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  • Thomas L. Knapp

And That, as They Say, is That Mar 6, 2016

Usually when a political type talks about running for office and starts an "exploratory committee" or puts out a poll or whatever, the idea is to either demonstrate the existence of a base of support or to create a wave of support.Of course, I'm not the usual political type. When I threw up an Internet poll last Tuesday on whether or not I should seek the Libertarian Party's presidential nomination, the idea was to show three people who had suggested I do so that it would be a bad idea.I think the poll results establish that it would, indeed, be...

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Sheldon Richman on Donald Trump Mar 6, 2016

From his latest "TGIF" column:For decades the Republican leadership (committed to corporate privilege and costly empire) encouraged a base of jingoists, protectionists, nativists, and other "politically incorrect" types, whom it then largely took for granted. The leadership wanted their votes, but not their opinions. It never expected those folks to one day embrace a presidential candidate who said aloud whatever they were thinking. So it underestimated Trump and now is in big trouble.If that was Richman's main point it would still be well worth a read. But he takes it an entirely different, and equally important, direction. So get thee...

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Not Exactly a Tour … Mar 5, 2016

... but I'm going to be traveling around northern Florida for Libertarian Party purposes next Tuesday and Wednesday, so I figured I'd throw my itinerary out so that anyone with a burning desire to meet me has a chance to do so.I'm heading from Gainesville to Orange Park to attend the Clay County Libertarian Party's monthly meeting on Tuesday, March 8th. That's at 7pm at the Brick Oven Pizzeria & Gastropub, 1811 Town Center  in Fleming Island. If you're in the area, come on out!The thing is, I'm taking the long way there, via Greyhound.I have a layover in Ocala...

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The Light Begins to Dawn? Mar 4, 2016

New at Cato: "Was the 'Libertarian Moment' Wishful Thinking? A Debate."Anyone who was paying attention and not heavily into the project of working through a really huge stash of euphorics knew it was wishful thinking as soon as we heard the phrase, of course. Looks like the stash may finally be running out.Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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A Question for John McAfee Mar 4, 2016

In mid-2013, in an interview on Fox Business, the following exchange took place:Neil Cavuto: Are you a Republican, are you a Democrat, independent, how do you describe yourself?John McAfee: What would you think, you think I'm a Democrat with my views on guns and everything else? No, sir, I'm a Republican.Here's an embed of the segment [update: Sometimes the embed loads, sometimes it doesn't -- here's a direct link]. The exchange begins at about 1 minute and 45 seconds in:Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.comMcAfee is now seeking the Libertarian Party's 2016 presidential nomination. Inquiring minds want to know: When...

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Ted Cruz’s “Border-Adjustable Business Flat Tax” Mar 4, 2016

I was just listening to him talk about it on the GOP debate. Here's his tax plan."Border-Adjustable Business Flat Tax" is TedCruzian for "import tarriff that's not quite as high as the Smoot-Hawley rate that completely cratered the American economy between 1929 and 1932."Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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Endorsement: Re-Elect Nick Sarwark as Chair of the Libertarian National Committee Mar 3, 2016

The 2016 Libertarian National Convention is less than three months away. Among items on the agenda will be election of new (or re-election of old) Libertarian National Committee members and officers.I'm aware of three candidates for the position of chair: Current chair Nick Sarwark, Brett Pojunis of Nevada and Mark Rutherford of Indiana. I support re-electing Sarwark to the position. Here's why:With the LP, more so than the "major" parties, the chair is often called upon to be the party's public face, especially when we're not in the middle of a presidential campaign. The quality and quantity of the Libertarian...

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Because I Like to be First with the Conspiracy Theories … Mar 3, 2016

... I have to wonder if Aubrey McClendon faked his own death.Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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Thanks For Asking! — 03/02/16 Mar 2, 2016

This week's AMA thread, and the podcast to follow, are brought to you by Darryl W. Perry:Ask me anything -- anything! -- in the comment thread below this post. I'll answer it in the comment thread, or on the podcast, or both.Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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I Finally Figured Out Who Trump is Channeling Mar 2, 2016

It hit me while watching his remarks from "Mar-a-Lago," his Florida mansion, last night.Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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An Un-Scientific Poll Concerning Something I’ve Sworn I’d Never Do (Again) Mar 1, 2016

When one person privately suggested it to me, I pointed out that I've sworn in the past that it. Would. Never. Happen.When another person privately suggested it to me, I again pointed out that I've sworn in the past that it. Would. Never. Happen.A third person just privately suggested it to me. Maybe it's time to start playing hard to get instead of being so Shermanesque. But please, help me go back to the latter.Free Blog PollI most specifically want to hear from those who've already materially supported my congressional campaign. I won't be bailing on that unless they say...

