Gerard Casey on Patriot’s Lament

The great Gerard Casey joined us today to talk with us about that ever contentious chapter in the Bible, Romans 13.
Professor Casey takes us through the historical thought on it, as well as delving into the Greek translation of Romans.
If you have ever had questions or maybe even concerns on what this passage of scripture is teaching us, you won’t want to miss out on this.
Also, check out his new upcoming book on Amazon,

Zap: Free speech and tolerance in light of the zero aggression principle.

Many thanks to Professor Casey!

July 4th- Celebrate by being a separatist!

Check out our latest YouTube podcast, we discuss the 4th of July, Trump, Iran, and several other things, like the true American Revolution!

The Dollar Vigilante: Jeff Berwick on the Patriot's Lament show

Topics covered:

- Guns
- The Ex-patriot Act
- Withdrawing consent for real change

Links:

Subscribe to The Dollar Vigilante:
www.dollarvigilantes.com/subscribe.php

For more on internationalizing your assets please visit:
www.tdvoffshore.com

For more on passports please visit:
www.tdvpassports.com

Watch Anarchast
www.anarchast.com

Patriot's Lament June 16, 2012: Love It Or Leave It and What Shall We Do?

In the first hour we talk about expatriation and the ultimate way of removing consent. We also talk about the attack on raw milk and using that issue as a litmus test for your friends and associates.

June 9 and June 2 Patriot's Lament episodes

Patriot's Lament June 9, 2012: Withdraw Your Consent and What Is Freedom?

In the first hour we discuss the power of withdrawing consent. Non-participation with the correct philosophical basis may be the most powerful way to render coercive power irrelevant.

In the second hour we explore the question of what freedom means. It can mean many different things to many different people, but some decisions seem to expand the horizon of our possible choices while others limit this horizon. If we look at freedom this way we arrive at some rather different conclusions than some who claim to be pursuing freedom. David also dispels the myth that a One World Government can be sustained for any meaningful period of time.
 



Patriot's Lament June 2, 2012: Stefan Molyneaux and Education vs. Schooling

Stefan Molyneaux joins us in the first hour to talk about the non-aggression principle, the "against me" argument, and the slow but steady march towards liberty throughout history.

In the second hour we discuss the difference between education and schooling. Could you become educated without any school? Could you not get any education with lots of school? We take a look at both of these questions.

Rome Will Burn

Ron Paul is out. We can already hear the cry, "What will we do now?!" Leonard Read's "How to Advance Liberty" provides some insight. In my opinion, Rothbard had a massive non-sequitur which was advocating the use of politics to end the state. I am unaware of any state that has ended this way (my little resort to a historicism fallacy). Logically in terms of means and ends, it is impossible for political means to result in non-political ends. Historically, states end themselves. All political action then is the velvet glove over iron fist. For example, no state income tax (velvet glove), state spending out of control squeezing the main industry out (iron fist). What good is no income tax if your job is eliminated? Conversely what good is a job if the state is legally entitled to take as much as they wish? The catch-22 of statism. Obviously the practical answer is that not ALL jobs are eliminated and/or that not ALL income is taxed. Politics is then the practical question of degrees of violence. One who believes in non-violence must then walk away to the maximum extent possible, being mindful to go about this in a peaceful way so as to avoid creating a ratchet effect where the state then escalates its violence.

Political thinking and political action necessarily accepts the premise of the state, so of course it is divisive. It is by nature "us" against "them." Voluntary action benefits both parties. State action benefits one at the expense of the other. Always. The division and futility of libertarian activity in Alaska is a fascinating story and history with a lot of useful takeaways, but for me the most fascinating part is that the ideologically pure ones who went directly after the state as Mike notes accomplished nothing for themselves or others. See also Schaeffer's thing. Same result. The de La Boetie essay suggests something different. Walk away. There are oh-so-many ways of doing this without stepping in the beehive of the state (which it considers to be violence against it). You won't find tax protestors at the Mises institute. Attacking the state is an exercise in futility. Selling ideas to those who are "shopping" is the only method consistent with the desired ends of a voluntary society. This obviously excludes "successful" politicking. To use Ron Paul as an example, he has never claimed that he can make a difference or that him being elected would make a difference. His reply is always, "When the people decide to change the nature of government, that's when things will change." Since he's the only one presenting an alternative for people to consider, how would they ever learn of another way if he weren't out there being unelectable (and not caring about being unelectable)?

