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| June 21, 2012 |
The Cowboy Byte
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| June 21, 2012 News and Thoughts for the day |
Personal Liberty Alerts
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The United States – A Democracy or a Republic – A Dragon or a Lamb
by David Barron
In a republic people the
government is to protect your God given natural rights. The declaration
of independence and the constitution exclude disbelief in or even doubt
as to the existence of God as the Creator of Man as we shall see.
The lamb like beast which speaks as a dragon
Democracy:
In a democracy, the people accept their government given civil rights. Democracy was repugnant to the founders of the United States and it is repugnant to God and to bible believing Christians who understand the principles of liberty and justice for all as we shall see.
“A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine.” – Thomas Jefferson
For instance, let’s say that 51% of the nation votes for military drones to monitor people and take away their privacy and freedom or federal departments such as the TSA to touch every part of your body and grope your private parts to ensure the safety of others, the Department of Education to make sure your kids are being educated by the powers that be to believe that we are no longer free, and that God doesn’t exist, and that they came from animals and were not formed in the image of God.
Or how about the Department of Energy to force you to pay taxes for breathing, the Food and Drug Administration to govern us and force down our throats fluoridated water and to also force us to put mercury, aluminum, and other poison in our veins and bloodstream by means of vaccinations, meanwhile outlawing the sale of herbs and vitamins. Or the Department of Buildings creating laws and red tape so much so that a small business cannot operate anymore, a construction company can no longer cut down a tree without a permit from the government, or do renovations on the home, build a fence, or a deck etc.
The businesses pay so much to follow all of these guidelines, and get all this government training, permits etc. that the small business cannot afford to pay it’s workers and thus all good jobs disappear and taking over 50% of our income in unconstitutional taxes, and forcing the people to give them more money by way of permits and other red tape while corporations like Wal-Mart are given government grants of land and don’t have to pay taxes and import products from China etc promoting slavery and other unconstitutional principles.
Not only that, but also forcing us into a health care system that forces the healthy to support and pay for those who choose to be sick by means of improper lifestyle habits. It’s like forcing me to pay high insurance premiums because other people get in lot’s of car accidents, and not only that , but to put millions of dollars into the pockets of the monopolized insurance companies.
Furthermore, taking your money to put into foreign wars to destroy innocent civilians who are upset because you are trying to “FORCE democracy” on them and they don’t want it because it’s to destructive. Also being supposedly Christian they make God look tyrannical to the other nations, and obviously many Christians who think God is a war monger also become tyrannical. Please see my article on whether or not Christians should fight in war for more on that topic:
Should Christians Fight in wars? - God's Non-Interventionist Policy
How about 99% of the people of Occupy Wall Street using their democracy or shall we say mobocracy because that’s what democracy is, to force the government to come up with equal rations for all by demanding that those who are wealthy must split their income among the poor. And they believe that they are 99% and they want to take away the rights of others(by force) and if 51% of them believe that wealth distribution by force is the answer then that’s the way it will be whether the other 49% agree or not. I am definitely part of the 99% who are not wealthy, but not part of the % who believes that the government needs to redistribute wealth from wealthy people to poorer people.
We have in excess of 50 million people on food stamps(welfare) in America right now. That’s 1 in 7 people. Sadly when the people become immoral the cry is for others to govern us and take away our rights and enslave us and make us a complete welfare State dependent entirely on the government to feed us our daily rations, tell us what to eat and drink, give us a little room to live in, tell us what job to do, and basically enslave the nation because they did not accept that they were the government and were to govern themselves giving you a little card to buy and sell with and you must accept their rules first in order to do so.
The cry right now is becoming “Give us a King” and they have fallen right into the hands of power hungry dictators who are quite willing to make the 99% equal in a total police state where they give you your vaccination shots, some white bleached bread, and some water, and lots of Federal Emergency Management Agency camps where everyone will have equal bedding, and a radio going 24 hours re-educating the people into accepting the tyranny they got themselves into and how they believe they can correct it and save everyone.
That’s democracy for you, and that’s where it’s heading. If 51% wants to force the other 49% to take a mark in their right hand or in their forehead, then the majority cheers as they take away the rights of the minority.
Self Government The Republic:
A republic is not a democracy, and far from it, and it is well worthwhile to study this issue out. Abraham Lincoln defined to us what a republic is. “A government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
In a Republic, the sovereignty resides with the people themselves. In a Republic, one may act on his own or through his representatives when he chooses to solve a problem. The people have no obligation to the government; instead, the government is a servant of the people, and obliged to its owner, “We the People.” Many politicians have lost sight of that fact.
The power is structured thus:
1. God
2. People
3. Government
The opposite is true with democracy as well as most churches today.
