Betsey Markey and Other Traitors

Traitors. Yep. that's the word...

by TL Davis at Washington Reb

"It seems that all of the representatives who threw their weight behind the passage of Obamacare in the last few days are staring defeat square in the face. As one of the people who walked the halls of Congress on that week, trying desperately to communicate with my representative Betsey Markey to encourage her that my business would be wrecked by the economic uncertainty of the bill, I couldn’t be happier. Had I not pleaded with her staff time and time again to let me impart the pleas I had personally; had I not visited her office three times in two days; had I not intreated her to save the jobs of the four or five people I had left working for me, I might be kinder, but I can’t.

There is a difference between passing legislation and transforming a nation from one thing to another. I submit that when the representatives of the people gather and in contravention of public opinion seek to effectively destroy the nation as it exists and endeavor to replace it with something of another form, what else could it be called but treason? Where there was a moment when the impact and import of the legislation had not been known, it could be understandable that one might support a bill offered by one’s political party, but when that legislation and the impact of it to society is known and still supported, there is no understanding.

The people had come to understand the law as moving the nation from an ostensibly capitalistic republic with some democratic methods toward an openly socialistic nation and they rejected it. There could have been no mistake that the people were not ready to give up the nation as founded. There could have been no mistake that the answer to this transformation was a resounding NO.

With this knowledge the representatives had a decision to make: would they support the legislation and move the nation into open socialism, or would they oppose the legislation and retain the government as founded? That answer was given to us on March 25, 2010 and people like Betsey Markey decided to thwart the efforts of people like me and to thwart the opinions and demands of the American people to establish for themselves the mantle of transformer. Now, today, the rest of the story can be told. Despite their efforts to put us under the yoke, they themselves face the same unemployment they have caused to spread throughout the land with their improvident actions.

These few, who knew what their votes would mean, what it would do to the nation as constructed and to the people who expected honest representation, committed nothing short of treason. It was, in effect, a coup that failed and now the conspirators must suffer the penalty of those Valkyrie conspirators of the last century. I believe that the whole of the supporters of Obamacare should be removed from office and cast defenseless to the people. Instead, I and others, have allowed for the orderly dictates of our republic to do the work with less upheaval, but this is a limited-time offer and is largely dependent upon the actions of the newly minted representatives we will send in the places of the conspirators.

Long live the republic!"

And my comment: Great post. I’m linking it at my blog. I’m in Colorado too. We may rid ourselves of one Betsey Markey, but barring a stunning upset we’re about to get another for governor. I’m preparing my escape while it’s still legal to leave.

I DO remember what the law was, back before everyone EXCEPT the criminals was a criminal. The Founders tried. They gave us the law of the land, our Constitutional Republic.

Knowing that law could always be twisted and abused, they gave us free speech.

Knowing that speech wouldn’t always hold sway, they gave us the ballot box.

Knowing that voting didn’t work infallibly either, they gave us nullification.

Knowing that even nullification might fail, they gave us the Second Amendment, and informed us of our right and duty to alter or abolish OUR OWN government, should it come to abuse us.

JFK said “those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.” This must be exactly what they wanted, because they’ve toiled diligently to bring us here.

So be it. Every mind ruined in public school, every name on a list, every moment under camera surveillance, every checkpoint, every warrantless search, every e-mail intercepted, every phone call recorded, every gun registered, every lie told, every dollar printed, every effort taxed, every citizen beaten, framed or killed by a cop, every shred of ludicrous propaganda, every plane into a building, every body scanner, every asset seized – none of these indignities will suffice to repress the American spirit when it is deprived of essential Liberty just one minute too long.

And time’s up.

Again we’ve patiently suffered through a long string of abuses, and this election is our 1773. Again, it’s business as usual for the ruling class. Again they take no heed, because again, we do not matter.

We all know what’s next. Pray we avert it, work to avert it, but make your decisions now. Be ready.

And many thanks to Western Rifle Shooters Association, where I spotted this!

Must Watch NIA Video: "End of Liberty"

The best video yet, from an organization that gets it. Do you???

Erik Scott Update

Bill Scott has posted a flurry of entries at the Erik Scott Memorial Blog. I particularly liked "Erik's Testimony: First Installment". There are some interesting developments - check them out...

