Please tell me that Global Warming, Cooling, Dimming, and Climate Change aren't just a fad that briefly caught the eye of the media, politicians, celebrities, money-hungry entrepreneurs, and the Nobel Prize Committee. Please.
John Spivey, the Big Daddy of the Tarrant County Libertarian Party, recently asked me for a listing of my favorite Liberty-themed songs. I shot a few back at him and forgot about it.
And then today, this gem is posted on Facebook. Enjoy !
A few days ago I posted a status update asking "What song best describes Obama's first few months?" I thought 'Been Caught Stealing" by Janes Addiction... but mainly because I thought the title was funny. Mike Coyne thought "Make It Rain" by Li'l Wayne was a good choice, while Allen Patterson suggested "Won't Get Fooled Again", which also was a pretty funny title. But, Allen named the EXACT right song - line for line, almost, describing what we're going through now.
I realized this as I sat in my car this evening listening to the radio when those synthesized "Hammond Organ" chords started up, followed by Pete Townsend, Keith Moon and then Roger Daltrey sings the following (my notes in parentheses):
We'll be fighting in the streets (soon will be, likely) With our children at our feet (Yep, our kids are bearing the burden of our excess) And the morals that they worship will be gone (life, liberty, property - gone) And the men who spurred us on (Obama/Biden and crew) Sit in judgement of all wrong (The new arbiters of morality) They decide and the shotgun sings the song (Their "philanthropy" are only enforceable by coersion)
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution (really, 'say goodbye' to old one!) Take a bow for the new revolution (Well, MY revolution is a bit different) Smile and grin at the change all around (Is this the change that we can believe in?) Pick up my guitar and play (I like guitars) Just like yesterday (all my troubles seemed so far away) Then I'll get on my knees and pray (Please God, we're begging!!!) We don't get fooled again (Too late. We've been fooled, folks)
The change, it had to come (After GOP led spending and governmental growth & wars) We knew it all along (Just listen to Jefferson, Bastiat, Paul - they TOLD us) We were liberated from the fold, that's all (freed from shackles and into a cell) And the world looks just the same (Yep... no change really) And history ain't changed (Nope - it's still the same too) 'Cause the banners, they are flown in the next war (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!)
I'll move myself and my family aside (Individualism and family is second... the state is #1) If we happen to be left half alive (just half?) I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky (Get your tax records, health records, citizen ID ready) Though I know that the hypnotized never lie (one of us.... one of us... one of us.... one of us...) Do ya?
There's nothing in the streets (It's been plundered and looted... Looks any different to me (It does seem like the different side of the same coin) And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye ("Country First" replaced by "Change") And the parting on the left Are now parting on the right (left and right no longer matter) And the beards have all grown longer overnight (what? I don't get this at all)
Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! (SCREAM of frustration!)
Meet the new boss (Hello.) Same as the old boss!!!
So, instead of a grossly overspending government burning your children's future wages on a non-sensical war in Iraq all while trampling on our freedoms given to you by your creator... NOW, we're still in an expensive non-sensical war AND trampling on different freedoms and now, spending us into an economic nuclear winter. All, STILL at the point of a gun.
Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss... different side of the same coin, my friends.
Well said, Mr. Spivey. Here's Mr. Townsend doing the original song:
And here's a link to some unknown genius on YouTube breaking down those guitar licks note-for-note:
These are all from the geniuses who run the Simon Jester site. You can hit the link and get downloadable PDF's of each of these.
Perfect for the next round of tea party protests.
Here's one for those who want to practice agriculture (ahem) more freely:
And for those who think the "Serve America Act" will be a pointless boondoggle:
This is directed to everyone except the roomfull of people who voted for Bob Barr:
This one is my favorite. It's ecological. In fact, why aren't we having a Tea Party outside the Fort Worth money-printing plant ?
A reference to the first Tea Party protest:
Yep. Leave everyone alone, and we'll be fine. Get more busybody idjits involved, and we'll have another Great Depression. Pick a side.
This one doesn't really say much. It's too obvious.
Here's a Thomas Jefferson reference. Google Jefferson and The Tree Of Liberty. (For the record, Jefferson didn't advocate "watering the tree of liberty" in that particular way after he witnessed first-hand the excesses of the French Revolution. He was just blogging.)
