“Two of a kind” (Thursday, 17 June 1982, GT)
As Israel expends more and more American hardware in southern Lebanon and kills more and more civilians, the differences between Menachem (“King David Hotel”) Begin and Yassir (“That’s My Baby”) Arafat become less and less clear.
update 171228: As of 1994, the differences continue to fade, as Arafat is awarded his own Nobel “Peace” prize, joining such kill-crazed corpse-mongers as Begin himself, Anwar Sadat, Teddy Roosevelt, and presaging such similar monsters as Al Gore and Barage O’Bombers (Barrack Hussein Walker Bush 44)
“Invest in space” (Monday, 16 August 1982, GT; also edited by Salem Statesman-Journal, 10/14)
The Earth is finite. Man’s aspirations, however, are infinite.
Once we’ve exhausted the Earth, as one of these centuries we must, what then? Shall our teeming descendants return to the muscle and steam technologies of the 19th century, plowing the fields with the help of a mule and traveling by wood-burning locomotive? Shall they forsake the alloys, drugs, and instruments that cushion, illuminate, and even extended our lives? Shall they starve?
As our horizons draw closer to us, we become less safe, less wealthy, and less free. Because our planet is limited and Man’s potential for growth and acquisition is limitless, we must embrace technology. I believe that our physical salvation lies in the exploration and exploitation of our extra-terrestrial frontier.
In light of the foregone, the government’s abandonment of America’s space program seems criminal. What is worse, the abuse and bungling of past administrations and congresses, Republican and Democrat, have so crippled the economy as to render it almost impossible for the private sector to move into space without big bureaucracy’s consent [government’s guidance].
Therefore, I am proposing that all contributions to space research, public or private, be fully tax creditable. This would allow space enthusiasts (that is, survival enthusiasts) to direct their exorbitant tax bills where they may do the most good. Furthermore, I propose that all investments (including loans and the purchasing of stock) in any space-faring enterprise be deducted from a person’s taxable income.
If such a law were to pass within the next year I believe that free enterprise would take us to the moon, to stay, before this century is out.
update 171227: Clearly America missed my deadline, and probably only partly because of not following my advice.
I do remain a space nut, but am now less sanguine about the prospects of tax-credit fueled “free enterprise”. Not that I’ve any quarrels with ACTUAL free enterprise, I’m just not as much the naive congressional candidate running on a platform of ill considered feel good nostrums, Hard Money, and a Secure Frontier. Hey! That’s still mostly my platform! However, I now see “Tax Accountants and IRS Auditors Full Employment Acts” in most prospective tax-credit schemes. I lean now towards more wide scale tax cuts and deregulation and letting an unimpeded market present us with its customary wonders.
And Hard Money and a Secure Frontier!
update 211110: I’ve since abandoned such weak and weaselly halfway measures as tax credits. I now advocate for consigning taxation itself to history’s dustbin of embarrassing superstitions. And clearly, we (homo sapiens) have yet to return to the moon, though there does exist cause for optimism. Kudos therefore to the Billionaires’ Boys Club and their very impressive “dick measuring contests” of late, from which most notably Wally Funk and William Shatner have benefitted. And so have I, and Trekkies across the globe, even if we haven’t joined them yet in corpus. Excelsior!
“Answers to questions” (Wednesday, 8 September 1982)
On September 3, correspondent MD asked: “Is the congressional franking privilege being used (by Rep Denny Smith) an attempt to convince voters that he is the incumbent in the new 5th District, which has no incumbent?” Probably not. I doubt that he thinks we’re that gullible. He’s just taking advantage of the privilege that the Congress has granted itself to promote its members at our expense.
“Does Smith’s opponent get to mail campaign literature to us at taxpayer’s expense?” Certainly not. The Repucrats and Demoblicans have enough trouble defending their bankrupt programs and unprincipled positions without providing the opposition with free ammunition. Beside which, even if government loot were offered to run my campaign, I could not accept it. Neither I nor Mr Smith has a right to extort money from people in order to promote a cause with which they may differ. As a Libertarian I can only accept voluntary donations.
“Who is Smith’s opponent? What does that opposition stand for?” I am the Libertarian candidate opposing Smith, and I believe that no one, including the government, has the right to initiate aggression against anyone else for any purpose. I believe that the productive are fully entitled to the fruits of their own labors, that no American tax victims should be obliged to support foreign dictators, and that no American GI should die in another useless campaign to make war safe for big business and big government.
update 171227: I’ve since reconsidered my position with regard to accepting “tainted” funds. If I were running for office today and “matching funds” were available from the public trough, I would probably accept them, even as I recognized the possible political disadvantage engendered by a “principled libertarian” accepting plunder funding. I would face the charges head on. I would accept tax pelf from Negan, and if offered, I would accept cash from David Duke, Harvey Weinstein, the Ku Klux Klan, or even the Southern Poverty Law Center.
I would proudly follow the examples of the Righteous Rons (Reagan and Paul). With regard to David Duke, Mr Reagan stated succinctly that just because Duke endorsed him didn’t necessarily mean that he endorsed Duke. Dr Paul explained more fully (not quoting, exactly) to the effect that, “[You say that these are bad people, and because of that you think I should give them their money back? Why? If they’re really bad people, as you say, they’re just going to do bad things with the money. I’m going to spread the message of liberty with it. What’s better than that?]”
So, like the Righteous Rons, I would accept all voluntary contributions, just as I walk on the sidewalk and drive on the streets, even though I know that they’re built with stolen money. Also, I encourage all to accept food stamps, AFDC, Social(ist in)Security, or any other goodies that Negan might be handing out (if you can stomach the process). No matter that we may not be able to directly recompense the original tax victims, at least we’re getting the loot out of the hands of the bandits who took it.