The Freedom Bulletin

…without telling you. According to a recent federal court decision, law enforcement can read your emails as long as they give a warrant to your Internet service provider (like Comcast or AOL). They don’t have to serve you with a warrant.

This seems a little creepy to me. People have much more interest in the privacy of their emails than ISPs do. The government ought to let you know if they are going to read your emails.

Last week Ann Coulter was on the Joy Behar show and she said something I completely agree with about health insurance companies:

“I don’t think they should pay for Viagra. I don’t think they should pay for people to have babies. I don’t think they should pay for marriage counseling. I think you should buy catastrophic health insurance which you’re not allowed to do because why — government intervention.”

Exactly! Health insurance companies shouldn’t pay for things that are not medically necessary,  and it’s not medically necessary to have a baby or to have sex. Things that only people who make certain choices need (like maternity services and STD treatment) and that no one needs (like Viagra and infertility treatments) shouldn’t be covered by insurance. At least, insurance companies should be required to offer at least one plan that does not cover these things. It’s unfair for people who don’t have sex or have babies to subsidize those who do.

Customers of a Marblehead gym are mad that there’s a big flag hanging from the ceiling! According to Fox25…

“The Fitness club’s owner, 23 year-old Mark Shea, hung the 12 foot long flag from the gym rafters on Friday and had over a dozen complaints by Monday. Some have complained that the flag blocks gym televisions, while some members have gone as far as to say that the flag is offensive. One members (sic) was quoted to say ‘It’s like putting a Jesus cross in my face.’”

Okay, I can understand the issue with the televisions (the gym owner subsequently moved the flag so it didn’t block them), but offensive? The American flag???

I can also understand why someone who didn’t believe in Jesus would be offended by a “Jesus cross,” but a flag is not comparable to a cross. People legitimately disagree on matters of religion, but I don’t think anyone disagrees that the gym is in America. An American flag doesn’t stand for a particular political theory, but simply for our nation, which happens to be where the gym is located. What could be offensive about that? Do these people think America shouldn’t exist?

If I was in another country and that country’s flag was displayed in a gym, that wouldn’t offend me in the least. It’s awesome to be proud of your country, no matter what country you’re from.

If you don’t like America (and you must not if you find our flag offensive), then you shouldn’t live here.

I’m doing something a little different for the Democratic Senate candidates’ debate tonight. I’m going to be writing my thoughts on everything the candidates say as they say it, more or less in real time, and updating this blog post from time to time during the debate. Enjoy!

7:10: Mike Capuano kept mentioning how much federal funding he’s brought home to the state. I’m not really sure why he would want to brag about this. Wouldn’t it be good to bring home as little funding as possible so that the federal government spends as little as possible and therefore can lower taxes?

7:17: The moderator just asked them what they would do if another senator offered them a deal that would involve cutting either Hanscom Air Force Base or Natick Labs, and they all said basically the same answer!

7:19: Would you support another stimulus package?

Pagliuca: Yes, as long as it was targeted in the right way. It should be funded by increasing the marginal rate for the wealthiest individuals. It’s only 30% here and is 40% in other countries, so we can handle it.

Coakley: “The jury is still out” on the first stimulus. It’s unclear whether she supports another one.

Khazei: “We absolutely need another stimulus.” He’d repeal all the Bush tax cuts and deal with the debt when we get out of the bad economy.

Capuano: If you made me emperor, I’d raise taxes. “Horse trading” is bad because it allowed 4 Republicans to cut $25 billion from the stimulus package. (How is that bad?)

7:28: Would you hold out for a public option in the health reform bill? They all say yes.

7:31: Do we need Republican support for the health reform bill?

Coakley: No, having the 60 Democrats is enough.

Khazei: We just need to pass the reform bill. I’d support medical malpractice reform to try to please the Republicans.

Capuano: We only need 51 if we move for reconciliation. We have to get it done ASAP.

Pagliuca: Basically says same thing as Capuano.

7:35: What would you do about Afghanistan? They all say don’t send any more troops. Capuano and Pagliuca want to get all of our troops out.

7:42: Should illegal immigrants get drivers’ licenses or be covered by universal health care? What about legal ones?

Coakley: It’s terrible that people come here and can’t find a path to citizenship. The moderator asks her what she thinks about drivers’ licenses and health insurance, and she says that what’s being done in Massachusetts is appropriate, but she doesn’t support giving licenses to undocumented immigrants.

Khazei: Yes to health services for legal immigrants. Don’t deport illegal immigrants, instead offer them path to citizenship.

Capuano: “This country needs immigrants on a regular basis,” but we can’t absorb all of them so we need secure borders. What about drivers’ licenses and health services, asks the moderator. Capuano doesn’t really answer the question. The moderator asks it again, and he says that a package containing those things wouldn’t come up. We can’t “blame immigrants for all our problems.”

Pagliuca: No to drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants. Legal ones should get health insurance; illegal ones should get a path to citizenship before they can get health insurance.

7:48: What would make you vote against one of Obama’s supreme court nominees?

Khazei: If they wanted to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Capuano: It’s almost impossible that Obama would nominate such a judge.

Pagliuca: His 3 criteria for a S.C. nominee are equality (meaning gay marriage, I think), privacy (meaning pro-choice), and an understanding of the struggles of the American people.

Coakley: “Common sense is incredibly important.” She agrees with Capuano that Obama probably wouldn’t pick someone incompetent anyway.

7:51: Would you ever support a preemptive strike against Iran? Khazei takes a long time to answer, and the moderator scolds him and threatens to take time away from his closing because he’s used the most time so far of any of the candidates.

7:55: Closing arguments!

Pagliuca: We need to fix health care, unemployment, etc. I have 25 years of business experience, and I will fight tirelessly for you.

Coakley: We need affordable health care and an energy policy that makes sense. We need to keep kids and seniors safe here and our troops safe overseas. I’ll be a new kind of leader in Washington.

Capuano: I’ve had the courage to vote against the Iraq War and the Patriot Act. I’ve brought home more money to the state than anyone else. I know how Washington works. Not voting for me would be telling Ted Kennedy he should have been replaced halfway through his time in the Senate. (What would be wrong with that?)

Khazei: Coakley’s doing a good job as Attorney General, Capuano is doing well in the House, and the Celtics need Pagliuca. Let’s keep these terrific leaders where they are and you’ll get me too! I challenge the other candidates to weekly debates.

My conclusion:

None of the candidates said anything surprisingly good or surprisingly bad. I know that this is supposed to be the Democratic primary debate, but it would have been a lot better if Scott Brown was in it!

Citizens for Limited Taxation, a great anti-tax organization, might shut down! They are running out of money and are in dire need of donations before the end of the year. One way that you can help is by going to their annual brunch on Sunday, November 15 at 12:00. See this page for more details. If you believe in liberty and you have any extra money sitting around, you should really consider donating to CLT. They helped to prevent a graduated income tax in Massachusetts and to pass Proposition 2 1/2. They’re one of my favorite organizations in Massachusetts, and it would be sad to see them go!

P.S. I know things have been slow around here lately. That’s because I am ridiculously busy with school and the extremely fun process of trying to get a job. I’ve seen many things in the news that I want to blog about but just haven’t had the time! I will try to blog more often but probably won’t be able to blog every day or every other day until my life gets less busy.