A republic was known as the greatest at self government and the early republic of Rome became the greatest and most powerful nation on earth before its fall. But by their continual conquests they became rich. Historian AT Jones writes that:
“In the train of luxury came vice; self-restraint was broken down; the power of self-government was lost; and the Roman republic failed, as every other republic will fail, when that(self government) fails by virtue of which alone a republic is possible. The Romans ceased to govern themselves, and they had to be governed. They lost the faculty of self-government, and with that vanished the republic, and its place was supplied by an imperial tyranny supported by a military despotism.” – (AT Jones The Two Republics page 3)
Don’t just step over that quote. It say’s a lot. Especially since it was written over 130 years ago. The republic was about self government, but they stopped governing themselves.
So the steps were:
1. Riches and luxury
2. Vice (Loss of morality)
3. Self restraint broken down (self government lost)
4. Democracy sets in and majority cries for government restraint (Give us a King)
5. Tyranny supported by a military despotism (police state)
I read in the bible “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”(Eccl 1:9).
These steps are nothing new. The government of the people, by the people and for the people” was lost. It was lost because the people lost morality and didn’t realize that the people they had called as governors were immoral. Study history and you will see what made a great republic fall yesterday, and what has made it fall today. It’s interesting how the bible say’s “Babylon is fallen, is fallen”(Revelation 14:8, and 18:2). Seems to me that God was telling us that history repeats itself.
Article IV Section 4 of the Constitution states: “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion . . .”
In a constitutional republic, we govern ourselves. There is not mob rule, but a rule of law. And the law states in it in amendments 1 to 8 of the constitution our unalienable rights which are protected from a mob rule democracy. Which can be summed up in the declaration of independence as thus:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”(Declaration of Independence)
If you are going to step on my liberties or encroach my pursuit of happiness, or want to kill me, then you are violating the constitution and my God given not government given rights. Doesn’t matter if you have 51% or not.
Examples of Democracy at Work to Destroy Freedom and Liberty
Coca-cola is not good for you. But the government cannot FORCE you not to drink it.
If I choose to drink a 16 ounce Coca-cola in the streets of New York City(which I don’t by the way, I think it’s unhealthy), you have no right to stop me, you then are infringing on my liberty which the constitution protects. In a democracy you could vote to put me in jail for 6 months for drinking that much Coca-cola, and that’s the difference from a republic. In a democracy people begin to force others to comply to their beliefs.
In a constitutional republic you cannot force me not to drink Coca-cola, not even to not smoke Marijuana, though I disagree strongly with that as well. The war on drugs is unconstitutional.
I recently heard of a woman who had a beautiful garden in her yard. The city came by and cut it all down and gave her some fines to pay and told her it was against the city law. They came up with these laws because she might grow marijuana in her garden. Basically the 51% destroyed the rights of the other 49%. I’m sure they’ll remember someday should they ever want to grow a garden. But this is the fruit of democracy.
Some might quickly say “Your for drugs”. No, I’m for liberty.
2Co 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
The bible has many examples of the majority taking away the rights of the minority. Such as the three boys who would not bow to the image.(Daniel 3) They stood alone. Daniel when he prayed to his God 3 times a day.(Daniel 6) And finally in the end of time we read in Revelation just before Jesus comes that a second beast or nation(Daniel 7:23, Revelation 13:11) would come out of the earth looking like a lamb, but it would eventually speak like a dragon.
Democracy in this country was feared as much as a monarchy by the founders. Because it did was intolerant toward those with differing views. In Revelation 13 we see 3 beasts. A first beast rising out of the sea.(Revelation 13:1, 2), a second beast rising out of the earth(Revelation 13:11) and an image to the first beast which the second beast forms. The image or copy of this first beast is given all the power of the first beast by the second beast.
It is my personal belief however, and you have the freedom to differ with me. Some reading this may feel the urge to take away my rights as they are reading this because they cannot tolerate what they feel to be erroneous, some may differ with me, that is your right. I have personally come to believe that the first beast of Revelation 13 is the Papacy, and the second beast is the United States, and the Image to the Beast is a copy of the Papacy and very similar to what developed in Rome after the fall of the republic where worship was publicly forced on the people and those who refused to bow were tortured, killed, and slain for not accepting the beliefs of the Roman Church. Some have said that 50 million or more were killed by the Roman Church during the dark ages.
If anything has ever been more destructive it was the Church trying to force it’s will on the people using civil government. And this is what the founders tried to protect against in the first amendment.
