Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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New Mexico politicians are hopping on the “red flag law” bandwagon; scheming to commit wrong in the name of imagined “safety.” Red-flag legislation is all the rage, politically. I don’t call them laws because they aren’t laws. Laws can’t violate natural human rights; this legislation does. Imposing or enforcing legislation that violates life, liberty, or property in any way makes you the wrongdoer. It doesn’t change matters to write words giving yourself permission to v...
I want you to hunger for liberty; to crave the freedom to do everything you have a right to do, even if you choose to not do it all. I want you to want liberty as much as I want it. I also want you to respect the liberty of others. To govern yourself and no one else — this is your primary obligation to others. I realize some people are scared by the thought of liberty or freedom. I’ve even seen people complain that libertarians want to “force people to be free.” This has becom...
Everyone would be smart to consider “what if?” — especially where their beliefs and assumptions are concerned. While it’s not healthy to dwell on it until the thought paralyzes you, “what if I’m wrong?” is essential if you like being correct. What if I’m wrong about everything I believe? There are those who believe I am. Are they right? What if it really were possible to change an unethical act into an ethical one just by writing some words saying it’s now OK? What if you call...
I remember the panic I felt about tornado warnings as a child. It didn’t matter whether my family was in danger; I wasn’t informed enough to know whether we were. I didn’t understand that worry isn’t helpful, and I wasn’t able to change things. There was nothing meaningful I could do. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve heard of local children scared that World War III had begun. They’ve overheard adults talking about it and were worried. I did my best to explain things and ca...
I’m not a fan of the trend on social media to create artificial divisions to pit people against each other. A recent example is the condescending remark “OK boomer.” This phrase is commonly used against anyone assumed to be a “baby boomer,” or who simply isn’t as “progressive” and “enlightened” as those weaned on “social justice” might prefer. If someone points out problems with socialism, with basing legislation on sexual identity issues, with climate change prescriptions to...
Happy new year and happy new decade. I know, it doesn’t really mean anything to say it’s a “new year” or a “new decade” since it’s arbitrary, but it feels significant — partly because it’s treated as though it is. I like excuses to celebrate so I’m fine with it. The winter solstice is a natural time for a year to begin, as would be the other solar divisions of the year: the summer solstice or one of the equinoxes. The winter solstice was originally celebrated as the n...
Peace on Earth. While it sounds like a wonderful ambition — and under the right conditions, it would be nice — not all peace is good. A cemetery is peaceful. No one is more peaceful than the dead. People who have given up are peaceful. Why fight against something that has already defeated you? I’m no pacifist. I don’t support unnecessary violence like the kind governments depend on, but I know defensive violence can be necessary. When I first heard the story of the First W...
The holiday season is the main time of year when traditions come alive. Everywhere you look, someone’s tradition will be on display; from house decorations, to clothing, to food and music. These are the ones visible to the world — many more traditions are practiced at home among family and friends. Almost everyone has some sort of holiday tradition they’ve passed down through the generations. Holiday traditions can be a lot of fun. They provide a common thread running from...
There’s one Christmas gift I’d love to give you: the gift of liberty. The freedom to do everything you have a right to do. It’s a gift bigger than you can imagine. Alas, it’s not possible to give anyone liberty. In order for you to have liberty, you’ve got to make it for yourself, with your own hands, and put it to daily use. Plus, even if I could give you liberty, it would most likely be illegal. The best I can do under the limitations of reality is get you to recognize...
It’s the holiday season. This is the time of year when people can celebrate — or not — however they like. It’s also when those who feel they are better than you and assume the moral authority to dictate how you should be allowed to live decry what they see as the rampant consumerism. I’m glad I live in a time and place where “consumerism” is possible, whether I participate or not. Most of human history has been a struggle to barely survive, with a low chance of surviving lon...
How can Thanksgiving Day be here again? Has it really been a year? Yes, it has, and this means it’s time again to remind myself of the things I’m grateful for on this Gratitude Day. You’d probably expect me to say I’m grateful for the scattered bits and pieces of liberty left in America; those fragments that haven’t yet been regulated out of existence, and I am. I’m also grateful for my family, especially because in the past year my son has moved within visiting distance. I...
Are you concerned over how divisive politics has become? Do you notice the growing intolerance for opposing opinions? Do you wish everyone could go back to a time when there was civil debate and people could agree to disagree? Yet, at the same time, do you support using government and its legislation against others in ever-increasing ways? You can have a civil society or you can have government control; you can’t have both. Government has been allowed to get too big, p...
A common criticism of libertarians is that we are wrapped up in principles; in absolutes. We are called “purists” as if this is a bad thing, yet the opposite of “pure” is “contaminated.” Ethical principles function like a conscience. You won’t always do what your conscience tells you, but without it, you can’t know you’ve done wrong. Another word for “principled” is “consistent.” People balk at principles and consistency when they want to do something they know isn’t...
