, but did not have very many black applicants and even fewer black students...
The Cost of the Lie: Duke, the Courts, and Hoaxes
William L. Anderson:
The Cost of the Lie: Duke, the Courts, and Hoaxes — I recently received an email from someone who was a member of last year’s lacrosse team at Duke University, a young man who has had to watch the travesty suck three of his teammates and friends into North Carolina’s maw of injustice. What he said in the email made my jaw drop, and this is a case which has hardened my jaw line more than any other.
His email said that so far, the estimated cost of defense to the three families is exceeding five million dollars. That is correct. Three families are having to shell out five million dollars in total to deal with the lies perpetuated by the State of North Carolina.
No doubt, many readers will not care at all. Two of the three families are wealthy, and the other is well-off, although the third family is having some difficulty paying the legal bills, from what I hear. I already have heard a number of black commentators and assorted leftists declaring that they see nothing wrong in having to force wealthy whites to pay millions of dollars to protect their sons against wrongful prosecutions....
The Cost of the Lie: Duke, the Courts, and Hoaxes — I recently received an email from someone who was a member of last year’s lacrosse team at Duke University, a young man who has had to watch the travesty suck three of his teammates and friends into North Carolina’s maw of injustice. What he said in the email made my jaw drop, and this is a case which has hardened my jaw line more than any other.
His email said that so far, the estimated cost of defense to the three families is exceeding five million dollars. That is correct. Three families are having to shell out five million dollars in total to deal with the lies perpetuated by the State of North Carolina.
No doubt, many readers will not care at all. Two of the three families are wealthy, and the other is well-off, although the third family is having some difficulty paying the legal bills, from what I hear. I already have heard a number of black commentators and assorted leftists declaring that they see nothing wrong in having to force wealthy whites to pay millions of dollars to protect their sons against wrongful prosecutions....
What Thomas Jefferson learned from the Muslim book of jihad
Democrat Keith Ellison is now officially the first Muslim United States congressman. True to his pledge, he placed his hand on the Quran, the Muslim book of jihad and pledged his allegiance to the United States during his ceremonial swearing-in.
Capitol Hill staff said Ellison's swearing-in photo opportunity drew more media than they had ever seen in the history of the U.S. House. Ellison represents the 5th Congressional District of Minnesota.
The Quran Ellison used was no ordinary book. It once belonged to Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States and one of America 's founding fathers. Ellison borrowed it from the Rare Book Section of the Library of Congress. It was one of the 6,500 Jefferson books archived in the library.
Ellison, who was born in Detroit and converted to Islam while in college, said he chose to use Jefferson's Quran because it showed that "a visionary like Jefferson " believed that wisdom could be gleaned from many sources.
There is no doubt Ellison was right about Jefferson believing wisdom could be "gleaned" from the Muslim Quran. At the time Jefferson owned the book, he needed to know everything possible about Muslims because he was about to advocate war against the Islamic "Barbary" states of Morocco , Algeria , Tunisia and Tripoli .
Ellison's use of Jefferson's Quran as a prop illuminates a subject once well-known in the history of the United States, but, which today, is mostly forgotten - the Muslim pirate slavers who over many centuries enslaved millions of Africans and tens of thousands of Christian Europeans and Americans in the Islami c "Barbary" states.
Over the course of 10 centuries, Muslim pirates cruised the African and Mediterranean coastline, pillaging villages and seizing slaves.
The taking of slaves in pre-dawn raids on unsuspecting coastal villages had a high casualty rate. It was typical of Muslim raiders to kill off as many of the "non-Muslim" older men and women as possible so the preferred "booty" of only young women and children could be collected.
Young non-Muslim women were targeted because of their value as concubines in Islamic markets. Islamic law provides for the sexual interests of Muslim men by allowing them to take as many as four wives at one time and to have as many concubines as their fortunes allow.
Boys, as young as 9 or 10 years old, were often mutilated to create eunuchs who would bring higher prices in the slave markets of the Middle East . Muslim slave traders created "eunuch stations" along major African slave routes so the necessary surgery could be performed. It was estimated that only a small number of the boys subjected to the mutilation survived after the surgery.
