Fraternal Order Of Police Lobbies For New Federal Hate Crime Law

Nation's biggest police union boasts that it has spent years lobbying for more federalization of crime and punishment.

The 300,000-member Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is demanding that the U.S. Congress and President Barack Obama ?act now? to expand the federal hate crimes statute and add police officers as a protected class.

In a recent press release, the police union boasts that it has spent years lobbying for more federalization of crime and punishment. The presser cites a handful of recent incidents, nationally, in which police officers were attacked while on the job.

?Enough is enough! It's time for Congress to do something to protect the men and women who protect us,? said union president Chuck Canterbury.

The federal government?s 1969 hate crime law has been expanded several times and already criminalizes [attempted] bodily injury against anyone based on race, religion, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability. Penalties for committing a ?hate crime? extend to up to 10 years in federal prison.

The FOP proposal would add the basis of ?uniform? to the current list.

There are two main principled reasons to oppose all federal hate crime legislation. First, is the basic legal tenet that all people should be treated equally in the eyes of the law. The judicial process should not be dependent upon the demographics of the victim or defendant. This is the reason that ?Lady Justice? wears a blindfold while holding the Scales of Justice. Violence against anyone ? regardless of the identities or beliefs of those involved ? should be prohibited equally and impartially in a fair and just system.

Secondly, the federal government has no legitimate authority to create such laws. The U.S. Constitution ? specifically Article 1, Section 8 ? offers no mention of the federal government having the ability to prohibit crimes of violence between citizens for any reason. Crimes such as assault and murder are properly prohibited at the state-level and are enforced by state or local agencies ? not the FBI. To broaden the scope of federal law enforcers is a mistake and a move toward more centralized authoritarianism.

Readers are advised to oppose the Fraternal Order of Police?s agenda to nationalize crime statutes and create legally protected classes of citizens.

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there is nothing worse is a FOP WHOPP copulator

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Rise of the Nanny Police State: Town Governments Across the US Ban Sledding

By John Vibes

Dubuque, Iowa ? Local politicians in cities and towns across America have implemented laws that will ban children from sledding.

Town officials in Dubuque, Iowa for example, have banned sledding in 48 of its 50 parks because they fear that children will get hurt and that their parents could sue the city.

?We have all kinds of parks that have hills on them. We can?t manage the risk at all of those places,? Marie Ware, Dubuque?s leisure services manager told reporters.

"Everybody likes sledding, OK? Everyone wants to promote outdoor activities, and we want people to be active. But everyone knows sledding is a risky activity, we want to manage that risk," she added.

In other cities such as Des Moines, Iowa; Montville, New Jersey; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Columbia City, Indiana, the local governments have not entirely banned sledding, but instead posted signs warning people that they are sledding at their own risk. This approach gives some level of legal protection to the city if someone happens to get hurt, without enacting an all out ban.

In places where these bans have been put into place, many children and family?s have ignored the laws and engaged in civil disobedience. Town officials said that fines are expected for repeat offenders.

It is only a matter of time before the first arrests are made of those ?rebel children? who dare to have fun outdoors.

The natural tendency of the state to control every aspect of our lives is constantly on the rise.?The message from the state is clear, either you keep your kids locked up in the house or you very well may be the one locked up.

Children's book author, Kari Anne Roy, received an unexpected visit from Child Protective Services (CPS) and the Austin Police Department last year. She was being investigated for allowing her son Isaac, 6, to play outside unsupervised.

In June of last year,?Jeffrey Williamson?s 8-year-old son skipped church to play in the neighborhood. Williamson was subsequently arrested for child endangerment after a neighbor called the police to report an unsupervised child on the loose.

Also last year, there was the case of?5-year-old Eric Lopez, who was charged with sexual misconduct after he decided to drop his pants on the playground.

_
John Vibes is an author, researcher and investigative journalist who takes a special interest in the counter culture and the drug war. In addition to his writing and activist work he is also the owner of a successful music promotion company. In 2013, he became one of the organizers of the Free Your Mind Conference, which features top caliber speakers and whistle-blowers from all over the world. You can contact him and stay connected to his work at his Facebook page. You can find his 65 chapter Book entitled "Alchemy of the Timeless Renaissance" at bookpatch.com.

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I'm not sure it's the government bureaucracy to blame.

"Town officials in Dubuque, Iowa for example, have banned sledding in 48 of its 50 parks because they fear that children will get hurt and that their parents could sue the city."

It's quite likely that this step was made not out of blue, but exactly because there were parents who did sue the city.

Same as when there's yet another incident of an overboard zero-tolerance at yet another school, it may also very well be in response to the paranoia expressed by the parents, and this zero tolerance is exactly what they demanded. Quite likely the same mother who today is crying that her angel was arrested for even mentioning a gun, is the one who only yesterday adamantly demanded exactly that, to "protect" said angel.

I don't need to reach very far for examples - my own spouse is an exhibit #1.

This has nothing to do with 'Nanny-State', it is full-blown fascism .
Sadly, it is what often happens when you give 'The Little Man' any power -
He abuses it to impose whatever twisted idea he may have on people he should have no power ever in the first place . Having grown up in Iowa, I can tell you that there's not much else for kids to do in the winter. They say Dubuque has 50 parks, but I would wager that maybe 5 of them have hills big enough for sledding. I guess there's always Meth..... LOL! No doubt there is plenty of meth! :D Allegheny County, PA had a place called "Sunny Slopes" in South Park. It was a big half-funnel with hay bales at the bottom. Teen agers and some adults would go there at night, get a fire in a tash barrel or two and then we'd ride sleds and inner tubes to the bottom. Great fun for most of the night. They closed Sunny Slopes to sledding about thirty years ago.
Pass any play area and look for "see-saws." They aren't there anymore. Yet the road signs advising of a play area show a see-saw. What irony.
WE are gong to immobilize our selves in this country. Whew, Just had Crazed Suits and Tie Mob gnawing at my Cars Tires coming home from purchasing Bird Food. Must have been Local Politicians. Crikey, Cigs but no Lighter. Dayum am afraid to go back out.

