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Queens Libertarians

Libertarian News, Views, Discussion and Advocacy from Queens County, New York

News

Homeschooling Surges 700% as Parents Separate School from State

Populist activist, scholar and entrepreneur Steve Turley comments on how the statist establishment’s COVID Lockdown has deeply backfired, as more and more parents have gotten used to having their children educated outside of the government schools, and apparently are not coming back. Reason likewise has separately estimated that homeschooling has roughly tripled during the pandemic:

 

Libertarian Discussion of China and US Foreign Policy

On Saturday, June 12, 2021 at 11:30 a.m. at Takara Sushi restaurant located at 150-11 14th Avenue, Whitestone, New York QL will hear retired NYU Professor (and new member) Robert Luster speak on the topic of “China and US Foreign Policy.” Is the US increasingly falling under the influence of China, or the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)? Should either nation have or maintain hegemony or controlling geopolitical dominance? Are many US officials de-facto CCP allies or operatives? How do recent elections, and the economic circumstances of both countries factor into their current relations? Is the US answer to these issues more, or less foreign intervention? Luster will speak 45 minutes, followed by discussion.

Details and Directions

 

LPNY Appealing Court Defeat On Ballot Law Changes

The LP is appealing the denial of its motion in the battle to repeal the 2020 “Cuomo rules,” that reverse the permanent ballot status the party earned in New York in the 2018 election. Interestingly, the party’s attorney ran into the same kind of biased judge behavior as claimed by Trump in the November 3 election integrity cases, where the court threw out the motion before even hearing the evidence. Maybe BLM was right that “the system is against us,” only the “us” turns out to be, well, us:

In March 2020, the New York State Legislature passed a state budget, under the cover of the COVID pandemic, that included provisions to increase ballot access petitioning and vote thresholds meant to remove the Libertarian Party of New York and other minor parties from the ballot.

In July 2020, in conjunction with the Green Party of New York, the LPNY filed a Federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against the New York State Board of Elections to declare the new thresholds unconstitutional.

In December 2020, we filed a motion for preliminary injunction to enjoin the NYSBOE from implementing these Draconian thresholds, and to restore our automatic ballot access and petitioning thresholds through the 2022 election cycle.

We asked for your help then, and you came through for us. Through your generous donations, we were able to retain Oliver Hall, one of the nation’s top ballot access litigators. On April 28, 2021, Mr. Hall presented the oral argument in favor of our motion for preliminary injunction before Judge John Koeltl, a partisan Clinton appointee with a long history of conflicts of interest.

Despite being a nationally-known ballot access expert with a firm grasp of related case law, the full extent of Mr. Hall’s case was never heard. Incomprehensibly, he was interrupted by Judge Koeltl at least thirty-six times while Oliver tried to present the LPNY’s argument.

Thirty-six times.

The BOE lawyers, on the other hand, were allowed to defend their flawed argument with nearly no interruptions. They piled one adulation after another upon the judge for his questionable jurisprudence in the related SAM Party and WFP v. BOE ballot access case.

It quickly became evident that Judge Koeltl had made his decision before the hearing. If he hadn’t, we think he would have spent his time listening to the merits of both sides of the case and ruled in our favor. Instead, he went out of his way, to be combative with Mr. Hall while giving preferential treatment to the defendant’s attorneys and, ultimately, denying our motion for preliminary injunction.

If we had a dollar for each time Oliver was interrupted, we would be thirty-six dollars richer.

BUT – if each of you gave a dollar for each time Oliver was interrupted, we would be able to get this case heard on its merits.

Please support our effort to get the facts of our case appealed before an impartial panel of judges. Give $36 today in support of the ongoing lawsuit. If you’re able, donate another multiple of 36 – $72, $108, $144, or $360 – or whatever you’re able to protest the lack of respect and integrity shown to our attorney. Your anger, and your donation, will help us fuel the fight against these unjust political attacks and restore voter choice to New Yorkers.