When American colonists rebelled against British rule in 1776, American merchant ships lost Royal Navy protection. With no American Navy for protection, American ships were attacked and their Christian crews enslaved by Muslim pirates operating under the control of the "Dey of Algiers "--an Islamist warlord ruling Algeria
Because American commerce in the Mediterranean was being destroyed by the pirates, the Continental Congress agreed in 1784 to negotiate treaties with the four Barbary States . Congress appointed a special commission consisting of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, to oversee the negotiations.
Lacking the ability to protect its merchant ships in the Mediterranean, the new America government tried to appease the Muslim slavers by agreeing to pay tribute and ransoms in order to retrieve seized American ships and buy the freedom of enslaved sailors.
Adams argued in favor of paying tribute as the cheapest way to get American commerce in the Mediterranean moving again. Jefferson was opposed. He believed there would be no end to the demands for tribute and wanted matters settled "through the medium of war." He proposed a league of trading nations to force an end to Muslim piracy.
In 1786, Jefferson, then the American ambassador to France, and Adams, then the American ambassador to Britain, met in London with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the "Dey of Algiers" ambassador to Britain.
The Americans wanted to negotiate a peace treaty based on Congress' vote to appease.
During the meeting Jefferson and Adams asked the Dey's ambassador why Muslims held so much hostility towards America , a nation with which they had no previous contacts.
In a later meeting with the American Congress, the two future presidents reported that Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja h ad answered that Islam "was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Quran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman (Muslim) who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise."
For the following 15 years, the American government paid the Muslims millions of dollars for the safe passage of American ships or the return of American hostages. The payments in ransom and tribute amounted to 20 percent of United States government annual revenues in 1800.
Not long after Jefferson's inauguration as president in 1801, he dispatched a group of frigates to defend American interests in the Mediterranean , and informed Congress.
Declaring that America was going to spend "millions for defense but not one cent for tribute," Jefferson pressed the issue by deploying American Marines and many of America 's best warships to the Muslim Barbary Coast
The USS Constitution, USS Constellation, USS Philadelphia, USS Chesapeake, USS Argus, USS Syren and USS Intrepid all saw action.
In 1805, American Marines marched across the dessert from Egypt into Tripolitania, forcing the surrender of Tripoli and the freeing of all American slaves.
During the Jefferson administration, the Muslim Barbary States , crumbling as a result of intense American naval bombardment and on shore raids by Marines, finally officially agreed to abandon slavery and piracy.
Jefferson's victory over the Muslims lives on today in the Marine Hymn, with the line, "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli , we will fight our country's battles on the land as on the sea."
It wasn't until 1815 that the problem was fully settled by the total defeat of all the Muslim slave trading pirates.
Jefferson had been right. The "medium of war" was the only way to put and end to the Muslim problem. Mr. Ellison was right about Jefferson . He was a "visionary" wise enough to read and learn about the enemy from their own Muslim book of jihad.
Capitol Hill staff said Ellison's swearing-in photo opportunity drew more media than they had ever seen in the history of the U.S. House. Ellison represents the 5th Congressional District of Minnesota.
The Quran Ellison used was no ordinary book. It once belonged to Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States and one of America 's founding fathers. Ellison borrowed it from the Rare Book Section of the Library of Congress. It was one of the 6,500 Jefferson books archived in the library.
Ellison, who was born in Detroit and converted to Islam while in college, said he chose to use Jefferson's Quran because it showed that "a visionary like Jefferson " believed that wisdom could be gleaned from many sources.
There is no doubt Ellison was right about Jefferson believing wisdom could be "gleaned" from the Muslim Quran. At the time Jefferson owned the book, he needed to know everything possible about Muslims because he was about to advocate war against the Islamic "Barbary" states of Morocco , Algeria , Tunisia and Tripoli .
Ellison's use of Jefferson's Quran as a prop illuminates a subject once well-known in the history of the United States, but, which today, is mostly forgotten - the Muslim pirate slavers who over many centuries enslaved millions of Africans and tens of thousands of Christian Europeans and Americans in the Islami c "Barbary" states.