The Bell Tolls for Benoit Mandelbrot

Larger than life mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot has passed away. He died last Thursday at age 85, of pancreatic cancer. Perhaps best known for his pioneering work on fractal geometry (he coined the term "fractal" and wrote the original book) Mandelbrot was also a significant intellectual force in the field of finance. His book "The (Mis)behavior of Markets - a Fractal View of Risk, Ruin and Reward" was a best seller and won the financial book of the year award. Mandelbrot was the beloved mentor of Nassim Taleb who authored "The Black Swan". He and Taleb made frequent joint appearances on financial news shows as the present economic crisis unfolded.

I loved his wry, gentle manner of presentation, which was quite accessible to the layman. (He reminded me of physicist Al Bartlett in that respect, who can also tell us we're screwed, with a smile, and keep the audience chuckling.) Another giant of science, one of the most important mathematicians of the post WWII era, gone...

Camel's Back, Two Straws...

My dire prediction for the housing market is based on two recent developments. First is B of A's nationwide suspension of foreclosures. Expect this to spread until all foreclosures are halted for some indeterminate period. At issue is documentation, and whether anyone attempting to seize a house actually has the secured interest needed to legally foreclose.

This impacts not only pending and future foreclosures, but completed foreclosures. Also hit hard are past and pending purchases of foreclosed homes. If you bought a foreclosed home in the last couple of years, it's quite possible that the foreclosure wasn't properly documented, and title may now be in question. Among other things, this will develop into a title insurance crisis that could take years to resolve.

The second big development is the Countrywide Mortgage class action lawsuit. Among the many claims, plaintiffs have asserted that Countrywide and various retail lenders who wrote Countrywide paper deliberately shopped for high appraisals in order to overvalue properties. This will be easy to prove, as everyone familiar with this mess knows that "optimistic" appraisals have been used industry wide for at least the last decade.

That's called fraud. Every real estate transaction in America over the last 10-15 years is now in question, tainted by this universal practice. Many homes have changed hands two or three times in this time period, and every buyer has paid too much. They've been defrauded.

There's no statute of limitations on fraud, nor can such liabilities be discharged in a bankruptcy.

It's easy to demonize and marginalize subprime borrowers who can't pay their mortgage. But, how do you dismiss someone who did everything right, paid his loan on time every month but who was overcharged for his house? When those people realizes what happened, they'll sue. And they're sympathetic victims. Virtually every realtor, every appraiser, every mortgage broker and every bank in the country participated in this fraud, many knowingly and the rest looking hard in the opposite direction.

As this sinks in, the next realization is that the government was a willing participant. Government regulators looked the other way as taxes poured in from the incomes and purchases of contractors, realtors, appraisers, mortgage brokers and bankers, and from capital gains. Our government knowingly caused the mess, and was on the take from day one.

I expect a total loss of faith to follow on the heels of these revelations, and I doubt they can keep a lid on this until the election.

Republican Women vs. Democrat Women

Housing Meltdown: Panic Time

The bailouts to date went largely to financial houses for a reason - they were attempts to cover up the massive housing market fraud by filling the equity chasm with taxpayer dollars. Said attempts were blessed by politicians of both parties - all puppets of the very bankers who were in trouble. Nary a thought has been given to merely acknowledging, let alone finding a remedy for the staggering underlying fraud. I'm relieved that those days seem, at last, to be coming to a close.

As more lenders suspend foreclosures, more state attorneys general look into this mess and as more class action lawsuits are filed, it finally appears that this is coming to a head. At issue now is whether there remains any semblance of civil and criminal justice in America, or whether the bankers have corrupted even that.

Bad as they were, the housing/mortgage related problems we've seen up to now have merely been the warm-up. The real show starts soon. For a short and not at all sweet look at where we're at, read Ezra Klein Interviews Janet Tavakoli from the Washington Post. As Janet says in the interview, "this is the biggest fraud in the history of the capital markets"

A massive writedown is in the offing, and trillions of dollars of paper wealth will simply disappear when that happens. As this plays out, it will devastate the financial markets. Markets that have already priced Quantitative Easing II into the equation. Markets that are poised at recent highs, entirely unsupported by fundamentals. It's time to take a VERY defensive basic position with your investments. Food, gold and silver, household supplies, fuel and guns/ammo come to mind. (Anything Bernanke can't ruin.) Then cash, in hand, sufficient to pay at least half a year's payments. Only after that level of self-sufficiency is achieved should any money be at play in any market, and I'm at a loss to discern where such money might be safe through what's coming.

