Libertarian Commentary on the News, 22 - 28 April 2007

Privacy wars:
WI: Amish farmers balk at farm ID numbers
Press Gazette
“Amish dairy farmers who oppose a Wisconsin livestock identification system that takes full effect May 1 contend it’s forcing them to make a choice between their livelihood and their religion. The Amish, members of a Christian sect that favors plain living with little reliance on modern conveniences, cite Biblical passages as prohibiting them from buying and selling animals that are numbered, or have what they would consider the ‘mark of the beast.’ About 200 Amish dairy producers recently met with state officials about the new ID system that was passed into law three years ago. It requires livestock farms to register with the state and receive a farm ID number as a way of making it easier to track animals in case of a disease outbreak or other emergency.” (04/20/07)

Of course, not only Amish oppose this, but by highlighting Amish opposition, it makes all farmers and ranchers opposed to the farm ID laws seem like anti-progress Luddites.

Privacy:
CA: Senate votes to ban RFID chips from licenses
The Newspaper
“The California state Senate voted 31-6 Monday to impose a ban on driver’s licenses containing radio frequency identification (RFID) transmitters. State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) introduced the measure to prevent the Department of Motor Vehicles from using the technology to track motorists, exposing information to the potential of identity theft. Although California’s DMV has stated it does not intend to the technology [sic], the US State Department issued its first RFID-enabled passport last year. RFID chips allow a scanner to read a document’s sensitive personal information from a distance, including name, address, identification numbers and a photograph. In March, the London Daily Mail was able to download all of an RFID passport’s information from a sealed envelope before the new passport had been delivered to its owner. This happened even though the document had encryption advertised as secure and unbreakable.” (04/25/07)

Good news, for once, from the California legislature. The problem is not that DMV is not now using it, but that federal law might require them to do so in the future.

Mama's Note: This was a real shock. I keep thinking, however, that there much be a catch... we just have not heard the whole story. The California legislature never saw a government program it didn't love. Must just not be enough in it for THEM quite yet.

Our right to defend ourselves and Thugs:
Congress hesitant on victim disarmament
Boston Globe
"Despite calls for legislative action in the wake of last week's massacre at Virginia Tech, Democratic congressional leaders have no plans to bring up major gun control bills for votes, and supporters of stricter gun laws concede that significant gun legislation is highly unlikely to get serious consideration this year. Democratic leaders, mindful of political damage their party has sustained in the past for seeking to crack down on guns, are hesitant to push for high-profile gun bills, such as mandating trigger locks or renewing the federal assault-weapons ban that expired in 2004." [Editor's note: Given that the VTech shootings happened in a place where "gun control" was already "absolute," it's incredible that the issue is even being discussed, except as precursor for repeal! - SAT] (04/23/07)

Steve, never underestimate the ability of politicians to pander: they’ll figure out a way around this, I’m sure. And in many state legislatures, they already have started the usual process of “tightening up the law” to “prevent” another tragedy. But even in DC, some are pressing on, as the next story relates.

Our right to defend ourselves:
NY: McCarthy gun bill gaining ground
NewsDAy
“The Virginia Tech shooter’s ability to buy handguns despite a judge’s ruling that he had mental illness is giving new impetus to a stalled House bill to improve state reporting of ineligible gun buyers to the national background check system. The Democratic House leadership could decide as early as next week whether to push forward with some version of the legislation introduced in January by Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-Mineola), House aides said. The decision hinges on talks between Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), a gun-rights advocate and bill cosponsor, and the National Rifle Association, the powerful gun lobby whose support is crucial to the measure’s survival, House aides said.” (04/21/07)

This would, of course, lead to far more disarmament of people who aren’t a danger to anyone but bad guys, than it will to disarming the bad guys.

Mama's Note" Please consider that the NRA may well lend their support to this terrible disarmament legislation, as they have many times in the past.

Our right to defend ourselves:
VA: Kaine may close gun access loophole
MSNBC
"Virginia's governor said Tuesday he may be able to close the loophole that allowed a mentally disturbed Virginia Tech student to acquire the guns he used to kill 32 classmates and faculty last week. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said in a radio interview that changes in the reporting of people a court has ruled have mental problems into a background check database might be possible with an executive order." (04/24/07)

As I said, fears of the 2008 election aren’t stopping many state leaders from trying to “tighten up the laws.” The barn door is shut after… Except in this case, the animals can just run out the side door. How much “preventive justice” will VA decide to use? Ever seen a head-doctor? Whoops, no gun for you. Ever get written up for a poor choice of words in a school assignment? And what about Ritalin?

