I’ve had Libertarian ideas before I even knew that’s what they were.  When I was in high school, it made me sick to walk through a metal detector and have my backpack rummaged through.  My backpack was my own personal property.  To have every student that walked through the door presumed guilty of having some type of drugs or weapons was an insult. I’m not going to go overboard with trying to convince you to read this book. All I will say is that if you ever plan to vote for a president in the US, you need to do so only after reading this book.

My eyes have been opened even further upon reading this short book.  It is surprisingly light reading, even given it’s subject matter, but Dr. Paul is still manages to drive home the importance of his ideals of less government and more liberty.  I’ll end with a few excerpts.

“Every election cycle we are treated to candidates who promise us “change,” and 2008 has been no different.  But in the American political lexicon, “change” always means more of the same:  more government, more looting of Americans, more inflation, more police-state measures, more unnecessary war, and more centralization of power.”

“…Every four years we are treated to the same tired, predictable routine:  two candidates with few disagreements on fundamentals pretend they represent dramatically different philosophies of government.”

“[The] mainstream media…focuses our attention on trivialities and phony debates as we march toward oblivion.  This is the deadening consensus that crosses party lines…and that is strangling the liberty and prosperity that were once the birthright of Americans.  Dissenters who tell their fellow citizens what is really going on are subject to smear campaigns that, like clockwork, are aimed at the political heretic.  Truth is treason in the empire of lies.”

“Early on in my presidential campaign, people began describing my message and agenda as a “revolution.”  In a way, it is, albeit a peaceful one.  In a country with a political debate as restricted as ours, it is revolutionary to ask whether we need troops in 130 countries and whether the non-interventionist foreign policy recommended by our Founding Fathers might not be better.  Is it revolutionary to ask whether the accumulation of more and more power in Washington has been good for us.  It is revolutionary to ask fundamental questions about privacy, police-state measures, taxation, social policy, and countless other matters.”

The good news:  I got off work, went to Hampton to pick up my Scrambler.   It runs like new!  All it took was a new battery, some fuel stabilizer and what was it?  Oh yeah, the pros at All Out Cycles basically ripped out the gas tank, fuel lines and carburetor and scrubbed the dirt and trash off them all.  I can’t believe I’ve finally got it fixed!  I am just as excited today as when I got it new.

The bad news:  After I got back from picking up my Scrambler, I got tied up in a bunch of stuff at my parents’ place.  Between moving some appliances with Dad, eating dinner, helping Ma with the kittens, trying to fix the touch lamp said kittens broke and so on…I just got home and took a shower.  So yeah, tonight is not the night and tomorrow isn’t looking great either unless you wanna tag in to go help Dad set poles for a lean-to.

I will give you another teaser pic.  Here’s me with a cool Hare Krishna guy.  He tried to get me to make a donation to a group I knew nothing about in exchange for a book I didn’t know if I’d like.  After bartering for a bit he decided we didn’t have a deal but on the next trip to the bathroom I scored one somebody left by the sink.  When I passed by him again I asked him if I could put his picture on my web site after I lied to him about how I got a copy of the book.  He said yes and asked what the site was.  When I told him Kevin108.com he got really excited.  He said 108 was a very spiritual number and showed me the significance in the book.  Free book, neat story…I thought that was pretty cool.