March 11, 2005

Bush Put The Fox Back In The Chicken Coop
By Ed Henry

The following is an excerpt from a speech called “Social Security Saved” that Daniel Patrick Moynihan delivered to the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University on March 16, 1998 .

"On January 3, 1983 , Robert J. Dole, Senate Majority Leader, published an article on the op-ed page of The New York Times, entitled "Reagan's Faithful Allies." It seemed that many people thought Congressional Republicans weren't giving the President the support he needed and deserved. Not so, Senator Dole said, we are with the President and there are great things still to be done. Then this: 'Social Security is a case in point. With 116 million workers supporting it and 35 million beneficiaries relying on it, Social Security overwhelms every other domestic priority’.... That day I was being sworn in for a second term in the Senate. I had read the article and went up to Senator Dole on the Senate Floor and asked if he really thought that, why not try one last time? (They had just spent a year on the Greenspan Commission that went nowhere) And he did think it. A year of listening to Myers had altered a lifetime of Republican dogma. We met the next day. The day after that Barber Conable was brought in, a Republican who both understood and believed in Social Security. On January 15th, 13 days from our first exchange, agreement was reached at Blair House and the crisis passed...Social Security was secure for the time being. Indeed, the payroll tax generated a considerable surplus which we have lived off ever since, and will continue to enjoy for yet a few years. (Read the rest here)

Libertarian Commentary on The News
By Nathan A. Barton © 2004

Government is supposed to protect our freedom - at least American government was originally intended to do that. Sadly, we have allowed so many other things to be tacked on, that the primary purpose is almost forgotten, and when done, is done poorly at best. Some of the articles today point that out, in my opinion (which may not yours or necessarily those of TPoL, RRND, or FND).

Utah: Thousands evacuated after chemical spill
Salt Lake Tribune
A railroad tanker car leaking a mixture of chemicals sent a plume of orange fumes above South Salt Lake City, UT, the morning of Sunday, March 6, causing the evacuation of as many as 6,000 residents and the closing of Interstate 15. Workers found acid bubbling from three holes in the tanker Sunday morning in the Roper Train Yard. Special equipment was brought in from Las Vegas, NV, around 10:00 p.m. to pierce the tanker and drain the liquid into other containers. More than 100 emergency crews from as far away as Tooele, UT, responded to the chemical spill, which they were initially told was composed of sulfuric, nitric, hydrofluoric and hydrochloric acids. The chemicals are dangerous on a number of levels -- any one of them could burn the skin on contact, and if inhaled could damage the lungs, esophagus, cause difficulty breathing, nausea and vomiting. By 10:00 p.m. Sunday night, after hours of confusion, miscommunication and finger pointing, residents were allowed to return home. The Federal Bureau of Investigation was at the scene and determined the leak wasn't linked to any type of terrorist or criminal activity.

It is accidents like this that the so-called War on Terrorism is actually making more likely, with the insane emphasis on secrecy - so much so that DHS wants to remove warning and identification placards from rail cars, thus exposing emergency responders and local folks to even more dangers. (See the third article, on government secrecy, for more on this.) And then, just to make matters worse, the Feebes have to get into the act - messing with the local people. Thanks to Tim for this article! (Read the rest of the Commentary here)

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