I’m always in favor of cleaning up litter, so Clovis’ semi-annual Trek for Trash last weekend seems like a good idea. A useful task made into a party. An even better idea is to not wait until someone organizes a special event, but to pick up any trash you run across as you go about your daily travels. You can make the world a little cleaner every day. Decent, responsible people don’t litter, and they make sure their trash can’t accidentally escape into the wild to violate othe...
A tax increase for Clovis’ near-mythical water project has been recommended. This illustrates one danger of allowing government to control access to water. To propose a tax is to admit failure. They couldn’t find a voluntary way to do what they want so they’ll send the guns of government to loot the society — in this case through an annual ransom on property; a “property tax.” A reliable supply of drinkable water is critical. The responsible, difficult, and adult way to handle...
How much do you respect and obey laws? How much should you? I suppose that depends on what you mean by “laws.” Most people confuse legislation for laws. Laws were discovered — usually thousands of years ago — while legislation is made up by politicians and imposed under threat of violence as if it were law. Occasionally, legislation is written to copy or reflect law, but not often. Law concerns respecting the rights of others, while legislation is almost entirely written...
Sometimes it’s hard to remember to be thankful for life’s little blessings. Recently I was reminded to be grateful I don’t live in California. My electricity went out for a little while a few days ago, but the power company was on the ball and power was restored in no time; long before it could have become inconvenient for anyone but the least prepared among us. By contrast, the electric utility in California plans to shut off power to hundreds of thousands of its payin...
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, and all the rest of you, too! Welcome to the Big Top. Yes, that’s right: the Impeachment Circus, with its dancing elephants and prancing donkeys, is coming to town. It has been announced amid much fanfare. The flyers have been tacked to telephone poles all over America and I think I hear the parade of animals coming up the street. Grab your manure shovels from the tool shed and be ready to start scooping. If only it w...
You may find it hard to believe, but my first car was an electric car. Nothing so fancy as a Tesla, though. It was a 1975 Sebring-Vanguard Citicar. That's us in the photograph, in the spring of 1980, looking nerdy. At school and around the neighborhood my car was known as "The Nuke." Why such an odd nickname? Because it sported a bumper sticker that said something to the effect of "One nuke plant saves enough oil for X-thousand cars;" I don't remember the exact wording or...
Libertarians have a saying, often represented by the acronym TANSTAAFL: “There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.” This is a rule of reality as inflexible as any other law of physics, but politicians think they can fool people into believing it’s negotiable. Sometimes it seems they are right; people can be fooled — but reality won’t be cheated. Now New Mexico’s politicians are telling the people they can magically make college free for everyone. They can’t, and it probably...
It’s as predictable as the equinox: school starts in the fall and bullying catches society’s attention anew. It’s not as though bullying stops over the summer break, but then it is usually left-over momentum from the previous school year. “Back to school” recharges it. Schools decry bullying, often getting the community involved. It’s a halfhearted effort at best. Schools can’t eliminate bullying without undermining their own system since it’s based on authoritarianis...
We all have our own likes and dislikes. This means everyone likes some things other people dislike; sometimes the likes and dislikes are passionate and the disagreements get rather heated. There’s a secret trick I discovered, which seems to be unseen by most people; one which seems nearly impossible for them to even consider. Here it is, presented for (maybe) the first time you’ve ever heard it: It’s OK to dislike something without wanting a law to ban or control it. Serio...
I admit it: I’ve always been a bit of a space geek. Or, would that be “space nerd?” Whatever the term, I love space flight, and am especially excited to see it beginning to escape the stagnant, innovation-crushing monopoly of government. I’ve enjoyed watching the recent rocket launches and the tests of the experimental vehicles. I am pulling for humans to walk on Mars in my lifetime; thinking it’s looking more likely all the time. I resent government agencies pretendin...
The better you understand something, the easier it is to notice when you’re being lied to. Plus, the less likely it is you’ll be fooled by the lies. When I’m watching a movie and I see someone on screen starting a fire by randomly hitting rocks together and suddenly their campfire logs burst into flame I always think, “That’s not how it works!” Anyone who tries to light a fire this way isn’t going to end up with a fire unless someone else builds one for them. The same thin...
Usually, the more I learn about something the more I appreciate it. There have been many times when a friend has introduced me to something I knew next to nothing about; something they were enthusiastic for, and before long I had gained a new appreciation. It doesn’t necessarily mean it becomes something I’m seriously interested in, but I can still appreciate it through new eyes. Recently I was introduced to the history of the Three Stooges by a friend who runs the int...
