Times of Earth TV: Sarah Palin Leads Push Ahead of U.S. Congressional Elections

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Erik Schneider

Source:FRS FreeState

I hope the Tea Party leader who only speaks in quips and one liners (Sarah Palin) is the Republican nominee for president in 2012.  If I weren’t a patriotic American, I would work and volunteer my butt off to make that happen. As a Democrat I see that Sarah Palin, who I admit is an attractive and charming political figure (easy on the eyes as well), has political talent, is likable, and definitely can inspire people.

But put her in a situation where she has to think for herself and doesn’t have prepared material, as in an interview or a debate, and she’s a disaster for the Republican Party. The Tea Party has served the Republican Party well as far as reenergizing the Republican base, which has been asleep thanks to George W. Bush because of the borrowing and spending of his administration. But these are short-term gains and the Tea Party hurts Republicans in the long term as they move farther right with Independents, who tend to be fiscally conservative but liberal or moderate on social issues.

So as a Democrat, I hope the Tea Party and Republicans stay on the course that they are on. But as an American, I hope the Republican Party gets back to Goldwater/Reagan conservative libertarianism, meaning government out of our wallets and bedrooms and off our backs. It’s good for them and the country that they’ve returned to their fiscal conservatism, but for them to be a major party down the road, they need to get back to their social libertarianism or moderation.

And hopefully the Christian Right will splinter off and form its own third party along with the Tea Party, which is even farther to the right of traditional Republicans on fiscal policy. As I see it, the Tea Party has served a useful role in reminding Americans of the need for fiscal responsibility in America. But to me they are just the Christian Right of the 1990s with an economic theme, because they’ve realized that their social or theocratic conservatism scares independent voters and they’ve lost almost all the battles in the Culture War.

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Associated Press: President Obama Urges Democrats Not to Get Discouraged

Posted on October 16, 2010 by Erik Schneider

Source:FRS FreeState

If Democrats fail to get their voters out in the mid-term elections, then there’s no doubt they’ll lose their majority in the House and be in danger of losing their majority in the Senate as well. Democrats are either tied or down among Independents with Republicans so their best shot at retaining control in both chambers in Congress is to energize their sleepy base, especially the social Democrats, and convince them that Republican control of either the House or Senate would be a disaster for the Progressive movement and would almost erase everything that Democrats have fought to accomplish the last 4 years.

Democrats are certain to lose seats in both the House and Senate in the mid-terms and they already know that the question is how many, but can Democrats hold Republican gains in the House to 30 or less where they would still have a 10-seat majority? Or will Democrats lose more then 30 in the House and come close to losing their House majority? Or will Republicans pick up more than 40 seats in the House and have a clear majority like the Democrats?  So the only victory Democrats can hope for in November is holding on to their majorities in both the House and Senate, which is why getting out their vote is critical for them to remain in control of Congress.

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Professor Milton Friedman: The Role of Government in a Free Society (1978)

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Rik Schneider

Attachment-1-408

Source:Basic Economics– Professor Milton Friedman, talking about the role of government in a free society, in 1978.

Source:The FreeState

“Milton Friedman – The role of government in a free society – Socialism & Social Justice Debunked!”

From Basic Economics

My idea of an ideal society, or a “Utopia,” is a society where the people are in charge of not only their government but also their own individual lives. Where people have what Classical Liberal economist Milton Friedman called maximized freedom and responsibility for the individual: where people have the right to live their lives as they see fit as long as they are not hurting anyone else.

I don’t agree with Milton Friedman on economics, at least not on everything. For example, he believed that government had no role in the economy from a regulatory or a supportive standpoint. I think government does have those roles, not a dictatorial role, but a supportive role, to provide a safety net and (not a welfare state) for people who fall through the cracks of capitalism. For example, welfare, unemployment insurance, and Social Security. These empower people at the bottom to acquire the skills and sometimes retraining they need to be self-sufficient.

Economist Friedman believed in a completely free market when it came to the economy and that government had no role in it. I believe in American capitalism, which has a mix of private market economics and a robust private sector, but with solid regulators to prevent and punish abuses in the system such as slave labor, slave wages, and unsafe working conditions. We need these regulators along with a strong but affordable safety net, not welfare state, to empower people to become self-sufficient.