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Texas Cop Fired After Tasing 76-Yr-Old For Driving With 'Expired Tags' That Were Perfectly Legal

Texas Cop Fired After Tasing 76-Yr-Old For Driving With 'Expired Tags' That Were Perfectly Legal - informationliberationinformationliberation
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The Obama Deception: The Mask Comes OffOperation Gladio: The Hidden History of U.S. Sponsored False Flag Terrorism in EuropeThe New American Century: The Untold History of The Project for the New American Century(more)Analysis posted Jan 06 2015, 5:25 AMCategory: Tyranny/Police StateSource: InformationLiberationPrintTexas Cop Fired After Tasing 76-Yr-Old For Driving With 'Expired Tags' That Were Perfectly LegalNew vehicles do not require fresh tags, cop was ignorant of the law.
Chris | InformationLiberation

It took almost a month, but the young punk cop who tasered a 76-year-old man for questioning his questionable traffic stop has finally been fired, the Victoria Advocate reports.

The cop, 23-year-old Nathanial Robinson suspected 76-year-old Pete Vasquez of driving a vehicle with expired tags. In fact, Vasquez was driving a new car, all of which are exempt from having fresh tags, which Vasquez pointed out at the time he was stopped. Rather than check the law, Robinson responded by violently attacking and tasing his elder, throwing him to the ground and tasing him twice before placing him under arrest.

While the police chief criticized Robinson's actions at the time and said they would investigate, no details nor follow up was released until just yesterday. Here's an excerpt from their press release, which you can read in full here:

Chief Craig has announced the findings of the internal affairs investigation regarding Officer Nathaniel Robinson. Chief Craig has determined based on the evidence, that Officer Robinson violated three areas of policy and sustained allegations regarding violations of the following departmental policies.

1) Policy 0.216 - Conduct and Performance, Section 2.15
2) Policy 03.03 - Use of Force Section 1
3) Policy 0.0305- Arrest without a Warrant Section 3

Based on the findings of the administrative investigation, Nathaniel Robinson?s employment with the Victoria Police Department has been terminated.

Kudos to the police chief for doing what's right, including for faulting the officer for his false arrest.

Frankly, I find it abhorrent the mere idea a 23-year-old young punk could think a badge and a gun gives him the right to boss around a 76-year-old man because he has "expired tags."

It reminds me of a story about the late Steve Jobs. Jobs would buy a new car every six months to take advantage of a California law which makes you exempt from having to have a license plate for six months. Ever since I heard that story, I've thought about how any young punk rookie cop could pull over the great Steve Jobs and potentially put him through hell for not having a license plate, despite being entirely in the wrong.

The late H. L. Mencken believed government as an institution was a conspiracy devised by inferior human beings to rule over their betters. As he wrote back in the year 1919,

"All government, in its essence, is a conspiracy against the superior man: its one permanent object is to oppress him and cripple him. If it be aristocratic in organization, then it seeks to protect the man who is superior only in law against the man who is superior in fact; if it be democratic, then it seeks to protect the man who is inferior in every way against both."

As one who chronicles stories of government abuse, which is mostly carried out by low-grade morons such as officer Robinson, this strikes me as accurate.

Of course, in the case above, there's a good chance Robinson will be rehired, with back pay, once his moron protection agency, a.k.a. the police union, files an appeal to get him his job back.


_
Chris runs the website InformationLiberation.com, you can read more of his writings here. Follow infolib on twitter here.

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Comments 1 - 20 of 23Add CommentPage 12 of 2 >AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 8:12 AM

Link 99170The firing is just for show to take some heat off the chief and the department and make it look like they are responding to the concerns of the citizens. I dare say the cop and the chief both know the union only has to flex its little pinky and he'll be back in the saddle with retro pay and probably a medal and a promotion. AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 9:48 AM

Link 107191Great mencken quote!Plus8Posted: Jan 06 2015, 10:18 AM

Link 24173I feel police violence is actually being stoked by those who wish to impose martial law. We know who \'those\' people are. The same criminals who pledge allegiance to Israel. Our political system has been completely broken for some time; Direct Action is the only way to put our great nation back on course.AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 10:32 AM

Link 9815The Police Chief set a high standard. Salient article on the problem. Bad people with money, controlling lawmakers and steering policy to protect their standard of living through oppression of the masses.
Worlds oldest song.
ChrisPosted: Jan 06 2015, 10:34 AM

Link Thanks so much Anon, agreed & much appreciated! AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 10:35 AM

Link 7141"Kudos to the police chief for doing what's right..."? WTF!! What's right is to file assault charges against the cop and sue the snot out of him personally. Don't leave it for the taxpayer to pick up the tab.AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 10:42 AM

Link 6950What planet did this chief come from? It surely isn't zionist earth ChrisPosted: Jan 06 2015, 10:49 AM

Link Hey Anon, he still may be brought up on charges, the case is being "reviewed" by the DA. I'm not holding my breath the DA will actually do anything. I agree the cop should be personally liable for his criminal actions just as any commoner would be. AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 11:28 AM

Link 66102now someone post this pos cops .......sorry EX pigs address online ASAPAnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 12:20 PM

Link 10832Did anyone notice the gangsta rap the cop was listening too.AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 12:34 PM

Link 76121Yeah i can hear the music for sure,kinda goes with his actions on the elderly,pray to god my kid's dont get a badge and a gun.AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 12:51 PM

Link 10832I'm all about being able to listen to the type of music you so choose,but we all know that different types of music can sometimes alter our moods. So if you are listening to music that promotes violence and lawlessness and are a cop that is already mentally unstable you clearly are gonna do what you want and hurt people for ridiculous reasons. He probably his ass kicked everyday he was in school till he graduated and went into law enforcement. Victoria is notorious for drug smugglers but he is and was too much of a whimp to deal with them he has to pick on elderly and kids I'm sureAnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 2:34 PM

Link 166216He will be in uniform with another police dept. in the state of Texas before the week is out.Jim BPosted: Jan 06 2015, 3:28 PM

Link 72161Now the man needs to sue the man, that had the badge, for his aggravated assault and battery and kidnapping...and leave him poor and on the street...AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 3:30 PM

Link 173190As the young cop obviously recently went through his education and training process to be qualified as a cop, we must conclude the cop knew his legal limitations, and the citizen's civil rights. Whenever a cop willfully violates a citizen's civil rights, he is no longer protected by 'qualified immunity' and is exposed to be personally liable. Not that he has any assets accumulated this early in life, but no doubt he can be sued for a percentage of all his future income.TomPosted: Jan 06 2015, 3:43 PM