Over the course of 10 centuries, Muslim pirates cruised the African and Mediterranean coastline, pillaging villages and seizing slaves.
The taking of slaves in pre-dawn raids on unsuspecting coastal villages had a high casualty rate. It was typical of Muslim raiders to kill off as many of the "non-Muslim" older men and women as possible so the preferred "booty" of only young women and children could be collected.
Young non-Muslim women were targeted because of their value as concubines in Islamic markets. Islamic law provides for the sexual interests of Muslim men by allowing them to take as many as four wives at one time and to have as many concubines as their fortunes allow.
Boys, as young as 9 or 10 years old, were often mutilated to create eunuchs who would bring higher prices in the slave markets of the Middle East . Muslim slave traders created "eunuch stations" along major African slave routes so the necessary surgery could be performed. It was estimated that only a small number of the boys subjected to the mutilation survived after the surgery.
When American colonists rebelled against British rule in 1776, American merchant ships lost Royal Navy protection. With no American Navy for protection, American ships were attacked and their Christian crews enslaved by Muslim pirates operating under the control of the "Dey of Algiers "--an Islamist warlord ruling Algeria
Because American commerce in the Mediterranean was being destroyed by the pirates, the Continental Congress agreed in 1784 to negotiate treaties with the four Barbary States . Congress appointed a special commission consisting of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, to oversee the negotiations.
Lacking the ability to protect its merchant ships in the Mediterranean, the new America government tried to appease the Muslim slavers by agreeing to pay tribute and ransoms in order to retrieve seized American ships and buy the freedom of enslaved sailors.
Adams argued in favor of paying tribute as the cheapest way to get American commerce in the Mediterranean moving again. Jefferson was opposed. He believed there would be no end to the demands for tribute and wanted matters settled "through the medium of war." He proposed a league of trading nations to force an end to Muslim piracy.
In 1786, Jefferson, then the American ambassador to France, and Adams, then the American ambassador to Britain, met in London with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the "Dey of Algiers" ambassador to Britain.
The Americans wanted to negotiate a peace treaty based on Congress' vote to appease.
During the meeting Jefferson and Adams asked the Dey's ambassador why Muslims held so much hostility towards America , a nation with which they had no previous contacts.
In a later meeting with the American Congress, the two future presidents reported that Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja h ad answered that Islam "was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Quran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman (Muslim) who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise."
For the following 15 years, the American government paid the Muslims millions of dollars for the safe passage of American ships or the return of American hostages. The payments in ransom and tribute amounted to 20 percent of United States government annual revenues in 1800.
Not long after Jefferson's inauguration as president in 1801, he dispatched a group of frigates to defend American interests in the Mediterranean , and informed Congress.
Declaring that America was going to spend "millions for defense but not one cent for tribute," Jefferson pressed the issue by deploying American Marines and many of America 's best warships to the Muslim Barbary Coast
The USS Constitution, USS Constellation, USS Philadelphia, USS Chesapeake, USS Argus, USS Syren and USS Intrepid all saw action.
In 1805, American Marines marched across the dessert from Egypt into Tripolitania, forcing the surrender of Tripoli and the freeing of all American slaves.
During the Jefferson administration, the Muslim Barbary States , crumbling as a result of intense American naval bombardment and on shore raids by Marines, finally officially agreed to abandon slavery and piracy.
Jefferson's victory over the Muslims lives on today in the Marine Hymn, with the line, "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli , we will fight our country's battles on the land as on the sea."
It wasn't until 1815 that the problem was fully settled by the total defeat of all the Muslim slave trading pirates.
Jefferson had been right. The "medium of war" was the only way to put and end to the Muslim problem. Mr. Ellison was right about Jefferson . He was a "visionary" wise enough to read and learn about the enemy from their own Muslim book of jihad.
