http://www.courthousenews.com/…

Small businesses that received $682 million in IOUs from the state say California expects them to pay taxes on the worthless scraps of paper, but refuses to accept its own IOUs to pay debts or taxes. The vendors’ federal class action claims the state is trying to balance its budget on their backs.

Lead plaintiff Nancy Baird filled her contract with California to provide embroidered polo shirts to a youth camp run by the National Guard, but never was paid the $27,000 she was owed. She says California “paid” her with an IOU that two banks refused to accept – yet she had to pay California sales tax on the so-called “sale” of the uniforms.

The class consists mostly of small business owners, many of whom rely on income from government contracts to keep afloat. They say California has used them as “suckers” as it looks for a way to bankroll its operations while avoiding its own financial obligations.

“Instead of seeking funds through proper channels, the State has created a nightmare,” the class says. “Many of these businesses will not survive if they are required to wait until October 2009 to have these forced IOUs redeemed by the State.”

The class claims the state is violating the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. It demands that California be ordered to honor its own IOUs, plus interest. They are represented by William Audet.

I’m reading about this very same type of situation from back in the 1700’s. Check out Part 2 of Volume 2 of Conceived in Liberty.

Massachusetts government printed money (one of the first in history) to pay debts and then later effectively refused to redeem them for specie. Wonder why the US Constitution says that the states could only coin gold and silver as money? Read this to get an idea.

From an MPP email today:

“Marijuana is dangerous and has no medicinal benefit.”
– White House drug czar Gil Kerlikowske, at a Fresno, Calif., press conference yesterday (http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/1553061.html )

Not again.

In fact — and it’s getting a little tiresome to keep repeating it — the esteemed Institute of Medicine, American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Lymphoma Foundation of America, American Academy of HIV Medicine, and dozens of other medical organizations recognize marijuana’s medical value.

What’s more, President Obama’s own statements on the campaign trail about marijuana’s medical efficacy run counter to his new drug czar’s statements yesterday.

We need to stop this in its tracks. Would you please speak out against this ridiculous, outdated argument:

1. Please use MPP’s online action center at http://control.mpp.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=SplashPage&id=358 to e-mail the president about the drug czar’s statement.

2. Please call the drug czar’s office at (202) 395-6700 to politely complain that we’re still hearing this sort of nonsense.

We need to make sure the drug czar receives the message loud and clear that the anti-science Bush era is over.

Thank you,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I’ve mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today at http://control.mpp.org/site/Donation2?idb=0&df_id=1180&1180.donation=form1&s_src=NA_072309 will be doubled.

From: Alan Khazei <info@bethechangeinc.org>

Dear bile,

I just returned from this year’s National Conference on Volunteering and Service in San Francisco, an outstanding event where more than 4,000 service leaders gathered to celebrate our achievements and plan the path forward.

This is an extraordinary moment for our movement, with a new law on the books promising unprecedented federal resources for service; people across the country becoming more engaged in their communities than we’ve seen in a long time; and a President and First Lady in the White House who come from the service world, and who want service and civic engagement to become a part of every American’s life.

So many terrific ideas came out of the event, and you’ll be hearing more about them in the weeks and months to come. But before that, we need you to become a part of this discussion.

Our supporters on the ground are the ones who powered us from the beginning.  And today, it’s your input and your ideas that will carry us forward as we plot out the next steps for this organization – and for the service movement as a whole.

Please fill out this short survey – your feedback will help shape the future of ServiceNation:

http://www.servicenation.org/survey

If you didn’t make it to the Conference, there’s a lot to fill you in on. Here are a few of the highlights from the event:

-    The crowd gave a hero’s welcome to Michelle Obama, the keynote speaker, who talked passionately about the White House’s commitment to service and the need to find innovative ways to expand it.

-    I had the honor of interviewing Maria Shriver, the First Lady of California, about her path-breaking efforts to strengthen service in that state. (More to come about that interview in a follow-up message.)

