Libertarian Ron Paul speaks in Oberlin

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OBERLIN A spirited full house greeted former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul in Oberlin Colleges Finney Chapel on Sunday evening as a part of the colleges Convocation Series.

Paul, known for his strict interpretation of the constitution, limited government intervention and support of free market capitalism, came through Oberlin on a speaking tour to give a lecture, Liberty Defined, from Pauls 2011 book of the same name.

We now have accepted this notion that the government can solve all problems, Paul said on Sunday. You just have to remember that when the government gets involved in trying to improve your personal and social life when they want to get involved in how you spend your money, invest your money, take care of yourself economically they can only do that at the expense of personal liberty.

The retired congressman enthusiastically extolled the virtues of small government, limited regulation, personal property rights and the resurgence of an ethos of government that promoted individual liberty protected equally for all people.

Paul served 12-terms Republican congressman in Texas. He decided against a 13th congressional bid in 2012 to run for president on the Republican ballot in November.

With a crowd of primarily college students, Paul emphasized his commitment to a younger generation of citizens.

Ive been asked by (Oberlin College President Marvin Krislov): Whatre you doing these days? I lobby for liberty by going to the campuses of Americans who are interested in liberty, Paul said.

The lecture was sponsored by the Oberlin College Republicans and Libertarians and funded primarily by the Ronald Reagan Political Lectureship Series, a yearly series sponsored by Oberlin College alumnus Steven Shapiro featuring speakers from the center-right of the political spectrum.

Nick Miller, college senior and president of the Oberlin College Republicans and Libertarians, contacted Paul in January after his congressional term ended, with the hope of bringing him to campus before Miller graduate in May.

Its been kind of dream of mine for a long time (to) have the leader of the Libertarian movement come to Oberlin, Miller said of the event. Pauls never really a nonstarter for anybody.

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Libertarian Ron Paul speaks in Oberlin

No, The Actual Libertarian Movement Didn’t ‘Go Nuts’ — It’s Just The One Inside Bill Maher’s Head

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During his HBO show last Friday, Bill Maher dedicated four minutes to bashing libertarians for having ruined libertarianism. The comedian lamented that even though he himself once identified as a libertarian, the movement has morphed into this creepy obsession with free-market capitalism based on an Ayn Rand novel called Atlas Shrugged.

I didnt go nuts; this movement did, he concluded before launching into a series of cartoonishly reductive descriptions of what he thinks are the ultimate libertarian ends.

All in all, Mahers rant was actually pretty funny. Despite stereotypes to the contrary, we libertarians do love a good send-up from Parks and Recreations parodic anti-government hero Ron Swanson to a mock tourism advertisement for Somalia, the libertarian paradise. But throughout all the libertarian bashing, Maher showed his hand a bit: Despite once calling himself a libertarian, he revealed that he really does not have a grasp on what the movement/ideology actually represents.

For starters, the fact that he somehow believes libertarianism was ever a movement not predicated on a belief in free market economics is astonishing. The ideology never morphed into a free-market obsession, as he believes. In fact, the study of markets has always been a fundamental part of the movement, from the Austrian school of economics (F.A. Hayek, Ludwig von Mises) to the Chicago school (Milton Friedman, Gary Becker).

When Maher declared himself a libertarian back in 2001, Salon declared it a joke, noting that only a handful of his beliefs (specifically in the social issues realm) overlapped with libertarian ideology. His staunch support for the expansion of government over guns, education, business, etc., were all in direct opposition to what libertarians generally believe and yet, somehow, he bizarrely believes to this day that the movement left him.

Ultimately, it seems what Maher thought libertarian meant is actually what liberal is supposed to mean. American liberals are supposed to support the social issues and civil liberties causes he extols, yet they never fully commit when in power. Maher was never a libertarian; just a staunch liberal. As Reasons Nick Gillespie notes: For better or worse, a Venn diagram of Maher and libertarianism is going to show a huge amount of overlap on things. And thats a welcome fact. Libertarians and honest liberals will always get along on civil liberties; but well just have to respectfully disagree on economics.

