This is Gus Van Horn at his finest. He adeptly integrates the importance of rights, not compromising one’s principles, and the folly of animal rights proponents.

As illustrated here and here, I have always been one who develops deep attachment to pets. But, as irrational entities they have no rights, and therefore should be unquestionably subordinate to humans in every way. It is precisely their lack of rights which precludes any objective law pertaining to them other than those protecting domestic animals as property.

David Boaz highlights the anti-individual, and hypocritical demeanor of the clowns attempting to rule the greatest nation.

Below is the transcript of one clown’s commencement speech with noteworthy phrases highlighted, below are my comments (here are others):

Thank you, President Roth, for that generous introduction, and congratulations on your first year at the helm of Wesleyan. Congratulations also to the class of 2008, and thank you for allowing me to be a part of your graduation.

Thanks also for your generous campaign contributions Mr. Roth.

I have the distinct honor today of pinch-hitting for one of my personal heroes and a hero to this country, Senator Edward Kennedy. Teddy wanted to be here very much, but as you know, he’s had a very long week and is taking some much-needed rest. He called me up a few days ago and I said that I’d be happy to be his stand-in, even if there was no way I could fill his shoes.

Oh, I think in terms of philosophical merit, you’re exceeding his standard - plus albeit less humorous for the college crowd, the lack of senility is refreshing.

I did, however, get the chance to glance at the speech he planned on delivering today, and I’d like to start by passing along a message from him: “To all those praying for my return to good health, I offer my heartfelt thanks. And to any who’d rather have a different result, I say, don’t get your hopes up just yet!”

Too late.

So we know that Ted Kennedy’s legendary sense of humor is as strong as ever, and I have no doubt that his equally legendary fighting spirit will carry him through this latest challenge. He is our friend, he is our champion, and we hope and pray for his return to good health.

A true legend indeed Osama.

The topic of his speech today was common for a commencement, but one that nobody could discuss with more authority or inspiration than Ted Kennedy. And that is the topic of service to one’s country – a cause that is synonymous with his family’s name and their legacy.

Such a noble clan.

I was born the year that his brother John called a generation of Americans to ask their country what they could do. And I came of age at a time when they did it. They were the Peace Corps volunteers who won a generation of goodwill toward America at a time when America’s ideals were challenged. They were the teenagers and college students, not much older than you, who watched the Civil Rights Movement unfold on their television sets; who saw the dogs and the fire hoses and the footage of marchers beaten within an inch or their lives; who knew it was probably smarter and safer to stay at home, but still decided to take those Freedom Rides down south – who still decided to march. And because they did, they changed the world.

I bring this up because today, you are about to enter a world that makes it easy to get caught up in the notion that there are actually two different stories at work in our lives.

The first is the story of our everyday cares and concerns – the responsibilities we have to our jobs and our families – the bustle and busyness of what happens in our own life. And the second is the story of what happens in the life of our country – of what happens in the wider world. It’s the story you see when you catch a glimpse of the day’s headlines or turn on the news at night – a story of big challenges like war and recession; hunger and climate change; injustice and inequality. It’s a story that can sometimes seem distant and separate from our own – a destiny to be shaped by forces beyond our control.

I’m not sure if this is a hint of determinism, or an appeal to bolster the notion of helplessness and lack of purpose. My guess is that’s it’s a setup line for his insights (to come below) regarding the way to find purpose.

And yet, the history of this nation tells us this isn’t so. It tells us that we are a people whose destiny has never been written for us, but by us – by generations of men and women, young and old, who have always believed that their story and the American story are not separate, but shared. And for more than two centuries, they have served this country in ways that have forever enriched both.

I say this to you as someone who couldn’t be standing here today if not for the service of others, and wouldn’t be standing here today if not for the purpose that service gave my own life.

Now we get to the meat. His life had no purpose before he felt the urge to serve? What misery.

Read the rest of this entry »

What We Owe Our Soldiers by Alex Epstein

Every Veterans Day we pay tribute to our fellow Americans who have served in the military. With speeches and ceremonies, we recognize their courage and valor. But justice demands that we also recognize that we should have far more living veterans than we do. All too many of our soldiers have died unnecessarily—because they were sent to fight for a purpose other than America’s freedom.

The proper purpose of a government is to protect its citizens’ lives and freedom against the initiation of force by criminals at home and aggressors abroad. The American government has a sacred responsibility to recognize the individual value of every one of its citizens’ lives, and thus to do everything possible to protect the rights of each to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness. This absolutely includes our soldiers.

