Posted tagged ‘War On Cash’

Must Reads For The Week 2/27/16

February 27, 2016

Pentagon Orders Military To Prioritize Global Warming In All Actions, at hypeline.com. I can see it now. The military can’t act until they do an environmental impact statement. Government intervention makes everything more difficult.

4 Reasons To Fear Encryption Back Doors Even Though You’re Not A Terrorist, by Scott Schackford, at reason.com. Apple is standing against the FBI grabbing power that it doesn’t possess. Here is an excerpt from the article: “…the federal government has made it very abundantly clear that they want to bypass encryption not just in this one case, but in others as well, including cases where the suspected criminal is alive but uncooperative or unavailable. The government is attempting to coerce citizens into assisting the government to gain access to somebody else’s property. This sets a dangerous precedent that is easy to ignore because of the circumstances of this case.”

Judge Orders Discovery, Testimony From State Department On Hillary’s EMail, at tammybruce.com. Judge orders that Judicial Watch will be able to question Hillary’s staff under oath about her e-mails. Judge says there is “reasonable suspicion” that staff members tried to thwart the Freedom of Information Act. I find it hard to believe that a Clinton would stonewall, delay, and outright defy the law! There is no pattern of this, Is there? Read here, Hillary and Benghazi: Call In The Cleaners.

Germany’s Looming Demographic Cliff, at zerohedge.com. Demographics is destiny. In a totally unrelated article, Germans Cheer As Refugee Center Burns, Crowds Stop Firefighters From Extinguishing Blaze, at zerohedge.com.

Greek Attempt To Force Use Of Electronic Money Instead Of Cash Fails, at zerohedge.com. The Greek government will start to ratchet up the force to get people to use electronic money instead of cash. The carrot didn’t work, get ready for the stick.

New Campus Social Justice Cause: Fat Liberation, at tammybruce.com. Fat studies courses are popping up at colleges. Students go into large amounts of debt to take these rigorous academic courses that every business wants their future employees to take. Fat studies is a game changer for these students.

Clinton And Sanders And Progressivism, by Walter E. Williams, at jewishworldreview.com. Excerpt from the article,”…progressivism sought to grant the state vast new authority to manage all walks of American Live while at the same time weakening traditional checks on government power, including private property rights adn liberty of contract, two principles that progressives hold in contempt.”

Why Women Pay Higher Prices For The “Same” Products, by John Dotson, at mises.org. The operative word is “same”. Just because a product may be similar doesn’t mean it is the same. Subjective value by consumers also contributes to price differences between similar (not the same) products. Since men and and women value things differently, price differences shouldn’t be a shock to anyone.

The Economics Of Free Stuff, by Jonathan Newman, at mises.org. Free stuff costs somebody something. When government is giving out free stuff, who do you think bears the cost? Good answer!

Cartoons From The Burning Platform

Political Cartoons by Lisa Benson

Political Cartoons by Nate Beeler

 

Advertisement

Must Reads For The Week 2/20/16

February 20, 2016

Justice Scalia And Constitutional Fidelity, by Andrew Napolitano, at creators.com. Justice Scalia was a great man and jurist. Here are some excerpts from the article: “Justice Scalia was the modern-day progenitor of the idea….of interpreting the Constitution faithful to the plain meaning of its words. He was utterly and unambiguously faithful to this concept……Justice Scalia argued that the Constitution means what it says; it says it is the supreme law of the land; and all American judges have taken a solemn oath to be subject to what it says. It is superior to the jurists who interpret it…..If the text of the constitution is ambiguous, it then becomes the duty of the jurist to ascertain the original public meaning of the words that form the ambiguity……Ascertaining original public meaning often requires the skills of a historian; yet, thanks to James Madison, the historical record is ample….

The rejection of this line of thinking permits jurists to interpret the Constitution in novel and creative or even destructive ways, according to their own ideologies. It permits them to adapt a meaning in the text that they wish had been there to fortify contemporary societal attitudes…..the job of the jurist, he argued, is not to adapt the text of the Constitution to public trends or cultural changes. That is the job of the Congress and the States through legislation.”

“The Court, he said, was just one creature intended to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. The Constitution is the court’s creator. No creature can be greater than its creator. He liked the Court. He loved the Constitution.”

