Jesus Is a Libertarian

It's a fair question: "compassion" is a vice, when practiced by government. But isn't it still a virtue when practiced by individuals?

The Objectivist position is that moral pressure, and guilt, are just as coercive, and just as wrong, as government coercion.

So, the liberal position is this: "We" should take money from B to give it to C. B is rich, and C is poor. But "We" does not include rich liberals, like Al Franken, who think that only saps pay taxes.

It's not charity if it's done at gun point. Is it charity if it is done out of fear of shunning?

Bill o' the Day: Fall of the Noose

The current statute on racial intimidation/hate crime in NC is this, as far as I can tell:

GENERAL STATUTES Chapter 14

§ 14‑3. Punishment of misdemeanors, infamous offenses, offenses committed in secrecy and malice, or with deceit and intent to defraud, or with ethnic animosity....

(c) If any Class 2 or Class 3 misdemeanor is committed because of the victim's race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin, the offender shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. If any Class A1 or Class 1 misdemeanor offense is committed because of the victim's race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin, the offender shall be guilty of a Class I felony.

§ 14‑401.14. Ethnic intimidation; teaching any technique to be used for ethnic intimidation.

(a) If a person shall, because of race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin, assault another person, or damage or deface the property of another person, or threaten to do any such act, he shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

(b) A person who assembles with one or more persons to teach any technique or means to be used to commit any act in violation of subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

New Legislation, introduced yesterday by Senator Berger of Franklin County:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to make it unlawful to burn a cross or hang a noose for the intent of intimidating another person because of race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin and to study the impact of recent cross burnings and noose hangings across the state to make recommendations for modification to the criminal laws of the state.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 14‑401.14A. Unlawful to burn a cross or hang a noose with the intent to intimidate.
If a person shall burn a cross or hang a noose with the intent to intimidate another because of race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin, he shall be guilty of a Class H felony."
SECTION 2. The Legislative Research Commission shall study the impact of recent cross burnings and noose hangings within the State and determine if any modifications should be made to existing statutes to lawfully deter this type of conduct. Of funds appropriated to the General Assembly for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, there shall be allocated the sum of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) to fund this study. The Legislative Research Commission shall report its findings and make recommendations for legislation to the 2009 Session of the General Assembly.
SECTION 3. This act becomes effective December 1, 2008, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.

My view:

1. A study? Really?
2. The new legislation is not as bad as the existing law, and I had not seen the existing law. Punishing someone for "ethnic animosity" is pretty vague. Punishing someone for burning a cross is at least specific. And, "intent" is always hard to guess. But if somebody burns a cross in your yard, it is likely intended to intimidate and terrorize.

The law makes a distinction between me putting a pile of garbage in your lawn, and setting it afire, and putting a cross in your yard and setting it afire. That distinction, at least, seems right: burning a cross really is an assault. But a "class H felony" has a presumptive punishment of three years imprisonment, even if no other action or assault takes place.

Please discuss.

Betting On a Good Pair

This was posted to the LPNC Yahoo List by KPC friend and frequent commenter Tom Howe. It addresses the questions asked by many, including the judicious Steve Newton, about the Barr-Root ticket:

As a poker player, I assure you that a good pair will often lose. But it will often win, too. On thing is sure: if you don't bet, you can't win. One more thing is sure: if you bet big and then let a small raise scare you away, you have lost.

The LP chose to bet big on a good pair. We might win big -- we might get several per cent and get credit for destroying McCain. We might do this and attract hordes of thoughtful people who had liked our ideas, but previously believed our cause too far fetched. Of course, there's a chance of losing: we could be invaded the way the Reformers were.

We have a lot of chips in the pot. If we are scared away now, we're just certain to lose.

Hang tough! We have a good pair; the pot is huge! Back these candidates and the LP can be the politcal powerhouse you always wanted. Don't get wobbly now.

yours in Liberty,
Tom Howe

That is a fine way to put it. Play out the hand. If we fold, we lose the pot for sure.

And, yes, we might lose. That's how poker, and politics, work.

