MCViewPoint

Opinion from a Libertarian ViewPoint

Teachable Moment

Posted by M. C. on June 28, 2023

Teachable Moment

James Howard Kunstler

“In the wake of the Hunter Biden sweetheart plea deal, calling D.C. a swamp is an insult to swamps and frankly to all wetlands in general. We need to redefine the Clean Water Act to include all Biden adjacent areas.” — Margot Cleveland, Lawyer and legal analyst

“I’m proud of my son” — Joe Biden

  I hope you agree this has been an instructive week for our republic, sinking to the bottom as fast as the Titan submersible on its way to consort with its grandmama, the RMS Titanic. Here’s what I learned, for instance, from Special Counsel John Durham’s visit to the House Judiciary Committee: When asked why he did not seek grand jury testimony from the primary culprits in the Russia Collusion hoax — Comey, McCabe, and Strzok — he told the room it would have been “unproductive” because they habitually claimed to “not recall” anything when testifying in Congress.

    That’s an interesting legal theory. If it is so, we must suppose that any witness in a criminal inquiry may decline testifying on the grounds of claiming a defective memory. I’m not a lawyer, of course, but is it not the case that witnesses can be prompted to recall events when presented with evidence? E.g., “…here is your smartphone text of July 29 saying, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll stop him [Trump].’ What means did you have in mind to accomplish that, Mr. Strzok?”

     In the four-year lead-up to his personal appearance in the House, many of us were fooled into thinking Mr. Durham was a serious dude. (I sure was.) Turns out the ferocious facial hair masked a rather timorous persona. Mr. Durham apparently did not dare test the boundaries of the narrow lane laid out in the scoping directives set forth by then Attorney General Barr. Mr. D. did find a line of criminal conduct between Lawfare artist Michal Sussmann, the Fusion GPS disinfo company, the DC law firm Perkins Coie, and candidate Hillary MyTurn in the creation and marketing of the Steele Dossier — yet he never called Hillary to do any ‘splainin about it (or anything else she did in 2016). Weird, a little bit.

     While his omissions and missteps were spotlighted by the Republican members, Mr. Durham was mugged, kicked to the curb, stomped, and peed-on by the committee Democrats, who still labor to prop-up the dead-letter Russia Collusion fraud against all evidence and reason. As usual, the lead attack dog on that was Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA). He was rewarded the next day with a censure vote for seven years of shameless lying about said fraud, and stripped of his seat on the House Intel Committee, which he used, as then-chairman, to launch Trump Impeachment #1 in 2019 with fake “whistleblower” (and CIA goblin) Eric Ciaramella, whom Mr. Schiff naturally lied about never meeting prior to the proceeding.

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I Shouldn’t Be Allowed to Vote

Posted by M. C. on June 28, 2023

Disenfranchisement of legitimate voters is an inescapable issue with raising the voting age, but nonetheless the sentiment of the policy proposal should be welcomed. In fact, because of decreasing rational ignorance, it would likely be a net good rather than a net bad.

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/i-shouldnt-be-allowed-to-vote/

by Benjamin Seevers 

pexels tara winstead 8850706

I just turned 22, and I should not be allowed to vote.

I agree with Vivek Ramaswamy that the voting age probably should be increased, but the good intentioned policy misses the mark because it does not go far enough. Raising the voting age would be a step in the right direction, but the criterion for voting should not be age, but instead if one owns property in land.

Ramaswamy, a candidate in the 2024 Republican primaries, stated that the voting age should be increased to 25 years of age, granting exceptions to those that serve in the military, work as emergency responders, or pass the naturalization test.

It is easy to decry this as disenfranchisement (it is), but that is precisely why we should be cheering on this proposal. If people under 25 years of age are barred from voting, then the vote of everyone else becomes more valuable. Therefore, a single vote has a higher chance of swinging an election. The relative worthlessness of the single vote is why the public is ignorant about what policies work and what policies don’t; learning what policies are good and which are bad just is not worth the reward. Bottom line: If you increase the effectiveness of an individual vote, people will do more research because there is a higher chance their vote matters.

If raising the voting age can be accomplished, why stop at 25? Raise it to 30, 35, 40…Doing so will only make the marginal vote more impactful, thereby decreasing rational ignorance of the average voter.

