Shameless Fundraising Plug

It’s been almost a month since I announced my candidacy for the Libertarian Party VP Nomination. I have gotten a lot of good feedback from friends, family and libertarians I have known for years. My candidacy has been featured on the front page of the State Journal-Register, which is the oldest and third largest newspaper in Illinois. Now here’s the rough part; In order to keep my “success” going, I need funds, that’s right, MONEY! I know many of you have contributed to “Dr. No”, who is running for the Republican Party Presidential Nomination, but if you have a few dollars to spare, not only would I encourage you to contribute to my campaign but to other Libertarians running for office this year. Arin Sime and Tim Maguire are running classic campaigns and they need as much as your support as possible.

As for me, my plans are to go to Wisconsin, Missouri, Tennessee, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania and California state conventions. I want to create a decent campaign bi-fold to hand out at these conventions and have them available on-line for supporters to download so they can hand them out at conventions I am not able to attend. My goal for November is modest:500 dollars. So if you agree with me and want an active VP candidate in 2008, you know what you gotta do-throw me a little change for the campaign. You can contact me at chrisbennett2008@yahoo.com

Thanks!

George Phillies campaign gets mainstream media news coverage

According to this network’s website:

New England Cable News (NECN) is the largest regional news network in the country, serving more than 3.6 million homes in over a thousand cities and towns throughout New England.

Launched on March 2, 1992, NECN is a partnership between the Hearst Corporation and Comcast Corporation. NECN is available exclusively to New England cable subscribers, providing 24-hour access to breaking news, sports, weather, and traffic. The network’s original programming includes NewsNight, an in-depth news analysis program with Jim Braude; The Chet Curtis Report, a review of the day’s tops stories; Sports LateNight, a sports news and daily wrap-up program; New England Dream House, a home improvement program; and TV Diner, a restaurant review program with Billy Costa. NECN also airs three business-targeted programs—CEO Corner, New England Business Day, and This Week in Business. The news channel is the only station in the region to regularly produce its own documentaries.

NECN serves a six-state area encompassing Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island. The network broadcasts from its studios in Newton, Mass, and additionally maintains bureaus in Manchester, New Hampshire; Hartford, Connecticut; Worcester, Massachusetts; Portland, Maine; and Burlington, Vermont.

NECN is distinguished as a leader in the industry, having received several awards for broadcast journalism excellence including the George Foster Peabody Award, the Alfred I. duPont–Columbia Journalism Award and the Scripps Howard Foundation Award. The news channel was twice named News Station of the Year by the Associated Press, and for two consecutive years was named Television Station of the Year by the Gabriel Awards.

Fucking awesome.

Something Ron Paul probably ought to clarify

It’s kind of academic to a lot of people, but to a very select handful of the electorate, it’s one of the most critical issues.

Where does Ron Paul stand on Native American rights?

Right now the Bureau of Indian Affairs routinely denies Native Americans basic rights, rights that if systematically denied the average American would throw the country into the hands of the other party, if not outright revolution.

Lakota farmers have to seek BIA permission to grow crops on their own reservation, and continually agitate for their land back while the government owns and does nothing with the adjoining Custer National Grasslands and Oglala National Grasslands. Why can’t we give that back to them, and why can’t we let them have the same freedom we give our own farmers?

Osage members have to sign a “stupid Indian” clause establishing them as legal minors, regardless of their age, and putting their money in the hands of a non-Native American citizen if they wish to do business deals outside of their reservation.

Centuries after the European invasion, a class of people are still routinely denied their rights, and what’s more, it’s still socially acceptable to be racist towards them. We have the Cleveland Indians and the Atlanta Braves, but if we had the Baltimore Negroes or the San Francisco Chinks, there would be no end to the speeches against it and the boycotts threatened. In towns near the Native reservations, it’s all right to talk about “stupid drunken Indians” or for cops to pull people over for Driving While Native. Where people don’t do this, it’s merely because there aren’t any Natives left-our ancestors succeeded in extirpating them.

I say this because I have a Lakota friend who is very much a supporter of Ron Paul, but is hoping that he will come out and announce a common-sense policy that finally puts an end to government’s abuse and control of the first Americans. He could have done so at the minority debate, but focused on blacks and Hispanics.

Natives aren’t a huge demographic like blacks and Hispanics. Most states will not swing one way or another on the Native vote. But I’ll say this-if a Republican candidate were to come out swinging in support of Native rights, Alaska’s 12% native population would support him in the primaries. Arizona’s Navajos and Hopis would stand with all the Goldwater Republicans in the state. South Dakota would join the Ron Paul Revolution for good. And so would most of the rest of the Western states where Native Americans still remain a sizeable minority.

It’s not that I think Ron Paul is against Natives. I’m sure he isn’t. But he needs to come out and SAY that he stands with them, or else he runs the risk of looking like all the other politicians to the group that has lost more liberty than anyone else.

The Club For Fascism releases its white paper on Ron Paul

The Club For Growth — a ravenous band of Fed-loving, big-government centralists — clearly does not know a truly pro-growth / pro-capitalist candidate when it sees one. Their white paper on Dr. Paul proves once and for all that supply-side GOP hacks like Stephen Moore and Larry Kudlow are nothing but industrial socialists posing as free marketeers.

CFG on Ron Paul on trade:

Unlike protectionists who deny the economic benefits of free-trade policies, Ron Paul embraces the importance of free trade, but lives in a dream world if he thinks free trade will be realized absent agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA. Paul himself argues that “tariffs are simply taxes on consumers,” but by opposing these trade agreements, he is actively opposing a decrease in those taxes. While Paul’s rhetoric is soundly pro-free trade, his voting record mirrors those of Congress’s worst protectionists.

CFG on Ron Paul on entitlements:

But the recurring theme of Paul’s career is his frequent willingness to let unattainable ideals obstruct attainable progress towards those ideals. Just as in trade, this tendency leaves Paul opposing pro-growth reforms of Social Security. He opposes allowing workers to divert some Social Security payroll taxes into private retirement accounts, arguing instead for cutting payroll taxes and leaving it up to workers to do what they will with the savings. While the ideal is admirable, it is not a sufficient reason to oppose the pro-growth, expansion of freedom that personally-owned retirement accounts represent.

CFG on Ron Paul on “school choice”:

Ron Paul’s opposition to school choice (as if!) stems from his opposition to the government’s role in education, arguing that federal voucher programs are “little more than another tax-funded welfare program establishing an entitlement to a private school education.” He consistently voted against voucher programs, including a 1998 school voucher program for D.C. public school students, and a 2003 bill for a DC voucher program.

CFG on Ron Paul on tort reform:

Instead of traditional federal tort reform, he proposes “private contractual agreements between physicians and patients” that “enables patients to protect themselves with ‘negative outcomes’ insurance purchased before medical treatment.” In theory, Paul’s solution may help alleviate the situation, but it is politically untenable. While Paul’s idealism is laudable, he has not offered a viable alternative for dealing with a problem that is hurting American consumers and businesses, while diminishing our international competitiveness.

In summation, the Club For Growth wants its members to oppose Ron Paul because:

1. He believes in unilateral free trade, instead of unconstitutional and sovereignty-reducing faux-trade agreements that grant thousands of special privileges and introduce thousands of barriers to free trade. . . The CFG knows that these “free trade” agreements must be good because idiotic protectionist Democrats oppose them. Logical!
2. He thinks payroll taxes should be cut to allow individuals to invest their money as they see fit, rather than forcing people, at gunpoint, to invest in “privatized” funds that are administered by politically connected corporations who would make billions in non-market-based account fees.
3. He recognizes the fact that the federal government is not authorized to meddle in the educational affairs of its citizens, and would, instead, allow individual states to determine how to administer and fund their public schools — or privatize them altogether! The CFG members send their kids to private schools, and they want their share of welfare. Hey, central planning never hurt anyone, did it?
4. He admits that, under the Constitution, the federal government has no place dictating to “tort reform” to the states, and that individual states should be free to establish their own tort-based justice systems. Just imagine if the CFG really did their homework and found out that Ron Paul wants to deregulate everything and have more tort-based justice! That’s really “anti-growth” because the CFG members would no longer be able to bribe Congress for legal permission to violate the property rights of regular Americans.

