Thought for the Day

We don’t have a lot of time on this earth! We weren’t meant to spend it this way. Man was not meant to sit in little cubicles staring at computer screens all day, filling out useless forms and listening to eight different bosses drone on about about mission statements.

Give The Devil Benefit Of Law

How We Can Win the Second American Revolution Without Firing a Shot

A Tea Party Manifesto
by James Ostrowski


Ladies and Gentlemen.

I have news for you. Barack Obama is not the problem with America. He is merely the symptom. When big government failed, the people, not knowing what went wrong, went for the fresh face who promised that government would solve the problems the people didn’t know government caused in the first place.

America went off course many, many decades ago. Blaming Obama for our problems is like saying a 500 pound man is fat because he just ate three pizzas. Obama is the captain of the Titanic and his ship is speeding recklessly along, but he did not design the ship nor place that giant iceberg in its path.

The tragedy is that the American people do not know why the economy collapsed. They do not know the nature of the regime that runs the country. They do not know that this regime is not the regime for which the Founding Fathers fought. They do not know what the regime was that the Founders fought for. Finally, they do not know that the solution to our economic collapse is to restore that regime.

What were those Minute Men fighting for at Lexington and Concord? A republic of largely independent states. They weren’t fighting for the Constitution. There was no Constitution. They were fighting for a republic that would protect their natural right to liberty.

What is a republic? There’s much confusion about this. We must get this right. John Adams once complained that he “never understood” what the guarantee of republican government meant “and I believe no man ever did or will.” With apologies to John Adams, by “republican,” I mean a government exercising limited powers delegated to it by the people, whose officials are answerable to the people in regular, free elections.

Distinguishing between a republic and a democracy is critical. Both forms of government feature voting by the people to select officials. The difference between them is that while republican voting is done for the purpose of choosing officials to administer the government in the pursuit of its narrowly defined functions; democratic voting is done, not only to select officials but also to determine the functions and goals and powers of the government. The guiding principle of republics is that they exercise narrow powers delegated to them by the people, who themselves, as individuals, possess such powers. They cannot spring as they do in democracies, ex nihilo, from the mob’s collective whim.

Only a republican government can be truly limited. A republican government may only exercise powers delegated by the people that the people actually possess. The people do not have the right to steal from their neighbors so they cannot delegate to the government the power to create a welfare state. The people don’t have the right to counterfeit so they cannot delegate that power to the Federal Reserve. The people do not have the right to rule the world so they cannot delegate to the government the right to create a global military empire. You see where I am going with this? If we had a republic, we wouldn’t be in the bloody mess we are in.

In a democracy, there are no real limits to government power. If you object, you will always be told, hey, majority rules.

Long before Barack Obama was born, America traded in its decentralized libertarian republic for a centralized, democratic, corporate state with a global military empire. You can’t destroy a great country immediately. By the 1970’s, however, the corporate state, the welfare-warfare state started to cause economic stagnation and an endless series of domestic and foreign crises. Middle class living standards have been frozen in place for decades. Our standard of living was only maintained by smoke and mirrors: young mothers joining the workforce, parents working three jobs, credit card and mortgage debt, huge federal deficits, inflation and foreign borrowing. What is happening now is judgment day, the day of reckoning, the day the national Ponzi scheme collapsed. To con the people into thinking that all was well, our puppet masters created a lot of phony money and the bill is now due.

Now, the solution to all this is quite simple. Here’s what we need to do.

1. Liquidate the global military empire, ending the two Asian land wars that George Bush got us into and the Democrats and Obama helped pay for.

2. Take the savings, trillions, and liquidate the federal welfare state, buying out all Social Security recipients with lump sum payments.

3. Abolish all the unconstitutional departments and programs like Education, Energy, HUD, HHS, and Agriculture.

4. Then we can repeal the damned Income Tax Amendment, the worst thing that ever happened to this country, except for possibly–

5. The Federal Reserve–abolish it. Repeal the legal tender laws and gold and silver will automatically become market money.

6. Now, add a couple of amendments to bring the moribund Constitution back to life. Ban all corporate welfare so we never again have bankster heists and corporate bailouts. And, since true federalism was destroyed in the Civil War, let’s recognize what the Founders understood in 1776, that any republic has the right to withdraw from a union when it so chooses. That will guarantee that the federal government will never again turn into a monstrous, murderous, counterfeiting kleptocacy.

