Allison Bricker

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – The Republican faithful gathered at the Riverside Hilton hotel in New Orleans for their quadrennial conference SRLC 2010, to discuss election strategies, attend workshops and listen to the Republican party’s s most public figures. Further, the conference’s most highly covered event the straw poll, featured a tie for first place this year between former governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney and Texas Congressional Representative, Ron Paul both receiving 24% of the vote.

Representative Paul who failed to place whatsoever in the previous conference in 2006 and who was widely mocked by the Republican status-quo during the 2008 Presidential campaign is finding an ever-growing audience due to his consistent promotion of Constitutionally limited government as well as his dedication to a humble foreign policy more in line with that of the Founding Generation.

This is Representative Paul’s second straw poll victory having placed first by a wide margin during the CPAC conference held this past February. He credits the growing acceptance of the message to both the explosion in information via the internet and the energetic youth who see that their economic liberty is on the hook thanks to promises made by the federal government regarding Social Security, Medicare, continuing imperial wars, and the new massive health care bill signed into law by President Obama.

Nevertheless, even as Representative Paul and the message of Liberty continue to gain momentum, the old-media as the LibertyMaven points out⁽¹⁾ is none to thrilled and spare no chance to minimize the statesman or the prospect of greater Liberty in our lifetime.

Source(s):⁽¹⁾Liberty Maven ^“Straw Poll Media Bias: Ron Paul vs. Mitt Romney” by: Marc Gallagher, published April 10th, 2010 • MinnesotaChris YouTube Channel

Allison Bricker

It may not be televised but its participants will indeed be educated.

THE REGION, INDIANA – The desire which compels me to write and speak in strong opposition towards the oppressive expansion of the American government, whether under Democrats or Republicans, owes its genesis to the firm imploration by my mom that education does not end upon graduation, and instead must be a continual process throughout the course of one’s life. As it is often said, knowledge is power.

The illuminated truth, motivated by my infatuation with the founding of this Republic, came to me through the worn and sometimes crumbling pages of books, not the endless memorization and standardized testing advocated in government schools.

Unencumbered by whitewashed lesson plans and the sometimes-evident pro-statist bias of my teachers and administrators, the ability for me to sit and soak up the words of those dusty essays, journals, letters, and notes is in my opinion, one of humanity’s greatest accomplishments, id est. the Gutenberg Press.

The proliferation of movable-type in the colonies spurred forth the “Challenge of Ideas”, giving rise to the radical Questioning of the absurd notion that rule over mankind came from divinely appointed kings, queens or parliamentary superiority, the “central planners” of their day. Further, its unique place in our history whereby it aided the distribution of both Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and the Declaration of Independence, cements a fondness in my soul for both it and the enlightened distribution of information.

Unfortunately, the business of news, information, and debate had become increasingly consolidated during the course of the last 100 years. As government intervened into the market via absurd licensure schemes under the guise of promoting “fairness”, “public” ownership of the airwaves et cetera, its endless volumes of regulations succeeded only in raising barriers to entry and creating media oligarchies to the benefit of the state. Government sanctioned soap-boxes have proved mightily their efficient processing and packaging of news and information into simplified talking points, but at what cost?

The result of this corporate protectionist media racket; is to have given rise to the sound bite intellect, thereby imbuing legions of collectives charged with half the facts and all the passionate rhetoric once reserved for a Finney tent revival.

Yet we see throughout history that humanity’s yearning for information is as perpetual as a sunrise. Undiscouraged by the darkness, she eternally dawns over the horizon pushing back the shadows and nefarious K-Street deals that go bump in the night, providing her warmth and illumination to the dual pillars known as the trees of Liberty and Knowledge, which to the utter dismay of the D.C. pull-peddlers shan’t be felled.

Indeed the central authority’s arrogance will lead to its own most necessary undoing. Nevertheless fellow readers, windows do not remain in perpetuum. However, our patient suffering at the hands of the old-media spoon-feeders has in large part been relieved via the propagation of citizen journalists and institutions dedicated to the pursuit of Reason and human Liberty.

