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Bob Bowdon, director of The Cartel spoke to our convention attendees during our 2010 convention. He showed the trailer and then discussed various problems with the education system in New Jersey.

As someone who has watched The Cartel, I strongly recommend this movie to every New Jersey resident. I plan on seeing it again when I get a chance. A review of The Cartel was previously published on this website.

The triumph of persuasion over force is the sign of a civilized society. - Mark Skousen, Persuasion versus Force

Today at work we were discussing the recent news that AT&T will take a $1 Billion dollar non-cash accounting charge as a result of the recent Health Care Act. Surprisingly not many of my coworkers were even aware of this news. We discussed what effect this may have on our pay and benefits. Most of the group expressed their disdain over the Act. However two coworkers wouldn't accept the fact that this Health Care Act is bad for our country.

The first, lets call him Boris, made the argument that this bill will cost AT&T money, but it won't affect our pay or benefits. He is normally an intelligent guy, but when it comes to economics he just doesn't get it. He believes that if AT&T shows a profit then that profit is coming out of our pay. We tried our best to explain to him that when AT&T loses money, they are going to pay their employees less, not more. The same is true of the insurance companies. When insurance mandates increase costs, companies will pass the expenses down to their customers and employees.

John Locke made the argument that if one person did not have a right to coerce or control another person, that he could not transfer this right, that he did not possess, to a third party. Thus, Locke not only questioned the divine rights of kings and popes, but also the "rights" of democracies. Later, he changed his mind and accepted a version of Thomas Hobbes' "social contract", which was later popularized by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. The social contract effectively said that all people are obliged to obey the dictates of whatever political power is in control of a given area, and to "render Caesar's unto Caesar".

Later, Josiah Warren and Lysander Spooner, political activists in the US, argued for Locke's original case, saying that no person could logically delegate a right they did not possess to a third party, and that no group calling itself a government could legitimately claim to have power a person without his or her consent, thus leaving all people as sovereign individuals.

It is not often that I link to the American Conservative Magazine but I found this article very interesting. Real libertarians do not demand labor protectionism, bigger government bureaucracies and a police state on the border.

Mr. Unz was interviewed on Free Talk Live on Saturday.

Talk TV sensationalists and axe-grinding ideologues have fallen for a myth of immigrant lawlessness.

By Ron Unz

According to Lou Dobbs, "a third of the prison population in this country is estimated to be illegal aliens," and Glenn Beck regularly warns of "an illegal alien crime wave." Congressman Tom Tancredo insists, "The face of illegal immigration on our borders is one of murder, one of drug smuggling, one of vandalism for all the communities along the border, and one of infiltration of people coming into this country for purposes to do us great harm." Michelle Malkin adds an even more terrifying note, calling our borders "open channels not only for illegal aliens and drug smugglers, but terrorists, too." Even as far back as 2000, the highly regarded General Social Survey found that 73 percent of Americans believed that immigration caused higher crime rates, a level of concern considerably greater than fears about job losses or social unity.

Read the full article...

Get yer Baileys out! Longtime Reason science correspondent Ronald Bailey will be making two speaking appearances in the greater New York City area next week, at Princeton Univ. and at The New York Salon.

Info on the Princeton gig:

Richard A. Lee

Richard A. Lee, Director of Communications for the Hall Institute of Public Policy – New Jersey, has 30 years of professional experience in journalism and public relations. At the Hall Institute, he is responsible for media relations and all promotional and marketing activities. He also conducts research and writes papers for the institute, focusing on media, government and politics.

Having been in the room eight years ago when the State House Press Corps staged a mini-revolt in reaction to the McGreevey Administration’s attempt to set a new set of ground rules for a press briefing on the state’s fiscal condition, I must admit I was mildly amused to learn that history seems to have repeated itself in the early days of the Christie Administration.

Back in 2002, reporters walked out of a budget briefing when they were told they could not tape record the session nor could they quote by name the officials who would be outlining the issue and answering questions.

