T.Mike Curry Weblog

Choosing Sides...

Choosing between Republican or Democrat
is a lot like choosing between stripes or solids.
Either way, it's still a game of eight-ball.


  ( Dec 15 2008, 02:13:18 PM CST ) Permalink

Next On The Agenda : Publicly Funded Pre-School For All Children

Apparently lots of Government officials agree the K-12 education system is failing, if not broken. The solution per these Government officials therefor is...

Publicly Funded Pre-School For All Children
http://reason.com/blog/show/129613.html
-Reason Magazine Online

A representative for private sector pre-school and daycare had this comment to say in response to the free publicly funded universal daycare movement...

"It's very difficult to compete with free."

  ( Oct 23 2008, 04:20:31 PM CDT ) Permalink

100 Reasons to End the Federal "War on Drugs"

Charlie Lynch, a private business owner in California, followed all the laws of his state to set up and run a business which sells medical marijuana. Medical marijuana is legal in California. Who knows how many people's pain and suffering he's helped to alleviate. However, the Federal government has decided he's a felony-level criminal who needs to be put away for up to 100 years.

Despite having never injured anyone, never killed anyone, never robbed anyone, nor even ever destroyed anyone elses property, the Federal government believes Charlie should now spend more time in jail than most robbers, rapists, arsonists, or even most murderers.

Mr.Rodney Balko of "The Agitator" and Drew Carey have a few words to say on this subject...

Charlie Lynch Trial Begins on Tuesday
California Medical Marijuana Dispensary Owner faces 100 years in prison on federal felony charges.
http://www.theagitator.com/2008/07/18/charlie-lynch-trial-begins-on-tuesday/

It's a good one-hundred reasons why Libertarians believe we should end the failed "War on Drugs".

  ( Jul 21 2008, 08:27:21 AM CDT ) Permalink

Uncle Sam Says I Can't Get My Teeth Cleaned

I was at the dentist to get my regular six month cleaning. The hygienist reclined my chair and put that paper-thingy over my chest. She pulled up my information on the computer screen next to us and went to enter the date and time of my cleaning into my file.

That's when a little window popped up. I couldn't see it as it was behind me but I heard the little noise the computer made. She says "oh, just a second" and gets up. "I'll be right back" she says as she leaves the room.

When she returned she was very apologetic. She told me she couldn't do my cleaning because my dentist took vacation that day and was not in the office.

It's a federal regulation, she explained. If it has been more than six months since the dentist last gave my teeth an exam, then the dentist has to be in the office for the hygienist to clean my teeth.

The dentist doesn't have to actually look at me. She just has to be in the office. This is if it's been more than six months since my last exam by the dentist. This is a federal regulation.

So... Uncle Sam is now determining the conditions under which I can get my teeth cleaned? When did this start? Why did it get started? Who in the federal government could possibly care enough about when and how I get my teeth cleaned to have started creating regulations about it? How is this benefiting me? Is it supposed to protect me from something? If so, what?

I've been going to this dentist for years. This hygienist has been cleaning my teeth for years. This is the best dentist I've ever had. This hygienist is the best I've ever had and I have confidence in her ability.

I don't mind if the dentist took a day off. I'm a grown-up. I think I can choose to have her clean my teeth or not. It's not like she's going to be extracting a tooth or anything like that. She's just cleaning them, like she's done every six months for the last eight years. She does a good job. I have every confidence in her ability.

Clean away!

But no. Uncle Sam says 'no'. Can't do it. Been more than six months. Nope. There's no dentist in the office today. Them's the Federal Regs.


It's not just the big things Libertarians are talking about when they speak of having smaller government. It's the little things too.

Little things, like when your hygienist can clean your teeth, or not.

  ( Jan 27 2008, 03:21:31 AM CST ) Permalink

An Eminent Domain Victory You Might Have Missed

On July 6, 2007, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt vetoed House Bill 327. This bill, amongst other things, would have allowed creation of Regional Railroad Authorities. These agencies or departments would have had the ability to use eminent domain within Missouri and would have been under the control of unelected officials.

In his veto letter, Governor Matt Blunt had this to say [emphasis mine]:

"IV. The bill would create a regional railroad authority giving eminent domain and taxing authority to unelected officials.

"House Bill 327 authorizes local government entities to create a new type of political subdivision called a regional railraod authority. Regional railroad authorities created under this legislation will be directed by unelected officials and granted some degree of eminent domain and taxing powers. This comes at a time when we have been working successfully to end the abuse of eminent domain authority to protect private landowners."


House Bill 327
http://www.house.mo.gov/bills071/bills/HB327.htm

Veto Letter
http://www.house.mo.gov/bills071/rpt/HB327vl.pdf


Read more about eminent domain abuse in Missouri and find out how to sign the petition...

Missouri Citizens for Property Rights
http://www.mo-cpr.org/

Missouri Eminent Domain Abuse Coalition
http://medac.typepad.com/

  ( Aug 09 2007, 08:08:13 AM CDT ) Permalink

Bob Barr in St.Louis, April 13th, 2007

Former Congressman Bob Barr will be speaking in St. Louis on April 13th, 2007 at 7:30pm. This speaking event, hosted by the Missouri Libertarian Party, will be about privacy rights and the second amendment. The event is free and will be held at the Renaissance Grand Hotel at 800 Washington Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri. Everyone is welcome to come to the Landmark IV room and enjoy the speech!

Additional good news is that if you are attending the NRA 136th Annual Meeting in St.Louis, this event does not conflict with other events on that Friday. The NRA exhibit hall closes at 6pm that day with no major evening events scheduled. However, if you feel like making a day of it, there is a NRA-ILA Grassroots Workshop also being held at the Renaissance Grand Hotel at 8am that morning. Keep in mind that even if your greater interests do not include second amendment rights, the principles and concepts discussed apply to other arenas of grassroots efforts as well (eminent domain, 4th amendment, and etc.).

