Leslie Carbone

So Long and Thanks for all the Fish

2010-03-25T17:54:00.001-04:00

Two-Party Tyranny

2010-03-22T07:40:00.001-04:00

The Capitol phone lines were jammed by angry constituents calling to oppose the most unpopular government power grab in years. The unpopular president was just as determined to force the unConstitutional legislation on the non-consenting governed. He tried to increase popular buy-in to his scheme by painting doom-and-gloom scenarios about financial ruin if people the did not submit to the coddling control of the federal government. The people stood firm, and made clear that they resented and rejected such arrogant paternalism. But our wanna-be overlord, and his Mrs.-Danvers minions, twisted enough arms in Congress to push the legislation through.

It was September-October 2008 when Republican President George Bush XLIII and Congress forced the unpopular bank bail-out on the American people. A month later, the Democrats won sweeping victories in the White House and Congress.

This morning, now that the Democrats have made a similar mistake, the Republican hands that were wringing themselves raw a year and one-half ago are now rubbing themselves in gleeful hope for a similar sweep by their side in November. But anyone who's paid attention to Republican governance over the past two decades should realize that Republican electoral victory is no way to loosen the grasping grip of government.

That's because, like their Democratic colleagues, too many Republicans have, wittingly or unwittingly, adopted the assumption of the zeitgeist that government is the solution to our problems.

As I explained in Slaying Leviathan:

The modern philosophy of government was born during the Progressive era. This philosophy emphasizes a powerful central government that intentionally redistributes wealth. It has largely replaced America's founding philosophy, which emphasized limited government protecting individual rights.

If we want to set America back on the path to freedom and prosperity, swinging the pendulum back and forth between two parties that have both substantially bought into the Progressive vision of big government isn't going to work.

What we need to do is to revive the Founders' vision of a Constitutional republic that protects the individual rights of people who exercise individual responsibility. It means educating ourselves in the history and philosophy of republican government, the history and philosophy of progressive government, and the principles of economic freedom that the former respects and the latter disregards. It means making certain that those who would presume to govern us are educated in these things too. It means restoring a culture of freedom and responsibility, where paternalistic power grabs like bank bail-outs and health-insurance take-overs are quickly dismissed as the offensive absurdities that they are.

Can we do this by November? Of course not. And the pressures simply to work hard to replace Democratic bums with Republican bums and hope for the best are all around. But recent history shows that such hope will be very much misplaced. What I'm proposing is much more challenging and much more complicated, and it will take much more time. But it will also be much more effective and much more lasting.

Benjamin Franklin famously said that our Founders had given us "a republic, if you can keep it". We're losing it. But we can still take it back.

Palin on the Bank Bail-Out

2010-02-16T15:34:00.001-05:00

"I like every American I'm speaking with we're ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out but ultimately what the bail-out does is help those who are concerned about the health-care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy um helping the oh it's gotta be all about job creation too shoring up our economy and and putting it back on the right track so health-care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans and trade we have we've got to see trade as opportunity not as a a competitive um scary thing but one in five jobs being created uh in the trade sector today we we we've got to look at that as more opportunity all those things under the umbrella of job creation this bail-out is a part of that."

The Problem with Palin

2010-02-08T19:02:00.000-05:00

"How's that hope-y, change-y stuff working out for ya?" asked former Governor Sarah Palin at the so-called Tea Party Convention this weekend in Nashville, where the popular populist spoke for $100,000.

The advocates of fiscal responsibility gathered at the $549/ticket event cheered the McCain stumper and bail-out supporter with all the gusto that the "Values Voters" showered upon the topless model and sex-tape star who "think[s] it's great that in America we can choose between 'same-sex marriage' and 'opposite marriage'."

With the popular outrage sparked by the Bush bail-outs, I've become more hopeful about the future of economic freedom than I'd been in 20 years. And the tea parties and town-hall protests just buttressed my optimism.

I'm still optimistic, but the reflexive, relativistic, populism-as-the-new-elitism near-worship showered upon Gov. Palin by supposed conservatives and libertarians-- people who profess to believe in economic freedom--tempers my optimism.

The problem isn't simply that the rambling rogue was wrong about the bank bail-out, and it goes beyond her sometimes appearing flaky and non-conversant regarding matters of national policy; it's that she displays no deep, nuanced, informed, well-considered political philosophy.

Conservatism, particularly its free-market vein, has a strong intellectual heritage. It's that principled pedigree that provides a foundation for the arguments that can fend off demagogues' efforts to rob Peter to pay Paul, that illuminate why it's not good for everybody when you spread the wealth around. Unfortunately, national-level Republicans since Ronald Reagan appear to be largely ignorant of this heritage and have been clearly unable to articulate its principles. America has paid a dear price for such failures. And conservative gushing over Gov. Palin suggests that we're likely to keep paying it.

In the Fall of 2008, as he was touting his disastrous bank bail-out, former President George Bush XLIII, apparently oblivious to the irony, described himself as "a market-oriented guy". Nearly a year after leaving office, he said that the bail-out went against his "free-market instincts", in a speech that made clear that he hasn't achieved any greater philosophical depth since leaving the White House than he exhibited while he was living there.

A robust, realistic, principled political philosophy can provide guidance in the midst of crisis. The problem with Bush was that he had never developed such a principled philosophy. It is also the problem with Palin.

Today on the Willie Lawson Show

2010-01-26T09:18:00.003-05:00

I'm scheduled to go back on the Willie Lawson Show this afternoon at 12:15 (EST). Topics include Slaying Leviathan, Scott Brown, health care, and the grassroots movement. Please tune in!

King's Arms Tavern

2010-01-23T11:54:00.000-05:00

The pewter salt cellar feels cool and slightly gritty to the touch; it sounds a soft clap when replaced on the wooden table. The reproduction Chippendale and Queen Anne furniture, and the maps and other prints on the painted wooden walls of the King's Arms Tavern's tightly packed eleven rooms, represent styles favored by the well-off planters and other ladies and gentlemen in the very stratified society of colonial Virginia.

The King's Arms opened in 1772, although during the War for Independence its name was changed to Mrs. Vobe's, after its owner, and later to Eagle Tavern. Today it operates under its original name, and offers a comforting continuity in Colonial Williamsburg, where other eating establishments change format frustratingly frequently.

Taverns like the King's Arms, as well as coffeehouses, figured prominently in the birth of the American republic. Mrs. Vobe's provided food, drink, and lodging to American soldiers. George Washington sometimes dined there when visiting Virginia's capital.

They also provided venues for men catch up on the news and debate events of the day. In the 21st century, sporadically pleasant servers in period costume bring baskets of bread lined with reproductions of the Virginia Gazette.

The Tavern offers 18th-century menu choices including peanut soupe, fried chicken, and game pye, which features venison, rabbit, and duck. They have a daily pasta dish, and call it macaroni. The meaty fare smells hearty, and it is--soft, salty comfort food whose flavor comes from its main ingredients rather than blends of spices and herbs.

Sadly, like most everything at Colonial Williamsburg, it is overpriced. Baron von Steuben once ran up a bill of 300 Spanish dollars for food, drink, and lodging there, and it's not hard to imagine how. A couple today could easily spend above $100 in today's American currency on a single soupe-to-syllabub dinner with drinks, and, frankly, the food isn't worth it. But like Mrs. Vobe's clientele, today's visitors are paying for the atmosphere and the location near the Capitol. And travellers who truly want to include a tavern experience in their Williamsburg visit may well find it worth planning for a meal at the King's Arms Tavern.

Today on WINA

2010-01-11T11:27:00.002-05:00

I'm scheduled to talk about Slaying Leviathan today at 1:15 (EST) on the Rob Schilling Show on 1070 WINA in Charlottesville. If you're in the area, I hope you'll tune in!

"Whole Body Imaging": Never Waste a Crisis

2010-01-08T09:54:00.003-05:00

White House Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel's mantra never to waste a crisis has grown a whole lot sicker.

The Obama Administration is pressuring foreign governments to degrade U.S.-bound passengers with naked X-rays. The pretext for this is, of course, the wanna-be underwear bomber's aborted--by normal people, not bureaucrats--attempt to blow up a plane over Detroit on Obama's birthday (observed), despite the fact that the so-called "whole body imaging" machines can't penetrate plastic or rubber that resembles skin, though they do give the government's voyeurs a clear view of passengers' flab, moles, scars, sores, sweat, nipples, buttocks, and genitals.

One of the few things that government does well is exploit its own incompetency to expand its power over the people whose rights its supposed to secure. But taking advantage of the acknowledged failures to "connect the dots" regarding the "underwear bomber"--including the fact that the guy's own father reported him as a threat--to violate the corporal privacy of America's citizens and guests takes government power-grabbing through incompetency to a deeper, sicker level.

Those who would sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither. And that's exactly what they'll get.

NoVa Tea Party Volunteer Banquet

2009-12-30T13:51:00.001-05:00

Earlier this month, I enjoyed the honor of MC'ing the Northern Virginia Tea Party Volunteer Appreciation Banquet. Here's a clip from my closing comments.

Thank You, Sen. Webb!

2009-11-14T08:08:00.001-05:00

Never thought you'd see those words on this blog, huh? Well, neither did I.