Thank you in advance for whatever you are able to give.

In Liberty,
W. Cody Anderson
Chair, Libertarian Party of New York

Police, Businesses Adjust to Pot Decriminalization

The Queens Chronicle reported this month on the local changes resulting from the legalization of marijuana in NY:

Weed is legal in New York and the NYPD is adjusting.

A memo to officers says people 21 and older can legally smoke weed “almost anywhere that cigarette smoking is allowed including on sidewalks, on front stoops and other public places.”

People are allowed to have up to three ounces of cannabis under the law.

When it comes to cars, the smell of “burnt and unburnt” weed “alone no longer establishes probable cause of a crime to search a vehicle,” according to the memo, which was posted online by the New York Post.

If a driver admits to smoking recently, officers can search the vehicle’s passenger compartment, but “the trunk may not be searched unless the officer develops separate probable cause to believe the trunk contains evidence of a crime (e.g., gun recovered from under driver seat).”

Read the rest.

 

Independent Petitioning Begins for Queens Candidates

The (official) Libertarian Party of Queens has announced the petitioning period has started in New York, and has provided instructions for those who will be active in the effort. “Due to the circumstances of the ongoing lawsuit between LPNY & NYS Board of Elections, we have not gotten results back in regards to our official ballot status, and as a result our candidates need to gather independent petition signatures. The petitioning period begins 4/12 and ends 5/25. Signing is very appreciated, as well as those who can commit to be dedicated volunteers for the 2021 petitioning cycle. We need all hands on deck for our candidates!” The complete petitioning instructions, and template petition form can be found here.  

Dr. Phil on Replacing the Progressive Income Tax, The Essay

For those who missed his presentation at the QL April meeting, Phil Schoenberg has submitted his remarks in essay form, excerpted below. Link to the full article is provided:

I am here to tell you why the progressive income tax does not work as advertised.  There is no way to make it work because it is a regressive tax riddled with tax loopholes that punishes everyone’s  success. I would like you to stand on one foot, and say after me, “You pay for my benefits.” This is what I had my college students repeat after me as the essence of American government.

Frédéric Bastiat, the French economist, called the idea of progressive taxation “a fatal illusion” in the early nineteenth century. The people in the middle who think they are getting unearned benefits from those above forget the people below are getting unearned benefits from them.  No matter how the progressive income tax is reformed, the people in the upper income brackets find or create loopholes so they will never pay their “fair share.”  They routinely lobby for new loopholes all the time and Congressmen write loopholes to please their campaign contributors. The more things change, the more things remain the same as the French say…

See full Article

 

LPNY Rejects “Voluntary” COVID Vaccine Passport

It appears tyrant Cuomo is going ahead with a proto-Mark of the Beast “passport” scheme to impose document requirements on people to prove they took a COVID vaccine shot, in order to participate in normal life in New York. A federal version of this also being announced by the Biden regime. IBM is going to administer handling the data collected by the program, because having a serial number permanently inked on your forearm is just so 1940’s. Cody Anderson of LPNY objects:

 

Libertarian Party of New York Vehemently Opposes “Voluntary” Vaccine Passport Imposed By New York Governor’s Office

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced a “vaccine passport” that New Yorkers can use to prove vaccination or history of a negative COVID-19 test. The program, called the “Excelsior Pass,” is an app that is being called “not mandatory” but is being forced upon venues who wish to fully reopen. The Biden Administration is said to be considering a similar program for the entire nation.

Privacy experts have decried this move. IBM, who developed the Excelsior smartphone app used to do the tracing, insists user data will be kept confidential, as it will use blockchain technology to record and transmit data. However, the terms of service accompanying the app do not explicitly state how the data is tracked or safeguarded, even less so than standard smartphone applications. That isn’t the only issue, according to Cody Anderson, chair of the Libertarian Party of New York.

