Section 230, Amazon and Parler, Caveat Emptor, Contracts, & Alternatives (41m) – Episode 454

Episode 454 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following topics: Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and what is and is not libertarian about it; Amazon Web Services cancelling their contract with social media platform Parler without the contractually specified notice of 30 days; what should happen to contracts in the future; examining our dependencies and building alternatives; and more.

Apartheid Israel, Facebook Italy Fine, Seizing Sammiches, & Pakistan Blasphemy Executions (32m) – Episode 453

Episode 453 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following news stories: from APNews.com, “Leading human rights group calls Israel an ‘apartheid’ state”; from TheRegister.com, “Facebook appeals ruling that it stole tech. So, Italian judge issues new judgment: Pay 10 times the original fine”; from TheGuardian.com, “Dutch officials seize ham sandwiches of drivers arriving from UK”; and from AlJazeera.com, “Pakistan court sentences three to death for blasphemy”.

Building Alternative Institutions, Enforcing the NAP, Taxation, & Simple Libertarianism (26m) – Episode 452

Episode 452 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following questions from Quora: he starts the episode with a complaint against Quora for banning it’s most prolific author, Dennis Pratt; “How do Libertarians intend to implement/enforce the NAP?”; “Libertarians, what do you make of the argument that taxation isn’t theft because you are able to choose your representatives, so either choose ones that disagree with taxation as well or start your own political party?”; and “What is a simple explanation of libertarianism?”

Shepard Returns, Redneck Hooligans, Humor, Propaganda, & Prison (1h3m) – Episode 451

Episode 451 welcomes back Shepard the Voluntaryist to chat with Skyler on the following topics: sitting on the sideline during political uncertainty; trying on different colored glasses to see the world more clearly; JP Sears success and using comedy to fight the state; Washington DC redneck hooliganism; the outpouring of propaganda through 2020 and 2021; uncontrolled kids becoming uncontrollable adults and untraumatized kids becoming peaceful adults; making peace with going to prison for frivolous and arbitrary reasons; defending yourself with surety bonds, challenging jurisdiction, petroleum jelly, or whatever you can to stop their attack on your peaceful behavior; making the most of being a prisoner, recognizing your sphere of control; dealing with prisoner politics in various ways; the perseverance of the 1st and 2nd Amendments, or rather, the perseverance of the American cultural commitment to free speech, free religion, peaceable assembly, and bearing arms; and more.

Jim C. Returns, Surviving 2020, Living is Learning, & TV Recommendations (56m) – Episode 450

Episode 450 welcomes back Jim Carigan to chat with Skyler on the following topics: surviving 2020 in Kentucky; living is learning; facial hair; memorable years in his life comparable to 2020; his Yankee mom and Dixiecrat dad; comparing mask mandates to the Vietnam War draft; recent attention on Federal spending; long term view of the effects of money inflation; 80% of humanity are meat puppets, 80% of the remaining have screwed themselves up, and the remaining 4% of humanity are “with it”, and even they disagree among themselves about good and evil; television show recommendations: PBS’s “Line of Separation”, HBO’s “Chernobyl”, Netflix’s “The Crown”, and Prime Video’s “The Expanse”; and more.

Washington Shitshow, Good People, Radio vs. Streaming, & GPS Speed Limiters (26m) – Episode 449

Episode 449 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following entries to r/unpopularopinion: his own commentary on the January 6th events in Washington DC; GNU_Yorker writes, “Good people still outnumber bad people by a monstrous amount”; CainKilledAbleton writes, “Listening to radio when driving is better than music streaming”; and flammmes writes, “Cars should have speed limiters that communicate with GPS signal to update the limiter according to the road’s limit.”

Millennial Socialism, Teachers’ Strike, Fat Capitalist Bezos, & Work or Die (26m) – Episode 448

Episode 448 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following entries to r/shitstatistssay: @NathanHRubin writes, “Millennials don’t hear socialism & think about the USSR or the Cold War… we think about Canada, Switzerland…”; PixPls writes, “It’s time that teachers stood up to their states and just said ‘No’. And while they are at it, a 20% raise is in order.”; Wordsmifff2991 writes, “The biggest cause of poverty is greed… Yes Jeff Bezos I’m talking to you.”; and NeonDepression writes, “There wouldn’t be any value without labor period. The worker HAS to create it for there to be any wealth whatsoever. Property inherently is theft… There is no such thing as a free market when people are forced to work in order to live. Thats called coercion.”

Avian Flu, Elected Transgender Women, Macron on Brexit, Pedophile Castration, & Pope Francis (30m) – Episode 447

Episode 447 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following news stories: from IndianExpress.com, “Avian flu confirmed: 1,800 migratory birds found dead in Himachal”; from PinkNews.co.uk, “Two trans women win election in historic moment for LGBT+ visibility in India” (Wikipedia.org, “LGBT themes in Hindu mythology”); from reddit.com, “Brexit a product of ‘lies and false promises’, Macron says in New Year’s message”; from JakartaGlobe.id, “Child Predators to be Chemically Castrated Under New Regulation”; and from TheGuardian.com, “Pope condemns travelling abroad to escape coronavirus lockdowns” (YouTube / Ivor Cummins, “Crucial Viral Update Jan 4th – Europe and USA – Covers it ALL”).

Liberty Quotes: Bertrand Russell, Thomas Jefferson, Francis Mahaffy, Mahatma Gandhi (28m) – Episode 446

Episode 446 has Skyler giving his commentary on a quote by Bertrand Russell on the idea that some questions and opinions aren’t open to discussion; by Thomas Jefferson on disobeying unjust laws; by Francis Mahaffy on the concept of “social justice” and the damage it does to justice; and by Mahatma Gandhi on the inhumanity that is the use of coercion.

Anderson’s Journey, Philosophy, Stoicism For a Better Life (1h6m) – Episode 445

Episode 445 welcomes Anderson Silver to the podcast to chat with Skyler on the following topics: the French language in Canada; the cultural diversity of Montreal; his journey to self-reeducation; publishing 3 books on Stoicism; how Stoicism saved his life; our physical needs versus our mental and spiritual needs; how we each have a spirit, or soul; Stoicism and parenting; the prevalence of unidentified philosophy, or people learning and choosing the wiser course of action; human capacity for good and evil; striving toward clarity in dire situations; emotions make for bad advisors; Vulcanism versus Stoicism and Virtue Ethics; Stoic insight on New Year’s resolutions; and more.