But yesterday, Senator Jim Webb, who rarely does anything of which I approve, stood up to President Barack Obama and the national-security nincompoops in his Administration who have decided to try 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and his band of thugs as criminals in New York. "Those who have committed acts of international terrorism are enemy combatants," said Sen. Webb, a former Marine, former Secretary of the Navy, and (like me) former Republican. "They do not belong in our country[;] they do not belong in our courts, and they do not belong in our prisons."

After the disgusting display of last fall, it's refreshing to see a prominent Virginia politician standing up to a president of his own party on a matter of grave importance to America's well-being. From time to time, I ask you to call Sen. Webb and ask him to vote a certain way on some legislation. Now I'm asking you to do something a little different. If you are a Virginian outraged by the decision to treat terrorists like regular criminals, please call Sen. Webb's office at (202) 224-4024 and thank him for standing up to President Obama.

Bush: "I went against my free-market instincts."

2009-11-13T09:56:00.001-05:00

Former President George Bush XLIII delivered a speech yesterday in which he warned against the kind of government meddling that he perpetrated last fall.

This 55-second clip reveals a wealth of mushy thinking, and shows that the former President still doesn't grasp how deeply he harmed this country:

"I believe the role of government is ... to create the conditions that allow entrepreneurs and innovators to thrive."

No, it isn't, and it's arrogant and misguided for politicians to presume that government can "create the conditions" that foster prosperity. Freedom fosters prosperity, and freedom is natural; it needs no government to create it. Limited government is needed to protect the rights of those entrepreneurs and innovators and others so that they can create wealth. When government robs Peter to pay Paul, in other words, when it robs small-business owners and middle-class families to bail out big corporations, it undermines the very freedom on which prosperity depends.

"I went against my free-market instincts and approved a temporary [??] government intervention to unfreeze the credit markets so that we could avoid a major global depression."

Economic freedom is not a matter of "instinct". It is a matter of principle and common sense, backed by the lessons of history. If the former president had a stronger foundation in the philosophy of freedom, he could have understood at the time how the bail-out Band-Aid was really a poison pill.

"As the world recovers, we're gonna face a temptation to replace the risk-and-reward model of fr-- the private sector with the blunt instruments of government spending and control."

We've been failing in the face of that temptation for the last century, and we're paying a high price for it. Former President Bush XLIII was simply continuing the 20th-century trend of arrogant politicians presuming that they can somehow sponsor prosperity.

"History shows that the greater threat to prosperity is not too little government involvement but too much."

And history will record President Bush XLIII as having greatly increased that threat.

It would be nice simply to say, well, gee, it's too bad that he still doesn't get it. But he's far from being alone. Too many of the politicians still in power, and too many of the voters who keep them there, have the same mushy understanding of the role and capabilities of government. Our country desperately needs a renaissance of the philosophy of freedom, a reawakened, well-considered understanding that freedom nurtures prosperity, and that government will always be a threat to both.

Thursday on WTJS

2009-11-11T22:12:00.000-05:00

My SamSphere friend Ken Marrero is slotted to sub for Mike Slater on WTJS in Jackson, Tennessee, on Thursday, and he's scheduled me to chat about Slaying Leviathan at 6:30 am. I hope you'll tune in!

Happy Birthday, U.S. Marine Corps!

2009-11-10T11:53:00.001-05:00

Thanks for standing on the wall!

"Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

2009-11-09T08:36:00.001-05:00

Obama/Pelosi-"Care" Passes

2009-11-07T23:16:00.000-05:00

The health-care power grab has passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 220-215.

Please call your Senators and ask them to vote against Obama-"care". If you live in Virginia, your Senators are:

Jim Webb
(202) 224-4024

and

Mark Warner
(202) 224-2023

If you do not live in Virginia and do not know how to contact your Senators, please click here.

Obama/Pelosi-"Care" Vote Likely Today

2009-11-07T13:43:00.001-05:00

In the wake of President George Bush XLIII's bail-out, more than 100 banks failed. In the wake of President Barack Obama's "stimulus" package, unemployment has climbed above 10 percent. And in response to fumbling overreaches like these, Americans on Tuesday capped off a year of tea parties, town halls, and rallies by voting against big government.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is having none of it. She is trying to push a vote on the bill to cede massive power over the health care system to our big, bloated, bumbling federal government today.

My fellow Americans, if you don't want your family's health care in big government's clumsy hands, those hands that have so strangled prosperity, please contact your Representatives and urge them to vote against Obama/Pelosi-"care".

Conservatism Wins!

2009-11-03T20:06:00.000-05:00

Today's has been my favorite election since 1984, because conservatism had won even before the day had dawned.

When the GOP's anointed liberal dropped out of the special election in New York's 23rd "safe Republican" congressional district on Saturday, after badly trailing Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman, it was a clear victory for conservatism over the Party of Bush.

Here in Virginia, conservatism is winning its most important victory as Ken Cuccinelli defeats Steve Shannon in the race for Attorney General. The re-election of Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling is also good news.

Conservatism also played a role in the weirdest gubernatorial campaign in my memory. Creigh Deeds had won the Democratic nomination by positioning himself as the moderate-conservative alternative to two liberals. Then, bizarrely, in the general election campaign, he painted Bob McDonnell as a conservative, building much of his campaign on an effort to manufacture the former Attorney General's 20-year-old graduate thesis into some kind of Handmaid's Tale, while showing himself to be no opponent of government intrusiveness, refusing to reject the Obama-"care" public "option" and touting an endorsement from The Washington Post, a withering rag whose editors are so blinded by big-government ideology that they haven't grasped the fact that "new taxes" are not words that normal people like to read, especially in a grim economy. Is it any wonder that Governor-elect McDonnell is trouncing him?

The Republican top-ticket sweep in Virginia is, of course, very bad news for the Democrats. Indeed, as the Deeds campaign began to tank, Democrats became so desperate that they sent both President Barack Obama and DNC Chairman Tim Kaine to Virginia to campaign for him.

But combined with the much-merited slap across the face that New York conservatives delivered to the Republican Party, it's clear that the election of 2009 is much more than another swing of the pendulum.

This is not a Republican renaissance. This is a conservative renaissance. Americans are fed up with intrusive government and its arrogant, dangerous view of itself as their benefactor. And they are fed up with Republicans and Democrats alike who subscribe to the misguided notion that government is somehow the sponsor of prosperity. This disgust has been building for some time. It showed up in the reaction to the disastrously decided case of Kelo v. New London. It was clear in the "thumpin'" of 2006. And it exploded in the popular outrage at President George Bush XLIII's bank bail-out, his auto bail-out, President Obama's "stimulus" plan, and his health-"care" power grab--fueling unprecedented citizen backlash at tea parties, town-hall meetings, and the enormous 9/12 rally.

Big government, its pandering power-mongers, and their Mrs.-Danvers enablers in both parties are the big losers in the election of 2009.

Cry Witch!

2009-10-31T16:42:00.000-04:00

The polished wood gleams in the glow of flickering candles. It's nighttime, and little moonlight breaks through the circular window panes in their cream-colored frames.

Several dozen visitors have gathered in the courtroom of Colonial Williamsburg's dull-red brick Capitol building to serve as the jury in a recreated trial of Grace Sherwood, the "Virginia witch". In the dimness, their 21st-century garb is slightly shrouded, and the atmosphere seems at least a little like 1706.

A midwife who sometimes sported pants, Mrs. Sherwood did not remarry after her husband's death in 1701. She was tried several times on charges like bewitching her neighbors' crops. Then in 1706, a local farmer named Luke Hill accused the 46-year-old of practicing witchcraft and thus causing his wife to miscarry. On July 10 of that year, Mrs. Sherwood's hands were tied, and she was thrown from a boat into the Lynnhaven River. Able to swim, Mrs. Sherwood untied her hands and rose to the surface--thus proving that she was a witch. (Drowning would have established her innocence.) Court records indicate that she spent seven or eight years in gaol as punishment.

Colonial Williamsburg's mock murder trial takes place after this water test. Because she's charged with a capital crime, the trial takes place in the Capitol, presided over by the Royal Governor. Her water test failure is presented as evidence of her guilt, as is the statement that her devil's marks (birthmarks) did not bleed when punctured and testimony that she never takes Communion. Mr. Hill testifies that, after Mrs. Sherwood visited his farm, his "pigs began to act peculiar-like and die".

Unfortunately for Mrs. Sherwood, defendants cannot be sworn, and anything she says in her own defense cannot be counted as evidence. On the other hand, there is no protection from self-incrimination. There is neither the presumption of innocence nor the recognition of the (derived) right to face one's accuser. When the prosecutor declares that Mrs. Hill, appearing as a witness, is "afraid to be in the same room as the witch", the Governor-judge directs Mrs. Sherwood not to look at Mrs. Hill and assures the witness that God will protect her.

Despite the fact that this trial mocked fundamental principles of modern Western justice, science, and common sense, Mrs. Sherwood was convicted 44-13 by the jury and sentenced to hang. (Your humble blogger was among the 13.) According to a CW guide, juries convict Mrs. Sherwood in about 80 percent of the mock trials. She is, however, entitled to appeal to the Governor.

In real life, history suggests that Mrs. Sherwood returned to her farm after serving her time in gaol and lived there until her death c. 1740. England's last law against witchcraft was repealed in 1951. On July 10, 2006, Governor Tim Kaine informally pardoned Mrs. Sherwood.

BREAKING: Scozzafava Out!