Our right to defend ourselves:
CO: Man quits college because not allowed gun
Denver Channel
”A Lakewood man, who is just three classes short of graduation, is not going back to Front Range Community College because of its campus rules on guns.”I’ve carried a gun every day for six years. I have a permit. Everything is legal. They still will not allow me to carry on their campus because it violates their student code of conduct,” said Aaron Brown, a former student. Brown was suspended for six months after he was found carrying his gun on the college campus. He has no plans to come back and finish his associate’s degree in science once his suspension is up.” [Editor’s note: Now, if enough other students quit, we might actually see some changes in these laws-MLS](04/21/07)

Mama Liberty made a public appeal for more students and parents to do this! More of us need to: a lot more.

Mama's Note: At the very least, those who ARE prepared to defend themselves would not be among the victims. There are some colleges that do accept the tools of self defense and there would be more of them if people voted with their feet and wallets. We will be disarmed and helpless where and for as long as we allow it, no more.

Our right to defend ourselves:
NE: Jury finds Stella man not guilty in shooting death
Journal Star
“Richardson County District Court jurors found Dennis L. Lockard not guilty of second-degree murder Saturday morning in the Aug. 18 death of James Nutile, 32, of Humboldt. The case went to the jury of seven men and five women on Friday, after a week-long trial. Lockard, 39, of Stella, faced charges of second-degree murder and use of a firearm to commit a felony. He was found not guilty on both. In closing arguments, defense attorney James Martin Davis said his client obeyed one of the oldest laws in human history: the law of self-preservation. Lockard testified during the trial that after he fired a warning shot meant to stop a fight between Nutile and another man, Nutile rushed Lockard, grabbing him with one hand while “slashing” him with the other. As Lockard fell, he felt he was being stabbed, Davis said. Assistant Nebraska Attorney General Corey O’Brien, who helped prosecute the case, said Lockard could have chosen many options that would have left Nutile alive. Instead, he introduced a gun into a fistfight, making a volatile situation worse.” 04/23/07)

Of all the Great Plains states, I think that Nebraska has the worst record for “not getting it” when it comes to firearms and self-defense. It is one of the last states to refuse to allow concealed carry of any type (unless you are a blue gangster), and it is obviously trying hard to intimidate ANY use of weapons to defend yourself or others.

Mama's Note: So, I repeat... why does anyone live there? Something must be more important to them than preserving their lives and liberty.

Our right to defend ourselves:
OH: Robber, 15, fatally shot by would-be victim
Plain Dealer
“A 25-year-old Cleveland man shot and killed Arthur C. Buford, 15, after the boy tried to rob him, police said. Buford was shot in the chest at 8:30 p.m. Saturday and taken to MetroHealth Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later, according to Cleveland police spokesman Thomas Stacho. Buford and an accomplice reportedly robbed a man at gunpoint on the porch of his house near East 134th Street and Kinsman Road. Stacho said the robbery victim had just walked home from a nearby store. Stacho said the robbery victim, whose name was withheld, told police he pulled his own gun and shot the teenager, who staggered away and collapsed in the street.” (04/23/07)

Hopefully people will see beyond the age of the thug who was killed for his own evil actions. The intended victim didn’t have time to ask if the kid was of age. Maturity begins, according to Torah, at about 13 (thus, Bar mitzvah), but we apparently believe it should be 21.

Mama's Note: Any person who is old enough and strong enough to use deadly force must also be prepared to bear the consequences. Our government, of course, wants to keep us all as infants who have no will or desire to take personal responsibility for ourselves.

Our right to defend ourselves:
FL: Bicyclist shoots in self defense
Fox 30
“A man fought back against his attackers Sunday night in Arlington by pulling a gun and firing. One of the suspected attackers was shot in the chest. The 17-year-old suspect is expected to survive. Police say the victim fired in self defense and is not facing any charges at this time….. The man was riding his bicycle on Merrill Road Sunday night, when two people attacked him, police said. In retaliation, the man pulled a gun, fired it and hit one of his attackers in the chest.” (04/23/07)

Another “minor” shot while committing a crime. Something that bothers me about this story is the reporter’s using the word “retaliation” – self-defense is NOT retaliation, revenge or vengeance.