Link 6742One of the benefits of my proposal to require all police to carry individually-purchased professional liability insurance is that this young cop could not just go to another city and get hired again without this following him. His insurance company would raise his premium, just like a driver who has been at fault in an accident. His insurance company might even see this moron as too great a risk and refuse to insure him at any premium, which would end his career.PutschPosted: Jan 06 2015, 3:49 PM

Link 2469I'll Wager the Old Guy won't make it another Year.
Creeping Insidious Collectivism and its attendant Stress with Tasing tossed in for Good Measure pretty much assure it. My Dad went downhill fast. This heavy handedness is wholly unacceptable. 200V Electrocutions for any who find Cattle-Proddings of the Elderly a valid Leadership endeavor.Tom Posted: Jan 06 2015, 6:43 PM

Link 71222The gangsta rap music this cop was listening to surely merits a notation regarding his violent actions towards this mundane. This cop is recently graduated and I can guarantee he was briefed upon Supreme Court case Castle Rock v. Gonzales. In 2005 the SC ruled that it is NOT the duty of police to serve and protect. This court ruling is probably the underlying cause of the upward incidents of violence against the public. New cops know they will never be held accountable for harm, destruction of property or death when they dish it out. However, what happened here was there were too many crimes and gross ignorance of the law and firing the cop is probably a City decision to attempt to lessen the upcoming consequences when this man sues the cop and the City. AnonymousPosted: Jan 06 2015, 7:48 PM

Link 24154'Contempt of cop' (asking a question), though not illegal, is punishable by anything from false arrest and fining, up to and including tasing, beating and summary execution. AnonymousPosted: Jan 07 2015, 12:04 AM

Link 174134Fired!? Usually they get a long paid vacation. Oh right, that's only if he killed his victim. He was probably fired for leaving a witness.Comments 1 - 20 of 23Page 12 of 2 >

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MPAA Wants Regulators To Force ISPs To Block Sites 'At The Border'

by Tim Cushing

When SOPA died its inglorious death, the MPAA's best shot at ISP-level site blocking died with it. But the MPAA is nothing if not stubborn and is still willing to wreak havoc on the internet in exchange for a slight dip in infringement.

According to a leaked document from the MPAA's law firm [pdf link] and two public filings in support of the International Trade Commission (sent over by Charles Duan of Public Knowledge), the movie industry is hoping to use the agency's new willingness to regulate digital transmissions like physical goods as a foundation for site blocking.

As we've discussed for years, the ITC has been an active player in helping US patent holders go after those they believe are infringing. Generally, this has taken the form of blocking imports of infringing physical goods -- that the ITC deems as infringing (using different rules than the US court system). This has often allowed patent holders two separate bites at the apple -- one in the courts, and one at the ITC. But a recent case saw the ITC shift its focus -- and its purview -- in response to some circuitous patent infringement. Russell Brandon at the Verge details the case that has led to the MPAA's next attempt at site blocking.

The heart of the case is a company called ClearCorrect, which 3D prints clear plastic braces custom-designed for each patient's teeth. Much of the technology involved in the process is already under patent, but ClearCorrect has gotten around those patents by farming out its intricate computer modeling to an office in Pakistan. That modeling violates a number of US patents ? and if ClearCorrect were shipping back the resulting braces in a box, it would be a simple case: the goods would be contraband, to be stopped at the border. But instead, ClearCorrect is only transmitting digital models from Pakistan and printing out the braces in local offices in Texas. The only thing coming in from Pakistan is raw modeling data. So what's a trade commission to do?

In October of 2014, the trade commission -- blowing past legal precedent and established statutory limits -- granted itself the power to treat the incoming digital models as physical goods? and stop them at the border.

In the sweeping and unprecedented decision below, the International Trade Commission found that its authority to regulate trade extends to pure "electronic transmission of digital data" untied to any physical medium. Generally, by statute, the Commission's jurisdiction is limited to oversight of "importation . . . of articles." However, the Commission expansively construed the term "articles" to potentially include anything "bought and sold in commerce," thereby leading to its conclusion that digital data was an article of importation.

The MPAA, which has entered comments in favor of the ITC's self-granted power expansion, wants to use the agency's power over digital imports to block websites at the ISP level. The leaked Jenner & Block memo confirms this. The MPAA's lawyers don't consider it a slam dunk but they are cautiously hopeful that the ITC's land grab will pay off.

As discussed in the 2012 ITC Memo, seeking a site-blocking order in the ITC would appear to offer a number of advantages over federal court litigation, at least at first blush. This now seems even more so given the ITC?s recent decision (albeit now on appeal) holding that electronic transmissions are ?articles? within the meaning of Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, 19 U.S.C. ? 1337. As also discussed in the 2012 ITC Memo, however, such an action would still involve several difficult questions of first impression, making the prospect of success in that forum uncertain.

While the ITC's new aim -- stopping infringing digital files at the "border" -- would seem to be the ideal starting point, the memo points out that many technical limitations make this approach less than feasible. The "transit" ISPs -- those that "ship in" data from other countries -- can be handled more easily by other court orders than by ITC regulation. The ITC's purview only covers inbound traffic, and technical limitations make this a weaker approach. For one, the lack of information on incoming packets means the blocks would only affect IP addresses. If a "pirate site" shares an IP address with another site, the block won't work. And IP addresses could easily be shared to circumvent blocking at transit ISP level.

The memo also notes that the internet is designed to flow around obstructions. Applying blocks at the transit level would simply shift infringing loads to other pathways, nullifying the blocks altogether.

The law firm then addresses blocking outbound traffic to infringing sites at the ISP level. This would ignore the inbound traffic of "transit" ISPs and demand action be taken by US ISPs.

Even though site blocking by transit ISPs may be impractical in most (and likely all) cases, it may still be possible for the ITC to issue orders to the consumer-facing network access ISPs requiring them to cease and desist from providing their subscribers with access to the pirate site. To do so, however, the ITC would first have to find that the network access ISPs, by providing their subscribers with access to the pirate site, have themselves violated Section 337.

