If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free.
-P. J. O'Rourke
(Also prophetic, he said that before Obummercare.)
The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. The Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work and then they get elected and prove it.
-P. J. O'Rourke
There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences.
-P. J. O'Rourke
The interesting thing about staring down a gun barrel is how small the hole is where the bullet comes out, yet what a big difference it would make in your social schedule.
-P. J. O'Rourke
The whole idea of our government is this: If enough people get together and act in concert, they can take something and not pay for it.
-P. J. O'Rourke
Freedom is not empowerment. Empowerment is what the Serbs have in Bosnia. Anybody can grab a gun and be empowered. It's not entitlement. An entitlement is what people on welfare get, and how free are they? It's not an endlessly expanding list of rights — the "right" to education, the "right" to food and housing. That's not freedom, that's dependency. Those aren't rights, those are the rations of slavery - hay and a barn for human cattle.
There are just two rules of governance in a free society: Mind your own business. Keep your hands to yourself. Keep your hands to yourself, Bill. Hillary, mind your own business.
Health care is too expensive, so the Clinton administration is putting Hillary in charge of making it cheaper. (This is what I always do when I want to spend less money — hire a lawyer from Yale.) If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free.
And the Clinton administration launched an attack on people in Texas because those people were religious nuts with guns. Hell, this country was founded by religious nuts with guns. Who does Bill Clinton think stepped ashore on Plymouth Rock? Peace Corps volunteers? Or maybe the people in Texas were attacked because of child abuse. But, if child abuse was the issue, why didn't Janet Reno tear-gas Woody Allen?
You know, if government were a product, selling it would be illegal.
Government is a health hazard. Governments have killed many more people than cigarettes or unbuckled seat belts ever have.
Term limits aren't enough. We need jail.
There is a fine line in the Third World between half a dozen customs officials waiting for you to offer them a bribe and half a dozen customs officials waiting for you to offer them a bribe so they can throw you in jail.
War is a great asshole magnet.
When a private entity does not produce the desired results, it is (certain body parts excepted) done away with. But a public entity gets bigger.
When a government controls both the economic power of individuals and the coercive power of the state ... This violates a fundamental rule of happy living: Never let the people with all the money and the people with all the guns be the same people.
A good one Joel. In terms of pure effectiveness, one wonders how anyone can support the government’s war on anything. I’ve tried sharing with friends Block’s ideas about drugs in “Defending the Undefendable.” There’s always the “yes, but” response. The propaganda reaches deeply into the social consciousness. More conversation is required. Thanks.
Careful with those misplaced decimal points. They may be trivial, or they may not, as I found out one year with my tax return. For the record, the first known hominins appeared between 6 and 7 million years ago. Not 200 million. You probably meant 200 thousand years ago, roughly the point at which homo sapiens first emerged and, presumably, began to get high....
Too funny. I wasn't there, of course, but the evidence points overwhelmingly to the earth being no older than about 6,000 years. Look it up; it's never been easier to find the truth. That is, if you want the truth.
I hope Trump, in making this very appropriate pardon, grasps the oh so very significant assessment that you have offered. He should as it is quite obvious (two sequential 40 year sentences +) that as has been so often the case the DOJ twisted justice into tyranny.
Great article. While I despise all drugs, including coffee and chocolate, I recognize that people need to be free to do what they please, whether for good or evil. God agrees, BTW, He is the original "libertarian." If He were not, Jesus didn't have to die on the cross. God does not force people to do the right thing, that is satan's method. Instead, God invites us to receive His spirit.
You mention China and Russia . They do not have many disgruntled citizens because they are not breathing any more. These 2 countries are just the tip if the ice berg.
I am conflicted about the war on drugs and allowing the free market to flourish. I think it would be liberating to just say "tota lfreedom: don't outlaw anything." But there are real problems with that, as we can see at our southern border. IOW, at the very least we should have laws regarding who can cross our borders and how, right? Or is national sovereignty not to be preserved either?
I worked for a short while in Bill Bennett's ONDCP (office of the Drug Czar). I think we all knew we were fighting a losing war, but at the same time knew the outrageous quantities of cash surrounding the drug trade impose an enormous influence on any semblance of free markets and law enforcement. It's a tough dilemma, and not one that is resolved by saying "ahh, let everybody do what s/he pleases." At the same time there were more than a few of us who said the best solution to the drug trade was to let people ingest so much they eventually killed themselves. Problem solved. Anyone who believes that should walk the streets of San Francisco and see what that leads to.
I have an addictive personality. I know others with the same condition. I don't object to the government telling me I cannot trade in or consume certain narcotic substances. Others don't need this hand on the shoulder, but I don't think we suffer unduly by making drugs hard to buy. Admittedly, this also raises the specter of black markets and lawlessness. I don't see that Ross Ulbricht solved this dilemma.
