Constitution Society

List of Enemies of Liberty

2010-03-11T12:05:00.000-06:00

Yesterday the House of Representatives had a chance to end the war in Afghanistan immediately. Unfortunately, 356 representatives revealed themselves as our enemies. The official list can be found here.

Partial List of Enemies of Liberty in Congress:

Ackerman
Aderholt
Adler (NJ)
Akin
Alexander
Altmire
Andrews
Arcuri
Austria
Baca
Bachmann
Bachus
Baird
Barrow
Bartlett
Barton (TX)
Bean
Becerra
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop (GA)
Bishop (NY)
Bishop (UT)
Blackburn
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boccieri
Boehner
Bonner
Bono Mack
Boozman
Boren
Boswell
Boucher
Boustany
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Braley (IA)
Bright
Broun (GA)
Brown (SC)
Brown, Corrine
Brown-Waite, Ginny
Buchanan
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Butterfield
Buyer
Calvert
Cantor
Cao
Capito
Capps
Cardoza
Carnahan
Carney
Carson (IN)
Carter
Cassidy
Castle
Castor (FL)
Chaffetz
Chandler
Childers
Clyburn
Coble
Coffman (CO)
Cohen
Cole
Conaway
Connolly (VA)
Cooper
Costa
Costello
Courtney
Crenshaw
Cuellar
Culberson
Cummings
Dahlkemper
Davis (CA)
Davis (KY)
Davis (TN)
DeGette
Delahunt
DeLauro
Dent
Diaz-Balart, M.
Dicks
Dingell
Doggett
Donnelly (IN)
Dreier
Driehaus
Edwards (TX)
Ehlers
Ellsworth
Emerson
Engel
Eshoo
Etheridge
Fallin
Fattah
Flake
Fleming
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foster
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Fudge
Gallegly
Garamendi

Garrett (NJ)
Gerlach
Giffords
Gingrey (GA)
Gohmert
Gonzalez
Goodlatte
Gordon (TN)
Granger
Graves
Green, Al
Green, Gene
Griffith
Guthrie
Hall (NY)
Hall (TX)
Halvorson
Hare
Harman
Harper
Hastings (WA)
Heinrich
Heller
Hensarling
Herger
Herseth Sandlin
Higgins
Hill
Himes
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Hirono
Hodes
Holden
Holt
Honda
Hoyer
Hunter
Inglis
Inslee
Israel
Issa
Jenkins
Johnson (GA)
Johnson, Sam
Jordan (OH)
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kennedy
Kildee
Kilpatrick (MI)
Kilroy
Kind
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kirk
Kirkpatrick (AZ)
Kissell
Klein (FL)
Kline (MN)
Kosmas
Kratovil
Lamborn
Lance
Langevin
Larsen (WA)
Latham
LaTourette
Latta
Lee (NY)
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Loebsack
Lofgren, Zoe
Lowey
Lucas
Luetkemeyer
Luján
Lummis
Lungren, Daniel E.
Lynch
Mack
Manzullo
Marchant
Markey (CO)
Marshall
Matheson
Matsui
McCarthy (CA)
McCarthy (NY)
McCaul
McClintock
McCollum
McCotter
McHenry
McIntyre
McKeon
McMahon
McMorris Rodgers
McNerney
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Melancon
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller (NC)
Miller, Gary
Minnick
Mitchell
Mollohan
Moore (KS)
Moore (WI)
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)

Murphy (CT)
Murphy (NY)
Murphy, Patrick
Murphy, Tim
Myrick
Neugebauer
Nunes
Nye
Oberstar
Olson
Ortiz
Owens
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor (AZ)
Paulsen
Pence
Perlmutter
Perriello
Peters
Peterson
Petri
Pitts
Platts
Poe (TX)
Pomeroy
Posey
Price (GA)
Price (NC)
Putnam
Radanovich
Rahall
Rehberg
Reichert
Reyes
Rodriguez
Roe (TN)
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Rohrabacher
Rooney
Ros-Lehtinen
Roskam
Ross
Rothman (NJ)
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Ruppersberger
Rush
Ryan (OH)
Ryan (WI)
Salazar
Sarbanes
Scalise
Schauer
Schiff
Schmidt
Schock
Schrader
Schwartz
Scott (GA)
Scott (VA)
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Sestak
Shadegg
Shea-Porter
Sherman
Shimkus
Shuler
Shuster
Simpson
Sires
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (NE)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Souder
Space
Spratt
Stearns
Sullivan
Sutton
Tanner
Taylor
Teague
Terry
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thompson (PA)
Thornberry
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Titus
Tonko
Turner
Upton
Van Hollen
Visclosky
Walden
Walz
Wamp
Watt
Waxman
Weiner
Westmoreland
Whitfield
Wilson (OH)
Wilson (SC)
Wittman
Wolf
Wu
Yarmuth
Young (AK)

