Libertarian Party of Henrico County

http://news.aol.com/elections/story/_a/barr-announces-libertarian-bid/20080512103009990001

Posted by Robert Russo at 04:32 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/04/23/teen.be.gone.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch

"Police fear those who loiter will eventually commit more serious crimes."*

*http://www.foxreno.com/news/16193035/detail.html

Posted by Robert Russo at 01:21 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

by Robert Russo

With national, state and local elections crisscrossing this year and next, a slew of fiscal promises are out there, some of them more realistic than others. Minimum wage always crops up but now states are debating how to comply with the Fair Minimum Wage Act (which decrees a gradual increase from $5.15 to $7.25), or to exceed it. Right now it is $5.85 until September.* And yet despite this measure people with competitive jobs can't support themselves and dual-income families are in debt. Virginia has no minimum wage laws of its own and relies on the federal rate, not counting jobs with some kind of exemption. Kansas currently has the lowest at $2.65.**

This problem is being tackled in a variety of ways. Yesterday Connecticut approved an increase to $8 starting next year. Illinois has an increase of 25 cents a year until 2010, while many states adjust their rate continuously based on inflation or the U.S. Consumer Price Index.** One idea for employers that can't afford to raise their rates is to increase benefits instead. Another is to stop paying hourly wages altogether and make them salaried.

Living wage is compensation based on a person's cost of living. In Europe this standard dictates a set lifestyle one is entitled to by their profession ("housing, food, utilities, transport, health care and recreation").*** This comes from a different school of thought than capitalism where wages are only a contract for doing the hired tasks. It suggests private businesses have a greater responsibility to the community, closer to socialism. Maryland and North Carolina are known for their campaigns to bring the minimum wage closer to the living wage for a given area, while other locales have posted restrictions on it.***

The downside to this is capitalism (especially laissez-faire) says an individual's life is in his own hands. An employer has no control over where he lives, how he chooses to spend and what his goals are. If employers took a more direct role in providing the needs of their workers, a set amount going directly to the landlord, another to the doctor, and allowances for food, fuel and spending money, they would become the new target of those who profit off the individual by raising those prices, along with any bad decisions he makes and unforeseen disasters that befall him.

There's a point where businesses can't say their employees' lives are not their business, which is where pensions and health plans come from. But this involvement is just a hairsbreadth away from owing your soul to the company store, which is where infringements on our rights come from (i.e. penalizing smokers and overweight people for having more health expenses). This catch-22 comes from wanting equality and laissez-faire when the current system is so economically mismatched the highest percentile would instantly gobble up the rest of us.

The only true solution is to lower our dependency on money and the workplace. Currency gives control over our lives to whoever has the most of it, and is therefore an enemy of true self-sufficiency and a smokescreen to the true cost of living, our needs overwhelmed by fees and gratuities toward our masters in every aspect of life. We require allowance to do almost anything and this makes us children competing for quite a pittance. The Dept. of Labor lists the minimum wage schedule and developments for each state at www.dol.gov/esa/minwage/america.htm, as does en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S.A._minimum_wages. Here are some resources on the living wage movement:
http://acorn.org/index.php?id=10265
http://www.livingwage.geog.psu.edu/
http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/issueguides_livingwage_livingwage
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_wage
http://www.letjusticeroll.org/

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Minimum_Wage_Act_of_2007
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S.A._minimum_wages
*** http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_wage

Question of the Week: As an employer or employee you are the only person who knows exactly how much of a role a business should have in your life. What is the first thing that would put it closer to having that role? Is there no one move that won't eventually push everything one way or the other? Send your thoughts to russo@richmondliberty.org.

If you have topics of interest to libertarians please let us know. We welcome your input!

Posted by Robert Russo at 05:35 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The Patrick Henry Supper Club presents:

Del. Chris Peace (R)
candidate for 97th district
www.chrispeace.com

The PHSC will meet at its usual location, Eastern Buffet, 7586 W. Broad St. Richmond, VA 23294
(in Merchants Walk Shopping Center). Dinner is at 6pm and the main event is 7pm.

Posted by Robert Russo at 12:55 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

by Robert Russo

At Virginia Tech last Thursday the Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (whom I have praised before) had an unusual guest speaker, the gun dealer who sold Seung-Hui Cho one of the handguns he used in the massacre. Eric Thompson of Green Bay, Wisconsin spoke respectfully and candidly at his own expense, although his very presence there sparked outrage among the administration and others. In the words of their spokesman "I find it terribly offensive to learn that the gun-seller of the weapons used in the Virginia Tech campus murders would set foot on this campus".*

The biggest threat to our Second Amendment rights is perception, which can also be our greatest tool. Gun owners are perceived as an isolated minority with outdated views apart from the rest of society, which is why they must be presented as ordinary people inseparable amongst our coworkers, classmates and friends. The SCCC achieves this by revealing to people just how commonplace the need for concealed carry is and that it is a precaution that divides no one. Gun lobbyists are also perceived as being heartless, trigger-happy extremists who care more about their right to bear arms than the lives of victims. Undying promotion of our cause by any means necessary is not enough to change this misconception. A finely-crafted message must accompany it, not for existing members like Mr. Thompson's audience, but for outsiders like the school's administration.

