Ask yourself this, what would happen to you if you were incompetent at your job? What would happen to you if you were in management and people you supervised were constantly making poor decisions? What would your boss do to you? Would you still have your job? How many times would you be able to use the excuse that you just didn't know what some underling was doing? I bet it wouldn't take long before some disciplinary action was brought against you. It's likely that sooner or later you would be held accountable. If only it was that way in politics.
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The word "war" has changed over the decades. It used to mean the militaries of different nation states battling each other for dominance over certain territorial claims and the peoples living in those territories. Nowadays, because of the complete bastardization of the English language, it has come to mean a battle against anything the state wants to control but can't. It's come to mean the attempt of an elite ruling class to gain control of all the wealth, property and power in the world versus rising middle and lower classes who wish only a small portion so that they can live their lives and raise their children in relative comfort. It is a war of those who would be lords of all versus those they wish to make into serfs.
I don't like to label people. I don't like to speak in generalities. Unfortunately we live in a society where labels and generalities have become quite acceptable, particularly when talking in terms of politics and political beliefs. It is, in my opinion, because of this, at least partially, that we often forget we live in an individualist society. It is among the most unique societies in human history. As part of Westernized culture we have romanticized the idea of freedom, but as Americans we have squandered the ideals of the founding fathers and allowed a tyrannical centralized government and their corporate backers to gain too much power and influence over our personal lives. I believe this is because we as human beings seem to have this tendency toward wanting to collectivize. This likely has something to do with the human desire to be loved and accepted by others. We worry that if we don't share the same customs and beliefs as others that they will not accept us for loving, caring human beings.
So I just finished reading this 
There's a meme in the world of debate that once you start to compare the politics of today to the politics of Germany during Hitler's reign the debate is over and you've lost. So, I'm going to start this article by comparing modern American politics to Hitler's Germany and other 20th century collectivist political schemes. The point of this beginning is to do so. If you don't want to read further, than don't. You see, I don't buy the meme. Such a meme is developed, in my humble opinion, simply because some people don't want to face the growing evil and choose instead to remain willfully ignorant as to what has been happening in the land that was supposed to be a beacon of individual freedom shining to the world.
If tyranny was a living being, it would be a strange and marvelous creature. By that I don't mean it would be a good thing, I mean it would be something to gaze upon and marvel at, much like a dangerous or poisonous animal. One could appreciate its qualities, but one wouldn't want to get too close for fear of being attacked or bitten. In many ways, tyranny engrosses the human mind, hypnotizing the observer with its brilliance and power. At the same time the observer knows he should back off and carefully put some distance between himself and the creature, yet he is enticed to creep just a little closer, to see just how close he can get to test his mettle. This is a dangerous practice which we know can end up in disaster.
When I express my views on energy and the future of humanity I am oft times labeled a dreamer. I am sometimes told the technologies I speak of are too expensive and are therefore not worth it for homeowners to install. I am told that homeowners would be better off financially if they continue to pay the low prices charged by energy companies with their coal burning and nuclear power plants. I am told that cars can't make the change over to battery power because the technology simply isn't there. I don't believe any of that is true. I think that technologies have been developed that are far ahead of anything many of us might imagine. I believe that the power elite I often talk about are preventing these technologies from getting out simply so they can continue to control your life.
As a writer and a blogger, I do occasionally correspond with some of my readers who my writings have touched. Sometimes I am exposed to interesting stories about their lives and maybe some epiphany they might have had. Such is the case with Howard who recently emailed me with a personal story about an interaction he had with what he described as a liberal/socialist on facebook. He now faces a dilemma many others who have discovered the message of freedom face, the dilemma of extricating themselves from a system they find repugnant without starving to death.
I had a dream the other night. I stood on the shore looking across a calm ocean. From the east I heard a strange noise. It sounded like the distant roar of a mighty beast. It was quiet on the wings of the wind, but as it passed the ocean suddenly started to roil. Before too long the still waters were undulating wildly and the silence of lapping ripples had become a cacophony of crashing waves. I wondered at what could have fomented such a drastic change. I awoke before I could find out.
I've been reading about this idea to mint a $1 trillion dollar coin as a way to avoid the debt ceiling. I thought it started as a joke. I mean, years ago there was a episode of The Simpsons where Homer Simpson and Montgomery Burns go to Cuba with a trillion dollar bill where Fidal Castro steals it. This idea is so silly it's hardly worth talking about. It's all a big joke. The only thing it's worth is a lot of laughs. The problem is, some people might actually be starting to take this idea seriously. After all, it is the congress, they are constitutionally obligated to mint coins, and if they say a coin is worth a trillion dollars, then by law it's worth a trillion dollars.