Now, that was easy, but if that platform was put up to a vote, it would lose, big-time.

So our real problem is how to put this plan into effect, how to restore the Republic, in short, how to win the Second American Revolution.

History—Pickett’s Charge; The Charge of the Light Brigade–shows what happens when a smaller army attacks a larger army in a heavily fortified position. They lose!

The sad truth is, though we want to restore the spirit of the American Revolution, we are outnumbered by Red Coats!

The vast majority of Americans now support Red Coat government: an arrogant King in a big castle, with a large court, ruling by edict from a distant capital, endless wars across the ocean for a global empire, and heavy taxes to pay for those wars. And we are now embroiled in two land wars in Asia in countries that previously expelled the British! That’s why Rudyard Kipling wrote:

When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier.
Go, go, go like a soldier,
So-oldier of the Queen!

Maybe the Loyalists who fled to Canada should come back home. After all, the British ultimately won the Revolutionary War. Their ideas prevailed. The Revolution is dead—unless the tea party movement can revive it.

Let’s assume for the sake of argument that about ten percent of Americans are fed up and ready for radical change. That means that 90% are not. That’s a huge problem.

Remember that at Lexington, when the government gun controllers and tax collectors came up the road, the men of the town greeted them with muskets ready to fire. Today, if we did that, most of the men of the town would side with the federales.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in 1770 again, when there was a small number of radicals who wanted independence but most people wanted to stay with England.

Being outnumbered doesn’t mean we can’t win. History also teaches that a smaller, more dedicated army, with a just cause, can prevail against a larger, mercenary force. But we need to become more dedicated, more committed, and at the end of the day, we need to get larger. We need converts just as the Patriots did.

So, our first task is obvious: education. We need to educate ourselves before we can educate others. We need to study the history and principles of the American Revolution. We need to study war and peace. War is the health of the state. We need to study economics.

Let’s take a quick look at the American Revolution.

• England needed money for war.
• They taxed the Colonists.
• The Colonists didn’t want to pay.
• England sent troops and tax collectors armed with general warrants to find taxable stuff.
• The Colonists got angry and threatened resistance.
• The English decided to seize the Colonists’ guns.
• War broke out.

Lessons:
• War means high taxes.
• Taxes mean invasion of privacy.
• To steal your money and violate your privacy, the government must disarm you first.
• You have the natural right to resist tyranny.
• Gun control was the proximate cause of the American Revolution.
• America was born in an act of resistance to gun control!
***********
Economics. Did you know that if the American people understood one simple principle, that we could shrink the size of government by 90% in three months. What principle? All resources are scarce. If we could only understand that principle, which just happens to be the first law of economics, then all the politicians’ lies about adding new programs like the bailout and stimulus would be laughed at.

So, we need to teach ourselves economics at home school—the living room laptop or the desk top computer in the attic or basement.

What does the free market have to do with the Republic? Everything! Republican government exists to protect private property. The free market is the free exchange of private property. A true republic can only have a free market economy.
Why can’t a republic have a global military empire?

An empire is designed to rule other nations for their benefit or ours. If it’s the former, it violates the purpose of a republic as limited to protecting the rights of its own citizens, not the planet’s. If it’s the latter, then the republic violates its own premise, the natural rights of all human beings. Empires require huge armies and bureaucracies and oppressive taxes which violate our right to private property, the right to keep what we earn. Empires, as Washington taught us, invite retaliation and thus the government betrays its only true purpose by jeopardizing the lives and security of its citizens by pointlessly manufacturing foreign enemies.

Once we understand our own history, the dynamics of war and peace and the principles of market economics, we need to start making more Patriots. Start with your family and friends, then co-workers, customers, clients, neighbors and members of your church or your gym if fitness is your religion.

Can you all convert 25 Patriots this year? If not, we will lose this fight.
What else can we do?

Remember, a direct assault when you are outnumbered will fail.

But we do not have to wait till we make more coverts to move towards our goal.

Let me back up and discuss strategy generally. We neglect strategy at our peril. Keep in mind that no movement such as ours has succeeded in its goal since Jefferson’s day.

There are only three ways to change politics.

Violence, political activity and direct citizen action.

Violence is out of the question. That’s our adversary’s tactic. That’s why we are here today. We favor liberty over violence, peace over war. Liberty = Peace = Order. Pierre Proudhon was wrong. Liberty is not the “Mother of Order.”
Liberty is order.

