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Rand Paul
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Thursday, April 25, 2013
Friday, April 5, 2013
Big Government's "Problem Racket"
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If government is the problem, why would government want to solve it? Think about it.
Since Marxist-leaning John Dewey's educational reforms took hold in America, our citizens have been conditioned to turn to government when difficulties arise. It was a long transition from the instinctive habit of individualism and self-reliance that held on stubbornly from pioneer times through the late 50's. Vestiges of America's independent spirit remain (as seen in the Tea Party, Tenth Amendment initiatives and scattered patriot groups sandwiched between the coasts), but recent social, political and economic developments in America suggest that self-reliance is now more relic that viable force. We turn to government.
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| Understanding the Rackets |
If government is the problem, why would government want to solve it? Think about it.
Since Marxist-leaning John Dewey's educational reforms took hold in America, our citizens have been conditioned to turn to government when difficulties arise. It was a long transition from the instinctive habit of individualism and self-reliance that held on stubbornly from pioneer times through the late 50's. Vestiges of America's independent spirit remain (as seen in the Tea Party, Tenth Amendment initiatives and scattered patriot groups sandwiched between the coasts), but recent social, political and economic developments in America suggest that self-reliance is now more relic that viable force. We turn to government.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Foreign Trespassers
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It is remarkable when I find myself in agreement with the AP, but in this case I do -- at least in part. The use of the phrase "illegal immigrant" should be abandoned, as should "illegal aliens" and "undocumented workers". But the use of language in this sole instance is all I will stipulate to AP. They carry the matter much farther in support of a pervasive relativist ethic -- no labels at all, anywhere! [1] We may describe an action as illegal, but never a person. Someone may belong to the CPUSA as a loyal and activist member, but he may not be called a communist; he may, with malice aforethought, take the life of his fellow human beings, but we mustn't call him a murderer. And so on... Too judgmental. [2]
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| US Soldier at Border Fence - 1916 |
It is remarkable when I find myself in agreement with the AP, but in this case I do -- at least in part. The use of the phrase "illegal immigrant" should be abandoned, as should "illegal aliens" and "undocumented workers". But the use of language in this sole instance is all I will stipulate to AP. They carry the matter much farther in support of a pervasive relativist ethic -- no labels at all, anywhere! [1] We may describe an action as illegal, but never a person. Someone may belong to the CPUSA as a loyal and activist member, but he may not be called a communist; he may, with malice aforethought, take the life of his fellow human beings, but we mustn't call him a murderer. And so on... Too judgmental. [2]
Sunday, March 24, 2013
"Comprehensive": Cover For Central Planners
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Comprehensive legislation -- whether emanating from a city council or the US Congress -- is bound to be destructive. The differences lie only in limits of hubris and the scale of harm. At the moment I'm thinking of the push for Comprehensive Immigration Reform, the recent fiasco of healthcare reform and proposed "grand bargains" to reshape the economy. I believe the principle applies universally.
Incremental legislation, by contrast, is more targeted, manageable, easily understood, simple and transparent. Its outcomes and costs are less difficult to predict. When mistakes are made they are easier to remedy. On the other hand, incremental is harder than comprehensive. Since incremental initiatives will be elements in a larger (comprehensive) scheme, they will require careful planning, sequencing, coordinating and prioritizing. Once implemented and evaluated in action, an element may indicate the need to revise parts of the plan not yet launched.
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| Alter to Reason |
Comprehensive legislation -- whether emanating from a city council or the US Congress -- is bound to be destructive. The differences lie only in limits of hubris and the scale of harm. At the moment I'm thinking of the push for Comprehensive Immigration Reform, the recent fiasco of healthcare reform and proposed "grand bargains" to reshape the economy. I believe the principle applies universally.
Incremental legislation, by contrast, is more targeted, manageable, easily understood, simple and transparent. Its outcomes and costs are less difficult to predict. When mistakes are made they are easier to remedy. On the other hand, incremental is harder than comprehensive. Since incremental initiatives will be elements in a larger (comprehensive) scheme, they will require careful planning, sequencing, coordinating and prioritizing. Once implemented and evaluated in action, an element may indicate the need to revise parts of the plan not yet launched.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Open Thread
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Guest Conductor, Barack Obama, Leads NRSO In Offenbach Series -- Washington, DC, 16 January, 2013
Interviewed this morning, maestro Obama was effusive in his praise of the National Republican ensemble. "It has been an experience conductors can only dream of. I have never before led a symphony orchestra more attentive -- more responsive -- to my baton", said a relaxed, confident and cordial Obama to this reporter.
