Tag: David F. Nolan

On economic Liberty

Gigi BowmanLeave a comment

by Mike Swatek, Liberty Candidates Committee Member

www.MikesMarket.Info/News

 

Austrian school economics illuminates how personal and economic liberty are intimately intertwined. Neither of these broad liberties can ultimately exist without the other. It’s wonderful to see the expanding awareness of the need to defend our personal liberties, through the Tea Party movement and growing media visibility, which has recently taken a giant leap forward with Freedom Watch on Fox Business every night at 7pm central and online.

Unfortunately, this awakening is less focused on the fundamentals of economic liberty, which is essential to preserve personal liberty. It should be as much of a personal civic duty to have a basic understanding of economics as it is to be familiar with the Declaration of Independence, US Constitution, Federalist Papers and Kentucky/Virginia Resolutions. Unfortunately, economics is widely perceived as overly complicated and/or discredited as a “dismal science”. However, this is only true of the economics promoted by the US government and Federal Reserve, quite possibly with the intention of keeping the masses confused and ignorant on this essential component of their overall liberty. Fortunately, there is an alternative school of thought that overcomes these hurdles, but today it’s only taught at a handful of US universities.

The only school of economic thought that has been consistently correct for the last century is the Austrian school, as Ron Paul has often shared. There are some excellent and enjoyable resources available to gain a working knowledge of the time-proven Austrian economic school of thought.

By far, the best first book is How an Economy Grows and Why It Crashes, by Peter & Andrew Schiff. It’s a brilliant and entertaining short journey through the fundamentals of Austrian economics. Better yet, it’s written and illustrated in a way that is also engaging for younger readers. Don’t let the appearance fool you. This is an absolutely sound and wonderful first book on Austrian economics for everyone. Even with an existing knowledge of the topic, it’s still a very enjoyable book. We should all try to get as many people as possible to read this, so that wider awareness of how to preserve economic liberty will also help preserve personal liberty. Donate copies to local school/public libraries, and it makes a great personal gift.

Another book that covers much of the same material and more, with added detail, is The Case Against the Fed by Murray Rothbard. Don’t be fooled by the title. Rothbard starts with Austrian economic basics in the development of the case. If you would like to learn more after reading Schiffs’ book, this is an excellent second book. Or, if you’re a bit short on cash, you could start with this book which is available from the Ludwig von Mises Institute in free full text and free audio format (chapters listed in reverse order) with all the mp3 files more easily downloaded from an ftp directory HERE. Even if some of the early chapters are a review, the vast majority of people should learn a lot about their economic liberty from the entirety of the case. The proposal for how the USA could end the Fed and go back to a gold standard in the final chapters is also quite interesting.

The next recommended book is Economics in One Lesson: The Shortest and Surest Way to Understand Basic Economics by Henry Hazlitt. This is
still one of the most widely recommended and popular books on Austrian economics, first published in 1946. The lesson is indeed “one”, but the breadth and importance of its meaning needs quite a number of examples to fully understand, which is accomplished in chapters 2-23. This book provides a thorough understanding of the natural economics embodied in the Austrian school of thought. Amazingly, the lesson that Hazlitt shares was first published 1850 in the seminal publication “That Which is Seen, and That Which is Not Seen” by Frédéric Bastiat (1801-1850). Hazlitt’s more modern examples are essential for the fullest understanding of Bastiat’s work, which you may also enjoy reading along with his others* (see ps: below).

Ron Paul has long been the only person in the US Congress with knowledge of Austrian economics, which is a key ingredient in his must-read books, “ The Revolution: A Manifesto” and “ End The Fed“.

If you’re hooked on the topic by the above readings, you might also enjoy the following available free online at the Ludwig von Mises Institute:
Mises and Austrian Economics: A Personal View by Ron Paul (audio version)
Gold, Peace, and Prosperity by Ron Paul (audio version)
What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Murray N. Rothbard (audio version and its ftp directory) ;
The Theory of Money and Credit by Ludwig von Mises;
History of Money and Banking in the United States: The Colonial Era to World War II by Murray N. Rothbard (audio version and its ftp directory)
plus many other free online Austrian school full text books and audio books

If you enjoy these free online opportunities to become educated about your interconnected economic and personal liberties, please Make a donation and become a Member of the Ludwig von Mises Institute

I sincerely hope this message helps some of you to take the plunge into learning much more about your essential economic liberties so that you can better defend them and, by doing so, more fully protect your personal liberties as well. If you find this message beneficial, please forward it to as many others as possible.

