statism

Innocents Betrayed [2003]

"You’ll see the photos, the footage, the people, the faces. You’ll read the laws and hear the proclamations. You’ll witness just enough horror to understand how easy it is for armed killers to slaughter the disarmed, the powerless, the innocents. Genocide examples from all over the world: Russia, China, Germany, Cambodia, Guatemala, Uganda, Rwanda and more. Examples showing how disarmed people in America have suffered persecution, mass murder, slavery, and terrorist attacks. A fast-moving, modern production, Innocents Betrayed presents the entirely true accounts of how civilian disarmament made possible the killing of millions. The point is made sharply, clearly, unforgettably." Continue reading →

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Genocide: Worse Than War [2010]

"Watch Daniel Goldhagen's ground-breaking documentary focused on the worldwide phenomenon of genocide, which premiered on PBS on April 14, 2010. 'By the most fundamental measure -- the number of people killed -- the perpetrators of mass murder since the beginning of the twentieth century have taken the lives of more people than have died in military conflict. So genocide is worse than war,' reiterates Goldhagen. 'This is a little-known fact that should be a central focus of international politics, because once you know it, the world, international politics, and what we need to do all begin to look substantially different from how they are typically conceived.'" Continue reading →

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Police Crackdown at Burning Man Alarms the Community

"Workers and volunteers who arrived early to Nevada’s Black Rock Desert for the annual art, self-reliance, and free-expression event called Burning Man are reporting an unprecedented police presence on the playa, and whispers of a police crackdown on the event are spreading. Burning Man has historically been a peaceful event with little to no incidents that would merit increased law enforcement. For example, at last year’s event, which had more than 52,000 attendees, a total of four drug-related arrests were made and 13 nonviolent misdemeanor citations were given (in lieu of arrests) according to the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. No violent crimes were recorded." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPolice Crackdown at Burning Man Alarms the Community

What would the Rev Martin Luther King think of Obama’s presidency?

"John Lewis, now a Georgia congressman, is the only survivor of the March’s original organizers. [..] Lewis has also lived long enough to see that even a black president can be tone deaf to the spirit of King’s life. If King, an apostle of non-violence and advocate for the poorest of the poor, were alive today, what would he make of President Obama’s careless-with-life drone assassinations, his bullying of journalists and whistleblowers, his assent to slashing Social Security via his Scrooge-like 'deficit commission'? Without irony, the current 50th birthday organizers have invited Obama to speak from the very same podium where King made history." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhat would the Rev Martin Luther King think of Obama’s presidency?

Dead Souls of a Cultural Revolution

"What can be said for an NAACP that was lately demanding a Justice Department investigation of a rodeo clown running around a bull ring in rural Missouri in an Obama mask, but cannot find its voice to address a black-on-white atrocity in Middle America? When Trayvon Martin was shot to death in a murky incident in Sanford, Fla., Jesse Jackson rushed there to declare: 'Blacks are under attack. … Killing us is big business.' Trayvon was 'shot down in cold blood by a vigilante … murdered and martyred.' After Chris Lane’s cold-blooded murder, Jesse tweeted: This sort of thing is to be 'frowned upon.' Can the president not find his voice to speak to the parents of Chris Lane?" Continue reading →

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“Public Service” Is Among the Safest “Work,” Alas

"CNN Money presents 'America’s Most Dangerous Jobs' – and surprise, surprise: cops are nowhere to be found on the list. Indeed, notable for their absence are all 'public servants' other than 'sanitation workers.' And many of the latters’ injuries occur because their employer (and no doubt their unions) order them to gather garbage when streets are clogged with 'impatient drivers try[ing] to squeeze past their stopped trucks.' Contrast innovations in the most dangerous private job, log-cutting, and their dramatic reductions in casualties, with municipalities’ stodgy insistence on collecting trash during times that often coincide with rush-hours." Continue reading →

Continue Reading“Public Service” Is Among the Safest “Work,” Alas

100+ complaints and only a demotion: What does it take to fire a bad cop?

"Sergeant Patrick 'K.C.' Saulet is a sergeant with the King County Sheriff’s Department in Washington. Throughout his years of service he has managed to rack up an outstanding 120 complaints against him for use of force, conduct unbecoming an officer and not treating people with courtesy. In comparison, the sergeant with the second most complaints has 23. Even though 20 allegations have proven true, it was finally an incident from December 2012 that got him demoted. A family mistakenly drove into an off limits area of a Seattle bus terminal while following their GPS. Saulet threatened the 2 adults with arrest and that he 'could take away your daughter' as well." Continue reading →

Continue Reading100+ complaints and only a demotion: What does it take to fire a bad cop?

Gun Crime ‘Out of Control’ Despite Strict Australia Laws

"As former Australian politician Tim Fischer turns the shooting of Christopher Lane into an opportunity to push a travel boycott until the U.S. changes its gun laws, police in Sydney launched 'a new plan to tackle out-of-control gun violence' there. Australia implemented a massive purge of guns in 1996, which included bans on 'assault weapons' and other semi-automatic rifles and shotguns. Yet 17 years after the implementation of gun control schemes that are very similar in many ways to those being pushed by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the NSW police department is launching a new operation to rein in gun violence." Continue reading →

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School District Ends Policy Of Forcing Students To Kneel Down For Dismissal

"School district officials in San Bernardino County say they will discontinue a policy that required elementary school students to kneel down before being dismissed to class. Principal Dana Carter at Calimesa Elementary School had reportedly instituted the policy, which called for students at various times of the school day to kneel down on one knee and wait for the principal or another administrator to dismiss them, as a safety measure. Yucaipa Calimesa Unified School District Superintendent Cali Binks told KCAL9 the policy – which was described as 'positive behavior intervention' – will no longer be enforced at Calimesa Elementary after several parents spoke out against the practice." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSchool District Ends Policy Of Forcing Students To Kneel Down For Dismissal

Striking teachers block access to Mexico City airport

"Thousands of teachers severely disrupted access to Mexico City’s international airport, forcing some travelers to abandon cars and roll suitcases on foot during a protest against education reform. President Enrique Pena Nieto pushed through Congress changes to the constitution in December in order to put education, which was in the hands of powerful unions, back under government control and require teachers to undergo mandatory performance appraisals. More than 70,000 teachers went on strike in southern Mexico, leaving more than one million children without classes at the start of the school year this week." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingStriking teachers block access to Mexico City airport