UPDATED 4/24/13: Abdul Rahman Ali Al-Harbi: Boston bombing ‘person of interest’ has 6 Saudi ‘terrorists’ in family, 5 more are in Gitmo. Visited by Michelle Obama prior to deportation & after Boston bombing | Global Dispatch

Abdul Rahman Ali Al-Harbi in the hospital.

UPDATED 5AM EST Apr 24, 2013:

Confirmation that Abdul Rahman Ali Al-Harbi, the Saudi national and initial “person of interest,” is indeed being deported this week now is spreading across the Internet. More details are emerging this weekend as Arabic sources and Saudi papers themselves are confirming “rumors” swirling in the US. (more at bottom)

Moreover, the Saudi papers are detailing the visit by the Obamas, especially Michelle to the hospital and this man. The “rumors” of the President meeting with Saudi officials in the hospital just prior to his “approved deportation” is a bragging right in their press.

More notable is the assertions that Abdul Rahman Ali Al-Harbi is free an clear of terrorist ties, when in fact over 10 names from his clan are already linked to Al-Qaeda.

Michelle Obama visits Al-Harbi in Boston Hospital? Image source and accuracy unknown

Many from Al-Harbi’s clan are entrenched in terrorism and are members of Al-Qaeda as identified by the Islamic governments.

Out of a list of 85 terrorists listed by the Saudi government shows several of Al-Harbi clan to have been active fighters in Al-Qaeda:

• #15 Badr Saud Uwaid Al-Awufi Al-Harbi
• #73 Muhammad Atiq Uwaid Al-Awufi Al-Harbi
• #26 Khalid Salim Uwaid Al-Lahibi Al-Harbi
• #29 Raed Abdullah Salem Al-Thahiri Al-Harbi
• #43 Abdullah Abdul Rahman Muhammad Al-Harbi (leader)
• #60 Fayez Ghuneim Humeid Al-Hijri Al-Harbi [Source]

Then you have Al-Harbi clan members in Gitmo:

• Salim Salman Awadallah Al-Sai’di Al-Harbi
• Majid Abdullah Hussein Al-Harbi
• Muhammad Abdullah Saqr Al-Alawi Al-Harbi
• Ghanem Abdul Rahman Ghanem Al-Harbi
• Muhammad Atiq Uwaid Al-Awfi Al-Harbi [Source]

Counterterrorism analysts want US mass transit security tightened in wake of plots | Fox News

Bend over, grab your ankles, turn your head and cough, and pee in the cup or we cannot let you on the bus… this is going to get frigging ridiculous, and real quickly.

via Fox News

Counter-terrorism experts have renewed calls to tighten security on America’s mass transit lines following two would-be terrorists’ foiled plot to blow up a Toronto passenger train.

The alleged plan to attack Canada’s transit system has shed light on the vulnerabilities that still exist in America’s commuter system and the challenges involved in keeping it safe for travelers.

“The millions of Americans who take public transportation need to be assured that everything possible is being done to ensure their security and safety,” American Public Transportation Association President and CEO Michael Melaniphy told FoxNews.com on Monday, adding that federal funding should be increased.

… “This country has to change its outlook on day-to-day life,” he said. “We can’t let out guard down.”

.

Here’s Why the NRA Won and Gabby Giffords and Mike Bloomberg Lost | Mother Jones

And as a partial counterpoint to the WSJ article on the same subject, I post this for your consideration.  In a nutshell, the progressives at Mother Jones see gun supporters in the same bile-green light of disgust and noblesse oblige as they have always.   Mother’s view of the NRA, however, as some disembodied corporate entity unrelated to the will (and money) of a large number of American patriots is logically dissonant.  I.e.:

Money, a tragic moment, and public support do not equal political power

Mother Jones —By Andy Kroll | Thu Apr. 18, 2013 1:45 PM PDT

On NBC’s Meet the Press last month, National Rifle Association honcho Wayne LaPierre, the face of the American gun lobby, delivered this message to New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg: ”He’s going to find out that this is a country of the people, by the people, and for the people, and he can’t spend enough of his $27 billion to try to impose his will on the American public. He can’t buy America.” The day before, Bloomberg had announced that he would spend $12 million of his own money on an ad blitz pressing members of Congress to pass new legislation expanding background checks for gun purchases. LaPierre went on national television to tell the mayor that all those millions wouldn’t make the difference in the fight in Congress over new gun laws.

Guess what? LaPierre was right…

The Gun Rights Consensus: The real reasons the Senate trounced the Obama agenda | WSJ

“A pretty shameful day for Washington,” President Obama called it, with “pretty” being the only remnant of his famous cool. In the Rose Garden, Obama blamed the failure of gun control in the Senate Wednesday on three causes:

1. “The gun lobby and its allies willfully lied about the bill.“
2. The Senators who voted against it are cowardly and had “…no coherent arguments as to why we wouldn’t do this. It came down to politics...”
3. And finally”…a minority was able to block it from moving forward…” through “…this continuing distortion of Senate rules.”

The media are amplifying Mr. Obama’s themes with less subtlety, amid a collective aneurysm in Washington and New York. Yet this combination of animus and overreach explains why the post-Newtown gun debate has been such a lost opportunity.

