Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf Of Wall Street” is a raucous bacchanalia of sex, drugs, and money on Wall Street that focuses on the excesses of Jordan Belfort’s career at over-the-counter brokerage house Stratton Oakmont. Scorsese and lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio seem less interested in the true facts of Belfort’s life and actual details of his securities crimes than in showing off more and more lewd behavior. But the movie does correctly feature one of the first public takedowns of Belfort and Stratton Oakmont in a 1991 issue of Forbes magazine.You can read the complete original article here.
While staff writer Roula Khalaf (now foreign editor at the Financial Times) didn’t coin the phrase “The Wolf Of Wall Street,” she did call Belfort a “twisted Robin Hood who takes from the rich and gives to himself and his merry band of brokers.” Khalaf describes the business model as “pushing dicey stocks on gullible investors” and noted the already growing challenges from federal investigators.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
The Forbes' Original Takedown Of Jordan Belfort The 'Wolf Of Wall Street'
Brian Solomon writes:
Noam Chomsky, The Salon Interview: Governments are power systems, trying to sustain power
Noam Chomsky is very bad on economics and social policy in general, but he does have decent insights about the surveillance state. During a Salon interview he had this to say:
Q: This year’s revelations about the scope of surveillance state activity are certainly not the first major leaks you’ve seen draw scrutiny on government spying. Is there something particular or unique, in your view, about the NSA revelations?In principle it’s not an innovation, things like this have been going on for a long time. The scale and the incredibly ambitious character of the surveillance and control is something new. But it’s the kind of thing one should expect. The history goes back a long way. So, for example, if you go back a century ago, right after the U.S. invasion of the Philippines — a brutal invasion that killed a couple hundred thousand people — there was a problem for the U.S. of pacification afterwards. What do you do to control the population to prevent another nationalist uprising? There’s a very good study of this by Alfred McCoy, a Phillippines scholar at Unviersity of Wisconsin, and what he shows is that the U.S. used the most sophisticated technology of the day to develop a massive system of survelliance, control, disruption to undermine any potential opposition and to impose very tight controls on the population which lasted for a long time and many ways the Phillippines is still suffering from this. But he also points out the technology was immediately transferred home. Woodrow Wilson’s administration used it in their “red scare” a couple years later. The British used it, too.Q: Do you think revelation about sprawling surveillance has prompted much significant self-reflection from the American public about the workings of our state apparatus and our use of technology?Governments are power systems. They are trying to sustain their power and domination over their populations and they will use what means are available to do this. By now the means are very sophisticated and extensive and we can expect them to increase. So for instance, if you read technology journals you learn that in robotics labs for some years there have been efforts to develop small drones, what they call “fly-sized drones,” which can intrude into a person’s home and be almost invisible and carry out constant surveillance. You can be sure that the military is very much interested in this, and the intelligence systems as well, and will soon be using it.We’re developing technologies that will be used by our own governments and by commercial corporations and are already being used to maximize information for themselves for control and domination. That’s the way power systems work. Of course, they’ve always played the security card. But I think one should be very cautious about such claims. Every government pleads security for almost anything it’s doing, so since the plea is predictable it essentially carries no information. If after the event the power system claims security, that doesn’t mean it’s actually a functioning principle. And if you look at the record, you discover that security is generally a pre-text and security is not a high priority of governments. If By that I mean the security of the population — security of the power system itself and the domestic interests it represents, yes, that’s a concern. But security of the population is not.
Snowden Lawyer: Supreme Court Must Weigh In on NSA
"It is time for the Supreme Court to weigh in" on constitutionality of NSA bulk intelligence collection, Ben Wizner, head of the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Any ruling from the Supreme Court will be, to say the least, interesting. Will the Supremes really rule against what the state wants?
Any ruling from the Supreme Court will be, to say the least, interesting. Will the Supremes really rule against what the state wants?
Does Anyone Really Use Bitcoin as Money?
I see that Dr. Walter Block has made some initial comments, over at Circle Bastiat, about Bitcoin.
The main focus of his comments is with regard to Bitcoin and the regression theorem. While I do think this is an interesting topic, a few byproducts of Block's discussion of Bitcoin and the RT have caught my eye.
