Ingredients:

• 4 stalks of rhubarb (peeled and diced)
• 2 cups blueberries (frozen or fresh)
• 3 Tbsp salted butter
• 2 grams stevia
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Combine butter, stevia, and vanilla extract in a saucepan. Melt over medium heat.
2. Add rhubarb. Cook until about half has reduced to a sauce (roughly 10 minutes). Stir frequently.
3. Add blueberries. Continue cooking until rhubarb has completely reduced to a sauce and blueberries have spread their yummy goodness.
4. Layer with Whipped Cream.
5. Serve while sauce is hot, or chill entire desert as desired.
6. Enjoy.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups raw unpasteurized whipping cream (if you can find/afford it)
• 4 tsp vanilla
• 4 Tbsp stevia

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in bowl.
2. Using a whisk, mix the hell out of it. (I use a Kitchen Aid.)
3. Serve chilled.

Enter Mark Sisson, creator of the Primal Blueprint and evolutionary blogger at Mark’sDailyApple.com.

Here’s how it went down. I’ve got a coworker that is a CrossFitter. CrossFitters are annoying… they are the Ron Paul supporters of the fitness world. For months all I heard from him was “WOD, Clean, PR, Deadlift, Muscle Up, kettleball, paleo, zone, primal, paleo, primal, paleo… etc.” (Perhaps I deserved it, all he heard from me was “liberty, Rothbard, Mises, Paul, non-aggression, peace, capitalism, anarchy, peace, anarcho-capitalism, peace anarcho-capitalism.”) I even went to a CrossFit gym once, it was hell. I nearly puked. Don’t get me wrong, those dudes a tough as they come, just way beyond anything this dough ball was ever going to keep up with. So I quit. Again.

But it was different this time. I was afraid. I swallowed that bitter pill of acceptance. I realized, for the first time in my life, that not only was I fat, but that I was dying. I couldn’t remember the last time I had slept well. I couldn’t remember the last time I didn’t have acid reflux problems, I had been living on 150 mg of ratinidine 2x per day for way too long. That’s twice the maintenance dose. I became so out of shape that I could no longer put on socks or tie my shoes while standing up. I was completely winded by getting to the third floor of our apartment building. To top it off, I had just married a beautiful bride 8 1/2 years younger than I. I was totally mindfreaked. I tried to hide it from those around me, but I’m afraid I didn’t do that well.

Then, on my 32nd birthday, I listened to an episode over at LewRockwell.com entitled “Just Do the Opposite of What the Goverment Says to Do”. That got my attention. It was an interview with Mark Sisson. I was introduced to the ideas of living as our ancestral archetype Grok had lived, though in the modern world. I downloaded Mark’s book “Primal Blueprint”. The logic was sound. Humans evolved, or were created, before the days of agriculture. Our genetic makeup was selected, naturally or divinely, to achieve maximum gene expression by consuming a pre-agricultural diet. I learned that any deviation from that diet risks triggering epigenetic responses, altering the expression of the very genes we have. That we are stuck with the DNA we were given is true, but how those genes express themselves is up to us.

It took me a few more months to break through the fog and a couple of weeks to onboard the diet, but as of 6 days ago, I am Grok. On day 1 I stopped taking my acid reducers. After two days of no grains, beans, or legumes, I was able to sleep on my left side with no heartburn. I was able to hug my wife all night long.

I’m on day six of this new lifestyle. The carb cravings are not nearly as intense as I had feared. I have more energy than ever. Plus, I finally have a reason to go to sleep that outweighs the natural competitor in me that used to find reasons to stay awake. In the two weeks since I started this adventure I have lost 5.8 lbs. Not much, but I promise you it isn’t 5.8 lbs of water nor of muscle.

April 1, 2012
Weight: 273.6

Today:
Weight: 267.8 (-5.8)

Please, follow me… or better yet, join me. Send me words of encouragement. I’m sure there will be days ahead when I fall short of the ideal, I tend to spiral when I fail. Your words just may be what I need to pick myself up after I stumble. I’m so excited for this lifestyle change and would love to share this path with others.

When individuals, steeped in the traditions of their patriot fathers, witness the ebb of liberty and the sunset of that corps of rights once christened indivisible, and their humanity stirs their souls to pursue an honorable course to reclaim those self-same principles of freedom, it is incumbent on them to lay bare the injustices they have endured.