First violinist, John Boehner (now in an offsite meeting with the orchestra), has not been reached for comment, but it is believed that he, like the maestro, is looking forward enthusiastically to upcoming performances. While the schedule is closely held by the conductor, there is strong speculation that, following the concluding work in the current series (La Perichole), the next performance will be Carl Orff's Carmina Burana.
Guest Conductor, Barack Obama, Leads NRSO In Offenbach Series -- Washington, DC, 16 January, 2013
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| Sage Brush Symphony - 1916 |
First violinist, John Boehner (now in an offsite meeting with the orchestra), has not been reached for comment, but it is believed that he, like the maestro, is looking forward enthusiastically to upcoming performances. While the schedule is closely held by the conductor, there is strong speculation that, following the concluding work in the current series (La Perichole), the next performance will be Carl Orff's Carmina Burana.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
What Is An Assault Weapon?
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Simple answer: it is a totalitarian term of art. But the skewing of the language by the Left to serve their purposes of aggression and control should neither surprise nor trouble us; it's who they are and what they do. What is troubling is that conservatives uncritically accede to the terminology and thus to the premises of our enemies. We should immediately and instinctively correct the usage to "defense weapons" (better still, "defensive firearms"), and when there is a mass killing simply point out that a defensive firearm fell into the wrong hands -- most often the hands of persons who are mentally ill.
Simple answer: it is a totalitarian term of art. But the skewing of the language by the Left to serve their purposes of aggression and control should neither surprise nor trouble us; it's who they are and what they do. What is troubling is that conservatives uncritically accede to the terminology and thus to the premises of our enemies. We should immediately and instinctively correct the usage to "defense weapons" (better still, "defensive firearms"), and when there is a mass killing simply point out that a defensive firearm fell into the wrong hands -- most often the hands of persons who are mentally ill.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
The American Project Is Undone
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For many reasons I have not looked forward to writing this essay. Some readers will surely view it as a pessimistic and panicky jeremiad; all Henny-Penny. And I'd love to be wrong; I hope that my arguments will be found wanting and, if not rebutted definitively, at least convincingly. My thesis is this: America has passed the tipping point in its long journey toward Marxist solipcism; that, barring the miraculous or the sudden emergence of a black swan, we cannot return to being a free society.
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| Humpty Dumpty |
For many reasons I have not looked forward to writing this essay. Some readers will surely view it as a pessimistic and panicky jeremiad; all Henny-Penny. And I'd love to be wrong; I hope that my arguments will be found wanting and, if not rebutted definitively, at least convincingly. My thesis is this: America has passed the tipping point in its long journey toward Marxist solipcism; that, barring the miraculous or the sudden emergence of a black swan, we cannot return to being a free society.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Don't Stand If You Can Sit; Don't Work If You Can Steal
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Allowing for cultural exceptions, such as the Protestant Work Ethic, labor is most often motivated by the desire to satisfy physical [1] needs. We don't like to be hungry or cold or thirsty or standing wet in the rain or being unprotected from human enemies and predatory wild things. Human nature, being what it is, we try to find shortcuts (not always a good thing) and efficiencies (usually good), or when we can get by with it, not work at all. But working is not always necessary, particularly in rich societies where stealing may be an attractive alternative.
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| The Great Train Robbery |
Allowing for cultural exceptions, such as the Protestant Work Ethic, labor is most often motivated by the desire to satisfy physical [1] needs. We don't like to be hungry or cold or thirsty or standing wet in the rain or being unprotected from human enemies and predatory wild things. Human nature, being what it is, we try to find shortcuts (not always a good thing) and efficiencies (usually good), or when we can get by with it, not work at all. But working is not always necessary, particularly in rich societies where stealing may be an attractive alternative.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Fiscal Cliff: Let's Test Obama
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It comes to a choice, I think, between acute and chronic pain.
"Fiscal cliff" [1] ranks right up there with "shovel-ready jobs, reset button and pivoting..." as another simplistic and vacuous metaphor. Nevertheless, the consequences of great tax increases paired with sharply reduced government spending should not be underestimated. Another recession, bankruptcies, defense vulnerabilities and a probable downgrading of US credit seem all but certain. But what if Republicans compromise with the administration in raising revenue through "taxing the rich"? [2]
What if they don't?
