Tag: 1984 was a Warning not a Blueprint

Why not, the State Already Implemented Nazi Gun Control Laws

For those who are unaware the Gun Control Act of 1968 very similar to Nazi gun control laws that were implemented to disarm Jews. Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership published an excellent book titles “Gun Control” Gateway to Tyranny that compares an english translation of the Nazi gun control laws to the Gun Control Act of 1968 and the similarities cannot be denies.

Consider this, I’m not surprised by the fact that the state is moving to emulate more Nazi laws:

Call it the return of the Reichsfluchtsteuer.

The president of Americans for Tax Reform, Grover Norquist, did not use the term. But that is what Mr. Norquist was talking about when he spoke to The Hill newspaper about the legislation proposed by Senator Schumer, the Democrat of New York, to tax at a 30 percent rate the $2 billion capital gains of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, who renounced his American citizenship before Facebook’s initial public offering.

“I think Schumer can probably find the legislation to do this. It existed in Germany in the 1930s and Rhodesia in the ’70s and in South Africa as well,” Mr. Norquist said. “He probably just plagiarized it and translated it from the original German.”

The Reichsfluchsteuer, or Reich flight tax, that the Nazis imposed on Jews trying to flee in the 1930s was 25 percent; Mr. Schumer and his Senate colleague Bob Casey, Democrat of Pennsylvania, want 30 percent. Give Mr. Schumer some credit for creativity, Mr. Norquist; the New Yorker did not just translate, he also raised the rate.

When you’re a fascist regime it only makes sense to take ideas from former fascist regimes. Noting the state’s propensity to simply repeat failed policies but harder we can see that our politicians took what the Nazis did, stealing 25 percent, and did it hard, stealing 30 percent.

Confiscating Guitars Possibly Going to a New Level

Several years ago Gibson was raided and guitars were seized because they were supposedly using “illegal wood.” Interestingly enough Martin was using the same wood and never go raided. This would indicate a double-standard or some kind of payoff in my rather cynical mind but the state may still step up its game by raiding concert to seize even more guitars:

Lawmakers are scrambling to save the summer concert season from federal agents poised to seize the instruments of rock and country stars because the wood used to make them may have been illegally harvested–and without their knowledge.

“I don’t want the musicians from Nashville who are flying to Canada to perform this summer to worry about the government seizing their guitars,” said Tennessee Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander.

[…]

“Senator Wyden and I are going to write the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service a letter in the next couple of weeks and try to make it clear that wood harvested before 2008 to make musical instruments can’t be seized by the federal government,” Alexander said in a statement. “The Justice Department and Fish and Wildlife have said they have no intention of doing that, but Sen. Wyden and I are going to make it absolutely clear. We hope to get a clear ruling within a few weeks, and if we can’t get a clear ruling, we’ll introduce legislation to change the Lacey Act.”

I wonder if the feds have actually threatened to raid summer concerts or if Senator Alexander and Wyden are simply performing political grandstanding. It’s sad that I have to wonder this but the federal government has become so drunk with power that raiding I wouldn’t put raiding concerts past them. They already stole guitars from Gibson and haven’t even had the decency to charge the company with a crime yet.

This case is very interesting to me because I have no idea what is going on. Did a competing guitar manufacturer sick the feds on Gibson? Did some official in Madagascar do it? Did a local supplier of wood bring in the federal dogs? Did Gibson merely forget or refuse to pay off a state agent? If the state were confiscating goods from the competitor of an obviously politically well-connected company I would already know what the angle was. As far as I know none of Gibson’s competitors are all that well-connected politically, in fact I don’t know if any guitar manufacturer contributes money to political campaigns or hires lobbyists.

You May be a Terrorist if…

With suspected terrorists being held without trial at Guantanamo Bay (Gitmo) the evidence held by the state must be insurmountable right? That really depends on your definition of insurmountable:

It is cheap, basic and widely available around the world. Yet the Casio F-91W digital watch was declared to be “the sign of al-Qaida” and a contributing factor to continued detention of prisoners by the analysts stationed at Guantánamo Bay.

Briefing documents used to train staff in assessing the threat level of new detainees advise that possession of the F-91W – available online for as little as £4 – suggests the wearer has been trained in bomb making by al-Qaida in Afghanistan.

There is a list on Wikipedia of Gitmo detainees held, at least in part, because they were in possession of a Casio watch. In other words, for around $10.00 you to can become a member of Al Qaida. You would think the premier terrorist ground in the world, the organization that is so insidious and power that they have been the primary target of America’s military might since 2001, wouldn’t be such cheap bastards. The least they could do is splurge for a G-Shock.

With “evidence” like this almost anybody can be a terrorist. The Casio F91W isn’t exactly a rare watch, you can pick them up almost anywhere. It’s been in common production since 1991 and is still being produced, a demonstration of the watch’s popularity. Until now I’ve never owned one of these, I usually don’t go for extremely cheap and mass produced watches, but I’m going to order one now. Somehow I still haven’t made it on the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) no-fly list, hopefully being in possession of an F91W will finally get me on that list (then I only have a few more government watch lists to get my name on before I’ve “collected them all”).

