Rational Public Radio

"Why Marxism?" An Evening at FEE with C. Bradley Thompson

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 06:00:00 GMT

The lecture "Why Marxism?", is an examination of why so many people are still attracted to Marxism despite the history of totalitarianism and genocide.

Professor C. Bradley Thompson is the BB&T Research Professor at Clemson University and the Executive Director of the Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism. He has also been a visiting fellow at Princeton and Harvard universities and at the University of London.

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RPR Interview - Robb Wolf

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 22:07:48 GMT

We caught up with fitness guru Robb Wolf to talk about America's weight problem. In addition to writing the bestselling book "The Paleo Solution" he is also the co-host of the "Paleo Solution" podcast.

He explains why government lies are to blame for the obesity epidemic. It turns out that following the government sponsored "food pyramid" is just about the worst thing you can do.

Next, Robb clues us in on what a healthy diet actually looks like. The answer is pretty shocking, it's almost diametrically opposite to the conventional wisdom.

You can support Rational Public Radio by reviewing us on iTunes or sharing this story on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc. Thanks!

{audio}RPR Interview - Robb Wolf|robb-wolf-interview.mp3{/audio}

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Rational Public Radio is an Objectivist podcast and blog, a.k.a., the rallying center for reasoned warriors in the fight to gain and keep individual freedom.

Would a Debt Default Really be the End of the World?

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 17:32:25 GMT

Of course, President Obama is making dire predictions about what will happen if we fail to raise the ceiling. He predicts a default so dramatic that Social Security may grind to a halt in August of this year.

As I've written before, such claims are simply dishonest political grandstanding. We can still spend 2.1 trillion annually without raising the debt limit. All leaving the ceiling in place means is that we can't borrow additional funds. 2.1 Trillion is more than enough to cover social security and military spending and interest payments on the debt with hundreds of billions left over.

I won't disguise the fact that this would be unpleasant for a great many people. Federal Deficit spending currently accounts for about 12% of GDP. Eliminating that spending would cause an instantaneous drop in GDP of at least that amount. Economic declines over 10% qualify as depressions.

However, we need to be very clear about something. Doing this would be recognizing that we are in a depression, it wouldn't cause a depression. The formula for GDP is simple but also deeply flawed. GDP = private consumption + gross investment + government spending + Net Exports.

Which one of these figures isn't like the others? Government spending of course. The government can borrow and spend tremendous amounts of money. Today, the federal reserve has taken the game one step further. The left hand is lending the right hand money that it has created out of thin air. This "quantitative easing" doesn't actually reflect increased productivity or a healthier economy but it adds to GDP nonetheless.

It's like a homeowner who gets laid off and pays his mortgage with a credit card, and then pays the first card with a second. From the outside everything looks ok. However, we all know that the homeowner is digging an ever deeper hole, not actually fixing the problems. Similarly, the government can deficit spend or print enough to give us increasing GDP numbers, but they cannot print their way to a healthy economy.

Now, I'm going to ask a new question. What happens if the United States does default? Well, obviously it isn't a course that is going to win us many friends. Individual investors will be ruined when the value of their investments plunges to zero. Entire countries will see similar problems. China currently holds around a trillion dollars of US government debt, and they will not be best pleased to see that evaporate.

As a consequence, the government would find it impossible to borrow again within the next generation at anything approaching a reasonable interest rate. The value of the dollar would take a substantial hit as well, and millions of Americans would lose a tremendous amount of wealth as a result.

As for the first half, that is precisely what America needs. Our system of government financing is fundamentally broken. As a nation we have convinced ourselves that we are entitled to whatever we want...right now....at someone else's expense. We've been able to pull it off for a stunningly long time, but the math is simple. Debt and GDP growth are both exponential functions. If debt systemically rises faster than GDP, the system must blow up eventually.

