Social Issues

Submitted by Ron Paul via The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity,

Those who advocate ending, instead of reforming, the welfare-warfare state are often accused of being “impractical.” Some of the harshest criticisms come from libertarians who claim that advocates of “purism” forgo opportunities to make real progress toward restoring liberty. These critics fail to grasp the numerous reasons why it is crucial for libertarians to consistently and vigorously advance the purist position.

by Ron Paul

Those who advocate ending, instead of reforming, the welfare-warfare state are often accused of being “impractical.” Some of the harshest criticisms come from libertarians who claim that advocates of “purism” forgo opportunities to make real progress toward restoring liberty. These critics fail to grasp the numerous reasons why it is crucial for libertarians to consistently and vigorously advance the purist position.

Saudi Arabia executed 47 people for terrorism on Saturday, including a prominent Shi’ite Muslim cleric. The execution of Nimr al-Nimr has caused outrage among the kingdom’s critics, saying the cleric’s death aims to “set the region on fire.” The men, 45 Saudis, an Egyptian and a man from Chad, were reportedly killed behind closed doors in prisons across the country RT reports: Nimr, along with six others, were accused of orchestrating anti-government protests between 2011 and 2013 in which 20 people died.

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog,

The decline of middle class capital is partly self-inflicted.

Conventional explorations of why the middle class is shrinking focus on economic issues such as the decline of unions and manufacturing, the increasing premiums paid to the highest-paid workers and the rising costs of higher education and healthcare.

An Education Institute of Scotland (EIS) survey, which questioned more than 300 primary and secondary school teachers in Scottish schools, found there had been a 51 percent rise in the number of children going to school hungry. Teachers have claimed that crippling government austerity measures are forcing schoolchildren in Scotland to go hungry, steal food from their peers and develop mental health issues. The Scottish government has described the survey’s findings as “shocking”, saying that no child should go to school hungry.