Executive Orders are the New Hotness

What happens when you’re the president and Congress isn’t looking to play ball? You issue executive orders of course! In fact Biden’s committee on gun confiscation is rumored to recommend 19 executive actions to Obama:

The White House has identified 19 executive actions for President Barack Obama to move unilaterally on gun control, Vice President Joe Biden told a group of House Democrats on Monday, the administration’s first definitive statements about its response to last month’s mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Pretending that a system of checks and balances existed was getting kind of old anyways.

What is an “Assault Weapon”

I don’t know who created this concise guide to “assault weapons” but they made a great contribution to the fight for gun rights. The site is a slideshow that describes the origin on the term “assault weapon” and discusses that the term is nothing more than a legal fiction defined not by lethality or capability but by cosmetic features. It’s a pretty good link to send those who aren’t sure what an “assault weapon” is.

OS X Security Tip: Destroy FileVault Key on Standby

I haven’t talked much about technology as of late. With so much other news, especially on the gun rights front, I haven’t had much time nor reason to writeup any technology tips. With that said I have a security tip that OS X users who use FileVault on their main drive may find useful. While investigating another power management issue I found a pmset (an OS X command line application for adjusting power management settings) value mentioned in the command’s man page:

destroyfvkeyonstandby – Destroy File Vault Key when going to standby mode. By default File vault keys are retained even when system goes to standby. If the keys are destroyed, user will be prompted to enter the password while coming out of standby mode.(value: 1 – Destroy, 0 – Retain)

As a user of FileValut and my laptop’s standby mode I found this value interesting. As far as I knew the FileVault key was destroyed when my computer entered standby. Apparently that’s not the default behavior. Looking further into this command I found a FileVault 2 training document [PDF] put out by Apple that had more to say about the destroyfvkeyonstandby value:

All computers have firmware of some type—EFI, BIOS—to help in the discovery of hardware components and ultimately to properly bootstrap the computer using the desired OS instance. In the case of Apple hardware and the use of EFI, Apple stores relevant information within EFI to aid in the functionality of OS X. For example, the FileVault key is stored in EFI to transparently come out of standby mode.

Organizations especially sensitive to a high-attack environment, or potentially exposed to full device access when the device is in standby mode, should mitigate this risk by destroying the FileVault key in firmware. Doing so doesn’t destroy the use of FileVault, but simply requires the user to enter the password in order for the system to come out of standby mode.

The destruction of the FileVault key when going to standby mode can be accomplished by setting a specific power management environment variable using the pmset command. Performing the following command on the targeted system interactively, or during the execution of a script for automation or deployments, sets the key for destruction:

# pmset destroyfvkeyonstandby 1

I used the command “pmset -a destroyfvkeyonstandby 1” (the same as the command mentioned in the manual with the addition of the -a flag, which applies the value to all power profiles) but I don’t believe the -a flag is actually necessary. Now, hopefully, my FileVault key is actually destroyed when the computer enters standby mode.

Addressing the Important Petitions

The White House’s We the People petitions have an interesting track record. When a petition asking for cannabis to be legalized reached the arbitrary numbers of signatures it was entirely blown off. When a petition dealing with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was close to reaching the arbitrary number of signatures it mysteriously vanished. By blowing off or deleting petitions that fail to fit the state’s agenda the White House has sent a clear message, the people will be ignored. On the other hand if your petition is entirely pointless it receives an actual response:

The Administration shares your desire for job creation and a strong national defense, but a Death Star isn’t on the horizon. Here are a few reasons:

  • The construction of the Death Star has been estimated to cost more than $850,000,000,000,000,000. We’re working hard to reduce the deficit, not expand it.
  • The Administration does not support blowing up planets.
  • Why would we spend countless taxpayer dollars on a Death Star with a fundamental flaw that can be exploited by a one-man starship?

I find it hard to believe that the White House doesn’t support blowing up planets. Then again if a planet is blown up the resources can’t be expropriated so I guess there is some method to their madness. It should go without saying that the administration’s claim that it’s trying to reduce the deficit is laughable.

Now we know the secret to getting a serious response to a petition, write a joke petition.

Know When to Grow

As an agorist I advocate separating one’s self from the state as much as possible. One of the easiest ways to reduce your attachment to the state is to produce your own taxable goods. Every taxable good you’re able to produce is a good that isn’t taxed by the state and therefore doesn’t contribute to the state’s coffers. Several states collect sales tax on groceries so it would be beneficial for people living in those states to produce their own food (and it’s still a good idea for people outside of those states to produce their own food as it reduces your grocery bill and makes you less dependent on grocery stores). To that end I would like to mention the website SproutRobot. Many people, including myself, are not very knowledgable when it comes to agriculture. SproutRobot can tell you what crops can be produced in your area as well as when you should plant them and how to plant them (it also includes instructions for both gardens and boxes that are useful for those living in apartments).

