LPM OnlineMay 16, 2000 |
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The following article is the latest in a series of Op-ed articles written by LPM Executive Director Tim O'Brien and submitted to news outlets across the state for publication. This current article was published on May 11, 2000 in the Detroit News and can be viewed on their web site at: http://www.detnews.com/EDITPAGE/0005/11/edit3/edit3.htm Officials at the Taft Elementary School in Wyandotte announced a few weeks ago that they are considering a ban on Pokemon trading cards -- the latest fad among elementary school kids. Teachers complain that the cards are an on-going source of arguments and even thefts among the youngsters. Banning Pokemon cards seems so trivial in a world in which a 6-year-old shoots and kills a classmate. But it is a perfect example of the contemporary pedagogic philosophy that makes these larger tragedies all but inevitable. Previous generations of educators would undoubtedly have used such childish disputes as an opportunity to teach about voluntary cooperation and civil social interactions. Refraining from disruptive behavior has always been one of the first lessons learned in school. I attended parochial schools and recall that gum chewing was, for instance, not allowed. But it was chewing gum during school that was prohibited -- not the mere possession of a pack of Wrigley's Spearmint (Juicyfruit for the girls). Violation of the rule could result in a trip to the principal's office and, perhaps, an after-school detention. I'm sure that today's politically correct, "progressive" school administrators would be aghast to see how the nuns at St. Jude's would have dealt with theft. The contemporary approach is to preempt irresponsible behavior by the simple expedient of banishing the troublesome items. Coincidentally, there was another example of this kind of "protect kids from having to actually deal with the real world" philosophy the very same week in one of the daily columns by professional advice dispenser, Ann Landers. In that instance the offending objects were in fact guns. But the proposal was essentially the same: lock them up, hide them somewhere, hide the ammunition somewhere else, hide the key in yet another place, and to quote Ann, "teach kids not to touch guns." This is incredibly stupid and dangerous counseling from someone who makes her living giving out advice. Every parent knows that, given ten minutes of unsupervised opportunity, kids could work their way through every clever security measure protecting the legendary pirate booty in the "Money Pit" on Oak Island, Nova Scotia. And in another two minutes figure out how to get the treasure chest unlocked. Every parent also knows that kids find what is strictly taboo irresistibly appealing. The wise parent who is a responsible gun owner will remove the mystery by taking their kids to the range, teaching them the fundamentals of gun safety, and letting them hold and fire a weapon -- so they can see for themselves the power and damage of which it is capable. Of course, this would no more have prevented the tragedy of a six-year-old finding a stolen weapon in his crackhouse home than would President Clinton's proposal to ban high capacity clips and require trigger locks and background checks of legitimate buyers. But Ms. Landers suggests instead that safety is somehow to be found in blind fear and deliberate ignorance (though, oddly, she doesn't espouse this philosophy when it comes to illicit drugs or sexually transmitted diseases). It used to be that the widely acknowledged goal of child rearing was to prepare the naive and dependent youngster to face the world as a competent, independent, self-reliant adult. However, as we enter the 21st century it appears that has been replaced by the notion that children should be sheltered for as long as possible from learning that actions have consequences. The traditional "reading and 'riting and 'rithmetic" focus of education, for instance, has now taken a back seat to obsessively promoting what is mislabeled "self-esteem." Genuine self-esteem flows naturally from a sense of personal integrity, competence and accomplishment. What our society has actually ingrained in our children is not self-esteem, but self-importance -- it's perverse mirror image that is not earned but rather asserted as an entitlement. The most obvious result of embracing this psychobabble is, not surprisingly, that scholastic skills have plummeted. Of course, on the plus side, the little dears are perfectly comfortable with that. It puts one in mind of the old admonition: Be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Unfortunately for educators, there remains a stubborn 15% or so of kids who are restless and unhappy despite all the insulation and the ceaseless I'm-okay-you're-okay indoctrination. But, our culture has found away to deal with these problem kids, as well. We drug them. A daily dose of Ritilin or Luvox or Prozac and our Brave New World can be populated with nothing but contented little Alphas and Betas and Gammas protected from normal growing pains and convinced that they are destined to be the indispensable cog in society's machinery. And isn't the Soma-sotted world a happy place? Until a couple of them in Colorado shoot up a school like some non-virtual video game -- only without a reset button to bring all the fleeing targets back to life. Then everyone wrings their hands and pontificates about how we need to make even more laws to do a better job of keeping guns out of the hands of high school kids. But, it has always been difficult to control teenaged angst in any case. It would be far easier to nip this problem in the bud. What we really need to do is keep Pokemon cards out of the hands of 1st graders. And hope that the ban is more effective than the one against handguns. Tim O'Brien is the Executive Director of the Libertarian Party of Michigan.
The LP has always had a great product (freedom) but never bothered to advertise -- until now! Over 13 million mass transit riders in Chicago will see these ads in the month of May and we've now made them available in poster form due to high demand for such a product.
Go to Print the form and send with check of money order. It's as easy as that. (Credit card capability is coming end of month) I just put framed copies of all of these up in my LPC office and they look GREAT! Our ad campaign has been a success after only 1 week, generating over 70 inquiries into our local club. These poster sales help us offset the significant cost of mass transit advertising. So not only do you spruce up the basement or office, you help us spread the word here in Chicago and grow the party in leaps and bounds. We are currently working on how to license these ads out to clubs all over the country so they too can put their club name on the ads and grow their local club like we are. You'll receive notification when the specifics are worked out. If you have any questions or problems, don't hesitate to email me or call evenings (773) 528-7463
Matt Beauchamp
ALLEN PARK — Timothy O’Brien will be able to recoup the
costs he incurred representing himself in a libel lawsuit
filed against him by former Mayor Kenneth Ford.