If the spread is small, it may take decades, but it absolutely will happen eventually. No amount of will power can change the math. No amount of demanding the status quo continue can make it so. No amount of saying that America is the greatest country in the world can change the fact that we must obey the laws of reality.

As a nation, we need to accept that fact that we must spend within our means or perish. A debt default would cause exactly the sort of enforced austerity that we need.

The lower value of the dollar would make exports more affordable in the rest of the world, assuming they had functioning economies after the US debt they held disintegrated.

This isn't to sugar coat the situation, it would undoubtedly be extremely ugly. Dire poverty, and perhaps even starvation in America would be almost certain. War abroad and revolution at home are entirely conceivable. However, just like deficit spending causes a fraudulently healthy perception of the economy would this default cause the problems or would it simply reveal them? I argue the latter case, and if I'm right the longer we wait, the worse it will be.

Rational Public Radio is an Objectivist podcast and blog, a.k.a., the rallying center for reasoned warriors in the fight to gain and keep individual freedom.

Drone Warfare in American

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Tue, 15 May 2012 19:34:58 GMT

How would Obama supporters feel if they learned that their beloved President was running far-to-the-authoritarian-right of arch-hawk Charles Krauthammer on one particular civil liberties issue?

Sadly, the answer is that the most Obama supporters probably wouldn’t feel very much at all, because support for Obama has always predominantly been emotion-driven (he promised change “you can believe in”, not “change that I can logically convince you will be beneficial“).

The Cause of the Great Recession has been Found!

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 03:24:54 GMT

Think about how much better off our economy would be if only we could eliminate trains and semi trucks. Why, we would need thousands of horse drawn carts to do the same job as a single railroad engineer. Maybe, that's not far enough.

Think about how disastrous the horse drawn cart has been for employment! In the good old days, it was just men carrying sacks. We'd need dozens of sack-carrying men to do the job of a single horse drawn cart. Surely we'd all be better off under such a system. We'd certainly have full employment.

The trouble (and it should be obvious) with this economic theory is that workers displaced by technological improvement don't remain unemployed forever. They go where they can be more useful. The process of technological innovation and capital formation is the reason why we don't need to employ 90% of our nation to farm any longer. Are we worse off because we don't have 280 million self sufficient farmers eeking out a living scratching the dirt with primitive hand tools?

Of course not, thanks to technology and automation those people can be more productively employed while a tiny fraction feeds the whole nation. This is the precise reason why today's standard of living is vastly superior to the era of the founding of our country.

President Obama doesn't understand this economics 101 concept. His "thoughts" on the subject would scarcely earn a D- at the local community college. Columbia and Harvard, if they have a shred of intellectual integrity, should rescind his diploma.

Legions of Democrats claimed that President Bush was an idiot. Well, he never said anything this dumb and meant it.

Objectivist Podcast - July 4, 2011 - Michigan Racism, Jihad, Debt Ceiling, 4th of July, Ayn Rand

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 15:59:46 GMT

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{audio}July 4, 2011 - Michigan Racism, Jihad, Debt Ceiling, 4th of July, Ayn Rand|025-rpr7411-michigan-racism-jihad-debt-ceiling-4th-of-july-ayn-rand.mp3{/audio}

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Has Godlessness Doomed Britain?

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 19:35:47 GMT

Let's start by looking at the problems Boteach makes about England:

"British influence in the world...has gone off a cliff over the past century."

"Britain – once the most advanced nation on earth, which gave the world parliamentary democracy and inimitable centers of higher learning – is today more famous for exporting reality shows like Big Brother and Project Catwalk."

"But a century later, Britain is better known for football hooliganism, the gratuitous degradation of women in its most-circulated publications, and one of the highest out-of-wedlock birthrates in the world."

Firstly, I think these are pretty weak pieces of evidence to justify saying "Britain is doomed." 2 are strictly a commentary on popular entertainment, and popular entertainment has never destroyed a country in all of history. Religious prudes have lamented how sexual entertainment is for millennia. However, sexual repression simply isn't healthy. It certainly won't "doom" a country.