What about politics—lobbying and elections? Politics is rigged. Most politicians are corrupt degenerates and couldn’t care less what we think. And the last time an election led to smaller government in America was—-guess—-1800!

I have been fighting the political machine for 35 years and I firmly believe that direct citizen action is the only way we can beat them.

What is direct citizen action? Instead of convincing some bought-and-paid-for politician to change his little mind, or spending all summer trying to beat them at a rigged game and get good people elected, you choose your own battle ground and you choose courses of action that are designed to achieve your goal.

Direct citizen action is hardly a new concept. Ever hear of the Boston Tea Party? And it’s what Gandhi used to topple the British Empire. It’s what Martin Luther King used to fight Jim Crow.

We need to think about the things we do every day and figure out how we can integrate our movement into those daily routines. One thing we do every day is spend money. We buy things. We buy services. We pay bills.

How do politicians win elections? By buying TV time. Where do they get the money? Much of it comes from private businesses or private persons who run or own business firms. We know who they are and so I say to you: stop slitting your own throats. Stop buying things from business firms that fund the political machine and fund the corporate state and fund big government.

Now you can go down to Congressman Higgins’ office and talk to his staff till you’re blue in the face about getting rid of the Federal Reserve. They will ignore you and, when you leave, they will have a good laugh at your expense. Or, you can stop giving your money to his bankrollers. One tactic is a complete waste of time. The other will hurt his ability to raise money. If he can’t raise money, we can beat him when our numbers grow.

Boycott the bankers of the political class. Starve the Red Coats and Loyalists!

Now, if you are boycotting those fat cats and their firms, you are going to have to spend your money elsewhere. Here too you can directly aid the movement with each purchase. If we have ten percent of the population on our side, we probably have twenty-five percent of small businesses. Small business owners are natural libertarians. You don’t have to tell them how taxes are oppressive and how government regulations can strangle them. They know it because they live that nightmare each day. So I say, buy from Patriots. They will return the favor later in too many ways to imagine now. To hell with Red Coat companies. In this country, money talks. In politics, it’s the only thing that does.

You want to win this fight? You want a free country? Buy it!

How do we know which businesses to patronize? Easy. Look for the Betsy Ross flag, the flag the Patriots flew.

We need to get people’s attention. We need a new symbol because the current symbols of patriotism have lost their meaning. What does the current flag stand for? Limited government? A true republic? Minding our own business in the world as Washington advised? Obviously not. In fact, the flag is used to glorify a regime that would make the Patriots sick to their stomachs.

So I propose that we use the Betsy Ross flag to symbolize our movement. Our adversaries have their symbols; we will have better ones.

There is a great symbol out there for the taking that is universally understood to stand for the old republic. I propose we bring it to life again as the symbol of our movement and, further, to use it as a battle flag. Battle flags serve the critical function of identifying allies during the chaos of battle. When we see that flag, wherever we are in the country, we know there will be a kindred spirit behind that door.

As this movement grows, these flags will start dominating the landscape and we will know that victory is near.

Here’s another form of direct citizen action you can take. The original Patriots did not trust government, including prosecutors or judges. They knew the only way to restrain the power of government was by external checks and balances. They gave us two: the right to bear arms and juries. Naturally, they have tried to take both of these rights away from us. The right to bear arms is safe for the moment but let’s talk about juries.

The original concept of a jury was that it could override the judge on matters of law. Call that jury nullification. Every prominent founder who was a lawyer stated explicitly that juries have the right to judge the law itself and whether it would be unjust to convict a defendant for violating that law under the circumstances.

Tyrannical judges have ruled otherwise, thus overruling the Constitution by judicial fiat.

The bottom line is this. The founders believed you have a constitutional right to judge the law in a criminal case and any judge who says otherwise hasn’t studied our constitutional history.

The purpose of republican government is to protect the individual’s right to life, liberty and property. The Founders created a jury system to ensure that no one was convicted of a crime unless they violated the life, liberty or property of a fellow citizen. If you get a jury notice, don’t grumble. Show up and assert your rights and keep in mind that no one can tell you how to cast your vote in that jury room.

Now, just for the record, I’m not saying jurors should violate the law and lie to judges about their willingness to follow their instructions on the law. What I’m saying is that judges should follow the law and should not lie to jurors!