We hold with firm conviction that the individual is the supreme sovereign, that no just law can separate him from his life, liberty, and property without his consent, that when the express limits of government are usurped it is the right of the individual to disobey and to cast off each unjust and unlawful convention that violates his individual welfare and happiness. But when the custodians of our Constitution seek the edification of a despotic empire, it is our individual right, it is our individual duty, to nullify those decrees which violate our conscience.

The serenity of our citizenry in the face of such abuses is testament of the virtue of the American man, the self-same virtue that now compels him to refuse submission, conformity, and obedience to the illicit demands of tyranny.

We, The Resistance, recognize that the eternal disposition of the despot is to employ coercion, terrorism and violence in the subjugation of mankind. Each American citizen has endured violations designed to subjugate the individual under an evolving form of tyranny. It matters not which party rules; both require the sacrifice of subjects to the god of power.

The laws of nature compel us to accept that any unjust law, consistently applied as a boot to the throat of the sovereign, is unfit in the cannon of liberal jurisprudence and therefor null from the perspective of the individual. For too long, we as individuals have embraced the soft seductions of apathetic separation from our greatest of duties: the application of sovereignty. For too long we have accepted the role of the government of the noble oppressor. For too long we too have stood idly by in a state of willing ignorance.

As individuals we proclaim once again that every man is his own sovereign, to be judged according to his own obedience to principles of freedom, responsibility and tolerance, and that it is not the nature of man to be reformed by government, it is the nature of government to be reformed by man.

Every man is hereby absolved from the moral conflict restraining him from throwing off the shackles of unjust, immoral, and unconstitutional law. In so doing, the political connection between him and his nation is magnified and made living the furnace of disobedience. No longer will we live with blood stained souls in willing ignorance of the carnality that our sweat stained dollars have endorsed. We make our stand here. We make our stand now. We each proclaim, in no uncertain terms, that no more shall the downtrodden remain nameless. No more shall the government fain reason and eloquence, for it is brute force and our hearts are sounding, our minds are firm. We choose to disobey.

We join history’s historic objectors, that we too may find the courage of character to face the bludgeon, the gun, and the gavel; that we too may be remembered by our friends and our beloved families; that we too may be memorialized, not by the waves we made but by the principles we refused to abandon.

You are witnessing the rise of The Resistance. We are your neighbors, your students, your sons and daughters and our ranks are swelling. You see us and you know us not but for the smiles we carry, for we are at peace with our principles. In the days that come you will come to understand that we seek not for power but to pull it down. We employ no violence in our methods. We have no general, no organization, no weapons; but we are an army. Our members carry conviction in their hearts as they live by the motto: “I do not consent. I am The Resistance.”

Let Freedom Ring,

The Resistance

Downloads:
Full MP3

High water from record winter snow and spring rains flooded out the annual Utah Lake State Park Festival, but didn’t put a damper on the Utah Summer Games Keelboat Regatta held Saturday, June 4 at Utah Lake State Park… Twelve teams competed in three classes based on each boat’s Portsmouth Yardstick Index. To account for the variety of keelboats, the Portsmouth ratings handicap the faster boats so those racing slower boats can compete… After four races, scores were tallied and the following medals awarded:

Portsmouth rating between 90–100 (intermediate class)

• Gold — Skipper Pat Sullivan and crewman Dave Pendell
• Silver —Skipper Darin Mangum and his crew of Elizabeth Jefferson, Branden Espinoza, Matt Pugh, and Brandon Barney
• Bronze — Skipper Roger Bliss and his crew of Richard Oman and Mike Munnerlyn

We had a really great time out on Utah Lake. We sailed in Darin Mangum’s Sailbun III, a Catalina 25 that he has owned for about four years. I love sailing with these guys. Brandon Barney could only stay for our first race. That’s why he isn’t in the pictures.

The Three Principles

We have decided, out of principle, to not buy until we can fulfill the following 3 principles.

1. We will put down a 20% down payment.
2. We will only buy under a 15 year mortgage.
3. We want our mortgage payments to be no more than 25% of our take home pay.

So for now, we need to increase our savings, increase our income, and be willing to compromise on our living standards.


The Double Dip Dilemma

Though home prices are low today they have not hit a solid bottom. Google “Double Dip Housing” and you will see that we still have about a 2-3 year glut in inventory. That excess inventory drives prices down. People who say that “this is the best time to buy” and “you are guaranteed a great deal” are looking backward, not forward.