Yours in Liberty,

Mike
http://www.mikesmarket.info/news
Important Economic/Financial News aggregator of much the government/mainstream media wants to hide/misrepresent – updated very frequently

*ps: If the works of Frédéric Bastiat (mentioned above) perk your taste for the roots of Austrian economics, you may enjoy the Ludwig von Mises Institute’s free publication of Richard Cantillon: Founder of Political Economy by Jonathan M. Finegold. This is an introduction to An Essay on Economic Theory by Richard Cantillon published sometime between 1730 and 1734, over 30-years before Adam Smith’s seriously flawed “Wealth of Nations”, which is widely and incorrectly believed to be the genesis of economics. There are a couple of interesting audios about Cantillon’s essay available: An Essay on Economic Theory: Interview With Mark Thornton by Jeffrey Tucker; and The Founding Father of Modern Economics: Richard Cantillon by Murray Rothbard (Chapter 12, Volume 1 – Before Adam Smith in his massive 2-volume Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought which is a fascinating read or listen Volume 1 [ftp] and Volume 2 [ftp])

Buy Silver, Crash JP Morgan

Gigi BowmanLeave a comment

 

December 7-10th, 2010, we are asking EVERYBODY to buy at LEAST one (1) ounce of PHYSICAL Silver either online at a primary dealer or secondary market like eBay.com or offline at a local coin dealer or pawn shop. Do NOT buy any fraudulent silver certificates or speculative silver mining stocks.

Help crash the corrupt J.P. Morgan who has committed silver fraud and broken dozens of federal and state laws in manipulating precious metals while helping the Government prop up the over-valued and nearly worthless U.S. greenback currency.

Vote with your feet and buy as much Silver for yourself or loved ones on that day!

For more info on “Crash JP Morgan: BUY SILVER”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_lhPoFuSTY&feature=player_embedded
http://truthsquad.tv/?p=93

Event Posted at
We Are Change NYC
http://www.meetup.com/wearechange/messages/boards/thread/10137382/

Save: Long Island http://www.savelongisland.org
http://www.meetup.com/SavelongIsland/calendar/15659175/

Don’t know where to buy your silver? Try DelValley Silver and talk to Bob & Karen Emery! http://delvalleysilver.com/

 

The United States “Economic Civil War”

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The United States “Economic Civil War”

Danny Panzella
TruthSquad.TV
12/2/2010

Independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont gave an impassioned speech on the floor of the Senate yesterday. Mr. Sanders railed on the top 12th of  the top 1% of the wealthy in the United States. Highlighting their oligarchical control of the congress, their use of taxpayer money in the form of subsidies, grants, special tax exemptions and bailouts to continue to force the middle class into poverty.

While I disagree with Mr. Sanders assertion that the “Bush tax cuts” should be repealed, and the Death tax should remain in place, I whole heartedly agree with his assessment of the economic situation.

The government already taxes far beyond its authority, the Bush tax cuts are an attempt to limit the amount the federal government can tax, does it benefit the wealthy more than the poor and middle class? Certainly. Should it be repealed allowing the Government to confiscate wealth that does not belong to it, skim off the top and then redistribute a pittance to the little guy? Certainly not. As far as the death tax goes, that money has already been taxed once, to tax it again upon death only serves to ensure people spend their money before they die leaving no wealth for the younger generations to improve their economic status.

So if Sanders is wrong on the solutions to the very real crisis we are in, what are the solutions? It all begins with a sound money system. We need to Audit the private corporation that controls our currency and monetary policy. This will expose the corruption of the Federal Reserve system which will convince the American people it is time to abolish the Fed.

With the currency and monetary policy back in the hands of the congress who is accountable to “we the people” we will start to see economic policy that benefits the people. The next step in this process is to repeal the 17th Amendment, putting the election of Senators back into the hands of the State Legislators. This will ensure that these Senators are loyal to the State, and NOT special interest groups or the Federal Government. With direct election by the people the Senate is loyal to the Federal Government because that is how they protect their own power. Campaign finance reform is the third crucial step towards true Constitutional Government. In a world where dollars translate into political speech; the top 12th of 1% that Mr. Sanders mentions have all the voice while they have reduced we the people to little more than a vote.  In the age where the main stream corporate media are the gate keepers to decide which Candidates are given opportunity to address the people. Keep in mind that top 12th of 1% OWN the 6 corporations that OWN ALL of the main stream media.

