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Index for this page...(Be aware some links below may have expired.)
All The Following Items Were Posted On July 1, 2006 The following remarks are by Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527), an Italian political philosopher who authored the classic work The Prince. It is from this philosopher that we derive the term "Machiavellian" which refers to the political principle according to which "every act of the state (or statesman) is permissible which might be advantageous for one's own country"; it seems that this political principle is all too evident in today's world. Agreed?
As quoted in Volume 1 of The Wisdom Seekers: Great Philosophers of the Western World, by James L. Christian. If you want an excellent and comprehensive history of philosophy, the two volumes in this set are among the best available. And I'm not just saying that because Professor Christian is a personal friend. I used his introductory textbook in philosophy when I was teaching an introduction to philosophy course many years ago. J.D. Read about Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) in The Radical Academy.
FOR THE RECORD 1. One Year After Kelo: Eminent Domain Abuse Skyrocketing Friday, June 23, marked the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court's notorious Kelo v. City of New London decision. That decision, one of the most denounced in the Court's history, allows local governments to seize homes and businesses through eminent domain and give that property to private businesses. In Kelo, the Supreme Court ruled that the *mere possibility* that a different use of the property might generate more taxes or jobs was sufficient reason for seizure. One year later, has eminent domain abuse gotten worse, as some critics predicted? Yes, says the libertarian Institute for Justice, which fought the Kelo case all the way to the Supreme Court. Much worse. Last year more than 5,700 homes, businesses, churches, and other properties nationwide were threatened or seized with eminent domain for private development. And that may be only a fraction of the cases; statistics are very difficult to come by. This number is an astonishing increase. It is more than half of the total number of known cases for fully *five years* prior to the Supreme Court ruling. Clearly, Kelo has been a green light for such seizures. According to a new report from the Institute for Justice, "The Kelo decision emboldened officials and developers, who started new projects, moved existing ones forward, and, especially, threatened and filed condemnation actions. ...[C]ities are pushing out motels for commercial development and replacing small businesses with upscale hotels. Homes are being replaced by shopping malls, but the stronger trend has been the replacement of middle-class residences for other, more upscale ones. Agricultural land has been taken for still more retail development." One encouraging sign is that many states, responding to the demands of outraged citizens, have passed laws limiting or prohibiting Kelo-type eminent domain. Twenty-five states (out of the 45 that had legislative sessions this year) have enacted legislation curbing the abuse of eminent domain. Three more states passed bills now waiting signatures by governors. Some of the bills offer less protection than others, and many are flawed in some ways, but this is a remarkable response in so short a time. Still, that leaves huge numbers of Americans utterly unprotected from the evil alliance of greedy businesses and big government. Notes the Institute for Justice: "That's all the more reason why Congress needs to pass legislation preventing the use of federal economic development funds to those state and local agencies that use eminent domain for private commercial development." Currently, a bill that would do just that -- the Private Property Rights Protection Act of 2005 (HR 4128) -- is stalled in the U.S. Senate. It passed the House by a vote of 376-38 in November 2005. The Institute for Justice has formed an organization, The Castle Coalition, to inform the public and fight for reform on this issue. The Castle Coalition defines itself as "a nationwide network of home and small business owners that uses activism to fight the private-to-private transfer of property by the government through the use of its eminent domain power." The Castle Coalition Web site has a wealth of information on what's going on, by state and nationally. Source: http://www.castlecoalition.org/index.html Courtesy: Advocates for Self-Government In what is shaping up to be a year of the remake, a new version of the 1976 horror flick, "The Omen," arrived with a flourish on 06/06/06. The film is about an American official who discovers that his kid is a little devil for real. Actor Pete Postlethwaite, who plays Father Brennan in the new film, experienced a personal tragedy that sounds like it came off the pages of the movie script. Postlethwaite's brother died after drawing a hand in a card game. The cards that he pulled were three sixes. Those involved in the original movie experienced some inexplicable occurrences as well, including the following:
Source: The Left Coast Report from NewsMax.com 3. Surprising Facts About Private Schools Private schools are good for families, good for kids and good for America, according to the Council for American Private Education (CAPE), an organization that champions American private K-12 education. But you may be surprised at just *how* beneficial and effective private schools are. According to CAPE:
.. and that's just the beginning, according to CAPE. No wonder, then, that -- to cite another CAPE statistic -- a substantial majority of adults believe private schools do a better job of providing a quality education than government schools. And that belief, in turn, is fueling increased demand among parents for alternatives to the government's education monopoly. Source: CAPE report at http://www.capenet.org/benefits4.html Congress Suddenly Discovers the Constitution! "Today the Republicans said this raid (on Rep. William Jefferson's office) may have violated protections for congressmen that are spelled out in the Constitution. The Constitution? All of a sudden they found a copy? Where was this when they were spying on our phone calls?" -- Jay Leno, "The Tonight Show."
