Stephen’s Movie Review: The Hunger Games

First of all, this article contains no spoilers, I wouldn’t want to do that to you. I got to see The Hunger Games on Sunday night. The theater was pretty busy for a 10:30 showing on a Sunday night, but good seating was easy enough to find. I prefer at or near the top row.

Trayvon Martin: A rush to judgement with little information

This whole Trayvon Martin ordeal is a mess. It’s an issue that I’ve been content to steer clear of simply because there are too many variables, conflicting stories, and a lack of general knowledge about the incident.

Primaries fundamentally unable to represent will of the voters

Chances are the process of party politics and how to become involved with them, such as becoming a delegate, has not crossed your mind. It’s a complicated process, it takes a while, it’s difficult to participate, and party officials aren’t exactly pushing for everyone to know what’s going on.

Is Inflation about General Increases in Prices?

There is almost complete unanimity among economists and various commentators that inflation is about general increases in the prices of goods and services. From this it is established that anything that contributes to price increases sets in motion inflation. A fall in unemployment or a rise in economic activity is seen as a potential inflationary trigger. Some other triggers, such as rises in commodity prices or workers’ wages, are also regarded as potential threats.

If inflation is just a general rise in prices as the popular thinking has it, then why is it regarded as bad news? What kind of damage does it do? Read More

Russ Belville Houston Drug Forum

Russ Belville speaks at a drug forum in Houston on 3-10-12 about cannabis and why it should be legalized. Electrifying speech.

Shark Cages

So, what if when people go down into the ocean in a shark cage, that the sharks aren’t actually trying to attack them, but they’re trying to help them because they think they’re stuck in the cage?

Whoa…

6 Completely Legal Ways The Cops Can Screw You

We are so lucky to be living in an era of law when it’s no longer common for, say, suspects to be interrogated with live cobras tied to the ends of nightsticks. Unfortunately, there are still many colorful ways the police can royally screw you while Lady Justice shrugs.

For instance, you might be surprised to learn that right now in the U.S., it’s actually legal for the cops to… Read More

Hemp: The Green Gold at the End of the Rainbow

Hemp is a wonderful plant that you might have heard of but pay little attention to. In fact, the ladies might know the wonders of hemp better than most.

To ensure everyone is up to speed on what this plant is and the circumstances surrounding it, let’s address that information right now. Hemp is a fibrous plant that has many industrial, agricultural, and health benefits. It is a part of the cannabis family, also known as marijuana. This is the core of the issue with hemp, it is lumped into the same category as drugs when in fact it is not possible to get “high” from ingesting hemp and consuming the plant will not cause a person to fail a drug test. This means that hemp was made illegal to grow in 1938, however it is legal the import it from other countries. This oddly makes very little sense.

Ron Paul needs Santorum

At this point it is apparent that Ron Paul can’t win this thing outright, and there’s no doubt he probably didn’t think he could win it outright. That’s why his strategy to win the GOP nomination is very different from the other candidates.

Guns and Cannabis: Why have one legal but not the other?

By: Stephen Carter

I’ve always been an avid target shooter and a big proponent of self defense with a firearm. Growing up I was surrounded by rifles, shotguns, and pistols. Having lived in Texas my entire life, guns are very much a part of the culture. Another aspect of the culture here that is often hidden but definitely on the rise is the use of cannabis.

Ron Paul got you confused?

By: Stephen Carter

The go-to guide on understanding Ron Paul and a Paul presidency.

For a summary of most topics in this piece via video format, please scroll to the bottom.

Ron Paul is a very unique politician that sharply stands out from others. Having served 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives he has a record of being an outsider in congress; having never voted for a budget that would increase U.S. debt, choosing to opt out of the congressional pension plan, returning unspent money from his congressional office each year, and sponsoring bills where other politicians dare not tread, he is a rare breed that stands on principle. When he talks to people he doesn’t flop around in order to get votes, he means what he says and doesn’t try to mislead people. His goal is a constitutionally restricted federal government that promotes liberty for all and he has demonstrated his seriousness of this issue time and time again.

With all of that being said, there’s still quite the misunderstanding of who Ron Paul is and why he thinks the way he does. Many still know very little about the man, which is common in our drive-by, sound bite driven media. It is my hope to present to you here a full summary of who Ron Paul is, what his political stances are and where they are derived from, as well as tackle many of the questions surrounding Paul and what his presidency might look like.

Is it hypocritical for a libertarian to accept money from government?

An often repeated line by many liberals and even some conservatives, is that it is hypocritical for a libertarian to accept money from the government in any form. So is this true? Not hardly.

