statism

Military’s ‘war on drugs’ back as U.S. Navy looks to net big catches in the Pacific

"Operation Martillo and other military assistance to Central American nations represent one of the most ambitious US efforts against drug cartels since World War II. The United States has trained security forces across the region, deployed 200 Marines in Guatemala and built forward operating bases in Honduras and shared radar intelligence with Honduran authorities. But top US generals warned last month that the effort could be greatly undermined by budget cuts. The cost of international operations and support to nations worldwide to fight drugs went from $2.7 billion in 2001 to $5.7 billion last year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMilitary’s ‘war on drugs’ back as U.S. Navy looks to net big catches in the Pacific

David Galland: Big Brother’s Beginnings

"For me, then, the real message of 1984 is that once governments are allowed to get too firm a grip on the reins of power – including the judicial, the constabulary, the military, the media – they are not just imminently corruptible but super-hardened to any real change. I, Pencil, Leonard Read's 1958 essay, a video version of which you can watch here, explains how the free market works using the simple example of how the lowly pencil is produced and brought to market. I'll try to use the same sort of simplistic example – replacing the pencil with the coca leaf – to expose the genesis of Big Brother's steady assent to unassailable power." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDavid Galland: Big Brother’s Beginnings

The War on Drugs Is Far More Immoral Than Most Drug Use

"See the man in the photo at the top of this article? It isn't immoral for him to light a plant on fire, inhale the smoke, and enjoy a mild high for a short time, presuming he doesn't drive while high. But it would be immoral to react to his plant-smoking by sending men with guns to forcibly arrest him, convict him in a court, and lock him up for months or even years for a victimless crime. That's the choice, dear reader. So take a look at the guy in the photo and make your choice: Is it more moral to let him smoke, or to forcibly cage him with thieves, rapists, and murderers? My own moral judgments don't stop there." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe War on Drugs Is Far More Immoral Than Most Drug Use

DEA Targets FedEx, UPS in Online Pharmacy Battle

"FedEx may prove a tougher nut to crack. Officials there called the federal probe 'absurd and disturbing' and said it threatened customer privacy. They also accused the DEA of failing to cooperate with them in efforts to resolve the problem. 'We are a transportation company -- we are not law enforcement, we are not doctors and we are not pharmacists,' FedEx spokesman Patrick Fitzgerald said. 'We have no interest in violating the privacy of our customers by opening and inspecting their packages in an attempt to determine the legality of the contents. We stand ready and willing to support and assist law enforcement. We cannot, however, do their jobs for them.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDEA Targets FedEx, UPS in Online Pharmacy Battle

The Rocky Mountain Road to Legal Marijuana Commerce

"The clock is ticking in Colorado. The voters have already voted to legalize marijuana. Either the legislature passes regulations to implement it -- and quite possibly puts anticipated taxes on the ballot, as required by state law for any new taxes -- and Colorado has legal, taxed and regulated marijuana commerce, or it simply has legal marijuana possession with no taxes and no regulations. The threat of the latter should be enough to ensure the success of the former." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Rocky Mountain Road to Legal Marijuana Commerce

Doug Casey: All Banks Are Bankrupt

"The whole banking business is corrupt from top to bottom today. Part of the problem is that banks are no longer financed by the individuals who start them, putting their personal net worth on the line. Now, they are all publicly traded entities – just like all brokerages – playing with Other People's Money. Management has no incentive to do anything but pad their wallets, so they pay themselves gigantic salaries and bonuses, and give themselves options. These people aren't shepherding their money and that of clients they know personally. They've got zero skin in the game. This is true all over the world, not just in the US and Europe." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDoug Casey: All Banks Are Bankrupt

The Eurozone Unemployment Picture

"The unemployment rate for the currency bloc’s 17 nations was a seasonally adjusted 12% in February, up from 10.9% in February 2012. Among member nations with the lowest unemployment rates are Austria, at 4.8%, and Germany, at 5.4%, reports WSJ. Among members with the highest unemployment rates is Spain, at 26.3%. Three things are going on here." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Eurozone Unemployment Picture

Pawn Stars Rick Harrison tells how the feds are keeping him from filming on govt land

"I’ve been watching Pawn Stars for a while now and I love the show. I’ve sat for hours in front of the TV watching rerun after rerun until I think I’ve just about seen them all. Tonight Rick Harrison was on Mark Levin’s radio show said he had a great idea to film out in Southern California at the Glamis Sand Dunes. He’d be employing around 100 or so people to film the show and had all kinds of ideas as to what he could do. But it’s on federal government land run by the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) so he had to apply for a permit to film there. He said he just found out yesterday that he was denied, and the reason they gave him was ‘budget cuts’." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPawn Stars Rick Harrison tells how the feds are keeping him from filming on govt land

The Collapse of the Value of a College Education

"The college system is far from a free market profit oriented system. Almost 100% of colleges take money from government or accept students who receive government loans. This results in colleges being required to meet government guidelines which have dramatically dumb downed the system. The Chinese government has created 60 million vacant apartments through its central planning policies, while the U.S. government through its intervention in the education system has created tens of millions of college graduates with vacant minds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Collapse of the Value of a College Education