Political notes

Whew, a long time since the last post. I promise to be more prolific. Herewith some political notes.

(Warning Label: Sam considers active politics a legacy disorder from humanity's first 5000 years of recorded history. He hopes to help encourage the world to move toward a libertarian, limited republic system that will protect people from each other and also from politicians by not giving governments much power at all. Governments were not intended to be social service agencies, anymore than Pit Bulls were intended to be lap dogs.)

Don Siegelman
The former governor of Alabama was, according to an article in this week's Time magazine, more or less framed by prosecutors, who happened to be Republicans, and Siegelman happened to be a Democrat. Don got his start in politics as a staffer for the McGovern campaign in Alabama in 1972, and went on to be exec of the Alabama Democratic Party and hold various elected statewide offices, including governor from 1999 to 2003. He was barely defeated for re-election by Republican Bob Riley in 2002. Although Don's political ideas are nothing to write home about, from a libertarian perspective, he does not deserve, in Sam's opinion, to be sitting in a federal prison in Louisiana when there are a lot of real political crooks running free.

Ron Paul
Representative Paul continues to be the only authentic candidate in the presidential race, of either party, holding exactly the same libertarian positions he has held, and voted according to, since he first came to Congress from Texas several decades ago. (He is the only person in congressional history to win election three different times by defeating an incumbent.)

If Paul can manage to raise more money, get momentum going into January, and avoid Rottweiler interviewers like Bill O'Reilly, there is an outside chance he could be nominated or end up on the ticket with Giuliani, in which case the latter would probably adopt a lot of Paul's ideology. (Why? Because libertarian ideas are superior, of course.)

Fred Thompson
The former Senator and former television DA should return home to Tennessee as quickly as possible and help his wife raise their young daughter. Presumably he has plenty of money after several years on "Law & Order" and, being retirement age, will have plenty of time.

The Democrats
With the single exception of Bill Richardson, this is as discouraging a group of candidates as can be imagined. All want to expand government, decrease liberty, raise taxes and create a National Nanny State. None should be in public office, rather they should all be working at social service nonprofit organizations where they can satisfy their urges to do good and inflate their egos at a cost borne only by those willing to voluntarily contribute to said organizations.

The Other Republicans
Did Sam say that the Democrats are a discouraging group? Well, the other Republicans are equally discouraging, including the incredibly-flip-flopping Romney, the anti-First Amendment John McCain, etc. Mike Huckabee seems like a nice enough guy, but he's still got statist positions on too many issues. We issue a similar recommendation for these fellows: please return to your home states and find honest work outside government. It will do you, and the rest of us, a lot of good. Donate your remaining campaign funds to organizations fighting mental disorders.

Congress
Whoa, Nellie. Remember the Democrats were elected primarily to end the Iraq War? Well, not only have they not ended the war, they've voted more funds for the Bush administration to continue it. Meantime, the output of Congress has been new entitlements, expanded entitlements, more regulations, and of course attempts at higher taxes.

They're now looking to bring back that wonderful political musical from the 30s - The Smoot-Hawley Tarriff - that played so well then it helped keep the Depression going years longer than it would have otherwise. The main theme will be anti-protectionist with discordant notes being sung off stage by the WTO and several developing countries trying to actually work their way out of poverty -- places like Senegal, etc.

Nancy Pelosi's main accomplishment seems to have been banning smoking too close to House chamber doors. Harry Reid's main accomplishment seems to be a continuing impression of that bossy great uncle who Sam always avoided at family reunions. They both look and sound really important, but have thoroughly failed to accomplish the one clear mandate given last autumn, namely the end of the war.

Consensics
Sam proposes to replace politics, which resembles warfare in content and action, with consensics, patterned on the decision-making process of the Iroquoian Confederacy. The process eschewed factions and demanded that every possible consequence, good and bad, of a proposed action or policy be considered before a final decision, usually virtually unanimous, was made. And, by the way, a council of elder women had final, final signoff after that. How would that work for you? Sounds very good to me, given that politics in the US has now degenerated, inevitably, to the level of packs of wild hyenas fighting over carcasses. Wait, let me take that back - it's insulting to the hyenas.

Until next time...Sam in Annapolis.