TO HAVE GUV'MINT, OR NOT HAVE GUV'MINT...THAT IS THE QUESTION

Friday, September 18, 2009 The Epoch Battle of Our Time by Jacob G. Hornberger It seems as though every statist has his favorite health-care reform and, more important, is convinced that his particular reform is the one that is finally going to make socialism and interventionism succeed. I hate to burst anyone’s bubble, but it just ain’t gonna happen. Socialism and interventionism are inherently defective. They cannot be made to succeed. Even if the most brilliant set of minds comes up with the most brilliant health-care reform, the system will remain in chaos and crisis and, before long, people will once again be calling for reform and coming up with their favorite reform plans that they’re convinced will finally make the system work. The core reason why America’s health care is in such a mess is owing to socialism and interventionism. That’s what these people keep missing, and the reason they keep missing it is because they simply do not want to let go of their socialism and interventionism. They’re too committed to the idea that government should be involved in health care and, for that matter, most everything else. Thus, all their reform plans presume that socialism and interventionism are a given. No one is supposed to question the role of government in health care. Instead, everyone is supposed to just assume that socialism and interventionism are now a permanent feature in American life and come up with some silver-bullet reform that will finally make them work. Suppose a group of people start beating their heads against a wall, all day long, day in and day out. After a while, they begin suffering headaches. So, everyone decides to come up with reforms to cure the headaches. One reformer advises the group to pad the wall. Another reformer suggests taking pain relievers. Another recommends changing the position of the head. Everyone is convinced that his particular reform is ingenious and will succeed in stopping the headaches. Then, along comes a libertarian and says, “Actually, none of these reforms is going to work because they don’t get to the root of the problem.” His suggestion: “Stop beating your heads against the wall!” Immediately, the libertarian is hit with all sorts of vile and vituperative reactions: “You’re an extremist! You’re a radical! You’re whacky! We need reform, not eradication. Be practical. Join the mainstream and help us come up with the right reform to cure the headaches.” In one sense, social problems are much like medical problems. If the doctor gets the diagnosis wrong, he’s likely to get the prescription wrong. The same holds true for political and economic ailments that afflict the body politic. The health-care crisis is rooted in Medicare and Medicaid, government regulation of the health-care and insurance industries, tax-code incentives for employer-provided medical insurance, and medical licensure. Thus, there is but one solution to this mess: repeal all of those things. Don’t reform them. Don’t fix them. Just repeal them. Get government entirely out of the health-care business. Separate health care and state as fully and completely as our ancestors separated church and state. The health-care debate reflects the battle of our age — the battle between those of us who are fighting to restore economic liberty and free markets to our land and those who are battling to extend statism. As Ludwig von Mises stated, “No one can find a safe way out for himself if society is sweeping towards destruction. Therefore everyone, in his own interests, must thrust himself vigorously into the intellectual battle. None can stand aside with unconcern; the interests of everyone hang on the result. Whether he chooses or not, every man is drawn into the great historical struggle, the decisive battle into which our epoch has plunged us.” Jacob Hornberger is founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation.

ECONOMIC STIMULUS 101

CREDIT TO GOLDMELTER FOR THE ARTICLE Subject: Economic Stimulus 101 > > Sometime this year, we taxpayers may again receive an Economic > > Stimulus payment. This is a very exciting new program. > > > > I will explain it using the Q and A format: > > > > Q. What is an Economic Stimulus payment? > > > > A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers. > > > > Q. Where will the government get this money? > > > > A. From taxpayers. > > > > Q. So the government is giving me back my own money? > > > > A. Only a smidgen. > > > > Q. What is the purpose of this payment? > > > > A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV set, thus stimulating the economy. > > > > Q. But isn't that stimulating the economy of China ? > > > > A. Shut up. > > > > Below is some helpful advice on how to best help the US > > economy by spending your stimulus check > > wisely: > > > > > > If you spend the stimulus money at Wal-Mart, the money will > > go to China . > > > > If you spend it on gasoline, your money will go to the Arabs. > > > > If you purchase a computer, it will go to India . > > > > If you purchase fruit and vegetables, it will go to Mexico ,Honduras and > > Guatemala .. > > > > If you buy a car, it will go to Japan . > > > > If you purchase useless stuff, it will go to Taiwan . > > > > If you pay your credit cards off, or buy stock, it will go > > to management bonuses and they will hide it offshore. > > > > Instead, keep the money in America by: > > > > 1 spending it at yard sales > > > > 2 going to ball games > > > > 3 spending it on prostitutes > > > > 4 beer > > > > 5 tattoos. > > (These are the only American businesses still operating in the US .) > > > > I'm going to go to a ball game with a tattooed > > prostitute that I met at a yard sale and we're going to > > drink beer all day! > > > > FUN TIMES!

