So, what can we do to improve and promote this site?

We’ve been over at the new site for six months or so .

The last three months have been about even in visits and page views:

http://www.sitemeter.com/?a=stats&s=s28lastfreevoice&r=33

The last few weeks we have added a LFV group on
facebook and a LFV page on myspace. Our newest blogger, not yet on the about LFV page, is the world famous (or is that infamous?) Steve Gordon.

I’ve been putting out posts like this on group emails to the bloggers here and on our facebook page, but I usually don’t get a lot of response to those, so I thought I would throw it out here; I hope Stuart and others don’t mind if we get some reader input here.

Should we add more writers here? If so, how many should we have? Several people have asked to be added; I’m not sure if there are more interested who have not let us know (if so, post it in the comments). Have we already reached a saturation point, or have any people who have asked to be added and not been added just been overlooked?

I have a couple of ideas I’d like to test out here if any of the other folks here are interested; one is to have a LFV blog talk radio show (I’ll co-host if anyone is interested), and another is to have some of the writers (those who have webcams – that would not be me) record our own Video Blogs.

Besides that, open forum time: what subjects are we covering too much or too little? What have been your most and least favorite posts and/or comments? What can we do to make this place more interesting and popular?

Ed & Elaine Brown update

Just got this from a Myspace bulletin, so take it for what it’s worth, but:

For those of you who have been following the Ed and Elaine Brown story, this message is for you:

Reports of 20-30 shots fired at Ed’s house up in Plainfield…no news as to who is the culprit. Possibly law enforcement agents. Confirmed by inside sources at the Brown house..unreported by outside MSM. Developing…

Does anyone know anything more about this?

Some Friday night fun

It’s Friday and I’m getting over being sick, so this is the only cocktail I’m having.

How to make a miche

Ingredients:3 parts competetiveness 3 parts self-sufficiency 3 parts ego

Method: Stir together in a glass tumbler with a salted rim. Top it off with a sprinkle of emotion and enjoy!

 

Username:

Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

Tommy Cryer wins

I told you last month about the Browns and mentioned Tommy Cryer’s case. As a refresher, there is no law that demands payment of a tax on the average man’s wage and these people are fighting the system to prove it.

I was called everything from stupid c*nt to tin foil hat nutjob, but it appears that the last laugh is the tin foil hatters’. Tommy Cryer won his case. From the linked article:

The Internal Revenue Service has lost a lawyer’s challenge in front of a jury to prove a constitutional foundation for the nation’s income tax, and the victorious attorney now is setting his sights higher.

“I think now people are beginning to realize that this has got to be the largest fraud, backed up by intimidation and extortion and by the sheer force of taking peoples property and hard-earned money without any lawful authorization whatsoever,” lawyer Tom Cryer told WND just days after a jury in Louisiana acquitted him of two criminal tax counts.

snip…

He said multiple Supreme Court opinions have affirmed an individual’s ownership of his or her own labor, and “exercising your fundamental rights” is not taxable. “It is definitely a trade. What most people receive in the form of wages, salaries or in my case fees that they personally earned for their labor is not received in exchange for nothing.”

He said there might be a profit that should be taxable, but there might not.

“The IRS lets Wal-Mart sell a trillion dollars worth of goods, but they can back out their cost of goods [before being taxed,]” he said. “The IRS considers, in the case of a Wal-Mart wage earner, 100 percent of what he takes in is profit.”

“But he’s using his life, energy and work lifespan, and depleting it as he goes,” Cryer told WND. “[Working] is a God-given fundamental right that is protected under the Constitution and can’t be taxed any more than exercising freedom of speech.”

Damn, wearing a tin foil hat has never felt so freaking fashionable.

Scary shit

Rapture Ready: The Unauthorized Christians United for Israel Tour from huffpost and Vimeo.

Presidential Candidate Purity Testing

While I believe that “how libertarian” a candidate is shouldn’t be the only deciding factor in determining whether to vote for them, I feel it’s important we discuss it more than “so-and-so’s position on this is not libertarian”, both with regard to their position on it and whether they address it at all. I recognize this thread will likely turn into a huge argument, and if people can provide me with information to alter my analysis, I will be happy to change it. (If I’m slow in doing so, I won’t be offended if other LFV writers do it, though I’d prefer it if those officially affiliated with certain campaigns didn’t do so, for obvious reasons.)

The three substantial candidates I consider remotely libertarian are Steve Kubby, Ron Paul, and George Phillies. (Despite others including Christine Smith as a substantial candidate, I have seen functionally no presence from her.) The standard I’ll use for “libertarian” will be the LP platform, which I recognize is by no means perfect, but it gives me a set of issues to work with. I’ll consider the candidates in alphabetical order.

Notable Ron Paul hater exposed as a fraud?

If there is one thing I can’t stand, it is a fraud. Readers of this blog know that full well – anything I perceive to be shady, I post about it. Heck, I don’t even like the appearance of impropriety. Not that I’m perfect myself, but I don’t put myself out there as anything but a humble blogger, and you can expect nothing more or less.

Well, according to this article, the word “fraud” exactly describes Doug Thompson, creator of “Capitol Hill Blue“. What did he do exactly, you may ask? My first thought when I heard about this was that he’d simply posted under a fake name, like John Lott or Libertarian Girl. Well, apparently that is correct, but it goes way beyond that minor internet charade. The allegations range from making up sources out of whole cloth all the way to plagiarism, and everything in between.

I’ve been aware of Capitol Hill Blue for like a decade now. Didn’t know much about them, except I remember that they really didn’t like Bill Clinton. Also, they’re the source of the claim that Bush called the Constitution a “piece of paper” or something like that. And, from the article, it seems they really don’t like Ron Paul or his supporters.

Reading through the pages of Capitol Hill Blue, I can’t help but feeling a bit sad. From their editorial slant, I think they probably are in alignment with some of my own political views. Even their tagline expresses this: Because nobody’s life, liberty or property are safe while Congress is in session.

Any readers have any thoughts on the article in question, or about Capitol Hill Blue? And anyone know why a webpage like Capitol Hill Blue, which seems to dislike government as much as I do, would be against the only Libertarian in congress?

New Survey Results: Paul Wins, Root Wins, Phillies Wins, Kubby Wins

The lastest LibertarianLists survey is completed. This time, we spent more time looking information which will impact the Libertarian Party’s presidential candidates. It looks as if all of the LP presidential frontrunners will be able to spin the data in a favorable manner to their respective campaigns.

Ron Paul is still the big winner. However, if you take a look at all survey respondents, Wayne Allyn Root comes out on top of the LP candidates, with Kubby and Phillies tied for second.

My Kind of Political Ad

As cynical as I’ve become about politics, it’s not often I see/hear something from a politician that makes me smile, but this one is a rare exception:

Atlas! PAC

Here is an organization I hope everyone will get more active in supporting…I received a notice
from its chairman, Mark Rutherford, through facebook.

July 23rd I’ll be flying to Atlanta and having dinner with current Libertarian Party of Alabama Chairman Stephen Gorden, Deborah Gordon and a very influential national political figure. Stephen and I will be introducing Atlas!PAC to this influential person. Please invite fellow libertarians to join Atlas!PAC. Although we just started, we’ve already sent four Libertarians for campaign training to Washington, D.C. and our sponsorship of the Region Three Convention will enable several student libertarians to receive fund raising training free of charge.

Spread the word! Atlas!PAC is finally helping libertarians do the practical things needed to get elected.

Remember, I’d rather have Libertarians on the inside then the outside. You can changes things easier from the inside.

Mark W. Rutherford
Chairman
Atlas!PAC

Scientists prove you really don’t need a brain to be a tax collector

Tiny Brain No Problem for French Tax Official

Something that many people secretly believed has been confirmed: You don’t actually need a brain to work in a tax office. A French civil servant has been found to have a huge cavity filled with fluid in his head — yet lives a completely normal life.

The commonly spouted wisdom that people only use 10 percent of their brain power may have been dismissed as a myth, but one French man seems to be managing fine with just a small fraction of his actual brain.

In fact the man, who works as a civil servant in southern France, has succeeded in living an entirely normal life despite a huge fluid-filled cavity taking up most of the space where his brain should be.

Neurologists at the University of Marseille described the incredible case in the latest edition of the medical journal Lancet published Friday.They describe how the 44-year-old man went to the hospital in 2003 because he felt a mild weakness in his left leg. When the doctors went to look at his brain to see if the problem lay there, they found, well, pretty much nothing but a great black hole.

Scans of the man’s brain show the huge fluid-filled chamber and the thin sheet of actual brain tissue.

The man told the hospital that as a child he had suffered from hydrocephalus (also known as “water on the brain”), a condition in which an abnormal ammount of cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the brain cavities, causing pressure inside the skull. To treat the condition, a valve known as a “shunt” had been inserted in his head to drain away the fluid when he was a six-month old baby. It was removed when he was 14.This information prompted the doctors to give him a computed tomography scan (CT) and a magnetic resonance imaging scan (MRI). They then saw that there was what they — somewhat euphemistically — called a “massive enlargement” of the lateral ventricles, chambers that hold the fluid which cushions and protects the brain and which are usually tiny.

Dr. Lionel Fuillet, who headed the team that treated the man, told the Agence France Presse agency that a huge cavity had built up filled with fluid, while a thin sheet of functioning brain tissue, the proverbial grey matter, “was completely pushed back to the inner walls of the cranium.”

Tests showed that the man’s IQ is 75 — the average is 100 — but he was not considered physically or mentally disabled. Fuillet said that his condition had not impared his development or his socialization. He is married with two children and works in the tax office — which is perhaps not the most “taxing” of jobs.

“The case is extreme, but there are other cases of patients with incredibly little brain matter,” Florian Heinen, a brain development expert at the Dr. von Hauner’s Children’s Hospital at Munich University, explained to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. “Obviously these few nerve cells can achieve just as much as the millions more cells that other people have.”

I bet if they did an MRI on Dubya, they’d find a similar lack of brain matter. That sure would explain a lot, wouldn’t it? LOL

FEC Reports on Libertarian presidential campaigns

The following links are permanent, because they are based on the candidate’s FEC registration number, so those interested in such things may want to bookmark them (or bookmark this page, whichever is easier). Each candidate page lists links to contributions, reports, and all kinds of interesting things.

What I found most interesting of all, though, is that the much-touted Wayne Allyn Root is not even registered with the FEC as a candidate, libertarian or otherwise. Dondero isn’t registered with the FEC for his alleged run against Ron Paul, either.

George Phillies: One contributor has donated over $1000. It appears that Dr. Phillies has donated much more to his own campaign than what I originally thought. Nothing wrong with that, but it’s interesting if his own contributions are being counted in overall contributions for the quarter for comparison purposes with other LP candidates.

Steve Kubby: Three contributors have donated over $1000 each; two of them have given $2000. Kubby has not contributed any funds to his own campaign, and that’s okay too.

Christine Smith: One person has contributed $2000. Ms. Smith also received an individual contribution from someone who works for the Oregon LP. She has not contributed to her own campaign.

Mike Jingozian: Jingozian has received no contributions.

Alden Link: Link is registered with the FEC as a Republican presidential candidate. He has received no contributions.

Bob Jackson: Jackson has received no contributions.

Daniel Imperato: Imperato is registered with the FEC as an Independent. He has received no contributions.

Barry Hess: Not registered with FEC

Wayne Allyn Root: Not registered with FEC

Robert Milnes: Not registered with FEC

Dave Hollist: Not registered with FEC

John Finan: Not registered with FEC

Known Libertarian Selected For Barker’s Replacement on Game Show

It’s official! Rosie O’Donnell will not be spouting off 9/11 conspiracies on the “Price Is Right”. Drew Carey is Barker’s replacement on the longtime game show. I think Barker let out a big sigh of relief when he found out Drew was replacing him and not Rosie.