First, Block writes:
Bitcoin at present is not a threat to Master Card, Visa or American Express. Despite all the hype, there remains very few Bitcoin transactions at the retail level. If Bitcoin ever appears to become a threat to the major current day transaction processors such as MC, V and AE, you can be sure teams of lobbyists will descend on Capitol Hill to nudge Congress into some type of regulations on transactions that will cripple Bitcoin as a method of transacting business, the type of regulations that China and India have already implemented. It can be done.
A second point made by Block is this:
This is not going on with Bitcoin, though it may appear that it does. We have seen a small town sheriff say he wants to get paid in Bitcoin, but he is surely not thinking in terms of Bitcoin. His salary is fixed in terms of dollars, and each month depending upon the price of Bitcoin, he will receive payment converted to bitcoins. BUT, he is getting a fixed dollar value of income. Both Virgin Airways and Overstock have announced that they are going to accept Bitcoin, BUT both are setting prices in terms of dollars and asking for Bitcoin payments at the time of the transaction based on the fixed dollar price, not a fixed amount of bitcoins. Both VA and O also appear to be converting immediately (or plan to convert immediately in the case of O) their bitcoin receipts to dollars.
In other words, no one is pricing things in terms of a fixed Bitcoin price, the way things are priced every day in terms of dollars. In my view, this means that Bitcoin is not being used as money, but is being used more like a gyrating American Express travelers check. If the day ever comes when prices are set in terms of fixed amounts of bitcoins, and people are willing to take their wages in terms of fixed amounts of bitcoins, then, in my view, we can say that people are treating Bitcoin as money. This is not occurring now.
Block also states that
Stay tuned, I am going to ask Prof. Block to respond to my thoughts.
The main focus of his comments is with regard to Bitcoin and the regression theorem. While I do think this is an interesting topic, a few byproducts of Block's discussion of Bitcoin and the RT have caught my eye.
First, Block writes:
Probably, the govt will soon blow this out of the water with regulations, taxes.I agree. Both China and India have provided examples of how this could occur with their recent shutdown of Bitcoin activity. While many argue that Bitcoin is beyond the reach of governments, daily commercial transactions are not. China and India have simply made it illegal for businesses to deal in Bitcoin at the daily transaction level. Beginning and end of story.
Bitcoin at present is not a threat to Master Card, Visa or American Express. Despite all the hype, there remains very few Bitcoin transactions at the retail level. If Bitcoin ever appears to become a threat to the major current day transaction processors such as MC, V and AE, you can be sure teams of lobbyists will descend on Capitol Hill to nudge Congress into some type of regulations on transactions that will cripple Bitcoin as a method of transacting business, the type of regulations that China and India have already implemented. It can be done.
A second point made by Block is this:
More than just a few people treat it [Bitcoin] as a money.I'm not sure this is the case. From my perspective, people treat something as money when they think in terms of that item and are willing to enter into fixed contracts with that item. In the US, dollars are money and we daily enter into all kinds of transactions with dollars, instant transactions and longer term contractual transactions.
This is not going on with Bitcoin, though it may appear that it does. We have seen a small town sheriff say he wants to get paid in Bitcoin, but he is surely not thinking in terms of Bitcoin. His salary is fixed in terms of dollars, and each month depending upon the price of Bitcoin, he will receive payment converted to bitcoins. BUT, he is getting a fixed dollar value of income. Both Virgin Airways and Overstock have announced that they are going to accept Bitcoin, BUT both are setting prices in terms of dollars and asking for Bitcoin payments at the time of the transaction based on the fixed dollar price, not a fixed amount of bitcoins. Both VA and O also appear to be converting immediately (or plan to convert immediately in the case of O) their bitcoin receipts to dollars.
In other words, no one is pricing things in terms of a fixed Bitcoin price, the way things are priced every day in terms of dollars. In my view, this means that Bitcoin is not being used as money, but is being used more like a gyrating American Express travelers check. If the day ever comes when prices are set in terms of fixed amounts of bitcoins, and people are willing to take their wages in terms of fixed amounts of bitcoins, then, in my view, we can say that people are treating Bitcoin as money. This is not occurring now.