Bill o' the Day: Control the Beaver

Best of the many Bills introduced today in the NC General Assembly, led by Speaker Joe Hackney.

HB 2572

Hill - TABOR CORRECTIONAL BEAVER CONTROL FUNDS.

Now, Tabor Correctional Facility can be learned about here. Note the Yam festival. (I'm not making fun. I like the Yam festival.)

This piece of legislation was introduced by the Hon. Dewey Hill, a Democratic Representative from Brunswick/Columbus counties, doing the people's business for nearly 20 years.

Here is the legislation:

AN ACT to appropriate funds for beaver control at tabor correctional institution.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Correction the sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000) for the 2008‑2009 fiscal year for beaver control measures at Tabor Correctional Institution in Tabor City.

SECTION 2. This act becomes effective July 1, 2008.

They must be worried that Bill Clinton is coming to town. THAT is when beaver control becomes really crucial.

If Doctors Were Outlawed, Only Criminals Would Have Doctors

STATISTICS TO PONDER
(A) The number of physicians in the U.S. is 700,000.
(B) Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year are 120,000.

(Calculation) Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171
Statistics courtesy of U.S. Dept of Health Human Services.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Now think about this: Guns:
(A) The number of gun owners in the U.S. is 80,000,000. (Yes, that's 80 million..)

(B) The number of accidental gun deaths per year, all age groups, is 1,500.

(Calculation) The number of accidental deaths
per gun owner is .000188; Statistics courtesy of FBI
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

So, statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Remember, "Guns don't kill people, doctors do."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Please alert your friends to this alarming threat.
We must ban doctors before this gets completely out of hand!!!!!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Out of concern for the public at large, I withheld the statistics on
lawyers for fear the shock would cause people to panic and seek medical attention...

(Nod to CC, who knows from doctors)

LifeCrock

So, LifeLock is getting sued.

For not being able to do what they say they can do.

Todd Davis has dared criminals for two years to try stealing his identity: Ads for his fraud-prevention company, LifeLock, even offer his Social Security number next to his smiling mug.

Now, Lifelock customers in Maryland, New Jersey and West Virginia are suing Davis, claiming his service didn't work as promised and he knew it wouldn't, because the service had failed even him.

Attorney David Paris said he found records of other people applying for or receiving driver's licenses at least 20 times using Davis' Social Security number, though some of the applications may have been rejected because data in them didn't match what the Social Security Administration had on file.

Davis acknowledged in an interview with The Associated Press that his stunt has led to at least 87 instances in which people have tried to steal his identity, and one succeeded: a guy in Texas who duped an online payday loan operation last year into giving him $500 using Davis' Social Security number.

(Nod to Anonyman, who thinks his NAME is too terrifying to reveal.)

You Just Can't Make This Stuff Up

Suffering from growth....The entire blog would be quite amusing, if it were satire. But he actually believes Australia, one of the lowest pop-density nations in the world, should shrink in every way in the next half century.

Look, the white population of the world is stable, maybe shrinking slightly.

The darker hues of humans are the one increasing in population. And many of the places that have high growth rates don't have that milky white skin, either. So both population growth and economic growth are primarily occuring outside whiteland. When white people are upset about growth, they are saying, "There seems to be the right number of me, but way too many of you!"*

So why not call this whole environment movement the "Hey, Jack, White people got their hot tubs and solar-powered laptops, why don't you dusky hordes live in your grass huts and like it?" lobby?

We may need to try to mitigate environmental damage of growth, but to decide that the present distribution of wealth and power was handed down by a pale-hued God seems unfair.

*Props to PJ O'Rourke on this thought.

I hate to keep doing this....

I hate to keep doing this, but you need to read Weigel's analysis of the Denver LP convention. Interesting, and some nice insights into politics, regardless of your view of the events on merits.

Steve Newton Takes a Fair View: Wait and See

Steve Newton takes a sensible position: Wait and see.

He's right, of course: help from Barr could easily add 1% or more to my vote total,
and we need that. On the other hand....OF COURSE we need our Prez candidate to help. That's what a Prez candidate does.