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble..”(1st Amendment of the Bill of Rights)
We are told that Christians are to be servants. Jesus Christ himself served us. And the servant is not here to rule and reign over others. They are to govern themselves. And the government is to serve the people. They are not to rule and reign. The bible tells us that there are “three things for which the earth is disquieted” and the first of those is written “A servant when he reigneth”(Proverbs 3:22). In other words there is nothing that alarms this planet more than a servant who wants to rule.
The founders of the United States believed that government was only in place to serve and protect the people and their God given rights. And also government was not to do anything without the consent of the people. This is a far cry from what is happening right now.
Democracy Leads to Dictatorship
I read in Revelation that:
Rev 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
It came up like a lamb, but then eventually begins to speak like a dragon. The Dragon is pictured here:
Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Eventually it would come to a point where the power of the dragon was given to the first beast.(Revelation 13:2), and finally that power was excercised by the second beast who wanted to make an image or a copy of the first beast which would then take away the rights of those who refused to comply with the request of the kingdom.
Revelation 13:15-17 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. (16) And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: (17) And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
I intend shortly to put together a few more studies which go over this in much more detail as I understand that some may be skeptical. I believe that the bible and history clearly lay out what is happening and that God has not left us ignorant regarding the remaining events to close world history. But I believe that we are heading quickly into this final democracy where the majority 51% say’s “no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
A very great issue here is the misrepresentation of the character of God in the way the government is now carrying things out and the way in which many people, professing themselves to be Christian have fought against the very thing that God stands for trying to spread democracy around the world, and coming up with silly saying such as “We must give up our liberties for freedom”. They fail to understand that they are saying that they must give up their freedoms and liberties for freedom and liberties. It’s an oxymoron.
If you are interested in the upcoming bible studies regarding America in Bible prophecy, please sign up for my blog at:
The Third Angels Message Website
Joe Biden the Vice President doesn't mind having a mark in his forehead.
The lamb like beast which speaks as a dragon
Democracy:
In a democracy, the people accept their government given civil rights. Democracy was repugnant to the founders of the United States and it is repugnant to God and to bible believing Christians who understand the principles of liberty and justice for all as we shall see.
“A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine.” – Thomas Jefferson
For instance, let’s say that 51% of the nation votes for military drones to monitor people and take away their privacy and freedom or federal departments such as the TSA to touch every part of your body and grope your private parts to ensure the safety of others, the Department of Education to make sure your kids are being educated by the powers that be to believe that we are no longer free, and that God doesn’t exist, and that they came from animals and were not formed in the image of God.
Or how about the Department of Energy to force you to pay taxes for breathing, the Food and Drug Administration to govern us and force down our throats fluoridated water and to also force us to put mercury, aluminum, and other poison in our veins and bloodstream by means of vaccinations, meanwhile outlawing the sale of herbs and vitamins. Or the Department of Buildings creating laws and red tape so much so that a small business cannot operate anymore, a construction company can no longer cut down a tree without a permit from the government, or do renovations on the home, build a fence, or a deck etc.
The businesses pay so much to follow all of these guidelines, and get all this government training, permits etc. that the small business cannot afford to pay it’s workers and thus all good jobs disappear and taking over 50% of our income in unconstitutional taxes, and forcing the people to give them more money by way of permits and other red tape while corporations like Wal-Mart are given government grants of land and don’t have to pay taxes and import products from China etc promoting slavery and other unconstitutional principles.
Not only that, but also forcing us into a health care system that forces the healthy to support and pay for those who choose to be sick by means of improper lifestyle habits. It’s like forcing me to pay high insurance premiums because other people get in lot’s of car accidents, and not only that , but to put millions of dollars into the pockets of the monopolized insurance companies.
Furthermore, taking your money to put into foreign wars to destroy innocent civilians who are upset because you are trying to “FORCE democracy” on them and they don’t want it because it’s to destructive. Also being supposedly Christian they make God look tyrannical to the other nations, and obviously many Christians who think God is a war monger also become tyrannical. Please see my article on whether or not Christians should fight in war for more on that topic:
Should Christians Fight in wars? - God's Non-Interventionist Policy
How about 99% of the people of Occupy Wall Street using their democracy or shall we say mobocracy because that’s what democracy is, to force the government to come up with equal rations for all by demanding that those who are wealthy must split their income among the poor. And they believe that they are 99% and they want to take away the rights of others(by force) and if 51% of them believe that wealth distribution by force is the answer then that’s the way it will be whether the other 49% agree or not. I am definitely part of the 99% who are not wealthy, but not part of the % who believes that the government needs to redistribute wealth from wealthy people to poorer people.
