Working For The Clampdown
By Steve Hynd Friday Oct 03, 2008 5:00pm
The ACLU notes that the FBI made public Friday its new rules for opening investigations which basically say "facts not required".
New FBI guidelines governing investigations were released today after being signed by Attorney General Michael Mukasey. The American Civil Liberties Union quickly blasted the Department of Justice and FBI for ignoring calls for more stringent protections of Americans' rights. The guidelines replace existing bureau guidelines for five types of investigations: general criminal, national security, foreign intelligence, civil disorders and demonstrations. The ACLU has been vocal in its disapproval of the overly broad guidelines, citing both the FBI's and DOJ's documented records of internal abuse.
The new guidelines reduce standards for beginning "assessments" (precursors to investigations), conducting surveillance and gathering evidence, meaning the threshold to beginning investigations across the board will be lowered. More troubling still, the guidelines allow a person's race or ethnic background to be used as a factor in opening an investigation, a move the ACLU believes may institute racial profiling as a matter of policy.
The police state arrives by small increments, not all at once. As arrests prior to the RNC in St. Paul prove, you can now be arrested for thought crimes.
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The police state arrives in small increments.
Increments most don't notice.
But take hold.
Americans do not understand, because they choose not to understand, how close we are to a police state.
If you don't think we're already there, then you're either a Republican, or a rich, privileged, white guy - no wait, I repeat myself....
So if you think we are already there, then your a Democrat, or poor, under privileged, black guy? By the way what were you arrested for?
They have been getting ready for the clampdown for sometime.
Military Commissions Act - FISA to name only two.
John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007 - The one that makes it legal to use the US military to quell domestic disturbances even over the objections of a state's governor.
FOUR MORE YEARS!FOUR MORE YEARS!FOUR MORE YEARS!
Alice X - (Click Here for Nader on the 'Bailout' Bill) - status quObama - change you can pretend in - @ 2:
Most democrats (including Obama) caved on both of these bills. Cowards all.
That the Republicans are power grasping traitors to the American way. I see. Obviously the Dems forced them.
Johnny2Bad @ 3:
See you in the re-education camp.
Don't let on that you know me...
Maybe we should come up with a secret sign?
So last summer I was in a discussion with one of my republican brother-in-laws and get this: He said he would give up some freedoms to stay safe.
I was speechless.
Still am.
VietVet8666 @ 4:
I'll be there, if I make it that far.
Johnny2Bad @ 3:
Because the Democrats and the Republicans are the same. They are both working towards the same goal. Police state in the USA, Fascism with a friendly face.
seriously @ 5:
"Those who give up their personal freedoms for safety deserve neither and will lose both."
-Benjamin Franklin
Alice X
I fear you will wind up to be a frustrated voter.
I fear, for example, you will vote for Candidate X. Hoping Candidate X will carry out your hopes and aspriations. Only to see Candidate X do something awful.
Good luck, Alice X, whoever you are.
VietVet8666 @ 4:
There's space for all of us in Room 101.
I am beginning to not care about the ACLU, since it seems that REAL-ID and the formerly homeless is not a priority with them.
Smell that? It's the smoke from the Constitution burning.
Is Obama going to step in and stop, no, REVERSE this deterioration of our civil rights?
Obama isn't going to help....he'll do nothing at all. He'll go what he alwats does: give a lofty-sounding speech, then sell us all down river. FISA? Voted Yea. The unConstitutional Faith-Based Initiatives? He wants to expand it. For a constitutional lawyer, he's got an abyssmal record. He seems indifferent to Constitutional issues.
I think its funny that so many of us are called conspiracy people simply because we pay attention to things like this. If you haven't please watch the latest film: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912
Blake @ 8:
I forgot about that quote. Wish I would have remembered it back then! I've got 5 other siblings and I'm pretty much the lone lib'rul ... oh, what fun...
Johnny2Bad @ 10:
Johnny2bad,
You should have been driving a truck or humping the bush in Viet Nam.
You're a good guy.