How many amongst us gave pause just a decade prior to entertain a contrary view on economics outside the Keynesian philosophy, which dominates the airwaves and halls of academia? Further, what is the rise in percentage of Americans who now know that the FEDERAL RESERVE is a private for-profit bank who charges interest to the government in exchange for loans collateralized by our and our posterity’s wages as opposed to just five years previous?

Whereby even just a decade past many swam in a sea of noise almost exclusively dominated by the 24-hour cable news cycle, perhaps unaware of what questions to even ask, let alone where to look, our present station finds us on the familiar yet long undisturbed grounds of our forbearers.

Americans today are questioning the answers like no time in recent memory. The floodgates of knowledge have burst open providing us the gift of distributed learning via wonderful institutions such as the Mises Foundation, which has its entire catalog available for the taking on iTunes university, free of charge. We the People are gathering under varied banners unified solely by dissatisfaction of government intrusion into all spheres of our lives.

The airwaves are humming with talks of finding Constitutional solutions to the present Crisis, such as the symposium being held by Mike Church in Washington tomorrow to discuss the possibility of a remedy at the hands of an Article V convention.

It makes me smile to know that despite the Central Authority’s best efforts to squeeze out dissent, the tighter they grasp, the more we awaken.

Long Live Liberty and let us raise a glass in celebration of the coming Second Age of Reason.

Allison Bricker

THE REGION, INDIANA – As someone who came to the defense of Dr. Chuck Baldwin upon the release of the MIAC report last year, it is very disheartening to me upon reading his latest post to discover he is nothing more than a charlatan in the vein of Beck, promoting his brand of collectivism under the guise of Liberty. In his latest article, which from the title onward is filled with an over abundant use of logical fallacies and half-baked collectivist rhetoric, he attempts to correlate being queer, a government take-over of health care, and violating immigration law as one in the same, ergo “Guilt by Association”.

How he can resort to such nonsense after he was the victim of such flawed fallacy whereby the Department of Homeland Security via the MIAC sought to place him and his supporters on par with abortion clinic bombers is mind-numbingly depressing.

However, perhaps even more alarming is his dearth of knowledge on that of which he speaks, specifically stating in reference to homosexuality in the military he writes:

“…turning the modern American army…into a hodgepodge of foreigners, gang members, women, homosexuals, and mercenaries. (It worked out so well for Rome!)”

Dr. Chuck Baldwin
Up Next: Open Gays In The Military And Amnesty For Illegals
March 26, 2010

Well Chuck, first it was the Ancient Greeks who advocated open same-sex relationships in the military to boost morale¹ prior to the assimilation in the Roman Republic proper. Perhaps Dr. Baldwin meant that the fall of Rome was due to homosexuals, in which case he would still be wrong as same-sex relations were well tolerated in Rome from prior to the reign of the notoriously flamboyant Caligula around 41 AD right up until the coronation of Theodosius in 380 AD.

Whereby, with Theodosius’ ascent to Emperor, he immediately outlawed the practice of all other religions, except for the Nicene orthodoxy of Christianity, forbid the Olympics, and closed down the Temple of Zeus. Further, he then ordered all Romans to pledge allegiance to the Bishop of Rome, and set about passing decrees restricting same-sex relationships punishable by death.²

Moreover, upon learning that the town of Thessaloniki revolted and assassinated his military governor for refusing to release a queer charioteer who made a pass at the governor, Theodosius ordered immediate retaliation upon the town resulting in the massacre of its 7,000 inhabitants including women and children. Consequently, after the death of Theodosius, Rome fractured never again to be united as one.

Thus, should my line of argument seek to pin the fall of Rome on one “Christian Soldier” type emperor who thought the appropriate retaliation was to murder and enforce religious doctrine by use of the state’s coercive power? Or should the example set by Theodosius taint my views towards all Christians as murderous thugs?

The simple fact of the matter is that Rome fell due to variety of circumstances ranging from perpetual Imperial Conquest, massive government subsidies, destruction of the currency, and the elevation of the “Executive Branch” i.e. the emperor over that of the Roman Senate, not due to the tolerance of one demographic or another.