Preventing You from Leaving

Last week I gave my predictions for France, most of which were pulled from the book Pictures of a Socialistic Future [PDF]. Pictures of a Socialistic Future was a took written at the end of the 1800s that property predicted many things that would happen in socialist countries. One of the predictions was the socialist state would face a massive exodus of people and would implement laws preventing unapproved departures from the country. Such laws have been implemented in many socialist countries and are put into place to keep wealth and labor in the country by force. Guess what? The United States is officially announcing plans to implement such laws:

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has a status update for Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin: Stop attempting to dodge your taxes by renouncing your U.S. citizenship or never come to back to the U.S. again.

[…]

At a news conference this morning, Sens. Schumer and Bob Casey, D-Pa., will unveil the “Ex-PATRIOT” – “Expatriation Prevention by Abolishing Tax-Related Incentives for Offshore Tenancy” – Act to respond directly to Saverin’s move, which they dub a “scheme” that would “help him duck up to $67 million in taxes.”

The senators will call Saverin’s move an “outrage” and will outline their plan to re-impose taxes on expatriates like Saverin even after they flee the United States and take up residence in a foreign country. Their proposal would also impose a mandatory 30 percent tax on the capital gains of anybody who renounces their U.S. citizenship.

The process of preventing people from leaving the United States has been underway for a while. Earlier this year legislation was announced that would prevent those who owe taxes from leaving the country. Now the state is moving to make laws that will make it legal for the state to plunder a great deal of your wealth if you decide to renounce your citizenship. Ladies and gentlemen, it doesn’t get much more blatant than this.

You are not a citizen, you are not a free individual, you are a slave according to the state. In their eyes they own you, you are their property. Honestly, if you have any wealth whatsoever get the fuck out of this country now. The ship is sinking and the state is looking to transfer any and all wealth from the people to its cronies and agents before there is no wealth left to take. Eugene Richter warned us what socialism would bring in Pictures of a Socialistic Future and nobody felt it was worth heading his warning. Right now the state is targeting the wealthy because they have the most to take but you can rest assured that laws preventing the departure from the United States will only expand.

Also, the the Expatriation Prevention by Abolishing Tax-Related Incentives for Offshore Tenancy Act? EX-PATRIOT Act? Really? Really?! Who the fuck is paid to come up with these acronyms?

I hat tip to Snarky Bytes for this revealing story.

Canada Doesn’t Want to be Outdone

Not wanting to be outdone, our neighbors to the north are looking to bring more tyranny upon its people:

A proposed private members’ bill would make it a crime for protesters to wear a mask or disguise while participating in a riot or unlawful assembly, and this week the Harper government put its weight behind the legislation.

The Conservative majority on a House of Commons committee that’s examining the bill took matters a step further Thursday by doubling the proposed maximum prison term to 10 years from five.

Government MPs passed the amendment over the objections of the NDP opposition, who argue the bill is a sham because wearing a mask to commit a crime is already an offence under the Criminal Code.

So it’s going to be illegal to wear a mask while participating in a riot or “unlawful assembly?” Isn’t participating in a riot already illegal? What the hell is an “unlawful assembly?”

What is the point of laws like this other than to expand the police state? I can think of none as these laws simple make acts that are already illegal more, uhh, illegaler I guess. Whether somebody is wearing a mask while participating in a riot should be irrelevant, the only things that are relevant are whether or not they hurt anybody or damaged property. Masks aren’t enchanted items that give +2 to melee or +2 to smashing shit and thus are not relevant regarding any crimes.

Oh well, this does demonstrate that the police state is expanding everywhere, not just in the United States of America.

The CIA Captured Their Own Man

The news has been covering the Central Intelligence Agency’s (CIA) foiling of the “updated underwear bomber.” I didn’t bother to cover this because I was waiting for the punchline and it has been delivered:

The would-be bomber in the recently-uncovered plot to blow up a U.S.-bound airliner leaving Yemen was an undercover intelligence agent. The plot was revealed to U.S. intelligence officials based on a tip by Saudi intelligence services, and had been revealed by a Saudi intelligence source who had been inside Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and providing information to the Saudis and the CIA for some time.

CBS News correspondent John Miller, a former assistant director at the FBI, reports that the double-agent revelation goes right to the heart of an intelligence agency’s nightmare, which is identifying a source that they’ve placed inside an organization.

Great job guys, you did some bang up investigatory work. You managed to not only foil an “updated underwear bomb” scheme but you also managed to catch one of your own agents. With quality work like this I feel safer already.

Just Because I’m Paranoid Doesn’t Mean They’re not Out to Get Me

Last year I decided to abandon third-party Internet services such as GMail, Google Calendar, and even WordPress.com. Everything now sits securely on a server in my apartment where I maintain the exclusive right to access it. Why would I go through the trouble of maintaining my own server when there are many great free service providers out there? Because things have gotten to the point that you can’t trust anybody to maintain your secrecy:

he FBI is asking Internet companies not to oppose a controversial proposal that would require firms, including Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, and Google, to build in backdoors for government surveillance.

