07/02 -- Wal-Mart: Make companies provide health insurance; US suspends military relations with Honduras

[Thomas L. Knapp]

**************************************************
* RATIONAL REVIEW NEWS DIGEST
* The Freedom Movement's Daily Newspaper
*
* Volume VI, Issue #1,693
* Thursday, July 2nd, 2009
* Email Circulation 2,080
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* Published every non-holiday weekday
* by the staff of Rational Review
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* On the Web: http://www.rationalreview.com/news
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In The News:

1) Wal-Mart: Make companies provide health insurance
2) US suspends military relations with Honduras
3) French parliament sets up burqa commission
4) Iraq: Four killed, four wounded
5) Afghanistan: Occupation forces launch major operation
6) Karl Malden, 1912-2009
7) UK: Brown finally admits that there will be cuts in public
spending
8) UK: Forced marriage plea to schools
9) MI: Arrested for stealing computer ... from jail
10) Population numbers bounce back in cities
11) CA: Feds could seize parks if closed by budget
12) Former Edwards aide appears at federal courthouse
13) Arms dealer gets 25 years in NYC terror case
14) Obama awards WWII-era women pilots congressional medal
15) New Dem health plan has "public option," lower cost
16) CA: Victim disarmament bills have stores up in arms
17) Amnesty accuses Israel of war crimes in Gaza
18) SC: Elderly homeowner shoots intruder
19) UT: New era of choice for bar patrons
20) TN: Bredesen shoots down menu labeling restriction
21) Franken as 60th Senate Dem: How big a prize?
22) Suicide warnings for two anti-smoking drugs
23) Racketeering defendant's rapsheet goes back to FDR days
24) Thailand: Burmese fossil shows apes arose in Asia first
25) MA: State draws zones for coast wind farms

Everybody Has An Opinion:

26) Had enough yet?
27) "Fight them over there vs. over here" a false choice
28) Looking for Advil in all the wrong places
29) Cap and trade equals fraud and tax
30) Health care is not a right
31) The extraordinary evil of Bernie Madoff
32) ID cards downgraded
33) You're not the boss of me!
34) Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence presumes to tell people how to
worship
35) In Calais, solidarity with the sans papiers
36) The "Spirit of Humanity"
37) The Fourth of July: A celebration of agitation
38) Breaking the siege of Gaza
39) Mothers and military lies
40) Bring out your brain dead
41) No climate debate? Yes, there is
42) Whisky Tango Foxtrot?
43) How do you measure success?
44) What's the tipping point for revolution?
45) Don't get fooled again
46) Pecora Commission II: Super-sleuths or Keystone Cops?
47) NRA members must oppose Sotomayor
48) Auditing the Fed will audit the state
49) Moving along the state-anarchy continuum
50) It's the consequences, stupid
51) Do we need state control of medical care?
52) Ayn Rand at 100: When will businessmen learn her lessons about
politicians?
53) The paradox of liberty
54) Difference between legislation, law
55) Bloodless instability
56) Palinpalooza!
57) The only way to defend America: Kill a bunch of us
58) On passing judgment: Politics versus etiquette
59) In which I infiltrate Team Red and Team Blue and report my
findings
60) Medical arrogance
61) Keeping the fizz in the journalism biz
62) No tears for them in Argentina
63) Trying to understand the 4th of July from an African-American
perspective
64) The real Russia
65) Black and white and dead all over
66) Rage, rage against the dying of the light
67) Libertarians should dare to be different
68) Obama's public plan could drive insurers out of business
69) Objectively stupid
70) Bernie Madoff: Fall guy or first of many?

See No Evil, Hear No Evil:

71) Dan Proft on Freedom Rings Radio, 07/06/09
72) Sam Kazman on The Freedom Works, 07/02/09
73) Free Talk Live, 07/01/09
74) Liberal and conservative agree on Bill of Rights
75) Scott Ritter on Antiwar Radio

What's Up In The Freedom Movement:

76) Today's events

WaYbAcK:

77) Guiteau v. Garfield

***************
* In The News
***************

1) Wal-Mart: Make companies provide health insurance
Raw Story

"In a major break with most other large companies, Wal-Mart said
Tuesday in a letter to President Barack Obama that it supports a move
to mandate health insurance coverage by employers. 'We are for an
employer mandate which is fair and broad in its coverage,' said the
letter, signed by Wal-Mart Chief Executive Mike Duke. Also signing
were two prominent liberals: Andy Stern, president of the Service
Employees International Union, and with John Podesta, former Bill
Clinton chief of staff and head of the Center for American Progress, a
progressive think tank. The move 'flabbergasted' the National
Retailer's Federation, according to the Wall Street
Journal." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/l6vrur

-----

2) US suspends military relations with Honduras
MSNBC

"The Obama administration said Wednesday it has suspended joint
military operations with Honduras to protest a coup that forced
President Manuel Zelaya into exile. The U.S. withheld stronger action
in hopes of negotiating a peaceful return of the country's elected
leader. The Organization of American States, meeting in Washington,
gave Honduran coup leaders three days to restore Zelaya to power --
under threat of suspending Honduras's OAS membership. Afterward,
several officials said the administration is still reviewing the
possibility of cutting off U.S. aid." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/n5bjkw

-----

3) French parliament sets up burqa commission
Reuters

"French legislators on Wednesday set up a panel to look into the
spread of full burqas and niqabs among Muslim women in France and will
hand in its report by the end of the year. President Nicolas Sarkozy
said that burqas were not welcome in France because they are a symbol
of the subjugation of women. Sarkozy's remarks came after 60
legislators signed a proposal calling for the commission to be set up.
Al Qaeda's north African wing has threatened revenge against France
for launching a 'war' against women wearing the garments." (07/02/09)

http://www.rationalreview.com/content/65902

-----

4) Iraq: Four killed, four wounded
AntiWar.Com

"A bomb near Baquba in Ibrahimiya killed one Iraqi soldier and wounded
three more. A body bearing gunshot wounds was found in Makhmour. In
Mosul, a gunman was killed as he was planting a bomb. A separate bomb
wounded a policeman. Police in Fallujah killed a man who was seen
planting a bomb." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mgv8yx

-----

5) Afghanistan: Occupation forces launch major operation
ABC News

"Thousands of U.S. Marines and hundreds of Afghan troops moved into
Taliban-infested villages with armor and helicopters Wednesday evening
in the first major operation under President Barack Obama's revamped
strategy to stabilize Afghanistan. The offensive was launched shortly
after 1 a.m. Thursday local time in Helmand province, a Taliban
stronghold in the southern part of the country. The goal is to clear
insurgents from the hotly contested Helmand River Valley before the
nation's Aug. 20 presidential election." (07/01/09)