2009-10-31T10:41:00.002-04:00

My friend Stacy McCain is reporting that Dede Scozzafava, the GOP's anointed liberal in the special election in New York's 23rd congressional district, has dropped out of the race! Poll after poll has recently shown Ms. Scozzafava badly trailing Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman. This is a stunning--and much-deserved--rebuke to the Party of Bush and a bright light in the conservative renaissance. Way to go, New York conservatives!!

"Take AIM" Today

2009-10-29T08:06:00.003-04:00

In the wake of my speech to Accuracy In Academia's conservative university earlier this month, I'm slotted to chat about Slaying Leviathan on "Take AIM", the blogtalkradio program of AIA's parent organization, Accuracy In Media, this morning at 11:30 (EST). Please tune in!

Robert Reich: "We're Gonna Let You Die"

2009-10-28T22:00:00.001-04:00

Blogs United Registration Open

2009-10-27T08:40:00.003-04:00

Virginia's next Blogs United conference is scheduled for November 21 at Christopher Newport University in Hampton Roads. The last Blogs United conference, in 2007, was lots of fun, and this November's promises more of the same. You can register here for $15.00.

This Week on WGGRN

2009-10-26T08:59:00.001-04:00

My friend Chad Everson, whom I met at last year's fabulous SamSphere Chicago, has started WGGRN, a new conservative talk radio network. I had the pleasure of appearing on his BlogTalkRadio show last year during the bail-out fight, and I'm happy to write that he's planning to air an interview with me about Slaying Leviathan this week on Monday (today!) at 11 a.m. CST, Wednesday at 10 a.m. CST, and Friday at 9 a.m. CST on the new WGGRN. Please tune in. The best thing about SamSphere is the way that it has brought liberty-loving bloggers together, so if our interview sounds more like a chat between friends, that's because it is!

War in the West

2009-10-24T12:11:00.001-04:00

America is a nation built on the foundation of great ideas. But great ideas can be difficult to live out. This is true today, as we move further and further from the time when ideas like individual liberty and limited government were debated and developed from Congresses to coffeehouses. But it was also true then. As the Revolutionary War raged on, the ideals which justified our break with Britain continued to undergo an awkward refining process, as subjects-turned-citizens strove to live them in practical ways.

One of the things that Colonial Williamsburg does exceptionally well is to explore the tension between ideas and practices. In the Revolutionary City skit "War in the West", Henry Hamilton, the royal governor of Detroit, has been captured and is being held in the Williamsburg Gaol. Though he was rumored to have offerred bounties to his Indian allies for the scalps of Americans, the charges against the hated "Hair Buyer" are vague, and he has not been allowed access to any evidence against himself. On June 18, 1779, he points out ways that the Virginians' treatment of him violate the very ideals according to which they justify their war for independence.

Government v. Prosperity

2009-10-22T12:13:00.001-04:00

Accuracy In Academia has posted last week's talk about my book. I hope you find it valuable.

Cuccinelli "Money Bomb"

2009-10-20T08:40:00.001-04:00

My disgust with the Party of Bush is no secret. But in a political party overrun with misguided opportunists, there remain a few principled conservative politicians. State Senator Ken Cuccinelli, the Republican nominee for Attorney General of Virginia, is one such conservative. Sen. Cuccinelli has been an effective force in protecting the natural right to property, and seems bright and thoughtful enough to understand its philosophical foundations, making him a refreshing rarity in today's GOP.

Today, Sen. Cuccinelli's campaign is holding a "money bomb", a one-day online fundraiser. If you can, please click here to contribute today and help return both the Republican Party and the Commonwealth of Virginia to their conservative roots. Thank you.

"Slaying Leviathan" Events on Thursday

2009-10-14T09:23:00.001-04:00

Thursday promises to be a good day for Slaying Leviathan.

I start the day with a 6 a.m. (PST) appearance on KVI 570 AM's Kirby Wilbur Show in Seattle. If you're not in Washington state, you can listen online here.

Then at 6 p.m. (EST), my fabulous former employer, Accuracy In Academia, is hosting an "Author's Night" for me at Armand's Pizza on Capitol Hill. If you're in the area, I hope you can come.

With government foolishly trying to plunder America's way back to prosperity, I'm thankful for these opportunities to contribute to our national discussion about the moral hazards of wealth redistribution.

Defending the American Dream

2009-10-05T12:33:00.001-04:00

A year has passed since former President George Bush XLIII, former treasury czar Hank Paulson, and their band of plunderers in Congress foisted the unConstitutional bank bail-out on an unwilling American public. And it has been the most encouraging year I can remember since Ronald Reagan restored economic prosperity, brought Soviet tyranny to its knees, and renewed American optimism. Despite our wanna-be overlords' naked pandering to consumerism, the American people vehemently and vociferously opposed the effort to reward irresponsible banks and borrowers on the backs of hard-working tax-payers. But that was only the beginning. We booted many of the bums out of Congress. We've held tea parties across the country, and the astonishingly large 9/12 rally at the Capitol, and we've fought Big Brother at town hall meetings. And the tide is turning: Six months ago, Obama-"care" looked like an inevitability, but now opposition is high and getting higher, and the Keystone Kourtiers in the White House (reeling from the greatest Olympic humiliation since 1980) don't know what hit them.

In this hopeful environment, about 2,000 free-market activists gathered here in Virginia at Americans for Prosperity's annual Defending the American Dream Summit, hard-working tax-payers who gave up a weekend to come from around the country at their own expense to protest federal molly-coddling, learn new strategies for defeating it, and simply encourage one another in the long and glorious battle for economic freedom.

One special highlight for me was seeing my SamSphere friend Bob Weeks receive AFP's Blogger of the Year award; he follows Maggie Thurber, also of SamSphere, who won the award last year. SamSphere also came through for me personally, yet again, when Steve Eggleston suggested that Ed Morrissey interview me about Slaying Leviathan for Hot Air. And of course, it was great just to catch up with so many other SamSphere friends, including Emily Zanotti, Virginia's own Krystle Weeks, Bill Smith (and his charming wife Lois), and AFP's Erik Telford. Y'all are good friends and great patriots, and it's a privilege to fight this battle with you.

WSPD in Toledo

2009-09-24T13:25:00.002-04:00

SamSphere comes through again! I'm planning to chat about Slaying Leviathan on WSPD in Toledo today at 3:30 pm EST with blogger extraordinaire Maggie Thurber, whom I met at last year's fabulous SamSphere Chicago. Please tune in.

Health Czar, Interrupted

2009-09-11T10:13:00.001-04:00

Obama's Health Care "Reform" Could Cost $4,176 per Virginian

2009-09-09T14:20:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, I enjoyed the privilege of talking about Slaying Leviathan with the Tuesday Morning Group, a monthly gathering of freedom-loving Virginians, sponsored by Tertium Quids. It was great to talk with them about my book, and especially to catch up with Jeffersoniad friends like Rick Sincere and Norm Leahy.

After I spoke, Donna Arduin of Arduin, Laffer & Moore Econometrics and Randy Forbes, conservative Congressman from Virginia, addressed a news conference announcing The Prognosis for National Health Insurance: A Virginia Perspective, a new policy study released by the Virginia Institute for Public Policy.

According to the report, rising government expenditures are the main factors driving the growth of the health care wedge--the economic separation between providers and consumers and a primary driver of rising health care costs. The report finds, "President Barack Obama's principles to drastically alter U.S. health care policy--a public health insurance exchange, mandated minimum coverage, mandated coverage of preexisting conditions, required purchase of health insurance--do not address the growing wedge and its role as the fundamental driver of health care costs. In fact, they will further increase the wedge, and can thus be expected to increase medical price inflation."

The bottom line for Virginians? President Obama's health-care "reform" priorities would cost $4,176 (net present value) for every person in our Commonwealth, according to the report.

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Conservatism

2009-09-03T19:35:00.000-04:00

I'm scheduled to chat about Slaying Leviathan tonight at 9:10 (EST) with Ann Babe Huggett and my SamSphere colleague Warner Todd Huston on their Blog Talk Radio show Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Conservatism. Please tune in!

MTNP Radio Saturday

2009-08-29T07:50:00.002-04:00

I'm going back on Meet The New Press Radio this morning at 10:05 (EST) to talk about Slaying Leviathan and the Dean/Moran Town Hall with my fellow SamSphere bloggers Skip Murphy and Doug Lambert. Please tune in here.

Town Hall Reflections

2009-08-26T09:09:00.001-04:00

The plunder lobby did a good job of mobilizing its astroturf whiners for yesterday's Town Hall meeting with Howard Dean and Jim Moran.

Earlier this week, Organizing for America sent out an email urging agitators to arrive at 5:00 for the Town Hall, a full hour earlier than constituents were told the doors would open. OFA followed up with another email telling its whiners to

WEAR A BLUE T-SHIRT AND ARRIVE AT 5:00 PM TO ENSURE THAT YOU GET A SEAT AND A POSITIVE HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM SIGN!

"Negative people have been getting to these events early," the email explained.

I had hoped to arrive around 3:00, but with the brouhaha surrounding Slaying Leviathan's release, it was after 4:00 when I pulled into the parking lot.

Both sides were already out in force. I saw Crystal Clear Conservative and a few of the folks from the Reston Tax Day Tea Party.