It's truly insane! Hoping that Obama is going to ride in on his white horse and magically change everything back to the way it was. Obama is as much a part of the problem as Bush and McCain. The Democratic party and the Republicans are but twins. Party 1a and 1b. Naomi Wolf wrote a column last year that is becoming more and more relevant. I would urge everyone to read it and pass it on to all your friends.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/apr/24/usa.comment
Everyone of us here and in other political forums, blogs, and discussion groups, by posting our thoughts and opinions are by definition, subversives and threats to the established order. By our thoughts, ideas, and words, we are now enemies of the nation we love and the liberties we cherish. We are ALL suspects in the eyes of the enforcement authorities now because "facts are not required". The threshold of tyranny has been crossed. We are all suspect and subject to surveillance, seizure, and unlimited detention. Welcome to the nightmarish abandonment of the rule of law and obliteration of justice. Welcome to the abyss of FASCISM.
Che's Lounge @ 13:
You tell me....After he voted for the FISA "Compromise" Obama said this:
"Given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay. So I support the compromise, but do so with a firm pledge that as president, I will carefully monitor the program."
So, we don't need oversight...We just need to trust him.
"Trust" Uh, huh.
VietVet8666 @ 16:
Missed it by a rats ass in '71. High number, Thank God.
We honor your service.
Johnny2Bad @ 18:
Trust is the key word. Trust to lend money.
seriously @ 15:
I don't know how Americans have become so soft that they will gladly hand over so many of their "freedoms" for safety. How can people be so afraid of everyday life.
DrTyrell @ 14:
Thanks for the link. I'm downloading it now and will spread it around to all my friends.
Is this blog for the crybabies. I hope we can have some faith in the ones who have fought for us and have paid the price. Do you think those in the military are going to forget how they have been treated?
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/319.html
Because every last one of them took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. Yet where are they while their commander in chief is busy enviscerating the document they were sworn to protect? Sure quite a few of them are fighting for their lives overseas. But what about the ones that are still here? What about the national guard? What about the grunts and the officers and the commanders? Where are they?
The President is wrong. The Constitution has been subverted and the people who are most equipped and prepared to defend it are not doing it and now that laws like Public Law 109-364 have been passed, they will be the ones ordered gun civilians like me down if we rebel. So don't talk to me about the US military - they're only following orders.
Given this story, I'm surprised that since the FISA battle, niether of the candidates have brought up constitutional issues which warrant review. I seem to recall Obama saying after the FISA vote, that all executive orders issued by President Bush would be reviewed if elected. As legal issues regarding our privacy and now this move by the F.B.I. are incideous, I have to wonder if either candidate will address these issues which on their face seem to be counter to what the Constitution calls for yet niether candidate has made mention of this on the campaign trail. Sure the economy is front and center at the moment, but perhaps that's governments plan all along. Give the little people something other than their rights to be concerned and everything else will take care of itself.
Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759
VietVet8666 @ 9:
The last winning candidate I voted for was Clinton in '92. He campaigned as an agent of change and turned out to be something of a Republican.
I voted Nader in '96 but Gore in '00. I thought that anyone in government that had the courage to criticize the internal combustion engine and still be standing could not be all bad. I held my nose with his campaign in view.
Three ironies there.
1 - Nader took heart from his vote count of '96, as miniscule as it was.
2 - Nader did even better in '00 and is so widely vilified for Gore's supposed loss. When in fact Gore was only out lawyered but actually won the election. Plus I never hear a word of complaint about that Nazi Buchanan who ran and drew votes on the right.
3 - To the present, the of, by, and for the corporations government or ours just stealthily loaned the not so big anymore Big Three $25 Billion to transition from the internal combustion engine, thank you Mr. Gore.
There are probably more but those come to mind first.
This year I will vote for Nader. I WILL NOT vote for anyone that voted FOR either the Military Commissions Act or FISA. PERIOD.
Nader's chances realistically are somewhere between slight and none. Click on my handle and watch the video of Nader one on one answer a couple of questions.
This country needs Nader or someone like him. Though there are not nearly enough like him.
Watch the video and understand what sort of person you are looking at.
To say that John Q Six Pack American voter is dim witted is an overstatement. They watch TV shows such as 24 and transfer that theater of the mind into real life. How many times have I heard "If your not doing anything wrong you have nothing to worry about". They get a lump in their throat thinking about how thankful they are to live in a free county but have no clue what they are talking about. The corporate media pounds them every day through entertainment and "news" shows until they are numb to the realities of what the United States should represent. I remember during the conventions people were being chased and tackled and arrested for exercising their citizenship. The people standing around cheered when a policeman would beat a protester with a club before handcuffing him. The police state is coming soon and will be met with a cheering standing ovation and smiles.