Barker said he’s not familiar enough with Carey’s past performances to offer an opinion on his selection. But, he said, “I understand he ad-libs very well and that he has a very nice, friendly way of working, and I think both of those would be helpful to him on`The Price Is Right.’” His advice for Carey: “Go out there and do that show the way you think it should be done. Don’t imitate me and don’t imitate anyone else.”

We have John Stossel on ABC and Drew Carey on CBS…who’s next?

Lawsuit against US Department of Veterans Affairs alleges multiple abuses of injured war veterans

A class action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Iraq War veterans against the US Department of Veterans Affairs. A copy of the lawsuit complaint may be seen at http://www.mofo.com/docs/pdf/PTSD070723.pdf

Along with a plethora of abuses alleged in that lawsuit, it is additionally alleged (as previously touched upon in this forum, when I noted that this is a longstanding action dating back to at least the early 1980s) that the VA has conspired with the Pentagon to falsely categorize veterans as suffering from preexisting personality disorders, as a way of denying them their veteran benefits.

According to the lawsuit, the Veterans Administration has a backlog of between 400,000 and 600,000 claims. It states that it takes 177 days to process an initial claim, and 657 days to process an appeal, and some benefit claims take up to ten years to decide while injured veterans suffer and, sometimes, die awaiting necessary care. The suit additionally compares this timeline to healthcare claims made in the private sector, which take on average less than 70 days to decide.

Additionally, according to the lawsuit, senior VA officials were given $3.8 million in bonuses during 2005, the same year in which the VA spent $1 billion over budget while timely and appropriate treatment of injured veterans continued to decline.

Most recently, there have been a rash of suicides by Iraq War veterans, which were attributed to the agency’s failure to provide sufficient and appropriate mental health care to war veterans.

The law firm representing the veterans, Morrison and Foerster, stated that the lawsuit does not seek to make a statement about the war, but instead is intended to force action on veterans’ benefit issues.

Recently, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, in a sharply worded decision regarding the failure of the VA to pay retroactive benefits to Vietnam veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and suffered from a form of leukemia, “The performance of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs has contributed substantially to our sense of national shame.”

According to the newest complaint, which seeks a court order directing the Veterans Administration to make drastic changes in order to properly and timely treat injured and ill veterans, “Unless systemic and drastic measures are instituted immediately, the costs to these veterans, their families and our nation will be incalculable, including broken families, a new generation of unemployed and homeless veterans, increases in drug abuse and alcoholism, and crushing burdens on the health care delivery system.”

Update from the Phillies campaign

Good News from Phillies 2008
July 22, 2007

For second quarter, Phillies 2008 raised $11,700. Counting checks in hand, we are already over $10,000 for third quarter. In the same quarter, the Smith campaign raised $2264, while the Kubby campaign raised $568.

The week featured two extended radio interviews and a trip to New Jersey. Check out the debate with Daniel Imperato at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/asher . Listen to the interview with Chuck Gooch at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thehawgpen

Advertising: Phillies 2008 Radio ads will start airing in the next few weeks. One ad an hour, 6 days a week, for 13 weeks. This is a live broadcast plus podcast on a show heard from sea to sea by many libertarian Republicans. The contract has been approved, and the check is being written.

More advertising: Another web page milestone was passed: The front page has had 150,000 downloads. The Google Adwords Campaign is now well over two million impressions. The click-through rate for the core campaign has tripled, comparing first half of July with first half of June. A major newsletter and fundraising mailing should start hitting libertarian mail boxes this week.

Staff News:

Please welcome Carolyn Marbry of San Francisco as Press Director. She will be preparing several press releases a week, circulating widely to bring our issues to all Americans.

Nevada State Coordinator (and LP of Nevada Vice Chair) Debra Dedmon has taken over materials distribution, sending printed matter to state coordinators and others.

Jake Porter received the additional position of Associate Chief of Staff, reflecting his major role in campaign operations. He continues as National Mobilization Facilitator, in charge of all volunteer operations.

Volunteer operations are now so large that Jake Porter needs assistants. Press Director Carolyn Marbry will be Assistant National Mobilization Facilitator for Electronic Operations, in charge of recruiting volunteers for all the net outlets and in charge of classical media operations. An Assistant National Mobilization Facilitator for Volunteer Operations to be named will support recruiting and assisting state and affinity group coordinators.

City Councilman Gone Wild

From The Smoking Gun:

A Cleveland City Councilman wrote the following to a constituent who was arrested on felony drug trafficking charges. (I had to shrink it to fit this forum, so if you can’t read it, hit Ctrl + to enlarge the document.)

Not at all surprisingly, the young man’s mother considers the letter to be a threat, and is conferring with her attorney. Of even more concern, however, is that the letter was copied to the Chief of Police, the Department of Public Safety, and the Commander of the local police district headquarters.I get the impression he doesn’t like the kid, because the kid dared to mouth off to him, so he’s trying to improperly influence the police with regard to the charges and criminal case. Disgusting.

Reno Gonzalez to accompany Cindy Sheehan to Iraq

From Reno Gonzalez’s myspace blog…..

Understand this please…
Current mood: peacefulfor those that do not yet understand; I am not at Elaine or Ed’s home any longer.

There are three stories, what I was told by Ed and what Ed tells others, then the real reason. You can go ask ed why, I am tired of the lies flying around. Just another distraction from the stand I have taken on and it needs support.

Understand this…

I am working at holding our very own government accountable for the wrongs in the past and in the here and now.

I am not holding a protest march, not asking for permission to stand on a corner to tell others the truth… I am not giving into the non laws that control us.

I was sad to leave the home, but they made the choice to ask me to leave. But that does not mean much to me really. Sitting on my ass waiting for what? Security, I gave my two cents… And got nothing.

Waiting? For what? Ask to leave? Yes I was, but being on the move is where I am more at ease. Waiting for what!?!

If not me then who? If not now then when?

I have not gone home. I have been helping others setup their own orgs to networks and reach out to others…

I am not going home. Not while I still have the means… And the means I have. Thanks to your very own support and from the donations to the cause that moves this movement forward.

I will not ask for permission to continue, I have the personal responsibility to push myself forward. I determine my own level of involvement.

I sit on my ass only when I have to drive and eat. Sometimes both of those at the same time.

I cannot just sit and wait for others to wake up. So I am pushing myself to find others that are ready to cut the bullshit off. Too god damn many are hurt everyday just waiting… fuck that!

I have some interesting news for you all…

For those of you that did not know, Cindy Sheehan is going to Jordan, Syria and then to Iraq as part of her peace efforts.

A good friend of mine called and updated me about the Camp Casey’s change of command and then went on to explain the peace efforts that he will be joining Cindy Sheehan on. After a long pause, I offered my services to the group going.

He and I talked at length about what would be expected and I assured him I was ready. This is not my first time to Iraq and this is not my first time at a war zone. Nor is it my first time placing myself in harms way.

It has occurred to many that I have been allowed to travel freely about after my time with the Elaine and Ed Brown.

And I myself wonder; along with others if I will be grabbed at the airport or will they wait to allow me to leave and have someone else do their dirty work… Either way… This is new for me…

A chance to work with people that are known and actively working to end what I first saw as a must be stopped war.

I mean I have done the anti war marches and the peace marches, but none of them I felt really did anything. And the coverage was just suck.

Cindy on the other hand, moves around and gets in people’s faces and demands answers. And demands them then and there. My kinda activist.

I remember hearing about Cindy going to Cuba, and I so fucking wanted to go meet that group there… But instead I set my focus on something that could be tracked and explained to bring our government back to the people’s will and control; and hold those that lied accountable for their actions.

On Easter weekend of this year I met Cindy in person. It was part of my trip on my way to offer my services to Elaine and Ed Brown. Funny how some things work out.

Once I have things all set I will update my status on my work here at home. Perhaps I could blog about my account of what happens over seas…

IF, I am not able to go with them on their “Peace Efforts”… Then I will carry on here. California and Arizona have been asking for a meeting there and I want to go talk to them.

Plus I understand that Bree Walker would like to speak with me… I would love to visit Camp Casey again…

Reno

I am glad to hear that someone with experience in a war zone will be accompanying Ms. Sheehan, and I send their entire peace party the very best wishes for a safe and fruitful journey.

Robert Milnes, Steve Kubby, Ron Paul, fan letters, and prison

First I’d like to say that by far the most important development in the libertarian race thus far is “The Libertarian Vote” study published by The Cato Institute. See: http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=6735 Briefly, 20% of voters are libertarian leaning at the beginning of the election cycle (Gallup Governance Survey). 13% are reliably libertarian. 1% wind up actually voting Libertarian. My own conclusion is that 7% of the 20% are leftists. Further, I estimate the leftist vote as 27% which leaves 20% left, 20% right i.e. 40% possible progressive vote. If you understand this study, you understand a lot about the Progressive Alliance Strategy and what is happening with Ron Paul. Paul has tapped into this initial cycle 20%. It represents a kind of “glass ceiling” which no Libertarian can penetrate. This is why I believe it cannot last and Ron Paul cannot get the GOP nomination. Now, I believe, and I have read others about this, that Ron Paul’ s positions actually fit best in the Constitution Party. Kubby correctly describes Paul as a “right-wing libertarian” & I enjoyed his description of the Libertarian Party as like a plane with only a right wing. Kubby wants to reach out to leftists but he wants their vote and support but offers them little compared to an actual agreement (alliance).The Progressive Alliance Strategy calls for a left-libertarian presidential candidate OR a Green. Briefly, this strategy calls for cooperation between the inclusive Green and Libertarian Parties in order to garner the 40% progressive vote. One Green OR Libertarian on EVERY ballot, so as not to split the vote; first come, first served. The executive ticket is more complicated but the most simple strategy would be for the Green Party to endorse the Libertarian ticket as it will probably garner more ballot access. Clearly in all this Paul’s candidacy is an anomaly and an unfortunate complication. He is drawing libertarian support from the libertarians to the GOP. If we further assume a working hypothesis that there are about 50% right and left libertarians, Paul is getting most right and many left libertarian support (70%). I am convinced the LibertarianLists poll is fairly accurate. See: http://www.libertarianlists.com/surveyresult1 In all of this in my opinion Kubby’s endorsement of Ron Paul’s candidacy is a huge strategic blunder. He should call for, as I do, for libertarians to cease their support for Ron Paul. He is diverting libertarian support to the GOP. He is not a good progressive alliance candidate.In fact, if he gets the LP and/or the Constitution Party nomination, he could ruin (spoiler) a Progressive Alliance attempt at victory.”All Together Now” should mean all the LP candidates call for libertarians to cease support for Ron Paul. Kubby wants his cake & eat it too. He endorses Ron Paul yet says”I’m still running for president”. Also that if Paul wins the GOP nomination, he “…will withdraw, ask the party to nominate “None of the Above”… and work as a volunteer on Paul’s…campaign.” If not, he will”…continue preparing to give the LP the best presidential campaign I can…”. I, on the other hand, will not endorse Ron Paul and continue to offer all progressives the reasonable chance of election victory. For further information about my candidacy, See; http://www.robertmilnes.net
WE ARE IN TO WIN.

