Hornberger's Blog

The Tyrannical Power to Kidnap and Torture

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 23, 2011

The U.S. Supreme Court has let stand an appellate court ruling that immunizes agents of the federal government who kidnap people and deliver them into the clutches of foreign dictators for the purpose of torture. The case is Mohamed v. Jeppesen Dataplan Inc. The appellate court’s rationale for summarily dismissing the suit brought by five kidnap victims who were brutally tortured? ...

The Perpetual Terrorist-Producing Machine

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 20, 2011

The angry protests currently taking place in Afghanistan provide a microcosm of the U.S. government’s entire foreign policy and so-called war on terrorism. Afghan citizens are protesting NATO’s recent killing of four people, including two women. NATO officials are saying that the four were terrorists. The Afghan people aren’t buying it. They are angrily contending that the four people ...

Should Schwarzenegger and Strauss-Kahn be Prosecuted for Adultery?

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 19, 2011

One of the silliest and not-thought-out arguments that drug-war proponents make against libertarians is the following: “Since you favor drug legalization, that means that you favor drug abuse.” The accusation is a perfect example of the mindset that public-schooling produces within people, one that examines matters in a purely superficial way, one in which there is no analytic or ...

Should Public Schools Teach the Bible or the Koran?

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 18, 2011

A recent article about the First Amendment in the Christian Science Monitorreflects how differently libertarians think about religious and educational liberty compared to non-libertarians. The article is entitled “What If Public Schools Were Mandated to Teach Islamic Creation in Science Class?” by David Sessions, a 2008 graduate of Patrick Henry College and the editor of Patrol, a culture ...

Debt-Ceiling Fraud

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 17, 2011

The federal government has now reached its $14.3 trillion debt limit, even though Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is buying the government a couple of more weeks through some clever financial finagling. That means that the federal government cannot legally add any more debt to that $14.3 trillion. That’s the maximum. That’s what they said would be the maximum the ...

America’s Post-9/11 Turn toward Dictatorship

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 16, 2011

Among the most potent weapons employed by the Syrian dictatorship have been the arbitrary arrest, confinement, and torture of people without trial. Syrian police and military are simply arresting people without cause, jailing them indefinitely without trial, and torturing them. No formal charges are necessary. No trial is necessary. The victim simply sits in jail and is tortured until the ...

Big Money Fast

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 13, 2011

The drug war will never be won no matter how fiercely it is waged. Why? Because there will always be people who will be attracted to making big money fast. The drug war provides people with the opportunity to do that. In fact, the harsher they crack down in the war on drugs, the more money there is to ...

Endless Immigration Reform

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 12, 2011

The title of today’s Los Angeles Times editorial says it all: “Get moving on immigration reform.” The operative word is “reform.” Here we go again. More calls for immigration reform after decades of immigration reform. I thought that Berlin Wall type of fence they were constructing down on the Southern border was supposed to be their final reform. I thought they said ...

Michael Gerson’s Attack on Ron Paul

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 11, 2011

Michael Gerson’s attack on Ron Paul in Tuesday’s Washington Post confirms, once again, that the real battle facing our nation is between statists and libertarians. Gerson is your standard conservative. He worked at the Heritage Foundation and then as a speechwriter for President George W. Bush. Not surprisingly, Gerson is a proponent of the 40-year-old war on drugs. It’s not surprising because most ...

The Coming Fiscal Train Wreck

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 10, 2011

A New York Times editorial today provides a perfect example of the statist thinking that has produced the out-of-control federal spending and massive debt that now threaten the United States with bankruptcy. The editorial points out that several state governors refused the U.S. government’s offer of billions of dollars to fund mass transit programs. Among them was Florida Governor Rick Scott, ...

It’s All about Empire

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 9, 2011

Just as I suggested last Monday, the killing of Osama bin Laden isn’t going to change a thing. The war on terrorism will continue, along with the invasions, bombings, occupations, sanctions, embargoes, kangaroo tribunals, torture and abuse, assassinations, indefinite detention, foreign aid, support of dictatorships, and, of course, the out-of-control federal spending and ever-growing infringements on the freedom ...

Will Mexicans Lead Us to Drug Legalization?

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 6, 2011

There is good news coming out of Mexico. CNN is reporting that hundreds of protestors have begun a 3-day march to Mexico City seeking an end to the drug war. It’s seems that the group might be calling for some kind of truce between the government and the drug gangs, rather than legalization, but it’s nonetheless a clear sign ...