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Friday, August 21, 2015

Miscellany: 8/21/15

Quote of the Day
There are two types of people in this world, good and bad. 
The good sleep better, 
but the bad seem to enjoy the waking hours much more.
Woody Allen

Image of the Day

via Catholic Libertarians on FB

Tweet of the Day
Daddies: Teach Your Daughters Well



Cherokee Lizzie's War on Consumers: End the Fascist CFBC!



Murder By the Ruling Class



Facebook Corner

(Jeffrey Tucker). At what point should the critics of Trump start to fear for their lives and liberties? If he actually gets elected, he will use every power to crush every enemy.
The fact he's still fuming over Rosie O'Donnell, not to mention has gone after Megyn Kelly, McCain, Graham, Rand Paul, and anyone else who looks at him the wrong way... In an earlier comment, I said can you imagine if the Congress won't rubberstamp his agenda? Think Obama's executive orders or Nixon's enemies list on steroids. Could you imagine if Putin insults this thin-skinned son of a bitch? Can you imagine how he could abuse the IRS or national intelligence?

 What's really scary is his ignorance of the limits of the Presidency, the idea that he could unilaterally slap a tariff on Ford products in Mexico vs. NAFTA?

(Stossel). ‪#‎STOSSEL‬ just got Trumped because of Donald Trump's rally. My show will NOT air tonight.
You know, John, if the economically illiterate, ill-tempered, xenophobic incompetent "four bankruptcies" buffoon is elected President, Fox will need you to run your show 5 days a week.

(Jeffrey Tucker). The common element in all fascist ideology is trade war. It combines nationalism, xenophobia, and populist economic ignorance. If you listen to Trump, he says insane things about trade, proposing that he personally be in charge of all economic relations with foreign nations. He has said, many times, that he will use government power to prevent companies from expanding abroad. It's the crudest form of mercantilism, and his plan would impoverish everyone. It's very tragic in some ways. Economics has been trying to explain international trade for hundreds of years, and then one demagogue comes along with all the old fallacies and lies and people just fall over themselves with love for his genius.
Great piece. Let's point out that Trump's right-fascism has its ideological mirror-image, left-fascism. (There are still those on the left arguing Hitler was right-wing, that he didn't sponsor a social welfare state.) It's amusing to hear Bernie Sanders' version of economic nationalism call open immigration a Koch brothers' right-wing plot. 

 Mark Perry (Carpe Diem) also talked about the rank hypocrisy of Trump, e.g., his clothing collection has included items made in Mexico and China, two countries that Trump has bashed the most.

(Reason). Republicans are finally coming around to the reality of Obamacare. The problem is that they’re five years too late. 
We need some basic reforms, e.g.,:
- allow competition of high deductible major medical plans across state lines
- allow self-insured healthcare plans to operate across states
- eliminate or at least flatten/means-test healthcare tax breaks
- vest consumers in efficient healthcare decisions
- repeal or privatize occupational licensing
- privatize the FDA
- encourage competition and new medical business models, e.g., concierge services, medical tourism, and flat-bid, all-inclusive services

(IPI).  Yesterday, the Illinois Senate overrode Governor Bruce Rauner's veto of the interest arbitration or “no strike-no lockout” bill.
The measure would enable mandatory arbitration should either the state, or its unionized employees, declare a bargaining impasse in their continuing contract talks.
State Senator Sam McCann of Carlinville was the only Republican to vote for the arbitration override.
Good.. I'm glad they overrode the bill. Rauner wants to cut the pay and reduce benefits of working class people. How about increasing the tax rate on the super rich and big business if you have a revenue problem. Don't lay the burden on the poor and middle class working adults. I pay my taxes and have no problem having my taxes used for those that work for us.. Cut spending elsewhere if you need to spend less.
More proof that the political whore Dems are the union's bought and paid for bitches. These union parasites spamming the thread are arguing for self-serving bastards price gouging Illinois taxpayers. Basically arbitrators are union workarounds to good-faith negotiations in a financially-strapped state. To give an example, in 15 cases involving disciplinary actions taken against rogue cops on the West Coast, seven were revoked and 5 were reduced by arbitrators.

(Catholic Libertarians). See the Image of the Day.
I'm not sure I quite buy that one's political beliefs stem from one's religion. For example, almost every federal Catholic Democrat is pro-abort, and a simple majority of SCOTUS is Catholic, but Roe v. Wade stands. Also note the choice of terms: "common good", "solidarity", etc,; these are indicative of more a communitarian, vs. individualist perspective. From libertarianism, this is more indicative of a left-libertarian/traditional "no-property" anarchism. (I could discuss these themes from a pro-liberty perspective, e.g., voluntary transactions re: the invisible hand, serving the common good. But beware of the ruling class over the common good and their corrupt bargains.) I don't think these positions necessarily reflect religious perspective; for example, there are pro-life atheists/agnostics.

 I think a similar meme could be devised (if it hasn't already) on the terms 'conservative' and 'liberal/progressive'. I have noted 2-3 times this year in other groups I've been called a liberal (I am a classical liberal, but not a social liberal, which most people mean by the term). I don't immediately recall the context; it may have been on an Eric Garner or immigration thread. 

 I do agree that Catholicism helps shape my values, but if and when this pope publishes pro-Statist/leftist garbage, I ignore it.

Venezuela's Experiment of Socialism on its Citizens

HT: Carpe Diem



Political Cartoon
Courtesy of Henry Payne via Reason
Musical Interlude: My Favorite Vocalists

Kenny Rogers (with Gladys Knight), "If I Knew Then What I Know Now"

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