Student Loan Debt Collection, At The End Of A Gun, by Scott Greenfield, at mimesislaw.com. Think twice before going into huge debt for college. Government is creating student loan debt serfs. Government will receive tribute payments for years to come. HT  libertypenblog.blogspot.com.

Occupational Licensing Regulations Stifle Job Creation, at reviewjournal.com. When the cost of doing any activity rises, you will get fewer people doing these activities, (just as increasing the minimum wage decreases the employment of minimum wage workers). I have the solution: The Government should start a student loan type of program for the people who have to acquire Government mandated occupational licenses! HT  libertypenblog.blogspot.com.

Tim Cook Says Apple Will Fight Order To Help Unlock iPhone, by Brian Barrett, at wired.com. Instead of getting an Apple engineer to decrypt the particular iPhone used by the San Beradino terrorists and retrieving the information, the Feds want Apple to give them the skeleton key that will unlock all iPhones, not just the terrorists particular phone. Big Government always wants more and more power over individuals. How long do you think Tim Cook can hold up against the resources and force that the Federal Government will bring down on Apple?

How Government Buys Your Support, by James Bovard, at mises.org. Excerpt from the article, “Politicians and bureaucrats realize that addicting citizens to government handouts is the easiest way to breed mass docility and stretch their power.” Politicians aren’t being charitable when they give out government largess. They are stealing, via taxation, from one group and using it to bribe another group.

Why Negative Interest Rates Will Fail, by Frank Hollenbeck, at mises.org. The Fed wants to incentivize banks to loan out the excess reserves they are holding at Federal Reserve Banks, in the hope of stimulating the economy. Unfortunately there is no one to loan these dollars to.

When Cash Is Outlawed, Only Outlaws Will have Cash, at zerohedge.com. Government wants us to use electronic numbers (money) in our bank accounts instead of actual cash. Easier to control and confiscate electronic money than it is cash.

Check Out This Rare Planetary Alignment Before It’s Gone, electronicproducts.com. Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter will be visible starting tonight (2/20/16) in the predawn all month.

five-planet-alignment-2016-01-21

The State Of Drug Use In America, at huffingtonpost.com. This article shows the drug usage in the US. It shows each states use of  tobacco, alcohol, wine, weed, painkillers, heroin, and meth. It also shows the number of deaths from alcohol and drugs.

 

 

 

 

Must Reads For The Week 2/13/16

February 13, 2016

Economics Explained (In 1 Simple Cartoon), at zerohedge.com. Economics isn’t about what is good or bad. Each of us wants low prices when we are buyers, and higher prices when we are sellers. Prices reveal the subjective values of consumers and producers at any given point in time. Prices change when decisions by individuals change (of course government intervention is factored in by individuals when making their decisions). These price changes coordinate the activity of individuals on the market. So prices are neither good nor bad. They are part of the process that coordinates supply and demand.

 

The Minimum Wage Surged In 6 Cities Last Year. Then This Happened, at zerohedge.com. This is not complicated. When the minimum wage is artificially set above what the market will bear, the number of low wage workers employed decreases.

Welcome To The Recovery: 1 in 7 Americans (45.5 million) Remain On Food Stamps, at zerohedge.com. During the great depression people stood in soup lines to get food. Food stamps are the modern-day soup lines.

Measuring The Global ECONOMIC Temperature, by Mark Thornton, at mises.org. The shrinking demand for oil, even at bargain basement prices, and shrinking demand for shipping world-wide isn’t a good sign.

The Cozy Relationship Between The Treasury And The Fed, by David Howden, at mises.org. The Federal Reserve funds government by purchasing  Treasury bills (debt). The interest the Fed receives from its debt purchases is paid to the U.S. Treasury after the Feds costs are paid for. Not a bad deal for the US Government!

A Surprising Opponent Of The War On Cash, at eonomicpolicyjournal.com. Excerpt from the article: “...politicians and bureaucrats and their crony banksters actually fear and loathe cash because it protects personal and financial privacy of law-abiding citizens and facilitates the preservation of their wealth in the face of mass political surveillance, negative interest rates, bail-ins and other crimes against liberty and property perpetrated by government.”

Want To Deposit Cash At J P Morgan Chase? Be Ready To Show Your ID, at economicpolicyjournal.com. Another example of banks not wanting to deal with cash.

