Pictures. Posters. Memes. Facebook Statuses. Post-Thanksgiving edition

It's been a long holiday weekend, and I've taken a break from getting pissed off from reading accounts of the Obamacare debacle, the looming doctor shortage, the unemployment rate and all the other things that make up my media diet. 

So here are some funny and pithy pics that I've been saving for the last month or so. 

 

 

Look this one up for the full-size version at HiddenSecretsOfMoney.com 

The clown in the White House is now advocating raising the minimum wage to ten bucks an hour, BTW....

 

The Greatest Collection Of Libertarian Links EVER

A genius called Nobody25864 over at Libertarian Reddit has put together the best collection of Libertarian links that I've ever seen.

It's a monument to unselfish generosity. 

And since there is no such thing as generosity without a recipient, I have stolen it and posted the entire thing here so I can find it later for my own selfish self. 

It would've been the perfect reading companion to fill up the sober moments of my Labor Day weekend, had I seen it sooner. 

Images - Inspirational quotes, cartoons, memes and funny pics

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30 Day Reading List Challenge - A good collection of libertarian articles to get you familiar with theory!

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Principles
The Law by Frederic Bastiat - A fantastic look at the proper place of the law and how it has been perverted into legal plunder, as explained by Bastiat in 1850. Highly recommended.
Anatomy of the State by Murray Rothbard - An explanation of what the state is not, what it is, and how it functions. Highly recommended.
The Science of Justice by Lysander Spooner - Spooner talks of some implications of self-ownership.
The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible - Libertarian morals broken down into kid stories!
The Philosophy of Liberty
The Philosophy of Liberty: Property
The Philosophy of Liberty: Plunder
Pirates and Emperors
George Ought to Help
You Can Always Leave
The Non-Aggression Principle
Make Mine Freedom
Milton Friedman - Greed
I, Pencil
For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto
The Ethics of Liberty.

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Anarcho-Capitalism
The Production of Security by Gustave de Molinari - The first anarcho-capitalist book ever written. Highly recommended.
No Treason by Lysander Spooner - Possibly the greatest argument for anarchy ever written. A scathing attack on the Constitution, Spooner reveals how the Constitution fails all the requirements for a legal contract, concluding that it is a Constitution of no authority. It does presume a bit of familiarity with legal principles though. Highly recommended.
The State is Not Great by Jacob Spinney
The Market for Security by Robert Murphy
The Tale of the Slave by Robert Nozick - Does voting turn slaves into free men?
If You Were King
Law Without Government - Highly recommended.
The Machinery of Freedom: Illustrated Guide - Highly recommended.
Why Libertarianism is Dangerous - The "horrors" of anarchy!
Top 10 Reasons Why the Mafia Would Be Better Than the State
But Wouldn't Warlords Take Over?
Common Argument Topics

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Economics
How an Economy Grows and Why It Doesn't by Irwin Schiff - A comic about cavemen that invent economic interaction, going from there to developing a more modern economy, and how the government messes this all up. Highly recommended.
Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt; Video series version (currently ongoing!) - Inspired by Bastiat, Hazlitt explains the economics behind some key political issues.
That Which is Seen and That Which is Not Seen by Frederic Bastiat - The article that inspired the above.
The Candlemaker's Petition by Frederic Bastiat - Bastiat writes a fake petition from the producers of light in France for the government to ban the sun.
Defending the Undefendable - Block looks at different occupations that are frowned upon in society, but are consistent with libertarian principle.
Lessons for the Young Economist by Robert Murphy; a high school textbook for austrian economics.
Economics for Real People: An Introduction to the Austrian School - Brought in by comment by /u/LetThemEatWar32's suggestion! As the title says, its an introduction to the Austrian School.
Capitalism in One Lesson - An explanation of what capitalism is with tons of resources to learn more.
Praxgirl - A cute girl explains basic praxeology.
Fight of the Century: Keynes vs. Hayek Round Two (this is a sequel to "Fear the Boom and Bust" a Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem)
Deck the Halls with Macro Follies
Trade is Made of Win
The Broken Window Fallacy
-Methodological Individualism
That Mitchell and Webb Look - Football - A comedy sketch explaining what's wrong with the excessive use of the word "we".
Friends - A Selfless Good Deed - A clip from Friends in which Joey explains why all purposeful action is selfish as everyone necessarily acts to complete the goals they value most highly, even when this end is normally dubbed "selfless" or "altruistic".
- Money
What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Murray Rothbard - Rothbard explains what money is, how government messes it up, and gives a brief history of money in western civilization. Highly recommended.
What is Money? by Frederic Bastiat; audio version - Bastiat explains in dialogue form the many evils that come from confusing money with wealth.
The American Dream - A cartoon looking at the problems of the Federal Reserve and fractional reserve banking.
- Austrian Business Cycle Theory
"Fear the Boom and Bust" a Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem
The Austrian Business Cycle Explained
America's Great Depression by Murray Rothbard - A bit more lengthy, but definitely worth looking at if you're interested in a simple explanation of business cycle theory and a history lesson on the causes of the Great Depression.
-TEH ROADS?!?!
The Privatization of Roads and Highways by Walter Block
Streets and Roads by Murray Rothbard
- Environmentalism
Law, Property Rights, and Air Pollution
Can Hunting Endangered Animals Save the Species?
Tragedy of the Commons
Ghostbusters Hates the EPA and So Should You
-Intellectual Property
Against Intellectual Property
History of Copyright
- Healthcare
How Government Solved the Healthcare Crisis
A Four-Step Healthcare Solution by Hans-Hermann Hoppe
Healthcare as a Right
- Minimum Wage
Edgar the Exploiter
How the Minimum Wage Creates Unemployment
Jeff's Story
Critique of Objectivism
Ayn Rand on Libertarianism
Mozart was a Red by Murray Rothbard
The Sociology of the Ayn Rand Cult by Murray Rothbard

