Obama’s “New Deal”

Here’s a link to an interesting article by Jeff Bonn over at the Ludwig von Mises Institute regarding economic realities we are likely to be seeing soon…

“The business and economics establishment will soon call for a new New Deal, and all the socialist policies of FDR will be dusted off and respun to the unwitting public, and the years that follow will be ones of pain, high prices, and a real fall in the standard of living.

As long as our central government has the ability to dole out these favors, there will be special interests lining up to receive them.”

Never underestimate the ability of human nature to line up for a handout.

 

Is Linux "Libertarian?"

I watch relatively little television… so I missed this 20/20 segment that aired recently, but I saw a link to it on www.campaignforliberty.com, and thought it was so good I have to pass it along. It was so well done, and entertaining, I actually watched the whole 30 minutes online… and I recommend it to you as well. For some reason, I was not able to find the 6th segment on ABC’s website, but it can be found on YouTube here.

Do you wonder why I mention this on a Linux-related blog? Let me see if I can explain.

While I would hesitate to call myself a Libertarian, out of a general dislike for using labels, I lean that direction on a number of issues. I think the less government we have, the better, as long as we still cover the essential bases of national defense and a just judicial system. “John Stossel’s politically correct guide to politics” expressed my views quite well. Keep things plain, simple, transparent and free (read: liberty). Government isn’t the solution, it’s the problem!

My enjoyment of Linux and open source software fits into this stream of thought quite nicely. It is the “free: as in Freedom” part that I really appreciate. Keep things plain, simple, transparent and free (read: liberty). Don’t weld the hood shut on my car (operating system), forcing me to bring it in to the dealership (Microsoft) to fix every little hiccup, and to buy every little part for a not so little price.

That’s my view.