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=7982024

-----

6) Karl Malden, 1912-2009
San Francisco Chronicle

"Karl Malden, the Academy Award-winning actor who played Lt. Mike
Stone in the 1970s TV series 'The Streets of San Francisco,' died
today at his Los Angeles home. He was 97. Mr. Malden's acting career
spanned more than six decades, during which he won an Oscar as Blanche
DuBois' milquetoast suitor in Elia Kazan's 'A Streetcar Named
Desire.'" (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/kphmj7

-----

7) UK: Brown finally admits that there will be cuts in public
spending
Independent [UK]

"Gordon Brown changed his tune on public spending last night,
admitting Labour would have to cut Government programmes, as he tried
to refocus his attack on the Conservatives. The Prime Minister
insisted that Labour would secure economic growth, efficiency savings,
asset sales and public-sector reforms to protect frontline services
which would be at risk under a Tory Government. But he said it would
be 'fine' for other programmes to be 'cut' and that Labour would face
'hard choices.'" (07/02/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nyt4lx

-----

8) UK: Forced marriage plea to schools
BBC News [UK]

"New guidelines are being published urging schools to identify signs
of forced marriages ahead of the holidays. The guidance comes as an
official report raises questions about how schools and some councils
have responded to calls for help. The report calls on schools to play
a greater preventative role, saying some are clearly reluctant to get
involved. The government's Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) says it has
received 770 calls for help this year -- up 16% on 2008." (07/01/09)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8129466.stm

-----

9) MI: Arrested for stealing computer ... from jail
United Press International

"A Michigan college student was sentenced to 180 days for what the
judge described as 'the dumbest crime I've heard today' -- stealing a
computer from a jail. William Bradley, 25, a student at Western
Michigan University in Kalamazoo, was convicted of larceny after he
took a computer that was delivered to the jail while he was serving a
sentence for a separate case and concealed it behind some trash bins
to be picked up later. ... Bradley's actions were recorded by
Kalamazoo County Jail security cameras." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/lwnobv

-----

10) Population numbers bounce back in cities
USA Today

"The housing crisis and economic downturn that have forced many
Americans to stay put are boosting older cities where population had
been shrinking or was stagnant, according to Census estimates out
Wednesday. Last year, Los Angeles recorded its biggest annual increase
since 2002 and New York its second largest this decade. Chicago, where
population had declined for five years this decade, grew by
0.73%." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/llr3jj

-----

11) CA: Feds could seize parks if closed by budget
MSNBC

"California officials said Wednesday they are trying to avert the
federal government's threat to seize six parks that could be closed to
help reduce the state's ballooning budget deficit. National Park
Service Regional Director Jonathan Jarvis warned in a letter to Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger that all six occupy former federal land that
could revert to the U.S. government if the state fails to keep the
parks open." (07/01/09)

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31693419/ns/travel-news/

-----

12) Former Edwards aide appears at federal courthouse
Culpeper Star-Exponent

"An ex-aide to John Edwards who claimed he fathered a child born to
the mistress of the two-time Democratic presidential candidate spent
Wednesday in a federal courthouse, but declined to talk with a
reporter about an investigation into his former boss. With his lawyer
at his side, Andrew Young at about 8:30 a.m. walked into the building
in Raleigh where a grand jury was meeting. The longtime Edwards
loyalist simply smiled as he went by and declined to
comment." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nmbrgb

-----

13) Arms dealer gets 25 years in NYC terror case
Denver Post

"A man extradited from Romania in a plot to sell weapons to Colombian
militants has been sentenced in New York City to 25 years in prison.
Federal Judge Jed Rakoff sentenced Tareq Mousa al Ghazi on Wednesday.
Al Ghazi was convicted in March of conspiracy to murder U.S. officers,
conspiracy to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles and conspiracy
to support a terrorist group. He could have received a life
sentence." (07/01/09)

http://www.denverpost.com/rawnews/ci_12737010

-----

14) Obama awards WWII-era women pilots congressional medal
CNN

"President Obama on Wednesday signed a measure awarding the 300
surviving Women Airforce Service Pilots from World War II the
Congressional Gold Medal. The bill passed by both chambers of Congress
bestows one of the nation's highest civilian honors on the group known
as WASPs more than 60 years after they were the first women to fly
U.S. military aircraft." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/kl9ytu

-----

15) New Dem health plan has "public option," lower cost
Quincy Patriot Ledger

"Democrats on a key Senate Committee outlined a revised and far less
costly health care plan Wednesday night that includes a government-run
insurance option and an annual fee on employers who do not offer
coverage to their workers. The plan carries a 10-year price tag of
slightly over $600 billion, and would lead toward an estimated 97
percent of all Americans having coverage, according to the
Congressional Budget Office, Sens. Edward M. Kennedy and Chris Dodd
said in a letter to other members of the Senate Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions Committee." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/kk4pw9

-----

16) CA: Victim disarmament bills have stores up in arms
Appeal-Democrat

"Two new pieces of legislation related to guns are making their way
through Sacramento -- and making gun store owners in the Mid-Valley
frustrated at what they call political myopia. ... AB 962 would compel
those who sell ammunition to be licensed the same as gun dealers, and
mandate a face-to-face transaction when someone buys ammunition. ...
SB 697, would mandate safety measures be included in every gun sold in
California. That technology would be used to tell how many unfired
cartridges remain in a gun, to avoid accidental shootings when thought
to be empty. Guns would also have to have biometric technology to
prevent them from being fired if someone other than the registered
owner tried to do so." (06/27/09)

http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/stores-79105-making-arms.html

-----

17) Amnesty accuses Israel of war crimes in Gaza
Yuma Sun

"Israeli forces killed hundreds of Palestinian civilians and destroyed
thousands of Gaza Strip homes in attacks that amounted to war crimes,
Amnesty International charged Thursday, in the first in-depth human
rights group report on the recent war in Gaza. Amnesty called on
Israel to publicly pledge not to use artillery, white phosphorus and
other imprecise weapons in densely populated areas. And it urged
Gaza's militant Hamas rulers to stop rocket fire against Israeli
civilians -- attacks it also described as war crimes." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/m6958s