There were signs, chants, and street theater. As one might expect, the folks on the side of personal responsibility tended to be more creative

than the ones who expect somebody else to provide for them.

"Health care now!" some liberals chanted, as though there actually were no health care in America. "Let's mix it up," one of them suggested. "Now health care!"

I got myself into a couple of arguments (to use the term generously).

I asked this gentleman whether he would continue to support Barack Obama if he kept back-peddling on his pledge only to sign a bill containing a public "option".

"I trust his judgment," the gentleman said of the rookie POT(57)US a decade or two his junior.

I cataloged a few of Mr. Obama's broken pledges (e.g., that he'd filibuster FISA, that he'd accept public campaign funding) and pointed out the folly of trusting someone who has revealed himself as just another two-faced politician who'll say one thing to one group at one time and another thing to another group at another time.

"I trust his judgment." Okay then.

Another argument I had was even more intellectually disheartening. A gentleman was insisting that health care is a right, but he was unable to articulate where this alleged right originated; his best effort was to utter the words "general welfare". I tried to get more specific, asking him how he came to have a right to technology that someone else created and capitalized; he couldn't or wouldn't answer and instead accused me of saying that the uninsured shouldn't be treated, which of course bore no resemblance to what I said.

With all the sanctimoniousness that ignorance allows, he insisted:

"We have a right to be taken care of."

Yikes!

Ever since the enormous outcry sparked by George Bush XLIII's unConstitutional bank bail-out, I've been hopeful about America's future. I still am.

But the encounters I had last night were a window into the uncritical mentality that we're up against. If the liberals I talked to, and the ones carrying signs and chanting slogans, are representative, then we're up against something even more insidious than whining, than the notion that rights are a product of available technology, than the assumption of entitlement to what someone else has created, than the willingness to sacrifice human dignity to the infantile desire to be coddled. We're up against an unawareness that ideas have to be rooted in something, that conclusions have to be derived logically, that truth matters.

Last night was a reaffirmation that conservatives need to reacquaint ourselves and our fellow Americans with the ideas and principles that work. Ideas matter, and it's the responsibility of those of us who understand that to make sure that the right ones are heard.

Slaying Leviathan is out!

2009-08-25T14:37:00.001-04:00

I am happy to announce that my book Slaying Leviathan: The Moral Case for Tax Reform has been released. You can order it here.

Democrats Asked to Pack Moran Town Hall Before Constituents Arrive

2009-08-24T16:14:00.000-04:00

The glossy postcard, printed and posted at taxpayer expense, arrived last week:

Howard Dean
to Speak at Town Hall Discussion
on Health Care Reform
Hosted by Congressman Jim Moran (D-VA)
on
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
7:00PM - 9:00PM
Doors open at 6:00PM

Wanting to get a good seat (after all, nothing says reasoned policy discussion like Howard Dean and Jim Moran), I made a mental note to arrive by 6:00.

You can imagine my surprise today when a friend forwarded me an email from Brandyn Keating, Virginia State Director of Organizing for America, "a project of the Democratic National Committee", touting Mr. Moran's Town Hall meeting and announcing:

Arrival Time: 5:00 p.m.

"Please arrive as early as possible to the town hall, and make sure that the most powerful voices in this debate are those calling for real reform, not angrily clamoring for the status quo," the message pleads.

I'm glad to know that we've got them running scared, but asking party loyalists to pack a so-called town hall meeting before constituents arrive is just plain wrong.

My fellow conservatives, please arrive by 5:00, and please spread the word to others about the Democrats' trickery.

The location is:

South Lakes High School
11400 South Lakes Drive
Reston, Virginia

President Reagan's 1984 Acceptance Speech

2009-08-24T11:22:00.001-04:00

Is America better off than she was 25 years ago?

Health Reform

2009-08-11T12:09:00.001-04:00

Obama on 300,000,000-payer health insurance

2009-08-04T16:47:00.001-04:00

MTNP Podcast

2009-08-04T10:35:00.003-04:00

Click here to listen to a podcast of Saturday's MTNP interview with Paul Mitchell, the conservative candidate booted from the Republican Party booth at the Lake County, Illinois, Fair.

MTNP Radio Today

2009-08-01T08:36:00.003-04:00

Please tune in to Meet The New Press Radio this morning at 9:00 EST, as my SamSphere colleagues Doug Lambert and Skip Murphy host Paul Mitchell, the conservative candidate who was booted from the Republican Party booth at the Lake County, Illinois, Fair.

GOP War on Conservatives Continues

2009-07-29T08:56:00.000-04:00

Stubbornly refusing to learn from the disastrous losses and even more disastrous victories of its "moderate" and Conservative-In-Name-Only candidates, the Republican Party continues to give conservatives the cold shoulder while wooing liberals into its left-listing big tent. The most recent example comes from Lake County, Illinois, where Paul Mitchell, conservative challenger to an establishment Republican State Representative, reports that he was unceremoniously booted from the Party's booth at the county fair, on the grounds that only incumbents, not candidates, were allowed to display materials and communicate with voters. I guess that's one way of keeping conservatives from reclaiming the GOP.

You Spend Two Trillion Bucks. What Do You Get?

2009-07-24T16:51:00.001-04:00

Health Administration Bureau

2009-07-18T10:23:00.001-04:00

Obama vs Obama on the Stimulus

2009-07-18T10:12:00.001-04:00

United Breaks Guitars

2009-07-11T12:20:00.001-04:00

This video provides a great example showing why freedom of speech is so important to the efficiency of the market economy--and it's really funny too.

GOP's Woes Nothing New

2009-07-07T11:29:00.000-04:00

Sorting through some old boxes this morning, I ran across the March 14, 1993, "Orange County Voices" page of the Los Angeles Times (sorry, no link because I couldn't find it in the paper's archives).

Under the banner headline, "GOP Must Define Its Basic Essence, Offer Clear Vision of Future", the paper offerred "a representative sample" of readers' letters "on the future of the GOP and what its themes, appeals and programs should be".

And what were folks thinking 16 years ago?

Party Needs Goals Such as Reagan Had, George Bush Didn't

Party Must Address Pocketbook Issues Vital to Middle Class

GOP's 'Conservatism, Pro-Life Stance Didn't Cost It White House'

GOP Should 'Emulate (Reagan's) Philosophy of Less Government'

'Republican Party Didn't Lose[;] Bush and Bushonomics Lost'

Should Anyone Care 'What's Next for Republican Party?'

If only the party leadership had listened.

Washington, D.C., Tea Party

2009-07-07T08:00:00.001-04:00

Event organizer Lisa Miller has posted part of my speech to the Independence Day Tea Party on Capitol Hill. I hope you enjoy it.

Tea Parties

2009-07-04T19:10:00.001-04:00

The Washington, D.C., Tea Party today was a fabulous success! I'd say there were around 2,000 passionate patriots there. Unfortunately, something went wrong with my video, so I can't post my speech. However, I also sent a video message to the Birmingham Tea Party, since I couldn't accept their kind invitation to speak live. I hope you enjoy it.

Declaration of Independence on Alaska Cruise Ships

2009-06-20T13:48:00.001-04:00

While many of us across America will be celebrating Independence Day at Tea Parties, some lucky passengers cruising around Alaska will see an original copy of the Declaration of Independence. One of the approximately 200 original broadsides will be brought on board all (ironically) Princess Cruise ships docking in Juneau during July 1-8. According to Princess, this is the first time an original Declaration has travelled to Alaska and the first time that one will be displayed on a cruise ship. Kudos to Princess for bringing this vital document in the history of liberty to its passengers!

Freedom & Prosperity Radio

2009-06-15T09:32:00.003-04:00

Recently, I had the privilege of chatting about my book and the moral need for fundamental tax reform on Virginia's own Freedom & Prosperity Radio. You can listen to a podcast at Tertium Quids.

Obama:Putin::Bush:Corleone?

2009-06-13T14:30:00.001-04:00

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (Virginia, to my great dismay) made headlines this week when he likened President Barack Obama's policies that build upon former (to my great relief) President George Bush XLIII's auto bail-out to the policies of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

"It's almost like looking at Putin's Russia," the Whip quipped. "You want to reward your political friends at the expense of the certainty of law."

As Chief Deputy Whip, Rep. Cantor helped push President Bush XLIII's unpopular bank bail-out through the House. After its first vote failed, Rep. Cantor allowed that several Republicans voted against it because of Speaker Nancy "Pelosi's speech that frankly struck the tone of partisanship that frankly was inappropriate in this discussion".

After this frank acknowledgment that many of his fellow Republicans will do for pride what they won't do for principle, Rep. Cantor went back to Deputy Whipping the wayward whiners into shape. Four days later, the bail-out passed. Roughly a month after that, a couple of weeks after the Republican repudiation of 2008, Rep. Cantor was elected Whip.

Meanwhile, arm-twisting duties were picked up by Bush XLIII administration officials, who allegedly threatened to audit banks that refused to accept the plundered bail-out dollars.

Given the similarity of this deal-by-extortion to "Your brains or your signature will be on this contract", it seems to me that President Bush XLIII's approach was at least as similar to Don Vito Corleone's as President Obama's is to P.M. Putin's.

