End the War on Freedom

"Those who wash regularly should not stoop to democracy." -- Fred Reed

Aaron McGruder's Boondocks via Marc Brands Liberty - Iraqi Sovereignty - cartoon commentary. Gramps explains the concept to his grandchildren. Hehe. [smith2004]

Dan Wasserman at The Boston Globe - Ashcroft on Torture - my title. Cartoon commentary. Not funny.

# Joe Garner And Hector Gutierrez at The Rocky Mountain News - Adams jury convicts gun activist on 2 felony counts - he's out on bail until sentencing in September. [google]

BRIGHTON - Gun activist Rick Stanley was found guilty Thursday on two felony counts of attempting to influence a public official.

Stanley, 49, owner of a Denver shop-supply company, said he was prepared for the verdict in the trial, which began Monday in Adams County District Court behind double security screening - once at the door of the courthouse and again at the door of the courtroom.

...

The four-man, eight-woman jury deliberated Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning, before returning its decision in a fifth-floor courtroom with at least 14 uniformed sheriff's deputies cordoning off Stanley, the attorneys, judge and jury from the public benches.

"I'm never surprised when people allow the government to destroy their rights," Stanley, who remains free on bond until a Sept. 10 sentencing, said outside the Adams County Justice Center as supporters gathered around him.

Diane Szostak, who identified herself as "a militia member from Michigan," said, "It was exactly what we expected from the system because the system is corrupt and it convicts innocent people."

...

Dionne said some of the jurors were "nervous because of the negative connotations that go with 'militia' nowadays."

After the trial, Stanley said jurors have no cause for alarm.

"I know their names, and I don't care," he said. "I'm not a threat to them or anyone else; but, if attacked, I would defend myself."

Stanley said his defense attorney R. Scott Reisch would appeal Thursday's verdict. Stanley's sentence could range from probation to a maximum of 12 years in prison.

# Manhattan Libertarian Party via The Price of Liberty - No Permission Required: Libertarians Announce "Unauthorized" RNC Protest - August 29 at 12:00 noon on the Great Lawn in Central Park. No permit. No organization. Let them arrest a hundred thousand protesters. [smith2004]

# Fred Reed at Strike the Root - Curmudgeonly Reflections on Democracy - civilized people don't vote. This article is the source of the quote at the top of today's edition. [root]

Clearly taking part in this is unwise. What then do you do?

First, and most important, stop regarding yourself as part of government. Government doesn't concern itself with you; why should you concern yourself with it? The change of attitude provides both relaxation and perspective.

Next, avoid governmental impositions. There are many. Military service is the worst of them. Don't go. A little man in Washington, whom you have never met and wouldn't talk to over a back fence, tells you to kill people who have done nothing to you in a foreign country you may never have heard of. Does this seem reasonable?

...

Better yet, enjoy the onrushing atrophy. Is the United States going to hell, western civilization being subverted, knaves scuttling like fetid crabs through the corridors of power and nitwits ravaging the schools in the manner of monkeys in a fruit store? (Yes, actually.) Relish it for the splendid historical theater that it is. A better spectacle there cannot be.

I say this seriously. If you regard yourself as audience rather than participant, the accelerating collapse becomes entertainment. You read each morning's headlines with zest to see what new and preposterous clownishness erupts from Washington. It is high comedy. Just now Mr. Bush wants to tighten the embargo on Cuba because of its violations of human rights; meanwhile Mr. Bush is running a torture camp at Guantanamo. We have a war on poverty that perpetuates poverty, a war on drugs that guarantees availability by keeping prices up.

I doubt that Mark Twain could make such things up.

# EconGeek at the Claire Files Board - Shrug - how to beat the system without violence. Ayn Rand had it right in Atlas Shrugged. [clairefiles]

# Paul Marston at The Telegraph - Cars are more fuel-efficient than trains, claims study - America's cars and highways are the best mass transit system in the world. And now we know that they are also the most fuel efficient.

"I know this will generate howls of protest, but at present a family of four going by car is about as environmentally friendly as you can get."

# Gregg Ramsay at The New Hampshire Union Leader - Advice for Free State carpetbaggers -- Go home - apparently the subset of the Free State Project that has been attempting to take over the city of Grafton have not been very good at their social skills. At least one Granite State resident, the author, thinks New Hampshire is better without them. [smith2004]

# Richard Wall at LewRockwell.com - Michael Moore: on the Couch and in the Spotlight - Mr. Wall thinks that Mr. Moore did a pretty good job with his latest movie, which opens today. I intend to watch the video when it comes out, unless I find a good reason not to do so before then. [lew]

"Moore has done a wonderful thing" wrote Llewellyn H. Rockwell, commenting on Fahrenheit 911 in his article on May 22 entitled "Training Wheels and Fighting Words," and the anonymous author of a June 2 article entitled "Michael Moore gets distribution deal: just the ego-boost he needs" writes in similar vein:

"Let's be clear, Michael Moore is undertaking a glorious assault on the Bush administration and the neo-conservative establishment -- and the world owes him a huge debt of gratitude for working so hard to such a noble end..."

"And yet..." the same author goes on:

"And yet, the more one sees of him, the more one suspects that Moore's primary obsession isn't politics or war or truth or injustice, and the more one wonders whether his primary obsession might not actually be himself.

A more precise diagnosis might be that Michael Moore is suffering from Narcissistic Personality Disorder."

And he gracefully concludes:

...whether or not one accepts the diagnosis of Moore as someone suffering from acute Narcissistic Personality Disorder, one can certainly be glad that he is aiming the force of his personality in the right direction. Whyever he does what he does, let's be glad that he does it."

# Dark Operations Knives are the creation of Navy SEAL Paul Basal. No prices yet on the web site, just a few photos. [guns]

By the time you are using your knife and not your rifle or sidearm, things have already gone to hell. Our knives are designed to retain maximum grip and leverage when covered with hydraulic fluid or blood. Our mil-tested handle designs contain ground quartz inserts for maximum grip, aided by substantial finger grooves that orient the knife in the dark. The blades are long and sharp enough to penetrate both airplane skins and Comm-bloc body-armor. Strategically placed blood grooves control blood spray in covert deanimation activities.

Check back soon for our full Website!

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