Robert Reich: Why the CONSTITUTION prevents Trump from running for high office in 2024, and much more

 This might be arguable, but it makes perfect sense to me; and for any new readers here, I'm not a Republican or a Democrat.  I must admit, though, I believe Trump is not only incompetent for high office, but dangerous as well.  In my opinion, he's the worst President we've had in my lifetime, and I'm eighty years old.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5ffe7MYSo8

Of course, we must keep in mind that about half the time our elected officials in the Fed Gov't ignore the Constitution, and do whatever is expedient in various situations.  If you don't think so, consider the following.  A few Laws passed by Congress clearly violate the Fourth Amendment.  FISA and the FISA Court violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments.  The PATRIOT Act violates the Fourth Amendment.  In addition, the NSA - created by President Harry Truman, but not revealed to the Public until 1975 - absolutely violates the Fourth Amendment.  Many legal scholars agree with all the above.  So does the ACLU.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBbELqqSyek

How can this be in the "Land of the Free"?  How are these violations permitted by We the People?  I think it's due to poor education, Establishment propaganda, and distractions via the Rat Race and "bread & circuses".  We the People have lost our vigilance because we're under-educated, over-propagandized, and too busy to notice the erosion of our freedom.  AND/OR - we've become apathetic because we don't believe anything can be done about the decades-long coup by the Corporatocracy.

Surely it's not that last item above.  People are waking up.  Worldviews are changing.  Peaceful change is underway in many areas.  Not much is coming from the Top down, so communities are making changes from the grassroots up.  Those changes are in agriculture, in employment, in consumption, in politics, in resilience, in ethics, and in lifestyles.  Because of all that, Oligarchs/Plutocrats seem to be a little more worried lately.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbbgfnpJN9w

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

We're Voluntarily Heading to the Brave New World

Below is my response to a forwarded, satirical email from a dear friend.  In that piece of satire, a caller is ordering a pizza from what turns out to be "Google Pizza" instead of "Gordon's Pizza" .  As the conversation proceeds, the customer is amazed to discover that the business knows the caller's pizza-ordering history, medical history, finances, etc., etc.  The header of the forwarded email is:
"This could be where things are heading.

                                                                      .... Partially there now?"

My response has been edited for this venue...in particular, the last four paragraphs have been added.

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We're probably HALFWAY (or more) there already.  Plus, people who have this small electronic tower (I think one is called Alexa, or something) in their homes that they request things of, and that listens to the household even when it's turned off, are flat-out crazy...or maybe merely not thinking clearly.  

Employees at some company recently agreed to have electronic chips embedded in their hands (or maybe some other part of the body...can't remember).  There certainly are some advantages to having "chipped" humans (e.g., opening restricted doors, finding lost kids, kidnapped people, etc,), but the dangers far outweigh the benefits. Imagine what an errant gov't or company could do with such tools.

How people cannot see the danger of these things is completely beyond me.  We seem to be voluntarily heading into the Brave New World.  All because these gizmos supposedly make life "easier" & "more convenient".  The whole thing is just plain nuts... chips in humans, SMART HVAC systems, SMART household appliances, SMART cars, SMART anything, including---Hello--- SMART phones.  They're all hackable, by individuals or by institutions public and private.  Privacy not only is at risk, but privacy also is starting to be treated as some sort of anti-social sin.  The former is bad enough, but the latter is even more dangerous.

The Corporatists---the Powers-That-Be---want to eliminate privacy as much as humanly possible.  They appear to believe that's a very good thing.  As a corollary, it seems they want people who seek solitude to be thought of as anti-social (in a harmful way), off-kilter, perhaps even mentally ill or dangerous.  The Corporatocracy is working toward having us all in a closely-watched herd, or a series of such herds...because herds are easier to manage than free-thinking individuals.  In a still relatively free society such as ours, the Powers-That-Be can't rely on massive brute force to control us, so instead, they use Edward Bernays style Propaganda--- molding the public mind--- and maximum surveillance.  History shows those have been very effective.

All the above must be peacefully resisted if we are to retain any semblance of freedom.  Protect your privacy as much as possible.  Avoid "tracking" of your activities whenever possible.  Speak up against the War on Cash (the War on Un-tracked Transactions).  Avoid surveillance whenever possible.  Gov't AND Big Biz have no business whatsoever in tracking our activities unless we are suspects in a crime.  But they have adopted the attitude that everyone should be tracked and/or surveilled.  That's a direct violation of the Fourth Amendment.  According to the Fourth, the people are to be "secure in their persons, houses, PAPERS and EFFECTS" (emphasis added) unless there's "probable cause" and a properly obtained, specific, and signed Warrant.  The NSA hasn't observed that in decades...and the Big Boys in the Telecom Industry have assisted the NSA in constantly recording our emails & phone calls...1.5 billion emails per day are recorded in the USA.  The Snowden documents revealed that the NSA has a program (can't recall the name of it) the goal of which is to record "everyone, everywhere".

At times, a few "Conservatives" have said to me, "If you're not doing anything illegal, why should you care?  What do you have to hide?"  Are you kidding me?  1. What the NSA is doing in that regard is unconstitutional, and thus illegal.  2. No one needs to justify wanting & protecting privacy...it's a Natural Right.  3. There's a definite danger in relinquishing your privacy; the info obtained easily can be used against anyone who is a critic of the Gov't (or some Mega Company), especially by any rogue element within the Gov't (or Corporation)...and you would most likely never know who did the deed that ruined your life.  And all that could happen to individuals who never broke the Law.

Do I really have to remind everyone of McCarthyism?  Why in the world do you think the Fourth Amendment was created...perhaps to protect you from an errant Gov't?  Hello.  It slays me that "Conservatives" rail against "Big Government", and yet for the most part, fully support the massive NSA---many, many times larger than the CIA---and its illegal, unconstitutional activities (I'm not saying all their activities are such).  Do you support the Constitution, or not?  You can't have it both ways and still be ethically consistent...or even make any common sense.
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Not only my opinion.  Happy Trails

The Consummate Liar Strikes Again

Obama's lies have become so blatant that even a person who is totally apathetic and ignorant of politics must be able to detect them... at least, I would think so.  Following are just a few of his latest attempts at deception.  Feel free to laugh, cry, or sigh... or cuss.

1.  Regarding the Obama-Osama story, the Administration claims there are too many assertions by Hersh to respond to any of them.  What a cop-out.  So much for accountability.  Obama, through spokesmen, claims the whole Hersh story is false; we are supposed to simply accept their word.  Personally, given the President's record, I would believe Sy Hersh over Barack Obama any day of the century.

2.  Regarding his support for the TPP---
Obama claims he fought hard for banking regulations after the 2008 Crisis, so "Why would I sign something that rolls back those protections?".  His implication is that parts of the TPP do not roll back protections against crooked mega bankers.  That's a bald-faced lie.  In addition, the regulations he supported back when were nothing but window-dressing.  Finally, he signed the fairly recent omnibus spending bill that included an Amendment written by Citi-Group lobbyists which did roll back the paltry protections of Dodd-Frank.  Obama must believe that we have the shortest memories in the history of Humanity... or, he simply doesn't give a damn about what we think... or???

3.  Obama continues to claim that NSA dragnet, bulk collection of our records (phone, email, other internet use, credit cards) is legal.  Just the other day, a Fed Appeals Court vigorously disagreed and called the bulk collection "unprecedented and unwarranted".  The Court went on to say that the Executive Branch doesn't even pretend that such collection is related to any "specific, defined inquiry".  All that makes the whole business a blatant violation of the Fourth Amendment.  Given his Constitutional Law education, Obama must know that.

