5/30/2011

Libertarian Party 2010 Platform

    Libertarian Party 2010 Platform Strongly Edited, Mike Liveright

1.0    Personal Liberty -- Individuals should be free to make choices for themselves
1.1    Expression and Communication -- We support full freedom of expression and oppose government censorship
1.2    Personal Privacy -- the rights recognized by the Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons,
homes, and property.
1.3    Personal Relationships -- Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity should have no impact on the government's treatment of individuals
1.4    Abortion --we believe that government should be kept out of the matter
1.5    Crime and Justice -- Criminal laws should be limited to violation of the rights of others through force or fraud, or deliberate actions that place others involuntarily at significant risk of harm
1.6    Self-Defense -- The only legitimate use of force is in defense of individual rights — life, liberty, and justly acquired property — against aggression.

2.0    Economic Liberty -- Each person has the right to offer goods and services to others on the free market.
2.1    Property and Contract --
Property rights are entitled to the same protection as all other human rights.
2.2    Environment --  environmental advocates and social pressure are the most effective means of changing public behavior.
2.3    Energy and Resources -- We oppose all government control of energy pricing, allocation, and production.
2.4    Government Finance and Spending -- We call for the repeal of the income tax,  We support the passage of a "Balanced Budget Amendment" to the U.S. Constitution, provided that the budget is balanced exclusively by cutting expenditures, and not by raising taxes.
2.5    Money and Financial Markets -- We favor free-market banking, with unrestricted competition among banks and depository institutions of all types.
2.6    Monopolies and Corporations -- We defend the right of individuals to form corporations, cooperatives and other types of companies based on voluntary association.
2.7    Labor Markets -- We support repeal of all laws which impede the ability of any person to find employment.
2.8    Education -- is best provided by the free market
2.9    Health Care
-- We favor restoring and reviving a free market health care system
2.10    Retirement and Income Security --
Retirement planning is the responsibility of the individual

3.0    Securing Liberty -- The protection of individual rights is the only proper purpose of government
3.1    National Defense -- We support the maintenance of a sufficient military to defend the United States against aggression.

3.2    Internal Security and Individual Rights -- The defense of the country requires that we have adequate intelligence to detect and to counter threats to domestic security. This requirement must not take priority over maintaining the civil liberties of our citizens.
3.3    International Affairs -- Our foreign policy should emphasize defense against attack from abroad and enhance the likelihood of peace by avoiding foreign entanglements.
3.4    Free Trade and Migration -- We support the removal of governmental impediments to free trade.  Economic freedom demands the unrestricted movement of human as well as financial capital across national borders.
3.5    Rights and Discrimination
-- Government should not deny or abridge any individual's rights based on sex, wealth, race, color, creed, age, national origin, personal habits, political preference or sexual orientation. 
3.6    Representative Government -- We support electoral systems that are more representative of the electorate at the federal, state and local levels.   
3.7    Self-Determination -- Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of individual liberty, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to agree to such new governance as to them shall seem most likely to protect their liberty.


There are a number of Quizs (Tests) that show a person, or other's leanings these are available at links/quiz . The simplest one is that by the Libertarian party, Political Position Quiz (10 questions)


Personal Issues 
  • Government should not censor speech, press, media, or internet.  
  • Military service should be voluntary. There should be no draft.
  • There should be no laws regarding sex for consenting adults. 
  • Repeal laws prohibiting adult possession and use of drugs.
  • There should be no National ID card.  
Economic Issues 
  • End "corporate welfare." No government handouts to business. 
  • End government barriers to international free trade.
  • Let people control their own retirement; privatize Social Security.
  • Replace government welfare with private charity   
  • Cut taxes and government spending by 50% or more.
Libertarian (5,5)
Liberal (5,0)
Conservative (0,5)
Statest (0,0)

5/28/2011

Justice is served, but more so after lunch: how food-breaks sway the decisions of judges

{The original article} shows that the odds that prisoners will be successfully paroled start off fairly high at around 65% and quickly plummet to nothing over a few hours (although, see footnote). After the judges have returned from their breaks, the odds abruptly climb back up to 65%, before resuming their downward slide. A prisoner’s fate could hinge upon the point in the day when their case is heard. 

5/05/2011

AT&T case

In the case of AT& T Mobility v. Concepcion the Supreme Court decided that:

"California state contract law, which deems class-action waivers in arbitration agreements unenforceable when certain criteria are met, is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act because it stands as an obstacle to the accomplishment and execution of the full purposes and objectives of Congress".
      (Also see: iApp OyezToday)

The decision seems important as "This holding leaves the states with no clear way to ban contracts that insulate companies from liability through class proceeding waivers" as well as it may be a continuation of a trend where the Court decides for Business and against the Individual, I wanted to collect the various materials on this case.

Note: I may also want to look at: American Electric Power Co., Inc. v. Connecticut, Whether federal law allows states and private parties to sue utilities for contributing to global warming.