Nevertheless, Dr. Baldwin then proceeds to attempt to buttress his skewed timeline of history with an appeal to the majority, i.e.:

“I have spoken with hundreds (literally) of active duty and retired frontline soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen, and I can unequivocally say that not one of them supported allowing sodomites to serve openly in the US military–especially in combat units. Not one! And the vast majority of them were also opposed to women serving in combat units.”

Dr. Chuck Baldwin
Up Next: Open Gays In The Military And Amnesty For Illegals
March 26, 2010

Well Chuck that is dandy, but just because a majority views something as proper and correct does not imbue said policy with morality. So using this logic, one could justify the invasion of Iraq, as a majority thought Saddam responsible for the attacks on 9/11. Alternatively, perhaps because the majority at one time thought women should also be prohibited from voting that should still be the case, or that a majority also once opposed integrating the armed services there should still be segregated barracks. Were any of these in hindsight valid reasons for the policy because the majority thought them to be the proper moral course?

Chuck, I am really sorry that possibly you and those who you have spoken with would perhaps prefer to see women barefoot, pregnant in the kitchen doing “women’s work” letting only the strong strapping heterosexual men be the ones killed in unnecessary war, but Chuck, have you ever considered examining another possible reason for lifting the Don’t ask Don’t Tell policy?

Has it ever occurred to the good doctor that perhaps the motivations behind lifting the Don’t Ask Don’t tell policy could be two-fold? While on the surface it appeals to the collectivist LGBT people group as fulfillment of campaign pandering, the actual motivation might just be based on cold calculated mathematical limitations.

That maybe with our military spread throughout the world in various never-ending conflicts, with many now going on their third and fourth deployments that perhaps lifting the ban and letting all who would like to serve helps stave off a more severe method, such as a draft or even longer deployments.

Let us face candid facts Chuck, the military is tired, the men and to your interviewees dismay the women too, are tired, weary of war, weary of being away from their families, and that excluding anyone at this point makes the aforementioned all that much closer to reality.

However, it seems unlikely dear Chuck that you would allow yourself to entertain such a possibility, as it would be counter to your main motivation, ergo your own self-promotion by inflaming divisions via wedge-issue collectivist tactics. With you as the opportunist hoping to seize upon those disaffected in general with politics and small segments of the liberty movement thereby allowing you to form your own little people-group to support your next run for office.

Shame on you, and how dare you sully the Liberty Movement with your self-aggrandizing attempt to link a socialist take over of the health care industry, and breaking the law with being queer.

WTF Chuck. (NSFW)

Source(s): ¹“Homosexuality and Civilization” by Louis Crompton, Harvard University Press, page 69 • ²Elements of General History of Ancient & Modern” by Alexander Fraser Tytler, Oliver and Boyd Press 1872 •

Wire Report

(Wire/LP) – The Liberty movement has been looking for a beacon of truth in the mainstream media to stand up for the Founding Fathers vision of patriotism. At CPAC’s Campaign for Liberty event Thursday night, Ron Paul talked about a young man who came to his office to ask the congressman what it would take to get into politics. Dr. Paul encouraged the young man to consider going into the media business instead.

During an interview with Judge Andrew Napolitano promoting his book “A Nation of Sheep”, he told me we need more wolves in the “fourth branch of government,” spreading the ideas of liberty and that will challenge the dominant progressivism-which sometimes goes by the name “conservatism.” The progressive movement has gradually infiltrated the minds of conservatives, through talk radio and other mediums, and such pundits are truly sheep in wolves clothing.

Enter the Neo-Conservative

Talk host Sean Hannity doesn’t even acknowledge Kentucky Tea Party Republican candidate Rand Paul who was even endorsed by Hannity favorite, Sarah Palin. Rush Limbaugh said of Representative Ron Paul’s CPAC victory, that it “put the brakes on Republican progress.” Mike “holy war” Huckabee, claims of CPAC, “it’s not the event it once was”, and in their agreement, Huckabee and Rush are correct–there were actual conservatives at CPAC this time.