4.  Obama lies by omission.  Not long ago, he stated that "No one is listening to your phone calls.".  He left out this:  one of the Snowden documents revealed that calls are being recorded automatically, and that the NSA has the technology to enable a key-word search and then generate a transcript of the conversation.  All of this is done by high-speed computers because of the billions of calls involved.  So, the end result is the same as if someone were listening to your calls.  Even if there were no key-word searches or transcripts, simply recording the numbers of whom we call (without a specific reason or specific warrant to do so) is plainly unconstitutional.  Read the Fourth Amendment:  the word "effects" surely includes our records.  Obama must know that.
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Yes, other Presidents have lied and violated the Constitution.  That's no legitimate excuse for the current President to do the same.  Democrats and Republicans (at the highest levels) both appear to believe that the U.S. Constitution is a Menu... just pick out what you like and discard the rest.  These same Democrats and Republicans appear to believe in Legislative Absolutism, a term coined by a Supreme Court Justice, Harlan, in 1901.  The term means passing laws that violate the Supreme Law of the Land... such as the misnamed PATRIOT Act.  This will all continue until We the People peacefully put a stop to it.

Not just my opinion.  Happy Trails

The Obama Administration Violates the First Amendment

In an earlier post, I related the story of Frontline's piece, "The United States of Secrets"... truly a MUST-SEE film for anyone who loves Liberty.  This past Sunday, 60 Minutes essentially re-told a portion of that same piece in a story entitled, "The War on Leaks".  It involves the current case of the NYT reporter, James Risen... a genuine American hero.  Risen, as well as Tom Drake and others (independently), revealed the illegal and unconstitutional spying-on-Americans scheme of the NSA.  In both films, Bush-Obama-Hayden are revealed as the propagandists, deceivers, and violators of the First Amendment that rival anyone in recent memory.  [Hayden is the guy who, at the behest of Dick Cheney, came up with a plan to spy on Americans that exceeded the Executive's authority.  They knew it was illegal, but didn't care.]

Relative to all this, here's how the highest levels of an Outlaw Fed Gov't operate:  they concoct and execute a completely unconstitutional, secret plan to spy---without proper warrants---on citizens of their own country, and then, when the scheme is exposed, they criminalize & prosecute the whistleblowers.  They make it illegal to expose the illegality of the Govt's actions.  Perfect...for them.  On top of that, We the People have to endure the wishy-washy, sleazy, weak-minded propaganda "justifying" it all... put out by the puppets of the Oligarchy.  Michael Hayden, former Head Honcho of the CIA & the NSA, is the worst example.  On second thought, Barack Obama may be the worst example... he has pursued and prosecuted more whistleblowers than all other Presidents combined.  That's according to 60 Minutes.  This is the guy who said he would protect whistleblowers.  [When Obama starts talking, about 50% of the time he's lying... and if you look carefully, you can see it in his eyes.]  Dubya Bush started the case involving James Risen, and Obama is pursuing it vigorously.  The propaganda from both Bush & Obama surpasses that even of Richard Nixon or Bill Clinton.

A Free Press is (or should be) inviolate in this country.  It really is our primary protection from corruption in government and loss of freedom.  Unfortunately, our present Fed Executive---like the one immediately before him---is waging an unprecedented war on journalism.  The case against James Risen is a prime example of that, as was the pursuance of Tom Drake.

I suspect that some people , perhaps many, feel there's nothing we can do about any of this.  That's simply not true.  It's not a question of "can we", it's one of "will we".  Though we live in a soft Fascist State, we still have considerable freedoms; plus, even in a dictatorship, public opinion matters.

The solution will not be found in "voting".  It should be obvious by now that these politicians essentially are all the same; they are selected, groomed, and financed by the Oligarchy.  Obama is a prime example.  [The very, very few who aren't puppets quickly are demonized and/or marginalized and/or eliminated by the Political Machine & the Corporate Media.]  No, "voting" is not the answer; it might be someday, but not now.  Ballot-access laws (among others) will have to be changed first... an almost impossible task.  Peaceful, nonviolent expression and/or protest and/or boycott is the way to have an impact.

As Henry David Thoreau wrote, "Let your life be a counter-friction to the Machine.".  That can be done in many ways, not just by marching in the streets.  It can be done individually or in groups organized around just causes... or both.  It can be done by speaking up (and out) in encounters with Institutionalists, in conversations with anyone, in Art (including Street Art), in music, in boycotts, in writing... in all kinds of peaceful actions.  Use your imagination.  When the Pulse of the People is overwhelming enough, even Oligarchs pay attention.

Not just my opinion.  Be Well

The Institutionalists vs. the Insurrectionists, RE: Edward Snowden

Both John Kerry and Hillary Clinton have suggested that Edward Snowden should return to the U.S. and face trial.  That brings to mind the current, worldwide philosophical (and practical) clash between the Institutionalists and the Insurrectionists.  Institutions, or the Establishment in general, ostensibly exist to serve the People in various ways; that's their purpose.  The Oligarchs who run Institutions often sincerely believe in the goodness of that function... until the Institution is exposed in some wrongdoing or another... until the end supposedly justifies foul means.  Then everything changes.  The Oligarchs hunker down and do everything possible (legal or not) to protect the Institution; to hell with the People, or Justice, or due process.

I would think that most people know that if Snowden did return, he never would receive a fair and just trial.  Here's why---

1.  In all likelihood, he would be held incommunicado.
2.  Evidence would be suppressed.  The Gov't would claim "State Secrets", "National Security", "Executive Privilege", etc., ad nauseum.
3.  The Judge, or perhaps Tribunal, would allow nothing to surface that didn't relate to the 1917 Espionage Act.  In other words, the Govt's many, many, many wrongdoings and violations of the Constitution would be deemed "not pertinent to this case" or "not relevant".
4.  Jury nullification would not be allowed.

The tragic irony in the Snowden affair is that Obama, when first running for President, publicly claimed that his Administration would protect whistleblowers... that they were good for government.  As soon as he was elected, he continued the case against Tom Drake (an NSA whistleblower)... a case first brought to trial by Alberto Gonzales under Dubya Bush.  As the Australian socialist, journalist, and documentarian John Pilger once stated, "Brand Obama...and it's all fake.".

I'm fairly sure that Oligarchies around the world are beginning to worry because nonviolent Insurrectionists courageously are exposing the gross wrongdoings of various Institutions.  Just as importantly, the People no longer are buying the Propaganda put out against patriotic, peaceful whistleblowers.  Notice, however, that those at the highest levels in any Oligarchy continue on no matter how illegal, unjust, and unethical their exposed actions are shown to be.  They accuse the whistleblower or journalist of being a criminal, and then claim that the Institution will "reform" its wrongful ways.  Distract, distract, distract.  All of that means it will take a long, sustained effort to really reform any corrupt Establishment.

Kudos to Daniel Ellsberg, John Perkins, John Pilger, Matt Taibbi, Jeremy Scahill, Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, Julian Assange, Sarah Harrison, Edward Snowden, Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning, Tom Drake, and many, many others for the great personal costs they have paid in order to help bring Outlaw Gov'ts into the light.  Exposing rogue Institutions is a very risky business.  Very little is more patriotic.  We the People should support the peaceful Insurrectionists to the hilt.

Be Well

Part II: The Bush-Obama Doctrines

PREFACE
These blog pieces should not in any way, shape, or form be viewed as "anti-American".  The principles of We the People in the USA have not been represented by the Fed Gov't for decades.  I'm talking about the principles of freedom, Free Market Capitalism, fairness, and justice.  Our Gov't has been co-opted by a fairly disorganized (but nevertheless effective) Oligarchy whose members don't believe in any of those things.  That has been going on for a very long time.  The dissidents in America are far more patriotic than the Oligarchs can ever hope to be or care to be.

Now, on to the Bush-Obama Doctrines, Part II.  [Many other Democrat and Republican Administrations could be included, but for clarity I'll stick with only those two.]