You'll note how much time I spent advocating state action vs. individual action when I went on Duke's show (none). I don't care about the borough or the state or the feds except to the extent which I must adjust my action based on their decisions. I can far more effectively free myself from the state by spending my time doing other stuff. Anything done in a political sphere is a compromise. It is those who don't understand this who find politics frustrating. Again, it comes down to means and ends. Political means will never lead to voluntary or non-political ends. Ever. Most people accept this, so they accepts political action as useful (believing that voluntary ends are a largely unattainable goal). This is consistent with their premises. In that context it makes sense.

I don't really have any use for the velvet glove or the iron fist. I don't have to stay anywhere. I don't care about "my" country or state or any of that stuff (probably because they're not "mine" in any logical sense). Furthermore, I can be the most useful to society not through political action but through market action and education. No one is better off because I convinced them to vote for Ron Paul in 2008. Some people are better off because they learned about the risk of holding dollars in 2008 (and since). Steve Jobs has created more prosperity for mankind than Ronald Reagan. Bill Gates than Bill Clinton. Etc.

My initial idea for the Austrian Economics book club was to read about econ and investing so that people wouldn't get wiped out. No one can or will save us but ourselves. This has always been true. No one is really interested in that tho. The "liberty movement" in America is wrapped up in the myth of collective salvation. Tragic yet funny. I can safely say that there are only a couple of us with significant positions that will weather the coming storm very very well. Everyone else, two years later, has been completely wrapped up in politics even tho they now KNOW what is coming economically. What do they have to show for it? They are frustrated, tired, and poorer than they were two years ago. The state wins. All the money and effort spent on Joe Miller, for example. There was a lot of money to be made (or at least preserved) in that time. This would facilitate a lot of families being able to pull their kids out of public school. This would reduce a lot of people's dependence on their state job, or the PFD, etc. What is there to show instead? Nothing. What would there be to show had Joe won? Nothing. A shame and a waste. And for what?

Probably my favorite "place" to hang out is the Daily Anarchist site/forums, because no one there advocates anything political. It is calm, the discussions are civil yet deep, and no one is getting tweaked about political trivialities. There is a Ron Paul thread, but no one cares if any of the others participate or do not participate in the election. The overwhelming recognition is that for questions of "what do we do" the answer will be unique for each and every one of us (indeed this is the basis of voluntaryism). Therefore we can share ideas and personal courses of action without crossing so-called Ego Boundaries. This is simply not possible in a political context because people who think politically are 1) collectivist to some extent and 2) authoritarians to some extent. Since I do not like being pushed around, to be consistent I have to refrain from pushing others around. So very few get that. I never expect it to be more than a very few. But a whole lot are indifferent (terrific!). I try to minimize exposure to those who my buddy Jake and I call the "True Believers." Those who believe that shoving people in the right direction somehow makes things better. If the cause of liberty is futile, then sanctioning authoritarianism is certainly more futile. States forever and always eventually revert back to the only way feasible in the long term: they cease to exist. Sort of a liquidation of counterproductive action.

The Caesars have already de-based the money and sent the young men to go die for the empire. All that remains is for Nero to burn Rome. All those dependent on Rome will be in trouble when this happens. This includes the Borough itself. It does not include me. It no longer includes my family. It no longer includes some of my friends. It no longer includes at least one guy I work with. While we wait, we can go about our lives without fear. That is a success. Let Rome Burn. It's going to anyway.