The Burdens of Overtime Wage Laws

By: Stephen Carter

Sometimes I need to work more than forty hours a week, sometimes I want to work more than forty hours a week, either way it’s to get ahead and be a little more financially stable. Often though, I’m unable to do so.

A Right to Discriminate

Should it be illegal for a privately owned business to discriminate against people?

People discriminate every day. What instantly comes to mind with something like this is color of skin and gender. Discrimination can be any range of areas though, from looks, to speech, quality of clothes, pitch of voice, physical strength, etc. There are many things here that are discriminated against that people cannot control. Should we employ a bad singer over a good singer in order to avoid discrimination? Should we employ a weaker person over a very strong person to do a job that requires a lot of physical strength, just to avoid discrimination? How about the modeling business, isn’t that entire industry built on discrimination against ugly people? What of all female book clubs, doesn’t this discriminate against males? Scholarships that go to only black people? Businesses that will not hire people with visible tattoos or those who cannot pass a drug test but never show up to work inebriated?

A Not So ‘Just’ Government

By: Stephen Carter

It just doesn’t seem like you get much justice when it comes to dealing with the government, especially when you’re defending yourself from it.

Most have experienced this before, whether they realized it at the time or not, and it is remarkable that we have not conceived of something better, at the very least cried out against the injustice. When the government gets you in its sights, often the easiest thing to do at the time is comply and hope it goes away. What exactly are we talking about here you ask?

Higher One foists new restrictions on students

I’m a college student and I receive any school funds through the Higher One system. Today I got an email from them notifying me of a change in the way they are treating our accounts now. Their new amendment is as follows:

Your Account may consist of two sub-accounts. One sub-account is a demand deposit account (the “Checking Sub-Account”) and the other sub-account is a savings deposit account (the “Savings Sub-Account”). These accounts are treated as a single account for purposes of certain record keeping, fees, and paying items presented against your account. The periodic statement of activity on your Account and any record of your Account at any automated teller machine, will reflect this Account as a single account, and will not select the sub-accounts in any way. Neither sub-account pays interest on account balances. Although we have no intentions of exercising this right, federal regulations require us to reserve the right to require at least seven (7) days written notice prior to withdrawal or transfer of any funds in the savings sub-account. You may only access your savings sub-account through transactions on your checking sub-account.

At various times during each statement cycle, should your checking sub-account balance exceed a threshold amount, all funds in the checking sub-account in excess of that amount may be transferred into the savings sub-account. As funds in the savings sub-account are needed to pay items presented against your checking sub-account, they will be transferred back into the checking sub-account. Transfers into the checking sub-account will be made up to five times per statement cycle. If a sixth transfer is needed in any statement cycle, the entire balance of the savings sub-account will be transferred into the checking sub-account. The threshold balance is set by us and may be changed at any time at our discretion.

So I’m wondering, does this now mean that they can make loans against the money I have in my account and make interest off of those loans? If so, that means they’re using my money to make money for themselves, without paying me for the use of my money. I suppose this also means that if I want to use my money, I may have to obtain permission to do so seven days prior. Why should I have to obtain permission to use money that is mine?

I honestly believe us college students are getting the shaft. We have to jump through so many hoops to go to school, can only drop six classes during our entire time in college, we are paying insanely high tuition rates, we’re getting sub-par education, the federal government has fed us to private lenders, and now we’re being restricted in how we use our money, and on top of that, these people who we are forced to go through in order to obtain our money are charging substantial fees and making loans against our money so that they can make money.

I really hope college students make it a point to bring these issues to the political conversation this coming year, and that they don’t let up until positive change is made.

Simple Supply and Demand: What you should know about this easy concept and how it can make for a more prosperous society

Supply and demand is a simple economic function that works on very basic principles that everyone should learn and know.

A toddler dies, the only person to help is the least expected to do so, a perspective

A Chinese toddler ended up dieing after being hit by a car and no one stopped to see if she was alright. A homeless man ultimately found her and tried to help.

Electric Cab Company Battle A Success

Good news, we have an update on the Austin Electric Cab situation.

After the previous article covering the situation received around 90,0000 views, and elicited over 1,000 responses to the Austin City council, we have results!

The council has approved a pilot program for the electric cabs. Though the downside is that after over 300 tickets and 3 arrests, fines and other costs will not be recouped by the cab company, it seems that battle is over. It is with hope that future monopolies will be broken down by enterprising individuals who have the courage and will to slug it out with their governments in order to better improve the lives of the people around them.

Many thanks to those who also ran the story, those who shared the story with their friends, and those who took the time to contact the city council. Activism is alive and well!

Some advice the Libertarian Party, national, state, and local should consider

This is a mixed bag of advice covering various areas, all very pertinent to becoming a successful party.