Disqus - Latest Comments for pintpundit

Re: I’m sorry, I have jerk syndrome

pintpundit — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 11:21:53 -0000

Interesting. For what it's worth, i never found you to be socially awkward or any kind of a jerk. You were always friendly and extroverted to me. 'Course, maybe that's my filter/condition at work:)

Re: PFF Closes Doors after 17-Year Run

pintpundit — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 17:31:18 -0000

Sad to see PFF go, but I know the good folks there will reemerge elsewhere doing the same quality work that's marked PFF for years.

Re: I’m sorry, I have jerk syndrome

pintpundit — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 01:59:20 -0000

oops; commented twice and can't delete:(

Re: I’m sorry, I have jerk syndrome

pintpundit — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 01:58:55 -0000

Asperger's?

Re: Are pirates like government?

pintpundit — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:09:52 -0000

Jesse Walker has a comprehensive take on Somalia and its pirates here: http://www.reason.com/news/...

Re: Are pirates like government?

pintpundit — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 01:13:10 -0000

"A tax, at least in principle, and most often in practice, is a charge for a service rendered –- not necessarily a wanted or an evenly distributed service, to be sure, but most relevant here, protection from third-party pirates and other lawless predators, domestic and foreign. By contrast, a pirate’s shakedown puts the victim to a choice between two of his entitlements –- his freedom and his property."

I have to disagree w/ you here Greg. The difference between the "services" provided and penalties/taxes imposed are a difference of degree rather than kind. I don't want to pay for the mafia's protection, to pay the pirate's toll or to pay for much of what the state at all levels purports to render to me as a service. The fact that I would pay for some of these things under a voluntary, contractual arrangement does not mean that I submit to being charged or penalized for them in non-voluntary arrangements. The citizen who pays only a portion of his taxes (for the things he actually values) is presented with exactly the same choice between freedom and property. Augustine was spot-on in his comparison of pirates and emperors.

As a separate issue, in light of this and related posts here: http://www.huffingtonpost.c... , I'm not exactly sure we've got a grasp on who these pirates are and what they're doing over there. Yes, I'm very skeptical of the source of these claims and have not seen verification elsewhere, but if there is in fact nuclear waste dumping and what amounts to theft of Somalian fish (yes, I'm allowing them "territorial" waters even if they're not a "real" country), then it's unclear whether much of what is going on is actually unjust, or instead the only form of redress that Somalians have in the absence of a formal government. Certainly there are some truly bad actors and vigilante justice is less than ideal, but if the only way to get redress from other governments over what amount to criminal actions is to join the club of governments and this remains an impossibility, then what can we possibly expect. I know you don't necessarily believe this and i also know better than to goad you into a debate:), but would you contend that the Somalis (or anyone in similar circumstances) had no recognizable rights and no right to protect their health and livelihoods in the absence of formal government?

Re: Bad Regulation Drives Out Good

pintpundit — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 13:44:24 -0000

It strikes me that the opponents of a truly free market could accuse proponents (including myself) of exactly the same fallacy. Some libertarians assume what they have to prove and present the free market as a sort of libertopia, where all of the problems of life are reduced and perhaps even entirely eliminated. A truly free market would certainly eliminate much of the dead-weight loss that needless, foolish, etc. regulations incur. And, we should certainly point out the foolishness and needlessness of such regs as Dr. Richman has ably done in this case above, but is "the movement" as a whole making the positive case for economic liberty very well? Those within the libertarian ranks are already fully convinced of the efficiency and superiority of a free market, but I suspect that the majority of average folks is not. Though it is important to point out the flaws and ultimate harmfulness of intervention, it seems that avoiding our own charges of committing the Nirvana fallacy requires making a positive case for freer markets by demonstrating exactly how markets work and pointing out that though they are superior to other means of economic organization, they are in no wise perfect. I say this not because FEE especially hasn't been doing a good job of making the positive case, because the folks at FEE are among the leaders in doing so, but rather because the movement as a whole tends toward a negative strategy of pointing out our opponent's flaws rather than emphasizing the benefits of our own position. Such a negative approach seems hardwired into our brains as does the belief in the possibility of perfection, which is likely why the Nirvana fallacy exists and is so successful, but demonstrating the virtues of the free market and how a free system of individuals pursuing their own ends peacefully will lead to a better (but not perfect:) world that will eliminate some of the problems we face seems to be the better approach. Sorry for rambling:)

Re: Leeson’s Libertarian Love Story

pintpundit — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 15:40:01 -0000

Congrats Ania and Pete! Nice graphic talley:)

Re: If you haven’t yet . . .

pintpundit — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 01:38:09 -0000

Done and done!

Re: Atlas: corrupted by conservative cash?

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:54:19 -0000

Sounds slow and painful:)

Re: Atlas: corrupted by conservative cash?

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:53:44 -0000

You're a better reporter than I am David:) I read the entire post and comments, but didn't follow up like I should have on the individual claims in the post. I saw it as another example of intra-movement counterproductive criticism and riffed on that for too long:) Thank you for taking the time to bring this to our attention and thanks for reading!

Re: Reader Requests: Libertarianism, the five-minute version

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:39:01 -0000

I haven't either, but I still have several copies lying around and I run across one every now and then. Good times.