With the military, the debtload, and the overall shutdown of economies on the horizon, all politicians really have the power left to do is tinker with rights and laws. What else is there? They can't fix the economy either because they don't want to, or can't. They can't create jobs because they can't. They can't give tax breaks because of the massive debt. They can't increase taxes to pay the debt because it would result in layoffs and less tax revenue. The next Prez of the US will be a one term failure regardless of who it is.
That's what I keep telling my wife. But now that I think of it, I said exactly the same thing in 1992, when William Jefferson (Blythe) Clinton was running...
Johnny2Bad @ 10:
To re-turn a phrase I will borrow from Christopher Hitchens who generally turns a good phrase, even if he sometimes is confused about our politics.
At least in Room 101 you can fucking die. If there were a Heaven or a Hell, that would be forever.
Here's the attitude of the Denver cops toward the DNC protestors. Check out the T-shirts the assholes are pedaling in the article (top right):
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/17563487/detail.html#
The local cops, the National Guard (witness the confiscation of homeowners guns during Katrina...un-Constitutional), and the private Blackwater goons do NOT feel they are here to "protect us and to SERVE us anymore". Even though every one of their salaries are paid by us, the taxpayers. I fear they look at patriotic Americans who love the Constitution and what it stands for as the enemy, even as terrorists if we even support the impeachment of a president for war crimes.
Interestingly, as the Brasscheck video linked up top suggests, it's the U.S. Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force that might refuse orders to kill American citizens who are fighting for our Constitutional and God-given rights. They are the only ones I might hold out hope for to defend the American people, because many of them have been screwed by their masters with multiple rotations into an illegal war and horrible medical care.
And not just because we pay their salaries, medical and pensions. It's because every single one of them took an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.
We can only hope and pray that when push comes to shove, and it might, that their allegiance will be to the people and not to the corporations who are trying to be their puppet masters.
Notice who's being monitored, arrested, investigated and attacked first?
Students, member of media, supporters of human rights, educators, and those the government considers 'foreigners'.
The number of people arrested who are actually supporting or attempting terrorist acts are shockingly small.
This is what most facist governments do before they establish a police state. It's what they ALWAYS do.
More people need to study up on their history to prevent it from repeating.
This doesn't hold a candle to the powers that were given to the IRS in the new "bailout" bill that just passed.
Wonder which re-education camp I'll be sent to.
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both." Benjamin Franklin We need to tattoo this on the forehead of every President, Vice President, and member of Congress.
Won't help us this time - Palin doesn't read (McCain doesn't count, since his cancer-laden body probably won't be around long).
Wouldn't have helped us last time either - GW doesn't read and is proud of it!
Police State coming soon? Dude, it's been here for a long while. What you want to bet that they consider anybody who visits C&L to be an enemy of the state? turn around is fair play, the justice department is now an enemy of the People.
This decides it for me, I'm joining the ACLU.
Libertas @ 11:
They have more work than they can possibly handle. They are, after all, working in areas where the Congress should be.
Our bought and paid for Congress. The best Congress that money can buy. Of, for and by the Corporations.
You grow up and you calm down
You start wearing blue and brown
Working for the Clampdown
Ah yes, The Clash were timeless (or maybe just ahead of their time).
Yes it has...
This is why people need to heed the cutting edges... even on the right they have been calling this for a long time...
Despotism cares not for Elephants or Donkey's..
Wake up!
Amen!
RayC @ 28:
...How right you are. The dumbing down of our society has officially arrived. They know it and it is all happening right before our eyes. Just shocking. I so look forward to Jesus and his army bringing all these evil fuks to their knees.
Want to know what's really coming our way?
Want to know how bad it's really going to get?
Go read this:
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/20797485/chinas_allseeing_eye...
And, do not expect Obama to make any of this any better.
He will not. Period.
after hearing about the 'obama truth squads' i wouldnt expect him to do anything to curb 'thought crimes'
Ttown @ 39:
Uh, oh...Cue the appropriate sound effect.