Our right to defend ourselves:
Switzerland: Ban on army firearms at home wins support
swissinfo [Switzerland]
"A survey shows a majority of the Swiss want to ban army weapons from homes -- scrapping a long-standing tradition of the country's militia army. Centre-left political parties and pacifist groups are preparing a plan to force a nationwide vote on the issue as parliament considers alternative options. Nearly two thirds of the people interviewed came out against storing personal assault rifles and guns in private households." (04/22/07)

Watch the crime rate – especially home invasions and burglaries climb, if this happens. Hopefully, if it is not defeated, it will be tested someplace (like the canton with the highest “yes” votes) and they can see it happen. How many deaths is a gun-free home worth?

Mama's Note: Unfortunately, there is already a serious "gun control" attitude in Switzerland, and has been for a long time.

Our right to defend ourselves:
PA: Packing heat in plain view
Lancaster Online
"The security guards at Park City mall don't carry guns, but Patrick Miller packs heat on his hip in plain view when he strolls amid the shoppers with his family. Miller, 30, of Atglen, has a permit to carry a concealed weapon, but he has worn his loaded semiautomatic 9 mm handgun in the open to dozens of restaurants, sporting events, his church, movies -- almost everywhere he goes in his leisure time. Most people who even notice the gun on his waist assume he's a law enforcement officer. Most don't know -- and many likely will be shocked -- to learn that any law-abiding citizen over the age of 18 in Lancaster County can wear a loaded firearm in public. No permits are required -- you only need one if you plan on concealing your gun. ... 'Open carry,' as it's called by guns-rights advocates, is a long-established basic right that's existed since frontier days. Only six, mostly Southern, states have moved to restrict that right -- and those were largely racist actions to keep African-Americans from arming after the Civil War, open-carry groups say." (04/24/07)

Bizarrely, in some states it is ILLEGAL to open carry IF you have a concealed carry permission slip (SD and WY are NOT on that list: NM is). Obviously the staff of this publication from the publisher right on down are strong supporters of open-carry, as well as concealed-carry Vermont style (no permission slip needed for either one). I used to open carry all the time, but now pretty much “carry concealed” in various convenient places that make sure I can get my iron out if and when needed.

Our right to defend ourselves:
Pennsylvanians denounce gun-grabbing pol at rally
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
"Gun supporters at a Capitol rally today waved a sign saying a state legislator who proposed a contentious gun control bill should be 'hung from the tree of liberty for treasonous acts against the Constitution.' The sign denounced Rep. Angel Cruz, a Philadelphia Democrat who sponsored House Bill 760, which would charge gun owners $10 for each weapon they own and allow state police to confiscate guns that aren't registered. The legislation, which would require people to annually register weapons, is pending in the House Judiciary Committee. Alan Kiser, of Warren, said he brought the sign to a Second Amendment rally in the Capitol Rotunda to draw attention to his position that Cruz should be impeached. Told that some Cruz supporters were upset, Kiser said, 'They shouldn't be upset. They (legislators) take an oath of office to uphold the Constitution.'" (04/24/07)

Perhaps the “honorable” thug Mr. Cruz should visit a few places, starting with Liberty Hall in his own town, then Dachau, Bergen-Belsen, the Alamo, Lexington, and a few dozen Pennsylvania homes where deaths and thefts were prevented by guns.

Our right to defend ourselves:
Missouri latest state to bar police from taking guns
Belleville News Democrat
"In the chaos after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, police confiscated guns from some people and removed them from homes, hundreds in all. That action spurred gun-rights groups -- led by the National Rifle Association -- to embark on a nationwide campaign to keep the situation from happening again. It appears to be working. Missouri recently joined 12 other states in passing a law in the past two years to prevent government from taking people's weapons during an emergency, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The first was Louisiana. Another dozen are considering the idea, and similar efforts are under way at the federal level." [Editor's note: Actually, I'm pretty sure it was the Second Amendment Foundation that took the lead on this one, especially in Louisiana - TLK] (04/23/07)

Good – another fad, but a needed one. The problem is, why should we have to have all these laws when supposedly the supreme law of the land has an amendment that says the same thing.

Our right to defend ourselves:
AZ: House OKs bill to make self-defense law retroactive in some cases
Tucson Citizen
"The House on Monday reversed itself and approved the latest attempt to make a 2006 self-defense law favorable to defendants apply retroactively in some cases. The House approved the bill on a 32-23 vote, six days after rejecting the bill 31-27. Four Republicans and one Democrat who voted against the bill on April 17 cast votes for it on Monday. None explained their changed votes during the floor session. The bill would make the 2006 law apply to cases pending in trial court when the law took effect on April 24, 2006." (04/23/07)

And at least one case of horrible injustice will be overturned.