That's the sales pitch for ISP-level site blocking. It somewhat ignores the new powers of the ITC and instead relies on convincing the agency that access to "pirate sites" -- even as a "dumb pipe" -- is a violation of Section 337. Definitions will need to be stretched and ISPs that allow their customers to roam the web freely will need to be painted as contributors to infringing activity.

Because it is the transit ISPs and not the network access ISPs that actually carry the infringing data across the border, we would need to persuade the ITC that the network access ISPs? conduct is also tantamount to ?importation into the United States? of copyright-infringing articles... For this reason, we may be able to develop a case that the network access ISPs, by virtue of the integral role that they play in the process of accessing and delivering infringing content from the foreign site to the end user, should be treated as an importer for purposes of Section 337.

If that doesn't work, the next argument is to portray the ISPs as involved in the sale of counterfeit goods.

Even if we cannot persuade the ITC that network access ISPs are ?importers? of the infringing articles, it can plausibly be argued that the network access ISPs are engaged in a post-importation ?sale? of the infringing articles to their end-user subscribers, in violation of Section 337. See 19 U.S.C. ?1337(a)(1)(B) (providing that ?sale after importation into the United States? is an unlawful act). The difficult question presented here is whether an ISP, by providing network access in exchange for its subscribers? payment, can be found to have engaged in the ?sale? of the infringing articles as that term is used in Section 337.

The arguments don't get any less ridiculous. There's a pitch for ISPs to have participated in "unfair acts" by "forcing" (read: allowed customers to access sites the MPAA doesn't like) the motion picture industry to "compete" against infringing copies of its own works. There's even a small paragraph that pushes the notion of contributory infringement, although the law firm notes that this would be the longest shot of all. The likeliest approach appears to be the use of the ITC's power to obtain cease-and-desist orders against ISPs, forbidding them from allowing access to "pirate" sites.

Public Knowledge's brief [pdf link] in opposition to the ITC's pending power shift points out that even though the statute itself is old (Tariff Act of 1930), its authors directly contemplated the difference between physical and more ethereal goods -- and made it clear that the two shouldn't be treated identically.

Evidence from the early 1900s indicates that Congress and others would have cleanly distinguished importation and telecommunication, vesting authority over each in distinct agencies. Treating the Commission as having authority over telecommunications data, then, conflicts with this distinction. To the extent that the Commission?s interpretation of ?digital data? as an imported article encompasses such telecommunications data, this Court should reject that erroneous interpretation of the Commission?s purview.

[...]

There is substantial evidence that, around 1930, data transmissions were generally understood to be distinct from articles of commerce and international trade. This understanding influenced Congress, as reflected in its creation of separate and distinct agencies to oversee trade and telecommunications.

The distinction was highlighted by the Supreme Court as early as 1887, in considering one specific type of telecommunications data, namely telegrams:

Other commerce deals only with persons, or with visible and tangible things. But the telegraph transports nothing visible and tangible; it carries only ideas, wishes, orders, and intelligence. Other commerce requires the constant attention and supervision of the carrier for the safety of the persons and property carried. The message of the telegraph passes at once beyond the control of the sender, and reaches the office to which it is sent instantaneously. It is plain, from these essentially different characteristics, that the regulations suitable for one of these kinds of commerce would be entirely inapplicable to the other.

The brief also points out that, while the ITC is correct in noting that internet transmissions couldn't possibly have been envisioned during the crafting of the 1930 Tariff Act, similar "articles" like telecommunications and radio signals had already been discussed by Congress, and each time, these were not allowed to fall under the same regulatory agency.

Putting the ITC in charge of digital transmissions will turn ISPs into ad hoc customs agents who need to inspect incoming packets and outgoing requests. Cloud services would also be negatively affected, as load balancing would need to be rebuilt from the ground up in order to accommodate the legal concerns now inherent in every transmission. The DMCA safe harbor would no longer exist, forcing ISPs to stay one step ahead of IP holders, building in anticipatory takedown response systems and choke points. The MPAA still wants site blocks and is still willing to break the internet to get them. Even the cautiousness displayed in the legal memo still glosses over the severe disruptions this use of the ITC's new powers will cause.

The good news? The ITC's "digital = physical" shift isn't in effect yet. The case prompting this shift is still under appeal and no decision is expected until late 2015. Chances are, this decision will be appealed as well, likely landing it in front of the Supreme Court sometime in the next few years. The MPAA can't move on its arguments until this is all decided. But it's ready to move as soon as it can, and this isn't its only plan of attack.

Use of the ITC to Block Foreign Pirate Websites (PDF)

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This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

by Phillip Smith

A high-ranking DEA agent in Mexico is in trouble, so is a former North Carolina SBI narc, an Alabama police officer and a West Virginia jail guard. Let's get to it:

In Washington, DC, the DEA's resident agent in charge in northeastern Mexico was arraigned last month on charges he took reimbursements for doing "favors" on behalf of unnamed Mexican nationals. Agent Leonardo Silva is accused of abusing his position by advising the State Department to cancel the US visa of a Mexican national at the behest of a friend. Silva allegedly falsely said the woman was a cocaine user and trafficker, and then bragged about it. He is also accused of taking nearly a hundred private plane trips that he didn't pay for or report, as well as taking a $3,000 payment for obtaining a job for the son of a US consulate worker. He is charged with fraud and making false statements.

In Charlotte, North Carolina, a former State Bureau of Investigation narcotics agent was arrested early last month on federal charges he was involved in a major cross-country marijuana trafficking conspiracy. Fredrick Tucker is accused of transporting more than a thousand of pounds of marijuana from California to North Carolina via South Dakota, where he now lives, in a conspiracy with his son Ryan. Tucker had resigned his SBI position "while under investigation for improprieties." He is now charged with conspiracy to traffic more than 50 kilos of marijuana and money laundering. He's in jail in Charlotte pending a March court date.

In Birmingham, Alabama, a Huntsville police officer was arrested last Tuesday on charges he conspired to make cocaine trafficking charges against a person go away. Officer Lewis Hall, 45, allegedly conspired with another person to pay another police officer $5,000 to claim a search he made that resulted in a drug trafficking arrest was unlawful. The officer who they hoped would help make the charges vanish instead turned them in. Hall faces charges of conspiracy, bribery, obstruction of justice, and making false statements to investigators.