The Club For Growth and others of their ilk give capitalism a bad name. Or perhaps the “growth” the Club is after is merely growth of government?

The real ‘green’ candidate for president: Dr. Ron Paul

What we call “environmentalists” aren’t environmentalists at all. They are communists. They hate private property and want to effectively abolish it so that all lands may be collectively governed according to “green” principles.

The real environmentalists are libertarians, and this in-depth interview on the environment with Ron Paul proves it. The interviewer, Amanda Griscom Little, did a great job in asking questions that allowed Dr. Paul to articulate free-market environmentalist principles. Here are some highlights.

On energy policy:

I would say that the reliance on the government to devise a policy is a fallacy. I would advocate that the free market take care of that. The government shouldn’t be directing research and development because they are bound and determined to always misdirect money to political cronies. The government ends up subsidizing things like the corn industry to develop ethanol and it turns out that it’s not economically feasible. So, my answer to energy is to let the market work. Let supply and demand make the decision. Let prices make the decision.

On environmental protection:

Governments don’t have a good reputation for doing a good job protecting the environment. If you look at the extreme of socialism or communism, they were very poor environmentalists. Private property owners have a much better record of taking care of the environment. If you look at the common ownership of the lands in the West, they’re much more poorly treated than those that are privately owned. In a free-market system, nobody is permitted to pollute their neighbor’s private property — water, air, or land. It is very strict.

On abolishing the EPA:

Environmental protection in the U.S. should function according to the same premise as “prior restraint” in a newspaper. Newspapers can’t print anything that’s a lie. There has to be recourse. But you don’t invite the government in to review every single thing that the print media does with the assumption they might do something wrong. The EPA assumes you might do something wrong; it’s a bureaucratic, intrusive approach and it favors those who have political connections.

On the threat posed by global warming:

I think war and financial crises and big governments marching into our homes and elimination of habeas corpus — those are immediate threats. We’re about to lose our whole country and whole republic! If we can be declared an enemy combatant and put away without a trial, then that’s going to affect a lot of us a lot sooner than the temperature going up.

There’s much more, but I don’t want to quote the entire interview. The interviewer comes from a more typical leftist “environmentalist” perspective, and she is clearly taken aback by Ron Paul’s answers. But she can’t help but offer him at least some faint praise for his free-market ideas — which were clearly foreign to her. Read the entire interview.

Ron Paul’s most thoughtful and candid interview yet

The best thing about this interview is actually the interviewer — the first I’ve seen who actually knows what he’s talking about, and treats Ron Paul not only with the respect that he deserves, but with a mild degree of reverence. The content of this video is largely about monetary policy, banking, and the Fed, etc. It is fascinating, and the most in-depth Dr. Paul has ever gone (as far as I know).

This is why the Middle East can’t have nice things.

Looks like Turkey’s taking cues from us.

Under mounting public pressure, Turkey’s government is mulling a cross-border military operation into Iraq to pursue the Kurdish separatist rebels based there. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has so far withstood military pressure to authorize such a move, but with 26 people killed in two recent attacks, public calls for retaliation are growing. The top-selling daily Hurriyet ran a banner headline Monday saying, “This warrants going into [Iraq].” Opposition politicians on both left and right have accused the government of failing to respond to the increased violence.

When the world hegemon proves itself to be a bloody warmonger, naturally the rank and file will tend to follow suit. Turkey’s going to get itself involved in Iraq now, when diplomacy (which ironically we’re pulling for in this instance) could probably solve the problem. Not only that, but the democratically-elected though religiously-fundamentalist party ruling Turkey is looking to get itself overthrown by a military coup if they don’t do this right. So we’ll have not only completely failed at “spreading democracy” but we’ll have been indirectly responsible for ending a healthy democracy. Awesome.

Equal opportunity offensiveness

Former Badnarik for Congress campaign manager Allen Hacker does not like this ditty little poem I found by way of Loretta Nall’s blog about the Gary Aldridge case. Oh well. The author is “Cuttlefish”.

We gather here to eulogize
The Pastor and the Man
Old Gary Aldridge, often wise,
Though not his latest plan.

A member of the Christian nation,
Friend of Jerry Falwell,
His last attempt at masturbation
Didn’t go at all well.

For fifteen years, he’d preached the word
A Southern Baptist minister
His death–now, is it just absurd
Or something rather sinister?

How does a person come to wear
Not one wetsuit, but two?
(Although, I know, I should not care
I’m curious–aren’t you?)

I tend to think that, years ago,
He spied a rubber glove,
And wondered “Should I–well, you know–
When God and I make love?”

He tried it on, and found a tube,
Half hidden on his shelf,
Of KY–smiled, and murmered “Lube
Thy neighbor as thy self.”

And minutes later, hard at work,
He felt a little odd
Was this a sin, or just a quirk?
He talked it out with God.

“Is what I’m doing here a sin?
Or is my pleasure Thine?
Is this as bad as skin on skin?
Lord, please, give me a sign!”

So God produced a pamphlet: “Your
Vacation in Aruba!”
And pointed out–right there, page four–
The wetsuits used for SCUBA

See, God’s not really how you think
A deity might be
He’s got a wicked bondage kink
(Just ask His son, J. C.)

So Gary died, not steeped in sin
But following God’s plan;
So straight to Heaven–come on in!
And bring the wetsuits, man!

A story, sure, but it may yet
Explain what happened then.
The moral is, please don’t forget:
Your safeword is “Amen”.

Lest anyone think I’m just picking on Baptists and Hackerites, check out Louis CK learning about the Catholic Church:

Confessions of a former Fiat-Money/Inflation Enthusiast

Dr. Ron Paul helped me see the light.

Here is a letter I’m sending to my local newspapers:

During last night’s Republican debate on Fox News, a typically clueless media inquisitor had the audacity to ask Texas Congressman and Republican presidential hopeful, Dr. Ron Paul, how he was different from Hillary Clinton. The question stems from the fact that, unlike his “Republican” colleagues, Ron Paul holds traditional conservative Republican positions against interventionism at home and abroad. Hillary, of course, is much closer to any of the other Republicans than Dr. Paul on virtually every issue. A better question would have been, “How are any of the other Republicans different from Hillary?”

Unfortunately, Dr. Paul only had enough time to outline his foreign-policy disagreements with Mrs. Clinton. It would have been nice if he had been given a chance to point out that while she wants to raise taxes, he wants to abolish the income tax and the IRS altogether. Hillary wants to expand socialized medicine, while he wants to gradually abolish Medicare and Medicaid. Hillary would extend the federal government’s sphere of influence on issues like abortion and gay marriage, while Dr. Paul would leave these and most other issues to the states, as per the 10th amendment. But most of all, Hillary, her Democratic colleagues, and all of the other so-called “Republicans,” would leave the immoral and unsustainable fiat-money system of the Federal Reserve in place, while Dr. Ron Paul would legalize monetary competition and restore gold and silver to their rightful and constitutional status of legal tender.

Anyone who advocates for a continued fiat currency cannot rightly be called a fiscal conservative. Fiat money allows politicians to simply print more whenever there’s a shortfall, and there is no hope for restoration of small-government principles so long as Helicopter Ben’s printing presses keep churning out essentially worthless bills.

Supporters of the War in Iraq on the right, and opponents on the left, are virtually in agreement (or willful ignorance) on the issue of fiat money. But fiat money, the War in Iraq, and socialized Hillary/Romney-care all go together. One cannot support one without giving his support to all. Fiat money not only makes them possible, it makes them inevitable. If you are pro-fiat money, you are pro-war and pro-socialism. There is only one candidate from either party who is against all of the above: Dr. Ron Paul.

Rapper Nas, The N-word Apologist.

It looks like title of Rapper Nas’s new album will be called “N****r”.

There were reports that his label, Def Jam, had scuttled the title idea. But Nas told MTV that he has had no opposition from the label, and said his intent in naming the album the N-word was to take the sting out of it.

“The title using the ‘N’ word is morally offensive and socially distasteful. Nas has the right to degrade and denigrate in the name of free speech, but there is no honor in it,” the Rev. Jesse Jackson said in a news release.