The tea party has been a very important part of this process of getting our country back on track, yet much of the tea party is being co-opted by fake neo-conservatives like Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich. I can hear the groans now as people dismiss Bernie Sanders speech because he is a socialist. We the people need to unite on our commonalities so we can defeat the real enemy, that 12th of 1% that rules the United States through corporate monopoly control and the media induced illusion of choice.

The left and right need to put aside their ideological differences and build a coalition on the common interest of self preservation, preservation of our natural or human and civil rights. The tea party & coffee party for the most part desire the same goal. To bring true change to the United States. Peace, equality, to stamp out hunger and empower the poor to be successful; for each successive generation to enjoy a greater standard of living than the previous. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness for ALL mankind. Let’s work together to counteract the main stream propaganda media, identify the real problem and eliminate it. Then the tea party and coffee party can argue over the solutions once we the people are in control of our country once again.

The Forest, The Trees, and the TSA

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by John Jay Myers
With all the naked viewing and groping going on, I wonder if this is the United States of America or the back room of an adult video store.  We have two major problems here, the TSA and their intrusive unconstitutional invasions of our rights, and the bigger question of why are we turning into a police state.

Let’s start with the TSA.  How many passengers have I seen interviewed on TV who all share the notion that “If it makes us safer then I think it is a good idea. I just want to get to my destination in one piece.”  Not only does this presume that the government is more capable at assuring safety than private citizens, but it also illustrates an alarming trend in this country where we have become willing to so easily trade freedom for the illusion of safety (or prosperity, or charity).

Let me ask you this – who has the greatest interest in safe and secure airplanes?  The government?  On the contrary, the people themselves have the greatest self interest in safety.  The airlines would not want to jeopardize their reputation, their financial security, nor the lives of the passengers.  Then there would be the insurance companies who insure those planes who would insist on the airlines taking proper steps for safe travel.  And finally there are the passengers, who are so interested in safety that they willingly bend over and accept the government’s intrusion.  So we now have three key private players with major interest in the safety of planes.

The TSA only had a 2 year contract before the airlines could opt out.  I believe it is time for America’s airlines to opt out, or for the people to opt out of America’s airlines.  Let airlines decide what security policies they employ, and then let the free people of America choose which airlines they feel safest flying.  This simply means if you don’t want to blow up prematurely (if blowing up was already on your agenda), ride on a plane with tight professional security, and if you don’t want to pay more for a ticket (or be probed) ride on the plane without it.  Freedom and security is not a trade off.  Freedom IS security.

If you believe that the Federal Government has the greatest interest in a secure plane, or that we should employ a more intrusive “papers please” approach or the Israeli model of rapid fire interrogations, let me ask you a few questions.  If we could make airlines 100% safe, so safe that we know that a terrorist will never board a plane and take it over, would that be the end of terrorism as we know it?   Do secure airlines mean a secure America?  Hardly, considering that in America we have thousands of events held daily where greater numbers of people gather.

Which brings us to the title of this article The Forest, The Trees, and the TSA.  The TSA is actually only a symptom, while the real problem is our foreign policy.  Our history in the Middle East did not start on September 11, 2001.  Understanding our involvement around the world and how it has a habit of coming to roost is key before we end up with check points outside our children’s soccer games.

Though any step towards privatization in the airline industry is an improvement, the ultimate solution to our problems is bringing our troops home and minding our own business. Foreign beligerence is immoral, incredibly costly, and it threatens our security by inspiring people to hate us.

This is not a blame America first mentality.  This is blame bad policy first.  The fact is that our foreign policy of a trillion dollars a year is bankrupting this country.  The fact is that our involvement in these countries is the main reason some want to attack us.  The fact is that the TSA represents a victory for the terrorists and a loss for freedom, and facts are never unpatriotic.  We are accepting a Federal government to protect our freedom when the Federal Government Military/Security State is openly hostile to freedom.

We have sent the government scrambling to find new ways to intrude on our rights, without realizing that our current foreign policy of entangling alliances and questionable corporate intent are the opposite of what our founders envisioned.  We need to think about this the next time we see a Fox News report about the impending threat of Iran, followed by an advertisement sponsored by Lockheed Martin.  America can can continue down a road of war, terror, insecurity and an ever increasing police state or we can choose a new direction of peace, commerce, security and a foreign policy of freedom.