Just as it is wrong to think permit-holders are uncompassionate toward gun-related violence, oppose gun control and place their personal rights above human lives, it is a mistake to think gun manufacturers and retailers don't feel great pain and responsibility when their product is used in this way. They are not guiltless. Therefore it is important to set an example that they are not the unscrupulous monsters they've been made out to be, by remaining neutral tradesmen of their wares, not engaging in this fight to the shocking point where the supplier of a murderer's weapons is visiting the scene of the crime to make a political statement. Nothing this man could have said can make up for the negative press his appearance there has caused. It is an abuse of his position in this matter. People now have more reason to get the wrong idea about a legitimate student organization than they did before.

Any successful civil movement requires tact. When a talk show brings out the child molester or arsonist as a surprise guest that is sensationalism, not a cause against child abuse and arson. Many frustrated political activists like the NRA have made a habit of overzealousness, which leads to one-sided journalism giving people the impression we are obsessed and incapable of listening. Victims' families and friends feel like they are being opposed for feeling grief like it's a political position. The best use of an advocate's voice is not preaching to the choir but reaching out to the opposition, showing them we are human beings no different than them.

As libertarians we are responsible for tempering ourselves from being too political and Machiavellian in pursuing our goals. The only thing all permit-holders have in common is their mode of self-defense, so don't make the cause any more than that. Don't make it a sportsmen's club. Being right doesn't mean "cornering" our opposition, it means selling the point. Our opponents include devastated people who did not become this way by choice, and if we threaten this sentiment they will grapple with us forever. We must also take personal responsibility for the trends we start and face some difficult questions. Violence increasing among students because of the call to arms is a distinct possibility, more so than a gunman being stopped in self-defense. (Just as a licensed handgun being misused sends a huge political blow while saving a life with one makes barely a ripple.)

On an unrelated subject, I was amazed the university allowed this, saying "Free speech is a hallmark of university life".* No, it isn't. Students have zero say over academic decisions, whether it's a teacher's grade or dorm policy. The financial aid center operates as if all students are deaf and dumb. If an assembly this offensive to the administration was allowed to take place, why isn’t there an antiacademic league burning the school's flag and calling for the president's resignation? (or at least a change in the school menu). It is not for this administration that we should tread carefully but for ourselves. I read this story at www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/25/vatech.guns/index.html. The SCCC's take is at www.concealedcampus.org/eric_thompson.htm.

*http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/25/vatech.guns/index.html

Question of the Week: Strategically speaking, students arming for defense is not as easy a platform for the public to get behind than banning all guns. How can we improve our PR standing instead of simply fighting tooth and nail and making people more agitated? Send your opinions to russo@richmondliberty.org.

If you have topics of interest to libertarians please let us know. We welcome your input!

Posted by Robert Russo at 09:44 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

http://go.vcu.edu/survey/richmondcensus

Spring is the season for polls and surveys. The LP's annual report and membership survey has gone out, as well as VCU's triennial school census. This census is a thinly-disguised "child registration" to crack down on truancy. It is supposed to figure the amount of tax money allotted for public education in Richmond, but its procurers cannot be trusted. There should be some kind of vigil for all young people in light of the horror stories in the news every week, and true measure of statistics but it must be a pure source. Our children are not the government's business. There's a good article on this at dailywhackjob.com/index.php/2008/03/03/school-census.

Posted by Robert Russo at 08:23 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

http://jobs.aol.com/article/_a/does-no-degree-mean-no-job/20080415165609990001?ncid=AOLCOMMjobsDYNLprim0001

Here's a surprising article with tips to help people with no academic background advance their career, write a better resume and compete with academicians. It is especially important for people with good work credentials to engage in this competition and cast doubt on hiring standards, so there is no longer a call for older people to go back to school.

http://jobs.aol.com/article/_a/25-highest-paying-jobs-no-bachelors/20071218180409990001

Posted by Robert Russo at 09:02 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Anyone who's seen a map of southeastern Virginia knows there are major naval operations adjoining large tracts of wilderness land which continue into North Carolina. A more certain target area for military ambition was never crafted. The Outlying Landing Field or OLF is a practice airstrip meant to simulate landing procedures on an aircraft carrier, which was originally proposed to be built in NC's Washington and Beaufort Counties along Albemarle Sound, but was rejected by those counties along with four others. The proposal moves from county to county, now hotly contested in Gates, Camden and Currituck Counties, and across the VA border into Surry, Sussex and Southampton.*