1.  Dictators around the world should be opposed... unless, of course, they march to the tune of the U.S. Fed Gov't.  Then they should be supported.  [Example:  the Feds fairly recently gave the military dictatorship of Egypt 1.5 BILLION dollars in aid.  This is the same dictatorship that conducts court trials of hundreds of dissidents at once; each trial lasts about 30 minutes.  This is the same dictatorship that overthrew a democratically elected government.  Previous to all that, the Bush Administration gave similar amounts of aid to the Gov't of the dictator Mubarak.]

2.  Continue to inundate the People with Edward Bernays style propaganda.  [Examples:  lies about NSA surveillance; lies about the health of our economy; lies about Oligarchs "creating jobs"; lies about the power of the Office of President; lies about the role of the U.S. in world affairs; lies about mega banks; lies about conflict of interest in DC;  lies about so-called "Free Trade" Agreements; and many other items too numerous to list.]

3.  Tell the People whatever you think it is that they want to hear... even if it's untrue, or utter nonsense.  [Examples:  "Saddam is linked to Al Qaida"; "Our troops will be out of Afghanistan by 2014"... a bit later--- "Our troops will be out of Afghanistan by 2016"; "This is not anything like our involvement in Vietnam"; "We will assure the People of Iraq and Afghanistan the right of free choice"; "They hate us for our Freedom"; "We're fighting them there so we don't have to fight them here"; "Our economy will collapse if we don't do this"; "Congress has NSA oversight"; "All NSA surveillance is authorized by a court...it's all legal and Constitutional" (no mention that it's the kangaroo, rubber-stamp FISA "court"... a secret court... and no explanation of exactly HOW/WHY it's Constitutional... because it isn't.); etc., etc., ad nauseum.]

4.  Originate (Bush) and continue (Obama) the concept of the Unitary Presidency... an absurd, false principle concocted primarily by John Yoo, former Counsel to Dubya.  It's basic premise is that the Office of President legally can bypass Congress, the Courts, or anybody when undertaking actions previously denied by our system of Checks and Balances in government.  [Google:  Unitary Presidency.]  The result has been to convert the Office of President into that of a virtual King.

5.  Prosecute war criminals and terrorists... unless, of course, those same people are in the U.S. Fed Gov't.  [Richard Clarke, former Counterterrorism "Czar" under Clinton, and for a short time under Bush, has stated publicly that he believes some of the actions of Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld measure up to "war crimes".  Noam Chomsky--- political dissident, political analyst, Professor Emeritus of M.I.T.--- has stated publicly that he believes the invasion of Iraq was in itself a war crime.  Other prominent people in the world believe the same thing.  I would ask this:  did Iraq, a country that did not threaten or attack the U.S., and also a country that we supplied arms to in the '80s (including chemical weapons), have sovereignty in 2003 or not?  Yes, Saddam was a brutal ruler; however, that has absolutely nothing to do with the Constitutionally permitted use of our military.  Nothing at all.  That war was completely unconstitutional.  It was an exercise in NeoImperialism & Big Bullyism perpetrated by a President and supported by Senator Obama who both are puppets of the mega corporation Oligarchy.  The Feds even provided tutorial conferences (relative to the war) for mega corporations, showing them how to belly-up to the Federal Money Trough, the Fed Gravy Train.]

6.  Sign International Agreements relating to war crimes and terrorism... but exempt the USA's Gov't from being subject to any prosecution under their provisions.  [That has been going on for decades.  The Fed Gov't always has self-immunized itself from any such prosecution.  That is understandable to some degree... until the Feds (as they often do) chastise some country or another for violating "International Law"... the Law to which the Feds are not subject... by their own insistence.  That is completely bizarre.]

Out of time.

Be Well

John Kerry Should "Man Up"

Very recently, John Kerry stated publicly that Edward Snowden should "man up", come back to the U.S., and face the charges against him.  I doubt it, but perhaps Secretary Kerry is unaware of the common knowledge that the U.S. Fed Gov't Justice System is almost completely broken.  It's overwhelmed, often corrupt, often vicious and unfair, and just about totally political.  It has very little to do with justice.  Furthermore, Mr. Kerry, making such a statement as a representative of the highest levels of our Gov't, displays the height of hypocrisy.

I suggest that Secretary Kerry man up and admit the following.
1.  The mass surveillance "Program" of the NSA not only violates the Constitution, but also any concept of common decency.
2.  "The Program" of the NSA is used for non-terrorist related activities, such as monitoring economic meetings of our allies.
3.  The so-called "FISA Court" is a travesty.  It's nothing but a rubber stamp for an out-of-control Executive Branch...no matter who is in the Oval Office.
4.  No law in this country supercedes the U.S. Constitution.  Politicians, including Mr. Kerry, need to cease citing the War Powers Act, FISA, the so-called PATRIOT Act, the NDAA, etc. as justifications for blatantly unconstitutional actions by the Feds.
5.  The political Game in the USA is completely rigged.
6.  The Fed Gov't has little to no interest in helping to bring about Peace in the Middle East.  [I covered the reasons why in a previous post.]
7.  The invasion of Iraq was perhaps the greatest war crime in recent history.  At the very least, it was utterly unconstitutional.  Anyone who can read and has an I.Q. of at least 100 knows that.
8.  Recently released Snowden documents reveal that the NSA trained operatives to "collect it all"--- all the digital data it could get on as many people as possible...terrorist suspect or not.
9.  At the highest levels, representatives of our Fed Gov't work for the Oligarchy, and it's NOT a "conspiracy"...it's right out in plain sight.
10.  No matter who is in office, the Executive Branch (as well as Congress) protects mega bankers from criminal prosecution.
11.  Obama's recent pronouncement at West Point that the U.S. Gov't will now "act unilaterally" when it sees fit most likely will result in future violations of International Law.  [This is somewhat akin to the Bush-Cheney-John Yoo-Wolfowitz concept of a "Unitary Presidency"...except that this is much worse.]
12.  No matter who is in office, Edward Bernays style Propaganda is used by the highest levels of the Fed Gov't to mold the public mind.
And finally, the Oligarchy---including its wholly owned subsidiary, the Fed Gov't---is beginning to worry because We the People often no longer buy into their load of crap.  People not corrupted by politics are beginning to organize around just causes and to peacefully resist the propaganda and soft despotism of the central government.

If anyone should man up, Mr. Kerry, it is you.

Partly just my opinion.  Happy Trails

The Deceivers Bush & Obama, and an American Patriot, Tom Drake

The primary source for this essay is the current piece on PBS Frontline titled, "The United States of Secrets".  It's the best, most detailed rendition that I've seen of how-why-where-when the Fed Gov't launched (via the NSA) its unconstitutional (& thus illegal), warrantless program of mass surveillance of Americans.  It also includes many interview clips with several people formerly in the Gov't who attempted to expose what the NSA called "The Program".  They tried first through proper Gov't channels, and when they were ignored, one of them became a whistleblower.  That was Tom Drake.

Mr. Drake was a dedicated NSA senior executive.  So was Mr. Edward Loomis... and there were some others... William Binney, J. Kirk Wiebe, etc.  They were appalled at what the Fed Gov't was undertaking.  Before getting into that, though, let's back up a bit.

The Program was conceived immediately after 9-11.  Michael Hayden, the Head of the NSA, was told by Bush-Cheney to come up with a Program to prevent another 9-11 attack.  Essentially he also was told to include tools that currently were not allowed by the Constitution or various Statutes.  He set to work doing exactly that.  It turns out that there was a program in existence prior to 9-11 that could monitor just about anyone..."ThinThread".  It had automatic, electronic"privacy protections" for American citizens.  The NSA stripped out those protections, thus ensuring that when The Program eventually was used, it violated the Fourth Amendment.  The justification by various Executive Branch, political appointee, puppet lawyers for its use was the Article 2 (of the Constitution) phrase, "Commander-in-Chief".  [Luckily, not being an attorney, I have some common sense and realize that the phrase cited does not negate other parts of the Constitution.  I think most non-puppet people know the same thing.]  By the summer of 2002, The Program was in full swing... doing something that never before had been allowed--- surveilling (without a proper warrant) American citizens, our phone calls, emails, financial transactions, credit card use, etc.  Literally TRILLIONS of individual bits of data.

