The Trouble With Communism

'Capitalism' was a word coined by Karl Marx as a term of derision for free market economies. Knowing this, I refuse to call it capitalism anymore. But I digress. Jordan Peterson explains the fundamental errors in the Communist Manifesto. 

This must have been part of a symposium about forms of government, or political systems. There are two other panel members with very dour looks on their faces, which leads me to believe that they are from a different school of thought from our friend JP.

To Prevent Their Kids From Being Socially Awkward And Weird, More Parents Opting To Homeschool

Click the pic to go to Babylon Bee...

To Prevent Their Kids From Being Socially Awkward And Weird, More Parents Opting To Homeschool

I'm a Walking, Leaky Gain-of-Function Laboratory

As a 65 year old overweight diabetic, I figured I should probably be vaccinated. I've had no noticeable negative effects so far, save for a mildly sore injection site for a day or so. And for a few weeks there, I was able to waltz into any business establishment without a mask, and say, "Yo, I'm fully immunized! I can't hurt you risk-averse cootie-phobes!" 

But then Emperor Inslee dropped the hammer again, and I have to wear a mask anyway. So no more practical advantage to being vaccinated. 

And now, we're finding out that the vaccine is 'leaky', i.e., it doesn't train our border guards to kill or fend off every invader. So the stronger variants escape, creating an even more powerful mutant. I just realized I'm actually a walking gain-of-function laboratory. Swell done, idjits!

Hey Busybody Control Freaks!

• If the vaccines work, and it fits your risk profile, then get vaccinated. What I do should have no effect on you. Live and let live.
• If the vaccines don't work, then what you or I do won't matter. So let me make my own decisions. Live and let die. 
• The same goes for masks. The same goes for lockdowns. If going out doesn't fit your risk profile, then stay home. 
• If you're afraid of me, then you're at liberty to stand six feet away, if it makes you feel better.

Please Let Freedom Ring

The World Wide Web took off in the early '90s, and caught the government off guard. Our government is just now becoming aware that this great big genie is out of the bottle, and things are just too free. There may be inequalities. It needs to be regulated. Or taxed. Or both. I received the following letter from Senator Mike Lee (R), Utah:

Dear Friends, 

Obamacare, the VA scandal, the IRS scandal--these are just a few examples of what happens when we give government huge power without oversight.

It's about to happen again--the Obama Administration is fighting for a government takeover of the Internet and the Federal Communications Commission is going to vote on it February 26th. That's why I am writing you today--I need your help to stop this.

President Obama came out a few weeks ago urging the FCC to vote to regulate the Internet the same way that it regulates public utilities under Title II. What this means is that, for the first time, billions of dollars in fees will be attached to Internet service just like they are to telephone service.

You see, under Title II if someone wants to own a telephone company, there are fees baked into the law--fees companies pass on to customers.

Now, under this new regulatory regime, Internet service providers will be subject to these fees as well, and then pass them on to you, the consumer.

This is essentially a massive tax increase on the middle class, being passed in the dead of night without the American public really being made aware of what is going on.

The Internet is built on speed and dynamism, it’s always changing, there are always new and better ideas that are exploding onto the scene, and part of the reason for that is that innovators are not having to go ask Washington, DC for permission every time they want to do something new.

What this really comes down to is a fundamental question:

Who do you want in charge of the direction of the Internet: people at dot-com startups that brought us game changing companies like Facebook, Google, Twitter, Amazon and Uber; or nameless, faceless, unelected bureaucrats in our nation’s capital?

There is another aspect of this that gets overlooked: the Internet is an incredibly important force for freedom, for liberty, and the rights of free speech that we hold dear. It is an existential threat to tyrants in countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Russia who seek to keep information from their people.

We must preserve the high ground for the United States to stand up to these countries and tell them to keep the Internet free and preserve free speech on the Internet throughout the world. We cannot do that if we are regulating the Internet in a similar manner ourselves.

I am not accusing anyone of sinister motives here, but I am deeply concerned about the idea of any government bureaucrat having the power to tell companies what they can and cannot do. In the long term, this could have a chilling effect on political speech, in ways that today we could not even begin to imagine.

We do not have much time left to stop this gigantic government takeover of the Internet. The FCC is voting on February 26th and the Left is mobilizing to support their effort to do so. We cannot let the conversation be totally one-sided. The FCC needs to hear from us today--not tomorrow or next week or next month. Today. Please join me and go sign the petition to keep the Internet free. We must stand for liberty and preserve the Internet free of government interference.

Thank you for standing for Internet freedom.