(Dang. I'm going to have to dust off my Jubilee article and re-post it...)

An Open Letter to Ted Nugent - "The Day I'll Join the NRA"

from Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership

Dear Ted:

First, I personally thank you for the valuable work you have done, and are doing, for the Second Amendment. You have used your talent, success, wit, and celebrity to fight for our freedoms.

Additionally, you are a member of the Board of Directors of the NRA. So this letter is directed to you in strictly that capacity. Why? Because I believe that you will listen. And you have the standing and respect within the NRA to actually do something regarding the issues I’d like to bring to your attention.

We at JPFO recently received a letter from an angry and very articulate fellow who took the vast majority of gun owners to task for not being NRA members. He rightly points out that there are more than eighty million gun owners and only five million members of any pro-gun organization, the NRA obviously being the largest.

I read this fellow’s letter a couple of times, and could not fault him on his spirit or personal philosophy. What bothered me was that he was asking me to join the NRA.

Ted, the day I’ll join the NRA is…

1. When the NRA announces, from the rooftops, that the police have NO LEGAL DUTY to protect the average American citizen. Time after time, our courts have upheld this. If every American understood this, we would see gun ownership, and Second Amendment awareness, burgeon across our nation. The tide would resolutely turn in our favor.

One of JPFO’s finest projects was the book “Dial 911 and Die”. It is meticulously documented with actual court cites. Why didn’t the NRA, years ago, publish this material in a reader friendly format for nationwide distribution?

♦ Why didn’t the NRA, years ago, publish this material in a reader friendly format for nationwide distribution?

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

2. When the NRA aggressively presses to abolish all concealed carry permit laws. How has an unalienable right to self defense been demoted to a revocable government granted privilege? Unregistered concealed carry has been no big issue in both Alaska and Vermont for decades. Arizona just passed unregistered concealed legislation. It’s time for the NRA to start swimming strongly with this tide. Yes, it’s a victory for gun owners when a State like Minnesota finally allows registered carry, but we must see it for what it still is: an un-Constitutional infringement on our G-d* given right to self defense, see: "The Ten Commandments of Self Defense". It is also an obvious way to add more gun owner names to a list and database. (*Out of respect, observant Jews do not write out the name of the Almighty in secular texts.)

♦ How has an unalienable right to self defense been demoted to a revocable government granted privilege?

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

3. When the NRA calls for the complete and unconditional disbanding of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE). Gun owners should be appalled at the NRA leadership’s incestuous “good cop/bad cop” dance with the BATFE. For decades there has been a symbiotic, and liberty threatening, “good ole’ boy” relationship between NRA and BATFE. They should instead be mortal enemies.

♦ They should instead be mortal enemies.

The BATFE’s abuses are legion and despicable. These criminal acts crested like a bloody wave with the horrific deceit and treachery the agency displayed at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and then at Waco, Texas.

JPFO has produced a documentary about the BATFE called “The Gang” for which you kindly donated footage, showing you teaching teenagers how to use firearms safely. As you know, “The Gang” is not specifically about Ruby Ridge or Waco, it’s about how, with deliberate regularity, the BATFE criminally harasses honest gun owners.

Did you know that, back during the Administration of Ronald Reagan, President Reagan actually wanted to dismantle the then “BATF”? Who stopped him? The NRA! See this Time Magazine article that reports this hypocrisy.

The NRA has publicly stated that it wants to “work with” BATFE to punish the criminal use of guns, see: copy of NRA response letter. We don’t need these bucket headed, jack booted paramilitary goons playing cops in our lives. Let the local police, county sheriff, State police, or the FBI, do what they were assigned and sworn to do in the first place.

♦ We don’t need these bucket headed, jack booted paramilitary goons playing cops in our lives.

On top of that, tobacco is a drug. Alcohol is a drug. Give that authority to the FDA. Explosives? Wasn’t that an FBI specialty already?

And then there’s the firearms. This means “gun control”, and every single threat to our freedom that comes along with it.

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

4. When the NRA soundly condemns, and works tirelessly to abolish, the “Gun Control Act of 1968”. NRA lawyers actually helped to write this piece of totalitarian legislation. JPFO was the first to expose “GCA ‘68” for what it was: a near carbon copy of the Nazi German gun laws of the 1930s. See: "Gun Control" Gateway to Tyranny.

