In Defense of John Kerry, Kinda

Last Friday, the Boston Herald broke a story that Mass. Senator, John Kerry was using the boat haven state of Rhode Island to berth his new $7 million dollar yacht.  No matter how many jokes there are in there somewhere about a Senator being able to afford a seven figure blow-boat with the millions his heiress wife probably gave him to buy it, it seems the Senator put himself into quite a pickle.  The Bay state collects a 6.25% sales tax on all new boat sales and another 1% annual excise tax on luxury yachts.  If you work the numbers, that's roughly $437,500 on the boat for sales tax and another $70,000 recurring charge.

While, I question the motives of keeping the boat in RI knowing that there is always an eye of suspension with public servants commandants these days, let us point out that the time honored tradition of boat registration has always been, register where the boat is kept and operated the most.  According to the Herald article, the ship's designer is based out of Rhode Island, which would make some sense for why 'Isabel' is kept there for regular maintenance and upkeep.  It is not uncommon for custom boat builders to require maintenance contracts or "sole seller" agreements in the event you decide to sell later down the road.  That said, I dug into the Massachusetts Envrionmental Police website to find just what Massachusetts qualifies as "home waters" for vessels registered with the USCG. 

I live in another state but sometimes boat in Massachusetts. Do I need to register and title my boat? 
Visiting boat owners who are registered in another state are allowed to boat in Massachusetts for up to 60 consecutive days without obtaining a Massachusetts registration and title. If you plan to keep the boat in Massachusetts for more than 60 consecutive days, you must obtain a Massachusetts registration and title certificate. 
As I have always understood it, this also applies the other way, in that if you operate your vessel in waters outside of your state of residence, or you keep the vessel in those waters on a permanent or plurality basis, then that is where you should register her.  

Obviously, since the ruling class's standard for those of us in the country class is of a high level, so too are we obligated to hold them to the same standards and challenge their intentions.  Considering Kerry is practicing what he preaches on this issue, and is going to pony up to the state for his obfuscated taxes, I am willing to give him a pass.  Perhaps we could give him a pass from the Senate and sending him sailing around the world Magellan style? 

RIP: The Rule of Law

JUDGE BLOCKS AZ LAW
Police barred from determining immigration status...
Union members, activists caravan to AZ for protest...
SHERIFF: I'll jail 'em...
ILLEGALS 'FREE TO LEAVE'...

Matt Drudge might have well just said "RIP: THE RULE OF LAW."  While most of us Conservative-Libertarians know that the rule of law has been dying for a long time, it is only just becoming plainly evident to the mainstream members of the country class.  As is the case currently, an AZ judge has moved to strike out the major enforcement portions of the Arizona Immigration law that requires law enforcement officals to check the status of suspected illegal immigrants.  

With this ruling it has now just become legal, to be illegal.  So much for state and national sovereignty as well as national security.  If you must know, the activist [judge], Susan Bolton is a Clinton era appointee, using the power of her position to overrule the will of the people, the law, and the Constitution.

While the AZ law mirrored Federal code, apparently the Fed Gov didn't like the fact that AZ was challenging the federal authority and envoked "preemption" as the means with which to strike down the major fangs of the legislation.  Never mind that there is a real crisis where US citizens are dying, the liberal institution is trying to use this State vs. Fed "conflict" as a democrat voter recruiting drive.  Sorry to say this Obamabots, but AZ Gov Jan Brewer ain't buying what your boy is selling; a degradation of the Federal Criminal Code. 

Judge Bolton effectively said that the state has no authority to enforce Federal code, since it is up to the Feds to enforce it's law.  Without Federal enforcement, there is no uniformity, and therefore, no equal treatment.  Let us neglect the fact that the AZ law is almost a direct copy of the Federal Law that already requires local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to follow the procedures that AZ was going to be following.   The question that Judge Bolton just raised to the states and the American people is "Do you now want local law enforcement to stop enforcing federal drug laws, kidnapping laws, bank robbery laws, firearms laws, explosive laws, ect?"  If that's the case, I'm sure there are a few laws that some states will gladly neglect and yield to the Fed's for enforcement.

It is disgusting that such disregard for the rule of law and sovereignty exists within the Federal system, especially in the judiciary, where we expect the last line of defense in the Constitution.  If I were Gov.Jan Brewer, I'd be invoking the Tenth Amendment, and tell them to forcibly stop me.  Now THAT would be an awesome preemption showdown.  

Slice of Life: Why I Blog

Welcome to the second installment of Slice of Life, the semi-regular "column" of what's on my mind and how life surrounds the individual.

Earlier this week, we saw a blatant and coordinated attack by the old media against the new media.  Obviously, this isn't so much an attack on the messenger, but in reality, the message.  The outcry against those of us in the "new media" who have welcomed increased freedom and less government regulation in an effort to disseminate the truth, are now seen as targets for a dino-media that is loosing influence and market share.  Most of us do this for free because we enjoy it.  It is our hobby and our passion, and gives us an outlet, which may or may not have an impact upon the landscape of the country.  Most of us realize that we are relevant only to a subset of American culture, but we are relevant to those who matter most; family, friends, and the friends of friends who share the same views as us. 

While writing, politics, and history might be a hobby of mine, I am not personally seeking much gain other than another voice on the bandwidths of the internet.  I don't seek attention, except to fuel my own ego, and I certainly don't do this for the money.  Instead of keeping a lame journal, that no one else will ever read, there is a chance that the words scribed here will become immortal and invaluable for future societies.  A common "peasant's" view of the world, unaltered, unregulated, and unflushed down the memory hole of the Ministry of Truth. 

Most of the new media movement merely follows the news and reports on the "obscure" outrage of the day type stories that those in the old media refuse to follow.  The new media follows them because to us, these stories are not "obscure" but actually "slices of life" (reality).  We feel empowered to broadcast the insane stories and to question the lack of attention provided to them by those in the old media.  New media members want to show the hypocritical nature and the collisions of those in the old media with the ruling class.  The mere fact that the ever expanding technology that is now accessibly affordable to mainstream Americans has given those of us with grievances the forum for redress, drives those in the old media to the funny farm.

When our founders were frustrated and fed up with the ruling establishment, they first sought out the minds of their fellow colonists through editorials in revered and prestigious newspapers.  Most of our founders were commoners who took it upon themselves to do the work that they knew needed to be done.  Today, us commoners must trudge through the web of news paper editors, website moderators, talk show call screeners, the FCC's decency policies, and other litigious obstacles to exercise our First Amendment rights.  In the era of the "self-publishing" World Wide Web, we feel emancipated to spread the wealth of ideas, philosophy, and history and win over the hearts and minds of our fellow Americans. 

Perhaps in that quest, we may step on a few toes.  We may inaccurately report a few items.  We may use sarcasm and irony to twist the words of others to prove the righteous points and ridicule the liars and the thieves of our ruling class along with their complicit dino-media lackeys.  Most of us know that we have to use excellent Google-Fu skills to advert lawsuits and place phone calls to those who we really were on the ground and have the first hand knowledge of the situation we are reporting upon.  Unlike the old media, we are not motivated by ideology, but for a natural and relentless pursuit of the truth, which is precisely the job that the old media is supposed to be doing.