Saturday, December 09, 2006
The Mechanics of How the Dollar Became the World's Reserve Currency
During WWII, I guess around the time of the Bretton Woods agreement, the US government decided to make the US Dollar the reserve currency of the world. The Treasury or Fed shipped out two types of huge boxes the size of refrigerators, Federal Reserve Boxes and Wells Fargo Boxes. Their destination were the governments/central banks of post war nations. The former were full of Federal Reserve notes and the latter were full of Federal Reserve notes, gold, and diamonds. These Federal Reserve notes were printed in exceptionally large denominations. The purpose of these contents was to serve as bank reserves for the world financial system after the war. They were never meant for general circulation.
Some boxes were lost because planes crashed in the mountains, ships sank at sea, or were captured. Several of these have been found over the years, some legitimate and many fake. People have tried to cash these in, mostly unsuccessfully.
Supposedly the Federal Reserve has seven men who are assigned the task of dealing with these as they come to light. Redeeming them is a complicated process. You cannot just fly these into America on a commercial plane or they will be seized. They have to be brought into the US via private aircraft.
If redeemed, they are currently being redeemed for 2% of face value, it used to be higher, 10%! But this still results in a huge amount of Federal Reserve Notes, a few billion worth. And they won't just hand you the cash, they will fund a charity.
The reason why the government does not just ignore the whole issue is because of embarrassment. They are embarrassed that these boxes are out there and still circulating and getting attention. I guess payments are hush money!
The problem with such treasure hunts, even if people find the high value notes, is that they rely on the U.S. Treasury or Federal Reserve to pay up at the end. Not a likely scenario. They are worth the same as all other Federal Reserve Notes in the end... worthless paper, zero.
Some boxes were lost because planes crashed in the mountains, ships sank at sea, or were captured. Several of these have been found over the years, some legitimate and many fake. People have tried to cash these in, mostly unsuccessfully.
Supposedly the Federal Reserve has seven men who are assigned the task of dealing with these as they come to light. Redeeming them is a complicated process. You cannot just fly these into America on a commercial plane or they will be seized. They have to be brought into the US via private aircraft.
If redeemed, they are currently being redeemed for 2% of face value, it used to be higher, 10%! But this still results in a huge amount of Federal Reserve Notes, a few billion worth. And they won't just hand you the cash, they will fund a charity.
The reason why the government does not just ignore the whole issue is because of embarrassment. They are embarrassed that these boxes are out there and still circulating and getting attention. I guess payments are hush money!
The problem with such treasure hunts, even if people find the high value notes, is that they rely on the U.S. Treasury or Federal Reserve to pay up at the end. Not a likely scenario. They are worth the same as all other Federal Reserve Notes in the end... worthless paper, zero.
The Silliness of the Iraq Study Group
In going through the Iraq Study Group Report, recommendation number 19 is pretty silly...something that a high school student might come up with for a current events report.
To have learned men suggest that the President and National Security team stay in close and frequent contact with the Iraqi leadership is amazingly simplistic.
Of course that is being done currently.
To make this a serious and grave recommendation is just silly.
To have learned men suggest that the President and National Security team stay in close and frequent contact with the Iraqi leadership is amazingly simplistic.
Of course that is being done currently.
To make this a serious and grave recommendation is just silly.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
More Prisons....
During Robert Gates' testimony for Defense Secretary this week, Senator Sessions of Alabama asked about the need for more prisons in Iraq.
Now isn't that just typical of the federal government to broach the subject of a prison building scheme?
They truly want to turn Iraq into another America...a land of prisons.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
The White House Can’t Put Out the Mideast Fires It Ignited
"Remember when narrow-minded Republican know-nothings launched a hate campaign against French President Jacques Chirac and everything French because Paris would not go along with George Bush’s jolly little war in Iraq?
Well, it turns out that Chirac’s warnings in 2003 that a US invasion of Iraq would set the Mideast on fire, encourage terrorism, and produce a disaster have been tragically born out by events.
For the latter, thank George Bush. He overthrew two of Iran’s bitterest enemies, Taliban and Saddam Hussein, then stuck US ground forces in the $250 million per day Iraq quagmire that is now estimated to cost at least $1 trillion before the United States admits defeat and pulls out."
