Old Truth Blog

In my last post in this series, I talked about traveling across the country for business. That is not, however, the biggest part of my job. My primary responsibility is assisting users of my company's software when they get stuck and need help. Those users are motorcycle dealership employees, managers, and owners from all over North America. The utilities that I have available to use are amazing. Even though these users are located all over the continent, and beyond, they are able to talk, in real-time, to me in a matter of minutes, and sometimes seconds. As amazing as that is, my support capabilities go even further. Without pre-installing any additional software, my users can give me remote access to their computers , and while talking with them on the phone, it is as if I'm sitting with them at their desk. I literally can talk and control the computer of someone anywhere in the world. The furthest I've ever "traveled" in this regard is Hawaii. Everyday I help ...

Yes, I believe that's true. Currently, I only own one gun. I'd like to own more. I'd like a smaller one that's easier to conceal than what I've got, and I'd like a small shotgun. I'm glad I live in a part of the country that I'm free to own as many guns as I'd like, and carry open without a license, and concealed with one. This is one of the greatest freedoms most people enjoy here in America. I've recently come across two great articles on this topic that I'd like to share. The first is by a liberty-loving woman named Karen De Coster, and the second by journalist Charley Reese (the introductions): Women, Stop Watching Oprah and Learn to Love Guns - Karen De Coster Women never cease to amaze me. The majority of them are still "afraid" of guns. Afraid, as in "oohhhh, they are so scary." They say things like "I don’t like them around" and "they’re dangerous." I know of women who have defense-minded, pro-g...

Here's a great graphic (2mb) on the 2008 budget and where everything (supposedly) went:

I wanted to start a little series that I could post to regarding the over-looked, taken-for-granted miracles of the free-market that I (we) encounter in my everyday life. So here's my first post on this, coming after my trip to Michigan for business. It's absolutely amazing to me that I can travel across the country and find waiting for me all of the things I enjoy back home. When I first arrived in Detroit, via a 3.5 hour miracle of a plane ride, I picked up my rental car and proceeded northwest. On the way, I started craving Wendy's. I knew there would be a Wendy's nearby and I knew that once inside, it would have the exact same look, feel, menu, and quality of food that I get in Salt Lake. Truth be told, I was right. It was perfect, and all right there waiting for me . Similarly, later in the week I found a McDonald's, Burger King, IHOP, Panda Express, and Pizza Hut, all completely the same as I what I enjoy back home. This is certainly one of the greatest mirac...

I say, let the big newspaper companies fail. The market has spoken and they have become increasingly irrelevant and inefficient. It's silly that we're even having this conversation. Here's a video from Reason.tv ( 6m, 16s ) on this subject:

Nobel laureate and founder of the Green Revolution, Norman Borlaug recently turned 95 years old and an interview conducted by the Reason Foundation nine years ago was re-posted on their Hit & Run blog . I was unfamiliar with Mr. Borlaug and the Green Revolution until I read that interview and his Wikipedia page . It seems to me that this man could very well be credited with saving our planet. I recommend educating yourself on what he accomplished. An excerpt from the interview: Reason: What do you think of organic farming? A lot of people claim it's better for human health and the environment. Borlaug: That's ridiculous. This shouldn't even be a debate. Even if you could use all the organic material that you have--the animal manures, the human waste, the plant residues--and get them back on the soil, you couldn't feed more than 4 billion people. In addition, if all agriculture were organic, you would have to increase cropland area dramatically, spreading out in...

These two paragraphs by Anne-Robert-Jacques Turgot (1727–1781) explains, quite succinctly, how the free-market better protects against fraud than government: The general freedom of buying and selling is therefore the only means of assuring, on the one hand, the seller of a price sufficient to encourage production, and on the other hand, the consumer, of the best merchandise at the lowest price. This is not to say that in particular instances we may not find a cheating merchant and a duped consumer; but the cheated consumer will learn by experience and will cease to frequent the cheating merchant, who will fall into discredit and thus will be punished for his fraudulence; and this will never happen very often, because generally men will be enlightened upon their evident self-interest. To expect the government to prevent such fraud from ever occurring would be like wanting it to provide cushions for all the children who might fall. To assume it to be possible to prevent successfully, by...

I had only somewhat ventured to know the origin of the word "capitalism" and learned it was first coined by Karl Marx in his book Das Kapital . I've always used it as synonymous with "free-market" and "free enterprise". It wasn't until I read my latest Freeman issue that "capitalism" took on a new meaning. In " Capitalism: Yes and No ", author Clarence B. Carson examines the various definitions of capitalism. It's a very interesting article and after reading it, I must admit, the term capitalism has become somewhat tainted. But then again, not really. Let's just say I find the terms free-market and free enterprise preferable. This is a must read, an excerpt: [Capitalism] does not have a commonly accepted meaning, proponents of it to the contrary notwithstanding. As matters stand, it cannot be used with precision in discourse. And it is loaded with connotations which make it value-laden. Indeed, it is most difficult f...

In this interview, the late economist and Nobel laureate Milton Friedman gives sound argument for ending drug prohibition, known as the War on Drugs. I believe both his economic and moral arguments are strong and deserving of serious public discussion, as I've tried to promote on this blog . The interview ( 7m, 56s, YouTube ):