We have in excess of 50 million people on food stamps(welfare) in America right now. That’s 1 in 7 people. Sadly when the people become immoral the cry is for others to govern us and take away our rights and enslave us and make us a complete welfare State dependent entirely on the government to feed us our daily rations, tell us what to eat and drink, give us a little room to live in, tell us what job to do, and basically enslave the nation because they did not accept that they were the government and were to govern themselves giving you a little card to buy and sell with and you must accept their rules first in order to do so.
The cry right now is becoming “Give us a King” and they have fallen right into the hands of power hungry dictators who are quite willing to make the 99% equal in a total police state where they give you your vaccination shots, some white bleached bread, and some water, and lots of Federal Emergency Management Agency camps where everyone will have equal bedding, and a radio going 24 hours re-educating the people into accepting the tyranny they got themselves into and how they believe they can correct it and save everyone.
That’s democracy for you, and that’s where it’s heading. If 51% wants to force the other 49% to take a mark in their right hand or in their forehead, then the majority cheers as they take away the rights of the minority.
Self Government The Republic:
A republic is not a democracy, and far from it, and it is well worthwhile to study this issue out. Abraham Lincoln defined to us what a republic is. “A government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
In a Republic, the sovereignty resides with the people themselves. In a Republic, one may act on his own or through his representatives when he chooses to solve a problem. The people have no obligation to the government; instead, the government is a servant of the people, and obliged to its owner, “We the People.” Many politicians have lost sight of that fact.
The power is structured thus:
1. God
2. People
3. Government
The opposite is true with democracy as well as most churches today.
A republic was known as the greatest at self government and the early republic of Rome became the greatest and most powerful nation on earth before its fall. But by their continual conquests they became rich. Historian AT Jones writes that:
“In the train of luxury came vice; self-restraint was broken down; the power of self-government was lost; and the Roman republic failed, as every other republic will fail, when that(self government) fails by virtue of which alone a republic is possible. The Romans ceased to govern themselves, and they had to be governed. They lost the faculty of self-government, and with that vanished the republic, and its place was supplied by an imperial tyranny supported by a military despotism.” – (AT Jones The Two Republics page 3)
Don’t just step over that quote. It say’s a lot. Especially since it was written over 130 years ago. The republic was about self government, but they stopped governing themselves.
So the steps were:
1. Riches and luxury
2. Vice (Loss of morality)
3. Self restraint broken down (self government lost)
4. Democracy sets in and majority cries for government restraint (Give us a King)
5. Tyranny supported by a military despotism (police state)
I read in the bible “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”(Eccl 1:9).
These steps are nothing new. The government of the people, by the people and for the people” was lost. It was lost because the people lost morality and didn’t realize that the people they had called as governors were immoral. Study history and you will see what made a great republic fall yesterday, and what has made it fall today. It’s interesting how the bible say’s “Babylon is fallen, is fallen”(Revelation 14:8, and 18:2). Seems to me that God was telling us that history repeats itself.
Article IV Section 4 of the Constitution states: “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion . . .”
In a constitutional republic, we govern ourselves. There is not mob rule, but a rule of law. And the law states in it in amendments 1 to 8 of the constitution our unalienable rights which are protected from a mob rule democracy. Which can be summed up in the declaration of independence as thus:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”(Declaration of Independence)
If you are going to step on my liberties or encroach my pursuit of happiness, or want to kill me, then you are violating the constitution and my God given not government given rights. Doesn’t matter if you have 51% or not.
Examples of Democracy at Work to Destroy Freedom and Liberty
Coca-cola is not good for you. But the government cannot FORCE you not to drink it.
If I choose to drink a 16 ounce Coca-cola in the streets of New York City(which I don’t by the way, I think it’s unhealthy), you have no right to stop me, you then are infringing on my liberty which the constitution protects. In a democracy you could vote to put me in jail for 6 months for drinking that much Coca-cola, and that’s the difference from a republic. In a democracy people begin to force others to comply to their beliefs.
In a constitutional republic you cannot force me not to drink Coca-cola, not even to not smoke Marijuana, though I disagree strongly with that as well. The war on drugs is unconstitutional.
I recently heard of a woman who had a beautiful garden in her yard. The city came by and cut it all down and gave her some fines to pay and told her it was against the city law. They came up with these laws because she might grow marijuana in her garden. Basically the 51% destroyed the rights of the other 49%. I’m sure they’ll remember someday should they ever want to grow a garden. But this is the fruit of democracy.
Some might quickly say “Your for drugs”. No, I’m for liberty.
2Co 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
The bible has many examples of the majority taking away the rights of the minority. Such as the three boys who would not bow to the image.(Daniel 3) They stood alone. Daniel when he prayed to his God 3 times a day.(Daniel 6) And finally in the end of time we read in Revelation just before Jesus comes that a second beast or nation(Daniel 7:23, Revelation 13:11) would come out of the earth looking like a lamb, but it would eventually speak like a dragon.