We, as a species, like to label things. We seem to like to be able to slap a label on something so that when we talk about things we have an idea about what's being talked about. This works well for physical things like plants, animals or minerals, but it can be a bit lacking when talking about not so physical things like political philosophies. People like to label someone like me, someone who doesn't fit into any of their prefabricated political party holes, so to speak, as a libertarian, an minarchist, a constitutionalist, or some other label. I like to think of myself as an individualist as opposed to a collectivist. I also like to think of myself as an abolitionist, though the vast majority of Americans would believe that such a label is unnecessary as slavery was ended by Abraham Lincoln back in 1865 at the end of the War of Northern Aggression. I would say that no one is as enslaved as the person who believes he is free when he is not. Slavery has just become more subtle and the masters have changed.
There was another tragic event that took place on Friday, December 14th, 2012 in Newtown Connecticut. A young man killed his mother and then proceeded to a nearby school where he shot and killed more than two dozen people, most of them very young children. My heart goes out to the parents of those children who fell victim to this senseless violence. As a parent myself, I can't even begin to imagine the pain they must feel. No one should have to go through such an ordeal. Words seem to be woefully lacking when trying to offer comfort in a situation such as this, but one can only try as best one can to sympathize. I, like most sane people, wish to see a world where such violence is but a bad memory of a bygone era.
Something happened the other day that caused me to engage in a little self examination. I was talking on the phone to a woman I care about very much. She was telling me about a billionaire she had seen on CNBC who had come from a socialist country. According to her, the gentleman was talking about how he had come from this country to America because he wanted to make his fortune in our "free markets" and he did. Then he went on to say that he was voting for Mr. Romney because Mr. Obama had an agenda to bring socialism to America, or something like that. Then she told me he said something about how voting for anyone other than Mr. Romney was a waste of a vote. That's when the red flags went up. That's where I lost it.
Yes, you read that right. What I'm about to write will likely piss off some of my more "conservative" readers, especially those who still think there's any significant difference between Republicrats and Dempublicans, or Obamney and Rombama. That's okay, people need to start getting pissed off. People need to look at the reality of politics in modern Amerika and recognize the criminality we're putting up with. People need to march into their representatives' offices across the country and demand they stop breaking the law. There needs to be outrage because otherwise they're just laughing at you and me as they continue to simply do as they please.
As I watched the beginning of the Boston Red Sox game, the first baseball game played in Boston since the tragic events of 4/15/2013, I was flabbergasted by the propaganda that was taking place before my eyes. Thousands of people applauding the police who had shut down their city in an attempt to find one unarmed, wounded 19 year old. Thousands of people applauding the martial law that had come to their city. Thousands of people applauding the disintegration of The Bill of Rights and welcoming the armed men who could remove entire families from their homes at gun point without warrant and without, in my humble opinion, just cause. All for one lonely, isolated teen accused, not proven, of doing something evil and already judged guilty by the masses.
I have said this before and I will continue to say it, I do not condone violence. I particularly abhor random acts of violence such as the one that occurred in Boston on April 15th, 2013 during the Boston marathon. I say it was a random act of violence because as of this moment, as I write this, no one has taken responsibility for it and no suspects have been arrested nor any reason given for this act. This is only speculation, but I would bet that there's some political agenda or another behind it. For some reason those who seek power over others seem to think that the way to go about gaining such power is through force and coercion.
The image of the robber baron has been burned into the psyche of the American consciousness. When one thinks about capitalism or free markets, this is the image that comes to the forefront of most people's minds. This image has helped create the misconception that capitalism and free markets have come to create the financial mess that the world finds itself in. The truth is that government and their attempts to regulate markets is what created the robber baron in the first place. They would have never been able to reach the pinnacles they reached without the levers of power that government provides.
I think that perhaps I've always been a conspiracy theorist. Now, that statement needs a little clarification. Always is a long time, so perhaps it would be better to say I've been a conspiracy theorist in this lifetime. Ah, but even that is a long time and can be a little unclear, so perhaps it is a little more accurate to say I've been a conspiracy theorist for as long as I can remember. Hmm, even that's a little incorrect because I can remember pretty far back to times when I didn't have a realistic idea of how the world works. Perhaps if I claim I've been a conspiracy theorist for as long as I've been able to think about such things and use reason to come to logical conclusions. Yeah, that's the ticket.
Do you know what's good for you? Have you personally studied various cures, potions and concoctions to figure this out, or are you taking someone else's word for it? Do you have any personal experience with certain substances, medications or procedures when treating your disease, or are you trusting someone else that they know better which will work and which will not? Are you using an allopathic physician, a naturopath, some other alternative practitioner, or maybe a combination of all these? Are you sure the physician you use has told you all the alternatives you have to choose from? Are you sure you know what would work best for your particular circumstance?