That’s all well and good, and his point is just as valid as anyone else’s on this topic, but this is as good a time as any to say that voters have a right to know about Robert Milnes’ very serious criminal record (which he doesn’t try to hide, to his credit, but it’s the nature of the crime about which voters have a right – and may even have a need – to be informed since he is running for President). Milnes spent about four years in federal prison. Here’s his description of what happened, from his biography page on www.robertmilnes4president:

But then I got tripped up by the FBI. They arrested me on charges related to several fan letters I had written to a local Philadelphia TV anchorwoman, Deborah Knapp. She had married present day Congressman Henry Bonilla, R-Texas. Of course I suspected this was a colateral attack on me by the FBI for political reasons, but I could not articulate that or convince my court appointed federal defender. He convinced me to plead guilty to one count. This was a big mistake. I was sent to FCI Butner, N.C. in 1985. I actually read “The Age of Surveillance” in prison! Eventually I got “maxed out” on mandatory parole in 1989

The 1 count I pleaded guilty to was 18 USC Section 876. Later I filed a pro se motion to withdraw guilty plea pursuant to 28 USC Section 2255 and Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 32 (d). The federal defender was not authorized to assist me after probation violation & was ineffective anyway. This was denied through the US Supreme Court. My petitions for parole were all denied.

The crime with which he was charged, 18 USC 876, deals with threatening communications through the United States Mail. Here is the law, so you can read it for yourself:

Mailing threatening communications

(a) Whoever knowingly deposits in any post office or authorized
depository for mail matter, to be sent or delivered by the Postal
Service or knowingly causes to be delivered by the Postal Service
according to the direction thereon, any communication, with or
without a name or designating mark subscribed thereto, addressed to
any other person, and containing any demand or request for ransom
or reward for the release of any kidnapped person, shall be fined
under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.

(b) Whoever, with intent to extort from any person any money or
other thing of value, so deposits, or causes to be delivered, as
aforesaid, any communication containing any threat to kidnap any
person or any threat to injure the person of the addressee or of
another, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more
than twenty years, or both.

(c) Whoever knowingly so deposits or causes to be delivered as
aforesaid, any communication with or without a name or designating
mark subscribed thereto, addressed to any other person and
containing any threat to kidnap any person or any threat to injure
the person of the addressee or of another, shall be fined under
this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. If such
a communication is addressed to a United States judge, a Federal
law enforcement officer, or an official who is covered by section
1114, the individual shall be fined under this title, imprisoned
not more than 10 years, or both.

(d) Whoever, with intent to extort from any person any money or
other thing of value, knowingly so deposits or causes to be
delivered, as aforesaid, any communication, with or without a name
or designating mark subscribed thereto, addressed to any other
person and containing any threat to injure the property or
reputation of the addressee or of another, or the reputation of a
deceased person, or any threat to accuse the addressee or any other
person of a crime, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned
not more than two years, or both. If such a communication is
addressed to a United States judge, a Federal law enforcement
officer, or an official who is covered by section 1114, the
individual shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more
than 10 years, or both.

LFV MySpace now operational

The brand-new LFV MySpace page now has a customized design and is completely operational. It includes videos from numerous LP presidential candidates, and even the full director’s version of America: Freedom To Fascism.

Take a look, add yourself to the friends list (we have 13 friends already), invite your MySpace friends, and tell me what you think including ideas for improvements.

And the propaganda machine keeps spinning …..

According to this article, we’re supposed to believe that prisoners being held at Gitmo are being treated as if they’re merely guests of the goverment, while the only real abuse is directed at the guards.

However, it’s far more likely that the government is sending military members back to the states with strict orders to report that all is well at Gitmo. It’s easy to get them to do that, after all, especially if the person in question is an officer with a pension on the line, as with the person who gave the information for this story. It’s even easier when the military member knows that they, too, can be declared an enemy combatant and simply disappear if they dare to speak the truth about the atrocities they have witnessed. There is also the fear that they will be discharged due to a nonexistent “personality disorder”, and thus shamed and stripped of the civilian benefits of having served voluntarily and honorably in the armed forces.

That’s nothing new, incidentally. The military was discharging soldiers on the basis of alleged preexisting personality disorders in the early 1980s, when I served in Air Force Intelligence Operations. Those airmen were not mentally ill, and in fact were extraordinarily good at their specialties; however, they had committed the unspeakable crime of not remaining silent against what they perceived to be wrong, and branding them mentally deficient is the military’s way of silencing them. Once they are so categorized, the military can easily discount anything they may later say against the military’s interest. But, I digress.

Like so many in the current administration, this Brigadier General (for those unfamiliar with military ranks, that’s a one-star General) believes it’s acceptable to hold people in a lawless prison environment long-term with no charges, and no hearing, because they’re “enemy combatants” …… and he really and truly thinks there’s a difference between enemy combatants and prisoners of war, which causes Geneva Convention protections to not apply to enemy combatants. Yet the only real difference is that prisoners of war are captured while engaging in war, while enemy combatants are, for all intents and purposes, kidnapped. In other words, while he is willing to toe the military line and is quite successful in that position, in the civilian world his brainwashing would render him, for all intents and purposes, useless.

If prisoners at Gitmo are specifically classified as not being prisoners of war, for whom torture is forbidden under the Geneva Convention, does the government actually expect us to believe that these men are not being tortured? It’s quite obvious that the only reason to classify them differently is so that they can be tortured without violating the Convention.

What’s most sickening about this particular article, beyond the brainwashing aspect, is that it is being distributed and touted as truth on a discussion list for paralegals, who should definitely know better than to mindlessly accept what the government says. Or maybe, just maybe, these particular paralegals know just enough to be dangerous.

Just couldn’t resist ……

Yahoo Breaking News

WASHINGTON (AP) President Bush will have a routine colonoscopy on Saturday at his mountaintop retreat at Camp David, Md, his spokesman says.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I guess he’s lost his head again, and they’re trying to find it.

New York Times article on Ron Paul

That’s right.

They tried ignoring him, they tried mocking him, now they’re trying to damn him with faint praise.

Ron Paul will not be the next president of the United States. But his candidacy gives us a good hint about the country the next president is going to have to knit back together.

Other than that andthe fact that the article treats Eric Dondero as a credible source, it’s fairly good.

Fuck yeah, freedom!

Having just peroused my own internet politics blog and seen the Kubby declaration/interview, I gotta say:

I am goddamn proud to be a Libertarian.

This doesn’t happen often. For years, surrounded by people whose political opinions could be boiled down to “lol war” or “yay socialism,” I took a lot of shit in real life for being a libertarian and a Libertarian. I made a bet with my dad in 2004 that Michael Badnarik would cost Bush his reelection. I lost it, obviously.

After that, I saw my movement divided between people who wanted to get shit done no matter the cost, and people who wanted to resurrect Murray Rothbard and have him rewrite the Constitution-the bickerings of a party and an ideology defeated time and time again. I was too petty to rise above it. We never really resolved those issues, of course, and I am nominally on the side of the reformers for the little it’s worth. The reformers won their victory in the 2006 convention, but then the purists one-upped them.

The very first time that I can say I was proud to be a Libertarian, it was because a purist-Stan Jones-got shit done for freedom. I had even written up an article a few days beforehand taking his campaign to task for talking about the New World Order or whatever it is he did. But he showed us all up, and he defeated the Republican senator in Montana, and he gave the Senate to Nancy Pelosi c/o the Libertarian Party. There were others, of course, other victories we handed them, and other minor positions in small towns and offyear elections that are just as vital, if not moreso, to building the Party in the long term. But that was the very first time that, when my friends asked why the hell I kept throwing away my vote, I could point to them and say “THIS is why.”

The Ron Paul Revolution gets some crazies onboard…

No, I’m not talking about the 9/11 Truthers. I’m talking about astrologers.

Reposted from the National Ledger for the lulz:

Ron Paul has the Sun in Leo (view chart), but that is the only fire in his chart. As a Leo, he needs to take center stage – needs to be recognized for his views and his positions and his desire to do good things. The elemental balance of his chart reveals a great deal about him: with only a small amount of fire he is not particularly inspired or ego-oriented; however, the fire planet Mars is in Scorpio and conjuncts benevolent Jupiter which adds the missing fire that his chart otherwise lacks. With five planets in earth signs he is practical and steady, with a focus planted firmly in the material world.

His chart shows Mercury in Virgo which is cautious and shows an analytic mind with a love of details. Virgo often has a tendency towards more conservative views because of its cautious nature, but in Ron Paul’s chart that Virgo Mercury makes a close trine to Uranus, the planet of revolutionary change. This shows that he is not afraid of new ideas and enjoys thinking for himself. Uranus rules the internet and technology, and this dynamic in his chart illustrates his standing as this year’s Internet Candidate. Still, Saturn is exactly opposite his Mercury which shows that at an early age he was criticized for his ideas. Saturn is retrograde in his chart which suggests that he is still overly critical of himself. Saturn aspects are often more difficult when we are younger and add strength as we age, so the opposition of Saturn to Mercury can develop the strength of conviction in later years that is now serving Ron Paul so well.

I mean, I guess it’s cool and all, it takes all kinds… but fuck, that’s hilarious. Astrology, lol.

LP Presidential candidate Steve Kubby issues press release endorsing Ron Paul

All Together Now” — Kubby endorses Paul

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
07/19/07
POC Thomas L. Knapp
314-705-3042
kubby.communications@gmail.com

“ALL TOGETHER NOW” … LIBERTARIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE ENDORSES PAUL

Fort Bragg, CA — Citing overwhelming support from his own party’s members and lackluster response to Libertarian presidential campaigns, Steve Kubby today endorsed US Representative Ron Paul’s campaign for the Republican Party’s 2008 presidential nomination. Kubby, a candidate in his own party’s presidential contest, made the endorsement in an interview from his home in Mendocino County, California.

“I am not, and have never been, a Republican,” says Kubby, 60, best known for his work for cannabis legalization and on behalf of medical marijuana patients. “For me, the Libertarian Party has always been, and remains, our last best hope for achieving freedom through the American political process. And until recently my position was that the Libertarian Party needed to stick to its own guns, stake out its own territory. But sometimes a special situation comes along.”

Recent polling shows Paul garnering the support of about 70% of LP members — and the LP’s front-runners, including Kubby, clustered together in the 2-3% range among those same members. That polling, Paul’s much higher media profile, and fundraising reports showing that Paul has raised nearly 100 times as much money as any of his Libertarian competitors, convinced Kubby that this is just such a situation.

“I’m still running for president,” says Kubby. “My campaign’s first television commercial will debut shortly. I’m continuing to debate my opponents, attend public events as a candidate, and appear on talk radio to make my case. There are important things that need to be said, and I’m saying them. Dr. Paul and I disagree on some issues that I want to skyline, and I firmly believe that I’m the best candidate to represent the party next November. But when 70% of your own party believes so strongly in a candidate that they’re willing to cross party lines to support him at least until he’s out of the running, you owe it to them to back their play.”

Kubby states that if his fellow freedom activists’ long-shot bet pays off and Ron Paul becomes the Republican nominee, he will withdraw, ask the party to nominate “None of the Above” at its national convention, and work as a volunteer on Paul’s general election campaign. “And I’m urging my fellow Libertarians to approach this in the same way,” he says. “But at the same time, I’ll continue preparing to give the LP the best presidential campaign I can give it if that doesn’t work out.”

Paulie Cannoli Interviews LP Presidential Candidate Steve Kubby

PAULIE CANNOLI: I’ll cut right to the chase. You’re giving this interview to announce your support for Ron Paul’s presidential campaign. Why?

STEVE KUBBY: Well, let me get the endorsement in first! I support Ron Paul for the GOP’s presidential nomination, and for the presidency. I’m asking my fellow freedom activists to do so as well. If Dr. Paul wins the Republican presidential nomination, I’ll withdraw my candidacy for the LP’s nomination, ask the LP to nominate “None of the Above” at its national convention next year, and go to work as a volunteer on Dr. Paul’s general election campaign. And I’m urging my fellow Libertarians to approach this in the same way. But at the same time, I’ll continue preparing to give the LP the best presidential campaign I can give it if that doesn’t work out.