The Inflation Hedge Myth

Interest rates WILL begin to increase significantly. Most Real Estate professionals will say that it is best to buy when interest rates are low, and they argue that interest rates are at historic lows. So buy now! That is true if you are entering into a 30, 40 or 50 year mortgage. Interest rates can rape you over the long run. However, think like an economist for a second. Artificially low interest rates do not create buyers markets, they create sellers markets. Where credit is cheap, prices always are higher. When interest rates finally rise, what is going to happen to the market? Less people will be buying because the high interest rates will price them out of the market. In order to attract buyers, home builders must lower prices on their homes. More profit will flow to the banks and less to the builders. That sucks if you are looking at a long term mortgage. However, if you are shopping for a 15 year mortgage, and can drop 20% on your house, you will be able to buy more house for less because your interest isn’t compounded over 3-5 decades.


The Menacing Fed

Interest rates will increase because the Federal Reserve will have to reign in inflation (Obama and Bush have almost tripled the M2 money supply to try to avoid the inevitable market corrections of the recession). So one of 3 things will happen.

1. Perhaps they will not increase rates enough and inflation starts to ramp up. Again, real estate professionals will tell you that highly leveraged property is a great hedge against inflation, especially if you lock in your interest rates at these “historically low rates”. (I’m tired of hearing that meme). They say that even if hyper inflation kicks in, you will be able to pay back the debts quicker because you will make much more. That is a fundamental misunderstanding of how inflation works. The old adage, all boats rise with a rising tide, does not apply (at least not at the same rate). In fact, it is impossible to escape the detrimental effects of the time lag between the rise of different prices and wages. Your income will be the last to rise should inflation kick in, however you will be paying more at the pump, at the grocery store, and at the movie theater. Those prices will likely push most people into default on their mortgages long before they can reap the “benefits” of the real estate hedge.
2. The Fed may miraculously contract the money supply to keep it at current levels. That may be fine for your mortgage as your buying power will remain the same. However, increased cost of credit means your next car payment will be higher. And since you are locked into a 30 year mortgage, you have to realize that your ability to pay for your kid’s college will be pinched by your mortgage as well. If you had a 15 year mortgage, you’d be in the clear.
3. They may contract the money supply too much, causing deflation. In this case, you would find yourself upside down rather quickly, unless you were to pay down a large chunk at the beginning (say 20%). Also, in deflationary times businesses are more likely to lay off workers and higher cheaper ones than simply adjust pay downward. So you are more likely to find yourselves w/o a job.




The Renter’s Serenity

There are real benefits to renting. Do you know how to make all the necessary repairs that WILL be needed in your home? Can you afford the risk of code enforcement officers ordering you to make major changes? What if Matt has a great opportunity to take a job or go to grad school elsewhere? What if you child gets sick and needs to be treated by specialists in another state? In the end, if there is a high probability of flux in your life over the next 5 – 10 years, then now is not the time to buy, as romantic as it may sound.

That is why fiancée and I have decided to wait and save. However, that is just our risk management strategy. Yours may be different. In any case, learn everything you can about the economics of inflation and deflation before buying. I recommend reviewing articles at the Mises Institute. I can email some relevant commentary to any of you if you want. Cheers, and good luck with the decision.

President Obama has presided over a threefold increase in the number of detainees being held at the controversial military detention center at Bagram Air Base, the Afghan cousin of the notorious prison at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. It’s the latest piece of news that almost certainly would be getting more attention — especially from Democrats — if George W. Bush were still president.

There are currently more than 1,700 detainees at Bagram, up from over 600 at the end of the Bush administration.

via The Gitmo no one talks about – War Room – Salon.com.

The article goes on to state that the administration’s policies fall short of international law. To hell with that, it falls short of Constitutional Law. Obama now stands guilty, as far as I am concerned, of gross war crimes.

But this should come as no surprise. I remember finding myself in rare, shocking agreement with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow back in January. In a speech at the National Archives, in front of the Constitution, Obama declared that he was going to ramp up Bush’s precrime doctrine to levels unknown in American history. Well, with this news, I can declare that just as Hitler delivered on his promises in Mein Kampf, so has Obama delivered on his opressive and grossly tyrannical pronouncements. Watch him in his own words.

These are among the most intriguing issues in political and economic philosophy. More specifically, the problem of law that itself violates law is an insurmountable conundrum of all statist philosophies.

The problem has never been discussed so profoundly and passionately as in this essay by Frederic Bastiat from 1850. The essay might have been written today. It applies in ever way to our own time, which is precisely why so many people credit this one essay for showing them the light of liberty.

Bastiat’s essay here is timeless because applies whenever and wherever the state assumes unto itself different rules and different laws from that by which it expects other people to live.