Independence Day TEA Parties

2009-06-11T11:49:00.002-04:00

July 4 is fast approaching, and with it the next round of TEA Parties. I'm happy to announce that I'm planning to speak live at the Washington, D.C., TEA Party and via video at the Birmingham, Alabama, TEA Party. I hope you'll join us! Click here to find a TEA Party near you, or check out this map on my SamSphere colleague Stix Blog.

Why We Must Remember Ronald Reagan

2009-06-10T08:47:00.002-04:00

Granite Grok, one of my SamSphere colleague blogs, this morning posted a little essay of mine on why we need to keep Ronald Reagan's memory alive. I hope you find it valuable.

Deeds Wins

2009-06-09T20:50:00.000-04:00

At least one party is courting conservatives. While many Republicans continue to follow the MSM's (hardly disinterested) advice by rejecting conservative values (BTW, how's that working?), some Virginia Democrats are appealing to conservative voters by appearing more moderate than their national counterparts. The trend picked up a little more steam tonight, as rural State Senator Creigh Deeds walloped liberals Brian Moran and Terry McAullife in the commonwealth's Democratic gubernatorial primary. As of this writing, Sen. Deeds has won nearly 50 percent of the vote, performing well in northern as well as rural Virginia. This sets the stage for a rematch between Sen. Deeds and Republican nominee Bob McDonnell, who narrowly defeated the Democrat in a 2005 race for Attorney General. Since Virginia's races will be in large measure a referendum on President Barack Obama and his unpopular, dangerous policies, the presence of a moderate Democrat at the top of the ticket promises an interesting Fall.

MTNP Radio

2009-06-06T09:28:00.002-04:00

I'm going back on MTNP radio in New Hampshire this morning at 10:30 to talk about the Reagan legacy, my book, and a few other things. Click here for more details and instructions for connecting to the livestream.

Ronald Reagan's D-Day Speech, Part 1 of 2

2009-06-06T08:26:00.001-04:00

Ronald Reagan's D-Day Speech, Part 2 of 2

2009-06-06T08:25:00.001-04:00

Remembering Reagan

2009-06-05T17:55:00.000-04:00

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the passing of Ronald Reagan.

What follows is the tribute I wrote at the time:

MOURNING IN AMERICA

Families in Berlin awoke Sunday morning to the news that Ronald Reagan had “slipped the surly bonds of earth”. They were free to reach out to friends and relatives anywhere in the city for comfort—-because the Berlin Wall no longer keeps them apart.

Families in the former Soviet Union are free to seek comfort in churches—-because the Godless ideology of communism has been toppled, and the Soviet Union is no more.

Families in America, native and immigrant, live in prosperity—-because of the commonsense economic reforms of the 1980s.

All around the world, people are better off than they were 24 years ago. We’re better off because Ronald Reagan stood up to the communists and to the Congress. We’re better off because Ronald Reagan taught us to believe again in America and what she stands for—-freedom, opportunity, prosperity, and the value of every human life. We’re better off because Ronald Reagan exuded such hope that it reshaped how we saw ourselves, our country, and our world.

I met him only once. I was a young intern at Reagan-Bush ’84, his re-election campaign. The President came in for a late-October pep rally. I stood in an office doorway crowded with colleagues. He did not shake my hand. Rather, he looked into my face for a nanosecond—-and winked at me. Twenty years later, the memory of the warm smile on his face still brings a smile to mine.

I was struck by how big he was—-tall and broad-shouldered. His face was crinkled and wrinkled, as one would expect for a 73-year-old man with the hardest job in the world. But his sagging skin was pink, his smile sincere, and he exuded a vitality and a joie de vivre that made him seem younger than some people half his age.

He filled the room. It’s hard to pin down exactly how he filled it, but he did. He was big, but a lot of men are big, and few have Reagan’s presence. He had the aura of the presidency, and that’s a factor, but not the main one.

Reagan’s presence didn’t come from the mantle of the presidency or the broad shoulders on which it hung.

It came from within the man. It came from his character, and the hope that character produces.

Because of his character and his hope, he filled more than the room. He filled the decade. He created an era. His hope and optimism changed the way America saw itself. Hope was in the air in the 1980s—-a sense of renewal, a sense that the present was bright and the future brighter.

What a contrast to the decade before! It seemed that the news was all bad. The economy was in recession, brought on by stifling taxation and regulation. The Soviets invaded in Afghanistan, and the U.S. responded by boycotting the Olympics. News networks were literally counting the days that American hostages were held in Iran, and the American president announced that he wouldn’t leave the White House until they came home (a pledge he later broke).

The weak response to these harsh providences took a toll on our nation’s psyche.

Even before Reagan took office, something told us that he could make us proud again. When someone tried to shut off his microphone at a 1980 debate sponsored by his campaign, he stood up and declared, “I am paying for this microphone, Mr. [B]reen!” The microphone stayed on. The moment defined his campaign. We couldn’t imagine then that, seven years later, Reagan would speak the words that defined his presidency: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” We just knew that this man wouldn’t be pushed around, and, under his leadership, neither would our country.

It helped that his policies worked. An aggressive, expansionist enemy cannot be “contained”; it must be confronted. Reagan confronted the evil empire, and it crumbled. High taxes strangle prosperity; Reagan cut taxes, and the economy soared.

But his policies worked because they were rooted in truth and in hope. They were rooted in the understanding that people will soar when they are not stifled by oppressive government—-be it the pervasive, evil oppression of Godless communism, or the relatively lesser, misguided oppression of high taxes and big bureaucracy. They were rooted in what Ronald Reagan believed, and what he reminded us that we believed too.

Because Reagan’s policies worked, life improved, in America, and around the globe. And because Reagan’s exuberant optimism never failed, we believed that it would just get better and better.

Through his strength and his success, he reshaped the world. The Berlin Wall, that vast scar on the hopes of half a nation is gone—-and so is the ideology for which it stood.

Twelve years after he left office, America faced the most horrific attack on our nation and its values in our history. We did not respond with the despair that marked the 1970s. We responded with the character and spirit that were reborn in the 1980s and have never left us.

Ronald Reagan changed the world. He believed in America, and reminded us to believe in her again. And he believed that America’s values are meant to be shared with the world, and he did more to share them than anyone else.

So today, our fellow freedom-lovers in the East mourn, but they mourn in the freedom that Reagan restored to them. And we in the West, we mourn in the hope that he restored to us.

"Obama Man", by Greg Morton

2009-06-05T17:16:00.003-04:00

McGuire Statement on GM Plant Closing

2009-06-05T06:51:00.000-04:00

My friend and Republican nominee for Lee Hill Supervisor D.J. McGuire released the following statement in reaction to the announced closing of GM’s Powertrain plant on Tidewater Trail:

Like many other Spotsylvanians, I was disappointed by the news of the closing of General Motors’ Powertrain plant. I see the plant every day on my way home from work, and it has been a symbol of the county’s openness to success in industry and prosperity for its citizens. I am sad to see its apparent demise. Just three years ago, GM was investing more capital into the Powertrain factory, so this action also comes as a surprise. Given GM’s current status, I hope and expect that both the company and the Obama Administration will be very open about the reasoning behind this decision.

Of course, GM is in need of serious adjustment, and no one can be certain what action, if any, the county could have taken that would have led to a different outcome. However, this is a good time for Spotsylvania to reflect on its recent actions, which certainly didn’t improve the outlook for business in general or the Tidewater Trail plant in particular.

Since GM’s last infusion of capital into the Powertrain plant, property taxes were raised 11% (on average); the personal property tax rate was raised more than 25%; and the business furniture/fixture tax rate was raised 19%. While avoidance of these recession-aggravating measures may not have saved Powertrain, at the very least it would have reduced the risk and the cost to GM for keeping it open – and would certainly do the same for future users of that space. Moreover, if (however unlikely the possibility) the plant was closed for more political reasons, the aforementioned tax increases could very well provide Washington with some of the justification it would use to claim otherwise. It certainly won’t help the future users of that plant, or any other businesses struggling to get through this recession here in Spotsylvania.

In any event, it is time for Spotsylvania to recognize its place in the national and global community, and to acknowledge that it cannot over-tax, over-spend, and over-regulate in a vacuum. That is why, should I be elected Lee Hill Supervisor this November, I will:

• Refuse to support any real estate tax rate above equalization
• Keep a close eye on county spending to avoid future tax increases and where possible allow for reductions in tax rates, be it for real estate, BPOL, furniture/fixtures, machinery/tools, heavy equipment, personal property, etc.
• Work with my fellow Supervisors and the Planning Commission to scale back (and, if possible, repeal) the recently imposed commercial design standards (a.k.a. the “HCOD design standards”) as soon as practicable

The GM Powertrain plant may stay open until late next year. I cannot say whether or not the above plans will save it – and truth be told, it would not be sensible to bend county policy simply to aid one employer. However, we can (and I believe we must) use this as a wake-up call to make Spotsylvania a friendlier county for established and rising businesses – including the business that is and/or will be at 11032 Tidewater Trail.

For more information, contact Mr. McGuire at dj@djmcguire.com.

Back on RFC!

2009-06-04T17:16:00.000-04:00

I'm happy to announce that I'll be back on Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 EST--as a guest on Raisin' Hale. Please tune in as host Tabitha Hale and I talk about my book, what ails the GOP, and why we have hope.