Now … why? Believe me, this was a tough decision. I am not, and have never been, a Republican. For me, the Libertarian Party has always been, and remains, our last best hope for achieving freedom through the American political process. And until recently my position was that the Libertarian Party needed to stick to its own guns, stake out its own territory. But sometimes a special situation comes along. And this is a VERY special situation.

PC: What makes it special. Or rather, what makes it more special now than it was a week ago or a month ago?

SK: I declared my candidacy for the LP’s nomination last August. Ron Paul declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination in March. According to the 2nd quarter FEC reports that came out this week, he’s raised more money each and every day since then than I have over the entire course of my campaign.

Also, in the last couple of days, there’s been an interesting move in the establishment Republican blogosphere. All of a sudden Ron Paul’s opponents are predicting that he’ll come in second in next month’s Iowa Straw Poll. They’re predicting that because they’re afraid of it … but they wouldn’t be afraid of it if they didn’t think it was likely.

And last week, Libertarian Lists released the results of a poll they did. The poll’s methodology isn’t perfect, but it looks reasonably honest and representative. That poll says that 70% of LP members support Ron Paul, and that the “front runners” in the LP race — George Phillies, myself, and Wayne Allyn Root — are only pulling 2% to 3% each.

PC: So the odds are stacked against you in a big way?

SK: Well, yes, but that’s not the point.

Look … I don’t mind long odds, okay? When I was working to get Proposition 215 passed in California, I couldn’t even count the number of people — including a lot of long-time friends and some very hardcore libertarians — threw the “long odds” argument at me. This will never happen. If we even suggest it, we look crazy. Let’s put a different foot forward. Let’s run away from medical marijuana and find something that doesn’t put people off.

I’m glad I ignored that talk. I’m glad that Proposition 215 passed and that twelve other states have since adopted essentially the same law. We took a real long shot and turned into a bunch of high-profile victories for freedom. So screw the odds. You do what you have to do.

PC: If it’s not the odds, then what is it? Why this sudden change from telling Libertarians to stay the LP course?

SK: There are two things to think about here.

The first is that if I could have put together the kind of campaign in the LP that Paul is running in the GOP, I wouldn’t have considered endorsing him. But I couldn’t — and he did. More people are lining up to vote for Ron Paul in the Republican primaries right now than have ever lined up to vote for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nominee. And that number is going up, not down. He’s already raised three times as much money for his nomination campaign than Michael Badnarik’s 2004 presidential campaign was able to raise and spend in that general election. He’s already received more media coverage as a GOP presidential candidate than any LP presidential candidate ever managed to get, and far more than all of the current candidates for the LP’s 2008 presidential nomination combined.

Now, if I think that Ron Paul is a reasonably solid libertarian — and despite the fact that we disagree on some big issues, I do — then at some point I have to look at what he’s accomplishing and ask myself whether my priority is being the big fish in the small LP pond, or whether my priority is advancing liberty, and act accordingly.

Secondly, I don’t just bow down to majority opinion, but I do respect the views of my fellow Libertarians — and 70% of them say that Ron Paul’s campaign is their choice for advancing liberty, at least in this part of this election cycle. If I was convinced that those Libertarians were wrong, I’d keep trying to convince them otherwise. But every day, the evidence that they are right gets more overwhelming. This is a no-brainer. If they’re right, I should be working with them. If they’re wrong, then I’m wrong with them … but I’m also the guy who was working with them, not the guy standing off to the side quoting the long odds at them.

PC: You say you disagree with Paul on some big issues. What are they?

SK: Immigration. Equal rights for non-heterosexuals. The importance of addressing climate change in public policy. Those are the big three that come to mind, and to me they are important issues.

When I decided to run for president, one of my goals was to help the Libertarian Party appeal to the “left” while sticking to its principles. If we think of the party as an airplane, it’s not too hard to figure out why it’s been taxiing up and down the runway for 35 years without ever taking off — it’s only got a “right” wing! I don’t think we’ll get anywhere as a party until we get a lot better at pulling votes and support from the “left” as well, and I think that 2008 is a year when we have incredible opportunities to do so.

Ron Paul is a “right-wing” libertarian, and that’s one of the reasons I kept on plugging for so long after he announced. To the extent that his campaign is successful, it’s going to overshadow the libertarian movement’s “left” outreach in many ways. On the other hand, he’s picking up a lot of “left” support for his opposition to the war on Iraq. We’re just going to need to find ways external to his campaign to get them to stick with us. Believe me, I’ve been thinking about how to do that. A lot.

I disagree with Paul on some major issues. But as one of my friends likes to tell me, “stick two libertarians in a room with an issue, and they’ll come out with three mutually exclusive opinions on it.” If I never supported or worked with anyone I had disagreements with, I’d be a hermit. When it’s all said and done, Ron Paul is working hard to change the focus of America’s political debate, and he’s doing a far better job of it than I or any of the other Libertarian Party candidates are. And when it comes to freedom, I’d rather follow success than lead failure.

PC: So … does this mean your own campaign is over?

SK: Absolutely not. I’m still running for president. My campaign’s first television commercial will debut shortly. I’m continuing to debate my opponents, attend public events as a candidate, and appear on talk radio to make my case. There are important things that need to be said, and I’m saying them. Dr. Paul and I disagree on some issues that I want to skyline, and I firmly believe that I’m the best candidate to represent the party next November. But when 70% of your own party believes so strongly in a candidate that they’re willing to cross party lines to support him at least until he’s out of the running, you owe it to them to back their play.

When the television commercial is finished, we’ll be releasing it on YouTube and through other Internet channels. We’ll be raising money to air it on broadcast and cable television. I’m hoping to get back “on the road” shortly and start attending LP events. I’m also talking with an “Internet radio” outfit about doing a weekly talk show — I just wrapped up a series of 20 weekly podcasts, and I want to get more interactive, change this thing from a lecture to a discussion.

The big difference this endorsement makes is that when people ask me about Ron Paul, I’m not going to ask them to support me instead of Paul — I’m going to tell them that they should support both of us. If Paul can pull this off, great. I’ll be his biggest cheerleader while he’s trying and if he succeeds I’ll shut down my own campaign and support his to the hilt, in and out of the Libertarian Party. But I’ll also continue preparing myself to carry the LP’s banner into the general election if the Republican Party unwisely chooses someone other than Dr. Paul to represent it.

PC: At least one of your campaign staffers has publicly opposed Paul’s campaign in very strident terms. Will there be a staff shakeup?

SK: You’re talking about Tom Knapp, my communications director. I don’t agree with his take on Ron Paul, and he knows that. Part of our agreement for having him on the campaign staff was that he’d remain his own man when he’s not officially speaking for me. I thought that was an acceptable deal and I still do. I hope he’ll come around concerning Dr. Paul, and I’ll keep talking with him about that, but if he leaves the campaign it will be of his own accord. Unless he claims to be speaking for me, he’s only speaking for himself.

LFV now on MySpace, Facebook

Last Free Voice now has set up a few social networking sites. Our FaceBook group is located at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2352778606

We also have a MySpace page, at http://www.myspace.com/last_free_voice

While you can view them both without an account, it is necessary to make an account in order to participate, receive bulletins, etc.

You can make a MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com, or a FaceBook page at http://www.facebook.com

If you are already a member of these social networking communities, just send us a friend request.

Comments and suggestions are more than welcome. In the meantime, spread the word, and we hope to see you there!

Since we are talking about LP candidates…

By some lucky alignment of sun, moon and stars, I will be in Las Vegas this weekend to mingle with the USA Basketball team and see the Wright/Hopkins fight. I will also be having lunch with LP presidential nominee hopeful, Wayne Allyn Root. He has agreed to answer some questions from me and libertarian blog readers.

I’ve read Mr. Root’s position page and understand his stated position on the current situation in Iraq (and war in general). But I, like many of you, have seen Eric Dondero’s blog comments that beat the war drum in Mr. Root’s name. Mr. Dondero, with an air of authority, even pumps Mr. Root’s initials in the blog comments- WAR. Realizing that every candidate has enthusiastic supporters that spout off comments that cannot really be attributed to the candidate, I would like to ask Mr. Root if his position on Iraq has been consistent or if it has changed. I’d like to know the thought process behind the answer he gives.

I’d like to know why his Libertarian for President site URL is www.millionairerepublican.com. Was it an already happening site and he thought it prudent to modify it for traffic? Question answered by Jason Gatties. Mr. Root is also @ www.rootforamerica.com. I’m not opposed to a LINO candidate any more than I am a RINO candidate (Ron Paul), but I want to know why Mr. Root thinks he should win the LP nomination.

I need your help to find out. Please send any questions you may have of Mr. Root either to my email address or post them in the comments section here.

I don’t want a “purity” test; we are all supporters of the Libertarian Party, but ensuring liberty should be the primary concern. If Mr. Root thinks he is the man to do it, we should give him an opportunity to explain why.

I know there will be thoughtful questions, so I want to say “thank you” in advance.

Mike Jingozian: Libertarian/Green Fusion Presidential Candidate

What follows is an excerpt from Jingozian’s extensive website.

Observations on the Campaign Trail – Libertarians can be Environmentalists Too

The very first Libertarian event at which I spoke was at the Oregon State Convention in early March 2007. I spoke about the six areas of sustainability. Following my speech, a group of people formed around me, and through the crowd, a man approached. When he made his way to the front, I noticed that veins were pulsating in his forehead. He pointed right at me and said, “YOU SOUND LIKE A GREEN!”

I believe global warming is occurring. I know that this opinion is out of favor with some Libertarians. During the candidates’ forum at the Libertarian Party California Convention, held in April 2007, I was the only candidate (out of five) who publicly recognized that global warming exists. (Although to his defense, Steve Kubby did acknowledge that “something is going on with the environment.”)

However, far more Libertarians are concerned with Environmental Sustainability than those who are not. In fact, between 77 and 83% of Americans believe global warming poses a serious problem. The majority of Libertarians are no different. Certainly, there are some who question the data. If that is how you feel, so be it – we don’t harbor any hard feelings. We still live in a free country (that is, unless that Bush Administration gets its way).

Nevertheless, we find that most Libertarians embrace our principles. Regularly, I am approached at events, receive emails and phone calls from Libertarians who support our message. Even many “Purists” like our message as it reminds them of Harry Browns’ position on compromising to achieve political ends. These comments may not be from the more vocal segment of the party, but they are, nevertheless, the majority.

However – and I say this with the utmost respect and sincerity – I will not represent a party where the majority does not believe that global warming exists or who are not willing to compromise on this issue for the greater good.

Building the Libertarian and Green Parties Together

If we have any chance to even start addressing these issues, then we must destroy the 2-parties as quickly as possible. Viable solutions to solve these problems exist today. But, frightfully, these solutions will not be viable for much longer and these problems are growing in money and getting worse.

As a people, we must support only Independent and 3rd party candidates. We must band together during this next election and say: “Enough is enough!” We must elect an Independent Congress and an Independent President and we must do it in 2008! The two political parties that I support are the Libertarians and the Greens.

I am attracted to the Libertarians for its positions on personal accountability, small government, and maintaining and even bolstering freedom and democracy.

I am attracted to the Greens for its concern for the environment and our health and well-being.

The Libertarians and Greens are not in competition; rather, they complement each other in many areas.

Sharing Common Goals… What the 3rd parties have in Common

Each election brings forth Independent and 3rd party candidates. Many of these candidates promote their own agendas or those of their respective parties. The chart depicts our view on the areas of interest among the four major 3rd parties and Independent candidates.

As shown, the Libertarian Party generally addresses issues regarding the Economy, International Diplomacy, and Democracy & Freedom while the Green Party tends to focus more on Environmental, Health & Well-being, and Societal issues. The Reform Party, Working Families Party, and Independents vary in their focuses.

