Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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Clovis' Poison Pellet Program for prairie dogs shows some of the flaws with "public" property, and with the sad state of property rights in general. Some people, me included, really appreciate prairie dogs for their historical significance to the region, and for their vital niche in the ecosystem. Wildlife of any sort is a valuable addition to the area. Others want them eradicated. Nearby landowners are claiming damage from prairie dogs that wander — or emigrate — from Ned Houk Park onto their property. They want the cit...
So, you're still not a libertarian? Why not? Let's get beyond misguided religious excuses, justifications regarding "fairness" and overblown, irrational fears. What all these excuses boil down to — as reasons why you can't embrace libertarianism — is wanting to feel OK with having someone available to hurt other people who are not harming you. Yes, that really is at the foundation of all acts non-libertarians are trying to justify. Libertarianism recognizes your absolute right to self defense when you are being attacked, and...
I am frequently amazed that more people don't see the fundamental folly in permitting a branch of the government — the Supreme Court — to claim to have the final say in whether or not a particular law is constitutional. That power wasn't granted the court. The justices grabbed it for themselves, in the "Marbury v. Madison" decision in 1803, the case that established the basis for judicial review. The Constitution has one main purpose: outline what the U.S. government can do, and conversely outline what it may not do. The ide...
Recently a lot of anti-liberty advocates have tried to justify their opposition to the Second Amendment. They say it is "outdated;" that back when the Bill of Rights was written, the founders couldn't have foreseen semi-automatic rifles. That may or may not be true, but even then advances were being made, and these men weren't stupid. You can't convince me that scientists such as Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson weren't smart enough to see where the technology was leading. But let's pretend for just a moment that the...
How many times have you wished others would "wake up" and realize the importance of some issue? Probably as many times as I have. Libertarian author L. Neil Smith points out that people are already "awake," otherwise nothing would get done. They are awake to the things they need to do to get through their day. Taking care of the kids, getting the job done so the paycheck will keep coming, so the house payment gets made, the groceries get bought, and the electricity doesn't get shut off takes a lot of awareness. Often, it... Full story
One of the self-evident tenets of libertarianism is that of self-ownership. You own your life, and the products of your life. If you didn't own yourself, you couldn't give your life to someone else since it wouldn't be yours to give. That has implications in every aspect of life, from the interpersonal to the religious. Just as no one else can claim to own your life, no one else has any claim on the products of your life without your explicit agreement. Being born in a place, and choosing to not leave, is not an explicit...
Libertarians often get accused of blaming everything on government. Little old us, picking on big strong government? That's silly. The problem is not government, nor is it crime. The problem is people using theft and aggression against others. To draw a false distinction between these primary sources of theft and aggression in the world is to miss the point entirely. It is to be a part of the problem rather than a part of the solution. Theft and aggression exist, and always will, so I might as well accept it and deal with... Full story
In the weeks after the Sandy Hook massacre, the standard reactions that always follow such a tragedy cropped up everywhere, with a new emphasis on the specter of "mental illness." Surprise! Mentally ill people are responsible for mass murders. What can be done about that? Even more "taxes" to force us to pay to treat more people? If nationalized health care is bad, and it is, how can more be good? Nothing is free, politicians' claims to the contrary. Do you sentence someone to life in a cage or a "hospital" when they haven't...
Following libertarian principles is inseparable from being a decent human being. Even kindergartners are taught the libertarian principles: Don't start a fight by throwing the first punch and don't take other people's stuff. It really is that simple. It's only as kids get older that most adults start trying to make children accept exceptions to these rules. It is a glaring inconsistency that most children can see right through, while their parents try to wiggle around finding justifications that just aren't there. Rules are o...
Mass murders. Who commits them? Where do they happen? How can they be prevented? How can they be stopped when prevention fails? These seem to be the only reasonable questions to ask in the wake of Sandy Hook. Who commits them? People who have mental problems, which have often been treated with medication. That includes people who, for various reasons, are already prohibited (illegally and unconstitutionally) from possessing the weapons they use to murder people. Where do they happen? Almost exclusively in places where people...
Are you among those torn between feeling you should support the government, and knowing it does wrong? Should you "render unto Caesar" anything that he, in his modern incarnation, demands? Basically, to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's just means don't take, or keep, that which isn't yours. Don't steal. If you have someone else's property, give it back. Does your money automatically belong to the government just because someone passed a law permitting them to take it? Absolutely not. Should you pay for services you use,...
