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All the libertarian news you can use for the week of May 29th, 2009!
In the US, with the economic down-turn comes a decrease in earnings for Americans. One upshot to this news is that the IRS will not be able to get their grubby hands on that income. The US has a progressive tax rate, so the more you make, you more you're taxed. US Today is reporting that revenues for the IRS are down 34% since April vs. a year ago. This is the biggest drop since April 1981.
This past Monday was Memorial Day. This is a holiday where people celebrate the murders of fallen soldiers. It takes on a whole new meaning when you phrase it that way, I think. On Twitter, there was a rash of posts like "If you can read this right now, thank a veteran" and "If English is your primary language, thank a veteran." Amidst this BS was a great post from nothirdsolution.com entitled "Memorial Day: War Is Not Worth Celebrating."
Obama is set to announce his CYBER CZAR this week. Please remember, when you hear the word Czar being used by the media, please use with its actual meaning: overlord. The new headline would be:
Obama is set to announce his cyber-overlord this week. Takes on a new tone, doesn't it? Unfortunately, the mandate this overlord has spills over into the private sector. I hope this won't mean more regulation. Especially data-retention laws that so many European countries already have.
Sam Dodson was on Fox News' Freedom Watch show this week talking about his jail-time and what events led to his incarceration. Basically, Sam was thrown in a cage for not giving "the authorities" his name. Sam moved to Keene, NH as part of the Free State Project earlier this year.
The big International news this week is North Korea's missile test. All sorts of official-types from various Government agencies have issued statements condemning the tests. Apparently, only economically powerful countries can have access to nuclear weapons. The Russian officials are particularly worried. Justin Raimondo of Antiwar.com asks the question, Is North Korea about to Blow Up the World? in his recently column.
The Pirate Party in Sweden is a political party dedicated to copyright reform. The latest polls coming out indicate that they could win a seat in the European Parliament. I think it would be absolutely hilarious if they did. I don't know seriously The Pirate Party members take themselves, but it could help bring some attention to intellectual property anyway. One of their goals is to end the Government patent system and that is a good thing indeed.
CNN is reporting that Fort Campbell, home of the US Army's 101st airborne division is going to shut down for three-days after a rash of suicides. 11 deaths this year have been attributed to suicide and the entire fort will undergo "suicide stand-down training." Its a really a shame that military culture stigmatizes asking for help. The number of US military suicides last year: 133.
As we close this weeks news, I'll leave you with two interesting articles I read this week. Over at 6thdensity.net, there has been some discussion on what, if any natural elites would arise in a free society. Entitled "Let the Free Market Eat the Rich" the article attempts to explore how a free-market would deal with wealth disparities. This last article is not new, but interesting anyway. 15 Mistakes by Austrian Economists takes a look at 15 well-known Austrian ideas from a critical standpoint. This is not research, but simply commentary. I still found it thought-provoking though.
Until next week, follow Libertypile pile on Twitter at @libertypile for more news and updates!
Yours in Liberty
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