Sitting Out the RPV Convention

2009-05-29T12:09:00.001-04:00

For a few reasons, I'm not a delegate to this year's Republican Party of Virginia convention. I was a delegate last year, and it was an entirely frustrating experience in opportunity costs. The conservative I supported for Senate lost to a moderate, who later lost the general election to Mark Warner. The conservative I supported for Chairman won, and was later bounced by the State Central Committee. And the convention itself was chaos.

But mostly, I'm not a delegate because I'm no longer a Republican.

But that doesn't mean that I don't care about the outcome of this convention, as it will affect the Commonwealth of Virginia.

That's why I'm glad that I fully expect Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling to win the nomination to retain his post. He's been a strong voice of common sense against the liberal administration of Gov. Tim Kaine.

It's why I hope that Ken Cuccinelli wins the nomination for Attorney General. Sen. Cuccinelli is a real conservative who isn't afraid to stand up to the liberals in his party, and that's what Virginia needs.

And it's why I hope that Bill Stanley, the alternative to SCC's latest hand-picked choice, wins the race for chairman. When they booted a popularly elected chairman less than a year into his term, SCC's picked a fight with grassroots conservatives, a fight they shouldn't be allowed to win.

Since 1989, the Republican Party has oozed more and more elitest contempt for grassroots conservatives with each passing year. In the process, it has aided and abetted the modern liberal quest to crush the market economy and tighten government's grip on every aspect of American life. And not coincidentally, it has increasingly lost respect and credibility, as well as elections.

There are still many good people, including many of my friends, in the party that I can no longer stomach. I hope they're able to do some good this weekend.

Republican Hypocrisy

2009-05-26T14:58:00.000-04:00

The Republican National Committee last week adopted resolutions "Recognizing the Democrats' March Toward Socialism" and "Commending Republican Members of Congress for Their Opposition to Bailouts and Reckless Spending".

This degree of hypocrisy should make Bill Clinton blush.

It was a Republican president and his Republican water boys in Congress who pushed the bank bail-out through, and it was that same Republican president who diverted bank bail-out funds to an auto bail-out after the Democrat-controlled Senate refused to approve the latter.

But nowhere do these resolutions acknowledge that Republican responsibility.

If the Republican Party ever sincerely decides to return to free-market conservatism, no one will be better pleased than this blogger. But for the RNC to point fingers at the majority party, with no recognition of, much less repentance for, Republicans' disgraceful role in tightening the grip of big government's tentacles around the necks of responsible Americans makes it impossible to believe that the party can be sincere about anything, except its own unquenchable thirst for power.

TSA Replacing Puffers with Naked X-Rays

2009-05-22T12:16:00.004-04:00

Tyrants Searching Americans (TSA) is scrapping its airport "puffer" machines in favor of whole-body imaging machines, which give screeners free peeks at travellers' naked forms.

After wasting more than $36 million tax money on the "puffer" machines, the TSA will blow another $1 million to remove them. Intended to detect bomb residue, the machines frequently break down in the face of dirt.

And unlike whole-body imaging machines, they don't offer screeners the perk of a peek. Though the naked X-ray machines can't penetrate plastic or rubber that resembles skin, they do give screeners a view of passengers buttocks, nipples, and genitals.

The House of Representative is scheduled to consider a bill sponsored by Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) to ban the naked X-rays in a couple of weeks.

“Nobody needs to see my wife and kids naked to secure an airport,” says Mr. Chaffetz.

Congress Punishes Responsibility, Again

2009-05-20T11:36:00.000-04:00

The federal government yesterday took another step forward in its on-going quest to undermine freedom of contract and reward financially irresponsible whiners on the backs of those who exhibit virtuous economic behavior. The Senate passed credit-card legislation that restricts the right of banks, among other things, to raise interest rates on late-payers. The House, which earlier passed a similar bill, is likely to pass the Senate version today.

This is, of course, just the latest example of the government taking the power that it has been granted in order to secure rights and abusing it in order to violate rights. It's another instance of arrogant overlords infantilizing the people. And it's a little bizarre: The TARP was forced on the banks and the people with the excuse that banks needed money to lend, but now, eight months later, Congress is passing laws that will further discourage lending.

And of course, as is always the case when government steps in to protect irresponsible whiners from having to pay for their own mistakes, this one will hurt the responsible people, in this case credit-card users who pay on time, most likely with higher annual fees and perhaps with scaling back on rewards programs.

No government can do what ours is trying to do: make life soft and cushy. And the more it tries, the worse it makes matters for everybody.

What happens to Vegas?

2009-05-19T12:58:00.000-04:00

Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons is crying foul. President Barack Obama is planning a junket to Caesar's Palace in order to help raise funds for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. But the President also told companies that accept bail-out dollars, "You can't go take a trip to Las Vegas ... on the taxpayer's dime."

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reports that more than 400 conventions and business meetings scheduled to take place in its city have recently been cancelled, meaning the loss of 111,800 guests and 250,000 "room-nights", according to a statement from Gov. Gibbons. The cancelled events cost the Las Vegas economy more than $100 million, not including gaming revenue, the Republican governor said.

"I am disappointed at the hypocrisy shown by this administration," Gov. Gibbons said. "President Obama is coming to Las Vegas later this month for a political fundraiser, but he will not help the struggling families in Las Vegas and Nevada who are out of work because of his reckless comments."

But as painful as this is for me to admit, President Obama has a point. Hard-working taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill for failing companies' luxury get-aways. As I've written earlier, bail-outs should hurt. Corporations that are so unscrupulous as to survive via plunder should suffer, and they should provide a warning example to any other companies thinking of committing the same moral outrage.

But Gov. Gibbons has a point too. Discouraging business travel means destroying opportunities for hard-working people in the travel and related industries. President Obama and his liberal water boys and girls in Congress just squandered billions of tax dollars on his "stimulus" gimmick. Does President Obama really believe that only government can stimulate the economy? That there's no value in companies providing business for other companies? If failing companies are to be propped up on the backs of taxpayers on the claim that they're vital to our economy, why are they then discouraged from fully participating in the economy?

This is just one example with what's wrong when government meddles in the market economy: Government then seeks to control microl-level business decisions, and both taxpayers' money and businesses' opportunities go to waste.

Update

2009-05-19T12:12:00.002-04:00

If you ever want to shake up your life, write a book. As many of you know, last week I sent my publisher what I really hope is the final version of Slaying Leviathan: The Moral Case for Tax Reform. And as many of you have noticed, blogging once again fell by the wayside as I struggled to complete the revision. Sadly, as those of you who care will have realized by now, I also had to give up my show on Radio For Conservatives because of time constraints. But I'm happy that the station keeps growing, and I hope that you listen to the other shows. I look forward to appearing on some of them as a guest, and to getting back to blogging. Thanks for your patience and your support!

Jack Kemp, RIP

2009-05-02T23:34:00.001-04:00

The conservative movement sufferred a significant loss today with the passing of Jack Kemp at age 73. He was, of course, a great conservative leader, the chief architect of the historic Kemp-Roth tax reform bill. He was also a friend to me and an encourager of my work when I really needed one. Few men in his position would have spent the time and energy that he did to help a relatively young and unknown conservative with not much more to offer than an idea. But then the former quarterback never lacked for energy; sometimes I got tired watching him. When BreakPoint published my column, "The Cost of Abandoning Great Things: Why Republicans Lost Conservative Trust", he took the time to send me a note congratulating me for its "powerful reasoning about the power of great ideas". We shared the same view of tax policy as a moral issue, and I was humbled and honored when he offerred to endorse my book Slaying Leviathan: The Moral Case for Tax Reform. He told me he was one of my "fans"; well, I was one of his. I'm crushed that he didn't live to see Slaying Leviathan published, and I mourn for this great loss to our conservative movement.

Eureka! A Rational Liberal on Twitter!

2009-04-30T09:23:00.003-04:00

So many liberals attack me verbally on this blog, twitter, and elsewhere in ways that are presumptuous, vitriolic, ad feminam, and just plain rude. That's why it was so refreshing to read my twitter pal Noebie's post this morning, about areas where he speculates we agree. It's a thoughtful post, and I encourage you to read it and jump in the conversation.

Specter Switches to Democratic Party

2009-04-28T14:20:00.002-04:00

Any finger-wagging Republican water-carrier who has pressed me or any other conservative to support liberals just because they happen to have (R)s after their names is welcome to post his apology in the comments section.

Finding Hope in Obama Government's Latest Power Grab

2009-04-20T18:02:00.001-04:00

In a move that should surprise no one, the Obama Administration is floating a scheme that would make the federal government's power over the nation's banks stronger and more permanent. The Administration says it can stretch what's left of the $700 Billion in bail-out money by converting existing loans to common stock. Such a move would give the federal government voting power in the banks, and make it the largest shareholder in some of them. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 300 points in the wake of the announcement.

This is, of course, terrifying. This is the same government that brought us the Post Office, the Social Security system, and the Community Reinvestment Act. Tightening its grip on banks, giving it voting power, would only permeate the financial system further with its unique blend of incompetence and unaccountability.

But there is an encouraging facet to the Administration's power grab du jour. It's driven, at least in part, by the fact that the Democrat-controlled Congress can't muster enough votes to throw more of the taxpayers' money down the morally hazardous rat-hole of bank bail-outs. Granted, the Administration is responding in the never-waste-a-crisis way that typifies its opportunistic quest for more power. That's to be expected. Our wanna-be overlords are scared of the mushrooming populist sentiment against their paternalism, but they're not going to restore economic freedom without a fight. They're going to keep trying to find ways to expand their power, while pretending to bend to the will of the people.

