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Sparta 300 June 2007 $4.00 Persia 0 ~vorse than death. II - Andrew Hamilton June 2007 Inside Liberty Volume 21, Number 6 4 Letters Our readers fight the power. 7 Reflections We stroll through Baghdad, score at the World Bank, corner the chicken market, breed less sheepish sheep, wrestle a bloodthirsty lion, diagnose an old malady, smuggle light bulbs, break a leg, and add a venerable American species to the endangered list. Features 21 A Freewheeling Debate Bookstores across the nation are featuring Brian Doherty's history of the libertarian movement. Bruce Ramsey and Lanny Ebenstein study the phenomenon; Doherty provides his own account. 29 Borking Up the Wrong Tree When it comes to legal principles, modern conservatives can be as dangerous as modern liberals. Timothy Sandefur shows what's under the sheep's clothing. 35 The Founding of the Party John Hospers, one of the select group of Americans who have ever received a vote in the Electoral College, tells how it's done. 38 A Generation of Slackers Michael Christian surveys the age of porcelain and skateboards. Reviews 41 Lies Your Teachers Are Telling You Gary Jason runs down the myths that keep public school budgets high and test scores really low. 46 Sparta 300, Persia 0 The story told in 1/300" is a great one, Liam Vavasour admits. But the story told by history is even better. 47 Fondly Remembering Karl Hess Richard Kostelanetz savors the heyday of American anarchism. 48 Pax Reagana Reagan may have muffed his lines about domestic matters. But, as Martin Morse Wooster finds, he played his part on the international stage almost to perfection. 49 A Wake for the West The death of the West: are the reports exaggerated? Garin Hovannisian weighs the evidence. 51 Curtain Calls Jo Ann Skousen takes in a hit, a flop, and a guilty pleasure. 50 Notes on Contributors Our boon companions. 54 Terra Incognita One measures a circle, beginning anywhere. How to Letters Subscribe [ ] Occupation Nation assimilated a working knowledge of Jon Harrison's article ("Why the military operational art. From that per to Surge WillFail," April) is correct in not spective, I am critical of Jon Harrison's using the word "war" to describe what assessment of the surge. we are doing in Iraq. We are not at war; Harrison's first argument amounts II LibertY] we are involved in an occupation of a to simple troop-counting, as might be country we conquered. The analogy is appropriate in frontal attrition warfare France and Poland by Germany during - which the campaign in Iraq is not. Liberty takes individual WWII, or India for many years by the For one thing, it makes a difference freedom seriously ... and British. In those days, they called the whether one is counting actual com the status quo with more "resistance" guerrillas, and here in the bat troops (which the 21,500 are) or a than one grain of salt! U.S. we honored them for fighting their fielded. mixture of combat and support occupiers. troops (which the 153,000 are). The Every issue of Liberty brings Here is what I believe the surge re normal ratio of combat troops to total you news you can't miss, ally means to the Bushies: when the expeditionary force is variably between Democrats won in the fall, it was most 20 to 500/0. Thus, the increase in combat opinions you won't find capacity is far greater than simple num anywhere else, and the best ly an antiwar vote. This meant when they took control of the House and bers indicate. More important, however, libertarian writing in the world. Senate, they would probably ask for a is the nature of the operational strategy withdrawal date. The Dems would say they will be called to execute, of which You won't want to that the American people want us out Harrison is ignorant. At present our miss a single issue! of there, so let's make a plan to leave troops are not numerous enough to im ASAP. pose secure control perimeters, within Act Today! Bush's advisers saw it coming and which "housecleaning" operations can proposed an increase in troops. They commence. The new numbers will cor Liberty offers you the best in didn't really believe a few thousand rect that deficiency, so we can impose individualist thinking and more boots on the ground would help the methods that were successful in writing. So don't hesitate. You much, but that wasn't the point. It Fallujah. have nothing to lose, and the changed the argument from whether The second argument purports to be fruits of Liberty to gain! to withdraw to whether to add more a critical analysis of the incoming de ployment. He states that to "expect [our Use the coupon below or call: troops. They snookered the nation with a classic misdirection move. forces] either to defeat or to overawe 1-800-854-6991 