Our right to defend ourselves:
Poll: Lax gun laws not the problem behind VT rampage
MSN Bizjournal
“Nearly half of those responding to the Business Journal’s most recent online survey said that lax gun laws were not the real problem leading to the April 16th massacre at Virginia Tech, when 32 people and a gunman were killed in a shooting rampage. A total of 47 percent of the 393 people who responded to the question, ‘what are your thoughts on gun laws?,’ agreed with the answer that guns were not the real problem. The poll question, which ran April 18-24, also offered two other answers. Another 37 percent agreed with the answer, ‘there should be greater restrictions on the purchase of handguns and ammunition,’ while 15 percent picked the answer, ‘the ability to carry a concealed weapon should be broadened for personal defense.’” (04/24/07)

One would hope that Business Journal readers are more influential than the readers of the “Weekly Sun” or the “National Inquirer” and so thugs in Congress and elsewhere might pay attention. The choices, or this question’s answers are themselves interesting, and perhaps indicated that BJ’s management might be less hoploclastic than most media.

Our right to defend ourselves:
New Zealand: Home invasion victim claims self-defence
Stuff [New Zealand]
“‘Hurry up, please,’ Marie Rangihuna begs the police telephonist. ‘Oh my god! What’s going on?’ ‘We are on our way,’ the woman telephonist calmly replies. The recorded emergency call — played in the Christchurch District Court today — includes the sound of a shotgun blast just outside the door of the bedroom where Miss Rangihuna is sheltering after three men have kicked and smashed their way into her Linwood house through the front door. No one was hurt by the shotgun blast, but it has led to a trial before Judge David Saunders and a jury where self-defence is the sole issue. On trial is Deryck Joseph Morgan, 23, who fired the shot. He was a visitor at the house in Tuam Street on May 6. He has denied charges of firing the shotgun with reckless disregard for the safety of others, and unlawfully possessing the sawn-off shotgun and ammunition. ‘He was acting in self-defence, not only of himself but also of others in the house that night — a baby, a mother, a grandmother and another visitor,’ said defence counsel Serina Bailey. ” (04/26/07)

Clearly, Morgan is FAR more dangerous and evil than the three home invaders. Another example of how stupid laws do far, far more harm than good.

Our right to defend ourselves:
GA: Homeowner defends herself
WJBF News
“The homeowner was no easy mark. She fought back against her attacker. It looks like the victim stopped the suspect in his tracks. The victim is a 57 year old woman who lives alone. But that only made her more prepared to protect herself. Even though she was abruptly awakened while asleep, it didn’t take long for her to come to her senses and take aim at the suspect who turned out to be a neighbor. … Detectives say 19 year old Justin Brent Haynie got into his neighbor’s home while she slept and put a knife to her throat. Sgt. Calvin Chew, Richmond County Sheriff’s Office: ‘He jumped on the bed and he started trying to cover her mouth because she was shouting.’ During the struggle Sergeant Calvin Chew says the victim, a 57 year old woman who lives alone somehow managed to grab her .357 off the nightstand. That was something haynie (sic) didn’t know. Detectives say as haynie (sic) walked behind her with a knife to her neck, she quickly spun around and shot him in the stomach. Haynie grabbed her gun and ran. But he didn’t get far.” (04/26/07)

Evil walks in the night, but this woman was prepared.

Silly People Tricks:
UK: Soap gives caffeine kick
Ananova [UK]
“Caffeinated soap has been launched to help people who don’t have the time for both a shower and a coffee in the morning. Manufacturers claim their Shower Shock soap releases caffeine that is absorbed into the user’s system and provides the same hit as a two cups of coffee.” (04/23/07)

A stupid sales gimmick. I suspect that skin absorption is probably next to nil.

Stupid government tricks:
MA: Patrick would nix grant, end abstinence classes
Boston Globe
"Governor Deval Patrick wants to end state-sponsored, abstinence-only sex education in Massachusetts, a year after Governor Mitt Romney ordered the Department of Public Health to redirect a long-standing federal abstinence grant to classes that focus exclusively on encouraging teenagers to avoid sexual encounters. Patrick proposed forgoing the $700,000 grant, which the state has received since 1998, joining at least six other states in rebelling against increasingly restrictive federal mandates about how the money can be used." (04/24/07)

How come they don’t do this with all the thousands of other things that the Feds mandate by controlling the purse strings? Like seat belts, smoking laws, DUI levels, biker helmets, and student testing? Aside from the fact that the Feds have NO authority to give grants to states to deter pregnancy or diseases, this is treated differently because it is viewed as politically incorrect to tell teens to keep it in their pants.