Block also states that
I’m not aware of any formal discussion of this [Bitcoin and the regression theorem] in the literature.I would argue that part of Murray Rothbard's critique of Hayek's support for denationalized money applies to Bitcoin (See: Murray Rothbard: Bitcoin is a Crank Scheme)
Stay tuned, I am going to ask Prof. Block to respond to my thoughts.
Is a Columnist at The Atlantic Dissing Mises and Austrian Economics?
Anyone who has a passing familiarity with EPJ is aware that I have serious questions about the long-term viability of Bitcoin. That said, I do not view the enthusiasm for Bitcoin to be connected in any way to the monetary theory of Ludwig von Mises or the Austrian school of economics.
To be sure, there is enthusiasm for Bitcoin among some libertarians, but this enthusiasm should not be linked to a correct understanding of Mises' monetary theory..
Which brings me to Matthew O'Brien, a senior associate editor at The Atlantic. He has written a parody, in the form of a Nigeria scam letter, promoting Bitcoin. He does make some relevant points about some of the weaknesses of Bitcoin, but he also does a curious thing with regard to Mises and the Austrian school by linking them directly to the current Bitcoin fad, in his parody.
He writes:
To be sure, there is enthusiasm for Bitcoin among some libertarians, but this enthusiasm should not be linked to a correct understanding of Mises' monetary theory..
Which brings me to Matthew O'Brien, a senior associate editor at The Atlantic. He has written a parody, in the form of a Nigeria scam letter, promoting Bitcoin. He does make some relevant points about some of the weaknesses of Bitcoin, but he also does a curious thing with regard to Mises and the Austrian school by linking them directly to the current Bitcoin fad, in his parody.
He writes:
BUT I HAVE UTMOST CONFIDENCE THAT YOU ARE EVEN SMARTER THAN EVEN SMARTER INVESTORS. YOU DON'T NEED TO DIVERSIFY. YOUR SAGE SAGACITY AND KNOWLEDGE OF LUDWIG VON MISES(REDUNDANT I KNOW) WILL LET YOU PICK OUT THE BEST "ALTCOIN."and
I HAVE USED MY DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF AUSTRIAN ECONOMICS TO INVENT THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE CRYPTOCURRENCIES. IT IS CALLED PONZICOIN. WHAT MAKES IT BETTER THAN BITCOIN OR DOGECOIN OR ANY OTHER COIN IS THE QUESTION YOU ARE WONDERING AND NOW I WILL TELL YOU FREE OF CHARGE. PONZICOIN HAS THE MOST LIMITED SUPPLY POSSIBLE AND THE MOST SECURE LOCATION POSSIBLE. AT ANY TIME THERE IS AT MOST ONE PONZICOIN AND IT ALWAYS STAYS WITH ME. BUT IT IS INFINITELY DIVISIBLE SO YOU CAN BUY AS SMALL A PART AS YOU LIKE AND I WILL SEND YOU A CODE TO VERIFY YOUR HOLDING. PONZICOIN HAS LITERALLY UNLIMITED USES BUT THE PRIMARY ONES ARE SELLING IT TO THE GREATER FOOL AND BUYING STAMPS.Perhaps O'Brien is mocking the view of those Bitcoin enthusiasts who think Misesian monetary theory supports the idea that Bitcoin will survive and prosper, but he also may be attempting to link Mises and the Austrian school to Bitcoin. Such a link would be preposterous. As I have pointed out in a post, Murray Rothbard: Bitcoin is a Crank Scheme, Rothbard discussed Bitcoin type schemes and understood that they failed to meet the basic criteria outlined by Mises for it to be money.
The Inconsistency and Non-Libertarian and Non-Austrian Positions of Hayek
Because Friedrich Hayek studied under the great economist Ludwig von Mises and because Hayek won the Nobel prize in economics and is associated with the Austrian School of Economics, there is a tendency to want to hug Hayek and tell the mainstream, "See, our guy got your big award." But in a way, the award may be a mixed blessing to the Austrian school.