Democracy in this country was feared as much as a monarchy by the founders. Because it did was intolerant toward those with differing views. In Revelation 13 we see 3 beasts. A first beast rising out of the sea.(Revelation 13:1, 2), a second beast rising out of the earth(Revelation 13:11) and an image to the first beast which the second beast forms. The image or copy of this first beast is given all the power of the first beast by the second beast.
It is my personal belief however, and you have the freedom to differ with me. Some reading this may feel the urge to take away my rights as they are reading this because they cannot tolerate what they feel to be erroneous, some may differ with me, that is your right. I have personally come to believe that the first beast of Revelation 13 is the Papacy, and the second beast is the United States, and the Image to the Beast is a copy of the Papacy and very similar to what developed in Rome after the fall of the republic where worship was publicly forced on the people and those who refused to bow were tortured, killed, and slain for not accepting the beliefs of the Roman Church. Some have said that 50 million or more were killed by the Roman Church during the dark ages.
If anything has ever been more destructive it was the Church trying to force it’s will on the people using civil government. And this is what the founders tried to protect against in the first amendment.
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble..”(1st Amendment of the Bill of Rights)
We are told that Christians are to be servants. Jesus Christ himself served us. And the servant is not here to rule and reign over others. They are to govern themselves. And the government is to serve the people. They are not to rule and reign. The bible tells us that there are “three things for which the earth is disquieted” and the first of those is written “A servant when he reigneth”(Proverbs 3:22). In other words there is nothing that alarms this planet more than a servant who wants to rule.
The founders of the United States believed that government was only in place to serve and protect the people and their God given rights. And also government was not to do anything without the consent of the people. This is a far cry from what is happening right now.
Democracy Leads to Dictatorship
I read in Revelation that:
Rev 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
It came up like a lamb, but then eventually begins to speak like a dragon. The Dragon is pictured here:
Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Eventually it would come to a point where the power of the dragon was given to the first beast.(Revelation 13:2), and finally that power was excercised by the second beast who wanted to make an image or a copy of the first beast which would then take away the rights of those who refused to comply with the request of the kingdom.
Revelation 13:15-17 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. (16) And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: (17) And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
I intend shortly to put together a few more studies which go over this in much more detail as I understand that some may be skeptical. I believe that the bible and history clearly lay out what is happening and that God has not left us ignorant regarding the remaining events to close world history. But I believe that we are heading quickly into this final democracy where the majority 51% say’s “no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
A very great issue here is the misrepresentation of the character of God in the way the government is now carrying things out and the way in which many people, professing themselves to be Christian have fought against the very thing that God stands for trying to spread democracy around the world, and coming up with silly saying such as “We must give up our liberties for freedom”. They fail to understand that they are saying that they must give up their freedoms and liberties for freedom and liberties. It’s an oxymoron.
If you are interested in the upcoming bible studies regarding America in Bible prophecy, please sign up for my blog at:
The Third Angels Message Website
Joe Biden the Vice President doesn't mind having a mark in his forehead.
Voters leaving Republican, Democratic parties in droves
By Richard Wolf, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON – More than 2.5 million voters have left the Democratic and Republican parties since the 2008 elections, while the number of independent voters continues to grow.
A USA TODAY analysis of state voter
registration statistics shows registered Democrats declined in 25 of the
28 states that register voters by party. Republicans dipped in 21
states, while independents increased in 18 states.
The
trend is acute in states that are key to next year's presidential race.
In the eight swing states that register voters by party, Democrats'
registration is down by 800,000 and Republicans' by 350,000.
Independents have gained 325,000.
INTERACTIVE: Presidential Poll Tracker
INTERACTIVE: Candidate Match Game
The
pattern continues a decades-long trend that has seen a diminution in
the power of political parties, giving rise to independents as Ross Perot and Ralph Nader and the popularity this year of libertarian Republican Ron Paul.
"The
strident voices of both the left and the right have sort of soured
people from saying willingly that they belong to one party or the
other," says Doug Lewis,
who represents state elections officials. "If both sides call each
other scurrilous dogs, then the public believes that both sides are
probably scurrilous dogs."
Registered
Democrats still dominate the political playing field with more than 42
million voters, compared to 30 million Republicans and 24 million
independents. But Democrats have lost the most — 1.7 million, or 3.9%,
from 2008.
Democratic registration has fared worse than Republicans in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina
and Pennsylvania — the eight swing states with party registration.
Republican losses are biggest in Nevada, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.
The
decline is due to a variety of factors. People move, people die, people
revolt in disgust. Many are stripped from registration rolls by states
seeking to remove inactive voters.