Burglary Tied to The Journal News’s Map of Gun Owners

The Journal News created a map of gun permit holders in the state of New York. While the news organization claimed that they did this because people have a right to know who the gun owners in their neighborhood are I believe the purpose behind publishing the maps was more nefarious. Most of us in the gun rights community warned that maps like this put gun owners at risk because it informed thieves where they could be reasonably assured guns could be stolen. Needless to say a burglar used the map to steal firearms:

Brewster, N.Y. – 1/13/2013 – Today Senator Greg Ball (Patterson – R, C, I) announced that a burglary has been reported on Davis Ave. in White Plains, New York that evidently ties into The Journal News gun maps. It is reported that the burglar used The Journal News’ interactive gun map to target a home included on the map. Luckily the gun was locked up and no one was hurt.

It was bound to happen and I think that was why the Journal News published the maps.

Monday Metal: Phoenix on Fire by Katana

This week we’re doing some more new old school metal. Katana is a Swedish heavy metal band that started in 2005. Their music is very reminiscent of the early days of metal. Many of their songs remind me of Iron Maiden and you can’t complain when a band reminds you of Maiden. It was difficult to decide what Katana song to post so I ended up choosing the first one I listened to, Phoenix on Fire:

Gun Control Advocates Like to Contradict Themselves

I maintain a relatively positive outlook most of the time by finding the funny side of things. Because of this I can find the Star Tribune somewhat entertaining at times. If I were a more negative person the Star Tribune would be a constant source of anger. Both the articles written by the paper’s staff and the letter received from their readers are often headache inducing if you try to find any logic. Take the following letter sent to the Star Tribune:

In response to the Jan. 10 letter on gun violence that ended with “Never forget, the Constitution was created to protect us citizens from our government”: This libertarian myth is contrary to the full breadth of the document. According to constitutional scholar Garrett Epps (writing in the Nation, Feb. 7, 2011): “[The] document as a whole is much more concerned about what the government can do — not with what it can’t. From the beginning, it was empowered to levy taxes, to raise armies, to make war, to set the rules of commerce and to bind the nation through treaties and international agreements. … [It] was not written to weaken an overreaching Congress but to strengthen an enfeebled one.”

I actually agree with this paragraph. The Constitution was actually a federal power grab. Before it the federal government was ruled by the Articles of Confederation, which kept most power in the hands of the individual states. In fact the federal government was unable to collect taxes, instead relying on voluntary payments from the individual states, and didn’t have a Supreme Court, leaving it unable to make court rulings affecting people living in the individual states. This is why I’m not a fan of the Constitution, it centralized power and left the door open so the federal government could perpetually grab more power. Had the writer stopped there she may have been able to claim a point but she continued:

The Constitution continues to be a living, breathing document — the 27 Amendments are proof of this — and should not be considered a means to restrict our present laws based on an 18th-century, musket-toting populace.

LUANNE SPEETER, EDINA

She claims that the Constitution is a living document as attested by the 27 amendments that have been made to it. Notice that she specifically indicated the the document is living because of the amendment process, she didn’t claim that the Constitution was a living document because the interpretation of the statements found within can be change over time. She contradicted herself by saying the amendment process is how you make changes to the Constitution then claimed that the Constitution shouldn’t “be considered a means to restrict our present laws based on an 18th-century, musket-toting populace.” The second of those 27 mentioned amendments specifically protects the rights of gun owners from disarmament. On top of that the Supreme Court, which was granted the ultimate authority to interpret the Constitution, ruled in Heller v. District of Columbia and McDonald v. Chicago that the Second Amendment protected the right of individuals to keep and bear arms. You can’t claim that the amendment process is how you change the Constitution and then turn around and ignore one of those amendments.

Gun control advocates can’t help but get caught up in contradictions. Their entire philosophy is contradictory. They claim to oppose violence but demand the state use violence to disarm gun owners and they claim to oppose gun possession but demand that the state be allowed to keep guns.

For the Record

Buck Yeager has a habit of saying really stupid stuff. Apparently challenging anybody who called him a coward due a duel wasn’t enough, he decided to go on YouTube and threaten civil war if new gun control laws are passed.

I’ve heard a few people in the gun rights community either voice their concern about new gun control laws sparking civil war or claiming they would spark a civil war themselves if new gun control laws are passed. For the record I just want it know that if a civil war breaks out in this country I’m going to be hearing about it from a different country. I’ll probably pick somewhere tropical since I’m getting sick and tied of dealing with winter here in Minnesota.

I am not a patriot, I have no loyalty to this country, I’m not even a fan of the Constitution. My loyalties lie with my friends and family who I plan to take with me if things turn violent. Civil wars have a nasty habit of leading to new, usually more tyrannical, states and I’m not going to help bring in a new age of tyranny.

