Upcoming events

Three upcoming events for classical-liberal Arizonans:

• Tomorrow, Thursday 8 July at 11 AM, the Goldwater Institute (no affiliation with this 'blog) is hosting an Internet chat in which the implications of McDonald v. Chicago will be discussed. For details, see the event website.
  
• On Thursday, 15 July the Goldwater Institute is hosting a luncheon speaker event with Frank Luntz, one of the behind-the-scenes architects of the Contract with America, in which the nature of the American electorate in 2010 will be discussed. Non-member tickets start at $50; see the event website to register.
  
• On Friday 30 July, the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity will celebrate the anniversary of Milton Friedman's birth. Details are as follows:

  Dear Arizona Taxpayer,
  
  This year, the late economist and freedom fighter Dr. Milton Friedman would have celebrated his 98th birthday. He won’t be here for that event, but we’re going to celebrate it for him!
  
  In coordination with the Foundation for Education Choice (www.edchoice.org) and its 2010 Friedman Legacy for Freedom Day, the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity Foundation is throwing a birthday party for Milton.
  
  On Friday, July 30, from 6:00 to 9:00 pm, we will meet at the Mama Java Coffee Shop, on the southeast corner of 36th Street & Indian School in Phoenix.
  
  Here is the schedule for the event:
  
  6:00 to 6:30 pm – Guests arrive. The first 25 persons to respond will get a free ( Milton would say “unpriced”) drink. RSVP to Tom Jenney, at tjenney@afphq.org.
  
  6:30 to 7:30 pm – Viewing of Phil Donahue’s 1976 interview with Friedman.
  
  7:30 to 7:45 pm – Exclusive (and very geeky) video footage of AFP Arizona director Tom Jenney talking to Milton in 1994.
  
  7:45 to 8:45 pm – Q&A on the progress of the school choice movement, featuring Clint Bolick of the Goldwater Institute’s Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation.
  
  8:45 pm – We sing “Happy Birthday” to Milton.
  
  RSVP to me at tjenney@afphq.org. If you are one of the first 25 persons to respond, I will send you a coupon for your free (“unpriced”) drink.

These sorts of events are an excellent means to network with fellow liberty lovers. It is unlikely that I will attend any this month, but the Friedman event is a possibility.

On science funding, moving beyond "Yes, Please!": Science Salon TONIGHT at 5:30 PM

A late announcement, for sure, but I'll put it out anyway.

I will be giving the fortnightly Science Salon tonight, Thursday 12 November 2009, at 5:30 PM, in the back room of the Auld Dubliner (at the intersection of Euclid and University, in Tucson) on the topic of science funding. Abstract is as follows:

Poll a roomful of academic scientists about funding and you will likely find a consensus position: "Yes, please!" Most of us are economically productive, but what we produce cannot be sold, which means we are largely dependent on grants from the government and the private sector. It is often argued that science is by its nature a public good and thus will be underprovided by the private sector. We will discuss to what extent this is the case, as well as under what conditions government funding of science is fair to nonscientists, how the funding paradigm affects the way science is done, and whether or not it can reasonably be improved.

A few words about Warren Meyer's bona fides.

It's been brought to my attention that Warren Meyer of the Coyote Blog and its side project "Climate Skeptic" will deliver a talk in Phoenix tomorrow about anthropogenic global warming (AGW).

Arizona has real experts on the topic--Chris Castro and Jon Overpeck both immediately come to mind--but Meyer, an "amateur" working through the literature (in that respect, not unlike myself, but read further) almost certainly draws a different audience, one I suspect overlaps a bit with this 'blog.

Meyer may call his climatology 'blog "Climate Skeptic", but I wouldn't call him a "skeptic" at all. "Skeptic" involves a measured, rational, cautious take; Meyer is if nothing else very excitable. Many of the would-be "skeptics" don't even bother to read up on the scientific case for AGW before claiming that the scientific mainstream--98% of people actually working on the problem--is wrong, wrong, wrong, and wrong for reasons that would have the scientists involved being outright slobs or worse. Meyer, on the other hand, clearly reads and could almost be said to be trying to learn the science.