Sincerely,
Senator Mike Lee
Republican-Utah

The Internet has unleashed a wave of political thought and diversity that rivals the invention of the printing press. Citizen journalism has replaced the monopoly of the leftstream media. Once government gets its meat-hooks into the Internet, licensing and regulation won't be far behind. Read what is happening in China. The article is about how censorship and oppression of the Chinese people, and the attendant bureaucratic mismanagement of the equipment to implement it, caused network outages all over the world. Think it can't happen here? Think the US government won't do that? Don't bet on it. We've already seen the IRS being weaponized against wrong-thinking Americans. After a government becomes tyrannical, it's too late. We have to act now. 

How Many Statists Does It Take To Change a Light Bulb?

Stolen from facebook:



I don't like CFLs. I do like LEDs, but I think the free market is quite adequate for moving people to more efficient, environmentally friendly lighting. Government mandates are completely illiberal and unnecessary.

Happy New Year! Have more fun in 2014!

"So here's a resolution for you: In the new year, obtain more liberty for yourself and for your friends and for your family."



Because government will no longer protect our rights; it upslurps them, we have to assert our rights if we wish to keep them.

u·surp

yo͞oˈsərp/

verb

1. 1.

   take (a position of power or importance) illegally or by force.

   "Richard usurped the throne"

   synonyms:

   seize, take over, take possession of, take, commandeer, wrest,assume, expropriate More

up·slurp

upˈslərp/

verb

1. 1.

   take (a position of power or importance) illegally or by force in large volume, as with a hydro-vac truck.

   "Richard upslurped everyone's rights without authority or due process"

   synonyms:

   seize, take over, take possession of, take, commandeer, wrest,assume, expropriate More

Merry Christmas! God Bless Us, Every One!

Bill Whittle talks about faith, morality and the American form of government:

Where Are You on the The Nolan Chart?

What is your political persuasion? As you can see, I sit in the libertarian corner of this chart. It says that I am about 80% classical liberal on personal issues, and about 90% classical liberal on economic issues.

How did I find that out? I took this quiz. If I took it again, I might get a slightly different answer. The quiz consists of ten questions. I think that might be too few to get a truly accurate reading, but it is interesting.

The really interesting thing about this is that most 'progressives' would call me a right wing conservative, which I most certainly am not. That would demand that I tolerate far less personal freedom than I am comfortable with.

A hard core right-winger would demand nearly zero personal freedom and nearly 100% economic freedom, while a hard core left-winger would demand nearly zero economic freedom and nearly 100% personal freedom. Interestingly, a statist demands nearly zero personal freedom and nearly zero economic freedom. A libertarian demands nearly 100% personal and economic freedom.

I am not an anarchist though, which brings me back to this other chart that I made a couple of years ago:

It isn't to scale, of course. There is no scale. But it does illustrate how individual liberty increases with increasing government - up to a point. Beyond that point, government becomes oppressive, and self-determination begins to diminish. So in the general scheme of things, I believe that I am more of a centrist - perhaps to a little right of center. The Nolan Chart may require some more calibration. 

Public Comment – Concerns Regarding Birch Bay Watershed Action Plan

Yesterday, I sent the following letter to the Whatcom County Planning Commission:

---

December 9, 2011

Karl A. Uppiano
5988 Malloy Ave.
Ferndale, WA 98248

File Copy – Whatcom County Planning Commission
5280 Northwest Drive
Bellingham, WA 98226

Subject: Public Comment – Concerns Regarding Birch Bay Watershed Action Plan

Dear Planning Commissioners:

I want to share my impressions of the public hearing last night. You may remember me; I was the only one who spoke on the principles of good government.

All through the meeting, I kept thinking of a quote by Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park: “[they] were so preoccupied with whether they could that they didn't stop to think if they should.” A lot of the second part of the proceedings was devoted to how many angels could dance on the head of a pin, but no one questioned the forgone conclusion about whether the Birch Bay watershed actually needs fixing, and if so, whether the government should do it. Where does this authority come from?

• One commissioner noted that there was “overwhelming support” for this measure.

No, there was the predictable parade of NIMBYs, environmental extremists, vested interests (e.g., Sustainable Connections, contractors, consultants, etc., whose job it is to promote these measures), and only a smattering of people, including me, who questioned the fundamental premise – whether the proper role of government is controlling individual behavior.

• Several commissioners expressed concern about the size and complexity of the measure.
• At least one commissioner was concerned about the likelihood that the regulations would change over time.

