Mar 13

Palace Intrigue in North Korea: Those Who Trust Government Most are the Most Likely to be Purged

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Another recurring lesson for those who trust government most. It is they who will always be targeted by jealous rivals when their dreams of government power bear fruit.

The history of the Soviet Union was filled with examples where the most loyal communists were– –again and again– — purged or prosecuted by government officials they adored and supported.

Jealousy and power are the calling cards of government supremacists.

The New York Times is reporting that North Korean president Kim Jong Il has ordered the execution of two more loyalists in the office of Kim’s own uncle Jang Song-thaek. Prior to 2014, Jang had been a rising star in the government and was considered by some to be the second-highest government leader.

As the New York Times reports,

Hundreds of officials were gathered there to witness the execution of Mr. Jang’s two trusted deputies in the administrative department of the ruling Workers’ Party.

The two men, Ri Ryong-ha and Jang Su-gil, were torn apart by antiaircraft machine guns, according to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service. The executioners then incinerated their bodies with flamethrowers.

The Times report has some interesting details about the socialist regime:

Mr. Jang’s name has been expurgated from all official records in the North. Hundreds of his associates were purged. His wife is alive but sickly, according to the South Korean intelligence agency.

The Times report also details some of the opulent luxuries of the North Korean officials — — in a land where millions go hungry and live in poverty.

Mar 11

Government again demands that all must be naked before the state

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Every government that ever existed sought the same powers: total control over all resources, all property, all thought and speech– –and the authority to kill all who resist.

Now the U.S. government- – -the president and most of the prominent members of the Senate – – are (again) seeking to enact a “law” requiring all devices be open to the government. See here.

The justification, now and for centuries in the past, is “terrorism: a threat that is less likely to cause an American’s death than bee stings or lightning strikes.

Mar 10

U.S. Government Spending Hundreds of Millions on “Global Warming” Theory–Despite Lack of Congressional Authorization

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‘Manmade-global-warming-by-carbon-dioxide’ is a government theory. It is a theory that supports (actually, begs for) further government expansion and control over energy and industry.

Despite what the theory’s proponents claim, the theory is highly contested in scientific circles.

Yet ‘the science is settled’ among government circles. And among those who trust government.

The U.S. government is slightly more democratic than most governments in the world, however, and the public has managed to defy government on this issue–in part by electing congressional representatives who are skeptical of the theory.

Now it emerges that the U.S. President and his State Department have been bypassing congressional approvals, and simply dispensing State Department funds (intended by Congress for other purposes) into the ‘global warming’ promotional arm of the United Nations. See here.

Mar 08

Global Warmists’ Theory that Fossil-Fuel interests are entirely responsible for climate skepticism is based on “one sentence in one memo”

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Columnist Brian McNicoll nails the claim among government-trusters that skepticism of the government’s manmade-global-warming theory is all funded by energy companies. See here.

The entire body of proof of this great conspiracy . . . comes down to one sentence in one memo written in support of a PR campaign by the coal industry that did not even end up occurring. The sentence cited the need to “reposition global warming as theory rather than fact.”

A whole cottage industry of enviro-crazies has sprung up around that quote – which was about PR strategy; not the kind of scientific dissembling found so often on the green left. Al Gore sites the quote. So does Naomi Oreskes, the “scientific historian” who carries so much water for the global warming cult. So does George Monbiot, the Union of Concerned Scientists and others. Robert Brulle, an academic from Pennsylvania
carries so much water for the global warming cult. So does George Monbiot, the Union of Concerned Scientists and others. Robert Brulle, an academic from Pennsylvania, has promoted this yarn for years.

Beyond that, books have been written, accusations leveled, careers, funding and even liberty threatened. And now a sitting U.S. senator wants to throw people in prison for decades because they do not share his fantasies about imminent destruction from global warming.

All because of a supposed conspiracy of which most observers can find little evidence.