For the first time in years, I’m actually in agreement with Jesse Jackson when he says that there is no honor in the use of the n-word. African-Americans are not empowered by the liberal use of the racial epithet within our communities. Like I want to be reminded everyday of a word that is as degrading as the white racists who created it’s use. The real honor is to not use the n-word at all and bury the use of the word into non-existence.

“We’re taking power from the word,” he added. “No disrespect to none of them who were part of the civil rights movement, but some … in the streets don’t know who (civil rights activist) Medgar Evers was … they know who Nas is,” the rapper said, referring to the civil rights leader slain in the 1960s.

“And to my older people who don’t know who Nas is and who don’t know what a street disciple is, stay outta this (expletive) conversation. We’ll talk to you when we’re ready. Right now, we’re on a whole new movement. We’re taking power from that word.”

Well, Mister Nas, instead of rapping about selling drugs, pimping hos and brag about how much bling-bling you have, why don’t you start rapping about those who made it possible to spit your filth on CDs. Use your voice on positive subjects to uplift our communities. If it weren’t for those who fought and died during the civil rights movement, NAS wouldn’t be making any money today as a rapper but as a bathroom attendant in some posh, upscale restaurant in Lower Manhattan.

To me, there is no difference when a white person or black person uses the n-word, I’m disgusted when I hear it either way.

The government’s War on Corpses

My mom called me today with the following dilemma: A friend’s father had died. Prior to his death, he had arranged for his corpse to be donated to science. He had MS, and he felt, rationally, that his corpse would do him no good after his own earthly demise, so why not enjoy to psychic satisfaction, in the present, of potentially helping others, in the future? A rational choice.

However, where my mom’s friend’s dad went wrong was in assuming that the state wouldn’t have any obstructions against his posthumous wishes. Surely the state-funded institution of higher learning to which the cadaver was to be donated would have notified him of any potential obstacles, right? Wrong. We’re dealing with the government here. It’s always parasitic, feeding off the fruits of your labor, even in corpse form. Or, failing that, it will allow a favored group from among the populace to do the feeding, with the backing of the government’s guns.

My mom’s friend’s dad’s “crime”: He lived in Michigan. He had arranged for his body to be taken by the University of Toledo, which if you don’t know, is in Ohio. State or federal law prohibits the transfer of a dead body across state lines — unless you have a license to do so. After all, someone could get hurt! The funeral home, of course, has paid the necessary bribe to the state. Their charge for the sixty-mile round trip: Two thousand dollars, payable in Federal Reserve Notes.

So my mom wants to call her state representative and urge him to sponsor a bill barring “price gouging” by funeral homes. I tried to tell her that the price gouging wasn’t the problem, the problem was the favored status these “professionals” have been granted by the state, which distorts the free market by decreasing the supply of potential service providers. If the licensure requirements did not exist, someone would certainly be willing to perform this task, unpleasant as it may be, for 1/10 of the price.

But she didn’t get it. And it’s not because my mom is dumb. I understand her inability to grasp free-market solutions to problems when we’re all taught from an early age that government is the solution — that the government exists to regulate markets.

Breaking the statist paradigm is difficult, and that’s why I’m so excited about the Ron Paul campaign. I am much more of a libertarian now than I was when his campaign began, and I’m not the only one. That’s why I’m hopeful, and fairly confident, that his campaign will continue through Election Day, regardless of whether he wins the GOP nomination.

Where Ron Paul gets his money

Good analysis from Patrick Ruffini’s site. Click the map for in-depth details.

Oklahoma is not OK

Something stinks in the Sooner State.

Oklahoma voters were the only voters with no choices for president on their ballot except Bush Skull and Kerry Bones in 2004, and Oklahoma is one of 5 states that doesn’t permit write-ins, so Oklahoma voters who wanted to vote for someone other than Bush or Kerry in 2004 completely lost their right to vote (Source: Ballot Access News). In order to be on the ballot, an independent candidate or alternative party has to get signatures equal to 5% of the last vote cast, which is the hardest standard in the country, and they have to get 10% of the vote to keep their place on the ballot, second behind only Alabama with 20%. Half of the state legislative races go completely unopposed. The Oklahoma Supreme Court refused a challenge to this edict, and the feds have no jurisdiction.

Currently, there is an
effort underway to change this crazy scheme by initiative, but Oklahoma makes it hard to get issues on the ballot by initiative. Statute initiatives must get the signatures of 8% of the voters, which is among the highest percentages among states which allow citizen initiative, and constitutional amendments need 15%, tied with Arizona for the highest percentage required by any state that allows constitutional amendments by citizen petition according to a chart by
National Voter Outreach. The signatures have to all be gathered within 90 days, and then the State Supreme Court can hold up approval for the vote to take place by over a year.

After you gather the signatures, you have to print the names of everyone who signed on the back of the page. Imagine having to do that several hundred times after you get back from a hard day of asking people to sign and getting run out (or attempted) of every location imaginable, public and private, or having to flip the page over and ask busy people to print their name a second time for every single signature – especially when working on more than one issue. Yep, it sucks, and is one of the most asinine rules I have encountered in petitioning in 27 states plus DC over the past ten years. And there are some very asinine rules out there, such as New England states requiring signatures from every city to be on a separate page, and Massachusetts ruling that any tiny tear, food stain, stray pen mark or writing outside the box disqualifies a whole page of signatures.

To make matters worse, in a decision in the case of Yes on Term Limits v. Savage, U.S. District Court Judge Tim Leonard upheld a challenged Oklahoma state law (in effect since 1969) banning out of state residents from being ballot petition circulators and signature-collectors there. Who, exactly, is a state resident? People move all the time. Some more frequently than others. Some people don’t predictably live in one place long enough to get a mortgage or apartment lease, so we prefer to live in motels or stay with friends (I resemble this remark). Some people don’t even have a place to live at all. Does that mean we should lose our right to petition the government for redress of grievances?

Shortly after this ruling, as Brian Doherty reports at Reason Magazine,

longtime libertarian political activist Paul Jacob was indicted on felony charges in Oklahoma for conspiracy to defraud the state, along with Susan Johnson of National Voter Outreach and Rick Carpenter of Oklahomans in Action.

It isn’t Jacob’s first time with the guns of the state aimed at him. He served five months in jail in 1984, after a year on the run, for refusal to register for the draft.

In his interview about the arrest with Brian Doherty, Paul Jacob explains:

Synopsis of the Illinois Libertarian Party State Convention

Last week after I announced my candidacy, I had 3 mid-terms to complete. Friday, I made the 3 hour trip from Springfield to Rockford for the state convention. After checking into our wonderful suite, which Jeff Wartman can attest to seeing, we made it down to the bar, where you are almost sure to see a few Libertarians lurking around.

I never knew that word could spread so quick about a candidate, even to those I didn’t send an announcement to. Just about everyone knew that I was running for the VP spot and many welcomed the good news. I had a nice discussion with George Phillies, it was a reunion of sorts; George and I worked on both Russo’s and Badnarik’s campaign in 2004, it seemed like we were on those campaigns yesterday.

Friday night was a get together of sorts with a carnival like atmosphere. I got to mingle with other members and perspective delegates and told them what I will be focusing on as a VP nominee. I got a lukewarm greeting from Christine Smith. I don’t know what her beef with me was all about but by the time Sunday came around she was at best..hospitable.

Saturday morning we had workshops. I wound up attending a workshop in which I have huge interest in. Next year the voters in Illinois will have a choice to vote whether or not we need a Constitutional Convention for the state of Illinois. Bruno Behrend has set up a group for those in favor of the idea.

Bumper Hornberger was our speaker during lunch. This was his first Libertarian Convention he had spoken in front of in almost 6 years! I think his speech was more inspirational than Michael Cloud’s, who spoke later during dinner.

Sunday was the business meeting with a fantastic powerpoint presentation by Tony Ryan, member of LEAP and LNC Rep.

It was by far the best state convention I have attended and my thanks goes out to all those who made it possible!

Libertarian Receives Front Page Attention!

It’s been a week since I announced my candidacy for the VP Nomination for the LP. I sent press releases far and wide. I took a chance on sending a press release to my local newspaper, which is widely read and one of the biggest newspapers in Central Illinois. The political reporter picked up my release and asked me if I wanted to do an interview that THURSDAY! By the way, this blog was mentioned within the interview so I am hoping that our web traffic increases substantially.