The NRA needs to “man up” and confess that it made a terrible mistake here. It needs to go on an Obama style apology tour of every State, and personally confess this sin to American gun owners. And then repent.

Gun registration (brought to you by GCA ’68) is intolerable in a free society. In Nazi Germany, Jews were forced to identify themselves with a yellow star. In America, our citizens are forced to identify their ownership of firearms with a form called a “4473” and concealed weapon permits.

♦ In Nazi Germany, Jews were forced to identify themselves with a yellow star.

Now, with the computer age fully entrenched in our society, a centralized database of all gun owners and their firearms’ serial numbers is just a mouse click away. The BATFE claims it would never do this. But they are already doing it with their phony 'eTrace' program. They actually share information about American gun owners with foreign governments! This could have ominous repercussions.

Let’s analyze why “GCA ‘68” even passed. It was because of the political assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. Without those three murders, the American people would have scoffed at the idea of national “gun control”. The highly emotionalized loss of the lives of three public figures, tragic though it was, created enough manipulated hysteria in this nation to essentially throw the Second Amendment out the window.

But what about the hundreds of thousands of brave Americans who have died fighting, generation after generation, to protect our Bill of Rights? Instead of standing firm in the face of this 1968 “gun control” travesty, when a far more conservative America could have been effectively rallied, the NRA got in bed with the gun prohibitionists and actually helped pen the legislation. See: "NRA Supported the National Firearms Act of 1934"and GCA68.

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

5. When the NRA quits kowtowing to authoritarian police bureaucrats and takes a no compromise stand against the increasing paramilitarization of our local and State law enforcement agencies.

It’s time to quit building a standing army in America, masquerading as local SWAT teams and hooded “tactical units”. Federal money is lavishly splashed at these local law enforcement agencies. And, as we all know, payback day cannot be far away.

When push comes to shove, can we depend on local cops who have been suckling at the Federal teat, and attending Federal brainwashing seminars?

The NRA has to get in the face of all local police and ask them, point blank: “Will you ever assist in the disarming of the American citizenry?” Any cop who answers in the affirmative must be drummed out of the ranks.

♦ Any cop who answers in the affirmative must be drummed out of the ranks.

“To Protect and Serve” does not mean “To Disarm and Enslave”.

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

6. When the NRA assertively speaks to our active duty military personnel and respectfully (but emphatically) reminds them that any disarming of innocent Americans is a blatant and evil breach of their oath to uphold and protect our Constitution. The NRA needs to follow the lead of Oath Keepers in reaching out to both soldiers and cops.

That disgusting “czarette” Janet Napolitano, of Homeland Security, actually had the gall to imply that homecoming soldiers posed a threat because they could be “recruited” by “extremist” groups. The NRA should be at the top of that list of so-called “extremist” groups!

These hard line Leftists have to understand one thing: If forced to, we are unwilling to give them any quarter to protect our freedom. And every freedom loving American should expect that active duty soldiers, who have sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic, will stand, gun in hand, by the side of The People if push ever comes to shove.

♦ These hard line Leftists have to understand one thing: If forced to, we are unwilling to give them any quarter to protect our freedom.

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

7. When the NRA forcefully and persistently brings up the uncontestable fact that every major genocide of the 20th Century was preceded by “gun control” policies. Disarmed millions became the victims of government sponsored or condoned mass murder.

What far too many American gun owners are so hesitant to face is that the greatest criminals in history have not been common street thugs. By a huge, huge factor, the greatest criminal element in modern history has been government-gone-bad.

The Founders didn’t pen the Second Amendment to protect us from muggers and rapists or burglars. That’s actually a secondary benefit. They penned the Second Amendment to protect us from our own government! See: "2A Today for The USA".

At one time in America, this somber ideal was actually taught in public schools. Now a kid can’t even draw a picture of a gun or take a “Goody Gun” cookie to school for lunch. The insane poison of political correctness runs amok in our nation today. Ted, you don’t put up with the p.c. garbage, why does the NRA?

♦ The Founders didn’t pen the Second Amendment to protect us from muggers and rapists or burglars.

NEXT: I’ll join the NRA…

8. When the NRA honestly and accurately “grades” politicians for their real position on the Second Amendment. Hillary Clinton’s and Charlie Schumer’s pet protégé Kirsten Gillibrand got an “A” rating from the NRA. This is insane.

Gillibrand is now on the band wagon for a reinstated “assault weapons” ban. The NRA: Suckered and betrayed once again.