When I talk about maximizing freedom, I mean maximizing the freedom of people to live their own lives as they see fit as long as they are not hurting anyone else. That means legalization with regulation of marijuana, not that I would ever smoke or use it except for a medical condition. Legalize, with regulation, gambling, including casinos, and it looks like casinos will be headed to my Free State of Maryland, which will bring in thousands of much-needed jobs if the industry is regulated properly.

Legalize, with regulation, prostitution. Again I believe government shouldn’t be involved in how people live their own lives, and as long as the prostitution industry is regulated properly, it can be as safe as possible while controlling the spread of disease. As things stand, the oldest profession in the world is still in business and thriving, but we currently have little, if any, control over it. Again, I would never pay for sex, but I don’t have the right, nor does Government in my opinion have the right, to make this decision for others.

Under the U.S. Constitution, homosexuals have the same rights as straight people, but their constitutional rights aren’t protected completely, with adoption and marriage as good examples. But under the Constitution, since gay people (note the word people) have the same rights as straight people, so also should their constitutional rights be protected.

As on most things, I’m pro choice on reproductive rights, because again I don’t believe government has the right to make medical decisions for women, or men for that matter. I’m also pro choice on physician-assisted suicide for mentally competent patients who have unbearably painful medical conditions without a chance for cure, again because I believe Government doesn’t have a role in making medical decisions for people. These decisions should be left to individuals and their doctors.

As I’ve said before, if people have all the options in front of them, they’ll generally make the best decisions for themselves and their families. So let’s let them and let government do what they do best, and perhaps the only thing it does well, which is to play a supportive role and protect people from abusing each other. Laws should be written to protect people from hurting others, not themselves.

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James Miller Center: The Legacy of President Lyndon B. Johnson

Posted on July 6, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

Lyndon Johnson’s Presidency is remembered for the Vietnam War and the miss-handling of it but that’s only part of the story of a five year Presidency. When I think of Lyndon Johnson, I think of not only the best Senate Majority Leader America has ever seen for passing legislation but, also, someone who brought those skills to the White House and became the greatest legislative President America has ever seen. Whether you agree with all of the legislation that President Johnson got passed or none of it or are somewhere in between, you have to give him credit and acknowledge his ability to get legislation passed through Congress.
I also think about what would not have happened had Lyndon Johnson not become President. How long would African-Americans have had to wait for the full citizenship that the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act gave them?  Without LBJ, who secured crucial help from then Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen and some progressive Republican Senators, those bills could not have passed.

How did LBJ get the Civil and Voting Rights Acts through Congress?  He did it by scaring the hell out of Representatives and Senators, especially Southern Democrats, by telling them that if they didn’t allow votes on the bills he wouldn’t support their pork projects in the appropriations bills. If you really want to scare a member of Congress, find a way to prevent their delivering pork to their district or state.  Pork to members is like cocaine to drug addicts.  They don’t think they can survive without it.

In evaluating the presidency of LBJ. a very important consideration is how long would America have to wait for the Civil and Voting Rights Acts to be passed.  I think that President Nixon would have signed those bills into law but he would not of put much effort into getting them through Congress.  The same with President Ford.  I think that President Carter would have of tried to get them through Congress but he didn’t have the respect from Congress that President Johnson did. I think that President Reagan might have been able to get them passed but he and the Republican Senate from 1981-87 would have wanted stripped down and compromised versions of the Acts.

We probably would have waited until President George H.W. Bush or President Clinton, a generation after LBJ, before those bills become Law. Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton didn’t have the respect from Congress that LBJ  had because they had not served in Congress.  Both Congressional parties knew very well that LBJ would do whatever it would take to pass legislation that he thought was in the best interest of the country.  Carter and Clinton had more of a “Get what you can now” approach to negotiating with Congress.

When I think of  a Progressive in political (not pop culture) terms, I think of someone who wants the country as a whole to advance in a positive way.  I think of Lyndon Johnson.  He was a Progressive.  He never saw a problem that he thought could not be solved, whether it was poverty, health care civil rights or whatever.  A lot of times, as in civil rights and Medicare, it worked and sometimes it didn’t, as in Vietnam, but he was always working to bring positive change to America.

So when you look at Lyndon Johnson’s Presidency, there is the stain of the Vietnam War but  remember to look at the whole story.