Drake and the others were kept out of the secret loop at the NSA regarding The Program, but eventually it was leaked to them that their ThinThread Program had been altered and was being used in an illegal manner.  In addition, the major phone companies in the USA were turning over customer phone call records to the NSA.  Apparently, these words from the Fourth Amendment are not understood by the Executive Branch:  "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, PAPERS, and EFFECTS..." (emphasis added).  [In actual fact, I believe those words are understood by the Feds; they had/have another agenda--- expansion of Power in the U.S. World Domination Game, what Brzezinski once called "American Primacy and its Geostrategic Imperatives".  From their perspective, 9-11 was a fortuitous excuse to run amok.]

Bill Binney, getting nowhere in the NSA with his concerns met with Diane Ruark, a top Congressional Staffer with 17 years of experience in the Intelligence field.  A "Conservative" Republican, Ruark nonetheless was extremely concerned that the NSA had "gone rogue".  She launched a campaign to inform Congress.  Of course, by then it was too late--- the White House already had brought Congress on board.  Oversight of the NSA was basically dead.  Porter Goss was Ruark's boss; he sent her to Michael Hayden, NSA Head.  He basically evaded her questions, but in a politically incorrect manner, she persisted.  Finally he essentially told her to mind her own business because he had authority for The Program from the highest level (the "Commander-in-Chief").  Keep in mind that she was on the Congressional Committee for Intelligence OVERSIGHT.  Checks and Balances in our Gov't, for all intents and purposes, were gone.

A few attorneys in the Executive Branch opposed The Program due to its unconstitutionality.  They basically were thrown under the bus, so to speak.  The Program grew, despite the fact that the Justice Dept. determined part of it to be illegal.  Because I don't have the time for all the essential details, I highly recommend that people watch the Frontline piece.  It is a feature-length film, but fascinating and well worth the watch.

Eventually, some knowledge of The Program reached the public.  Bush and Hayden were pretty much forced to say something publicly.  Both were deceitful; only a tiny part of the operation was justified... the part dealing with specific terrorist suspects.  The public was propagandized.  Bush eventually lied about warrantless surveillance of innocent Americans by an agency forbidden to spy on Americans.  A couple of dissidents in the Gov't attempted to get the story published in the New York Times.  Despite what the Right Wing in the USA thinks, the Times often kow-tows to the Feds.  They did.

A year later, a reporter essentially forced (see the film) the Times to reconsider.  Bush and Hayden tried to intervene; they were unsuccessful.  The story was published in December, 2005.  It "shocked the world", according to one commentator.  Bush again went public and again was deceitful about The Program; nothing was said about monitoring trillions of emails, phone calls, etc.  Hayden lied, saying, "Not a single employee of the NSA has expressed any concerns about...blah-blah-blah.".  [Hayden is known as a masterful propagandist... evasive, deceitful, and totally loyal to the Institution.]

Enter Tom Drake.  After four years of exhausting all in-house means of expressing concern, he contacted The Baltimore Sun and blew the whistle...anonymously.  All the documents he used were UNCLASSIFIED.  USA Today published another leak from a different whistleblower.  The Times came out with another story.  Cheney went crazy, that is, crazier than his usual.  He was determined to stop the leakers (of unclassified info).   A massive manhunt was launched by the FBI and it was led by Alberto Gonzales, former White House Counsel and then currently the Attorney General.  Long story short, the FBI raided the homes of several people (Binney, Wiebe, Ruark, Loomis, etc., pretty much destroying their careers), but found nothing.  They finally, six months later, got around to the home of Tom Drake.  They seized a trove of UNCLASSIFIED documents, and he was charged under the Espionage Act.  He faced possibly life in prison... for exposing Gov't unlawfulness.  The seized documents were altered... "unclassified" was crossed out and they were marked "secret".

As the investigation proceeded, the Govt's cases began to fall apart.  In 2008, enter Barack Obama.  "No more secrecy!"  Another quote: "The most transparent government [what his Administration, if elected, will be]".  "Whistleblowers are good for government; they will be protected by my Administration [if elected]." "No more illegal wiretapping of American citizens [if elected]."  Obama becomes President.  He continues The Program.  Prior to that, though, Bush reverses himself and decides he needs Congress to make The Program permanent.  His Administration pushes through an Amendment to the FISA law.  He claims it's "reform", but Intelligence insiders know that it gives the NSA unprecedented powers.  The Program is expanded, made worse from the standpoint of the Constitution.  The Amendment Bill had to be read extremely closely in order to figure out exactly what it said.  Insiders expressed the opinion that Congress had little clue as to what the Bill really said.  [Even if they had understood it, politicians seem to count on Americans being unaware of the fact that no law supercedes the U.S. Constitution.  The Fourth Amendment cannot be negated by any Act of Congress.]

Senator Obama supported the Amendment.  So even before he was elected President, the public should have had a clue that he was, at the very least, insincere in his campaign rhetoric concerning wiretapping (with no probable cause) of Americans.  At most, he was lying.

President Obama's Administration continued the case against Tom Drake.  So much for protection of whistleblowers.  Drake's career was over, his finances were decimated (because of legal defense expense), his life more or less trashed.  To get the whole thing over with, he pled guilty to a misdemeanor (they never had any espionage case) and received a minor fine and community service.

The Program continues to this day... a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment, and "justified" by a law.  In the bizarro world of DC, apparently laws do supercede the Supreme Law of the Land.  Amazing.

Who cares?  Why is any of this important to Americans, especially non-political Americans.  Here's one reason why:  the whole scenario is Soft Fascism.  It violates our Constitution and our Rights.  It has been implemented by both major political parties, and there's little reason to believe that more of our Rights won't be trashed down the line somewhere.  As Lord Acton said long ago, "Power corrupts, and...".

Finally, our Gov't is doing this worldwide.  Particular Snowden documents have revealed that the NSA is even spying on the economic meetings of our allies.  That has nothing at all to do with terrorism.  We're losing any reputation we ever had as a great nation.  Worse, our Govt's NeoImperialistic methods are making enemies of people who once admired our country.  In their attempts to dominate the world, our Gov't is over-reaching... not only making enemies, but bankrupting us in the process.

I hope many of you watch the Frontline piece.  The content should inform and disturb you.  In any case, I salute Tom Drake and the other people in the film who tried, at great personal cost, to wake up both Congress and the public to our Govt's grossly unlawful activities.  Kudos to you all.  The same praise goes to Edward Snowden.  His story is in Part Two of the film.

Be Well

Lies, the Elites, the Corporate Media, and Class War

Recently on Democracy Now!, Glenn Greenwald (a major player on a journalistic team that just won a Pulitzer Prize for Public Service) characterized the Corporate Media in America as "impotent, neutered, and obsolete".  I agree; however, it's important to recognize that they were created to be that way.  Their major function, as mega corporations, is to distract the public and support the soft despotism (in America) and the fascist intervention (abroad) by the central government.  A long time ago, Walter Lippmann---the "Dean of American Journalism" and a so-called "Liberal"---stated that the American public consisted of people who were "meddlesome outsiders" (relative to gov't) and made up the "bewildered herd".  He also believed, along with Edward Bernays (the Father of Public Relations), that controlling the public mind was especially important in a democratic society, and that public "consent" must be "manufactured".