Ted Nugent running for office gets an “A+” grade from the NRA. That’s the standard they must start with. We cannot grade on a bell curve when it comes to our freedom.

Our politicians must not simply be “pro gun”, they must be fervently pro Second Amendment. It is now time for zero tolerance for any form of “gun control”. Far too often, American gun owners have seen “A” graded politicians waffle and cave on gun law after gun law. If the NRA has to step away from any candidate to uphold our rights, so be it.

♦ Ted Nugent running for office gets an “A+” grade from the NRA. That’s the standard they must start with.

Millions of American gun owners will reject any candidate who betrays our G-d given right to defend our lives.

The time for any sort of compromise is over. We must now retrieve ground that has been lost to past retreats. It is time for the NRA to really start “walking the walk”. Radically downgrade every single politician who has betrayed us in any way in the past.

Ted, you have the clout and celebrity status to bring any or all of these issues directly to the NRA’s Board of Directors. You can also, through your website and fan base, expose countless younger Americans to these critical matters.

♦ You can also, through your website and fan base, expose countless younger Americans to these critical matters.

It’s time to give the American people a very loud wake up call regarding their freedom. No one can say you are shy, Ted. Please, make some of that trademarked Nugent Noise over these crucial issues.



Sincerely, and Yours in Freedom,

Aaron Zelman, Founder and Director of Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership.

Copyright 2010 Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership.

Obama Plan: Flee to India After Mid Term Election

Just can't wait to get outta here...

Regrettably, it's a round trip.

Slow Learners

Bloomberg reports a new form of subprime security: "asset-backed auto debt linked to loans to consumers with credit considered subprime"...

And investors, liking the high yields, are snapping them up.

Words aren't necessary...

...because a picture's worth a thousand of them.

h/t to WRSA...

I Smell a (liberal) Rat...

So the black-robed legislature is back in session, and newly minted Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan is recusing herself from fully HALF of the cases on the court's docket.

I suspect that if I had the time to research those cases, I'd know why.

Erik Scott Inquest Results

During a long conversation with an out of state friend last night, I was asked why I hadn't followed through on the Erik Scott inquest. I didn't want to get sidetracked, so I promised to catch up on the story in print. Bottom line is, I have to admit to not having the stomach to follow the entire inquest into Erik's murder by Las Vegas police.

I understood that by any rational standard the process would be a joke. What I wasn't prepared for was the fury I experienced as the family sat helplessly through the proceedings. And fury is what it was - by the end of the second day, I could feel my blood pressure! The Scott family's attorney was present, but he was NOT allowed to speak. No cross examination, no objections, nothing. He was allowed to submit written questions(!) but the inquest wasn't required to show the questions to the "jury" - let alone read them out loud during the proceeding in a timely fashion. The whole proceeding looked like what you would expect to see in a corrupt third world hell hole, which is apparently just what Las Vegas is.

So it was that I only managed to watch the first two days of one-sided testimony. It was damning testimony, as expected, but if you were paying attention various details presented ranged from implausible to contradictory. Since the inquest ended, I've caught up on the low points (there were no high ones) from the third day on by way of print media.

Needless to say, the cops looked at themselves in their own mirror and liked the image they saw. In the kangaroo court that is a Clark County inquest, government marsupials painted a picture of Erik that was almost comically one-sided - as contrived and simplistic as an old western, with the good guys (cops) dressed in white and the bad guy (Erik) dressed in black. The farce ended with the jury ruling that the three cops who shot Erik seven times (five times in the back) were justified in killing him. (Right. Try shooting someone five times in the back and see if the cops let YOU get away with calling it justified...)

This isn't over. In fact, for those interested in the truth, it's just getting underway. From here on out, the Scott family will be able to speak. In court. They'll be allowed to present witnesses who contradict the "official" story, and to cross examine government witnesses. They'll also enjoy the power of the subpoena, which should lead to some very interesting revelations. And, thank God, the Scotts won't be compelled to sit silently while government thugs slander their son, which means I'll be able to watch again.

