Libertarian Vegan

As everyone knows, April 15th is income tax day.  There have always been protests before, but never like this.  Over 2,000 cities all across the United States have “Tea Party” protests scheduled to take place tomorrow. To understand what that looks like, check out this map of the protests .

The movement gained momentum with the “Rant heard ’round the world” by Rick Santelli.  The basic idea is that, with an $11 trillion debt that grows every second and a federal government who seems to think there is an unlimited amount of money to spend, the people are already taxed enough and the ridiculous spending needs to end.

There is no way to spend yourself out of debt, just as there is no way for the federal government to spend itself out of debt.  Countries holding our debt are worried we will never be able to pay it back and will stop giving us credit, meanwhile the Federal Reserve continues to print money, making each dollar worth less and less.  Something has to give, and it seems that it is up to the people to stop the nonsense.

Check out the Official Tax Day TEA Party website for information and to find a protest close to you.

Sunshine Review also has a good deal of information related to the protests.

Are there really Americans out there that think they aren’t taxed enough?

In some fascinating videos that have been unearthed by YouTube user loumen, Ron Paul dissects the entire economic crisis of today as caused by the Federal Reserve and fiat monetary system way back in 1988.  And it’s dead on.

If we would have been smart enough to listen to him then (don’t blame me, I was only 6 years old), we would never have had the crisis we are currently in.   Just about the only sign that this was not recorded today is that Paul’s hair isn’t white yet - otherwise there’s no way to tell.  How refreshing that there actually is a politician who is guided by intelligent principles that don’t change over time because they are based on facts instead of shameless flip-flopping just to get votes.

Paul currently is trying to push House Bill 1207, which would allow a full audit of the Fed.  Why shouldn’t we be able to see the books of the private bank that controls our monetary supply?

If you don’t want to take the time to write your Representative personally, at least take a minute and sign the petition at Paul’s website, Campaign for Liberty .

In February, Representative Ron Paul introduced H.R. 1207, which would effectively allow for a full audit of the Federal Reserve.  As of today, the bill has reached 58 cosponsors  and a companion bill, S604, has been introduced in the Senate.

So why is this important?

Essentially, we have absolutely no idea what goes on in the Fed and legally we are kept from finding out.  Hence, HR 1207 would open their books for inspection.  The Fed controls our money supply, but not even Congress is allowed to know its workings.   What rational arguements are there for keeping this secret?

Postmaster General John Potter appeared before a House subcommittee this past week to ask Congress for money.  Without it, he said, the United States Postal Service will run out of money before the year is out.

“We are facing losses of historic proportion,” Potter declared. “Our situation is critical.”

Last year the USPS was $2.8 billion in debt, and the first quarter of this fiscal year (October - December) showed a $384 million loss.

Subcommittee chairman Stephen F. Lynch, (D-Mass) said, “With the Postal Service facing budget shortfalls the subcommittee will consider a number of options to restore financial stability and examine ways for the Postal Service to continue to operate without cutting services.”

The fact of the matter is, the USPS is a real monopoly.  Unlike Microsoft and others that trust-busters have gone after in the past, a real monopoly can only exist when it is enforced by law, which is the case with the Post Office.

Congress outlawed private mail delivery in cities in 1825, and gave the USPS a monopoly on first-class letters and third-class items such as magazines, catalogs, and junk mail.  Some 184 years later, it still has monopoly status.  Private carries such as UPS and FedEx have shown the benefits of competition while the USPS has continually raised postage rates since 1958.

Yet here it is, begging for a taxpayer-funded bailout, when it should really have its monopoly status revoked.  True monopolies are inefficient, bad for consumers, and bad for freedom.

In 1844 Lysander Spooner proceeded to set up the American Letter Mail Company, going into direct competition with the USPS.  He argued that the Constitution said Congress could “carry the mail” but not prevent others from doing so.  He delivered letters between Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore for five cents.  Meanwhile, the USPS charged 18 3/4 cents between Boston and New York.

His was the first private interstate post office, (and it was rather successful), which brought great anger from Congress.  Threatened with jail, Spooner gave up the business, but clearly showed up the Post Office and Congress.

