LSOCK NEWS December 17, 2012
IN THIS ISSUE:
IN THIS ISSUE:
- From The Editor
- Tuesday LSOCK Meeting Last for 2012
- Joel Balam’s Vote Total sets National LP Record
- David Nolan on Essential
1. From The Editor
Hello everyone,
Have a joyous Christmas - if you celebrate Christmas – not all do (and not all Christians do as well) or any of the other holidays that you might observe this winter solstice.
Much ado has been made lately regarding the 2012 Solstice due to the Mayan calendar ending on that date. We probably needn’t worry too much about the Mayan Calendar predicting the end of the world. It is just the point where their calendar resets itself. This does not mean the end of the world. It is from this point that the Mayans measured the 26,000 (actually closer to 25,920) year period of the cycle of the wobble of the Earth’s axis. This is known as the “Great” or “Sidereal” Year. The Winter Solstice in 2012 AD (or CE for those who are non-christians) is where in this cycle the sun is centered in the middle of the Milky Way as seen from Earth at dawn on the morning of the solstice.
The ancient Egyptians measured this period from when the constellation Orion is at its lowest height above the horizon at dawn on the vernal equinox., 10.500 BC was the last time that happened. This was the “beginning” or “end” time for the ancient Egyptians. I understand that 30 or more ancient cultures around the world were aware of this period of 26,000 years. That any ancient culture was aware of this cycle at all is staggering and calls into question what has generally been our accepted history of human civilization.
However, we certainly can readily see that “the time’s, they are a’changin” to use the words from a Bob Dylan song. This is obvious from a variety of current events. The states are standing up to the feds now for their (our) rights on many fronts, firearms, education, healthcare and cannabis laws to name just a few. The United States
Whether our nation will change for the better or worse will depend on how the battle for liberty goes. We must do more to educate the public of the value and critical importance of individual freedom and free markets.
We must promote our Libertarian philosophy and policies and demonstrate that libertarianism is respect for others’ property and rights and decisions on how they wish to live their lives. That human freedom in the greatest human good and that it results in the greatest benefits to both individuals and society.
We are not alone in this effort as many grass-roots citizens groups are also working toward the goal of less government – more freedom!
Thank you and God Bless you all.
For Liberty
Steven A. Rosile
Editor, LSOCK NEWS
2. Tuesday LSOCK Meeting Last for 2012
As the last two Tuesdays this year are Christmas Day and New Year’s Day the last LSOCK Supper Meeting for 2012 will be Tuesday, the 18th of December.
3. Joel Balam’s Vote Total sets National LP Record
From Ballot Access News www.ballot-access.org
At last month’s election, the only two candidates on the ballot for U.S. House, In the district as a whole, Balam received 92,675 votes, whereas Yoder received 201,087. Balam’s share of the vote in the district, 31.5%, is the best showing by a Libertarian for U.S. House in the party’s history. Here is Balam’s web page. He appears to have active involvement with veterans groups, and a church group. His mother was Hispanic and some of the content on the web page is in Spanish.
4. The Essence of Liberty
As a founder of the Libertarian Party and editor-in-chief of California Liberty, I am often asked how to tell if someone is "really" a libertarian. There are probably as many different definitions of the word "libertarian" as there are people who claim the label. These range from overly broad ("anyone who calls himself a libertarian is one") to impossibly doctrinaire ("only those who agree with every word in the party platform are truly annointed").
My own definition is that in order to be considered a libertarian, at least in the political context, an individual must adhere without compromise to five key points. Ideally, of course, we'd all be in agreement on everything. But we're not, and probably never will be. Debate is likely to continue indefinitely on such matters as abortion, foreign policy, and whether, when, and how various government programs can be discontinued or privatized. But as far as I'm concerned, if someone is sound on these five points, he/she is de facto a libertarian; if he fails on even one of the five, he isn't. What then, are the "indispensible five" -- the points of no compromise?
YOU OWN YOURSELF
First and foremost, libertarians believe in the the principle of self-ownership. You own your own body and mind; no extermal power has the right to force you into the service of "society" or "mankind" or any other individual or group for any purpose, however noble. Slavery is wrong, period. Because you own yourself, you are responsible for your own well-being. Others are not obligated to feed you, clothe you, or provide you with health care. Most of us choose to help one another voluntarily, for a variety of reasons -- and that's as it should be -- but "forced compassion" is an oxymoron, a contradiction in terms.
THE RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENSE
Self-ownership implies the right to self-defense. Libertarians yield to no one in their support for our right as individuals to keep and bear arms. We only wish that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution said "The right to self-defense being inalienable..." instead of that stuff about a "well-regulated militia". Anyone who thinks that government -- any government -- has the right to disarm its citizens is NOT a libertarian!
NO "CRIMINAL POSSESSION" LAWS
In fact, libertarians believe that individuals have the right to own and use anything- gold, guns, marijuana, sexually explicit material- so long as they do not harm others through force or the threat of force. Laws criminalizing the simple possession of anything are tailor-made for police states; it is all too easy to plant a forbidden substance in someone's home, car or pocket. Libertarians are as tough on crime- real crime- as anyone. But criminal possession laws are an affront to liberty, whatever the rhetoric used to defend them.
NO TAXES ON PRODUCTIVITY
In an ideal world, there would be no taxation. All services would be paid for on an as-used basis. But in a less-than-ideal world, some services will be force-financed for the foreseeable future. However, not all taxes are equally deleterious, and the worst form of taxation is a tax on productivity -- i.e., an income tax -- and no libertarian supports this type of taxation.
What kind of taxation is least harmful? This is a topic still open for debate. My own preference is for a single tax on land. Is this "the" libertarian position on taxes? No. But all libertarians oppose any form of income tax.
A SOUND MONEY SYSTEM
The fifth and final key test of anyone's claim to being a libertarian is their support for an honest money system; i.e. one where the currency is backed by something of true value (usually gold or silver). Fiat money -- money with no backing, whose acceptance is mandated by the State -- is simply legalized counterfeiting and is one of the keys to expanding government power.
The five points enumerated here are not a complete, comprehensive prescription for freedom... but they would take us most of the way. A government which cannot conscript, confiscate, or counterfeit, and which imposes no criminal penalties for the mere possession and peaceful use of anything, is one that almost all libertarians would be comfortable with.
*editors note - David Nolan passed away in late 2010 just a few weeks after the Congressional elections. Nolan had just ran for US Senator for Arizona
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