There's a famous radio talk show I listen to. Actually, it's on late at night and so I listen to the podcast. The host will occasionally have a guest on who will speak about the Obama administration and many times these guests will refer to the president simply as Obama. The host believes that proper respect should be shown and the top executive should be referred to as "president Obama." He thinks that even if one doesn't respect the man one should respect the office. I happen to disagree. I think proper respect is earned, and in my eyes Mr. Obama has not earned my respect. In my lifetime no one who has ever obtained the office of POTUS has earned my respect, with perhaps the exception of JFK but I was only three when he was killed. It is therefore extremely difficult for me to respect even the office itself.
One of mankind's deepest, longest asked questions is "Why is there evil?" It is a valid question to be asked. I'm not sure if anyone has the correct answer, or if there even is a correct answer, or if there is an answer at all. Certainly many theories have been proffered, and many reasons given even by those who create evil in the world, but do any of these truly answer the question of why it exists? There are explanations as to why it becomes physically manifest, but how far does it stretch into the metaphysical? As a writer of both fantasy and horror, a study into the nature of evil is essential in helping me to create good fiction. It can also help explain why it exists and how it can be conquered.
The gun debate rages on. What a waste of time. It was settled over two hundred years ago. One would wonder what else is going on in the world where we need to focus on such a divisive issue. What's going on that the powers that be need us paying attention to this issue, yelling and screaming at each other, rather than something of real importance? What issue are they trying to hide from us while our focus lies with the gun issue? I don't know. I know the economy is bad. Some say it's about to implode. I know the Federal Reserve continues its fraudulent practices. Is something about to happen on that front? Are they finally going to arrest the bankster criminals? Are we about to see rampant hyper inflation? Is World War III about to be launched? Are they getting ready to unleash hell upon this world? I hope not. Still, I think this debate might be some kind of distraction.
What could be more innocuous than the pizza delivery guy? What could be more welcoming than the man or woman showing up at your door bringing sustenance from one of your favorite restaurants you just called? You didn't even have to go out into the cold night on your own and freeze your little toes off to get your favorite food. They brought it to you. All for a small convenience fee and whatever voluntary tip you might like to give the person who provided this little service. Ah, but don't be fooled. These people who provide this service are very dangerous. They must be stopped. You see, these types of people are a perfect example of how a free market system works. If you begin to learn from their example, why you just might learn too much about how the elite who would like to rule the world work, and we just can't have that now, can we? Besides, you little common folk don't need such convenient services. Such services should be exclusive to the wealthy elite.
I think skepticism is a good thing, a very good thing. There is nothing wrong with being skeptical and it can in many cases prevent one from being suckered into some big con or lie. Skepticism, however, can also be a very effective tool to keep the truth hidden from people. It can be used to prevent people from even wanting to know the truth, especially when presented by some very clever propagandist in a way that ridicules others. No one wants to be ridiculed and so when some "respected" source ridicules those who make some "fantastic" claim others quickly learn to keep their mouths shut and not question authority. Skepticism based on emotion or opinion is not skepticism, it is a simple choice to believe one thing or source over another. Sometimes the mind can't imagine that the incredible could be reality and so one tends to disbelieve based on that fact alone.
Ninety nine years ago this month, the law that brought the Federal Reserve System into existence was passed. It did so at the behest of some very wealthy and very greedy men who wanted nothing less than total control of as much of the world's total wealth that they could possibly get their hands on. These men with names like Aldrich, Rockefeller, Rothschild, Vanderlip, Kuhn, Loeb, Warburg, Morgan, Schiff, et al. wanted nothing less than total control of finances, currencies and economies worldwide. They wanted it so badly that they cared not what the majority might think, and they certainly didn't care what the common folk at the time might think. These were the robber barons of finance in their day, and they knew the general public wouldn't trust them or their banking schemes. It was for this reason they had to remain secretive in their plans and use every deception and political dirty trick in their arsenal to achieve their goals.
You want to know something about gatekeepers, I can tell you something about gatekeepers. I've been dealing with the publishing industry most of my adult life. I got involved with writing partially because I would read best sellers that were written like crap. I didn't understand how these people ever got published. I knew I was a better writer. I knew I could tell a better story. Yet somehow, no matter how well written the story, no matter how unique the idea, I only ever acquired rejection. Even when I managed to find publishers and editors who appreciated my work, even when I found those who knew the difference between a writer with an original vision and a hack who just imitates the popular meme of the time, those publishers proved powerless against the industry giants and the economic currents of the times.