The trouble is the spirit in which Meyer is reading. Meyer is not trying to gain an understanding of the state of the science, but instead, he's looking for tidbits to help him argue a preconceived position, like a lawyer does. He's looking for a "gotcha!", and when he thinks he's found one, he stops without going further, without checking to see if his criticism is well-founded or if it is merely a personal hangup, and he tries to convince the public that the people who do this for a living have made a (usually gross) mistake or worse.

When you make a statement about science or the state of science, it comes with an unwritten message: "I have exercised intellectual due diligence and can not only make this argument but can be confident that it is truthful and valid." Meyer completely neglects this. His mistakes are often things that someone working in that field would spot right away but take a bit of effort for someone like me working on different problems. I can't usually fault him for getting it wrong--but in maybe every tenth post there is a glaring exception where he doesn't bother to get the basics right before slandering scientists as being slobs--but I can fault him for not being skeptical, for not examining his position before he tries to convince others that he is correct. And I can fault him for never correcting himself. Being Warren Meyer means never having to explain one's self or apologize.

One of the clearest examples is a a recent post on ocean acification. Ocean acidification isn't a consequence of AGW but it shares a cause, so is often brought up in the same conversation. Meyer plays some word games He thinks it's insightful to note that the pH of seawater is not predicted to drop below 7 and therefore finds use of the word "acidification" objectionable, as though his being an ignoramus implies moral failings for others. But that's not the worst of it.

Meyer tries to pick through the chemistry ab initio--and without the use of tables--and fails in a ridiculous fashion. The claim is that carbon dioxide not only doesn't acidify seawater, but that it cannot, because it "soaks up" H+ ions. (He also gets the mechanism of shell thinning wrong, but that isn't common knowledge.) In short, he is claiming that the
CO2+water <--> carbonic acid <--> H+ + bicarbonate
reaction causes water to become more basic! This is not an advanced topic: this is freshman-high-school level stuff that he could learn from a textbook at a used bookstore. Aquarists (fishkeepers) and others have firsthand practical knowledge of the affect of dissolved CO2 has on pH; if Meyer wanted for some reason to experimentally confirm it, he can purchase a pH meter, Instant Ocean seawater mix, and either generate his own CO2 in a yeast reactor or capture it from a 2 liter bottle of pop, and test what happens to the pH. That sodium carbonate (washing soda) and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) are alkaline should also give him pause. Or perhaps he is also a baking-soda-as-antacid "skeptic".

The basic chemistry, empirical work, physiology, and more are spelled out with constant reference to the literature in the Royal Society's review of ocean acidification, which was written to summarize the topic for nonspecialists (and nonscientists). If nothing else, Warren Meyer should have read this before trying to convince the world that the position that increased partial pressure of CO2 acidifies the ocean and that such acidification has negative impact on marine life is "silly". But the normal rules of intellectual honesty do not apply to Warren Meyer and other faux-"skeptics". Take what he has to say tomorrow cum grano salis, or perhaps chase it with antacid.

Tucson Day of the Dead parade

In my seventh November in Tucson, I finally made it to a Day of the Dead/All Soul's parade. A few impressions:

• I was expecting it to be much more Mexican or Mexican-American and much more centered on honoring the departed. The Downtown/Fourth Avenue crowd, which often looks a little skeletal and sunken-eyed even without masks and makeup, was very represented. It appeared that there were as many parading just to parade as there were parading for holiday-specific reasons. There's nothing wrong with that, but again, not what I was expecting.
  
• It's clear that some worked on costumes for weeks or months.


• If I had to compare the parade with anything, it would be the carnival parades in New Orleans, specifically the neighborhood/club krewes and half-formal "Krewe de Vieux" march that come out on Mardi Gras day. It has the same autochthonous and non-hierarchical structure.
  
• If you have a tiny camera with a short lens and can't get a shot from where you're standing, please don't run out into the parade to snap pictures; you mess things up for the rest of us. Use your zoom or crop.
  