Professor Walter Block has written a number of papers on some of the non-libertarian and non-Austrian positions of Friedrich Hayek. See Walter Block: Hayek Is No Rothbardian.
Gary North has written:
Confidential Memo on Hayek's Constitution of Liberty
and
Letter on The Constitution of Liberty by F. A. Hayek
Both can be found in Murray N. Rothbard vs. The Philosophers: Unpublished Writings on Hayek, Mises, Strauss, and Polanyi, Edited by Roberta A. Modugno.
Professor Walter Block has written a number of papers on some of the non-libertarian and non-Austrian positions of Friedrich Hayek. See Walter Block: Hayek Is No Rothbardian.
Gary North has written:
Some of us were more than a little suspicious when F. A. Hayek received the Nobel Prize for 1974, the year after the death of Ludwig von Mises, who provided Hayek with his major economic theorems, and for which Hayek was awarded the prize. Admittedly, Hayek put these ideas into a form which was more acceptable to "scientific economists." For example, in his youth, he once used six graphs in an essay. Admittedly, he never did it again. Mises, in contrast, never once adopted such tactics to appeal to his peers. He assumed that one graph is worth a thousandBut it goes beyond style. North understand this. For whatever reason, Hayek has taken on positions that are occasionally contradictory and often non-libertarian and non-orthodox Austrian. This causes the problem Murray Rothbard warned about when discussing funding for Hayek's book, The Constitution of Liberty:
methodologically illegitimate words.[...]
To put it bluntly, the secret of success in academic economic circles has as much to do with style as it does with content. This is not a new development; it has ever been true.
For when the supposed leader of one’s movement takes compromising and untenable positions, the opposition can always say: “but even [Hayek] admits . . .” Hayek is the philosophic counterpart. The only tenable conclusion is that any Volker Fund or any other support for this book will be self-destructive in the highest degree.See Will Luther for a current example of the "even Hayek admits" problem. Rothbard went on to say:
In my letter of October 23, 1956, I criticized Hayek’s Claremont lectures, which summarized this book, and reference to the letter would be helpful. However, there I wrote that Hayek is a “composite of brilliant things, and very wrong things . . . a mosaic of confusion.” In the full-fledged book, the picture and impact change greatly; for the brilliant things fade dismally into the background, and all of Hayek’s care and elaboration go into the terribly wrong things. Indeed, this book is a fusion of bad tendencies in his previous books, but which there had been only minor flaws in the product; here the flaws are magnified and raised to the status of a philosophic system. In all the 400 pages, I found only chapters 1 and 10 as agreeable chapters, and all the rest a veritable morass of error.For a complete understanding of Rothbard's take on Hayek's Constitution of Liberty, see these two important Rothbard writings:
Confidential Memo on Hayek's Constitution of Liberty
and
Letter on The Constitution of Liberty by F. A. Hayek
Both can be found in Murray N. Rothbard vs. The Philosophers: Unpublished Writings on Hayek, Mises, Strauss, and Polanyi, Edited by Roberta A. Modugno.
Venezuelans Wonder: What Happened To The November Inflation Report?
A combination of mad money printing and price controls is ruining the Venezuelan economy. The Venezuelan central bank makes the Fed look a hard money bastion by comparison.
AP reports via FOX:
AP reports via FOX:
here's one burning question among economists in Venezuela these days: What happened to the November inflation report?
It's been more than two weeks since the deadline passed for the central bank to publish its closely-watched consumer price index and so far authorities have been mum about when it will be released.
Economists and opposition politicians say the delay is a sign the government is trying to hide its embarrassing record controlling inflation, now running at 54 percent, after President Nicolas Maduro last month delivered a rare rebuke of the way the bank measures prices. They warn of more interference to come, undermining an institution that until now has been a redoubt of balance and credibility amid a decade-long socialist push that has divided Venezuelans.
"The most extreme way of manipulating the data is not publishing it," Victor Olivo, a former manager of macroeconomics analysis at the central bank, told The Associated Press.
The central bank's bylaws require it to publish inflation data within the first 10 days of each month. On the rare occasions when it has missed the cutoff date before, it was late by only a few days.
