Karl Hess Club

Regina Cobb Memorial Service

2012-01-26T00:29:00.000-08:00

Longtime KHC attendee Pamela Maltzman forwards this email regarding Regina Cobb, whom some of you may have known: Dear Friends, It is with great sorrow that we must share with you the news that our sister, Regina Cobb, passed away on Dec. 30 after a massive stroke. It has been a devastating loss, and Gina will be greatly missed. She touched many lives in many ways we cannot even know. You

Foothills Libertarians Discuss Death Penalty

2012-01-06T19:25:00.000-08:00

Libertarian Party of Los Angeles activist Ted Brown sends this notice about Region 63's upcoming anti-death penalty speaker: This month's Foothills Libertarian speaker will be Loretta Keller, a local activist for SAFE California, the group that is sponsoring an anti-death penalty initiative for the November 2012 ballot. They are currently circulating the petition and copies will be available.

Was Friedrich Hayek a Hypocrite on Socialized Medicine?

2011-10-31T23:13:00.000-07:00

A piece of investigative journalism from The Nation indicates that Friedrich Hayek may have been an enthusiastic supporter of socialized medicine -- at least so far as him receiving benefits. Libertarians have often discussed whether libertarians can morally accept socialist benefits if they live under socialism. Those who find it acceptable argue that since the State took your money, you can

See Lady Magdalene's for Free!

2011-10-24T23:26:00.000-07:00

Karl Hess Club attendee J. Neil Schulman now makes his action comedy film, Lady Magdalene's, available for free viewing, online! See below:

Life Enhancements Distributes Lady Magdalene's

2011-10-18T08:06:00.000-07:00

Karl Hess Club attendee J. Neil Schulman's action comedy film, Lady Magdalene's, has signed a distribution deal with health supplements company, Life Enhancements. As part of that deal's cross-promotion, Lady Magdalene's actress Mara Marini interviews Life Enhancements CEO Will Block:

If Foreign Troops "Liberated" America...

2011-10-08T02:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a great Ron Paul ad, which asks, How would we feel if foreigners treated us as we treat them?

Conservative Zombies, Liberal Vampires

2011-09-27T12:57:00.000-07:00

Apparently, vampires films are more popular during Republican presidencies. Zombie films are more popular under Democratic presidencies. S. Peter Davis theorizes that it's because conservatives/libertarians see the Left as vampires, while liberals/progressives see the Right as zombies. It's a amusing article. Even better, Davis cites my book, Vampire Nation, as proof of his thesis. Read his

Ed Moss 1937 - 2011, RIP

2011-09-13T07:55:00.000-07:00

California libertarian Gail Lightfoot, who is well known to many Karl Hess Club attendees, announces the sad passing of another California libertarian -- Ed Moss. Gail writes: "Ed Moss died Wed Aug 31, 2011 of respiratory failure following gall stones leading to gall bladder inflammation, pancreatitis and sepsis. Heart surgery was performed because of a left coronary artery occlusion preventing

Reason TV's Nick Gillespie Interviews J. Neil Schulman

2011-08-19T22:33:00.000-07:00

Longtime Karl Hess Club attendee, J. Neil Schulman, discusses his work on Reason TV:

Antiwar Libertarian Republican Karen Kwiatkowski Runs for Congress

2011-08-03T07:05:00.000-07:00

Karen Kwiatkowski, who I've endorsed for president, has instead decided to run for Congress as a Republican. Like Ron Paul, Kwiatkowski is a true Constitutionalist, libertarian, and antiwar patriot, and deserves support from those communities. Kwiatkowski emails her supporters: "We've not really asked for money for the campaign, although it is generously flowing in already. What we value in

Protect Internet Privacy -- Fight HR 1981

2011-07-29T13:50:00.000-07:00

Demand Progress reports: "A direct assault on Internet users" is what the ACLU is calling it. Yesterday a U.S. House committee approved HR 1981, a broad new Internet snooping bill. They want to force Internet service providers to keep track of and store their customers' information -- including your name, address, phone number, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, and

J. Neil Schulman's Lady Magdalene's Wins at Anthem Libertarian Film Festival

2011-07-24T00:50:00.000-07:00

On July 16, 2011, J. Neil Schulman won the "Special Jury Prize for Libertarian Ideals" for his comedy suspense film, Lady Magdalene's. The award was presented to Schulman by Anthem: The Libertarian Film Festival. A longtime Karl Hess Club attendee, Schulman has frequently presented lectures on libertarian philosopy at the KHC.

