Brave Cop Beats up 15-Year-Old Girl

In a jail cell. On video. While another cop watches.



Personally, I think the other thug who just stood by and did nothing should also be charged. Full story here.

Papa Don't Preach

The British government is encouraging parents to, well, not parent.
From Times Online:

Parents should avoid trying to convince their teenage children of the difference between right and wrong when talking to them about sex, a new government leaflet is to advise.

Instead, any discussion of values should be kept "light" to encourage teenagers to form their own views, according to the brochure, which one critic has called "amoral".

Talking to Your Teenager About Sex and Relationships will be distributed in pharmacies from next month as part of an initiative led by Beverley Hughes, the children's minister.

The leaflet comes in the wake of the case of Alfie Patten, the 13-year-old boy from East Sussex who fathered a child with a 15-year-old girl and sparked a debate about how to cut rates of teenage parenthood.

It advises: "Discussing your values with your teenagers will help them to form their own. Remember, though, that trying to convince them of what's right and wrong may discourage them from being open."

You know it's a bad idea when the so-called "experts" start weighing in with their support:

Linda Blair, a clinical psychologist, said educating older children and teenagers about sex had to be a process of negotiation. "We do not know what is right and wrong; right and wrong is relative, although your child does need clear guidelines," she said.

So, if you hate your children, go ahead and heed their advice and refuse to teach them right from wrong. It really is the least you could do.

We Don't Need a "Conversation on Race"

Walter Williams doesn't appreciate Attorney General Eric Holder saying that we're "a nation of cowards" when it comes to race relations. He writes:

The bottom line is that the civil rights struggle is over and it is won. At one time black Americans didn't share the constitutional guarantees shared by whites; today we do. That does not mean that there are not major problems that confront a large segment of the black community, but they are not civil rights problems nor can they be solved through a "conversation on race."

Read the full article here.

Good News for Alabama Gun Owners

Alabama legislators are hoping to prevent the kind of chaos Louisiana saw during the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. From the Press-Register:

A bill to prevent state or local government from seizing lawfully owned guns during emergencies sailed through the Alabama House on Thursday and now heads to the Senate, where it was approved last year.

Rep. Mark Keahey, D-Grove Hill, said his measure is aimed at ensuring the chaos that comes with disasters, such as hurricanes, is not made worse by overzealous government officials.

"The Second Amendment gives us a constitutional right to bear arms, and this bill is just an effort, on Alabama's part, to help us maintain that right," Keahey said.

Congressman Keahey isn't entirely correct. The Second Amendment doesn't give us the right to anything; it is there to prevent the federal government from infringing on our right to keep and bear arms. But good for Keahey and the citizens of Alabama!

Ron Paul on Bill Maher's Show

Why So Many People Prefer Government Handouts to Real Jobs

A brilliant observation by Dr. Raymond Stantz in Ghostbusters:

Talk About Free market

Mises.org is going open source.

On Chimps and Bailouts

Whether or not you've known it by its official name, you're all familiar with the infinite monkey theorem. It states that given an infinite amount of time, it's possible for a monkey, or a roomful of monkeys, randomly hitting keys on a typewriter, to eventually produce a complex, coherent text -- Shakespeare's Hamlet, for example. It has to do with probabilities and statistics, which is why this particular illustration comes up quite a bit in discussions about evolution.

Variations on the infinite monkey theorem pop up all the time, most recently in the following New York Post cartoon by Sean Delonas:

An obvious link is being made to the recent story about cops shooting to death a rampaging 200-pound chimp. And what the cop in the cartoon is referring to is the slapped-together stimulus bill the Democrats forced through Congress without allowing anyone time to even read it -- a bill so devoid of logic and reason that (are you ready?) a chimp could have written it.

The link you may have missed (probably because it doesn't exist) is one that has more racial overtones. Leave it to our resident expert on racism, Al Sharpton, to point out what you and I may have overlooked. He issued this statement on his web site yesterday:

The cartoon in today's New York Post is troubling at best, given the racist attacks throughout history that have made African-Americans synonymous with monkeys. One has to question whether the cartoonist is making a less than casual inference to this form of racism when, in the cartoon, the police say after shooting a chimpanzee, "now they will have to find someone else to write the stimulus bill."

