A state shouldn’t care only about its economy. The first thing a “true”, “free” state should think of is, certainly, its citizens. Some people would cry foul here: “why should we be burdened by people that don’t want to work? Let them pay their own bills!” But this is not what libertarianism is about. True libertarianism, and therefore freedom, is not violating the US constitution and invading people’s privacies needlessly. It’s about not enslaving other countries, and spending useless amounts of money with an imaginary war. So, if the state isn’t bad, is it good in every way? Should we let it take care of our lives?

No.

Our State is made by US, Citizens. Obama’s government is certainly not perfect. One example is his making of bold claims. He said he would end the war, for example. He didn’t. He said he would cut the government’s wasteful spending. Did he? Politicians have too many ties, and they should always be taken with a grain of salt. There is a chance that Obama’s government will turn tyrannical. If that happens, it is up to us to claim back our freedom. So, as a consequence, I do not think Obama’s government is evil. It is here to bring many taboos to the spotlight. As we discussed, health is one of them, but economic and education inequality are also taboos in the American society. My point of view about all this? I believe freedom is knowing you can count on your State, and that it actually supports you into times of trouble – not some sort of façade that hides a political agenda made to benefit only a rich minority. I expect our politicians to spend our resources wisely, and I truly think the US hasn’t been doing this for a long time – it’s just that we’re only starting to see this now.

The state of Florida has recently passed a law that states that any new welfare claim that is submitted, the person must have a drug test done before receiving any benefits. the claimant is responsible for paying for the test, but if the test is negative, the person will be reimbursed for the cost of the test. If they fail, they will not be paid back for the test as well as they will not be eligible for welfare for one year. This issue has become an ever growing concern for people on both sides of it.

The left (Democrats) feel that it’s an unconstitutional decision to invade someone’s privacy. They use the 4th Amendment as they reason to not allowing these test to be legal. The right (Republicans) think that if you’re going to get assistance from the government, you should be expected to abide by the same standards as those who have to take a test to get a job. They say that since employees who work to pay taxes to help fund entitlement program have to take the same test to work, the people on welfare should do the same. The reason behind their thinking is that there is so much corruption within the welfare system (along with multi-generation families) that this is one way to weed out the wrong-doers.

Those people who say that the drug testing is wrong is because if infringes on their Constitutional right as laid out in the 4th amendment The fourth amendment protects the American citizen from unwarranted and illegal search and seizures. In 2003, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Michigan’s drug testing of welfare applicants as a Fourth Amendment violation.
As for the other side of the issue, the 4th amendment pertains to privacy and they feel that if these people are looking for public assistance, then the issue of privacy doesn’t play a role in the debate.

While I agree to the drug testing, some say that I’m wrong. All I can say to that is that I must trust the judicial system to make the right decision on the matter. Unfortunately I don’t trust those who are serving on the circuit courts as well as the Supreme Court. Again this issue is for each state to make their own decisions as to if they want to legalize medical marijuana.

During the entire week we heard the news reports stated that this is going to hit Florida, then it said it was going to hit the Carolinas. It was estimated that it would be a CAT3 when it made land fall. Irene was over thousand miles from hit land, moving at 15 miles per hour, but the media along with the Obama Administration were issuing statement to batten down the hatches and prepare for the worse storm to hit the area in over fifty years. The estimates being reported in regards to the damages Irene will cause was over $8 billion and as high as $20 billion.

As of Sunday morning we can see that the damages from the storm was minimal, mostly due to flooding. Yes New York City did get hit with a lot of rain, but being a kid from Brooklyn, it wasn’t the first time nor the last.

It’s gotten to the point where people who listen to the newscast, watch the weather reports and pay attention to possible disasters are starting to think that the “power-that-be” have no idea what they are doing when it comes to notifying the public of important information. The truth of the matter is that they do know what they’re doing and it all surrounds ratings.

