By Patrick Carroll Ryan Crownholm is a self-described “serial entrepreneur” and the founder of a California-based business called MySitePlan.com. Founded in 2013, the business creates unofficial “site plans” for various clients using publicly available imagery. Hotels and resorts will sometimes use the plans as maps for their guests. Homeowners and contractors often use the … [Read more...] about California Entrepreneur Who Was Fined $1000 for Drawing Informal Maps Without a License Takes Regulatory Board to Court
Constitution
Ghost Guns and the Deeply American Tradition of Gun Privacy
By Brett Cooper Earlier this month, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn) and Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) introduced the Untraceable Firearms Act, a bill that targets “ghost guns,” or unregistered firearms without serial numbers. Also called “kit guns” or “80% guns,” most are built at home from manufacturer-produced gun kits. Improvised weapons, also known as “pipe guns,” … [Read more...] about Ghost Guns and the Deeply American Tradition of Gun Privacy
Ninth Circuit Says “Ghost Gun” Blueprints Can Be Posted Online Without Fed Approval
By Tyler Durden 3D-printed gun blueprints can be posted online without U.S. State Department approval, a divided Ninth Circuit panel ruled on Tuesday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco reinstated a Trump administration order that authorized removing ghost guns from the State Department's Munitions List. The appeals court ruling will make it easier … [Read more...] about Ninth Circuit Says “Ghost Gun” Blueprints Can Be Posted Online Without Fed Approval
Putting Decentralization Into Practice
By Michael Maharrey Putting decentralization into practice was the overriding theme that came out of a recent interview I did with Nick Hankoff on his show “Come Home America.” Nick and I discussed recent efforts at the state level to end the enforcement of federal gun control. We also talked about the silver market as the so-called Reddit Raiders turned their eyes toward … [Read more...] about Putting Decentralization Into Practice
California Now Wants to Tax People Who Live in Other States, Too
By Gary Galles California’s government has become infamous for abusing its citizens, from steep taxation to burdensome regulations to arbitrary covid impositions. But less noticed is how it is also trying to abuse other Americans as well. As reported in a December 28 Los Angeles Times editorial, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA), which … [Read more...] about California Now Wants to Tax People Who Live in Other States, Too
Why Everyone is Vulnerable When the Government Determines the Essentialness of Someone’s Livelihood
By Sam Bocetta Did you ever think that there would come a time when going to work or meeting with consenting individuals would be acts punishable under the law? Or if going to a grocery store or something as basic as getting a haircut would be forbidden by the authorities? To say that the coronavirus has changed the world as we knew it is an understatement. It has made … [Read more...] about Why Everyone is Vulnerable When the Government Determines the Essentialness of Someone’s Livelihood
Trick-or-Treating Bans Are the Scariest Part of Halloween in 2020
By Kerry McDonald Halloween is creepy this year and it has nothing to do with the costumes and face paint. Several cities and counties have placed an outright ban on children’s trick-or-treating due to COVID-19 fears, while others are strongly urging families to forgo the practice. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises individuals and families to … [Read more...] about Trick-or-Treating Bans Are the Scariest Part of Halloween in 2020
Why Aren’t Americans Suing Their Way Out of Lockdown?
By Robert E. Wright While presumed experts in Washington look for data that will justify reopening the economy, the third branch of government, the judiciary, has hardly been mentioned in the crisis to date but could play a key role in breaking any political stalemate. So my spirits soared when I saw a partial headline reading “Coronavirus: Battle Breaks Out As Beach … [Read more...] about Why Aren’t Americans Suing Their Way Out of Lockdown?
California’s Contractor Law Violates Free Speech
By Robert E. Wright It is becoming increasingly difficult to reject the hypothesis that California lawmakers are trying to solve their state’s notorious housing crisis by driving out everyone who isn’t a lover of earthquakes, fires, to-die-for weather, and arbitrary government. Their latest Constitutional faux pas is AB5, which, among many other things, limits California … [Read more...] about California’s Contractor Law Violates Free Speech
Why America’s Founders Didn’t Want a Democracy
By Gary M. Galles When I took history and government in school, many critical issues were misrepresented, given short shrift, or even ignored entirely. And those lacunae undermined my ability to adequately understand many things. Randall Holcombe’s new book, Liberty in Peril: Democracy and Power in American History, fills in some very substantial gaps, particularly with … [Read more...] about Why America’s Founders Didn’t Want a Democracy
How to Avoid Civil War: Decentralization, Nullification, Secession
Op-Ed by Ryan McMaken It's becoming more and more apparent that the United States will not be going back to "business as usual" after Donald Trump leaves office, and it is easy to imagine that the anti-Trump parties will use their return to power as an opportunity to settle scores against the hated rubes and "deplorables" who dared attempt to oppose their betters in … [Read more...] about How to Avoid Civil War: Decentralization, Nullification, Secession
Proposed Federal Vaping Ban Is Bigger Than Vaping
By John Michaels The Trump administration is aggressively pushing an unconstitutional ban on all flavored vape products after reports that over 1,000 people have become ill and roughly two-dozen people have died, supposedly from “vaping.” Vaping has been called an “epidemic” even though vaping has been around for over 10 years with no prior reports of anything like this … [Read more...] about Proposed Federal Vaping Ban Is Bigger Than Vaping