Are you among those torn between feeling you should support the government, and knowing it does wrong? Should you "render unto Caesar" anything that he, in his modern incarnation, demands? Basically, to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's just means don't take, or keep, that which isn't yours. Don't steal. If you have someone else's property, give it back. Does your money automatically belong to the government just because someone passed a law permitting them to take it? Absolutely not. Should you pay for services you use,... Full story
Fraser Institute released its Economic Freedom of North America 2012 report, and New Mexico came in 50th among the American states. That's bad news, but it's also an incredible and exciting opportunity, because it would be so simple to flip that ranking upside down. Economic freedom is natural; it requires a lot of effort to stifle it. To destroy economic freedom requires "taxation," regulations, red tape, licenses, and fees. All those things amount to barriers that are erected between an idea and actually providing a... Full story
I have noticed a couple of recent letters to the editor calling for respect toward those in political office. That's all well and good; there needs to be more respect in society, but it needs to be earned. Respect is cheapened when it is not deserved. When it is given unearned to someone who demands it, it is downright worthless. So should politicians and other government employees be shown respect? Well, sure, the same respect that is due everyone alive is also due to them. But no extra respect is due them simply because of...
Being libertarian isn't all fun and games. We are not necessarily the "party crowd" we are sometimes made out to be. While some libertarians are undoubtedly that way, as are many non-libertarians, it certainly isn't a given. Libertarianism is not about taking liberties, but about respecting the liberty of others to do as they wish with their own life as long as they are not stealing or attacking. Many, perhaps most, libertarians have very ordinary personal lives. Some may never shoot or own a gun, may never smoke marijuana re... Full story
How would you behave if there were no laws against murder or theft? How about your friends and relatives? Would any of you go on a rampage? If so, what's really stopping you now? I think people who obey such laws would not do those things in the absence of the laws. I also believe the laws don't do anything to stop those who are determined to commit those vile acts. Good people don't need laws to restrain them and bad people won't be restrained by laws. On the other hand, the vast majority of laws have nothing to do with... Full story
The election has come and gone, and even though I am writing this before any actual results are in, I already know the outcome with absolute certainty: Once again a crooked politician has won the presidency and America — specifically the liberty that is the only thing that distinguishes America from any second-rate banana republic — has been stomped down a little more. If you don't believe me, let's discuss this again in three years or so and see where the situation stands at that time. It is the same story every ele...
I will probably never understand those who feel the solution to any problem is to get the government to do something about it. Very few things should ever be subject to a vote, and nothing that would violate the rights of the losing side should ever be put to a vote — nor imposed by law. I recently watched an online video that told the story of how the Dutch got their bicycle paths. Instead of having those who thought it was a good idea join together in voluntary cooperation, the advocates instead joined forces to have govern...
The Clovis cosmetics plant fiasco is a good demonstration of the truth that the best thing government can do, about the economy and everything else, is: nothing. It's a result that it seems anyone who doesn't look at life through the "beer goggles" of government could have seen coming. Judging from comments I saw when the deal was first announced, I'd say many are not surprised. Yes, the area could use more jobs, but handing out "tax" money to bring them in is just not a good idea, even if you believe it is ethical to do so....
What is "America?" America isn't the land mass, although it does sit on a spectacular and rich piece of real estate. America isn't the shared history, although that is a vital thread that gets neglected, inverted, or obscured today. America isn't the U.S. government or those employed by it, nor is it the massive mountain of "laws" that government has imposed. America isn't even the individuals living here. Many who have lived here for generations, both in and out of government, violate everything America is with everything... Full story
Recently I saw some people around here get very upset over what they saw as an attack on their freedom of religion at government-sponsored sporting events. I saw it somewhat differently. Religious freedom is a condition necessary for liberty. As long as you practice your religion, or absence thereof, without attacking any innocent person, without coercion, and without violating the property of others, no one should be able to use government force to interfere. That's not exactly freedom from religion, but from religiouscoerci...
Recent and ongoing local events illustrate the folly of imprisonment. The situation is not unique. The same type of events repeat, in limited variation, all across America on a continuous basis. The Stanford Prison Experiment, and subsequent studies that keep confirming it, should demonstrate that you can't give one group of people dominion over another group of people without both groups losing their humanity. It's not healthy for anyone. Imprisonment also provides a...
"Justice" is the attempt to take an individual who has been harmed by an act of aggression or property loss and correct the damage; to return the victim to as close to the "pre-victimized condition" as possible. What, then, is "injustice?" It is often simply the lack of justice. This could be injustice through omission or a case of justice being impossible to provide. Or it could be (and often is) the opposite of justice. This might be the attempt to harm an individual who has already been harmed by an attack or a theft — l... Full story
Even if you could make murder rare by banning or regulating guns and knives, it would still not be right to violate the fundamental right of every human to own and to carry whatever type of weapon we desire, wherever we may go, openly or concealed, without ever asking permission from anyone. Even if ending prohibition would result in a massive increase in the use of politically incorrect drugs and result in more deaths, it is still the right thing to do because no one has the right or the legitimate authority to tell other... Full story
Even if you could make murder rare by banning or regulating guns and knives, it would still not be right to violate the fundamental right of every human to own and to carry whatever type of weapon we desire, wherever we may go, openly or concealed, without ever asking permission from anyone. Even if ending prohibition would result in a massive increase in the use of politically incorrect drugs and result in more deaths, it is still the right thing to do because no one has the right or the legitimate authority to tell other...