Mama's Note: Indeed, not to mention that the only way to teach this, or anything else, is for the adults in their lives to demonstrate it consistently. We can't teach what we don't live.

Stupid government tricks:
Paper-trail voting gets organized opposition
USA Today
"State and local officials have begun a coordinated campaign to stop Congress from requiring a paper record of ballots cast on electronic voting machines, arguing it could cause more problems in next year's presidential election than it would solve. Groups representing secretaries of state, state legislators and county leaders are working together to block legislation headed for a House committee vote and Senate hearings soon." (04/23/07)

This sort of thing just is plain disgusting: convenience trumps freedom and honest elections.

Stupid government tricks:
VA to allow Wiccan symbols on headstones
Yahoo! News
"The Wiccan pentacle has been added to the list of emblems allowed in national cemeteries and on goverment-issued headstones of fallen soldiers, according to a settlement announced Monday. A settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the five-pointed star to the list of 'emblems of belief' allowed on VA grave markers. Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with Circle Sanctuary in Barneveld, Wis., a plaintiff in the lawsuit. The settlement calls for the pentacle, whose five points represent earth, air, fire, water and spirit, to be placed on grave markers within 14 days for those who have pending requests with the VA." (04/23/07)

Much as the symbol may be detested (others are, equally, of course), it was foolish of the VA not to allow it in the past, and foolish that Congress didn’t step in and do something about it without having to use courts.

Stupid Govt Tricks:
NY: Bloomberg touts congestion tax
The Newspaper
“In a speech yesterday, New York City, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg openly embraced the concept of the congestion tax that city transportation officials have been working on quietly for more than a year. Under the proposal, the city will charge motorists an initial fee of $8 and truckers $21 to enter the city between 6am and 6pm on weekdays. A massive infrastructure of surveillance cameras and electronic tag readers will be installed to collect the revenue. The proposal was one of dozens of ideas designed to raise more than a billion dollars annually from the driving public.”The question is not whether we want to pay but how do we want to pay,” Bloomberg said. The mayor is counting on “hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding” to bankroll the cameras and RFID tag readers needed to collect the commuter tax.” (04/23/07)

Shades of Imperial Rome, where wagons and carts were banned during daylight hours!

Stupid people tricks:
Feds make 22 arrests in false ID ring
Elkhart Truth
“Twenty-two people connected to a bustling, multimillion-dollar counterfeit ring that produces several thousand bogus identification documents a year have been arrested, officials said Wednesday. The fake documents, which range from driver’s licenses to Social Security cards, could help criminals and even terrorists blend into society, said Elissa Brown, an official with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Investigations in Chicago.” (04/25/07)

This kind of crime is bad, but it is government action (“ID, please”) that makes such a crime attractive or provides a market for its products.

Stupid people tricks:
FDA was aware of dangers to food
Washington Post
“The Food and Drug Administration has known for years about contamination problems at a Georgia peanut butter plant and on California spinach farms that led to disease outbreaks that killed three people, sickened hundreds, and forced one of the biggest product recalls in U.S. history, documents and interviews show. Overwhelmed by huge growth in the number of food processors and imports, however, the agency took only limited steps to address the problems and relied on producers to police themselves, according to agency documents.” (04/23/07)

How about just releasing the information to the public, and letting US decide?

Tech News
Recycling Nuclear Fuel – Demo scheduled for this year
Popular Science
The aim of the demo—part of a controversial $405-million government project called the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP)—is to transform nuclear leftovers into fuel for a new breed of reactors. The new reactor/fuel combo, GNEP officials say, could produce up to 100 times as much energy as conventional reactors and could generate 40 percent less waste.

