Pro-Liberty News and Opinion | Libertarian Voluntaryist

Really, she hits all of the right points. Government does restrict the free-market. Government does restrict supply and demand. I don’t know about the government “pulling the plug” on people, but the rest seems accurate:

Giant sea creatures are attacking coastal regions all around the world. Some weigh more than a Sumo wrestler. Is there potential for an immortal giant creature from the deep?

First, it was the giant “red devil” squid that attacked the coast of San Diego. The hostile creatures, which are known to attack divers, can grow up to five feet and weigh over 100 pounds. That’s a lot of calamari! Swimmers, however, should be safe, as the squids rarely come to the surface.

Some news reporters have been comparing this to a certain old school b-movie. This journalist, however, will not stoop that low! These squids aren’t attaching themselves to any bridges, nor is the event taking place in San Francisco!!

More insidious, perhaps, are the giant jellyfish that have been appearing along the coasts of Japan. These creatures from the deep can grow to be six and a half feet in diameter and weigh over 450 pounds. The spineless sea-goers are more common in China and Korea, but their recent appearance in Japan has caused a catastrophe for the local fishing industries.

The jellyfish tend to become tangled in the nets of fisherman, poking holes and tearing them to shreds, while also poisoning their would-be catch.

They also have an interesting defense tactic that makes them nearly impossible to ward off, though the Japanese government is mounting a task force to take on the problem. When killed or placed under the threat of attack Nomura’s Jellyfish release millions of sperm and eggs, which attach to coral formations. Once the water reaches ample conditions they disengage from the coral and become brand new miniature giant jellyfish that will undoubtedly grow up to become a menace to society.

In an exercise of free-market entrepreneurship, some Japanese citizens are taking advantage of the situation. Turns out the jellyfish can be made into pretty good tofu. Some say that jellyfish collagen is also very good for the skin.

How does this all tie-in to immortality? There is another interesting sea creature that seems to have the potential to live forever. The immortal jellyfish, known as the Turritopsis Nutricula, has the unique ability to revert back to a juvenile state after reaching maturity. Scientists believe that the process can go on forever, allowing the creature to potentially live forever.

Let’s just hope that Nomura’s Jellyfish doesn’t get the bright idea to cross breed with Turritopsis Nutricula, or we might have a catastrophic situation on our hands. The Age of the Jellyfish has begun.

I, for one, welcome our new jellyfish overlords!

Originally written for digitaljournal.com visit the link and vote for the story to improve its visibility.

On May 11 the US Post Office is raising the price of stamps by 2¢. Even in the face of increasing prices, many people will argue that the Post Office is necessary because a private organization could never perform these functions for a similar cost. The story of Lysander Spooner, however, might rekindle the debate over the necessity of a monopoly Post Office.

WHO WAS LYSANDER SPOONER?

Lysander Spooner is an obscure figure in American history. He is so forgotten, in fact, that his voluminous Collected Works has remained out of print for many years. The six-volume collection, which contains 36 works, can be found used on sites like Amazon.com for upwards of $400. This current obscurity, however, does not mean that he was an unimportant figure.

Spooner achieved many great things in his lifetime including his active campaigning against slavery and the publication of his most famous work titled The Unconstitutionality of Slavery (1846), which influenced the likes of Fredrick Douglas. One of his lesser-known ventures, however, was his creation of the American Letter Mail Company, which was a private mail delivery service that was meant to compete directly with the United States Postal Service.

Spooner was born on January 19th 1808 at a farm in Athol, Massachusetts. He studied law under John Davis, who would later serve in the House of Representatives and Senate and as Governor of Massachusetts, and Charles Allen, who would serve in the House of Representatives. Spooner, however, never attended college. Under state law, non-graduates were required to study under attorneys for five years, while graduates were only required to do so for three years. Spooner, however, saw this law as unfair and he therefore flaunted it, setting up his own practice in Worcester, Massachusetts after only three years. He also viewed the regulations as unfair discrimination against poor individuals who might not be able to afford attend school.