Ben Pleasants Holds a Reading for Ghosts of Pumpkin Park

2011-07-08T04:38:00.000-07:00

Frequent Karl Hess Club attendee Ben Pleasants held a reading for his new play, Ghosts of Pumpkin Park, earlier this summer. It was hosted at Frances Rose's home. Last May, Pleasants discussed his recent literary works at the Karl Hess Club. Fellow KHC attendee Joseph O'Neill (below, far left) was among the guests, who read parts from Ben's play. Pleasants's wife, Paula, is sitting behind

Santa Monica Councilman Kevin McKeown's Hypocrisy

2011-07-05T09:12:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I submitted a Letter to the Editor to the Santa Monica Daily Press. They published it in their July 5th issue: Editor: You report that City Councilmember Kevin McKeown "urged commissioners to resist [rent] increases on low-income tenants during these rough economic times ("Rents to rise by 3.2 percent," June 11-12," page 1)." Yet McKeown supported raising Santa Monica's sales

Video War Games -- Teaching Tool of the Welfare/Warfare State

2011-06-22T05:05:00.000-07:00

When I was young and stupid, I loved to play war with my friends. Board games when we were indoors. Sticks and plastic guns when we went outside. Either that, or plastic toy soldiers. The State counts on children's distorted, romanticizing of war. As cynical, wounded combat veterans return home, and are dropped into an underfunded V.A. health care system, a new generation of warrior wannabes is

Jerry Jewett on Gary Chartier's The Conscience of an Anarchist

2011-06-12T07:18:00.000-07:00

Jerry Jewett reviews The Conscience of an Anarchist Why It's Time to Say Good-Bye to the State and Build a Free Society, by Gary Chartier. Who hasn't felt that the State is a little bigger than it ought to be, or that it tries too hard, or perhaps that it is hostile to common folk? Such sentiments can scarcely be out of place when the State wields Leviathan-like power. What would a stateless

Ron Paul: Killing Osama Bin Laden Not Necessary

2011-05-12T08:01:00.000-07:00

Rather than war and assassinations, Ron Paul believes that U.S. foreign interests can be better achieved through a policy of 1. international cooperation, and 2. the rule of law. Writing for Politico.com (5/12/11), Juana Summers reports: Ron Paul says he would not have authorized the mission that led to the death of Osama bin Laden, and that President Barack Obama should have worked with the

Miral -- A Film About Palestinians Resisting Israeli Statism

2011-04-13T19:07:00.000-07:00

Resisting the State is generally celebrated among libertarians -- in which case, consistent libertarians should celebrate director Julian Schnabel's (Basquait, The Diving Bell) new film, Miral, based on the novel by his Palestinian wife, Rula Jebreal. Miral has already stirred controversy in the Jewish community. Some Jewish leaders are slamming the film for being "one-sided." Schnabel admits

Demopublicans, Hollywood, Pushing for Internet Censorship

2011-04-07T18:21:00.000-07:00

DemandProgress.org reports: We stole it right out from under them: This week, the special interests pushing the Internet Blacklist Bill called a big press conference with their allies in Congress, trying to create the illusion of broad support for Internet censorship. But our team caught wind of it and scrambled to make sure you were heard. Teaming up with conservative bloggers who also oppose

Peace Rallies Against Obama's Lybia War, April 9, 10

2011-03-30T20:31:00.000-07:00

Kevin Zeese, of Voters for Peace, sends "an announcement of antiwar rallies in New York on April 9 and San Francisco on April 10 which Voters for Peace has endorsed." Details of where and when to show up at: NationalPeaceConference.org. This seems like a mostly Left coalition. It's noteworthy that the Left is opposing Obama's war. It would be nice if many antiwar libertarians and

Online Agora Conference

2011-03-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

From Carol Moore: George Donnelly and friends have organized this fantastic free online liberty conference for the coming weekend (March 25-27th). It includes dozens of libertarian speakers on philosophy, strategy, media and entrepreneurship. I'm speaking on Libertarian Decentralism and Secessionist Strategy on Saturday March 26th at 10 AM Est. I would love for you to join me and participate.

California Internet Sales Tax Threatens Amazon Affiliates

2011-03-11T18:29:00.001-08:00

The California state legislature is threatening the livelihoods of over 10,000 Californians who earn money as Amazon Associates for online retailer, Amazon.com. These Californians place links on their websites to Amazon. When someone clicks through to Amazon and makes a purchase, the Associate earns a commission. Amazon is not required to collect sales taxes on purchases made to Californians

Linking to YouTube Is Copyright Infringement

2011-03-07T07:43:00.001-08:00

From DemandProgress.org: Ever sent someone a link to a copyrighted YouTube video? Of course: Everybody has. And now the US Government seems to think that means it can put us in prison. Bryan McCarthy ran a website that linked to various websites where you could watch online streams of TV shows and sports networks. A couple months ago, the government seized his domain name and on Friday they

David Horowitz Calls Ron Paul an "Anti-Semite" and "Anti-American"

2011-02-25T09:30:00.001-08:00

David Horowitz accuses Ron Paul of anti-Semitism, primarily because Paul wants to end foreign aid to Israel. In an article entitled, "Ron Paul Is a Vicious Anti-Semite and Anti-American and Conservatives Need To Wash Their Hands of Him," Hororwitz writes: "For years the Texas crackpot, Ron Paul, has been attacking America and Israel as imperialist powers -- the Great Satan and the Little Satan

Google, Facebook Invade Your Privacy

2011-02-22T08:58:00.000-08:00

From DemandProgress.org: "Imagine the cops rifling through your mail, your calendar, your receipts. All your private information, available for them to look through. To do this offline, they'd have to get a warrant from a judge and break into your house. But every day the cops -- and anyone else with a good lawyer! -- get access to your online email and calendar just by asking. "Major online