Making the Warmongers Cry

2010-03-11T11:35:00.000-06:00

Ron Paul uses his vocal sledgehammer to make the warmongers cry in shame.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=422uTaGxY8o

Doctors Skirt FDA To Heal Patients With Stem Cells

2010-03-09T14:13:00.000-06:00

More evidence that the FDA does nothing but harm:

For many years countless individuals in the US have had to watch with envy as dogs and horses with joint and bone injuries have been cured with stem cell procedures that the FDA has refused to approve for humans. Now, in an exciting development, Regenerative Sciences Inc. in Colorado has found a way to skirt the FDA and provide these same stem cell treatments to humans. The results have been stunning, allowing many patients to walk or run who have not been able to do so for years. There's no surgery required, just a needle to extract and then re-inject the cells where they are needed. There has always been a lot of hype around stem cells, but this is the real deal. Real humans are getting real treatment that works, and we should all hope that more companies will begin offering this procedure in other states soon.

(Hat tip to Slashdot.)

Ron Paul on the Census

2010-03-08T12:56:00.000-06:00

Census: A Little Too Personal

By Ron Paul

Last week Congress voted to encourage participation in the 2010 census. I voted “No” on this resolution for the simple, obvious reason that the census- like so many government programs- has grown far beyond what the framers of our Constitution intended. The invasive nature of the current census raises serious questions about how and why government will use the collected information. It also demonstrates how the federal bureaucracy consistently encourages citizens to think of themselves in terms of groups, rather than as individual Americans. The not so subtle implication is that each group, whether ethnic, religious, social, or geographic, should speak up and demand its “fair share” of federal largesse.

Article I, section 2 of the Constitution calls for an enumeration of citizens every ten years, for the purpose of apportioning congressional seats among the various states. In other words, the census should be nothing more than a headcount. It was never intended to serve as a vehicle for gathering personal information on citizens.

But our voracious federal government thrives on collecting information. In fact, to prepare for the 2010 census state employees recorded GPS coordinates for every front door in the United States so they could locate individuals with greater accuracy! Once duly located, individuals are asked detailed questions concerning their name, address, race, home ownership, and whether they periodically spend time in prison or a nursing home - just to name a few examples.

From a constitutional perspective, of course, the answer to each of these questions is: “None of your business.” But the bigger question is - why government is so intent on compiling this information in the first place?

The Census Bureau claims that collected information is not shared with any federal agency; but rather is kept under lock and key for 72 years. It also claims that no information provided to census takers can be used against you by the government.

However, these promises can and have been abused in the past. Census data has been used to locate men who had not registered for the draft. Census data also was used to find Japanese-Americans for internment camps during World War II. Furthermore, the IRS has applied census information to detect alleged tax evaders. Some local governments even have used census data to check for compliance with zoning regulations.

It is not hard to imagine that information compiled by the census could be used against people in the future, despite claims to the contrary and the best intentions of those currently in charge of the Census Bureau. The government can and does change its mind about these things, and people have a right to be skeptical about government promises.

Yet there are consequences for not submitting to the census and its intrusive questions. If the form is not mailed back in time, households will experience the “pleasure” of a visit by a government worker asking the questions in person. If the government still does not get the information it wants, it can issue a fine of up to $5000.

If the federal government really wants to increase compliance with the census, it should abide by the Constitution and limit its inquiry to one simple question: How many people live here?

Andrew Napolitano's New Book Tops Amazon

2010-03-05T12:44:00.000-06:00

Judge Andrew Napolitano's new book, Lies the Government Told You: Myth, Power, and Deception in American History, is now the #2 bestselling book on Amazon.com! It is #1 in non-fiction! Get yourself a copy of this awesome book if you have not done so yet. Check out the summary:

What new crisis will the federal government manufacture in order to acquire more power over individuals? What new lies will it tell?
Throughout our history, the federal government has lied to send our children off to war, lied to take our money, lied to steal our property, lied to gain our trust, and lied to enhance its power over us. Not only does the government lie to us, we lie to ourselves. We won't admit that each time we let the government get away with misleading us, we are allowing it to increase in size and power and decrease our personal liberty.