Even as the storm was downgraded to a CAT1 Friday night, the news channels didn’t push the point too much. Instead they sent reporters out to areas that the town or city are just a few feet above sea level and made it seem that this is what the entire city was dealing with.

Yes there were many areas in the tri-state area that flooded, but if you look at the landscape of the region, you’ll see that most of the area is only feet above the sea level. Have any decent storm move in on the city and the same thing will happen.

So why didn’t the government do the right thing and properly warn citizens about the truth instead of causing the entire east coast to shut down operations? Because after the mishap of this past winter when New York, New Jersey and Washington were buried under feet of snow, Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Christie and President Obama din’t want to show how incompetent they are when it comes to handling issues that need immediate action. So over the past week, the beaches were closed, subway systems shut down and government agencies had a few extra days off.

How are the American people going to take these warnings serious if every single issue is going to be handled like it’s the next Armageddon. News broadcast, newspapers, and the government (all levels) must be honest and precise with the information they release to the public if they expect the public to take them serious. If not, one day there will be a major warning and many people will just shake it off and go about their business. Then what are we to do when there are hundreds of people injured, trapped or even dead because the media and the government cried wolf once too many times.

The issue that has been going on is that the federal government has been getting involved to “help” a particular industry and/or company for so long that we no longer know what is an artificial or organic supply and demand product or service.

During W.W.II, the wool industry was busy supplying the material to make our military’s uniforms. To make sure the industry would always be there to keep our troops clothe, the federal government gave subsidies to them to the tune of millions of dollars. Years later as synthetic materials were being used for the military, Washington continued to pay the wool farmers.

The agricultural subsidies assist farmers and agribusinesses to supplement their revenue, manage the supply of the different commodities and to influence the cost and supply of such commodities (ie corn, wheat, rice, milk, sugar). So the government is dictating the price as well as the supply of these commodities. In this situation, the laws were passed during the Great Depression and have remain in place to this day. We have farmers being paid not to grow corn on their land. Many farmers receive some sort of government (tax payer) financial assitance.

A Canadian report claimed that for every dollar U.S. farmers earn, 62 cents comes from some form of government, with total aid in 2009 from all levels of government adding up to $180.8 billion.

These are just two incidents where government has manipulated the free market for decades. The free market hasn’t been free for just as long. As long as the federal government is involved, no industry or company will go bankrupt. The whole idea of competition is that the strongest one wins. Well in this case, whoever pays more money to the politician campaign funds, wins.

Let’s take a look at the recent bailout of General Motors. They received billions of dollars from Washington to keep them from filing bankruptcy. If GM was left to file bankruptcy, the union contracts would have been history at that point. The company would have restructured to survive or close their doors forever. Is that a bad thing. On the surface, yes. When you go ahead and let the free market work it out, it would become a good thing.

How? Simple, it’s obvious that GM wasn’t making the product(s) that the customers wanted. If they continued doing the same thing, they would have had to close their business forever. An entrepreneur, with the financial backing, would step in and buy the assets of GM to build his own vehicle. They would hire the former GM workers and a new car manufacturer would be born to make it or break it. He either builds want the customers want or he goes out of business too.

The unions are a powerful force with plenty of money to persuade politicians to help the their industry/company. The government makes it impossible for new car companies to start in the industry since there are so many regulations that only the “big” dogs can work within them.

The federal government has made it so hard for the free market to run like it should that it’s questionable to say that we can ever separate the two. The first step is having Congress cut programs that support industries that wouldn’t survive without it.

Jesse Jackson, Maxine Waters and other members of the causus were in Miami Florida this week to rally the troops to put the blame of the economy and other issues on the TEA Party. Earlier this month Maxine Waters said publicly that the TEA Party should go straight to hell. Her comments on Tuesday included her saying, “We have to stand up and fight. It’s fight time…We’re not afraid of the tea party…In this struggle, we have to define who we are, what the president is doing and not let our voices be overshadowed by the tea party.”

