S.C. Dixon-ary

I’m not clear on America’s phobia about polygamists.

It just seems weird to me that, a country founded on religious freedom, albeit by the Puritans, arguably one of the most obnoxious bigoted religious groups in history, that one of the oldest religious and cultural practices on earth is so abhorred in “the land of the free.”

In case you’re wondering I am NOT a polygamist. I can’t image why any man in his right mind would want more than ONE wife (if indeed, that many) let alone 5, 10, 15, whatever.

By the same token, I can’t imagine why a woman would want to be wife #2 or #22 or #202.

(Obviously, if the roles were reversed, it might be understandable why a woman would want multiple husbands, but only if they all had jobs and she could afford domestic help.)

Besides that, and back to my point, in this great country of ours you can be a jihadist and preach death to everybody who doesn’t think like you do, you can practice voodoo and sacrifice a goat before breakfast and eat its viscera along with your morning java while you design a doll of your neighbor and stick pins into it to punish him for that unfortunate business with his dog and your new lawn, you can have children who can be raised by “two mommies” or “two daddies,” you can refuse to fight in wars, you can refuse life-saving medical treatment, if you’re inclined you can even pass around poisonous snakes like hissing party favors, you can practice ritual mutilation of male genitalia (though female “circumcision” is, I believe, illegal), if you’re not too stoned you can argue your way out of a ticket and jail time for possession of ganja by arguing that you are a Rastafarian,  if your are a member of the American Indian Church you can take peyote and other cool hallucinogenic drugs. (more…)

I believe in a free-market economy. In America anyone with a skill or talent, or anyone willing to work or provide a service can prosper. Like most business people, small or large, I abhor intervention from nameless, faceless entities that without scrutiny can mutate into a ruling class unto themselves. I loathe the creeping intervention of the so-called “nanny state” into our personal lives. Now there are city governments taking on the roll of arbiters of what foods we are allowed to serve or consume. (We have a growing lobby of people demanding the eradication of incandescent light bulbs. Instead replace them with fluorescent bulbs that cost the consumer 4 times as much and which bring quantities of mercury, which we’re now told is a deadly biohazard, into our homes. ) The road to hell is paved with good intentions. The front page article of the Emporia Gazette, Friday, April 11^th, 2008 concerning a new advocacy group, Clean Air Emporia, gave me a vague sense of apprehension . I am co-owner of a local nightspot. Three partners, two of whom DO NOT smoke cigarettes, discussed whether or not our place would be smoke-free. We decided, at least for the time being, to allow smoking in our business. Because we own the business, because we pay the bills and the considerable taxes, it is our right to make that decision. The next phase of this equation rests with our clientele. Spending their own money gives them the right to decide whether or not to patronize our business. If they choose to be in a smoke free environment it is inarguably their right to avoid our pub. If they choose to smoke or to be around those who do, it is likewise their right to make that decision. Nothing in this scenario invites or requires the arbitrary input or decision from any 3^rd party entity. Millions and millions of taxpayer dollars are spent on anti-smoking campaigns and propaganda. Conversely millions and millions of taxpayer dollars are spent subsidizing tobacco growers. Rather than interfering with business and the free market, groups wanting to control tobacco use should instead consider spending their time and efforts petitioning a government that speaks conveniently from both sides of its collective mouth. Many state governments have successfully sued the tobacco giants promising to use the money to rehabilitate smokers and to provide healthcare for folks who have suffered from using tobacco related products. They also promised us all a large slice of pie to be served somewhere high in the stratosphere. Simple research showed that by and large they have lied. It is also noteworthy that tobacco is not an illegal substance. It is grown, processed, and distributed by legal means, albeit heavily controlled by state and federal law. It is widely quoted that Albert Einstein once said that “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” With that in mind I urge folks to revisit their history books and to read about a period not so long ago in American history. A time when the high and mighty capriciously decided what would be best for everyone else, whether they liked it or not. A “morale mandate,” so to speak. A sweeping reform, the 18^th Amendment to the U. S. Constitution was passed “for the good of the nation and its people.” It unleashed a period of political and law enforcement corruption the magnitude of which the country had never seen. By the end of the period known as “Prohibition” organized crime had grown a hundred fold and the repercussions are still felt today. After 13 years of graft, corruption, fraud, murder, mayhem, and the creation of a black market of international dimensions, the so-called “Nobel Experiment” failed… as it was doomed to do from the start, because in the end it is true that governments cannot (successfully) legislate their own particular brand of “morality.” Educating the public is one thing, legislating is another. I choose not to live as a Socialist. Let me decide what is best for me. I will extend the same courtesy to you.

Why do I keep seeing Michael Moore’s moon of a face on my television and in the newspaper? Why is anyone still paying any attention to this guy when he has proven himself to be absolutely ineffective and politically impotent?

ROGER AND ME certainly did not bring down General Motors. In the end the film was little more than a gnat hovering around the rump of the corporate giant.

There are still guns in schools despite BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE.

Mike’s films certainly didn’t stop W. from being reelected.

Honestly now, just what are this guy’s credentials in the real world? Why would anyone continue to think of him as any sort of force in ANY arena, be it political or “entertainment”?

Now I read he’s supporting Obama. Shouldn’t that scare the hell out of Barack and his staff?