Today, the interview was on the front page of the Springfield (Illinois) State Journal-Register

UIS student takes aim at Libertarian Party VP candidacy

By BERNARD SCHOENBURG
POLITICAL WRITER

Published Monday, October 15, 2007

At 6-foot-9, Chris Bennett is hard to miss. And his political aspirations match his height.

Bennett, 35, a senior at the University of Illinois at Springfield, is hoping to become the vice presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party.

“The days of a dormant Libertarian Party VP candidate are over,” said Bennett in a news release announcing his quest last week. “Our VP candidate should be as active as our presidential candidate and I will proudly work with whoever you choose as our presidential candidate in order to spread our message of liberty and freedom to the American people.”

Bennett was soft-spoken as he explained in an interview how he realized, after working on Bill Clinton’s primary campaign in 1992, that he didn’t really believe in Clinton’s platform.

“I just didn’t like how he wanted more government in more stuff,” Bennett said. “I didn’t like government having more control over the health-care situation, as Hillary tried to do and she’s proposing to do now.”

So, Bennett said, “I went soul searching.”

“The Republicans didn’t feel right,” he said. “They never really do reach out to minorities or a lot of women. And the Democrats, it just seems like they were taking the black vote for granted. So I decided ‘I’m going to search for another party.’”

Bennett had seen a Libertarian Party convention on C-SPAN. The convention included an African-American candidate for the presidential nomination, Richard Boddie.

“He was saying stuff that I really agreed with,” said Bennett, who is black.

Bennett now has been a Libertarian activist for more than 15 years, including working as scheduling coordinator during the late Aaron Russo’s 2004 attempt to be the Libertarian nominee for president.

“For the longest time, I used to carry a Constitution in my back pocket,” Bennett said, “so if anybody wanted to get in a philosophical, constitutional argument, I could whip out my Constitution.”

Bennett doesn’t think the country’s leaders are adhering to the Constitution, including going to war in Iraq without a formal declaration of war. Among his platform planks are “restore our civil liberties and constitutional rights,” including elimination of the Patriot Act and a proposed federal “Real ID” identification card. He said both invade people’s privacy.

He’d like to see lower taxes, with eventual elimination of the Internal Revenue Service.

Bennett frequently posts on Web sites, including one called

lastfreevoice.com, often in strong language.

“Jesse Jackson has taken up the anti-gun issue only because he failed as a ‘civil rights’ leader and pushes his new agenda to re-invent himself,” Bennett claims in one entry. “Just remember Hitler forced his people to give up their guns and look what happened; millions died in concentration camps. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; I’ll defend those values with my gun to protect my right to bear arms.”

Bennett said he actually doesn’t own a gun, but believes in the right to own one.

He’s also taken off on television preachers who get rich through their appeals.

“TV evangelists are the scum of the Christian community,” he said, writing about recent allegations of misspending by Richard Roberts, son of Oral Roberts. “Isn’t it immoral to steal from your contributors for your own lavish lifestyles …? Who do they think they are — the GOVERNMENT?”

And in an essay chastising Democrats for not doing more to get U.S. troops out of Iraq, he refers to the president as “Fuhrer Bush.”

Bennett is pro-life on abortion, which goes against the Libertarian platform. But he thinks other Libertarians may be coming around. He also thinks steps should be taken to legalize drugs.

A native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Bennett moved to Littleton, Colo., at age 9. He’s been married to his wife, Evonne, for 71/2 years, and they have two children. He moved to Springfield in 2005 to attend UIS.

While he said rural or suburban Libertarians might not be keyed into the issue of race relations, those from urban areas are, and he thinks the party is good for African-Americans.

In addition to ending discriminatory drug laws, which he blames for too many blacks being in prison, the Libertarians’ anti-tax sentiment would also help, Bennett said.

“If we lower taxes, people would be more able to get the house that they want or be able to contribute to their church or their social organization a little bit more,” he said. People could also “save for a rainy day.”

“I know a lot of people who would like to start their own IRA account, but they can’t because they’re taxed so much,” Bennett said.

Bernard Schoenburg can be reached at 788-1540 or bernard.schoenburg@sj-r.com.

Q & A Session with A Concerned Citizen From Anna Texas

I sent some questions to drax0r, a concerned citizen in Anna Texas who is very involved in the Keep Anna Growing organization. He was kind enough to provide me with some additional insight on the matter. You gotta love how the internet brings people together!

1. How did you get involved in the “Keep Anna Growing” organization?

I had just moved to Anna and my wife, looking for info on the city, happened across a local online forum where Anna citizens were discussing a wide variety of topics including the recent news about a petition to prohibit sales of alcohol having been circulated. There were a few people arguing for the prohibition on the forum so I took to engaging them in debate. It was.. spirited. (no pun intended)

I watch the news and am often disappointed when I see the erosion of liberty that comes with increased government influence on our daily lives. When this alcohol issue came up I realized I was in a position to do something about it in my little corner of the world.

My long-winded defense of liberty and fight against neoprohibition on the site caught the eye of a local fellow who invited me over for a drink and then introduced me to one of the people heading up the movement to oppose this petition.

The rest is history.

My (Very Short)Conversation With a Statist

I recently received a phone call from one of the Republicrats seeking the presidency in 2008.  Thanks to caller ID I knew just what to say.  My husband must be on the list, because they certainly do not want to speak to me.  The call went like this:

Me:  Hello?

Statist Staffer:  Hello. Is Mr. Crankypants in the house?

Me:  Mr. Crankypants is not available at the moment.

Statist Staffer:  I will call back again some other time.

Me:  We like Ron Paul here.

Statist Staffer:  I will call back when Mr. Crankypants is available.

Me:  Go Ron Paul!

Legalize Pro Athlete Steroid Use…

… and any other performance enhancing technique too!

Marion Jones gave back her medals, offered profuse apologies and retired from track – because old fogeys think the games are better off without pharmaceutical enhancement. This is not only a patently ridiculous idea, it is a concept that leaves us provably worse off for its acceptance. I can think of three ways offhand that removing the “enhancement” ban would benefit you and me.

Entertainment Value Would Increase

Everyone likes to see people perform great feats. When Mark McGuire was knocking home runs into the upper bleachers, the Cardinals were selling out their stadium on a consistent basis and I don’t seem to recall anyone falling asleep at the olympics when Ms. Jones won those races. Personally, I think it would be COOL to watch someone cover a hundred yards in under five seconds and, be honest, do you think football games would really drop in attendance if a few quarterbacks were literally drop kicked between the goalposts by a defensive lineman? That’s why they’re called “performance ENHANCING” they give us a better performance to watch!

Medical Research Would SURGE

One of the big things holding medical research back is the difficulty in finding willing participants to experiment on. Athletes are ready made for this! They are typically in excellent shape, their health is closely monitored and, at least in this area, they would be BEGGING for the chance to be guinnea pigs! And the benefits would NOT be limited to athletes any more than advances in auto mechanics due to formula one racing are limited to race cars. Auto races have literally driven forward improvements in EVERY aspect of automobile design from engine design to suspension to brakes. Odds are, you would not be driving half as sophisticated a car as you currently have if it weren’t for racing. The same could be true for your physical health, IF medical researchers had something to drive them forward in new directions like the Automobile industry does.

Professional Athletics Could Subsidize OUR Prescriptions

Prescriptions are getting expensive. Currently Americans are paying even more so less advanced nations (like Canada and France) can pay less. This is going to continue unless someone even better off then the typical American can foot the bill. Someone like the typical Athletic team owner. Now, you KNOW that these guys are going to pay hand over fist for the BEST of the best designer drugs available. This could easily mean a break in prescription drug costs for US! And best of all, it’s all voluntary!

Considering all of the above, wouldn’t you agree that outlawing performance enhancement is not only backward, it’s downright wrong?

Jenna Bush: Elitist socialist in the family tradition

From Time magazine:

If the war in Iraq is so noble, why aren’t you and your sister serving our country there? —Donald Pence, San Francisco

Jenna Bush: I understand that point, but there are many ways to serve our country, and I think my skills are better suited for teaching and representing the U.S. in Latin America through UNICEF. I respect the men and women of our country who are over there fighting. It is an unbelievably selfless thing to do. But if people really thought about it, they would know it’s not even a practical question.