Ahhhh.... A current events reference !
Hope to see all of you at the next Cowtown Tea Party !
In spite of serious competition from The Browncoat Libertarian, I won last week's caption contest. It was time for it to happen. Picture from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
They just finished recalibrating the National Debt counter (to your right) to account for the latest government mischief. Back in October, I asked a few people when the counter would hit $11,000,000,000.00 (That's Eleven Trillion Dollars.) I didn't get many responses. I didn't have to. Flee nailed it within a week. Hit the top link to be amazed.
So, Flee....who do you like in the next Super Bowl?
"America has long stood out among developed countries for its religiosity. This has less to do with innate godliness than with the free market created by the First Amendment. Pre-Revolutionary America was not that religious, because the original Puritans were swamped by less wholesome adventurers -- in Salem, Mass., the setting for "The Crucible," 83% of taxpayers by 1683 confessed to no religious identification. America became religious after the Constitution separated church from state, thus ensuring that religious denominations could only survive if they got souls into pews. While state-sponsored religion withered in Europe, American faith has been a hive of activity: from the Methodists, who converted close to an eighth of the country in the half century after the Revolution, to the modern megachurches."
The statement that religion has prospered in the U.S. because of the absence of a state religion is almost a cliche. I mean, who the hell is going to voluntarily give 10% of their income to the C of E when it is presided over by Prince Charles?
Let's see how many other examples we can shovel into Mr. Micklethwait and Mr. Woolridge's beautifully phrased paragraphs: America has long stood out among all countries for having VCR's. This has less to do with an innate desire to watch movies than with our ability to trade somewhat freely with Taiwan. Pre-1970's America did not have that many VCR's, because the original models cost too much. In fact, one of the earliest models cost $30,000.00 and was one of the featured "ridiculously expensive" items in the Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog. Fortunately, even the poorest Americans have a VCR now that you can get them for $5.00 at pawn shops. America acquired VCRs because they were developed primarily overseas. Our government was not bribed into protecting a local monopoly, thus insuring that entrepreneurs, engineers, and logistics experts all over the world were motivated to develop less and less expensive models as demand grew. (The direct descendent of the VCR, the DVD player, is now available for $35.00 at Wal-Mart. But not in Cuba, North Korea, or Amish households.)
Ok, let's try another example ! ! !
America now leads most of the world with its low rates for phone calls. This has less to do with a government plan than with the breakup of Ma Bell in 1982. Pre-monopoly breakup America considered long distance calls an expensive novelty, which is why my mother still encourages me to call relatives whenever I pass through Mississippi, even though the rate is the same from Texas. America benefited from cheap long distance calls only after Judge Harold Greene broke up the AT&T monopoly, thus ensuring that competing phone companies could only survive if they had a reasonably priced product. This action drove AT&T into the business of creating incredibly crappy wireless phones, which I've ranted about here. Now that competition has entered the picture, long distance calls from the U.S. to the rest of the world are practically free.
That one was fun. I could do one about how, until the early 1980's, the only LTL freight carriers permitted to operate in Texas were Central Freight and Tex-Pack. When trucking was somewhat deregulated, freight costs fell from 15% of GDP to 10%. I now have freight companies falling over each other wanting to provide me what I need. For a tiny little sliver of profit. But let's save that for another day.
Let's do a fantasy one....
America has long stood out among developed countries for its education system. This has less to do with innate intelligence than with the free market created by the Milton Friedman Voucher Act of 2011. Pre-Friedman America was not that bright, because the original citizens were primarily educated by a government monopoly system -- in Washington, D.C., even opponents of The Friedman Voucher Act avoided the public schools like they were....like they were....like they were government facilities run by union labor. (See Presidents Clinton and Obama.)
America became well-educated after the Constitution separated schools from state, thus ensuring that schools could only survive if they got butts into desks. While state-sponsored education withered in Eritrea, American education has been a hive of activity: from the Gates Foundation Schools, which taught close to an eighth of the country in the half century after passage of the Friedman Voucher Act, to the modern megaschools founded by The Jonas Brothers.
Someone (who will remain nameless...heh heh heh) emailed me asking how I can be a Ron Paul fan when Dr. Paul opposes many of our Free Trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA.