In 1975, Crisis in Democracy was published by the Trilateral Commission, an elite, "Liberal" think tank founded by David Rockefeller and Zbigniew Brzezinski.  The book-length report, which was authored by elite so-called "Liberals", stated the proposition that America had a huge problem, a crisis--- ordinary people were organizing (which is anathema to Oligarchies) and demanding a place at the political table.  These insurgents actually wanted to determine their own destinies...and the policies of their servant gov't.  According to the "Liberal" elite authors, the solution to the "crisis" was to somehow return what Lippmann called the "meddlesome outsiders" and "bewildered herd" to their proper state of apathy and obedience.  Thus began another cyclic push by the Oligarchy in general to manufacture or engineer the consent of the public to allow things to be run by the "smart" people, the Meritocracy.  The process continues right up to the present day.  [The so-called "Conservatives" operate in the same manner.]

We still live in a relatively free society here in the USA.  Because of that, the Oligarchy cannot resort to brute force (in most cases) in order to get us to tow the NeoImperialist, Corporatist line.  They wouldn't get away with it.  The method used by the State-Corporate Complex to gain our "consent" is Edward Bernays style Propaganda, which is instrumental in their strategy of Distract-Divide-Conquer.  [To any new visitors to this Blog--- none of this is a "conspiracy".  It's right out in the open, but one must pay attention in order to see it.]

The biggest threat to the Crony Capitalist, State-Corporate, State-Capitalist, Mega Corporate Oligarchy in America is not communists, or terrorists, or narco-kingpins, or any other boogie-man...the biggest threat is ordinary people organizing around a just cause.  None of us can do much individually to obtain and secure a fair and just society; but with solidarity in a group, much can be accomplished peacefully.  That's what the Oligarchy fears most.

Because of that fear, you will notice (if you're not totally distracted) that the Elites and their Institutions will either completely ignore or almost instantly attack, smear, or marginalize any group (or individual, for that matter) that proposes or supports any egalitarian issue or project.  Whistleblowers are criminalized, labor unions are crushed, environmental groups are ridiculed or marginalized, alternative media are ignored, workers protesting poverty-level wages are ignored or marginalized or fired, alternative energy proponents are ridiculed or ignored, health care reform advocates are deemed "socialists", constitutionalists are ignored, poor people in any organization protesting almost anything are deemed "unworthy", opponents of so-called "Globalization" (which really means mega corporate tyranny) are deemed "behind the times", and on & on.

Elite Propaganda in America comes from a diverse array of sources--- the highest levels of the Fed Gov't, "Conservative" groups, "Liberal" groups, the Corporate Media, various public Institutions, various private Institutions, think tanks, etc.  It usually originates at the very highest levels, but no matter the source, the message almost always amounts to some variation of this:  the State-Corporate Complex knows what is best for you and our country; you should leave it to us, no matter how unfair, unjust, or illegal it might seem.  We know best.  You should accept on its face anything we say.

The major offenders are those at the highest levels of the Fed Gov't (no matter which Party holds majority power) and those at the highest levels of the Corporate Media... a close third would be those elites in the large, private political organizations supporting "Conservatives" or "Liberals", Republicans or Democrats.  In fairness to the last group, I should say that maybe some of them promulgate propaganda without knowing that the Game is rigged.  The two major political parties in America mean virtually nothing anymore...they're strictly meant to serve as distractions from the mega corporate agenda.  Anyone with even half a political eye surely can see that they're merely two branches of the Mega Corporation Party.

Our Fed Gov't (and Mega Corporations) now, without probable cause or a proper warrant, spies on all of us.  Our Gov't now spies on our allies, and even individual Heads of State (e.g., Merkel in Germany) who are our allies.  In his new book, Nowhere to Hide, Glenn Greenwald reveals an NSA training document (from Snowden) which instructs gov't operatives basically to get it all, all the digital info it can from everyone...not just those suspected of terrorism.  After all, anyone in the world possibly could be a "terrorist".  These are not the actions of a moral, ethical, just Gov't.  Instead, this is Soft Fascism...or what de Tocqueville called Mild Despotism.  As long as the People are distracted, divided, and thus conquered, the Gov't gets away with it; no brute force is involved.  It's all unconstitutional.

Obama was at a WalMart the other day, praising that company in a speech.  WalMart, the biggest employer in the USA, and the biggest corporate destroyer of the American economy (not counting the mega banks)...and also, in terms of how its workers are treated, possibly the shabbiest employer in the country.  But that mega corporation fits right in with the Elites' view of how Globalization is good for everyone.  Republicans, Democrats, "Conservatives", "Liberals" (all at the highest levels) appear to take that as an axiom.  They all also appear to support the WTO, the IMF, the World Bank, and "Free Trade" Agreements--- all of which are not favorable to poor people, or even to Middle Class people.  But the rich become the super-rich.

The lies promulgated by our Fed Gov't (again, no matter who is in power), the Corporate Media, and various public and private Institutions are so numerous and egregious as to boggle the mind.  Propaganda does work if it's repeated enough times.  Elites in supposedly democratic societies do rely extensively on propaganda to mold the public mind.  I do see the beginnings of an awakening to those axioms.

Partly just my opinion.
Happy Trails 

Addendum to: Signs That the Elites in Our Gov't Have Lost It

As reported on Democracy Now! ---

1.  The FBI has deemed Ryan Shapiro's PhD Dissertation on Animal Rights to be a threat to national security.  Ryan, an Animal Rights activist, is a PhD candidate at M.I.T.  He also has submitted more Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the Feds than any other American.  Perhaps the tagging of his Dissertation was Gov't payback for all those FOIA requests...who knows.

2.  In 2006, Dubya Bush signed into law the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA).  As a result, animal rights activists who go undercover into Big Ag factory farms and film deplorable conditions and gross mistreatment of livestock may be charged with terrorism.  Nonviolent, peaceful activists who stage sit-ins or lie-downs at such factory farms are not just practicing civil disobedience protests anymore; they may be charged with terrorism as well.

3.   The Feds have tagged the underground Animal Rights activists (not the out-in-the-open protesters) and the underground environmental protesters as the number one domestic terrorist threat.  So, if you break into, say, a fur farm at night and release all the critters, you're part of the number one terrorist threat in America.  Really?  Imagine if you stole an apple in the process.  Admittedly, a few of these eco-activists and animal rights activists who are clandestine have burned structures to the ground or otherwise damaged the property of Big Business in the past...but, the number one domestic terrorist threat?  I don't think so.  As far as I know, not one person has been injured as a result of their illegal actions.

4.  In the course of monitoring the peaceful "Occupy Houston" protest not too long ago, the FBI discovered a sniper plot against the leaders of that rally.  The FBI kept that fact from everyone.

5.  In a memo and a scenario similar to a portion of the old COINTELPRO, the FBI describes how peaceful Animal Rights activists can be neutralized by spreading false rumors that certain ones of them are FBI undercover agents.  More lies from the Fed Gov't.

6.  Ryan Shapiro (see number 1. above) is suing the NSA, FBI, and DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency) for their refusal to disclose the USA role in the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela.  Shapiro also wants to know why the Gov't kept Mandela on the Terrorist Watch List until 2008... which is another indication of how the management of all this unwieldly "terrorism" info is really beyond the capability of the sprawling Fed Gov't.  The right hand often doesn't know what the left hand is doing.  I think there's a misconception amongst the public that the central government is one big monolith.  In reality, it's thousands of semi-autonomous institutions which often are competing for turf and funding.  The result is what you see today...some of it good, much of it miserably bad.

Partly just my opinion.    Be Well

Signs That the Elites in Our Gov't Have Lost It (Edited 3-25-14)

1. It appears that the Executive Branch is spying on the Legislative Branch because the latter is investigating the former for alleged acts of torture.

2. James Clapper, the Head of Intelligence, lied before Congress...which is a felony in this country.  There are no consequences suffered by Mr. Clapper.

3. President Obama marks terrorist suspects in various countries for death by assassination.  "Collateral damage" (the death and maiming of innocent civilians) continues---about 1400 in Pakistan so far--- despite White House claims of "precision" and "minimal loss of innocent civilians".