Let’s break it down, word-for-word:

I understand that point . . .

She understands the “point” that thousands of Americans her age, from less aristocratic backgrounds, are killing and dying for a “noble cause,” and that the common folk may wonder why she and her sister should have “other priorities.” Very empathic of her.

. . . but there are many ways to serve our country . . .

She illuminates her poor, dim-witted inquisitor that, contrary to popular belief, there are ways of “serving our country” that don’t involve killing brown people or potentially being killed by them (or one of your one).

But make no mistake about it — man is a sacrificial animal in Jenna’s eyes; whose only noble purpose is in service of the tribe. Man alone is nothing. A worker bee. He finds worth when he surrenders his individuality for the betterment of the hive. Jenna, of course, is a Queen Bee.

. . . and I think my skills are better suited for teaching . . .

A capitalist principle! Division of labor. You see, some people have no useful skills other than serving as mercenaries and/or cannon fodder. These are necessary and valuable services for the tribe, but there’s no sense in using someone with more valuable skills — such as “teaching” (as if she were a “teacher”) — for less value-added pursuits. Maybe Jenna is a capitalist after all?

. . . and representing the U.S. in Latin America . . .

Yes. We all know how well the Bushes have represented the U.S. in Latin America. We have real problems with some of those uppity egalitarian-minded socialists. But have no fear — Jenna will relieve all of the tensions with the brown people in the Western hemisphere so we can concentrate on killing all of them in the Eastern hemisphere.

. . . through UNICEF . . .

Luckily, there is a global socialist bureaucracy through which Jenna can bring the world her “teaching” and representative talents. If not for socialism, how would she rightfully serve the tribe? Thank God for the United Nations!

. . . I respect the men and women of our country who are over there fighting. It is an unbelievably selfless thing to do. . .

And selflessness is next to godliness in socialist theology. I can see it now: Jenna Bush’s next book, The Virtue of Selflessness.

. . . But if people really thought about it, they would know it’s not even a practical question.

Silly plebes. You think you are equal to Jenna, but you’re not. You can’t be blamed for not understanding — it is above your intellect. This is why we need government. For the smart people — the people with real skills, like “teaching” and “representing” and curing AIDS — to take care of us dumb animals and prevent us from hurting ourselves or each other . . . Unless of course we are needed for a war.

Fiftieth anniversary of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged

From David Kelley, author of A Life of One’s Own: Individual Rights and the Welfare State (Cato Institute, 1998), and the founder of The Atlas Society, from today’s Wall Street Journal.

Fifty years ago today Ayn Rand published her magnum opus, Atlas Shrugged. It’s an enduringly popular novel — all 1,168 pages of it — with some 150,000 new copies still sold each year in bookstores alone. And it’s always had a special appeal for people in business. The reasons, at least on the surface, are obvious enough.

Businessmen are favorite villains in popular media, routinely featured as polluters, crooks and murderers in network TV dramas and first-run movies, not to mention novels. Oil company CEOs are hauled before congressional committees whenever fuel prices rise, to be harangued and publicly shamed for the sin of high profits. Genuine cases of wrongdoing like Enron set off witch hunts that drag in prominent achievers like Frank Quattrone and Martha Stewart.

By contrast, the heroes in Atlas Shrugged are businessmen — and women. Rand imbues them with heroic, larger-than-life stature in the Romantic mold, for their courage, integrity and ability to create wealth. They are not the exploiters but the exploited: victims of parasites and predators who want to wrap the producers in regulatory chains and expropriate their wealth.

Rand’s perspective is a welcome relief to people who more often see themselves portrayed as the bad guys, and so it is no wonder it has such enthusiastic fans in the upper echelons of business as Ed Snider (Comcast Spectacor, Philadelphia Flyers and 76ers), Fred Smith (Federal Express), John Mackey (Whole Foods), John A. Allison (BB&T), and Kevin O’Connor (DoubleClick) — not to mention thousands of others who pursue careers at every level in the private sector.

Yet the deeper reasons why the novel has proved so enduringly popular have to do with Rand’s moral defense of business and capitalism. Rejecting the centuries-old, and still conventional, piety that production and trade are just “materialistic,” she eloquently portrayed the spiritual heart of wealth creation through the lives of the characters now well known to many millions of readers.

Hank Rearden, the innovator resented and opposed by the others in his field, has not created a new type of music, like Mozart; rather he struggled for 10 years to perfect a revolutionary metal alloy that he hoped would make him a great deal of money. Dagny Taggart is a gifted and courageous woman who leads a campaign — not to defend France from England on the battlefield, like Joan of Arc — but to manage a transcontinental railroad and, against impossible odds, to build a new branch line critical for the survival of her corporation. Francisco d’Anconia, the enormously talented heir to an international copper company, poses as an idle, worthless playboy to cover up his secret operations — not to rescue people from the French Revolution, like the Scarlet Pimpernel — but to rescue industrialists from exploitation by ruthless Washington kleptocrats.

Economists have known for a long time that profits are an external measure of the value created by business enterprise. Rand portrayed the process of creating value from the inside, in the heroes’ vision and courage, their rational exuberance in meeting the challenges of production. Her point was stated by one of the minor characters of Atlas, a musical composer: “Whether it’s a symphony or a coal mine, all work is an act of creating and comes from the same source: from an inviolate capacity to see through one’s own eyes. . . . That shining vision which they talk about as belonging to the authors of symphonies and novels — what do they think is the driving faculty of men who discovered how to use oil, how to run a mine, how to build an electric motor?”

As for the charge, from egalitarian left and religious right alike, that the profit motive is selfish, Rand agreed. She was notorious as the advocate of “the virtue of selfishness,” as she titled a later work. Her moral defense of the pursuit of self-interest, and her critique of self-sacrifice as a moral standard, is at the heart of the novel. At the same time, she provides a scathing portrait of what she calls “the aristocracy of pull”: businessmen who scheme, lie and bribe to win favors from government.

Economists have also known for a long time that trade is a positive sum game, yet most defenders of capitalism still wrestle with the “paradox” posed in the 18th century by Adam Ferguson and Adam Smith: how private vice can produce public good, how the pursuit of self-interest yields benefits for all. Rand cut that Gordian knot in the novel by denying that the pursuit of self-interest is a vice. Precisely because trade is not a zero-sum game, Rand challenges the age-old moral view that one must be either a giver or a taker.

The central action of Atlas is the strike of the producers, their withdrawal from a society that depends on them to sustain itself and yet denounces them as morally inferior. Very well, says their leader, John Galt, we will not burden you further with what you see as our immoral and exploitative actions. The strike is of course a literary device; Rand herself described it as “a fantastic premise.” But it has a real and vital implication.

While it is true enough that free production and exchange serve “the public interest” (if that phrase has any real meaning), Rand argues that capitalism cannot be defended primarily on that ground. Capitalism is inherently a system of individualism, a system that regards every individual as an end in himself. That includes the right to live for himself, a right that does not depend on benefits to others, not even the mutual benefits that occur in trade.

This is the lesson that most people in business have yet to learn from Atlas, no matter how much they may love its portrayal of the passion and the glory possible in business enterprise. At a crucial point in the novel, the industrialist Hank Rearden is on trial for violating an arbitrary economic regulation. Instead of apologizing for his pursuit of profit or seeking mercy on the basis of philanthropy, he says, “I work for nothing but my own profit — which I make by selling a product they need to men who are willing and able to buy it. I do not produce it for their benefit at the expense of mine, and they do not buy it for my benefit at the expense of theirs; I do not sacrifice my interests to them nor do they sacrifice theirs to me; we deal as equals by mutual consent to mutual advantage — and I am proud of every penny that I have earned in this manner…”

We will know the lesson of Atlas Shrugged has been learned when business people, facing accusers in Congress or the media, stand up like Rearden for their right to produce and trade freely, when they take pride in their profits and stop apologizing for creating wealth.

Ron Paul’s odds of winning GOP nomination better than McCain’s

Bob Murphy is the author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism — a fabulous book, by the way. He also contributes to LewRockwell.com, where last week, he published an article entitled Real Money Says Ron Paul Has a Shot.