Intrigue about the delay began to build after the bank abruptly cancelled a Dec. 19 news conference to release the report[...]
Maduro last month questioned the reliability of the central bank's data, saying that internal calculations he had seen showed prices fell 5 percent in November as a result of the government's actions[...]
Economists say Maduro's forecast has no basis. While the prices of televisions, stoves and refrigerators did fall by more than half after the government offensive, appliances carry around a 2 percent weighting in the consumer price index, making it impossible to swing the gauge at a time prices for food, clothing and services are rising by more than 5 percent a month.
Economists also depend on the inflation report to monitor another ill battering the South America's largest oil economy: record levels of shortages.
The October report's so-called scarcity index showed that out of 100 products measured, 22 were out of stock.
What a Way to Launch a New Administration in NYC
Former President Bill Clinton will swear in Bill de Blasio as New York City’s 109th mayor during Wednesday’s inaugural ceremony at City Hall, the mayor-elect’s transition team said Saturday.
Clinton will swear-in de Blasio with a bible once owned by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the transition team said.
Crony Clinton and super-interventionist FDR, how symbolic of what New Yorkers should expect from de Blasio.
Clinton will swear-in de Blasio with a bible once owned by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the transition team said.
Crony Clinton and super-interventionist FDR, how symbolic of what New Yorkers should expect from de Blasio.
"The Best Critique I Have Ever Read About Fractional Reserve Banking"
Dr. Walter Block is out with another email that he has sent along to a list that includes, Redmond Weissenberger, Dave Howden, Larry White and George Selgin:
Dear Redmond, Dave:
This is just about the best critique I have ever read about fractional reserve banking, and I've read a lot of them. That bit about the trains is magnificent!
Dear Larry, George:
I'd love to see your critique of this beautiful attack on your position.
Best regards,
Walter
Walter E. Block, Ph.D.
Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair and Professor of Economics
Joseph A. Butt, S.J. College of Business
Loyola University New Orleans
-----Original Message-----
From: Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada on behalf of Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada
Sent: Sat 12/28/2013 9:01 AM
Subject: [POSSIBLE SPAM-PMX] [POSSIBLE SPAM-PMX] Mises Canada Daily for 12/28/2013
Mises Canada Daily
=A Simple Math Question for Bankers=
Dec 28, 2013 09:00 am by David Howden posted in Banking, Economics, Education, Law, Regulation, Fractional Reserve Banking
http://mises.us2.list-manage1.
[...]
4:38 PM (22 minutes ago)
 | | |||
Dear Redmond, Dave:
This is just about the best critique I have ever read about fractional reserve banking, and I've read a lot of them. That bit about the trains is magnificent!
Dear Larry, George:
I'd love to see your critique of this beautiful attack on your position.
Best regards,
Walter
Walter E. Block, Ph.D.
Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair and Professor of Economics
Joseph A. Butt, S.J. College of Business
Loyola University New Orleans
-----Original Message-----
From: Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada on behalf of Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada
Sent: Sat 12/28/2013 9:01 AM
Subject: [POSSIBLE SPAM-PMX] [POSSIBLE SPAM-PMX] Mises Canada Daily for 12/28/2013
Mises Canada Daily
=A Simple Math Question for Bankers=
Dec 28, 2013 09:00 am by David Howden posted in Banking, Economics, Education, Law, Regulation, Fractional Reserve Banking
http://mises.us2.list-manage1.
[...]
The EPJ Calendar
By, Chris Rossini
Each Sunday EPJ publishes a calendar of upcoming political & economic events. The appearance of an event does not necessarily mean an endorsement by EPJ. If you believe that your event, speech, meetup, etc. should be on our weekly calendar, please email me at chris@economicpolicyjournal.com
Each Sunday EPJ publishes a calendar of upcoming political & economic events. The appearance of an event does not necessarily mean an endorsement by EPJ. If you believe that your event, speech, meetup, etc. should be on our weekly calendar, please email me at chris@economicpolicyjournal.com
January 2014
- January 9 - Mises Academy - Basics of Economics: The Free Market with Robert P. Murphy
- January 14 - Mises Academy - The Economic Rise of the West with David Gordon
- January 16 - Mises Academy - Managerial Economics From an Austrian Perspective with Joseph Salerno & Peter Klein
- January 17-19 - Robert P. Murphy - Save Long Island Forum - Long Island, NY
- January 18 - Mises Circle - Houston, TX
- January 19-20 - Vancouver Resource Investment Conference 2014
- January 22 - Mises Academy - The Interwar Years with Hunt Tooley
- January 29 - Peter Schiff - The World MoneyShow Orlando, FL
- January 28-29 - FOMC Meeting
Saturday, December 28, 2013
A Redistribution of Respect?