As for the Ayn Rand jokes: What a cheap, easy way to broadstroke a whole movement. But Maher should know better: Ayn Rand is not the be-all-end-all for libertarians. Even she hated libertarians, describing them as hippies and anarchists, while blasting the movements inability to stick to her absolutist mentality on a variety of issues. Today, many of her most devoted acolytes are war-hawks who shrug the libertarian association.

While its safe to say a plurality of libertarians read Atlas Shrugged and became introduced to the concept of limited government via her awful prose, there are plenty of us who dont invoke her name in every conversation and arent the biggest fans of her obsession with the ubermensch. Her work is a decent introduction, but by no means a bible.

On a related note, another misunderstanding of Mahers: Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) is not and never has been a part of the libertarian movement. Reason magazine regularly pans his budget proposals that pay lip service to fiscal restraint, but really only cut the rate of increase and dont balance the budget anywhere in the near future. He is also an outspoken social conservative, unafraid to use legislation to back that up. And during the Bush years, Ryan was a proponent of the bailouts, TARP, an expanded warfare state, and Medicare Part D.

At one point during his monologue, Maher painted a dystopian vision in which entitlements are eviscerated, human skeletons shit in the river, and pollution is rampant. What a goofy way to invoke the most extreme possible goals for his strawman version of libertarianism. Opposition to expansive government social programs does not mean total anarchy or zero regulations. The lefts favorite strawman is to paint libertarians as people who want the poor to suffer, the air to fill with smog, and the wealthy to cackle their way to bank but, in reality, we just believe the economy functions better with a lighter touch.

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No, The Actual Libertarian Movement Didn’t ‘Go Nuts’ — It’s Just The One Inside Bill Maher’s Head

Libertarian Party vows to challenge CT lawmakers that backed gun law

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The Libertarian Party of Connecticut is opposing Connecticuts new gun law and says elected representatives that voted for it can expect Libertarian challengers in the next election.

The bill imposes substantial limitations on the right to keep and bear arms as well as imposing large costs on law-abiding citizens who wish to buy and sell weapons peacefully, said Joshua Katz, a Westbrook resident who is the partys secretary. It punishes those who seek mental health counseling, which, far from keeping us safer, will simply discourage people who need help from getting it.

The Libertarian Party is known for its small-government philosophy. It has run candidates in Connecticut with limited success.

The party says that politicians who voted for the law have abandoned their commitment to transparent, accountable government, and should expect to face challenges from Libertarian opponents in their next election, the party said in an April 5 press release.

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Islands of Adventure – Me Ship The Olive – Universal Orlando Resort 2013 Toon Lagoon HD – Video

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Islands of Adventure - Me Ship The Olive - Universal Orlando Resort 2013 Toon Lagoon HD
Take a video tour of Me Ship The Olive at Islands of Adventure at the Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida. This was a video request. Me Ship, The Ol...

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Islands of Adventure - Me Ship The Olive - Universal Orlando Resort 2013 Toon Lagoon HD - Video

Islands of Adventure – The View Around The Lagoon – Universal Orlando Resort HD – Video

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Islands of Adventure - The View Around The Lagoon - Universal Orlando Resort HD
Take a look around the lagoon at Islands of Adventure from all the #39;islands #39;. We start at the Port of Entry and end in Suess Landing. Watch in HD (1080p) for...

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China to open disputed islands to tourism: official

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China is to open disputed South China Sea islands up to tourism this month, state media reported Sunday, a move likely to inflame a long-running territorial row with its neighbours.

The plans to allow tourists to visit the Paracel Islands before the May Day holiday is the latest stage in Beijing's development of the territory, which has previously angered Vietnam and caused concern in Washington.

Vietnam and China have a longstanding territorial row over the Paracel Islands. Hanoi last month accused a Chinese vessel of firing on one of its fishing boats which had sailed in disputed waters in the area.

The plan to allow cruise tours follows rapid development of infrastructure in a new city -- Sansha -- along with the establishment of an army garrison on one of the Paracels last year.

