Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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There is room in this world for many different beliefs, even those that are wrong. Beliefs are only truly incompatible when one of them includes the belief that it’s OK to force others to believe one particular thing. Or, more accurately, to force others to pretend they believe, since belief can’t be imposed. Any such belief discredits itself; no valid belief has to be forced on others. I’m fine with the beliefs of others, even beliefs I think are crazy. It’s only when those believers start trying to force their beliefs on me that I have a prob...
Here’s something you probably don’t hear every day: I dislike obedience. Obedience is not something to be encouraged or celebrated; it’s one of the most dangerous human traits there is. Obedient people have caused far more problems than rebels. It’s not even close. The Holocaust can be laid directly at the feet of obedient people -- including people who weren’t otherwise bad, but who were obedient. It wasn’t only the Nazis and those who enabled them, their victims were also too obedient. You may think that’s a rare case; surely obedience is...
As I write this I am wrapping up my own adventure with COVID-19. It didn’t feel good, but it was nothing worth destroying the economy over. It was not worth any mandates, shutdowns, or other government overreaches. When I think back on the worst illnesses or injuries in my life, this doesn’t even make the top 100 list. Even those experiences in the top 10 wouldn’t convince me to violate your liberty in the tiniest degree to avoid them. If they could even be avoided by violating you, which is unlikely. Your liberty and your natural rights matte...
There’s almost no one more dangerous than a driver who refuses to yield because they have the right-of-way. I’ve known people who got into accidents because the other person was supposed to move over or slow down, and didn’t, and they weren’t going to let the other guy “win.” When two drivers of this sort encounter one another, have your camera recording. Personally, I think it’s more important to avoid an accident than to be “in the right.” I’ve tried to teach my kids that their safety is always their responsibility. Responsibility isn’t fun....
The conveniences of the modern world are all around us all the time, but I don’t think I’ll ever take them for granted. One of my grandmothers grew up in this area during the Dust Bowl days. Her big family was crowded into a two-room, dirt-floored shack without indoor plumbing or electricity. They traveled by horse-drawn wagon and their water was dipped from a cistern; they didn’t even have a windmill. They picked cotton by hand, dragging the heavy sacks behind them. She grew up living basically the same life as someone born in this regio...
I’m libertarian, uncapitalized, to separate the ethical philosophy I follow from the political party I can’t. A Libertarian, capitalized, is a member of the Libertarian Party. Ethical libertarianism is based on the recognition that no one has the right to use — or threaten — violence, personally or politically, against anyone who isn’t currently violating the life, liberty, or property of another. This is the guiding principle that distinguishes a libertarian from anyone else. Follow it and you’re libertarian; don’t and you’re not. “Classical l...
Once upon a time, the word “liberal” was used to describe people who were “generous,” “open-minded,” and “accepting of other opinions.” It was closely related to the word “liberty.” This description no longer applies to political liberals. Describing their backward-thinking as “progressive” or their nightmarish denial of reality as “woke” is equally ridiculous. This doesn’t mean they are always wrong. I agree that everyone has value, but their value has nothing to do with superficial features like sex, race, or ethnicity. They have value be...
There can be a difference between what a person likes and what they are willing to force on others. Most of my preferences lean conservative: liberty, family, and keeping government out of my life. The difference between me and political conservatives is that I don’t believe it’s ever ethical to use government or legislation to force my preferences on others. Therefore, I can’t be politically conservative. Another difference is I’m no fan of the Constitution. A fatal mistake was made when the founders established a political government where l...
This past spring I noticed a bigger than usual crop of the plant that becomes tumbleweeds when it dies and the wind blows. I told a few people to be ready for an epic tumbleweed season this year. Then, I failed to see many tumbleweeds last month and wondered what had happened to them all. It turns out they had all gone to Oasis State Park to plot their attack. So, I was right about the bumper crop, but I missed where they were going. I can’t win ‘em all. Some things are easy to predict based on what you see happening in the world around you, bu...
I love people. I also know that humans are deeply flawed. This combination explains why I’m a libertarian. Every other position insists that no one is smart enough to run their own life while also believing most people are smart enough to run the lives of people they’ve never met. This running of strangers’ lives is carried out through voting and wielding political power. It’s not a realistic position. The libertarian position recognizes that most people are better at running their own lives than others would be and no one is qualified to run...
The Kyle Rittenhouse trial may have served as a canary in the coal mine. That’s how I saw it. Government doesn’t respect your right of self-defense and would prefer you die at the hands of attackers. Fortunately, the jury saw through the malicious prosecution. Unfortunately, much of the public believed the lies spun by the national media corporations to advance their anti-gun, anti-defense agenda. Rittenhouse was even called a “white supremacist” and his attackers were called “his victims.” Rittenhouse was persecuted for doing something e...
I love the free market. The market, liberated from government rules, subject only to the choices of individuals. One of my choices is to not shop on major holidays. If I knew for certain the store let employees volunteer to work on the holiday it would be different. As it stands, no sales or discounts can entice me to shop on Thanksgiving or Christmas when I know the employees were probably coerced into working instead of spending the holiday with their families. I’m also not willing to fight crazed crowds for “deals.” It’s not an experie...
Although the start of a new year is completely arbitrary, it's still a good time to reflect on the past year, and look toward the future. Of course, any day is a perfect day for doing so. Just remember: It's easy to look at the past and see only the good, or only the bad. Every year holds both, just as does every era in history. I understand people looking back at parts of their own life with nostalgia. I do it, too. "If only I could go back and ..." seems to be a universal human thought. Yet when I really think about it, I remember that,...