HA GITALONG, GITALONG!
As timely now. The world was a better place with Joe Strummer in it.
CLAMPDOWN
What are we gonna do now?
Taking off his turban, they said, is this man a Jew?
’Cos working for the clampdown
They put up a poster saying we earn more than you!
When we're working for the clampdown
We will teach our twisted speech
To the young believers
We will train our blue-eyed men
To be young believers
The judge said five to ten but I say double that again
I'm not working for the clampdown
No man born with a living soul
Can be working for the clampdown
Kick over the wall 'cause government's to fall
How can you refuse it?
Let fury have the hour, anger can be power
D'you know that you can use it?
The voices in your head are calling
Stop wasting your time, there's nothing coming
Only a fool would think someone could save you
The men at the factory are old and cunning
You don't owe nothing, so boy get runnin'
It's the best years of your life they want to steal
But, you grow up and you calm down and
You're working for the clampdown
You start wearing the blue and brown and
You're working for the clampdown
So you got someone to boss around
It makes you feel big now
You drift until you brutalize
You made your first kill now
In these days of evil presidentes
Working for the clampdown
But lately one or two has fully paid their due
For working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown
Yeah I’m working hard in Harrisburg
Working hard in Petersburg
Working for the clampdown
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong
Begging to be melted down
Gitalong, gitalong
Work
Work
And I give away no secrets – ha!
Work
More work
Work
Work
I remember getting SO much flack here last winter/spring for warning everyone that Obama was a farce and that we're headed towards some form of fascism (perhaps not on the level of the Nazis, but fascism nonetheless). Now it looks like Fascism has arrived, and it's going to be BRUTAL and wear a FAKE SMILE as it works. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared at this point.
Rosa Clemente (VP Green Party) warns of the prison industrial complex
Third Party VP Candidates Matt Gonzalez and Rosa Clemente Respond to Biden-Palin Debate
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/10/3/third_p...
FEMA Camp Footage (Concentrations Camps in USA)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P-hvPJPTi4
ICE out of control...
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/9/30/headlin...
Immigration Agents Arrest 1,100 in California
In California, federal immigration agents have arrested more than 1,100 people over the past three weeks in a series of sweeps. It was the largest immigration operation ever carried out by ICE agents in California. One ICE official described the effort as a “big surge.” Immigrant rights advocate Basil Robledo of San Jose said the raids have been traumatizing. He said, "It is a scary situation for folks in the community. People keep their kids home from school. It creates less of a willingness to talk to police. They see ICE agents, and they see a uniformed person, and that blends into all of law enforcement.”
August 19, 2008
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/8/19/35_year...
Cancer-Stricken 34-Year-Old Chinese Computer Engineer Dies After Being Denied Care in Private US Immigration Prison
Earlier this month, a thirty-four-year-old Chinese computer engineer, Hiu Lui Ng, who overstayed his visa, died in a Rhode Island immigration detention center. He had cancer in his liver, lung and bones, and a fractured spine. Despite repeated complaints of severe pain, Mr. Ng was refused independent medical evaluation by immigration officials. Before Mr. Ng died on August 6th, he told his sister that the nurses at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Center in Rhode Island had told him to “stop faking” his illness. We speak to immigration attorney Joshua Bardavid, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Renee Feltz, co-creator of the site BusinessOfDetention.com.
Fema's Coffins for the American People !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=od29Ece8OsE&fe...
The link...
Fema's Coffins for the American People !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=od29Ece8OsE&fe...
..wasn't the video I was thinking of I meant to post this one
Fema coffins for real!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYp85QMJd1Q
The point is, it's not candidate X. It's candidate D(X) or candidate R(X). And the effect of the functions D() and R() are important. And if you don't like D(X), you become part of D() at the primaries. So it becomes D(Y), where Y is progressive. Candidates don't fly out the ass of a giant donkey or elephant. They're normal, capable people who stand for office and get selected. If all you do is bitch about the current candidate or wank over some independent loser, nothing is going to change. I'm all for proportional representation in the House or Senate, where the number of representatives is proportional to the number of votes, so indies stand a real chance. But until that comes along, I(X) = 0 and V(I(X)) = 0 = V(0)
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