These estuaries are where migratory birds from the entire length of the Eastern Seaboard came from, along with endemic species of the isolated maritime forests, but as this ambition moves west it is simply encroaching on rural Virginia communities nowhere near a naval base. The major purpose of the strip is the transfer of fighter squadrons to the east coast for deployment to Iraq, and the training of those pilots.*

The navy's "scoping" meetings to draw public support begin on April 29 in Prince George, Surry, Sussex and Southampton. (Surry's opposition is having a public meeting the same night.) The locations and times are posted at www.novaolf.com. Del. Bob Marshall is an outspoken opponent of the OLF, and Pres. Bush vetoed a defense bill in December which included a provision to withhold funding for an OLF site.** The official website for this project at www.olfeis.com is a shameless environmental pacifier and denial of the impact. More info can be found at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outlying_Landing_Field, although this itself seems to grab at straws about the environmental effects of a massive habitat and community destruction to support an overseas war. One would think the navy would get the idea. Updates on this fight and ways to get involved are posted at www.noolf.com.

*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outlying_Landing_Field
**www.noolf.com

Posted by Robert Russo at 09:48 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

On Cafe Hayek Don Boudreaux writes:

"On this Earth Day, I celebrate capitalism -- the institution that, far more than any other, has made human lives clean, safe, dignified, and culturally rich. Capitalism is also responsible for giving people the wealth and leisure to permit them to mis-perceive nature as loving and bountiful, and to enjoy nature in a way that few of our pre-industrial ancestors could ever have enjoyed it."

Full Story at:
http://cafehayek.typepad.com/hayek/2008/04/capitalism-day.html

Posted by Leonard Harris at 10:53 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

by Robert Russo

Our neighbors to the south have a good history of showing us previews of what things could be like in VA. Some examples of this are the NC Lemon Laws, the record of city authorities in Raleigh working together (unlike Richmond), the climate of course, and the fight against the Outlying Landing Field which Leonard spoke of in his report. (Although this cause includes the Virginia Beach area it is headquartered in NC and their website is calling for more Virginia chapters.) The race for governor in that state is mounting, with one candidate running on a platform of free community colleges.*

This idea has come and gone over the years with no state yet adopting it, Massachusetts coming closest in 2007.** The Scandinavian countries stand alone in the world for providing free education all the way through graduate school, even for foreign exchange students.*** There is very little history involving Virginia or libertarians that I can find, and here is probably why:

Someone might assume that if I have academic creditors knocking on my door after 11 years I would support easing this burden on the student. But I did not get anything of value for this money. Libertarians oppose dictatorial regimes as well as bilking the citizen. The goal of private institutions may be to take your money, but public institutions strive to take away our freedom. Free admission means more students and greater influence, so it plays right into their hands. Any monopoly tramples those who dare to disagree with it, so there has to be something that sets people apart (i.e. cost). As long as this exists the service is not universal and therefore there are other choices. Many have tried to reform these institutions but if it can't be done, we must widen this divide and make it more difficult to enroll, not easier. If no one can afford tuition there would be so few students the college degree would lose value and the rest of us move upward in the workforce. These sprawling self-serving campuses would shrink, releasing young people as fulltime participants into society.

So what to make of this depends on your definition of "free". Education is free, whatever institution says otherwise is standing in its way. Most libertarian sites on the subject of "free education" are referring to freedom for the student, to be his or her own person instead of brainwashed and dehumanized by regimes. More freedom in the classroom will probably come at greater cost, while a curriculum at no cost is likely to be serving someone else's plans for our offspring.

Then there is the argument that there is no such thing as free tuition because someone else has to pay for it. (Also called "subsidized education".) A lib would not only oppose this but say that no one besides those enrolled by choice should pay a cent. Democratic candidate Richard Moore says the first two years of this can be paid using interest from the state's settlement against tobacco companies.* So this is just a short-term proposal, one of many, of what to do with an available surplus. It's nice to see a politician vow to give it back to the people, but there are so many ways this can be done directly instead of feeding the school system.

Responses to Moore's platform at carolinapoliticsonline.com are all "let people fend for themselves" or "I had to pay so you have to pay", which aren't very libertarian. Right now the most successful provider of no-cost college courses and other training is the internet, and it's hard to know what to make of this. Distributing free information to use as we see fit empowers the citizen, but handing out free sheepskins with a government stamp on them enslaves the citizen unless he either designed it himself to speak his true credentials, or they are given out without having to earn them in which case the government's seal loses credibility and things like knowledge, integrity and determination are sought instead.

*http://www.carolinapoliticsonline.com/2008/03/05/moore-wants-free-community-college-and-higher-minimum-wage/
**http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/02/education/02massachusetts.html?ref=education
***http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_education

Question of the Week: On the subject of paying for college, do you sympathize with the student, the taxpayer, the school or none of the above? Send your opinions to russo@richmondliberty.org.

If you have topics of interest to libertarians please let us know. We welcome your input!

Posted by Robert Russo at 06:26 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)