Top 20 Airports for TSA Theft | TSA Watch

…Top 20 U.S. Airports for TSA Agent Firings for Theft

1. Miami International Airport (29 TSA agents fired)
2. JFK International Airport (27 TSA agents fired)
3. Los Angeles International Airport (24 TSA agents fired)
4. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (17 TSA agents fired)
5. Las Vegas-McCarren International Airport (15 TSA agents fired)
6. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (14 TSA agents fired)
7. New York-Laguardia Airport (14 TSA agents fired)
8. Newark Liberty (12 TSA agents fired)
9. Philadelphia International (12 TSA agents fired)
10. Seattle-Tacoma International (12 TSA agents fired)

Feds Identify 300,000 Americans as Terrorists | Activist Post

Do you hate paying taxes? Are you fighting foreclosure? Do you feel like no one should be allowed to commit violence against you and don’t always blindly follow the commands of the authorities? Do you film encounters with police or believe gold makes better currency than Federal Reserve Notes? Well you might be part of a domestic terrorism movement and not even know it.

On Friday, the Los Angeles Times posted an article attempting to define a domestic terrorist movement consisting of as many as 300,000 Americans. Some are even labeled as non-violent “paper terrorists”.

Is there a more Orwellian term than “non-violent terrorist”?  If you can think of one please share it in the comments below.  They refer to this so-called terror group as “sovereigns, zealots who refuse to recognize government authority in virtually any form.”

When attempting to further define and identify individuals in this movement, some very broad and dangerous stereotypes appear.  “Sovereigns believe U.S. currency has no value but recognize precious metals as valid currency,” wrote the LA Times, much like the US Constitution does.

“A central tenet of the sovereigns movement is that its adherents believe they owe no income taxes,” also much like the Constitution forbids.  What’s more, federal and state law enforcement are being trained that anyone who disobeys their commands falls into this terrorist movement and may pose a violent threat to them.

“Sovereign citizens are more likely not to obey their commands and more likely to commit violence during a traffic stop,” said Detective Rob Finch who’s made a cottage industry of anti-sovereigns police training.  “They refuse to recognize your authority, and that creates a dangerous situation,” Finch emphasized.

The LA Times piece points to a handful of colorful examples of people who defended themselves against police aggression, or who were plain crazy, as to why the movement should be considered violent. But they don’t stop there.  The FBI has even invented a new form of terrorism committed by nonviolent sovereigns called “paper terrorism“.

Even nonviolent sovereigns can cause headaches through what Finch calls “paper terrorism.” Some squat in foreclosed homes and file phony deeds claiming ownership, “paying” with photos of silver dollars.

Who knew fighting foreclosure was a form of terrorism? Paying taxes and mortgages with hand-written notes and photos is just funny, not really a threat to anyone.

However, self-described “sovereign citizen” James Turner faces ”a potential maximum prison term of 164 years, a maximum potential fine of $2,350,000, and mandatory restitution” to the state for the nonviolent act of paper terrorism.

A blog for law officers, PoliceOne.com, also tries to help cops identify sovereign citizens, saying they’ll “...likely to be argumentative with police authorities…may attempt to videotape your encounter…may refuse to give you their name or documents…”

To his credit, the article’s author states that the “…Sovereign Citizen movement is not an organized civil or criminal enterprise. It’s a fractured series of loosely affiliated individuals who adhere to anti-government ideologies.”

It should be noted that the Feds and local law enforcement all received these characteristics and tactics from one original source: The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). The SPLC has been on a publicly-funded partisan crusade to demonize so-called right-wing or patriotic extremists.

In 2010, SPLC put together a short documentary about “sovereign citizens” and the threat they supposedly pose. To help identify potential sovereigns, they warn about certain bumper stickers and challenges to authority in a professionally produced propaganda video.  Significantly, the video below has three times as many down-votes on YouTube as up-votes.  Watch it below:

Beretta to leave Maryland | The Captain’s Journal

As I had hoped, Beretta isn’t full of windbags and liars.  They are honest folk.  They said they would leave Maryland, and they are.

New legislation is forcing gun manufacturing company Beretta to uproot and take their business elsewhere.

Established in 1526, Beretta holds the distinction of being the oldest active firearms manufacturer in the world. The U.S. factory is located in Accokeek, Maryland, and has been a staple of the local economy for years.

Beretta warned that stricter gun control laws would push the company outside of state lines, but that didn’t stop Maryland legislators. Jeffrey Reh, a spokesman for Beretta who also serves as the President of Stoeger Industries under Beretta, announced that the company would begrudgingly uproot and take its business elsewhere. He said, “We don’t want to do this, we’re not willing to do this, but obviously this legislation has caused us a serious level of concern within our company.”

He added that Beretta paid approximately $31 million in taxes, employs 400 people, and had invested $73 million in the business over the past several decades. Despite being such a prominent player in the local economy, Beretta was unable to prevent legislators from passing tighter gun control laws. Ironically, Beretta manufactures some firearms that are now banned in Maryland.

Good.  I hope it’s painful and hard for Maryland.  I hope they lose business of all kinds, and I hope they feel it right in the pocketbook.  Take note of the next bit.

Son, Will You Fire On American Citizens? | The Captain’s Journal

Interesting read.

Please click the link for an update on the Maryland gun restriction vs. veterans vs. business vs. hypocrite scum politician situation.

