Obama’s War on Prosperity and Freedom by James Bovard September 12, 2011 On September 7, 2011, James Bovard gave the following speech at The Future of Freedom Foundations Economic Liberty Lecture Series. The speech can viewed below in its entirety. James Bovard is the author of nine books, including Attention Deficit Democracy (2006), The Bush Betrayal (2004), and Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty (1994). He has written for ...
The Freedoms Defended Since 9/11 by Anthony Gregory September 9, 2011 “Freedom itself was attacked this morning by a faceless coward,” said George W. Bush on September 11, 2011. “And freedom will be defended.” President Obama apparently agrees that the U.S. government’s response to 9/11 has been to defend freedom. This past Memorial Day he announced, “From Gettysburg to Kandahar, America’s sons and daughters have served with honor and distinction, securing ...
Ten Years After 9/11, America Deserves Better than Dick Cheney’s Self-Serving Autobiography by Andy Worthington September 9, 2011 On August 30, when In My Time, former Vice President Dick Cheney’s self-serving autobiography was published, the timing was pernicious. Cheney knows by now that every time he opens his mouth to endorse torture or to defend Guantánamo, the networks welcome him, and newspapers lavish column inches on his opinions, even though astute editors and programmers must ...
9/11 and the National Security Scam by Sheldon Richman September 9, 2011 National security is a scam — an $8 trillion scam. That’s the amount spent since September 11, 2001, on the military, including the Iraq and Afghan wars, and “homeland security,” according to Christopher Hellman of the National Priorities Project. If “veterans benefits, future costs for treating the war-wounded, and interest payments on war-related borrowing” are added, Hellman writes, the cost ...
Stockholm and the Kidnapped Citizenry by Rich Schwartzman September 8, 2011 Individual men and women don’t need enemies. Many want a challenge with an opponent, someone with whom to compete cooperatively, but not an enemy. Governments, however, do need enemies to get their citizenry to submit to coercion. Some of us accept that as almost axiomatic, a self-evident fact that’s so blatant we can’t understand why the rest of society doesn’t ...
An Orgy of Make-Work for Bureaucrats and Lawyers by Wendy McElroy September 7, 2011 New Jersey has provided a blueprint on how not to solve a social problem. The blueprint will almost certainly create a barrage of new difficulties without relieving the old one. The “Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act” took effect on September 1. The New York Times (August 30) reported, “Under a new state law in New Jersey, ...
Give Thanks to Price Gougers by Fergus Hodgson September 7, 2011 Some things never cease to amaze me, for example, the willingness of state officials to vilify and prosecute those who dare to raise prices during an emergency. As far as superficial demagoguery and economic illiteracy go, those initiatives are right up there. Thirty-one states have some form of anti-price-gouging law, and a recent statement from North ...
The Jacob Hornberger Show – September 3, 2011 by Jacob G. Hornberger September 6, 2011 The Jacob Hornberger Show broadcasts live Saturday nights at 7pm EST. Visit FFF's Ustream Channel to watch the show live. Download the MP3 here, or subscribe to the RSS feed.
Why Do Republicans Want to Raise Taxes? by Laurence M. Vance September 6, 2011 True or false: Barack Obama wants to raise taxes and Republicans in Congress want to cut them. The surprising answer is, False. Although it can usually be said that the president never met a tax hike or spending increase he didn’t like, such is not the case right now. One does not have to be a fan of Obama or ...
Is There a Right to Earn a Living? by George Leef September 3, 2011 The Right to Earn a Living: Economic Freedom and the Law by Timothy Sandefur (Washington, D.C.: Cato Institute, 2010) Is there a right to earn a living? Most Americans would answer, “Of course there is, but ...” Following that “but” you would get a long list of exceptions and qualifications that whittle away at the right, such as “but ...
Freedom by Jury by Rich Schwartzman September 2, 2011 We should be celebrating September 5 with at least as much exuberance and respect as we celebrate July 4 or Thanksgiving. It’s Jury Rights Day. Little is made of the date. Most people are completely unaware of its historic significance and have never heard that jurors have rights. Yet it was on that date in 1670 when a group of ...
Libya Is Nothing for Obama to Be Proud Of by Sheldon Richman September 2, 2011 A fascinating example of the mindset of American mainstream journalists is provided by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, who wrote a glowing piece this week praising the U.S. government’s humanitarian intervention in Libya. It’s entitled “Thank You, America!” Kristof’s article comes across as a glorious paean to the U.S. government — how good and wonderful the government ...