Just When I Thought I Was Done
Before we get all serious, this photo is from Christmas Eve 2021, a family hike we did up Overlook Mountain outside of Woodstock New York. At the summit is a deserted ruined hotel. And like those two adventures who are about to explore the ruins and descend, we’ll do the same with Friday developments.
History Pulls Me Right Back In
I feel like Al Pacino in the Godfather III in the scene where he states “Just when I thought I was out … they pull me right back in” There are times when I have warned myself that digging too deep into history is not of value, and that it's of far less value to others as well. These past couple weeks I’ve been proven wrong, there are events that map directly to warnings and analogies our ancestors urged us to internalize as part of our instincts for liberty.
Cultural Courage would not exist without our documentary Severed Conscience. Something clearly has changed in many people, we all have cases where we see how people are trapped and controlled by the dopamine mills and AI based algorithms that present to you what others want you to see. That’s either because they have detected your reactions, or worse, they have anticipated your actions. I call this Anticipatory Intelligence, and it can keep you in a state where manipulation is easy to pull off.
In many ways Cultural Courage is here to explore Natural Law and deepen our understanding of the Enlightenment, our history, and how life off the Big Tech platforms is the answer to this collectivized Stockholm Syndrome. The message is not a stodgy, powdered wig or William F Buckley erudite lecture. This shit matters, because we are being enslaved if we don’t rattle the cages open and reject those who are trampling our rights. And punish those who acted illegally during Covid either with prosecution or, at a minimum, throw them out of office.
I’m just becoming acquainted with Lysander Spooner, but this week was another occasion where I read something written nearly 150 years ago regarding how far afield we are from the intent of the Constitution. Synchronicity struck again. Today, the very scenario he described was demonstrated by the results of our lame duck session in my state of Michigan. Last night Michigan passed a law that will fine a person guilty of spreading campaign misinformation $1000. An entity involved in elections who employs a person who commits this transgression will be fined $10,000, unless of course it is a government. Link is below.
https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2023-2024/billengrossed/Senate/pdf/2024-SEBS-0707.pdf
Spooner warned that unless we follow the convention that any unconstitutional act is immediately unconstitutional and summarily null and void, we must wait for the courts to decide. If that’s the case, what’s the difference between the truly constitutional act and the unconstitutional one if we obey both? The constitutional act we must obey, and the unconstitutional one we have to obey until the courts say otherwise, so I guess we wait potentially years until a case is heard. But as Spooner points out, what's the freaking difference? He didn’t say it like that of course, but you get my urgency. He went on to depict a scenario where a law is passed limiting speech, and while you wait for the courts you may want to throw the offending politician out of office. But since your speech is curtailed, it will prevent you from raising enough awareness to build an opposition vote in the next election cycle, and then MORE laws are passed that further tighten the shackles you now wear.
The law in Michigan includes a phrase “The time, place, or manner of an election.” Manner of election covers many things, including absentee ballots, how they are counted, how early voting votes are counted, etc. In other words, this is a broad phrase that can lead to misinterpretation. So what if you are fined yet not in the wrong? Ok, you’re innocent, sure, but you have to go to court to prove that questioning how election tallying is handled is not describing the manner of an election that discourages or convinces someone that their vote would not be appropriately handled.
That’s what we have been hearing in our state for the past year, that voting misinformation is a cause for lower turnout, and is a threat to our democracy.
In addition, local governments are excluded, so what if a county clerk were handing out instructions that illegal aliens could vote, does that exclude that county from being fined? To my mind the sting of having to pay would be an incentive for our public servants to get things right.
There is too much leeway here for this law to be abused. And if this were a strong bill, it would have been introduced in a timely fashion where both parties would be able to read and debate the merits while communicating its impact to the citizens of Michigan.
Despite Trump’s win, our grave misunderstanding of how our Founding Fathers intended the Constitution to function is destroying us. It’s merely a piece of paper if people don’t enforce it because they don’t want to or if they don’t understand it.
If you have missed my article on the vaccine mandates that Michigan may pass, it is here. These events this week are reminder of what happens when we allow things cascade out of control.
OZFest Recap
AI was back on the radar for OZFest Morning Mission, and I have a feeling that there will be a tech segment on these podcasts for the foreseeable future. As I’ve emphasized many times, many have identified AI as vital to national security, so that will affect our energy policy and priorities because AI and Large Language Models take a lot of electric juice to run. Data centers and available water for cooling will also be strategic, and last night my state passed another law extending tax credits to data centers relocating to the Great Lakes State. The ever fantastic Mackinac Center has described the pitfalls of falling for the “it will bring jobs, jobs, jobs” rationale as we give away millions in tax credits and access to our water. I highly recommend Jason Hayes and his newsletter.
His work at the Mackinac Center sheds critical eye on all of the Fourth Industrial Revolution Renewable Energy craze we are experiencing in my home state. As I say, Michigan is the Microcosm.
Coming Up On Sunday Nights Radio
Enough of all this dire, dark talk. This Sunday we are going to stretch and relax on Sunday Nights Radio, some history and of course good music. If I manage my time, I may have something different and entertaining too. I know I need the change of pace.
Sunday Nights Radio is Sunday at 930 PM Eastern. Link below.
https://rumble.com/ozfest/live
History must be learned. Zee keep going I am soaking it in. Great job !