By
contrast, the number of independents has grown for years and is up more
than 400,000 since 2008, or 1.7%. States with big gains: Colorado,
Florida, North Carolina — and Arizona, a possible target for President
Obama in 2012.
The 2012 winner, says North Carolina elections director Gary Bartlett, will be "whoever is attractive to the unaffiliated voter."
EFF Updates
EFF Updates
The Internet Archive has filed a federal challenge to a new Washington State law that intends to make online service providers criminally liable for providing access to third parties' offensive materials. EFF is representing the Internet Archive in order to block the enforcement of SB 6251, a law aimed at combatting advertisements for underage sex workers but with vague and overbroad language that is squarely in conflict with federal law.In recent years, online tracking companies have begun to monitor our clicks, searches and reading habits as we move around the Internet. If you are concerned about pervasive online web tracking by behavioral advertisers, then you may want to enable Do Not Track on your web browser. Our tutorial walks you through the enabling Do Not Track in the four most popular browsers: Safari, Internet Explorer 9, Firefox, and Chrome.
People tend to think that digital copies of our biological features, stored in a government-run database, are problems of a dystopian future. But governments around the world are already using such technologies. Several countries are collecting massive amounts of biometric data for their national identity and passport schemes -- a development that raises significant civil liberties and privacy concerns.
The British government has unveiled a bill that has a familiar ring to it. The Communications Data Bill would require all Internet Service Providers and mobile phone network providers in Britain to collect and store information on everyone's Internet and phone activity. Essentially, the bill seeks to publicly require in the UK what EFF and many others have long maintained is happening in the US in secret -- and what we have been trying to bring to public and judicial review since 2005.
Earlier this month, an inmate in Texas was denied access to computers and an electronic messaging system because he ordered a copy of the information security handbook Hacking Exposed. Does simply ordering a copy of an information security handbook render an individual a threat to the safe, secure, and orderly operation of a federal prison? Almost certainly not.
Since March of this year, EFF has reported extensively on the ongoing campaign to use social engineering to install surveillance software that spies on Syrian activists. Syrian opposition activists have been targeted using several Trojans, including one disguised as a Skype encryption tool, which covertly install spying software onto the infected computer, as well as a multitude of phishing attacks which steal YouTube and Facebook login credentials. The latest attack covertly installs a new remote access tool, Blackshades Remote Controller, whose capabilities include keystroke logging and remote screenshots.
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The parallels between ACTA and TPP can't be ignored. But, as CitizenVox explains, TPP is even worse.Phil Zimmermann and some of the original PGP team have joined up with former US Navy SEALs to build an encrypted communications platform. Silent Circle will launch later this year, and $20 a month will buy encrypted email, text messages, phone calls, and videoconferencing.
The prevalence of online tracking on the top 50 websites has risen exponentially since 2010, driven in part by the rise of online advertising auctions, according to a new study by San Francisco-based data protection company Krux Digital Inc.
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Expanding Drone Legislation ‘Raising an Alarm With the American Public’
(Image: Wikimedia)
by Liz Klimas
by Liz Klimas
Predictions that multitudes of unmanned aircraft could be flying here within a decade are raising the specter of a “surveillance society” in which no home or backyard would be off limits to prying eyes overhead. Law enforcement, oil companies, farmers, real estate agents and many others have seen the technology that was pioneered on battlefields, and they are eager to put it to use.
It’s not just talk: The government is in the early stages of devising rules for the unmanned aircraft.
So far, civilian use of drones is fairly limited. The Federal Aviation Administration had issued fewer than 300 permits for drones by the end of last year.
(Related: Where are the 63 drone sites approved by the FAA in the U.S.)
Public worries about drones began mostly on the political margins, but there are signs that they’re going mainstream.
Jeff Landry, a freshman Republican congressman from Louisiana’s coastal bayou country, says constituents have stopped him while shopping at Walmart to talk about their concerns.
“There is a distrust amongst the people who have come and discussed this issue with me about our government,” Landry said. “It’s raising an alarm with the American public.”
Fear that some drones may be armed, for example, has been fueled in part by a county sheriff’s office in Texas that used a homeland security grant to buy a $300,000, 50-pound ShadowHawk helicopter drone for its SWAT team. The drone can be equipped with a 40mm grenade launcher and a 12-gauge shotgun.
Randy McDaniel, chief deputy with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, told The Associated Press earlier this year his office had no plans to arm the drone, but he left open the possibility the agency might decide to adapt the drone to fire tear gas canisters and rubber bullets.
Earlier this year Congress, under pressure from the Defense Department and drone manufacturers, ordered the FAA to give drones greater access to civilian airspace by 2015. Besides the military, the mandate applies to drones operated by private companies or individuals and civilian government agencies, including federal, state and local law enforcement.