-----

18) SC: Elderly homeowner shoots intruder
Times and Democrat

"A security alarm went off at a Holly Hill accountant's residence in
the pre-dawn hours Tuesday, rousing the sleeping homeowner who grabbed
his gunshot, confronted an intruder standing in his doorway and shot
the burglar in the shoulder. L. Glenn Littlejohn, 71, of 1244 Peake
St. interrupted the suspect, Roosevelt Elmore Jr., at around 4:55 a.m.
as Elmore stood in the doorway of Littlejohn's home, according to
police. ... Littlejohn, after being awakened by the alarm, 'grabbed
his shotgun, went out the back door and went around to the side of the
house where the suspect made entrance and confronted the suspect in
the doorway,' Wunderlich said. He said Littlejohn shot Elmore in his
right shoulder with a 12-gauge shotgun. The wounded Elmore fled the
scene, and Littlejohn called 911 ..." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/ldncoh

-----

19) UT: New era of choice for bar patrons
Breitbart.com

"For the last 40 years, dropping into a bar in Utah has been a
complicated affair: Patrons have to fill out an application, pay a fee
and become a member before they can go in for a drink. It is one of
several restrictive rules governing alcohol consumption in Utah that
made the heavily Mormon state one of the toughest places in the nation
to get a drink. But some of that will change on Wednesday when a new
state law kicks in eliminating the need for people to become members
of bars to go inside." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mcbrlh

-----

20) TN: Bredesen shoots down menu labeling restriction
Tennessean

"Gov. Phil Bredesen just vetoed a bill that would have prevented local
health boards from enacting menu-labeling requirements. The Metro
Board of Health moved to put such requirements in place earlier this
year, but a group of Metro Council members then filed legislation to
repeal the board's action. The council has been waiting for the state
and Congress to act. The bill barely survived an initial council vote
in March." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nomgyo

-----

21) Franken as 60th Senate Dem: How big a prize?
Christian Science Monitor

"Al Franken's recount victory in Minnesota's US Senate race gives the
Democratic majority its 60th senator -- but no guarantee that the new
'supermajority' will hold on tough votes on energy, healthcare reform,
and war. That 60-vote threshold needed to break a filibuster by the
minority party has been Exhibit A in fundraising appeals on both sides
of the aisle throughout the 239-day recount in Minnesota. What the red-
flagged e-mail appeals didn't say was this: It may not matter. Take
Jimmy Carter -- the last US president with a filibuster-proof
majority, at least on paper. President Carter came into office in 1977
with a head count of 61 senators in the Democratic majority, but it
didn't ensure him the votes to jump-start a morose economy or move
White House tax and welfare reforms." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/lbngsb

-----

22) Suicide warnings for two anti-smoking drugs
New York Times

"Federal drug regulators warned Wednesday that patients taking two
popular stop-smoking drugs should be watched closely for signs of
serious mental illness, as reported suicides among the drugs' users
mount. But officials emphasized that patients should not be scared
away from taking the smoking-cessation medicines, Chantix, made by
Pfizer, and Zyban, made by GlaxoSmithKline. ... The F.D.A. required
Pfizer and Glaxo to place so-called black box warnings -- the agency's
most serious caution -- on the prescribing information for both drugs.
Both companies will be required to conduct clinical trials to assess
the mental health risks associated with the drugs' uses." (07/01/09)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/health/02drug.html

-----

23) Racketeering defendant's rapsheet goes back to FDR days
Fox News

"At 92, Frank Colacurcio Sr. shows little sign of slowing down in a
life of crime that began back in the FDR administration with a
statutory rape conviction. Colacurcio hit his first jackpot with
pinball machines in the 1950s, muscled his way into the jukebox and
cigarette vending machine business and built a topless and strip club
empire extending to 10 Western states. In 1984 the FBI hosted a two-
day conference on him that was attended by investigators from 12
states. ... Prosecutors now hope to send Colacurcio away for good.
They charged him and five of his associates with money laundering,
mail fraud and prostitution conspiracy in a racketeering indictment
announced Tuesday. He could face up to 20 years in prison if
convicted." (07/01/09)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,529786,00.html

-----

24) Thailand: Burmese fossil shows apes arose in Asia first
Associated Press

"Fossils recently discovered in Burma could prove that the common
ancestors of humans, monkeys and apes evolved from primates in Asia,
rather than Africa, researchers contend in a study released Wednesday.
However, other scientists said that the finding, while significant,
won't end the debate over the origin of anthropoids -- the primate
grouping that includes ancient species as well as modern humans. The
pieces of 38 million-year-old jawbones and teeth found near Bagan in
central Burma in 2005 show typical characteristics of primates, said
Dr. Chris Beard, a paleontologist at the Carnegie Museum of Natural
History in Pittsburgh and a member of the team that found the
fossils." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nxwxk3

-----

25) MA: State draws zones for coast wind farms
Boston Globe

"Dozens of wind turbines could sprout within sight of the
Massachusetts shoreline under a first-of-its-kind state blueprint with
the promise of generating both electricity and controversy. The draft
plan, scheduled to be released today, would allow a series of small
wind farms of up to 10 turbines each in coastal waters that stretch 3
miles from shore. Substantially larger farms -- similar to what's
proposed in Nantucket Sound -- could be built off Cape Cod near
Cuttyhunk Island and adjacent to another tiny island several miles off
Martha's Vineyard." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mqa3sl

*******************************************************************
* HEALTH-OF-THE-STATE-O-METER, 07/02/09
*
* Reported Civilian Deaths in Iraq: Min - 92,485 ... Max - 100,964
* (source: www.iraqbodycount.org)
*
* American Military Deaths in Iraq: 4,323
* (source: www.antiwar.com/casualties/)
*******************************************************************

****************************
* Everybody Has An Opinion
****************************

26) Had enough yet?
THE MORATORIUM
by L. Neil Smith

"The vast majority of the existing body of law, and of new law passed
every year is, of course, thoroughly unconstitutional. Article 1,
Section 8 of the Constitution lists those functions of government that
are legally permissible. Anything the government does that is not on
that list (probably 95 percent of its current activities) is a clear
and open violation of the law. The individuals who perform those
functions for the government -- politicians, bureaucrats, and cops of
various kinds -- are criminals. ... the indispensable first step
toward restoring our freedom in this country, as well as preventing
any future threats to it -- and this should be the principal goal of
any organization that claims to advocate freedom -- ought to be a
constitutional amendment forbidding any new legislation for at least
that hundred years. Let's just call it 'THE MORATORIUM.'" (07/01/09)

http://elneil.rationalreview.com/2009/07/01/had-enough-yet/

-----

27) "Fight them over there vs. over here" a false choice
Washington Times
by US Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX)

