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June 29, 2009

Free Liberal identity

Bit by bit, we are preparing a reboot of the Free Liberal site, which will include more meaningful navigation and other improvements. This has involved lengthy discussion of the site’s goals, vision, and clarifying the free liberal identity. Here are some shots of the new logo that we shall roll out with the new site design:

  • Free Liberal logo image
  • Free Liberal logo image
  • Free Liberal logo image with accents
  • Free Liberal logo image with accents

We wanted a logo mark that presents The Free Liberal as a magazine, while communicating something of free liberal personality. Originally I had something plainer in mind akin to the old logo, but Bob Capozzi wanted the Free Liberal to “arise from a quagmire of other ideologies,” and Carl Milsted wanted to project connection to nature along with “fun, free spirited liberalism”. Using a goose in the logo was originally suggested by Carl:

In T. H. White’s The Once and Future King, Merlin polymorphs the young Arthur into several different animals in order to gain wisdom. The most positive one is the lesson of the Geese: no borders. King Arthur thinks back to that lesson as he reflects on his life and what he could have done better.

Kevin liked the idea, saying that the goose in flight also hints at liberty, community and the balance between them that is vital to the free liberal outlook. We also talked about the correlation between flying in formation and the liberal ideals of individualism and spontaneous order: the geese coordinate flow without any kind of central command.

John Stephens is a Quaker designer, developer and creative professional at Design Opus.

Posted by johnstephens at 04:44 PM | Comments (3)

High Speed Rail: Railroading Taxpayers

The Rio Grande Foundation has introduced a new study from prominent transportation expert Randal O'Toole who has analyzed the limited positive impact high speed rail will have on Americans and New Mexicans in particular in terms of mobility and the tremendous impact such "investments" will have on taxpayers. Read more in the study release here.

The full study is available here.

Posted by PaulGessing at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)

June 24, 2009

Transparency two-step in Louisiana

Louisiana Gov. Jindal was elected on a plethora of promises of open government and transparency. One of the first bills signed by the governor brought much more transparency to legislative dealings. In this year's session, the discussion has moved to increasing transparency in the governor's office itself. A number of bills of this topic have fallen by the wayside, but one has survived to the this point of the legislative session - SB 278, filed by Sen. Lee Amedee (D-Gonzales).

But an analysis by the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana reveals SB278 is one step forward and two steps back for transparency. Right now, virtually all of the records from the governor's office, excluding some financial records, are exempt from state open-records laws. Some bills which have been filed and failed by the legislature would have removed this exemption wholesale. Amedee's bill, backed by the Jindal administration, would open up those records but still keep confidential records regarding the governor's schedule, security matters, and interoffice communications.

But it would also shield from open-records requests a number of documents related to the state budget which are now accessible. “Pre-decisional advice and recommendations to the governor concerning budgeting” from "unclassified" gubernatorial appointees would be locked up for six months from the date of their creation. PAR's analysis points out that this would be "a devastating blow to open government." These reports are important fodder for the public debate over the state's budget decisions. They reveal how state appointees are considering using budget appropriations and whether the appointees consider the budget requests to be necessary or frivolous. By the time the six-month window has ended, the state's budget would have already been passed by the legislature and signed into law.

Surely any new law to increase transparency should increase transparency across the board, and not restrict transparency in some areas. Particularly when it comes to spending taxpayer dollars. But Amedee's bill has now passed both houses and awaits Jindal's expected signature.

Posted by JamesPlummer at 06:06 PM | Comments (0)

June 12, 2009

Frank and the Fine Art of Evasion

What's your take on this:












For me, this was a very smart politician who could not stand the scrutiny. The CNBC interviewers are highly sophisticated, unlike most journalists, in finance and markets. Frank was subtly demogoging the issue of executive compensation, but his practical sounding "solutions" don't wash. Realizing that his evasions weren't working, he feigned that he felt disrespected, as he persisted in changing the subject. The interviewer was getting a bit rude, so this was Frank's out.

-RC

Posted by RobertCapozzi at 06:54 AM | Comments (0)

June 11, 2009

Obama's Cruel Drug War

Yet another victim of the drug war goes to prison, now under the "progressive" Obama administration's auspices. When will folks on the left call on the administration to truly reverse decades of brutal and unconscionable drug war policies?

See the MPP press release below.

/KDR

***
MPP Condemns Prison Sentence for Medical Marijuana Defendant Charles C. Lynch

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA —The Marijuana Policy Project strongly condemned today's federal sentencing of Charles C. Lynch, a California medical marijuana provider who worked scrupulously to follow state and local laws but now faces one year and one day in federal prison.