Let the Spooner’s of the country compete.  Anyone who has had to wait in line at the Post Office knows there has to be a better way.

Sources: Cybercast News Service - Postal Service Asks Congress for Bailout March 25, 2009

Wired - Stop the U.S. Mail! February 2005

Athol Daily News - Stamp-ing Around May 4, 1977

 [IMAGE: Raytheon via MSNBC]

On Thursday Pentagon officials announced a plan to spend $400 million to create a giant spy blimp.  Floating at 65,000 feet above the Earth, it would be able to linger over any area for a long time, be unnoticed, and nearly untouchable.  (I thought this was a joke until I found it on DARPA’s official website. )

Werner J.A. Dahm, chief scientist for the Air Force, called the project, “absolutely revolutionary,” comparing it to a cross between a satellite and a spy plane.

The air ship would be 450 feet long and be airborne for 10 years.  Filled with helium, it is to be powered by a system of solar panels recharging hydrogen fuel cells.

While the Pentagon has yet to select a contractor, it has an agreement with DARPA to develop a demonstration air ship by 2014.  If (ahem) it is “successful,” it could pave the way for a fleet of spy blimps.

You know, I’m trying to have an intelligent response to this but - really?  A $400 million dollar spy blimp?  Really?

Sources: Los Angeles Times - Pentagon plans blimp to spy from new heights March 13, 2009

 In response to a Bloomberg News lawsuit, the Federal Reserve said that its Board of Governors receives daily reports on the bailout loans for financial institutions, but refuse to make the information public.  Releasing the names of borrowers and loans, they say, would cast “a stigma” on those institutions receiving some $1.9 trillion (yes, Trillion) in emergency credit from taxpayers and collateral assets.

On February 26, Ron Paul introduced the Federal Reserve Transparency Act (HR 1207), and this is a perfect example of why it is needed.

Secrecy of the Federal Reserve was the focus of a Senate Banking Committee hearing last Thursday.  In a sworn statement, Susan E. McLaughlin, a senior VP in markets group of the Fed bank of NY said the bank provides “select members and staff of the Board of Governors with daily and weekly reports” on Primary Dealer Credit Facility borrowing, which “include the names of the primary dealers that have borrowed from the PDCF, individual loan amounts, composition of securities pledged and rates for specific loans.” But no one on the outside is allowed to see them.

Committee member Richard Shelby (R-AL) declared, “If the American taxpayer’s money is at stake, and it is, big time, I believe the American taxpayers, the people, and this committee, we need to know who benefited, where this money went. There is no transparency here. We are going to find out.”

Last November 7, Bloomberg sued under the Freedom of Information Act, asking for details on 11 Federal Reserve lending programs.  Most of the relevant documents are at the Fed Bank of NY, which, according to the Fed, isn’t covered under FOIA law.

Representative Paul’s bill has been referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.  It mandates transparency and government-level audits of the Fed and removes all restrictions on the Government Accountability Office, requiring a full audit by the GAO by the end of 2010.

Even if you supported the bailout, don’t you want to know where the money is going?  Senator Shebly said “The Fed and the Treasury can be secretive for a while, but not forever.”  Unfortunately they can, unless we demand otherwise.  HR 1207 is desperately needed now.

Source: Bloomberg News - Fed refuses to release bank data, insists on secrecy March 5, 2009

In his tireless quest for sound money in the United States, Texas Congressman Ron Paul introduced H.R. 1207, the Federal Reserve Transparency Act.

The Act mandates transparency and government-level audits of the Federal Reserve.  It would remove all restrictions on the Government Accountability Office audits of the Federal Reserve and also open its activities to the press and public.  It also requires a full audit by the GAO by the end of 2010.

For those unfamiliar with why this is important, here is what Paul had to say when introducing the bill:

Madame Speaker,

I rise to introduce the Federal Reserve Transparency Act. Throughout its nearly 100-year history, the Federal Reserve has presided over the near-complete destruction of the United States dollar. Since 1913 the dollar has lost over 95% of its purchasing power, aided and abetted by the Federal Reserve’s loose monetary policy. How long will we as a Congress stand idly by while hard-working Americans see their savings eaten away by inflation? Only big-spending politicians and politically favored bankers benefit from inflation.