COUNSELING CORNER: About Growing Older - Some Reflections . . . First - Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it. Second - The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for. Third - Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me, I want people to know "why" I look this way. I've traveled a long way and some of the roads weren't paved. Fourth - When you are dissatisfied and would like to go back to youth, think of Algebra. Fifth - You know you are getting old when everything either dries up or leaks. Sixth - I don't know how I got over the hill without getting to the top. Seventh - One of the many things no one tells you about aging is that it is such a nice change from being young. Eighth - One must wait until evening to see how splendid the day has been. Ninth - Being young is beautiful, but being old is comfortable. Tenth - Long ago when men cursed and beat the ground with sticks, it was called witchcraft. Today it's called golf And finally - If you don't learn to laugh at trouble, you won't have anything to laugh at when you are old.
A LITTLE OF THIS & A LITTLE OF THAT A Little Wisdom: If we are to keep our democracy, there must be one commandment: Thou shalt not ration justice. A Little Advice: "If you see a snake, just kill it. Don't appoint a committee on snakes." -- H. Ross Perot, a one-time U.S. presidential candidate. A Little Question: Where do forest rangers go to "get away from it all"? A Little Put-Down: Mirrors don't talk, and luckily for you they don't laugh either! A Little Proverb: You can't change the past, but you can ruin the present by worrying over the future. A Little Reflection: The best part about procrastination is that you are never bored, because you have all kinds of things that you should be doing. A Little Observation: Thirty-five is when you finally get your head together and your body starts falling apart. A Little Quote: "Propaganda is persuading people to make up their minds while withholding some of the facts from them." -- Harold Evans A Little Definition: A dead atheist is someone who's all dressed up with no place to go. A Little Quip: "Dogs feel very strongly that they should always go with you in the car, in case the need should arise for them to bark violently at nothing right in your ear." -- Thanks to the hilarious Dave Barry A Little Legal Shmegal: "And God said: 'Let there be Satan, so people don't blame everything on me. And let there be lawyers, so people don't blame everything on Satan.'" -- Thanks to the great George Burns
ELSEWHERE ON THE INTERNET Some interesting & provocative articles on other websites: Pass the Donuts, or, Enjoy Your Heart Attack, Collection of Prescription Medicines, or General Slumpishness, and Have a Good Day, by Karen De Coster: The era of Lifestyle Fascism is upon us, and so we face this highly-charged tool of the State that threatens our ways and habits, freedom of contract and association, and ability to function as men and women of free choice. Animals are less valuable than human beings: Leading researcher John Martin tells Helene Guldberg why it is morally justifiable to cause heart attacks in rats - and why he isn't scared of animal rights extremists. Smoking ban 'is based on bad science', by Sam Coates: The ban on smoking in pubs was an over-reaction to the threat posed by passive smoking and symptomatic of MPs' failure to understand the concept of risk, a House of Lords committee has said. The Government takes more notice of scare stories than of evidence, a Lords committee has said. What Would the Founders Do Today?, by Richard Brookhiser: Who cares what the founders would do? Who believes that the experiences, opinions, or plans of men who lived 200 years ago could have any relevance to our problems? Who imagines that the Founders could answer our questions? Let doctors kill without consent, says ethics expert, by Ian Evans: Doctors should be allowed to help to kill terminally ill patients with or without their consent, a leading professor of medical ethics said yesterday. Another Marijuana Myth Goes Up In Smoke, by Paul Armentano: Epidemiological data presented last May at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society concluding that smoking marijuana, even long-term, is not positively associated with increased incidence of lung-cancer, is just the latest in a long line of government claims regarding the alleged dangers of pot to go - pardon the pun - up in smoke. The Great No-ID Airport Challenge, by Ryan Singel: Jim Harper left his hotel early Thursday at 5:30 a.m. to give himself more than two hours to clear security at San Francisco International Airport. It wasn't that he was worried the security line would be long, but because he accepted a dare from civil liberties rabble-rouser John Gilmore to test whether he could actually fly without showing identification. Coffee may cut alcohol damage: Coffee may provide some protection against cirrhosis of the liver, especially among heavy alcohol drinkers. A study in Oakland, California, by Arthur Klatsky, of the healthcare group Kaiser Permanente, suggests that drinkers of four or more cups of coffee a day are five times less likely to get cirrhosis than non-coffee drinkers. Even one cup a day cuts the risk by a third. No moral excuse for war atrocities, by Robert Higgs: Owing to the appearance of hard-to-dismiss photographic and videotaped evidence, certain "incidents," such as the massacre at Haditha or the disgusting fun and games at Abu Ghraib, find their way into the U.S. news media from time to time. Tsar admits - we've lost the war on drugs, by Marcello Mega and Kate Foster: Scotland's drugs tsar has sparked a furious row by openly declaring that the war on drugs is "long lost". Tom Wood, a former deputy chief constable, is the first senior law enforcement figure publicly to admit drug traffickers will never be defeated. Prison for you, but not for me, by John Stossel: Our elected officials say they are just like the rest of us. But that's a myth. "The king can do no wrong" is often closer to the truth. Support states' rights -- OK medical pot, by Debra Saunders: If ever a piece of legislation should pass readily through the U.S. House of Representatives, it is a measure sponsored by Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-N.Y., and Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., that would prevent the Department of Justice from using tax dollars to prosecute medical-marijuana patients in states that have legalized medical marijuana. Time for Objectivists To Come Clean, by Scott McPherson: It's time for Objectivists to come clean on the Iraq War. I say that as a small "O" objectivist. Like so many others, I came into the Libertarian Movement largely due to the writings of Ayn Rand.
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