Based on contract data from the online betting site, Intrade.com, Ron Paul now has a 6.1% chance of winning the GOP nomination. In contrast, John McCain’s odds are just 5.4%. Bettors rank Ron Paul as fourth — behind Rudy, Romney, and Thompson — in terms of the likelihood of winning the nomination.

Could this be another instance of Ron Paul backers “spamming” the polls? Absolutely not, as Murphy explains:

To make sense of all this, let me briefly explain how Intrade works. It is fashioned after a futures market (such as in oil or pork bellies), where participants can buy or sell contracts contingent on future events. Now in the case of the “2008.GOP.NOM.PAUL” contract, the buyer (as of October 2) pays $6.10 for a contract entitling him to a $100 payoff if Ron Paul gets the Republican nomination. In contrast, the seller of this contract receives $6.10, but might have to pay out the $100 if Paul gets the nomination. Obviously, if Ron Paul doesn’t get nominated, then the buyer of the contract gets nothing – he’s out his $6.10 – and the seller gets to pocket the $6.10.

There are imperfections due to transaction costs and other frictions, but the probabilities of all the possible outcomes should sum (close to) 100%, because otherwise there would be pure arbitrage opportunities. For example, if the sum of the contract prices totaled only $98, then someone could buy one of each, and be guaranteed a profit of $2 (since one of the contracts would “hit”). On the other hand, if the contracts summed to $103, then someone could sell one of each, earning $103, and then only have to pay out $100 when one of them hit – thus netting a guaranteed profit of $3. So generally speaking, the contract prices should all sum to $100.

Of course, people with inside information stand to profit by trading in this market. If a technician at a health clinic comes across a very disturbing heart exam for McCain, that person could rush out and sell contracts on McCain’s nomination – and thereby push down the price of a McCain contract. On the other hand, if a Romney campaign staffer learned that Mitt was going to receive an honorary degree from a university, he could rush to buy contracts on his candidate, and thereby push up their price.

It’s because of the arbitrage element, and the fact that people with inside information can trade on it, that leads economists to loosely say that “the market” assigns a probability of (right now) 6.1% to a Ron Paul nomination.

So for all of those who have said “Ron Paul has no chance of winning the GOP nomination,” we were wrong. He has a chance. He’s still far from a favorite, but his chances are legitimate. The media continues to promote Christian socialist Mike Huckabee as a “real” candidate, but his odds of capturing the nomination are just 3.1%, according to Intrade. Sooner or later, Ron Paul will be given his due as a legitimate contender.

In addition: Check out this article from an Iowa political insider: Ron Paul Could Win Iowa.

Tragedy on Kubby Video Set

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
10/09/07

CONTACT:
Thomas L. Knapp
kubby.communications@gmail.com
314-705-3042

TRAGEDY ON KUBBY VIDEO SET: CAMPAIGN RELEASES “DEATH OF DENNY” FOOTAGE

FORT BRAGG, CA — In a stunning turn of events, Libertarian presidential candidate Steve Kubby’s campaign organization has announced that it will release previously unseen shocking footage of an on-set death — the murder of the South Park, Colorado medical marijuana patient known to friends and loved ones as “Denny” by none other than Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani.

The footage is included in a “Director’s Cut” of The Kubby Chronicles, Episode One, which was released today on YouTube.com. The circumstances of Denny’s death are still under investigation by California authorities, but the footage clearly implicates Giuliani. The former mayor of New York — known for his rabid opposition to medical marijuana and for his city’s record-setting marijuana arrest rates, while he was mayor — apparently made an unauthorized entry, accompanied by fellow drug warrior and presidential candidate John McCain, to the cannabis dispensary where the video was being shot. There, he assaulted Denny during a break in filming, while the young patient was receiving his medical marijuana via IV. Denny was pronounced dead at the scene.

“Capitalizing on this senseless tragedy wasn’t in the playbook” says director Doug Scribner. “We just wanted the actors from our 1998 South Park commercial back together again for a screen reunion. But Denny’s grieving parents convinced us that publicizing it may help America stop Giuliani from killing again.” Friends say the young actor, who had been battling cancer for the past two years, had just gone into remission.

Kubby was unavailable for comment and rumored to be accompanying Denny’s body back to Colorado for burial but, says Scribner, “he approved the message before he left.”

Giuliani’s whereabouts are unknown. Local authorities have warned citizens not to approach Giuliani, as he is considered prone to bizarre, and it now seems violent, behavior.

-30-
about 290 words

The Kubby Chronicles, Episode One — The Director’s Cut:
http://www.kubby2008.com/cartoon

Arin Sime: Libertarian with a real chance

Austin Cassidy of ThirdPartyWatch.com recently posted an article urging libertarian activists and Ron Paul supporters to get behind Libertarian candidate for Virginia state senate, Arin Sime. Sime has run the kind of campaigns Libertarians say they want to see — he’s been very visible in the community, he’s maintained an active campaign schedule, he’s produced a quality TV ad, and he has raised a lot of money — $35,000 to date, with $7,000 on hand, according to TPW

So I, too, am asking Libertarians to put their Federal Reserve Notes where their mouths so frequently are: Make a contribution to Arin Sime’s campaign. And you can do more than that, as outlined in Austin’s article.

But I’m not asking you to get involved with Sime just because he’s “done everything right.” I’m asking you to get involved because, more so than any Libertarian of recent years, he actually has a decent chance of doing very well on Election Day — including a legitimate longshot at victory. I don’t say this fancifully, either. I’ve taken a look at the numbers, and they are extremely favorable for Sime.

To be clear: Sime’s race is to be decided this November — as in 2007; not 2008. The last state-senate elections were held in 2003, and there were a total of 35,612 votes cast in a lopsided win (72% to 28%) for the Republican.

Here are the makings for a perfect storm:

• Sime’s district is overwhelmingly conservative, as evidenced by the 2003 election results. However, the Republican Party has a lot of problems with its constituency, and Democrats are charged up.
• Sime has been campaigning on issues that appeal to conservative voters.
• If the Democrat is able to increase his vote share to a mere 30%, then that leaves a remaining 70% for Sime and the Republican. Assuming 3% turnout growth (to be safe), this makes Sime’s victory target a mere 12,838 votes.

A say “mere” with reservation. I know full well how difficult it is to get 12,838 votes. Sime’s chances for victory may be slim, but they are real — they actually exist, unlike with most Libertarian candidates. And in the absence of victory, a solid 10% showing seems extremely likely. A second-place finish may be even-money odds.

The thing is: We won’t know unless we try. Arin Sime is running a real campaign. So please, take up his cause.

Divinity, drinking and douchebags

Back when I went to a Baptist church, three things were impressed upon me: the importance of potlucks, the importance of the temperance wagon, and the importance of outlining each and every sermon in three big bullet points, usually with alliteration up in that mutha.

Why am I saying these things? Because I had a dinner party last night. There is this absolutely delectable dish that I make, it’s pretty much unnamed, but the recipe was crafted by God Himself and handed to my mother and she gave me the recipe. It’s chicken and mushrooms in a sauce made with mayonnaise, cheddar cheese soup, white wine and various spices served over rice. It’s basically my “Impress Prospective Females And/Or People At Formal Occasions” dish.

So anyway. I had this dinner party last night and went to make this dish and realized I was out of white wine, and so I went down to the corner store to get more. I discovered that, despite the fact that the Sutter Home White Zinfandel was staring me in the eyes from its position right there on the shelf, that I could not purchase it. No sir, on Sundays it’s there to make the store look pretty, and nothing more. You see, the Baptists in Nebraska had long ago banned alcohol sales (except for beer) on Sundays.

Wait, what? (IS IT CAN BE BULLET TIEM NAO AFTER THE JUMP? )

Now for that big announcement…….

Since I have put many of you in suspense, I’m going to come right out and tell you what the big surprise has been over the last few weeks. I’m announcing my candidacy for the Libertarian Party’s 2008 Vice-Presidential Nomination.

A little background about me: I have been a libertarian activist for almost 16 years, helping Libertarian and small l-libertarian candidates throughout the years. I was Aaron Russo’s scheduling coordinator during his run for the 2004 LP Presidential nomination. I am 35 and married with two children. I’m a senior at University of Illinois at Springfield pursuing a degree in political studies and a minor in economics and I graduate in May, 2008, two weeks before the national convention in Denver. I am currently the Legislative Chair for the Libertarian Party of Illinois. I have fought for for better ballot access for third parties in Illinois, which according to Richard Winger over at Ballot Access News, has one of the most difficult ballot access laws in this country for third parties.