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Billy Joel: These Are the Times to Remember

Posted on May 31, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

On this beautiful, hot and sunny Memorial Day, the official kickoff of summer in the nations capital, as we go to our cookouts, beaches, pool parties, pub crawls, and whatever else, lets take a moment to remember why this  is all possible.

Before we begin our celebrations, let’s remember our brave American warriors stationed in Europe, Afghanistan, Iraq, Japan, Korea and everywhere else around the World who won’t get to spend this time with their spouses, kids, parents, nephews, nieces, and friends because they’re serving our country so that their fellow americans can.  As we’re celebrating, lets take some time to honor them and their families, who will spend this Memorial Day without each other.

Let’s also remember our brave fallen warriors from Desert  Storm, Desert Shield, Afghanistan, the Civil War, World Wars I, and II, Korea, Vietnam, and all the other wars they’ve fought to keep America safe so that we can celebrate Memorial Day today. Let’s also remember the  sacrifices of our brave warriors who were wounded and who will never fully recover from their injuries.  Let’s not feel that it’s too big of a sacrifice for us to make sure that they receive the health care that they will need for the rest of their lives because of what they sacrificed for America.

So as we go to our cookouts, beaches, pool parties, pub crawls and whatever, else lets take time out to remember who has kept it all possible.

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The White House: President Obama Nominates Elena Kagan to Supreme Court

Posted on May 10, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

When U.S. Justice Paul Stevens announced his retirement from the Supreme Court, I saw it as another opportunity for President Obama and Liberal Democrats, of which I’m one, to appoint another liberal Justice to the Supreme Court who would be there for at least a generation and would fight for the U.S. Constitution and liberal values, which is what I believe we got with Justice Sonia Sotomayor, especially since Democrats also control the Senate with a large nine-seat majority. It took President Bush 5 years to nominate his two Justices to the Supreme Court.

President George W. Bush had a right-wing Republican majority in the Senate, a five-seat majority smaller than Democrats of course, but President Bush was smart enough to appoint hard-core conservatives in John Roberts and Samuel Alito. The two appointees had bipartisan support, so the then Senate Democratic Leadership never really considered blocking Roberts or Alito. The difference for President Obama and other Liberals is that we gained an opportunity to appoint two Justices within the first year of President Obama’s presidency with a large Senate majority to go along with the White House.

I think the President did a very good job appointing as his first Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who is in her mid-fifties and has pretty much voted the way the President was expecting, being a reliable vote on the four-seat liberal wing of the Court. With the President’s second choice, I think he needs to appoint someone who can go toe to toe with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia, two Justices with whom I rarely if ever agree.

But they are two people whom I consider to have brilliant legal minds and have the right approach to making their legal decisions. I usually don’t agree with them, but you can make a credible case for why they believe what they believe and understand why they believe it. Also, it would be useful for the President to appoint a Justice who can persuade other Justices to vote with them, and of course I’m thinking of Justice Anthony Kennedy, the current swing vote on the Supreme Court.

E.J. Dionne said about Elena Kagan that she will be a reliable vote on the Liberal wing of the Supreme Court who can persuade conservative Justice Kennedy to vote with them, not always of course, but enough to make a difference. E.J. Dionne is a Washington progressive columnist and commentator who is also very objective and whose political judgement has my respect. He’s a partisan in the good sense, someone who states his views but then backs them up, and he’s not a political attack dog who attacks conservative Republicans just to attack them.

Elena Kagan also just turned 50 years old and could definitely serve 25-30 years on the Supreme Court if she stays healthy. I don’t know much about Elena Kagan, other than that she served for then Senator Joe Biden when he was Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Biden is a liberal Democrat for whom I have a lot of respect.  Elena Kagan also served in the Clinton White House, again more liberal Democrats for whom I have a lot of respect.

In many ways, despite the bad plate of food (like a typical meal in solitary confinement in prison) that Barack Obama inherited as President, so far in some ways he’s lucky, because he has an opportunity to replace two liberals on the Supreme Court with two liberals as well as a Democratic controlled Senate in his first 2 years as President.

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Associated Press: President Obama: Arizona Immigration Law Miss-Guided: Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Posted on April 24, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

So what would I do?  I’ve said before it’s easier to complain about something than to fix it.  I would have a comprehensive approach to fixing the illegal Immigration problem like the Affordable Care Act’s reform of our health care system.

