Image courtesy of Dave Newman under CC BY 2.0.
Predictably and unrelentingly, American government continues to carve out for itself ever-expending rights and freedoms at the expense of once-free Americans in the name of security measures against terrorism. But, as all informed students of government and political science already know, government, “the state,” isn’t the least bit concerned about protecting its citizens; it is only concerned about protecting itself.
The USA Patriot Act is just such a government protection scam, offering US security with terrorism as justification. But as the well informed already know, the terrorist acts of 9-11 demonstrated the state’s inability to protect US; specifically, it has been confirmed that the state, in terms of the FBI, CIA and FAA, had advance knowledge of the impending attacks and were totally unable to prevent them. And any further revelations of this incompetence have been summarily covered up by the Bush administration when President Bush ordered the suppression of facts and truth in the 28 pages redacted in the Kean 9-11 Commission report as “off limits” to the American people.
Many Bush-haters and administration critics have pointed out that the Bush administration over-reacted to “terrorism” in quickly ramming through Congress the USA Patriot Act. It was pointed out that Congress passed this greatest assault on the Bill of Rights without even reading its provisions; yet, last week, Congress authorized still more sanctions against citizens’ freedoms by expanding FBI powers. And this took place right on the heels of charges that the FBI inappropriately used its newly-acquired authoritarian police state powers in a crime investigation in Nevada that wasn’t even remotely connected to “terrorism.” This is precisely the problem with unconstitutional laws that are incursions on the sanctity of individual freedom as protected by the Bill of Rights.
None of this should come as any surprise to students of the state. The state grows itself by continuously expanding laws to favor itself over the rights and freedoms of its citizens. And both our political parties fully support this unconstitutional expansion of statist powers.
In an article Sunday, November 23rd, “F.B.I. Scrutinizes Antiwar Rallies,” the propaganda arm of the state, the New York Times, attacks the Bush administration’s FBI in a way they would never have attacked it under the Clinton administration. This is precisely why Americans should always focus on the end product of politics in terms of how political machinations and nonsense empower the state and deprive US of our freedoms.
Consider the First Amendment for example. What is its underlying purpose? Is it freedom of the press, so NY Times reporter Jayson Blair can write fiction and pass it off as news obtained via professional, investigative journalism? Is it freedom of the press, so that Dan Rather can cover up the Chandra Levy/Gary Condit incident? Is it freedom of the press so that Peter Jennings can call American voters “spoiled two year-olds” for not voting for Democrats for Congress in 1994? Or is it freedom of expression, so that taxpayer dollars in New York City can be spent displaying a “portrait” of the Virgin Mary decorated with Elephant dung?
The purpose of the First Amendment is to protect the American environment from the pollution of government corruption and tyranny. It exists so journalists can expose government abuse, fraud, waste, corruption and authoritarianism. So when informed, the people can act upon these grievances and confront government. And if government refuses to correct its corrupt, authoritarian ways, then the people have a right to assemble, and to petition government with respect to the grievances the people wish to have addressed! And to prevent the state from preventing the people from exercising their God-given rights of life, liberty and property, as well as the innate right to defend all these, and even with force if necessary, each and every single, solitary citizen has the right to buy, own and carry firearms, as well as the right to train with them! This is what has precluded government tyranny in America as guaranteed by the First and Second Amendments to the Constitution in our Bill of Rights.
In spite of the liberal leanings of the New York Times that always support ever-expanding government programs, Times reporter Eric Lichtblau in his November 23rd article begins, “The Federal Bureau of Investigation has collected extensive information on the tactics, training and organization of antiwar demonstrations and has advised local law enforcement officials to report any suspicious activities and protests to its counter terrorism squads, according to interviews and a confidential bureau memorandum.” [Emphasis added.]
Consider this “new” dimension of both the FBI and the USA Patriot Act, incrementally yet swiftly morphing from “terrorism” to the homegrown political petitions of grievances that are antiwar demonstrations and embarrassments for the Bush administration. This is yet another manifestation of the ever-expanding USA Patriot Act and FBI powers just as was the case of the organized crime investigation in Nevada during the prior week.
Lichtblau continues, “The memorandum, which the bureau sent to local law enforcement agencies last month in advance of antiwar demonstrations in Washington and San Francisco, detailed how protestors have sometimes used ‘training camps’ to rehearse for demonstrations, the Internet to raise money and gas masks to defend against tear gas. The memorandum analyzed lawful activities like recruiting demonstrators, as well as illegal activities like using fake documentation to get into a secured site.” [Emphasis added.]
But here’s where the rubber hose beats the Bill of Rights: “F.B.I. officials said in interviews that the intelligence-gathering effort was aimed at identifying anarchists and ‘extremist elements’ plotting violence, not at monitoring the political speech of law-abiding protestors.” Remember when leftists like the Clintons, liberals and Democrats referred to Republicans and anyone else that disagreed with them as “extremists?” Remember when Hillary alluded to a “vast right-wing conspiracy?” Well now, according to America’s thought police Gestapo, the FBI, this is a crime! And a “hate crime” at that!
Curbing demonstrations and intimidating protestors by putting their names on lists, especially in the kind of “secret government” scenario of the Bush administration, is further proof of precisely where “Big Bro” American government is now unmistakably going! This smacks more of “secret government” paranoia and a fear of the people rising up, which is precisely what is protected by the rule of law of this once-great land: the First and Second Amendments. These rights of the people are now a threat to the state!
As can be expected, the New York Times, the propaganda arm of Big Bro government, supportive of administrations only when run by the Democrat Party, must now qualify this item of news. To wit: “But some civil rights advocates and legal scholars said the monitoring program could signal a return to the abuses of the 1960’s and 1970’s, when J. Edgar Hoover was the F.B.I. director and agents routinely spied on political protestors, remained largely free of violence and disruption.” [Emphasis added.] The Times hated Hoover because of his unyielding stance against communism.
” ‘The F.B.I. is dangerously targeting Americans who are engaged in nothing more than lawful protest and dissent,’” the article quotes Anthony Romano as saying. Romano is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. Just what we need! A communist-originated “legal rights” organization to protect the rights of “all” Americans from protests largely organized by communists in the first place! How’s that for muddying the waters of our civil liberties? Romano also takes a shot [intended] at Hoover. And the article goes on with more references to Hoover.
I believe most Americans don’t want to allow communists to organize protests in this country. And probably a great majority do not want communist organizations like the ACLU to abolish the Ten Commandments and Christmas either. But the infestation of communists in our federal court system is just as real as was the Democrat Party’s condoning of communists in our State Department during the administration of FDR during World War II.
But once again, the Bush administration’s continuing assault on the rights and freedoms of all Americans is driving Republicans and libertarians away from the Republican Party. And when Republicans are finally defeated in the presidential election next year, Hillary Rodham Clinton will be president, and finally able, via the USA Patriot Act and America’s newly empowered secret police and Gestapo, to effectively and permanently deal with that “vast right-wing conspiracy” of mean-spirited extremists!
“Published originally at EtherZone.com : republication allowed with this notice and hyperlink intact.”