I will not make promises I can not keep. I do not have 200,000 dollars in future contributions and I am not endorsed by a famous dead person. However there are some promises I will keep:

I am strongly against the invasion and the “police action” in Iraq and will help push for an anti-war resolution at the Denver Convention.

I am against a fair tax and I will continue to fight to decrease the tax burden for all Americans.

I will continue to fight to restore our civil liberties and constitutional rights and fight to eliminate the Patriot Act, the Real ID Act, the Military Commissions Act and the North American Union.

As an African-American, I will use my candidacy to recruit more minorities and women into the libertarian movement.

As a soon-to-be college graduate, I will continue to convince younger voters and non-voters that the Libertarian Party is the future not the two “boot on your neck” parties and use my candidacy to re-energize libertarian college campus and local organizations across the country.

If I am nominated, I will help/assist state parties on getting our presidential ticket on their respective state ballots.

If I am nominated, I will assist serious Libertarian candidates running for office in all facets of their campaign across the country.

The days of a dormant Libertarian Party VP candidate are over. Our VP candidate should be as active as our Presidential candidate and I will proudly work with whoever you choose as our Presidential candidate in order to spread our message of liberty and freedom to the American people.

My e-mail is chrisbennett2008@yahoo.com and if you want to talk to me personally via phone, e-mail me and leave your number and I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Thank you and I hope I will get a lot of support heading into the National Convention in Denver. Thank you ahead for your support!

Chris Bennett

Update: I have my new website/blog up now plus a Yahoo group all set up. Campaign announcements will be published there as well as here in the upcoming weeks.

Living in Luxury In the Name of GOD!

Remember this moment?

Twenty years ago, televangelist Oral Roberts said he was reading a spy novel when God appeared to him and told him to raise $8 million for Roberts’ university, or else he would be “called home.”

It seems like God has called Oral’s son, Richard, to deny the plethora of allegations against him and his wife of misusing the university’s funds and resources.

Richard Roberts is accused of illegal involvement in a local political campaign and lavish spending at donors’ expense, including numerous home remodeling projects, use of the university jet for his daughter’s senior trip to the Bahamas, and a red Mercedes convertible and a Lexus SUV for his wife, Lindsay. She is accused of dropping tens of thousands of dollars on clothes, awarding nonacademic scholarships to friends of her children and sending scores of text messages on university-issued cell phones to people described in the lawsuit as “underage males.”

Here’s a list of the allegations against the family:

• A longtime maintenance employee was fired so that an underage male friend of Mrs. Roberts could have his position.

• Mrs. Roberts — who is a member of the board of regents and is referred to as ORU’s “first lady” on the university’s Web site — frequently had cell-phone bills of more than $800 per month, with hundreds of text messages sent between 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. to “underage males who had been provided phones at university expense.”

• The university jet was used to take one daughter and several friends on a senior trip to Orlando, Fla., and the Bahamas. The $29,411 trip was billed to the ministry as an “evangelistic function of the president.”

• Mrs. Roberts spent more than $39,000 at one Chico’s clothing store alone in less than a year, and had other accounts in Texas and California. She also repeatedly said, “As long as I wear it once on TV, we can charge it off.” The document cites inconsistencies in clothing purchases and actual usage on TV.

• Mrs. Roberts was given a white Lexus SUV and a red Mercedes convertible by ministry donors.

• University and ministry employees are regularly summoned to the Roberts’ home to do the daughters’ homework.

• The university and ministry maintain a stable of horses for exclusive use by the Roberts’ children.

• The Roberts’ home has been remodeled 11 times in the past 14 years.

TV evangelists are the scum of the Christian community. Instead of getting their own house in order, they go on TV, in the name of GOD, and speak about how immoral homosexuality, abortion and pre-martial sex is. Isn’t it immoral to steal from your contributors for your own lavish lifestyles and not for it’s actual intentions? Who do they think they are-the GOVERNMENT?

I leave you with this last quote:

“All over that campus, there are signs up that say, `And God said, build me a university, build it on my authority, and build it on the Holy Spirit,’” Brooker said. “Unfortunately, ownership has shifted.”

16 Constitutional Amendments to be voted on in Texas

It’s fall, which means that it’s time for Texans to consider another round of constitutional amendments to one of the longest constitutions in history.

Since this is the first year I can vote, I’m all excited about this. Here are my thoughts on the proposed amendments, which agree with those of the Libertarian Party of Texas’s Treasurer, Patrick Dixon:
1.“The constitutional amendment providing for the continuation of the constitutional appropriation for facilities and other capital items at Angelo State University on a change in the governance of the university.” No – the state should not have this many schools.
2.“The constitutional amendment providing for the issuance of $500 million in general obligation bonds to finance educational loans to students and authorizing bond enhancement agreements with respect to general obligation bonds issued for that purpose.” No – the state is not a bank.
3.”The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide that the maximum appraised value of a residence homestead for ad valorem taxation is limited to the lesser of the most recent market value of the residence homestead as determined by the appraisal entity or 110 percent, or a greater percentage, of the appraised value of the residence homestead for the preceding tax year.” No – This is weaselly, it just distorts who pays.
4.“The constitutional amendment authorizing the issuance of up to $1 billion in bonds payable from the general revenues of the state for maintenance, improvement, repair, and construction projects and for the purchase of needed equipment. “ No – Too far-ranging; most equipment will probably be used for worthless projects.
5.”The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to permit the voters of a municipality having a population of less than 10,000 to authorize the governing body of the municipality to enter into an agreement with an owner of real property in or adjacent to an area in the municipality that has been approved for funding under certain programs administered by the Texas Department of Agriculture under which the parties agree that all ad valorem taxes imposed on the owner’s property may not be increased for the first five tax years after the tax year in which the agreement is entered into.” No – Seems like a way for certain people to get breaks on taxes for making a deal with the government.
6.”The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation one motor vehicle owned by an individual and used in the course of the owner’s occupation or profession and also for personal activities of the owner.” No – just more rules, probably won’t be applied to the people who need it.
7.”The constitutional amendment to allow governmental entities to sell property acquired through eminent domain back to the previous owners at the price the entities paid to acquire the property.” Yes – Less property in the state’s hands is better.
8.”The constitutional amendment to clarify certain provisions relating to the making of a home equity loan and use of home equity loan proceeds.” No – burdens lenders with responsibility for debtors.
9.”The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to exempt all or part of the residence homesteads of certain totally disabled veterans from ad valorem taxation and authorizing a change in the manner of determining the amount of the existing exemption from ad valorem taxation to which a disabled veteran is entitled.” No – creates a privileged class. Should all people disabled on the job receive a tax abatement?
10.”The constitutional amendment to abolish the constitutional authority for the office of inspector of hides and animals.” Yes – Sweet, a government program going away.
11.”The constitutional amendment to require that a record vote be taken by a house of the legislature on final passage of any bill, other than certain local bills, of a resolution proposing or ratifying a constitutional amendment, or of any other nonceremonial resolution, and to provide for public access on the Internet to those record votes.” Yes – establishes more accountability.
12.”The constitutional amendment providing for the issuance of general obligation bonds by the Texas Transportation Commission in an amount not to exceed $5 billion to provide funding for highway improvement projects.” No – TTC is bad.
13.”The constitutional amendment authorizing the denial of bail to a person who violates certain court orders or conditions of release in a felony or family violence case.” No – Good-faith arguments could be made for either, but this extends the power of judges to deny bail and would probably be used against people that it shouldn’t be used against. When in doubt about a government program it’s a no.
14.”The constitutional amendment permitting a justice or judge who reaches the mandatory retirement age while in office to serve the remainder of the justice’s or judge’s current term.” For – If they do a good job, keep them.
15.”The constitutional amendment requiring the creation of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and authorizing the issuance of up to $3 billion in bonds payable from the general revenues of the state for research in Texas to find the causes of and cures for cancer.” No – More bureaucracy. Cancer is obviously horrible, but it’s not the state’s job to fix it.
16.”The constitutional amendment providing for the issuance of additional general obligation bonds by the Texas Water Development Board in an amount not to exceed $250 million to provide assistance to economically distressed areas.” No – We don’t need to subsidize farming where it shouldn’t be happening.