Being that the stimulus bill has been the first legislative victory of President Barack Obama (the first African American president) and has become synonymous with him it is not a reach to wonder whether the Post cartoonist was inferring that a monkey wrote it? Given that the New York Post cartoonist has come under heavy fire in the past for racially tinged cartoons including the infamous cartoons depicting 2001 mayoral candidate Freddy Ferrer and me in very unflattering ways (that ultimately was used as a campaign tactic to inflame racial prejudices), one cannot ignore that history when looking at this morning's cartoon.

The Post should at least clarify what point they were trying to make in this cartoon, and reprimand their cartoonist for making inferences that are offensive and divisive at a time the nation struggles to come together to stabilize the economy if, in fact, this was yet another racially charged cartoon.

This is quite a stretch, even for Reverend Al, but he doesn't joke around when it comes to making mountains out of mole hills. It's how he makes his living.

So, here's what we're supposed to think: The chimp represents President Barack Obama because, contrary to reality, he was the one wrote this so-called "stimulus" bill, not congressional Democrats. And everyone knows that some cartoonists 60 or 70 years ago depicted blacks with chimpanzee-like characteristics, not to mention that a few lowlifes today may occasionally employ such a slur when referring to those with darker skin. Therefore, we are supposed to be outraged and need to join Sharpton and his followers in some sort of protest or boycott or whatever.

But let's pause for a moment. Which president has been compared over and over again to a chimpanzee? Why, George W. Bush, of course. In fact, he was the inspiration for web sites like BushOrChimp.com and SmirkingChimp.com. Where was the outrage? Where was the call for protests?

What convinces me that Sharpton's accusation is bogus is that his only complaint about the cartoon is that it is "racially charged." He makes no issue out of the fact that the chimp in the cartoon has just been shot dead. If Sharpton really thought the artist intended the chimp to represent Obama, don't you think he would have pointed out that this could be interpreted as some sort of veiled assassination threat? Seems to me that is far more serious than any possible racial implication.

Unfortunately, we're easily distracted. This little scandal has now overshadowed the real crime perpetrated on American citizens of all colors: the passage of the largest pork spending bill in our nation's history that is sure to drive the economy further into the ground.

If You Really Want an Economic Stimulus...

...start cutting back on the number of government employees.

First of all, these public sector jobs are virtually unaffected by free market principles. It's all political. Secondly, many of these government workers are guaranteed hefty pensions when they retire, regardless of the state of the economy in the real world.

If you want to see where a lot of your tax dollars are going, take a look at this article in Forbes. Though the article barely scratches the surface, the comments section has already received quite a few gripes from those who live off the money taken by force from ordinary citizens. Some even play the "we're risking our lives, therefore we're above criticism" card. Such is the entitlement mindset of most government employees.

How Do We End Slavery in America?

According to Ron Paul, abolishing the Selective Service would be a good start.

Dear Federal Government...

Drop dead.

New Strategy in the War on Gun Rights

Proposed Illinois House Bill 687 seeks to place an extra financial burden on law-abiding gun owners. Here is the bill's synopsis as it was introduced:

Amends the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act. Provides that any person who owns a firearm in this State shall maintain a policy of liability insurance in the amount of at least $1,000,000 specifically covering any damages resulting from negligent or willful acts involving the use of such firearm while it is owned by such person. Provides that a person shall be deemed the owner of a firearm after the firearm is lost or stolen until such loss or theft is reported to the police department or sheriff of the jurisdiction in which the owner resides. Provides that the Department of State Police shall revoke and seize a Firearm Owner's Identification Card previously issued under this Act if the Department finds that the person to whom such card was issued possesses or acquires a firearm and does not submit evidence to the Department of State Police that he or she has been issued in his or her name a liability insurance policy in the amount of at least $1,000,000 specifically covering any damages resulting from negligent or willful acts involving the use of such firearm while it is owned by such person. Effective January 1, 2010.

The intent of this bill is clear: reduce the number of gun owners by making it too expensive for most people to own a gun.

Like all other gun control laws, this will have no effect on criminals. My guess is that they probably aren't going to be all that concerned about whether or not the guns they use to commit crimes carry liability insurance. This bill will only leave more law-abiding citizens defenseless.

Tyranny by Any Other Name...

William Grigg nails another one out of the park with his latest essay. He comments on Rush Limbaugh's infantile rant about using the power of the state against the Left once Republicans regain power.