• The parade is used to honor not just relatives and friends but other things that have died, sometimes as protest. Drug war victims and "Macho B" the unnecessarily-killed jaguar both were represented--Macho B both by a lone marcher and a group of at least 30. Also mourned was the better of the two local papers, the Tucson Citizen.
  

Event: "Something from Nothing" in science

I like to think of this as a "Third Culture" 'blog. It isn't about science per se, but at least one of the authors is a scientist, and it brings an analytic, empirical sensibility to current affairs and questions of public policy. Instead of ab initio ideology or "principles", insights from modern economics, environmental science, and other disciplines are brought to bear.

Thus I'm comfortable posting an announcement here for Tucson's premier "Third Culture" event, the fortnightly Science Salon. There an early-career scientist leads a discussion of a major idea in modern science, or of science policy, researchers' ethics, or the culture of professional science.

Thursday (tomorrow!), 1 Oct 2009, physicist Alan Cooney will lead a discussion on emergence:

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Title: Something from Nothing

Abstract: Something cannot arise from nothing, so goes the adage, and this has long had an impact on the scope of scientific studies. Yet the scientific revolutions of the last 150 years beset us with examples like emergent systems (complexity from simplicity), quantum ones (literally something appearing from the vacuum) and even the Big Bang theory of creation. These revelations offer scientists the opportunity to tackle this philosophical quandary. In this Salon, we will explore more examples and the questions they raise, as well as ask if the persistence of the “something from nothing” myth retards our pursuit of science and the public's understanding of our field.

Time: 5:30 PM-7:30 PM

Location: The Auld Dubliner, intersection of University and Euclid, Tucson.

Fee: Free. Appetizers will be provided. Attendees must purchase their own drinks. The Dubliner features a modest beer selection and a declining but still respectable assortment of Irish and other whiskeys, in addition to the usual soft drinks.

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These events are some of the best intellectual stimulation in the area, and a great way to meet interesting people. I'm pushing against a major research deadline, but may be there.

HT: Cory Christenson

Liberty on the Rocks, this Wednesday

It doesn't look like I'll be able to attend, but there should be plenty of other cool liberty-minded people, including Nick Coons, (Phoenix Libertarian Examiner) Dan Heller, and (too many things to list) Kim Ruff at:

Liberty on the Rocks
Wednesday, 23 Sept 2009
6 PM - 8 PM

Location: Monti's, 100 S Mill Ave, Tempe.

Be there or be...like me.

Fatally Flawed, a documentary about the RTA election, to premiere at the Loft, Wednesday, 16 Sept.

Fatally Flawed, a documentary about the possible election fraud in the RTA transportation plan election, will premiere at the Loft this Wednesday. An announcement of what has been discovered after the end of the film--the last covered event is Terry Goddard's press conference--and a question-and-answer session with Bill Risner, John Brakey, Jim March and Mickey Duniho will follow.

It's unlikely that I will be able to attend, but guest posts about the announcement are very welcome.

Event details are below.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

RTA Documentary Fatally Flawed premieres in Tucson. Discussion that follows will have new details from an analysis of the Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard's RTA ballot examination.


Wednesday, September 16, at 7 pm at the Loft Cinema, 3233 E Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85716

Admission: $8.00 general; $6.00 Loft members

Contact: J.T. Waldron

Office: 520-624-9710

e-mail: jt@soundandfury.tv

Dissidents carry openly to a political event, act responsibly, and don't even shoot anyone: if you have the press's prejudices, this is newsworthy.

Update: "Chris" is exactly who I think he is, a libertarian-leaning paleocon, affiliated with We are Change.

By now you've probably heard that at least twelve people exercised their right to openly carry firearms to one of the satellite demonstrations associated with President Obama's Monday Morning visit to Phoenix. Somehow, if gun owners carry openly and have the gall to act civilized and not even shoot anyone with whom they disagree, it's national news. It flies in the face of everything reporters, editors, and the still-anti-RKBA establishment expect from gun owners.