"Neoconservatives who have come to power in both the Democratic and
Republican parties argue that the U.S. must ether confront every evil
in every corner of the globe or risk danger at home. We need to 'fight
them over there' they say, so we don't have to 'fight them over here.'
This argument presents a false choice. We do not have to pick between
interventionism and vulnerability. The complexity of our world is
exactly why the lessons of our past should ring true and demand a
return to a traditional, pro-American foreign policy: one of
nonintervention." (07/01/09)

http://www.rationalreview.com/content/65900

-----

28) Looking for Advil in all the wrong places
Reason
by Jacob Sullum

"It turns out that strip-searching a 13-year-old girl suspected of
bringing ibuprofen to school is unreasonable. Who'd have thought?
Well, almost everyone except Kerry Wilson, the assistant principal who
ordered the search. But until last week it was not clear the U.S.
Supreme Court would agree. Its 8-to-1 decision finding that Wilson
violated the Fourth Amendment's prohibition of unreasonable searches
is an encouraging signal that there are still limits on what
government agents can do to our children, even in the name of
protecting them from drugs." (07/01/09)

http://reason.com/news/show/134465.html

-----

29) Cap and trade equals fraud and tax
Campaign For Liberty
by Glenn Jacobs

"H.R. 2454: American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 will result
in a totalitarian centralization of the American economy in the
administrative agencies of the federal government, especially the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This 1,300 page horror is a
prime example of congressional modus operandi -- no one in Congress
actually had the opportunity to read the bill which was, incidentally,
being amended as it was debated on the floor. As H.R. 2454 shows, this
axiom still holds true: the more benign the title of a congressional
bill, the more draconian its contents. After all, who could be against
clean energy or security? The real goal of H.R. 2454 has nothing to do
with either of these; it is a power grab, pure and simple." (07/01/09)

http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=126

-----

30) Health care is not a right
Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G. Hornberger

"Amidst all the health care debate, there is one underlying assumption
that hardly anyone challenges: the notion that people have a right to
health care. The truth is that it's a nonsensical notion. People no
more have a right to health care than they have a right to education,
food, or clothing. After all, what does a right to health care mean?
If I have a right to something, then doesn't that mean that you have a
correlative duty to provide it?" (07/01/09)

http://www.fff.org/blog/jghblog2009-07-01.asp

-----

31) The extraordinary evil of Bernie Madoff
LewRockwell.Com
by Bill Bonner

"Poor Bernie. The man has been ordered to spend 150 years in the
hoosegow. What for? Who did he kill? A century and a half seems a
little excessive for a financial crime. You could hold up three liquor
stores and rape a whole convent and still not get 150 years. With a
little bit of good lawyer-ing, a history of child abuse in the family,
and good behavior in the big house, you'd be back on the street in 18
months. But all the papers seem delighted. 'Locked up for Life!' says
one of today's headlines. The judge 'threw the book at him,' says
another. His victims wanted him to get no mercy. The judge gave him
none, imposing the maximum sentence. He is 'extraordinarily evil,'
said the man on the bench. Justice has been done. Right? Here in the
building with the gold balls on the roof, we're not so sure. We stand
up for lost causes ... die hards ... and scalawags. Besides, we're not
convinced that Bernie is extraordinarily evil at all. He seems much
more like an ordinary evil to us." (07/02/09)

http://www.lewrockwell.com/bonner/bonner392.html

-----

32) ID cards downgraded
Adam Smith Institute
by Steve Bettison

"We should celebrate but unfortunately the government has already
wasted our money on investigating whether a national ID card would be
viable and there's nothing left in our pockets to contribute to the
party. The national ID card scheme has been downgraded from
potentially compulsory to voluntary. Still it was a tidy earner for
the goverment and a few high tech industries closely associated with
the project. For example over the past 5 years the government had
spent £20m on one segment of the project, the Critical Workers
Identity Card and of course it is behind schedule and being badly run.
As with anything IT related that the government's hands fall upon. But
(and there's always a but when a government announcement is made) the
voluntary roll out is to be speeded up and the over-75s will become
the guinea pig group that is handed the cards for free. They will hold
them alongside the thousands of foreign nationals in the UK who will
still be forced to carry one. The government will get you sooner
rather than later." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/lh8tbo

-----

33) You're not the boss of me!
Freedom's Phoenix
by Larken Rose

"The Declaration of Independence basically amounted to a bunch of guys
telling their king, 'You're not the boss of us anymore.' The
Declaration was an act of treason, written by a bunch of tax cheats
and lawbreakers. It wasn't merely some people whining or petitioning
the government to do something different. In fact, the Declaration
describes how they had already tried that, and it hadn't worked. So
they resorted to open disobedience. And it wasn't just one protest or
demonstration, to make a point or try to convince their masters to
change; it was a declaration that they were completely and permanently
denying the right of the standing regime to rule them at all, ever
again. And that's a pretty darn radical thing to do." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/kks8zg

-----

34) Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence presumes to tell people how to
worship
St. Louis Gun Rights Examiner
by Kurt Hoffman

"Last night, the Northwest Baptist Church, in Toledo, OH, held a rally
celebrating the right to keep and bear arms, and spreading the message
that the exercise of that right is in no way incompatible with
Christian values. ... As one might have guessed, there were some with
whom this rally did not sit well. The [OCAGV] was particularly
apoplectic. ... What struck me about that press release was not the
over-the-top emotionalism of the rhetoric ... No, what floored me was
the arrogance inherent to telling people that they're worshipping
'wrongly,' and that their church service is 'immoral.' It seems that
along with the right to keep and bear arms, even freedom of religion
offends OCAGV." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/neslyn

-----

35) In Calais, solidarity with the sans papiers
Spiked
by Jessica Mudditt

"Protestors at the week-long No Borders Camp wanted to highlight the
plight of around 1,000 migrants who had hoped to cross the English
Channel to claim asylum in Britain, but remain stuck in a stretch of
wasteland nicknamed 'the jungle' by Calais' main port. These migrants
are sans papiers -- paperless undocumented migrants. Jessica Mudditt
reports on a protest for open borders at the wasteland migrant
shanties in France." (07/01/09)

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/7108/

-----

36) The "Spirit of Humanity"
Information Clearinghouse
by Paul Craig Roberts

"On June 30, the government of Israel committed an act of piracy when
the Israeli Navy in international waters illegally boarded the 'Spirit
of Humanity,' kidnapped its 21-person crew from 11 countries,
including former US Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and Nobel Laureate
Mairead MaGuire, and confiscated the cargo of medical supplies, olive
trees, reconstruction materials, and children's toys that were on the
way to the Mediterranean coast of Gaza. The 'Spirit of Humanity,'
along with the kidnapped 21 persons, is being towed to Israel as I
write." (07/01/09)