US energy use is expected to go from 4 billion kilowatt-hours in ’05 to 5.8 billion in 2030 (assuming the US is still around). As environists scream about their newly found faith, “human-caused global warming” and tell us to stop producing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, none of them are really doing anything substantial – because there are only four alternatives to producing usable energy that produces such gases as a byproduct: (1) Solar, (2) Wind, (3) Hydro, and (4) Nuclear. (Hydrogen, though it produces nothing but water when it burns (yes, I know – see the Penn and Teller episode on dihydrogen monoxide at xxxx), still must be produced from water in the first place, requiring one of these methods.) Solar, of course, is very low density power, and there are many environists already complaining about the impact on the desert and other drawbacks, much like that of wind. Wind is now, in the eyes of many environists, “non-green” because it pollutes the viewshed and kills birds. Hydro, of course, is nasty and horrible because of all those wild rivers dammed, all the erosion and sediment, and wetlands. Nasty stuff, water, especially behind dams. But nuclear power is evil incarnate – an invention of the Devil that they don’t believe in. So they have little or nothing – except a return to Xth Dynasty Egypt where a few elites roam the world and all the rest of us (the 1 out of 100 that will be allowed to live) are born, suffer, and die within ten miles of our home village.

Tech news:
Potentially habitable planet found
Seattle Times
"For the first time astronomers have discovered a planet outside our solar system that is potentially habitable, with Earth-like temperatures, a find researchers described Tuesday as a big step in the search for 'life in the universe.' The planet is just the right size, might have water in liquid form, and in galactic terms is relatively nearby at 120 trillion miles away. But the star it closely orbits, known as a 'red dwarf,' is much smaller, dimmer and cooler than our sun." (04/24/07)

Good news, but not necessarily for the “search for life” – rather, hope for a place to live in freedom and liberty.

Mama's Note: Perhaps. It doesn't sound too inviting, and it's one heck of a long hike... Nothing wrong at all with the world we have, and much potential for liberty - just as soon as we cure the statist disease that plagues it.

The fall of Africa:
Nigeria: Observers say election “not credible”
swissinfo [Switzerland]
“Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo’s chosen successor was proclaimed victor on Monday in a presidential election EU observers said was not credible and Obasanjo admitted was not perfect. The electoral commission chief said Umaru Yar’Adua of the ruling People’s Democratic Party had won the election, with 24,638,063 votes against 6,605,299 for his nearest rival, Muhammadu Buhari of the All Nigeria People’s Party. The ballot for the first handover of power from one civilian leader to another in the vast oil producer was undermined by ballot-stuffing, violence and a shortage of millions of voting papers on Saturday. … A local coalition of civil society observers called for the cancellation of the vote to allow a rerun in Africa’s most populous country, scarred by decades of corrupt dictatorship since independence from Britain in 1960. ‘The election was a charade. A democratic arrangement founded on such fraud can have no legitimacy,’ they said.” (04/23/07)

Did anyone expect anything different?

Theft by government:
MO: Supreme Court to hear corporate land theft case
Springfield News-Leader
"The state appeals court on Tuesday sided with small business owners in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton who challenged the taking of their property for redevelopment in an eminent domain case. The ruling was the first appellate decision in Missouri that has overturned a finding of blight by a legislative body .... The Missouri Court of Appeals said the prime property that was set for redevelopment did not meet all the criteria required to qualify as blighted .... The appeals court said it would reverse the judgment of the trial court, but, citing the case's importance statewide, transferred the case to the Missouri Supreme Court for review. ... Centene, a managed health care provider, purchased property in Clayton to expand and relocate its headquarters. The city of Clayton encouraged Centene to expand the development to include a retail component that would have infringed on several smaller businesses' property." (04/25/07)

Too little – too late.

Theft by government:
Property taxes up as house prices fall
USA Today
"Property taxes will keep rising nearly everywhere for homeowners even as house prices are falling in many parts of the country, according to a USA TODAY analysis of government data. A key reason: Despite the downturn, the market value of millions of homes still exceeds their assessed value used for tax purposes." (04/24/07)

Nasty, eh? And then when the tenants can no longer pay their mortgages and their property taxes, the government and the banks can fight over their remains.

Theft by government:
CT: "Cocaine" energy drink seized for "licensing problem"
Fox News
"Hundreds of cases of an energy drink called Cocaine have been seized by the state, which accuses the Las Vegas company that produces it of not licensing it as required by law. It's the latest in a battle that began last week when state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez denounced the drink because of its name. The drink contains no drugs and is marketed as an energy drink, the manufacturer says. Jerry Farrell Jr., commissioner of the Department of Consumer Protection, said Monday that the state has embargoed 300 cases of the drinks from distribution warehouses in Connecticut. The bottles do not provide coding indicating the source of the drink, he said. State law requires licensing to allow state officials to know whether water used in the production is suitable for drinking, Farrell said." [Editor's note: Congrats to the jackboots in the Nutmeg State, for finding a bureaucratic way to do what other regulators hadn't dreamed up yet! - SAT] (04/24/07)

Law codes are so complex and arcane that any enterprise can be shut down due to some violation of the rules – it just takes a little bit of time and cunning on the part of the local tyrants who want to punish a particular person or company.