(By the way, LWRC makes one HELL of a piston-driven AR.  I have a couple, somewhere, if i recall. Just saying.  GE. )

David Codrea passes along a statement from LWRC International where they have told us that they will move their company out of Maryland if the proposed unconstitutional gun ban passes. I appreciate their patriotism, and I have already weighed in informing Beretta that they must move as well if they wish to survive as a company.

But there’s some fascinating movement in the proposed weapons ban in Maryland. I must quote at length.

“When hunters argued that Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley’s proposed assault-weapons ban would ruin their sport, state lawmakers were not moved. When devotees of the National Rifle Association cried that it would trample on their constitutional rights, lawmakers did not blink....  via The Captain’s Journal.

Wikileaks Was Just a Preview: We’re Headed for an Even Bigger Showdown Over Secrets | Matt Taibbi

…Still, it seems like an insane amount of pressure to apply, given the other types of crimes (of, say, the HSBC variety) where stiff sentences haven’t even been threatened, much less imposed…..

But in all of these cases, the government pursued maximum punishments and generally took zero-tolerance approaches to plea negotiations. These prosecutions reflected an obvious institutional terror of letting the public see the sausage-factory locked behind the closed doors not only of the state, but of banks and universities and other such institutional pillars of society. As Gibney pointed out in his movie, this is a Wizard of Oz moment, where we are being warned not to look behind the curtain….

via Matt Taibbi | Rolling Stone.

DHS Ammo Investigation | Brittius.com

DHS Ammo Investigation | Brittius.com
click that pic …

Reportedly, there is being a request by a few members of Congress to look into alleged ammunition purchases by the Department of Homeland Security. Numbers are now alleged at two billion rounds of ammunition which is at this time, completely unsubstantiated, but people keep jacking up the numbers. This alone merits being looked into because the fear and panic it is creating has to either be proven or laid to rest as fear mongering, which is very dangerous to the peace of America. Why would people want to start a war in America? Some have demonstrated long ago that they qualify for a straight jacket and to be locked away in a rubber room. On the flip side of the coin, if it is merely an emotional plea to get people’s attention to make them aware of a dangerous situation, Congress needs to go the extra mile for once, and the Congressional underachieving slackers have to stop stuffing money into their pockets and have the DHS ammunition issue, investigated.

Moneyless Man: Author Lives Without Money For Three Years

interview with Mark Boyle ‘The Moneyless Man’. Mark is an author and has lived without money for 3 years. They talk about the predictably collapsing money system which is literally killing people and the planet, being based on debt, short term greed and fear.  They also talk about the urgency and emergency that people find a way to live without money and find a more sustainable way of living and being on the planet, before the negative consequences of decisions and actions made now become too overwhelming to reverse in the near future.

Nova | Ol’ Remus & The Woodpile Report

When you step back and look at the big picture, it really makes one wonder—how big of a piano needs to be dropped on people’s heads before they notice what’s happening?   Simon Black at sovereignman.com

Stars shine for billions of years, fusing one element into another, hydrogen into helium, carbon, neon, oxygen, silicon, until one day fusion into iron begins. There, quietly, at the heart of the star, it’s doom is sealed. Fusion into iron generates no net heat, in fact, it’s a heat sink. There comes those last few seconds when equilibrium is lost, the star can’t support its own weight, the outer shells collapse inward at nearly the speed of light and the star is torn apart in a spectacular cataclysm. When gravity wins, it wins all at once. So it shall be with us.

There are those among us who want what they don’t need and need what they don’t want. Tolerance for this has metamorphosized into entitlement, which for the beneficiary mimics success, and so the core of career consumers has grown large enough to make its own weather and exert its own gravity. Debt on this scale would eventually overwhelm any economy, no matter how robust. Enough is never enough, even if it were a wide-open spigot plumbed to any conceivable source of supply. Fantasies about debt can keep it going for a while, but in the real world no debt has ever gone unpaid, if not by the borrower then by the lender. In the end, historic debt has historic consequences.

The hard road ahead will likely be comparable in its scope and impacts to the harrowing times brought by America’s first three rounds of anacyclosis. To live through the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, or the Great Depression was not an easy thing; those of my readers who are curious about what might be ahead could probably do worse than to read a good history of one or more of those.   John Greer at resilience.org

[Obama-appointee] Judge Audrey Fleissig overturns Mo. law on birth control coverage | AP

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A federal judge has struck down a Missouri law exempting moral objectors from mandatory birth control coverage because it conflicts with an insurance requirement under President Barrack Obama’s health care law.

click for bio

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Audrey Fleissig cites a provision in the U.S. Constitution declaring that federal laws take precedence over contradictory state laws. But Fleissig emphasized that she was taking no position on the merits of the Obama administration policy, which requires insurers to cover contraception at no additional cost to women.

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster did not say on Monday whether he would appeal the ruling, which was dated Thursday but not publicized.

The anti-abortion group Campaign Life Missouri distributed an email Monday denouncing the ruling as “a radical departure from America’s tradition of religious freedom” and imploring people to contact Koster’s office in support of an appeal. Some backers of Missouri’s law said the court ruling could result in churches and other religious organizations having to accept insurance policies that include contraception coverage.