In acquiescing to the government's continuous fraudulent behavior, we bear partial responsibility for the erosion of our individual liberties and the ever-expanding federal regulation of private behavior. This book attacks the culture in government that facilitates lying, and it challenges readers to recognize that culture, to confront it, and to be rid of it.

A Flood of Free Thinkers coming?

2010-03-04T10:06:00.000-06:00

These days there is little for Americans to be proud of, but here is a wonderful exception:

A German family facing persecution in their home country has been granted asylum in the United States. The parents dared to attempt to teach their children stuff themselves, something that is illegal in much of Europe. It is very rare for people to be granted asylum from a supposed "civilized" nation, so this case sets an extremely important precedent. If the precedent is upheld, this could open the door for a flood of free thinkers to move to the USA, which could in turn cause the pivotal shift in the climate of ideas needed for the R3VOLUTION to take place.

The story has been covered by Reason, Time, NYT, and others.

Liberty Overtakes CPAC

2010-03-02T09:12:00.000-06:00

Libertarians could not be silenced at the 2010 Conservative Political Action Conference. We are the future.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apCIQ_qri0M

UK Bill Would Outlaw Open Wi-Fi

2010-02-28T11:57:00.000-06:00

The despicable Digital Economy Bill provides evidence that the politicians in the United Kingdom hate us too:

The government will not exempt universities, libraries and small businesses providing open Wi-Fi services from its Digital Economy Bill copyright crackdown, according to official advice released earlier this week. This would leave many organizations open to the same penalties for copyright infringement as individual subscribers, potentially including disconnection from the Internet, leading legal experts to say it will become impossible for small businesses and the like to offer Wi-Fi access. 'This is going to be a very unfortunate measure for small businesses, particularly in a recession, many of whom are using open free Wi-Fi very effectively as a way to get the punters in. Even if they password protect, they then have two options — to pay someone like The Cloud to manage it for them, or take responsibility themselves for becoming an ISP effectively, and keep records for everyone they assign connections to, which is an impossible burden for a small cafe,' said Lilian Edwards, professor of Internet law at Sheffield University.

Conservative Foreign Policy

2010-02-26T11:30:00.000-06:00

The neocons have it ass backwards.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4zKzXFcLN4

Off-The-Grid Power Plant in a Box

2010-02-25T16:23:00.000-06:00

Since libertarians are often fond of being as self-reliant as possible, Bloom Energy's newly unveiled "power plant in a box" might be of interest to you as a get-off-the-grid technology. Right now only large companies are testing the device, but a home unit is estimated to cost about $3000. The companies using it expect it to take only 3 to 5 years for the device to pay for itself. Unfortunately, this calculation includes subsidies and tax incentives. Without tax incentives considered, the cost of electricity from the box, which runs on a wide variety of fuels, is about the same as using the grid. This is a big step forward. Hopefully it will not be ignored, like that 12 year-old man who invented a solar cell that is 500 times more efficient than currently available solar cells.

Imagine a day when the term "energy independence" is assumed to refer to self-reliance at the household level!

Human Movement Predictable 93% of the Time

2010-02-25T15:55:00.001-06:00

We'd like to think of ourselves as dynamic, unpredictable individuals, but according to new research, that's not the case at all. In a study published in last week's Science, researchers looked at customer location data culled from cellular service providers. By looking at how customers moved around, the authors of the study found that it may be possible to predict human movement patterns and location up to 93 percent of the time.

Read the rest of the article here, or if you're into complex numbers and graphs you can read the official research paper here.

Privatize Elephants

2010-02-24T12:40:00.000-06:00

Daniel Hannan, representing Southeast England in the European Union, is no 'Dumbo' when it comes to economics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QouamYWL6vc

Ron Paul People

2010-02-23T12:28:00.000-06:00

Jack Hunter on those darn "Ron Paul People."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukzPf_6eNBg

Homeland Security Loses 243 Guns

2010-02-19T13:13:00.001-06:00

In a screw up so big it could only be brought to you by the government or a famous athlete, 243 guns were lost by Homeland Security agencies between 2006 and 2008. 179 guns, were lost "because officers did not properly secure them," an inspector general report said. One of the worst examples of carelessness sites a customs officer who left a firearm in an idling vehicle in the parking lot of a convenience store. The vehicle was stolen while the officer was inside. "A local law enforcement officer later recovered the firearm from a suspected gang member and drug smuggler," the report said.

Hat tip to Slashdot.org

Cover Your Webcam With Tape

2010-02-19T13:10:00.000-06:00

A government school in Pennsylvania is remotely activating webcams and spying on students in their homes. Read the full story here.