And we're not going to let them get away with it. The fight against 21st-century tyranny is not over, but it has begun.

Reston Tea Party--Closing Remarks

2009-04-16T09:54:00.001-04:00

Reston Tea Party--Opening Remarks

2009-04-16T09:33:00.001-04:00

Reston Tea Party--LOCATION CHANGE

2009-04-15T16:34:00.003-04:00

Tonight's Tea Party in Reston, Virginia, has been moved down the street to:

Baron Cameron Park
11323 Baron Cameron Drive
Reston, VA 20190

Directions from Dulles Toll Road:

Take Wiehle Avenue Exit (northbound)
After ~ two miles, turn cross Baron Cameron Drive
Turn left into Baron Cameron Park

I hope to see you there at 6:30!

Reston Tea Party

2009-04-13T11:31:00.003-04:00

I am happy to announce that I'll be MCing the Reston Tax Day Tea Party, Lord willing.

When: Wednesday, April 15th, 6:30-8:30pm

Where: Lake Anne Village Center Plaza
1609 Washington Plaza
Reston, Virginia

If you'll be in northern Virginia, I hope you'll join us in the middle of the square. If you will not be in northern Virginia, please check out this site for the Tea Party nearest you.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-09T12:28:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter! I look forward to blogging next week about Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling's third annual Bloggers' Day at the Capitol and other matters.

RPV Parodies Own Rudderlessness

2009-04-04T22:01:00.001-04:00

The Republican Party will not be dancing its way back to conservatives any time soon, if today's episode of Fakes and Flakes: The Reality Show is any indication. By a vote of 57-18, the insiders on the State Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia have removed chairman Jeff Frederick, who was popularly elected less than one year ago. Having not thought the issue of Mr. Frederick's replacement "through that far", the establishmentarians appointed Mike Thomas to serve as interim chairman, as he has three times in six years. SCC plans to meet on May 2 to elect its own puppet. If I thought the RPV establishment was competent enough to execute such a plan, I'd say they were trying to encourage conservatives to leave. But I think instead they're just parodying their own rudderlessness.

How Bush Administration Strong-Armed Banks into Taking Bail-Out Dollars

2009-04-03T21:41:00.001-04:00

Party Like It's 1773!

2009-04-03T16:38:00.001-04:00

Tonight on RFC

2009-04-02T21:44:00.000-04:00

Please tune in to Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 (EDT). I'm chatting about the Obama Administration's latest power grab, the proposed budget, and the murder of Terri Schiavo.

Blogger Budget Call with Rep. Goodlatte

2009-04-02T10:48:00.000-04:00

Last night, I had the privilege of joining my friends Krystle Weeks and Jim Hoeft on a Virginia bloggers call with Rep. Bob Goodlatte, who discussed the Republican alternative budgets to Barack Obama's $4-Trillion spending spree, which is likely to be voted on today.

One thing that's clear is the differring visions that undergird the budgets: The Democrat budget calls for huge tax increases, including letting the Bush tax cuts expire and even undoing the 2010 elimination of the estate tax; the Republican proposals, on the other hand, emphasize tax cuts and tax reform.

And how's this for a sobering tidbit? Although many criticize the Obama plan as following Europe down the path to socialism, it would actually render the United States ineligible to join the European Union, because its debt levels are too high, according to Mr. Goodlatte.

Even some Democrats at least claim to be leery of the enormity of President Obama's proposed budget, although Mr. Goodlatte expects most of them to fall in line with the President. Blue-dog Democrat, he said, really means yellow-dog Democrat from a conservative district. Many of them are likely to talk the language of fiscal responsibility, but vote for the Obama spending spree in the end.

But there is some good news. As Mr. Goodlatte acknowledged, the Republicans have been fairly criticized for fiscal irresponsibility. Having lost the last two national election cycles, they're finally trying to recover their roots as the party of free markets and limited government. Are they any more sincere than the yellow/blue-dog Democrats, who'll tout conservative economic values but don't really believe or even understand them? Recent history shouts a resounding NO! But even so, while Republicans who understand and believe in the free market and fiscal responsibility would be best, those who don't but are too scared to enrage the taxpayers any further are better than those who ooze contempt for the will of the people. In other words, it's better to have Representatives who agree with us, but being scared of us is a second we can work with.

Sunshine Review Rates Virginia County Transparency

2009-04-01T08:03:00.000-04:00

The Sunshine Review, which evaluates governmental transparency and accountability at the state and local levels, has charted the Web sites of Virginia counties, evaluating them on the basis of how much open information they provide on matters like budgets, taxes, and lobbying. The Fairfax County review is mixed. For example, while the Web site provides current and past budgets, there is no information about its lobbyist relationships. The Sunshine Review also provides several helpful links for citizens seeking to learn more about their county government.

Great Video Invitation to Richmond Tax-Day Tea Party

2009-03-31T09:16:00.001-04:00

Terri Schiavo, Four Years Later

2009-03-31T08:26:00.002-04:00

I remember walking into the room, looking at Terri and, in a rage, thinking, Look what they've done to my beautiful sister. It's hard watching someone dear to you being killed.

The sight of Terri was awful. Her skin was discolored, and there was blood pooling in her eyes, which were darting wildly back and forth. Her cheeks were hollowed out, and her teeth were protruding. She looked like a skeleton from a horror movie.

She was gasping for air. Earlier when I'd seen her, she was moving spastically, like she was in extreme pain and suffering. This night she lay almost still, but you could see she was scared and in pain.

...

I thought of how happy we all were growing up, of the vacations we took together, of the birthdays and holidays, the parties. I thought of the times Terri and I danced together and of our grandparents, whom we loved so much. ...

--Bobby Schindler, A Life That Matters: The Legacy of Terri Schiavo--A Lesson for Us All, p. 4.

Please take a moment to remember Terri Schiavo today, on the fourth anniversary of her murder. Thank you.

Obama to Wagoner: "You're Fired!"

2009-03-30T09:09:00.000-04:00

Wow. General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner has resigned in obedience to an Obama administration directive, a condition of the company's receiving additional plundered tax dollars. The government has also given GM 60 days to present a cost-cutting plan; the company will of course continue during that time to be kept afloat by the taxpayers, the human safety net for arrogant losers. On the other hand, the government has decided that Chrysler cannot be saved as a stand-alone company and ordered it to merge with Fiat by April 30 before it will be allowed to suck any further on the taxpayers' teat.

There's something deeply, disturbingly unAmerican about the federal government controlling companies to such a degree, and the notion that government can do a better job than experienced businesspeople of managing corporations and whole industries would be laughable if it weren't so dangerous. If the auto industry really is as vital as so many think, anybody who's ever mailed a letter should be downright terrified by the government's power grab du jour. And the precedent that it sets--that government can actually force CEOs out--is absolutely chilling.

On the other hand, this isn't all bad. Bail-outs should hurt. I mean really, really hurt. They should make the survival of the companies that take them less likely, not more likely (as surely federal control can accomplish). Every corporate executive and union boss, every socialist politician and pundit, responsible for the transfer of billions upon billions of hard-earned taxpayers' dollars to loser companies should suffer, as the incompetency of government merges with their own incompetency into some kind of super-incompetency. They should never again enjoy one good night's sleep. They should writhe. They should scream, scream deep, loud screams that echo through the decades in the ears of any would-be moral felons, who seek to rebuild failing companies on the backs of hard-working taxpayers.

Rick Wagoner deserves to go; having accepted ill-gotten tax dollars, he has displayed himself as a morally reprehensible person unfit to lead a once-great company. And if what's happenning to him discourages one CEO from trying to plunder the taxpayers, then that's a welcome corrective to the gross moral hazard created by bail-outs.

That's not the only silver lining. President Obama is clearly positioning himself as a greater defender of taxpayers than President Bush XLIII was during the disastrous final quarter of his presidency. (Granted, that isn't hard, but it is more than we might have expected.) Now, I'm not so naive as to think this positioning is sincere; certainly this regard for the taxpayer is notably absent from President Obama's other policies.

But it's a sign that he's running a little scared of the populist outrage that's been building ever since XLIII and his water boys in Congress bailed out the banks on the backs of taxpayers. As The New York Times notes this morning, "Mr. Obama is well aware that he cannot afford to give the appearance of using tax dollars to reward executives who have done a poor job." Of course, that's exactly what he is doing in allowing these bail-outs to continue at all. But hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue.

We're getting to 'em. Let's keep the pressure up!

More Virginia Tax-Day Tea Parties

2009-03-27T09:44:00.001-04:00

The list of April 15 tea parties in Virginia continues to grow. Check out this page for updates.

Tonight's Show

2009-03-26T12:33:00.002-04:00

Due to a killer cold that has me sounding like Marlon Brando, my 10:00 show tonight on Radio For Conservatives will be a rebroadcast of last week's.

How to Hold a Tea Party

2009-03-24T09:22:00.002-04:00

The Grizzly Groundswell has posted a helpful step-by-step guide to organizing a tea party. If you're hosting a tea party or thinking about doing so, I encourage you to check it out.

Punch-Drunk POT(57)US?

2009-03-23T06:49:00.001-04:00

Giggling like a schoolgirl is apparently President Barack Obama's latest tactic to project "confidence" in America's economic future.

