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Liberty and Power

  • May 1, 2006

    Who Said This?

    by Liberty and Power

    "There are two sorts of forecasters. Those who don't know, and those who don't know they don't know."

    John Kenneth Galbraith, who died Saturday aged 97.

    Galbraith was noted for his wit and sagacity (click on image). Here is another of his quips:"If all else fails, immortality can always be ach

  • Apr 30, 2006

    My President Invaded Iraq and I Didn't Even Get Any Oil to Show for It

    by Liberty and Power

    From the Associated Press:
    With the global economy carrying the weight of $70-a-barrel oil, dismay among many economists is focusing on Iraq, whose exports have slipped to their lowest levels since the 2003 invasion.

    Iraq, a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, sits atop the world’s third-highest proven reserves. The e
  • Apr 30, 2006

    Dietary Advice across the Years

    by Liberty and Power

    Go here to learn more about changing dietary advice across the millennia and especially the last two hundred years. For an explanation, go here.
  • Apr 28, 2006

    Ron Paul on the Academic Bill of Rights

    by Liberty and Power

    Given that this has been a topic here lately, I thought I'd post a link to Ron Paul's statement on the Congressional floor about the so-called"Academic Bill of Rights." It's short, and ends with this bang:
    Instead of fostering open dialogue and wide-raging intellectual inquiry, the main effect of the"Academic Bill of Rights" will be to further stifle debate about controversial topics. This is because many administrators will o
  • Apr 28, 2006

    Dagny Taggart, Tomb Raider; or, Tyler Durden Shrugged

    by Liberty and Power

    [cross-posted at Austro-Athenian Empire]

    The Atlas Shrugged film project, which has been languishing in development hell for, like, ever, seems to be making progress toward actuality once again, this time under the auspices of Lionsgate. Moreover, the Objectivist Center reports that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are “interested in parts in th
  • Apr 28, 2006

    Double Standards

    by Liberty and Power

    Jonathan Steele describes President Bush's double standards when it comes to international relations and explains that his messy choice of friends and enemies is not a moral failing, but a ruthless show of strength and should be feared.

    When will"Beltway libertarians" recognize this truth?
  • Apr 27, 2006

    Bellevue Puts on the Straight Jacket

    by Liberty and Power

    "Take an Inch, and They'll Take a Mile." That's the title of a blog by King Banaian and it says it all. Banaian, of course, is summing up the response of administrators at Bellevue Community College in Washington to an incident in which a professor asked an idiotic math question involving Condoleezza Ri

  • Apr 27, 2006

    The Price of Empire

    by Liberty and Power

    Empire — sorry, benevolent hegemony — has its price. Terrorism is one. Every empire in history probably had terrorism directed at it, because it’s one of the few weapons available to relatively weak nonstate adversaries. Another, less dramatic price is the determination of other countries’ rulers to go their separate ways. This can range from major moves to establish spheres of influence to sticking a thumb in the empire’s eye.

    In the latter category comes word that the li
  • Apr 27, 2006

    Nat King Cole is Happy to Avoid "Franklin D.'s" Draft

    by Liberty and Power

    In “Gone with the Draft” from 1940, Nat King Cole is positively subversive in his glee at avoiding Roosevelt’s Selective Service dragnet:

    “When Franklin D. did sign the draft, the cats all had a chill. The boys turned pale and ceased to laugh, cause this is a serious bill. They now realize that skinny me was the luckiest one of all, who can stay at home with Minnie while
  • Apr 27, 2006

    "We're Alright, Jack," Says David Montgomery to the Left

    by Liberty and Power

    In a rambling presentation at the conference of the Organization of American Historians, David Montgomery (a former president of the OAH) holds forth on"Defending Historians' Academic Freedom in Our Own Times." He identifies the following as the main villains: classicists, the Academic Bill of Rights, conservative-oriented private foundations, cuts in government spending, and even critics of Women's Studies.

    He continues his track record, however, of ignoring threats to academic freed

  • Apr 26, 2006

    U.S. Government to American People: Suffer

    by Liberty and Power

    Each and every one of us is at risk of experiencing severe chronic pain due to accident or illness. If that time comes respite from that pain will become the most important objective in our lives. An absolutely excellent and comprehensive article in the Spring issue of The Independent Review by Ronald T. Libby shows how our government is actively seeking to deny us the relief we will need. I have posted some highlights f
  • Apr 26, 2006

    Muslim Violence and State Violence

    by Liberty and Power

    The news that a German brothel has responded to threats of Muslim violence is indeed disturbing. It looks as if they took their decision more because they figured the police would not be prepared to protect their property against threats of violence than because they didn’t wish to offend public sensibilities irrespective of the threatened violence.

    "A Cologne brothel touting for clients with a World Cup-themed banner ha
  • Apr 25, 2006

    What Would the British Have Done under Nazi Occupation?

    by Liberty and Power

    Max Hastings has written a thoughtful essay in which he speculates on what the British would have done if the Nazis had occupied Britain. Irène Némirovsky's Suite Française (Chatto and Windus, 2006; Knopf, 2006), a portrait of wartime France, has become a bestseller more than 60 years after its Jewish author perished in Auschwitz, and this has prompted renewed debate about societies' conduct under occupation. Hastings
  • Apr 25, 2006

    Hugh Pearson R.I.P

    by Liberty and Power

    Much belatedly, the news is circulating about Hugh Pearson who was found dead in his apartment last month in New York at age 47.

    I had some contact with Hugh over the last two years regarding our mutual interests in the history of blacks and the writing of biography. I always found him to be a gentleman and willing to take time to provide help and advice. He kindly publicized my reseach (along with Linda Beito)

  • Apr 25, 2006

    Corporate State or Laissez Faire?

    by Liberty and Power

    This picks up on a running theme of Kevin Carson's: Vulgar Libertarianism. We free-market folks can sometimes be confusing to the rest of the world. One moment we complain (properly) about all the deep-seated government intervention, but the next moment we act like we live under laissez faire. Almost in knee-jerk fashion we scoff at reports that income is not growing at all levels, or that income mobility is not what it ought to be, or that CE