Defense of Truth

The mainstream media is having a little fun affirming its own role as thought-police with a ridiculous statement made on the floor of the House by Tennessee Democrat Representative comparing the tactics Republicans have used to (properly!) criticize the Obamacare bill to those used by Nazi propaganda mastermind Paul Joseph Goebbels. Here are his words: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG2hWFPLmZ4 Of course, even bringing up the Nazis has become so politically taboo that immediately Talk Radio condemned Rep. Cohen for comparing Republicans to Nazis. This he did NOT do. And in defending himself on CNN with Anderson Cooper, Cohen was quite right to insist that he wasn't comparing the morally repugnant Nazis with his political opponents the Republicans. Instead he attempted to be careful--and his logic is flawless in this--about re-affirming that it was the (in his mind) dishonest propaganda tactic he was condemning, not the politicians. Here's his interview on CNN: http://www.th...

The right has been mercilessly hammering home the evilness of this infamous Rahm Emanuel quote over the last few days, and with good reason. The essential meaning Emanuel, Barack Obama's former chief of staff and longtime Clinton iron-fist, was trying to convey, was that the masses are too stupid to understand the political system that's in their best interest. Therefore, it was up to leftist politicians to "capitalize", despite the irony of the term, on the emotional high only a crisis can provide--only a sustained media-hyped public event can provide--to shame principled opposition into permitting compromises on free-market, limited-government solutions. Now to be sure, stifling debate by choosing an unassailable victim as your voice is a preferred trick of the left, and is deplorable for what it is. Whether it's the ideology they're trying to advance, or their own personal political gain, a politician who trots out a victim can quickly chill his principl...

Here's another Facebook conversation I shouldn't have stuck my nose into today. Please note what passes for objectivity. Also Liberal Friend B presents an interesting assumption. Apparently, conservatives have evil intentions and no other explanation for their actions is possible, or even really thinkable. It couldn't possibly be that they have an actual logical disagreement on the merits of the issue at hand... Liberal Friend A: So we don't want to pass a treaty with Russia because... the Republicans don't want to comply with international law? We'll hunt you down if you have nukes, but don't ask us to get rid of ours. Right? http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/world/europe/17start.html?pagewanted=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=a2 G.O.P. Opposition Dims Hope for Arms Treaty With Russia www.nytimes.com The chief Senate Republican negotiator dealt a setback to President Obama’s effort to pass a treaty with Russia. Me: Thanks for the read. It reminds me why I...

Inevitably we are all going to "friend" someone on Facebook who posts lots of bolstering material for their chosen political ideology on their wall. I don't like to respond there. The wall is for person to person contact, and it's public. I'm not going to start a big ole word fight over things there, unless I feel compelled by the nature of the post. But it would be fruitful to think some of them through here. Latest case in point: the Tea Party and the supposed hypocrisy of some of its candidates, Joe Miller of AK to be specific in this article (I haven't read the Rolling Stone in AGES--ever since they knocked Metallica for writing "Don't Tread on Me" because it didn't fit their idea of how anti-war the band was somehow supposed to be). Fair warning the article is mildly salacious and is not opposed to harsh language and imagery. Can I enjoy the wit in an opponent's sarcasm? Absolutely. But he's still fallacious. First off, Ca...

Ron Paul Photo from: http://www.ronpaul2008.com/about/ Sean Hannity photo from: http://www.jonesreport.com/articles/150507_ron_paul_debate.html I like Congressman and former multiple-election Libertarian party presidential candidate Ron Paul . I do. I admire him for his straight talk, and even more for the fact that he actually does walk it too. I had a conversation with a brother of mine (who I respect immensely and who has researched and thought through many of the aspects of his affiliation with Ron Paul's ideals) at our family reunion recently that helped me understand what appeal he might have in the Republican primary. So between that and a recent Michael Medved interview with him, where he answered so frankly and unapologetically that I almost had a hard time reminding myself that this was a politician, I think it's time I finally address his candidacy and policy positions. First, I espouse the fundamental libertarian ideals on most issues. I think Ron Paul is right on...