By, Chris Rossini
Noah Smith, who in my readings seems to support every form of government thuggery imaginable, adds his opinion to the "inequality" debate that is making the rounds amongst the redistributers.
Smith writes:
So, it's no surprise that "respect" should be brought about by government "redistribution". Heck, maybe next Smith will throw "love" into the inequality shindig as well. The government will make us "love" whoever they deem in need of the most love.
Now for the hard truth.
Government is the last place to find anything resembling "respect". In fact, it is a major factor in the destruction of respect. If someone really respects their neighbor, there's one simple ingredient necessary: hands off!
True respect means no initiation of aggressive force against your fellow man. Government is the premier man-made tool that is used to aggress against others. Washington DC is a slop factory filled with fat sweaty hogs that come from all over the country with the goal of somehow initiating force against their fellow neighbors. At this stage in the game, after 200+ years, it has become a free-for-all.
When using aggressive force becomes as widespread as it has, your neighbor is not someone you "respect", but someone that you loot. And if you don't loot him, there's a good chance that he'll "win," and will end up looting you!
If Smith wants to "respect" the burger-flipper (as he claims) then stop "helping" him by advocating that the burger-flipper be forced to pay for someone else's healthcare. Stop "helping" him by advocating the robbery of his purchasing power via the printing press. Stop "helping" him by forcing him pay for other people's "Social Security", "Food Stamps" and the rest of the unending list of "benefits".
The best way to "respect" the burger-flipper is to take your hands off of him and treat him as an individual human being who deserves not to aggressed against. He and his property are off limits!
Multiply that by 300 million, and you'll have a much more respectful society. No "redistribution" required.
Chris Rossini on Twitter, Facebook & Google+
Noah Smith, who in my readings seems to support every form of government thuggery imaginable, adds his opinion to the "inequality" debate that is making the rounds amongst the redistributers.
Smith writes:
I've always been a communist revolutionary at heart. Inequalities between human beings have always annoyed me, and I have the strong desire to see them eliminated.Smith identifies the various inequalities that the talking heads are mulling over, like the inequality of wealth or income, of opportunity, or rights under the law. However, he throws another inequality into the mix:
I've come to realize that there is another important dimension of equality that I care about. Maybe more than any of the others. It's equality of respect. (his emphasis)This is what Smith would like to see in the U.S.:
I had this realization (as with so many others) while living in Japan. I first noticed it when I was sitting in a "kaiten-zushi" restaurant, watching some cooks chop fish. It was robotic, repetitive work, about as difficult - and about as well-paid - as flipping burgers. But my Japanese friend referred to one of those cooks as "sushi-ya-san", meaning "Mr. Sushi Chef". She used the honorific reflexively, not patronizingly or sarcastically. The respect for this low-paid, low-skilled worker was reflexive, automatic.Ever the meddler, who seeks to change others, Smith had the following thoughts (this time my emphasis):
I suddenly wondered if we could get Americans to start calling burger-flippers "sir". The thought made me laugh. [...]
I want this to change. I want to move back toward a society where the hard work of an unskilled laborer is considered worthwhile in social interactions, regardless of how many dollars it brings home. I want to move back toward a society where being a good parent or a friendly neighbor earns as much respect as making a hundred million dollars on Wall Street.Putting aside that "redistributing respect" makes no sense, this much is obvious...Whenever you hear a meddler say something like "if we could get" or "we need to redistribute", they mean the government should do these things. Like I said, from my readings of Smith, government is the wellspring which brings about all the good things that the meddlers want to force on everyone else..
