Author: Bionic Mosquito

Which only means “we” are doomed to repeat these…. I have begun to read a book that examines the history that led to the Great War.  This period has always been of interest to me as I have not found satisfying explanations as to why Europe decided to consume itself so completely (and deal its suicide blow).  Toward this end, I came across The Lost History of 1914: How the Great War Was Not Inevitable, by Jack Beatty. From a review at Amazon: Augmenting the literature on the origins of WWI, Beatty dwells on domestic political situations in the initial … Continue reading →

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Overall, Louis’s diplomacy and warfare with the Slavs in the decade after Verdun demonstrate his determination to reestablish the traditional Carolingian tributary lordship over the Slavs as well as the considerable obstacles to this policy. Taken from Struggle for Empire: Kingship and Conflict Under Louis the German, 817 – 876, by Eric J. Goldberg. Louis the German is grandson of Charlemagne and ruler of the eastern kingdom (and sometimes more, depending on his relative power and standing with his father, Louis the Pious).  To his east are the troublesome Slavs. Apropos to this time of Brexit and consistent with my … Continue reading →

The post Always Anathema to the Elite appeared first on LewRockwell.

Brexit has won.  A joyous occasion for fans of decentralization. Now, what?  Markets are certainly in turmoil – the Pound is falling historically; gold is rising; equity markets everywhere are falling; volatility is all the rage. But this will all pass…perhaps until the next vote.  The Dutch are already pushing; so are the French.  More will come. As an aside, take it further: not every county and city in Britain voted to leave.  Why not let each locality decide if it chooses to stay or go?  After this, why not each household?  Why not? And why stop at the EU?  … Continue reading →

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Is it theirs, or what they think of ours?  Example 85,273,569. What’s truly scary about the horrifying attacks that have recently taken place in Orlando, England and France isn’t just the number of victims — it’s that the acts themselves are impossible to understand. This being the summary, offered just below the subject post at Spiegel.  I suspect I don’t have to do much more writing for you to know where this post is headed.  But here goes…. It’s been 10 years since the Football World Cup transformed Germany into a “summer fairytale,” as it was referred to by Germans. … Continue reading →

The post Are the Mainstream Media Stupid? appeared first on LewRockwell.

I have chosen to address several of the comments to my original post on this topic at one time, via this new post.  I thank each one of you as you have provided very good feedback and conversation on this topic. While I began the original post on the trail of dealing with the lack of freedom of speech as an issue in this freedom award, I obviously wandered further – into self-censorship; it is in this “further” where much of the feedback to the original post was focused. Stayton June 10, 2016, at 9:20 AM …just as liberty affects … Continue reading →

The post Culture and Freedom appeared first on LewRockwell.

NB: I understand well the NAP applied to this topic.  I also understand that just because something is allowable within the NAP doesn’t mean it is conducive toward a civil society, and therefore even conducive toward developing and maintaining a free society.  Expanding freedom is possible in the long run only within a society that understands what is necessary to maintain freedom.  I keep in mind: the less civil and the less respectful the society – while such behavior is perhaps perfectly compatible with the NAP – the more demand for more government. I know some libertarians don’t like to … Continue reading →

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Putin has delivered his strongest public remarks to date regarding the missiles placed by NATO on the borders of Russia – active in Romania and soon to be active in Poland: “If yesterday in those areas of Romania people simply did not know what it means to be in the cross-hairs, then today we will be forced to carry out certain measures to ensure our security,” Putin said in a joint news conference in Athens with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. “It will be the same case with Poland,” he said. The US claims that the missiles are to protect … Continue reading →

The post Human Extermination on the Way? appeared first on LewRockwell.

