Politics

It’s good to live in Texas

/ hsoi

A new study was released, Freedom in the 50 States: An Index of Personal and Economic Freedom by William P. Ruger & Jason Sorens, from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. (h/t to Volokh).

Texas came in 5th overall. Not bad for this freedom-loving soul. Certainly one reason I love to live here and have little desire to leave Texas is because freedoms are pretty good here. There’s room for improvement and of course there are threats to freedom every day… but you just gotta keep vigilant.

On abortion and freedom

/ hsoi

I was reading this article this morning that motivated me to finally write on this matter. But it’s a matter that’s been on my mind for some time. I’m not writing on this being a moral or religious issue for me, but rather an issue of freedom.

You see, I used to believe in being “pro-choice,” and in some regards I still do. There is no eliminating abortion from society, so keeping it safe is better than letting it go illegal. Of course, perhaps if it was illegal it might stave things off, but look at how our “War Against Drugs” is working and you’ll realize that being illegal doesn’t really stop things and instead can create a whole host of other problems. But whereas someone consuming drugs ultimately only affects themselves, abortion does directly affect someone else: that unborn child, even if at the time of the abortion it’s little more than a clump of cells. And thus, I still have a lot of inner debate about the issue. There’s moral conflicts, Libertarian conflicts, legal issues, ideal issues, practical issues….

But one thing I can see clearly is infringement upon freedom: this so-called “Freedom of Choice Act”. I fail to see where there’s any freedom of choice. If a doctor is forced to give an abortion on-demand, where is there any freedom of choice for that doctor? If a hospital is forced to provide services that go against their moral and religious backing (many hospitals have religious affiliation) and if they refuse to provide abortion services they lose Federal money and thus can no longer operate and serve the greater community… where is the freedom of choice in that, not only for the hospital but for the larger community now without a hospital? If you as a taxpayer now must fund an activity you find wrong, because you cannot choose to not pay your taxes nor how your tax money is spent, where is the freedom of choice in that?

Freedom is something we must give to others if we wish it for ourselves.

To take freedom from one to allow freedom for another, that is not true freedom. To force one against their moral grain for the benefit of another, that is not true freedom. To force one to subsidize another, that is not freedom. To use the force of law to inflict your beliefs upon the entire nation, that is not freedom. To grow the power of government, to allow it more control over my body, my conscience, my life, that is not freedom.

Folks, if you really want freedom of choice, make sure that what you work for will truly provide that. No, it won’t be easy, no it won’t be something quick to come up with, and yes we must come to accept that the choices of some may not be the same choices we would make for ourselves but those choices are theirs to make and they will receive the consequences (good or bad) of their choices. Freedom does require you to think and act self-less-ly, not selfishly. If you really want to live in world where you are free to choose in whatever you think, say, or do, make sure your efforts ensure others — especially those that stand in opposition to you — remain free as well. Anything less is not true freedom.

Keepin’ on

/ hsoi

I’ve always found Xavier’s blog to be filled with good stuff… one of the better blogs overall out there.

Yesterday he writes about “On Keeping On Keeping On” and I have to agree with him. One reason I became an NRA Certified Instructor was to help people learn about firearms. I changed, I know others can too. It’s difficult to preach change to a large group and expect change to happen, but working one-on-one with folks you can speak directly to their needs, address their concerns. I won’t lie, I don’t bullshit; honesty is the only way to go about things. I’ll do my best to avoid politics, but there’s inheriently a political component to this. Still, by going one-on-one you can gauge the audience and tailor the message best (e.g. you can avoid politics unless asked; if they’re for sport, you can go that route; if they’re for self-defense you can go that route; etc.). If at the end of it all they’re not going to “see it my way” that’s ok… at least if they were willing to engage in the conversation, and that’s something. That they were willing to let a seed be sown, even if it doesn’t sprout today, maybe it will sometime later.

We cannot hold a grudge. We cannot let our anger be our driving force, especially if it closes us off. Not only does that make us look bad, but it won’t help bring new people into the fold. Think about it. If a sheep sees an angry dog bearing big teeth, it doesn’t matter if that angry dog is a wolf or a sheepdog — it’s still a big predator with teeth that the sheep is going to be afraid of and avoid. So you sheepdogs, think about how to win the trust of those sheep. How to better present yourself, how to better and honestly gain their trust and realize that we’re The Good Guys. And perhaps, just perhaps, be able to teach those sheep how to show some teeth as well.