Tonight on RFC

2009-03-19T21:11:00.000-04:00

Please tune in to Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 (EDT). I'm chatting about the AIG bonusses, bail-out backlash, and one of the fatal flaws of modern-day Keynesianism.

Frederick Should Stay

2009-03-19T10:04:00.000-04:00

I hate when I have good friends on opposing sides of a bitter fight. But I've been around long enough to know that's part of the price.

Since I first learned from my friend Jim Hoeft at Bearing Drift that some members of the State Central Committee had formally asked Jeff Frederick to step down as Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, I have thought long and deeply about where to side, asking questions of friends on both sides of the issue.

After considering the charges against Mr. Frederick, his responses, and the comments of my friends and acquaintances, I have decided to support Mr. Frederick. He is a pro-life, anti-tax, non-establishment conservative, and I do not find the charges against him compelling. Mr. Frederick has responded in detail to each of them, and called them "false and without merit".

Silly seems more like it to me. Consider #9: "Damage to the reputation and effectiveness of the Republican Party of Virginia through refusal to coordinate activities, including campaign messages, with Republican nominees for public office".

Are they joking? "Damage to the reputation and effectiveness of the Republican Party of Virginia"? RPV has been a disaster for years. To cite just a couple of examples from my own experience: In the fall of 2006, I contacted RPV to volunteer for the Allen campaign, and never heard back. Last year, RPV's convention was such a logistical disaster that they were about 100 seats short for my (Fairfax County) delegation, and ours was not alone. Mr. Frederick has had less than a year to clean up this mess. Any organization that's either well-managed or has any class gives someone in a complicated position at least a year before showing him the door.

More to the point, do they really think that the Republicans had their heads handed to them in November because of Jeff Frederick's failures? This would be the Republican Party that nominated John McCain, that pushed through the unpopular bank bail-out weeks before the election, that had betrayed conservative principles for 19 years.

This isn't to say that Mr. Frederick hasn't made notable missteps. Responding to criticism of RPV's social-media efforts, for example, Mr. Frederick commented, "As you may know, I rarely read blogs," thus lending credence to every suspicion that he's arrogant and out of touch. And the behavior of some of his supporters in the current brouhaha has been nothing short of infantile.

But the movement against him, what my friend and SCC member Jim Bowden calls a "political lynching", has all the hallmarks of an insider cabal against an elected leader. Consider Mr. Bowden's assessment of the Soviet-style secrecy under which he was asked to join the lynching party:

If there were a real crisis - I would have been allowed to see the charges as a member of SCC. Instead, I was told I couldn’t have a copy unless I agreed to sign in advance. I would have been told who will replace Jeff. Instead, I was told a male and female “are being looked at.”

And that leads to another concern regarding the effort against Mr. Frederick: Who will replace him? A conservative populist or an establishment RINO? Well, gee, who are insiders likely to pick?

The Republican Party desperately needs to return to its conservative roots. An insider-led political lynching of an elected conservative isn't the way to do it.

This is not an eternal endorsement. It is still possible that something compelling will emerge to change my mind. But for now:

Jeff Frederick should remain as Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia.

Virginia Tea Parties

2009-03-18T19:52:00.001-04:00

In 1767, the British Parliament adopted the plan offered by Charles Townshend, chancellor of the exchequer, to levy import duties on a range of items used in the American colonies, including paper, lead, glass, dyes, and tea.

The American colonists were outraged. This was an attempt by the Parliament to tax them without their consent. As even Royalist moderate John Dickinson wrote in his Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, “[W]e cannot be free without being secure in our property . . . we cannot be secure in our property if without our consent others may as by right take it away . . . taxes imposed on us by Parliament do thus take it away.”

The colonists were willing to make the sacrifices necessary to boycott the goods and break the yoke. Merchants in every colony refused British imports. Many products, tea in particular, were smuggled in from other countries.

The British were in a quandary. The colonial boycott reduced exports to America by nearly ₤1,000,000 during 1768-69, but to repeal the duties would mean to back down. Finally, in 1770, Parliament repealed most of the Townshend taxes, but retained the tax on tea. The smuggling of that product continued.

By 1773, 15-20 million pounds of unsold tea languished in British warehouses. British Prime Minister Lord North decided to reduce—but not repeal—the tea tax, thus underselling the smuggled Dutch tea, and export it to colonial merchants.

The gesture was more than insufficient; it was offensive. The financial cost of the tax was not the issue inflaming the colonists. The true issue was the moral question of whether or not Britain had the right to tax the colonists at all without their consent.

Attempting to undersell the smuggled tea was seen as an attempt at bribery. As one writer explained 20 years later, “[A] free people will not be amused by financial palliatives.”

Seven tea-carrying ships set sail; four for Boston and one each for New York, Philadelphia, and Charleston. Most of the New York merchants refused to stock the tea. The people of Philadelphia adopted resolutions declaring that since “the duty imposed by Parliament upon tea landed in America is a tax on the Americans, or levying contributions on them without their consent, it is the duty of every American to oppose this attempt.” The intimidated importers in those two cities sent the tea back. In Charleston, the tea was unloaded and then sat unsold in warehouses.

As usual, the patriots of Boston were rowdier. On the evening of December 16, 168 Sons of Liberty, disguised as Mohawks, rowed out to the anchored tea ships, boarded them, split open the cargo chests, and dumped their contents—-approximately ₤15,000 worth—-into the harbor.

Americans today face similar tyranny. We made it crystal clear that we do not consent to the ersatz financial palliatives offerred in the form of the bank bail-out, the auto bail-out, and the so-called stimulus. Government made it clear that it doesn't care whether we consent or not, and blew billions of dollars on each of these outrages, billions that we don't have, meaning that the money has been borrowed from Americans yet unborn, the ultimate taxation without representation.

Just as it did in the middle of the 18th century, popular resistance to this kind of tyranny is building. And some of it is finding expression in "tea parties" across the nation. Picking up on Rick Santelli’s call for a “Chicago Tea Party”, the DontGo Movement, Smart Girl Politics, and Top Conservatives on Twitter organized more than 50 protests, attended by more than 30,000 people, across the nation on February 27. Building on the success of those tea parties, similar protests are being planned for April 15 in more than 120 cities. Michelle Malkin, Dana Loesch, GOPUSA, and American Solutions are co-sponsoring the movement.

Three of those cities are in Virginia. The schedule for Virginia Tea Parties on April 15 is:

Virginia Beach: Virginia Beach Town Center, 11 am - 1 pm

Charlottesville: Downtown Mall by City Hall, 3 pm – 5 pm

Richmond: Kanawha Plaza, 6 pm – 8 pm

If you are a Virginian, I hope you will make it to one of them.

What do you think about the Frederick Fracas?

2009-03-17T14:44:00.001-04:00

Okay, I've read the correspondence back and forth. I've asked some questions and received some answers. And I still don't know what to think about the movement to remove Jeff Frederick as chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia. Last year, I asked for your guidance regarding how to cast my delegate vote at the convention. The responses leaned toward Frederick (and were soon buttressed in my mind by the disastrous job that incumbent chairman John Hager's people did in managing the convention). So I'm asking for your input once again. What do you think? Should Mr. Frederick stay or go? Why?

Tonight's Show

2009-03-12T21:54:00.000-04:00

Please tune in to Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 (EDT). I'm chatting about the misuse of federal tax dollars to fund the destruction of embryonic human life, the continuing troubles of the bank bail-out, the potential ouster of the chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia and what really ails the GOP, and the biggest Ponzi scheme of the last century.

Tonight on RFC

2009-03-05T13:22:00.000-05:00

Please tune in to Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 (EST). I'm talking about Rush Limbaugh, the Tea Party movement, and why we should all be grateful that government's efforts to plunder America's way to prosperity are doomed to fail. If you miss my show tonight, you'll have another chance at 4:00 (EST) Friday afternoon. And while you're listening, feel free to join the chat!

By the way, I do plan to resume regular posting in the near future. Learning how to do my new show, keeping up with client work, and marketing Slaying Leviathan have been edging out blogging lately.

Tonight's Show on RFC

2009-02-26T11:04:00.002-05:00

Please tune in to my show on Radio For Conservatives tonight at 10:00 (EST). I'm chatting about the government "stimulus" plan and responding to Cargosquid's question.

Also, I'm happy to announce that the show will regularly be rebroadcast on Friday afternoons at 4:00 (EST), so if you miss it tonight you'll have another chance tomorrow.

As always, I welcome your suggestions for future topics.

"Slaying Leviathan" on Facebook

2009-02-23T18:22:00.002-05:00

My forthcoming book, Slaying Leviathan: The Moral Case for Tax Reform, now has its own page on Facebook. Please visit!

RFC Rebroadcast

2009-02-20T15:55:00.000-05:00

The maiden broadcast of my new show on Radio For Conservatives is scheduled to re-air at 4pm (EST) today. Please tune in to hear me chatting about the "stimulus" plan, the bail-outs, Roland Burris, and the (un)Fairness Doctrine.

So What Do You Want Me to Sound Off About?

2009-02-18T16:26:00.002-05:00

I'm thrilled to announce that I'm hosting a weekly radio show at 10 p.m. (EST) on Thursdays at Radio For Conservatives.

I would welcome your suggestions for topics. What would you like to hear me talk about?