“The Excelsior Pass is not benign,” Anderson stated. “Not only does the Excelsior app entrust the government with HIPAA-privileged health information, it creates a surveillance state by recording protected health information, tracking individual locations and correlating gatherings in real-time. It requires businesses like concert and sports venues to either join the surveillance regime, or remain closed. That’s not optional participation – that’s force – and will only worsen the economic and psychological damage already inflicted upon New York State by Governor Cuomo.

“Furthermore, requiring use of the Excelsior app sends the signal that compliant behavior will be rewarded with a restaurant meal, concert or sporting event. It creates a class structure where vaccinated individuals carrying smartphones are more deserving and of a higher caste than those who have legitimately chosen not to vaccinate or carry a mobile device. We stand opposed to this state-sanctioned sorting ceremony.

“The consequences for our natural and constitutional rights to privacy, due process, and peaceful assembly are dire. Do not install this app.”

A protest against the Excelsior Pass is planned for Wednesday, March 31st at 12 noon, at the state Capitol in Albany. You can find details about that event at fb.me/e/NQroS51h.

For more information about the Libertarian Party of New York, please visit lpny.org. You may also visit Facebook at www.facebook.com/LPNYOfficial, Twitter @LPNYOfficial, or Instagram @LPNYOfficial.

Schoenberg On Replacing the Progressive Income Tax

Queens Libertarians will host Dr. Philip Ernest Schoenberg, retired college professor of American government, at the Takara Sushi restaurant located at 150-11 14th Avenue, Whitestone, New York on Saturday, April 10 at 11:30 am. He has taught at various colleges in the New York area for the past twenty years, and has been a consultant to PBS on its presidential website. He will speak 45 minutes followed by discussion. Dr. Schoenberg will speak on why “The Progressive Income Tax Should be Replaced by the Flat Income Tax.” Just in time for income tax day, learn why the progressive income tax should be abolished.  Details and directions.

Dr. Marcus on COVID Vaccines and Health Freedom

Queens Libertarians will host the return of Naturopathic Doctor Dr. Saul Marcus (ND), at the Takara Sushi restaurant located at 150-11 14th Avenue, Whitestone, New York on Saturday, March 13 at 11:30 am. He will speak on the topic of “The Truth About COVID Vaccines and Health Freedom.” and the best way to promote natural immune wellness in the wake of the constantly evolving “COVID guidance” state and city mandates of 2021.
Are Americans going to be forcibly drugged, with under tested vaccines, in order to be permitted to function in society? Do the first round of vaccines for COVID 19 even work, or will they continue to, given the mutation of the virus? Are there natural alternatives? Dr. Marcus explains many options, some of which he may offer from his practice in Forest Hills. His website is https://saulmarcusnd.com/

Dr. Phil on “Should the Coronavirus Vaccine be Mandated?”

Our Dr. Schoenberg (historian, not MD) has discussed his perspective on whether the COVID vaccine should be mandatory , in New York State or elsewhere, in this article for his American Blog.  While somewhat critical of “anti-vaxxers” who have increasingly objected to the rise in jurisdictions that have introduced legislation to force vaccines on the public, he does note rational reasons why mandating the current vaccine is not recommended or helpful. His approach echoes that of Robert Kennedy Jr, who has recently expressed his own objections to California’s proposed vaccine law. Dr. Phil states:

…First, I go with the wisdom of the crowd. 30% of medical people on the frontlines of fighting this pandemic do not want to take the vaccination at this time. Although it is almost a miracle that we have been able to come up with several vaccinations in less than a year, I share their concern that in the rush to make the vaccine available to the public, inappropriate shortcuts may have been taken, an insufficient safeguard to make sure they work, and they are not harmful. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some of these vaccines are not as effective as touted because people have died after they have been vaccinated or have been vaccinated after they recovered from Coronavirus and came down with it once more. Some possible side effects have been reported. Right now we are in the anecdotal stage, not the scientific stage of evaluating these vaccines. I am not one of those that will never be satisfied but the first rule of medicine, is “Do no harm.”

