Notices by Nicholas Sarwark (nsarwark@universeodon.com)

“But don’t those countries have more security in the form of better welfare states? To a degree, but it’s not the security to live at an American standard of living. The UK jobseekers’ allowance (unemployment insurance) is £70-90 a week (or $89-114). That’s it. A little under £5,000 a year. Most Americans I’ve mentioned this to find that preposterously low, but that’s only because they’re viewing it in the context of American wages.

In contrast, the US left has long held $15/hr (or $31,000/yr full time) to be the bare minimum and, increasingly, through both legislation and a good labour market, wages are catching up to that. On average, that’s what the barista mentioned earlier earns, and many service workers are able to claim $18-20/ HR, or around $40,000 annually.

In many countries this is what doctors earn. In the UK, the salary for an NHS Junior Doctor is £32,000 ($40,000).”

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/a-disease-of-affluence/

@fu thank you for catching it, edited.

“The Democratic Party will undoubtedly debate how it should present itself going forward. That is what we expect of losing parties. There will be arguments about what policies it should or should not abandon and what rhetorical concessions to make. But I am not writing as a Democratic functionary, and in the spirit of the Adamses I want to reach above and beyond party interest to say plainly that I still believe in the open society, in the principles of pluralism, freedom, and mutual toleration. Even when they prove unpopular and unpersuasive, I believe in them still.”

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/now-is-not-the-time-for-moral-flexibility-the-example-of-john-quincy-adams/

People move to places where they can pursue their own happiness.

Some people want to pursue happiness through procreation.

They move to where other people share their pursuit and they can be more successful in achieving their goals.

Freedom of migration is a human right.

#thisIBelieve

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2023-08-16/japan-miracle-town-birth-rate-depopulation-crisis

@fu they have not become a person yet.

With wealth taxes in the news, a 1976 short story by a beloved children's author is relevant again and makes a nice Saturday morning read.

https://open.substack.com/pub/nsarwark/p/on-pomperipossa?r=15fsdm&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

“It's the idea that women are people, that Black people are people, that sick and disabled people are people, that people in poverty are people, that foreigners are people, that all people are people, that being a person is not a matter of being able to afford it or earn it, and that everyone has earned life already.”

https://www.the-reframe.com/fighting-in-the-dark/

@nroming @pluralistic

I second that recommendation.

The work starts now.

When Ross Ulbricht is given clemency, I will celebrate that mercy shown to a victim of the racist war on drugs.

There will be no celebration for a man who wants to add the death penalty to the racist war on drugs.

Those who chose the latter to get the former should meditate.

It's my first election as neither a candidate, party official, nor paid campaign consultant. Who I'm voting for and who I'm betting on in the 2024 election.

https://open.substack.com/pub/nsarwark/p/on-election-day-2024?r=15fsdm&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

#Libertarian

No prosecutor in the United States has not participated in enforcing the drug war.

Disqualifying all former prosecutors from public service would prevent libertarians from voting for a candidate who changed their position and supports legalizing cannabis.

How sad would that be?

@Beeks your advice is noted and disregarded, I'll vote for the Libertarian candidate for President as I have in every election since 2000.

@Beeks my vote is my voice and I cast it for the candidate who best reflects my values.

Trump has been worse for individual liberties than Biden by a great margin.

Harris is pro-choice on cannabis and abortion, two longstanding libertarian political priorities.

Equivocation is lazy and it benefits the worse of two options.

That's why low-key MAGA supporters are so eager for it.

Nicholas J. Sarwark, 45, an attorney who chaired the Libertarian National Committee from 2014 until 2020 and now lives in Manchester, N.H., called Trump “a unique and somewhat malignant force” and said he’s “cautiously optimistic” that Harris will defeat Trump at the ballot box. Sarwark said he plans to vote for Oliver, not Harris.

“I’m still a Libertarian,” he said. “The fact that a bunch of people who aren’t Libertarians have taken over the party and called themselves Libertarians does not mean that I change who I am.”

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/11/01/metro/chase-oliver-libertarian-new-hampshire-lgbtq-maga-trump/

This election is asymmetrical.

Most campaigns wants to do all the things they can to win votes without violating standards of character and decency.

One campaign wants to do all the things they can to win because losing the election means prison time.

Don't vote for a loser.

“I am a proud Christian Patriot determined to stand up to Big Therapy,” the flyer read. “I want to expose the damage done to conservatives by the people they have been misguided into trusting with their inner thoughts.”

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/rod-iron-freedom-festival-moon/

My wife wrote something of importance to people who care about the application of due process principles in the Libertarian Party.

Check it out.

https://open.substack.com/pub/nsarwark/p/urgent-appeal-to-the-judicial-committee?r=15fsdm&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Some professional news: After a few years of inactive status, I've reactivated my license to practice law in Arizona. If you have Arizona legal matters you need assistance with, please feel free to reach out.

If you live in New Hampshire, you ought to vote for Joyce Craig for Governor because she's not a secessionist and will legalize cannabis.

https://open.substack.com/pub/nsarwark/p/on-joyce-craig?r=15fsdm&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web