Even the State Representative Frederica Wilson (Miami Gardens) has stated that the grassroot movement is “The tea party holds Congress hostage…They have one goal in mind, and that’s to make President Obama a one-term president.”

Ms. Wilson is correct on half of that statement. The part where the TEA Party is trying (along with many Americans) to make sure Obama doesn’t get re-elected.

Jesse Jackson took the stage of the 10 member panel to stoke the fire of the audience. He asked the members to stand if they had a family member in jail, credit card debt as well as a home in foreclosure, a majority of the audience stood up. When asked who voted for Obama, nearly the entire room stood at that point. Mr. Jackson continued to fire up the crowd by his comments of Dr. Martin Luther King. The tea party opposing Obama, Jackson said, should be called the “Fort Sumter Tea Party that sought to maintain states’ rights and slavery.” he continued, “The tea party is a new name on an old game,” he said. “Dr. King fought a ‘tea party’ in Alabama…He had no weapons, but he confronted the tea party.”

This is where I take offense. Dr King was for human rights no matter what the color of the person’s skin is. He fought against racism and inequality towards all people. Dr King didn’t fight against government destruction of the economy or even the government itself. So why would Jackson even use Dr. King is his speech? To insight emotions. The democrats (republicans too) have always used emotions to get the people engaged in taking action. Emotions are what also create the TEA Party too. People being tired of the government not caring about the American person. That is what the TEA party is about, not racism and slavery. The Democrats have been using those two words to describe the group since it first started. They also claim that the group is filled with “terrorists” and “right-wing extremists.

We will never move forward in becoming a single unit of people when influential people like Jackson, Waters and others keep separating us by race, color or sexual orientation. We have to come together as Americans, nothing more and nothing less, if we want to move forward.

The double standard that goes on within Washington is ridiculous. No matter which political party is in control, the same games are played against the other. Here’s a quote from the then Congresswoman Hillary Clinton (D-NY)

“I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration somehow you’re not patriotic. We should stand up and say: We are Americans and we have a right to debate and disagree with any administration.”
— Hillary Clinton, April 28, 2003

That’s right, these words were spoken by our current Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. She made these comments when the republicans had control of the House and the Senate. Hillary is absolutely correct. We, as Americans have the right, given to us by the Constitution, to have the choice to agree or disagree with our elected officials.

Now years later when the shoe is on the other foot, it’s wrong for Americans to disagree with the Obama Administration. It seems that when any group or another political party go against the current power, they’re considered wrong and will be referred to as “extremist’, “fanatic” or a “racist” Of course let’s not forget the favorite one of the Obama Administration and Democrats alike,… Wait for it…

“terrorists”.

Well let them call me whatever they want and I don’t care about it one bit. As long as this country has been in existence, it’s citizens have had the right to speak up against what our politicians are doing (or not doing) for this country. Since the 2008 election, the TEA Party and other constitutional minded groups have been speaking up and making a difference with the mindset of others who are typically unconcerned with the political BS that goes on. These groups have woken the sleeping giant, which is the patriotic American people. We will save this country from the Socialistic policies of the current administration and bring it back to the smaller, limited government that it was meant to be. It’s just going to take awhile for it to happen since the policies of both parties have been changing this Republic for over 50 years.

Our great country was built on the idea of a representative republic as the basis of our government, not a democracy. A republic is a form of government that in essence is ruled by laws, not by a person or people. There are five forms of government. Monarchy, Oligarchy, Democracy, Republic and Anarchy. Of course the last one is actually the absence of government, lawlessness, The first being Monarchy is a country ruled by one, like a king or some form of ruler. As you read through the list, you will see less government involvement. An Oligarchy is ruled by a group, sort of what the supposed Bilderberg Group is to be. Democracy is a country ruled by many, majority rules. The Republic form of government is ruled by laws. The Greeks once said, “without laws, there is no freedom”.

So how come so many Americans get it wrong when asked? I can’t answer that question. All I can say is that we’ve been lied to by the political leaders of this country.