Theft by government:
CA: City says company faked land theft powers
Daily Breeze
“Gardena officials and residents are slamming the company proposing to lay a jet fuel pipeline under Rosecrans Avenue for falsely claiming it had ‘common-carrier’ status, like a public utility, which would give it the power to dig up streets and push through its project regardless of opposition. WesPac Energy Group of Huntington Beach, unlike such companies as Verizon and Southern California Gas Co., has not been granted such power, according to Public Utilities Commission records, although it has applied for it. … The proposed 24-mile underground pipeline would connect fuel-storage facilities in Wilmington and Carson with 61 airlines at LAX. … City officials and residents said the company deceived them in recent community meetings, making them believe it has eminent domain-like authority despite city objections to the project.” (04/27/07)

This is happening a lot of places – and is often encouraged by those local governments until they get called on it.

Thugs and economy:
Democrats ask Bernanke for new lending rules
Alpena News
"Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee asked Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Monday to write new rules against predatory lending in the market for high-risk mortgages, which has been in distress in recent months. Bernanke told Congress last month that the central bank would 'look very carefully' at its authority to define unfair and abusive lending practices under a 1994 law that the Democrats, led by committee Chairman Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, invoked in their letter to him." (04/24/07)

They feel the heat of the growing bubble – but too many people look at a 13000 Dow Jones and think everything is hunky-dory – just like in October 1929. Unlike Rome in AD64, this time it isn’t the emperor fiddling, it is the Senate.

Thugs:
Independent Investigative Body Needed in Congress, Critics Say
CNSNews.com
Scandals of the past year are clear evidence that Congress cannot police itself, in the view of advocates arguing for an independent panel to probe wrongdoing in the House and Senate. "The real question is, are you going to address the fundamental flaws with the ethics problems?" Meredith McGehee, policy director for the Campaign Legal Center, asked while addressing the Special Task Force on Ethics Enforcement in Washington, D.C. "The current process has lost credibility; therefore it does not protect the integrity of the institution," she added.

How about a grand jury selected at random from voter registration lists? Preferably one with death penalty powers, of course.

Thugs:
Cheney, Reid spar over Iraq policy
Cañon City Daily Record
"Vice President Dick Cheney accused Democratic leader Harry Reid on Tuesday of personally pursuing a defeatist strategy in Iraq to win votes at home -- a charge Reid dismissed as President Bush's 'attack dog' lashing out. The particularly harsh exchange came just hours after Bush said he would veto the latest war spending bill taking shape in Congress, which includes a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq." (04/25/07)

Entertaining, but hardly new or exciting.

Thugs:
House OKs Iraq troop withdrawal bill
Charlotte Observer
“A sharply divided House brushed aside a veto threat Wednesday and passed legislation that would order President Bush to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq by Oct. 1. The 218-208 vote came as the top U.S. commander in Iraq told lawmakers the country remained gripped by violence but was showing some signs of improvement.” (04/25/07)

If these thugs so badly want to make a stand, I suggest giving them helmets, M-4s, and a group ticket to Karbala. These thugs, led by Reid and Polosi, are enjoying political prestige for this sort of clowning around, which shows how bad things are. Of course, reading the language of the bill to be vetoed shows their hypocrisy: it would not really end the occupation of Iraq, as most claim, but just micromanage it.

Thugs:
Dems vote subpoenas in widening probes
Long Beach Press-Telegram
“Putting their congressional control to work, Democrats approved new subpoenas Wednesday — and a grant of immunity — for probes ranging from the prosecutor firings and White House political activities to President Bush’s justification for the war in Iraq. Democrats said the broad array of investigations represents a revival of Congress’ role after six years of little oversight of the Bush administration by Republican lawmakers.” (04/26/07)

All according to plan and as predicted months ago. Of course, their own incompetence and grandstanding delayed a lot of this.

