Tea party's other half

Tea party's other half - David Kirby and Emily Ekins - POLITICO.com:
"Just under half, or 48 percent, of tea partiers at the recent Virginia Tea Party Convention held views that are more accurately described as libertarian — fiscally conservative, to be sure, but moderate to liberal on social and cultural issues. Many of these activists, however, are unfamiliar with the word 'libertarian.' Rather, 60 percent of the libertarian tea partiers label themselves as 'independent' or 'something else,' compared to 37 percent of tea party conservatives.

"The other half of our survey sample, roughly 51 percent, held traditional conservative views — agreeing on “the less government the better” but also believing that government should promote traditional values.

"Many still mistake the tea party as one large group, sharing common interests, which our research shows is incorrect. Understanding the tea party’s two halves — libertarian and conservative —
may help unravel the seemingly contradictory impulses of the group"

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/44243.html#ixzz16odgdGhS

David Nolan, Libertarian Party founder, has died.

David Nolan, founder of Libertarian Party, has died - Powell Gammill, Freedom's Phoenix:

"David Nolan, who along with eight others founded the Libertarian Party in his living room in Denver in 1971 has unexpectedly died yesterday (Saturday, Nov. 20). He apparently suffered a stroke while driving alone. His car went off the road and struck something which may have contributed to his death.

"He would have been 67 years old this Tuesday, and ... is survived by his wife Elizabeth....

"In Libertarian circles he is also known for having developed what became known as the Nolan Chart.

"He just finished running against John McCain for his Senate seat in Arizona having received over 80,000 votes in a four way race".

http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/Article/079002-2010-11-21-david-nolan-founder-of-libertarian-party-had-died.htm

Right-wing media promote private airport security

Right-wing media promote call for private security at airports | Media Matters for America - Justin Berrier, Eric Schroeck, & Melody Johnson:

November 17, 2010 - "On the November 16 edition of Fox Business' Freedom Watch, Andrew Napolitano hosted former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson (R) to criticize TSA. Napolitano asked Johnson, 'Does government even keep us safe? Or would private industry -- that obviously has a strong financial interest in keeping the planes flying and keeping us safe -- do a better job than the government does, and let us choose the level of scrutiny that we want depending on the plane we ride?' Johnson replied that 'they would definitely do a more effective job ... and probably [be] a lot more safe.' Napolitano later asked Johnson, 'Would you abolish the TSA?' Johnson said that 'abolishing the TSA' is something that 'ought to be looked into.' "

Read more: https://www.mediamatters.org/research/2010/11/17/right-wing-media-promote-call-for-private-secur/173442

Tea party groups push GOP to quit culture wars, focus on deficit

Tea party groups push GOP to quit culture wars, focus on deficit - CSMonitor.com:
"The letter, signed by 16 tea party groups and a conservative gay organization, points to an emerging rift between the tea party movement and the GOP, which still counts social conservatives seeking 'moral government' as a key constituency.

"The signatories, ranging from conservative commentator Tammy Bruce to local tea party group leaders, say the key lesson the GOP should draw from the election is that Americans are concerned chiefly about taxes and the size of government, not their neighbors' lifestyle choices or personal decisions."

Burma's junta releases Aung San Suu Kyi

Burma's military junta releases Aung San Suu Kyi - CTV News:

"In 1990, Suu Kyi's party won Burma's elections by a wide margin. However, the military barred her from taking office. She has been in jail or under house arrest for more than 15 of the last 20 years. Her latest period of house arrest lasted seven-and-a-half years."

A Blast from the Past

Now that I've learned how to put jpegs into my column, by (1) saving them on my harddrive, then (2) uploading them to Picasa, then (3) copying them onto The Political Animal, and finally (4) embedding the url into the column, it occurs to me that I can put (2) and (3) to other uses as well. So here's a blast from the past: a picture of yours truly from 22 years ago. It's from the Libertarian Party of Canada, Toronto Region, meeting of June 1987, at which I ran for Toronto member of the Board of Directors. I lost to Dr. Clarke Slemon (who would also defeat me for Party Leader at the Ontario Libertarian Party convention that fall).

Justin Amash photo

When I was writing my recent article, "Justin Amash elected to Congress," I couldn't find a picture of Justin Amash online that I was licensed to use. So I contacted the Amash for Congress campaign at their website, and they sent me this picture as a jpeg. (Thanks, Poppy!) I'm placing it here to have it on a url location, so that I can embed the latter into the Chart article.  We'll see how that works out; all of this is first-time stuff to me.

Justin Amash elected to Congress

Justin Amash elected to Congress - George J. Dance:

November 5, 2010 - "Endorsed by Ron Paul, dubbed a 'rock star' by the Club for Growth, this young libertarian Republican wins a House seat on his first try."

Read the article here:
https://www.nolanchart.com/article8105-justin-amash-elected-to-congress-html

Rand Paul has commanding lead in Kentucky

Well, it could be wishful thinking (or early prediction) regarding the vote today. But it was a reference to the last-minute lead Paul's built up in the polls. Today we'll see how that plays out at the ballot box.

Rand Paul has commanding lead in Kentucky 
Published: November 1, 2010