FIREARMS REFRESHER COURSE

FIREARMS REFRESHER COURSE CREDIT TO GOLDMELTER FOR THE ARTICLE 1. "Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not." ~Thomas Jefferson 2. Those who trade liberty for security have neither. ~John Adams 3. Free men do not ask permission to bear arms. 4. An armed man is a citizen. An unarmed man is a subject. 5. Only a government that is afraid of its citizens tries to control them. 6. Gun control is not about guns; it's about control. 7. You only have the rights you are willing to fight for. 8. Know guns, know peace, know safety. No guns, no peace, no safety. 9. You don't shoot to kill; you shoot to stay alive. 10. Assault is a behavior, not a device. 11. 64,999,987 legal firearms owners killed no one yesterday. 12. The United States Constitution (c) 1791. All Rights Reserved. 13. The Second Amendment is in place in case the politicians ignore the others. 14. What part of 'shall not be infringed' do you NOT understand? 15. Guns have only two enemies; rust and politicians. 16. When you remove the people's right to bear arms, you create slaves. 17. The American Revolution would never have happened with gun control. IF YOU AGREE, PASS THIS 'REFRESHER' ON TO OTHER FREE CITIZENS.

The Destruction of the US Empire

http://dailyreckoning.com/the-destruction-of-the-us-empire/ BY BILL BONNER OF THEDAILYRECKONING.COM One of the best, and most humorous, of all financial writers. Read EVERYTHING that Bill Bonner writes and you will become well-versed, historically competent, and confident that you understand how we got to where we are, and a good insight into where we are going...financially...and culturally.

Gold and Freedom

Gold and Freedom, Part 2 by Jacob G. Hornberger, Posted September 11, 2009 http://www.fff.org/freedom/fd0905a.asp

THE REAL ISSUE IS FREEDOM FROM GUV'MINT

Friday, September 11, 2009 Faith in Freedom by Jacob G. Hornberger Whenever libertarians suggest that America’s socialist programs should be immediately repealed, rather than reformed or gradually reduced, statists inevitably react with shock and horror. The statists feel that Americans could never survive if their welfare-state dole was suddenly ended. What would happen if public schooling, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, farm subsidies, education grants, income taxation, and all other welfare-state programs were suddenly eliminated today? According to the statists, thousands of people would be dying of starvation and illness in the streets and the nation would quickly fill up with dumb, uneducated people. Nothing could be further from the truth. Actually, it would be the exact opposite. There would immediately be a tremendous outburst of creative energy, enterprise, prosperity, and charity throughout American society. Consider 19th-century American slaves who picked cotton on some Southern plantation. In a sense, they lived under a welfare program. While they were required to work hard, they had free housing, food, clothing, retirement, and health care provided to them by their employer. Their job skills were limited to picking cotton. Since work was mandated, they had not developed a work ethic that required them to voluntarily be at work on time. Moreover, they certainly had not acquired any skills in running their own businesses. They had lived like this for generations. Undoubtedly, some people in the 1800s argued that it would be cruel and brutal to free the slaves all at once. How would they survive, especially after several generations of life on the dole, with no real job skills, work ethic, and business experience? If the slaves were freed all at once and, therefore, no longer guaranteed the basic essentials of life, thousands of them would surely starve to death. They wouldn’t even have a few cents in savings to get them through a couple of weeks. Yet, when Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, that’s precisely what happened. Slaves were freed all at once. No gradualism. No weaning. They were suddenly deprived of their guaranteed housing, clothing, food, health care, and job. They were suddenly on their own. While life was difficult for them, just as it was difficult for lots of people after the war, there were no mass deaths from starvation or from being deprived of health care or other essentials. The freeing of the slaves showed the remarkable resiliency of human beings. Some of them opened businesses, others went to work for businesses. Over time, some of the former slaves even began outcompeting whites, which was why whites began enacting Jim Crow laws. Another example was Franklin Roosevelt’s fascist National Industrial Recovery Act, which converted American industries into cartels that had the power to set their own prices. More and more people began realizing what a horrible disaster this program was for America, but the argument was that the NIRA had become too entrenched in the American economy to suddenly end it. Millions of Americans, both producers and consumers had become dependent on the NIRA and, therefore, people felt that if it were to be ended, it should be done gradually. One day, the Supreme Court declared the NIRA unconstitutional. On that day, the program suddenly ended. It’s as if the Court had pushed a magic button that immediately eradicated the law. The result? An outburst of creative energy and prosperity from having this fascist burden suddenly lifted off the American economy. The third example involves the extensive wage-and-price controls that the Allied Powers levied on Germany after World War II. Germans wanted them lifted but the Allies said that since people had become so dependent on them, there would be chaos if they were suddenly lifted. One day, and much to the chagrin of the Allied leaders, the German leader Ludwig Ehard suddenly announced that the controls were lifted. That was the start of the post-war German “economic miracle.” The best thing that could ever happen to the American people is to have all welfare-state programs repealed, immediately. Given the resiliency of human beings, there is no doubt that there would be a tremendous outburst of creative energy, prosperity, and charity. The problem we face is that all too many Americans just don’t believe it. Given the decades of dependency on the welfare state, Americans have lost their sense of self-reliance and self-esteem. Thus, the problem we face in our day is not only economic and political in nature but also psychological in nature. To get our nation back on the right track, we libertarians have the task of not only showing people that economic liberty and free markets are moral and that they work, we must also inspire people to restore their faith in themselves, in others, in freedom, in free markets, and in God. Jacob Hornberger is founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation.