Posted: 02 Jun 2010 10:28 AM PDT

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Rand Paul of Kentucky, U.S. Senate hopeful, is caught up in a swirl of controversy in response to his comments on MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show." He has been dishonestly accused of saying he thinks that private businesses have a right to discriminate against black people. Here's a partial transcript of the pertinent question in the interview:

Maddow: "Do you think that a private business has a right to say, 'We don't serve black people'?" To which Paul answered, "I'm not, I'm not, I'm not in ... yeah ... I'm not in favor of any discrimination of any form."

The "yeah" was spun in the media as "yes" to the question whether private businesses had a right to refuse service to black people. Paul had told Maddow that while he supported the 1964 Civil Rights Act in general, he thought that provisions banning private discrimination might have gone too far.

Democrats launched an attack on Paul accusing him of being a racist. Republicans criticized and in the words of Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, Paul's "philosophy is misplaced in these times." He added that Paul has a libertarian perspective and "(has) a very, very strong view about the limitation of government intrusion into the private sector."

Should people have the right to discriminate by race, sex, religion and other attributes? In a free society, I say yes. Let's look at it. When I was selecting a marriage partner, I systematically discriminated against white women, Asian women and women of other ethnicities that I found less preferable. The Nation of Islam discriminates against white members. The Aryan Brotherhood discriminates against having black members. The Ku Klux Klan discriminates against having Catholic and Jewish members. The NFL discriminates against hiring female quarterbacks. The NAACP National Board of Directors, at least according to the photo on their Web page, has no white members.

You say, Williams, that's different. It's not like public transportation, restaurants and hotel service in which Title II of the 1964 Civil Rights Act "prohibits discrimination because of race, color, religion, or national origin in certain places of public accommodation, such as hotels, restaurants, and places of entertainment." While there are many places that serve the public, it doesn't change the fact that they are privately owned, and who is admitted, under what conditions, should be up to the owner.

If places of public accommodation were free to racially discriminate, how much racial discrimination would there be? In answering that question, we should acknowledge that just because a person is free to do something, it doesn't follow that he will find it in his interest to do so. An interesting example is found in an article by Dr. Jennifer Roback titled "The Political Economy of Segregation: The Case of Segregated Streetcars," in Journal of Economic History (1986). During the late 1800s, private streetcar companies in Augusta, Houston, Jacksonville, Mobile, Montgomery and Memphis were not segregated, but by the early 1900s, they were. Why? City ordinances forced them to segregate black and white passengers. Numerous Jim Crow laws ruled the day throughout the South mandating segregation in public accommodations.

When one sees a law on the books, he should suspect that the law is there because not everyone would voluntarily comply with the law's specifications. Extra-legal measures, that included violence, backed up Jim Crow laws. When white solidarity is confronted by the specter of higher profits by serving blacks, it's likely that profits will win. Thus, Title II of the 1964 Civil Rights represented government countering government-backed Jim Crow laws.

One does not have to be a racist to recognize that the federal government has no constitutional authority to prohibit racial or any other kind of discrimination by private parties. Moreover, the true test of one's commitment to freedom of association doesn't come when he permits people to associate in ways he deems appropriate. It comes when he permits people to voluntarily associate in ways he deems offensive.

Flurry of Construction Activity Surrounds BP Chemicals ... - StreetInsider.com

Posted: 02 Jun 2010 06:10 AM PDT

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June 2, 2010 5:00 AM EDT

SUGAR LAND, TX -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 06/02/10 -- Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas) -- Last year, construction on two plants began at the Hull Works plant site of BP Chemicals Limited (London, England), a subsidiary of BP plc (NYSE: BP) (London), in Kingston-upon-Hull, England. Like so many chemical producers in Europe, BP found itself looking for ways to profit from the very sizeable infrastructure maintained at this site, while the prospects of growth became increasingly limited.

For details, view the entire article by subscribing to Industrial Info's Premium Industry News at http://www.industrialinfo.com/showNews.jsp?newsitemID=161176, or browse other breaking industrial news stories at www.industrialinfo.com.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. IIR's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle

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Pa. college to return stolen Descartes letter - Pottstown Mercury

Posted: 01 Jun 2010 11:58 PM PDT

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By Kathy Matheson

Click to enlarge

A letter signed by French philosopher Rene Descartes (1596-1650) in Haverford. The long-lost letter, stolen in the 1800s, was discovered in the library and is scheduled to be returned to the rightful owner in Paris. AP Photo

Associated Press Writer

HAVERFORD — The valuable 17th-century letter was hiding in plain sight, available to almost anyone who checked the "D'' drawer of the library card catalog at Haverford College.

"Descartes, Rene (1596-1650) French philosopher. 'Mon Reverend Pere' 27 May, 1641 (?) (in French)," reads the handwritten index card.

Yet this signed missive from Descartes, a pivotal figure in Western philosophy and mathematics, had remained unnoticed by scholars for more than a century until a Haverford librarian posted its existence online last fall.

The "discovery" of the famous, long-lost letter at first seemed an archivist's dream, but it briefly turned into a nightmare when college officials realized the document had illicit origins.

The happy ending comes next week when Haverford returns the letter to its rightful owner in Paris.

"We're not in the business of keeping stolen property," college President Stephen Emerson said.

The letter was one of thousands pilfered from French libraries in the 1800s by Guglielmo Libri, the director entrusted with their care. He was convicted in absentia of several thefts in France in 1850 but had already fled to England, selling the documents to collectors and booksellers.