So, there are things you can do yourself and right now to move toward restoration of the Republic.

Make a list of the people you know and who respect your opinion. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, clients, customers. Write them a letter and tell them you have joined a movement to restore the American Republic and save the nation from the Red Coats who have destroyed it. Invite them to do the same. Host a meeting at your home to discuss the matter further.

Before that meeting, educate yourself about the history of your country, about economics, about the Federal Reserve, the income tax and the true nature of the present regime. We have created a web page with all the resources you will need.

PoliticalClassDismissed.com/teaparty

Immunize yourself from the lies of politicians. If any politician tells you they will improve your life, they’re lying. Don’t believe them. How do know a politician is lying? Their lips are moving. Teach your children not to believe them either. A politician will tell you face to face he will do this or that for you, then, as soon as you turn your back on him, he will pick your pocket to pay for the same promise he made to your neighbor.

Tolstoy wrote the politician’s credo:

“I sit on a man’s back, choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for him and wish to ease his lot by all possible means - except by getting off his back.”

So, you need to withdraw your support for the corrupt regime the federal government has become. That’s easy. Just stop. Stop voting for those degenerates and don’t vote for their opponents either unless they are Patriots. Stop being silent when people talk about politics. State your opinion clearly. Tell people you’ve joined the Second American Revolution and urge them to do so as well.

You can also start to support the new media sites that are already fighting this battle. A website is no better than its traffic. If you patronize sites such as www.PoliticalClassDismissed.com, you make us more influential so we can fight harder for you. When you’re surfing the web, consider if the sites you frequent are part of the problem.

And stop supporting authors and magazines that led us astray in recent years. Stop funding organizations whose policies have failed. Stop supporting websites whose policies have failed. You need to go out and find those authors, groups, websites, books and magazines such as Ilana Mercer of World Net Daily who got it right the last ten years. We have created a page with those links.

Use the Betsy Ross flag; patronize business firms that fly or display the flag; stop patronizing Red Coat firms that take your money and hand it off to the political class. Stop slitting your owns throats. Stop giving your money to the bankers of the political class.

If you serve on a jury, educate yourself about your constitutional right to decide the case based on your conscience. No judge or fellow juror can tell you that you must convict someone of a victimless crime if you believe there is reasonable doubt.

To sum up, here’s a 12-step program for how you can start to restore the American Republic.

1. Decide that you’ve had enough. You want to do something to reverse America’s economic collapse. That something is nothing less than restoring the American republic. America’s problems of today were caused by the abandonment of that Republic slowly over a long period of time. Pledge allegiance to the principles of the American Revolution.
2. Write a letter to your family, friends and neighbors declaring your support for restoring the American Republic.
3. Invite them to a meeting.
4. Educate yourself on American history, politics and economics.
5. Hold the meeting and explain to them what you have learned and urge them to do the same and then hold their own meeting with their own social circle.
6. Display the symbol of the restoration of the republic, the Betsy Ross flag.
7. Patronize businesses that display this flag.
8. Boycott businesses that bankroll the political class.
9. Educate yourself on the rights of jurors. If you are called for jury duty, understand that the founding fathers designed the system as a check on government power. Remember that when you are in the jury room deliberating.
10. Patronize books, blogs, websites, newspapers, magazines, think tanks, and political groups that were right about the economic collapse. Mises.org., IlanaMercer.com and others. See our page for a complete list.
11. For political activism, join an existing Patriot group. Don’t reinvent the wheel. See our page for recommended groups. While I believe that politics is not our best field of battle at the moment, as our movement grows, we will soon be able to launch a successful frontal assault on the political class.
12. Follow these websites for continuing developments:

PoliticalClassDismissed.com
FreeNewYork.org
BuffaloLiberty.com

Will this plan succeed? I believe it will if it gets a good start. I believe if it gets started, it will be unstoppable, like an idea whose time has come—back.

But this I know for certain. If we do not try to spark a Second American Revolution, we will fail and you, and your children, and your grandchildren, will never know what it is like to live in the America that was supposed to be. And, with the government always strengthening its stranglehold on the schools, they won’t even have a historical memory of it.

George Washington, who led the fight in battle for the American Revolution, and knew a thing or two about adversity, about temporary defeat, about being outnumbered, about being accused of treason, and about being shot at by Red Coats, said, “Perseverance and spirit have done wonders in all ages.”

