Sudden Outbreak of Common Sense

Texas House approves bundle of radical pro-gun laws

"The bills that passed include a measure letting college students over 21-years-old carry weapons in classrooms. Lawmakers also approved letting schools select employees to carry concealed weapons on campus, and easing the standards for concealed carry permits. The bulk of the bills were targeted at easing restrictions on concealed carry weapons, such as making permit fees cheaper, preventing agencies from asking for detailed information on permit renewals, and restricting fingerprint registries for gun owners. The package of bills also includes a measure that declares all federal gun laws null and void in Texas." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas House approves bundle of radical pro-gun laws

Gold to play major role in Italy economic recovery

"According to a WGC survey, only 4% of citizens and business leaders would support the sale of Italy's gold reserves, while 52% of citizens and 61% of business leaders would endorse using, but not selling, national gold reserves. The study revealed that Italian business leaders (92%) and citizens (85%) overwhelmingly agree that the nation's gold reserves have an important and positive role to play in the country's economic recovery." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGold to play major role in Italy economic recovery

Nigel Farage and His UKIP Party Win Big in Britain Once More

"Tony Blair – thanks for small mercies – has not had a comfortable retirement, though it has been a lucrative one. He works for big Wall Street houses but when he makes a speech, former constituents often show up to try to make citizens' arrests for war crimes. The farce has continued within the British government, as well. Cameron is widely seen as inept even within his own party and has trouble enunciating what he actually stands for. There is a huge vacuum in British politics that the classical liberal wing of English political philosophy used to occupy. This is an honorable tradition that surely continues to exert a powerful attraction. Now we can see the evidence." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNigel Farage and His UKIP Party Win Big in Britain Once More

‘The Single Most Valuable Document In The History Of The World Wide Web’

"Twenty years ago this week, researchers renounced the right to patent the World Wide Web. Officials at CERN, the European research center where the Web was invented, wrote: 'CERN relinquishes all intellectual property to this code, both source and binary form and permission is granted for anyone to use, duplicate, modify and redistribute it.' It's a dull sentence from a dull document. But that document marks the moment when the World Wide Web entered the public domain — a moment that was central to creating the Web as we know it today. Could the Web have been patented? And how would the world have been different if it had?" Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘The Single Most Valuable Document In The History Of The World Wide Web’

Lower Taxes Tapped a Beer Revolution

"As recently as 35 years ago, there were fewer than 50 breweries in the whole country, and the fastest-growing type of American beer was light, which Miller introduced in 1975. The story of the U.S. ascent to the top tier of world beer began in the late 1970s, when brewing was liberated from government taxation and regulation that had held it back since Prohibition. Following the federal example, state legislatures also began rewriting their bans on home-brewing, and it is legal now in every state except Alabama. The rise of American beer wasn't an accident. It was spurred by efforts to cut taxes and regulation that unleashed entrepreneurship." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLower Taxes Tapped a Beer Revolution

DIY Law Enforcement in Cash-Strapped Oregon County

"This year, Josephine County slashed its public safety budget from $20 million to less than $9 million. As a result, the county was forced to release 39 prisoners. Only three sheriffs patrol Josephine County, an area larger than Rhode Island, and those sheriffs only respond to life-threatening calls. The self-reliant folks who live in Josephine County aren't likely to raise their own taxes any time soon, but lots of citizens are willing to do their part to deter criminal activity. Sam Nichols and the other members of Citizens Against Crime strap on guns, turn on flashing lights mounted on their vehicles and keep an eye out for suspicious activity." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDIY Law Enforcement in Cash-Strapped Oregon County

Italian showdown with Germany as Enrico Letta rejects ‘death by austerity’

"Italy’s new premier Enrico Letta is on a collision course with Germany after vowing to end death by austerity, and warned that Europe itself faces a 'crisis of legitimacy' unless it charges course. He said the country is in 'very serious' crisis after a decade of stagnation and warned of violent protest if the social malaise deepens. The grand coalition of Left and Right - the first since the late 1940s - will abolish the hated IMU tax on primary residences, a wealth levy imposed by ex-premier Mario Monti, and push for tax cuts for business and young people to pull the country out of perma-slump. A rise in VAT to 22pc in July may be delayed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingItalian showdown with Germany as Enrico Letta rejects ‘death by austerity’

Gun nights for ladies spring up at shooting ranges around the country

"In a growing trend, many of the pro-gun groups — like the ladies at The Fredericksburg Range — are all women, aiming, as Ovalle explains, 'to teach a lady how to handle a gun safely.' The 'Shooting Divas' group trains just a few miles away in Virginia, while 'Gun Powder Gals' is based in North Carolina and 'A Girl and A Gun' organizes some 40 groups around the country. And websites, magazines, merchandise — pink pistols and bra holsters — abound in the growing market. According to polling firm Gallup, 13 percent of women in the US owned a gun in 2005 compared to 23 percent in 2011." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGun nights for ladies spring up at shooting ranges around the country

Judge Gives ’5 Second Probation’ In Widow’s $21M Tax Case

"Consider 79 year-old Mary Estelle Curran of Palm Beach who inherited Swiss and Liechtenstein accounts when her husband died in 2000. She failed to report them and the IRS lost out on approximately $667,716 in taxes. That’s a lot of money to be sure, but the size of her penalty was, well, enormous: 50% of the highest balance: $21,666,929. And that’s not all. She was facing serious jail time too. And it seemed doubly unfair that she was unsophisticated and had tried to come forward to the IRS long before. Fortunately, though, U.S. District Judge Kenneth Ryskamp eased up, even suggesting that the government could probably use a little more discretion." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJudge Gives ’5 Second Probation’ In Widow’s $21M Tax Case