Right-wing extremist groups on the extreme rise | MSNBC / Hardball / Matthews / Schultz

Updated march 17, 2013 @ 7PM EST.

Dear Southern Poverty Law Center:

Please add me and this blog to your list of terrorists.  Up yours you fucktard idiots.  GE

…and now from this libtard air-headed echo chamber…

American Jihad: Jumat al-Fuqra training camps in USA | Hannity

Welcome to New York!

Christian Action Network exposes (alleges?) Muslims of America [Jumat al-Fuqra] training caps in USA.

The propaganda tape “Soldiers of Allah” features Sheik Mubarak ali Gilani.  The group “Muslims of the Americas, Inc.” was founded in 1980 by Gilani on a trip to New York. Among other projects it has model communities in the Town of Hancock, New York, called Islamberg, and in York County, South Carolina, called Holy Islamville.

see here at Kafir Crusaders blog as well:

Europe Does It Again: Cyprus Depositor Haircut “Bailout” Turns Into Saver “Panic”, Frozen Assets, Bank Runs, Broken ATMs | Zero Hedge & Ann Barnhardt

… Congratulations Cyprus savers – you were just betrayed by both your politicians, and by Europe – sorry, but you are the “creeping impairments” in the game known as European bankruptcy.  And so is anywhere between 6.75% and 9.9% of your money, which you were foolish enough to keep with your banks (where at least you were compensated with a savings yield of… 0%).

More importantly, as of this morning Europe has finally grasped that there is a 6.75% to 9.9% premium to holding physical cash in your mattress rather than having it stored with your local friendly insolvent bank.

Luckily Cyprus is so “small” what just happened there will never happen anywhere else: after all in Europe nobody has ever heard of “setting an example”.  Or so the thinking among Europe’s unthinking political elite goes.

And congratulations Europe: just when people almost believed you things are “fixed” you go ahead and prove to the world that you are as dis-unified (because size doesn’t matter in a true union), as confused, as stupid and as broke as ever…via …Saver “Panic”, Frozen Assets, Bank Runs, Broken ATMs | Zero Hedge.

Responding to this ZerHedge article,  Ann Barnhardt posted this:

Finance: The Cypriot Confiscation is Terrifying.  Posted by Ann Barnhardt – March 16, AD 2013 9:27 PM MST

Yes, it is every bit as bad as it sounds, and worse. Word is that the initial plan was for a 40% (!!!!) levy confiscation of Cypriot bank accounts. They settled for a MERE 6.75% and 9.9% dual-layered compromise.

Yeah, you all need to do what I have been doing for the last several months and live within spitting distance of being overdrawn in your bank accounts. In other words, keep the BARE MINIMUM in the bank and feed your account just enough to cover the bills. As soon as money comes in, get it the heck out of there.

Looks like the IRS may prove to be the least of my worries with regards to levying bank accounts!

This has the potential to spark bank runs in other Southern European nations MERELY BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT IT ACTUALLY HAS HAPPENED. Pray the Greeks, Italians, Spaniards and Portuguese are all watching talent shows or soccer and don’t notice. But if it does, if you have watched my eight-part economic presentation on YouTube, then you understand that we will blow sky-high as the big banks and their tens of trillions of dollars in repos and reverse repos and credit default swaps, many-to-most of which are written on European sovereign debt, blow.

…   UPDATE: I agree with various commentators that this is almost certainly a test-run by Brussels to see what the reaction of the Cypriots is. If no one is hanging from light poles by sunset on Tuesday, they will likely move on to Greece and the other Southern European economies, satisfied that the people have been sufficiently conditioned to roll over. Tiny Cyprus, an ISLAND mind you, makes the perfect test lab.

I anticipate that the light poles will remain undecorated. There is no fight left in the men of former Western Civilization; only indifference punctuated by self-loathing. Say goodnight, Gracie.

Goodnight, Gracie.

NY SAFE Act Nabs its First Gun Owner: An Iraq War vet | Guns.com

A Western New York man now faces seven years in prison for violating Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s new gun control-law, the NY Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act (or SAFE Act).

Benjamin M. Wassell.
Credit: Buffalo News

Benjamin M. Wassell, an Iraq War veteran, was charged with twice selling newly banned military-style ‘assault’ weapons and standard-capacity magazines to an undercover police officer as part of a sting operation conducted by State Police and the New York Attorney General’s Office, the Buffalo News reported.

Altogether, the 32-year-old Silver Creek resident was slapped with three felony charges and one misdemeanor, which as noted could end up putting Wassell, who has no prior convictions, behind bars for as many as seven years.

“By selling these illegal firearms, Mr. Wassell’s actions had potentially dangerous consequences for New Yorkers,” said state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. “We have seen far too much gun violence in our state in recent months, and the sale of illegal semiautomatic weapons will not go unpunished.”

On Jan. 24 Wassell sold a Del-Ton AR-15 to an undercover agent along with six standard-capacity magazines and 299 rounds of ammunition for $1,900.

Due do the fact that the rifle has one or more military cosmetic characteristics, i.e. a detachable magazine, a pistol grip and a telescoping stock, it is considered an ‘assault’ weapon under the NY SAFE Act and cannot be sold to anyone but a licensed dealer or an out-of-state citizen.