4. Various sections of the Constitution (e.g., the First Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, Article II Section 2, in fact---all of Article II, which is the portion dealing with the Executive Branch, and others) now mean pretty much whatever the Gov't desires them to mean.  [This is not unique to the Obama Gang...other White House Gangs have been just as guilty; so too have various Legislative and Judicial Gangs.]

5. Russia is being criticized and punished for violating International Law.  You see, when they do it, it's a crime.  When the US Gov't does it, it's "spreading democracy" or "a humanitarian mission"... or "in the interests of the security of the USA".  The US Elites never commit crimes; everyone knows that.  That's because US Elites are, you know, "exceptional", "special", and beyond question as to morality.  Besides, they have the biggest guns.  Apparently, might makes Right.

6.  It would seem, according to the actions of the US Gov't, that the Pakistani People have no sovereignty.  Their Gov't has asked the US Gov't to stop launching Hellfire missiles onto their territory.  The US essentially has said:  Frack You.  It would seem that the Big Bully US Gov't gets to decide who has sovereignty and who doesn't.  This whole scenario, of course, is not a crime...because US Elites are ordering it.

7. For decades, the US Gov't has done what it can to oppose the peace process in the Middle East.  That continues today.  I say that because the only acceptable proposals (in the Elites' eyes) are those made by the US and Israel.  Even though the overwhelming majority of people in the world believe that Israel is in the Occupied Territories illegally, that doesn't count.  Leaving is not an option.  Israel should be able to continue evicting Palestinians and bulldozing their houses...because, you know, that's how we get peace.
[NOTE:  Some people seem to have forgotten that just before Israel became a nation, when that land still was British Palestine, men like Menachem Begin were bombing hotels there...they were terrorists.  Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones at others.]

8. According to the Elites in our Gov't, inflation is low in this country.  That's because when figuring the rate of inflation, they don't count the rises in the cost of food, energy, and housing.  No wonder inflation is "low".

9. The NSA has plans to infect (using automated systems) millions of computers...and has impersonated the Facebook server...in order to gather more bulk data...on everyone.  It has done so with no probable cause, and no proper warrants.  Obama claims it's all legal, and there's "oversight".  Yes, we've seen some of that oversight---Clapper lied to Congress.  Here's how "oversight" works:  a representative of the appropriate Executive Department appears before the Congressional Oversight Committee...and tells the truth when answering questions, or lies, or both.  No one knows for sure...unless a whistleblower such as Snowden releases documents to the public.

10. Whistleblowers are being smeared and criminalized.

11. Independent journalists are being smeared, and in some cases, criminalized.

12. You now can become a "terrorist suspect" by reading the "wrong" thing on the internet.  Even if you're later cleared of suspicion, you're already in the information system in probably a thousand places.  That system is too unwieldy too manage properly.  There's a definite chance that you're screwed.  Ask Cat Stevens.

13. The Heads of mega corporations can buy their way out of Fed criminal prosecutions by paying a fine amounting to billions of dollars.  A top executive in a mega bank involved in a case recently sent an email to a colleague stating, "Just throw some money at it, it'll go away."  The Feds don't prosecute the top cronies in Big Business...the geese that lay the golden eggs...for campaign financing.

14. A Fed Gov't official recently stated, "I would gladly walk up to Edward Snowden and shoot him in the head."  As far as I know, that official is still on the job.

15. Presumption of innocence apparently no longer exists in the minds of some in our Gov't.  Suspects are being assassinated overseas in the name of We the People.  At least two American citizen suspects have been so assassinated. 

16. Though we're not constitutionally at war, the Elites have propagandized us into believing that we legally are in an actual war.  They've convinced us that the War Powers Act somehow trumps the Constitution, which is impossible.  No Legislative Act trumps the Supreme Law of the Land.  They've also convinced us that the President can do pretty much as he pleases with the American military...because he's Commander-in-Chief.  To the Elites, that means he's not constrained by the constitutionally permitted uses of the military.  Hello...that's false.

17. Thanks to the misnamed PATRIOT Act, FBI Agents can write their own search warrants...a blatant violation of the Fourth Amendment.

18. Thanks to the Supreme Court decision in Kelo v. the City of New London, governments now can seize private property under Eminent Domain and sell or give that property to private developers.  Supposedly, the "public use" in that scenario are the taxes generated by the development.  Essentially that means anyone's property can be seized at any time and sold to private entities.  Incredible.

There is a better way, but first we have to stop drinking the Propaganda Kool Aid.

Be Well

The Gall of Fed Policy Makers is Truly Astounding

Snowden-documents reveal that the NSA has been collecting every phone call from an undisclosed country.  100%.  Apparently they do it in 30-day batches.  They then can "rewind" whatever device the info is on, and pick and choose.  The "authority" for this blatantly illegal action, I'm assuming, probably comes from the secret FISA "Court".  Never thought I'd live to see the day when there would be a Fed, secret, political court in the Republic of the United States of America.  [This is totally unlike a Grand Jury.]
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There's a good deal of evidence to indicate that the NSA has been spying on Congress, including hacking into staffers' computers.  If true, and it's certainly looking that way, it's a violation of the Separation of Powers concept, never mind the Fourth Amendment protection afforded every American (including staffers).  Plus, it makes a joke out of Congressional "oversight".  I can't guess where the "authority" for that spying is found.
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The Feds are boycotting international talks in Geneva regarding the USA's use of weaponized drones.  Because they don't have a leg to stand on, I really don't blame them for the boycott. :)  Pakistan spurred the calling of the talks; it seems they're fed up with violations of their sovereignty and the murdering of innocent civilians.  Go figure.
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Right-Wing Death Squads in Colombia are murdering people again.  These squads, what they do, and their victims ("suspects") essentially are ignored by the oligarchical government of Colombia...you know, the gov't that our Fed Gov't supports.  The last I heard, Colombia is the only South American government that still allows us to have US military bases on its soil; we have seven there.  Every other S.A. country has kicked us out or never let us in to begin with.  Their shabby experiences with US "intervention" in their affairs has been the reason.
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Obama's supposed "authority" for imposing sanctions on Russia is the concept of the "Executive Order".  This one isn't as bad as Clinton's Exec. Order that declared that Serbia was a threat to the security of the USA (Congress disagreed), but it's bad enough.  We the People have been sold a fraudulent bill of goods regarding Exec. Orders.  The Congressional Research Office claims such orders are implied by the Constitution, especially Article II, Section 2.  Here are the two orders that the President can issue under that Section:  he may require the opinion, in writing, of each of his Department Heads on any subject relating to their duties; and, he may order Pardons related to offenses against the United States.  Those are a far, far cry from imposing sanctions on, or invading, a foreign country.  Nowhere else in the Constitution is power delegated to the Executive Branch to issue so-called Executive Orders.  It's not the office of a King, but it has morphed into something that's too close to that for comfort.
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Partly just my opinion.  Happy Trails

Governments Run Amok: the USA's NSA & the UK's GCHQ

Glenn Greenwald & Laura Poitras (award-winning journalists), Jeremy Scahill (producer of Dirty Wars, an Oscar-nominated documentary), and other top-notch journalists recently launched First Look Media.  Their initial digital News Magazine, The Intercept, today ran a story of bombshell proportions.  It will be interesting to see if any of the Corporate Media---ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, & Fox News---cover this revelation...and if so, how.

Here's the link:  https://firstlook.org/theintercept/article/2014/02/18/snowden-docs-reveal-covert-surveillance-and-pressure-tactics-aimed-at-wikileaks-and-its-supporters/ ...or, just go to  https://firstlook.org/theintercept/ and click on the lead story.  [FAIR WARNING:  I'm guessing there's about a 99% probability that if you go to the First Look website, you automatically will be surveilled  (without a warrant) by at least the NSA and possibly by the UK's GCHQ as well.  You'll see why I say that in a few moments.  GCHQ is the Government Communications Headquarters, Britain's top spy agency.]

