Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr.'s Blog, page 2476

The 2nd American Independence Day

“Whether we remain in one confederacy, or form into Atlantic and Mississippi confederacies, I believe not very important to the happiness of either part.  Those of the western confederacy will be as much our children & descendants as those of the eastern, and I feel myself as much identified with that country, in future time, as with this; and did I now foresee a separation at some future day, yet I should feel the duty & the desire to promote the western interests as zealously as the eastern...

Declaring Our Independence

As Independence Day comes around again we should spend a few moments between barbecue and fireworks to think about the meaning of independence. The colonists who rebelled against the British Crown were, among other things, unhappy about taxation. Yet, as economist Gary North points out, the total burden of British imperial taxation was about one-to-two percent of national income.

Some 241 years later, Washington claims more of our money as its own than King George could have ever imagined. Wh...

Democracy Dies in Darkness

So says the banner of the Washington Post.  Democracy also dies when the people are fed lies and nonsense; then again, democracy dies when the system ensure a large portion of the population lack the critical thinking skills to recognize they are being fed lies and nonsense.

From the Post:

Early last August, an envelope with extraordinary handling restrictions arrived at the White House. Sent by courier from the CIA, it carried “eyes only” instructions that its contents be shown to just four...

One Nation…

As a child in government schools, I must have recited the pledge of allegiance thousands of times. And not once did it occur to me that the “one nation . . . indivisible” part of it is simply an embrace of the Lincolnian heresy, a preemptive attack on the potential for any kind of organized withdrawal whatsoever. At this point in history, can we not see what a terrifying affirmation this doctrine really is? No matter how oppressed people may be, their secession from the overbearing super-stat...

Saudi Arabia Has Handed the Emir of Qatar

In the event you have noticed the hullabaloo about Qatar and wonder what it is about, it is about Al Jazeera, a news organization, established by the Emir who rules the oil and gas sheikdom on the Persian Gulf. Al Jazeera is far more professional than any news organization in the West. Al Jazeera’s problem is that it covers the actual news and tells the truth. This is unacceptable to the Saudis, the United Arab Emirates, and to Washington.

At the time of the US invasion of Iraq, the Crown Pri...

Patriotic Services

For the past two weeks, the sign in front of a church near my house has advertised a “patriotic service” for Sunday, July 2. Other churches around town undoubtedly held some kind of patriotic service as well even though it wasn’t advertised. This is because patriotic services are now a nationwide phenomenon. Although they are not limited to any specific denomination, conservative evangelicals are the worst when it comes to these things.

There are three times each year when churches are likely...

America’s Pension Bomb

We’ve written quite a bit over the past couple of months about the pending financial crisis in Illinois which will inevitability result in the state’s debt being downgraded to “junk” at some point in the near future (here is our latest from just this morning: “From Horrific To Catastrophic”: Court Ruling Sends Illinois Into Financial Abyss).

Unfortunately, the state of Illinois doesn’t have a monopoly on ignorant politicians…they’re everywhere.  And, since the end of World War II, those ignor...

An Armed People

FINALLY: a European country that gets it!

In December, when the European Commission responded to terrorist attacks by passing stricter gun laws, only three countries stood against their impotent actions.

Now, one of them is taking matters into their own hands with a proposition to put the right to bear arms back into their Constitution and put guns into the hands of its citizens for protection.

On Wednesday, the lower house of the Czech parliament voted in favor of adding gun rights to their...

Libertarian Summer Reading

I wonder, in hindsight, whether I can consider what I experienced so many years ago a kind of child abuse: as a child, I attended public school—in other words, government controlled education. And before discovering LewRockwell.com, I had no idea I’d been exposed to many patently false myths serving the state’s agenda.

Nevertheless, I really liked the stories told by my teacher about the courage, nobility and honesty of Abraham Lincoln who walked miles to school, read by firelight, and was ho...

Morticia, Vampira, & Elvira

“Morticia, Vampira and Elvira – The unholy trinity of women of darkness. These three femme fatales have captured the wicked imaginations and nefarious fantasies of many generations. And like links in the chains they might use to restrain their victims, the stories of all three of these lecherous ladies are linked.”

This superb mini-documentary was forwarded to me by a long time colleague who noted:

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“Fun video on three pop characters...