The Mercatus Center of George Mason University has released a report studying the level of freedom in the United States. They rank each state based on economic, social, and personal Freedom. Unsurprisingly NJ ranked at the bottom.

New Jersey is a highly regulated state all around, #46 on economic freedom, #45 on personal freedom, and #49 overall. Taxes and spending are high. Spending on education is particularly high. Property taxes are among the highest in the country, and individual income taxes are also high. Gun control is extensive. Marijuana laws are subpar. New Jersey has primary seat-belt enforcement, motorcycle and bicycle helmet laws, a cell phone driving ban, an open-container law, sobriety checkpoints, and mandatory liability and personal injury coverage for automobiles. Fireworks are prohibited. Asset forfeiture is largely unreformed. Cigarette taxes are stratospheric, and smoking bans are as draconian as any in the country. On the positive side, alcohol is taxed fairly reasonably, and, like Nevada, casino and slots gambling are legal statewide. More importantly, private and home school regulations are surprisingly light, extending only to broad curriculum requirements. Civil unions are also recognized. On economic regulation, labor laws are predictably costly, statewide land-use planning (“smart growth”) is in force, and there is extensive community rating for private health insurance. On other issues, however, New Jersey is about average.

Read more at WorldNetDaily...

I know that this sounds like something The Onion would write as a satire in one of their articles but it is horrifyingly true. NJ officials are proposing to ban Brazilian wax jobs which are a waxing of the genital region. Why are they doing this? Because two clients were injured at a salon in NJ. Hmmmm... I guess that makes sense. I got cut shaving yesterday, they should ban that. I tripped over a curb a week ago, they should ban those.

The NJ Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling has stated that it has always been illegal though it is not stated in the current regulations. Is this a good excuse? No! That is not a reason for banning anything.

You can find the article here.

In New Jersey and elsewhere, if a person wanted to enter a profession or a field, one has to be licensed by the state or the federal government. If one wanted to get into, for example, the financial services industry or the real estate industry, one has to be licensed by the state. If one wanted to participate in the import/export business, one has to be licensed by the federal government. If one wanted to braid hair,one,in Washington, D.C., has to be licensed by the local government there. It goes on and on, ad infinitum.

Fellow Libertarians,

The last few months have been extremely busy and exciting for me as business is really taking off.  I have traveled and will continue to travel extensively both domestically and internationally and must apologize for the lack of time I have spent in New Jersey.  It is not that I have not been working on projects to promote Liberty because I have, and in fact just this week attended the State Chairs conference in Charleston, South Carolina representing the NJLP.  In speaking with other chairs, and reflecting on the last two years as chair, I have come to the conclusion that two years is enough.  It is time for a fresh set of eyes to move us forward.  In that regard, I will not be seeking reelection as chair.  I wanted to give everyone a little heads up before the convention.

Sticky - scroll down for more recent articles.

Tax Day Tea Parties are being planned across the nation. In NJ, Tea Parties are confirmed in Belmar, Flemington, Hackensack, Morristown, Newark, Trenton, and Vineland.

• This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. : April 15th 12:00 AM - 3:00 PM, 16th Avenue Boardwalk.

• Flemington: April 15th, Noon - 2:00 PM. The northwest corner of Main Street and Court Street.

• Hackensack: April 15th, 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM. Bergen County Court House.

• Morristown: April 15th Noon, On The Green at the center of Morristown.

• Newark: April 15th, 782 McCarter Highway, Gateway Center One. Lautenberg and Menendez's office. Noon - 6:00 PM.

• Piscataway: April 15th, 5:00 PM. Johnson Park (River Road, Piscataway Township).

• Trenton: April 15th, in front of the State House steps. 11:30 AM - 4:00 PM.

• Vineland: April 15th, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM, 722 E Landis Avenue, Vineland, NJ 08360

• Middletown: July 4th, from 11-1 at 1750 Highway 35 (Arin Park Bldg).

Originally published in 1896 by Frank R. Stockton (1834 - 1902). This was in reference to an event that occurred on December 22nd, 1774 in Greenwich Township, Cumberland County NJ.

At the time when the American colonists began to be restless under the rule of Great Britain, the people of New Jersey showed as strong a desire for independence as those of any other Colony, and they were by no means backward in submitting to any privations which might be necessary in order to assert their principles. As has been said before, the people were prosperous, and accustomed to good living, and it was not likely that there was any part of America in which a cup of well-flavored tea was better appreciated than in New Jersey.

There are many politicians and others, liberal, "moderate," and conservative, that take the position that if a particular legislative action or policy has failed, the people should judge them by their "good" intentions and not if the action or policy is successful. They will say that their "motives" were "good," That their "idea" was "good,"That their "belief" was "pure," no matter if the policy or action has caused hardships and difficulties for individuals. It is a way to excuse it all and not do much else.  This often causes problems for society at large.

