Hornberger's Blog

The Value of Government Surveillance of Citizens

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 27, 2010

It’s amusing to watch U.S. officials protest the Chinese government’s surveillance of its own citizens. After all, isn’t it the U.S. government that secretly and illegally conspired with private telecom companies to record telephone conversations of private American citizens? And isn’t it the U.S. government that secured both civil and criminal immunity for the ...

The Conservative Love for Unlimited Government

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 26, 2010

A good example of one of the things that is wrong with conservatives is provided by a conservative named Rich Lowry, who has an article today about the Detroit bomber case on nationalreviewonline.com, one of the premier websites in the conservative movement. Lowry is upset that the suspect in the Detroit bomb base, ...

Another “Success” Story from U.S. Sanctions

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 25, 2010

U.S. officials can claim another “success” with their sanctions against Iran. A Russian-made Tupolev airplane crash-landed in Iran, injuring 42 passengers. Those passengers were much luckier than those traveling on an Iranian flight to Armenia last summer. All 168 passengers were killed. That plane was Russian-built too. Also last summer, another Iranian Russian-built plane skidded off a runway and caught fire, ...

Libertarianism vs. Socialism and Interventionism

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 24, 2010

One of the amusing parts of all the crises facing our nation — immigration, the dollar, Social Security, healthcare, Iraq, drug war, terrorism, foreclosures, and the rest — is when a supporter of the socialism and interventionism exclaims in frustration and exasperation, “Well, what is the libertarian solution to these crises?” They just don’t get it. ...

Brown’s Election Is No Victory for Liberty

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 22, 2010

Reaction to Scott Brown’s Senate win in Massachusetts has been glee for conservatives and depression for liberals. Conservatives have reason to be happy because Brown’s victory might spell the death knell for Obama’s socialist national health-care plan. Libertarians are celebrating Brown’s victory for the same reason. But that’s about where the celebration ends for ...

Socialism and Death in Haiti

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 21, 2010

As President Obama and his cohorts struggle over what to do now with their socialist health-care plan in response to the Democratic defeat in Massachusetts, now would be a good time to point out one of the biggest reasons for the enormous death toll in Haiti — socialism. Yes, I am referring to the economic philosophy of American liberals ...

Haiti: Shades of FDR and the Jews

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 20, 2010

President Obama and other U.S. officials, who purport to be good and caring people through their delivery of U.S. taxpayer money to Haiti, have a message to the Haitian people. It’s the same message that President Franklin D. Roosevelt had toward Jews trying to escape Nazi Germany. The message is simple: No matter who ...

The Illegality of Federal Aid to Haiti

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 19, 2010

In my blog last Friday (Jan. 15), I made the point that U.S. government compassion for Haiti wasn’t compassion at all, given that the money is taken by force by the IRS and distributed by federal politicians and bureaucrats who didn’t earn it. I pointed out that no one, including the president, the members of Congress, IRS agents, ...

More Gun-Control Nonsense

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 18, 2010

The New York Times has another silly editorial on gun control. The paper’s editorial board is calling for a renewal of the assault-weapons ban, which expired in 2004. The paper’s justification? “A survey of more than 130 local police chiefs and officials found 37 percent reporting an increase in assault weapons in street ...

U.S. Government Compassion for Haitians

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 15, 2010

With President Obama’s promise to help the Haitian people, Americans are once again confronted with a basic moral question: When the U.S. government gives money away to people in need, who are the good, compassionate, caring people in this process? Is the president the caring person? After all, he’s the one issuing the order that ...

Freedom by Permission Is Not Freedom

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 14, 2010

A statement by a Chinese woman in response to the Chinese government’s censorship of Google reveals the statist mindset perfectly, both in China and here in the United States. Here is what she said: “The government should give people the right to see what they want online.” Do you see the problem with that woman’s ...

Cuba Is Obama’s End of the Road

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 13, 2010

American liberals have long extolled Cuba as a model of their economic philosophy, which entails government control of economic activity, socialized health care, government-provided education, and equalization of wealth. While Cubans correctly call this socialism, to avoid the stigma associated with that word American liberals have long called it “progressivism.” Opposed to the socialist/progressive ...