Let’s not forget Debra Medina being treated like a joke by Glenn Beck. Beck obviously doesn’t understand himself, the principles of conservatism he preached to the CPAC audience, concerning “progressivism” and “Wilsonianism”. The blind-leading-the-blind, Beck might want to go back to step-one himself and admit he is himself a disease called “Beckaholism”, a not so rare sickness that consists of part liberty rhetoric, part establishmentarianism, and part progressive interventionism.

Though his schizoid mix is a more dangerous form of the disease, there is hope. Mr. Beck, we invite you to join Neoconservatives Anonymous before going off and embarrassing the rest of us who are actually in recovery from the intellectually debilitating disease of neo-con denial. I am willing to be his sponsor as I am the founder of the program and all are welcome. But remember it’s for those who want it, not for those who need it.

My suggestion to Beck and the rest of the war state ostriches:

1. Take the cotton out of your ears and put it in your confused-about-conservatism mouths.
   
2. Start listening to real wolves in the media beginning with the Mike Church Show.
   

Yes, the Mike Church Show! I recently had the honor of meeting Mike Church at CPAC, a true, modern day Patrick Henry, and someone I believe to be an honest-to-goodness, recovering neoconservative. After he spoke Friday night, a small group had dinner with Mike Church, including his brother, sister-in-law, his producer Andrew Guss, author Tom Mullen, The American Conservative’s Kelly Jane Torrance, Jack Hunter (aka the Southern Avenger”), and we discussed what it was like before and after we woke up from neo-conservatism. Mike Church knows both sides of the real conservative vs. neo-con argument, which easily makes him the most dangerous man on talk radio today. It’s hard to neo-con a recovering neo-con.

Mike Church has been doing talk radio for 18 years and was part of what he calls the “talk show mafia”. Mike has the longest running talk show on Sirius Radio and just a couple of years ago he woke up from neo-conservatism and has been helping wake millions since. Mike discovered noted Liberty movement figures Kevin Gutzman and Tom Woods and organizations like the Ludwig von Mises Institute, which led to his producing a wonderful film about the founders and constitutional government called “The Spirit of 76: The Greatest Story Never Told.”

There are those who do speak for true liberty in the forth branch of government. FOX News Judge Andrew Napolitano with his program “Freedom Watch” and a veteran voice on Sirius satellite radio, the great Mike Church. Before it’s over, I expect there will be many others that will join the Church/Napolitano wolf pack. Who knows, perhaps even the schizophrenic Glenn Beck might come around, finally and fully becoming one of “us”. But chances are by the time that happens-it will be viewed along with the rest of the “talk show mafia” through Mike Church’s rear view mirror.

Kurt Wallace, Editor & Publisher, The Liberty Pulse & The Liberty Pulse Blog

Since hosting Wake Up America, Wallace has interviewed many distinguished guests including Judge Andrew Napolitano, Fox News Commentator and Judicial Analyst; Dr. Murray Sabrin, USA Daily; Thomas E. Woods Mises.org and Peter Schiff, Financial Advisor and a regular contributor to Fox Financial Network and Congressman Ron Paul. As Editor & Publisher of LibertyPulse.com, Mr. Wallace offers the Liberty Movement its own news aggregator service filled with a variety of Liberty oriented news stories and editorials updated constantlyfrom around the web.

Allison Bricker

Essay No. 2

- A Response to My Friend Republicae from “Essays of the Revolution” and fellow member of the DailyPaul.

From my analysis, based upon multiple perspectives of historical research and subsequently merged harmoniously along with principal philosophies from the ‘Age of Enlightenment’ the Republic is not dormant; but was toppled long before the birth of the “lost” or 13th Generation. However make no mistake; the weight is borne with full impact by the 13th and all herein. As such, if we are to realign ourselves within the natural state of human liberty, it shall, as it always has, require a firm conviction by all who profess to favor Liberty to set about righting the glorious path which for so long has been allowed to drift astray.