Because NAFTA and CAFTA are not free trade agreements. They are just named "free trade agreements". If I named myself "Mr. Rape Victim Helper", yet I go around raping people, am I for or against rape?
And later on....
A free trade agreement should fit in a paragraph. NAFTA and CAFTA are hundreds of pages of regulations.
I still like NAFTA and CAFTA, just because they eliminate some of the protectionist B.S. And I'm not naive enough to believe that the good Dr. Paul might be protecting his own backside with some of his votes, and using the impurity of the agreements as a cover. But it does make you wonder why something called a "Free Trade Agreement" has to be 900 pages long.
The Aggie and I got to hear Pat Green perform at the Texas Motor Speedway on Friday night. Here's one of the best P.G videos that I've seen. All acoustic.
For the True Believers, here's an interview:
Here he is doing a radio promo in Ireland:
Even if Country Music isn't your thing, go hear Pat Green play. He will convert you.
Adlai Stevenson’s description of the journalist as one who “separates the wheat from the chaff and then prints the chaff” was never more apropos than in the Sunday, April 5 edition of the New York Times. Adam Nossiter’s page A-16 article, “Louisiana, a Test Case in Federal Aid” makes lowly chaff seem like nothing less than the cream of the crop. Imagine a thief who spends an afternoon pick pocketing a sizable crowd. In a few hours, he’s nabbed thousands of dollars in cash and a bag full of credit cards. He then spends a small fortune at some jewelry stores and makes off with the loot as a suspicious citizen who recognizes him cries “Stop!” If Nossiter were covering this little episode, the story in the Times the next day would read as follows: “A Good Samaritan yesterday gave several gem shops a big boost when he bought more diamonds than the stores usually sell in a month. The benefits of the spending binge were confirmed by no less an authority than the store owners themselves, who promise to hire more employees if the generous customer comes back regularly. An obviously disgruntled passerby attempted to interfere in the matter by shouting as the customer left, but he was told by an angry store manager to leave well enough alone. Meanwhile, economists at the nearby state university are hailing the increase in local GDP.” Make these substitutions and you have the gist of the actual Nossiter story in the April 5 Times: The Good Samaritan is the federal government, the jewelry store is Louisiana and the passerby who tried to rain on their parade is Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindahl. Oh, I almost forgot: the people in the crowd whose pockets got picked are representative of the taxpayers of America but it doesn’t matter because they’re not mentioned in Nossiter’s story anyway. The Times story notes that the feds have dumped more than $50 billion in money on Louisiana since Hurricane Katrina. “Indicators suggest,” notes ace reporter Nossiter, that “dumping a large amount of reconstruction money into a confined space . . . has had a positive outcome.” It’s an “experiment” that he says bodes well for the flood of stimulus spending Washington is doling out to alleviate the nation’s financial woes. Lo and behold, guess what has happened to construction in Louisiana? It’s up! (Apparently, not even government can spend $50 billion on construction without yielding some construction.) Nossiter quotes a professor who says this proves that “stimulus can have an effect.”
The Aggie and I went to Texas Motor Speedway for the weekend, an event that I'll write more about later.
There were preliminary races on Friday (with a Pat Green concert), a 300 lap race on Saturday, and a 500 lap race on Sunday.
There were display/merchandising/advertising/driver trailers peddling stuff all around the track. Organizations like Jack Daniels, Nationwide Insurance, Jeff Gordon, The U.S. Army, Kasey Kahne, Red Bull, Dale Earnhardt Jr., The U.S. Border Patrol (who sponsored a car and driver), Sprint/Nextel, Tony Stewart, The U.S. National Guard, OfficeMax, Kyle Busch, and enough food vendors to fatten up Darfur.
Halfway through the Sunday race, The Aggie decided she wanted to go look at the souvenir stands. There appeared to be more than 100,000 spectators watching the Sunday race. Organizations had paid a fortune to have a presence outside the track. 100,000 drunk people with money to spend, email addresses to harvest, mailing lists to sign up for, and good will to promote were about to come pouring out of the racetrack. It was marketing heaven.
Guess which three organizations were closing down and packing their trailers before the race was over?