James Madison addressed both concerns 230 some odd years ago, in The Federalist:

The internal effects of a mutable policy are still more calamitous. It poisons the blessing of liberty itself. It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood; if they be repealed or revised before they are promulgated, or undergo such incessant changes that no man, who knows what the law is to-day, can guess what it will be to-morrow. Law is defined to be a rule of action; but how can that be a rule, which is little known, and less fixed?

• One commissioner noted (as justification?) that if the county does nothing (or even if it does something), ever more stringent state regulations will follow.
• More than one commissioner was concerned that what is now voluntary will become mandatory.

Thomas Jefferson: “The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground.” As citizens, it is our duty to resist “the natural progress of things”. The natural progress of things is to deteriorate without maintenance. We the People must maintain our liberty at all levels of government. Government won’t restrain itself – that much is obvious, or should be.

• One commissioner mentioned that the county wants to help the people of Birch Bay, who want this.
• One commissioner suggested CAPR testimony should be disregarded. (Seriously?!)

Jefferson again: “The policy of the American government is to leave their citizens free, neither restraining nor aiding them in their pursuits.”

• One commissioner suggested that if this is voluntary, why not simply publish the LID materials, and leave it at that?

Why not indeed? Instead of collecting government grants, and lobbying for the government to force people to go where they would not go voluntarily, why don’t the ReSources and Sustainable Connections people (and all the rest of the ICLEI/Smart Growth/Sustainable Development crowd) manufacture environmentally friendly LID products and educational materials that they can sell for a profit, in order to purchase buffers and offsets with their own money, and fund their own environmental public awareness campaigns and how-to programs? For the answer to that question, you need to understand that for many, the environment is nothing more than a convenient tool used shamelessly to promote a collectivist, illiberal agenda.

• Several commissioners expressed concern for the amount of time, effort and expense already spent for research and development on this project and the potential waste if it fails.

That’s a valid concern, but two wrongs don’t make a right. Again, we have to question the fundamental premise: Is this necessary? Is it proper?

I realize that quoting our dusty old founders might seem quaint, except for one thing: They had a lot invested in the American form of government, and the principles that they established as necessary for good government are still the official specification for the United States: the federal, state, and local constitutions and charters. These supreme laws have not been rescinded, but merely disregarded in recent years.

Once government becomes activist, picking winners and losers, working on behalf of one special interest or another, it becomes a fraud magnet – susceptible to lobbying, special interests, waste. Those problems are much less severe when government sticks to its affirmed purpose: that of protecting the civil liberties of all citizens, equally. I believe it is possible – preferable – to protect our natural resources without forfeiting our natural rights.

Respectfully Submitted,

Karl A. Uppiano

---

You may not feel that this is relevant to you if you live outside Whatcom County. If that is the case, then I would encourage you to Google "Sustainable Development", "Smart Growth", "ICLEI" and "Agenda 21". Then, attend your city and county council meetings. Be prepared for a shock. You might discover that, at the behest of environmental extremists, the government has made you a mere tenant on your own property. You can still develop and use your land, but only in very special ways, after paying the government exorbitant fees for the permission to do so. Tried any remodeling lately?

Resisting the Natural Progress of Things

Are biodegradable plastic shopping bags the biggest problem Bellingham faces? I think not, because few people were talking about it until a few days before the city council shoved the shopping bag ban down our throats. If it isn’t high on the Bellinghamsters’ agenda, then whose agenda is it? And why is it being imposed on us?

In a free country, when consumers identify a problem, they demand solutions from their producers. Then consumers vote with their dollars for the preferred solution. But no, here we use the force of government to compel everyone to adopt The Agenda, and implement the prescribed solution – under penalty of law.

Mind you, this is not about the bags. This is about freedom. Thomas Jefferson said, "The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground." To preserve our freedom, we must resist "the natural progress of things", even over silly things, such as bag bans.

Retailers supporting the ban include Fred Meyer, Albertsons, Haggen, Village Books, Paper Dreams, Terra Organica… maybe others. Please vote with your dollars to let them know, they can promote environmental awareness without disrespecting your freedom so trivially.

Interesting Quotes from Lord Acton

Here are some interesting quotes from Lord Acton (1834 - 1902):

• "There is no worse heresy than the fact that the office sanctifies the holder of it."
• "The danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern. Every class is unfit to govern."
• "The strong man with the dagger is followed by the weak man with the sponge."
• "And remember, where you have a concentration of power in a few hands, all too frequently men with the mentality of gangsters get control. History has proven that. All power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
• "Liberty is not the power of doing what we like, but the right of being able to do what we ought."