Below is a timeline created by the Electronic Frontier Foundation of drone integration in the United States. See the larger image here.
(Image: EFF.org)
But the potential civilian market for drones may far eclipse military demand. Power companies want them to monitor transmission lines. Farmers want to fly them over fields to detect which crops need water. Ranchers want them to count cows. Journalists are exploring drones’ newsgathering potential. Police departments want them to chase crooks, conduct search and rescue missions and catch speeders.
(Related: See other articles on the Blaze covering drone use by civilians and local law enforcement)
But concern is spreading. Another GOP freshman, Rep. Austin Scott, said he first learned of the issue when someone shouted out a question about drones at a Republican Party meeting in his Georgia district two months ago.
When Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican, suggested during an interview on Washington radio station WTOP last month that drones be used by police since they’ve done such a good job on foreign battlefields, the political backlash was swift. NetRightDaily complained: “This seems like something a fascist would do. … McDonnell isn’t pro-Big Government, he is pro-HUGE Government.”
(Related: Drones over D.C.? Metro police chiefs grilled on UAVs, illegal immigrants, cops on cellphones — see how they respond)
John Whitehead, president of the Rutherford Institute of Charlottesville, Va., which provides legal assistance in support of civil liberties and conservative causes, warned the governor, “America is not a battlefield, and the citizens of this nation are not insurgents in need of vanquishing.”
Drone operators (Photo: Wikimedia)
An ACLU lobbyist, Chris Calabrese, said that when he speaks to audiences about privacy issues, drones are what “everybody just perks up over.”
“People are interested in the technology, they are interested in the implications and they worry about being under surveillance from the skies,” he said.
The anxiety has spilled into Congress, where lawmakers from both parties have been meeting to discuss legislation that would broadly address the civil-liberty issues. A Landry provision in a defense spending bill would prohibit information gathered by military drones without a warrant from being used as evidence in court. A provision that Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., added to another bill would prohibit the Homeland Security Department from arming its drones, including ones used to patrol the border.
Scott and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., have introduced identical bills to prohibit any government agency from using a drone to “gather evidence or other information pertaining to criminal conduct or conduct in violation of a regulation” without a warrant.
“I just don’t like the concept of drones flying over barbecues in New York to see whether you have a Big Gulp in your backyard or whether you are separating out your recyclables according to the city mandates,” Paul said in an interview, referring to a New York City ban on supersized soft drinks.
(Related: Cola Wars: Full-page ads in the New York Times challenge and mock Bloomberg’s sugary drink ban)
He acknowledged that was an “extreme example,” but he added: “They might just say we’d be safer from muggings if we had constant surveillance crisscrossing the street all the time. But then the question becomes, `What about jaywalking? What about eating too many donuts? What about putting mayonnaise on your hamburger?’ Where does it stop?”
Calabrese, the ACLU lobbyist, called Paul’s office as soon as he heard about the bill.
“I told them we think they are starting from the right place,” Calabrese said. “You should need some kind of basis before you use a drone to spy on someone.”
In a Congress noted for its political polarization, legislation to check drone use has the potential to forge “a left-right consensus,” he said. “It bothers us for a lot of the same reasons it bothers conservatives.”
The backlash has drone makers concerned. The drone market is expected to nearly double over the next 10 years, from current worldwide expenditures of nearly $6 billion annually to more than $11 billion, with police departments accounting for a significant part of that growth.
“We go into this with every expectation that the laws governing public safety and personal privacy will not be administered any differently for (drones) than they are for any other law enforcement tool,” said Dan Elwell, vice president of the Aerospace Industries Association.
Discussion of the issue has been colored by exaggerated drone tales spread largely by conservative media and bloggers.
Scott said he was prompted to introduce his bill in part by news reports that the Environmental Protection Agency has been using drones to spy on cattle ranchers in Nebraska. The agency has indeed been searching for illegal dumping of waste into streams, but it is doing it with piloted planes.
Megyn Kelly with Fox News, which reported a couple weeks ago that the EPA has been using unmanned aerial vehicles to take pictures, said in a correction that the agency has informed them manned aircraft are actually being used for these missions over the United States.
In another case, a forecast of 30,000 drones in U.S. skies by 2020 has been widely attributed to the FAA. But FAA spokeswoman Brie Sachse said the agency has no idea where the figure came from. It may be a mangled version of an aerospace industry forecast that there could be nearly 30,000 drones worldwide by 2018, with the United States accounting for half of them.