To me the choice is clear.

John Jay Myers a small businessman from Dallas Texas ran for chair of the LNC, is a member of the Texas Libertarian Executive Committee and the Vice Chair of the Dallas County Libertarian Party.

TSA Body Scanners Unconstitutional – 2010 Liberty Candidates Speak Out

Gigi Bowman1 Comment

 

Liberty Candidate, Cisse Spragins, Speaks Out against Body Scanners

Adam VS The Man with Adam Kokesh Naked Body Scan or Pat Down

Robert Broadus

I think there is something not being discussed here, which is that the Federal Gov’t should not be conducting security for private airlines. The very existence of the TSA shows an overreach of the commerce clause, and is an unjustified expansion of gov’t. What SHOULD have happened is that the airport or the airline in question should provide its own security, and if the company then required body scans or pat-downs, then it would not be a violation of the Constitution, and if the customer did not like it, he could take his business to another airline or another airport. Because of federal involvement, every airport will soon have the same standards, and therefore every citizen will be in a position of having their 4th amendment protections violated. 

So for me, the answer is to end the TSA.

Alexander Snitker


It is truly amazing how far we will infringe on the liberties of our fellow Americans. This is where we must take a stand. What does the government have to do in order for people to understand this will not end until we decide it is enough? I will not fly until the body scanners are removed.

Steve Susman and David Smith

It is the choice of the airlines in these airports-Participate in tyranny and we will put you out of business. This time, the public will not bail you out. If the incumbents bail you out, we will get rid of them too.( We in Houston have joined forces with Oathkeeper Jay Stang(son of the late Alan Stang) and will organize a massive protest 11/24. David Smith and I are bringing in WAC Houston, the Houston Free Thinkers and more to combat this agregious rights violation) Planning begins immediately after the End the Fed Rally http://lptexas.org/meetup/end-fed-rally

Barry Hess


I think it’s very telling that among the apologists for the TSA, no one has suggested the obvious way to resolve this nonsense. 

I, for one am only flying privately because the minute some governmonkey touched me, my wife or any child, I’d probably end up with a felony on my hands. This thing is just a way to desensitize the public and destroy any sense of personal modesty.

Why must you appear naked before the Emperor and his minions? How can it be explained to a child that an adult ‘touching’ them inappropriately is “okay” if it’s an idiot with gloves? The whole thing flies in the face of being a “free” person with a government that is charged with protecting our individual rights.

The mental midget’s who think any of this makes them safer deserve their degradation, but I don’t. I am not afraid, to any degree of any so-called ‘threat’. I refuse to live in fear and under the delusion that somehow all this inconvenience and personal invasion makes me ‘safer’.

The obvious way to really make us “safer” is to simply declare Peace on the rest of the world and take away any reason for anyone to threaten any of us. Coupled with an armed Citizenry (yes, even on board the planes) we would all be as safe as is humanly possible. The Constitution was very well thought out, and the Declaration of Independence explicit in its intent

Jackie Miller


have refused to fly now for some time. I simply refuse to have my Fourth Amendment rights violated & I “walk my talk.” Until “The People” wake up to what is really going on ala Nazi Germany & fight with all we have against this (latest) assault on our civil liberties it will get worse! I am currently on vacation & doing “The road less traveled,”as I always do. It has amazed me that so many Americans are clueless as to what a truly beautiful Country we have. BOYCOTT the airlines! Tell Homeland Security that our LIBERTY means something to us. The sad part of my recent travels however are so many Liberties which have been taken away; something when I get back home I’ll be sharing a great deal about. Please be aware though that as usual we are also fighting the MEDIA & their propaganda machine. We must also spread the message that the bottom line to all of this is “Follow the Money!” And that it has NOTHING to do with “security” but also everything to do with CONTROL. “We the People” are the protectors of the Constitution, NOT the politicians & it is high time we began acting like it! If we do not stop this now, the next thing will be “checkpoints” for vehicles at all of our State borders, & I don’t think that is too far-fetched to believe.