In meetings with industry representatives, the White House, and U.S. senators, senior FBI officials argue the dramatic shift in communication from the telephone system to the Internet has made it far more difficult for agents to wiretap Americans suspected of illegal activities, CNET has learned.

The FBI general counsel’s office has drafted a proposed law that the bureau claims is the best solution: requiring that social-networking Web sites and providers of VoIP, instant messaging, and Web e-mail alter their code to ensure their products are wiretap-friendly.

As the police state ramps up it’s going to be harder and harder to know your data is secure on servers you don’t directly control. Most people probably don’t care because they feel as though they have nothing to hide but the golden rule of backdoors is that anybody can use them. If there is a backdoor one need only discover how to access it, which is why most manufacturers don’t like putting backdoors into their software. There is also the fact that the state doesn’t need to know what I’m doing, if they want to know they can get a fucking warrant.

If you don’t believe the United States is a police state you’re not paying attention.

The War on Climate Change

The United States likes to declare war on everything. We have the War on Poverty, the War on Drugs, and the War on Terrorism. Now Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is working hard on declaring a war on climate change:

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta declared global warming a national security threat yesterday during a speech before an environmentalist group in Washington, D.C.

“The area of climate change has a dramatic impact on national security,” Panetta told the Environmental Defense Fund last night. “Rising sea levels, severe droughts, the melting of the polar caps, the more frequent and devastating natural disasters all raise demand for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.”

I’m sure a Global Warming Enforcement Agency is being created and drones are being deployed to bomb those who working to forward global warming. Those who deny global warming or release research demonstrating global warming as a fallacy will likely be arrested and tossed into federal prisons.

Obedience Day

On top of being a pagan holiday and International Workers’ Day May 1st is also Loyalty Day:

On Loyalty Day, we rededicate ourselves to the common good, to the cornerstones of liberty, equality, and justice, and to the unending pursuit of a more perfect Union.

Wow, talk about doublespeak. It’s actually an official holiday that enjoys its own entry in United States code:

(a) Designation.— May 1 is Loyalty Day.

(b) Purpose.— Loyalty Day is a special day for the reaffirmation of loyalty to the United States and for the recognition of the heritage of American freedom.

(c) Proclamation.— The President is requested to issue a proclamation—

(1) calling on United States Government officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on Loyalty Day; and

(2) inviting the people of the United States to observe Loyalty Day with appropriate ceremonies in schools and other suitable places.

A special day for reaffirmation of loyalty to the United States? If that doesn’t scream nationalism I don’t know what does. Why don’t they just call it Obedience Day and designate its purpose to dedicate one’s self to being an obedient slave of the state? How the hell did we go from a country founded by individuals who espoused rebellion and seemed to hold no desire of mindless loyalty to the state to a country populated by people who believe it’s a good idea to reaffirm their loyalty to the state on an annual basis?

Nationalism is a plank of fascism so I guess having Loyalty Day in the United States makes nothing but sense.

Even the Mainstream Media is Noticing the FBI’s Penchent for Stopping Its Own Terror Plots

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) dirty little secret is that the terrorist plots they’ve “stopped” have all been ones of their own creation. Earlier this year the FBI “stopped” a bombing attempt on the United States Capitol, which was made possible by the FBI who not only encouraged the supposed bomber but gave him the “bomb” to as well. This practice has become so common that even the New York Times is no longer able to overlook it:

THE United States has been narrowly saved from lethal terrorist plots in recent years — or so it has seemed. A would-be suicide bomber was intercepted on his way to the Capitol; a scheme to bomb synagogues and shoot Stinger missiles at military aircraft was developed by men in Newburgh, N.Y.; and a fanciful idea to fly explosive-laden model planes into the Pentagon and the Capitol was hatched in Massachusetts.

But all these dramas were facilitated by the F.B.I., whose undercover agents and informers posed as terrorists offering a dummy missile, fake C-4 explosives, a disarmed suicide vest and rudimentary training. Suspects naïvely played their parts until they were arrested.

[…]

This is legal, but is it legitimate? Without the F.B.I., would the culprits commit violence on their own? Is cultivating potential terrorists the best use of the manpower designed to find the real ones? Judging by their official answers, the F.B.I. and the Justice Department are sure of themselves — too sure, perhaps.

The FBI knows two things: nobody pays attention to the details of stories anymore and fear is the state’s most powerful weapon. Point one relates to how easy it is for the FBI to pull off their little scams. They know 90% of the population isn’t going to bother looking into the details of any story about terrorist plots stopped by the FBI. In addition that 90% won’t listen to the 10% of us who do look into the details because they think we’re crazy conspiracy theorists. Point two’s value is pretty obvious, if people are afraid they’ll submit to the state in the hopes of receiving protection from the communist muslim extremist terrorists who are bent on bring Sharia law by bombing our country.

For the FBI it’s a pretty sweet scam… until people start to notice. Eventually even the 90% who pay no attention to the details of these stories wake up and notice something is amiss. Usually this happens when some mainstream media source finally reports on it, such as the case with this New York Times article. It looks like the FBI may have to find another way of cowing the American public into obedience.