Mike O'Brien

Law and Religion is an area of scholarly interest that I rarely have an adequate opportunity to discuss. For some reason it is now prominently noticeable in the political campaign season. The passage the Matthew 25 Network cites as justifying Barack Obama socialism is:

31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

In this article I will discuss socialism and Christianity, and do a quick Bible Study on Matthew chapter 25.

Jesse Helms, a former senator (R-NC) died on the Forth of July of natural causes. The blogosphere has been relatively silent about his death given the controversy that his live managed to create. Those on the left seem almost gleeful that the old man who suffered dementia passed. The headline on a village voice article reads Jesse Helms finally dies.

While Barack Obama appears to be silent the Associated Press Notes:

Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain said in a statement: "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Senator Jesse Helms. At this time, let us remember a life dedicated to serving this nation."

So if the left is so glad that Helms has passed, why is he so mimicked in their techniques?

John McCain issued a press release today which contained a statement from 300 economists who support his economic plan. The economists seem motivated by promises of reduced business taxes, reduced spending, and free market trade.

The Politico's Ben Smith notes that the economists didn't sign on to everything:

The statement leaves out two big chunks of McCain's economic argument: the gas tax holiday and his promise to balance the budget by the end of his first term.

To contrast, Steve Forbes discussed in a conference call today how Obama voted to raise taxes on those making as little as a $32,000 a year.

From the Wall Street Journal today:

[Barack Obama's] proposals include tax cuts, a minimum wage increase to $9.50 by 2011, an expansion of the earned income tax credit, child care tax cuts, an expansion of after-school programs, a pledge to enact the Fair Pay Restoration Act which intends to close the pay gap between men and women, and eliminating the capital gains tax rates for small business owners, among others.

John McCain has previously voted against an increase in the minimum wage.

Conservatives generally oppose the minimum wage and point to a recent study in the UK which notes, the increase resulted in slowed hiring, reduction in hours of current employees, and increased prices at a microscopic level. At the macroscopic level there was little change. Liberals point to the same study, and not there was little effect on unemployment, which is the classical fear of the minimum wage.

Barack Obama is taking a lot of heat on the blogs for supporting the extension of FISA with some new quirks. Most of the people who are complaining probably never read the bill, and don't really understand what it does. I'll try to demystify this legislation.

For what its worth. I have only been able to find one conviction of an American using FISA evidence since PATRIOT, and in that case the agent involved obtained a warrant from the FISC. It is likely that this statute will join the thousands of volumes of United States Code that have entirely no direct affect on your life.

Economists are theorizing about the potential ramifications about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Politicians are eager to find something that appears to be a solution. But does it really make a difference?

Let's say at one extreme Fannie and Freddie disappear. There would be a lack of capital in the mortgage markets and interest rates would skyrocket. Alternately, let's say that all of the mortgages are replaced with government bonds which effectively guarantees Fanny and Freddie's debt. Taxes would need to be raised to subsidize those mortgages. Effectively the result is the same on the average American, either it is more expensive to get a mortgage or taxes are higher.

So how does one make it look like nothing happened so that live goes on as usual?

Today's issue comes from the Heritage Foundation which notes that the number of federal crimes has substantially increased lately. The conservative law blogs (blawgs) are conserned about this massive increase in federal power. The liberals seem to think that the federal government should be able to go wherever it wants.

There are at least two notable ramifications of this massive increase in federal power:

An issue cannot simultaneously be both a federal and state issue - therefore this takes power away from the states. This is a problem because states are in the best position to determine how to resolve a local issue.

Also, many of the federal crimes do not require intent or mens rea. These crimes are like possession. It doesn't matter if you don't know you have it, as long as you have it you are guilty. This dissappearance of this requirement has been an increasing issue for at least fifty years in the United States.

This story initially caught my eye because of the unusual name of the main charector and his incredible honesty.

T. Boone Pickens wants to build a gigundus wind farm that will cost $1 Trillion in equipment and another $200 Billion in transmission line costs. He believes that the country could be 20% powered on wind in ten years, the natural gas formerly used to power the country can be used to power cars at a fraction of the cost of doing so today. He believes private investors will pony up for this idea.

So, what other ideas are out there?

It's a little early to start talking about 2009 elections, but this story is so salacious I think we can play local baseball for one night. This gives the reader an idea of who the Democratic party has running for office.

I will rhetorically ask, what does one have to do to get beat in a Democratic Party primary?