"Years from now, Mr. Lynch may well be remembered as the last American to go to federal prison for a mistake, the final victim of an already repudiated policy well on its way to the ash heap of history, but whose mean-spirited effects still linger," said MPP executive director Rob Kampia. "This sentence is a cruel and pointless miscarriage of justice. Mr. Lynch and his attorneys say they plan to appeal, and we hope they succeed. With federal law enforcement at the Mexican border so overwhelmed that traffickers coming through with up to 500 pounds of marijuana are let go, even one more penny spent persecuting a man who is not a criminal in any rational sense of the word is an outrageous waste of resources."

In February, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that henceforth the Drug Enforcement Administration would only conduct enforcement actions against medical marijuana defendants who were violating both state and federal law, reversing the Bush administration's policy of ignoring state medical marijuana laws.

Lynch's medical marijuana collective was licensed by the city of Morro Bay, and officials routinely inspected the facility to monitor compliance with state and local laws. But because federal law makes no statutory allowance for medical marijuana, all evidence related to California's medical marijuana law was barred from his trial.

With more than 27,000 members and 100,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit http://MarijuanaPolicy.org.

Posted by KevinRollins at 05:34 PM | Comments (1)

Chrysler Travesty

In what may be the end of the rule of law, the Supreme Court decided to NOT review the terms of the pre-packaged Chrysler asset sale. In the name of expediency, bondholders have clearly been short-changed in this process, and, near as I can tell, no one disagrees. And yet this contractual arrangement -- being inconvenient -- is just swept aside.

Not good. Not good at all.

If secured creditors can just be blithely ignored, this will have ramifications, potentially huge ones. Why would anyone buy debt -- especially of a "too big to fail" enterprise -- with this precedent hanging out there?

With the multiple crises happening simultaneously, and this one being rather obscure, few have taken notice. Be sure that debtholders of OTHER companies have.

-RC

Posted by RobertCapozzi at 06:57 AM | Comments (2)

June 06, 2009

Is Obama "Interfering" in Israel?

Obama's domestic policy of drastically bigger government will be a disaster for individual liberty, but he is the first president in many years to put pressure on Israel to stop expanding settlements and to really advocate for a Palestinian state. For that he has been criticized by neoconservatives and some Democrats alike. He's even been accused of "interfering" in Israeli politics. Glenn Greenwald exposes that assertion as a myth and points to the positive impact Obama's Middle East initiative may have on America's standing in the world.

Posted by PaulGessing at 07:21 PM | Comments (2)

June 05, 2009

Tullock Tower at George Mason University

Help us rename the Truland Building after Professor-emeritus Gordon Tullock!

Naming “Tullock Tower”

George Mason University now completely occupies the Truland Building (the black “Death Star”/”Borg cube” behind the School of Law in Arlington). The university is trying to figure out what to name the building, and several individuals have suggested naming it for Gordon Tullock, the legendary GMU professor of law and economics, and a founder of the public choice school of economics. If you don’t already know Tullock and his work, you can read more about him at GordonTullock.com and at Wikipedia.

Why we need “Tullock Tower”

• Show admiration and gratitude for Tullock’s trailblazing work
• Give attention to public choice economics generally
• Spotlight the excellent Mason law school and economics department
• Promote George Mason’s branding as a center of innovation and creativity

Whenever someone drives past and sees the “Tullock Tower” sign at Washington Blvd and Kirkland, or has a class in Tullock Tower, the name will invite them to consider why it was so named and to learn about a great thinker. For those who already know him, and are working to further Tullock’s insights and to emulate his entrepreneurship, we will be reminded that our work is making a difference in the world and that it is worth continuing.

What you can do to help

1. Sign your name in the comment field below, with your affiliation. Your public support of this effort is crucial to letting GMU know how much support there is for naming the building after Gordon Tullock. GMU students and alumni probably have the most influence. But, faculty, donors, and members of the community can also have a impact on this decision.

2. Write an email directly to Larry Czarda, GMU VP for Administration at lczarda@gmu.edu expressing your support for Tullock Tower. If you can add a personal remembrance or a particular Tullock idea that has moved you, please include it to make your message weightier.

3. Post a link to this blog entry on your Facebook profile. Tweet your support. Email your friends. Blog it. Digg it.

Please act quickly, because time is of the essence...

/KDR

***06/15/09***

Comments below are closed, please show your support here.

Posted by KevinRollins at 06:16 PM | Comments (34)

June 04, 2009

"Free" Government Money w/ Matthew Lesko

Remember the question mark guy who appeared on those late-night commercials pushing all those "'free" government programs that would allow you to get Uncle Sam to pay your tuition or for some money-making scheme? Well, he's come up with a new "commercial" relating to the federal bailouts:

Posted by PaulGessing at 10:52 PM | Comments (0)

Free-for-all (frfr-ôl) -- n. A disorderly fight, argument, or competition in which everyone present participates.

from Dictionary.com



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