Wayne County Circuit Judge Susan Bieke Neilson ruled in
O’Brien’s favor May 5.
O’Brien expects to be reimbursed about $500. His costs
included deposition, transcript, motion and mediation fees.
That decision piqued interest in former Councilman
Andrew Hill, who also was sued by Ford. His attorney, Bill
Colovos, said they, too, will seek compensation for their
costs.
"The judge made a finding that it was a frivolous
case," Colovos said.
Under Michigan court rules, when a case is deemed
frivolous by a judge, the defendants can receive
compensation for their costs from the person who filed the
lawsuit, he said. The rule is designed to ensure that people
don’t file frivolous lawsuits.
Edwin Selwocki, the attorney representing Ford, said he
would be in court again if Colovos filed a petition to
recoup costs. Hill’s costs were about $4,500.
O’Brien and Hill were sued for libel over language in a
recall petition against former Mayor Kenneth Ford.
The recall attempt began in September 1997.
The lawsuit focused on language in the petition that
accused Ford of voting for his own raise.
Typically, a compensation board recommends pay raises
for elected officials. The raises automatically take effect
unless they are rejected by a two-thirds’ vote of the City
Council.
Ford did not vote to deny himself the raise and said
that he never voted for a raise for himself. He eventually
filed a libel lawsuit against O’Brien and former Councilman
Andrew Hill.
A city firefighter and another resident were originally
named and eventually dropped from the suit.
Selwocki said he was disappointed at the decision, but
not surprised.
"I don’t believe the case was frivolous," Selwocki
said.
The attorney said he did not believe that just because
a mediation panel awarded no money to Ford that the judge
would find that it was a frivolous lawsuit.
"The overall impact is, if you’re a politician anyone
can say what they want and not have to worry about it being
true because there are absolutely no repercussions,"
Selwocki said.
Ford did not comment.
The Barry Hess for President Committee is looking for a
few thousand volunteers to further the cause of the
Libertarian Party on a national scale!
If you are able to assist us in doing any of the
following tasks, you could be a valuable asset to the
Libertarian Party:
- Distribute bumper stickers, yard signs, and campaign
materials
- Organize fundraisers
- Spread the words of Barry Hess and the Libertarian
Party to friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers via
telephone, e-mail, and snail mail
We are also in need of those who are willing to:
- Organize volunteers in their communities and/or
states
We are optimistic that Barry Hess and the Libertarian
Party will have a great impact on this year's presidential
election, and with your assistance and talents in the
following areas: printing, computers/database management,
media, graphic design, and public speaking, we will have a
good chance of seeing our dreams of liberty make it all the
way to the White House.
Please let us know what you can and will do for the
Barry Hess for President Campaign. Please provide the
following information in your e-mail:
Name, Address, Phone Number, Fax Number
Please reply to TraceyLockwood@aol.com with the above
information and any questions you may have.
We thank you for your time and support and look forward
to making this the most effective and meaningful
presidential election of the 21st Century!
In Liberty,
Tracey Lockwood, Volunteer Coordinator
Later in April, Troy Libertarian, David Eisenbacher,
was appointed to the Troy Historic District Commission.
May 1, however, the Troy City Council was back to their
old ways, trying to pass a resolution urging Congress to
pass an E-Commerce Tax. Councilman Howrylak and David
Eisenbacher spoke out eloquently against the tax and both
were quoted in various local papers, including the Detroit
News. Unfortunately, the Troy City Council passed their
resolution 6 to 1 - the lone voice of the people being
Libertarian Councilman Howrylak.
Perhaps it will take another election for the Troy City
Council to get the message that they should be serving the
citizens of Troy, not their own self-interests.
The three main contenders for the Libertarian Party
nomination for President of the United States will be
debating at the Michigan LP convention in Ann Arbor this
weekend.
The contenders are:
Harry Browne -- a successful investment advisor for 30
years who has written 11 books that have sold more than 2
million copies including: How You Can Profit from the Coming
Devaluation, How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World and Why
Government Doesn't Work. The party's '96 candidate for
president, Browne was born in New York City in 1933, grew up
in Los Angeles and currently resides in Franklin, Tennessee.
Don Gorman -- a former State Representative in the New
Hampshire House, Gorman was leader of the four man
Libertarian caucus and served on both the Criminal Justice
Committee and the Rules Committee. The 62 year old dean of
elected American Libertarians lives in Deerfield, NH, where
he was elected Trustee of the Trust Funds for the town in
1999.
Barry Hess -- a true "Renaissance Man" who has lived in
five different states (not including his time in Europe) in
his brief 43 years. He is an attorney, entrepreneur, and
small business owner whose educational background includes
extensive involvement in sports and theater as well as
politics. The self-described "moderate Libertarian" now
makes his home in Maricopa, Arizona.
The three contenders will be making a bid for the
support of Michigan's 72 delegates to the national
convention in Anaheim, CA, over the July 4th weekend.
The debate, moderated by Comerica Bank Chief Economist,
David Littmann, will be held Saturday evening, May 20, at
the Best Western Executive Plaza in Ann Arbor.
Members of the press are welcome. Contact convention
chair Emily Hopp Salvette at 734-668-2607 or by e-mail at
Salvette@aol.com to arrange for credentials and/or to get
more details.
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