User:Freejoelp

Immigration: Let's Get real

By Joe Michaels

A main reason, and this is pure speculation on my part, for our current illegal immigrant mess may be that our military and law enforcement personnel are spread so thin worldwide in a vain attempt to stamp out terrorism. Billions of dollars worth of resources are being sent to Iraq and elsewhere, while border patrols are underfunded and understaffed. (Is it any wonder why the Minutemen felt like they had to take matters into their own hands?) However, there are solutions, and here's what I propose:

• All illegal immigrants with histories of violent criminal activity should be deported immediately. The US

has a right and an obligation to keep out potential menaces to our social fabric. Period.

• All persons who are here illegally but who are otherwise law-abiding may apply for resident alien status

(green card)via the normal process; no special status would be granted.

An absolute solution? No. A giant step in the right direction? Yes. And in this world, a giant step is often all we can hope for.

--Freejoelp 13:18, 21 Oct 2006 (EDT) Joe Michaels

Labor and Management : their relationship in a free society

by Joe Michaels

Libertarians are not anti-labor. At least this libertarian isn't. I work on a loading dock to pay my bills, in addition to being a part-time writer. I'm non-union, by the way. Labor unions are voluntary associations of individuals, and as such, have a place in a free society. Workers have the right to bargain collectively with their employers over working conditions; business owners have the right to refuse their demands. Private sector workers have the right to strike; business has the right to fire the striking workers. If the employees and owners of private businesses spar over a greater share of their company's wealth, that is a private matter, and certainly not cause for any government intervention one way or another unless the dispute threatens public safety (and I don't see how it would.)

Really, it's none of our business.

Vote against the Two-Headed Monster

by Joe Michaels

The Republicans in Congress went to Washington to give us a smaller, less intrusive government and lower taxes. They have done neither. On theirs and President Bush's watch, we got the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act,billions of dollars poured into Iraq with little or no oversight, record budget deficits, toothless tax cuts ( I remember getting a $300 check five years ago, and not one cent more. $300 in five years; sorry kids, but that's not gonna get the job done.) and reckless arrogance. The party of Lincoln and Susan B. Anthony stands disgraced today.

As do the Democrats. They have ceased to stand for anything except pure politics. The party is merely a vehicle for furthering the ambitions of the likes of Harry Reid and Hillary Clinton. Neither person is anything but a pragmatic politician, and Washington is full of them. That is precisely the problem. The Demopublicans feud, while our money disappears down the rathole as we watch helplessly.

Does the Republican Congress need to go? Sure. We need more Libertarians, and a few sensible Democrats, in Congress. We need to get the two-headed monster in Washington off our backs, and rediscover liberty.

An Endorsement

By Joe Michaels

To all the registered voters in Texas's 22nd District: vote for Bob Smither, Libertarian for Congress on Nov 7. Want a vote against the war in Iraq AND a vote for gun rights? He's your guy. Want to chew away at the Two-Headed Monster? Vote for Smither. I'm Joe Michaels and I approved this message.

Goverment and Family Values

by Joe Michaels

For most of my life, I've listened to conservative politicians from Ronald Reagan to the two Bushes talk about "strengthening the family." Wonderful. Let's replace liberal social engineering with conservative social engineering. Here's my note to all politicians: LEAVE US ALONE, FOR GOD'S SAKE!!!!

Most parents know what works, and they should be given a freer hand in regulating their child's behavior. Your house, your rules. I'm single, no kids, never been married, so far be it for ME to tell parents what to do. Government solutions like school prayer, and abstinence-only education only infringe on the rights of responsible parents, while doing little to curb the abuses of irresponsible parents. What's more, federal definitions of morality (and marriage) are meaningless. Values come from the people, from the bottom up, not from the top down.

Mangling it in Massachusetts

by Joe Michaels

As a Massachusetts resident, I'm following the Governor's race closely. The Democratic candidate, Deval Patrick, is running a dignified campaign, but his old-school liberalism is dead. Nobody here wants to pay a cent more in taxes, businesses are leaving the state, the welfare state has long ago reached the point of diminshing returns. Patrick would be a status quo governor, at best.

His opponent, Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey, is totally inept. Aside from running the most negative campaign in memory, she has yet to make a compelling case as to why anyone should vote for her, as opposed to against Patrick. One of her campaign promises (see her 50 point plan online) is to ban cell phone use by teenage drivers.

Now.........

Cell phone use by other drivers can be annoying, and on rare occasions, downright dangerous, but is this really a matter that needs to be dealt with through legislation? Let parents deal with their teenage sons and daughters. That's the libertarian solution. Healey would also be a status quo governor at best.

Sad state of affairs.

NEXT: My election night diary.