Read an announcement of this event that has some more information over on the ShowMeFreedom.org web site.

( Apr 07 2007, 03:17:53 AM CDT ) Permalink

Welfare State "Bigger than Ever"
"The welfare state is bigger than ever despite a decade of policies designed to wean poor people from public aid."

So apparently after a decade of effort the welfare program wasn't really reduced. It was just sort of spread around more evenly amongst other government agencies. As well, it apparently now needs to increase expansion into more areas of job training to truely be successful.

Libertarian Principles: Avoidance of Government Programs
"Libertarians understand that government agencies are the only organizations that grow when they fail, and that have a built in bias against truly solving problems. Government problem solving programs create government employees whose jobs may go away if they succeed, but whose jobs and power will expand if the problem gets worse. Libertarians are committed to finding practical ways to get government out of everything possible."

( Mar 03 2007, 03:20:29 PM CST ) Permalink

Smoking Ban Consequences

Previously businesses which allowed smoking provided ashtrays, clean up, and proper disposal of all those cigarette butts left over from smokers. But not anymore. Now they're being dumped in the streets because inside ashtrays are forbidden and smokers must be 20 feet away from buildings. Now those butts are flowing into sewers, and washing into streams, ponds, and lakes. Now they're killing Daphnia.

Various Columbia officials and Health Department people have recently been quoted. They don't have funds for public ashtrays, plus it would send mixed messages about smoking. They hope businesses will step up and provide their own outdoor ashtrays and clean up. It's starting to be noted that it's the businesses' responsibility to clean the butts from their sidewalks and the people's responsibility not to litter in the first place. And apparently some consider littering even worse than smoking, which can only make one wonder what new ordinances and stronger fines will be imposed next.

Apparently they're not really having this problem so bad yet in Columbia because it's still cold out. However when it warms up and more people are outside... well, perhaps there will be new street sweeper positions open up with the City of Columbia in the Spring.

Before the smoking ban, businesses which allowed smoking voluntarily took on the extra effort to clean all their ashtrays and dispose of the butts. It appears now they will all be dumped in the street where they will blow around and get evenly distributed everywhere, so that all businesses can share the added time, effort, and expense of cleaning up the cigarette butts and wrappers.

The air may be cleaner inside the establishments, but now there are smokers standing 20 feet outside through whom patrons must thread their way to get inside, inhaling second-hand smoke as they walk along the way. Afterward they have to thread their way back out again, inhaling more second-hand smoke. Before the ban, all the smokers got to sit and be warm over in their section of the establishment. The non-smokers could walk from their cars, along the sidewalk, and into the non-smoking section without inhaling second-hand smoke and not having to unstick menthol filters from the bottoms of their shoes.

Maybe these all sound like little things; minor annoyances and small reasons to be concerned. Remember however that it is the little things that add up. An ordinance here, a restriction there, bit by bit creating more government control in areas of our lives which simply don't need the arm and hand of government going around holding on to to us and guiding us in the right way to live our lives.

Daphnia by the way, is a fresh water crustacean "often called a water flea", according to the online article As the Smoke Clears in the Columbia Missourian (February 25th, 2007).

( Mar 03 2007, 06:14:38 AM CST ) Permalink Comments [1]

Mo House and Senate? Nobody Seems to Know... But You Should

What's the Missouri House and Senate doing? Nobody seems to know... but you should. The state and local levels of government are the two places individual citizens can have the most influence. Yet, so few people do. Often it seems like the vast majority of people don't even know what their representatives are doing, let alone do they ever participate or get involved.

Fortunately there's an easy way to get started. All those bills they're working on are available online. You can look at them. You can read them. You can see where they are today, how they've been evolving and changing, and when the next hearing will be for a given bill. Really, you can.

Try going here...

Missouri House of Representatives Bill Information

Start with the bill list. It's a bit unruly, but it will get you started. Find one that looks intrigueing and click on the link. Take House Bill 282 for instance. This bill creates the crime of motorcycle stunt driving. Sounds odd, let's click on it. Oops, there's two links there actually. The first one takes you to the bill's status. The second one takes you to the House member page of the person who is sponsoring the bill and lists a lot of information, including a House email address for the sponsor (keep that in mind for later).

Back on the bill status page, you can find out what actions have been taken on this bill, hearing dates, where it is on the House calendar, fiscal notes, and more. There's even a link for the text of the bill. Click on the link under "Bill Text for HB282". There, you can actually read the text of the bill they are working on.

Finished reading it? Are you asking yourself, "Why?". Why do we need a law for this? Okay, let's say someone does a short little wheelie out on some county back-road. Let's say nobody gets hurt and no property is damaged. Unfortunately this person is now guilty of a class C criminal misdemeanor. Do it again and it's a class A misdemeanor. Do it a third time, and guess what budy, you're a felon!

Does this sound like a useless law for a victim-less crime to you? Does it sound like a great way to divert the efforts of law enforcement away from more important tasks like catching murderers? Or does this sound like something you really want to see become law? Either way, remember that link to the sponsors House email address? Go on. Click on it. Now that you know what they're doing and what the text of the bill says and means, let the sponsor know what you think of their bill.

But don't stop there. Go back to the main House page. Look on the right, down just a little. See that box labelled "Legislator Look-Up"? All you need to do is enter your zip code and click the Go button. It'll list your Senators, your Representatives, your Congressman, and more.

And by the way, you can find the same type of information for the Missouri Senate as well.

So go ahead. Find out what they're up to. Let them know what you think. You should.

( Feb 10 2007, 12:41:16 AM CST ) Permalink