Boarder Security- 
Increase the number of Boarder Patrol agents on the Southern border, so we have enough resources to protect that border adequately.  Collect dedicated revenue for Customs and the Border Patrol through a fee charged for  border crossings into America from Mexico, Canada, and other countries. 

Employer Fines- 
Place steep fines on employers who hire illegal immigrants and pay them below minimum wage.  Adjust the amount of the fine for the severity of the violation and the wealth of the company. 

Employment Visa- 
Since America is a country where people are expected to work and produce as part of living here and we don’t have the resources to subsidize anybody who’s not capable of supporting themselves, I would only admit immigrants who are capable of working and qualified to do a job needed here.   I would withhold their eligibility for unemployment insurance or welfare until they’re citizens of the United States. 

Probational Residency- 
Since America is a nation of laws, I’m not for giving the 15M or so illegal immigrants who are in America amnesty for entering our country illegally. That contradicts the Rule of Law but I’m also not for attempting to kick out all of these people because it’s simply impractical and inhumane.  I would bring these people out of the dark into the light of America and give them a chance at a normal life under the following conditions:  

They pay a fine based on the length of time they’ve been in the country illegally.  If they can’t pay it at once, installment plans would be available. 

They pay all back taxes to Federal, State and local governments that they might have avoided as illegal immigrants, plus penalties and interest.

They become proficient in the English language so they can better assimilate and improve their employment chances. 

In addition, illegal immigrants should be required to get a Probational Residency ID Card that would have to  be carried on their person like a driver’s license and renewed every year.   Renewal of the card would be based on their ability to meet the conditions of Probational Residency. If they meet the conditions, they can stay for at least another year.  If not, they would be subject to immediate deportation.

These conditions would include a requirement to hold a job or have a private sector sponsor who can support then.  After 10 years, if they’ve met all of the conditions of Probational Residency, they would be granted legal immigrant status and allowed to move towards citizenship.  If they’ve met all conditions except for reparation of back taxes, interest, penalties, and fines, they could remain in the country while their paying off their financial obligations as long as they’re not felons and employed.  They would be subject to annual review until they reach legal immigrant status. 

I think this Comprehensive Approach to solving our illegal immigration problem is more practical and humane than attempting airtight closure of the borders and deportation of15M illegal immigrants. 

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Associated Press: Arizona Governor Signs Arizona Immigration Law

Posted on April 24, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

The Arizona immigration bill is all the evidence needed to conclude that it’s time for  comprehensive immigration reform in America. As President Obama has said, failure of Washington to act will lead to misguided legislation meant to deal with the immigration.   Yesterday, a reporter asked Arizona Governor Jan Brewer what an Illegal Immigrant look like.  She replied that she doesn’t know.  Under the Arizona immigration bill, law enforcement personnel will be able to use race and skin color as factors in deciding whether someone is an illegal immigrant.

The Arizona immigration bill provides  no standard for the appearance of an illegal immigrant.   An Arizona law  officer could walk to up to a group speaking a language other than English and assume that they’re in America illegally. I hope that Arizona law officers have better judgement then that, but it could happen.

Arizona and the whole American Southwest have a right to be angry about the illegal immigration problem there. They are in a border war  against criminals there who bring  weapons and narcotics across our border.  They’re right to be angry at Washington for its failure to deal with the problem.  Congress has been debating immigration reform for 5 years now and has failed to pass  a bill.

The overwhelming number of immigrants to America are law-biding, hard-working people who come looking for a better life for themselves and their families.  They want to become Americans.    The Arizona Immigration bill, with its racial profiling aspect, is a serious impediment to there hopes and dreams.   The good news is that it will never become law because it violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S.  Constitution and will be overturned by the courts.

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Reason Magazine: Ted Balaker – Interviewing Neill Franklin: ‘Five Ways the Drug War Hurts Kids’

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Reason_ Ted Balaker- Interviewing Neill Franklin_ 'Five Ways the Drug War Hurts Kids'

Source:Reason Magazine– LEAP’s Neill Franklin, being interviewed by Reason Magazine’s Ted Balaker.