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John Kerry Skewered By French TV Host After Condemning Putin Invasion: “Why Isn’t Bush Judged In The Same Way?”

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Rochebin came back with: “I get that. But you understand that for the countries of the South, of course, justice, equality, principles, it’s their impression that there is a double standard. And that weighs today, including on the debate of the climate,” Rochebin said.

Journalist Glenn Greenwald later observed of the interview, in which a humiliated Kerry was clearly unprepared to be challenged and called out so directly, “The complete lack of self-awareness on the part of the US establishment sometimes shocks me, despite the contempt I harbor for them.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/john-kerry-skewered-french-tv-host-after-condemning-putin-invasion-why-isnt-bush-judged

Tyler Durden's Photo

BY TYLER DURDEN

John Kerry, who is Biden’s special presidential envoy for climate, came up against rare pushback when he tried to issue the usual invective and talking points on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Putin’s aggression while speaking on French television in Paris. 

But a French TV anchor wasn’t having it, and confronted Kerry over US hypocrisy, given Washington has mounted multiple invasions of sovereign countries in recent decades, especially since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Well-known French journalist Darius Rochebin during the Sunday night interview on news channel LCI posed the following: “We have to judge Putin for crimes of aggression, of course. But you, the Americans, you committed the crime of aggression in Iraq.” Rochebin then asked Kerry: “These countries of the Global South say, should we judge George Bush? Why isn’t Bush judged in the same way?”

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How the Flu “disappeared” during the Covid era

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

 In a carefully conducted study (4) of hospitalized pneumonia patients diagnosed on classical X-Ray or CAT scans, the cause of the infection (etiology) could not be established in 62% of cases. How is it possible that during the pandemic in the US, there were 107,201,630 COVID infections and 1,166,899 COVID deaths as of today (8)? Where are infections with other viruses? Where are conditions of unknown etiology?

The answer is straightforward. The results of PCR testing just for one virus are meaningless. This scam should be obvious to anyone versed in diagnosing respiratory infections.

https://www.dossier.today/p/how-the-flu-disappeared-during-the?publication_id=69009&post_id=130515871&isFreemail=true

JORDAN SCHACHTEL

One of the biggest mysteries of “the pandemic” involves the supposed disappearance of the flu. Did the flu really disappear during the covid hysteria era, or is something else afoot?

Here’s the grand mystery, in meme format.

Now, during the confusion and panic of the last few years, there have been lots of explanations advanced about the supposed disappearance of the flu. The lockdowners and their credentialed institutions often claimed that masked worked (lol) to stop the flu, despite not working for covid. Others claimed that covid had some kind of viral dominance effect that defeated influenza strains.

But neither explanation really solves the “where did the flu go” mystery.

The evidence seems to point to two main reasons for the flu’s disappearance: the physical disappearance of flu testing kits and a misunderstanding of what the flu actually means.

1. The flu tests were not physically available in healthcare systems

The Dossier surveyed several individuals and organizations with access to hospital system records and supply chain management, and we pooled together lots of anecdotal information to paint a greater picture of what happened.

We found that, at least in the United States, there was virtually no access to flu testing during the covid hysteria years, particularly from 2020 to 2021. Virtually all testing manufacturers pivoted to covid testing, leaving the influenza kits behind. According to Pharma and Government Health, Covid was a much bigger priority, both from a healthcare perspective and a business perspective, so the flu industry was no longer lucrative and kicked to the curb.

The second reason, however, is even more important.

2. The flu is not understood in its proper context

Prior to the establishment of the covid testing industrial complex (which brought in well over $100 billion a year at its peak), flu was almost always diagnosed by symptoms, not by a swab test. And again, covid symptoms are virtually identical to flu symptoms. In the vast majority of cases, what is “the flu” is traditionally understood not as a viral influenza diagnosis but a general diagnosis of countless potential symptoms categorized in a broad category as “flu.” Very few doctor-diagnosed “flu” cases actually come from influenza strains. This is why it is the perfect rationale to understand covid as the flu but with scarier branding. Both flu and covid share the same symptoms, so a potential flu case/illness/death instead was generally diagnosed as a covid case/illness/death.

