Typical

Ok, by a show of hands, who here is interested in hearing more about that drunk fan running onto the field during the Bengals/Packers game last October? Most sports fans can tell you that running onto the field is not anything new. To sports fans, it is annoying (sometimes amusing) for a game to be interrupted, but it is one of those things that happens every so often. Why does government need to get involved?A drunken fan runs onto the field. A politician (in this case, State Rep Bill Seitz) goes on TV talking about he will stop this from happening again by passing yet another law. This law will increase the punishment for interrupting an event (this includes stage plays, events in arenas, as well as sporting events in stadiums). So he wants to make something that is already illegal, even more illegal. Prosecutor Joe Deters is now personally handling this case to show the voters that he is not tolerating such behavior. As a sports fan, I don't like it when somebody interrupts a game like that. Unfortunately, it is one of those imperfect things that happen in an imperfect world. But do our politicians really need to get involved to show that they are being 'tough on annoyances'? This may not be a top issue in Columbus, but it certainly should be a bit chilling to people who support liberty. Do lawmakers really think they can stop drunken fans from running out onto the field? Do we really need to make a political issue out of it?

Unfortunately, our lawmakers think so. This is the same reason why they feel it necessary to pass laws to tell people how to save for retirement, what drugs you can and cannot take, what medicines a doctor can and cannot tell you to take, etc

As long as lawmakers think they can pass any law to make life better, I will continue to be reminded of why I became a Libertarian.

And you Trust them to Tax you, Spend your money, provide a secure retirement, run our economy, ...

Not to beat a dead horse too much, even though Representative Jean Schmidt's speech on the congressional floor will be remembered for a long, long time, but a very good point is made. No, I am not talking about defending or arguing with what she said. I am just amazed that she breaks a pledge she made 75 days prior, puts her foot in her mouth, and goes after other critics (instead of taking responsibility).

Ohio State Representative Tom Brinkman, Jr recently sent out an e-mail to his supporters reading:

This is typical. "Mean Jean" Schmidt sticks her foot in her month,
Gets trashed by the NEW YORK TIMES,
And her supporters send out an e-mail
attacking Me, Chris Finney and others.
She can not even take responsibility for her own miscues.

The e-mail continues to point out the pledge Rep Schmidt took when she was sworn into office:

However, here today I accept a second oath. I pledge to walk in the shoes of
my colleagues and refrain from name-calling or the questioning of character. It is easy to quickly sink to the lowest form of political debate. Harsh words often lead to headlines, but walking this path is not a victimless crime. This great House pays the price.

Does this surprise you that Rep Jean Schmidt did something wrong and instead of taking responsibility, she and her supporters are blaming others? It shouldn't. Over the years, our politicians have sworn to improve education, fight crime, make our economy prosper, get drugs off of the streets, and to provide retirees with a secure Social Security.

Well, how well have our politicians done in fulfilling their promises? Most people would agree, not good. Have any of our politicians taken responsibility for their actions? Hardly. Come campaign season, you will see politicians blaming each other for everything that has gone wrong. It is never their fault, it was the other party, or the other lawmakers. Politicians never seem to take responsibility for their actions.

Does it surprise anybody with what Rep Jean Schmidt did. It shouldn't. But it does of course serve as a ripe reminder of why Libertarians became Libertarians. If our politicians don't take responsibility for their actions, why would we trust them to tax our money away, spend money on their pet projects, take away our civil liberties, and to control our life. Don't be surprised by what happened on the congressional floor, just remember this situation the next time a politicians promises their next sweeping law or government project that is going to solve all of our problems. What will that politician do when their program fails to deliver?

You can read the New York Times article here

Libertarian for Governor of Ohio

Dr Bill Peirce was recently nominated by the Libertarian Party of Ohio to be their gubernatorial candidate. Dr Peirce has spent most of his professional life teaching and studying economics at Case Western Reserve.

I came to libertarian ideas through my study of economics. When I graduated from Harvard in 1960 I was dissatisfied by academic economics so I studied for two years at the American Institute for Economic Research (www.AIER.org), a free market think tank founded in the 1930s. Then AIER paid my way through Princeton (Ph.D., 1966) where Fritz Machlup kept the classical liberal tradition alive.

In 1966 I started teaching at Case Tech (now Case Western Reserve), where I retired from in 2001 and am now Professor Emeritus. At various times during my career I chaired the Economics Department, and I also have done consulting, and served as expert witnesses in court cases; but mostly I read, wrote, taught, and advised students. I have writen books about Bureaucratic failure, Economis of the energy insustries, and the European Union.

The courses I taught ranged across much of Economics and spanned all levels from Principles to advising Ph.D. Dissertations. I have spent much of my career studying government policy, mainly on economic issues. The more I learned, the more convinced I became that Harry Browne had it right when he said, "Government doesn't work." Although I love freedom, my approach to libertarianism began with the pragmatic insight that government is slow, inefficient, and either tied up in knots of red tape or tyrannical (or both). So unlike the many economists who hunt for market failures that the government can correct, I stress the government failures that imply that we should rely less on government and more on ourselves.

During my teaching years I did not have much time for Libertarian Party activities. This is really the first free time I have ever had, and after hearing Gary Nolan call for a credible candidate for Governor at the May LPO convention, I decided to switch from being a student of policy to being an active politician.

Ohio is a great place to live and is filled with fine, intelligent, independent people. The main problem is that the state has been very poorly governed in recent decades. When I moved here in 1966, it was a low tax, low service state. I loved it. Now it is a high tax state. Are you enjoying extra services?

