Welcome to a first here at A Geek With Guns, a Live Blog. I’m Live Blogging this event. Sorry for the lack of notification but I didn’t expect to do this right away.
20:34: It’s questions and answer time. This ends my live blog because I honestly don’t care about this part of the debate. Thank you for joining me on such short notice, if I choose to do this again I’ll try to give better notice. I’ll also try to pick an event that’s actually meaningful, this one was pretty lame.
20:32: Randian is explaining that equality in the United States means equality in the eyes of the law. He says there is no such thing as equality for opportunity or outcome which is true.
20:31: Statist Prick makes the false claim that yelling fire in a crowded building is a restriction on free speech. Yelling fire in a building isn’t actually illegal and was an example given by a Supreme Court justice as to a potential reason to restrict a right.
20:30: The moderator is asking Statist Prick to define the line between just government action and overstepping of government bounds. He claims it’s based on judgement and it’s one of those “we’ll know it when we see it” things. I disagree and I think anytime the federal government perform actions not granted in the Constitution they have overstepped their bounds (legally thinking).
20:27: Now Statist Prick is claiming our Constitution grants expansive powers to our government. This is debatable depending on who you talk to but I would disagree as the founders often talked about the Constitution as a constraint on the government.
20:26: Statist Prick is saying that the Constitution grants the United States government the ability to collect taxes. That is correct. However he kept talk and ended up sounding stupid. He’s claiming that while you own yourself you have a duty to the “tribe.” If you are obligated to perform duties for another you can no longer be said to be a self-owner in the truest sense.
20:24: Randian is attempting to define what individual rights are. According to him the American revolutionary idea is the belief that you own you. I think he’s trying to make an argument for self-ownership but he hasn’t.
20:21: He says he’d rewrite the Constitution and is a bigger fan of the Declaration of Independence. After saying this he also states that the Constitution is as good as it gets. Thor damn it this guy isn’t very consistent with his message or beliefs.
20:20: The moderator points out the fact that the Constitution allows for many of the things that Randian claims government shouldn’t be allowed to do. As his position is inconstant I can’t wait to hear his answer.
20:17: Now Randian brings up the fact that minimum wage laws actually cause unemployment. Ballsy statement again, good on him.
20:16: Randian is contesting Statist Prick’s claim that government isn’t force. He brings up the fact that government enforces its rules by the point of a gun. That’s a ballsy statement to make at the University of Minnesota, I commend him.
20:14: The Randian is not a fan of democracy. His explanation makes sense I will say, our country has a rule of majority when it comes to violating property rights. If the majority wants to bulldoze your home and build a tennis court it can be done.
20:12: I like that he brings up that we’re wealthier now than we were when there was less government. First of all inflation has made money worth far less which skews the statistics. Second of all our improvements in the means of production have allowed us to produce more and thus gain higher profits.
20:10: Apparently the United States has the highest poverty of all industrialized democracies… what’s quite the category he made up to fit his desired fact into.
20:09: Statist prick is back and is trying to claim that the government isn’t based on force. Somehow when a majority of people demand you do something (democracy) it’s somehow not violent when they use guns to make you comply.
20:07: Oh he’s making that whole if-the-government-doesn’t-do-it-nobody-will mistake in regards to the government again. Apparently Bernie Madoff couldn’t have been arrested by private security firms and tried in a private court. I wish people would stopping making this mistake.
20:06: Randian wants to see an actual number when people talk about “reasonable profits.” I agree.
20:04: He’s brining up how the free market regulates food safety. It’s common sense to realize that food providers aren’t going to poison their customers. Killing your customers has never good very good for getting repeat customers.
20:02: Randian has been describing the problems with central planning and the bailing out of failing businesses. Although I completely agree with that fact he’s not doing much in the way of describing how that is true.
20:00: Well it seems Randian is against the Federal Reserve which is a good sign.
19:58: Randian is actually making some sense now. I agree that the government’s subsidizing of home loans was a major fuck up that built up a bubble that popped and we’re now living with the consequences.
19:57: So the Randian is complaining about government regulations telling us what to do. He’s also a believer that there needs to be some financial regulations. I’m sorry but if you give the government an inch they’ll take a lightyear.
19:56: I think Randian is saying moral but it sounds like maul.
19:54: Now the Randian is claiming that the government should maintain a monopoly on the use of force. I don’t think he stops to consider self-defense in his statements.
19:53: Randian is trying to justify when force is necessary. He says force must be banned from human interaction. For some reason he doesn’t include self-defense as a form of human interaction which confuses me. It’s not a fun form of human interaction but it is a form of it.
19:52: Randian just said that we absolutely need government. He’s already lost me. This is supposed to be the guy I’m rooting for… guess what I’m likely going to be ripping them both apart now. Stand by for the fun.
19:51: The other guy we’re going to call the Randian is not introducing himself. I’m not the biggest Ayn Rand fan but I do believe she made some note worthy contributions to the philosophy of liberty.
19:49: At least the statist prick admits Marxism was one of the worst ideas the human race every came up with.
19:48: Now he’s fear mongering by talking about the terrible conditions that lead to regulations. Truth be told most of those horrible conditions were due to technological limitations.
19:47: Statist prick is trying to claim that the United States has never been anything besides a mixed economy. Although somewhat true the old West would be a very notable exception to this.
19:45: I missed the name of the statist prick so he’s just going to be known as the statist prick until I learn his name. According to him the government has done everything besides cure cancer. He actually believe Federal Reserve notes are somehow real money as they’re backed by the full faith and credit of the United States… which isn’t much. He’s making the common statist mistake of thinking that if the state doesn’t provide a product or service it won’t get provided.