Fast forward to 2010 and the special address on the state’s budget crisis that Governor Christie delivered to the Legislature last week. According to Sunday’s Star-Ledger, the Governor’s staffers insisted that reporters refrain from using tape recorders and from quoting those conducting the briefing by name. The ground rules didn’t sit any better with the press corps this time around, but apparently a compromise of sorts was reached. Reporters were allowed to record the session, but still could not identify the officials giving the briefing.

What makes this case of déjà vu all the more intriguing is that Christie and McGreevey are on opposite ends of the political world – and that this is not an isolated similarity.

Shortly after he was elected in November, Christie tapped David Samson to head his transition committee — the same David Samson whom McGreevey chose as his Attorney General eight years earlier.

The big government tendencies of the Republican party has caused many conservatives to question what they really believe in. Many are finding the Libertarian Party as a viable alternative to their beliefs. Some are right, some are wrong. While some may be discovering the true values of liberty, others are bringing their big government social agendas and belief in a pro-interventionist foreign policy with them.

TakeBackTheLP.info is an attempt to bring the LP back to its original belief system.

Greetings, libertarian! We need your your help with a special project -- restoring the party of principle.

America needs a Libertarian Party worthy of pride and respect -- a party it can look to for the right answers to the big questions.

America needs a presidential candidate who talks about the non-aggression principle.

America needs a platform and national candidate to advocate no-compromise abolition; to explain that there are ways to fulfill the world’s social needs without the violence of a coercive state.

Click to visit their website and learn more...

After a contentious battle the Stillwater Township Committee has voted to disband their police force. The decision was based mostly on financial reasons. There were allegations of police harassment of those who supported disbanding the police on Free Talk Live this past week.

By ELISA D. KELLER
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STILLWATER — There were tears and quiet complaints from a defeated crowd of police supporters Thursday night, as a special meeting of the Stillwater Township Committee ended with a unanimous vote to disband the municipality’s local police force in favor of coverage by the New Jersey State Police.

“I want to thank all of you for coming out,” Stillwater Township Police Chief Anthony Kozlowski said to the crowd of around 100 people before the committee’s vote.

During the nearly four-hour meeting, many of the people in attendance spoke out in favor of a continued police presence in Stillwater, offering up personal stories of Stillwater police officers delivering babies, saving children’s lives, and responding to the scene of an accident in record time.

Read the full story...

This morning NJ 101.5 reported on the story of a Hoboken cop who is in the news again for causing a ruckus at the Tampa Airport. The most disturbing part of this story is that he has been suspended with pay for two years at a salary of around $140,000!

Report: Suspended 'Hooters' Cop Flashed Shield at Airport

Ex-SWAT Lt. Was in 'Hooters Girls' Photos

Lt. Angelo Andriani is the former head of the Hoboken, N.J., SWAT team, an elite police unit that was disbanded in disgrace more than two years ago.

The cops got in trouble after Fox 5  New broadcast pictures of Andriani and his SWAT team posing in with their guns and with Hooters girls in Alabama, while on a trip to provide relief for Hurricane Katrina victims. There were also a few interesting pictures of some shenanigans in New Orleans.

Facing misconduct charges, Andriani has been suspended for two years so far with pay. His gun, badge and police ID were supposedly taken away from him.

Read the full story ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 28, 2010

Contact: Wes Benedict, Executive Director
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Phone: 202-333-0008 ext. 222

Libertarians respond to State of the Union address

WASHINGTON - Libertarian Party (LP) Chairman William Redpath issued the following statement today in response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address:

"Tonight's speech was a reminder that, for decades, the policies of Republicans and Democrats alike have failed. Libertarians are asking people to take matters into their own hands. Instead of just complaining, we're encouraging ordinary Americans to step up and run for Congress on the Libertarian Party ballot line.

Can Chris Christie reform the Garden State?

Eileen Norcross | January 22, 2010

"I'm gonna govern like a one-termer." That's the promise of New Jersey's Chris Christie, who became New Jersey's 55th governor this week. If true, it's a welcome development, because fixing New Jersey's fiscal mess isn't a matter of mere accounting. It will require tackling institutionalized corruption head on. The Garden State's budget has been crippled by spending schemes that largely benefit a well-paid and unionized public sector, itself a creation of New Jersey's entrenched political class.