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22964.htm

-----

37) The Fourth of July: A celebration of agitation
Creators Syndicate
by Jim Hightower

"Are you an agitator? You know, one of those people who won't leave
well enough alone, who's always questioning authority and trying to
stir things up.If so, the Powers That Be detest you -- you ... you ...
'agitator!' They spit the term out as a pejorative to brand anyone who
dares to challenge the established order. ... Were it not for
agitators, we wouldn't even have an America. The Fourth of July would
be just another hot day, we'd be singing 'God Save the Queen,' and our
government officials would be wearing white-powdered wigs." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/l5g6zc

-----

38) Breaking the siege of Gaza
Common Dreams
by Ann Wright

"When our governments refuse to act to stop the 22 month illegal and
inhumane siege, blockade, quarantine of Gaza, citizens have stepped in
to challenge the blockade. ... President Obama has taken no action to
alleviate the incredible humanitarian crisis for the 1.5 million
Palestinians in Gaza. However, ordinary citizens from around the world
are not willing to sit by and do nothing. In groups, as individuals,
or with organizations, six months after the 22 day attack on Gaza by
the Israeli military, citizens are bringing into Gaza supplies
forbidden by the Israeli government and the international
community." (07/01/09)

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/07/01-0

-----

39) Mothers and military lies
CounterPunch
by Duane Rejman

"When I talk with Vietnam Veterans, over and over I hear the same
thing -- they maybe had already arrived in Vietnam when -- 'then it
hit me -- I could get killed.' Somehow -- this message does not come
across as real to many people until it's too late. The soldier often
believes he or she is special. They are smarter and/or stronger than
everybody else. Their training is good. God will protect them. 'Don't
worry ma, everything will be ok.' I learned these are all lies. I
learned that death and injury in a war zone is a lottery. First prize
may be a college education. But second place is getting physically or
emotionally wounded for life. Third place is death." (07/01/09)

http://counterpunch.org/rejman07012009.html

-----

40) Bring out your brain dead
The Libertarian Enterprise
by Justin Thyme

"A new and dangerous form of swine flu has erupted like a plague.
Though its been growing for decades like a cancer it is even worse. It
is more dangerous in that it disguises itself as a cure making it the
most dangerous disease we face. It has now become a virulent epidemic
resembling elephantiasis. Though elephants have been blamed for the
outbreak of the disease there are other sources such as donkeys and
pigs. This form comes from both elephants and donkeys but is called
swinish flu for the buy-partisan reason that both elephants and
donkeys can get pork from it. They sty-me attempts to pen it. Now
everyone seems to be succumbing to it. What I'm talking about is seen
in the press release from our National Libertarian Party Headquarters.
It calls for strong government measures on the swine flu. This is
scary." (06/29/09)

http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2009/tle525-20090628-08.html

-----

41) No climate debate? Yes, there is
Boston Globe
by Jeff Jacoby

"The justification for inflicting this financial misery, of course, is
the onrushing catastrophe of human-induced global warming -- a
catastrophe that can be prevented only if we abandon the carbon-based
fuels on which most of the prosperity and productivity of modern life
depend. But what if that looming catastrophe isn't real? What if
climate change has little or nothing to do with human activity? What
if enacting cap-and-trade means incurring excruciating costs in
exchange for infinitesimal benefits? Hush, says Obama. Don't ask such
questions. 'There is no longer a debate about whether carbon pollution
is placing our planet in jeopardy,' he declared Saturday. 'It's
happening.' No debate? The debate over global warming is more robust
than it has been in years, and not only in America." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/m32nm6

-----

42) Whisky Tango Foxtrot?
The Nation
by Robert Dreyfuss

"It's encouraging that General Jim Jones, the national security
adviser, seems to have laid down the law to US generals in
Afghanistan: no more troops. That's not the same as less troops, but
it's a start. In a lengthy Washington Post report, Jones is quoted
extensively telling the generals that economic development in
Afghanistan will win the fight with the Taliban, not more soldiers.
And he used rather colorful language to make his point. During the
meeting with Jones, General Nicholson, the US commander, dropped hints
that he'd like more forces." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mm3w7o

-----

43) How do you measure success?
The American Prospect
by Tim Fernholz

"When the Democrats started their campaign for a congressional
majority in 2006, at the center of their platform was a simple
promise: competence. The party of government was going to make
government work again. Coming a year after Hurricane Katrina and amid
U.S. attorney purges and military contractor scandals in Iraq, it was
no small claim. Now the party of government is the Party Of
Government. President Barack Obama is rolling out major policy
programs in response to the financial crisis, the recession, and the
conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress is overhauling the
healthcare system, putting together a landmark energy bill, and
composing the most comprehensive financial regulatory reform since the
Great Depression." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mkvmfx

-----

44) What's the tipping point for revolution?
Christian Science Monitor
by Elizabeth Pond

"How can it be that 70,000 protesters in Leipzig in 1989 tore down the
Berlin Wall, while up to a million protesters in Tehran in 2009
managed only -- so far -- to trigger repression? Or, to phrase it
differently, what's the tipping point for revolution? Just when does
civil society trump entrenched political power? Different observers
would, of course, give different answers along the spectrum, running
from a historian's retrospective determinism to a journalist's
fixation on daily blips. But whatever the viewpoint, the similarities
and the differences between Leipzig and Tehran are
striking." (07/01/09)

http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0701/p09s01-coop.html

-----

45) Don't get fooled again
Slate
by Eliot Spitzer

"The Federal Reserve Bank has managed through most of its history to
reside in obscurity -- little understood, rarely questioned, viewed as
hovering above the political fray, the domain of technocrats and
erudite economists. That should all change. The Fed's power over all
things economic is hard to overstate, and it now desires even more,
seeking the title of 'systemic risk regulator.' Some of us have argued
that regulators -- and the Fed in particular -- have had virtually all
the power they needed to avert the economic traumas we have been
living through: They just failed to use it. Yet the proposed
formalization of the Fed's mega-regulator role requires that we lift
the veil that has shielded it from scrutiny for too long." (06/30/09)

http://www.slate.com/id/2221898/

-----

46) Pecora Commission II: Super-sleuths or Keystone Cops?
Our Future
by Dean Baker