The first sale Wassell made to the undercover officer was made nine days after the Governor rammed through the law in the dead of night after waving the mandatory three-day legislative review period.  Instead of arresting Wassell after his first offense, the investigators held out and remained undercover to see if he would sell another banned firearm. Unfortunately, he did…

Thoughts and analysis. This is only beginning.

Gun owners in the Empire State should be on high-alert moving forward.  Both Cuomo and NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg will continue to appropriate state and city resources to conducting sting operations that attempt to entrap law-abiding gun owners.

NY SAFE Act: Question on ‘Assault’ Weapons Registration

The way it looks, lawmakers want to ensure that this law is taken seriously.  Previously legal firearms are now banned.  And if you fail to register them in the coming weeks, you’re now a criminal in the eyes of the state.

Also, please note that these laws do not only apply to firearms, but magazines as well.  The NY SAFE Act put a retroactive ban on magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.  If you’re caught with a 10-plus round magazine, you’re a criminal.  If you load more than seven rounds in your ten round magazine, you’re in violation of the law.

via NY SAFE Act Nabs its First Gun Owner: An Iraq War vet (VIDEO) – Guns.com.

Fast, Furious, and Disappointing | Brittius

U.S. Border Patrolman Brian Terry He Kept His Oath – Avenge Him

The carnival with the Justice Department and House Congressional committee continue to disagree, in settling a lawsuit over congressional efforts to obtain records related to Operation Fast and Furious, a gun trafficking operation that was the brainstorm of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, under the direction of the U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney General, William Holder. The Justice Department, put it to the House Committee, that the settlement, will not be coming, period, case closed, and they don’t give a damn. The attorney general is not serious about settlement.

President Barack Obama has invoked Executive Privilege, and Attorney General Eric Holder, has been found in Contempt of Congress, for refusing to turn over records, after initially denying to Congress, that federal agents had used a very controversial tactic called “Gun Walking”, in the failed law enforcement operation that lead to the killing of a United States Border Patrolman, that was gunned down by a weapon deliberately placed into criminal hands with the consent of the U.S. Justice Department. Me, or you, and they would have locked us up and thrown away the key, long ago.

Soda-Obessed Mayor of Illiterate City to Convene Climate Change Summit in World’s Rape Capital | FrontPage

[GE NOTE:  I laughed so hard at the title of this article coffee shot out of my nose.  Well done Frontpage!!]

Click to read the latest of escapades of Napoleon Bloomberg Quixote.
(If Hell has an “insipid room” it will, no doubt, be reserved for this tool)

80 percent of New York City high school students seem to have some trouble reading, but Mayor Bloomberg has no time for them. He’s too busy dealing with serious issues, like soda sizes, gun control in Illinois and the impending destruction of the planet…

via Soda-Obessed Mayor of Illiterate City @ FrontPage

An Orwellian America | Zero Hedge

….ORWELL’S 1984 IS HAPPENING.  We are one crisis away from a police state. All the powers are in place. Someone will flip the switch. Whether a Cyber Attack, escalating Currency War tensions or a ‘terrorist’ attack by indebted college youth, it is only a matter of time and circumstance.

click the pic to read the entire dsytopic tonic on this topic at ZeroHedge

via An Orwellian America | Zero Hedge.

Mandatory Reading for 3/5/13 – The Woodpile Report

Go here, right now, and read it all. That’s an order.

***possible bs alert***Obama DHS Purchases 2,700 Light-Armored Tanks to Go With Their 1.6 Billion Bullet Stockpile | The Gateway Pundit

This is getting a little creepy.  According to one estimate, since last year the Department of Homeland Security has stockpiled more than 1.6 billion bullets, mainly .40 caliber and 9mm.  DHS also purchased 2,700 Mine Resistant Armor Protected Vehicles (MRAP)…   via The Gateway Pundit.

The Road to Oligarchy | Sultan Knish

Regardless of how many wars on poverty are declared and how often calls are issued to make the rich pay their fair share, neither the rich nor the poor will be going anywhere anytime soon. The question is what forces will keep the poor impoverished and where the rich will derive their wealth from.

The founder of Subway recently said that he could not have started up his company today. Similar messages have come from the founders and heads of other major companies. That isn’t to say that companies will cease to exist. What we think of as business has been changing for some time.
In most countries, starting a business does not begin with a great idea. It begins with connections. Knowing the right people is still important, but in most places it’s the most important thing.

How To Be a Survivor by Robert Heinlein [1945] | via Free Dominion

How To Be a Survivor : The Art of Staying Alive in the Atomic Age, by Robert Heinlein. 1945.

Thought about your life insurance lately?  Wait a minute-sit back down! We don’t want to sell you any insurance.

Let’s put it another way: How’s your pioneer blood these days? Reflexes in fine shape? Muscle tone good? Or do you take a taxi to go six blocks?

How are you at catching rabbits? The old recipe goes, “First, catch the rabbit-” Suppose your supper depended on catching a rabbit? Then on building a fire without matches? Then on cooking it? What kind of shape will you be in after the corner delicatessen is atomized?

When a committee of Senators asked Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer whether or not a single attack on the United States could kill forty million people, he testified, “I am afraid it is true.”