Click here for the rest of the article.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Ron Paul Interview
Congressman Ron Paul of Texas was recently interviewed by Al Korelin.
Ron Paul sits on the Banking Committee in The House of Representatives. He makes an interesting comment. Members of the committee actually believe that the US Dollar is backed by gold. This is incredibly naive thinking.The dollar has not been attached to gold since Nixon closed the gold window in the early seventies...and even then it was only superficially associated with gold.
Here is a link to the interview with Ron Paul.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
The Future
Today in History
"On this day in 1777 the Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation after 16 months of debate. Although much maligned by modern historians, the Articles were in many ways
superior to the constitution that succeeded them. They certainly did a better job of preserving the rights and sovereignty of the states, but the economic stagnation spawned by the states' issuing paper monies, and the tariffs they wanted to impose on intrastate commerce, stalled American development & prosperity." -Franklin Sanders
superior to the constitution that succeeded them. They certainly did a better job of preserving the rights and sovereignty of the states, but the economic stagnation spawned by the states' issuing paper monies, and the tariffs they wanted to impose on intrastate commerce, stalled American development & prosperity." -Franklin Sanders
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
The Elections of 2006
I am delighted that the Republicans have finally lost power. I am however, very saddened that the Democrats have won control of Congress.
The Republicans have been an embarrassment to this nation and the world. They have spent this country deeply into debt. They have not been a check on President Bush who is a dictator and a scofflaw. Republicans have greatly increased the size, power, and scope of the federal government.
They were elected in 1994 to reduce the size of government. They have not done so. Shame on the Republicans.
The Democrats will be no better. They will continue to promote envy and coveteousness. They will steal from one class of people and redistribute it, first to themselves and finally to their constituencies.
Both political parties in this country are corrupt. Unfortunately they merely reflect the values of the people of this country who are just as corrupt and immoral.
The Republicans have been an embarrassment to this nation and the world. They have spent this country deeply into debt. They have not been a check on President Bush who is a dictator and a scofflaw. Republicans have greatly increased the size, power, and scope of the federal government.
They were elected in 1994 to reduce the size of government. They have not done so. Shame on the Republicans.
The Democrats will be no better. They will continue to promote envy and coveteousness. They will steal from one class of people and redistribute it, first to themselves and finally to their constituencies.
Both political parties in this country are corrupt. Unfortunately they merely reflect the values of the people of this country who are just as corrupt and immoral.
Monday, October 23, 2006
A Point to Ponder
Attorney General Gonzales is quoted on the website of the Whitehouse, regarding the Military Commissions Act of 2006, as saying, "I want to make one thing clear: The Military Commissions Act does not apply to American citizens. The military commissions established under the Act may try only alien unlawful enemy combatants, and the new law does not restrict the rights of United States citizens to file writs of habeas corpus in federal court."
In 1978 the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals proclaimed that they could "find no basis in constitutional history, judicial interpretation, political history, legal scholarship, or persuasive argument to conclude that...a right ['to trust the federal government and to rely on the integrity of its pronouncements'] exists under...any...provision of the Constitution". Mapco Inc. v. Carter, 573 F.2d 1268, 1278 (Temporary Emergency Ct. App.)
So in light of the ruling, quoted above, by the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals (which has never been overturned by the US Supreme Court), why should I believe Mr. Gonzales' statement that I have not lost my right to Habeas Corpus in the federal courts?
In 1978 the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals proclaimed that they could "find no basis in constitutional history, judicial interpretation, political history, legal scholarship, or persuasive argument to conclude that...a right ['to trust the federal government and to rely on the integrity of its pronouncements'] exists under...any...provision of the Constitution". Mapco Inc. v. Carter, 573 F.2d 1268, 1278 (Temporary Emergency Ct. App.)
So in light of the ruling, quoted above, by the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals (which has never been overturned by the US Supreme Court), why should I believe Mr. Gonzales' statement that I have not lost my right to Habeas Corpus in the federal courts?
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
The War in Iraq
Here is my prediction on the outcome of the war in Iraq.