Tourists can only visit the islands on cruise ships as the hotels and other facilities are inadequate, news agency Xinhua said, citing Tan Li, executive vice governor of the southern province of Hainan.

Tan was speaking on Saturday at the Boao Forum for Asia, which is being held in Hainan.

The report quoted shipbuilder Haihang Group Corp Ltd as saying its cruise ship was ready to take almost 2,000 passengers on a tour of the islands. A second cruise ship was being built by Hainan Harbor and Shipping Holdings Co, the report added.

"The tour prices will be relatively high due to the high costs of tourism infrastructure construction," Hainan-based tour agency general manager Huang Huaru told Xinhua.

Tan said local authorities would build more supply ships and ports, and beef up the infrastructure in Sansha.

The city was established last summer to administer more than 200 islets, sandbanks and reefs in the South China Sea, which also include the Spratly Islands and Macclesfield Bank.

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China to open disputed islands to tourism: official

China plans disputed islands tourism

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7 April 2013 Last updated at 02:52 ET

China is to begin running tourism cruises to a chain of disputed islands in the South China Sea by next month, state media reports.

The Xinhua news agency said tourists would live on board ships, as the largest island has only one hotel and no fresh water.

The islands, known in China as Xisha but the Paracels elsewhere, are claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan.

China has controlled them since a short war with South Vietnam in 1974.

In recent years tensions have been rising over the over-lapping territorial claims in the South China Sea, amid a more assertive stance from China.

Analysts view the latest move as an another step in China's battle to demonstrate that the potentially oil-rich area is Chinese.

Xinhua quoted the Haihang Group ship company as saying that a 47,000-tonne ship, capable of accommodating nearly 2,000 passengers, was ready to sail and that another was being built.

The first tours would take place ahead of the May Day holiday, said Tan Li, the executive vice governor of Hainan province, just north of the islands.

He said tourists would eat and sleep on the ship but visit land for sightseeing, Xinhua reports, and that the currently limited facilities would be improved by the addition of more ports and sanitation infrastructure.

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China plans disputed islands tourism

China to open disputed islands to tourism

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The report quoted shipbuilder Haihang Group Corp Ltd as saying its cruise ship was ready to take almost 2,000 passengers on a tour of the islands. A second cruise ship was being built by Hainan Harbor and Shipping Holdings Co, the report added.

"The tour prices will be relatively high due to the high costs of tourism infrastructure construction," Hainan-based tour agency general manager Huang Huaru told Xinhua.

Mr Tan said local authorities would build more supply ships and ports, and beef up the infrastructure in Sansha.

The city was established last summer to administer more than 200 islets, sandbanks and reefs in the South China Sea, which also include the Spratly Islands and Macclesfield Bank.

All the territory within the 800,000 square miles of waters under Sansha's "control" is disputed. The South China Sea is also home to vital shipping lanes and substantial proven and estimated oil and gas deposits.

Located on Yongxing Island, Sansha is home to about 1,000 people, mainly involved in the fishing industry.

Edited for Telegraph.co.uk by Barney Henderson

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China to open disputed islands to tourism

Sea level rise: Jeopardy for terrestrial biodiversity on islands

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Public release date: 9-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Prof. Dustin Penn dustin.penn@vetmeduni.ac.at 43-148-909-15823 University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna

Terrestrial species on low-lying islands and coastal regions are vulnerable to sea level rise due to climate-change, the most vulnerable species being endemics with limited ranges and rare species that are endangered already. That is the key message of a study by Florian Wetzel and colleagues of the Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology (KLIVV) of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna (Vetmeduni Vienna) and Walter Jetz of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale University, USA.

The new study is the first of its kind in terms of geographic scope as it covers the entire Southeast Asian and Pacific region with more than 12,000 islands and the distribution of more than 3,000 vertebrate species (birds, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals). It is also the first study to use data in the high spatial resolution of 90 metres to address this problem. Compared to previous research the predictions therefore are particularly accurate. "The high data quality with which we were able to work constitutes a quantum leap of precision", explains co-author Helmut Beissmann of KLIVV.