This is not an article about making the atom bomb safe for democracy. This is an article about you-and how you can avoid being one of the forty million knocked off in the first attack in World War III. How, if worst comes to worst, you can live through the next war, survive the aftermath, and build a new life.

Court to consider whether speedy approval of NY gun controls violated constitution | Fox

ALBANY, N.Y. – A New York state judge agreed Friday to consider whether the state’s tough new gun restrictions were rushed into law in violation of the state constitution. State Supreme Court Justice Gerald Connolly signed an order granting the request for a hearing by plaintiffs who are challenging Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s decision to waive the three-day review usually required before votes on bills, according to LoHud.com.

The plaintiffs argue the law violates the guarantees of free speech, property ownership and the right to petition the government guaranteed under the state and federal constitutions.

Plaintiff Robert Schulz called Cuomo a “king” for pushing through the nation’s toughest gun law by suspending the three-day vetting period by submitting a “message of necessity” on the law, which allows the constitutional waiting period to be suspended.

via Court to consider whether speedy approval of NY gun controls violated constitution | Fox News.

Separation | Ol’ Remus & The Woodpile Report for 2/26/13

DC has always been distant from the people. Apart from the IRS and the draft, they were “the other” we read about in the papers, running gangsters and spies to ground, getting the interstate built, fighting wars and generally looking out for the Little Guy. We believed they were the Big Picture People doing things on the largest scale on behalf of all who worked hard, lived responsibly and stayed right with the law. DC was the captain and crew of our mighty ship, alert and sure, cutting cleanly through heavy seas and turgid morass alike, while their grateful passengers shuddered at the hardship and horrors beyond the delights of the endless buffet on the promenade deck.

The Right Way to Combat Gun Violence | Reason.com

The Right Way to Combat Gun Violence:  Most gun control ideas are irrelevant or impossible.  Steve Chapman | February 25, 2013

Public policy is a lot like math: No matter what the problem, the wrong answers are far more numerous than the right ones. This is particularly true on the subject of mass shootings and other firearms violence, which have stimulated a new fervor for barking up the wrong tree.

Many liberals think the answer to mass shootings and street crime lies in stricter gun regulation: banning “assault weapons,” limiting the capacity of magazines or, in their unrestrained moments, adopting ultra-stringent laws like those in Britain or Australia.

But most of these ideas are irrelevant or impossible. Even if the Second Amendment didn’t prevent it, Americans would never stand for a near-total ban on ownership of semiautomatic weapons, a la Australia, or of handguns, as in Britain. You might as well expect Nebraska to build 300 miles of oceanfront beaches.

Should You Go to Jail for Unlocking Your Phone? | Reason

Derek Khanna on copyright, the DMCA, and the terrible law against freeing your cellphone

Supreme Court Maintains Spotty Civil-Liberties Record | Reason.com

click to go to Reason.com

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions regarding police powers were mixed, thus offering a reminder to civil libertarians that they cannot depend upon the high court to protect the public from unwarranted government intrusions.

“The U.S. Supreme Court handed police one victory and one loss on Tuesday,” reported National Public Radio. “In one decision, the justices limited the power of police to detain people who are away from their homes when police conduct a search. And in a second case, the justices ruled that drug-sniffing dogs don’t have to get every sniff right in order for a search to be valid.”

Mom takes on smart meters over privacy, health concerns | McClatchy

Of course they  have to paint these brave folks as tofu-brained, big brother deluded wackos:

Non-compliance will be punished comrades… Heil Das Amerika.

Seriously though, think about this:  You are coerced into a monopolistic, sole-sourced relationship with your electricity provider.  You have no real recourse regarding the physical plant that serves your buildings (although you do have a shell-game of selections of primary electricity sources in some areas).  Thus, should not the state extend additional protections from ALL predatory / dictatorial actions by these state mandated sole source suppliers that you are tied to?

These brave women carrying the ball forward for you and I:

A mother of three who buys organic food and worries about the dangers of “dirty electricity” has become the face of resistance in Naperville, Ill.

Led away in handcuffs after trying to prevent the installation of a “smart meter” on her home, Jennifer Stahl vows to continue the protest movement that has made this suburban community ground zero in a battle over privacy rights versus modern technology.

“This is unreasonable search and seizure,” said Stahl, 40, who believes the devices designed to monitor power usage are intrusive and pose a health risk. “It definitely is not OK for my utility … to know when I’m home and not home.”

New Jersey Girl on Fire about the 2nd amendment, Feb 13, 2013, before NJ Assmbly Publc Safety Committe

This young lady read the 2nd amendment to the Committee and explained what it means in no uncertain terms. This occurred at the February 13, 2013 NJ Assembly Gun Control Hearing.

Big Brother to monitor ‘sovereign citizens’ | WND

Orwell hit this one on the head…

So if you had any doubt that NDAA, CISPA, DHS, drones, warrant-less searches, TSA, the Newtown-circus and citizen disarmament etc. were a prelude to your preemptive criminalization, consider yourself disabused of that comforting notion.

Make no mistake about it you tinfoil hat wearing, gun toting, Bible clinging, knuckle dragging anachronisms:  YOU ARE the the threat. YOU are the enemy. YOU must be handled, managed, silenced, marginalized and entrapped.

The state fears nothing so much as an awakened, empowered and angry citizenry and so you sheep are not allowed off the farm. Punishment will be severe.