A democracy has never lasted for long periods of time, as we’ve seen throughout history. Eventually the majority rule mentality collapses the system. Democracy is not a stable form of government, instead it’s a gradual transition from a republic (limited government) to a unlimited rule of an oligarchy, a tyranny of the elite.

As American, we are responsible for our own freedom and to hold on to our freedoms we must pull in the reins of the current out of control powers of the federal government. The essence of freedom is the proper limitation of government. The Constitution was written to protect the people from the federal government over stepping their boundaries. The Constitution doesn’t give the federal government it’s power, it limits it.

It’s a question that I feel should be asked since the Patriot act was implemented in 2001. Well it seems that the government has assured us that the information will be safe. President Obama sent a letter to Congress stating that the census data can’t be disclosed under the Patriot Act. Considering that the present Administration have told us other things in the past and have done something totally different. Assistant Attorney General Ronald Welch even wrote: “If Congress intended to override these protections it would say so clearly and explicitly.”

All I have to say to that is… Yeah, like I trust Congress.

There are ten questions on this years Census, included in the questions are name, race, age, birth date, do you own or rent, & who may live elsewhere during the year. The Census was set up to count how many people lived in this country and where. The purpose being to determine the number of seats your state has in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Why does anyone have to tell them if they’re renting or if they have a mortgage or not? My opinion is that we should definitely participate in the Census to make sure that everyone is counted, but as for the other information, we should refuse to answer them. I mean what does my name have to do with the Census?

The rights of individuals have been put in the back burner in today’s political world. For example, to prevent terrorism, the government has imposed security measures and enforced racial profiling on individuals. I have traveled on many domestic and international flights in the past few years and have been subject to such security measures.

In fact, I was awaiting the arrival of a family member from a Northwest flight coming in from Amsterdam (a couple days after Christmas) when the irrational restrictions on individual freedoms became ever so obvious. A Nigerian man who felt sick in the plane and used the restroom multiple times was detained because a few days earlier another Nigerian mad tried to set off an explosive on the same flight heading into Detroit. The poor man just felt ill, and the government poured in Department of Homeland Security employees, sniffing dogs, police and ambulances. What a waste of resources and a horrible inconvenience! I waited at the airport for nearly five hours. I would expect the government to be able to handle security threat in ways that do not impose so severely on individual freedoms in this day and age.

In today’s political atmosphere, issues besides terrorism, including government bailouts and universal health care, are also infringing upon the rights of individuals. The U.S. government has swept into the everyday lives of Americans in a big way. Americans facing foreclosure are being offered government assistance and extra money for energy efficient utilities. Instead of encouraging an independent populous, the government at federal, state and local levels, is encouraging dependency.

Government bailout of the auto companies in Detroit is an example of exactly this. Now, Detroiters are turning to the government for more money to improve railways to Chicago and increase jobs. The government should promote the rights and abilities of individuals to improve their lives and those of their community. Universal health care is another bill being pushed by today’s Democrats to involve government to control an essential part of people’s existence i.e. their health care needs.

An individual deserves the right to decide their own health care plans. A competitive, privatized health care industry with few governmental regulations is the way to go. When it comes to government involvement, less is always better. Unfortunately, individuals freedoms are slowly disappearing and the United States is becoming more like Communist China by the day.

Libertarianism is both a philosophy and a political view. The key concepts defining Libertarianism are:
Individual Rights as inherent to human beings, not granted by government
A Spontaneous Order through which people conduct their daily interactions and through which society is organized independent of central (government) direction
The Rule of Law which dictates that everyone is free to do as they please so long as they do not infringe upon the rights of others
A divided and Limited Government, checked by written constitution
Free Markets in which price and exchange is agreed upon mutually by individuals
Virtue of Production whereby the productive labor of the individual and any translation of that labor into earnings belongs, by right, to the individual who should not have to sacrifice those earnings to taxes
Peace which has, throughout history, most commonly been disrupted by the interests of the ruling class or centralized government.

Click Here To Purchase