United Liberty

Going off of my colleague Ron Davis’ post about technological reasons to oppose that monstrosity known as SOPA (and it’s Senate twin, PIPA), here are a couple of news stories from earlier in the month to share with you. I am a bit late on these, I admit, but I want to place them here just to show how ineffectual SOPA will actually be.

The first “solution” will probably fail and end in misery and a fireball, but you have to give some credit to these guys: a group of hackers want to send up a satellite that will act as an independent file-sharing server, a sort of space age Sealand:

The scheme was outlined at the Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin.

The project’s organisers said the Hackerspace Global Grid will also involve developing a grid of ground stations to track and communicate with the satellites.

Longer term they hope to help put an amateur astronaut on the moon.

Hobbyists have already put a few small satellites into orbit - usually only for brief periods of time - but tracking the devices has proved difficult for low-budget projects.

The hacker activist Nick Farr first put out calls for people to contribute to the project in August. He said that the increasing threat of internet censorship had motivated the project.

“The first goal is an uncensorable internet in space. Let’s take the internet out of the control of terrestrial entities,” Mr Farr said.

He cited the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) in the United States as an example of the kind of threat facing online freedom. If passed, the act would allow for some sites to be blocked on copyright grounds.

Man, journalists can’t catch a break these days. First there’s the National Defense Authorization Act, which could easily turn into a blanket order to throw them in jail if they alarm the public too much. Then there’s the DOJ’s idea of lying to people in FOIA requests (which are usually made by journalists.) And now, Congressional Democrats, led by Representatives Theodore Deutch (FL-19), Peter DeFazio (OR-4), Keith Ellison (MN-5), Alcee Hastings (FL-23), and Jim McDermott (WA-7), are introducing HJR 90. This is a constitutional amendment which would basically ban all newspapers—including the lefty New York Times—and radio and broadcast news from talking about politics. The text reads:

I don’t usually give into notions like “Our democracy is being destroyed!” and “This administration is going to lead us straight into fascism!” (Or that they already have.) But lately, two events have stood out that really make me question where America is going.

The first is a really asinine comment made by the governor of North Carolina, Beverly Perdue:

As a way to solve the national debt crisis, North Carolina Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue recommends suspending congressional elections for the next couple of years.

“I think we ought to suspend, perhaps, elections for Congress for two years and just tell them we won’t hold it against them, whatever decisions they make, to just let them help this country recover,” Perdue said at a rotary club event in Cary, N.C., according to the Raleigh News & Observer. “I really hope that someone can agree with me on that.”

Perdue said she thinks that temporarily halting elections would allow members of Congress to focus on the economy. “You have to have more ability from Congress, I think, to work together and to get over the partisan bickering and focus on fixing things,” Perdue said.

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2011/09/27/nc-governor-recommends-suspending-democracy-to-focus-on-jobs/#ixzz1ZCjFkGUD

And I thought I was insane.

When I was a Cato intern, some of us lamented that we really didn’t have any celebrities holding up the libertarian banner, no popular people to bring the message to the masses. John Stossel didn’t really count (apparently), and Drew Carey was left to hold the torch alone. Well, if we go by the rather simplistic (and thus, used by journalists everywhere) metric of Ron Paul = Everything Libertarian, then good news! We have a celebrity endorsement for Mr. Paul!

“Wedding Crashers” star Vince Vaughn introduced Republican presidential hopeful Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) Friday night at the Liberty Political Action Conference (LPAC) in Reno, Nevada.

Vaughn and Paul are “friends,” according to Paul’s campaign. Pictures from the conference posted at Paul’s campaign website show the two chatting along with Paul’s son, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).

The Pauls did attend the premiere of Vaughn’s film “Couples Retreat” in 2009.

Vaughn also wrote an endorsement for Paul’s book “End the Fed” in 2009, writing: “Everyone must read this book–Congressmen and college students, Democrats and Republicans–all Americans.”