White House Considering Stealing the NRA’s Proposal

It appears that a little irony is playing out in Joe Biden’s task force. The Obama Administration has announced that they will consider spending $50 million to put police officers in public schools:

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration is considering a $50 million plan to fund hundreds of police officers in public schools, a Democratic senator said, part of a broad gun violence agenda that is likely to include a ban on high-capacity ammunition clips and universal background checks.

The school safety initiative would make federal dollars available to schools that want to hire police officers and install surveillance equipment, although it is not nearly as far-ranging as the National Rifle Association’s proposal for armed guards in every U.S. school.

I’m sure the National Rifle Association (NRA) will receive no credit for the idea, which is rather ironic consider the NRA’s actions towards the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF). But this decision by Biden’s task force doesn’t surprise me, in fact I would have been surprised if they hadn’t announced something like this. When the NRA announced its School Shield program and voiced my concerns over expanding the police state already rampant in public schools:

This concerns me as well. Securing schools as much as sports stadiums requires making schools even more like prisons than they already are. Many major stadiums have metal detectors, cameras everywhere, and guards performing pat downs on those entering the venue. Since stadiums are private institutions I don’t care how they run their operations. In his apparently desperate attempt to the Connecticut shooting on something LaPierre hasn’t considered the consequences of making schools more like prison. If he believes violent media causes violence in society then submitting children to prison style security is likely to make them more subservient to the state. As the state has a vested interest in disarm the populace it would seem counterproductive to the goal of protecting gun rights to instill even more obedience into today’s youth. Maintaining gun rights requires a populace that will stand up to the police state, not submit to it. Having children go through metal detectors, submit to searches of their persons and belongings, and being under the constant eye of Big Brother can only instill authoritarianism, which directly opposes the stated goals of the NRA.

Putting armed officers in schools makes sense from the state’s perspective as doing so will help instill more obedience at an impressionable age. We already have schools teaching children that the police are their friends and that one should always truth police officers, which isn’t true:

In reality the police are the state’s expropriators:

The true purpose of police officers is to act as direct state expropriators. Notice that a majority of offenses one can be punished for involve no victims. Speeding tickets, parking tickets, fines for possessing verboten drugs, etc. are victimless crimes that involve the payment of money from offenders to the state. Even the prison system is nothing more than a special form of subsidy in the form of slave labor. Federal prisoners are generally “employed” by Federal Prison Industries, more commonly known as UNICOR. UNICOR is a government owned corporation that produces goods and services for the federal government. All federal agencies, with the exception of the Department of Defense, are legally required to source all needed goods and services through UNICOR unless UNICOR is unable to provide it or gives permission to the federal agencie to seek an alternate provider. Private prisons are another form of subsidy. Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the largest private prison industry in the country, uses prisoners to provide goods and services to at extremely cheap prices. The police, through enforcing jailable offenses, provide both UNICOR and private companies like CCA with a source of extremely cheap labor. Both corporations enjoy a benefit over other domestic providers of goods and services since neither is obligated to follow labor laws such as paying workers a minimum wage. Effectively wealth, in the form of labor, is being transfered from prisoners to entities like UNICOR and CCA. The state’s courts have also ruled that the police are not obligate to provide protection, further invalidating any claim that their primary purpose is the defense of individuals from domestic threats.

It’s pretty easy to see why Biden’s task force has decided the NRA’s plan was a swell idea. Of course Obama’s administration needs to sell the idea, which will take a little finesse. Gun control advocates have been decrying the NRA’s idea because it would put more guns into schools. If Obama and his gang want to sell the idea they’re going to have to change the message, which they’re trying to do by claiming their plan won’t be as extensive as the NRA’s. This claim is an attempt to make the NRA look like overzealous extremists. Making the NRA appear to be overzealous extremists is necessary to forward the agenda of gun control because admitting the organization had a valid idea would give some the organization some credit and that may cause people to consider more of their ideas.

If Obama pursues the federally funded armed guards route you can rest assured he will say the federal funds will only go to arms school that are “at risk.” That is to say the federal government would start putting armed officers in a few schools initially and expand from there. At some point every public school would likely have posted armed guards but by then everybody will have forgotten about the NRA’s initial proposal and the gun control community’s reaction to it.

One question remains, why would gun control advocates go along with such an idea? They’ve been railing on the NRA’s proposal since it was made. How could they support the same proposal by the federal government? Easy. Gun control advocates don’t oppose guns, they oppose non-state agents having guns. Remember that gun control advocates are authoritarians and desire to grant the state totalitarian control so it can “advance” society in the “right” direction.

This will end up being an interesting month as far as gun rights are concerned. I wonder what other ideas will be announced by Biden’s task force next week.