We admit this is a major simplification of the policy issues important to each party. Furthermore, we are not suggesting that Libertarians are not concerned with well-being or that the Green Party is not concerned with economic issues. The chart merely shows how the major 3rd parties relate to the six areas of Sustainability.

LP Presidential Candidate Dave Hollist

You can read more details about Mr. Hollist’s ideas on his website.

THANKS FOR LISTENING TO ME

I’ll try not to waste your time. Instead of being a candidate, I prefer to vote for someone–in fact–my wife and I have a ten-year-old who likes to play baseball and I much prefer running around with them than running for office. But unfortunately, I disagree with those on the ballot. I think it is wrong to take money from people.

There is a small group who thinks it’s all right to rob people: Criminals. And this is the reason government was invented–to hunt these people down and put them in jail. Surprisingly, there is another group who feels this same way: Non-Libertarian candidates. Now these people believe they’re special–if they do all the hard work to get elected, they feel they are entitled to do special things. And they even have a special name for what they do: Tax. Well, they’re not that special and what they do is just as wrong even though it’s been done for thousands of years. But we don’t put these people in jail–we just vote for someone better. So, I thought the only alternative was to be on the ballot myself.

Admittedly we do have an obvious problem since taxation is wrong: What’s right? The answer is CONTRACT INSURANCE–an idea that I learned several years ago. Let me give you an example: Bill Gates is the wealthiest person in the world. He is an American businessman who signs billion-dollar contracts. And if anything goes wrong–if people don’t follow through with what they had promised–his attorneys just present the contract to our government, and the courts adjudicate it. While most people respect these judgements, if necessary, the police are sent out and might have to shoot people if they become threatening in order to get what is due Mr. Gates.

This is a very valuable service that is provided by our government, but there is one thing that is wrong: It’s free. I don’t understand–how can something of such great value be free? Well, you guessed it. I propose that we charge people one percent of the value of their contracts to insure them against any breach. Now in this example, one percent would be ten million dollars that would be voluntarily paid into the United States Treasury, and this is just one man and this is just one of his contracts, so you can see that with all the contracts that are signed each day, this would raise hundreds of billions of dollars each year–more than enough money to effectively run our government.

Now it’s insurance–no one has to buy it, but if something goes wrong with his contracts and he didn’t have insurance, Mr. Gates would have a big problem. If he went out and forcibly tried to take what he felt he deserved, the police would stop him for attempting to take something he didn’t legally own. If he went to the government, he would be told that he should have bought insurance, and he probably would the next time. You can see the great incentive.

LP Presidential Candidate Barry Hess’s Autobiography

While I couldn’t find anything written by Barry Hess about his Libertarian Presidential campaign (and in all honesty, I didn’t know he was running until I read it in one of Stephen Gordon’s articles here on LFV) I did find this autobiography, apparently written when he was running for a governorship.

Barry Hess Biography

I graduated from Fordham University in New York City in 1978 and then spent a little time in Law School. It didn’t take too long for me to figure out that I really didn’t want to be a lawyer, I wanted to travel and see the world, and so I did.

I am sincerely grateful that a solid work ethic and the pursuit of excellence (not perfection) had been instilled in me by the examples I saw in my own family. I can’t say we were poor, because my family’s fortunes seemed to settle more to either extreme of being broke, or flush. I got to see both sides and the middle of the economic spectrum in detail. I know how the ‘other half’ lives.
I loved summers for as long as I can remember, its arrival meant that I could get out of Florida and go up North to Ohio to work
and play on my grandparent’s farm.

The first job I had that I actually got paid for, was when I was twelve years old. What started as a modest newspaper delivery route soon became the second-largest in the city of Springfield, Ohio. I just kept using my own earnings to buy out the other paper boys, and when we finally moved up to New Hampshire a couple of years later, I was able to sell my business for a handsome profit. I was hooked on self-reliance from that point on.

My Mom died after an extended and hard-fought bout with cancer. She was 48, I was a high school freshman of 14, and the loss exposed a profound realization of just how precious, fleeting and fragile our time here really is.

As I grew up I did the usual things like pumping gas, washing dishes and mowing lawns. One of the best jobs I had was as the host of my own radio program when I was a sophomore in high school. I had become entirely self-sufficient. If I couldn’t find a job I liked, I’d invent one. Pulling my own weight gave me dignity and self-respect. From my fourteenth birthday I felt the pangs of pride and from that time on I would refuse to accept even a single dime that I did not earn—from anyone.

In high school, I continued to involve myself in theatre and sports like skiing, track, football and baseball, as well as school politics where I served as class president and student representative. I didn’t graduate high school, in fact after 2 ½ years of it, I had had enough. I was bored, so I went to college at the University of New Hampshire, at Plymouth. My freshman year I was voted class president and played sports like soccer, skiing and lacrosse. My sophomore year through graduation was spent at Fordham University in the Bronx of New York City. In order to pay my own way, I scrubbed the school’s toilets, (calling myself “Commander Commodee”) and managed the campus center at night that gave me time to study. I started a travel business to provide low cost student vacations to Ft. Lauderdale for Spring Break.

In the summers, I worked interstate bridge construction as a laborer. For fun, it was the school’s theatre troupe, soccer, sky-diving and rugby that kept me busy.

After graduating in May of 1978 with a B.A. in English and indepth credits in History, Political Science and Philosophy, I moved into Manhattan and took a job as a legal hearing representative for fraud investigations for a major national insurance company. It wasn’t long before I was offered a promotion and a transfer to San Diego. My cross-country trek was interrupted with a visit to my sister, right here in Phoenix. I never made it to San Diego, it just felt ‘right’ to stay.

Today, I’m learning to invest as a currency speculator in the foreign exchange market.

Arizona is where I really grew up. I’ve tried a lot of things here, and a lot of different businesses, and I’ve made a lot of mistakes, just like people do. But you’ll not find an honest man who can say that I have ever cheated or stolen from them, even though I have managed to embarrass myself more times than I care to recount.

Silent Flag Protest!

I have been a bit of a procrastinator about writing about this story I found in the Denver Post. It seems that a homeowners association in Wheat Ridge, Colorado wants Beth Hammer, a critic of the police action in Iraq, to properly hang her flag or face a fine.

Beth Hammer has turned her gated Wheat Ridge community upside down with her upside-down display of the U.S. flag.

On March 19 – the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq – Hammer decided to hang her flag upside down, which under the federal flag code is a signal of distress.

The 64-year-old retired banker said flying the flag with the white-starred blue field – called the union – on the bottom is her silent protest. “I think the war in Iraq has put this country in distress,” Hammer said. “We are losing lives, liberty and our honor.”

What damage or injury is Beth Hammer’s action doing to her neighbors? It is no different with her silent protest than if she were to put a candidate’s sign on her lawn. The homeowners association is not above the law and can not strip Beth Hammer’s 1st Amendment rights, no matter how upset her neighbors might be. Even if she signed a contract to abide by the conditions of the association when she bought the house, her constitutional rights in my opinion still supersede the contract.

The association board notified Beth Hammer in an April 24 letter that the flag display is against federal flag code and is in violation of the association’s “patriotic and political expression policy.”

The letter gave her a week to right the flag or face fines that appear to range from $25 to $500.

“Living in a community association offers many advantages to the homeowner, but at the same time, imposes some restrictions,” said the letter signed by association manager Melissa Keithly.

“These restrictions are not meant as an inconvenience or an invasion of your freedom, but rather as a means of maintaining harmony in your community,” the letter continued.

“..the flag display is against federal flag code and is in violation of the association’s ‘patriotic and political expression policy.’ “

Does anyone else besides me see the slippery slope that could arise from the above quote? What exactly is this policy? Would they disallow residents to put political signs in their lawn that mention controversial subjects like abortion or legalization of medical marijuana? How about restricting political sign of non-major party candidates? How about restricting residents from putting anti-war bumper stickers on their vehicles?

Hammer contends displaying the U.S. flag upside down is her First Amendment right of free speech. She has hired a Denver civil rights lawyer, Mari Newman.”Just because she lives in a covenant-controlled community doesn’t mean she gives up her rights to free speech,” Newman said.

The homeowner association has temporarily backed off further action against Beth Hammer

The Hearing Board finds that it is informed in all aspects of this matter, and in good faith finds
that the best interests of all the Association’s members would not be served by pursuing
enforcement under these specific circumstances. The financial and other resource costs to the
Association outweigh any harmful impact this violation may have.

The individual will not be fined nor further requested by the Association to change the manner in
which she displays her American flag.

Keep up the good fight, Beth Hammer!

Props

George Phillies: “Torture is a crime against civilization”

At the South Carolina debate, Republican candidates were asked if they would torture prisoners. Some of them thought torture was just fine.

What is the libertarian answer to the torture question? It’s the American answer, the answer the American people have already given. Torture is a crime against civilization, reviled by all patriotic Americans.

Let’s take it from the top.

First, there is nothing for a President to decide.

Inside the United States, torture is a felony. If you are anywhere in the United States, and you torture someone, you are committing more crimes than I care to list. There is no exception in those laws for government officials.

If you are an American abroad and torture someone, it’s a felony. If your victim dies, you have earned the death penalty. There is no exception in those laws for government officials.

Second, those laws reflect the wisdom of the American people. Torturers are the filth of the earth, properly grouped with child molesters and mercenaries. We need not ask what the founding fathers and their fellows thought of mercenaries. Their position is enshrined in the third verse of The Star-Spangled Banner:

“And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion

A home and a country should leave us no more?

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,”

Third, there are people who get their jollies from snatching people off the streets, hustling them off to remote places, and inflicting great pain and degradation on them. These people have their enablers: television producers and actors who portray torturers as heroes and patriots. Torturers and their advocates are perverts, shunned by decent human beings.

Finally, thoughtful Americans should find it hysterically funny to watch the same gaggle of Republican Presidential candidates first say they would torture a defenseless prisoner, and then pander to the Republican Christian Right. The required depth of hypocrisy surpasses all belief.

Christine Smith speech for 5/21/07 LP Candidate Forum

Greetings.

I am Christine Smith, Libertarian candidate for president. Truth is my highest priority.

If elected, I would take the oath of office, swearing to uphold the Constitution, but unlike past presidents I would not only swear to it I would always do it. I will diligently use the executive powers granted me to restore the democratic republic we were established to be.

I will focus on individual liberty because I believe social and economic progress occurs only through liberty. Regardless of your political party affiliation, I invite you to my campaign website LibertarianforPresident.com to read about the only presidential candidate truly dedicated to the U.S. Constitution, fiscal conservatism, and social progress. I am superior to all other presidential candidates regardless of their political party because my priority is the American people. Our peace. Our freedom. Our prosperity. Our equality. Read my platform.

But since this is a debate between Libertarian candidates seeking the presidential candidate nomination, I ask you this question…What do you really want your Libertarian presidential candidate to accomplish? Think about it for a moment. What do you really want them to do?

I’ve asked that question of many Libertarians nationwide. I’ve already attended the San Diego Libertarian Convention, the Oregon LP Convention, the New Mexico LP Convention and the Indiana Libertarian Convention where I asked this question…I also asked many Libertarians nationwide on the phone this question…and without exception everyone tells me they want their Libertarian presidential candidate to reach out to more American people.

This is the most essential quality we must look for in choosing a candidate–the ability to effectively communicate the LP message to millions of non-Libertarians. Of course, that statement coincides with everything else Libertarians tell me…that their spokesperson (which is what our presidential candidate is–a spokesperson for the Libertarian Party) must be knowledgeable, willing to travel the country and address Americans at every opportunity they can, and said candidate must be a true Libertarian.