So, what are you going to do?  I think that the time for calls and letters to Congressmen, candlelight vigils, writing op-eds and cordial, thought provoking discourse to the uninformed has long been over:  That stuff is pointless.  The time is here to get ready for the long pull, the dark struggle, the end game.

I say it is time to disappear, opt out and go Galt.  I say the ‘laws’ and Government are now so illegal, so immoral that the only ethical course of action is to withdraw from that context.  In other words, I quit.  I am forming and fostering a new society of the like minded.   If that makes me a “sovereign man” to you Mr. FBI person, so be it. And fuck you.  I’ll be out here working for the good, and working against you if needed.

Good luck on getting me back in the corral.

G.E.

With almost no media coverage, the White House last week announced its new Interagency Working Group to Counter Online Radicalization to Violence that will target not only Islamic terrorists but so-called violent “sovereign citizens.”

5 tools to protect your privacy online | SovereignMan

We’ve discussed many times before—hardly a month goes by without some major action against Internet users… from Obama’s ‘kill switch’, to ACTA, SOPA and PIPA, to stasi tactics against people like Kim Dotcom.  Online privacy is becoming more important by the day. And nobody is going to give it to you, you have to take steps yourself to secure it.  Below are five different tools and services that will get you started:

1. Tor Browser – Tor is a great weapon in the fight for online anonymity as it allows you to surf the web without giving up your location and other personal data to the websites you visit.  The Tor Browser Bundle is the easiest and most secure way to get started; simply download it, and start surfing the web with the Tor Browser. It’s available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.  Learn more about and download the Tor Browser Bundle here

New Yorkers Take Aim At Cuomo’s SAFE Act | Freedom Outpost

Citizens and local authorities are waking up to the tyranny that is rearing it’s ugly head in the United States today. On Thursday, the Oswego County Legislature approved a resolution against parts of New York State’s new gun laws. The measure passed by a unanimous vote (25-0)!

The measure says the new Safe Act has a severe impact on guns that are used for safe recreation. It argues that state lawmakers didn’t have enough time to review it before it was passed. A copy of the resolution will be on its way to both Barack Obama and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

The resolution also encourages public hearings to be held by lawmakers and encourages the representatives of Oswego County to submit written opinions about the SAFE Act.  Oswego is not the first to do this. Madison and Herkimer counties have already passed similar resolutions and Ontario is poised to follow.

I don’t answer to the state | Ezra Levant

Ezra Levant:  A portion of his argument before the Alberta (Canada) Human Rights Commission regarding biased prosecution and selective enforcement of his free speech rights. Classic and brilliant.  Here is is his YouTube channel with more parts of the testimony. Here is a wiki write up on Levant.  (H/T Jericho777)

As Secretive “Stingray” Surveillance Tool Becomes More Pervasive, Questions Over Its Illegality Increase | EFF

A few months ago, EFF warned of a secretive new surveillance tool being used by the FBI in cases around the country commonly referred to as a “Stingray.” Recently, more information on the device has come to light and it makes us even more concerned than before.

The device, which acts as a fake cell phone tower, essentially allows the government to electronically search large areas for a particular cell phone’s signal—sucking down data on potentially thousands of innocent people along the way. At the same time, law enforcement has attempted use them while avoiding many of the traditional limitations set forth in the Constitution, like individualized warrants. This is why we called the tool “an unconstitutional, all-you-can-eat data buffet.”

Some NJ bills could cancel all NJ Firearms ID cards and mandate police turn-in or face felony charges | Evan Nappen via ANJRPC

By Evan F. Nappen, Attorney at Law (Exclusive to ANJRPC)

Out of the 23 bills recently filed in New Jersey, three dealing with mental health evaluations as a condition of issuance of FID cards contain potential severe unintended consequences that could invalidate every FID card in the state. They are A3688 (sponsors: Mainor and Jimenez), A3667 (sponsors: Cryan, O’Donnell, and Jasey) and A3676 (sponsor: Jimenez.)  All three of these bills require a mental health evaluation approved by the Superintendent of State police as a condition for issuance of a New Jersey Firearms Purchaser ID card under N.J.S. 2C:58-3c. Failure to do so is explicitly a “disability” under N.J.S. 2C:58-3c

A3676 also requires a privacy invading in-home inspection as a condition for issuance of an FID card, and A3688 requires submission of a list of household members with mental illness to the police to receive an FID card. Failure to obey these requirements are also explicitly “disabilities” under N.J.S. 2C:58-3c.

New Jersey law provides that an FID card is void if the holder becomes subject to a “disability.” Accordingly, if these bills take effect, ALL persons already holding an FID card who have not had the home inspection, psychological evaluation, or provided the list of household members (and thereby overcome the “disabilities” imposed by the legislation) MUST TURN IN their Firearms ID card to the Police. The turn in must be done within 5 days by law or face prosecution for 4th Degree Crime (Felony -18 months prison time.)   TAKE OUT YOUR OWN FID AND READ THE WARNING ON THE BACK…

This Dog Can Send You to Jail | Reason.com

“… He asked me would I mind if he searched my vehicle, and I said, ‘Well, yes, I would mind if you searched my vehicle.’ ”

But thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court, the deputy did not have to take no for an answer. In the 2005 case Illinois v. Caballes, the Court declared that “the use of a well-trained narcotics-detection dog…during a lawful traffic stop generally does not implicate legitimate privacy interests.” So the deputy was free to walk his dog around Burns’ truck. “He got out with this dog and went around the car, two or three times,” Burns says. “He came back and said the dog had ‘passively alerted’ on my vehicle.”  via This Dog Can Send You to Jail – Reason.com.