Latest Report From The Frontlines Of The Bankster War On Cash, at economicpolicyjournal.com. Citi-Bank follows J P Morgan in the war on cash.

Mandatory Depression Screening Is A Depressing Thought, by Ron Paul, at lewrockwell.com. If individuals in government can have people diagnosed as being depressed, they can mandate certain things that the particular “depressed” person is not allowed to do as well as what he is allowed to do. Not very comforting, is it?

Lawmakers Accuse Feds Of “Stealth Land Grab” To Stop Arizona Mine Project, by Michael Bashtasch, at libertarianrepublic.com. This is what happens when government gets too big. Federal agencies can make up a law that will stop private citizens from doing what the bureaucrats don’t want them to do. Just another example of tyrannical government

Oklahoma Schools Put Up Signs Warning Of Armed Staff, by Micha Fleck, at thelibertarianrepublic.com. The superintendent didn’t want the school to be a soft target, so some of their staff is armed. The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun!

College Installs “Gender Neutral” Bathrooms But Makes Them Handicapped Inaccessible, at thefederalistpapers.org. It’s always interesting to me to see the order the left lists its protected groups on its scale of values. Apparently some groups are more equal than others. I have a question; what’s the standard used to weigh the handicapped against the transgendered?

Some Cartoons From theburningplatform.com.

Political Cartoons by Henry Payne

Must Reads For The Week 5/16/15

May 15, 2015
The pen is mightier than the sword...

 The pen is mightier than the sword… (Photo credit: mbshane)

Lilly Camera Drone Films And Follows You, at wired.com. The drone films your movements by following a tracking device worn on your wrist.

More Creative Destruction For Transportation: Here Comes Bridj, The App Based ‘Uber Of Bus Transit‘, by Mark J. Perry, at Carpe Diem blog. The most productive and least costly way of providing services and products will win out in a free market.

Reduce Healthcare Costs With MediBid, at medibid.com. Obamacare is creating a true free market in healthcare, as providers and consumers work together to find more cost effective methods. I can’t believe I just said something good about Obamacare. Unfortunately for the central planners, it is an unintended consequence of a bad policy.

Socialist Government Madness: French Retailers Can Now Hold Sales Only Twice A Year, at economicpolicyjournal.com. Why doesn’t the French Government just take over the retail business. They obviously think they are smarter than the people who “own” these businesses.

Hawaii’s $205 Million Obamacare Exchange Implodes, by Alexander Hendrie, at atr.org. Low enrollment will force the Hawaii Obamacare exchange website to shut down by the end of the year, in spite of tax payer funding to the tune of $205 Million. Government politicians and bureaucrats thought they were smart enough to run the healthcare system, They’re not! Bureaucratic central planning doesn’t work as well as voluntary cooperation among individuals when it comes to coordinating men’s activities.

The Best And Worst Cities To Start A Business, at economicpolicyjournal.com. I know this is hard to believe, but seven of the bottom ten worst cities for starting a business are in that low tax low regulation high tax high regulation State of California.

Denmark Legislates Cashless Society, at pymnts.com. Here is a quote from the article, “electronic payments make banking systems more productive and lessen the need for an informal or shadow economy, which isn’t taxed nor monitored by the government.” Why should government be monitoring everything you do? Money came to exist as a free market phenomenon, not as a creation of government. Government took over the creation of money after the fact. Going cashless won’t stop Governments ability to electronically print counterfeit money, it will just give them power to monitor every transaction that you make.

The War On Cash Destroys A Small Entrepreneur, at economicpolicyjournal.com. The IRS seized the cash deposits of this small business. Government is force. It can be used against anyone who bureaucrats and politicians want to wield it against. Going cashless, like Denmark, will make it easier for you to be monitored.

College Enrollment Drops As Millennials Re-Enter Work Force, by Justine Underhill, at yahoo.com. They are starting to figure out that taking on large amounts of college loan debt isn’t worth it.

This Is How Government Backed Education Debt Works, economicpolicyjournal.com. The Government is giving out loans to kids who would not normally qualify for the financing. Does this sound similar to how the housing bubble was created leading up the 08 collapse?

Helio Castroneves Takes To The Air During Practice At Indy.