Therefore, for the purposes of illustration and exchange let me offer a simplified time line of our history from which to begin:

Whilst it is doubtful the beginning of the simplified timeline would cause undue consternation to most, the justification for the transfer from Republic to Populist Democracy through to the present oligarchy will indeed make court historians of the state take umbrage at such an assertion. Therefore, let me make it plain, the timeline results from analysis that with passage of the “Trifecta” in 1913, the Central Authority, i.e. Washington D.C. was unchained from its Federalist restraints of carefully contrived Checks and Balances in its entirety, thus rendering the Republic as nothing more than an impotent sentimentality. Peering further in to the lecherous year of 1913 forebears witness to the key points of the dismantling, which leads us through to the present state of our disheveled Union:

• 16th Amendment (Collateralization of Americans and posterity, Feb. 3, 1913)
• 17th Amendment (Effectively removes states from any role/check on Federal Authority Apr. 8, 1913)
• FEDERAL RESERVE Act (Monopolization of monetary policy into hands of private bankers – Dec. 23, 1913)

All were principal in absolving the ship of state from its Constitutional moorings thereby allowing the Republic to begin listing in the kneejerk speculative inclinations of populist democracy, and thus resulting in a massive growth of central government. As history will illuminate, “democracy”, like the chaos of anarchy, is always a transitional period which results in the creation of a vacuum granting the means for miscreants and tyrants to further centralize power.

Further, with the end of Bretton Woods in 1971 and thus with the transition complete, the Central Banker Oligarchs gained total unchecked power over the nation; let the derivative financial schemes and nationalist neo-patriotism commence.

In conclusion, it is my view that if there is to be a restoration of the Republic in our lifetime we must accomplish the following for a peaceful transition:

1. End the 3rd Central Bank of the United States, i.e. FEDERAL RESERVE.
2. Repudiate Odious Debt created by FEDERAL RESERVE.
3. Repeal Income tax.
4. Restore State Check on the Central Authority’s power and simultaneously reintroduce the people to their representation amongst the several states by repealing the Direct Election of Senators.

May we see the Torch of Liberty Burn all the Brighter.

Your Friend in Liberty,

Allison Bricker

The Smoking Argus

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina offers his belief as to why all individuals considered an Enemy Combatant by the U.S. Government should not be allowed access to U.S. Courts and should be tried solely before a Military Commission. Further Senator Graham dismisses the idea of “natural rights” as put forth by Thomas Jefferson and other philosophers during the “Age of Enlightenment” and instead offers his view that all liberty and/or rights are derived solely by the benevolence of government and as such can only apply to whom the government considers friendly to its agenda. (FULL SYNOPSIS & TRANSCRIPT)

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	GOP Weekly Address Senator Lindsey Graham “No Right to Habeas Corpus for Any and All Persons Classified as “Enemy Combatant”

Source(s): GOPWeeklyAddress youTube Channel

Allison Bricker

“He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance, one cannot fly into flying”. -Friedrich Nietzsche

BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY – On Monday, former Governor of Alaska, and 2008 Republican Vice-Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin endorsed Dr. Rand Paul¹ over his Primary opponent, Secretary of State, Trey Grayson stating:

“I’m proud to support great grass roots candidates like Dr. Paul — While there are issues we disagree on, he and I are both in agreement that it’s time to shake up the status quo in Washington and stand up for common sense ideas.” Sarah Palin Former Governor of Alaska

Recent polling was already showing Rand widening the gap substantially between himself and Grayson² as well as beating every possible Democratic contender in the General Election prior to Sarah the Rogue’s verbal thumbs-up, so it appears to this blogger at least, as more of a calculated political move by the former Governor, than a huge plus for Candidate Paul.

In addition to her official statement endorsing the younger Paul, her political action committee, SarahPAC donated $2,000 to the doctor’s already burgeoning campaign war chest, again mostly thanks to money-bombs from the grassroots and not PAC’s. Her endorsement, in conjunction with recent controversial actions taken by the Campaign for Liberty, the attempted co-opting of the Tea-Party movement by the likes of Dick Armey³ and indeed the questionable platform stances by Rand Paul himself have left many in the Liberty movement, myself included, scratching our heads. It begs the question whether cozying up to establishment figureheads will lead to a watering down of the message, or derail the momentum thus far gained on the road to restoring the Republic.