The first claim, that Britain has lost its influence over the past century is true. However, Shmuley doesn't make a convincing link to explain why Atheism caused this at all.

A better case to argue about Britain's downfall, would be its economic woes. The United Kingdom is up to 60% of GDP. Deficit spending accounts for more than 11% of GDP. These are the figures that should raise cries of doom, not topless girls on TV. Perhaps he glosses over this fact because the debt stems very largely from Christian altruism. The bible teaches that we have a duty to care for our brothers. The new testament repeatedly makes clear that the only virtuous path is to give all that you have to the poor.

Well, Britain is doing exactly that.

In fact, Shmuley doesn't even define atheism particularly well. He says, "Atheism is a philosophy of nihilism in which nothing is sacred and all is an accidental."

Atheism simply means lack of belief in god. In philosophic terms, it often denotes people who are certain that there is no god as opposed to agnostics who are unsure if there is a god. Therefore it isn't a philosophy anymore than a-unicornism is a philosophy. It's just one statement about the supernatural. Atheists may be nihilistic, but there is certainly nothing that compels all of them to be.

Many atheists (including me) hold a great deal as sacred. I hold reason, and logic as sacred. I don't think any human activity is "accidental." I know that human action is the result of a thinking mind. A purpose driven mind. There's nothing accidental about it. The mistake Shmuley makes is assuming that there can be no purpose or happiness in life without a supernatural creator watching over his every action.

Just asserting that a supernatural god gives him purpose and happiness doesn't prove anything. It doesn't provide any form of proof that a god exists. Without that fundamental proof, a theist making such a claim is just engaging in meaningless self-indulgence.

Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and all other religious all depend on faith and divine revelation to inform them. They make no pretense about experimental evidence and reason informing their systems of belief. Sure, some of their mandates are reasonable, but that doesn't transform the whole faith based structure.

Shmmuley is going to have to work harder if he wants to convince skeptics that religion is the key to earthly salvation.

CBO: Boehner's Plan Only Cuts 2012 Deficit by $1 Billion

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 02:01:20 GMT

Next, he really earned some respect by sticking to his guns about a balanced budget amendment. Such an amendment looks like the only thing that can stop Washington's addiction to spending other people's money. Neither of the parties are willing to propose plans that come anywhere near eliminating the budget, so a constitutional requirement is the only thing that can restrain them.

Of course, we all knew that sort of principled stand was too good to be true. The current deal being pushed by Boehner requires a vote on a balanced budget amendment in exchange for a debt cap raise. Note the crucial difference here. Boehner doesn't insist such a vote pass, merely that it happen. We already know the democrats have no inclination to vote for such a thing, and I feel confident more than a few Republicans will decide such an amendment would "hurt the military" or "threaten social security' and chicken out when the vote actually happens. So, Boehner is back to his comfortable political theater. Pretend to be a budget hawk, and roll over after token concessions.

The CBO has issued another harsh indictment of Speaker Boehner. They have done the math on his latest budget plan, and it will cut a mere 1 billion dollars out of the 2012 budget. Compare that to our annual budget of about 3.7 trillion of which at least 1.5 trillion is deficit spending.

That's right, all the commotion, terror, panic, and arguments are being conducted over a mere .027% of our budget. If that isn't the definition of political theater nothing is. The fact that Boehner is the Republican speaker demolishes any claims that the Republican party stands for small government.

It's time for America to demand his resignation, and a replacement who is willing to do what is right for America. Our nation is heading off the cliff to fiscal oblivion. We passed the crucial 100% Debt to GDP limit months ago. Even that dismal figure is based on fraudulent government accounting. We are at nearly 100% debt to GDP if un-funded entitlement spending is included.

The days for easy fixes and small changes are decades past. We have built a giant house of cards, and the higher it gets the harder the inevitable crash afterwards will be. If America is going to survive, in a very literal sense, we need drastic painful changes today. Speaker Boehner has shown time and again that he isn't capable of doing what needs to be done. He is merely a spineless compromiser who is adept in fooling the American voter.