In Exxon, West Virginia, a Western Regional Jail guard was arrested last Wednesday carrying 74 grams of marijuana. Preston Chase Thacker, 20, is charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. It's not clear whether the weed was destined for the jail or not.

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NYPD 'Slowdown' Saves Taxpayers $10M A Week In Parking Ticket Fines

Chris | InformationLiberation

The New York Post is reporting the NYPD's slowdown in issuing parking tickets is "costing the city $10m a week in revenue."

From the perspective of the state's tax-victims, that means taxpayers are saving $10m a week.

The New York Post reports:

The city is losing about $10 million per week on parking ticket revenue because of the NYPD work slowdown, according to budget watchdog estimates.

There were just 1,191 parking summonses handed out between Dec. 29 and Jan. 4 ? down nearly 93 percent from the same period last year, when 16,008 of the dreaded orange envelopes were slapped on windshields.

Based on the weekly average ticket take of $10.5 million in fiscal 2014, the Citizens Budget Commission estimated the reduction could have bled about $10 million from city coffers.

And that doesn?t include other revenue losses from similar reductions in moving violations and court summonses during the slowdown, which is now in its third week.

?While losing $10-$11 million in a week is real money, in the context of the city?s $77 billion annual budget it?s a very small amount,? said Doug Turetsky, of the Independent Budget Office. ?But if the losses continue over weeks and months, the effect on the budget becomes more substantial.?

If you do the math, the state is looting people for $546m a year from parking tickets alone. The fact this is meager considering the city's budget is just further evidence how insanely large their budget is.

I covered the other day how New York police working for the port authority are making over $300,000 a year, that money doesn't materialize out of thin air, it has to be stolen from the general public before they can gorge on it.

This police "slowdown" is the best thing that has happened to New York taxpayers in ages, may it continue in perpetuity until all the cops and the bureaucrats they serve are out of work.

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The police are doing the people a favor with this slowdown. 9 billion dollars state wide, is collected in fines each year in new york,one can only wonder how much fine money is collected in the whole country. Big change is coming, and coming very soon.

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Extended Video Shows Aftermath of Tamir Rice Shooting; Cops Gave No Aid, Restrained Sister

"This has to be the cruelest thing I've ever seen," says Rice family lawyer

From Reason.com:

Reporters for cleveland.com obtained extended footage of the killing of Tamir Rice. The full video demonstrates police officers' callous indifference to the boy they had wrongly shot. The two cops allowed him to bleed for several minutes; the first person to administer aid to Rice was actually an FBI agent who happened upon the scene while the officers stood around doing nothing.

Well, that's not quite right. They did something--they intercepted Tamir's sister as she ran to help him, knocked her on the ground, wrestled with her, held her down, handcuffed her, and placed her in the squad car a mere 10 feet away from her mortally wounded brother. And it was there that she waited, according to cleveland.com.

Cleveland police were responding to an emergency call claiming that Rice had a gun, although the caller made clear that the gun was very possibly a fake replica weapon. Police officials have insisted that the responding officers were unaware of that suspicion, however. Regardless, they shot him within moments of arriving on the scene.

Timothy Loehmann, the officer who killed Rice, had a record of mental instability and was previous forced to resign from a different police force for his "dismal" gun performance.

After shooting Rice, the officers failed to administer first aid for the subsequent four minutes. Eventually, an FBI agent administered aid. Paramedics arrived around minute eight.

Walter Madison, an attorney representing the Rice family, said of the video: "This has to be the cruelest thing I've ever seen."

Watch the video courtesy of Cleveland.com:
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> Well, that's not quite right. They did something--they intercepted Tamir's sister a

I'm sure they did something else as well: called their union for instructions on what to lie. Which is why it was also so important not to allow anyone to see the victim before those instructions arrived.

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Cop Trying to Kill the Family Dog, Kills Woman Instead, In Front of her Husband and 4-year-old Son

By Matt Agorist

Burlington, IA ? A Burlington Police officer, supervising a domestic dispute, shot and killed a woman in front of her house Tuesday morning.

The victim has been identified as 34-year-old Autumn Steele. The Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation (DCI), who is leading the investigation,?has not released the name of the officer who shot her.

There is no indication that Steele or her husband were armed or that they posed a threat to the officer involved.

According to court records Steele was arrested Monday night on a misdemeanor charge of domestic abuse. She was released from the jail and told that she?could not return to the home without?a police officer escort in order to gather her belongings.

Steele then returned to the home with her police officer escort, the same person that would later kill her.

As her husband, Gabriel Steele, was loading up their 4-year-old son, Steele came out of the house and got into an altercation with him. She was followed by the dog.

When the escort officer saw the disturbance he went to break it up. Witnesses say that at this time the dog was being playful, but apparently still threatened the officer which caused him to draw his pistol and begin shooting.

One of the shots fired struck Steele in the chest.

?The dog startled the officer. The officer began shooting at the dog. The officer was still shooting when he fell down in the snow,? one witness told The Hawk Eye Newspaper.

?It appeared he was shooting at the dog when (the officer) fell to the ground. It?s my belief the woman was shot accidentally,? said another witness.

Seconds after the shooting another Burlington officer arrived on the scene?and both officers?tried to calm Gabriel Steele, who wanted to help his wife.

?I?m a combat veteran,? he screamed. ?What are you guys (police) doing? Let me help.?

Steele was eventually taken by ambulance?to the Great River Medical Center where she later died of the gunshot wound to the chest.

This is a tragic case of police incompetence. The very government agency who claims the authority to carry deadly weapons into all situations often disregard this heavy responsibility and end up hurting those they ostensibly protect.

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> he was shooting at the dog when (the officer) fell to the ground.

Something does not fit. Fell to the ground while shooting, and then already from the ground was still shooting and hit her in the chest?