Reps. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Joe Barton, R-Texas, co-chairs of a congressional privacy caucus, asked the FAA in April how it plans to protect privacy as it develops regulations for integrating drones into airspace now exclusively used by aircraft with human pilots. There’s been no response so far, but Acting FAA Administrator Michael Huerta will probably be asked about it when he testifies at a Senate hearing Thursday.
City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Destroys Woman’s Edible Landscaping with over 100 Varieties of Medicinal Plants
An Oklahoma woman is the latest victim of
government terrorism after City of Tulsa code enforcement officials
came to her house and illegally tore up her entire edible garden, which
contained over 100 varieties of medicinal plants. Denise Morrison was in
full compliance with local laws concerning her garden, and yet city
officials proceeded to both violate a court order, and willfully deny
Denise of her legal right to grow food on her own property by illegally
destroying it.
KOTV NewsOn6.com, which was the
first to break the heartbreaking story, explains a situation that is
becoming disturbingly common in America today. A phantom “neighbor”
allegedly complains about the victim’s yard, which prompts overzealous
city officials to conduct a witch hunt that includes coercing the victim
into complying with their unlawful demands. When said victim refuses
and tries to fight back and reclaim her legal rights, the city proceeds
to trespass on her property and destroy it, along with her livelihood.
For Denise, this is exactly what happened
when a “neighbor” complained about her edible garden, which she just so
happened to be using to naturally treat her diabetes, high blood
pressure, and arthritis. In this garden were strawberries, stevia,
several varieties of mint, apple trees, pecan trees, walnut trees,
grapes, lemons, garlic, and chives, to name just a few — and each of
these plants had a specific purpose in Denise’s life, whether it was
simply for nourishment, or for the prevention and treatment of various
diseases.
But City of Tulsa code enforcement
officials, apparently doped up on their own sick delusions of perceived
grandeur, decided that Denise’s garden violated local code, even though
it most clearly did not. In fact, nowhere in the local code is there
even a hint of verbiage that suggests Denise’s garden was in
violation of any local laws whatsoever — Tulsa city officials appear to
have simply made up phony violations in order to target Denise.
Local code reveals Denise’s garden in full compliance with the law
Code enforcement officials tried to claim
that Denise’s plants were too tall, exceeding the 12-inch limit for
plants, and thus had to be removed. But as you will see in the following
portion of Tulsa’s Code of Ordinances titled Nuisances Classified,
plants exceedingly twelve inches in height are permitted as long as
they are “healthy trees, shrubs or produce for human consumption grown
in a tended and cultivated garden.” (http://library.municode.com).
Denise tried to point this fact out to
officials, but they ignored her. She repeatedly tried to show them
pictures of her garden and set up meetings to discuss the matter, but
they continually refused, ordering her to remove the garden or else face
further penalties.
“Every word out of their mouth was, ‘we don’t care,’” said Morrison to NewsOn6.com about how the city treated her when she tried to defend the legitimacy of her garden.
Denise was not about to be steamrolled without a fight,
however. Rather than rip out her garden, she decided to call the police,
who issued her a citation in order to have the issue worked out at a
later day in court. But before the postponed hearing could even take
place, code enforcement officials, in violation of both the court order
and the city’s own laws, arrived at Denise’s house and proceeded to
forcefully remove every single plant from both her front and back yards.
Several days later, Denise, who had left
her house following the incident, came back to see the aftermath of what
had taken place. The destruction was so severe that Denise sat in her
driveway and cried for several minutes before eventually leaving.
“Not only are the plants my livelihood, they’re my food and I was unemployed at the time and had no food left, no medicine left, and I didn’t have insurance,” said Morrison about her garden. “They basically took away my life and my livelihood.”
Americans need to start standing up and defending their freedoms against government terrorists
Denise has since filed a civil rights
lawsuit against the city for tyrannizing her and destroying her personal
property. Some of her supporters have also set up a Change.org petition
demanding that the City of Tulsa replant her garden, compensate her for
all losses, and apologize to her for their illegal activities against
her (http://www.change.org).
But the incident should not have even
occurred in the first place, nor should it have happened to Kimberly
Bois of New Hampshire (http://www.naturalnews.com/035336_flowers_HOA_New_Hampshire.html) or Len Gratto of Mission, British Columbia (http://www.naturalnews.com/030983_food_freedom_British_Columbia.html). And Karl Tricamo of Ferguson, Missouri, faces a similar situation as Denise (http://nocostl.com).
The City of Tulsa’s Neighborhood
Inspections division, which was responsible for the destruction of
Denise’s property, can be reached at (918) 596-7698. Tulsa Mayor Dewey
F. Bartlett can be reached at (918) 596-2100 or by visiting:
http://www.cityoftulsa.org
http://www.cityoftulsa.org
Sources for this article include:
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