Latest Steve Kubby interview

The following interview was conducted by Phil Defer, a French student who has been interviewing US presidential candidates for his forum.

1. Could you introduce yourself in a few sentences ? ‘

I am a leader for medical rights here in the USA and I have written two books on drug policy reform.

2. How was your political engagement born ?

I helped write and pass California’s historic medical marijuana law and then was arrested for passing a law the police did not like.

3. What personal way drove you to compete for the presidency of the United States ?

The sorry legacy of George W. Bush.

4. Can you tell me some key points about your program, the main ideas ?

I am a one issue candidate who believes this is no more about Marijuana than the Boston Tea Party was about Tea. Our struggle today is for true liberty from tyrannical governments.

5. How do you view the upcoming campaign, can you give us some elements about what it represents in term of hardships, opportunities… in the US system, and what about your strategy ?

This election is a complete mess with anything as a possible outcome.

6. Political fiction : It’s January, the 20th, 2009. You have just been elected president ! What are your first steps, your priorities ?

My first step, within minutes of being sworn in as President, would be to issue Executive Order 13420 which would immediately defund the DEA and all laws against marijuana.

7. What are America’s biggest internal problems today, and what are your answers ?

America is saddled with an illegal, unconstitutional, power-hungry oligarchy of thugs.

8. Same question for America’s external problems.

Same answer.

9. More specifically, what do you think should be done on Iraq and national security ?

Leave NOW!

10. What about environment ?

Allow private citizens to sue giant corporations when their pollution enters your land or body.

11. What about your political (institutions), social, economic and societal (civil rights, abortion, homosexuality…) positions ?

I support free choice and a policy of non-intervention by the government.

Yet another reason to impeach Bush

From the Boston Herald:

WASHINGTON – President Bush ordered former Counsel Harriet Miers to defy a congressional subpoena and refuse to testify today about the firings of federal prosecutors, while a second former aide revealed new details yesterday about White House involvement in the dismissals.

The possibility of contempt of Congress citations against both women hung over the developments. House Democrats threatened to cite Miers if she refuses to appear as subpoenaed for a Judiciary Committee hearing today. The White House said she was immune from the subpoena and Bush had directed her not to appear, according to Miers’ lawyer. Democrats said her immunity ended when she left her White House job.

Meanwhile, former White House political director Sara Taylor tried to answer some committee questions but not others, in a bid to honor the subpoena without violating Bush’s claim of executive privilege.

After first refusing to answer questions about Bush’s possible role in the firings, Taylor later told the Senate Judiciary Committee that she knew of no involvement by Bush. Further, she said, she knew of no wrongdoing by administration officials in the controversy that has dogged Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

The Bush administration insists no wrongdoing occurred. Bush has offered to allow his aides, including counselor Karl Rove, Miers and Taylor, to be interviewed by congressional investigators – but only in private and without a transcript. Democrats rejected the offer.

Marine testifies that he sees nothing wrong with executing Iraqi civilians

From ABC News:

A Marine corporal testifying in a court-martial said Marines in his unit began routinely beating Iraqis after officers ordered them to “crank up the violence level.”

Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo testified Saturday at the murder trial of Cpl. Trent D. Thomas.

“We were told to crank up the violence level,” said Lopezromo, testifying for the defense.

When a juror asked for further explanation, Lopezromo said: “We beat people, sir.”

Within weeks of allegedly being scolded, seven Marines and a Navy corpsman went out late one night to find and kill a suspected insurgent in the village of Hamandiya near the Abu Ghraib prison. The Marines and corpsman were from 2nd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment.

Lopezromo said the suspected insurgent was known to his neighbors as the “prince of jihad,” and had been arrested several times and later released by the Iraqi legal system.

Unable to find him, the Marines and corpsman dragged another man from his house, fatally shot him, and then planted an AK-47 assault rifle near the body to make it appear he had been killed in a shootout, according to court testimony.

Four Marines and the corpsman, initially charged with murder in the April 2006 killing, have pleaded guilty to reduced charges and been given jail sentences ranging from 10 months to eight years. Thomas, 25, from St. Louis, pleaded guilty but withdrew his plea and is the first defendant to go to court-martial.

Lopezromo, who was not part of the squad on its late-night mission, said he saw nothing wrong with what Thomas did.

“I don’t see it as an execution, sir,” he told the judge. “I see it as killing the enemy.”

Read the rest of this disturbing story here.

Ex-cop invents door lock that will withstand police battering ram

From the Houston Chronicle:

Daniels says what makes his $249 lock special is its strength, its built-in panic-button feature and its looks.The lock, which fits across the entire door frame, can withstand 4,000 pounds of pressure, he said.

And according to a video he uses to promote the lock, a SWAT team using a 30-pound battering ram could not break through a door fitted with the Ultimate Lock.

Once pressed, the lock’s panic button alerts the police that there is a problem at the residence. Daniels said the button is designed to be wired with existing or new home alert systems and homeowners will need to work with their security companies to set up the optional feature.

Read the entire story by Ashley Harris here.

Happy Bastille Day. We need a new one.

Originally posted yesterday on my blog for Bastille day. Forgot to transfer it over til today. Oh well, better late than never…

According to wikipedia,

On 5 May 1789, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General to hear their grievances. The deputies of the Third Estate representing the common people (the two others were clergy and nobility) decided to break away and form a National Assembly. On 20 June the deputies of the Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath, swearing not to separate until a Constitution had been established. They were gradually joined by delegates of the other estates; Louis started to recognize their validity on 27 June. The Assembly re-named itself the National Constituent Assembly on 9 July, and began to function as a legislature and to draft a constitution.

The blue-blooded Chimperror, Cesar Potus George Dubai-ya Bushitler II, has brung back the clergy and the nobility back to a level of undue influence in civic life. Perhaps we need a new storming of the Bastille?

In the wake of the 11 July dismissal of the royal finance minister Jacques Necker, the people of Paris, fearful that they and their representatives would be attacked by the royal military, and seeking to gain arms for the general populace, stormed the Bastille, a prison which had often held people arbitrarily jailed on the basis of lettre de cachet. Besides holding a large cache of arms, the Bastille had long been known for holding political prisoners whose writings had displeased the royal government, and was thus a symbol of the absolutism of the monarchy.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The general populace being increasingly outgunned by regime agents? Check. People jailed arbitrarily? Check. Political prisoners? Check. Absolutist, hereditary rulers? Check.

The storming of the Bastille was more important as a rallying point and symbolic act of rebellion than a practical act of defiance.

Shortly after the storming of the Bastille, on 4 August feudalism was abolished and on 26 August, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was proclaimed.

Ending feudalism and having citizens rights? Yeah, we kinda need that again. Check!

What my job is like

I have to talk to hundreds of people like this every single day.

(Originally posted on my blog and in the
Libertarian Survey comments which are still going strong even though it’s on page two now).

The Power of Christ Compels You!

A city councilwoman from Edgewater, Florida, may have seen “The Exorcist” one too many times.

From WSB-TV:

EDGEWATER, Fla. — Police are investigating a city councilwoman and her husband are under investigation for performing an exorcism on their 18 year old daughter.

Police have recommended the State Attorney’s Office file charges of battery and false imprisonment against Edgewater city councilwoman Debra Rogers and her husband, Daniel Rogers.

Investigators said the couple admitted they tried to exorcise the demons out of their daughter by pouring olive oil on her while they held her hands behind her back on June 27.

First of all, the kid is 18, so if she wants to be possessed by Satan, isn’t that her right? Second, I haven’t kept up on my demonology since college – is olive oil a regular part of exorcism? And if so, is it extra virgin, or does that matter?

More:

Detective Brady said police believe this wasn’t the first time this happened. “This is bizarre, but this apparently was a normal occurrence.”

So, this wasn’t the first exorcism they’d done on this poor kid (adult)? They hadn’t worked before, so what makes them think they’d work this time?

I think a certain city councilwoman needs to be permanently “exorcised” from any current or future role in local, state, or federal government.

Some personal advice to the LP presidential wannabes

As my open letter to the LP presidential candidates is quite long, it’s available after the jump. And I’m sure I’ve said enough below that every libertarian in the world will have reason to take some issue or another with me. For what it’s worth, as a libertarian, there are many days where I don’t even agree with myself.

Live AV feed of Ed and Elaine Brown “Live Free Or Die” concert

Click here to watch and listen.

It seems to play well in Windows Media Player.

From what I have heard thus far, which sounded like someone talking on the phone, several bands were “too afraid” to show up.

The concert is supposed to start around 2pm EST.

Paulie and I are live blogging the concert in the comments section. Join in!

Jason Gatties blog recognizes LFV contributions to his Tribal Council campaign

Hours Away…Well now there is literally nothing more for me to do but sit and wait. I’ve met many fine people and I’ve enjoyed every minute of this campaign. Tomorrow I will find out if I touched any of them with my words, vision and actions. I didn’t think I would be nervous about this but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t. I’ll probably travel to Dowagiac on Sunday or Monday to get the results. I’m going to try to put it out of my mind until then and attempt to enjoy the Krasl Art Fair in St.Joseph with my wife.Many people deserve a huge “thank you” from me.

Libertarians- Thank you for the kind emails

Stuart, Paulie & “Elfninosmom” @ LastFreeVoice.com- Thank you for the campaign coverage and the Letters to the Editor. I know Paulie’s got published.

Family Members- Thank you for allowing me to annoy you with my passion for politics. Hopefully some of you voted for me but just allowing me to vent from time to time is a big help.

Cilla & Dylan- My two biggest supporters and the two most important people in my life. I love you both from the bottom of my heart.

Dan H. & Bill Parker- My boss Dan gave me alot of valuable advice and Bill was there to listen and lend his support. Thank you both.

Dan Grow & Bill Bradley- Two of my local partners in this freedom struggle. You are both inspirations to me in different ways.

Pokagon Tribal Members- Thank you for the kind emails. Even those of you who disagree with me, I thank you, because I need to be challenged in order to push myself even harder.

I know I’ve left some people off, but if you sent me a supportive email, a supportive phone call, a negative email, a negative phone call….I thank you all. Change is a struggle, but I plan to continue the struggle and fight the good fight for years to come.

If you haven’t done so already, get out to Dowagiac tomorrow and vote. My name appears 2nd on the ballot.

Impeach Bush-Cheney; Cheney goes first!

So I recently got me a myspace page and forwarded an impeachment bulletin.

A myspace bulletin debate ensued….

A reply to my bulletin, with my comments….

Bulletin Message —————–
From: Shane
Date: Jul 8, 2007 2:27 PM

Where were these people back when all this was started? They were going along with it. The Democrats voted for the USA PATRIOT ACT without even reading it; now they’re all horrified about it.

paul) Why assume it’s all Democrats? Numerous people for impeachment from all parties, and independents, even some Republicans! And some people did back the “war on terror” in the beginning and have come to realize they were wrong. Glad to have them on board. Others, like me, strongly opposed the wars, the invasions of our civil liberties, the massive growth in government spending under Chimperror George II, the dictatorial powers he has claimed in violation of the constitution, and have called for impeachment for quite a few years now. I’m happy so many people are agreeing with me now – even Democrats!

As to why any Libertarians would oppose impeaching the Bush fascist regime is beyond me. The LP called for Clinton’s impeachment, but not for the same reasons the Republicans did. If anyone thinks Dubai-ya! has been more faithful to the constitution, can I please get an intro to your drug dealer? Why the double standard?? Impeach Bush-Cheney!

