By Joseph T. Salerno With neither major party able to secure a majority of seats in the national legislature and the two parties unable to agree on a coalition government, for the last 10 months Spain has had a do-nothing caretaker government for the first time in its history. While basic government services continue, no new legislation is being proposed, foreign policy is stuck in place, and many infrastructure and other government projects are frozen. In contrast to dire predictions of chaos, everything is proceeding smoothly and some Spaniards are learning a valuable lesson about the resilience of society when left to its own (voluntary) devices. The lesson has been pithily summed up by Felix Pastor, a language teacher, who states: No government, no thieves. Mr. Pastor believes that, without politicians around to inflict more harm, Spain could last without a government “until hell freezes over.” Website editor Ignacio Escolar agrees, A lot of people said we would go to hell if we didn’t form a government. But we’re still here. And Ana Cancela, a civil servant, recognizes the corruption and incompetence endemic to political institutions, We already knew that politicians were corrupt, but now we also see that they can’t even make politics work. This article was originally published at The Mises Institute.
By Ron Paul Liberals defend some parts of liberty, while conservatives defend other parts. Progressives can be pretty good on foreign policy as well. The third-party candidates have elements of liberty mixed into their campaigns too. In this interview on MSNBC, I discuss how the ideas of liberty have been carved up. **Please note** that I am misquoted in this interview. I have not endorsed any of the remaining candidates in this year's election campaign.
As global growth declines, the world managers at the IMF are looking around for someone to blame. The problem is protectionism and populism, they claim. Well they are partly right, but the problem lies also with the world managers themselves.
By Ron Paul
With the income tax, the assumption is made that the government owns you and controls 100% of your income. It then lets you keep a certain percentage if you follow their rules. This is not the mark of a free society, where you would own all the fruits of your labor. I discuss this issue below:
The UK PR firm Bell Pottinger was paid more than half a billion dollars to create false videos and other covert propaganda operations in support of the US invasion and occupation of Iraq. Dozens of other firms also had Pentagon contracts to spin the war. Are we being propagandized with our own money?
By Ron Paul We've lived beyond our means for such a long time, in large part because of to the Federal Reserve. We have to realize that we're going to now have to live beneath our means. It's unavoidable. Promises of more spending by government and more money printing by the Fed will not change the inevitable. The Fed's damage has been done. I discuss this and much more below: Where does Ron Paul buy his gold?Call Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM (PST)
Watch Ron Paul introduce Camino Coin Company Interested in being a sponsor? Email us By Ron Paul
The death of former Israeli president and prime minister Shimon Peres last week marks the last of the Zionist “old guard” who successfully fought for a UN mandate to establish the state of Israel in what was formerly British Palestine. Much has been written about Peres since his death. He was a peacemaker. He was a warrior. He was brutal. He was complex. It is possible for all of them to be accurate at the same time. Was Peres a warrior? That is without question. Israel was established in bloodshed and Peres played an important role in that fight. Also, the brutal Israeli attack on a Palestinian refugee camp at Qana in 1996 took place under Peres’s command. In that attack more than 100 women and children were killed. But history, and especially Middle East history, can be quite complex. Shimon Peres was above all in favor of trying to find a way for Israelis and Palestinians to live side-by-side. He was right there in spirit when Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin had a famous 1993 handshake with Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat. Rabin paid for his efforts with his life, as a right-wing radical assassinated him in 1995. Shimon Peres was in favor of real negotiations with the Palestinians and he several times inserted himself into the process to urge the hawkish Benjamin Netanyahu to start talking rather than saber rattling. In 2012, for example, Peres made it known again that he favored a two-state solution and that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas was a suitable negotiating partner. He also urged Netanyahu to open up direct talks with Hamas if certain agreements could be made beforehand. But perhaps his greatest move to avert war only came known with his passing. Former Jerusalem Post editor Steve Linde wrote a fascinating article last week in his old newspaper detailing a meeting he and the Post’s managing editor had with Shimon Peres in 2014. According to Linde, Peres was asked what he thought was his greatest legacy. He replied that he had personally intervened to stop Netanyahu from ordering a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear sites. Asked by the journalists when they could report this revelation, Peres responded, “when I’m dead.” So it came to pass last week. How much for the worse things have become in Israeli-Palestinian relations with the passing on of anyone preferring negotiations to violence. There is little interest among current Israeli leadership to take steps toward negotiation or peace. Innocent Israelis and Palestinians will continue to be killed and injured as long as no compromises are considered. Sadly this position is reinforced in Washington, where the Obama administration just agreed to grant Israel the largest military aid package in US history. There is much to admire in those who work for peace, even those with stains on their record. I remain convinced that Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts would be much closer to bearing fruit if the US government would stop inserting itself into the process and subsidizing either side. Left alone, both sides would likely produce more leaders interested in ending bloodshed and conflict. By Chris Rossini The banks are broke...Fractional reserves are fraudulent...Central banks are counterfeiters...Politicians operate with moral hazards...Manipulated interest rates distort markets...Taxpayers bailout the bankers when they go bust. It's criminal from start to finish! All of the above is masterfully put together in a 2 speech! Don't miss this video of Godfrey Bloom MEP! (h/t - EconomicPolicyJournal.com) Where does Ron Paul buy his gold?Call Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM (PST)
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