"The school accused of remotely activating computer webcams to spy on students in their homes has denied the charges, although it acknowledged that the functionality was available for the purpose of recovering stolen computers. If the school actually engaged in spying, even with the aim of protecting students, "the administrators themselves became the predators," said tech attorney Ray Van Dyke."

Liberal & Conservative Terrorists

2010-02-16T18:01:00.000-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVztmtQX104

Obama Hates You

2010-02-11T15:23:00.001-06:00

So he's going to track your cellular whereabouts, you untrustworthy foe.
"An article at CNET is reporting on the Obama administration's push for warrantless tracking of the location of cell phones (Verizon Wireless stores location data for one year, for instance). The Justice Department says no warrant is necessary: 'Because wireless carriers regularly generate and retain the records at issue, and because these records provide only a very general indication of a user's whereabouts at certain times in the past, the requested cell-site records do not implicate a Fourth Amendment privacy interest."

Ron Paul on the Corrupt Treasury Department

2010-02-04T19:19:00.000-06:00

Ron Paul and Andrew Napolitano discuss the corrupt U.S. Treasury in Tuesday's episode of Freedom Watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i39Vb-YoPGE

The Constitution and Freedom

2010-02-03T16:29:00.000-06:00

Judge Andrew Napolitano on the real purpose of the US Constitution.

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9kM6vWL2QA

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGzFSajvy1g

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A725vBawbw

Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj6PSNwK_u4

Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_bDVpnDceg

Spending Freeze Not Likely

2010-02-02T10:51:00.000-06:00

A weekly column by Ron Paul

Last week politicians in Washington made a few things clear about how they really feel about the state of the union. First, they are beginning to hear the growing discontent with the size and scope of government and the broken promises that keep piling up. Certain events in Massachusetts recently made that statement loud, clear and unavoidable. In the face of those events, the powers that be made the determination that some populist rhetoric was in order, and the idea of a spending freeze in Washington was proposed, albeit with several caveats. These caveats to the proposed spending freeze ensure that we are not at any real risk of actually doing anything about spending.

First of all is timing. It wouldn’t go into effect until 2011, which allows plenty of time to increase spending levels quite a bit before they are frozen. If the administration really understood and cared about our spending problems they would not freeze spending a year from now, but cut spending immediately and significantly. But, spending cuts almost never happen in Washington, and they are not likely now or a year from now – if the politicians have anything to say about it.

The second caveat is the huge areas of the budget that are shielded from this freeze. The entire State Department budget is exempt, as are all entitlements, all military industrial spending and almost all foreign aid. Fully 7/8 of federal spending is excluded from this freeze, and some areas to be frozen were actually set to decrease, which means a freeze actually guarantees a higher level of spending.

Especially insulting is the idea that in spite of our own fiscal problems at home, taxpayer dollars will continue to be sent overseas in the form of foreign aid where it often does more harm than good. When need is demonstrated to Americans and they can afford it, they can be counted on for a tremendous outpouring of private, voluntary charity to worthy aid organizations, as we recently saw in Haiti. By contrast, government-to-government aid is taken from the poor by force and too often enriches the corrupt. It is counterproductive and wasteful. But the idea of eliminating, freezing, or reducing foreign aid is not up for serious debate any time soon.

The third caveat is what is included in the freeze that would make it politically impossible to pass Congress, for example air traffic controllers salaries, education, farm subsidies and national parks.

I do not necessarily want a cut in spending in this country - I just want to change who does the spending. The spending should be done by the people who earn the money, if they choose, and on what they choose, without any government interference. That is what makes the economy work. Politicians should stick to the very limited roles given them by the constitution instead of allocating such a sizeable portion of our capital and intervening through regulations and tax policy. But because politicians have disregarded the constitution, and the people have no idea what rule they will break next, there is already a very real spending freeze underway in this economy, by the people. If government would stick only to what it was authorized to do, and leave the rest to the people, most of these problems would resolve themselves.

What Does The Federal Budget Freeze Look Like?

2010-02-01T10:43:00.000-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMH9QZdjS2Y

Hayek vs. Keynes: Fear the Boom and Bust

2010-01-28T14:28:00.001-06:00

As much as rap music disgusts me and other thinking people, I must share this video because it is so well made. It is a music video that pits Hayek against his arch rival, Keynes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0nERTFo-Sk

The ironic combination of wise words and mindlessly primal music is hilarious.

