Hornberger's Blog

Bogus Justifications for the National-Security State

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 21, 2012

Interventionists justify the existence of the vast military and intelligence establishment in America by telling us that there are “radical Islamic elements” in the world. But the question is: Should that be a justification for continuing the U.S. national security state — i.e., a permanent military and intelligence establishment — that was brought into existence in 1947? After all, what was ...

A Frankenation in Iraq

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 20, 2012

I wonder how many U.S. soldiers who died in Iraq, or have who lost arms or legs or mental stability from their invasion or occupation of the country, figured that the reason they were making such an enormous sacrifice was so that Iraq could ultimately get to the point where it would be helping Iran secretly avoid the economic ...

The Solution to Poverty

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 17, 2012

Ever since Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, liberals have maintained that the way to alleviate poverty is to have government wage war on poverty. What does that mean? It means two things. First, it means having the government use its power to take money from “the rich” and redistribute it to the poor (after deducting the costs of government to perform this ...

Immigrants, the Scapegoats

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 16, 2012

Guess who the Greek government and Greek citizenry are blaming for their economic woes. Immigrants — the people who also serve as a favorite scapegoat for many Americans who, like the Greeks, are lamenting the ever-mounting crisis of the welfare-state, interventionist way of life. According to an August 6, 2012, article in the New York Times, Greek officials ...

The Other Side of Hitler

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 15, 2012

Whenever the subject of Adolf Hitler arises, it usually begins and ends with the Holocaust and World War II. That’s unfortunate because Hitler had another side, one that is similar to that of liberals and conservatives in America. Consider Social Security. Hitler was as firm a believer in Social Security as American statists. Like them, he too believed that it ...

The Bridge Over the River Nile

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 14, 2012

U.S. officials undoubtedly don’t know what to do about Egyptian President Morsi’s implicit challenge of Egypt’s military dictatorship with his sacking of high military officials in Egypt. For decades, the U.S. government has funded Egypt’s military dictatorship to the tune of billions of dollars in cash and armaments. The Pentagon and its counterparts in the Egyptian military have worked ...

Refortifying Egypt’s Military Dictatorship

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 13, 2012

Even while U.S. officials decry the brutal dictatorships in Syria and Iran, the U.S. government is fortifying the military dictatorship in Egypt. A recent attack in the Sinai Peninsula that killed six Egyptian soldiers is the latest excuse that U.S. officials are trotting out to use U.S. taxpayer money to refortify one of the most brutal dictatorships in the ...

The “We’re at War with the Muslims” Crowd

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 10, 2012

Have you noticed that the “we’re at war with the Muslims” crowd has been noticeably silent in the wake of the murders at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin and the arson of the Islamic mosque in Missouri? Well, they’re smart to keep their mouths shut. Hopefully, this segment of American society is increasingly being marginalized, and rightfully so. Ever since ...

Three Malignant Overlays

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 9, 2012

In 1890, Americans lived in a society without income taxation, the IRS, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, public (i.e., government) schooling, farm subsidies, foreign aid to dictatorships, minimum-wage laws, price controls, paper money, the Federal Reserve, Departments of Education, Labor, Commerce, Energy, and Homeland Security, occupational licensure, immigration controls, huge standing army, military-industrial complex, foreign military bases, CIA, kidnapping, rendition, ...

The Fifth Amendment Protects Everyone, Not Just Citizens

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 8, 2012

When defenders of civil liberties condemn President Obama’s assassination program, some of them place a greater emphasis on the constitutional right of American citizens to be protected from assassination as compared to foreigners. However, as much as they might wish that the Constitution limits its protection to citizens, such is simply not the case. In protecting people from being ...

More Gun Control Nonsense after Wisconsin

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 7, 2012

Let’s review the arguments of the gun-control crowd in the wake of the shooting at the Sikh temple in Milwaukee. Wisconsin is a concealed-carry state — that is, one in which people with state-issued permits are allowed to carry guns that are concealed. Some concealed-carry states make an exception for churches. In those states, people with concealed carry permits are not ...

Submissiveness and Conformity in America’s Business Leaders

by Jacob G. Hornberger August 6, 2012

Russian billionaire Aleksandr Lebedev is selling all his Russian assets and moving his money elsewhere. The reason? According to the New York Times, Lebedev, who has supported the opposition to President Putin’s increasingly authoritarian rule, stated that police and regulatory inspections had become overly intense. “The special services steamrolled my businesses into the pavement,” he said. “I give up.” It’s ...