The authors of the article are Glenn Greenwald and Ryan Gallagher.  [Greenwald is living in self-imposed exile in Brazil because he's being investigated by the UK as a terrorist suspect...simply for being a journalist.  He provided Snowden-documents which were published by The Guardian in the UK.  He's a U.S. citizen, but is wary of returning here because of our Fed Govt's close ties to the UK's GCHQ.]  Without trying to steal any of Greenwald's or Gallagher's thunder, I'll list just a few of the article's key points below.

1.  The NSA and GCHQ have targeted  both Assange and the WikiLeaks website (as well as other activist groups) with high priority surveillance (without a proper warrant) for quite some time.  Not only that, but WikiLeaks supporters have been targeted with "tactics ranging from covert surveillance to prosecution".

2.  The GCHQ monitored VISITORS to Wikileaks.org in 2011; it's unclear if that surveillance program, codenamed "ANTICRISIS GIRL", is still in operation.  The visitors' IP addresses were recorded & stored.  That means there's a very high probability that if you visited the site in 2011 (& possibly beyond that date), you're on a list of "suspects".  [Of course, you should take some pride in being a suspect in the files of any Outlaw Government.  Constitutions are violated on an almost daily basis by those governments, hence my designation of "outlaw".]

3.  From 2008 to 2012 (at least), the U.S. intelligence community maintained a file called the "Manhunting Timeline" which detailed efforts of our Gov't & its allies to locate and prosecute or kill individuals who were suspected of being terrorists, drug traffickers, etc.  In 2010, Julian Assange was added to the Timeline and our allies in the Afghan War were encouraged to file charges against him for publishing documents related to that war.  [Gov't wrongdoings were exposed, and despite earlier claims, the Gov't later admitted that they could cite no death that resulted from the release of those documents.]

There's much more; read the entire article at firstlook.org/theintercept.  This whole business is very similar to our Govt's COINTELPRO program launched against the Black Power Movement back when.  COINTELPRO, it was later revealed, was rife with wrongdoing and unconstitutional activity by the FBI.

Perhaps some in my country don't realize that sites such as WikiLeaks and The Intercept are non-corporate, digital news magazines.  People like Greenwald and Assange are journalists.  One should ask:  why are they denigrated, persecuted, & possibly prosecuted in the future for publishing exactly the same type of material that sometimes is published by The Guardian, the New York Times, and the Washington Post?  The answer is clear to me:  those corporate entities are part of the oligarchical Establishment...they get a pass, a "get out of jail free" card.  The Oligarchy considers them Institutions, not Insurrectionists (see recent previous posts on this Blog).  They can be used and manipulated.

Perhaps some people everywhere don't see the danger in governments gathering & storing the phone numbers you call, or the websites you visit, or the things you buy with a credit card, or the destinations of your emails, or who knows what else.  Perhaps it isn't clear how one becomes a "terrorist suspect", or a "part of a human network of a rogue organization" (another NSA term), or a "malicious foreign actor" (another NSA term), or what the result of all that may be.  I believe it's abundantly clear...and we all should be very concerned.  I know one person who is:  Michael Ratner, President Emeritus of the Center for Constitutional Rights and a legal adviser to Julian Assange.

It's obvious from the documents revealed by Assange, Greenwald, Poitras, Gallagher, Scahill, Snowden, Manning, and others that segments of our Gov't (and the UK's Gov't) are running amok.  They are violating our Natural Rights.  The excuse of the National Security State, that it's for "our own good", does not suffice.  Of course measures must be taken by governments to protect their citizens...but monitoring everyone without probable cause and then lying about it should never be tolerated in a free society.

When Hitler came to power in 1933, he didn't immediately start hauling Jews off to concentration camps and killing them.  They lost their freedoms little by little, over years.  Jefferson once said that dissent was the highest form of patriotism.  I fear that in this country (and others) dissidents, especially independent journalists, are the new Jews.  They won't be hauled off to concentration camps, but they will be (and are being) smeared, denigrated, criminalized, and (in some, or perhaps many cases) imprisoned.  It already has started...all in the name of "security".  Meanwhile, USA hegemony continues throughout the world...not making us safer, but rather making us more and more enemies...while transnational corporations, who abhor competition, get richer and richer at the expense of the rest of us.

Partly just my opinion.

USA Democracy, State-Corporate Complex, & Bernays Propaganda [and a Note on Chris Hayes]

First, a note on my previous post and Chris Hayes.  After viewing about an hour's worth of MSNBC Chris Hayes clips on YouTube, I've concluded that Mr. Hayes appears to have two different personas.  When he's a guest on Democracy Now and other non-corporate venues, talking about Twilight of the Elites, his message hits the mark & he definitely has credibility.  On his own show on the prostitute corporate medium MSNBC, he's mostly an apologist for Obama...and fails to recognize (or perhaps conceals the recognition) that Obama is part of the Meritocracy that he deplores so in his book.  That's my take on it, anyway.
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Let's begin by recognizing the unfortunate fact that the USA is no longer a Constitutional Republic.  About half of everything that the Fed Gov't (at the highest levels) does is unquestionably unconstitutional.  In large part, both Democrats and Republicans ignore the Constitution and instead pass laws or issue Executive Orders that they believe trump the Supreme Law of the Land.  Once in a blue moon, to their credit, they do get things right.  For example, just recently a Congressional Panel determined that the NSA's bulk collection of data is illegal.  That's rare.  Of course, don't look for anything significant to be done about that finding.

Despite the propaganda from the Gov't and Corporate Media, and despite the belief of most of our population, let's also recognize that neither is our form of gov't a Democracy...at least, not a genuine Democracy.

Not long after WW I, Walter Lippmann, writing about politics in America, described the general public as "ignorant, meddlesome outsiders" who should only be "spectators" in the political process and leave such matters to the ones who know what they're doing...in other words, the smart, informed people...the Meritocracy.  Lippmann was part of the intelligentsia at the time; he was known as the "Dean of American Journalism"...and was a so-called "Progressive".  So much for American style Democracy, at least, from his point of view (which was quite influential).

In 1928, Edward Bernays found a publisher for his book, Propaganda: Molding the Public Mind.  In it, he made the case that propaganda is essential to the successful functioning of any Democracy.  He said that the true rulers of the country are the ones who control the propaganda; the elites bought the proposition lock, stock, & barrel.  Bernays later was recognized as the Founder of the Public Relations industry.  His type of propaganda played a major role in our Govt's overthrow (in the '50s) of the democratically elected President of Guatemala.

The State-Corporate Complex flourished in the '50s and '60s...and beyond.  Ike warned us about it, but We the People pretty much ignored his warning.  The molding of the public mind was in full swing by then, with one of the promotions being that we lived in a "Democracy".  The elites' version of democracy is this:  every two years or so, the "ignorant, meddlesome outsiders", aka, the "spectators" truck on over to a designated site and pull one of two levers...and then go home.  Each lever represents a candidate chosen, groomed, and financed by the Meritocracy...and sold to the public via Edward Bernays style propaganda.  The public doesn't really know where either candidate stands politically...because all info given to the public is based on polls, studies, & focus groups that determine just what it is that the public wants to hear.  Adjustments are made for the phony differences between the two candidates.

By the '80s, voters weren't even really "spectators" anymore...because the Reagan and Thatcher administrations became private and secretive.  How many of you know about the Reagan-Thatcher concoction known as the "Washington Consensus"...it had a major impact on the world.  It promoted Neoliberalism around the globe, much to the dismay of most third world countries.  Not too many folks "spectated" that one.