Combat Veteran storms City Hall Cuntsel Meeting, Murders Everyone inside. Priceless. The stupid fucker. At least neglegent homicide. Glad it happened. Am I the only one to think the concept of 'domestic abuse',
in your own house, as applied in this case, is borderline perverted ?
Or how about
' could not return to the home without a police officer escort in order to gather her belongings' ??
I don't get it -
What where they 'protecting' her from ? Living ??
It was just a matter of time till this happened. If you discharge a weapon in an urban environment every 98 minutes in an effort to kill some hapless canine then human collateral damage will, will, will, eventually be a consequence. As a majority of homes with dogs also have children, I am am very surprised these same children haven't been killed by missed shots, ricochets, and in general just poor marksmanship. No doubt as the killing will be ruled "accidental" and "during the performance" of his so called duty the leo will face no consequences whatsoever. On the contrary, he will most likely get a promotion, a raise and a medal for valor or some-such.

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Cop Arrested for His Violent Behavior to be Reinstated Despite the Department Not Wanting Him

By Cassandra Rules

Des Moines, IA? Former Des Moines officer Cody Grimes, who was fired in 2013, is likely returning to the police force against the department?s wishes due to an expected order from the city?s civil service commission.

Grimes was fired after he was arrested for domestic abuse after allegedly beating and choking his ex girlfriend as they were in the process of breaking up. The officer was not arrested until three days after the assault despite police reports indicating the woman had sustained injuries.

The woman alleges she was pressured by the police and prosecutors not to press domestic abuse charges, and Grimes ended up pleading guilty to criminal mischief charges.

?There was a couple people who kept calling me and harassing me, saying we need your story again. Every single day they would call me and the Polk County Attorney said, ?you know, we can go to trial but he pretty much persuaded me that if we go to trial and one person (on the jury) doesn?t agree to it then everything?s dropped,?? the woman being referred to as only Alexandria told WHOtv. ?I felt that no one was on my side. That no one was on my back. and I knew I had enough evidence but they were pushing me to not go forth with it.?

Sadly, this woman fears Grimes so badly she had to move thousands of miles away, afraid that he would retaliate and hurt her again.

?He?s dangerous. He?s a liability. And he?s gonna end up really hurting somebody.?

When asked by WHOtv if she believes Grimes is going to kill someone, the woman replied, ?I do. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon enough.?

This was not the man?s first time showing his tendencies towards violence.

In October of 2010, Grimes was responding to a call at the KCCI news studios in downtown Des Moines when he mistakenly shot at a KCCI photographer who was outside with a cellphone in his hands. Luckily the shots missed, but unfortunately this massive error in judgement and display of poor reasoning and impulse control was not enough to warrant the officer being fired and he was cleared of any wrong doing.

Less than a year later, in July of 2011, Grimes beat a groom named Jake Twombly unconscious at the man?s own wedding, breaking several bones in his face.

Twombly hired an off duty officer to come provide security for his wedding. When a groomsman got out of line with the bride, Twombly shoved the man, causing him to fall and knock over a ceramic column into the lap of one of the officer he had hired. The officer called for back up and approximately 20 officers barged into the wedding, despite the situation having already deescalated by this point.

During the chaos, Grimes stood out to witnesses as a particularly brutal character, as he had reportedly punched the groom in the eye and then repeatedly in his face as he was already handcuffed and on the ground.

A 63 year old guest eventually stepped in and intervened by grabbing Grimes? arm. He believes that had he not, Grimes would not have stopped until he killed Twombly, the complaint alleges.

Grimes faced a two week paid administrative leave over the incident and then returned to the streets, despite the city having to pay out a $75,000 settlement to Twombly.

Grimes? ex girlfriend and Twombly have both stated that they fear for people?s safety should the volatile officer be returned to duty and the department appears to agree, stating that they have not reversed their decision. Unfortunately the decision to get rid of problematic officers is not up to those who should supposedly know best.

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put him back out on the street, It is known what he looks like and what his name is. somebody will make target practice out of him. People in the United States have had enough of these dirty pig motherfuckers. They asked for war, war is what they shall receive.

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Should the State Decide What You're Allowed to Eat?

Eating Right
by WENDY MCELROY

Food has always been political. Throughout history, armies have razed crops and demographics have shifted in response to hunger. Political correctness now drives the civics of food with bountiful nations attempting to dictate what people can eat and how much. Why? For their own good.

The public debate revolves around whether a particular food choice is healthy or not. The real debate is, ?Who should choose: you or someone else?? The defense of food freedom needs to turn on the right of people to express themselves through dietary choices that reflect not only their preferences but also their judgment. Food is self-expression as much as music or literature is. If the government can control the flavors of life you choose to swallow, then it can control everything else.

Poe's law comes alive

Poe's law is an Internet adage. It says that without knowing the intent of an online poster, it is impossible to distinguish someone who is expressing an extreme position from someone else who is satirizing that extreme position. A recent news story blurs the line between parody and reality.

The parody goes by various names, including ?Ordering a Pizza from Big Brother? and ?Ordering a Pizza in 2015.? The gist: a pizza parlor with access to all of your personal information refuses to accept an order that is contraindicated by your finances, medical condition, or some other characteristic. The reality is expressed by a December 8 headline in the Telegraph that read, ?The vending machine of the future is here, and it knows who you are.?

The Luce X2 Touch TV is the first commercial vending machine to use facial recognition technology to store data and interact with customers. The vending machines offer advantages to both buyers and sellers. A buyer could voluntarily store his preferences, and the machine could regularly restock those items. A seller could replace expensive employees and stores with machines. But the Telegraph points to possible disadvantages. Luce X2 ?could refuse to vend a certain product based on a shopper?s age, medical record or dietary requirements.? Candy might be refused to the obese, sodas to schoolchildren. Since Luce X2 uses data-sharing cloud technology, going to another machine might not provide the anonymity that allows access.

The prospect of social control via vending machine sounds paranoid to some. But food regulations have become so intrusive and unreasonable as to become self-parodies. Michelle Obama's unpopular school-lunch program has children across America tossing trays full of untouched food into extremely well-nourished wastebaskets. Recent menu-labeling laws require food vendors ? from restaurants to theater popcorn stands ? to provide information on calorie contents that next to no one will read. But the requirement does make fast food more expensive and so discourages its consumption, which may be the laws? real purpose.

Even as food regulation verges on the absurd, many acquiesce on health grounds. Framing the issue as medical gives the government a strong advantage.