Serious discussion of proposals to oversee the Federal Reserve is long overdue. I have been a longtime proponent of more effective oversight and auditing of the Fed, but I was far from the first Congressman to advocate these types of proposals. Esteemed former members of the Banking Committee such as Chairmen Wright Patman and Henry B. Gonzales were outspoken critics of the Fed and its lack of transparency.

Since its inception, the Federal Reserve has always operated in the shadows, without sufficient scrutiny or oversight of its operations. While the conventional excuse is that this is intended to reduce the Fed’s susceptibility to political pressures, the reality is that the Fed acts as a foil for the government. Whenever you question the Fed about the strength of the dollar, they will refer you to the Treasury, and vice versa. The Federal Reserve has, on the one hand, many of the privileges of government agencies, while retaining benefits of private organizations, such as being insulated from Freedom of Information Act requests.

The Federal Reserve can enter into agreements with foreign central banks and foreign governments, and the GAO is prohibited from auditing or even seeing these agreements. Why should a government-established agency, whose police force has federal law enforcement powers, and whose notes have legal tender status in this country, be allowed to enter into agreements with foreign powers and foreign banking institutions with no oversight? Particularly when hundreds of billions of dollars of currency swaps have been announced and implemented, the Fed’s negotiations with the European Central Bank, the Bank of International Settlements, and other institutions should face increased scrutiny, most especially because of their significant effect on foreign policy. If the State Department were able to do this, it would be characterized as a rogue agency and brought to heel, and if a private individual did this he might face prosecution under the Logan Act, yet the Fed avoids both fates.

More importantly, the Fed’s funding facilities and its agreements with the Treasury should be reviewed. The Treasury’s supplementary financing accounts that fund Fed facilities allow the Treasury to funnel money to Wall Street without GAO or Congressional oversight. Additional funding facilities, such as the Primary Dealer Credit Facility and the Term Securities Lending Facility, allow the Fed to keep financial asset prices artificially inflated and subsidize poorly performing financial firms.

The Federal Reserve Transparency Act would eliminate restrictions on GAO audits of the Federal Reserve and open Fed operations to enhanced scrutiny. We hear officials constantly lauding the benefits of transparency and especially bemoaning the opacity of the Fed, its monetary policy, and its funding facilities. By opening all Fed operations to a GAO audit and calling for such an audit to be completed by the end of 2010, the Federal Reserve Transparency Act would achieve much-needed transparency of the Federal Reserve. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

So far the bill has 11 co-sponsors:

Rep. Lynn Woolsey [D-CA]

Rep. Ted Poe [R-TX]

Rep. Walter Jones [R-NC]

Rep. Roscoe Bartlett [R-MD]

Rep. Steve Kagen [D-WI]

Rep. Dan Burton [R-IN]

Rep. Bill Posey [R-FL]

Rep. Dennis Rehberg [R-MT]

Rep. Paul Broun [R-GA]

Rep. Neil Abercrombie [D-HI]

Rep. Michele Bachmann [R-MN]

The bill itself is only 446 words long and can be found HERE.

This stands in stark contrast to the 11,000 page stimulus bill, and yet, which would really be more beneficial to America?

Sources: Politonomist - Ron Paul Introduces ‘Federal Reserve Transparency Act ‘ March 1, 2009

Liberty Maven - Ron Paul’s Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009 March 1, 2009

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was up in arms on Saturday over a U.S. report on narcotics, declaring Obama’s drug policies are no different than Bush’s.

The report, released by the U.S. Department of State on Friday, said “Geography, corruption, a weak judicial system, incompetent and in some cases complicit security forces, and lack of international counternarcotics cooperation make (Venezuela) vulnerable to illicit drug transshipments.”

On Saturday, an angry Chavez offered his rebuttal in a speech:

Is there a new government in the United States or is it Bush still in power? Obama seems to be a continuation of the Bush era. But it doesn’t matter to me. Regardless of US imperialism, this revolution will continue its course.

The Obama administration has again attacked Venezuela. He said that Venezuela and I, even citing my name, do not cooperate in the fight against drug trafficking. The country that most supports drug trafficking on this planet is the United States.

