Gibson Guitars has struck a deal with the federal government to avoid prosecution for the use of banned wood.

Extortion does work! Gibson Guitars has struck a deal with the federal government to avoid prosecution for the use of banned wood.

The company will pay a $300,000 fine under a criminal enforcement agreement that defers prosecution for criminal violations of the Lacey Act. Another $50,000 fine will go to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation β€œto be used to promote the conservation, identification and propagation of protected tree species used in the musical instrument industry and the forests where those species are found.”

Notice the political payoff to an outside environmental group. How nice. I wish my cause could get funding this way, by having the U.S. government threaten companies I don’t like and force them to give me money.

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A Chick-Fil-A was covered with graffiti last night reading “Tastes like Hate” in anticipation of the gay community’s “National Same-Sex Kiss Day.”

Leftwing civility: A Chick-Fil-A was covered with graffiti last night reading “Tastes like Hate,” in anticipation of the gay community’s “National Same-Sex Kiss Day.”

As the lead commenter for this article noted

As a gay man I want to say sorry for what “my” people have done. Im so ashamed of being gay for the first time in my life. This is getting out of control. These gays are giving me a bad name. Not everyone is gonna like or except gays. Hell we dont like alot of straight people. We all have our own opinion. Like I told everyone, if they dont like your opinions then dont eat at Chick-Fil-A. Eat at KFG or churches. Again Im sorry for what the gay community is doing. They should all be ashamed of themselves….

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A pro-life Catholic group announced today it will openly defy the new pro-abortion mandate imposed by the Obama administration.

We’ve only just begun: A pro-life Catholic group announced today it will openly defy the new pro-abortion mandate imposed by the Obama administration.

β€œThe unjust and unconstitutional HHS mandate, against which Priests for Life and 57 other plaintiffs have sued the federal government, takes effect today. We at Priests for Life do not qualify for the year that the government has offered certain groups to ‘adapt’ to the mandate. And we are not ‘religious’ enough for this Administration,” he explained. β€œBut regardless of all that, we do not adapt to injustice; we oppose it.

β€œTherefore today, on behalf of our organization and on behalf of myself personally, I announce our conscientious objection to this mandate,” he said. β€œPriests for Life has the highest respect for civil government and advocates the observance of all just laws. But this policy is unjust, and today I reaffirm our intention to disobey it.”

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The disappearance of the old-fashioned chemistry set.

The disappearance of the old-fashioned chemistry set.

Here’s what it used to be like, when we lived in a free society:

By the 1920s and 30s children had access to substances which would raise eyebrows in today’s more safety-conscious times. There were toxic ingredients in pesticides, as well as chemicals now used in bombs or considered likely to increase the risk of cancer. And most parents will not need to be told of the dangers of the sodium cyanide found in the interwar kits or the uranium dust present in the “nuclear” kits of the 1950s.

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The perspective of one man

The perspective of one man running for President:

[W]hat exactly accounts for prosperity if not culture? In the case of the United States, it is a particular kind of culture that has made us the greatest economic power in the history of the earth. Many significant features come to mind: our work ethic, our appreciation for education, our willingness to take risks, our commitment to honor and oath, our family orientation, our devotion to a purpose greater than ourselves, our patriotism. But one feature of our culture that propels the American economy stands out above all others: freedom. The American economy is fueled by freedom. Free people and their free enterprises are what drive our economic vitality. [emphasis mine]

Sounds good to me, though we should all reserve the right to remain skeptical of anything a politician says. It is what they do that matters. Nonetheless, that Romney is making freedom a central part of his platform is further proof that he recognizes the trends and, like any politician, wants to be on the cusp of that wave. Or to once again repeat the words of Milton Friedman, “The important thing is to establish a political climate of opinion which will make it politically profitable for the wrong people to do the right thing.”

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A Connecticut man is arrested and has his guns confiscated because he fired his doctor and demanded that doctor provide him copies of all his lab tests.

You can’t make this stuff up: A Connecticut man is arrested and has his guns confiscated because he decided to change doctors and demanded that his old doctor provide him copies of all his lab tests.

Read the whole story. It appears that Connecticut officials sided with the doctor, a convicted felon, mostly because the arrested man happened to own a gun.

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Election fraud, at the NAACP and elsewhere.

Election fraud, at the NAACP and elsewhere.

An NAACP official is convicted of voting multiple times under many names, many of which were dead, and is now serving five years in prison for the crime. No wonder this organization is against voter id. It would cramp their style!

The most encouraging part of the story is that it was a Democrat who led the prosecution.

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After using his truck without his permission in a botched sting operation, the U.S. government is now refusing to compensate the owner for the truck’s destruction.

We’re here to help you: After using his truck without his permission in a botched sting operation, the U.S. government is now refusing to compensate the owner for the damages.

Commandeered by one of his drivers, who was secretly working with federal agents, the truck had been hauling marijuana from the border as part of an undercover operation. And without Patty’s knowledge, the Drug Enforcement Administration was paying his driver, Lawrence Chapa, to use the truck to bust traffickers. … Chapa was shot dead in front of more than a dozen law enforcement officers – all of them taken by surprise by hijackers trying to steal the red Kenworth T600 truck and its load of pot. In the confusion of the attack in northwest Harris County, compounded by officers in the operation not all knowing each other, a Houston policeman shot and wounded a Harris County sheriff’s deputy.

But eight months later, Patty still can’t get recompense from the U.S. government’s decision to use his truck and employee without his permission.

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A Democrat election judge has said he will not enforce the Pennsylvania law that requires identification in order to vote.

The law is for thee, not me: A Democrat inspector of elections has said he will not enforce the Pennsylvania law that requires identification in order to vote.

He might not like the law, and the law itself might be bad, but he has no right to pick and chose what laws he will enforce as an elected official.

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