So in closing I urge you make this pledge. I pledge allegiance to the principles of the American Revolution, stated by Jefferson, and for which the Minute Men and Washington’s Army fought: that government’s only purpose is to protect our natural rights to life, liberty, and property; that any government that does “more” than protect our natural rights must thereby violate those same rights and become a tyranny that the people have the right to alter or abolish. I pledge to resist that tyranny by peaceful means if at all possible.

An Intellectual Revolution and the Money Masters

Gerald Celente is calling for an "Intellectual Revolution." Good article. Here's the reason why we need it...we've been lied to, for many years. And the proof is right here.

The Real Tea Parties

Ilana Mercer has a fantastic interview with James Ostrowski over at Taki's Mag on real tea parties and what must happen in order to change where our country is headed.

ILANA: The tea party protests across the country are all fueled by that indomitable America spirit. And that’s good. However, most tea protesters have yet to arrive at the principles that undergirded the American Revolution. Explain.

OSTROWSKI: What we have now in America is so far from the original idea that it would be unrecognizable to the Founders. The old Republic slipped away long ago and while it’s not possible to pinpoint the date, I like to say 1917. That year we entered World War I. War leads to higher taxes and the level of federal spending has never returned to pre-World War I levels. Domestically, the twin evils of the income tax and the Federal Reserve started to kick in around then too. So, forget Obama, we need to clear away the dead wood of the Progressive Era to even begin to see what a true Republic would look like. I don’t think most tea protesters are there yet but perhaps they can be persuaded. In any event, we need to go far beyond simply bashing Obama and pork.

Read the rest of it here.

Assault Rifle Confiscation Resisted By Armed Extremists

BOSTON (AP)--National guard units seeking to confiscate a cache of recently banned assault weapons were ambushed on April 19th by elements of a paramilitary extremist faction. Military and law enforcement officials estimate that 72 were killed and more than 200 injured before government forces were compelled to withdraw.

Speaking after the clash, Massachusetts Governor Thomas Gage declared that the extremist faction, which was made up of local citizens, has links to the radical right-wing tax protest movement.

Gage blamed the extremists for recent incidents if vandalism directed against internal revenue offices. The governor, who described the group's organizers as "criminals," issued an executive order authorizing the summary arrest of any individual who has interfered with the government's efforts to secure law and order.

The military raid on the extremist arsenal followed widespread refusal by the local citizenry to turn over recently outlawed assault weapons. Gage issued a ban on military-style assault weapons and ammunition earlier in the week. This decision followed a meeting earlier this month between government and military leaders at which the governor authorized the forcible confiscation of illegal arms.

One official, speaking on condition of anonymity, pointed out that "none of these people would have been killed had the extremists obeyed the law and turned over their weapons voluntarily."

Government troops initially succeeded in confiscating a large supply of outlawed weapons and ammunition. However, troops attempting to seize arms and ammunition in Lexington met with resistance from heavily-armed extremists who had been tipped-off regarding the government's plans.

During a tense standoff in Lexington's town park, National Guard Colonel Francis Smith, commander of the government operation, ordered the armed group to surrender and return to their homes. The impasse was broken by a single shot, which was reportedly fired by one of the extremists.

Eight civilians were killed in the ensuing exchange. Ironically, the local citizenry blamed government forces rather than the extremists for the civilian deaths. Before order could be restored, armed citizens from surrounding areas had descended upon the guard units. Colonel Francis Smith, finding his forces overmatched by the armed mob, ordered a retreat.

Governor Gage has called upon the citizens to support the state/national joint task force in its effort to restore law and order. The governor has also demanded the surrender of those responsible for planning and leading the attack against the government forces. Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, and John Hancock, who have been identified as "ringleaders" of the extremist faction, remain at large.

(The day and month you know, but the year was 1775.)

The Judge Weighs In

Judge Andrew Napolitano, the only guy on Fox worth listening to, offers Six Things You Should Know About the Homeland Security Report on ‘Rightwing Extremism’.

"My guess is that the sentiments revealed in the report I read are the tip of an iceberg that the DHS would prefer to keep submerged until it needs to reveal it. This iceberg is the heavy-hand of government; a government with large and awful eyes, in whose heart there is no love for freedom, and on whose face there is no smile."

Be sure to read the entire analysis, it's a frank look at what the government really thinks about American citizens.