Re: More from the “Sovereign Movement,” and a judge oversteps his authority.

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:35:57 -0000

Reason has a good take here: http://www.reason.com/blog/...

Re: About me…

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:51:11 -0000

Welcome aboard Gordo!

Re: More from the “Sovereign Movement,” and a judge oversteps his authority.

pintpundit — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:47:00 -0000

You missed the best quote in the article. The fellow told the judge that he didn't live in Pennsylvania and said: "I live inside myself" As much as I support the right of folks to set up their own spheres of freedom, you have to at least set up a micronation in your bedroom or get serious about it and become a seasteader. If my "sovereign space" is limited to inside my body, then I shouldn't be able to move or interact with anything outside of my body w/o explicit permission. Just saying. Instead, folks like Witmer just assert that they can be free from punishment when they (allegedly) behave like criminals.

Re: Toward a Non-Crazy libertarianism.

pintpundit — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 22:13:02 -0000

Welcome aboard Greg! Great first post!

Do the paleos still advocate racism, including immigration restrictions, and homophobia these days? I know that some of their number did in the past, but wasn't aware of any major voices who pulled that kind of crap these days.

Re: Lincoln at 200

pintpundit — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 10:30:52 -0000

I think the penny is a good metaphor for Lincoln's legacy: it looks nice and shiny, but is composed of lies (not even made of copper anymore). The penny is also a really bad deal, costing about 1.7 cents to make each one, which is why the bureaucrats at the mint thought it would be a good idea to make more: http://blogs.wsj.com/econom...

Re: Create your own government, or don’t

pintpundit — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 23:38:10 -0000

Thanks Rich!:)

Tom

Re: Feeling libertarian?

pintpundit — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 23:37:31 -0000

I'm not sure what you mean by the "pro-freedom central planning model"--it appears to me to be a contradiction.

I am all in favor of living freely and demonstrating the cooperative solutions that free individuals can and do provide as an alternative to state actions. I appreciate that you would like to see more positive examples from libertarians, but the "movement" (i use the term very, very loosely and broadly) is a big tent. Each group and individual activist acts in the way that seems best to themselves and sometimes this is helpful; sometimes counterproductive.

I don't think that the Hasnas essay falls into the latter category nor does his work taken as a whole. Certainly, some of his work is negative, but it's well-researched and written in a thoughtful way. It's also correct in many respects.

Don't want to argue with you; just think we should all promote liberty in our own way and live and let live:)

Peace.

Re: Feeling libertarian?

pintpundit — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 14:52:21 -0000

I agree with y’all on the necessity for voluntary alternatives and creating something positive rather than just focusing on the negative. Hasnas, who is a committed and thoughtful anarchist libertarian (see his published papers) certainly would agree with the need for those as well. I think that Sunni may be judging a little harshly here because she’s taking this one essay as the entire formulation of his political philosophy. Hasnas is not a company man by any stretch of the imagination and certainly wouldn’t advocate replacing one form of tyranny with another of his choosing. I think he’s blowing off a little steam here in a particularly insightful way and pointing out the very real frustrations that folks who struggle to show others that a free life is possible feel. Yes, this one piece focuses on the negatives and yes, we should all do the best to create our own free space regardless of what the man allows, but both are important sides to the struggle we all face. We could all just let the rest of the world go to hell while we live in a libertarian utopia (i realize that this is an exaggeration of your position), but eventually the man, as inept and bungling as the state is, and i don’t want to think what kind of lives would be possible without the vast specialization and trading opportunities made possible by a global economy. In other words, Galt’s Gulch sounds all noble and wonderful, but in reality, it couldn’t exist. Libertarians of all stripes (those who try to work revolution from within and without) are necessary.

Re: 1938 Jimmy Stewart movie questions taxation

pintpundit — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 03:06:43 -0000

Ah, i see that it is on DVD now. Cool.

Re: 1938 Jimmy Stewart movie questions taxation

pintpundit — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:44:50 -0000

Another good movie (not yet available on DVD) that questions the legitimacy of income taxes is Harry's War. Here's a good portion of it: http://video.google.com/vid...

Re: The Modernist Society Presents “Libertarian in the Age of Obama”

pintpundit — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 02:08:40 -0000

Great report and awesome photos Morgan!

Re: Social Security: the ultimate Ponzi scheme

pintpundit — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:41:22 -0000

Thanks MCL! We're trying to expose our Fr33Agent visitors to the to the broad spectrum of pro-liberty opinion and activism. Thanks for stopping by and keep up the good work in Wisconsin!

Re: Social Security: the ultimate Ponzi scheme

pintpundit — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:39:41 -0000

Being self-employed is one of the few ways to avoid being taxed double. When you work for an employer, you have to pay 6.2 percent of wages toward Social Security and your employer is supposed to match that. However, your employer isn't going to just kick in 6.2 percent on top of your wage. Rather, he will reduce your wage from the outset to cover the 6.2 percent he is required to pay. Therefore, employees pay the full 12.4 percent in lower wages as well as a direct cut from each paycheck.

Other than operating in the gray/black market and/or having zero income, there's not way to opt out of the system. I suspect that if folks under 40 were able to choose, the system would see mass exodus.