Image from: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bantjes.com/marian/pictures/su_grain-elevators.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.underconsideration.com/speakup/archives/002007.html&h=369&w=350&sz=40&hl=en&start=17&sig2=7ksbgBegz682zSMkyJkSRg&tbnid=kWVW9oKZa6ctrM:&tbnh=122&tbnw=116&ei=j2DDRoTYGpOQeayeuMAJ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsask%2Bwheat%2Bpool%2Belevator%26gbv%3D2%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX OK now I'm divided. Upon arrival in Canada for a family reunion my uncle almost had me convinced that socialism isn't a complete failure. Let's be honest, my conservative friends, you are quite right that the economic freedom in a free-enterprise system guarantees the most prosperity, and that alternatives which abridge such freedoms are misguided and are eventually self-defeating. But the dire analyses you make about how terrible things are in socialist countries are often biased and self-serving. Canada's health care ...

I have plenty of material to get to on the topic of global climate change, but for now let me respond to a caller who caused Rush Limbaugh to rant for nearly a half hour on his nationally syndicated radio show yesterday (full transcript here , but will be archived by 6M next Wednesday). While I wish he would change his terminology sometimes, Limbaugh's analysis of this issue is founded in correct principles. First, let individuals and groups be responsible in their decisions as to how they are affecting the environment around them. As a former Chief Scout (the Canadian equivalent of the Eagle), I believe firmly in the majesty of nature and of God's creation, and my default attitude toward such beauty is to take only pictures from it and to leave only footprints on it. With that basic conservationist philosophy explained, I also believe that we were put on this earth to be stewards of the resources it contains, animal, vegetable, and mineral. This means that we will be held acc...

At the base of the Statue of Liberty, symbol of arrival on the shores of freedom for immigrants from Europe for more than a century now, is inscribed a sonnet describing the statue and its symbolic function penned by Emma Lazarus, a Jew from a prominent long-established American family, entitled The New Colossus. In Lazarus's immortalized words, the statue beckons: "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore; Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" (read the whole sonnet here ) In the close of John Ashcroft's speech, he referenced this poem in connection with his own feeling of pride as a youth in the superiority of the US in almost all areas of human activity. Why are we so much better than every other country out there, he thought? The arrogance of the very question is striking to those who presuppose American hubris. Is it not hypocritical for a...

The meat of my liberal friend's reply on gas-gouging: I make no excuses for signing the petition to stop gas price gouging. Exxon (and whoever else) was doing just fine without $15 billion profits 5 years ago. Why the price hike now? Maybe a certain war has to do with it. For simplicity's sake, big oil just doesn't need that much money, and they shouldn't have to rely on the consumer for it. On top of that, (note: the following is speculative only) if we hadn't invaded Iraq, prices would still be at ~$1.19, and everyone would be happy. To my liberal friend, You have brought up a few objections that I should have anticipated before sending my first message. So thank you for giving me another chance to address them. So let's think about your objections together seriously for a minute here: big oil * doesn't need * that much money??? How do YOU know how much money they NEED??!! And most importantly, what makes YOU, or the GOVERNMENT, or anyone else besides Exxo...

Blogs are meant to be frequently updated, so I'm going to try to do a little (shorter) something every day even if it's not a complete treatment of the item in question. Today, I'm thinking that there's so much to get to with the PBS special that a radical shift of topic might be refreshing, so here goes… I recently had a liberal friend of mine forward me a canvassing email from www.moveon.org , a liberal political activist site, asking me to electronically sign a petition supporting an anti-price gouging bill that was in discussion in Congress at the time. The legislation, much to my dismay, was passed, but the email conversation with my friend would make a great cut and paste here. I have heavily edited the original email to refine my arguments, to take out elements that should remain personal, and continue to establish my own internet persona. If I decide to post his replies, I'll edit even more carefully so less personal and more generally useful arguments are m...

We pause our current series on "The Mormons" to write briefly about a truth and a core principle based in religious thought, but bearing more directly on the political. It's time to make some quick notes on liberty. The American founding fathers conceived that all men (and I will not hesitate to correct: all human beings ) are created equal. When you consider the diversity of talents, abilities, height, weight, growth, intelligences (While there are obvious problems with Gardner's theory and taxonomy of "multiple intelligences" per this , it makes intuitive conceptual sense to use the concept as a tool as explained briefly here ), socio-historical economic circumstances, etc. it's patently absurd to believe this equality is an equality of result, or even an equality of opportunity (since the very diversity of natures and contexts we're discussing here constrain the nature of each opportunity differently), but rather an equality of treatment before an...