"Congress will be appointing a special commission to investigate the
causes of the economic crisis and to determine who is to blame. This
proposal originated among progressives who wanted to see a replay of
the depression era Pecora Commission, which exposed the Wall Street
corruption that laid the basis for the 1929 stock market crash and the
depression that followed. At the very least, a similar exposure of the
greedheads at Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and the rest could provide an
element of justice to this disaster and possibly lay the basis for
criminal prosecutions of the worst offenders. Undoubtedly there are
many multi-millionaires at these institutions who would make far more
appropriate prisoners than some of the 2 million current guests of our
criminal justice system. Unfortunately, there is a real possibility
that the commission appointed by Congress may follow a different
precedent. Instead of striving to uncover the truth, it may seek to
conceal it." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/n6fjon

-----

47) NRA members must oppose Sotomayor
Liberty For All
by Sandy Froman

"Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Barack Obama's first nominee to the
U.S. Supreme Court, has a narrow view of the Second Amendment that
contradicts the Court's landmark decision in District of Columbia v.
Heller. A heated debate has started in the U.S. Senate over her
opposition to the right to keep and bear arms. This issue, which has
decided the fate of presidential elections, could also decide her
nomination. Gun owners, and especially the members of the National
Rifle Association, must aggressively oppose Judge Sotomayor's
confirmation to the Supreme Court." (07/01/09)

http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=2788

-----

48) Auditing the Fed will audit the state
Ludwig von Mises Institute
by George F. Smith

"If Ron Paul succeeds in getting the Fed audited, the consequences
could be far-reaching. Assuming the audit isn't rigged to protect the
guilty, as a similar bill was in 1978, the Fed will need every
obfuscating Keynesian to testify and write editorials on its behalf,
to reassure the public that monetary matters really are best left to
the gods who rule us, such as Ben Bernanke and Timothy Geithner.
Monetarists, too, would likely join the 'Save the Fed' crusade,
perhaps arguing that even a great free market economist like Milton
Friedman considered the Fed useful for preventing and curing
recessions." (07/01/09)

http://mises.org/story/3533

-----

49) Moving along the state-anarchy continuum
LiberaLaw
by Gary Chartier

"Consider the characteristic Hobbesian argument for the state: we need
Leviathan to ensure, through the use or threat of force, that
conflicts are resolved peacefully. (I do not say 'justly' -- there is
no structural way to ensure that the outcomes of any state-based
judicial system [or any comparable system in a stateless society] will
be procedurally or substantively just, though of course some
structures will be more conducive to just procedures and outcomes than
others.) I. It is important to note how little this argument even
seeks, on its own terms, to demonstrate: if it succeeds, it shows the
need, at most, for a night-guard state. II. It has limited
implications for the size of the state." [hat tip -- Roderick T. Long]
(07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/np7qm7

-----

50) It's the consequences, stupid
Freedom Politics
by Lance Izumi

"President Obama has talked a lot and taken some action on education
reform. Careful examination, however, reveals that his sound and fury
is virtually all anvil and no hammer, that is, there's still no
effective consequences for failing to reform. Take the
administration's efforts to expand charter schools, which are public
schools less restricted by red tape. Charter schools have improved
education by spurring innovation and by putting competitive pressure
on traditional public school." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/n2czk3

-----

51) Do we need state control of medical care?
Foundation for Economic Education
by William Anderson

"The notion that the political classes 'should never waste a good
crisis' has extended not only to the de facto nationalization of
domestic auto companies and the financial sector, but also to medical
care. It is treated as inevitable that the government will demand to
control all the money that comes into the medical sector, thus
effectively nationalizing it. President Barack Obama recently
expressed faux surprise that anyone would oppose his latest proposal,
a government-run insurance company that will offer coverage in
competition with private insurers." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/l7cpsh

-----

52) Ayn Rand at 100: When will businessmen learn her lessons about
politicians?
Competitive Enterprise Institute
by Fred L. Smith, Jr.

"She called businessmen 'America's persecuted minority.' And today --
as has been the case at least since the start of the Industrial
Revolution -- many businessmen and -women feel they are the victims of
a special scorn directed at them not because they cheat or steal but,
rather, because they grow wealthy through their own honest efforts by
producing goods and services that they sell to willing customers.
Politicians translate this disdain into higher taxes, regulations, and
special criminal penalties on these producers. On the centenary of her
birth, Ayn Rand remains a unique defender of capitalism. She showed in
both her magnum opus, Atlas Shrugged -- published in 1957 -- and in
her non-fiction essays the disastrous effects of mixing politics with
economics. But she went further than other laissez-faire advocates,
emphasizing the moral foundations of economic liberty." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nyu9js

-----

53) The paradox of liberty
Acton Institute
by Kevin E. Schmiesing

"There is a paradox at the heart of liberty, a tension between our
desiring what is good and our willingness to sacrifice true happiness
for fleeting satisfaction. 'Eternal vigilance is the price of
freedom,' abolitionist Wendell Phillips said. Lord Acton echoed the
idea, calling liberty, 'the delicate fruit of a mature civilization.'
The delicacy of freedom cannot be explained without recourse to the
realities of good and evil. Freedom is both universally sought and
everywhere in jeopardy because of the imperfection of human nature. We
are beings who seek what is good, but are tempted by what is evil.
Freedom–the capacity to know and choose what is good–is the path to
fulfillment, but reason is clouded and the will is compromised by our
inclination to pursue what is base." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/m7ptrw

-----

54) Difference between legislation, law
Orange County Register
by Tibor R. Machan

"Classical liberals and libertarians, especially those who admire the
works of the famous legal theorists and economist F.A. Hayek, are fond
of pointing out that a free society requires the rule of law. Others,
critical of this [garbled characters] political tradition, note,
however, that laws rule most societies, many of them quite tyrannical,
so the rule of law has no bearing on a society's being free. What
might be the source of the close relationship alleged between free
societies and the rule of law is that the only laws that can be
applied uniformly and universally in society are the very few that aim
to keep us free. Other so-called laws are really just edicts from
rulers, not bona fide laws, since they apply selectively, not equally
to all." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/krr85n