Read the Whole Article

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Rich Country, Poor Country. Why the Differences? | Mises Wire

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Surveying history it becomes clear that pursuing economic extraction does not lead to long-term prosperity. Typically, countries with a history of exploiting others are poorer than their peers. In Africa, Benin is an economic dwarf despite its rapacious history, but less aggressive peers like Mauritius and Botswana are economic stars. Similarly, the Ivory Coast experienced some of its best years when the country invested in promarket policies.

https://mises.org/wire/rich-country-poor-country-why-differences

Lipton Matthews

The scourge of poverty wounding citizens in the developing world has provoked much discussion in affluent countries. Quite unreasonably, rich countries have been indicted for inciting poverty in poor countries. Unfortunately, the assumption that prosperity stems from exploitation is still widely popular in academia and politics. However, the historical record casts serious doubt on this argument.

Imperialism was the standard in the ancient world, but no imperialist power achieved Schumpeterian growth. For example, bouts of economic progress in ancient Rome and Greece fizzled out despite imperial pursuits. Indeed, the national treasury is expanded when empires extract tributes from conquered states, but this does not redound to superior living standards for ordinary people. The wealth of the state is not a proxy for individual prosperity.

Surveying history it becomes clear that pursuing economic extraction does not lead to long-term prosperity. Typically, countries with a history of exploiting others are poorer than their peers. In Africa, Benin is an economic dwarf despite its rapacious history, but less aggressive peers like Mauritius and Botswana are economic stars. Similarly, the Ivory Coast experienced some of its best years when the country invested in promarket policies.

On the European side, empire proved to be quite costly for Sweden. Sweden became the envy of the world after the collapse of its empire. Further, the economic success that coincided with Swedish imperialism was the result of governance and economic reforms rather than empire-building. Japan experienced the glory of empire late in its history and like other examples, the evidence shows that it was a burden.

Using political clout to exploit other countries is not a strategy for success. Indeed, history reveals that many poor countries transitioned into affluence by facilitating commerce rather than chasing colonies. Finland was a poor European country in the early twentieth century and had no colonies like Switzerland. Yet both are two of the most successful countries in the world.

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Government Shouldn’t Be A Loophole For Criminality — If We Can’t Do It, They Can’t Do It

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Bastiat’s Law

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Pentagon Says Cluster Bombs Would Be ‘Useful’ for Ukraine

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Cluster bombs endanger civilians by scattering small bombs across a large area and have been banned by over 100 countries

Civilians like curious children.

antiwar.com

by Dave DeCamp

A Pentagon official has told Congress that controversial cluster munitions Ukraine has been seeking from the US would be “useful” to Ukrainian forces on the battlefield.

Cluster bombs scatter small submunitions over large areas, making them especially hazardous to civilians. Because of their indiscriminate nature, cluster munitions have been banned by more than 100 nations.

But the US, Ukraine, and Russia are not parties to the treaty, known as the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Both sides in the current conflict in Ukraine have reportedly used cluster bombs, and Kyiv was using them against populated areas of Donestk in the Donbas war going back to 2014.

Ukraine has been asking the US to send cluster munitions that are in Pentagon stockpiles, and the Biden administration has been under growing pressure from Republicans in Congress to oblige the request.

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Armed IRS and ATF Gun Raid in Montana: What Should Be Learned?

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Could it have been a test run meant to set the stage for many more of these raids, or was it done to prepare the proletariat for accepting more invasions against gun owners? If the Montana Department of Justice, and local police, had advance notice, did the politicians know as well? The owner stated that his shop had been under surveillance and investigation for a long time, so why was this such a surprise?

Why would the government goons expose themselves in such a bold manner with a small gun store in the middle on no-where Montana? Why would they steal information not listed in their bogus warrant; when they have most all that information already? What do the politicians gaining the spotlight due to this so-called raid, have to gain from this mass exposure?

Armed IRS and ATF Gun Raid in Montana: What Should Be Learned?

“The politicians of your country will always try to encircle you with the high walls of lies! You must know that the truth is beyond the walls and without meeting the truth you cannot meet the freedom!”

