Murphy's Sixth Law: If you perceive that there are four possible ways in which a procedure can go wrong and circumvent these, then a fifth way, unprepared for, will promptly develop.
Chart of the Day
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| On the Futility of Prohibition--Adam Smith org |
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| Via Kim Brown |
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Via Bastiat Institute |
Choose Life: Hello and Goodbye, Shane Haley (the "Bucket List Baby")....
Shane was born with anencephaly, a head/brain abnormality which typically results in death within hours of birth. Shane's loving, faithful parents were determined to celebrate his brief life by creating a bucket list, including a number of events during Jenna's pregnancy (the zoo, a trip to NY, sporting events, visits with relatives, etc.), shared on Facebook, and, of course, his Catholic baptism. My thoughts and prayers with the Haleys on the tragic loss of their beautiful baby son.
My dearest Shane Michael,
Every night I find myself looking to find a way to fall asleep but it's your sweet kicks that keep me up. You already have a favorite side that mommy lays on and, if I'm not, you remind me that you're more comfy when I lay on my right side. I've heard that laying on the left side is better for pregnancy but you are stubborn just like me and I love that. These sleepless nights are the ones I am going to miss. You've made me enjoy every second of pregnancy and you've kept me awake. I always think that it's your way of reminding me to spend more time with you and always talk to you. Each kick and roll is another reminder that you are a fighter. I love that about you. You've done more then I could ever imagine. I sometimes get sad thinking about the things I'm going to miss doing without you but I'm happy to know that you've done something I could never do. You've united so many people for one cause and that is in support of you. One tiny boy who has helped raised awareness for anencephaly. You're helping so many families break the silence. You've also done something that I am so privileged to say and that is to be your parents. So while we've watched you grow inside my tummy for all these weeks we know you've accomplished something that some people never can in a lifetime. You've taught us that life is fragile and that being a family means sticking together. You've given us hope and taught us to appreciate the little things in life. You've made a huge impact on this world and that is more than we could ever ask for. Shane Michael, Mom and Dad love you more than you could ever imagine .. Thank you for being our son.
Thank you all for your prayers, love, and support!
Shane Michael Haley
October 9, 2014
6lbs 9oz - 19 inches
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| Courtesy of Prayers for Shane on FB |
A Humorous Take on the Abomination of Civil Forfeiture
Global Energy Sources: An Overview
Congratulations, Obama! Anti-Business Policies Help Cede Our World Leading Economic Position to China...
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| Via Yahoo Finance |
I'm not going to say Obama is solely responsible for the malaise of the current economy, seemingly in a subpar growth rate rut. He inherited an aging workforce and the start of the Baby Boomer retirement; most of the budget is mandatory spending. The unsustainable welfare/entitlement burden by some estimates adds at least another $5T to each of our annual deficits. But he also was also given two advantages no other President has had in my lifetime: unprecedented Fed interest policy, nearly zero interest rates for over 6 years and counting, and a super-majority in Congress. He decided to use that super-majority to further saddle a struggling economy with a second dubious burdensome financial regulation reform in just over a decade (Sarbanes-Oxley, Dodd-Frank); he essentially increased the cost of hiring employees through ObamaCare; he played winners and losers with the economy in misguided stimulus spending (the government class benefited and special-interest green energy companies); he failed to address uncompetitive business tax policy (worldwide tax vs. territorial, high progressive tax rates); he's more than doubled the publicly-held debt, which has a long-term cost to the economy.
That some economic/job growth has occurred is despite Obama, not because of him (e.g., the oil/gas shale boom) and speaks to the resiliency of the economy. While he talks about the struggling middle class, he doesn't point out spiking health care cost benefits under government meddling have crowded out wage increases; his EPA run amok is adding to energy costs--all of these interventions have been unforced errors, pushing-on-a-string ideology and partisanship. I have consistently argued that government needs to get out of the way of an economic recovery by streamlining taxes and regulation (cf. discussion of zoning policies below), occupational licensing/new business startup burden, and employer hiring burden.
