Murder In Blue

One death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic.- Joseph Stalin

Once again members of the so-called "Thin Blue Line", (the largest gang in the US) have managed to kill an innocent victim. This time, tho it is a 92 year old woman whom the gang members and their sponsors contend was a drug dealer. Not a very likely scenario, to anyone with even a normal IQ, obviously not a prerequisite for badge holding, is it?

Now we get to add one more person, a little old lady to the statistics. The polizei in Atlanta have already gone on the offensive where this drug war murder is concerned. Note that their fellow gange members gathered to pay homage to them when they heard their homies had been capped.

Assistant Chief Alan Dreher said the officers had a legal warrant and "knocked and announced" before they forced open the door. He said they were justified in shooting once they were fired upon.

He conveniently ignores the fact that they were unjustified in being there at all. They should have been cognizant of the fact that the occupant of the house was a 92 year old woman...if they had bothered to investigate rather than bust down doors. What are the odds that this woman was a drug dealer? Not very good, but drug warriors seldom care, do they?

In this day and age, when the failed drug war continues to claim innocent lives and real criminals use police tactics to terrorise the innocent it's no wonder that this woman opened fire on these gang members enforcers. Beyond the fact that there were no drugs here, these men were not in uniform and were attempting to break down her door. What reason did she have to believe that these were actually cops? None. The justified shooting in this case belonged to this little old lady, not the police. The true tragedy in this case of drug warriors vs. the people is that Kathryn Johnson is dead and that the officers survived and will likely face no retribution for their incompetence and the unnecessary killing.

The continuing militarisation of the police has killed yet another person and it is unlikely to end any time soon. Yet one more reason to end the War on Drugs before it kills again.

(Thanks to Radley Balko for the link to the video.)

Technorati Tags:
Drug War, Police, Police Brutality, Atlanta, Libertarian

The Draft Buzz

Without a doubt this week the libertarian blogosphere will be abuzz with news of Democrat Charles Rangel's calls for a renewal of the draft. Again. It's certain that the blogosphere of the Democratic Left won't be paying much attention to this, tho. They, like the Republicrats will lockstep right down to the draft board rather than take a stand on an anti-draft platform. Fortunately, we are unlikely to see this come to pass, as the new Speaker of the House and their Majority Leader have already said they'll not let it get to the floor. Unfortunately, politicians promises aren't worth the wind it takes to make them, as we all know.

Eventually, someone will succumb to the slave state mentality and a draft will once again be imposed upon our children. People with guns will come and force our children into uniform to serve the will of the state in far off lands. My only question at this time is whether or no this will be your line in the sand? Will the imposition of press gangs to take your children, your brothers, lovers, husbands and your friends be the back breaking straw? Or will you stand idly by and watch as they are taken away to serve the warlords in D.C.? Will you help them leave their homes to flee to a foreign country, (from which they'll likely be deported at the behest of the US government, given the current state of affairs)? Urge them to resist and be imprisoned? Or will this be the "hill you choose to die upon"?

We will hear, in the next few days, (I doubt the issue will last that long given the attention span of most people) from a variety of people as to why this is a good or bad idea. Most libertarian folks will oppose the idea of conscription for all the right reasons and many out there will embrace Rangel's class warfare rhetoric and the warped view that politicians would be reticent to begin conflicts if there were a chance that someone they care about could be drafted. That's a ludicrous position to take, given past behaviour of these people. They care not one whit about the lives of others and they can always arrange for their offspring to be exempted from combat...just look at the President of this country if you don't believe it. Politicians wield power and they don't care if you know they use it for their own benefit. Who are you to question them? Nobody.

So, if this should come to pass will you concede your children to the state? Acknowledge that they are the property of politicians? Or will you allow that they are sovereign individuals and treat them as such, shielding them from the petty tyrants who would enslave them in the name of political expediency? Inquiring minds want to know.


Technorati Tags:
Libertarian, Draft, Politics, Democrat

Saying Goodbye To Milton Friedman

The libertarian and free market movements have lost one of the great icons today. Milton Friedman has departed the world at the age of 94. All of us who believe in the free market owe him a great debt, one which we shall never be able to repay other than by carrying on in his stead and fighting for a true free market on our way to a world without masters.

The statement from the Milton and Rose D. Friedman Foundation sums it up much better than I ever could.

America has lost a true visionary and advocate for human freedom. And I have lost a great friend.

Milton’s passion for freedom and liberty has influenced more lives than he ever could possibly know. His writings and ideas have transformed the minds of U.S. Presidents, world leaders, entrepreneurs and freshmen economic majors alike. The loss of his passion, incisive mind and dedication to freedom are all national treasures that we mourn for today.

Milton never chose to slow down; even at 94 he kept fighting to bring educational equality to all of America’s children. And it’s this vision, this drive for educational liberty that the Friedman Foundation will continue to bring to families throughout America.

His impact on my life over the last 33 years was significant. His impact on the world was momentous. Without a doubt, few people have done more to advance civil and economic liberties throughout the world during their lifetime than Dr. Milton Friedman.

The light of liberty has just grown a bit more dim with this loss. It just means that the rest of us have to work harder now, to realise the dream of Milton and Adam Smith. Mr. Friedman's Foundation work has been on my mind of late, as I have once again been fiddling with the idea of a new system of education. While he advocated a system of reform and choice I have been looking for a new system entirely. Now, just as I seem to be on the right track one of the people who was an inspiration to me in this area has left us.

Goodbye and Bon Voyage, Mr. Friedman. We'll miss you.


Technorati Tags:
Libertarian, Milton Friedman, Economics, Education

Say Hello To My Little Friend...

Well, I finally broke down two weeks ago and joined the semi-auto crowd at last. After years of being a devout revolver carrier I decided to find and purchase semi-auto. After months of research I took the decision to go with the Taurus Millennium Pro PT145 in stainless. I decided on the Mill-Pro for a number of reasons, top amongst them being that the pistol is light, concealable, fits my hand well and it has a lifetime warranty. I already own one Taurus revolver in .357 magnum so I had no qualms about the quality of the firearm I was purchasing. It was a good deal, too. I paid $100 under MSRP and got not just the firearm, but also received an extra magazine, cleaning brush, loading tool, receiver locking keys and manual. There's also a deal with Taurus to give away a 1 year membership in the NRA with every purchase of a Taurus firearm. Fortunately, I have no intentions of exercising that particular bonus, not being a fan of the NRA in any way shape or form. Maybe someone can convince them to offer up a GOA membership instead?

So, I went to my local gun show and picked up my newest friend, along with ammo and a new holster. This weekend I spent a cold morning at the range getting used to the vagaries of this newest addition. I was really surprised that the recoil on this pistol was nowhere near what I thought it was going to be. I think the recoil was less than I usually experience with my .44 Special. It's a joy to shoot. The only truly disconcerting thing was that every so often the Mill-Pro ejects a casing straight up and back, popping you in the head. If I hadn't been wearing my ball cap I might well have got a hot one to the head. Other than that this pistol fires well and puts rounds about where I want them to go, (misses were my fault).

I wasn't thrilled with the ammo I bought, tho. Speer Lawman rounds. More than once these rounds jammed on me. Grrr....while the price might have been right the quality leaves a great deal to be desired. My next purchase will be some old reliables like Winchesters or Remington's.

I think I'm going to like this pistol a lot. It'll probably even get me out to the range more often, too and that's a good thing!

Technorati Tags:
Guns, Taurus Millennium Pro, Libertarian