-   The Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) announced a week-long October campaign to promote service on all the major TV networks. This is a big opportunity to get new people involved in service, and it’s something we’ll all be hearing much more about in the months ahead. As part of the announcement, we were treated to a terrific concert from Jon Bon Jovi, a longtime friend of the service community who came to the Conference as a representative of EIF.

-    ServiceNation also was proud to host a luncheon for hundreds of service champions.  Melody Barnes, President Obama’s chief domestic policy advisor, spoke movingly about the future of service in America, and all the attendees participated in a strategy discussion led by Arianna Huffington, EIF’s Lisa Paulsen, and Colin Jones, a current AmeriCorps VISTA serving with the program BUILD in San Francisco.

With so many people across the country spending time this week to talk about what’s next for the service movement, it’s absolutely essential that you get involved in the discussion. We want to know more about you, your impressions of the work we’ve done so far, and your thoughts on where we should go from here.

Please fill out the survey today:

http://www.servicenation.org/survey

Thanks – we’ll be following up with more takeaways from the Conference soon.

Alan

The multiple choice sections are limited but there are opened ended areas to let Alan and friends know that we don’t appreciate the move toward national servitude.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LCTL-SpecialEdition/…

In the third episode, Todd and his panelists libertarian commentator and author Michael Weinheimer, JailedActivist.Info creator Bile, and libertarian writer, activist, and freelance social media consultant Mariana Evica discuss Sam Dodson’s release from the Cheshire County Department of Corrections, GM’s bankruptcy filing, anti-gay marriage conservative Carrie Prejean losing her Miss California crown, H.R. 1207 a.k.a. Fed Audit Bill, etc. Dale Everett of  AnarchyInYourHead.com may also join us as a 4th panelist on the show. Todd and his panelists interview Sam Dodson, CEO of the Obscured Truth Network and occasional co-host of Free Talk Live who was jailed for nearly eight weeks after being arrested for videotaping in the Keene District Court in Keene, New Hampshire. They dig really deep into the living conditions of the jail, how Sam was treated by his jailers, etc.

I wasn’t very vocal in the first half but later spoke up. It went alright. Didn’t get a chance to plug anything.

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http://reason.tv/video/show/783.html

He was the perfect political superhero, sent to rescue California from spend-happy politicians at just the right time. And yet Arnold Schwarzenegger’s reign as governor has turned into a disaster flick that could spell catastrophe for the Golden State—and the whole nation.

In 2003’s historic recall election, the former Mr. Olympia pummeled dozens of candidates—from incumbent Gray Davis to former child actor Gary Coleman to porn star Mary Carey—on the road to Sacramento. He promised to abolish the odious car tax hike implemented by Davis. And to balance the budget, cut taxes and spending, and make California more business-friendly.

“He promised to stop the crazy deficit spending, cut up the credit cards, live within our means. And he did exactly the opposite. Schwarzenegger increased spending faster than we saw under Gray Davis,” says Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), who was a state senator—and one of Arnold’s challengers—six years ago.

Now the Golden State faces yet another spending-induced catastrophe. California could simply go broke by July. Sacramento reacted to the latest crisis by passing a massive tax increase in February, squeezing another $1,100 from the average family. Even the dreaded car tax, the issue that catapulted Arnold to office, is back.

How could it all have gone so horribly wrong, especially after it looked so wonderfully right? Well, it turns out there’s a force in California politics that’s much more powerful than the Governator: a culture of spending pushed by public-employee unions, money-grubbing corporate-welfare cases, and more.

Sadly, California and Schwarzenegger are hardly alone in spending well beyond their means. As many as 40 states face whopping deficits that are only going to get worse as the recession continues.

If country-wide trends do start in California, Rep. McClintock worries about what’s in store for our nation. “As high taxes, high borrowing and high spending destroy California’s economy, Californians are moving to those 49 other states. If we allow the same policies to destroy our country where are we going to go?”

“Hasta La Vista, Arnold” is written and produced by Ted Balaker. Director of Photography is Alex Manning and Associate Producer is Paul Detrick.