Reinventing Cities for the 21st Century
Facebook Corner
(Cato Institute). "If the two proposed rules are implemented they will add billions of dollars in costs for consumers. Such an expensive change in regulations should have to be justified with good empirical data....the FDA’s proposed rules are justified mostly by good intentions, not data."
Give consumers the information that they need to choose for themselves, including GMOs. Cato seems to want markets that have no government controls, but are, instead, tightly controlled by corporations for their own benefit.
The GMO label propaganda is a predictable fearmongering tool that attempts to use government power to drive up demand and prices for questionably scaleable food products that provide less value on the basis of nutrition. It is another case of self-serving corrupt cronyism of a special-interest group.
(separate comment)
As for the "progressive" troll's propaganda in favor of State regulation, market competition and free expression are far more effective tools, and the sale of unsafe food in a free market does not shield a vendor from legal claims. The Statist troll ignores the fact that Toyota and other manufacturers have announced recalls not ordered by failed government regulators. There are independent organizations, e.g., Consumer Reports, which assess competing products on a number of criteria; they would cease to be able to charge for their service if they lost credibility. The competition has an incentive to promote their product/service's advantages, including safety, nutrition, etc. If the non-GMO vendors believe scientific-illiterates will believe their propaganda that the higher prices are cost-justifiable, let them come up with an independent auditor to validate non-GMO claims and label their products accordingly. There are potentially an infinite number of things that a food product is not--say, overconsumption of a product will help you lose weight. Food companies should not have to label its products with any crackpot objection. They have every incentive to maintain and grow their core business and, unlike government, cannot force consumers to buy at the point of a gun.
(Reason). Washingtonian Magazine ranks Justin Amash "Lobbyists' Worst Enemy" in its 15th biennial survey on the best and worst of all the Congresscritters
And yet the "progressives" will argue that he is beholden to the Koch brothers...
(LFC). Here is a good example of the market regulating itself... What do you guys think?
"The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers." Henry The Sixth, Part 2 Act 4, scene 2, 71–78.
(Independent Institute). "By all appearances, opening barriers between nations and making borders flexible in this new phase of globalization will continue to bring choice and opportunity to societies rich and poor, young and old. Those who have not yet accepted this evident fact swim against the current at their peril. Yes, globalization means more competition and the need to adjust, sometimes painfully, as the United States and Europe are having to do in the face of Asia’s rise. But it also means, for those who do adjust, that new avenues for progress are constantly opening before their eyes. Trying to decouple the approach to immigration from policy towards the circulation of goods, services, capital, and ideas is to misunderstand markets, globalization, and history. Placing more barriers to stave off the 'pernicious' effects of competition, as the reactionaries who decry the free circulation of people, goods, services, capital, or ideas would do, will render a disservice to the very nations seeking to preserve their international leadership. Trying to be open in some areas—the circulation of goods—and protectionist in others will place nations at a disadvantage vis-à-vis those that understand that freedom is indivisible and that breaking it up into compartments severely curtails its blessings." —Alvaro Vargas Llosa
Typical economic illiterate xenophobic commentators in this thread. Not one of them realizes during the first years of the recession/recovery, there was a reverse migration to Mexico. Are you going to leave your family, friends and relatives, with limited resources, to find a job in a country with a high cost of living, limited employment opportunities, not to mention hostile, omnipresent law enforcement and neighbors willing to report you at the drop of a hat? The fact of the matter is that immigrants are fellow consumers, entrepreneurs and workers whom help grow the economy. I myself have worked in several states, without having to get permission from each state government. There is no key difference between an immigrant moving to a state and my doing the same thing. Immigration is a win-win proposition for the economy; any competent economist will tell you that.
(Institute for Justice). COPS SEIZED $ 17,550 FROM DRIVER, NEVER CHARGED HIM WITH A CRIME
The burden of proof must be on the State; this is beyond legal plunder: when police have a vested interest in seizing assets, it's corruption of the highest order. Keep in mind this incident developed over the owner's vehicle's tinted windows; I don't see any reasonable basis for a search, to begin with.
Political Cartoon
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| Courtesy of Eric Allie via IPI |
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| Courtesy of the original artist via IPI |
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| Courtesy of Henry Payne via Reason |
Linda Ronstadt, "Love Has No Pride"