The United States Government will spend itself further into debt in its efforts to stabilize Iraq.
In time, Congress and the American people will realize the futility of fighting this war and pull out.
Within five years or less after American troops leave, a dictator as bad or worse than Sadam Hussein will rise to power. US efforts will have been in vain.
The United States Government will spend itself further into debt in its efforts to stabilize Iraq.
In time, Congress and the American people will realize the futility of fighting this war and pull out.
Within five years or less after American troops leave, a dictator as bad or worse than Sadam Hussein will rise to power. US efforts will have been in vain.
The Totalitarian State is Here to Stay
Congratulations!
Yesterday in history, 17 October 2006, y'all lost your ancient right to habeas corpus. Your government can now detain you indefinitely, without cause or charge, and, as an extra bonus, your government can now torture you as a prisoner, legally.You now live in certified totalitarian tyranny.
Don't be caught clapping too softly for Comrade Stalin.For more information, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igycXBseoAg&eurl.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
The Ring of Power
I have been recently rereading Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy. The following passage in Fellowship of the Ring got me thinking:
Like Boromir's desire for the Ring of Power, Christians have desired positions of power and influence in our Federal government. This caused me to think, what if Christians suddenly found themselves in positions of power tomorrow? What mess would we then have on our hands?
Far too many Christians on the right have desired their own precious: the power of big government. They see the good that they could do with the power if they had it. I have no doubt that Christians could and would do a lot of good. Many bad bills would be vetoed and maybe even some good legislation passed.
The Federal government ought to be completely dissolved and all power returned to the States and to the People.
I think a Christian in the position of Attorney General could have done much to advance the cause of liberty. A Christian could have done an honest review of the laws and statutes and refused to enforce unconstitutional laws. And a Christian would be well within his rights and duties to do so. "An unconstitutional act is not a law; it confers no rights; it imposes no duties; it affords no protection; it creates no office; it is, in legal contemplation, as inoperative as though it had never been passed." Norton v. Shelby County, 118 U.S. 425, 442 (1886).
"We of Minas Tirith have been staunch through long years of trial. We do not desire the power of wizard-lords, only strength to defend ourselves, strength in a just cause. And behold! in our need chance brings to light the Ring of Power. It is a gift, I say; a gift to the foes of Mordor. It is mad not to use it, to use the power of the Enemy against him. The fearless, the ruthless, these alone will achieve victory. What could not a warrior do in this hour, a great leader? What could not Aragorn do? Or if he refuses, why not Boromir? The Ring would give me power of Command. How I would drive the hosts of Mordor, and all men would flock to my banner!"
Like Boromir's desire for the Ring of Power, Christians have desired positions of power and influence in our Federal government. This caused me to think, what if Christians suddenly found themselves in positions of power tomorrow? What mess would we then have on our hands?
Far too many Christians on the right have desired their own precious: the power of big government. They see the good that they could do with the power if they had it. I have no doubt that Christians could and would do a lot of good. Many bad bills would be vetoed and maybe even some good legislation passed.
But like the Ring of Power that did so much evil in Middle Earth and yet was so terribly difficult for Isildur and Frodo to destroy, the power of the Federal government that has done so much evil in our own country and the world would be very difficult to destroy. It would be so difficult because so much good could be done with that power.
The Federal government ought to be completely dissolved and all power returned to the States and to the People.
Congressman Ron Paul has recently said, "The notion that an all-powerful, centralized state should provide monolithic solutions to the ethical dilemmas of our times is not only misguided, but also contrary to our Constitution. Remember, federalism was established to allow decentralized, local decision-making by states. Today, however, we seek a federal solution for every perceived societal ill, ignoring constitutional limits on federal power. The result is a federal state that increasingly makes all-or-nothing decisions that alienate large segments of the population."
So far the record of Christians in power is not a good one.
