There has never been a more beautiful veil for socialism as Global Warming, I mean Climate Change. Never has the political left been able to more clearly advance their assault on freedom. With such a viewpoint the imperative is to replace freedom with regulation at all levels. The logic here is that our freedoms are [...]
- Jun19
Annexation and Taxation without Representation
The proposed committee substitute for House Bill 524 (a combination of house bills 524, 645, and 727) is a really bad plan. If this bill becomes law, cities and towns would be able to annex, with the approval of the Local Government Commission, and collect taxes for three years, but ultimately never provide services. The LGC [...]
- 1Jun02
Gambling OK – As Long as it is State-Sponsored (Part 2)
Video poker is bad. It's harmful to society because people fall prone to its addictive nature many argue. So any attempts to allow video poker in North Carolina should be opposed as well, correct? Well, yes, but only if private enterprise are the ones running the operation according to NC Lottery Director Tom Shaheen. In [...]
- Apr28
DC Vouchers, RIP
A voucher program that sent poor minority students to the school of their parents' choice in the District of Columbia has been killed by liberals in Washington. Why do they fear giving parents a choice? The education industrial complex is hell bent on making sure they keep an iron clad monopoly on our students. [...]
- 1Apr08
Tea Party Protests Taking Off!
Elected officials beware! Last night a "Tea Party" in Wilmington drew up to 1,000 people to protest against against ever expanding government. You can watch video in the above link from WECT-TV and in this story and this story from the Wilmington Star-News. Local folks along with radio host Curtis Wright from "The Big Talker FM" and Americans [...]
- 1Mar20
Guns: two different views
A NC House Judiciary debated House Bill 270 by Representatives Hilton, Steen, Burr, Cleveland (same as Senate Bill 235) which is “an act to allow persons with concealed handgun permits to protect themselves and their families in restaurants.” In practice this would allow people who have been trained and licensed under state law and regulations [...]
- 1Mar12
Students Want Guns On Campus
Students at NC State University last month held a clever little protest where they wore empty holsters on campus to call attention to the vulnerability of so called "gun free" campuses. After the massacre at Virginia Tech, students want to know why they can not lawfully defend themselves against an armed attacker. The universities have, [...]
- Jan08
The Rich vs. Politicians
Walter Williams pens this article that should make class-warriors take pause. What has puzzled me for a long time is how lefties love to demonize wealthy individuals in the private sector who have acquired their wealth from voluntary transactions as "oppressors" or "exploiters". Meanwhile, these same lefties turn a blind eye to politicians who accrue [...]
- 2Nov10
SC vs. NC
In a past post, that will likely become a regular feature, I contrasted the difference between North and South Carolina by examining the types of license plates each state's legislature have authorized. Word now comes from our conservative cousins to our south of a forthcoming sales tax holiday. Both states have tax holidays for back [...]
- Sep23
North Carolina: Growing Less Free Every Year!
I recently wrote about North Carolina’s disappointing economic trends since 2001. Rising poverty, unemployment consistently above the national average, job and income growth lagging national and regional averages were among the findings. Now, we can add to that list: less economic freedom. The Pacific Research Institute recently released their U.S. Economic Freedom Index for 2008. [...]
- Aug29
Back to Basics: Bastiat’s “The Law”
If you haven’t yet read "The Law" by Frederic Bastiat, I recommend you do so. It won’t take you long – its only 76 pages. The brevity of this work is perfectly appropriate as the proper role of government, and the law it enforces, is quite minimal. In his weekly column out today, Sheldon Richman [...]
- Jul03
The 4th of July: The Reason for the Season
Don’t forget why we eat hotdogs and watch fireworks. …and ask yourself, would the revolutionaries of yesterday like what they saw in our state and federal governments if they could see them today?-Max Borders
- 1Jun03
Facist is to Nazi as Progressive is to Socialist
Randall O’Toole is dropping truth bombs on so-called progressives: It is time for the progressive philosophy to join this list of politically unacceptable beliefs. At the moment, many people view “progressive” in a positive way that is not in keeping with its history or the beliefs of many of its current practitioners. As the Antiplanner [...]
- May28
Collectivism v. Individualism
The never-ending struggle between the collectivists and the individualists is becoming more clearly articulated these days, as evinced by this, this and this. I think Boaz sums things up nicely: The real issue is that Messrs. Obama and McCain are telling us Americans that our normal lives are not good enough, that pursuing our own [...]
- May16
Pro-life and Family Legislation
Here is a rundown of the pro-life and family legislation introduced during the 2007-2008 session: ABORTION/REPRODUCTIVE ISSUES H 1782 Ultrasound Before An Abortion H 419 State Health Plan/No Abortion Coverage H 1552 WRTK-Woman’s Right to Know S 481 Notarized Consent for Minor’s Abortion H 420 Abortion-Parental Consent Notarized S 480 No Abortion Coverage/State Health Plan [...]