Taxes, Tea Parties, and a Bit of History

April 15, a day of legalized theft by our statist masters. A day every true blooded American dreads. This day is the sole reason the government has any power over her citizens slaves. Without the taxes that we willfully allow the government to plunder, she would have no power or authority over us. Many will argue that taxes are a necessary evil. Are they, and if so, at what rate?

The good Congressman from Texas writes:

Could America exist without an income tax? The idea seems radical, yet in truth America did just fine without a federal income tax for the first 126 years of its history. Prior to 1913, the government operated with revenues raised through tariffs, excise taxes, and property taxes, without ever touching a worker's paycheck. In the late 1800s, when Congress first attempted to impose an income tax, the notion of taxing a citizen's hard work was considered radical! Public outcry ensued; more importantly, the Supreme Court ruled the income tax unconstitutional. Only with passage of the 16th Amendment did Congress gain the ability to tax the productive endeavors of its citizens.

Yet don't we need an income tax to fund the important functions of the federal government? You may be surprised to know that the income tax accounts for only approximately one-third of federal revenue. Only 10 years ago, the federal budget was roughly one-third less than it is today. Surely we could find ways to cut spending back to 1990 levels, especially when the Treasury has single year tax surpluses for the past several years. So perhaps the idea of an America without an income tax is not so radical after all.

The harmful effects of the income tax are obvious. First and foremost, it has enabled government to expand far beyond its proper constitutional limits, regulating virtually every aspect of our lives. It has given government a claim on our lives and work, destroying our privacy in the process. It takes billions of dollars out of the legitimate private economy, with most Americans giving more than a third of everything they make to the federal government. This economic drain destroys jobs and penalizes productive behavior. The ridiculous complexity of the tax laws makes compliance a nightmare for both individuals and businesses. All things considered, our Founders would be dismayed by the income tax mess and the tragic loss of liberty which results.

America without an income tax would be far more prosperous and far more free, but we must be prepared to fight to regain the liberty we have lost incrementally over the past century. I recently introduced "The Liberty Amendment," legislation which would repeal the 16th Amendment and effectively abolish the income tax. I truly believe that real tax reform, reform that so many frustrated Americans desperately want, requires bold legislation that challenges the Washington mind set. Congress talks about reform, but the current tax debate really involves nothing of substance. Both parties are content to continue tinkering with the edges of the tax code to please various special interests. The Liberty Amendment is an attempt to eliminate the system altogether, forcing Congress to find a simple and fair way to collect limited federal revenues. Most of all, the Liberty Amendment is an initiative aimed at reducing the size and scope of the federal government.

Is it impossible to end the income tax? I don't believe so. In fact, I believe a serious groundswell movement of disaffected taxpayers is growing in this country. Millions of Americans are fed up with the current tax system, and they will bring pressure on Congress. Some sidestep Congress completely, bringing legal challenges questioning the validity of the tax code and the 16th Amendment itself. Ultimately, the Liberty Amendment could serve as a flashpoint for these millions of voices.

There are many people engaging in tea party protests today, hoping to send a message to Washington that we've had enough. The problem with this strategy is that the original Boston Tea Party was not a peaceful protest, it was a violent disregard for the law by a people who said no more taxes. Sipsey Street makes the comparison.

The original Boston Tea Party was a calculated act of law-breaking designed to send the British Empire a message it could not fail to comprehend. Making long-winded speeches, thumping impassioned chests and denouncing a government made up of people who have already written you off as unimportant, impotent and no threat to their plans is a waste of time, energy and oxygen. As comfortable and deeply ingrained as they are in all Americans, the conventional political tactics of speech-making, letter-writing and electioneering have brought us to this precipice of defeat. The guttering flame of the Founders' Republic is within one stiff breeze of going out forever. Both political parties have conspired through malice or incompetence to bring us to this state, yet still people look in vain to the system of party politics for salvation. The Founders were not so stupid as to place all their hopes on a corrupt system. When the accepted channels of politics and remonstrance failed, they burned the King's tax stamps, dumped his tea, broke the windows of his tax collectors with rocks and bricks, smuggled forbidden goods, defied "his royal majesty" in hundreds of other ways and dared him to do anything about it. Liberty is not free, nor is it without risk.

Finally, Paul Craig Roberts lays out a concise history of our modern serfdom.

Generational Theft - the Spending Hypocrisy

Hat Tip: The Southern Avenger

We're All Domestic Terrorists Now

WND reports below.