But the Democrats are not the only ones guilty of expanding the size and scope of government. Grigg writes:

Unlike his lemur-browed, synapse-deprived imitator Sean Hannity, Limbaugh is intelligent enough to know that the Democrats inherited a central government that had been gorged on power during the eight years of Bush the Dimmer's reign. The fact that the final consequential act of the Bush Regime was to create an economic dictatorship headed by the Treasury Secretary has not evaded Limbaugh's notice. The creation of a huge apparatus of regimentation, surveillance, and detention under Bush took place with the active support of Limbaugh and his ilk. So he is lying when he imputes sole responsibility for all of this to the Democrats.

But rather than urging that this edifice of tyranny be demolished, Limbaugh counsels his followers to be patient in the expectation that they will soon occupy its commanding heights, from which they can proceed with the extermination of their political enemies. ...

... The Democrats are the party of the welfare/warfare state; the Republicans, on the other hand, are the party of the warfare/welfare state. And both of them are tools of an entrenched Power Elite that is delighted to cultivate the collectivist hatreds from which totalitarianism is sprouting even now.

Conscription = Slavery

Beware those who wish to draft you or your children to help fight the "war on terror." Writes William Grigg:

Conscription is never necessary to inspire men to defend their homes and families, and it is never used for that purpose. It is carried out for the sole purpose of compelling men to kill and die on behalf of the State and the degenerate clique running it.

He concludes:

No scimitar-wielding Mohammedan has materialized on my doorstep to demand that I surrender my children as a "blood tax" demanded by the state. I know what variety of greeting I would give such a personage were he to appear. The same is true for any functionary of any government who would presume to claim my children as the property of the official gang that employs him.

Death by Environmentalism

I wrote about the tragic cost of environmentalism several years ago, how idiotic environmental regulations led to the deaths of four brave firefighters. A similar tragedy, though on a much bigger scale, has been playing out in southern Australia.

It has been suggested that the wildfires there that have been burning out of control because of global warming. According to Australian Green Party leader Bob Brown, "[The fires] are a sobering reminder of the need for this nation and the whole world to act and put at a priority the need to tackle climate change." What an arrogant, self-righteous fool.

Those directly affected by the wildfires know the real reason for the extent of death and destruction:

Angry residents last night accused local authorities of contributing to the bushfire toll by failing to let residents chop down trees and clear up bushland that posed a fire risk.

During question time at a packed community meeting in Arthurs Creek on Melbourne's northern fringe, Warwick Spooner -- whose mother Marilyn and brother Damien perished along with their home in the Strathewen blaze -- criticised the Nillumbik council for the limitations it placed on residents wanting the council's help or permission to clean up around their properties in preparation for the bushfire season. "We've lost two people in my family because you dickheads won't cut trees down," he said.

Personally, I think Mr. Spooner was being was being too kind. These environmentally (un)conscious morons have very little respect for human life.

Cops with Nothing Better to Do

The infamous photo of Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps taking a hit on a marijuana pipe has since led to eight arrests, seven for drug possession and one for distribution. Remember the good ol' days when cops went after real criminals?

But I guess since Richland County isn't exactly a hotbed of violent crime (PDF), they need to do something to look busy in order to keep the taxpayer dollars rolling in.

Propaganda Progression

This film from the 1940s now seems a bit prophetic:

Contrast that with the propaganda put out today by Washington bureaucrats and their willing accomplices in the mainstream media:

Obama's Politics of Fear

Forget the message of hope Barack Obama preached during his campaign for the presidency. He's in the White House now, which means he can let his true colors begin to show. So, it was no surprise when he used his first press conference to spread a message of fear.

And what a dismal picture he painted. People can't pay their bills. They aren't spending, and businesses are being forced to lay off workers as a result. He drew attention to the fact that last month we lost 598,000 jobs (or 500 million, according to Nancy Pelosi). Everywhere you look it's doom and gloom.

But wait...there may be hope for the economy after all. Why not let the government kiss it and make it better? The president didn't mince words, saying that "at this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life." Oh, yay. We're saved.

Interestingly, no mention was made about what these "resources" are or where the nearly $1 trillion will come from to pay for this pork-filled spending package. That's because the federal government has no resources of its own. It produces nothing. It must borrow the money from foreign sources and increase the national debt, print more money and further devalue the dollar, or simply steal it from productive citizens, which defeats the whole purpose of trying to get people to consume more.

The fact of the matter is that this "stimulus" package is nothing more than a wealth redistribution scheme, the largest in our nation's history. But it will sell because people are gullible when they're afraid.