The Fort Hood Shooting vs. the Gun Control media | via YouViewed\Editorial

Well stated at YouViewed\Editorial blog (I have edited for emphasis):

When you look at recent mass shootings that have occurred recently there is one specific incident that is very rarely if ever mentioned by the liberal media and Gun Control advocates.

The Ft. Hood Shooting is never cited or discussed or even mentioned by the Anti’s and Gun grabbers like Bloomberg, Schumer, Boxer, Feinstein, McCarthy or Cuomo. They only cite the Tucson, Aurora and Sandy Hook events as reason to restrict law abiding citizens their rights. WHY?

One must make a few assumptions to uncover why they rarely if ever cite the Ft. Hood mass shooting in their quest to deny law abiding citizens their 2nd Amendment rights.

1. …because it occurred on a military installation while Obama was the Commander in Chief;
2. …because the perpetrator was Muslim and it is not politically correct because the President himself sympathizes with the Muslim plight across the world;
3. …because the victims were military personnel and they just don’t have the same impact as civilians and children for good demagoguery.

Journalist Jason Mattera Accosted by Security over Mayor Bloomberg Gun Control Question | Breitbart

Jason Mattera, bless his soul, offers Bloomie some soda and asks whether he would consider gun control for his own staff of armed guards.  Hilarious and sickening at the same time.

One can only wonder if the Bloomberg School of Gun Fear at Johns Hopkins University will be doing a study on the psycho-social trauma of dealing with that narcissistic, lilliputian pukes armed henchmen.  Just makes one wanna barf…

EXCLUSIVE: Journalist Accosted by Security over Mayor Bloomberg Gun Control Question

via Breitbart

Sandy Hook, Newtown CT shootings: An accumulated collection of facts, assertions and posts

Photo Credit: DesMoines Register

Updated 18 Jan 2013, 7:15PM EDT.  Grey Enigma.

Well the more I dig into all these conspiracy assertions, the less convinced I am that there is any ‘there’ there.  Most of the assertions that the shooting was embellished, staged, had factual errors etc. are not reasonable/  I.e. see here for an excellent synopsis-repsonse to all of that.  I find no compelling evidence that the shooting was any more than it was reported to be:  A murder spree, perpetrated by a nutjob.  If new evidence is published I might change my mind. GE.   ———

Previously I had stated:  The Sandy Hook / Newtown CT crimes puzzle me.  Having done a fair amount of forensic investigation in another life, there are so many things about this event that are too vague or coincidental to rule out some of what appear at first blush to be just kooky conspiracy theories.

In cases like this – i.e. where there is a lot of evidence, much of it testimonial and based on interviews of 1st hand witnesses and 2nd hand investigators – there will be few simple questions definitively answerable. Instead, the best a reviewer will be able to determine is simply the most reasonable inferences and explanations based upon the  facts and evidence.

23 Executive Orders on Guns, Barack Obama, Jan. 16, 2013 | excerpted from Zero Hedge

Dear God save us from the vile, collectivist shitbag who happens to be President at the moment. Seriously, who does this man and his minions think we are? I.e.

…16. Clarify that the Affordable Care Act does not prohibit doctors asking their patients about guns in their homes…

Oh really?  Perhaps I will ask my doctor if he likes anal sex in his home as that might be unhealthful.  Too livid to type, I point you to SilverRhino responding to another on ZeroHedge who summed this up:

List of the 23 Executive Orders is as follows:

1. Issue a Presidential Memorandum to require federal agencies to make relevant data available to the federal background check system.

“A Time to Kill by L.T.”, with Comments | Grey Enigma

Posted 15 Jan. 2013.

Quite a few years ago I swore an Oath – one not too dissimilar from the one the titular leaders of our Republic swore as well.  In my case, here is what I promised:

I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice.  So help me God.

I and many other patriotic Americans are at or nearing a breaking point regarding the actions of our leaders and the direction of this country.  To those who would say that we are disaffected, unemployed stressed out rednecks, bitterly clinging to our God and guns, I assure that you’re kidding yourself.  We are your neighbors, friends, uncles, coaches, pastors, scoutmasters, store clerks  and mailmen.  We are, by most measures, most of the people in this nation.

“…Not one more inch.” Pack Your Bags Part 2 | James Yaeger

Mr. Biden: I’ll be keeping my guns, you have gone too far | The Grey Enigma

” The President IS going to act…they’re executive orders, executive action, that can be taken…we haven’t decided what that is yet, but we’re compiling it all with help of the attorney general and, uhh, and all the rest of the cabinet members, as well as the legislative action we believe is required… via Modern Survival Blog.

RANT WARNING: So, as followers of this blog have figured out I don’t usually opine much, preferring to let the things I cross post speak for themselves.  I fear we are at the threshold, however, of some new and nasty developments in this latest act in our ‘gun control’ kabuki theater and I can’t keep my mouth shut.