Now Bush will not leave because and disarm thousands of well-armed that would mean admitting he was de religious fanatics, is sheer fantasy," and inexplicably compares the problem in p-------Please enter my subscription .. feated. He wants to pin our Jlretreat" on the Democrats. Arguing about whether Baghdad to the siege of Stalingrad. The I to Liberty immediately! I expectation is entirely within reason, the "surge" is working or not is just a considering that U.5. forces success I 0 12 issues (One Full Year) $29.50 I time-eating camouflage, nothing more. fully accomplished the extirpation o 24 issues (Two Full Years) $56.00 Meanwhile my son is in the Marines, of insurgents within Fallujah, killing Add $5 per year for foreign subscriptions. serving in Fallujah. He doesn't like what I I 1,300 outright, with only 13 fatalities he sees, but like all good young sol on our side. This action was accom name diers, is doing his job to the best of his I I plished largely with the advantage of abilities. night-vision equipment and pervasive I address I Dick Geyer Las Vegas, Nev. overhead surveillance by unmanned I city state zip I aerial vehicles, to implement a new, Surge by Numbers information-dominated tactical ap I phone number I I am a libertarian in the defense in proach. (It was not well-reported in dustry and, in my 30 years here, I have the mainstream press; I had to read it I 0 I enclose my check (payable to Liberty) I Charge my: I 0 VISA 0 MasterCard 0 Discover I I signature I I account # expires I I Send to: Liberty, Dept. L, I P.O. Box 1181, Port Townsend, WA 98368 .. _-----_ .. June 2007 in the pages of Popular Mechanics.) rest assured that a mere handful of 100 prudent to provide military aircraft to But Harrison refers to the success at kiloton nuclear weapons can achieve in the Speaker for official travel between Fallujah as involving"a relatively small moments what took days in the Marne Washington and her district. The prac number of insurgents." Well, he can't or longer at Stalingrad. But, thank God, tice began with Speaker Hastert and I have it both ways: it cannot be the case we are not engaged in such wholesale have recommended thatit continue with that defeating thousands of insurgents destruction, and I am more comforted Speaker Pelosi. The fact that Speaker is an insuperable task - and also that by our armed forces' understanding of Pelosi lives in California compelled me the Battle of Fallujah did not involve that fact, than by Harrison's failure to to request an aircraft that is capable thousands of insurgents. At present, we understand. of making non-stop flights for secu have killed 20 insurgents for everyone In the end, Harrison's article gives rity purposes, unless such an aircraft is of our troops that has been killed, so let me newfound confidence that the troop unavailable. This will ensure commu us not doubt that it is possible to cope deployments to Iraq could be success nications capabilities and also enhance with "thousands" of the enemy. ful. If these are the best arguments he security. I made the recommendation The third argument is not really can muster, we should wish our troops to use military aircraft based upon the an argument, but a digression on the great success. need to provide necessary levels of se nuisance of Muqtada al-Sadr. At the Michael J. Dunn curity for ranking national leaders, such moment, the Baathist and al-Qaeda Federal Way, Wash. as the Speaker. I regret that an issue that insurgency is the more important prob Harrison responds: Mr. Dunn is enti is exclusively considered and decided lem, so it makes sense to deal with it tled to his opinions, though in my view in a security context has evolved into a first. they cast little light on the situation in political issue." His fourth argumentis nothing more Iraq. He misrepresents most of my ar Second, Gary Jason states that than a groundless dismissal of Gen. guments, but I do not feel compelled to "Pelosi managed to tack on an exemp David Petraeus, who, it turns out, au instruct him. Time will tell whose analy tion [to the minimum wage increase] thored the Army's latest field manual on sis is correct, his or mine. for American Samoa, because the big counterterrorism. Harrison can muster tuna-canning companies StarKist and nothing but commendable facts about Can It Del Monte (which pay Samoans $3.26 Gen. Petraeus, but wishes to nullify The April Reflections include a cou per hour) screamed that they would be these facts with shadowy speculations ple of pieces of misinformation about hammered by the new wage standard" that "a case can be made" against his Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi that and "StarKist, by the way, happens to competence - but does not make such should be corrected.