August 24, 2005

Kelo and the 14th Amendment: Exploring a Constitutional Koan Vanity
By Mark Edward Vande Pol

In the practice of Zen Buddhism, a koan is a statement that is intentionally insoluble to the rational mind, a tool by which to master life’s seemingly paradoxical events. Yet the Japanese Zen masters have nothing on us red-blooded Americans, who for over a century have become unconsciously adept at sustaining such conflicts, easily accepting contradictory interpretations of Constitutional Law, between the original scope of the Bill of Rights and that since the Fourteenth Amendment.

As Madison elaborated in Federalist 45, the Constitution for the United States of America was sold as a list of strictly limited powers; leaving the bulk of governance up to the several States. The reason for the extent of this preference is that the Anti-Federalists largely represented States that so feared centralized power that they would never have ratified the Constitution had it not so carefully proscribed the national government. (Read the rest here)

Spongebob Squarepants, Libertarian Hero
by Bob Wallace

He has strange friends, bizarre adventures, a weird pet, a pineapple for a house, a job at a burger joint, and lives in a place with the endearing name of Bikini Bottom - a place with no visible State. Throw in just a few more things, and Spongebob would have about as close to a dream-life as is possible in this world.

I was puzzled why I - and so many others - am so enamored of this cartoon. After a little thought, here are some conclusions:

Spongebob lives at the bottom of the sea. He, and everyone else there, are safe. They have the entire sea to protect them from the outside world. Symbolically, the sea stands for a preconscious (child-like) state, and for the feminine (the womb). Think of Father Sky and Mother Earth. This makes sense, because Spongebob is in many ways an innocent child, safe in the womb of the ocean. You can say he lives in the Garden of Eden, in a womb which shelters and protects. (Read the rest here)

Will Iraq’s Constitution Be Irrelevant?
By Ivan Eland

To the Bush administration’s relief, world media attention has focused intensely on whether the fractious Iraqis will meet the now extended deadline to create a constitution that can be put to a national referendum on October 15. As in U.S. election campaigns, the media are focusing on the short-term “horse race”—that is, how the process is going—rather than on the long-term ramifications of the issues decided.

The media’s focus on whether the Bush administration’s forced timetable is met, rather than on the quality and likely impact of the resulting constitution, serves the administration’s purpose of creating the illusion of progress. Thus, victory can be declared and American troops can begin coming home. After all, the congressional elections are next year, and by then, the Democrats will be feisty over a war that is getting ever less popular here at home. (Read the rest here)

Your Feedback and Comments
The Mailbag for Wednesday

Libertarian Commentary on The News
By Nathan A. Barton © 2005

Lots of stories about self-defense, so let us start with those today. Then we'll get to the day's nasty stuff, which is pretty bad. Be warned. And be prepared to fight for your own freedom and that of your family, friends, and neighbors.

Our Right to Defend Ourselves

North Carolina: Gas station clerk shoots suspect
Channel 14 News
"A convenience store clerk shot a man who was trying to rob the store early Sunday morning. Witnesses called police after a man entered the Express Mart on the 3400 block of Wilkinson Boulevard around 6:40 a.m. They said a confrontation was going on between the clerk and the man on the property. 'We do know that the clerk fired shots in self-defense and one of the rounds did strike the suspect,' said Sgt. Steve Huber, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Freedom Division. The man fled from the store on foot, but police tracked him down just a few blocks away. With the help of a canine unit, they had the man in custody in under a half hour." (08/22/05)

The sad thing in this otherwise good story is that none of the witnesses were willing (and perhaps not even able) to intervene. They were not protecting themselves at a dangerous time of early morning, and were unable to assist someone else threatened, either. (Read the rest here)

New Blog added 8-01-05

Liberty Bloggers We Know