Kent For Liberty Blog

If someone uses politics to force their will on you (or anyone) they have something wrong with them. Something's not right inside. Pity them, but don't let them hurt you. It's OK to defend yourself from them. Really. It may not be "legal", but it can't be wrong. - This blog is my job. YOU get to decide if I get paid.

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Because doing the right thing, and refusing to do the wrong thing, are so often "illegal", I'm glad to be an outlaw. How about you? - This blog is my job. YOU get to decide if I get paid.

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for October 3, 2018) Have you seen there are people who are blaming their health problems on the results of the most recent presidential election? Not just their mental health and happiness, as with the widespread "Trump Derangement Syndrome", but their physical health, too. They believe politics, of a particular sort, is making them sick. If so, it's because they have chosen to get sick over politics. In which case they take politics much too seriously...read the rest... - Thank you for helping support KentforLiberty.com

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

I mentioned my own emotional reaction when exposed to nasty anti-liberty ideas, but there's another kind of idea which can cause a negative reaction. Some people get angry when exposed to the truth. Angry enough they advocate using government violence to make people shut up. If you speak a truth these people don't want to hear, they want to make sure you suffer for it. That's evil and stupid. If you make it painful for people to speak the truth, you will get more lies. Some truth is ugly. It's not how you want to believe reality is. Something else would be nicer....

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Sometimes I really hate having emotions. Hating emotions? How's that for irony? I often get angry when people around me express statist, sexist, racist, nationalist opinions. I don't want anger to be my reaction. I want to be able to laugh them off as fools, then (if necessary) wipe the floor with them using well thought out truth presented without emotion. If nothing else, it would be better to annoy them with Socratic questions. Anger gets in the way of that. It sabotages me. So, recognizing this, I try really hard to get over my emotional reaction before I respond to nasty ideas. That's easier...

By Kent McManigal Vote16 0

I recently heard the claim that the economy is "going great". This doesn't match with the reality I'm experiencing, although I might not be representative. Nor is it what I'm seeing in some others I know. Some of them have even settled for government "jobs" because that's the only thing they could find. I think it's a terrible shame when the economy is so bad that people are reduced to looking for, or accepting, government "jobs". And I see this a lot. People can't find a job in the market, so they lower themselves and take a government "job". They would...

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

It's weird to me when someone pops up with "but that's the local government, not the feds" doing some evil thing or another. Or the other way around. And I can't figure out why it matters. Maybe to "state's rights" [sic] people... but to anyone else? Government is government. To distinguish between federal, state, and local is to miss the point. Yes, they can all hurt you in different ways, and sometimes you can pit them against each other to protect yourself a little. But to fall for the belief that one isn't bad, while the other is? Ridiculous! They are all bad, just in...

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

Being in favor of illegal searches and seizures is kind of a rapey position. Isn't it? - This blog is my job. YOU get to decide if I get paid.

By Kent McManigal Vote23 0

No, this isn't advocating cannibalism, it's a bunch of little thoughts that have collected and never made it to blog or column status, but that I didn't just want to throw away. You've been warned.... __ Alternate history: Quill and Tattler-- Medieval jesters who make fun of the ruling elites while practicing sorcery. Tattler never tattles because he doesn't speak. __ Liberty lovers need to come together, because the enemies of liberty are united against us. But liberty lovers fight over "borders" and American Sharia Law (including "vices") and the illusory "right vs left" nonsense, each insisting on each and every exception...

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

1. Do not use violence against the non-violent who are not taking or damaging your property. 2. Do not take or damage the property of any other person. 3. Do not seek to govern anyone but yourself, nor should you choose others to govern them on your behalf; do not enslave. 4. Mind your own business until or unless someone asks you for your help with their business. 5. Try to not unnecessarily offend others, but if you are offended, suck it up. You haven’t been harmed. 6. Tell the truth, unless you have to lie to keep someone from...

By Kent McManigal Vote2 0

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for September 26, 2018) I don't want to be cynical, but the emergence of a market in politically convenient accusations of sexual misconduct, made at just the right moment, is making me cynical. It's as though people collect and save these accusations in hopes that someday the person they are prepared to accuse will seek a political position, when the accusation can be whipped out, shined up, and presented as a tactic to derail the ambition. If the accuser and accused support different wings of the political vulture, anyway...read the rest... - Thank you...

By Kent McManigal Vote6 0

The theft-funded molesters of The Blue Line Gang are "special". They are expected to ignore all "no guns" signs because they "have to" remain armed while on duty. It is their job; their responsibility. The thing is, that's not special at all. It is YOUR duty and responsibility to remain armed at all times, too. In fact, your duty and responsibility are much more fundamental than theirs. Their "duty" only comes from a "job" and a paycheck; yours comes from the fact that you are a sovereign individual. The buck stops with YOU. As long as you are on duty-- and...