Soldiers are not sacrificial objects; they are full-fledged Americans with the same moral right as the rest of us to the pursuit of their own goals, their own dreams, their own happiness. Rational soldiers enjoy much of the work of military service, take pride in their ability to do it superlatively, and gain profound satisfaction in protecting the freedom of every American, including their own freedom.

Soldiers know that in entering the military, they are risking their lives in the event of war. But this risk is not, as it is often described, a “sacrifice” for a “higher cause.” When there is a true threat to America, it is a threat to all of our lives and loved ones, soldiers included. Many become soldiers for precisely this reason; it was, for instance, the realization of the threat of Islamic terrorism after September 11—when 3,000 innocent Americans were slaughtered in cold blood on a random Tuesday morning—that prompted so many to join the military.

For an American soldier, to fight for freedom is not to fight for a “higher cause,” separate from or superior to his own life—it is to fight for his own life and happiness. He is willing to risk his life in time of war because he is unwilling to live as anything other than a free man. He does not want or expect to die, but he would rather die than live in slavery or perpetual fear. His attitude is epitomized by the words of John Stark, New Hampshire’s most famous soldier in the Revolutionary War: “Live free or die.”

What we owe these men who fight so bravely for their and our freedom is to send them to war only when that freedom is truly threatened, and to make every effort to protect their lives during war—by providing them with the most advantageous weapons, training, strategy, and tactics possible.

Shamefully, America has repeatedly failed to meet this obligation. It has repeatedly placed soldiers in harm’s way when no threat to America existed—e.g., to quell tribal conflicts in Somalia, Bosnia, and Kosovo. America entered World War I, in which 115,000 soldiers died, with no clear self-defense purpose but rather on the vague, self-sacrificial grounds that “The world must be made safe for democracy.” America’s involvement in Vietnam, in which 56,000 Americans died in a fiasco that American officials openly declared a “no-win” war, was justified primarily in the name of service to the South Vietnamese. And the current war in Iraq—which could have had a valid purpose as a first step in ousting the terrorist-sponsoring, anti-American regimes of the Middle East—is responsible for thousands of unnecessary American deaths in pursuit of the sacrificial goal of “civilizing” Iraq by enabling Iraqis to select any government they wish, no matter how anti-American.

In addition to being sent on ill-conceived, “humanitarian” missions, our soldiers have been compromised with crippling rules of engagement that place the lives of civilians in enemy territory above their own. In Afghanistan we refused to bomb many top leaders out of their hideouts for fear of civilian casualties; these men continue to kill American soldiers. In Iraq, our hamstrung soldiers are not allowed to smash a militarily puny insurgency—and instead must suffer an endless series of deaths by an undefeated enemy.

To send soldiers into war without a clear self-defense purpose, and without providing them every possible protection, is a betrayal of their valor and a violation of their rights.

This Veterans Day, we must call for a stop to the sacrifice of our soldiers and condemn all those who demand it. It is only by doing so that we can truly honor not only our dead, but also our living: American soldiers who have the courage to defend their freedom and ours.

Following up to my previous comments regarding the man who’ll likely be our next president, via Myrhaf I’ve found many others who share my sentiments. I honestly believe this man represents the embodiment of a potent collectivist brew, a marxist-racist-islamic mole. This trifecta of philosophical cancers is shrouded by a facade of articulate and tactical rhetoric which both plays to, and fuels the altruistic and mental stupor or our population. Add in the subtle (even subconscious) motive of white liberal guilt, and you’ve got a strong hand to play.

If we are to judge individuals by their words and the company they keep, there are some pretty stark conclusions available.

This could be a little overly dramatic for some (not me personally), but I think the real meat is worthy of earnest consideration. I’m repulsed by everything about him, but the Marxist flag in his campaign office should be enough reason in itself to induce pause by anyone other than hard leftists. I have friends (that I consider good friends, but who’s relationship with me obviously harbors a few taboo topics) who are actually in support of this guy.

This in addition to his latest notable quote:

“We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times … and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK,”

Wow, what’s not to like about this guy?

Georgia House Bill 89 rightfully enables permitted individuals to carry in restaurants and parks. Let’s hope this logical wind blows in the direction of North Carolina and all other states.

There’ nothing shocking about this graph. It logically follows that when individuals aren’t prohibited from defending their rights to life and property, those who would violate said rights are less likely to do so.

Violent Crime and CCW:

Chart data sources:
Right to Carry Laws 2006 - www.nraila.org/map.
Violent Crime Rates in the United States 2006 - www.fbi.gov/table5.
National Average - Violent Crime Rates in the United States 2006 - www.fbi.gov/table1.

