QL hosts “Diane Sare on Free Speech, Versus the Assault on Democracy” May 10 at noon. Discussion will be at Stamatis Greek and Mediterranean Restaurant at 29-09 23rd Avenue in Astoria (in the back area, menu details are at https://stamatisrestaurant.site/). This address will follow its monthly business session, covering Queens LP planning and subcommittee updates.

Sare will talk on national and New York threats to liberty, and her recent runs for office. Sare was an independent candidate for US Senate in 2024, and is President of the LaRouche Organization. She also previously sought the Libertarian nomination for Senate candidacy. She writes, “Across the European Union and in the United States, democracy is under attack. If you don’t want a war with Russia or you oppose genocide, be prepared to give up your freedom of speech!” She will also comment on state matters, from Gov. Hochul to the recent campus protests. Sare discussed aspects of the speech matter in a recent video shown below.  Details and Directions

Libertarian Smith talks about ‘the clean break” in the wake of his recent Internet-shattering confrontation with neocon Murray on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Should any attempt to challenge the “the US must continue to intervene in the Mideast” or “Israel first” narrative be met with calls for censorship? Is some of this rhetoric meant to serve as a ramp up propaganda campaign to justify expanded war in the region, to be forever funded by Uncle Sam?

Real ID goes into effect in NY this May, according to Homeland Security. If you want to fly, or enter federal buildings you have to present “your (digital) papers, please” in the form of the surveillance-friendly Real ID card, RFID-laden passport, or the below short list of substitutes:

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has announced that effective May 7, 2025, all adult U.S. citizens must present a REAL ID-compliant form of identification or a valid passport to board domestic flights and access federal facilities…“If you plan on traveling, we need your help to prevent delays and to prove your identity. Get a REAL ID. Starting May 7th, you will need a REAL ID to travel by air or to visit federal buildings in the United States,” Noem said in a video statement.

“These IDs keep our country safe because they help prevent fraud and enhance security. Please do your part to protect our country. Go today, and don’t delay.”

…There are several other forms of identification you can use to fly.

According to TSA:

• State-issued Enhanced Driver’s License
• U.S. passport
• U.S. passport card
• DHS trusted traveler cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
• U.S. Department of Defense ID, including IDs issued to dependents
• Permanent resident card
• Border crossing card
• An acceptable photo ID issued by a federally recognized Tribal Nation/Indian Tribe, including Enhanced Tribal Cards (ETCs).
• HSPD-12 PIV card
• Foreign government-issued passport
• Canadian provincial driver’s license or Indian and Northern Affairs Canada card
• Transportation worker identification credential
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Authorization Card (I-766)
• U.S. Merchant Mariner Credential
• Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)

Children

TSA does not require children under 18 to provide identification when traveling within the United States. Contact the airline for questions regarding specific ID requirements for travelers under 18…More

Two looks at Democratic candidate for NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani, including an interview with Larry Sharpe. Is he a refeshing progressive voice, or the most anti-libertarian socialist ever?

Caitlin Johnstone provides us with an anti-militarism moment of Zen:

None of the people applauding Trump’s war on Yemen because “the Houthis are attacking ships” will tell you why the Houthis started attacking ships.

The pundits won’t say, and the people don’t know.

After two weeks of interacting with people who support Trump’s war I can confidently say that none of them know why the war is happening. They know it has something to do with the Houthis attacking ships in the Red Sea, but they never have any idea why those attacks started happening in the first place. They generally assume it’s because the Houthis are just plain evil and want to attack ships, or because Iran ordered them to do it in order to take over the middle east. The words “terrorists” and “pirates” come up a lot.

They legitimately do not know it’s a blockade aimed at halting Israel’s genocidal atrocities in Gaza, and that all attacks had ceased while the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was in effect. They have no idea that Ansar Allah only announced the Red Sea blockade would resume after Trump and Netanyahu actively collaborated to sabotage the ceasefire and resume starving Gaza, or that they hadn’t even resumed attacks yet when Trump began bombing them.

They do not know that the Houthis succeeded in causing an 85 percent reduction in shipping activity to Israel’s Port Eilat, putting effective pressure on the Netanyahu regime to end the Gaza holocaust. They do not know that Trump’s reason for bombing Yemen is the same reason as Biden’s: because the US empire believes it should be allowed to back Israel’s genocide without any consequences or resistance of any kind.

They’re supporting a war without knowing why they support it. This is possible because they not only don’t know why the war is happening — they also don’t care. They would support literally anything Trump did for any reason whatsoever, because they are mindless infantile cultists and not free thinking adults.

They don’t need to know why Trump is bombing Yemen, all they need is to be assured in a confident-sounding tone that the people he is bombing deserve to be bombed. As long as they receive that assurance, they don’t ask any further questions. They don’t even bother doing a few seconds worth of research. All they care about is supporting whatever Trump and his pundits tell them to support…. Read the rest

YouTuber personality Pearl Davis on the gun range, and the legal complications that may result from exercising self-defense:

John Stossel has come up with a liberty way to solve the fine mess brought to us by woke doctrine:

The Institute for Justice has represented a New York business trying to challenge Kelo, but the top court passes on the case at this time:

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Bowers Development, LLC v. Oneida County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA), a case challenging the infamous 2005 eminent domain decision Kelo v. New London. The property owners contesting the use of eminent domain in Utica, New York, were represented by the Institute for Justice (IJ), which also represented the Kelo homeowners.