By the '90s, transnational corporations (via institutions such as the GATT, WTO, IMF, and World Bank---that are completely secretive & absolutist--- as well as so-called "Free Trade Agreements") were creating a completely non-democratic, worldwide economic structure whose rules trumped U.S. laws.  That's continuing on steroids today.  So much for American style Democracy.

During all of this time, right through to the present, the American public (and the world public) is fed a steady diet of propaganda which basically and simply says, this is all good for you...and it will "create jobs".  What a deceit and a scam.

So, what's to be done about it?  Well, the first step is to stop drinking the Propaganda Kool Aid.  I'll say it 'til I'm blue in the face.  :)

Just my opinion.

More of the NSA Nightmare

I doubt that you'll hear about this on the prostitute Corporate Media broadcasts.  The whistleblower Jacob Appelbaum, speaking at the Chaos Communications Congress in Germany, revealed that the NSA has some sort of radar wave generator gizmo that allows the agency to view any targeted computer keyboard (and monitor).  In other words, they can see what the person is typing.  So...this should be a good thing relative to the so-called "War on Terror".  The problem is:  what does a person have to do to be considered a potential terrorist by the Fed Gov't?  Answer:  not much.

Some of you may be thinking, well, this has nothing to do with me...I would never be considered a potential terrorist.  Perhaps the following will change your mind.

1.  The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2012 designates our entire country as a battleground in the "War on Terror".
2.  The NDAA also gives the President the power to, all by himself, declare a national emergency which suspends presumption of innocence, due process, access to an attorney, and trial by jury.  In addition, it gives the President the power to have a potential terrorist executed without a trial...all this in the Land of the Free.
3.  Several writers are considered potential terrorists because they exercised the Natural Right of free speech by writing news stories contrary to the Govt's view of whistleblowing.
4.  Not long ago, the State of Missouri issued a sort of terrorist bulletin to law enforcement which stated that anyone with a Ron Paul bumper sticker should be viewed as a "potential terrorist".  [That was not an action by the Feds, but it shows what's possible.]
5.  Also so designated in that bulletin were "constitutionalists" and "militia members", and anyone associated with them.
6.  According to whistleblowers, the NSA considers anyone who visits certain websites to be a potential terrorist.  In other words, if you read material not approved, you're a potential terrorist.  Worse, anyone associated with you, and anyone associated with them, is considered a potential terrorist.

The Fourth Amendment is deemed by the Fed Gov't to be not relevant to potential terrorists.  The same is true of the Fifth (due process) and Sixth (speedy and public trial) Amendments.  Guilt by association appears to be more important to the Feds.

I love this country, but the Fed Gov't is not this country.  The well respected historian and Bill Clinton's mentor at Georgetown U., Professor Carroll Quigley, wrote this in 1966, "The tragedy is that we no longer have a representative government in this country [or in any country]; the hope is that the little people will accept that, because there is nothing they can do about it."  ~ Quigley, Carroll,  Tragedy and Hope, 1966.  Quigley considered himself to be one of the Oligarchs, thus he referred to Americans in general as the "little people".

All the Oligarchs, including those at the highest levels of our unrepresentative Fed Gov't, consider all of us to be the little people.  We're viewed by the Big Boys & Girls in much the way ranchers view livestock.

Just my opinion.

Whistleblowers Are Patriots

Patriots, if they can, expose government wrongdoing.  The hypocrisy of those in the upper levels of our Outlaw Fed Gov't is beyond the pale.  If China, or Israel, or Russia, or any other country spies on us, the Feds go bananas; but when our Gov't spies on our own allies, oh, there's nothing wrong with that.  The National Security State trumps any concept of Right and Wrong...and the Natural Rights that all humans possess.

In case you haven't heard, and as reported in Der Spiegel, the NSA has an elite computer hacking unit that has been remotely installing spyware and malware on computers using the Windows Operating System.  Not only that, it has been intercepting the delivery of new computers ordered online, installing spyware, and then sending the machines on their way.  This illegal process also includes cell phones.  The existence of the hacking unit, Tailored Access Operations (TAO), was revealed in documents sent by Edward Snowden to Der Spiegel.

Judge Pauley, who contradicted another Fed Judge who said the NSA's phone records collection was "almost Orwellian", in a very real sense claims that if the NSA does it to everyone, then that's constitutional.  Please, is he serious?!  Judges have been throwing out court cases because the individuals bringing suit don't know for certain if their records are being collected...they have no "standing".  It's clear to me that the Judicial System, in a very large part, is not independent of the Political System.  That's called corruption.  Read the Fourth Amendment; what the NSA is doing is blatantly unconstitutional.  Unfortunately, we can't even rely on the Supreme Court to be totally independent...remember the Kelo v. City of New London case?  The City seized private property using Eminent Domain and sold it to PRIVATE developers, claiming that the taxes to be generated qualified as "public use" of the property.  If that's true, then anyone's property can be seized under the guise of Eminent Domain, and the seizure doesn't have to be for a public road or public building, etc.  Where is the common sense in that?  The same is true for Judge Pauley's opinion that as long as the NSA does it to everyone, that's constitutional.  Have mercy.

If you look at History, you'll see that the Govt's response to Whistleblowers is to smear and criminalize them.  The U.K. is as bad as the U.S.A. in that regard.  Ask Glenn Greenwald, who now lives in Brazil.  He's wary of returning to England because he's being investigated for "terrorism".  Terrorism is the great catch-all now for governments.  Constitutions can be ignored, Natural Rights can be ignored, due process can be ignored...just label the person a potential terrorist.  In this country, because of the NDAA, such a person can be executed without a trial (according to an article in Forbes, & many other sources).  When he signed that bill into law, Obama said, "I would never do that.", or something to that effect.  Well, guess what?  I'm not reassured.  History shows us that no politician, present or future, is to be trusted.

Just my opinion.

This and That

1.  I see by yesterday's headlines that Afghanimization is going about as well as did Vietnamization---Nixon & Kissinger's plan to turn over the fighting in Vietnam (back when) to the South Vietnamese Army.  Similar conditions exist in Afghanistan as existed in Vietnam during that war---a corrupt government, a native Army incapable of defending itself, a native people who do not support the corrupt/puppet government, and a native people who want us out of their country.  And yet we continue... completely ignoring the lessons of History.  Young troops being maimed & killed for the sake of the Corporatocracy...the Oligarchy...the Plutocracy...whatever you wish to call it...and, the estimated one trillion dollars worth of unmined minerals...the natural gas & oil pipeline corridors...Brzezinki's "American Primacy and its Geostrategic Imperatives".  Shameful...and utterly so.  Apparently most Americans still believe that the present war is protecting us from TERRORISM, the Boogie Man that replaced the other Boogie Man, Communism.  Please.  That's about as true as the line that the Vietnam war was protecting us from Communism.  Let's see, N. Vietnam won...and life everywhere else went on pretty much the same.  No dominoes fell.  We now trade with Vietnam and visit there at will.

2.  Kudos to Snowden, the guy who blew the whistle on the NSA.  The NSA's actions were the result of orders from the FISA "Court", a secret "court" with absolutely no oversight by anyone...not Congress, not anyone... except of course, the Dictator-in-Chief (any President, not just Obama).  Where are the "checks and balances"?  Over the last 2-3 decades, the Executive Branch has seized an incredible amount of unconstitutional power.  Defenders of that obscenity can go on & on about how this or that secret action---with no oversight---prevented this or that calamity.  They miss the point---our Constitutional Republic cannot legally operate that way.  We have, in effect, an Outlaw Government.  Defenders of the current obscenity can go on & on about how, as Obama put it, "no one's conversations are being listened to".  Really?  How do we know?---there's no oversight.  Plus, the NSA actions included the internet.  I didn't hear anyone say, "no one's web surfing is being watched".  Again, how do we know...there's zero oversight.  Our Republic exists in name only...the checks and balances are long gone.  Long gone.

Be Well