Rational Public Radio is an Objectivist podcast and blog, a.k.a., the rallying center for reasoned warriors in the fight to gain and keep individual freedom.

NASA Data Demolishes Global Warming Hoax

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 23:15:14 GMT

Al Gore became a champion of the anthropogenic global warming cause. He received a Nobel Peace Prize for his "documentary" An Inconvenient Truth. The UN drafted, and passed a variety of measure to restrict carbon dioxide output.

The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in 1997, was the high water mark for government action. Based upon the alleged scientific consensus described by the UN IPCC 191 countries (notably not including the United States) have agreed to reduce their collective greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2% from the 1990 level. Supposedly, this would save us all from a grim future.

However, the evidence just keeps piling up that Global Warming is a hypothesis that just isn't supported by all the evidence. The Kyoto Protocol was dependent upon computer models that predicted temperatures would not only continue climbing, but that they would actually increase their pace. The reality was that temperatures dropped for the next decade.

The Climate Change Alarmists knew that, and were quite upset about it. Part of the email exchange revealed by climategate was between Kevin Trenberth, and hockey stick model creator Michael Mann. Trenberth told Mann, "“The fact is that we cannot account for the lack of warming at the moment and it’s a travesty that we can’t.”

That wasn't the first sign of trouble for Climate Change alarmists, but it was certainly one of the biggest. Today, scientists using NASA data have released another bombshell. To make matters worse, this release was in the peer reviewed scientific journal Remote Sensing. The Alarmists have claimed that the "deniers" lacked credibility because relatively few peer reviewed journals were willing to oppose global warming.

"The satellite observations suggest there is much more energy lost to space during and after warming than the climate models show. There is a huge discrepancy between the data and the forecasts that is especially big over the oceans." Translating from polite cautious academic speak to plain English, he is saying the NASA data shows the Global Warming computer models are bunk.

After a body blow like that, the Anthropogenic Global Warming alarmists need to start over from square one to build a case. Well, assuming they are honest and willing to be persuaded by facts. Ignoring this paper will essentially by a declaration, by the alarmists, that they have no interest in science or the scientific process.

They are certainly interested in tenured professorial positions, government grants, and authoritarian government solutions. Have you ever noticed that any global warming problem can only be fixed by an ever larger more authoritarian government? Have you ever noticed that the only fixes to c02 emissions are government control over the economy?

Ever wondered why it is claimed only a socialist government can solve pollution problems? It certainly isn't based on history. History shows us that communist countries like Soviet Russia, it's satellite states, and Mao's China are polluted wastelands. Compare that to the far free-er United States. We have drastically lower pollution levels. We have an incomparably better environment for man to live in. And yet, environmental activists would turn the US towards a centrally planned managed economy despite all the evidence that this is exactly the wrong way to accomplish their claimed objectives.

These questions, and reports like this one, are why I have severe doubts about the Global Warming alarmist dedication to science. Perhaps I am wrong, if so, we are going to see a lot of scientists abandoning the cause. If we don't, the implication should be clear to us all.

Rational Public Radio is an Objectivist podcast and blog, a.k.a., the rallying center for reasoned warriors in the fight to gain and keep individual freedom.

"If I Wanted America to Fail"

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 16:06:26 GMT

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Objectivist Podcast - July 1, 2011 - Legalize Marijuana, Bankrupt Illinois Steals From Charity, George Soros Packs Courts, Maryland adds "Environmental Literacy" Requirement

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 02:37:20 GMT

On today's podcast we've got good news, bad news, and weird news. We live in crazy times, so it's no surprise.

The State of Illinois is so close to bankruptcy that they have "borrowed" money from charity to keep the lights on. They still aren't talking about spending cuts in the hopes that Obama will bail them out. A bail out of a state would just punish prudent states and reward irresponsible ones. Most of the states in big trouble are heavily democratic so you can expect quite a push to make it happen anyway.