The model calculations show how islands and atolls in the study region will lose large parts of their land area and also that some islands will even become completely submerged. Wetzel and his colleagues predict that even with a sea level rise of one metre which is expected within the current century, one per cent of the land mass of the study area will be lost on average. Many Pacific islands lie only a few metres above sea level today, and a sea level rise of just one meter would translate into a loss of close to four per cent of their land area. What was surprising to find was the enormous variation in the vulnerability of different island groups. "Some Pacific atolls stand to lose one third of their land area with sea level rise of just one meter, and the species living there would be seriously at risk", explains study author Florian Wetzel. "In contrast, other volcanic island groups and their resident species will incur area losses of just a few per cent."

Should sea level rise reach six metres by 2500, Pacific islands could lose 14.5 per cent of their current land area and the overall loss for the region would average around 9.3 per cent, which is a significant loss of habitat. Some of the islands will become completely submerged and even with a rise of one metre, 14.7 per cent of all islands in the study area would disappear under water. However, it is important to note that only very small islands will be completely inundated. "This enormous number of entire islands lost is the most stunning result of our study", says Dustin Penn, head of KLIVV and co-author of the study.

Once the researchers determined which areas would likely be lost, they then assessed which species are the most vulnerable to sea level rise. To assess the consequences that rising sea levels could have for terrestrial vertebrate species the researchers calculated a biodiversity impact score for the island species in the study area. Their results show how the loss of habitat that goes along with losses of land area constitutes a serious threat to the continued existence of endemic vertebrate species in some of the Southeast Asian and Pacific islands. They discovered that endemic species found nowhere else but on certain islands and species that are already endangered face the greatest area loss from sea level rise. Their findings raise concerns not only about theses individual species but also the global impact of sea level rise for island and coastal species.

The scientists results once again confirm the potentially worrisome consequences of climate change. Moreover, the authors explain why their results may underestimate the risks and provide a series of additional factors could make the situation even worse for island biodiversity. For example, shifts in the settlement areas of the local human residents due to sea level rise could lead to further habitat reduction for terrestrial vertebrates. The researchers therefore recommend taking sea level rise into account when planning species conservation measures in the affected areas.

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The article Vulnerability of terrestrial island vertebrates to projected sea level rise" by Florian T. Wetzel, Helmut Beissmann, Dustin J. Penn and Walter Jetz appeared in the journal "Global Change Biology" online ahead of print.

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Sea level rise: Jeopardy for terrestrial biodiversity on islands

China will open disputed islands to tourists

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This month, China will allow tourists to book cruises to the Paracel Islands, a cluster of 40 islets, outcrops and reefs in the South China Sea. Vietnam and Taiwan also claim the Paracels as their own.

Chinawill this month start allowing tourists to visit theParacel Islands, one of a group of disputed islets and reefs in theSouthChinaSea, state news agencyXinhuasaid, a move likely to irk rival claimantVietnam.

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A cruise ship that can accommodate 1,965 passengers is ready for sailing to theParacels, known in Chinese as Xisha,Xinhuareported, citing ship ownerHaihang Group Corp.

HainanHarbour and Shipping Holdings Co is building another cruise ship.

"Tourists will eat and sleep on the cruise ships and can land on the islands for sightseeing" ahead of Labour Day on May 1, Tan Li, vice governor ofChina's southernmost island province ofHainan, toldXinhualate on Saturday.

There is only one hotel with 56 rooms on Woody Island, the largest island in theParacels, the agency said.

"Prices will be relatively high due to the high costs of tourism infrastructure construction,"Huang Huaru, general manager of a tourism agency inHainan, toldXinhua.

Last year,Chinaapproved the formal establishment of a military garrison in Sansha city, which is located on Woody Island. The city administers the mostly uninhabited islands in theSouthChinaSeawhichChinaclaims.

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China will open disputed islands to tourists