Second, there are vaccines in the pipeline that are easier to store, easier to use, and only require one application to be completely effective…”    Read the rest

Note: After QL holds a business meeting by phone conference for its February 13 meeting, Queens Libertarians will host the return of Naturopathic Doctor Dr. Saul Marcus (ND), at the Takara Sushi restaurant on Saturday, March 13 at 11:30 am. He will speak on the topic of “The Truth About COVID Vaccines and Health Freedom.”

 

 

The Libertarian Populist Revolt Against Short Selling

For those mystified about the complexity of the Gamestop reverse short-selling episode that rocked the markets this past week, the below breakdown on the Hill provides one of the clearest explanations of its implications. In essence, this was Occupy 2.0, only instead of people protesting the financial abuses of the state-subsidized, elite one percenters, this time some middle class investors on Reddit found a way to reverse the flow of profits, from Wall Street to Main Street. As summarized by online commentator ‘Styxhexenhammer666’ (Tarl Warwick):

This was the free market, the de-manipulation of stock prices at work, against a hedge fund that is essentially guaranteed by government and government propped-up central banking, and by so-called ‘private banks’ with a million government loans and contracts. This is essentially an attack on socialism. Just so you know, what Reddit is engaged in, ironically enough, is a libertarian referendum on a socialistic banking system, that favors the rich by structure, because central government tends to pal around with the rich, who donate to their campaigns. That’s basically what this is.”

Yee: Dr. Jo Jorgensen Was Swindled!

QL member and alumni Alton Yee has commented (in letters to the Editor, and to the Jorgensen campaign) on the strange numerical issues of the 2020 election as it bears on LP candidate Dr. Jo Jorgensen’s national totals. It appears she was “Dominioned” out of 11 million votes!  It also seems that there are not enough votes available to realistically account for the 81+ million ballots for Biden:

…I was heartened to see that Dr. Jorgensen had won 1,740,796 votes, or 1.2 percent of the total votes cast, which was “more votes, and a higher percentage of the vote, than all twelve presidential campaigns in the party’s history, except one.” I found it concerning, however, after I calculated the total votes cast in the 2020 Election based on the 1.2% of the votes she received.

If you remember from your College math, you can do this by solving for x: 0.012x = 1,740,796, which transposes to: x = 1,740,796 / 0.012, and when solved, shows x as 145,066,333, which is the total number of votes cast in the 2020 Election. (How does this number jibe with the total votes you used to calculate the 1.2% votes Dr. Jorgensen received?)

Now, mind you, when we add the 74 million votes DJT received plus the 82 million miraculous, _Guinness World Records_ – certifiable votes Biden received, we get a total of 156,000,000 votes ± 1 million votes. It seems to me that Dr. Jorgensen might have been swindled out of 11,000,000 votes. What other reason can you think of to explain the discrepancy?

Thank you for your attention. Regards, Alton Yee

The funny numbers correspond to some of the election number crunching that was separately done by Deroy Murdock, in chart below:

 

Alton has also sent letters to editors, such as this one to the National Review, whose subject line is: The Federal Government Provides Irrefutable Evidence of Voter Fraud.

…The Federal Government’s irrefutable evidence of voter fraud can be found in the Federal Register, which is “The Daily Journal of the United States Government,” and it’s published by the National Archives and Records Administration.

According to the Federal Register’s “Estimates of the Voting Age Population for 2019,” the voting age (18 and over) population estimates as of July 1, 2019, for each state and the District of Columbia totaled 255,200,373. While the total for 2020 was not available, the 2019 total is a good enough benchmark to stand in for the total in the 2020 election, which is the subject of this discussion.

So, let’s suppose that everyone in this population can legally vote in the 2020 election. But to actually vote, they must register with their State or local election boards. Suppose that 60% of this population had registered. Of course, not every registered voter will vote. So, how many will actually turn out to vote? According to the Washington Post, “The 2020 turnout [of voters] is the highest in over a century,” with a total turnout of 66.3%, which is “[a]s a share of the voting-eligible population,” i.e., registered voters.

