Fremen's blog

Of Man: Hobbes, Leviathan, and the Price of Liberty

Fremen — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:14:41 +0000

THE final cause, end, or design of men (who naturally love liberty, and dominion over others) in the introduction of that restraint upon themselves, in which we see them live in Commonwealths, is the foresight of their own preservation, and of a more contented life thereby; that is to say, of getting themselves out from that miserable condition of war which is necessarily consequent, as hath been shown, to the natural passions of men when there is no visible power to keep them in awe, and tie them by fear of punishment to the performance of their covenants….

United We Stand

Fremen — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:59:23 +0000

You may not use this image without permission - it is mine and I plagiarised it all by myself.

A Note from the Past (Which Repeats Until We Change)

Fremen — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 03:27:46 +0000

I have just been introduced to Charley Reese by way of an article he wrote in the eighties for his column in the Orlando Sentinel. He is retired now, but some of his writing - especially said article - lives on through the internet in various incarnations. As many of you know, I am a strong advocate for We the People taking back the power of our governance from the biggest whorehouse in D.C. and here I have found a brother-in-arms in a "paleoconservative" from Florida by way of Georgia.

Violence As Pertaining to the Gun

Fremen — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 07:16:07 +0000

I have a sudden and physical reaction to violence. It has gotten to the point that I have a harder and harder time watching even sensationalised Hollywood violence. Violence touches everyone in our society down to the intimate inner dialog that tells us we aren't good enough. Escalation of violence follows an insidious road of power struggles in relationships to opportunistic jabs at co-workers; one-upmanship turns a neighbor into an "other", predatory and threatening - a beginning to the justification of violent solutions to insure comfort.

Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Chance for Peace

Fremen — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 00:31:47 +0000

I have a lot of respect for warriors, and even more respect for warriors who move on in life, obviously culling wisdom from their experience with war. I feel like it is paramount that human beings stop buying into the idea that war is inevitable or natural or judicious in any way. The preparation for the 'inevitable' (which is, I believe, causing) escalation of violence globally costs us as a people so much that we can't even focus on more important tasks at hand. The rallying-cry since September 11, 2001 has been "War on Terror", which has served to tie the hands of Congress and make billions of dollars disappear down a hot, sandy hole far away from here.

Public Schools: Entry-Level Indoctrination into the Nanny State

Fremen — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:39:16 +0000

Think about it for a minute: a society that takes its children away from parents and family and concentrates them into a building with other children. A concentration camp. Then, the children begin the methodical, thirteen-year progressive indoctrination, carefully planned by institutes of education that conduct "studies" on human behavioral development*. Groups are small at first, with authority being granted to a single adult (sometimes two) that are beholden to a system too vast for a little mind to comprehend. Some may get a glimpse into the mechanics of the authoritarian system because they step out of line and meet the Authority behind the authority: the shadowy Principal. Principal what? Authoritarian. Disciplinarian.

A Poignant Take

Fremen — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:50:36 +0000

I participate from time to time in a forum run by anti-capitalist-vegan-animal-rights-activist tree-huggers.

WTO and Beyond

Fremen — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 03:00:07 +0000

I was living in Seattle in November of 1999. I walked downtown occasionally to partake of the atmosphere surrounding the WTO Ministry meeting and discussing the trade policies that would shape the future of trade worldwide.

Nonviolent Communication

Fremen — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:48:33 +0000

I have been studying nonviolent communication for several months.

Oil and the Media

Fremen — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 23:38:19 +0000

I have been interested in following AP reports for four years. I have found in that time that there is little evidence of investigation in the reports from this news service, and I suspect it of disseminating propaganda, bias at best. Take, for example, this article:

Crude oil is getting cheaper — so why isn't gas?

By CHRIS KAHN and JOHN PORRETTO, AP Energy Writers – Sun Feb 15, 12:31 pm ET

NEW YORK – Crude oil prices have fallen to new lows for this year. So you'd think gas prices would sink right along with them.
Not so.