In other words, I want our "democracy" back. We need to redistribute respect.
So, it's no surprise that "respect" should be brought about by government "redistribution". Heck, maybe next Smith will throw "love" into the inequality shindig as well. The government will make us "love" whoever they deem in need of the most love.
Now for the hard truth.
Government is the last place to find anything resembling "respect". In fact, it is a major factor in the destruction of respect. If someone really respects their neighbor, there's one simple ingredient necessary: hands off!
True respect means no initiation of aggressive force against your fellow man. Government is the premier man-made tool that is used to aggress against others. Washington DC is a slop factory filled with fat sweaty hogs that come from all over the country with the goal of somehow initiating force against their fellow neighbors. At this stage in the game, after 200+ years, it has become a free-for-all.
When using aggressive force becomes as widespread as it has, your neighbor is not someone you "respect", but someone that you loot. And if you don't loot him, there's a good chance that he'll "win," and will end up looting you!
If Smith wants to "respect" the burger-flipper (as he claims) then stop "helping" him by advocating that the burger-flipper be forced to pay for someone else's healthcare. Stop "helping" him by advocating the robbery of his purchasing power via the printing press. Stop "helping" him by forcing him pay for other people's "Social Security", "Food Stamps" and the rest of the unending list of "benefits".
The best way to "respect" the burger-flipper is to take your hands off of him and treat him as an individual human being who deserves not to aggressed against. He and his property are off limits!
Multiply that by 300 million, and you'll have a much more respectful society. No "redistribution" required.
Chris Rossini on Twitter, Facebook & Google+
STUDY: Claims of Virgin Births in U.S. Near 1 Percent
Nearly 1 percent of young women in a U.S. study who have become pregnant claim to have done so as virgins, according to a report in the Christmas edition of Britain's BMJ medical journal.
According to Reuters, the authors say such scientifically impossible claims show researchers must use care in interpreting self-reported behavior. Fallible memory, beliefs and wishes can cause people to err in what they tell scientists.
Based on interviews with 7,870 women and girls ages 15 to 28, 45 of the 5,340 pregnancies in this group through the years - 0.8 percent - occurred in women who reported that they conceived independent of men. The figure does not include pregnancies that result from in vitro fertilization or other assisted reproductive technology.
Fallible memory?
The US Has Bombed at Least Eight Wedding Parties Since 2001
The Nation writes:
U.S. drone campaigns are said to launch what in drone-speak are called "signature strikes"that is, strikes not against identified individuals, but against "a pre-identified 'signature' of behavior that the U.S. links to militant activity." In other words, the U.S. launches drone strikes against groups or individuals whose behavior simply fits a “suspect” category: young men of military age carrying weapons, for instance (in areas where carrying a weapon may be the norm no matter who you are). In a more general sense, however, the obliterated wedding party may be the true signature strike of the post 9/11 era of American war-making, the strike that should, but never will, remind Americans that the war on terror was and remains, for others in distant lands, a war of terror, a fearsome creation to which we are conveniently blind.
Consider it a record. For the period since September 11, 2001, we’re number one... in obliterating wedding parties! In those years, whether we care to know it or not, “till death do us part” has gained a far grimmer meaning.
The Screwing of the Unskilled Young: 13 States Will Raise Their Minimum Wage in the New Year
Increasing the minimum wage will simply mean that those who are not productive enough to produce revenue for a firm greater than the minimum wage will find themselves unemployed. The effect is greatest on unskilled youth, who then will have nothing to do but roam the streets and get into trouble. Helluva plan.
Below are the state and local increases that will go into effect next week, as compiled by the Employment Policies Institute. Checkout the madness in Sea Tac, Washington. Will nearby Seattle do the same?