I hold out the hope that the truth will come out someday, by way of civil court or perhaps a federal civil rights case. Perhaps at that time the powers that be will have no choice but to prosecute the killer cops criminally. I also pray that something like the Innocence Project, which has secured the release of a large number of innocent people through DNA testing, will spring up to shine the light on all police misconduct. By freeing innocent people, the Innocence Project has had the delightful side-effect of killing the careers of a few dishonest cops and dishonest prosecutors. (See? The law of unintended consequences works just fine when you start out seeking the truth!) And, who knows? Perhaps the seeds of just such an effort are here: Amazing Police Corruption Website

Those close to me know my alarm and disgust at the transition of American cops from "peace officers" to "law enforcement officers" - a transition that pretty much took place during my lifetime. We commonly call this the militarization of the police, and it's an apt term. By temperament, armament and near-total immunity they constitute a domestic standing army, which the founders would have found intolerable.

One is now best off to avoid all contact with the police. It is unwise to call them, regardless of the circumstances, and even less advisable to talk to them - particularly if you are innocent. Which leads me to ask - again - what the hell's wrong with us??? Why do we put up with this? If you ask me, we are again shirking our birthright as Americans, and the large part of the answer is to be found here: Are Cops Constitutional?

Surprisingly, many of my fellow conservatives (liberty oriented people, supposedly) are so blindly pro-cop that over the last several years of speaking out on this mess, I've taken serious abuse and even lost friends for my position that America is descending into a police state. Well, I'll take it, and continue to protest, for whatever it's worth. Increasingly, I'm just saddened that this denial remains so pervasive that public opinion perpetuates abuse by cop, and that my countrymen must continue to awake to this problem through the needless beatings and deaths of family members.

Teach Your Children Well

Joe Sobran's untimely death prompted some re-reading of his work - or at least the small portion of it that resides in my library. Herewith one of my all-time favorites, penned in 1999:

"Because I write about politics, people are forever asking me the best way to teach children how our system of government works. I tell them that they can give their own children a basic civics course right in their own homes.

In my own experience as a father, I have discovered several simple devices that can illustrate to a child's mind the principles on which the modern state deals with its citizens. You may find them helpful, too.

For example, I used to play the simple card game WAR with my son. After a while, when he thoroughly understood that the higher ranking cards beat the lower ranking ones, I created a new game I called GOVERNMENT. In this game, I was Government, and I won every trick, regardless of who had the better card. My boy soon lost interest in my new game, but I like to think it taught him a valuable lesson for later in life.

When your child is a little older, you can teach him about our tax system in a way that is easy to grasp. Offer him, say, $10 to mow the lawn. When he has mowed it and asks to be paid, withhold $5 and explain that this is income tax. Give $1 to his younger brother, and tell him that this is "fair". Also, explain that you need the other $4 yourself to cover the administrative costs of dividing the money. When he cries, tell him he is being "selfish" and "greedy". Later in life he will thank you.

Make as many rules as possible. Leave the reasons for them obscure. Enforce them arbitrarily. Accuse your child of breaking rules you have never told him about. Keep him anxious that he may be violating commands you haven't yet issued. Instill in him the feeling that rules are utterly irrational. This will prepare him for living under democratic government.

When your child has matured sufficiently to understand how the judicial system works, set a bedtime for him and then send him to bed an hour early. When he tearfully accuses you of breaking the rules, explain that you made the rules and you can interpret them in any way that seems appropriate to you, according to changing conditions. This will prepare him for the Supreme Court's concept of the U.S. Constitution as a "living document".

Promise often to take him to the movies or the zoo, and then, at the appointed hour, recline in an easy chair with a newspaper and tell him you have changed your plans. When he screams, "But you promised!", explain to him that it was a campaign promise.

Every now and then, without warning, slap your child. Then explain that this is defense. Tell him that you must be vigilant at all times to stop any potential enemy before he gets big enough to hurt you. This, too, your child will appreciate, not right at that moment, maybe, but later in life.

At times your child will naturally express discontent with your methods. He may even give voice to a petulant wish that he lived with another family. To forestall and minimize this reaction, tell him how lucky he is to be with you the most loving and indulgent parent in the world, and recount lurid stories of the cruelties of other parents. This will make him loyal to you and, later, receptive to schoolroom claims that the America of the postmodern welfare state is still the best and freest country on Earth.

This brings me to the most important child-rearing technique of all: lying. Lie to your child constantly. Teach him that words mean nothing--or rather that the meanings of words are continually "evolving", and may be tomorrow the opposite of what they are today.

Some readers may object that this is a poor way to raise a child. A few may even call it child abuse. But that's the whole point: Child abuse is the best preparation for adult life under our form of government."

Originally written for http://mises.org