A few remarks:

• I'm 95% certain that "Chris", the man carrying the AR-15, is someone I know. If he is who I think he is, I'll try to get him to answer a few questions here. No guarantees, but don't be surprised if you see something about it here. And if he is who I think he is, he's a levelheaded, well-spoken professional, the sort you'd want to be carrying.
  
  
  
• Reports of an "assault rifle" are exaggerations, a manifestation of reporter ignorance. "Semiautomatic assault rifle" is a glaring contradiction. "Assault is a behavior", or so the mantra goes, but we have to acknowledge that "assault rifle" is a class of infantry weapon. By definition it is selective-fire. AR-15 rifles that are both assault rifles and legally ownable by private individuals (i.e. not licensed firearms manufacturers or police departments) are very rare.
  
  Note that the M16, which is the military assault rifle version of the AR-15, was designed based on studies of real combat in WWII and made for closer combat than the M1 Garand, which, by the way, isn't an assault rifle (confused yet?). If one wanted to assassinate the President, far better choices of weapon exist, and could be obtained from Cabela's or Bass Pro Shop. None of these necessarily fall into the political scare category of "assault weapons"--which aren't assault rifles, either--except by choice of magazine or if someone chooses a folding stock. A folding stock would, by the way, make it less appropriate for assassinating the President.
  
  I'm still of the opinion that all reporters who might end up covering a story such as this should be required by their employers to both go shooting and be familiarized with firearms.
  
  
  
• It's not very often that police conduct is remarkably good. In this case, the Phoenix PD or Maricopa County sheriff's deputies--it's not clear who was involved--are to be commended. Rather than caving in to obvious demands to arrest or remove those exercising their right to open carry, on invented "disorderly conduct" or some other excuse, they merely explained the law to complainers. Classy. Very classy. Contrast this with the abuse and occasional assault open carriers have faced in other parts of the country.
  
  
  
• Many commentators (here's a representative example) have leapt to the conclusion that those carrying openly at this event must have been doing so to intimidate others. With no evidence whatsoever, they have slandered these men and women by declaring their intent malicious. It's true that some others present may have felt intimidated, but that B feels intimidated by A does not mean that A is out to intimidate B. It's also possible that B's feeling of intimidation is due to some defect of B's thinking. Hoplophobia, for example.
  
  Note that there were no reports of menacing conduct by any of the 12 carriers! That someone else is merely visibly armed is not grounds for feeling intimidated, that is, unless one would otherwise have physically attacked those who are armed. If they were brandishing the weapons or threatening to shoot people over the content of their speech, that would be different. Short of that, any feeling of intimidation is irrational, especially given that (legally or not) anyone in the crowd could be concealing a weapon!
  
  
  
• For the benefit of readers from out of state, it's worth noting that open carry is a common form of political expression in AZ. It's especially common at Bill of Rights Day and Independence Day parties. If an Arizonan is afraid of mere open carry it is a sign that said Arizonan doesn't get out much--that his social circle is so limited (he's probably a far leftist who only associates with far leftists!) that he hasn't encountered peaceful open carry, and possibly, given that in every crowded public place in Arizona except the universities it's likely that someone is carrying, either openly or concealed, that he is deranged. Open carry and concealed carry are both so common in Arizona that anyone afraid of mere carry is either ridiculously sheltered or deranged or both.
  
  There's an old, silly argument, that used to be part of ACLU policy--those days are long gone, and ACLU-AZ now explicitly acknowledges RKBA as a civil liberty--that the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment and those guaranteed by the Second are incompatible. In Arizona we know that empirically to be false, from years of evidence. There's no better illustration of that than today's events. People carry, openly, to an event where others can be emotional, over a perhaps irreconcilable difference of opinion on public policy--it'll be reconcilable when the "public option" crew learns some economics so we can have a reasonable discussion on fair and reasonable terms--and nothing bad comes of it. (Perhaps the police presence had something to do with it--keeping the hoplophobes from trying to do something stupid to the guys who are carrying!)
  
  But sometimes, too, carry is itself an act of political expression. In the U.S.A., and foreigners I've met have difficulty understanding this until they learn quite a lot about our history and our political culture, the two are intimately related.
  