Out of Town Pastor and LP City Council Member Push For Prohibition in Anna Texas

Tonight, I ventured to Fossil Creek Liquor in Anna. Upon checking out I asked the employees what I could do to help them prevail against the nannystaters. They advised me to vote in the upcoming election. Not being a citizen of Anna, they suggested I visit Keep Anna Growing.

I can’t believe that some nosy, out of town pastor started this quagmire. I have a problem with people who try to legislate their opinions, especially when it comes to alcohol/beer/wine. Does this man not know that Jesus didn’t have a problem with drinking in moderation?

It’s too bad we can’t find a way to convince people to boycott Harvest Time Church in Lancaster (which doesn’t have an online link by the way). Hopefully residents will vote City Council Member Billy Deragon out as he is working in collusion with Lancasters’ very own official church of the nanny state.

Mayor Pellham seems to be a keeper though, I wish the mayor in my town was a cool as he appears to be.

This article pretty much sums up how the entire fiasco began.

Mr. Gonzales, who helped defeat alcohol elections in Lancaster and Cockrell Hill, doesn’t feel sorry for Anna store owners who would have to close if the measure passes.

“Nothing in life is fair,” he said. “That’s the democratic system we live in. Just like they have a right to put it in, we have a right to take it out.”

What if the shoe were on the other foot and people were able to take away Mr Gonzales’ right to operate his state assisted church? Let’s put that up for a vote shall we? What a heartless “man of G-d” and he calls himself a pastor? I have had enough of these do gooder preacher types. It isn’t hard to see why so many people are turned off by religion these days.

*****UPDATE***** Among those supporting the alcohol ban is Kevin Anderson who was elected to Anna’s City Council as a Libertarian back in May of 2006. This story continues to become even more interesting.

Hat Tip/Wes Benedict

Interview With A Vampire

I found Angela in a Hollywood back alley. She was handing out
Jack Chick tracts. I thought I’d ask her what happened, and why.
She asked that I abbreviate names to protect the innocent as well as the guilty. We discussed starting a new religion for fun and prophet.

Paul: So, you got sick of the LP platform debate? How come?

AK: I don’t know what did it. Maybe it was the way BC could say “Lessarchist” with a straight face. Maybe it was KB’s asterix. KB would call LPHQ daily and demand recognition for Pro-War “libertarians” on the LP website with an asterix, when he refused to stop calling headquarters with his demands for liberventionist punctuation, he got pawned off to LNC members, namely me.

Paul: ‘Lesterchist is a good term, in my estimation. Is it short for molesterchist? Or would that be molestarchist? Molest-a-christ? Baby Jesus, what kind of deformed partial birth abortion are we helping bring to life here with the “new and improved (TM)” LP (Lesserchrist Party)? And when will it get to Nazareth, at this slouching pace? The Lesserchrist BizarroJesus loves the little children, all the little children of the world…(red and yellow, black and white, they’re all very, very tight, all the little children of the world). [Bump, bump, booty bump, bump...]

To my knowledge, there is no x is asterisk. Also, any X you buy from anyone I know is at your own risk. Could be an aster or a disaster…you just never know until it is already in your spinal fluid. If you choose not to deicide, you still have made a choice. Have you ever come to a fork in the road and bifurcated? I have, but only after 40 joints by myself, and somehow debifurcated a day or two later. I have two equally plausible, yet mutually exclusive, memories of that weekend. Where’s Schrodinger when you need a litter box?

Ron Paul raises $5 Million in Third Quarter

Hat tip Presidential Politics ‘08.

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, a former Libertarian Party presidential candidate, has raised a staggering $5 million for the third quarter of 2007.

Dr. Paul, currently a Republican Congressman from Texas, is an obstetrician who has a very large grassroots following, especially among libertarians. To many that libertarian support is even more stunning, considering that Dr. Paul opposes abortion, whereas the Libertarian Party does not hold such opposition. However, completely in keeping with libertarian principles, Dr. Paul advocates immediate withdrawal from Iraq, at one time angering Rudy Giuliani during a debate when he suggested that the 9/11 attacks were “blowback” from previous US activities in the Middle East.

Wolf Blitzer broke the fundraising news on his CNN show “Situation Room” with the following statement:

Some stunning political news this hour concerning Ron Paul: The Republican presidential hopeful is low in the national and state polls, but now, when it comes to campaign cash, he’s standing very tall.

Ron Paul’s campaign reports that the congressman from Texas raised five million dollars over the past three months. That’s in the same neighborhood as what rival John McCain is expected to report, and it’s five times what former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee reportedly raised. It’s also more than three million dollars more than Paul raised over the first six months of this year. Paul can partially credit his big bucks to a strong following on the Internet.

Blitzer was not the only political pundit to express astonishment at this unexpected development. A similar sentiment was expressed by other news organizations, including MSNBC and ABC.

ABC World News Tonight is flying to New Hampshire to interview Mr. Paul for tonight’s episode. Earlier today, ABC called Ron’s totals “jaw-dropping.”

The future of the libertarian movement

Okay, so let’s step back here for a second and think about where the movement is going. Right now, to be perfectly honest, the bulk of its focus is on Ron Paul. He’s grabbed ahold of some serious anti-neocon sentiment in the GOP and is running with it. There is an actual chance that he might be our next President. Not to denigrate my party, but the LP Presidential race is kind of a sideshow right now. Furthermore, the coalition he’s assembled and draped in Republican clothing isn’t going away. He’s pulling in tons of people to the broader movement. The question is where they’re going to go.

A lot of it depends on what happens on Election Day. If Ron Paul isn’t the nominee, then he’s just sent a message to the GOP-a loud message, to be sure, but one of many. If he wins the nomination but loses the election, then he’s the next Barry Goldwater and he’ll establish the libertarians as a real force within the GOP, and it’ll lead to a moderate libertarian being elected sooner or later down the road, as well as the Republican Liberty Caucus becoming a major force in-house. If he wins the election, then he’s the next Ronald Reagan and after the GOP loses itself to political heresy down the road once more, everyone will be calling themselves “Ron Paul Republicans” in an attempt to be cast as reformers, and isolationist libertarianism will probably assert itself as the primary ideological force in the GOP once more.

In any of these potential futures, we have to ask where the Libertarian Party steps in. Really, it’s a question of just how effective the libertarians in the GOP are. The more effective they are at controlling policy within the GOP and passing laws in Congress, the less of a need the movement will have for a protest party. (I’m sure that with the infighting among the libertarian movement, though, that there will always exist a Libertarian Party at some level… probably the purists holding on while the reformers forcefully implement “regime change” in the GOP.) But the Libertarian Party is needed only to triangulate against two extremely statist parties, and is less necessary once at least one of those parties starts moving closer to liberty, in the proportion with which that party moves towards liberty.

To those that say a vote for a Republican is a vote for neocon aggression… well, a vote for a Democrat is a vote for slavery and Japanese internment camps, while a vote for a Libertarian candidate is a vote for (insert your favorite Libertarian scandal here, there’s been plenty). Just how far back in history are you going to go? Political parties are not people that have inflicted cruelties and abominations upon the body politic and foreign nations. They are tools; nothing more and nothing less. In this country, there seem to be two of them that actually get elected. Unless you want the likes of Eric Dondero representing our movement to the outside world that actually has the power to change things, I would suggest that we start rethinking our priorities, and start thinking about how we can actually curtail this beast of a federal government.

Ron Paul takes a million bucks in a week

It’s true; this is pretty much more money than a libertarian has seen anytime ever.

Rand Paul said that every day he’s surprised at “how big” his father’s campaign has gotten. Last week, they asked supporters to raise $500,000. “They passed that in three days, and now we’re asking them to raise a million,” Rand Paul said. By Sunday, they had done just that. And Rand Paul said his father might end the third fundraising quarter with more cash on hand than most of the other Republicans. “We may have more money on hand than Romney if you subtract what he’s given himself,” he said.

Given that the crusty elite fucks in the Gay Old Party are begging Ron for money, this could mean something. Who’s up for taking over the GOP?