Thugs:
Rice to Congress: No
Fox News
“U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday she has already answered the questions she has been subpoenaed to answer before a U.S. congressional committee and suggested she is not inclined to comply with the order. Rice said she would respond by mail to questions from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on the Bush administration’s prewar claims about Saddam Hussein seeking weapons of mass destruction, but signaled she would not appear in person. ‘I am more than happy to answer them again in a letter,’ she told reporters in Oslo, where she is attending a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. The comments were her first reaction to a subpoena issued on Wednesday by the committee chaired by Rep. Henry Waxman, a Democrat from California.” (04/26/07)

This is not so much about being above the law as it is about the proper division of powers between the branches of government. Congress, feeling its oats, may have finally pushed too far.

Thugs:
Frank introduces bill to repeal gambling ban
Forbes
“The ban on Internet gambling enacted last fall would be overturned under legislation proposed Thursday by a senior House Democrat, but the bill faces long odds in Congress. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said the law preventing the use of credit cards to bet online ‘is an inappropriate interference on the personal freedom of Americans, and this interference should be undone.’ More bluntly, he has called the ban ‘one of the stupidest things I ever saw.’ Because traditional forms of legal gambling exist in nearly every state, Frank said, a continued prohibition on Internet gambling for Americans leaves those who choose to gamble online ‘without meaningful consumer protections.’” (04/26/07)

This parody of a politician is wrong 99.9% of the time, but on this one issue… it does make you wonder.

War on some drugs:
Marijuana sold in US stronger than ever
MSNBC
“The marijuana being sold across the United States is stronger than ever, which could explain a growing number of medical emergencies that involve the drug, government drug experts Wednesday. Analysis of seized samples of marijuana and hashish showed that more of the cannabis on the market is of the strongest grade, the White House and National Institute for Drug Abuse said.” [Editor’s note: Of course it’s getting stronger — we should have learned that lesson when opium prohibition resulted in the creation of heroin, and when alcohol prohibition increased the percentage of “hard liquor” versus beer drinkers. Prohibit something, and smugglers make it stronger so that the sought-after effect comes in a smaller, more concealable package. In the case of marijuana, it’s especially damaging as the level of THC is increased at the expense of other health-beneficial cannabinoids - TLK] (04/25/07)

I can’t add much to Tom’s discussion: yet another unintended consequence of a bad policy and dangerous war..

War on some drugs: theft by government:
US Coast Guard seizes record cocaine haul
Raw Story
“The United States Coast Guard seized more than 38,000 pounds (17.2 metric tonnes) of cocaine in what was described as the largest maritime drug bust in history, authorities said Monday. The US Coast Guard was set to unload around 40,000 pounds of the drug later Monday following three separate raids off the coast of Central America during February in March, a statement said. The raids included one bust where 38,000 pounds of cocaine, said to be worth 500 million dollars, was seized after the US coast guard swooped on a Panamanian-registered boat off the coast of Panama on March 18. When US authorities boarded the vessel they found the record cocaine haul stuffed into 765 bales.” (04/23/07)

Sounds more like piracy, doesn’t it?

World wars:
Canadian Gitmo detainee charged
CNN
"The U.S. military has charged a 20-year-old Canadian held at the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as a suspected terrorist with murder and other crimes, the Pentagon announced. Omar Ahmed Khadr, captured by U.S. Troops in Afghanistan when he was 15, was formally charged with murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, providing material support for terrorism and spying, according to the Pentagon's announcement on Tuesday." (04/24/07)

One of the “child soldiers” about which the Left cries so much – and his very service a violation of international law, he was caught on the battlefield. Why on earth did it take five years to bring charges? Let me state – he has the basic human right to choose his allegiance, however misguided, and to fight regardless of age, and is an enemy prisoner-of-war in fact, if not in accordance with international law, and should NOT be charged with crimes if they were part of his military duties. But given that isn’t going to happen, why does it take five years?

World wars:
Chechnya: Chopper down, 18 dead
Albany Times Union
“A Russian military helicopter crashed in Chechnya on Friday, killing all 18 people aboard, emergency officials said. There were conflicting reports about whether the craft was shot down. … The Mi-8 helicopter went down while flying to southern Chechnya as part of an operation against militants …. [an official] said preliminary indications were that the helicopter — carrying 15 paratroopers and a crew of three — was shot down, but a ministry duty officer in the region later called the crash an accident, saying a rotor blade had struck something during an attempt to land.” (04/27/07)

We sometimes forget that this war continues on and on and on.

Quote answer from page one:

To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858 - 1919)