Food is much more than a health matter

The State uses two basic arguments to justify the micromanagement of what people eat. First, laws are necessary to force people to make healthy choices. This argument assumes that politically motivated bureaucrats know what is best for people better than they do themselves. Second, people's unhealthy choices make them tax burdens on the socialized medical system. Having "relieved" or deprived people of the responsibility for their own medical maintenance, the State uses their dependence as an excuse to impose social control. It is important to counter both arguments, but doing so often ignores an equally essential point.

Food is not merely a matter of health or sustaining life. It is one of the main ways people express themselves in terms of culture, ethnicity, religion, psychology, family history, and pure preference. Food choices are personal; they define our identity as surely as choices in attire or music do.

Food is an integral aspect of transmitting culture and ethnicity. From Hungarian goulash to Italian sausage, from Indian curries to falafels, food expresses a family?s rich heritage. Recipes and cooking techniques are passed down from one generation to the next in an act that preserves the family bond; it preserves the culture itself.

Food is also a cultural ambassador through which diverse groups appreciate each other's ethnicity. People who would never listen to Chinese music are able to mention dozens of their favorite Chinese dishes. A man who would never learn Spanish might cook pescado a la talla with the same ingredients a woman is using in Acapulco. A couple will return from visiting Germany and rave about its spaetzle and knackwurst. This cultural appreciation occurs naturally, without tax funding or government-mandated tolerance. Indeed, laws interrupt people's appreciation of other cuisines.

Food can be a moral choice, as vegetarians and vegans know. It can be a part of religious doctrine, as any Orthodox Jew will tell you. It is a matter of ritual, as those who carve a turkey each Christmas or children who gather Halloween candy will gladly acknowledge. Food can even be a political statement, as those who prefer raw milk will attest.

As a psychological matter, food has been called ?love.? A mother makes her son's favorite meal or a cake to celebrate his birthday. A lover proposes marriage over a romantic dinner and a good wine. Women recover from a broken heart by emptying containers of ice cream. When a neighbor expresses sympathy for a death in someone's family, she brings over a homemade casserole. At the funeral, there is a spread of food. At festivals, it is featured; for the Super Bowl, it is strategically placed between the couch and the TV.

Digestif

The diversity of plentiful food that every grocery store boasts should be a cause of pride, because it demonstrates not only financial prosperity, but also cultural richness. It showcases the range of choices in our affluent society.

Never mind that subsidies, taxes, and regulations already distort what we find at the supermarket and how much we pay for it. When government tries to dictate what we may eat or the manner in which we eat, it is tampering with our heritage, our ethnicity, our psychology, and our religious or political choices. The ability to control the food you put in your mouth is as fundamental a right as to control the words that come out of it.

The government's increasing interference in food choice is often viewed as benevolent, because it is discussed in terms of health benefits. Food regulation is anything but benevolent. The government is not only trying to define who and what you are; it is, at the same time, trying to convince you that the denial of freedom is ?for your own good.? If you are what you eat, then food laws are an attempt to control your identity.
_
Contributing editor for The Freeman, Wendy McElroy is an author, editor of ifeminists.com, and Research Fellow at The Independent Institute (independent.org).

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Bitcoin Jesus Denied Entry To U.S. After Renouncing Citizenship

by Wendy McElroy

Roger Ver is a virtual currency millionaire who has been dubbed the Bitcoin Jesus because of his avid advocacy of the blockchain money, which includes his seeding many businesses that use it. Last year, the libertarian-anarchist became a citizen of the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis and renounced his American citizenship. Ver may be a bellwether of how the US plans to treat those who renounce their citizenship or who are otherwise inconvenient expats.

A frequent speaker at bitcoin events held in the US, Ver was meticulous about the process of renunciation and its implications. "I checked with lawyers very carefully before I renounced, and they clearly assured me that I will qualify for a visa to visit the USA. I would be fine with them denying my visa if it was for a valid reason.?

Ver also went through a mandatory ?one-week cooling-off period? and confronted such official questions as ?Did you know if you renounce citizenship, you won?t be able to serve in the armed forces?? Ver remembers thinking, ?darn,? before renouncing as fast as he could.

On January 6, he was denied a visa to attend the North American Bitcoin Conference, held from January 16 to 18 in Miami, a three-hour flight from St. Kitts and Nevis. (That passport allows for visa-free travel to 120 countries but the US is not one of them.)

It was apparently Ver's third attempt to re-enter America within an eight day period. The US Embassy in Barbados was happy to accept the $160 application fee each time it refused a visa. The stateside government had also willingly accepted his payment of a $325,000 tax bill just weeks before. Blood money, yes; entry, no. Ver cannot appeal the decision, only reapply and lawyers opine that each denial reduces the chances of future approval.

The official reason? The denial of entry was based on Section 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) which is notoriously elastic. The Section states, ?Every alien shall be presumed to be an immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer, at the time of application for admission, that he is entitled to a nonimmigrant status?? In short, this section of the INA presumes every applicant for a visa to America intends to eventually reside in America. It is the burden of each applicant to demonstrate that this is not the case??

The embassy's rejection letter stated: "One of the most common elements within the various nonimmigrant visa requirements is for the applicant to demonstrate that they have a residence in a foreign country which they have no intention of abandoning ... You have not demonstrated that you have the ties that will compel you to return to your home country after your travel to the United States." In short, America allegedly fears Ver will overstay his visa and become an illegal immigrant in the land of his own birth.

The official reason for denying a visa to Ver beggars belief. Do officials think Ver was 'just kidding' about renouncing his US Citizenship? Was the $350,000 he paid for the privilege to do so just a prank? As pointed out, ?It is strange...that Mr. Ver was denied by the US Consular [sic] General, Barbados, under a regulation that requires he prove his intent to depart the US when he appears to have already done so.?

The strong ties demanded by the embassy usually consist of a job, a house, a family, a bank account, a business, a history of residency... Although Ver's family resides in the United States, he is 'tied' to St. Kitts and Nevis by almost every other measurement of residency.

Moreover, Ver's primary residence is in Tokyo where he moved in 2006. In an interview, he told Coindesk that the Embassy officials refused to so much as glance at the documentation of the business he started in Japan or at ?the other nine years worth of history he has with that country.? Instead, "[t]hey wouldn?t even let me slide the documents regarding Japan through the slot in the window.?