  
  
• I'm not going to write too much about the semiotics of open carry in a free society, at least not right now, because I do not wish to speak for the demonstrators. But I'll throw this idea out there. In recent weeks, opponents to the Democrats' crowd-out plan for health care have been assaulted by union goons at "town hall" meetings at least twice, the worst of this incident being the beating outside a St. Louis "town hall" meeting of button vendor Kenneth Gladney, including kicks while he was on the ground, at the hands of one SEIU official and at least two members of the union wearing union t-shirts.
  
  In light of this, open carry to one of these events is a way of saying "bullying is off the table." That's not the only possible meaning, and it may not be why the group of 12 was carrying in Phoenix yesterday morning.
  
  Given the strange racialist nature of the Gladney incident--Gladney was the target of a Black minister/union organizer's rage because he was Black--at least one person among the dozen carrying openly may have wished to make an especially strong statement. I don't like to identify people by their ethnicity/"race" on Goldwater State as I believe strongly that this is something we need to move beyond, but it might be relevant that the gentleman who was carrying the AR-15 is also Black.
  

It isn't often that responsible conduct by gun owners gets covered in the mainstream, popular news. I'd say I'm enjoying the coverage, but they're trying so very hard to demonize this peaceful conduct--and this is the same popular press which glorifies left-wing protest--that it's painful.

Remarks? Think I'm way off on this one? Have any peculiar insight? Leave a comment. Traffic from Blog For Arizona is welcome. As usual, anonymity is highly discouraged. And if you say something silly, including referring to me as a right-winger or a Republican or something similar, I'll gladly call your ridiculous assumptions ridiculous and otherwise deserving of ridicule.

Just in: Health care demonstration at Giffords town hall, tomorrow (Thursday) at 6 PM

Via Tom Jenney of the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity:

WHAT: "Casual Conversation" with Gabrielle Giffords

WHEN: Thursday, August 6, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

WHERE: La Placita, 110 S. Church Ave.

Parking info: The address is 110 South Church Avenue, at the intersection of Church and Broadway. Parking is available across the street (West of La Placita), off of the street "Jackson" in the five-story parking garage. Parking is reportedly free after 5 p.m. on Levels 3 and above.

Remember: the "progressives", including Obama's "Organizing for America", are trying very hard to get Giffords and others to adopt the far-left "single payer" position on health care, framing Obama's proposal as a moderate alternative. We need to pull back.

Note that, while boosting protester numbers has value, there's also value in not being part of "the mob", of participating normally and asking very, very tough questions. Such as: Why not just fix the market and offer vouchers to the needy?

I'm on the road, 'blogging right now from Palo Alto. As usual, if you are able to attend and would like to be a guest 'blogger, just send me an e-mail.

Nick Coons to attend healthcare tea party

I just received word that Congressional candidate Nick Coons will make a campaign appearance at the health care "tea party" rally at Harry Mitchell's Scottsdale office, 7201 East Camelback Road, Suite 335, on Saturday the 8th of August at 9 AM.

If you'd like to meet Coons, shake his hand, get him to kiss your baby, and maybe even pick his brain re: health care reform, this would be a good place to do so. +1 to Coons for showing a bit of leadership on this--and extra points to anyone who shows up with a good Nick Coons for Congress sign or T-shirt.

Stand and be counted: Health Care Reform "tea parties"

Via Americans for Prosperity, this announcement. The "Tea Party" group is putting on demonstrations in favor of market healthcare reform and against government takeover at nearly all Congressional offices in the state on Saturday, 8 Aug.

Especially important is influencing Harry Mitchell, Anne Kirkpatrick, and Gabrielle Giffords, who have expressed concern about the mainstream Democrats' plan. We can count on all of the state's Republicans to at least oppose the truly bad ideas out there on this one. Since Giffords has started leaning in the wrong direction thanks in part to heavy lobbying from would-be "progressives" in the Tucson area, and Grijalva is ideologically committed to single-payer, those of you in Grijalva's district should consider augmenting the crowd at Giffords's office.