I am running for two reasons. First, I want to get the message out to as many people as possible that freedom is the route to prosperity, property rights must be protected, and consumer choice is the best solution to the problems of our educational system. Second, I want people to understand that Libertarianism is not just a utopian vision of a perfect world, but that it can offer a feasible path from today's grim economic reality to a freer and more prosperous future. I would also like to be the next Governor of Ohio so I can implement my program... and learn to play golf.

I am married, since 1966, to the same wife, Nynke, who accompanies me on my campaign trips. Together, we have three libertarian children.

For details of the platform, check out www.Peirceforohio.com.

Dr. Bill Peirce
Libertarian Candidate for Governor of Ohio

Can You Spare $8,000,000,000,000?

Can you spare $8,000,000,000,000 (yes, TRILLION)?

In my taking a break from local politics, I thought it important to let you all know that recently the US national debt has passed $8,000,000,000,000! $26,879.30 for every American man, woman, and child. That means that a worker making $13.49/hr would be able to pay off their share of the debt in one year, with nothing left over. How does that effect us directly? A question that President Bush Sr. was unable to give a good answer to in a 1992 debate. Don't think Clinton, Bush (W), Dole, Gore, or Kerry could give a good answer either. Well, here is my answer:

• Future generations will have a huge credit card bill to pay. Most of that debt is in the form of US bonds, which pay interest. So that $8 TRILLION is earning interest. Just as somebody who gets a new credit card with a high credit limit will have fun until the bill is due, our politicians are having fun spending our money on projects that will help further their political career.
  
• This will cause massive inflation, the hidden tax. One reason buying US bonds are considered a safe investment is because the US Government can print up money at will, so they will never default on their debt. Unfortunately, the more money the government prints up, the more inflation eats out of your buying power. Just as $.20 bought a stamp when I was a child, $.20 now doesn't buy you a stamp for a postcard. That means people on a fixed income, mainly retirees, will see their money buying less and less. Thus increasing their dependency on government programs to pay for their needs.
  
• It encourages corruption. Deficit spending encourages the government to spend money on pet projects. That makes it more worthwhile for a company to hire a lobbyist to encourage the politicians to award projects to their company. Big companies see the benefits. Most small companies will never see a dime from this. They don't have the money to hire lobbyists. Many politicians would love to award projects to companies that will donate to get them re-elected. No matter what campaign finance laws we pass, their money will help get their favorite politicians (re)elected.

Do you work hard? The government sure hopes you do. $127,864 is the average family's share. If this debt is not paid back with higher taxes, the government's money printing machine will work overtime and make your current savings worthless.

Visit http://www.toptips.com/debtclock.html to see the running total.

The Drug War, Libertarian Issue Number 1

I try to avoid talking about national issues, but this national issue is the root cause of so many problems plaguing the city. And with the local election over, it may be time to put local issues to rest (well, for a week or so). CityBeat is running a cover story in it's most recent issue. From my experience, it seems that the number 1 issue is the insane war on drugs that has cost this country billions of dollars, countless of innocnent lives (it has killed more people than drugs themselves), has funded terrorist organizations, and is the primary cause of gang warfare. When alcohol prohibition was enacted in 1919, almost overnight, we saw an increase in the violent crime rate (similar to where it is today). The year it was ended (1933), the crime rate went back to it's pre-prohibtion levels (it was just a bit higher than before). Now we have prohibition again, except this time it is drug prohibition. And instead of Al Capone and the mafia crime families killing each other over turf, we have street gangs killing each other (and innocent people)fighting over turf. Not much has changed. Here is the story.

http://www.citybeat.com/current/cover.shtml

Issues 8 & 9

Previous posts have outlined libertarian positions on state Issues 1 through 5. Here are my thoughts on two local Issues, 8 and 9.

NO on Issue 8

Remember the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, and the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Reaffirmation Act of 1987? Neither do I. Both of these laws mandated a balanced federal budget. However, the government's current financial situation seems to indicate Gramm-Rudman has been…less than effective.

Issue 8 is a "reform" that would "…require that Council individually ratify any increase in the salaries payable to members of Council, by a vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the members of Council…" The thinking is that if Council members have to go on the record with their approval or disapproval of pay increases, they will be less likely to raise their own salaries.

Laws to reform politicians do not work. Gramm-Rudman didn't create a balanced federal budget and Issue 8 will not hold down Council salaries. Politicians will always find a loophole (or ten) to get the money they want.

Cincinnatians don't need more laws, they need less. Vote NO on Issue 8.

YES on Issue 9

Businesses leave our city every day. This contributes to our population loss, which averages 12 people a day. In a few years we will be the fourth largest city in the state behind Cleveland, Columbus and…Toledo. And one reason that businesses are leaving is to move to places with lower taxes, including lower property taxes.

Issue 9 would phase out the city's property tax over the next 9 years. The current tax rate, which is set by City Council annually, stands at 4.89 mils on the dollar of assessed valuation. Issue 9 would reduce that rate to 4.0 mils in 2006 and then reduce it by .5 mils each year until it reaches zero in 2014.

Phasing out the property tax would reduce the City's income by about 1% each year. If city officials can't reduce the bloated City budget by 1%, they're just not trying.

Issue 9 will lower taxes and reduce the size of government. Vote YES on Issue 9.

Paul Green
Chair
Hamilton County Libertarian Party