Free Republic

Lysander Spooner is an important – and not exactly obscure – figure in the history of the liberty movement. He’s an idiosyncratic figure from the 19th century with no small cheerleading section in the 21st century. A bit of a throwback to a very different time, Spooner was a champion of the labor movement and was even a member of the First International at a time when socialists and anarchists coexisted peacefully within that movement. Perhaps one of the most interesting things about Spooner is that he ran a private company in direct competition with the United States Post Office....

The twice-delayed trial of 76-year-old John H. Spooner, accused of fatally shooting his 13-year-old neighbor, got off to a slow start Monday, as cases backlogged because of last week's courthouse fire took up most of the morning. Jury selection is now expected to get underway at 1 p.m. Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Jeffrey Wagner requested a pool of 50 potential jurors, a larger-than-usual number due to the publicity Spooner's case has gained in the past year. Spooner faces a charge of first-degree intentional homicide after allegedly killing Darius Simmons in front of his mother. Spooner suspected Simmons of stealing guns...

An NBA referee is taking the Associated Press to court. Bill Spooner, a 22-year veteran NBA official, is suing Minnesota Timberwolves beat reporter Jon Krawczynski for tweeting during a game that Spooner promised coach Kurt Rambis that he'd get the Wolves two points in the form of a make-up call, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal reports.

An Abolitionist Defends the South by Thomas J. DiLorenzo In the ongoing debate and discourse over the War to Prevent Southern Independence quite a few libertarians will admit that Lincoln was a consummate liar and conniver, a dictator, tyrant, protectionist, corporate tool, murderer of civilians, and a white supremacist to boot. But they refuse to take a stand on the war because, you see, the Confederate government was not a libertarian Nirvana; it was not perfect. Therefore, they say, one cannot conclude that the war was just or unjust: A pox on both their houses! Or worse yet, they condemn...

In the ongoing debate and discourse over the War to Prevent Southern Independence quite a few libertarians will admit that Lincoln was a consummate liar and conniver, a dictator, tyrant, protectionist, corporate tool, murderer of civilians, and a white supremacist to boot. But they refuse to take a stand on the war because, you see, the Confederate government was not a libertarian Nirvana; it was not perfect. Therefore, they say, one cannot conclude that the war was just or unjust: A pox on both their houses! Or worse yet, they condemn the Lincoln dictatorship but praise his "leadership" in...