However, where some see the aforementioned as nails into the coffin of all the progress thus far, upon further contemplation, I see opportunity; opportunity to make strides towards the reclamation of our natural rights formerly unfathomable in the wake of the Bush administration, September 11th, and the status-quo’s brand of neo-patriotism.

Nevertheless, it was very deflating to listen early on to Scott Horton’s interview of Rand Paul over at Anti-War.com⁴. During the interview, the younger Paul espoused believing in the Chief Executive’s right to act unilaterally without a Declaration of War, support for continuing the war in Afghanistan, and the absurd notion of keeping Club Torture, i.e. Guantanamo up and running in lieu of a total and complete shuttering.

Additionally, while continuing to observe Rand’s campaign it seems pedantic to me when he offers, “term limits”, code for lazy democracy, as a way to combat corruption in Washington D.C. As we all know, the 22nd Amendment has done little to spare us of corrupt, disastrous, power-hungry Chief Executives. It has only succeeding in perpetrating the illusion of change with each successive changing of the puppet.

But wait, there is hope; Rand like his statesman father, understands the insidious parasitic relationship of the FEDERAL RESERVE and the U.S. government. This my fellow readers in my opinion is our “golden arrow”; our chance to come face to face with the absolute root which enables the promulgation of its siblings, the FEDERAL RESERVE. The reality that a private cartel of bankers and the cottage supporting industries, i.e. Goldman Sachs have intertwined themselves so tightly into government via currency creation and the endless list of their crony sycophants receiving high level cabinet and department level appointments are the core reason for the current dilapidated condition of our Constitutional Republic, once known as America.

The central banker puppet masters alone through legislation enacted almost a century age, ergo the FEDERAL RESERVE Act, 16th, and 17th Amendments succeeded in delegating ‘We the People’ as collateral to finance their odious debt, corrupted the Senate, and morphed us from Republic to populous democracy, whilst simultaneously bestowing upon themselves monopoly control over the currency.

Moreover fellow readers ask yourself this question, where was your political philosophy and understanding of the issues five, ten, twenty years ago? My sophomore year in high school for example, my mother and myself sat glued to the television watching Tom Brokaw declare Bill Clinton the 42nd President of the United States. Upon Mr. Brokaw’s announcement, I remember turning to my mother and asking, “Things are going to be better now –right?”

Up until the election of William Clinton, the previous Presidents were all ‘evil’ Republicans, save my infancy during the Carter administration, and we were a rust-belt working class “Democrat” family, so surely a Democrat in office would make life peachy. Unfortunately, reality painted a different picture and the election of Clinton was a furthering of my education rather than salvation for working-class families such as my own.

The actions of the Clinton Administration were the catalyst for me to dig beneath the nationalist sugary sweet veneer that was beat into my head throughout my tenure at government school. The nauseating actions undertaken especially by his Attorney General, Janet Reno forever removed my rose-colored glasses and prompted me to purchase my first copy of Thomas Paine’s Rights of Man/Common Sense from a local bookstore.

In addition, contrasted against the largely college-centric movement of the late 1960’s whereby the focus was largely on the dissatisfaction of college-aged anti-war protesters, the Liberty movement is not so one-dimensional.

We are made up of not only the 13th Generation, a generation literally written off in our infancy as “the lost generation”, the roots to the movement run deep and are of a diverse stock. The movement includes not only those of us in our 30’s and 40’s, but we also benefit from the excellent work undertaken at the college level by Young Americans for Liberty, and are blessed with the veteran elders of the movement like Dr. Paul, Lew Rockwell, and Judge Andrew Napolitano, to name just a few.

In addition to spanning generations, my time in the movement has afforded me the opportunity to meet those from every walk of life under the sun; black, white, yellow, red, Christian, atheist, rich, poor, queer, straight, it matters not. The liberty movement redefines “big-tent” simply as American, people-group be damned.