Jake Shannon


The TSA is a red herring. They’ll concede and Republicans will take credit as liberators… Meanwhile we will still have war with Iran, the Fed won’t end, and the IRS will continue to terrorize Americans. We must stay focused and not be satisfied with false victories. We must not be satisfied with anything less than total liberty.

Cecil Anthony Ince


“Those who would give up essential liberty for a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin

This nation is a nation of delusional freedom today. It no longer resembles the national of our forefathers when the elected pass laws that violate and supersede the Constitution. We as a nation exist in a state of despotism and deny it claiming freedom which does not exist for U.S. under the law. Freedom is as real as a thought, a belief, a faith. It is the forgotten practice of agent-hood, and is the knowledge to make decisions and to take actions on ones own will or upon ones morality.

If we believe that liberty only exists because government allows it or that freedom is guaranteed by laws that dictate how individuals act and interact, then we are blinded and blinded unto a state of tyranny that we proclaim as liberty and we are doomed.

The reality is the government exists because the people permit it, and that liberty existed before governments and will continue even after they fall.
It is not the Government nor its laws that restrain me from killing another person it is my GOD given morality, the natural sense of right and wrong. It is not a “Red-light” law that prevents me from running a red light, it is my common sense and self-preservation that prevents me from pulling out into the intersection and being t-boned by another car.

“I have sworn upon the alter of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the minds of man.” – Thomas Jefferson

RJ Harris


“Following Orders” No Excuse for Sexual Assault!

Serving as I am here in Afghanistan many of you have asked me why I am here. I have replied that if asked to execute an illegal or immoral order I would refuse and I still hold to that. My point here is that were I a TSA agent…I would refuse orders to do what they are now doing. Those of you still clinging to the notions that our government is not corrupt and that it considers the defense of our liberty as anywhere near the priority that the founders did need look no farther than what is going on at the TSA. These are not solitary random acts of disgruntled agents which does not reflect the ethics of the rest of the agency…this administration and this agency are perpetrating these acts upon us knowing full well what they are doing and yet they tyrannize us anyway. When will you rise up America and fight for your freedom? Will it be after your sisters and your mothers and your wives are molested by government agents? When will you say that the degradations are too great? The founders who espoused to the notion that no exchange of freedom for security was a worthy bargain would be ashamed of what we have allowed already and I say it is time we told the government enough. Don’t fly if you can avoid it. Don’t go through the scanners if you must fly and video any and all searches to be used in court against the agents and agency at a later time. “Following orders” has never been a viable excuse for committing sexual assault and those of you being grope searched should seriously consider filling charges against even individual agents. WAKE UP AMERICA, ITS TIME TO FIGHT FOR LIBERTY

Doug Marks


As a liberty candidate I’d like to start off with displaying the Fourth Amendment:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

The Fourth Amendment was written in direct response to British general warrants where the Crown would grant general search powers to British law enforcement officials. These officials could search virtually any home, or person, they liked, at any time they liked, for any reason they liked but were not bound to having justification to do it, it could be on a whim or for folly.

The “right of people to be secure in their persons”, as already ruled by the supreme court, is your right to privacy and by being forced to display yourself naked, or face an intimate groping physical search, removes this right. If this can be done in airports, what is stopping the government from using this as a precedent for doing this in all public places? If, as a citizen, I was to perform any of these actions I would be jailed so how is it legal for the government to not be liable for breaking our battery, child abuse and child pornography laws?

The government is installed to preserve and protect our natural rights not strip them away, under any circumstance. The public is no safer now than we were before the Christmas bomber or September 11th. If someone is determined to bring down an aircraft there are methods available that are way beyond the technology of a strip search so believing that degrading people and stripping their rights makes them any safer is ludicrous at best. As we continue to move deeper and deeper into this “police state” we are telling the terrorists, they won. Their desire is to control through terrorizing and our government is completely following their desire.

‘Malo periculosam libertatem quam quietum servitium’- I prefer liberty with danger to peace with slavery. By willfully accepting the actions of our government we are accepting slavery as we are no longer the masters of our bodies, we are giving away that mastery to the government. As we give away our rights, we are also dissolving our republic and the rule of law which it was founded upon.

Where does it end? When do the people realize they have become slaves to the master in Washington? When do we fight back? If not today, when?