Look at John Ashcroft. For four years he served as President Bush II's Attorney General. He had the authority and the power to greatly reign in the power and tyranny of the United States Department of Justice. Rather than honestly review every law and statute for their constitutionality, Ashcroft and his US Attorneys went on a fishing expedition. They have used their power to go on a search and destroy mission for every violation, real or imagined, of federal law that they could find.Furthermore under Ashcroft, The Patriot Act was hurriedly pushed through Congress in the name of fighting terrorism. This evil legislation has given even more power to the Federal government's jackbooted thugs in their war on the liberties of the American people.
Ashcroft did at least two things wrong. First, John Ashcroft often used the courts to his political advantage to advance the power of the federal government. Second, there is no right for Federal judges to hear questions regarding abortion (and a host of other issues). Ashcroft tacitly agreed with the enemies of liberty and life that the courts did have jurisdiction in areas like abortion. He did so by not standing up to the Federal Courts and prosecuting judges that usurped their constitutional powers.
I think a Christian in the position of Attorney General could have done much to advance the cause of liberty. A Christian could have done an honest review of the laws and statutes and refused to enforce unconstitutional laws. And a Christian would be well within his rights and duties to do so. "An unconstitutional act is not a law; it confers no rights; it imposes no duties; it affords no protection; it creates no office; it is, in legal contemplation, as inoperative as though it had never been passed." Norton v. Shelby County, 118 U.S. 425, 442 (1886).
I am all for Christian involvement in politics. But the power to do good can often be used for destructive purposes later. The power of the Federal government, like the Ring of Power, is a power that nobody can wield rightly. This leads me to conclude that if Christians were to obtain power tomorrow, they would be twice the sons of hell that the pagans (who currently run the political system) are today.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Dictatorship Is Here
"BURIED IN THE complex Senate compromise on detainee treatment is a real shocker, reaching far beyond the legal struggles about foreign terrorist suspects in the Guantanamo Bay fortress. The compromise legislation, which is racing toward the White House, authorizes the president to seize American citizens as enemy combatants, even if they have never left the United States. And once thrown into military prison, they cannot expect a trial by their peers or any other of the normal protections of the Bill of Rights," write Bruce Ackerman. BRUCE ACKERMAN is a professor of law and political science at Yale and author of "Before the Next Attack: Preserving Civil Liberties in an Age of Terrorism." Published September 28, 2006 at the Los
Angeles Times website.
Angeles Times website.
Monday, October 02, 2006
America: Freedom to Fascism
I highly recommend the movie America: Freedom to Fascism. You may find more information at the following website: America: Freedom to Fascism
Apparently, there is no law that requires an individual to file an income tax return. Unfortunately most people don't know this and the IRS makes sure that you won't know this.
Aaron Russo exposes the lies, fraud, and deceit of the IRS and the US government. There are some funny episodes as Aaron Russo tries to track down answers to his very simple questions.
Apparently, there is no law that requires an individual to file an income tax return. Unfortunately most people don't know this and the IRS makes sure that you won't know this.
Aaron Russo exposes the lies, fraud, and deceit of the IRS and the US government. There are some funny episodes as Aaron Russo tries to track down answers to his very simple questions.
An Excellent Observation
"The fiscal conservatives are enraged at six years of the President’s financial recklessness. The nationalists are incensed, betrayed by the President’s lack of concern over border security. The Religious Right has begun to wonder what Jesus would do, and find that His righteous anger is directed not at Muslims or terrorists, but at a faithless flock that built idols of war and created their own Caesar." -Karen Kwiatkowski, Ph.D. For the full article go to: Cutouts
and Paper Tigers, and What To Do With Them
and Paper Tigers, and What To Do With Them
Sunday, October 01, 2006
On Secession
It is high time that serious thought and action be given to secession.
Americans no longer share common values, goals, and religious faith. It does not make sense to stay together as a nation.
This division has become quite apparent with the division of the country into blue and red states. Both divisions really don't like each other.
So I propose that the national government be dissolved and the states allowed to reclaim their sovereignty.
Americans no longer share common values, goals, and religious faith. It does not make sense to stay together as a nation.
This division has become quite apparent with the division of the country into blue and red states. Both divisions really don't like each other.
So I propose that the national government be dissolved and the states allowed to reclaim their sovereignty.
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