-----

55) Bloodless instability
Let A Thousand Nations Bloom
by Will Chamberlain

"Your average politician will often rail against 'political
instability' and advocate policies to keep things 'stable,' such as
subsidies, bailouts, quotas, and other forms of protectionism. But
while stability certainly sounds like something positive for the
economy, Joseph Schumpeter argued very persuasively that it was the
'creative destruction' of capitalism that facilitated innovation, and
further down the line, economic growth. Simply reframe the 'stability
vs. instability' dilemma as 'scleroticism vs. dynamism,' and
Schumpeter's logic becomes all the more easy to grasp. But what of
government? While dynamism in the economy is something to be desired,
dynamism in sovereignty has some obvious drawbacks. One is that
transitions between sovereigns are rarely bloodless, and dead bodies
littered all over the streets are hardly a boon to commerce. Another
is that in the process of any conflict, capital is bound to be
destroyed, so the economy will be handicapped massively. But on this
last point, the data simply doesn't work out the way you might
think." (07/01/09)

http://athousandnations.com/2009/07/01/bloodless-instability/

-----

56) Palinpalooza!
The Other McCain
by Robert Stacy McCain

"The problem with the MSM is not that it has no standards, but that it
has two standards. Or perhaps -- considering how the MSM savaged
Hillary Clinton in the primaries last year -- we can now say there are
three standards: One for Republicans, one for Obama, and one for
Democrats who get thrown under Obama's bus. But back to the Vanity
Fair article: If none of McCain's aides had the foresight to
anticipate his selection of Palin -- which would explain the lack of
'serious vetting' -- whose fault is that? And if choosing an unvetted
running mate was a blunder, whose blunder was it? This is what the
Blame Sarah First crusade by McCain campaign staffers is about:
Exculpating them for their own bad judgment, including their decisions
to join the McCain campaign in the first place." (07/01/09)

http://rsmccain.blogspot.com/2009/07/palinpalooza.html

-----

57) The only way to defend America: Kill a bunch of us
Salon
by Alex Koppelman

"Former CIA analyst Michael Scheuer, the original head of the unit
dedicated to hunting down Osama bin Laden before 9/11 and the
anonymous author of 'Imperial Hubris,' knows a whole lot about
national security and counterterror strategy. That can't really be
debated. But he's also a hothead, and he tends to embrace the
extremist fringes of whatever issue he's discussing. So combine him
with Fox News host Glenn Beck, and there's bound to be some fireworks.
When Scheuer appeared on Beck's show Tuesday afternoon, though, things
got even weirder than you might normally expect." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mmprew

-----

58) On passing judgment: Politics versus etiquette
Rebirth of Reason
by Ted Keer

"When dealing with politicians, criminals, and enemies in war, the
necessity of personally passing relevant judgments is unavoidable. In
so far as a person poses a credible threat to your rights, you must
judge him and act accordingly for the circumstances. ... But what
about people who are not politicians, who are not criminals, who are
not enemies at war, who are not acting politically to establish a
policy of the forcible violation of rights? What duty do you have to
pass judgment upon the the foolish, the mistaken, the rude, the
annoying, the disgusting, the vain, the gossipy? And further, what
right do you have to demand that others pass judgments upon such
people?" (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mo72vo

-----

59) In which I infiltrate Team Red and Team Blue and report my
findings
Disloyal Opposition
by JD Tuccille

"Neither the conservatives nor progressives with whom I interact seem
to know many members of the opposing tribe -- by and large, the
opposition are treated as aliens encountered only rarely, and then,
hopefully, on neutral ground. This social division may be why they're
all so prone to delegitimizing each other's world views. For
conservatives, lefties are mendacious bastards who adopt any argument
under the sun in order to further a hidden, totalitarian agenda. For
progressives, righties are soulless scum who've sold out to whatever
corporation is certainly sponsoring their advocacy, and who would
undoubtedly spin a 180 in their opinions if directed to do so by their
Wall Street masters. It seems that nobody could ever sincerely
disagree. And, of course, the opposition is always
plotting." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/kkalat

-----

60) Medical arrogance
National Review
by the editors

"During his ABC infomercial last week, President Obama continued to
insist that the type of reform he has in mind would reduce the cost of
health care, improve its quality, and enable people to keep their
current insurance policies and doctors. He is wrong on all
counts." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/mxhb5n

-----

61) Keeping the fizz in the journalism biz
Slate
by Jack Shafer

"What Sullivan got absolutely right in 1938 is that technology,
culture, business, and audience tastes are always in flux, making it
the job of writers young and old to grab the best available tools and
get to the business of chronicling the world. If Sullivan were alive
today, I'll bet he'd be encouraging journalists to study PHP and
Javascript, to hone their video-cutting skills, and to learn how to
manipulate databases. The cheap tools and affordable devices the
average Joe has at his disposal to produce precision journalism and
distribute it around the world are enough to make the reporters of
yesterday sob in envy. It's the difference between digging ditches
with a spade and excavating a canal with dynamite. Let me say it
another way: The barriers of entry into the journalism business have
been battered down, making it easier than ever to enter the
profession. That will read as small consolation to the journalists who
have had their publications shot out from under them -- the Rocky
Mountain News, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Ann Arbor News
(come July 23), and magazines too numerous to tally. But please notice
that I'm not saying there has never been a more lucrative or
prestigious time to become a journalist." (06/30/09)

http://www.slate.com/id/2221856/

-----

62) No tears for them in Argentina
Independent Institute
by Alvaro Vargas Llosa

"As is so often repeated, Argentina was once one of the 10 wealthiest
countries in the world -- a nation to which millions of Europeans
flocked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries because of its
stable institutions and open economy. Sometime in the 1930s, it all
began to unravel. In the 1940s, Juan Domingo Peron took over and
accomplished something that few nations have ever managed: 'undevelop'
a country -- as author Mariano Grondona aptly put it -- that was
already developed, at least by the standards of that time. Although
the 'Peronistas' have been in and out of power since, and
contradictory ideological factions within the party have at various
times taken over the leadership, Argentina has never really ceased to
be the populist nation that Peron molded. The challenge for those who
achieved a tremendous victory against what until recently looked like
the all-powerful Kirchner couple is not just to undo the latest
version of Peronismo -- it is to undo more than half a century of
populism." (07/01/09)

http://independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2536

-----

63) Trying to understand the 4th of July from an African-American
perspective
Birmingham Libertarian Examiner
by Stephen Gordon

"As a white person of mostly European ancestry, I understand the pride
that most Americans feel on Independence Day. As I'm not black, I'll
probably never be able to truly understand the feelings of African-
Americans on the topic. Were I black, I'd likely feel a sense of pride
that many of my ancestors laid down their lives to promote a system of
government which eventually led to the freest of societies in the
history of the world. I'd probably also wish to ensure that people
never forget the absolute horrors of slavery. As many of my white
friends want us to learn from the positives of the founding of our
country, my black friends want to ensure that we truly understand our
history so we never repeat the same mistakes." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/ng2m2d