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Comedy
TAKE JURY DUTY!
eEconomics and the rest - A fantastic video series
Be a Cop
Clint Webb
Crack
Pledge of Allegiance
Teachers Union
Moon Bears
Nerf Nuke
- Yes Prime Minister
Leading Questions
If the Right People Don't Have the Power
- Penn and Teller
Corn Subsidies
On the Second Amendment
Wealth Redistribution

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Fiction
Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - The horrors of egalitarianism. For a bit of expansion on it, read Rothbards' Egalitarianism as a Revolt Against Nature
1984 by George Orwell - The ultimate in dystopian literature.
Animal Farm by George Orwell - An allegory for the rise and fall of soviet communism.
Anthem by Ayn Rand - Miraculously, Rand did produce a short fiction story that has a nice look at individualism. A man in a socialist world rediscovers the lightbulb.
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein - A science fiction story of the moon revolting against the rule of Earth.
Time Will Run Back by Henry Hazlitt - The world has been taken over by socialism, and the son of the dictator of the Won World Government is suddenly thrust into a position of power in which he accidentally rediscovers capitalism step by step.

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Just the Recommended Ones
The Law by Frederic Bastiat
Anatomy of the State by Murray Rothbard
The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible
The Philosophy of Liberty
The Production of Security by Gustave de Molinari
No Treason by Lysander Spooner
How an Economy Grows and Why It Doesn't by Irwin Schiff
Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt
What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Murray Rothbard

Facebook Fodder For Libertarians

For everyone who wants to put liberty-oriented conversation starters on Facebook every day of their lives, here are a few resources:

All American Blogger has a selection of 99 Great Libertarian Quotes.  Here's a sampling.

1. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul, can always count on the support of Paul. – George Bernard Shaw
2. America needs fewer laws, not more prisons. – James Bovard
3. War is just one more big government program. – Joseph Sobran
4. Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide. – John Adams (1814)

5. They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin
6. One of the greatest delusions in the world is the hope that the evils in this world are to be cured by legislation. – Thomas B. Reed (1886)
7. If you are not free to choose wrongly and irresponsibly, you are not free at all. – Jacob Hornberger (1995)
8. Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys. – P.J. O’Rourke
9. The more corrupt the state, the more it legislates. – Tacitus
10. Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. – George Washington

The other 89 are just as good.  

Artist Dan McCall creates some of the greatest posters, prints, t-shirts, and blog illustrations on the Net.  

Go here for generic Free Stuff like this.

Or free desktop wallpaper like this:

And then there's his art and print gallery.  There's probably something in here for everybody.  That doesn't mean everybody will like this one.....

Dan also puts some of his work-in-progress on Facebook.  He's a great guy.  Friend him.  

And then there's Reddit.  

Reddit is a place where, no matter how much of an individual you think you are, you can find a few hundred people just like.....you.  

Here's a link to Libertarian Reddit.  Browse the top articles.  Facebook 'em.  Tweet 'em.  Email 'em.  

I hope you have fun with this stuff.  

Try to remember this one important rule:  "Polite People Never Change Anything".  

Liberal vs. Libertarian

On Libertarian Reddit, someone posed the question "What's the difference between Liberal vs. Libertarian?"

Here's the best answer:

I'm not sure if this relates to what you mean, but "liberal" used mean what libertarian means today, but the socialists co-opted the word, and so in now the USA "liberal" means socialism-lite.


Anyhow, to understand the false dichotomy between "liberal" and "conservative" you need to understand it's a divide and conquer strategy. Take those who believe very strongly in personal property rights over their body, and the right to do what they want with their bodies, and play them as enemies against those who believe very strongly in private property rights that are external to the body, and who believe they have the right to use their property in any peaceful way they see fit. And then try to sideline and treat like a loon, anybody who believes in both.

So today the liberals tend to believe very strongly in personal rights, but tend not to give a shit about economic liberties, and today the conservatives tend to believe rather strongly in economic liberties, but tend not to give a shit about personal liberties, and the libertarians believe in both personal liberties, and economic liberties. So in that sense, the conservatives try to treat the libertarians as liberal enemies, and the liberals try to treat libertarians as ultra conservative right-wing enemies. And libertarians tend to think of conservatives and liberals, well, as the same, not giving a shit about peoples' freedoms.

There you have it. 

What I Actually Do - Barack Obama edition

From the photo files

It's time to purge the photo files - all the great stuff that comes my way from Facebook, Reddit, emails, and elsewhere. 

No one but Libertarians thinks this is even remotely ironic.  Time magazine was for real with this.  But BHO and FDR are getting similar economic results.