Thoughts Aloud

Archive for February, 2012

I am over caring one whit what happens to the subhuman koranimals who inhabit Afghanistan – or any place else for that matter! Newt has it right:

So does Ron Paul… bring our kids home. All they have done for the women and children of these religious fanatics is totally unappreciated. There is nothing in that miserable tribal wasteland worth another drop of American blood, or another dime of our tax money. Let’s get out of the Taliban’s way, so these mindless fools get the government they so richly deserve.

Then, let’s figure out how to consign the mindless Apologist-in-Chief to the future he so richly deserves… what a reprehensible fool… ◄Dave►

In the ongoing exchange about the contraception/abortion mandate in Obamacare, most all of the participants seem to be totally “wrapped around the axle” over whether this means the end of separation of church and state, whether females have some natural right to contraception and abortion and, indeed, over whether reproduction is a form of “disease”. I suppose all these are all good items for discussion, although I will not inject my own opinions at this time. Instead, I wish to highlight an aspect of this issue that seems to be going unnoticed by all concerned…

All of the discussions (negotiations) on the government side of the issue seem to revolve around the decisions of a single person – Obama. We hear about what he is willing to do, what he is not willing to do, etc.

Are we not talking here about a healthcare law that was passed by the legislature? Where in our Constitution does it say that the executive may override the acts of the legislature at whim and without their consent (other than by veto before they become law)?
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In response to my article “Equality: Myth vs Reason”, BrockTownsend responded that homeschooling is a viable response to the sorry mess we call a public education system.

Naturally, Brock is absolutely right while being mostly wrong. Homeschooling is an option only for those families who possess the three critical attributes that determine virtually all success in raising children: means, ability and willingness. Families with these attributes will almost always raise their young to be good citizens whether they homeschool or not.

On a recent episode of Stossel, John Stossel opined that “Charter Schools” are another response to failing public schools. Again, absolutely right and mostly wrong. Charter Schools are not growing in number due to the resistance of both the progressive establishment and the education unions. And, getting a child into the ones that do exist requires at least ability and willingness on the part of the family because of the fierce competition to get into these schools.

A sad fact of modern American life is that far too many children are being born into “families” who lack most or all of the three critical attributes. As a result, the complete problem with our public education system is a combination of a dysfunctional system and dysfunctional students. This is proven by the fact that, however bad the system may be, a certain number of children emerge well educated despite it.

So, how do we improve the overall quality of the children being produced in this nation? That is the Ultimate Conundrum.
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Today I return to one of my favorite topics, that of Equality in America. In past articles, I have repeated the dictum that Equality is the opposite of Liberty (or, vice-versa if you prefer). However, this is actually true only in certain contexts of Equality. This is because, in present-day America, the notion of Equality actually presents itself in three different contexts. These are:

→ Equality Before The Law

→ Equality Of Opportunity

→ Equality Of Outcome

Let us examine each in more detail…
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What is a good libertarian (like yours truly) to think when two despicable organizations, both dedicated to controlling the lives of others, get into a urinating contest?

I refer, of course, to the current urinary battle between the Obama Administration and the Catholic Church. Who does one root for? Is it too much to hope that they ultimately destroy each other? Yeah, it probably is.

In all honesty, if forced to choose a side, it would be the church, not because I have any use for the organization, but because I have even less use for overreaching government.

But, it could be worse (and it has been) – the church and the government could once again merge and bring us a new dark age. Just imagine it: a flat Earth that is the center of the universe, a government mandate that we all attend the church services that we are directly taxed to fund. Oh happy day.

Where does this lust for the power to control others come from – especially in a world where so few exercise any self control?

Troy L Robinson