Texas Concealed Carry on Campus bills introduced

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

Just read the word that SB 1164 and HB 1893 have been introduced to the Texas State Legislature.

If you live in Texas, contact your State Senator and State Representative and let them know your opinion on the matter.

And so it begins

/ hsoi / 5 Comments

The chOsen One claimed he wasn’t going to take our guns, that he wasn’t going to tread on our Second Amendment guaranteed but God-given freedom. I knew he lied then, his “change.gov” policies made it clear he lied, and now they’re trying to gain momentum by claiming it’s for the good of stoping drugs and violence in Mexico. Read about it here, and here, and here, and here.

This is dangerous waters Mr. Obama and the Democrat-controlled Congress are treading into. With history of the previous AWB, basically the Congress got a major housecleaning after 1994. Bill Clinton even acknowledges losses were due to the passing of the AWB. If Mr. Obama wishes to have a long legacy, this is not the route to take.

 

Updated: and here. and good stuff here. and more here.

Updated 2: Seems Pelosi is saying no. (h/t to SayUncle). Sounds like someone knows she’ll be looking for a new job if she even thinks about going there. Still, it’s quite evident such things are on the mind of this President, Adminstration, and Congress… we must remain vigilant.

The Politics Test

/ hsoi

Not that these tests really mean anything….

You are a
Social Liberal
(78% permissive)  

and an…
Economic Conservative
(78% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Libertarian

Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid.com: Free Online Dating

 

Which is as I would expect. Squarely Libertarian… inasmuchas tests like this can determine.

Hrm… seems WordPress or something screwed up the graphics… the way they were plotted didn’t make sense. I edited out the graphics and left in the basic numbers.

(h/t to Caleb)

Obama’s speech

/ hsoi

Anthony G. Martin said it well enough about the interesting reasoning within Obama’s speech last night. So, I’ll just let him say it. Click and read.

Updated: Ok, I changed my mind. I’m going through my morning webroll and read this article. It kinda set me off.

He says the economic crisis is one he inherited from Bush. Now I’m no fan of Bush, but last I checked the Presidency had no control over economic matters. That’s the job for Congress, which of course Obama was a part of during the Bush administration. And Obama is on record as voting for all those damn bailouts. So uh…. who helped to create the mess, Mr. Obama? You helped to create that inherited mess.  But maybe this is just showing Obama’s ignorance for the Constitution he’s supposed to be sworn to upholding. I mean, he also believes that government has a role in solving our problems… don’t know where that is in the Constitution, but I guess since he apparently believes it to be the case, then it must be Fact and Truth, right?

Y’know, for all the American families that are having to tighten their belts, most of them are not only reducing their spending but many are also reducing their income. So why is it that the folks in Washington give lip service to reducing their spending, but at the same time just voted to jack up their “income” at the taxpayer expense? If you really want to eliminate all those problems, Mr. Obama, you probably shouldn’t have signed that trillion dollar “stimulus” (go read Anthony Martin’s article above).

Now he’s saying the bank bailout is going to cost more (surprise surprise). So we have to cut spending, but now if Congress has to “do whatever proves necessary”, which just means increase more spending (huh?? which is it?? reduce spending or increase spending?)… which means more borrowing against our grandchildren’s future… which means further tanking the US’s standing in global markets, which means further dollar weakening…. yeah, do whatever’s necessary. Keep flushing the country down the toilet, and continue to use the Constitution as your toilet paper.

*sigh*

People don’t write bullshit, computer’s do.

/ hsoi

Because we all know, inanimate objects do things all by themselves.

We need a ban on computers… it’s the only way to keep our children and Interwebtubes safe, dontchaknow.

Women, firearms, and self-defense

/ hsoi / 3 Comments

Funny how some things come together.

Today I made a post and then I receive a comment from Kellene Bishop from Women Of Caliber. Never heard of her or her group before, but I’m starting to read her blog and she presents some good food for thought. She is of course geared towards women and self-defense issues.

Then I’m reading over at Joe Huffman’s blog and he links to the brief of amicae curiae 126 women state legislators and academics in support of respondant.

Kellene, looks like some good stuff for your cause.