The National Security-State and JFK, Part 1 by Jacob G. Hornberger August 1, 2017 Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 In 1954 the CIA published a top-secret classified document titled “A Study of Assassination.” The document confirms that within seven years of the CIA’s founding in 1947, the agency was specializing in the art of assassination. There are various fascinating aspects of the study. One ...
The FBI’s Forgotten Criminal Record by James Bovard August 1, 2017 President Trump’s firing of FBI chief James Comey on May 9 spurred much of the media and many Democrats to rally around America’s most powerful domestic federal agency. But the FBI has a long record of both deceit and incompetence. Five years ago, Americans learned that the FBI was teaching its agents that “the FBI has the ability to ...
Free the Fire Stations! by Laurence M. Vance August 1, 2017 Many boys, at one time or another when they are growing up, become enamored with firetrucks after taking a school field trip to their local fire station. Some of them will then insist that they want to be firemen when then grow up. They want such an occupation because of the excitement and the adventure they envision — and, ...
Wartime Tyranny against Eugene Debs by David S. D'Amato August 1, 2017 Civil rights do not fare well in wartime, tested against the feverish jingoism of the martial spirit. As the old adage goes, inter armas silent leges — in war the law is silent. In the United States, liberty has too often been sacrificed (without hesitation, we might add) to the gods of wars, forced to prostrate herself before them, ...
Integrity and Leadership by Leonard Read August 1, 2017 Some years ago the public relations officer of a large corporation summarized for me his guiding principle: “Find out what the people want and do more of it; find out what they don’t want and do less of it.” While seldom so succinctly stated, such an external, “other directed” guide to behavior is finding ever wider acceptance in American life. ...
America’s Turn toward Empire by Matthew Harwood August 1, 2017 The True Flag: Theodore Roosevelt, Mark Twain, and the Birth of American Empire by Stephen Kinzer (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2017; 320 pages) Sen. Mark Hanna, a Republican from Ohio and President William McKinley’s campaign manager, couldn’t contain himself. How could the delegates to the Republican National Convention not see through the man wearing a ...
Separating Economy and State by Jacob G. Hornberger July 1, 2017 Throughout history, governments have controlled and regulated economic activity and monetary affairs. It has been generally accepted that such control and regulation are among the essential functions of government. The notion has always been that without government control and regulation of the economy and money, there would be economic and monetary chaos and disorder that would cause suffering for ...
How World War I Still Haunts America by James Bovard July 1, 2017 This year is the 100th anniversary of Woodrow Wilson’s pulling America into World War I. Many people celebrate this centenary of America’s emergence as a world power. But at a time when the Trump administration is bombing or rattling sabers at half a dozen nations and many Democrats are clamoring to bloody Russia, it is worth reviewing how World ...
How Not to Cut Welfare Spending by Laurence M. Vance July 1, 2017 The U.S. federal budget is now in the neighborhood of $4 trillion. Just ten years ago it wasn’t even $3 trillion. It was “only” $2 trillion in 2002, and didn’t reach the trillion dollar mark until 1987. The greatest component of the federal budget is spending on the welfare state. Welfare programs There are in the United States about 80 means-tested ...
The Invisible Hand of the State by Will Tippens July 1, 2017 It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest. — Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations As Adam Smith observed in 1776, when people seek to benefit themselves through voluntary trade, they unwittingly benefit society at large. This phenomenon is often ...
The Exit Strategy of Empire by Wendy McElroy July 1, 2017 The Roman Empire never doubted that it was the defender of civilization. Its good intentions were peace, law and order. The Spanish Empire added salvation. The British Empire added the noble myth of the white man’s burden. We have added freedom and democracy. — Garet Garrett, Rise of Empire The first step in creating Empire is to morally justify ...
Come You Masters of War by Matthew Harwood July 1, 2017 America’s War for the Greater Middle East by Andrew J. Bacevich (New York: Random House, 2016; 480 pages) America’s military involvement in the Middle East began in classic imperial fashion, according to military historian and retired Army colonel Andrew J. Bacevich. They had something we needed, and we made sure we had access to it. “Oil has ...