And so we have this legendary essay, written in a white heat against the leaders of 19th century France, the reading of which has shocked millions out of their toleration of despotism. This new edition from the Mises Institute revives a glorious translation that has been out of print for a hundred years, one that circulated in Britain in the generation that followed Bastiat’s death.

This newly available translation provides new insight into Bastiat’s argument. It is a more sophisticated, more subsantial, and more precise rendering than any in print.

The question that Bastiat deals with: how to tell when a law is unjust or when the law maker has become a source of law breaking? When the law becomes a means of plunder it has lost its character of genuine law. When the law enforcer is permitted to do with others’ lives and property what would be illegal if the citizens did them, the law becomes perverted.

Bastiat doesn’t avoid the difficult issues, such as why should we think that a democratic mandate can convert injustice to justice. He deals directly with the issue of the expanse of legislation:

It is not true that the mission of the law is to regulate our consciences, our ideas, our will, our education, our sentiments, our sentiments, our exchanges, our gifts, our enjoyments. Its mission is to prevent the rights of one from interfering with those of another, in any one of these things. Law, because it has force for its necessary sanction, can only have the domain of force, which is justice.

More from Bastiat’s The Law:

Socialism, like the old policy from which it emanates, confounds Government and society. And so, every time we object to a thing being done by Government, it concludes that we object to its being done at all. We disapprove of education by the State — then we are against education altogether. We object to a State religion — then we would have no religion at all. We object to an equality which is brought about by the State then we are against equality, etc., etc. They might as well accuse us of wishing men not to eat, because we object to the cultivation of corn by the State.

How is it that the strange idea of making the law produce what it does not contain — prosperity, in a positive sense, wealth, science, religion — should ever have gained ground in the political world? The modern politicians, particularly those of the Socialist school, found their different theories upon one common hypothesis; and surely a more strange, a more presumptuous notion, could never have entered a human brain.

They divide mankind into two parts. Men in general, except one, form the first; the politician himself forms the second, which is by far the most important.

Bastiat concludes his penetrating analysis with this:

The social organs are constituted so as to enable them to develop harmoniously in the grand air of liberty. Away, then, with quacks and organizers! Away with their rings, and their chains, and their hooks, and their pincers! Away with their artificial methods! Away with their social laboratories, their governmental whims, their centralization, their tariffs, their universities, their State religions, their inflationary or monopolizing banks, their limitations, their restrictions, their moralizations, and their equalization by taxation! And now, after having vainly inflicted upon the social body so many systems, let them end where they ought to have begun — reject all systems, and try of liberty — liberty, which is an act of faith in God and in His work.

*Review by Mises Institute
**Full Text PDF

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney broke with many in his party on Friday when he said he believes humans have contributed to global warming.

“I believe the world is getting warmer, and I believe that humans have contributed to that,” said at a New Hampshire town hall meeting, according to Reuters… Romney reportedly said Friday that he believed the United States as well as foreign nations need to “reduce our emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases,” saying they “may be significant contributors” to climate change.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20068782-503544.html#ixzz1OG8syI3U

Even if we are contributing to global warming, federal intervention is not the solution. Get the government out of the game and let those who have been injured or suffered loss due to global warming (if there be any) bring suit against the guilty parties, and if there is enough evidence to find the accused guilty before a jury of his peers, then restitution will ensure a change in behavior.

THAT is how to save the environment. Anything more or less than that is simply a power game, and THAT is why Romney is willing to play… power… pure and simple.

He was writing under the influence of Mises himself, of course, but he brought his own special gifts to the project. As just one example, this is the book that made the idea of the “broken window fallacy” so famous.

What thrills us in particular about this new edition is that it is beautiful, it is hardcover, and it is newly typeset for modern readers. It has a full index. It includes a wonderful foreword by Walter Block. It’s the right size, shape, and feel – perfect for making this book central to all educational efforts of the future.

This is the book to send to reporters, politicians, pastors, political activists, teachers, or anyone else who needs to know.

Professor Block explains that it was this book that turned him on to economics as a science. He believes that it is probably the most important economics book ever written in the sense that it offers the greatest hope to educating everyone about the meaning of the science.

Written for the non-academic, it has served as the major antidote to fallacies in the popular press, and has appeared in dozens of languages and printings. It’s still the quickest way to learn how to think like an economist. And this is why it has been used in the best classrooms more than sixty years.

Many writers have since attempted to beat this book as an introduction, but have never succeeded. Hazlitt’s book remains the best. Even if you own this book already, or have several past editions, you will want to have this book as your own as a wonderful testament to its place in the world of ideas.

*Review sniped from mises.org.
** PDF full text here.