“The Court declined this opportunity to restore some basic protections for American property rights, but it will have to confront this question eventually,” said IJ Deputy Litigation Director Robert McNamara. “Eminent domain abuse continues to run rampant in New York and some other states that have refused to change their laws, and it will not stop until federal courts return to enforcing the Constitution.”

While Kelo continues to enable abusive eminent domain, its effects have been limited by the nationwide campaign following the decision that led 47 states to amend their constitutions or pass laws preventing eminent domain from being used for private development.

“We’re deeply disappointed that the Supreme Court will not hear our case,” said Bryan Bowers. “New York property owners live with the constant fear that their homes and businesses can be seized and handed over to more politically connected owners. What happened to us can happen to anyone.”…More

One of the best military yet antiwar US voices for realism, Col. Doug MacGregor, on the ongoing sabotage of the peace negotiations by Zelenskyy, Trump’s F-47 vanity project, and more:

Reason reports on the impact of former Governor Cuomo’s legalization of marijuana in New York, so far:

At our humble LPQC convention on March 8, our current slate of officers were reaffirmed, with Dr. Phil Schoenberg accepting the position as county Secretary to resolve that long running issue. Larry Sharpe announced he had decided not to run for NYC Mayor in 2025, and in the absence of other citywide contenders emerging, it seems unlikely there will be a LP city convention this year. The meetings of QL/LPQC/LP Queens will continue at our monthly luncheons at Stamatis Restaurant in Astoria, held on the second Saturday of each month at noon.

But we are pleased to announce a Queens candidate has announced he is pursuing a Libertarian run for Borough President. QL is proudly hosting “Meet Erwin Roque, LP Candidate for Queens Borough President” April 12 at noon, to meet and greet and hear him on current Queens issues, leading to his exploration of running for office. Discussion will be at Stamatis Greek and Mediterranean Restaurant at 29-09 23rd Avenue in Astoria (in the back area, menu details at https://stamatisrestaurant.site/). This address will follow its monthly business session, covering Queens LP planning and subcommittee updates. Roque’s website is at https://roqnys.com/.

Roque is a real estate renovation entrepreneur who is running for the LP and Democratic nominations based on a pro-prosperity, free market, and anti-criminal justice corruption agenda. He states his own brother has been a victim of justice system abuse, and much of the Queens political establishment are “slavers” who are doing nothing about it. Roque writes “for too long New Yorkers have been abused by New York’s corrupt politicians, corrupt prosecutors, and corrupt judges.” He aims “to fix what politicians broke. To build what politicians never did. To engineer what politicians never could. To make all New Yorkers rich.” All members of LPQC should attend, to vote on endorsing his candidacy after his presentation.

A brief current premier on choosing liberty:

The national LP issued this statement following President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress:

Libertarian Party Response to Trump’s Address: Cut Spending, End Foreign Entanglements, Restore Liberty

President Trump’s recent address was filled with grand declarations, but behind the rhetoric lies the same government overreach and reckless spending that has plagued every administration. While he boasts of signing nearly 100 executive orders in 43 days, libertarians recognize this as further expansion of executive power—a trend that both parties embrace when it suits them. True liberty comes not from choosing the right ruler but from dismantling the unchecked power of the presidency itself.

We applaud the withdrawal from the World Health Organization—an unaccountable globalist entity that seeks to dictate American policy. We also support efforts to end the war in Ukraine and encourage a full withdrawal from NATO and other entangling alliances. But real non-interventionism means ending all foreign aid, including to Israel and Taiwan—if they want weapons, let them buy from the private sector, not the American taxpayer.

Trump speaks of efficiency, yet his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is meaningless unless it audits the Pentagon, the biggest source of waste, fraud, and abuse. His tariffs masquerade as economic nationalism, but they are just a tax on American consumers that fuels inflation. The only real path to prosperity is free trade, deregulation, and eliminating cronyism… not government-managed protectionism.

While we support deregulation, reducing bureaucracy, and lifting restrictions on domestic energy production, the real fight is cutting spending and ending Washington’s grip on our economy. A “Golden Age” will not come from executive orders, tariffs, or military expansion—it will come from unleashing free individuals, not a bloated government.

No president will save us, because the problem is the presidency itself, the bureaucracy, and the machine of centralized power. Libertarians stand for something different: a government that exists only to protect rights, not to dictate lives—if it is fit to exist at all. It’s time to restore liberty, take back control from Washington, and put power where it belongs—with the people.

– LNC Chair
[Steven Nekhaila]

From Scott Horton (of the Libertarian Institute), testifying on behalf of the antiwar Defend the Guard bills in Oregon and elsewhere: 

“Big changes are going on in the country today. As everyone knows, MAGA – make America great again – includes America First. And America First is not just a Donald Trump movement, but it’s really a reorientation of the entire American right towards patriotism and away from globalism and interventionism.

America First does not mean selfishness and belligerence; it means defend America first, take care of the American people first, and stop trying to be the policeman of the world and an empire that controls the Middle East, Europe, and East Asia but can barely control all of the chaos in our own country.

President Trump is obviously making major changes in his first weeks back, suspending all foreign aid and threatening to shake up America’s posture around the world. We know from last time he was in office that the permanent government will be against him. He’s just the White House. He’s got an entire executive branch to rule, including all of the national security establishment and the military.

President Trump is going to need our support out here in the country. It has to be an inescapable fact for all members of the news media that there is a real movement among Republicans in this country to end the wars and to come home. Let’s have four years in a row of no wars at all! Let’s start with that. That’s what Donald Trump campaigned on, and it’s clearly how he won the election. It’s a big part of why a lot of Democrats crossed the aisle to support him…” More