Resolve to serve no more, and you are at once freed. I do not ask that you place hands upon the tyrant to topple him over, but simply that you support him no longer; then you will behold him, like a great Colossus whose pedestal has been pulled away, fall of his own weight and break in pieces. –        The Politics of Obedience: The Discourse of Voluntary Servitude, Etienne de la Boétie Guess who this is, regarding the upcoming Brexit vote: In a passionate plea to Europe’s top conservatives, he accused the EU elites of living in a fool’s paradise … Continue reading →

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Several weeks ago, the [RAND Corporation] released [a] study that received a fair amount of attention. Financed by the Pentagon, they created a series of simulations for a hypothetical Russian invasion of the two Baltic states of Estonia and Latvia. “The outcome was, bluntly, a disaster for NATO,” the RAND researchers wrote in their report. In each simulation, the Russians were able to either circumvent the outnumbered NATO units, or even worse, destroy them. Between 36 and 60 hours after the beginning of hostilities, Russian troops stood before the gates of Riga or Tallinn — or both. Says Spiegel.  The … Continue reading →

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NB: I know Hornberger has today replied to my latest post on the topic of open borders; this post below is not in reply to Jacob’s post of today.  I have been chewing on the below post for a couple of days and have decided that more chewing isn’t going to help. I am not sure I will reply to Hornberger’s post of today.  I think we are talking past each other.  I am feeling that my points are either ignored or misrepresented; I do not put this solely on Jacob, as it takes two to effectively communicate (or not).  … Continue reading →

The post Minarchism, Border Control, and Invasion appeared first on LewRockwell.

NB: this post is regarding the elections in Austria, which occurred this past Sunday.  I wrote it prospectively, last week, with the intention to publish it before the elections, but did not have the chance to return to it to finish the post.  I became tied up on the issue of open borders. In any case, the right-wing populist did not win the Austrian presidency, although the vote appears to have been about as close to 50/50 as possible.  This does not change the general observations and thoughts below (in fact, only reinforces these), so I have decided to leave … Continue reading →

The post Open Borders Crime appeared first on LewRockwell.

Jacob Hornberger has written a column on open borders. He doesn’t mention my name, but it is pretty clear to whom he is writing.  I won’t go through Hornberger’s post line by line; instead, I will focus on his challenge.  Forgive the lengthy quote, but the full challenge must be presented: Consider the following hypothetical. Ever since I presented it many years ago, there has not been one single libertarian advocate of government-controlled borders who has ever been able to refute the principles set forth in the hypothetical. Unless and until any libertarian advocate of government-controlled borders successfully refutes the … Continue reading →

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Some background: there is an American football team with a team nickname that has been the target of Social Justice Warriors for a few decades – sometimes with more intensity, sometimes with less.  The Washington Redskins – a nickname deemed racist and offensive to Native Americans (well, I don’t know that they were native)…er…American Indians (they aren’t from India)…er…well, you know what I mean. There has been a big push lately regarding the name – legal battles over the trademark, a push by the city of Washington, DC (the team would like to build a new stadium in the city) … Continue reading →

The post You Are Supposed To Be Offended appeared first on LewRockwell.

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard is upset. He is upset with the IMF.  He is upset with the US Treasury Department.  He is upset with Barack Obama.  You might say he was gutted. What has caused him to be so cheesed off? If the International Monetary Fund and its co-conspirators in the Treasury wish to deter undecided voters from flirting with Brexit, they have certainly failed in my case. They have each told the Brits what to do about Brexit. Having listened to their irritating lectures, I am more inclined to opt for defiance, for their mask of objectivity has fallen. Ambrose is joining … Continue reading →

The post The Evil of the IMF appeared first on LewRockwell.

Angela Merkel’s open borders policy continues to pay dividends in the destruction of open borders as a libertarian concept.  But before I come to “practice,” I will revisit “theory.” Theory There is no “state” in libertarian theory.  The only “borders” are the borders that divide private property, one privately-owned parcel from another. Libertarian theory does not recognize open borders when it comes to property.  The property is private and exclusionary.  Is your property open to anyone who wants to come on it? Now, this doesn’t mean “closed” is the only other possibility.  Is your property closed to everyone? Access to the … Continue reading →

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