Great overview on the President's unchecked and unconstitutional power to declare war:
via Reason TV: As Barack Obama announces the beginning of troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, a far bigger issue - one that goes to the heart of American history and government - remains unaddressed.
"That the President has the right to start a war at his pleasure is just completely divorced from the original meaning of the Constitution," says constitutional scholar Gene Healy.
Must be nice to operate in total secrecy, accountable to no one!
via MarketWatch: The Federal Reserve released earnings for 2010, with the central bank's profit growing to $81.7 billion, a record high, from $53.4 billion, mostly due to growing interest earnings on federal agency and government-sponsored enterprise mortgage-backed securities. The Fed's balance sheet -- which also can be monitored monthly -- ballooned to $2.43 trillion, up $193 billion from 2009, as holdings of U.S. Treasury and mortgage-backed securities rose. The Fed returned $79 billion to the U.S. Treasury in 2010, up from $47 billion in 2009. (Updates to include that the Fed profits were at a record.)
via WSJ: Tomorrow's release of the movie version of "Atlas Shrugged" is focusing attention on Ayn Rand's 1957 opus and the free-market ideas it espouses. Book sales for "Atlas" have always been brisk—and all the more so in the past few years, as actual events have mirrored Rand's nightmare vision of economic collapse amid massive government expansion. Conservatives are now hailing Rand as a tea party Nostradamus, hence the timing of the movie's premiere on tax day.
When Rand created the character of Wesley Mouch, it's as though she was anticipating Barney Frank (D., Mass). Mouch is the economic czar in "Atlas Shrugged" whose every move weakens the economy, which in turn gives him the excuse to demand broader powers. Mr. Frank steered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to disaster with mandates for more lending to low-income borrowers. After Fannie and Freddie collapsed under the weight of their subprime mortgage books, Mr. Frank proclaimed last year: "The way to cure that is to give us more authority." Mouch couldn't have said it better himself.
Quote of the Day: “Right now, China, the government, can disconnect parts of its internet, in the case of war, we need to have that here too.” — Senator Joe Lieberman
via ReasonTV: Even as President Obama maintains close to 50,000 troops in Iraq and continues to escalate and expand the war in Afghanistan, the antiwar movement in America continues to shrink.
Via EconomicCollapse/Bloomberg: JP Morgan is the largest processor of food stamp benefits in the United States. JP Morgan has contracted to provide food stamp debit cards in 26 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. JP Morgan is paid for each case that it handles, so that means that the more Americans that go on food stamps, the more profits JP Morgan makes. Yes, you read that correctly.
So, what REALLY happens when you decriminalize drugs? Junkies on every street corner? A surge in drug-related crime? Eight years later, Portugal offers compelling evidence that the US' beloved War on Drugs is a gargantuan misstep:
Isaac Schlueter shows us it is possible to fight back against the TSA... and WIN! Here's how:
We've talked a lot about the controversies surrounding full-body security scans. Before a recent flight, Isaac Schlueter stood up and opted out. Here's why... and how.
Cathy Bossi lives in south Charlotte and has been a flight attendant for the past 32 years, working the past 28 for U.S. Airways.
In early August Bossie was walking through security when she says she was asked to go through the new full body-scanners at Concourse "D" at Charlotte Douglas International.
Here's the latest on S. 510, the Food Safety Modernization Act, now up for vote:
"If the bill does become law you can say goodbye to farmers markets, organically grown produce, raw milk – the kinds of food increasing numbers of Americans have been producing and seeking out.
Monolithic agribusiness & biotech corporations like Monsanto are gaining more and more power over our food supply, thanks in part to Congress creating policies that give them competitive advantage while harming small farmers & competitors, but also because we consume their products every day, without knowing it.
Want to do something about it? Watch this video, then accept the challenge below:
So now the cheerleaders for war would have us believe that they are more concerned for the welfare of Afghan civilians than are those who wish to end the US occupation.
First we have White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs sanctimoniously imploring the editors of Wikileaks not to post more information that the administration believes might endanger the lives of local Afghan informants:
For the last few years, federal agencies have defended body scanning by insisting that all images will be discarded as soon as they're viewed. The Transportation Security Administration claimed last summer, for instance, that "scanned images cannot be stored or recorded."
The Federal Communications Commission's plan to impose Net neutrality regulations just became much more difficult to pull off.
A bipartisan group of politicians on Monday told FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, in no uncertain terms, to abandon his plans to impose controversial new rules on broadband providers until the U.S. Congress changes the law.
Seventy-four House Democrats sent Genachowski, an Obama appointee and fellow Democrat, a letter saying his ideas will "jeopardize jobs" and "should not be done without additional direction from Congress."
A separate letter from 37 Senate Republicans, also sent Monday, was more pointed. It accused Genachowski of pushing "heavy-handed 19th century regulations" that are "inconceivable" as well as illegal.
Just got this email from Jane Hamsher @ FireDogLake - another terrific demonstration of your federal tax dollars at work!
A federally funded drug task force seized as evidence up to 200 petition signatures for marijuana legalization in Washington State in a series of early-morning raids this week. Seizing the petition signatures is bad enough. What's worse is what the task force did on its raids of a legal marijuana dispensary and its owner's home.
Why is it that when our elected representatives put their heads together to reduce federal spending, the best they can do is cut less than a tenth of one percent? Personally, I'm in favor of Chris Edwards' new plan - eliminate $380 billion in spending and reduce the federal budget by a whopping 10%.
I flew through BWI airport a few weeks ago, and saw signs posted in the security line indicating they're piloting the TSA's controversial new full body imagers.
In honor of Earth Day, I thought I'd do a little research on my favorite company... Monsanto. Specifically, the "safety" protocol they used to bring their flagship product, RoundUp weed-killer, to market. Disgusting, really:
Here's my appearance with David Asman on Fox Business yesterday. He's doing a new series looking at each cabinet department to see what they do, how much they cost, and if we really need them... What do you think?
One of my favorite people ever, Joel Salatin, is recognized as Person of the Year by The Hook:
(from Chelsea Green)
Christian-libertarian-environmentalist-capitalist-lunatic farmer and “high priest of the pasture” (New York Times Magazine) Joel Salatin has been farming sustainably for decades. His fiery oratorical style and verbal dexterity has earned him legions of fans and followers. Now, after a glowing profile in Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma and a couple of star turns in high-profile documentaries on food safety, most notably Food, Inc. and Fresh, people are really starting to sit up and take notice.
Of all of the efforts to rein in the Federal Reserve, this is by far the most critical, as it has the most potential to end that institution's pernicious ability to debase the currency we use. Read the full bill here.
"The White House has just released the Open Government Directive.
In a livestreamed chat, blogpost, and document online, the White House has announced a bold new plan for openness in the Executive Branch. The result of months of interior conversations, and three public components, the new policy introduces sweeping goals and initiatives aimed at bringing citizens closer to their government, through technology, information, and public interaction."
The internet is under attack by our very own US Government, working on behalf of corporate interests in the entertainment and content industries. What does this mean for you?
