"Do you have a choice not to pay Government programs you don’t like? If you have to pay for things you don’t want, are you free? Obama, Romney, it makes no difference. How do you feel about that? Chris Writing asks people on the street." Continue reading →
"To increase voter turnout, some countries require citizens to vote or face a penalty. Prof. Jason Brennan outlines several reasons the United States should not adopt such a law. For example, political scientists have found that most citizens are badly informed and that people tend to make systematic mistakes about the most basic issues in economics, sociology, and political science. Instead of being concerned about improving voter turnout, Brennan thinks we should be worried about whether the people who do vote are making well-informed decisions." Continue reading →
"What if someday an entire population was enlightened enough to withhold from participating in their local elections? What would that day look like and what would be the ramifications for everyone involved? Explore how the people free themselves from tyranny via non-violent means and how the politicians are always the last ones left clinging on to their delusion." Continue reading →
"Once again, major corporations are exempt from the laws that heavily apply to the average citizen. One Idaho woman found out in 2011 that misuse of government seals really can land you in jail when you don’t have billions of dollars. Found to be illegally using a phony government seal (sound familiar?), one Caldwell, Idaho woman now faces up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release — the sentence that applies to the average citizen." Continue reading →
"Ben Swann of Reality Check sits down with reps from the Democratic, Republican and Libertarian parties and allows actual undecided voters in Hamilton County to ask them questions about why they 'should' vote for them… not why they should vote 'against' the other candidate." Continue reading →
"Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno said the move was designed 'to help alleviate pressure on polling places.' But some experts say email voting, which is being allowed by some states for military and overseas voters, has not been tested on a large scale and opens up a host of technical and legal obstacles. Email ballots could be vulnerable to hacking or computer viruses, and could put the election at risk, says Matt Blaze, a University of Pennsylvania computer scientist specializing in security." Continue reading →
"One issue is that the laws are requiring licensed drivers to sit in the driving seat, eliminating one of the main advantages of the technology. Yet there are more problems. Bizarrely, Cheh’s bill also requires that autonomous vehicles operate only on alternative fuels. Another flaw in Cheh’s bill is that it would impose a special tax on drivers of autonomous vehicles. Instead of paying fuel taxes, 'Owners of autonomous vehicles shall pay a vehicle-miles travelled (VMT) fee of 1.875 cents per mile.' Administrative details aside, a VMT tax would require drivers to install a recording device to be periodically audited by the government." Continue reading →
"The Swedish industrialist and philanthropist Alfred Nobel, who died in 1896, said in his testament that the award should go to the 'person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.' The International Peace Bureau noted that the EU 'is not seeking to realise a demilitarisation of international relations', and that its members 'condone security based on military force and have waged wars rather than insisting on the need for alternative approaches.'" Continue reading →
"Every schoolboy used to know that at the height of the empire, almost a quarter of the atlas was coloured pink, showing the extent of British rule. But that oft recited fact dramatically understates the remarkable global reach achieved by this country. A new study has found that at various times the British have invaded almost 90 per cent of the countries around the globe. The analysis of the histories of the almost 200 countries in the world found only 22 which have never experienced an invasion by the British." Continue reading →
"The continent lay before the framers and Americans. Land lay before the framers and Americans. Untold riches and wealth in land beckoned. Land speculation was an American constant. Empire as a form of government was the chosen vehicle for expansion into these lands. Dreams of liberty also prevailed, and the framers thought that empire and liberty could co-exist. This illusion has never been shattered, not even by the bloodiest of all American wars. Today, we inherit the problem that empire and liberty, in the final analysis, cannot be reconciled. One or the other must prevail." Continue reading →