Read the full article at reason.com

The problem with Haiti has always been the lack of freedom. Haitians need stronger property rights. Without the ability to acquire, own, and transfer property you have poverty. Property ownership allows individuals to build capital that can be used to create businesses and build long term wealth. This article was written back in 2004, things have not changed since then.

North America

A solution in Haiti: Try Freedom
By Garrett Glass
Mar 3, 2004

The troubles of Haiti are once again making front-page news all over the world. Every expert from Amnesty International to French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepein has an opinion about what needs to be done to fix the problems. There are some fundamental issues, however, that often go ignored in all the demands for foreign military intervention and financial aid.

Property Rights

In Haiti's 200-year quest for freedom, one of the most crucial components of freedom, which leads to prosperity, has never been effectively implemented or even seriously tried (much less respected). The Haitian system of establishing property rights is so convoluted, complicated and corrupt that to the average citizen of Haiti owning any property will always remain just a dream. The connection between poverty and the lack of property rights is often overlooked.

Read the full article ...

Essex County Superintendent of Elections Carmine Casciano was charged today with official misconduct for allegedly giving unauthorized paid days off to county employees who worked on political campaigns, according to the state Attorney General's Office.

Read the full article...

Yesterday the New Jersey State Assembly passed a bill, already approved by the state Senate, that allows judges to waive heretofore mandatory sentences for nonviolent drug offenses committed in "drug-free zones." Under state law, such zones include any place within 1,000 feet of a school or 500 feet of a park, library, museum, or public housing project. Selling drugs (or possessing them with intent to sell) within that area triggers a mandatory minimum sentence of three years. The bill abolishing that rule, which Gov. Jon S. Corzine has promised to sign, follows years of lobbying by critics who argue that drug-free zones, aimed mainly at shielding children from drug dealers, arbitrarily increase the punishment for disproportionally black and Hispanic defendants whose offenses have nothing to do with children. The zones are defined broadly enough to include most or all of many cities.

Read the full story...

Michael's mother has sent the following message.

Hi Everyone:

Michael was cardioverted again today (with the electric paddles) to try to get his heart to beat more regularly. This evening they did the tracheotomy and looked down his throat. He had ripped the breathing tube out of his throat and they were afraid he damaged his vocal chords. Things looked pretty good and the doctors said the surgery went very well. They will give him antibiotics to be sure there isn't an infection after having the tube in his throat for 14 days. They have kept him very sedated all this time because he couldn't breathe without the breathing tube but it was very uncomfortable for him. He needed to rest so his heart could strengthen.

UPDATE: Michael is conscious. He has had a pacemaker installed. Hopefully all is well!


I received a report that Michael's heart stopped. His heart was started again with CPR. He has been rushed by helicopter to Gunderson Lutheran Hospital in Wisconsin. He is in serious condition.

At this time I have no further information.

Michael Badnarik was the Libertarian 2004 candidate for President. My prayers are with him and his family.

Today Reason Foundation released its 18th Annual Report on the Performance of the State Highway System. This report ranks the quality and spending on the state highways based on data reported by each state for 2007 and parts of 2008. Our legislators should be hanging their heads in shame while the taxpayers should be sharpening their pitchforks.

According to Michael Tanner, a senior fellow at The Cato Institute, approximately 163 million people receive health insurance through their employer. If this third-party arrangement was terminated, and this group added to the present 148 million privately insured (Consumer Population Survey), there would be a level playing field of 311 million people, not including the numerous small businesses. If a nationwide set of uniform rules and regulations were adopted, replacing the patchwork of existing state health insurance requirements, then an enormous market would be open to the private health insurance companies. A potential market of 311 million insureds could be expected to drive down the cost of health insurance, improve affordability, offer portability and provide among other benefits an industry risk pool with which to insure those with pre-existing conditions, an ObamaCare objective.

And at no cost to the taxpayers.