I think I need to offset my typically critical and pessimistic tone here. It goes without saying (here) that I take issue with the direction of our country and those leading the way. It’s simply my personality type to point out needless clutter, especially when it aims to overtake other serene areas of life. Just mentioning it, getting it out of my head, helps me deal with the tempestuous storm of nonsense thrown around every day. Unless I learn to ignore it, or no longer continue to find value in discussing it, I’ll keep doing the same.

I don’t mention the good stuff enough. It’s there, and plenty of it, but I tend to cherish it privately.

This morning I find myself at home, coffee in hand, working on a demo for my latest software package. I’ve enjoyed this project, as it’s allowed plenty of creative authority from both the architecture and design perspectives. I work from home mostly, which lends itself ideally to having a toddler. I hear music leading through the foyer as a backdrop to my son executing his first grasps at language. Every few minutes I hear his mother speak to him, verifying the truth of his statements and telling him how much she loves him. I’m adding value to a business using skills that I enjoy, and the most important entities on earth are only 10 steps away.

I can hear my lab’s toenails clicking on the floor when he swings by for a morning visit. He’ll report to our bed shortly for his morning nap… without his naps, he simply wouldn’t be able to make it.

The walls of my office are lined with guitars, ones with my name on them. Looking down at your instrument on stage and seeing a logo that you spent many years thinking about is a very rewarding experience. Music has been a strong ally for the past 12 years. My son now knows the word guitar and will eagerly strum the guitar when held in front of it - the one with his name on it. The music he heard in utero now serve as lullabies. John Coltrane, Blue Highway, George Winston - he likes them all.

My new shop is finally setup for production, now I just have to be creative with my time. I’ve years worth of orders still in the queue, very patient yet eager customers on the waiting end. I can’t wait to get each of them their guitar.

I spend about an hour, 200 rounds, $20, per week at an indoor firing range near my office. I verify reliability of my carry pistol, and work on drills. Hopefully this practice will make the difference in life or death for myself or my family in the unfortunate event that I’m ever forced to defend us. Shooting is a violent series of sincere tributes to man’s mind, with the lurking reminder of the evil that instigated the art form - an exhilarating mixture of pride and resentment. Having a weapon on my hip as I greet my son after travel assembles such an ironic event. The awe of beautiful, innocent life, and the reality that there are those who don’t properly value it.

My life is very fulfilling. I have a deep respect for reality, a strict sense of right and wrong, and a mental faculty that adheres to both. I enjoy using my mind, and I’m rewarded for doing such. I have a lovely, intelligent and tolerant woman that has accepted and started a family with me. The joy of our son is incomparably overwhelming. I have a family that continues to muster affection for me, overlooking my petulant tendencies. I have serious and part-time hobbies that I enthusiastically pursue, which satisfy my creative and inventive urges. I have friends with which I enjoy warm coffee, cold beer and intriguing conversation.

Life is good.

Socialist Paul Kanjorski [D-PA] further spearheads our descent into destruction with a gem of barbaric brilliance he’s named the “Consumer Reasonable Energy Price Protection Act of 2008″. H.R. 5800 would establish a “Reasonable Profits Board” that would serve to determine if oil companies are bringing in too much money.

Since we’ve, for all intents and purposes, abandoned the founding principles for this nation, and are no longer chained by constitutional justification, this measure is fair game.

Here’s uncle Sam’s claim - “You don’t have a right to your profits, we do. Therefore, it doesn’t matter how you might reinvest your profits, we’d rather confiscate them by force as a form of pandering and income redistribution.”

It escapes me how any human could claim the right to dictate the appropriate profitability of another. Unless he’s the consumer, by what right can he tell another how much the product of his labor and resources should be worth in barter? A producer and his voluntary consumers are the only entities with any justifiable means to determine price. Any man that claims such determination can rightfully be made by anyone other than the producer and consumer, and then imposed by force, is an advocate of slavery.

The proper response to this meddling is for the victim (big oil) to simply say “no, we quit”. It would only take once, as the crumbling economy would send a message to congress reminding them who’s rightfully in charge - the men of production, not crooks and cowards who scheme their way into office and pander to stay there. Kanjorski and all the other rodents would scurry in a desperate attempt to officially retract the 13th amendment in order to fix their boo boo. I long for the then day where men proudly assert their right to the product of their labor. When the victims realize their sanction is the only power Washington thugs maintain, the sick little game that is American politics will be nothing more than a footnote in history.

So, keep pushing Paul. The more you push, the sooner those of us who understand life, liberty and property can rebuild the nation you’re doing your best to obliterate.