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El Neil Endorses Mar 1, 2016

The whole piece -- as is the case with anything by L. Neil Smith -- is well worth taking your time to read. So please go do so. I'll wait to discuss it until you're done. And while I do, I guess I'll put on some music to keep me company.OK, so you're back, right? What did you think?I'm surprised. Not dismayed, just surprised.I kind of figured that if Neil endorsed, he'd endorse Darryl W. Perry rather than John McAfee.Why?Well, Darryl is far and away the most "purist"/"radical" candidate in the race, and L. Neil Smith both is, and tends...

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Quick Report on Garrison Center Pickups Mar 1, 2016

So far I've identified 61 February reprints of Garrison Center op-eds in "mainstream" newspapers and non-libertarian political publications.Not bad -- the number for January was 63, but of course February's a short month and I missed a column on Saturday due to illness, personal emergency, etc. So I'd say the trend is holding or maybe even improving slightly.And there's that "so far" thing, too.Like I said, I counted 63 pickups for January ... as of early February. When I went back yesterday to look for pickups in February, I found more January pickups that hadn't been indexed by Google yet when I previously...

By Thomas L. Knapp Vote1 1

The Secret Service’s Job Mar 1, 2016

Is it to protect the lives and safety of the president, VP, presidential candidates, etc.?Or is it to provide taxpayer-subsidized rent-a-cops for general event security purposes?Why am I wondering? Well, here's a bit from TIME regarding a scuffle involving one of their photographers and some Secret Service agents at a Trump event:Chris Morris, a veteran White House photographer working on the campaign for TIME, stepped out of the press pen to photograph a Black Lives Matter protest that interrupted the speech. A video shows that Morris swore at a Secret Service agent who tried to move Morris back into the...

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Trump: They’re Asking the Wrong Question Feb 29, 2016

OK, so there's quite a bit of gotcha political crap flying over the Ku Klux Klan, David Duke, et. al supporting Donald Trump. But that's all irrelevant.What's relevant is whether or not he supports them.Back in the day, I vociferously defended Ron Paul when people would try to put him down by noting that his weekly column appeared in David Duke's newsletter and in the Spotlight, a newspaper published by anti-semite and Holocaust denier Willis Carto. My view was simple: He put that column out for anyone to reprint as they pleased, and could hardly be held responsible if unsavory characters chose...

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Re-Thinking Augustus Invictus Feb 29, 2016

No, I wouldn't say I'm necessarily a supporter, but I'm getting less and less uncomfortable with the prospect of him representing the Libertarian Party as a candidate for US Senate. Why? Check out two things.First, his latest speech. If he had given this speech at the beginning of his campaign rather than later, he might have de-fanged some of his most energetic opponents:Secondly, his actual platform, which I've noticed neither Invictus himself or his supporters actually and actively promoting. Pretty damn libertarian (which is different than saying I agree with every jot and tittle).If he sticks to that platform, then the...

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Yeah, I Fall for it Fairly Often Feb 29, 2016

I speak, of course, of the ol' Gene Callahan trick of trotting out something like this question-begging bit on taxation, then sneering at any commenter who points out the weakness in his claim, after which he blocks further commenting by his interlocutor so that he can declare himself the winner of an argument without going to the trouble of, you know, actually winning an argument.I sometimes wonder if perhaps he teaches a class in logic and pulls this kind of thing so that he can assign his students the task "go over to my blog and identify one or more...

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The KN@PP Stir Podcast, Episode 68: The Libertarian Party’s Biloxi Blowout Feb 29, 2016

This episode of the KN@PP Stir Podcast is brought to you by Darryl W. Perry:In this episode:Thanks for Asking! (The bad old days and Nick Gillespie's Pop-Tarts);LP presidential candidates debate in BiloxiShow notes:Here's the "top 5" second part of the LP debate in Biloxi.I couldn't seem to find a video that was discretely of ONLY the first part of the debate with 10 candidates, but here's a video that INCLUDES that part (there's some other stuff before the debate begins also included in the video).Like KN@PPSTER? Check out Tom Knapp's work at the Garrison Center too!

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Medium, Not Particularly Rare Feb 25, 2016

I've noticed over the years that I really am becoming a late adopter of publishing platforms. Even when I created accounts at e.g. Facebook and Twitter, I didn't really start using those accounts for a long time after it became obvious that all the cool kids were there.So, it's probably not surprising that I'm just now really noticing and using Medium, which has been around for nearly four years. It's not that I objected to it as a platform or anything. It's just that I'm slow and thick and it was only a week or two ago that it finally came to...

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Concerning an Apple/FBI “Compromise” Feb 25, 2016

As I sometimes do, I'm going to structure this piece just a wee bit in reverse of the obvious order so that I can get certain things above the fold. Namely, Neal Reynolds's thoughts on the matter of the FBI vs. Apple's iPhone encryption.Quick summary -- reasonably objective, I think -- of Neal's thoughts: This isn't that big a deal because the FBI is willing to compromise and let Apple just crack the one iPhone rather than providing the FBI with a tool to crack all iPhones.But the full discussion is worth reading, and you can find it in the...

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