I get it. I despise all drugs, and the selfish attitude that compels people to ingest them, but recognize that you can't make people do the right thing. But, you can let them receive the consequences of their actions, and serve as a deterrent for others. Nevada does it "right," they allow whores and gambling, but only in certain areas, and they tax it. Las Vegas is one of the saddest places on earth. It looks all glittery, but underneath, it's just filth.
Nevada also legalized the sale of "recreational" marijuana while I lived there. The justification they gave is that this would destroy the black market dope trade and earn lots of money for schools. Neither happened: the black market marijuana trade increased dramatically (including the construction of very large growing operations by international groups), and the amount of money collected and spent on education was tiny. Lose-lose.
Dear Joel, please do not follow in the footsteps of the much-maligned media by getting simple well-known facts wrong. Humankind have NOT been around for 200 million years. There is probably no evidence that humanoids (or whatever) were using mind-altering substances 2 million years ago, which is perhaps what you meant to say. If there is evidence, please let us know where it comes from.
Thank you! ‘twas a mistake kindly point out by a vigilant reader, and already corrected. Luckily, I didn’t need two hundred million years to make the point…
What would you expect, dear reader, from a bull market in government? Where abject failure is rewarded with an ever-increasing budget and where no idea is too vicious or too stupid to be given a place on the growing list of federal agencies?............................................................
Might we be in a space and time where we might end this? It is time for us proles to war against it!
"To be governed is to be watched over, inspected, spied on, directed, legislated at, regimented, closed in, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, estimated, valued, censured, commanded--by creatures who have neither the right, nor the wisdom, nor the virtue."
Yes indeed, however at it's core he was "canned" because, "they wasn't in on it." If he had set that operation up in some small obscure location with full revenue "cuts" going out funding "people and projects," he would STILL be rolling today. He tried to "short stop customers," outside of the crack house. He forgot where he was at. "You sell mines or you don't sell nobody's." Thug life. "Don't sell dope."
Back in the day, the smart marijuana growers in Kalifornia paid their state and federal taxes. They were left alone. Or so I was told, and I don't doubt it.
Humboldt County, et.al. Yes, peaceable commerce in that particular crop and lucrative returns at that time. No drugs, just crop, just like any other form of Agriculture, and that's the way the sheriff looked at it. Grease a few palms, keep it legit and everyone's happy. The American way. Then the cartels and meth cooks came in. Ruined it. Then California went "legal," that was the double whammy. They are giving it away now for gas money.
Had to look up tricolon! Great piece and such an intelligent analysis. Has any country ended drug problems? We pretty much stopped most smoking in the US by spreading scientific evidence and getting people to quit on their own. It has always seemed to me we should focus on the demanders rather than the providers.
Sorry just couldn’t let you not know this quote if you haven’t read it.
“Once upon a time, in some out of the way corner of that universe which is dispersed into numberless twinkling solar systems, there was a star upon which clever beasts invented knowing. That was the most arrogant and mendacious minute of "world history," but nevertheless, it was only a minute. After nature had drawn a few breaths, the star cooled and congealed, and the clever beasts had to die. One might invent such a fable, and yet he still would not have adequately illustrated how miserable, how shadowy and transient, how aimless and arbitrary the human intellect looks within nature. There were eternities during which it did not exist. And when it is all over with the human intellect, nothing will have happened.”
— Friedrich Nietzsche, “On Truth and Lie in an Extra-Moral Sense”
I’m truly grateful for your Notes. They have truly opened my eyes to the corruption in what seems to be best for the people but in reality is robbing them blind. So very sad.
While traveling in Greece some years back when our boys were young we discovered there was no drinking or smoking age. At first we were a little shocked but after speaking with some local folks there was no drinking or smoking problem with the youth. It was all handled by community working together..my boys had their first beers at age 10, 11, and 14 with me!
You had me at the PJ O’Rourke quote. Informative and thought-provoking piece.
Another dead hero...
Ditto on that quote. Brilliant. But just the beginning. Great piece.
More brilliant quotes from O' Rourke:
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free.
-P. J. O'Rourke
(Also prophetic, he said that before Obummercare.)
The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. The Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work and then they get elected and prove it.
-P. J. O'Rourke
There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences.
-P. J. O'Rourke
The interesting thing about staring down a gun barrel is how small the hole is where the bullet comes out, yet what a big difference it would make in your social schedule.
-P. J. O'Rourke
The whole idea of our government is this: If enough people get together and act in concert, they can take something and not pay for it.