The Embassy officials most likely used 214(b) (the "non immigrant intent" requirement) as a pretext for denial, which is a common practice when they need an elastic excuse. 214(b) is a pretext that expats may encounter with increasing frequency.

The real explanation for the border shutting to Ver is almost certainly political. It could be based on one of three circumstances but probably draws upon all of them.

1) In the aftermath of Waco ? the 1993 Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms (ATF) siege of a Texas compound in which over 70 men, women and children died needlessly ? Ver took a hard line. While running as a Libertarian candidate for California State Assembly in 2000, he called the ATF ?a bunch of jack booted thugs and murderers.? ATF agents in the audience took umbrage.

?They began looking into my background in the attempt to find dirt on me,? Ver explained. One of his business ventures sold a product called a ?Pest Control Report 2000,? which was a type of firecracker used by farmers to scare deer and birds away from corn fields. The ATF called it ?an explosive,? instructed everyone else to stop selling them, and prosecuted Ver. He was imprisoned for 10 months with three years probation for ?dealing in explosives without a license.?

After the probation was over, Ver left to live in Japan.

2) In October 2013, the FBI arrested Ross Ulbricht on multiple charges of which he was indicted on four counts: Computer hacking, money laundering, narcotics trafficking and engaging in a criminal enterprise. Ulbricht was accused of being the pseudonymous Dread Pirate Roberts, who founded the Silk Road online black market. Ver posted on Twitter: ?I?ll give $10 to @Free_Ross for each RT (retweet).? Ver has donated over $150,000 to Ulbricht's defense, which cannot please the Department of Justice.

3) Ver founded a service called Passport for Bitcoins through which he assisted people who wished to obtain a St. Kitts and Nevis passport. The US Government could not have been amused. The site currently redirects to a Z?rich firm that specializes in ?residence and citizenship planning.? and Ver now forwards any second citizenship requests through "Passports for Bitcoins" to TDV Passports.

Ver is unlikely to set an official foot on American soil again. And, yet, he has recently been seen strolling the streets of New York City, handing out free bitcoins to bypassers. A headline in Coin Telegraph reported ?Virtual Roger Ver Spotted Handing Out Bitcoins in NYC.?

The man has done the next best thing to cloning himself. He used Double ? a remotely-controlled robot that featured a screen with his face and had the ability to interact in real time with people near it. The article explained, ?While enjoying the sun on a Caribbean Beach, Roger Ver simultaneously romped the streets of New York City, taking in the sights of the Financial District.?

It will take years for Congress to figure out how to deny entry to robotic Ver, especially if his ?parts? are manufactured in America. But his flesh-and-blood experiences are a cautionary tale to expats. Although he has traveled into the homeland in the past, Ver was denied entry this time. Like the Biblical Jesus, he was denied three times. Expats should secure their visas before buying non-refundable tickets.
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Wendy McElroy is a regular contributor to the Dollar Vigilante, and a renowned individualist anarchist and individualist feminist. She was a co-founder along with Carl Watner and George H. Smith of The Voluntaryist in 1982, and is the author/editor of twelve books, the latest of which is "The Art of Being Free". Follow her work at www.wendymcelroy.com.

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Cop Fired After Driving Away From Fatal Shooting, Neglecting Duties to Spend Time With Her Cop Boyfriend

Chris | InformationLiberation

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - San Antonio Police officer Serena Botello has been fired and her appeal rejected after an investigation showed she went derelict on her duties 23 times in two months, often to spend time with a fellow SAPD officer who appears to be her live-in boyfriend.

In one case last March, rather than respond to a 911 call to help a 35-year-old man who shot himself in the head, Botello drove away despite being under a mile away and the closest officer to the scene.

Family members of the man said he died at the hospital hours later. Questions over how the case was handled lead SAPD to conduct an investigation into Botello's actions. After looking at GPS records from her vehicle, they determined she had spent over 36 hours from March 21 to May 15 "neglecting her duties."

Investigators found Botello spent some of this time with another SAPD officer, whom they later determined she was living with.

Botello's termination papers noted she violated SAPD's regulations concerning ?relationships with co-workers,? ?alertness required of members,? and ?on-duty activities.?

Botello had been issued two separate suspensions in December 2012, one for 20 days, and another for 30 days. KENS 5 reports a source familiar with her service records said at least one of those suspensions was for "failure to respond," yet she wasn't fired at the time and was allowed to keep her job.

Watch a video report on the case courtesy of KENS 5:

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Chris runs the website InformationLiberation.com, you can read more of his writings here. Follow infolib on twitter here.

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I don't remember December. 2012 being fifty days long..... Thanks, she was issued two separate suspensions, I reworded it to be more clear! In Other News: "Hiring Less Qualified Applicants Because of Gender Causes People To Die" Ya know somethin, I've been a regular to this EXCELLENT website for a good while now & as a "foreigner" looking in, I feel sooo disheartened by the general (citizens) response to the stories I've read here. I'm not talking about the other "regulars", I mean the vast majority of american citizens who see NO problem with the way their country is being run & have no issue with their foreign policy stance. The United States Of America used to stand for something across the world, something good, something people aspired to, something people looked up to, a true democracy. America has been hijacked, not by ISIS or some other bogeyman, but by the very people entrusted to "protect & serve" the population, the politicians. I have decided NOT to contribute to the comments anymore, no-one is listening, no-one cares, I wish the very best for you, but I've seen enough to be pessimistic as to the outcome....
my prayers are with you & for you, in all denominations, please.... make a difference, for all our sakes. Hey irishpete, thanks so much for your kind words and for all your posts, I really enjoy reading them and personally I appreciate you sharing so much. I share your frustrations but I think you may not realize how much your comments contribute to the site, honestly without readers and commenters like you the site is nothing! I hope you'll reconsider!

Also, people are listening, just comment participation is low, maybe becuase we don't have the best comment system, I'm considering switching to disqus for example, but also if you check out this article on reddit you'll see there's a lot of comments and a lot of people who agree with you! http://www.reddit.com/r/Bad_Cop_No_Donut/comments/2rmd5d/cop_fired_after_driving_away_from_fatal_shooting/

All my best to you irishpete!

...so why didn't he get fired too??? Just another P.O.S. in uniform.

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