LIBERTY: College prof can’t see the value of the Electoral College

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/07/24/MNGIHK4CSQ1.DTL

SACRAMENTO
Stanford professor stumps for electoral alternative
— Matthew Yi, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
— Monday, July 24, 2006
***Begin Quote***

(07-24) 04:00 PDT Sacramento — A Stanford University computer science professor has come up with an idea to circumvent the more than 200-year-old Electoral College system and institute a national popular vote to elect the president of the United States.

The proposal by John Koza, who also invented the scratch-off lottery ticket, is receiving serious consideration by lawmakers in several states. Legislators in California, New York, Colorado, Illinois and Missouri have sponsored bills to enact such a plan.

Koza’s scheme calls for an interstate compact that would require states to throw all of their electoral votes behind the winner of the national popular vote, regardless of which candidate wins in each state. The plan doesn’t require all 50 states to join, but a combination of states that represent a majority (at least 270) of the electoral votes. If the largest states join in the agreement, only 11 would be needed.

***AND***

Proponents say Koza’s proposal is ingenious because it would avoid the immensely difficult task of trying to get rid of the Electoral College system by amending the U.S. Constitution.

***End Quote***

Oh, of course, they don’t like that the current Electoral College system does NOT give the socialists on the East and West Coasts the answer that they wanted to hear. (Personally, I can’t see much difference between the Democan and the Republicrat.) SO they want to change the system.

Never mind, that the Electoral College was specifically DESIGNED to prevent the large states from dominating the small states. Never mind that the system eliminates the need for a precise accurate count in most state. (I’m not sure the dead old white guys thought of that problem.) Never mind that they want to do this without the muss and fuss of amending that old Constitution thing — a back room deal between the politicians of 11 states — oligarchy? — is all that is really needed.

And, that is just off the top of my head.

By the way, the invention of the scratch off lottery ticket probably has done more to impoverish the bottom half of the population than any other invention other than sales tax. Single-handedly he has allow the gubamint to steal more money that any bookie. So, if that is his credential, then I am singularly unimpressed. If the Intelligent Designer needed my advice, then I’d suggest he has to do extra penance for that invention. And, clean up all those darn scrapings at every 7-11 cash register.

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Posted by reinkefj

MONEY: Pennies … are no more money than the FRBie!

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

http://www.mises.org/story/2254

***Begin Quote***

Of course, with the continuing possibility of inflation with fiat money, we will one day find “give a nickel, take a nickel” trays, and perhaps even “give a dollar, take a dollar” trays, at the convenience store.
***End Quote***

Remember when pennies would buy something? I do. The joke of the penny is on us. We have allowed the gubamint to institutionalize their theft of our money. Prior to FDR’s gold grab, money was a “store of value” as we were taught in economics class. Now it’s a depreciating good that silently and transparently rots. At least you can see a sinking ship, you can’t see the gubamint “clipping coins”, like the kings and prices of old. They’ve automated the process. The dollar bill in your wallet shrinks in value 5% to 10% every year and you don’t realize it. Inflation sticks it to the savers, the old folks on fixed incomes, and the not-rich (i.e., the poor and middle class). Wonder why there’s a real estate boom? Cause they can’t print any more of it. And, when the Japanese get tired of sending us Toyotas for little green pieces of paper, when the Chinese get tired of that trade imbalance, and when the Arabs get their gold dinar, what do you think happens to all those pretty green pieces of paper? Yup, the chickens come home to roost. Read about what you can do with a Confederate dollar or the hyper inflation in post WWI Germany. It’s coming here sooner rather than later.

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Posted by reinkefj

FUNY: Abbott & Costello and “Who’s on first?”

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

I love it!

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Posted by reinkefj

GUNS: Criminal brings a knife to a gun fight? Surprise, surprise!