“Vince [is] not merely interested in Dr. Paul’s philosophy but he also graciously invited Dr. and Mrs. Paul to the premier of his film ‘Couples Retreat,’” according to Paul’s 2012 National Campaign Chairman Jesse Benton in a statement.

Below is a collection of several links that we didn’t get around to writing about, but still wanted to post for readers to examine. The stories typically range from news about prominent figures in the liberty movement, national politics, the nanny state, foreign policy and free markets.

Below is a collection of several links that we didn’t get around to writing about, but still wanted to post for readers to examine. The stories typically range from news about prominent figures in the liberty movement, national politics, the nanny state, foreign policy and free markets.

Below is a collection of several links that we didn’t get around to writing about, but still wanted to post for readers to examine. The stories typically range from news about prominent figures in the liberty movement, national politics, the nanny state, foreign policy and free markets.

The search continues for a scapegoat for Saturday’s tragic shooting in Tucson. The latest target is free speech as Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) is proposing bringing back the Fairness Doctrine to censor talk radio:

U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the third-ranking Democrat in Congress, said Sunday the deadly shooting in Arizona should get the country thinking about what’s acceptable to say publicly and when people should keep their mouths shut.

Clyburn said he thinks vitriol in public discourse led to a 22-year-old suspect opening fire Saturday at an event Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords held for her constituents in Tucson, Ariz. Six people were killed and 14 others were injured, including Giffords.

The shooting is cause for the country to rethink parameters on free speech, Clyburn said from his office, just blocks from the South Carolina Statehouse. He wants standards put in place to guarantee balanced media coverage with a reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, in addition to calling on elected officials and media pundits to use ‘better judgment.’

‘Free speech is as free speech does,’ he said. ‘You cannot yell ‘fire’ in a crowded theater and call it free speech and some of what I hear, and is being called free speech, is worse than that.’

Clyburn is using the words of Sharron Angle - a former candidate for public office, not a talk show host - that there are “Second Amendment remedies” to restore lost liberty. Irresponsible? Perhaps, but it’s not illegal; nor should it be.

As more become clear about Jared Loughner, the facts seem to mean less and less for those seeking to turn this tragedy into a political witch hunt. It appears that Loughner, had an obsession with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) dating back to 2007 - before Sarah Palin or the tea party movement came on the national scene, and the warning signs that Loughner was an unstable person had been ignored; even by police.

And while the debate on Loughner’s political leanings is still raging, Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post notes that he is a registered independent:

Loughner registered to vote on Sept. 29, 2006, identifying himself as an independent. Records show he voted in the 2006 and 2008 elections but is current listed as “inactive” on the state’s voter roles — meaning that he did not vote in November.
[…]
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, liberals sought to paint Loughner as an anti-government, tea party conservative. Conservatives retorted that Loughner lacked anything close to a coherent political philosophy — a case strengthened by subsequent glimpses into his personal life that suggests someone struggling with mental illness.

Loughner’s decision to affiliate as an independent rather than a Republican or Democrat would seem to affirm the sense that while he targeted Giffords in the attack, it was not a decision born of a set of deeply held political beliefs that fit neatly into either party.

Since Saturday’s shooting in Arizona, my comments on the tragedy have been limited because there are a lot of things being said from all sides and I felt that I should wait until more information was discovered before making any comments.

Unfortunately, others have felt the need to be reactionary, rush to judgment and blame the most convenient figure(s) or movement to take advantage of the situation in hopes to score cheap political points.

Jared Loughner is mentally disturbed, it’s seem very unlikely that Sarah Palin or another politician or the tea party movement had any influence on his actions.

Let’s face it, we’re always going to have differences. And with those differences comes, at times, heat rhetoric - and it comes from all sides, conservative and liberal. There are occasionally individuals that react in an inappropriate manner, either verbally or physically abusive. And other take it to the next level by attempting to take the lives of someone they disagree with. Yes, it’s unfortunately when it happens, and we shouldn’t play down the significance of loss of life.

We should remember that with a free society occasionally comes some excess. With freedom of speech comes vitriolic and incendiary speech, and sometimes hate speech.