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

I am conservative, but I am not a conservative. I am liberal, but I am not a liberal. I am a conservative in that I believe there are some things from the past-- some values-- which need to be conserved. Including such liberal values as true generosity and compassion. I am liberal in that I value liberty for ALL and want it spread to everyone. That was once something liberals stood for. Not so much since they re-branded as "progressives". For that matter, I am progressive, but I am not a progressive. I am progressive in that I believe in progress. I believe progress is necessary...

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Those who are against you owning and carrying effective weapons, and using them to defend life, liberty, and property, like to pretend the bad guy is your ethical equal. That his death, as a consequence of his attack on you, is some sort of tragedy. For an anti-gun bigot to say that using a gun in self-defense "costs a life" makes it sound as though you traded a random innocent life for your life. As if, one day for no apparent reason, you feel threatened so you go out, find some little kid who is minding her own business and...

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Cody Wilson's situation really bothers me. Aside from the ridiculously statist "age of consent" stuff which goes against biological and mental reality (not discounting the real age of consent which is going to vary among individuals, and probably isn't any of your business to determine for someone else). One thought that keeps running through my mind is that believers in the State must expect everyone to swap "government-issued ID" when they meet (and be able to tell if it is "real"), just in case anything happens later on. Maybe they believe the State should issue "Approved for Sex" cards, with age restrictions on which...

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

Being against guns is as stupid as being against candles. Both are tools. Both are mostly used for good (in non-political hands). Both are useful and can save lives. Both can kill if misused. But being "against" either one is stupid. - This blog is my job. YOU get to decide if I get paid.

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Cody Wilson, of 3D-printed gun fame, has been targeted by the State for "sexual assault on a child". This is a lie. If it's consensual, it isn't "assault". If it's a business deal-- a trade-- it is mutually consensual. He is said to have paid her for sex; that makes it a trade. But then we get to the part that trips up even supposed liberty-lovers: that she is claimed to be a child. The girl in question is said to be 16 years old. Very few 16 year-olds are still a child. I doubt very strongly this girl is one of...

By Kent McManigal Vote1 0

I've been accused from time to time of using "scare quotes" around certain words; words which I feel are generally misused or are nonsense. Like "taxation", "good" cops, "immigration", or "common good". But those quotation marks are not there to scare you; they are there to illustrate my sarcasm. They aren't "scare quotes", they are sarcastiquotes. The very name "scare quotes" is dishonest and biased-- an attempt to shame writers into going easy with the truth. Not gonna happen. I'm going to continue to use sarcastiquotes to illustrate the dishonesty of others.

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for September 19, 2018) Instead of worrying about who someone is, it seems smarter to focus on what they do. Anything other than their actions is none of your business and can't harm you, and not many of their actions are your business, either. The color of someone's skin isn't my concern, nor is the language they speak. Who you love is between you and those you love, and your religious beliefs don't involve me. I'm not worried about where someone was born or what government permission slips they may lack...read the rest... -...

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Don't assume the cops don't know things about you just because you are quiet and peaceable. About 19 years ago, around half-past dusk, in an average town in a nearby state, I was riding in the passenger seat while my wife-at-the-time drove. Pulling a particularly blatant act of poor driving in the middle of town, she made a left turn and cut off an approaching coproach. She seemed completely oblivious when I mentioned this error. Unsurprisingly, the gangster in question made a turn, followed, and stopped her. As he did the "your papers, please" shakedown on her, he bent over to get...

By Kent McManigal Vote0 0

Politics is a symptom Oct 5, 2018

I aim to misbehave Oct 4, 2018

End government; improve health Oct 3, 2018

Other people’s emotions Oct 2, 2018

Sabotaged by emotions Oct 1, 2018

Economic realities and government “jobs” Sep 30, 2018

Picking nits Sep 29, 2018

Siding with evildoers Sep 28, 2018

Orphan stew Sep 28, 2018

(The?) Ten Good Suggestions Sep 27, 2018

Hard to believe in ‘accusation market’ Sep 26, 2018

Always on-duty Sep 25, 2018

Looking in the mirror, I see… Sep 24, 2018

Defense against the Dark Arts (of Archators) Sep 23, 2018

“Let me see your ID first” Sep 22, 2018

Stupid Against-ocrats Sep 21, 2018

When a “child” isn’t a child Sep 20, 2018

“Scared” yet? Sep 19, 2018

Actions matter more than identity Sep 19, 2018

You are being watched Sep 18, 2018