-----

64) The real Russia
The Weekly Standard
by Cathy Young

"What provokes Lieven to such harsh criticism is his conviction that
Russian liberals who insist that U.S. policy toward Russia must
include a moral commitment to freedom are aiding 'liberal
interventionists and neocons' with their dangerous agendas. He also
believes they are giving Western journalists a skewed view of Russia
and its people. The Russian liberals may be overly optimistic about
their countrymen's support for democratic values. But how realistic
are the 'realists?' The Hart-Hagel report is chock-full of meaningless
platitudes: recognize Russia's 'legitimate interests' in ex-Soviet
territories but without allowing Russian dominance; remind Russian
leaders of their commitments on human rights 'while respecting
Russia's sovereignty, history, and traditions and recognizing that
Russian society will evolve at its own pace.'" (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/ncr2ew

-----

65) Black and white and dead all over
Mother Jones
by Dave Gilson

"Since 1985, the number of newspapers with Washington bureaus has
dropped by more than 50%. 72% fewer newspapers and wire services cover
Congress today than in the mid-1980s. 1/3 fewer newspaper reporters
are dedicated to covering state capitols today than in 2003. Nearly
2/3 of newspaper executives say they've cut foreign coverage in the
past 3 years. In May 2007, Pasadena Now announced it would outsource 2
local reporting jobs to India." (07/09)

http://tinyurl.com/o5pohn

-----

66) Rage, rage against the dying of the light
KN@PPSTER
by Thomas L. Knapp

"It's too late for surrender -- it's been too late for that since the
minute the protests began. This thing is ugly, and it's going to stay
ugly because ugly is the only language the mullahs understand. Better
ugly in the streets, where some good might come of it, than behind
closed doors in the regime's torture cellars. The choice is uprising
in earnest or surrender without expectation of quarter." (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nm7ezq

-----

67) Libertarians should dare to be different
Albuquerque Libertarian Examiner
by Kent McManigal

"If you see nothing wrong with national borders enforced by
government; if you see nothing wrong with taxation as a concept; if
you don't recognize aggressive war (the business of the state) as
murder on a massive scale; if you accept that government has the
authority to do things that you or I can not do, then what is the
difference from any Demopublican out there? If you don't accept that
the philosophy of non-aggression applies to ALL individuals, including
those employed by the state, what is your line-in-the-
sand?" (07/01/09)

http://tinyurl.com/nfw5dm

-----

68) Obama's public plan could drive insurers out of business
Cato Institute
by Michael D. Tanner

"President Obama also wants to set up a government-run health plan (a
single-payer plan, if you will), that would compete with private
insurance. Regardless of how it was structured or administered, such a
government-run plan would have an inherent advantage in the
marketplace because it ultimately could be subsidized by American
taxpayers. The government plan could keep its premiums artificially
low or offer extra benefits since it could turn to the U.S. Treasury
to cover any shortfalls. Consumers naturally would be attracted to the
lower-cost, higher-benefit government program, thus undercutting the
private market." (07/01/09)

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10324

-----

69) Objectively stupid
The American Conservative
by Daniel Larison

"When Orwell used the phrase 'objectively fascist' during WWII to
criticize pacifists, he at least had the advantage of talking about a
situation in which there were actual fascists involved. Roger Simon,
on the other hand, is complaining about Obama's differing responses to
the Iranian election and the Honduran coup/deposition and uses the
differing responses to conclude that Obama is somehow 'objectively
fascist.' The abuse of the term fascist in a lot of the commentary on
Iran has been extensive and annoying, but now it's really getting out
of hand. Let's be clear about one thing: no matter what your view of
events in Iran and Honduras and Obama's responses to them, fascism has
nothing to do with any of these things." (07/01/09)

http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/07/01/objectively-stupid/

-----

70) Bernie Madoff: Fall guy or first of many?
AlterNet
by Eric Lotke

"So Madoff got 150 years for breaking into the bank. Fine. But what
about the guard who was asleep out front? What about the clerk who
forgot to lock the door? What about the $300 billion that Citigroup
walked out with from one vault, and the $200 billion that AIG took
from another? Does anybody know where that money went or what we got
for it? Don't they get in trouble too? Did you know that, or do you
know why, Goldman Sachs is paying its biggest bonus payouts in its 140
year history? That's why we need a Pecora Commission." (06/30/09)

http://tinyurl.com/lqe6xb

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71) Dan Proft on Freedom Rings Radio, 07/06/09
Freedom Rings Radio

Dan Proft discusses his 2010 campaign for governor of Illinois with
host Kenneth John. 9-10am Central on WRMN 1410 AM, Elgin, IL or live
on the web. [live radio or stream] (07/06/09)

http://freedomrings.net/

-----

72) Sam Kazman on The Freedom Works, 07/02/09
The Freedom Works

Sam Kazman, general counsel for the Competitive Enterprise Institute,
joins host Paul Molloy. 10-11am Eastern on WTAN 1340 AM, Tampa Bay, FL
or live on the web. [live radio or stream] (07/02/09)

http://thefreedomworks.com/

-----

73) Free Talk Live, 07/01/09
Free Talk Live

"Celebrity Obsession / Paying Property Taxes with Ones / Goading /
Modern Day Slavery / Unintended Consequences / Free Health Care! / One
World Currency / Cuban Housing Black Market / Helping the Poor /
Pronunciations of Places." [MP3] (07/01/09)

http://media.libsyn.com/media/ftl/FTL2009-07-01.mp3

-----

74) Liberal and conservative agree on Bill of Rights
Hit & Run

"Liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans may disagree on all
kinds of things, but based on the way they govern, they've reached a
consensus that the Bill of Rights is just way too long." [Flash video]
(07/01/09)

http://reason.com/blog/show/134527.html

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75) Scott Ritter on Antiwar Radio
AntiWar.Com

"Former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter discusses the withdrawal
caveats that could keep U.S. troops in Iraq indefinitely, the Iraqi
army's inability to maintain order, Maliki's pursuit of short-term oil
profits at the expense of Iraq's future, the Obama administration's
lack of moral courage for a messy withdrawal and how the acceptance of
U.S. funding by Iranian opposition groups destroys their
credibility." [Flash audio or MP3] (07/01/09)

http://antiwar.com/radio/2009/07/01/scott-ritter-8/

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* What's Up In The Freedom Movement
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76) Today's events

Check our sidebar calendar for this week's freedom movement events.
Don't see your event? Drop us a line at in...@rationalreview.com ... or
see:

www.rationalreview.com/add-your-event-to-our-calendar

... for instructions on adding your events directly!

http://upcoming.yahoo.com/group/4042/

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* WaYbAcK
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77) Guiteau v. Garfield

Details, and the "quote of the day," from Leon's Political Almanac at:

http://perspicuity.net/cgi/hypercal.cgi