Arizona: $7.80 to $7.90
Colorado: $7.78 to $8.00
Connecticut: $8.25 to $8.70
Florida: $7.79 to $7.93
Missouri: $7.35 to $7.50
Montana: $7.80 to $7.90
New Jersey: $7.25 to $8.25
New York: $7.25 to $8.00
Ohio: $7.85 to $7.95
Oregon: $8.95 to $9.10
Rhode Island: $7.75 to $8.00
Vermont: $8.60 to $8.73
Washington State: $9.19 to $9.32
Albuquerque, N.M.: $8.50 to $8.60
Bernalillo County, N.M.: $8.00 to $8.50
San Francisco, Calif.: $10.55 to $10.74
San Jose, Calif.: $10.00 to $10.15
SeaTac, Wash.: $9.19 to $15.00
(via HuffPo)
Below are the state and local increases that will go into effect next week, as compiled by the Employment Policies Institute. Checkout the madness in Sea Tac, Washington. Will nearby Seattle do the same?
Arizona: $7.80 to $7.90
Colorado: $7.78 to $8.00
Connecticut: $8.25 to $8.70
Florida: $7.79 to $7.93
Missouri: $7.35 to $7.50
Montana: $7.80 to $7.90
New Jersey: $7.25 to $8.25
New York: $7.25 to $8.00
Ohio: $7.85 to $7.95
Oregon: $8.95 to $9.10
Rhode Island: $7.75 to $8.00
Vermont: $8.60 to $8.73
Washington State: $9.19 to $9.32
Albuquerque, N.M.: $8.50 to $8.60
Bernalillo County, N.M.: $8.00 to $8.50
San Francisco, Calif.: $10.55 to $10.74
San Jose, Calif.: $10.00 to $10.15
SeaTac, Wash.: $9.19 to $15.00
(via HuffPo)
4 “Dangerous” Foods That Are Actually Good For You
By Kris Gunnars
For decades, many scientists and the media have been waging a war against fat.
The idea that fat caused harm was never based on any facts and has now been proven to be completely false.
But yet this bias against perfectly healthy foods lingers on… foods that have been demonized for the sole reason that they are naturally high in saturated fats.
Here are 4 foods that were considered “dangerous” due to their fat content, but are actually extremely healthy.
Read the rest here.
For decades, many scientists and the media have been waging a war against fat.
The idea that fat caused harm was never based on any facts and has now been proven to be completely false.
But yet this bias against perfectly healthy foods lingers on… foods that have been demonized for the sole reason that they are naturally high in saturated fats.
Here are 4 foods that were considered “dangerous” due to their fat content, but are actually extremely healthy.
Read the rest here.
Glenn Greenwald Keynote Speech at 30c3
Greenwald is pretty good here. Delivered to a 30c3 conference in Hamburg, Germany.
30c3 is the 30th Chaos Communication Congress of the world's oldest and largest global hacker organization The Chaos Computer Club.
30c3 is the 30th Chaos Communication Congress of the world's oldest and largest global hacker organization The Chaos Computer Club.
6 Reasons Why I do Not Trust The Mainstream Health Authorities
By Kris Gunnars
The mainstream health authorities have an excellent track record of getting things wrong.
Since the failed low-fat diet was born in 1977, rates of obesity and diabetes have skyrocketed.
New evidence shows that this advice is not only ineffective, but downright harmful for a lot of people.
However, despite the studies piling up, the major organizations and their guidelines show no signs of being about to change.
Here are 6 reasons why I do not trust the mainstream health authorities.
1. Many of Them Are Sponsored by The Big Junk Food Companies
In a perfect world, the people in charge of setting dietary guidelines and educating future and current nutrition professionals would be objective.
They would let current science guide their way, not old dogmas, political pressure or financial influences.
However, we do not live in a perfect world. We live in a world that is dominated by money and major corporations exert their influences everywhere, including the health organizations that are supposed to be in charge of protecting our health.
The best example of this is the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the “world’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals” (formerly known as the ADA – American Dietetic Association).
This organization licenses and educates registered dietitians, the people who aresupposed to be the ultimate authorities of what to eat to be healthy.
However, this organization is heavily sponsored by junk food companies.
Here are some of the Academy’s most “loyal” corporate sponsors:
You don’t need to take my word for it… this information is available right here on the Academy’s official website!
Big junk food companies like Coca Cola, Pepsico and Mars are paying large sums of money to Academy. They even provide educational courses to registered dietitians, where they “inform” them that sugar is okay for children.
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