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| How Steep the Cliff; How Hard the Fall? |
It comes to a choice, I think, between acute and chronic pain.
"Fiscal cliff" [1] ranks right up there with "shovel-ready jobs, reset button and pivoting..." as another simplistic and vacuous metaphor. Nevertheless, the consequences of great tax increases paired with sharply reduced government spending should not be underestimated. Another recession, bankruptcies, defense vulnerabilities and a probable downgrading of US credit seem all but certain. But what if Republicans compromise with the administration in raising revenue through "taxing the rich"? [2]
What if they don't?
Friday, November 16, 2012
Conservatism Might Be A Good Thing...
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I allude by reference to George Bernard Shaw's famous quotation, Christianity might be a good thing if anyone ever tried it. Actually, Christianity has been tried by a great many people, and with considerable success. And the same is true of conservatism, but in a much more limited way.
I allude by reference to George Bernard Shaw's famous quotation, Christianity might be a good thing if anyone ever tried it. Actually, Christianity has been tried by a great many people, and with considerable success. And the same is true of conservatism, but in a much more limited way.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Romney Retrospective
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I suspect that for many of us on the conservative side Mitt Romney's rise through the primaries had a foreboding familiarity about it. McCain redux. Another politically spineless pretender to conservatism carrying the Republican banner. Another candidate of adaptive principle who would rather be liked than respected.
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| The Romneys in Altoona, Iowa |
I suspect that for many of us on the conservative side Mitt Romney's rise through the primaries had a foreboding familiarity about it. McCain redux. Another politically spineless pretender to conservatism carrying the Republican banner. Another candidate of adaptive principle who would rather be liked than respected.
Monday, November 12, 2012
How Progressives Won
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Adding to the general confusion to be expected in a political rout is how questions are framed. Establishment Republicans tend to put it this way: How did we lose? Contrast the question with this essay's title. I hope the reader will see what I see.
Adding to the general confusion to be expected in a political rout is how questions are framed. Establishment Republicans tend to put it this way: How did we lose? Contrast the question with this essay's title. I hope the reader will see what I see.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Mea Culpa; Mea Maxima Culpa
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Whatever shortcomings I may have -- and they are many -- I maintain a high regard for integrity. In myself and others. It's for that reason that I long ago resolved not to be a "drive-by" blogger.* If I make a mess along the way, I'll retrace my steps and clean it up.
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| Manasseh's Sin and Repentance |
Whatever shortcomings I may have -- and they are many -- I maintain a high regard for integrity. In myself and others. It's for that reason that I long ago resolved not to be a "drive-by" blogger.* If I make a mess along the way, I'll retrace my steps and clean it up.
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Predicting An Early Night
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Here, I take a position squarely at odds with pollsters, pundits and political pros. I expect the presidential election to be called early by Fox News. For Mitt Romney on the wave of a strong mandate. If I am wrong, there is a great deal more at stake than my credibility.
Here, I take a position squarely at odds with pollsters, pundits and political pros. I expect the presidential election to be called early by Fox News. For Mitt Romney on the wave of a strong mandate. If I am wrong, there is a great deal more at stake than my credibility.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Obama Is Right About Changing Government
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"The most important lesson I've learned is that you can't change Washington from the inside." [1] Though I may have arrived at the same conclusion much earlier, by another route, and in another context, I have to concede that the President spoke the truth; which, in itself, is noteworthy.
"The most important lesson I've learned is that you can't change Washington from the inside." [1] Though I may have arrived at the same conclusion much earlier, by another route, and in another context, I have to concede that the President spoke the truth; which, in itself, is noteworthy.
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Debate: How MSM Set Up Obama to Fail
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Contrary to what seems to be the consensus, I don't think Mr. Obama was "off his game" in the first Presidential debate. It's just that the game wasn't played by his rules. MSM rules.
Obama at his best is prolix, stammering, pretentious and careless of fact, but his gift is a rare combination of rich voice, perfectly reinforcing gestures, facial expressions and cadence, capped by ex cathedra delivery that is mesmerizing and freighted with a strong hint of intimidation that discourages debate. He is the uber elitist, perfectly miming the best features of the truly elite. That he is profoundly ignorant in so many areas of common knowledge, thoroughly corrupt and intellectually vapid is not easily seen behind the persona of an accomplished man of letters. Not seen at all by legacy-media types.
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| Obama In Love |
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| Romney (In the Real World) |
Contrary to what seems to be the consensus, I don't think Mr. Obama was "off his game" in the first Presidential debate. It's just that the game wasn't played by his rules. MSM rules.