VIDEO! Ron Paul Introduces HR 6416: The American Traveler Dignity Act

 

TSA Tyrannical Practices forced to the Forefront by Your Emails! Napolitano to meet Travel Industry! Our boycott is working!

http://www.DailyTeaParty.com
Boris in Miami –

Stepped-up security screening at airports in the wake of foiled terrorism plots has provoked an outcry from airline pilots and travelers, including parents of children who say they are too intrusive. (Reuters)

Since the inception of the porn scanners at our airports the Freedom Movement at large has been up in arms about it; blogging, commenting, and making the case for the unconstitutionality, backwardness and ineffectiveness of such intrusive electronic searches and intimate pat downs.

Recently, pilot Michael Roberts posted a letter at LewRockwell.com “Pilot to TSA:  No Groping Me and NO Naked Photos“” which went on to be picked up by the Main Stream Media and became viral, inspiring a larger wave of indignant articles from the MSM and the Freedom Movement.  Michael also inspired the Allied Pilot Association to join the protest.

Read More:
http://dailyteaparty.com/2010/11/12/grassroots-win-tsa-tyrannical-practices-forced-to-the-forefront-by-your-emails-napolitano-to-meet-travel-industry/

Judge Napolitano

The Myth of the Wasted Vote

Gigi BowmanLeave a comment

The Myth of the Wasted Vote

by Charles L. Hooper
by Charles L. Hooper

Recently, I was surprised to see a long-term Libertarian’s car sporting a Kerry/Edwards bumper sticker. “What’s with the Kerry bumper sticker?” I asked my friend. “Isn’t it self-explanatory?” he replied sarcastically. “Okay, okay, I see that you’re going to vote for Kerry. I just want to know why. I thought you would be voting Libertarian.”

He then proceeded to tell me that while he doesn’t like Kerry, he simply despises George W. Bush. “You don’t want to waste your vote on somebody that you fundamentally disagree with, do you?” I asked him. “I’ve been wasting my vote for years by voting Libertarian,” he replied bitterly.

“Ah, but you will be wasting your vote this year because Kerry is almost assured to take California. One extra vote won’t make a difference.” I hadn’t run the numbers, but I was sure that my friend’s vote wasn’t going to affect the California electoral vote and, therefore, had no chance of affecting the national result.

Since our conversation I have run the numbers, and they are mind-boggling. Based on these results, reasonable people may conclude that they should never vote. But if you do decide to cast your vote, as I have, you should vote for the best candidate and abandon any attempts to displace the disliked Kerrys, Bushes, Clintons, Reagans, Carters, and Gores of the world.

To run the numbers, I created a Monte Carlo computer simulation model and ran well over 300,000 simulations. My model has two pretty evenly matched main political parties and three smaller ones that fight over roughly ten percent of the vote total. I defined voting groups, each with probability distributions. With these groups defined, I ran multiple runs of the model at 5,000 iterations (5,000 elections) each while varying the number of total voters.

It turns out that your one vote, and mine too, has a probability of swinging any evenly-matched election based on the following formula: Probability equals 3.64 divided by N, where N is the total number of votes cast. So for a small election, say for a homeowners’ association with 100 members, your probability of casting the vote that determines the outcome is about 3.64 percent (or 0.0364). Stated differently, you’d have to vote in 27.5 elections to determine a single one. As we move up to the state and national level, the odds fall dramatically. With 11 million voters in California, where my friend and I live, the probability drops to 3.3 x 10-7 (0.00000033), which means that you’d have to vote in over three million presidential elections to determine the winner in California just once.

Of course, California isn’t the whole country. California currently has 55 electoral votes out of a total of 538, with 270 needed to elect a president. Since 1852, when Californians first voted for U.S. president, California has been a key swing state in only two presidential elections. In 1876, California cast 6 electoral votes for Rutherford B. Hayes, who beat Samuel J. Tilden by the razor-thin margin of 185 to 184. In 1916, California cast 13 electoral votes for Woodrow Wilson, who beat Charles E. Hughes by 277 to 254. In either election, if California voters had gone the other direction, the national totals would have followed. In every other presidential election, however, the winner was determined regardless of how Californians voted. By acknowledging that California has been a swing state in only two of its 38 elections (5.3%), we can get to our final answer: A voter in California would have to vote in 57.5 million elections to determine one President of the United States.

This ignores voting error and fraud, but even with them, there is still a point at which the official vote total swings from candidate A to candidate B. The question is whether you will cast that key vote. And the answer is that it’s extremely unlikely.