Shane:

The Democrats voted for the authorization for the Iraq war when there was plenty of evidence it was all a fraud; now they’re all horrified that they were “lied to.” The Democrats voted for the military tribunals, and now they’re all horrified about the treatment of prisoners. The Democrats voted for the Military Commissions Act and the suspension of habeas corpus, and now they’re all horrified at the loss of our rights.

paul:

Individualists ought not refer to people collectively. Democrats are tens of millions of people, the vast majority of whom don’t get to vote on these things.. and many opposed them, including some of the ones who did get to vote on them, they were not unanimous votes. Some voted wrongly in the past and have admitted so; others are still voting wrongly on these matters, and should be pressured to change their votes or be removed from office in the next election.

congressional democrats: not too old to be spanked

Shane:

Why now? Why did they wait all this time to turn against it all and call for the impeachment of Bush and Cheney? Because now, their impeachment and removal from office would mean that a Democrat, Nancy Pelosi, would become President. That’s the only reason. They don’t care about your rights; they only care about power.

Stop being conned. Support Ron Paul and your local Libertarian candidates. That’s the only way out of this mess.

paul) I support
Steve Kubby

I like Ron Paul, and I wish he would introduce impeachment formally in Congress. It’s the right thing to do and would be great for getting him attention! The best thing he has done so far is stand up to
Ghouliani.

Most of the people backing impeachment are not doing it because of Pelosi.
I know I’m not. I supported impeachment ever since Dubai-ya stole his FIRST election and have even circulated a petition for impeachment and got thousands of signatures, and that was in 2003.

To the ones who only now have realized that the Chimperror and puppetmaster Cheney are war criminals: welcome on board! To those who are still not on board, what are you waiting for?

Demand impeachment NOW…while we are still allowed to!

paul

http://pauliecannoli.wordpress.com

Last Free Voice

facebook

>—————– Bulletin Message —————–
From: paulie
Date: Jul 8, 2007 8:47 AM

—————– Bulletin Message —————–
From: Cops Say Legalize All Drugs
Date: Jul 7, 2007 4:38 P

10 reasons why gay marriage should be illegal

Any questions?

Albany police engage in five-hour standoff with …. nobody

From Albany Times Union:

ALBANY — City police fired five shots of tear gas at a Clinton Avenue home shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday, several hours after converging on the block as part of a shooting investigation.

About a dozen specially trained emergency service team members then searched the house, but came out at about 11:30 p.m. without anyone.

The police action came in response to a shooting near Clinton Avenue and Lark Street at about 6:30 p.m., when a man was wounded at least once in the leg after an altercation on the street, police said. The man, whose name was not available, was taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital. Chief James Tuffey said at the scene that surgery was being considered for the man, but he appeared to be OK.

After one or more people fled the shooting scene, police centered on the home, located between Swan and Hawk streets. At least a dozen vehicles and police officers arrived, but as the hours passed, it still wasn’t known whether anyone was inside. Several neighbors vacated their homes.

An officer with a megaphone repeated this message 11 times in 15 minutes, starting at 9 p.m.: “Residents of 125 Clinton Avenue, this is the Albany Police Department. Come out of the house.” Part of the street was blocked off for several hours.

Las Vegas armed robbery victims get black eye, payback

Evan Skinner explained, “When he pulled the gun out he just had it right to my forehead and said, ‘Hey give us all over your cash.’ And I was like we don’t have very much. And he just went like that quick and clocked me. And I was like okay, that’s fine.”

But it wasn’t fine for one of Evan’s friends who didn’t want the suspect to get away with it. The suspect started to leave with a mere $30, that’s when Evan’s friend tackled the 21-year-old suspect.

Skinner continued, “Frank had his right arm under control. James is laying on top of him. He had his forearms on the guy’s throat and I’m laying on his left arm and just punching him.” The suspect continued to fire his gun.

James Wolff said, “Above all I think we got really lucky. Police told us the gun jammed after the second shot.”

In this case, it was suspect Anthony Westby’s luck that ran out.

“He was bleeding out of his nose, his eyes, his mouth. They had to put him on a stretcher in a neck brace,” Skinner described.

Westby was taken to University Medical Center and is now at the Clark County Detention Center.

“It’s one of the things you do in Vegas — go to Strip, check out shows, go to Fremont, pummel an armed robber,” Wolff added.

Read the entire article at Las Vegas Now

Drug Czar: Pot growers are “violent criminal terrorists”

From Cannabis News:

California — The nation’s top anti-drug official said people need to overcome their “reefer blindness” and see that illicit marijuana gardens are a terrorist threat to the public’s health and safety, as well as to the environment.John P. Walters, President Bush’s drug czar, said the people who plant and tend the gardens are terrorists who wouldn’t hesitate to help other terrorists get into the country with the aim of causing mass casualties. Walters made the comments at a Thursday press conference that provided an update on the “Operation Alesia” marijuana-eradication effort.

“Don’t buy drugs. They fund violence and terror,” he said.

After touring gardens raided this week in Shasta County, Walters said the officers who are destroying the gardens are performing hard, dangerous work in rough terrain. He said growers have been known to have weapons, including assault rifles.

“These people are armed; they’re dangerous,” he said. He called them “violent criminal terrorists.”

Walters, whose official title is director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, said too many people write off marijuana as harmless. “We have kind of a reefer blindness,’ ” he said.

No arrests have been made so far in the four days of raids, the opening leg of what Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko has promised will be at least two straight weeks of daily raids.

He said suspects have been hard to find because their familiarity with their terrain makes it easy for them to flee quickly.

Although crews doing the raids are using Black Hawk and other helicopters to drop in on some of the gardens, Bosenko said they don’t want to give the growers any warning of a raid.

“We try to move in under stealth,” he said.

As of Thursday morning, Operation Alesia raids had resulted in the yanking of 68,237 young marijuana plants from public lands in Shasta County. Raids already have been conducted in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, as well as on land managed by the U.S. Forest Service north of Lake Shasta and other public land near Manton.

The operation is being led by the sheriff’s office and has involved 17 agencies, including the California National Guard and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. It’s believed to be the largest campaign of its kind in the state, Bosenko said.

The operation is named after the last major battle between the Roman Empire and the Gauls in 52 B.C. That battle was won by the Romans.

With the blitz of marijuana gardens around Shasta County, Bosenko said officials hope to not only get rid of the pot, but also win back the land for the public that owns it.

“These organizations are destroying our lands and wildlife,” he said.

Bernie Weingardt, regional forester for the Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Region, said the 28,000 acres believed to house illegal marijuana grows on national forest land throughout the state would cost more than $300 million to revive.

“These lands must be cleaned and restored,” he said.

His estimate is based on a National Park Service study that found it costs $11,000 per acre to pull the plants, clear irrigation systems, reshape any terracing and replant native vegetation, said Mike Odle, Forest Service spokesman.

While Walters didn’t give specific goals for Operation Alesia, he said anti-drug agencies aim to cripple the organized crime groups that he said are behind the marijuana cultivation.

“This business we intend to put into recession, depression and put its leaders into jail,” Walters said.

Note: Federal official calls marijuana growers dangerous terrorists.

Source: Redding Record Searchlight (CA)
Author: Dylan Darling
Published: July 13, 2007
Copyright: 2007 Record Searchlight
Contact: letters@redding.com
Website: http://www.redding.com/

Georgia District Attorney: Lawyer and Child Porn Peddler

Federal Prosecutors have asked David McDade a Georgia D.A. to stop distributing a very controversial tape which shows teenagers engaging in consensual oral sex which was illegal under an old Georgia law which landed a black high school football star in prison for 10 years.

McDade is no porno kingpin, but a district attorney. And he says Georgia’s open-records law leaves him no choice but to release the footage because it was evidence in one of the state’s most turbulent cases — that of Genarlow Wilson, a young man serving 10 years in prison for having oral sex with a girl when they were teenagers.McDade’s actions have opened him up to accusations that he is vindictively misusing his authority to keep Wilson behind bars — and worse, distributing child pornography.

Earlier this week, Georgia’s chief federal prosecutor, U.S. Attorney David Nahmias, said the video “constitutes child pornography under federal law,” and he called on McDade’s office to stop releasing copies.”These laws are intended to protect the children depicted in such images from the ongoing victimization of having their sexual activity viewed by others,” Nahmias said.

The law Wilson was convicted of breaking made consensual oral sex between teens a felony. It has since been changed by the Georgia Legislature. But the state’s courts have held that the new law cannot be applied retroactively.A judge last month called Wilson’s sentence “a grave miscarriage of justice” and ordered him set free. But prosecutors are trying to block his release. The Georgia Supreme Court is set to hear the case next week.

I agree that Genarlow Wilson shouldn’t be in prison in the first place however did he get permission from the young ladies to videotape this affair; that would be my main concern especially as a parent. The individuals involved on the tape have already been humiliated by the media, their community and probably their parents. I feel that the DA is probably out to vilify the young man even further and make him out to be the monster he probably isn’t. I think the people in the county the DA represents should sue the local government for wasting taxpayers money for the use of peddling child pornography!

Survey to determine libertarian perspective on the 2008 presidential elections completed

The survey of libertarians being conducted by LibertarianLists.com is now completed and the baseline results are available on the site. Additionally, a new (and shorter and faster) survey has been initiated here. It asks a few new questions and breaks things out differently so we can learn more about how libertarians feel about the various presidential candidates. Please participate in the new survey so your voice is heard and your vote is counted.

It’s no surprise that Ron Paul dominated, pulling in a total of 1389 votes (69.62%) out of the 1995 people who responded to the survey. What’s interesting is that he got a slightly higher amount of votes from people who indicated they were members of the Libertarian Party than from the general libertarian community. Of the 1351 self-identified LP members, 976 (72.24%) chose Paul over the other candidates.

Of the Libertarian Party candidates, George Phillies won. Here’s how the vote broke down for members of the Libertarian Party (this excludes small-Ls not associated with the LP):

Field Summary for 0005:
If the presidential election was held today, for which candidate are you most likely to vote?
Answer	Count	Percentage
No answer	0	0.00%
Steve Kubby (1)	36	2.66%
Mike Gravel (2)	1	0.07%
George Phillies (3)	48	3.55%
Ron Paul (4)	976	72.24%
Wayne Allyn Root (5)	31	2.29%
Dennis Kucinich (6)	6	0.44%
Mike Jingozian (7)	2	0.15%
Newt Gingrich (8)	8	0.59%
Christine Smith (9)	16	1.18%
Barack Obama (10)	14	1.04%
Daniel Imperato (11)	4	0.30%
Tom Tancredo (12)	11	0.81%
Barry Hess (13)	8	0.59%
Joe Biden (14)	1	0.07%
Alden Link (15)	3	0.22%
Chuck Hagel (16)	0	0.00%
Robert Milnes (17)	0	0.00%
Mike Bloomberg (18)	7	0.52%
Bob Jackson (19)	2	0.15%
Fred Thompson (20)	39	2.89%
John Finan (21)	0	0.00%
Dave Hollist (22)	2	0.15%
Rudy Giuliani (23)	34	2.52%
John McCain (24)	8	0.59%
Hillary Clinton (25)	6	0.44%
Mike Huckabee (26)	9	0.67%
John Edwards (27)	3	0.22%
Tommy Thompson (28)	1	0.07%
Jim Gilmore (29)	0	0.00%
Duncan Hunter (30)	3	0.22%
Al Gore (31)	11	0.81%
Other (-oth-)	61	4.52%

With respect to name recognition and favorables, let’s take a look at the top five LP candidates. Again, these data are coming from big-Ls; I’m excluding the small Ls from these data. To see the full data, simply visit here.

Name recognition factors among LP members:

• Steve Kubby: 49.37%
• George Phillies: 38.49%
• Wayne Allyn Root: 18.8%
• Christine Smith: 17.84%
• Barry Hess: 23.46%

Of those who actually knew the candidates, here’s the average number of what they thought of them -with 1 as the least favorable rating and 5 as the most favorable.