Let’s do the math: 60% of 255,200,373 = 153,120,224 total registered voters in 2020, with 66.3% voting = 101,518,709 voters who voted in the 2020 Election.

When we add the 74 million votes DJT received plus the 82 million votes Biden received, we get a total of 156,000,000 votes ± 1 million. Excuse me, but 101,518,709 voters are not enough voters to see DJT and Biden through. Well, as Tom Hanks would say:

OK, let’s suppose that 80%, instead of 60%, of the 2020 total voting population had registered to vote. Thus:

80% of 255,200,373 = 204,160,298 registered voters, with 66.3% voting = 135,358,278 voters who voted in 2020. Do you see a problem?

OK, let’s suppose that 90% of the total voting population had registered to vote. Thus:

90% of 255,200,373 = 229,680,336 registered voters, with 66.3% voting = 153,120,224 voters who voted in 2020 for a President. “Close, but no cigars,” as the cliché goes. Even so, how likely would 90% of the total voting population (with 100% presumed legally able to vote) actually register to vote?

You are welcome to calculate the numbers for 100% of the total voting population, with a presumption that 100% can legally vote.

But, whichever, here is irrefutable evidence of voter and election fraud that’s provided by an unimpeachable source. Namely, the Federal Government’s Federal Register, which is published by the National Archives and Records Administration.

That’s all for now.

Thank you for your attention.

Alton Yee

Dubious Legacy, or Deplorables Victory? Two Perspectives on Trump

As we enter the last days of the (first?) term of President Donald J Trump, here are diverging perspectives on his era, and the disputed election battle. Below are excerpts from the first paragraphs of essays on the controversial figure. First, from Dr. Philip Schoenberg, on the rise, fall, and legacy of Trump:

Donald Trump has come full circle from whining winner to sore loser, always desiring to be the center of attention, the ultimate narcissist. Trump imagines, lies and mythologizes all the time and will instantly change a lie on a dime. Donald Trump, the master of self-promotion honed his social media and news making skills as the host of The Apprentice, a television show, that he did not create but was perfect for his personality of self-promotion as a celebrity.. He has played by own rules and was not limited by any sense of fair play, honesty, justice, and loyalty…”   Read more

Second, from John Clifton, whose blog predicts “the deplorables” will eventually win:

Set aside ideology, or personal preferences you have about “how a President is supposed to behave” (ahem, as if optics was a high priority consideration of the Founders). A mountain range level of election theft was committed across at least six states in the November 2020 coup disguised as an election. Coupled with the coordination of the tech giants in silencing the sitting President of the United States across all major social media (supposedly) in response to the events in DC on January 6, it represents the single biggest authoritarian power grab in American history…”   Read More

P.S.: Here is a huge list of items comprising the Trump White House’s own assessment of his accomplishments.

Clifton Quoted On Lew Rockwell’s Site

QL President John Clifton was recently quoted on LewRockwell.com, one of the leading libertarian sites on the web. He commented on what motivates the Trump supporters (or perhaps more accurately, leftist provocateurs who set them up) for their protest and confrontational entry into the US Capitol building in DC on January 6. Thanks to Becky Akers for the Rockwell blog posting:

What the MAGA people are, are the Resistance. They are pro-liberty populists, nationalists and traditionalists who actively stand up to the elite deep state establishment, which Libertarians used to understand was the Cult of the Omnipotent State. They and their current leader Trump have flaws, but lack of patriotism and backbone is not one of them. And they are just getting started. If their code could be summed up, it would look like the below recent internet meme:

“IF YOU FIND YOUR SELF AGREEING WITH THE CORPORATE MEDIA, MILLIONAIRE CELEBRITIES, AND THE BILLIONAIRE TECH OLIGARCHS, THEN YOU ARE NOT THE RESISTANCE.”