-P. J. O'Rourke
Freedom is not empowerment. Empowerment is what the Serbs have in Bosnia. Anybody can grab a gun and be empowered. It's not entitlement. An entitlement is what people on welfare get, and how free are they? It's not an endlessly expanding list of rights — the "right" to education, the "right" to food and housing. That's not freedom, that's dependency. Those aren't rights, those are the rations of slavery - hay and a barn for human cattle.
There are just two rules of governance in a free society: Mind your own business. Keep your hands to yourself. Keep your hands to yourself, Bill. Hillary, mind your own business.
Health care is too expensive, so the Clinton administration is putting Hillary in charge of making it cheaper. (This is what I always do when I want to spend less money — hire a lawyer from Yale.) If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free.
And the Clinton administration launched an attack on people in Texas because those people were religious nuts with guns. Hell, this country was founded by religious nuts with guns. Who does Bill Clinton think stepped ashore on Plymouth Rock? Peace Corps volunteers? Or maybe the people in Texas were attacked because of child abuse. But, if child abuse was the issue, why didn't Janet Reno tear-gas Woody Allen?
You know, if government were a product, selling it would be illegal.
Government is a health hazard. Governments have killed many more people than cigarettes or unbuckled seat belts ever have.
Term limits aren't enough. We need jail.
There is a fine line in the Third World between half a dozen customs officials waiting for you to offer them a bribe and half a dozen customs officials waiting for you to offer them a bribe so they can throw you in jail.
War is a great asshole magnet.
When a private entity does not produce the desired results, it is (certain body parts excepted) done away with. But a public entity gets bigger.
When a government controls both the economic power of individuals and the coercive power of the state ... This violates a fundamental rule of happy living: Never let the people with all the money and the people with all the guns be the same people.
-P. J. O'Rourke
I have told anyone who would listen that Parliament of Whores should be required reading for all high school seniors.
A good one Joel. In terms of pure effectiveness, one wonders how anyone can support the government’s war on anything. I’ve tried sharing with friends Block’s ideas about drugs in “Defending the Undefendable.” There’s always the “yes, but” response. The propaganda reaches deeply into the social consciousness. More conversation is required. Thanks.
Careful with those misplaced decimal points. They may be trivial, or they may not, as I found out one year with my tax return. For the record, the first known hominins appeared between 6 and 7 million years ago. Not 200 million. You probably meant 200 thousand years ago, roughly the point at which homo sapiens first emerged and, presumably, began to get high....
Thousand it is! Thankfully still sufficient to make the point. Good eye!
Too funny. I wasn't there, of course, but the evidence points overwhelmingly to the earth being no older than about 6,000 years. Look it up; it's never been easier to find the truth. That is, if you want the truth.
Or just go outside and look at some rocks and realise how moronic your assertion is.
I went outside and looked at some rocks. They didn't say anything. Apparently, there was an additional step you failed to mention.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL13eE2x3qhPktufTQOHw0wsMOPdxFky-P
Excellent piece Joel.
Hi Joel, thanks for your assessment here.
I hope Trump, in making this very appropriate pardon, grasps the oh so very significant assessment that you have offered. He should as it is quite obvious (two sequential 40 year sentences +) that as has been so often the case the DOJ twisted justice into tyranny.
🗽✍🏼🇺🇲 PJ O’Rourke,
MEMORY ETERNAL! 🕯️
^the biden/clinton/bho criminals may still get swept up
Another fine piece 🌎 🇦🇷 from
the Prophet Joel of the South ⚖️
Great article. While I despise all drugs, including coffee and chocolate, I recognize that people need to be free to do what they please, whether for good or evil. God agrees, BTW, He is the original "libertarian." If He were not, Jesus didn't have to die on the cross. God does not force people to do the right thing, that is satan's method. Instead, God invites us to receive His spirit.
You mention China and Russia . They do not have many disgruntled citizens because they are not breathing any more. These 2 countries are just the tip if the ice berg.
I was gonna say the same thing. I wonder if that counts the work camps in both and North Korea too.
Well at least there are 2 of us thinking a like.
I am conflicted about the war on drugs and allowing the free market to flourish. I think it would be liberating to just say "tota lfreedom: don't outlaw anything." But there are real problems with that, as we can see at our southern border. IOW, at the very least we should have laws regarding who can cross our borders and how, right? Or is national sovereignty not to be preserved either?
I worked for a short while in Bill Bennett's ONDCP (office of the Drug Czar). I think we all knew we were fighting a losing war, but at the same time knew the outrageous quantities of cash surrounding the drug trade impose an enormous influence on any semblance of free markets and law enforcement. It's a tough dilemma, and not one that is resolved by saying "ahh, let everybody do what s/he pleases." At the same time there were more than a few of us who said the best solution to the drug trade was to let people ingest so much they eventually killed themselves. Problem solved. Anyone who believes that should walk the streets of San Francisco and see what that leads to.