Somehow, Descartes' four-page, tightly scripted correspondence ended up in a 12,000-piece collection donated to Haverford in 1902 by the widow of alumnus Charles Roberts. College officials believe Roberts, who collected autographs, had no idea of the letter's provenance.

Descartes ("I think, therefore I am") had written the dispatch to a priest friend to discuss his struggle with what would become his seminal book, "Meditations on First Philosophy." It is now a basic text for college philosophy students.

Descartes was seeking advice on what to include, and what to leave out, to avoid excommunication from the Catholic Church, said Emerson, a 1974 philosophy major at Haverford.

But the letter remained inconspicuous at Haverford until John Anderies, head of special collections, posted an inventory of the Roberts trove online last fall.

"If they had not caught up with the spirit of digitizing the collections, then it could have been hidden there for another many years," said Erik-Jan Bos.

Then Bos broke the news of the letter's history. Further investigation — including an ultraviolet light that appeared to reveal where Libri scraped off a property stamp — seemed to confirm Bos' theory, said Anderies, who is still floored by the whole story.

"You don't think something like this will necessarily happen," Anderies said. "It's an amazing profession."

Emerson, the college president, immediately knew he wanted to return the letter to the Institut de France. The institute's chancellor, Gabriel de Broglie, was so thrilled he offered Haverford a reward of 15,000 euros ($19,000).

"The gesture honors you and exemplifies the depth of moral values that you instill in your students," de Broglie wrote to Haverford.

Emerson will accept the gift at the June 8 handover ceremony in Paris. The money will be used to support students studying French language and culture, he said.

Bos plans to write a journal article on the letter later this year. It will be the second in-depth examination of the document after a 1981 translation and analysis by Haverford student Conrad Turner, whose research had been archived as well.

Turner, now an overseas diplomat with the State Department, said by e-mail that he's proud the university is returning the letter to its "proper home."

Bos said his article will include details of a second obscure Descartes letter that he recently unearthed online. A picture of the correspondence in a 1983 auction catalog contained the complete text, he said.

Though less consequential than the Haverford letter — it's about a personal academic dispute — the 1645 document still illustrates another piece of Descartes' life, Bos said. The missive sold for $8,800 and since then has not resurfaced publicly, he said.

Meanwhile, back at Haverford, Anderies has acquired another rare find for the library: An out-of-print 1995 biography titled "The Life and Times of Guglielmo Libri: Scientist, patriot, scholar, journalist, and thief."

Online:

Haverford College: www.haverford.edu

Charles Roberts Autograph Letter Collection: http://tinyurl.com/374cnd2

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CONNIE MACK: Arizona's law vs. GOP principles - Standard-Times

Posted: 01 Jun 2010 02:04 PM PDT

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SAN ANGELO, Texas — America is at a crossroads on a number of issues. And as we tackle national concerns such as immigration, conservatives have a responsibility to commit ourselves to our philosophy of less taxing, less spending, less government and more freedom.

That means opposing any administration, Republican or Democratic, when it taxes too much, spends too much or takes over nearly one-sixth of the economy.

When the Obama administration undermines the basic concepts of capitalism and the free market through endless bailouts, "stimulus" plans and a government takeover of health care, it is picking and choosing winners and losers in the economy — and threatening our liberties.

The latest issue freedom-loving conservatives should be concerned about is the Arizona immigration law.

This law clearly challenges citizens' freedoms, and it does so by putting some Americans at risk of losing their freedoms while others stand little or no chance of being affected.

During World War II, while a German-American hero and future president — Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower — led the allied forces in Europe, this country put Japanese-Americans in detention camps. That outrage was wrong. We destroyed lives and undermined the very fabric of our Constitution.

We did so under the guise that we were at war and in crisis. But it is precisely at such times that we must take extra measures to safeguard our rights, our freedoms and our nation.

Instead, America took away the constitutional rights of citizens — a shameful overreach of the government.

The Arizona immigration law reminds us of how fear and distrust can lead to bad laws and even more government overreach into the private sector and our private lives.

Illegal immigration poses clear security risks to our nation and is a cancer on our economic well-being.

The Obama administration and previous administrations have failed to secure our border. While the announcement of additional National Guard troops at the border is a good first step, the federal government must do more to secure our borders — both north and south — now.

But trampling on the rights of some Americans to protect the majority conflicts with the values our nation was founded upon.

Our Constitution protects individual freedoms and liberties. Nowhere does this document speak of protecting the majority over the minority. Anger about the economy, increased crime and security concerns are fueling this law, not constitutional principles.

Conservatives' most important responsibility is to remember to protect freedom, liberty and the rights of every citizen. The Arizona immigration law doesn't do that, and that's why I oppose it.

I am proud that the GOP has been the party in which freedom has always mattered. We are a party whose members are willing to stand up for liberty because we believe that freedom matters and that it works.

As the wise saying goes, he who sacrifices freedom for security ends up with neither.

I do not want to live in a nation where American citizens are asked "Where are your papers?" We are better than that.

Connie Mack, a Republican, represents Florida's 14th District in the U.S. House. His commentary was written for The Washington Post.

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Philosophy

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

“What do you think of Obama's plan to send National ... - Town Hall” plus 3 more

“What do you think of Obama's plan to send National ... - Town Hall” plus 3 more

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