A common retort that libertarians, even minarchists, hear when criticizing ‘their’ government is “If you don’t like it, then just leave.” Indeed, residency is perceived to be one piece of evidence (among others, like voting, paying taxes, etc.) for one’s implicit consent to the state and its rules. Just leave. As if there are better alternatives. Or, as if ‘their’ country being the least bad option somehow justifies its government. Just leave. They make it sound so simple, don’t they? If only it were. Unfortunately, states are not so keen on letting their slaves get away so easily, free and clear.
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There’s a new anti-war rock/hip-hop song hitting the air waves lately. It is called White Flag Warrior, from the album Survival Story, by Flobots and featuring Tim McIlrath of the punk rock band Rise Against. It’s a catchy tune with good lyrics, melding both rock and hip hop elements. The song has a definite non-violent resistance ring to it. The oft repeated line that “we’d rather make our children martyrs than murderers” reminds me of the Socratic position that it is better to suffer injustice than to commit it — truly libertarian sentiments.
Music video and lyrics below:
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This is not a real Mediterranean recipe. I just made it up. I like it because it’s simple, easy to make, consists of just good meat, cheese and bread, and tastes good.
Ingredients
- 1 mini-sub roll (a small, slender 6″ sub-shaped roll; I like Asiago cheese rolls)
- deli-style, thinly-sliced smoked ham (Hillshire Farm is good)
- pizza-style pepperoni, for some spicy kick (I like Armour)
- goat cheese
Recipe
- Slice the roll in half lengthwise. Optional: Heat the roll in the oven at 350°F for a few minutes first until the crust gets a little crispy.
- Slather the goat cheese generously on the insides of both halves of the roll. It helps to let the goat cheese warm up a bit ahead of time as goat cheese can be really crumbly and hard to spread when cold.
(Click to enlarge.)
- Put down an overlapping layer of pepperoni slices on the bottom half of the roll. The rolls I like are just wide enough for one row of pepperoni.
- Pile on 2-3 layers of thin deli-style smoked ham, say 6-9 slices. Don’t lay ‘em out flat, cafeteria-style. I like to twist or fold them for greater volume and texture.
- Put the top half of the roll on, and maybe slice the roll in half widthwise. Enjoy!
A while back I published a blogpost here about the individualist American strain of SF and the more cosmological perspective of the British strain. I just published and expanded and revised version at The Libertarian Standard, working in more explicit libertarian observations.
Political Science PhD