I have an addictive personality. I know others with the same condition. I don't object to the government telling me I cannot trade in or consume certain narcotic substances. Others don't need this hand on the shoulder, but I don't think we suffer unduly by making drugs hard to buy. Admittedly, this also raises the specter of black markets and lawlessness. I don't see that Ross Ulbricht solved this dilemma.
I get it. I despise all drugs, and the selfish attitude that compels people to ingest them, but recognize that you can't make people do the right thing. But, you can let them receive the consequences of their actions, and serve as a deterrent for others. Nevada does it "right," they allow whores and gambling, but only in certain areas, and they tax it. Las Vegas is one of the saddest places on earth. It looks all glittery, but underneath, it's just filth.
Nevada also legalized the sale of "recreational" marijuana while I lived there. The justification they gave is that this would destroy the black market dope trade and earn lots of money for schools. Neither happened: the black market marijuana trade increased dramatically (including the construction of very large growing operations by international groups), and the amount of money collected and spent on education was tiny. Lose-lose.
The same thing happened in Kalifornia. Oh, the plans of mice and men. I wonder if something similar happened when Prohibition ended.
Dear Joel, please do not follow in the footsteps of the much-maligned media by getting simple well-known facts wrong. Humankind have NOT been around for 200 million years. There is probably no evidence that humanoids (or whatever) were using mind-altering substances 2 million years ago, which is perhaps what you meant to say. If there is evidence, please let us know where it comes from.
Thank you! ‘twas a mistake kindly point out by a vigilant reader, and already corrected. Luckily, I didn’t need two hundred million years to make the point…
"Laws of the Jungle
What would you expect, dear reader, from a bull market in government? Where abject failure is rewarded with an ever-increasing budget and where no idea is too vicious or too stupid to be given a place on the growing list of federal agencies?............................................................
Might we be in a space and time where we might end this? It is time for us proles to war against it!
"To be governed is to be watched over, inspected, spied on, directed, legislated at, regimented, closed in, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, estimated, valued, censured, commanded--by creatures who have neither the right, nor the wisdom, nor the virtue."
--Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
Yes indeed, however at it's core he was "canned" because, "they wasn't in on it." If he had set that operation up in some small obscure location with full revenue "cuts" going out funding "people and projects," he would STILL be rolling today. He tried to "short stop customers," outside of the crack house. He forgot where he was at. "You sell mines or you don't sell nobody's." Thug life. "Don't sell dope."
Back in the day, the smart marijuana growers in Kalifornia paid their state and federal taxes. They were left alone. Or so I was told, and I don't doubt it.
Humboldt County, et.al. Yes, peaceable commerce in that particular crop and lucrative returns at that time. No drugs, just crop, just like any other form of Agriculture, and that's the way the sheriff looked at it. Grease a few palms, keep it legit and everyone's happy. The American way. Then the cartels and meth cooks came in. Ruined it. Then California went "legal," that was the double whammy. They are giving it away now for gas money.
Had to look up tricolon! Great piece and such an intelligent analysis. Has any country ended drug problems? We pretty much stopped most smoking in the US by spreading scientific evidence and getting people to quit on their own. It has always seemed to me we should focus on the demanders rather than the providers.
Sorry just couldn’t let you not know this quote if you haven’t read it.
“Once upon a time, in some out of the way corner of that universe which is dispersed into numberless twinkling solar systems, there was a star upon which clever beasts invented knowing. That was the most arrogant and mendacious minute of "world history," but nevertheless, it was only a minute. After nature had drawn a few breaths, the star cooled and congealed, and the clever beasts had to die. One might invent such a fable, and yet he still would not have adequately illustrated how miserable, how shadowy and transient, how aimless and arbitrary the human intellect looks within nature. There were eternities during which it did not exist. And when it is all over with the human intellect, nothing will have happened.”
— Friedrich Nietzsche, “On Truth and Lie in an Extra-Moral Sense”
I’m truly grateful for your Notes. They have truly opened my eyes to the corruption in what seems to be best for the people but in reality is robbing them blind. So very sad.
While traveling in Greece some years back when our boys were young we discovered there was no drinking or smoking age. At first we were a little shocked but after speaking with some local folks there was no drinking or smoking problem with the youth. It was all handled by community working together..my boys had their first beers at age 10, 11, and 14 with me!
So...you started them on the road to perdition?
I'm against young boys smoking. They should be vaping at that age.