The United States is the world’s leading consumer of drugs. Why can’t they stop drugs from coming into their country? Obama, you take care of your business and I’ll take care of mine. Don’t mess with me, Mr Obama.

While I certainly don’t have any desire to defend a wannabe dictator such as Chavez, he is right that U.S. drug enforcement efforts in other countries is an imperialistic act.  We have no place there and certainly should not be spending any taxpayer money for such an undertaking.  Not to mention (as I’ve said here many times) that it is unconstitutional and therefore illegal.

Meanwhile, at a recent World Economic Forum, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned the United States about its slide towards socialism.

He tried to explain to the U.S. that  “Excessive intervention in economic activity and blind faith in the state’s omnipotence” is a “mistake.” Putin went on to remind that state control of the Soviet economy made the nation “totally uncompetitive.”

When the leader of the former USSR warns you not to “turn a blind eye to the spirit of free enterprise,” perhaps it is time to reevaluate your economic policy.

Sources: AFP - Chavez says Obama same as Bush on drug war February 28, 2009

Common Sense - Ears Burning February 25, 2009

President Obama’s promise that his administration will be the most transparent in history has already fallen by the wayside with the latest “stimulus.”  It was rushed through Congress without first publishing it online for the promised five days so that citizens can review it.

Also, the bill is some 11,000 pages…have any members of congress who argued so vehemently for it actually read it?  Any anyone?  But no matter, we are in an “emergency.” This is the exact same tactic that was used to push through the Patriot Act after 9/11, and countless other questionable legislation thoughout history.

Paul Jacobs, president of Citizens in Charge , summed it up well - “it would take bigger brains than the president has in his trust — or we have on tap on this spheroid we call Earth — to demonstrate why the spending is needed a mere five days earlier than his transparency promise would allow. Five days won’t add an appreciable kick to any alleged stimulus.”

Just go to the Recovery.gov website - here is the message you are met by:

They are kind enough to let us know that they will let us know what they are going to do with our tax dollars after it is too late for us to do anything about it.  This is what passes for “transparency”?

Source: Townhall - Government Emergency February 15, 2009

Investigations into the early days of the $125 billion reconstruction effort in Iraq have produced 35 convictions so far.  Most of them involved private contractors or mid-level officials.  Now for the first time top U.S. officials are under scrutiny.

Last month federal investigators subpoenaed personal bank records of Army Col. Anthony B. Bell.  Now retired, Bell was in charge of reconstruction contracting in Iraq during 2003-04, when the small operation became a huge undertaking.

Also under investigation is Air Force Lt. Col. Ronald W. Hirtle, who served as a senior contracting officer in Baghdad in 2004.  While both said they have nothing to hide, a number of recent cases indicate widespread corruption in the operation these two men helped to run.

Figuring prominently in all of this is information garnered form Dale C. Stoffel, an American arms dealer/contractor who was killed in Iraq in 2004.  He told authorities how tens of thousands of dollars were stuffed in pizza boxes delivered to American contracting offices in Baghdad, and that payoffs were made in paper bags throughout the Green Zone.

The investigations are being conducted by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, the Justice Department, the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command, along with other federal agencies.

In perhaps the highest profile case to this point, Army Maj. John L. Cockerham pleaded guilty to taking almost $10 million in bribes from 2004-07, when he worked as a contract officer.

Last December, a 513 page report from Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction declared the $100+ billion U.S. led reconstruction effort was a complete failure.  By mid-2008, some $117 billion had been spent, $50 billion of it was U.S. taxpayer money.

Let us remember this conversation between then Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Jay Garner, chief of the short-lived Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance:

“What do you think that’ll cost?” Mr. Rumsfeld asked of the more expansive plan.

“I think it’s going to cost billions of dollars,” Mr. Garner said.

“My friend,” Mr. Rumsfeld replied, “if you think we’re going to spend a billion dollars of our money over there, you are sadly mistaken.”

Sources: New York Times - Inquiry on Graft in Iraq Focuses on U.S. Officers February 14, 2009

New York Times - Official History Spotlights Iraq Rebuilding Blunders December 13, 2008