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Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:52:12 -0800

Worth a shot.

The Big-Spending, High-Taxing, Lousy-Services Paradigm by William Voegeli, City Journal Autumn 2009

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:02:15 -0800

This was actually a well-written and -reasoned article.

The purpose of corporate-state collusion is to develop and maintain a monopoly or near-monopoly. In the endless and mindless pursuit of profits, this is a lucrative strategy. Indeed, the state is the creation of industrial conglomerates, to provide and serve their interests. Invisible hands encourage other firms to jump on board.

The issue then becomes how to dismantle the state. At first glance, it may seem a simple matter of reducing taxes, firing politicians, disbanding public schools, hospitals and libraries, but these are the outward signs of the underlying problem. Doing away with these and other services requires some other entity to fill in the vacuum, and this would only result in more of the same corporate-state collusion. If you can't trust the government to do something, you shouldn't trust state-colluding businesses to do it either.

This situation is made possible by the current unequal distribution of wealth, as those who have must guard and keep their earnings (legitimately earned or not) from those who do not. Given historical conquests, thefts, pillaging, etc, and the current distribution of wealth, we see that much of the state-guarded wealth was actually illegitimately earned. That decades have passed does not erase this fact.

Of course leveling incomes does little to offset the crimes of the past, but finding ways to share and increase worker and consumer ownership, which might hopefully grant descendants of those robbed and murdered as fair a chance as the descendants of the conquerors have, just might do it. This might also be the winning strategy for dismantling the state once and for all, as it changes the relationship each of us has with businesses and what we call the state. Studies in the social sciences suggest that efficiency bonuses result from participatory economics.

Sadly, these and similar ideas have been around since before Marx, but the opposition has always been willfully ignorant and spitefully selfish. Hidden behind the "personal responsibility" rhetoric and "moocher" epithets is the arrogance and brutality of the conqueror mind, convinced of its inherent superiority. Race, gender, sexual-orientation, etc, all serve as inferiors. The more plain and garish examples can be found all over Mises and Rand and similar apologists.

So criticize the practices depicted in the articles, but don't hesitate or waver when you come upon the truth of the matter, lest you reveal yourself to be the jerk who rails against power because he can't have it. It's a fine line, and this author was wise in not crossing it... this time.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3515/3797592145_7118c692f5_o.jpg

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:19:23 -0800

Now imagine a large, hairy, smelly dude sitting there naked, and the picture really isn't all that special.

In fact, it isn't that special anyway, as it's just a black and white photo of someone sitting naked at a piano.

Hotel Proprietor Larry Whitten of Taos New Mexico Forbids Hotel Employees to Speak Spanish, Makes Them Change Their Names | Popehat

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:03:41 -0800

You know those close-minded fuckwits I often insult? This is one and why.

We broke the law, admits CIA agent convicted of rendition - Americas, World - The Independent

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 10:59:35 -0800

Typical right wing authoritarian follower behavior, perpetrating horrible acts at the request of state agencies.

My advice to aspiring do-gooders: To make sure you are in fact "doing good", compare your actions to a simple, consistent, universal moral code you've carefully developed and internalized. If you find you are a hypocrite, chances are you're being immoral.

GreenSmith Consulting: U2, Oxfam America, New York MTA: Green Hypocrites?

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 10:14:58 -0800

The problem occurs when being "green" is a means to an end: money. Odd that other means, like pollution, also lead to money-ends.

There is no discrepancy when being green is a means to be green.

Denying Canadas environmental truths - thestar.com

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 10:08:46 -0800

When one considers money saved from the reduction in pollution-induced illnesses, the benefits outweigh the costs.

warewolf55s blog - StumbleUpon

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 10:03:57 -0800

For some reason, this stumbler does not consider thousands of lives and billions of dollars lost in a false war to be a bad thing, politically-speaking or otherwise.

You know it's not a good reason, either.

SpaceMonkeyZeros favorite web sites - StumbleUpon

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 09:52:58 -0800

The digit is most relevant.

Dell Unleashes World's Thinnest Notebook - X-bit labs

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:05:16 -0800

Why put such a crappy and bloated OS on such a thin laptop?