Let Freedom Ring

Hello and welcome to my new blog!

I've been pondering for awhile now about whether I should create a blog, and finally, I pulled the trigger.  It's time to let loose and create my own "online voice."

Why This Blog?

The goal of this blog is very simple and straightforward- to help people open up their minds.  That's it.  Sure, like any other blog I will voice my opinion.  But, it's not a crime to disagree with me and have your own opinion.  If you have a different opinion on an issue, or some insight, feel free to share.  But, what I do hope to avoid are those that have created their belief systems about our society based on what "expert-Dr. so- and-so" who has a phd in this, and a masters in that told me on CNN, and then take that as absolute truth.

I don't claim to be absolutely right or an expert on anything, but what if all people throughout society took what they were told from "experts," accepted it as absolute truth, and never questioned anything?  My best guess is that I would be carving this message into the side of a cave right now.



-"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."
- Albert Einstein


 What great things were ever achieved simply by trusting the experts? In the early 1600's Galileo, now viewed as one of the greatest scientific minds in the history of man was ridiculed and even cast out by the Catholic church for voicing his belief about our solar system.  When Henry Ford began the process of developing an 8 cylinder engine, his lead engineers and expert staff worked tirelessly to create this unknown creation before deeming it "impossible". "Keep working," Ford told his engineers.  It wasn't until thousands of hours of work and failed attempts did the engineer finally develop the 8 cylinder engine, something all of them swore was impossible.


Here's my point, and the point of this blog.  Open up your mind.  Think for yourself. Don't let CNN, NBC, ABC, The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Time Magazine, your professors, your friends, your boss, or anyone tell you what's fact and what's fiction simply because they themselves have accepted an idea or theory as fact from another secondhand source.  All to often, I believe, our society accepts beliefs and ideas as fact just because the masses said so.  Our history is ripe with the masses being wrong on many, many occasions.  I'll leave you with one more quote before I end my poetic, yet moving ramblings...


"My suggestion would be to walk away from the 90% who don't and join the 10% who do."
-Jim Rohn


Why "Let Freedom Ring"?


During the 1970's a Doctor residing in the small town of Sarasota, Florida took it upon himself to create a movement to protect the freedoms of the United States, as well as protect the constitution as our original founding fathers intended it to be interpreted.  Dr. William Campbell Douglass II, took it upon himself to fight the Internal Revenue Service and its unjust acts against the American people.  He conscientiously conceived it to be his duty to resist in all ways the declaration, assessment, and payment of his income taxes.


Dr. Douglass  began to evolve a philosophy about the Internal Revenue System and the payment of income taxes. Reduced to its essentials, this philosophy is (i) the federal government, because of the influence of certain communists or communist sympathizers has given monetary and other forms of aid to enemies of the United States, (ii) to contribute to this aid by paying taxes would be treason, and (iii) the income tax is itself unconstitutional or at least is being illegally administered because it is not levied equally on all citizens.


 In 1966, Dr. Douglass filed a 1040 with the IRS that simply contained a name, address, signature, and a big line which read "Under Protest".  Dr. Douglass was truly one of the first of his time. Eventually, other patriots like Terry Lakin would follow, but he is truly an original. To those involved, it was obvious what the consequences would be.  He would not win his bout with the IRS.  The hope was that the principle would become known and the masses would follow his patriotism in the future.  Dr. Douglass served six months in prison for this cause.  Here are the details of the case:


United States of America v. William C. Douglass


I'm proud to say Dr. William Campbell Douglass II is my Grandfather.

While I don't claim to be a true patriot simply by starting a blog, or even claim to have his same political views on all subjects, this blog should serve as a reference for stimulating thought for oneself and doing away with the news that's too often spoon-fed to us.  In honor of my grandfather and his work, I've decided to name the blog after his patriotic actions as well as his originally titled telephone/radio show entitled "Let Freedom Ring" in which callers could call in for discussion with Dr. Douglass as well as voice their opinion. Let the new media carry on the patriotism started by him.  For more information about him, you can visit his website for his very popular medical newsletter.  In addition, I have posted the new website for his published books and other works.


http://douglassreport.com/

http://www.douglassfamilypublishing.com/



What's The Information That's Going To Be Discussed On This Blog?

While not all of the information discussed will have definite and concrete answers to problems, the idea, again, is to think for yourself.  Learn to ask questions that matter.  Instead of "What's the Dow at today?" maybe it's more important to look at the fundamentals of the market, why it fluctuates, what causes the boom/bust cycles, where are money comes from, and how does it truly affect you and me.  Instead of "Is Politician X a Democrat or Republican?"  let's consider what it really means to be in either party, what are the true differences, why has our system turned into a two party system, and what's controlling and driving our politics in the United States.

Similar to the original "Let Freedom Ring" movement, the blog will focus on economics and politics and the not-so-often-discussed subjects and ideas.  I'll occasionally post my original writings, but often I will include links to media stories and discussions that are important.

Let Freedom Ring!

B.