What does this mean? Well, first of all it means that you’d have to vote for a very long time – 230 million years – to swing one election and all you’d have to show for it is a Bush in the White House instead of a Kerry (or visa versa). If you are like me and many other voters, you can’t get very excited about either Bush or Kerry, so your final payoff would be lackluster, at best. For those who still think these odds look acceptable, consider the following comparisons. You are 12 times as likely to die from a dog attack, 34,000 times as likely to die in a motor vehicle accident, and 274 times as likely to die in a bathtub drowning as you are to swing a presidential election.

My friend thinks that his Libertarian votes have been wasted and that his vote for a Democrat will matter. This analysis shows that his vote for Kerry has a vanishingly small expected value. Even if he would be willing to pay $10,000 to determine the winner in November, the expected value (probability times value) of his vote for Kerry is only $0.00017. Americans won’t even stoop to pick up a penny on the ground yet every four years they happily cast votes worth one fiftieth as much. Voting may still make sense, but the overall satisfaction of participating in a great democracy must be compared to the time and costs of voting. The expected vote-swinging outcome is rounding error. In fact, if you drive to your polling place, you are approximately ten times more likely to die in an accident on the way than you are to swing that presidential election.

Now, what if my friend votes for Michael Badnarik, the 2004 Libertarian candidate? Is that vote wasted? Well, it is clear that no third-party candidate will win the 2004 election, but my friend’s support would certainly help his favorite political party stay in business and therefore get noticed. While it is in business, his party will help define election issues and could even get lucky and elect a president. Abraham Lincoln and Jesse Ventura are good examples of third-party candidates who were elected. Ross Perot in 1996 and 1992, American Independent George Wallace in 1968, and Progressive Robert LaFollette in 1924 were presidential candidates who got a large percentage of the popular vote. More likely, as any third party becomes successful, the Democrats and Republicans will simply adopt that party’s platforms. The same thing happened with the Socialist party early in the 20th century. As Milton Friedman points out, the Socialists failed miserably with a popular vote total that peaked at only six percent in 1912. But they succeeded in the way that matters most. Dig below the surface and you’ll find that virtually every economic plank of the Socialist’s 1928 platform has since been written into law. The votes cast for these Socialists certainly weren’t wasted from the point of view of those who cast them.

Your one vote has the same power to affect the results whether you vote for a major or minor candidate, but a vote for the candidate you respect and agree with gives you the expectation of a better outcome. If you are like me and do take the time and effort to vote, you should put your X beside the candidate you think will be the best president, not the one most likely to beat the guy you dislike. The myth of the wasted third-party vote is just that – a myth. If there is a wasted vote, it is the one cast futilely against the candidate you dislike in an attempt to swing the national election.

September 21, 2004

Charles L. Hooper [send him mail] is president of Objective Insights, a company that consults for pharmaceutical and biotech companies. His forthcoming book, coauthored with David R. Henderson, isThinking Works: Your Inside Track to Great Results. Charley is a visiting fellow with the Hoover Institution.

Copyright © 2004 LewRockwell.com

And Now for My Summation of The Tea Party by Gigi Bowman

Gigi Bowman5 Comments

There are three distinct facets of the tea party within the local communities and within those facets there are more arms and legs running nowhere.

The Tea Party which began in 2009 represents The Republican Party. They say they don’t but they put Sarah Palin at the helm as it’s voice to show that it was a NEW version –and really, they aren’t any different –she rubs shoulders with Kissinger and she pals around with it’s controlled opposition in the form of Glenn Beck and they fight to get Republican’s in office to replace Dems.

Then there is the Tea Party from 2007 which represents Libertarian/Ron Paul Republican’s who have a Mission Statement that guides their rationale as a whole which includes Sound Money, Free Market, Individual Liberty, Constitutional Government and Non-Interventionist Foreign Policy.  This mission puts them at odds with the Tea Party/Republican Party because  of the anti-war/non-interventionist stance which doesn’t sit well with the Religious Right of the Tea Party troopers.  Also, They feel that the Fed does not only need to be audited, but Ended Completely which seems a bit conspiratorial for the Republican/Conservative Tea Party.  With a penchant for Austrian Economics the voices that represent this sect of the tea party are Judge Napolitano, Tom Woods, Lew Rockwell, Michael Badnarik to name a few.  They are Libertarian bent but many of the Ron Paul rEVOLutionaries are also Conservative Republicans, Anarchist, Minarchist, Voluntarist, big and small L Libertarians and on and on with labels for every sort of personality.  As you can see this group is broken into numerous facets in itself. The only thing that ties the group(s) together is Ron Paul.