Obama at his best is prolix, stammering, pretentious and careless of fact, but his gift is a rare combination of rich voice, perfectly reinforcing gestures, facial expressions and cadence, capped by ex cathedra delivery that is mesmerizing and freighted with a strong hint of intimidation that discourages debate. He is the uber elitist, perfectly miming the best features of the truly elite. That he is profoundly ignorant in so many areas of common knowledge, thoroughly corrupt and intellectually vapid is not easily seen behind the persona of an accomplished man of letters. Not seen at all by legacy-media types.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Ignorance vs. Stupidity: A Dead Heat at CNN
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More and more I am convinced that legacy media folks -- contrary to the opinion of some conservatives -- are perfectly sincere. Innocent of fact, curiosity or independent thought, to be sure, but sincere. They believe they are right in most, if not all, things, and I think they might even feel sorry for the rest of us if sympathy wouldn't interfere with the pleasure they take in condescension.
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| CNN Ireport Badge |
More and more I am convinced that legacy media folks -- contrary to the opinion of some conservatives -- are perfectly sincere. Innocent of fact, curiosity or independent thought, to be sure, but sincere. They believe they are right in most, if not all, things, and I think they might even feel sorry for the rest of us if sympathy wouldn't interfere with the pleasure they take in condescension.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Mr. Obama: A Competent President
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If many people have styled President Obama as incompetent, they can be forgiven for their error; they are thinking that a robust economy and a position of strength in foreign policy are his objectives. They are traditional Americans. But seen from a Marxist point of view (the President's and that of his ardent Jacobin cohort) he has been extremely -- perhaps, spectacularly -- successful. He has further divided America along lines of race and class, hardened the ideology and dogma of the Left, increasingly marginalized capitalism in the public mind, and, by straining the economy to the point of collapse, he has set the stage for socialist revolution. The uprising of the masses against the bourgeoisie that historicism demands. He has succeeded beyond the dreams, so long unrealized, of Marxists planners who have so often been disappointed. [1]
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| Rope and Chains |
If many people have styled President Obama as incompetent, they can be forgiven for their error; they are thinking that a robust economy and a position of strength in foreign policy are his objectives. They are traditional Americans. But seen from a Marxist point of view (the President's and that of his ardent Jacobin cohort) he has been extremely -- perhaps, spectacularly -- successful. He has further divided America along lines of race and class, hardened the ideology and dogma of the Left, increasingly marginalized capitalism in the public mind, and, by straining the economy to the point of collapse, he has set the stage for socialist revolution. The uprising of the masses against the bourgeoisie that historicism demands. He has succeeded beyond the dreams, so long unrealized, of Marxists planners who have so often been disappointed. [1]
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Tea Party Terrorism
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I was recently dismayed to learn that, as a Tea Party member, I am, per se, a terrorist. Well, a potential terrorist anyway. And that revelation on no less authority than the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). [1]
A report commissioned by DHS called Hot Spots of US Terrorism tells us exactly who the terrorists are:
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| Che Guevara |
I was recently dismayed to learn that, as a Tea Party member, I am, per se, a terrorist. Well, a potential terrorist anyway. And that revelation on no less authority than the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). [1]
A report commissioned by DHS called Hot Spots of US Terrorism tells us exactly who the terrorists are:
Extreme Right-Wing: groups that believe that one’s personal and/or national “way of life” is under attack and is either already lost or that the threat is imminent (for some the threat is from a specific ethnic, racial, or religious group), and believe in the need to be prepared for an attack either by participating in paramilitary preparations and training or survivalism. Groups may also be fiercely nationalistic (as opposed to universal and international in orientation), anti-global, suspicious of centralized federal authority, reverent of individual liberty, and believe in conspiracy theories that involve grave threat to national sovereignty and/or personal liberty.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Short Take: Republicans Endorsing Hillary? (*)
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In political contests all sides labor diligently to insure that events affecting the contest are not left to chance. Though mistakes are inevitable, some "mistakes" are contrived. That's exactly what seems to have happened in the case of the public endorsement of Hillary Clinton by Sarah Palin and John McCain.
In political contests all sides labor diligently to insure that events affecting the contest are not left to chance. Though mistakes are inevitable, some "mistakes" are contrived. That's exactly what seems to have happened in the case of the public endorsement of Hillary Clinton by Sarah Palin and John McCain.
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