The "tea party" is a little too tin-foil-hat (and see their totally repugnant sixth talking point!) for me to be associated with as a professional, but I'd make an exception for this event, however, I'll be in Palo Alto on the 8th. Let me know how it goes.

Dana Kennedy fundraiser, tonight.

This is not an endorsement; I do not know enough about the race, and to be clear, I would almost certainly not endorse this candidate were she seeking a seat in the Legislature. But the issues of concern at the municipal level and the policy questions considered by city councilmen are different than those heard at the Legislature, and fair-mindedness requires that differences of position on matters irrelevant to the race be set aside.

This is being posted for the benefit of readers who might support this candidate advocating tolerant social policy and fiscal restraint in the face of Phoenix revenue shortfalls, passing along a bit of information I just received. A fundraiser is being held tonight, Wednesday 22 July, in support of the campaign of Dana Kennedy, candidate for Phoenix City Council, District 6, at At Ticoz, 5114 N 7th St. (North of Camelback), from 6-8 PM.

Sal DiCiccio, Nathan Oshop, and Barry Pacely staff and volunteers are, of course, welcome to send me announcements if they like, as is anyone else with news on any other campaign. But they didn't.

Independence Day in Tucson: A celebration of civil society.

Quite a few Tucsonans, having heard that the City government will not fund a fireworks display this year, think that the city will not see a major fireworks display on Independence Day. They're in for a surprise tonight: according to the Daily Star, Tucson Electric Power, the Arizona Builders Alliance, Cox Communications, the Tohono O'Odham Nation, the Pasqua Yaqui tribe, and several anonymous donors, on hearing this news, contributed more than enough to fund the the traditional fireworks show at Sentinel Peak.

It's long been known that government crowds out civil society. (See Russ Roberts's Concise Encyclopedia of Economics article on "charity" for a plain-language introduction, and its bibliography for rigorous development.) If nothing else, when government is allowed to attempt to do "good" beyond a limited scope, the individual's sense of obligation is removed. No longer can one assume that if one doesn't support one's causes, the causes will not receive support. It even becomes cheaper to lobby for government expense on the things one values than to self-fund.

But as the scope of government grows, encroaching on the many functions of civil society, government, charity, and civic life are all broken. Throwing money around substitutes for genuine civic interest and compassion for the poor. The level to which causes and interests are funded becomes dependent not on genuine persuasion of those who pay but rather on appeal to the prejudices of a few opinionmakers in the press and decisionmakers in government. And the number of political issues grows to the point where voting is corrupted and ineffective. The voter concerned about civil liberties, the effectiveness of the criminal justice system or the health of the environment may be canceled out by someone who supports the incumbent because he voted to give a few thousand dollars from the public treasury to support basket-weaving or folk dancing or his favorite charitable aid organization.

Civil society's decline, and the associated corruption of the voting mechanism, can be reversed by a controlled withdrawal of government from activities that aren't governance. We've been seeing that happen out of necessity in Arizona. The private takeover of responsibility for the Independence Day fireworks was but the first conspicuous reclamation of civic life by civil society. As reported on the Desert Lamp, (mining firm) Freeport McMoRan stepped up to fund the University of Arizona Mineral Museum. More examples are certainly to come.

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After over a year of war, on 4 July 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to declare independence from a government which no longer served what, to them, was its purpose. This was no mere separation; the Congress's statements and actions, even as they fall squarely within the English liberal or whiggish tradition, were motivated by radical ideas, such as the republicanism popularized by Thomas Paine. The break was not just with Parliament and the King, but also with Man's past. Strongmen, chieftains, and military commanders became monarchs and nobles, over and over. In the new republic, there were no nobles; all were equal before the law.

Nobility throughout history (and before) was privilege and power, certainly, but it would be inaccurate to say that it was nothing but privilege and power. Military service was expected, as were displays of generosity, support for the arts and sciences, and civic festival and ceremony. Send the tax collectors to terrorize, then hand out denarii at the parade. The expectation of conspicuous generosity from strongmen, chieftains, nobles, and the like is so universal that some have it as a human instinct that continues to influence our voting behavior and our thoughts on leadership.

