Here’s a fine video about what the videographer learned from Atlas Shrugged. I’m a libertarian, rather than an Objectivist (as I’d guess the videographer is), but the video offers an appeal to both groups. (Libertarianism is a political view, of individual rights and limited government, and has no inherent suspicion of religion, as Objectivism does.…
Liberty
Law, Liberty
Concise video on the Rule of Law
by JOHN ADAMS •
Free Markets, Liberty
Long live the American dream
by JOHN ADAMS •
Liberty
Creating a Free State: Filmmaker Christina Heller on Building a Libertopia in New Hampshire
by JOHN ADAMS •
One day we’ll have one in Wisconsin, too. Tired of waiting for a libertarian United States of America? Maybe the answer is to start small. Enter Libertopia, a documentary by director Christina Heller and producer Craig Goodale that follows three guys’ attempt to make one state free. Heller sat down with Reason.tv’s Ted Balaker to discuss…
Freedom of Speech, Liberty, Politics, Press
Lament of the Chicken Littles
by JOHN ADAMS •
There are lot of people who are very sure that protests in Madison are proof of a disordered society. They’re quick to wail and cry that the sky is falling, and that these protests are the end of Polite and Civilized Society as Understood by Polite and Civilized People. They sky’s not falling; society’s doing…
Freedom of Speech, Libertarians, Liberty
Wendy Kaminer: Free Speech, Free Markets, and Barriers to Civil Liberties Coalitions
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, Free Markets, Libertarians, Liberty
Sundry Libertarian Themes
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve had an eclectic set of posts lately, perhaps more even than usual. Someone asked me if there’s a theme to them, and there is. These recent posts reflect a libertarian view (although not exclusively a libertarian one.) I’ll list some posts, with a few remarks on each. First, what do we believe? Libertarians support…
Free Markets, Liberty
Executive Q&A: ‘I believe in the American dream’
by JOHN ADAMS •
Yes — no better opportunities in all the world: “I believe in the American dream,” said [accountant Julia] Arata-Fratta. “This is a country of opportunity. If you work hard, you are rewarded.”That meant learning the language and renewing her tax accounting skills to re-enter the work force. Now, she’s dedicated to making it easier for…
Liberty, Politics
God and gods
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve mentioned something of Nietzsche recently, but it’s another German philosopher I’ve in mind today. (Of Nietzsche, see Nietzsche and the Dark Hope Against a Better Local Politics.) Centuries before Nietzsche, a German theologian observed that everyone has a god, if not a faith in God: So, too, whoever trusts and boasts that he possesses…
Laws/Regulations, Libertarians, Liberty
Nanny of the Month (Jan 2011) Drug Testing 11-year-olds! Fining iPod Users!
by JOHN ADAMS •
Free Markets, Laws/Regulations, Liberty
Institute for Justice Defends the Rights of Street Vendors
by JOHN ADAMS •
The presence of a street vendor should be a welcome sign for a community, as evidence of a flourishing, diverse economy. More to the point — should government be used to discriminate against popular, efficient street vendors and in favor of less popular, less efficient brick-and-mortar retailers? Shouldn’t picking one over the other be a…
Liberty
Using Cameras to Fight Human Rights Abuses: Yvette Alberdingk Thijm of WITNESS
by JOHN ADAMS •
In 1988, musician and activist Peter Gabriel traveled the world with Amnesty International’s “Human Rights Now!” tour. He brought a big, bulky camcorder with him and used it to interview victims of human rights abuses. Gabriel realized that capturing those stories made it harder for them to be forgotten, and that’s what spurred him to…
Freedom of Speech, Liberty
Institute for Justice Fights to Unleash Free Speech
by JOHN ADAMS •
It’s not too much to ask that American business people — like all other citizens — should be allowed the rights of a free people. Unfortunately, not every local official understands or respects those rights. Consider the illegitimate and unconstitutional restrictions that Arlington, Virginia wants to place on Kim Houghton’s liberty. The Institute for Justice…
Freedom of Speech, Liberty, Music
Canada Bans Dire Straits’ “Money For Nothing” for Being Too Offensive
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’m sure the song is offensive to many — but that’s no reason to ban it. The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council has ruled that Dire Straits’ 1980s hit Money for Nothing is too offensive for Canadian radio. The ruling, released Wednesday, was in response to a complaint against St. John’s radio station CHOZ-FM. The listener…