The Patriot's Lament boys

From left to right:
Joshua Bennett, Aaron Bennett, David Giessel, and our good friend (and soon to be regular on the program) Michael Anderson.
Our own little "Circle Bastiat".
 David is moving on, taking his own advice to leave the country while you can.  He will still be checking in from time to time from places unknown.
Take care, brother. It has been a lot of fun this past year, you have been a huge asset to the program and this blog and in the lives of your friends.
Looking forward to when the Circle meets again, this winter. Well, it will be winter here in Fairbanks...
;-)

Arachno-Capitalism on ice! Patriot's Lament interviews Stefan Molyneux

Stefan Molyneux, host of Freedomain Radio, is interviewed on Alaskan Radio Patriot's Lament about liberty, voting, financial regulation, philosophy, integrity, virtue, peace, South Park, and the hope for true human freedom in the future. Freedomain Radio is the largest and most popular philosophy show on the web - http://www.freedomainradio.com

Thanks Stefan!

Patriot's Lament May 26, 2012: Do you hate the state? Jeff Berwick does.

In the first hour Josh asks the question, "Do you hate the state?" We also discuss the morality of theft and the possibility that those whose ultimate goal is simply LESS theft and not the abolition of theft entirely stand on the same philosophical foundation as those who advocate for MORE theft. We challenge one of the callers on his justification for some stealing in certain instances (how much and when?).

In the second hour we have our first return guest Jeff Berwick. Jeff talks about how the state of affairs in the United States has evolved in the last few months, what the options are for Americans, and some of the services he offers to help diversify internationally. We also discuss living abroad and the freedoms that are enjoyed by foreigners outside the U.S. and especially Americans living as Perpetual Travelers or Permanent Tourists (P.T.s) outside of their home "farm."

Perpetual Traveler: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perpetual_traveler

Jeff Berwick's Dollar Vigilante blog and newsletter: http://www.dollarvigilante.com/
Aca Condos: http://www.acacondos.com/
Anarchast: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheAnarchast

Anarchast Ep. 26 with David Giessel

In this episode, we talk with David Giessel from www.patriotslament.blogspot.com

Topics covered:

- David's experience in beautiful Acapulco
- Traffic laws
- The truth about Mexico
- The U.S. military

Want to visit Acapulco? You can also stay at Jeff's hotel, Las Torres Gemelas Private Suites. Visit www.ltgps.com for more details.

For more on Jeff's Anarchist Enclave visit www.acacondos.com

May 5: Scared to Disobey and Russ Millette

In the first hour, Aaron and Josh discuss the fear of people to disobey the arbitrary rules around them, even when those rules are destroying their basic ability to survive.

They discuss this article from DailyAnarchist.com also:
http://dailyanarchist.com/2012/05/05/fear-and-loathing-manipulation-of-the-li...

In the second hour we interview the new chair of the Alaska Republican Party, Russ Millette and take calls so our listeners can ask him their questions also.

Life After Ron Paul and What Might Freedom Look Like?

In this episode we ask the question: What will happen after Ron Paul? So many are waiting for him to free them from regulations and draconian laws, but freedom is a state of mind that we must each discover within ourselves. The work of spreading the ideas of liberty and freedom are also not Ron Paul's responsibility, it is our responsibility as individuals.

As Butler Shaffer reminds us:
Freedom is a state of mind that each of us must discover for ourselves. In so doing, we will find that there is nothing that anyone in authority can do to make our world more peaceful orderly, or free. There are no institutional reforms, or ideologies, or more fashionable gurus to save us: such thinking only continues our sense of irresponsibility.




In the first hour we discuss how roads are already self-regulating and also the modern belief in magic that we call the "legal system."

In the second hour we discuss various aspects of what a non-state society might look like. We get bogged down in details now and then, but offer a few possibilities for how roads, defense, and things of this nature might be provided.

I again recommend to anyone interested in this topic to read The Market for Liberty as an introduction to this philosophy.http://mises.org/books/marketforliberty.pdf

Freedom in Mexico and Seth King on BitCoins

In the first hour David and Josh call in to discuss their discovery of freedom in Mexico (without trillion dollar wars to "keep it free").

In the second hour Seth King from DailyAnarchist.com discusses BitCoin, Anarchism, and the fact that so-called rights are not what make us free.



In the first hour Wake Up Call, Aaron and Josh discuss the American and Alaskan cows and how they do what the farmer wants. In the second hour they discuss the socialist oil dependency that Alaskans have growing on them like a giant tumor.