Episode Details

Mercatus Center at George Mason University - Freedom in the 50 States: An Index of Personal and Economic Freedom by William P. Ruger and Jason Sorens http://www.mercatus.org/PublicationDetails.aspx?id=26154 A coercive State, i.e., government, will never respect people's rights A limited government can't stay limited for long What would happen if Libertarians got elected? What sort of "work" would they be doing? Basically, they would be employees of an unjust organization; case in point: NH legislators have busy schedule for 2009 http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090106-NEWS-901060349 What's the purpose of government if not to govern people! Because government funds itself through extortion, every person who works for it is supporting extortion No product or service should be provided at the barrel of a gun (hat tip to http://marcstevens.net) Civil disobedience, or non-compliance, prevents tyranny from overwhelming a society The media are typically cheerleaders for statism, i.e., tyranny Left/Right distinction is tenuous, but taxation, regulation, and "programs" are always anti-freedom Case in point: Trans Fats Banned in NYC Restaurants https://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/Trans-fats-banned-in-NYC-restaurants.shtml All of the several American states violate Americans' freedoms Can personal satisfaction and fulfillment occur without freedom? Are our bodies disconnected from our minds? We must beware the mind/body dichotomy concerning pleasure http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/soulbodydichotomy.html You can't be a slave to your job or to money, but you are made a slave by those in "government" If people didn't comply with taxation and regulation, they'd quickly determine how little freedom they have YouTube - 20/20 bailouts and bull http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=20%2F20+bailouts+and+bull&aq=f http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Economy/story?id=7067596&page=1 The Middle Class Is Doing Just Fine, Thank You by John Stossel http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Stossel/story?id=7055599&page=1 The nature of sacrifice http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/sacrifice.html http://www.logicallearning.net/libfreedomethica.html Sacrifice is used as a weapon against individuals to get them to surrender their self-esteem, autonomy, and independence to other people (the selfish ones;) Jesus, making the ultimate sacrifice, promoted the philosophy of death No matter how difficult it is to make money in a mixed economy, an extortion racket will never be charitable or encourage self-responsibility True slavery comes from the guns of government The several states are cannibalizing their own economies What would be the point of moving to a slightly freer US state? Perhaps for organizing and doing smart activism (e.g., http://freekeene.com) DEA to halt medical marijuana raids: Holder confirms states to have final say on use of drug for pain control http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29433708 Medical MJ "reality check" from Mordor: California Medical Marijuana Information http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/ongoing/calimarijuana.html Exactly How Legal Is Medical Marijuana?