~ Mehmet Murat ildan

On June 15th, 20 armed IRS and ATF (Bureau of Alcohol. Tobacco, and Firearms) agents raided, according to the owner of Highwood Creek Outfitters and others, his gun store in Great Falls, Montana. This was first and foremost, an IRS operation, with help from the ATF, both federal agencies. According to sources reporting, and what the IRS claims, this raid was meant to gain financial records, but all Form 4473s held by this store were said to have been seized, even though the supposed warrant did not mention these forms. Apparently, the IRS stole all of these forms held by Highwood Creek Outfitters during this assault, and without cause to do so; or at least this is what is being presented.

As an aside, the Great Falls Police Department, according to local TV station KRTV, confirmed that they were informed in advance of this raid, and participated by providing ‘security,’ but the Montana Department of ‘Justice,’ claimed no involvement, although an IRS spokesperson confirmed their presence at the store. This is all par for the course, as government agencies, state and federal, are birds of a feather, and lie and collude during these attacks against society.

Concerning government, absolutely no one at the local, state or federal level, including the mainstream media, can be trusted to do the right thing, protect any liberty of the individual, or tell the truth about any assault on what is falsely referred to as the ‘public.’ Nothing should be believed unless it can be factually verified, as the corruption and gross fraud connected with these entities is rampant and all-consuming.

This event has been reported nationwide, and covered by many different gun organizations, bloggers, TV stations, and others, mostly from the same angles, but what was the reason for this raid at this particular time? Why this shop, in this location, and why would the IRS be involved in leading this coup? Was it known about in advance by all, or was this really some singular plotted secret raid on one shop in a small city in Montana? Something does not make sense here, but finding the truth may not be possible, given the continuous lies by most involved.

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Elections Are Like A Toy Steering Wheel For Babies: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Which happens to be the job of the two-party system: creating the illusion of having a democratic choice between two opposing parties while ensuring that both parties advance the same overall agendas.

AUTHOR: CAITLIN JOHNSTONE

Listen to a reading of this article (reading by Tim Foley):

❖

Voting in a western “democracy” is like that bit in the opening intro of The Simpsons when Marge is driving with the baby and the baby has a toy steering wheel. The baby thinks she’s driving the car but it’s just a fake toy to keep her busy and let her feel like she’s participating.

❖

All the worst atrocities in human history have been perpetrated or permitted by the government of the people who perpetrated them. None of the world’s most evil people are in prison. The law isn’t there to protect you from bad people, it’s there to protect bad people from you.

That’s why you should always, always, always be distrustful of all efforts to extend the law and expand government power over you. It’s not happening because your government wants to help you. Your government is not your friend.

❖

Republicans push war with China while sometimes acting as skeptics on Russia warmongering, Democrats push war with Russia while sometimes acting as skeptics on China warmongering. This creates the illusion of opposition while giving the war machine everything it wants.

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Weaponization of Politics, an American Tradition

Posted by M. C. on June 27, 2023

Since then, the growth of government has led to the growth of an unelected and unaccountable bureaucracy that plays an important role for the deep state. The deep state pursues its own agenda regardless of the wishes of the people. The deep state works to subvert those who oppose its agenda, using tactics up to and including assassination in the case of President Kennedy.

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/weaponization-of-politics-an-american-tradition/

by Ron Paul

eugene v debs 5 times socialist candidate for president set free from prison 640

Library of Congress via Picryl.com

President Donald Trump is hardly the first political figure who has had the legal and policy processes weaponized against him. In fact, there is a long and shameful history of U.S. politicians and bureaucrats weaponizing governmental powers against their political opponents.

The First Amendment was not even a decade old when fear of influence on America by French agents was used to support the passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts. This outlawed “false, scandalous, and malicious writing” against the US government, Congress, or the president and made it illegal to conspire “to oppose any measure or measures of the government of the United States.”

The weaponization of politics is another example of how hysteria over alleged foreign threats leads to less liberty. The claim that opponents of U.S. government policy were serving interests of France is an early example. Sadly, critics of U.S. government policy have been smeared for spreading disinformation to benefit hostile foreign powers many times since.

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln oversaw the shutting down of newspapers and even the arresting of state legislators. After the U.S. became involved in World War I, Congress passed a new Sedition Act banning “disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language” toward the military or U.S. government. This act was used to imprison Eugene Debs, who then ran for president as the Socialist Party nominee while in prison.

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