Spooner’s legal career turned out to be a disappointment, as his radical writings seemed to have driven customers away. He also attempted to make a living as a real estate speculator, but that venture failed as well. Spooner decided to move back to his father’s farm in 1840. His time spent as lawyer, nevertheless, was not a total waste, as it would eventually aid him in his future court battles over his private mail delivery company.

Spooner’s most well known book, The Unconstitutionality of Slavery, was published in 1846. The book was very influential at the time, inspiring such prominent individuals as Fredrick Douglas. Douglas was originally a disunionist abolitionist who believed that the United States Constitution legally recognized and enforced the oppression of slaves. He would later come to accept the pro-Constitution argument, citing Spooner’s arguments as his rationale.

From the time the book was published to 1861 Spooner actively campaigned against slavery. He provided his legal services to escaped slaves, often free of charge, while also publishing pamphlets on the concept of Jury Nullification. This theory provides that a jury may find a defendant innocent despite their violation of the letter of the law, if they believe that said law is inherently unjust. Spooner presumably believed that informing the public about this idea would allow them to find escaped slaves innocent even though they violated the law.

Previous to the publication of The Unconstitutionality of Slavery Spooner founded the American Letter Mail Company as a direct opposition to the United States Post Office. Today, many Americans believe that it is a necessity to have a government sanctioned monopoly organization, such as the Post Office, deliver the mail. They will argue that a private company could never fulfill such a daunting task as delivering the mail across the entire country without charging outlandish prices. Not only does Lysander Spooner’s saga prove this mentality wrong, it also shows that the government is just as likely over charge for the delivery of mail as a private corporation.

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Check the store for the brand new “I’m Too Big to Fail” t-shirt. Join in as we make a mockery of the so-called big banks that are receiving tax-payer funded bailouts. Available in two colors.

Anyone who is involved in a political campaign — whether it be on a local, state, or national level – knows the importance of name recognition. Many people in the voting public will often vote for the name that seems most familiar to them because, lets face it, they are not very informed on the candidates’ positions on various issues. This is where grassroots campaigning comes in handy.

Much of the familiarity that a specific candidate will garner comes from the visibility that they have in the general public and the best way to gain this visibility is through printed material. This is where websites like PSPrint Online Printing become valuable.

PSPrint offers professional printing of high quality signs, posters, custom bumper stickers, flyers, vinyl stickers and more. These items are vital tools that any candidate would need to help get their name out there, and the best part is that the internet has made them cheaper by eliminating the middle man.

These tools are also great for supporters of a candidate who want to create their own unique bumper stickers or signs that will benefit the candidacy. They even work for grassroots organizations who want to embed a specific message into the psyche of the general public.

The evolution of the internet has allowed for companies like PSPrint to make these products available to the general public at a relatively low cost. So go out there and make some signs supporting Ron Paul or the general ideas of liberty. Let your message be heard!

In light of the recent photograph that showed Michael Phelps hitting an olympic sized bong Kellogg’s has decided to drop him from their sponsorship.  Proper response?  A boycott.

And, its gaining momentum:

You can call Kellogg’s hotline at 800-962-1413 to share your concerns and let them know why you won’t be purchasing their products. They’re getting so many calls about this that you actually get a message saying “If you would like to share comments regarding our relationship with Michael Phelps, please press 1…If you are calling about the recent peanut butter recall, please press 2.” Amazingly, Kellogg’s customers are more concerned about their treatment of Michael Phelps than about the salmonella outbreak.

So, if you dislike how Kelloggs handled this situation do the right thing and refrain from buying their products.  If you want to take it a little bit farther give ‘em a call and clog up those phone lines by letting them know how you feel.

Seasteading is the concept of building large platforms, floating cities if you will, out on the sea in order to create civilizations that are out of the purview of the current governments of the world.  Think Waterworld, but to a less intense degree.  

Patri Friedman, co-founder of the Seasteading Institute, was recently interviewed by the guys over at Free Talk Live to talk about the concept and how far off in the future some of these floating cities might come to fruition. What he has to say might surprise you. Listen to the interview here:

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