Lord Acton was a "Classical Liberal", most similar to a "Libertarian" in today's parlance. Lord Acton admired the American form of government, but he was sympathetic to the confederacy during our civil war, because he felt that the federal government was infringing on states' rights. Keep in mind that the civil war was about much more than just freeing the slaves, although that was certainly part of it. As usual, that conflict has been dumbed down to a single issue, which, though important, wasn't the only issue.

I bring this up, because someone reading Lord Acton's bio will say, "well he was a confederate sympathizer, so everything he said is invalid!". No. It. Isn't. If only life were that simple.

Common Sense, RIP

From an email going around the Internet:

An Obituary printed in the London Times

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers;
I Know My Rights
I Want It Now
Someone Else Is To Blame
I'm A Victim

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

Congressional Candidate Lieutenant Colonel Allen West

This is the kind of representative I want! Now we only need 544 more like him.

Charity or Thievery?

I am a charitable person. I have a charitable family. We help our neighbors, we contribute to causes in our community. But charity crosses the line into thievery when selfish special interests use the force of government to get what they want at my expense. These people are abusing the government's power to tax and regulate, and selfish politicians are all too happy to give them access to that power.

It is charity when we give willingly. It is thievery when the decision is made for us, and our dollars forcibly removed from our wallets. We the People are supposed to have the liberty to support whatever causes we wish -- or not, based on our personal values, priorities and needs. When the government presumptively makes that decision for us, that is a liberty that we have lost. Liberty, once lost, is almost impossible to regain.

Forget Health Care Reform, Cap & Trade

We must reverse deficit spending and the concentration of power in central government, in order to preserve states’ rights and individual liberty for future generations.

Do it for your children. Everything else is just details.

My New Catch Phrase

Setting aside for the moment that the Constitution does not authorize the federal government do most of this stuff anyway is my new catch phrase. I will use it to preface anything that seems to dig down into the details of something that the government is doing, that is fundamentally wrong in the first place. We're about to be enslaved, and we're discussing the nature of the chains.

(edit -- was: We're about to be enslaved, and we're discussing the color of the chains. Color is only one superficial attribute; nature is more about the internal composition, which is my intent.)

What It Means To Be a Tea Partier

I posted a little rant over at the Bellingham Tea Party Web Site.

Cap and Trade Could Be Repealed

While the Waxman-Markey Cap & Trade bill will insert the federal government into every aspect of production and commerce, and be perhaps the largest tax increase in US history, the good news is that it would be fairly easy to repeal, compared to social entitlements like nationalized health care.

We should fight this tooth and nail, but we really need to prepare for the fight against the national health plan. It is sad that so few Americans really understand what is happening to their liberty here.

Even if the Republicans get back in congress in two years, they won't be able to undo all of the damage that has occurred to our liberty in the past two years. Furthermore, all too few Republicans really understand limited government, so they would only be slightly better than the statists that we have now.

Campaign Against Cap & Trade

Nancy Pelosi is trying to force the Waxman-Markey Cap & Trade bill to a vote tomorrow. The following members of congress still need to be convinced that Cap & Trade is a bad idea:

Republicans:

• Bartlett (MD)
• Bono Mack (CA)
• Castle (DE)
• Dent (PA)
• Ehlers (MI)
• Frelinghuysen (NJ)
• Gerlach (PA)
• Inglis (SC)
• Tim Johnson (IL)
• Kirk (IL)
• Lance (NJ)
• LoBiondo (NJ)
• Petri (WI)
• Platts (PA)
• Ros-Lehtinen (FL)

Democrats:

• Altmire (PA)
• Bright (AL)
• Dahlkemper (PA)
• Drieshaus (OH)
• Ellsworth (IN)
• Kissell (NC)
• Kratovil (MD)
• Kanjorski (PA)
• Minnick (ID)
• Teague (NM)

You can call them at at 202-224-3121 and say something like:

I am not in your district, but as an American, I will be directly affected by your vote on the Waxman-Markey Cap & Trade bill. I cannot vote for you in the next congressional election, but I can contribute to you or your opponent -- depending on how you vote. I am going to keep track, and contribute aggressively.

With that in mind, please consider my most emphatic opposition to the Waxman-Markey Cap & Trade bill that is being stampeded through congress this week. This bill will have a minuscule impact on our climate, and a devastating impact on our economy and our individual liberty. It will give the federal government unprecedented influence over production and commerce. A statist would like that, but a classical liberal definitely would not. Please listen to the voters, and reject this bill.

If you call, use your own words of course, and include your own concerns. The only encouraging thing about this is that Cap & Trade can be repealed easily, whereas a new entitlement program like nationalized health care (the next big assault on our liberty) cannot. One thing at a time, I guess.