Maryland has added an "environmental literacy" requirement to graduate high school. What do you think the odds are that it will be even-handed and evidence based?

Ron Paul and Barney Frank introduce a bill to legalize Marijuana. What an odd couple! I'm not going to complain about more freedom though.

We wrap up by talking about George Soros' attempt to have more judges be appointed than elected. Apparently he can't get his agenda accomplished while the citizenry still possess that check on government power.

Rational Public Radio takes the philosophy of Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged and applies to current events. We hope you enjoy this Objectivist podcast.

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{audio}June 22, 2011 - Marijuana, Illinois Steals From Charity, George Soros Packs Courts|024-rpr7111-marijuana-illinois-steals-from-charity-george-soros-packs-courts.mp3{/audio}

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Welcome Survival Podcast Fans

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Tue, 17 May 2011 17:58:25 GMT

While you are here downloading the interview with Jack, check out some of the survival related topics I've written.

Insurance for Economic Collapse

Surviving a Great Depression

Surviving a Great Depression pt 2

We hope you enjoy the interview, and the articles. Please make sure to like us on Facebook. Check out one of our regular shows while you are at it, you might just like a show that brings you current events from a constitutional perspective. You can browse them individually in our "Podcast" tab, or click the iTunes icon on the top right of this page to subscribe in iTunes.

Thanks again for coming!

-The Rational Public Radio Team{jcomments on}

Islam Says: POWs Make Great Sex Slaves

info@rationalpublicradio.com (Scott Connery, Jeffrey Meek, Etsel Skelton) — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 19:02:36 GMT

For too long these adulterous affairs have been a blight on the otherwise un-blemished moral character of Muslims. Not only does al Mutairi have the courage to bring this problem to light, she also has the wisdom to bring forth a solution. If we just legalize sex slavery, men wouldn't be tempted to incur Allah's disfavor with the maids.

Wait, legalize sex slavery?!?!

That's the proper Islamic solution to a moral dilemma??? Apparently yes. She said, "There was no shame in it and it is not haram' (forbidden) under Islamic Sharia law." It gets worse because this isn't just the opinion of a lone weirdo. Al Mutairi checked with numerous Islamic scholars to see if her proposal would be in accordance with the Quran and Sharia law.

'They said, that’s right, the only solution for a decent man who has the means, who is overpowered by desire and who does not want to commit fornication, is to acquire jawari.' Jawari is the plural of the Arabic term jariya, meaning 'concubine' or 'sex slave'.

Let me throw a few Koran verses at you in case you think all these people are making it up as they go along.

4:24 And all married women (are forbidden unto you) save those (captives) whom your right hands possess.

4:34 Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other...As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them.

Just in case your eyes glanced over that horror, remember a scourge is: "a whip or lash, especially for the infliction of punishment or torture. "

True believers...

23:5 guard their modesty

23:6 Save from their wives or the (slaves) that their right hands possess, for then they are not blameworthy.

If you are already suspecting this story comes from The Onion let me assure that it doesn't. However, it does get weirder. Al Mutairi, and her Islamic scholars also have the perfect candidates to be sex slaves. Why Prisoners of War of course! That's the proper cost for waging war (or more realistically having war waged upon you) by Muslims. Russian women captured in Chechnyan war are perfect candidates.

They are beautiful, and they are not Muslims. Al Mutairi said such an arrangement would be proper because it would count as a marriage. "The man just buys her and that’s it. That’s enough to serve as marriage." I can't help but doubt that the women who are kidnapped, raped, and held captive for the rest of their lives will agree.

When people tell you that Islam is a Religion of Peace, when people tell you that it's "racist" to judge other cultures, remember that this is the face of Islam. This is the face of the enemy. The enemy of all people who are still willing to stand up for individual rights and liberty.