A newly unclassified Department of Homeland Security report warns against the possibility of violence by unnamed "right-wing extremists" concerned about illegal immigration, increasing federal power, restrictions on firearms, abortion and the loss of U.S. sovereignty and singles out returning war veterans as particular threats.

The report, titled "Right-wing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment," dated April 7, states that "threats from white supremacist and violent anti-government groups during 2009 have been largely rhetorical and have not indicated plans to carry out violent acts."

However, the document, first reported by talk-radio host and WND columnist Roger Hedgecock, goes on to suggest worsening economic woes, potential new legislative restrictions on firearms and "the return of military veterans facing significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of terrorist groups or lone wolf extremists capable of carrying out violent attacks."

The report from DHS' Office of Intelligence and Analysis defines right-wing extremism in the U.S. as "divided into those groups, movements and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups) and those that are mainly anti-government, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration."

"[T]he consequences of a prolonged economic downturn – including real estate foreclosures, unemployment and an inability to obtain credit – could create a fertile recruiting environment for right-wing extremists and even result in confrontations between such groups and government authorities similar to those in the past," the report says.

It adds that "growth in these groups subsided in reaction to increased government scrutiny as a result of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and disrupted plots, improvements in the economy and the continued U.S. standing as the pre-eminent world power."

"Proposed imposition of firearms restrictions and weapons bans likely would attract new members into the ranks of right-wing extremist groups as well as potentially spur some of them to begin planning and training for violence against the government," the report continues. "The high volume of purchases and stockpiling of weapons and ammunition by right-wing extremists in anticipation of restrictions and bans in some parts of the country continue to be a primary concern to law enforcement."

Most notable is the report's focus on the impact of returning war veterans.

"Returning veterans possess combat skills and experience that are attractive to right-wing extremists," it says. "DHS/I&A is concerned that right-wing extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize veterans in order to boost their violent capacities."

The report cites the April 4 shooting deaths of three police officers in Pittsburgh as an example of what may be coming, claiming the alleged gunman holds a racist ideology and believes in anti-government conspiracy theories about gun confiscations, citizen detention camps and "a Jewish-controlled 'one-world government.'"

It also suggests the election of an African-American president and the prospect of his policy changes "are proving to be a driving force for right-wing extremist recruitment and radicalization."

The report also mentions "'end times' prophecies could motivate extremist individuals and groups to stockpile food, ammunition and weapons. These teachings also have been linked with the radicalization of domestic extremist individuals and groups in the past, such as the violent Christian Identity organizations and extremist members of the militia movement."

"DHS/I&A assesses that right-wing extremist groups' frustration over a perceived lack of government action on illegal immigration has the potential to incite individuals or small groups toward violence," the report continues.

The report states the DHS will be working with state and local partners over the next several months to determine the levels of right-wing extremist activity in the U.S.

Last month, the chief of the Missouri highway patrol blasted a report issued by the Missouri Information Analysis Center that linked conservative groups to domestic terrorism, assuring that such reports no longer will be issued. The report had been compiled with the assistance of DHS.

The report warned law enforcement agencies to watch for suspicious individuals who may have bumper stickers for third-party political candidates such as Ron Paul, Bob Barr and Chuck Baldwin.

It further warned law enforcement to watch out for individuals with "radical" ideologies based on Christian views, such as opposing illegal immigration, abortion and federal taxes.

Chief James Keathley of the Missouri State Patrol issued a statement that the release of the report, which outraged conservatives nationwide, prompted him to "take a hard look" at the procedures through which the report was released by the MIAC.

"My review of the procedures used by the MIAC in the three years since its inception indicates that the mechanism in place for oversight of reports needs improvement," he wrote. "Until two weeks ago, the process for release of reports from the MIAC to law enforcement officers around the state required no review by leaders of the Missouri State Highway Patrol or the Department of Public Safety."

"For that reason, I have ordered the MIAC to permanently cease distribution of the militia report," he said. "Further, I am creating a new process for oversight of reports drafted by the MIAC that will require leaders of the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Department of Public Safety to review the content of these reports before they are shared with law enforcement. My office will also undertake a review of the origin of the report by MIAC."

Everyday it's something else, the federal government is so out of control it's unbelievable. When will the sheep wake up and say "ENOUGH!"? Remember, one man's terrorist is another man's freedom-fighter.