This expectation carried the day at the Arizona Daily Star, which speaks of a duty of the city government to take action for boost civic bragging rights, and plays up the relatively low cost of a fireworks display, as though it were shaming a stingy nobleman. Instinct or not, this line of thought, lamenting that rulers do not do for us what we can do for ourselves in civil society, is servile.

Among what we threw out on 4 July 1776 was the expectation that civic life would be provided for us by the government. That Tucson's festivities are, even accidentally, in accord with the spirit of the day makes the celebration so much sweeter.

I wish the readers of Goldwater State a safe, happy, and free Independence Day. (Take Evan Lisull's advice if you encounter any swarms of officers!)

Independence Day Double Feature: Winchester '73 and 33 Minutes

It's becoming a yearly tradition, for films with a classical-liberal (or, worst case, paleocon, e.g. Aaron Russo) thesis or themes to be shown at The Loft in Tucson on Independence Day.

This year, Emil Franzi of Inside Track and Charles Heller of Liberty Watch Radio are presenting a double feature: the Jimmy Stewart/Anthony Mann classic Winchester '73 and a new Hertiage Foundation opinion piece (erroneously called a "documentary") on missile defense called 33 Minutes.

Word is that Franzi and Heller will be raffling off a (reproduction) Winchester Model 1973 rifle, $10/ticket, with proceeds going to charities of their choice. Given what the American Physical Society, among others, had to say about missile defense, and given the flaky, somewhat dishonest, often anti-scientific source chances are that 33 Minutes is a load of rubbish, but should be interesting rubbish nonetheless.

I'll be in the audience, then headed out to Garden Canyon, Fort Huachuca, for hiking and photography.

Cut-and-pasted event details:

Saturday, July 4th at 11:00 a.m.
Doors open at 10:30 a.m.
Admission: $6.00 general; $4.75 Loft Cinema members

Join Charles Heller of Liberty Watch Radio and Emil Franzi of Inside Track for a special Independence Day screening of the classic 1950 western WINCHESTER '73, starring James Stewart (and shot right here in Tucson)! PLUS, see the new one-hour documentary 33 MINUTES: PROTECTING AMERICA IN THE NEW MISSILE AGE! Enjoy tasty "Freedom Dogs," "Uncle Samburgers" and cool drinks on the Loft patio, and enter a raffle to win a Winchester '73 rifle (made by Uberti)! Raffle tickets are $10 each, and only 225 tickets will be sold, so once they're gone ... they're gone! (Proceeds from raffle sales will benefit selected non-profit groups). To purchase raffle tickets in advance, please call DAN DEWEY at 520-747-5709!

33 MINUTES starts at 11:00 a.m.
WINCHESTER '73 starts at 12:00 p.m.
Double Feature admission, or admission to WINCHESTER '73 or 33 MINUTES only, is $6.00

Tonight: Late night legislative session on budget.

From legislative staffer and former Karen Johnson aide Karen Winfield:

There will be a rare late night session of the Arizona State Senatetonight (Wednesday) on the state budget for Fiscal Year 2010. You canwatch live on the internet at:

www.azleg.gov
-- Left-hand column, click "Live proceedings"
-- When the TV screen comes up, select Senate Floor

It is scheduled for sometime after the Caucus, which will NOT betelevised. Caucus is tentatively scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. You'll have to keep checking 'til the floor hearing starts.

You could also try watching it on Cox Cable TV (Channel 123). If they televise it live, it will show at the same time as the internet.

Health Care "Town Hall" with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords

Rep. "Gabby" Giffords from the Eighth Congressional District is holding a "Town Hall" meeting on the topic of health care reform on Tuesday, May 26, 2009, from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at Sahuaro High School Auditorium, 545 N. Camino Seco.

If you think you will attend, her office is requesting a response by May 21 to 520-881-3588.

Giffords is no free-marketeer but in my experience isn't a leftist ideologue, either. It may be worth readers' while to speak out in favor of market reforms and against crowd-out and "soft rationing". Cameras may be there. I don't know.

