RAG Perspective: An American Pro-Liberty Conservative: Miscellany: 9/22/14

Monday, September 22, 2014

Miscellany: 9/22/14

Quote of the Day
Ability is nothing without opportunity.
Napoleon Bonaparte

Duet of the Day: Ella & Louis

HT Lawrence Reed

Chart of the Day

Via mises.org

Image of the Day

Via Libertarian Republic

Via Being Classically Liberal

Via LFC

On Ideological Feminism

60 Minutes: "There is no underestimating the general dysfunction and incompetence of government bureaucracy"

HT Carpe Diem

RAG Walking

This is an occasional feature that celebrates the accomplishments of our public school monopoly students, patterned after Jay Leno's signature interview bits. I'm quoting choice excepts from PatriotPost:

Just 36% of the 1,416 adult respondents could name all three branches of the federal government, another 35% couldn’t name a single one. Only 27% of Americans know it takes a two-thirds vote of the House and Senate to override a presidential veto, and over one-in-five (21%) believes a 5-4 Supreme Court decision will be sent back to Congress for reconsideration.
When asked which party has the most members in the House of Representatives, 38% correctly answered Republicans, while 17% said Democrats, and a whopping 44% admitted they didn’t know. That last number represents a 17 point increase from the 27% who had no idea in 2011.
While 38% correctly answered Democrats, 27% thought it was Republicans, and another whopping 42% didn’t know, the same 17 point increase from the 27% who didn’t know in 2011.

I have my own ad lib response to this point:

A 2006 Zogby poll illuminates the same lack of knowledge about the three branches of the federal government – only 42% could identify them eight years ago. But that poll added a dose of cynicism to the mix, revealing nearly three-in-four of those same Americans could name each of the Three Stooges. I’d bet my life Moe, Larry and Curly could name all three branches of government.

I would bet that Moe, Larry, and Curly are in government....

Cottage Foods: Homemakers' Variation of a Lemonade Stand

I've mentioned in the blog my mother took some cake decorating classes around the time I was in high school. (She always had a mind for business, being the daughter of a grocery owner; she operated a highly successful cosmetics home business before working full-time at a local base exchange.) I thought my mom's cakes were appealing (I would bought them), but my mom said that she only did them as gifts to friends and families; I seem to recall some of her work at family wedding receptions.

Many states and/or municipalities have been hostile to home-based baking transactions, often demanding restaurant or bakery-type regulations, zoning restrictions, licenses and permits, etc. Thus, entrepreneurs have often had to rent relevant facilities at a steep cost and/or inconvenient schedule:

After winning Austin’s Best Chocolate Cupcake in the city’s Cupcake Smackdown, Amy Padilla decided to open a cupcake bakery in 2009. “At that time, a commercial bakery was my only option,” she said. But with rent averaging around $25 an hour, “it almost became cost prohibitive to continue.”
Not being able to bake at home posed other problems as well. Kelley Masters, a baker based in Cedar Park, found a rental kitchen for $15 per hour, but that rate was only available after 10 p.m. “So I would put my two-year-old son to bed,” she said, “pack a large laundry basket with supplies, and drive out to the commercial kitchen, and start baking, coming home around 1 or 2 a.m.” Sometimes she even had to waste time cleaning up after the previous renter.

Texas over the past 2 years passed a couple of cottage food laws to encourage home businesses; a number of states do have them but there are all sorts of restrictions, e.g., on aggregate sales, types of foods (e.g., I think Texas still doesn't allow some baked goods, e.g., certain pies requiring refrigeration), etc., sales venues, etc., and most laws deny meat-based sales. (As a Texas native, there is nothing like homemade tamales...) Obviously I would vastly liberalize these laws, but they are a positive step forward. The Forrager website does a good job summarizing and tracking cottage food laws; at a first glance, Pennsylvania seems to be most economically liberal state in cottage food.

Facebook Corner

(Cato Institute). "Another federal agency has screwed up. This time it is the Secret Service."
I bet I know who Secret Santa is....

(Reason). US forces have started bombing ISIS targets in Syria. Do you feel safer already?
What will make me feel safer is when the interventionists pay a political price for meddling.

Choose Life: Isn't She Lovely? Alexia Grace