President Obama and a heap of other politicians are imploring us to view voting as the ultimate expression of our freedom and self-government. The reality is that the vast majority of politicians will do as they damn well please after Election Day. Edward Snowden’s revelations should have been a battering ram to use against […]
Author Archive | Jim
American Tariffs and Wars From the Revolution to the Depression
Mises Institute / Mises Daily American Tariffs and Wars From the Revolution to the Depression by James Bovard Fair trade is once again a rallying cry for many Americans. Many contemporary leftists believe that the U.S. government should impose restrictions or tariffs on imported goods that are alleged to have been produced by underpaid or […]
Brian Wilson’s New Podcast Subscription Service
Libertarian talk-show legend Brian Wilson is launching a new podcast subscription service next month. Brian is one of the best interviewers in the business and he has become more hardline with each passing year. Here is the spiel from the launch/subscription page – which also includes an amusing 4 minute video pitch: Brian Wilson – Libertas […]
Wash. Times: Obama’s Phony Foreign Aid Reforms
Washington Times, October 29, 2014 Obama’s phony foreign-aid reform The president boosts aid spending rather than fixing its flaws By James Bovard Four years ago, President Obama promised in a United Nations speech to “change the way we do business” with foreign aid and “seek partners who want to build their own capacity to provide […]
IRS “Structuring” Robberies Go Back Decades – Playboy 1996
The New York Times had an excellent piece on Sunday on the IRS pilfering people whose bank account deposits were deemed “suspicious” – based on the shabbiest pretexts. (The Institute of Justice, which is doing great work on asset forfeiture, provided much of the research for the piece.) This abuse has been ongoing for decades. Here’s […]
Counterpunch: Obama’s Hypocritcal Crusade Against Extremism
Counterpunch, October 28, 2014 Obama’s Hypocritical Crusade Against Extremism by JAMES BOVARD In his speech last month to the United Nations, President Obama summoned foreign leaders to join his “campaign against extremism.” Obama has repeatedly invoked the “extremist” threat to justify attacking abroad and seizing more power at home since taking office in 2009. But […]
Needed: High Tech Barking at the Moon
This cartoon from the new issue of the New Yorker makes me wonder if I should be relying on more sophisticated technology to get my message across. This reminds me of one of the best cartoons from one of my favorite cartoonists, Sam Gross – That same question haunts many political activists & reformers […]
Tennessee Budd
You forgot the lie of 1861. Some Americans, seeing