And last but not least,  there is the Tea Party Express Tea Party which is represented by the Newt Gingrich, sect of the Tea Party.  The Neocon Republicans who are truly sitting at the head of the table alongside the Left though acting as it’s enemy –we can see that they are at work together through the implementation of everything from loss of Individual Liberty through legislative policies like The Patriot Act and FISA (and Obama voted for both as Senator).  We can put John McCain in this group with his recent hosted bill titled “Detain Americans Indefinitely without Trial”  http://smargus.com/2010/03/sen-john-mccain-authors-bill-to-detain-americans-indefintely-without-trial/ . These People are the most vile Anti-Liberty subhumans and they are in control of our country along side the left.  The most uncanny thing about the Republican Tea Party and the Tea Party Express Tea Party is that they led an entire movement to get Scott Brown elected (based on his single vote against Obamacare –yet he helped to implement Socialist Romney care????) and as soon as he was elected, based on “Tea Party Principles”, he turned right around and was the FIRST to jump on John McCain’s outrageous bill –which just proves that both facets are really one very polished diamond who know exactly what they are doing and how to gather the troops (tea party people) to do exactly what they want while trying to disguise themselves as PATRIOTS.

These Tea Party Patriots favor legislators like Jim Demint and Michele Bachmann who actually VOTED TO CONTINUE the Patriot Act!

So in reality there is no difference between the Tea Parties….Jim Demint plays all sides and sucks them all in –even the Ron Paul Tea Partier’s have a fondness for him because he helped to implement the “Audit the Fed Bill” (HR 1207) by speaking out for it and being one of the first to sponsor it.

One of the few journalist who knew exactly how to tie together the fact that the Right and the Left were one BIG party was our dear departed Alan Stang who is sorely missed by me!  In the 2008 election he explained how both Obama and McCain had the same foreign policy advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski, and it did not matter who won we were going to continue this war indefinitely!  http://www.newswithviews.com/Stang/alan170.htm .

Alan Stang also, right before he died, had a lot to say about The Tea Party and it should be heard by all.  This is a man who was Awake, Aware and unfortunately no mold was made of him 😦 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgiRVgfN7j4

So the same “Politicians” are playing all sides…..and meanwhile no one is even talking about the fact that the right and the left are truly one big TEA party playing two sides AGAINST Liberty  –and while everyone is fighting Right vs Left —Agenda 21/aka Communitarianism has it’s tentacles enmeshed in all our lives and it keeps creeping in little by little every single day –from Red Light Camera’s to GMO foods to the Green Revolution and Climate Change and Obamacare on the left while John McCain wants to make sure no one can buy vitamins and the Military Industrial Complex is an excuse to call ordinary citizens terrorist on the right.

EVERYONE IS FULL OF SHIT –and no one has a clue how to fight back!

I started an organization called Liberty Candidates http://www.liberty-candidates.org  because I wanted to help real, aware, awake humans who are making a run for office –inspired by their “swallowing of the red pill” which basically occurred when these people reached out during 2008 to get Ron Paul elected. (you can see documentation of this in the movie “FOR LIBERTY: How the Ron Paul Revolution Watered the Withered Tree Of Liberty” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emaeln–tzo .  We have had up to 260 Liberty Candidates and I stand by them because I believe that if anyone is going to change things through politics and fight the good fight by making people aware about things like Forced Vaccines and Sustainable Development and Corporatism destroying our food supply through Monsanto and our drug supply through Big Pharma –at least these people know what the hell is going on!

I had hoped the “Tea Party” would show it’s strength and take on wings and stand behind these liberty candidates…but they HAVE NOT!  What has the Tea Party done?  What is their purpose? To fight Right vs Left.  Their ultimate goal is to get Democrat’s out and Republican’s in –and that’s just more of nothing.

So all we have left is education.  And the first place to start is by passing on Niki Raapana’s “What is the Hegelian Dialectic”http://nord.twu.net/acl/dialectic.html which I do every day because there is NOTHING else that explains how we are mere pawns in the big game of RISK that a handful of Vampire Ghouls are playing with our lives, our American Sovereignty and our Planet.