So please ask yourself the last time you can remember something that freely unified such a wide swath spanning generations, race, and class. Liberty, my fellow readers is a most glorious unifier like no other. Thus, this is why we shake the puppet masters to their core. Fear not the endorsement of “Sarah the Rogue”.

As such, as we all continue to learn and expand our understanding; we must make room for this to apply to individuals like Sarah Palin as well, and seize the opportunity to begin a dialog with her and her supporters about the insidious nature of Central Banking, true Constitutionally limited government, and the doctrine of just, not preemptive war.

The Kentucky Senate race is likely to be watched closely both to gauge the threat to the establishment’s entrenched power via the inclusion of a Paul in the Senate and to see if Democrats could steal the seat currently held by Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) who announced his retirement last year. Let us seize the opportunity before us to spread the warm glow of the Sunshine of Liberty through educating and conversing with others on the principles of natural rights and the dangers of Central Banking.

Our posterity and our Republic deserve no less and the opportunity before us has never before in my lifetime been so self-evident.

Source(s): ¹Rand Paul U.S. Senate Campaign Website “Sarah Palin Endorses” by David Adams 02/01/2010 • ²Public Policy Polling “Paul Takes Big Lead in GOP Primary” 12/22/2009 • ³ Huffington Post “Operation Steele/Armey: GOP/Tea party Co Opt Each Other” by Alex Brant-Zawadzki published: December 17, 2009 • ⁴Scott Horton Interviews Rand Paul May 17, 2009 •

Tarrin Lupo

Liberty activist Kurt Hoffman was sentenced to 6 months in jail after Keene District Court Justice Edward Burke cited Mr. him for contempt. More specifically, Mr. Hoffman demanded that the Justice Burke at least say ‘please’ in lieu of commanding individuals rise upon his entrance to the court. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Hoffman was removed from the courtroom and assaulted by officer Eli Rivera behind closed doors. Liberty activists then proceed to hold a candle light vigil in front of Eli Rivera’s home, enraging the officer further.

In addition, there are several reports that since the initial assault, Mr. Hoffman’s conditioned has continue to worsen. As such, please consider bidding on my handcrafted liberty necklace featuring a Free State porcupine on one side and the Gadsden rattlesnake on the obverse. All proceeds will be donated to Mr. Hoffman’s family who are now without his income.

Source(s): Ridley Report • LCL Report

Allison Bricker

The “Change We Can Believe In” sure keeps looking like more of the same.

EDITORIAL – In the aftermath of the September 11th Attacks, the United States Congress hurriedly passed, without reading, and the President signed, the three hundred and forty-two page behemoth known as the USA PATRIOT ACT. Thereby legislatively gutting any remnant of our inherent right to privacy as outlined in the fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Politicians, such as Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) sought to calm the fears of civil libertarians by attaching a ‘sunset’ clause so as to require the act’s repeal unless extended by the congress.

Provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act first came up for review in 2005, a time in which the great color-guide of terror still readily flashed across television screens helping to keep the specter of terrorism at the forefront of the American psyche. Thus with the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq entering their fourth and second years respectively, coupled with the security provided by term-limits, the 43rd Executive, George W. Bush, upped the paranoia level with forecasts of bad ‘gut’ feelings and propagandized news headlines in order to further secure the central authority’s new “legalized” tools of tyranny.

At the conclusion of the tireless fear mongering, the USA PATRIOT Act’s sunset portion was extended until December of this year. Thus, with the act set to expire yet again, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, who originally sought to counter worries over the act, opted to author S. 1629 the “USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009”, thereby pushing any hope of legitimate legislative relief out past 2013, conveniently also just beyond the 44th Executive, Barrack Obama’s reelection bid.

In addition, it is possible that the Congress may opt to deflect additional criticisms in whole by resorting to one of the most tired political maneuvers on the hill, renaming the PATRIOT Act entirely. One proposed alternative; “The JUSTICE Act”, extending even further a truly demented sense of irony embraced exclusively by the plutocratic oligarchs who delight in seemingly sex-like gratification by exerting control over the lives of others.