Whether or not I'll be there myself is a toss-up; those who do attend are welcome to guest post about it here. Send me an e-mail if interested.

ACLU-AZ workshop on rights of "LGBT" students

I just received word of this, which should be of interest to my readers in the East Valley. Note that Quintanilla's activity is every bit as First Amendment protected as a black armband or a crucifix; what's at stake here are not just gay rights, but minority rights in general.

Justice for All: Creating Safe Schools for LGBT Students

The ACLU of Arizona is joining with GLSEN, HRC, and Equality Arizona for a moderated discussion to give students, parents and community members a chance to learn about the rights students have at school, and the many ways to combat bullying, harassment, and discrimination on campus and in our communities. One of the panelists will be Chris Quintanilla, a 14-year-old gay student from Peoria who stood up for his rights after a school principal demanded he not wear his rainbow wristband at school.

Thursday, May 7th, 6pm
Westside Community Center
715 W. 5th Street, Tempe

For more information, contact Community Organizer Mary Lunetta at mlunetta@acluaz.org or call 602.650.1854 x107

I will not make the drive up from Tucson, but I invite any readers who attend to report back either by e-mail or as guest 'bloggers.

A drink with bread and jam: thousands turn out for tea parties.

I salute those who turned out for the over eighteen "tea parties" across the state. It isn't that I think very highly of demonstrations, but it pleases me to see people going out of their way for the limited-government cause. And, importantly, you caught the press's attention.

The Tucson Citizen reports over three thousand in attendance in Tucson; Phoenix's event starts in about twenty minutes.

Remember that raising one's voice is not political action. Follow this up with organization and with a push for change. Consider reviving Axe the Tax, and let's make sure we pass the next Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act.

Much shame on David Safier "AZ Blue Meanie" of Blog For Arizona for calling the protests "racist." "Socialist" isn't a substitute for "nigger". It's a term the less educated use for politicians who support redistribution of wealth, who stir up class envy, and who can't imagine a solution to problems like those we're facing in health care that involve getting a market working. It's technically inaccurate as a descriptor of policy--Obama at his worst is more of a Social Democrat or New Dealer--but it's accurate as a descriptor of values. Anyone who takes the time to try to understand his opponents would understand this. But not Safier "Blue Meanie", nor one "Jill Tubman" who he echoes.

Bob Barr to lecture in Arizona!

Also on Thursday at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at ASU, former Congressman and 2008 Libertarian Party standard-bearer Bob Barr will lecture, from 12:15-1:15 PM in 105 Armstrong Hall. The title of the talk: "We Can Fight Terrorism Without Sacrificing Civil Liberties".

Barr has at different times in his career been a CIA analyst, a US Attorney, and a consultant to the ACLU; there are few more qualified to give this talk. He's also an intellectual whirlwind who can keep up with scholars of the highest order, and someone with the rare good sense to publicly change his mind and admit fault, as evinced both by his slow drift toward the libertarian way of seeing things, his work toward drug legalization, and his apology for the Defense of Marriage Act.

Thursday afternoon teaching duties preclude my making the drive up from Tucson; I could only be on time under ideal conditions. Those who do make it, please, report back about it. (And I am still entertaining the idea of guest 'bloggers; I just haven't found anyone who will follow through!)

David Bernstein of Volokh Conspiracy to give two lectures in Arizona

Volokh Conspiracy contributor and George Mason U law professor David Bernstein is or will shortly be in Arizona to give two lectures, on invitation of the Federalist Society.

The first, today (!) at 12:15 PM in room 164 of the University of Arizona's James E. Rogers College of Law, will be on the subject of his book-in-progress, Rehabilitating Lochner, referring to the now dormant doctrine of unlimited freedom of contract.

The second, at ASU's Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, from 4:00-5:30 PM in 111 Armstrong Hall, will be on the topic of "Threats to Civil Liberties from Antidiscrimination Laws".

I do not know whether CLE credit is available. Contact the Federalist Society for that information.

HT: Connor Medenhall of The Arizona Desert Lamp.