Just as Dubya frightened people into thinking that it was a good idea to send teenage girls overseas to keep us safe from the Axis of Evil, Obama is scaring people into believing that spending money we don't have (i.e. doing exactly what got us into this mess in the first place) will actually prevent economic collapse. Either our new president is pitifully ignorant, or he thinks we are. But one thing is certain: you can count on him exploiting our fears for as long as he can.

We Are All Socialists Now

So says Newsweek:

All of this is unfolding in an economy that can no longer be understood, even in passing, as the Great Society vs. the Gipper. Whether we like it or not -- or even whether many people have thought much about it or not -- the numbers clearly suggest that we are headed in a more European direction. A decade ago U.S. government spending was 34.3 percent of GDP, compared with 48.2 percent in the euro zone -- a roughly 14-point gap, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In 2010 U.S. spending is expected to be 39.9 percent of GDP, compared with 47.1 percent in the euro zone -- a gap of less than 8 points. As entitlement spending rises over the next decade, we will become even more French.

More Good States' Rights News

Eight states have already introduced resolutions to reclaim their sovereignty under the Ninth and Tenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. WorldNetDaily reports that "another 20 states may see similar measures introduced this year."

Do We Cherish Freedom?

Chuck Baldwin asks, "Do Americans really cherish freedom anymore?"

Um...not so much.

Only 48 to Go...

First it was New Hampshire. Now Arizona would like to reclaim its status as a free and independent state, resolving:

• That the State of Arizona hereby claims sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the Constitution of the United States.
  
  
• That this Resolution serves as notice and demand to the federal government, as our agent, to cease and desist, effective immediately, mandates that are beyond the scope of these constitutionally delegated powers.
  
  
• That all compulsory federal legislation that directs states to comply under threat of civil or criminal penalties or sanctions or requires states to pass legislation or lose federal funding be prohibited or repealed.

Full resolution here.

Obama and Lincoln Not a Good Combination

As Lew Rockwell notes, not all lefties are on board the Obama change train. He quotes author Kirkpatrick Sale, who wrote the following:

Let's just hold it a bit on this Lincoln thing. If Barack Obama wants to lead the nation as Lincoln did, we're in for a lot of trouble.

The man whose Bible he took the oath on, whose memory he regularly invokes, presided over the creation of what can only be called a nascent fascist government led by a party of industrial capitalism that ran roughshod over constitution and custom, encouraged a form of bloody warfare that defied all civilized practice to date, and was the cause of untold misery, violence, and destruction for the next half-century or more. He was the ultimate creator of an empire that, thanks to military might in service to corporate interests, spread across the American continent, not just north to south but eventually coast to coast, and would ultimately go on to impose itself worldwide.

Frankly, I think Sale is sugar-coating Lincoln's legacy just a bit.

New Hampshire to Put the Feds on Notice?

A resolution affirming "states' rights based on Jeffersonian principles" has been introduced in the New Hampshire House of Representatives. It resolves, in part:

That any Act by the Congress of the United States, Executive Order of the President of the United States of America or Judicial Order by the Judicatories of the United States of America which assumes a power not delegated to the government of United States of America by the Constitution for the United States of America and which serves to diminish the liberty of the any of the several States or their citizens shall constitute a nullification of the Constitution for the United States of America by the government of the United States of America.

Read the full resolution here.

Believe it or not, this was once the general consensus among the various states, even when it came time to ratify the U.S. Constitution. In fact, several states made it clear during the ratification process that they retained the right to break away from the new Union if it was ever deemed necessary to preserve the liberty of their citizens. For example, the delegates from Virginia stated that "the powers granted under the Constitution being derived from the people of the United States may be resumed by them whensoever the same shall be perverted to their injury or oppression and that every power not granted thereby remains with them and at their will." New York followed suit, claiming the same power for its citizens if and when "it shall become necessary to their happiness."

Let's hope this resolutions passes and sets an example for the other 49 states.

Worship of the State

Maryland State Senate Bill 371 (PDF) would force all county boards to:

• Require the display of an American flag on the site of each public school building in its county while the school is in session
  
  
• Buy all necessary flags, staffs, and appliances for the flags
  
  
• Adopt rules and regulations for the proper custody, care, and display of the flag
  
  
• PROMINENTLY DISPLAY AN OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IN EACH PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING IN ITS COUNTY (No emphasis added.)

Soviet-style state worship at its worst.

No Cutbacks for Uncle Sam

While private (i.e. legitimate) companies are being forced to lay off workers due to the economic downturn caused by Washington's incessant meddling, the parasitic federal workforce is actually growing.