UK Police to use Military Spy Drones on Their Own Citizens

2010-01-26T12:49:00.000-06:00

According to documents obtained by the Guardian under the Freedom of Information Act, the UK police plan on deploying unmanned drones in the UK to 'revolutionize policing' and extend domestic 'surveillance, monitoring and evidence gathering,' which will be used in 'the routine work of the police, border authorities and other government agencies.' The documents come from the South Coast Partnership, 'a Home Office-backed project in which Kent police and others are developing a national drone plan' in conjunction with BAE Systems. The stated aim is to introduce the system in time for the 2012 Olympics. Initially, Kent police stated that the system would be used to monitor shipping lanes and illegal immigrants, but the documents reveal that this was part of a PR strategy: 'There is potential for these [maritime] uses to be projected as a "good news" story to the public rather than more "big brother."' However, the documents talk about a much wider range of usage, such as '[detecting] theft from cash machines, preventing theft of tractors and monitoring antisocial driving,' as well as 'road and railway monitoring, search and rescue, event security and covert urban surveillance.' Also, due to the expense involved, it has also been suggested that some data could be sold off to private companies, or the drones could be used for commercial purposes.

Legalize Competing Currencies

2010-01-25T12:25:00.000-06:00

By Ron Paul

Much has been made recently about the supposed economic recovery. A few blips in a few statistics and many believe our troubles are all over. Of course, they have to redefine recovery as “jobless” to account for the lack of improvement on Main Street. But the banks have money, Wall Street is chugging along, and the administration would like to get on with other agendae.

They have even set up a commission to investigate the crisis as if it were all in the past.

The truth is that Americans are still losing jobs, the Fed is still inflating, and more regulations are in the works that will prevent jobs and productivity from coming back. We are on this trajectory for the long haul. The claim has been made many times that this administration has only had a year to clean up the mess of the last administration. I wish they would at least get started! Instead of reversing course, they are maintaining Bush’s policies full speed ahead. They are even keeping the Bush-appointee in charge of the Federal Reserve! They are not even making token efforts at change in economic policy. And for all the talk of transparency, we hear that some powerful senators will do all they can to block a simple audit of the powerful and secretive Federal Reserve.

We have been on a disastrous course for a long time. The money supply has doubled in the last year, our debt is unsustainable, the value of the dollar is going to continue its drop, and those Americans who understand where we are headed feel helpless and held hostage by foolish policy makers in Washington. When the bills finally come due and the dollar stops working we are in for some real social, economic and political chaos. That is, unless we take some major steps now to allow for a peaceful transition in the future. These steps are laid out in my legislation to legalize competing currencies.

First of all, no one should be compelled by law to operate in Federal Reserve notes if they prefer an alternative. We should repeal legal tender laws and allow Americans to conduct transactions in constitutional money. Only gold and silver can constitutionally be legal tender, not paper money. Instead, it is illegal to conduct business using gold and silver instead of Federal Reserve notes. Simply legalizing the Constitution should be a no-brainer to anyone who took an oath of office. Consequently, private mints should be allowed to mint gold and silver coins. They would be subject to fraud and counterfeit laws, of course, and people would be free to use their coins or stay with Federal Reserve notes, as they see fit. Finally, we should abolish taxes on gold and silver, which puts precious metals at a competitive disadvantage to paper money.

The Federal Reserve is a government-sanctioned banking cartel that has held far too much power for far too long and is in the end stages of running the dollar into the ground, and our economy along with it. The very least Congress can do, if they are not willing to abolish the Fed, and perhaps not even conduct a serious audit of it, is to allow citizens the freedom to defend themselves from being completely wiped out by their monopoly power.

Constitution Society

List of Enemies of Liberty

Making the Warmongers Cry

Doctors Skirt FDA To Heal Patients With Stem Cells

Ron Paul on the Census

Andrew Napolitano's New Book Tops Amazon

A Flood of Free Thinkers coming?

Liberty Overtakes CPAC

UK Bill Would Outlaw Open Wi-Fi

Conservative Foreign Policy

Off-The-Grid Power Plant in a Box

Human Movement Predictable 93% of the Time

Privatize Elephants

Ron Paul People

Homeland Security Loses 243 Guns

Cover Your Webcam With Tape

Liberal & Conservative Terrorists

Obama Hates You

More Spending is Always the Answer

Ron Paul on the Corrupt Treasury Department

The Constitution and Freedom

Spending Freeze Not Likely

What Does The Federal Budget Freeze Look Like?

Hayek vs. Keynes: Fear the Boom and Bust

UK Police to use Military Spy Drones on Their Own Citizens

Legalize Competing Currencies