Occasionally Harvard Profs Get Things Right

Even broken clocks are right twice a day... Ok, I'm joking. Harvard is worthy of academic respect, but it's only when I read pieces like this on the front page of cnn.com that I am reminded of their worthiness. Perhaps I'm only grumpy about their Marxist political theorists and their bail-out friendly, pro-nationalization economists. But no matter where they come from, more anti-prohibition theorists are always welcome in my books! Cheers to Jeffrey A. Miron!

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/24/miron.legalization.drugs/index.html

Does Posse Comitatus Act still apply in US?

I don't know how many American public school students know about the Posse Comitatus Act, but ever since I heard about it I thought it was a good idea. It generally bars federal military personnel from carrying out law enforcement duties in non-federal areas of the US. The Act limits the power of the federal government to intervene with force in affairs usually covered by states, like maintenance of law and order and elections, unless otherwise stated by the Congress or the Constitution. In short it means the Army cannot be deployed in Chicago, Los Angeles, Springfield, New York City or any other place that is not federal property.

The last time I was in New York City, I was somewhat unsettled by the presence of US Military personnel in certain areas of the subway. Now, following the shooting spree that happened recently, the US Army apparently feels it is necessary to deploy on the streets of Samson, Alabama. I have not read into the details yet, but some photos from Reuters speak loud enough to get me concerned.

This photo says it all, I think.

The Posse Comitatus Act in its entirety reads like this:

Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army or the Air Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.
--Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 1385

Now I know that, especially these days, there have been several precedents set in court rulings about the act, and a steady erosion of the limitations of the act, blah blah blah. However, 4 G.I.s blocking a road off with assault rifles presumably locked and loaded in an American town seems to me to be a blatant reversal of the Act based on the way it is worded, the intentions of its authors, and basic principles of American government. Somehow, I'm not surprised considering how little attention is paid to matters relating to the Constitution and the rule of law in the USA today.

Come on, Obama! As Commander-In-Chief, and a former constitutional lawyer I would expect much more from you. Isn't this a Bush type thing to do? Well, maybe not... It's more like a Homeland Security thing to do. Here's a quick quotation from a Homeland Security think tank journal.

"The Posse Comitatus Act was passed in an era when the threat to national security came primarily from the standing armies and navies of foreign powers. Today the equation for national defense and security has changed significantly."

That is from a paper titled, 'The Myth of Posse Comitatus.' I found another article as well, with similar attitudes, titled The Posse Comitatus Act and Homeland Security. Both of these were produced by a think tank funded by the federal government through the Department of Homeland Security called the Homeland Security Institute. Great! Taxpayer money at work encouraging an erosion of the limitations of the federal government. This whole federal department ought to be considered rogue and then abolished. If Obama had any balls, that's what he would do.

As it stands right now, President Obama is at the top of the chain of command, so I guess he should be fined and/or serving no more than 2 years in prison.

But let's forget about the law, or the argument that the government more than anybody should follow the law. What was the Army hoping to achieve on a pragmatic level? The gunman had already shot himself. Law enforcement was already on the scene. There were no riots in the street. If the gunman was affiliated to, trained or ordered by a foreign military to go on a shooting rampage, well... Like I said, he was already dead by his own gun. No benefit whatsoever could be had by having the Army patrol the streets. In fact, the only threat to law and order in Samson during the past few days since the shooting stopped was the US Army. Way to go, boys.

Go back to Ft. Rucker where you belong, G.I.s!

Thanks to the Daily Paul for the heads up and the photo!

No thanks to the New York Times or Reuters for mentioning Posse Comitatus or the implications of domestic deployment of the US Army in any of their coverage so far. (please correct me on this if I am wrong)

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Peter Schiff versus a populist from Michigan

Be it resolved that no federal money should go towards bailing out failing automakers. There's a couple funny parts about these clips. I like the mayor's blank response to the first question (must have been technical difficulties or something). I then chuckle when Schiff realizes his good fortune on the first question.

I think the callers who call in to the show are funny. The whole cable news medium is really quite annoying, especially when they throw hapless non-intellectuals into the middle of a conversation like this.

What I really found funny, other than Schiff's normal quirky facial expressions and polemic style, was a quick line from Schiff in the second part. The host is mentioning how auto executives are accepting $1 per year salary when Schiff chimes in off camera, "They're overpaid."

Part 1



Part 2


Sorry about the Matrix stuff at the intro and ending... The Matrix is cool and all. At least the first movie was. But I don't like seeing it used to score cheap philosophical points.

Ron Paul Names the Neocons

As well as naming major influences in the neoconservative movement, he also articulates the differences between them and traditional conservatives. Especially in this day and age, where neocons have tainted the name of capitalism and small government, this is a very important distinction to make.

I kind of chuckled when Christopher Hitchens was one of the first ones named. I suppose he lent himself to the neocons on matters relating to the Iraq War and... well, what the hell, maybe the guy is a neocon. If he is, I think he is a loose neocon and undoubtedly my favourite neocon.

Thanks to the Daily Paul for hooking me up with this video.

Peter Schiff's Sometimes Comical Analogies

Sometimes a metaphor is useful to help understand a concept. Sometimes it can be hilarious. I definitely laughed when Schiff characterized Bernanke and Paulson as blind and drunk pilots.

Retrospective on Peter Schiff

It's funny to hear Peter Schiff being all but laughed off of these business shows back in the day. I particularly like the part where Ben Stein recommends Merrill Lynch stocks.

Michael Ware on Iran/Iraq

This guy does a bang-up job of walking the philosophical tight-rope between 'American foreign policy is a joke' and 'we cannot leave Iraq.' I tend to disagree with him on the latter, but the man is a reporter's reporter. His nose was broken when he was kidnapped by Al-Quaeda insurgents, and that's why it is so crooked now. He's been in Iraq since before the second US invasion.



More to come from him in the future.

Ron Paul's Marching Orders

I promise this will be the last Ron Paul Presidential Debate clip... But this was probably my favourite highlight of them all and I thought it was included in the other debate clip I linked to.

Jim Rogers speaking with an inquisitive British Journalist

Jim Rogers is one of my favourite 'baby-faced,' overly polite free market theorists. He doesn't get angry, he just gets mildly frustrated when he has to repeat points. I love him!

He recently got in some hot water over comments he made about the British currency. He was rebutted publicly by Gordon Brown. This interview seems to be a follow up to that exchange.



I found this vid over at The Daily Paul blog. A great site that is a continuation of Ron Paul's presidential campaign of '08.

I Do Not Like Tucker Carlson

We all know Ann Coulter is incompetent as an intellectual, but Tucker Carlson always seems to be shockingly arrogant. He shows up at the end of the clip.

Tuckers's a good Libertarian, and he cynically kind of lent himself to the Ron Paul campaign... But I will not ever like Tucker until he changes his mind about Canada. Complain about legitimate issues between Canada and the US all you want, but please don't go on a tirade about 'dog sledding.' It makes you look retarded.

American/Canadian relations Cont'd

This time it's the alien threat.



Not that I know enough to support or deny the claims made by this former Canadian Minister of Defense, Paul Hellyer, but it would make sense that such a GLOBAL military power like the Americans would perhaps form some policy to deal with the occasion that we may be visited by lifeforms from another planet.

A Member of the Freedom Party of Canada speaking on 'Canada: Friend or Foe?'

Amusing clip about American/Canadian relations.