S. 1629 seeks to extend some of the most controversial of the act’s powers, among which are domestic warrantless wiretapping in conjunction with ‘National Security Letters’. The latter provides the ability to snoop through an individual’s home, bank, medical, and/or telephone records, ergo LIFE, without probable cause, notice, or permission. Once again, like ‘political manna from heaven’ old-media evening news headlines flash and proclaim the latest terrorist arrests, coincidentally providing a national pedestal for police-state plutocrats of ‘either’ party to claim a necessity in curtailing Constitutional restraints on the federal government in favor of catching vaguely defined ‘evildoers’.

More so, the reality of the matter is that with all the ballyhoo of “needing” these essential “tools” in order to win the ‘War on Terror’, the USA PATRIOT ACT has yielded few legitimate results. To the contrary, the powers granted to the Central Authority’s varied intelligence/police apparatuses have largely resulted in repeated and continued abuses of power.

Of the several hundred “sneak and peak” warrants executed under power decreed from the USA PATRIOT Act, only three were related at all to terrorism. The majority were used in investigations of illegal narcotics, to which, Assistant Attorney General David Kris, flippantly replied during testimony:

“I guess it’s not surprising to me that it applies in drug cases.”

David Kris
Assistant Attorney General
Department of Justice

Fellow readers, it is very alarming indeed that a piece of legislation sold and hence foisted upon us out of necessity in ‘combating terrorism’ elicits no surprise in its misapplication and utter violation of inherent liberties. Are we to now believe that the “War on Drugs” and “War on Terror” are one in the same; liberty be damned across the board?

This is just the latest example of the audacious and contemptuous behavior displayed by the wretches who clutch the reins of power. A power, which as expected and as we were warned, has like a cancer, spread throughout the seats of our government, and the American Republic.

Moreover, for those whom profess to cherish liberty, it must surely incite nausea to realize that many who were apprehended and branded as “persons of interest” or “terrorists” were quietly let go after the Central Authority failed to find any evidence of criminal activity; terrorism, drugs, or otherwise. Nevertheless, lives and reputations ruined wholly by mere suspicion/retribution by the state, i.e. Terrorism Theater.

It should also be noted that some of the innocent and unfortunate souls who fell victim to these wanton abuses of power were released with far less fanfare than the fist pumping “chicken-hawk”, tough on terror machismo displayed upon their capture. The ruined reputations viewed merely as “collateral damage” by a Central Authority who used the fallacious arrests like pawns in a chess match solely as a means to retain their pornographic lust of power over the common person.

It is most aptly apparent, that the representatives who inhabit the halls of our American government have failed to listen to our repeated injuries endured under such a repugnant “Act”. Let fall on deaf ear, our disdain over banker and auto manufacturer bailouts, continued torture through “Executive Order” vis-à-vis Rendition, and health care.

Instead, the banker beholden plutocrats attempt to label ‘We the People’ and our dissent as “un-American”, “Nazi”, “racist”. Let it be known that they shall disregard Liberty’s demands to repeal in its entirety, the USA PATRIOT Act at their own peril.

It may yet take actual Patriots to show these tyrants how to Act appropriately.

#DToM

Related Material(s)
	USA PATRIOT ACT, 2001 H.R. 3162 / P.L. 107-56 (PDF 377Kb) S.1692 – USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009 (PDF 239Kb)

Allison Bricker

The Smoking Argus Daily has written previously on faux liberty talking head Glenn Beck after he attempted to link supporters of Dr. Ron Paul to “Domestic Terrorists” and after he inferred a link between the Liberty Movement and white supremacist James von Brunn, the unhinged lunatic who went on a shooting spree in the holocaust museum. It most certainly seems like a long shot for a man who shamelessly admits he does not check his facts prior to airing a story and blatantly fabricates entire segments in order to forward his agenda.

Nevertheless, some feel his crocodile tears are proof positive that he has seen the sunshine of liberty and is thus leaving his war mongering, torture apologist, PATRIOT Act loving, neoconservative days in the dustbin of history right next to the bottle of Absolut Vodka.

To them we say wake up and smell the coffee: