Tag Archives: Crony Capitalism

Life in the Emerging American Police State: What’s in Store for 2014?

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“We in the emerging American police state find ourselves reliving the same set of circumstances over and over again—egregious surveillance, strip searches, police shootings of unarmed citizens, government spying, the criminalization of lawful activities, warmongering, etc.—although with far fewer moments of comic hilarity.  What remains to be seen is whether 2014 will bring more of the same or whether ‘we the people’ will wake up from our somnambulant states. Indeed, when it comes to civil liberties and freedom, 2013 was far from a banner year. The following is just a sampling of what we can look forward to repeating if we don’t find some way to push back.”

https://www.rutherford.org/publications_resources/john_whiteheads_commentary/life_in_the_emerging_american_police_state_whats_in_store_for_our_free

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Obama Faces a Bigger Ticking Time Bomb than Obamacare Itself

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“One admirable goal as expressed by President Obama as he signed Dodd-Frank into law was ‘to put a stop to taxpayer bailouts once and for all.’ But, it is not the anti-too-big-to-fail elixir Americans were promised. Quite the opposite—it has further enshrined too-big-to-fail.  The criteria for designating non-bank financial institutions ‘systemically important’ to the financial system are—in characteristic Dodd-Frank style—imprecise.  Having developed a taste for insurance companies, FSOC designated Prudential Financial as systemic in September. It is openly eyeing MetLife as the next member of this exclusive club.”

http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=4828

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Obama’s Phony Free Trade Treaty That He Won’t Let Congress See

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“The Obama Administration is seeking to restore ‘fast-track approval’ powers on this, which would allow an up-or-down vote on the whole TPP without discussion of its individual components.  As a final point in this introductory post, let me say this: The problem with these ‘free trade’ agreements is that some critics rely on centuries-old protectionist fallacies; they are afraid of ‘cheap imports.’ Anyone familiar with Bastiat understands why such worries are misplaced. However, those of us who believe in genuine free trade shouldn’t trust government officials when they title something a ‘free trade’ agreement. It doesn’t take years of backroom negotiations to reduce tariff rates.”

http://consultingbyrpm.com/blog/2013/12/introduction-to-the-tpp.html

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I worked on the US drone program. The public should know

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“Few of these politicians who so brazenly proclaim the benefits of drones have a real clue of what actually goes on. I have seen these awful sights first hand.  I knew the names of some of the young soldiers I saw bleed to death on the side of a road. I watched dozens of military-aged males die in Afghanistan, in empty fields, along riversides, and some right outside the compound where their family was waiting for them to return home from the mosque.  The US and British militaries insist that this is an expert program, but it’s curious that they feel the need to deliver faulty information, few or no statistics about civilian deaths and twisted technology reports on the capabilities of our UAVs.”

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/29/drones-us-military

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Post Office Funding Is Not About Preserving Mail

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“Almost comically, the miserable performance of the US Post Office in particular is held up as a classic example of how government facilities cannot compete with the private sector. Over and over the US Post Office is threatened with extinction. But somehow it never quite happens.  It is widely acknowledged that post offices generally cannot compete in the modern space. But that is almost beside the point. Post offices were among the first inventions of the modern surveillance state some 500 years ago. They were, of course, developed in London and the first one resided in the bankers’ City itself.”

http://www.thedailybell.com/news-analysis/34865/Post-Office-Funding-Is-Not-About-Preserving-Mail/

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War on Drugs more about big business than curbing marijuana use

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“Private prison interests have given nearly $200,000 to 79 of the 149 Oklahoma legislators since 2004. House Speaker T.W. Shannon (R-Lawton) was the No. 1 recipient of private prison-related donations totaling $34,950. That figure includes $22,500 contributed by three private prison companies to fund the 2013 Speaker’s Ball.  Meanwhile, Gov. Mary Fallin has enjoyed private prison support, which includes $33,608 in gifts and campaign contributions.  As the private prison industry gives to Oklahoma’s elected officials, it also receives plenty in return. Spending on private prisons increased from $57 million in 2004 to $73 million last fiscal year, said DOC spokesman Jerry Massie.”

http://www.okgazette.com/oklahoma/article-20013-lockdown.html

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RSA Responds to Claim that it Gave NSA Back Door Access For $10M

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“The NSA entered into a $10 million contract with RSA to place a flawed formula within encryption software to obtain ‘back door’ access to data.  According to the RSA, it had no idea that the algorithm was flawed, or that it gave the NSA back door access to countless computers and devices. The NSA reportedly sold the algorithm as an enhancement to security without letting the RSA in on its real intentions.  In fact, RSA responded to media reports about its contract with the NSA, saying it was never secret at all. It said the fact that RSA worked with NSA was always made public, but that RSA had no idea the government agency was actually sabotaging its encryption product.”

http://www.dailytech.com/RSA+Responds+to+Claim+that+it+Gave+NSA+Back+Door+Access+in+Exchange+for+10M/article33981c.htm

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$10m NSA contract with security firm RSA led to encryption backdoor

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“Documents leaked by the former NSA contractor Edward Snowden show that the NSA created and promulgated a flawed formula for generating random numbers, to create a ‘back door’ in encryption products, the New York Times reported in September. Reuters later reported that RSA became the most important distributor of that formula by rolling it into a software tool called Bsafe that is used to enhance security in personal computers and many other products.  Undisclosed until now was that RSA received $10m in a deal that set the NSA formula as the preferred, or default, method for number generation in the BSafe software, according to two sources familiar with the contract.”

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/20/nsa-internet-security-rsa-secret-10m-encryption

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Reminder: A New Light Bulb Ban Kicks in on January 1

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“For those who are fans of the traditional, yellowish glow of an incandescent light bulb, the time has come stock up.  We’ve already seen the 75-watt variety ushered out with a ban on manufacturing or importing them starting in 2013, but Jan. 1, 2014, starts the same process with 40- and 60-watt bulbs.  Stores are allowed to continue to sell the incandescent bulbs until the supply runs out.  The move forces consumers to switch to LED, compact fluorescent light bulbs and others, which are currently more expensive than the Thomas Edison-invented incandescents but are billed to be more efficient with a longer lifespan.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/12/17/reminder-a-new-light-bulb-ban-kicks-in-on-january-1/

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Rick Falkvinge’s 2013 List Of Stone Dead Industries

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“There is a number of industries today that are already obsolete, kept alive by sheer inertia or by political subsidies. Many politicians, in an attempt to ‘save jobs’, are foolishly taking resources from new, viable industries and giving to these obsolete ones. ‘Saving jobs’ in this context means that politicians are rejecting ways of producing the same level of output with a much more competitive and cost-efficient method, and is not to be applauded at all.”

http://falkvinge.net/2013/12/10/rick-falkvinges-list-of-stone-dead-industries-today/

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