NJ Libertarian Party Members,

On Friday, March 13 at 10:00 PM, John Stossel and ABC News has a special, "Bailouts, Big Spending and Bull."  As John put it in his announcement, this special is produced in partnership with Drew Carey and Reason Magazine. Indeed most of the segments are based on videos from Reason.TV.

Michael Beitler (pronounced Bite-ler), Ph.D., CPA, is the host of "Free Markets With Dr. Mike Beitler," a libertarian internet-radio talk show, and the author of Rational Individualism: A Moral Argument for Limited Government & Capitalism. Mike was the CFO of a profitable bank for more than ten years.

Originally published at Campaign For Liberty

Fannie Mae reported a loss of $25.2 billion for the fourth quarter of 2008 (losses of $58.7 billion for full-year 2008). Total nonperforming loans were $119.2 billion at year-end. Fannie is requesting additional capital from the U.S Treasury. The other gargantuan government-sponsored enterprise, Freddie Mac is likewise running up billions of dollars in losses. Freddie is preparing to ask for additional capital from the U.S Treasury of $35 billion.

Why should you, the taxpayer, be concerned? Isn't the Federal government using bailout funds allocated by Congress to clean up the mess?

The problem is the Federal government is on the brink of bankruptcy itself. The U.S. government is $11 trillion dollars in debt. (That figure does not include tens of trillions of dollars of off-balance sheet, unfunded liabilities.) Congress has no "money to allocate" to Fannie, Freddie, or anything else. You, the taxpayer, are on the hook for these massive obligations.

Go back to the first paragraph and substitute "additional taxpayer money" for "additional capital."

The convention shall be held on March 28th and 29th. For more information see the Convention Registration page.

Despite the change in administration we are still being used as the world's policeman!

Ike Skelton, Chairman House Armed Services Committee
For Immediate Release: February 17, 2009 Contact: Loren Dealy or Lara Battles

Skelton Praises Announcement to Increase

U.S. Troop Commitment in Afghanistan

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) praised today’s announcement to increase U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan:

“Commanders in Afghanistan have been calling for more troops to meet mission requirements.  Today’s announcement committing additional U.S. troops in Afghanistan signals that we are restoring American leadership to the coalition effort to defeat al Qaeda and the Taliban and to support the Government of Afghanistan.  I hope our NATO allies will take our example to heart and provide more assistance as well.

“But in addition to our military contributions, we must also increase the civilian resources available to improve security and stability in Afghanistan.  This is extremely important.  The military’s role is critical, but we must use all of our tools – military, diplomatic, economic – to meet the challenges in this region.  I look forward to working with the administration to chart the path ahead in Afghanistan.”

On October 2, 1996 in the “New York Post,” then columnist Carl T. Rowan wrote a piece entitled “Liberal Is Not a Four Letter Word.” In it, he described what it meant to be “a liberal” and what it entailed. After reading it, it just reaffirmed to me that the ideology had nothing to in common with the liberalism of the past. That the ideology was hijacked. Where once liberalism believed in the chains of the Constitution, the limits of power and government, as well as rugged individualism, it, along with the conservatism of the modern variety today, believes in the omnipotence of the state. To me, it was a sad read.

On February 15, 2009, the Pilesgrove Township (Salem County) Committee introduced an ordinance to repeal parts of The Township's "Peace and Good Order" Code. The ordinance, as introduced, is below and the NJLP's January 19, 2009 letter which requested the repeal is online HERE.

UPDATE 2/23/2009: Passed by the Senate!!! 22 - 16

URGENT ACTION NEEDED! From our friends at the Drug Policy Alliance:

Critically ill New Jerseyans, many battling life-threatening conditions, are enduring unnecessary pain and anguish because, in our state, many people cannot safely access their medicine.

Take action now.

A little over a month ago, you helped bring New Jersey one step closer to becoming the 14th state to allow access to medical marijuana. Because of you, members of the Senate Health Committee supported our medical marijuana bill.

The entire Senate will vote on Monday for the first time on this legislation. With your voice telling senators that you are concerned about reducing suffering in New Jersey, we can build on this momentum.

You have the chance to transform the lives of sick patients by telling members of the New Jersey State Senate that you support New Jersey’s Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act.

The time is now. Together, we can make certain that, with their doctor's recommendation, seriously ill patients have safe access to medical marijuana, but only if you act now.

Sincerely,

Roseanne Scotti
Director
Drug Policy Alliance New Jersey

P.S. Follow this link to learn more details about the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act.

There are many people in the United States that have this belief that society, government or other "owes us." This belief came to fruition in the late 1890s and early 1900s. It was made famous men such as William Jennings Bryant, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Eugene Debs, Franklin Roosevelt as well as others. This belief goes by names such as "soak the rich" and, my favorite. "compassion." What thsi belief really entails is the punishment of achievement and the promotion of class envy. It is the belief of pitting one group against another.