	Kubby	Phillies	Root	Smith	Hess
AVERAGE	3.83	3.60	3.35	3.34	3.58

In other words, LP member’s presidential preferences, so far, go in this order: George Phillies, Steve Kubby, Wayne Allyn Root, Christine Smith, Barry Hess.

To rank candidates by name recognition, the list looks like this: Steve Kubby, George Phillies, Barry Hess, Wayne Allyn Root, Christine Smith.

To rate them by favorability factors, it goes like this: Steve Kubby, George Phillies, Barry Hess, Wayne Allyn Root, Christine Smith.

In other words, it looks like any of the top five candidates could end up being the eventual LP nominee. It’s a shame that no one is paying much attention to them, considering how unlikely it is that Ron Paul will win the Republican nomination.

BTW, here’s a suggestion to some of the LP presidential candidates. If Hillary Clinton has more support from LP members than you have recieved, maybe you should consider dropping from the race.

I’ll be posting additional analyses of the survey results here and here.

I couldn’t resist posting this one ….

Let Freedom Grow! for 07/08/07

Sorry, I’m behind on the campaign updates. Catching up…

Steve Kubby wraps up the weekly podcast series and discusses future plans:

Subscribe Free  Add to my PageLatest campaign newsletter update after the jump.

Just For Laughs ….. The Pervy Prince

And now, for something completely different …..

I was curious about the skateboarding dog on the IPod commercials, and found this gem. I present to you … Tillman The Skateboarding Bulldog!

Fun with LFV’s google ads …..

Thanks to Google, LFV links to a site which reports only negative things about candidates, including Ron Paul. Here’s a taste, with some dirt on Rudy Giuliani:

Keeps priest accused of rape

Giuliani’s consulting firm continues to employ a priest — Msgr. Alan Placa — who has been accused of rape by multiple former students. Newsday gave the update on 6/23/07:

In 2002, after Newsday reported accusatons he had molested students decades earlier, the Diocese of Rockville Centre placed Placa on administrative leave. In 2003, a Suffolk County grand jury report cited the accusations by three of his former students and found Placa used his position as diocese vice chancellor to stifle other priest-abuse complaints.

But even after being pressed by survivors’-rights groups, Giuliani still refuses to show Placa the door.

There’s also an ad for a site which sells bumper stickers such as these:

There are other google ad links to the Cato Institute, an email service for political candidates, a site for US election polls, an offer to get Ann Coulter’s weekly column for free, and a site for an “urgent” Hillary Clinton poll. LOL

Some funny shit to brighten your day

Various posters, courtesy of Paulie and/or the Lew Rockwell blog.

Ron Paul wins New Hampshire straw poll

Could he win the first primary? I sure hope so. It could give him a MAJOR boost, potentially propelling him to victory. Anyway, the Ron Paul campaign put out the following press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 7, 2007

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA – Presidential candidate Ron Paul today won the Coalition for New Hampshire Taxpayers (CNHT) straw poll at their annual picnic in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. Dr. Paul received 182 of 294 votes cast, or 65 percent. In second place was Rudy Giuliani with 24 votes, or 8 percent.

“Today’s strong victory is further proof that Dr. Paul’s message is resonating throughout New Hampshire,” said campaign manager Lew Moore. “Dr. Paul is the only candidate in this race truly dedicated to smaller government and lower taxes for all Americans.”

CNHT is a statewide, grassroots organization dedicated to reducing the size of government at all levels, stopping judicial activism, providing students and parents with a choice of educational opportunities, expanding job markets, and protecting property rights.

A note from Jason Gatties …..

I just wanted to take a moment to thank all the Libertarians out there who have sent me supportive emails over the past few weeks. I also want to thank LastFreeVoice.com for their contributions. Running for Tribal Council was a unique experience in that I had to attempt to reach over 3000 members spread over 2 states. It wasn’t easy and I’ll know after Saturday if our hard work has paid off.

Again, I truly appreciate the support and I know that win or lose, I’m coming out of this feeling like a winner because of all the support I’ve received.

–
Jason Gatties

George Stephanopoulos: Asshole

Perhaps it’s better that the MSM doesn’t pay any attention to candidates I like. ABC’s George Stephanopoulos interviewed Ron Paul (who I like) and Mike Gravel (who I don’t) recently. You can go here to view the clips. (I can’t find a way to embed the videos; the title of Gravel’s interview is “The Existential Candidate”, Paul’s is “Betting against Ron Paul”.)

Both of these interviews are infuriating. It’s clear that Stephanopoulos is tasked, either by himself or his higher-ups, with making these guys seem like nutjobs, then telling them they won’t win. Ron Paul, of course, has dealt with this in every interview of him I’ve seen, and he’s quite good at not falling into the giant holes the interviewer digs for him. Gravel is a nutcase, so Stephanopoulos (how old do you think he was when he learned how to spell his name?) had an easier time with him, but still didn’t do a good job.

Then came to what was supposed to be the money shot: Stephanopoulos saying “You won’t win.” That’s all, there was no “probably” or anything to qualify the statement. Just “Haha, fuck you.”

It’s nice to know ABC has already determined the winner of the 2008 election.

Now for something completely different….

Back in the ’70s, there was a lot of controversy about alleged backward masking (i.e., subliminal messaging) in rock music.  Parents were absolutely freaking out over it, and forbidding their children to listen to rock music.   It should surprise no one to discover that I was one of the kids back then who played a lot of albums backward, just to see what all the controversy was about.  It was pretty easy to do on a record player, after all.

While most songs played backward have words here and there that you can clearly recognize, and some even had recognizable sentences which appear to make sense in some way, the undisputed king of all backward messages was, and still is, “Stairway To Heaven” by Led Zeppelin.  In fact, many hardcore rock fans at that time called the song “Oppositioner”, based on its backward message.

Don’t misunderstand, I don’t think this was intentional at all, since even human speech played backward can say some pretty weird stuff.  Still, it’s kinda freaky that the entire song seems to be a message in line with the song title, LOL.  So, for your viewing and listening pleasure, I present to you “Stairway To Heaven” played backward, with the ”Oppositioner” lyrics printed on-screen.

Ron Paul 3rd among “Republicans” in Cash on Hand

ABC just announced that Ron Paul has $2.4 million cash on hand, 3rd among Republicans – Giuliani and Romney are ahead of him, and McCain is just behind him.

While Paul isn’t perfect, he’s the best chance for liberty I’ve seen. So I ask, who’s a longshot now, bitches?

How to be a successful drug dealer and get away with it

Also posted at Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli

Really interesting post over on Capitalist Dove

Making the House into a proportionally-representative body?

I dig it. I like it. I put in my two cents; you should too. Maybe something cool could come of it, and we’ll get a coherent policy that might even be able to be advocated with other supporters of proportional representation (I’m thinking the Greens here).

Welcome Patriot Calendar!

A friend just told me about this new online liberty friendly community! It’s about time there is something like this! If you are an event organizer be sure to log your event information here. Let’s start using this great site!

2008 GOP platform published

It’s called How to be a Successful Tyrant.

Seriously though, it’s written by an anarcho-capitalist tax resister and sounds fucking COOL. From the summary:

Despite the apparent endless stream of “how to” and “self-help” books, one segment of the population still has nowhere to turn for help and guidance: the would-be tyrants and oppressors of the world. The purpose of this book is to remedy that deficiency.

If you are one of those individuals who most of all crave the ability to dominate, subjugate and control your fellow man, this book is for you. But as with many endeavors, satisfying your lust for dominion over others and building a successful tyrannical regime cannot be done with willpower alone. You need a little know-how as well. That is where this book comes in; combining your desire to enslave the masses with the lessons found in this book, you will soon be well on your way to becoming a successful tyrant!

The Man is back.

Stephen Gordon is back on the internet, and uncensored.

That’s fucking right.

Texas secession: A win-win situation?

Since I like to think ahead, I have occasionally posed the question to myself of what I’ll do if the 2008 Presidential race ends up being Giuliani v. Hillary, or an equally nightmarish scenario. (I think both will irreparably damage America.) I’ve come to the conclusion that secession would be the best option, and I don’t think my fellow Texans will think it’s that poor an idea – really, who wants their president to be a scary crossdresser from New York?

I think that as long as unconditional free trade was maintained, Texas and the rest of the country would be better off separate. Benefits to the rest of the country include:

• Texas will no longer pull you into idiotic wars, because it won’t think it’s as powerful.
• Texas political machines, such as the still-very-active one of Tom DeLay, will no longer hold sway over Congress. (They will also have less reason to exist at home.)
• Leftist bigots will have to find a new state to hate.

Benefits to Texas include:

• No more unfunded mandates from the Feds.
• Way less overhead.
• Midwestern unions will no longer keep us from real free trade.
• Since the political climate in Texas is significantly right-of-center, there’s more likely to be a libertarians v. conservatives contest going on than a conservatives v. “liberals” – there will be at least a chance of less government.

Finally A Drug We ALL Can Enjoy!

Do you want to eliminate a bad memory? Do you want to forget an unpleasant time in your life? Scientists have developed a drug that will erase bad memories.

Researchers have found they can use drugs to wipe away single, specific memories while leaving other memories intact. By injecting an amnesia drug at the right time, when a subject was recalling a particular thought, neuro-scientists discovered they could disrupt the way the memory is stored and even make it disappear.

I wonder if one could overdose on this medication. Would the overdose cause your brain to erase all of your memories or cause you to regurgitate last night’s meal?

I am figuring that our politicians have known about this drug for years because when you question them about a particular vote on a bill they seem to tell us that they don’t recall that particular vote.Lucky for us, every vote in Congress is archived.

I know there are some memories I’d like to forget. I’d like to erase the memories of those days when I was ever involved in the Democratic Party (maybe that’s not a bad idea because I wouldn’t be a Libertarian today?) Maybe the drug may help me forget that George Bush was POTUS and we never invaded Iraq. Or perhaps I could erase the memory of giving fifty dollars to LibertyMix?

Loretta Nall Needs Your Help

Loretta Nall has been a tireless advocate on a quest to reform the senseless, draconian drug laws in the US, assisting many defenseless victims along the way. Now she is facing personal financial difficulties of her own and is humbly asking others to return the favor.

Here is the situation. I do non-profit work from private grants and right now I am in between grant checks. There won’t be another one until September or October. While I have been and still am looking for work to supplement my family’s income I have found it virtually impossible to get anyone in the small town where I live to hire me because of my advocacy and my background as a radical drug policy reformer. That is one of the consequences of doing this kind of work in small town Alabama. Traveling to another town is not possible due to having only one vehicle operational. And the power steering went out on it last week.

Two weeks ago my husband had major back surgery. While we are fortunate enough to have major medical coverage we could not afford supplemental coverage that takes care of things like food and the power bill should my husband be out of work for any extended period of time. When you bring home less than $200 a week after taxes and insurance for four people to live on you literally cannot afford the extra supplemental stuff. Since he has been at this job less than a year he did not have enough sick time built up to be paid while he is out. And what was suppossed to be two weeks off for recovery has turned into six weeks off due to complications. This is just the beginning of the third week.

We are literally broke! I have five one dollar bills to my name. The power bill is due and the cupboards are near bare. We try to grow as much of our own food as possible to get through these lean times and it helps, but not quite enough.

And like a truly principled person, she refuses to accept food stamps even though she could have qualified for them long ago. So, what do you say, fellow libertarians? Please consider stepping up and chipping in whatever you can to a most worthy cause. I’ve just made my own modest donation.

UPDATE:  Loretta reports that the response has been overwhelmingly positive!

If The Chimperor Told The Truth…

Yes, I know, I already had this up in the comments section, but more people probably read this than that, so I thought I’d put it up on the wall too…

Adam Corolla hangs up on Ann Coulter