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

http://lonestartimes.com/2006/07/22/armed-citizen-stops-stabbing-spree/

Armed Citizen Stops Stabbing Spree
– Lonestar Times

***Begin Quote***

Proponents of gun control often use news of workplace massacres to justify their crusade against the Second Amendment. Try to reconcile that with this situation: “A knife-wielding grocery store employee attacked eight co-workers, seriously injuring five before a witness pulled a gun and stopped him, police said.”
***End Quote***

Here we have the principle of an armed citizenry act as the police when they are not around. Note that the unarmed citizen was protected by the voluntary action of an armed citizen. Criminals have to guess who are the sheep and who are the guard dogs in disguise. I’m reminded of a cartoon, where the wolf carries away the biggest sheep in the flock, only to find the guard dog unzipping the costume, and punishing him. I’d like my fellow citizens to have that protective uncertainty. Plus, in the cited case, how many of us, unarmed, would confront this attacker? It’d be fool hardy. I would like to have seen the expression on the knife weilder’s face when he was looking down the barrel of a gun. I imagine he could get on the ground fast enough. See, that’s the part that gets under reported, guns don’t necessarily have to be fired to bring peace to a situation.

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Posted by reinkefj

WRITING: ETR quotes one of my emails to Bill Bonner at the Daily Reconing

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Bonner wrote about “created” equal on Lew Rockwell.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/bonner/bonner267.html
http://www.dailyreckoning.com/Issues/2006/DRUS071106.html


***Begin Quote***

As for the main truth that Jefferson thought self-evident, that “all men are created equal,” we are even less certain. What made him think it was self-evident, we don’t know. All the evidence we’ve seen tells us just the opposite – men are not born equal. One is rich; one is poor. One is fat; one is skinny. One has Viking blue eyes and pale skin; the other is a Blackamoor with eyes like burning coals and skin the color of soot. Maybe twins are born equal, but the rest of us are as variable as snowflakes. No two are alike. No two are equal.

***End Quote***

So, since I was taught to think that Jefferson was absolutely correct, I jumped to his defense as I was taught many years ago.

**Begin My Response***

I’ve bought and read your book. I follow your writings in Worldnet Daily with interest. If I may be so bold, I think you’re not understanding a distinction that Jefferson was making.

I’d like to share a grammar school lesson I got in the fifth or sixth grade of Catholic elementary school. Bear in mind that this was the fifties, and the boys were taught by the Christian Brothers. These guys were tough. Many of them, if not all, were WWII or Korean War vets. And, they had answers for most tough questions. They also were pretty blunt. And, not a lot of patience for distinctions that did not make a difference. Strangely, they took a pretty strong position on the very topic you cited. So, clearly, it was not a trivial distinction to them.
Jefferson wrote ‘all men are created equal.’ To these battle-hardened vets, there was nothing ‘wrong’ about this assertion. Quizzically, they would say, ‘All men ARE created equal. But, all men are NOT born equal.’

They made a BIG deal out of that. You had to approach every person with an open mind. With justice for the SOBs (Swell Old Boys)! With charity for all the people who weren’t born with the advantages we had. Report cards had things like ‘respects the rights of others,’ ‘works well with others,’ and my personal favorite: ‘helps others reach their potential.’

There were a lot of funny lessons all designed to help us learn what they were trying to teach. There was one activity that had envelopes with rewards and punishments in them at random – with random rewards and punishments written on the outside. Lesson: Don’t judge a book by its cover! Tests where all the students’ grades were equal to the lowest grade in the class. Lesson: Teamwork! Classes were split into sections – smart, average, stupid, and dumb – with tests graded on improvement. Lesson: Just cause you’re smart doesn’t guarantee you’ll win! Halfway through a test, the rules were changed, no sympathy. Lesson: Life throws curves! And we had to adapt, live with it, and grow up.

So, there is a theoretical ‘created,’ like the theory of poker. And then there is the ‘born,’ like playing the hand you’re dealt.

Hope this ramble makes some sense, and explains what I think Jefferson was trying to say. Seems obvious to me, but then I was taught about life by some Marines.”

***End My Response***

I was absolutely tickled that it was reused in the Early To Rise issue.

http://www.earlytorise.com/archive/html/072406-2.html

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Posted by reinkefj