Source:Free State MD

“Commentators like Bill O’Reilly claim that ending the drug war would lead to more children being abused by drug-addicted parents. But 33-year law enforcement veteran Neill Franklin sees it differently.

“These drugs in an illegal environment are more accessible to our kids,” says Franklin, who serves as Executive Director Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, “because we leave complete control, regulation, and standards up to the criminals.”

Reason.tv’s Ted Balaker sat down with Franklin to discuss how battling drug dealers in Baltimore turned him against the war on drugs and why ending prohibition would improve safety for children, as well as the rest of us.”

From Reason Magazine

If there is one war in that America needs to end it’s the “War on Drugs”. The War on Drugs is almost completely fought from the law enforcement side. Dealers and users are both basically seen as criminals who deserve to be locked up. Narcotics dealers and importers are clearly criminals who deserve to be locked up in maximum security prisons serving long sentences because they make their money selling dope to addicts who use it and, in a lot cases, destroy they’re lives or die as a result. But, a lot of times, their “customers” are not criminals and shouldn’t be treated as such. Narcotics customers are addicts and should be treated as patients.

While I’m for putting narcotics dealers away in prison, I am for sending narcotics users to drug treatment centers. They could be released when their doctors and judges determine that they’re rehabilitated and don’t need or want narcotics anymore. They would get treatment, counseling and work while they’re at these centers. They wouldn’t be free people who could leave at anytime. Narcotics addicts sentenced to the treatment centers could be required to pay for their time there. There could be vouchers or some other arrangement for those who could not afford the treatment.

Now, under the War on Drugs, when drug users are caught and convicted of possession of drugs with intent to use, they are sent to prison. They serve their sentences and get out still addicted to narcotics. They may even have used narcotics in prison and picked up a few more criminal skills. They go back to the street as narcotics users. If, instead, we collapsed the narcotics market by getting the customers off of them, dealers would have fewer customers and make less money. After release from the drug treatment center rehabilitated users could be required to provide up to a year of community service. They could be spokesmen for the rehab program telling their community about the dangers of narcotics use and their experiences with it.

This makes financial sense. One reason the U.S. prison system is over crowded is because a lot of its Inmates are users who are there for narcotics related crimes. This program could save a lot of valuable prison space for violent felons who deserve to be there.

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The White House: President Obama Signs Health Care Law

Posted on March 23, 2010 by Derik Schneider

Source:Free State MD

What do I think of the Affordable Health Care Act?  Well to be brief, and I guess this is simplistic, I would say that it is the best health care reform bill that could’ve been passed in this Congress. As a liberal, I believe in private enterprise and capitalism and open competition, as well as freedom of choice.  Thats what the public option would’ve brought, another option not a mandate like a single payer system.  Americans could choose  where to get they’re health insurance among providers who would compete fairly in the private market.

It’s not a Medicare system for all, which would force everyone in the country to purchase Medicare whether they wanted it or not.  It offers a tax credit for employers and people who aren’t eligible for Medicare and Medicaid that goes a long way toward seeing that these people are able to afford health insurance.  The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the Health Care Act will provide health insurance to an additional 30M Americans who currently don’t have it.

Other than the tax credit to purchase health insurance, the best part of the Health Care Act, along with the fact that its totally paid for according to CBO and won’t add a penny to our national debt, is that it has a Patients Bill of Rights.  This was debated in Congress ten years ago.  New federal regulations  prevent health insurers from abusing their customers and sitting on their profits instead of providing health insurance, which is their primary purpose.

No longer will health insurers be able to dump patients who have pre-existing conditions or just because they are sick and need their health insurance. No more caps on the amount of health insurance claims over a lifetime. Health insurers are required to spend a certain percentage of their profits on patient care.  They’ll actually have to provide health insurance for  patients instead of sitting on their profits.

I’m a Liberal and I believe in freedom.   Part of freedom is economic freedom, the ability of people to set their own course in life.  People need to be able to make money to do that.  Economic freedom provides freedom of choice so that people can decide for themselves where to get the services they need in their lives.  A big part of that, of course. is health insurance, the ability to pay for your own health care.

The Health Care Act supports this by stripping away the most common abuses committed by the private health insurers.   It improves the private health insurance market so that people of modest means, but who aren’t poor, will now have the resources to decide for themselves where to get their health insurance, just like upper middle class and upper class people can.

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