Mar 06

D.C. Police raid homes based on little or no evidence

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American criminal justice has collapsed. Decades of pro-government rulings by the courts have opened the door to wholesale violations of basic protections by unaccountable police.

Now the Washington Post — -which generally trumpets the claims of the government — –has finally taken notice of the practice of police raiding homes armed with “search warrants” based on little or no evidence.

14 percent of all “search warrants” executed in the past two years stemmed from a person arrested for drug or gun charges on the street. The cops have gotten into the habit of simply looking up the person’s address and then getting a warrant to search the address, claiming “probable cause” that drugs will be found.

The cops swear under oath that their “training and experience” justified such searches; and the judges universally agree!

In about 60 percent of the 284 cases, police executing the warrants found illegal items, ranging from drug paraphernalia to guns,. . . usually small, ranging from residue to marijuana cigarettes to rocks of cocaine.

About 40 percent of the time — in 115 cases — police left empty-handed.

In a dozen instances, The Post found, officers acted on incorrect or outdated address information . . . .

Mar 06

Government welfare policies have greatly harmed the poor

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Here is a Reason Magazine interview regarding a new study of the impacts of welfare on poor people.

Since the 1970s, welfare policies have made poor people poorer; mostly by incentivizng poor people not to work or better themselves.

Mar 06

Government again moves to require financial “advice” columnists to be government-licensed

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Governments worldwide constantly seek to require all workers to be government-approved and government-licensed.

In the U.S., many occupations that poor people could enter freely in the past have been transformed into government-licensed occupations. Poor people must now go through expensive government “training” and approval processes just to work as hairdressers, manicurists, auctioneers, teachers or interior decorators.

These licensing policies often discriminate against people with criminal records, and some licenses such as SEC stock broker licenses, are strictly forbidden to those with previous criminal convictions.

Now there is another push by the U.S. government to require government licenses for giving any one-on-one financial advice. This change could mean that financial advice columnists like Suzie Orman or Dave Ramsey would be taken off the air. See here.

Mar 05

Turkish Government Seizes Newspaper Offices

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Every government that ever existed sought the same powers: ownership of all property, control of all resources, and control of all speech and thought. Governments invariably imprison and kill those who dissent — — frequently spreading messages that the government is at risk of terrorism or violent attack by critical speakers.

Now the government of Turkey is launching a major crackdown of newspapers that voiced mild criticism of the country’s government.

The New York Times report:

The crackdown on expression comes amid a growing sense that Turkey, once seen as a bastion of stability in a hostile region, is being enveloped by instability.

See here.

The Times continues:

Dozens of journalists perceived as critical of the government have lost their jobs as officials have put pressure on their bosses. Academics have been targeted for speaking out against the government’s military . . . .

At the same time, the justice system has charged Turks of all stripes — authors, journalists, cartoonists, politicians and ordinary citizens — with “insulting the president.” All told, more than 1,800 insult cases have been brought . . . .

Mar 02

Obamacare Exchanges are Collapsing

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Virtually every major state Obamacare “exchange” is collapsing due to low profits for insurers and high premiums for enrollees.

In North Carolina, Blue Cross and Blue Shield offers Obamacare plans to all of the state’s 100 counties. In the first year alone, five percent of their ACA customers consumed $830 million in health care costs; they only collected $75 million in premiums. That’s with the subsidy.

Twenty-three co-ops were created under the “Affordable Care Act,” and so far more than half have collapsed and are no longer selling plans in the marketplace. The remaining co-ops are on life support and will need bailouts to continue.

See the column by Matt Vespa here.

Mar 02

Breaking: the Global Warming “Pause” May have Ended

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1998 was a warm year. No year has matched it since, at least according to satellite data sets.

Now, after January’s data have been calculated, it appears that the 18-year,-8-month pause in global warming may have ended.

The satellite data sets appear to be consistent. January 2016 may be warmer than January 1998. See here.