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Big Brother Has Come to the Birthplace of America
Pennsylvania is literally the birthplace of the United States of America. The Constitutional Convention was held in Philadelphia, and that is where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were signed.
It
is therefore disconcerting that Pennsylvania's tax authority - the
Department of Revenue - recently launched a big brother "we know where
you live" type ad:
And according to the Department of Justice's Inspector General (via AP),
the FBI spied on an anti-war rally in Pittsburgh sponsored by a
nonviolent anti-war and anti-discrimination group, pretending it was
preventing terrorism:
The FBI gave inaccurate
information to Congress and the public when it claimed a possible
terrorism link to justify surveilling an anti-war rally in Pittsburgh,
the Justice Department's inspector general said Monday in a report on
the bureau's scrutiny of domestic activist groups.
Inspector General
Glenn Fine said the FBI had no reason to expect that anyone of interest
in a terrorism investigation would be present at the 2002 event
sponsored by the Thomas Merton Center, a nonviolent anti-war and
anti-discrimination group.
The surveillance was "an
ill-conceived project on a slow work day," the IG stated in a study of
several FBI domestic terrorism probes of people affiliated with
organizations such as Greenpeace and the Catholic Worker.
Earlier,
in statements to Congress and in a press release, the FBI had
described the surveillance as related to a terrorism investigation.
***
The
FBI has broad definitions that enable it to classify matters as
domestic terrorism that actually are trespassing or vandalism, the
inspector general said.
Regarding the Pittsburgh rally,
controversy erupted in 2006 over whether the FBI had spied on
protesters at the event several years earlier because of their anti-war
views.
(Its not just trespassing and vandalism. According to Department of Defense training manuals, protest is also now considered "low-level terrorism". And see this, this and this).
And
the state of Pennsylvania hired an Israeli-American company with
extensive military and intelligence ties to put out "terror" alerts.
The company - ITRR - describes itself as:
The preeminent Israeli/American security firm providing training, intelligence and education to clients across the globe.
ITRR explains:
The
Institute of Terrorism Research and Response's research and analysis
center, known as the Targeted Actionable Monitoring Center (TAM-C), is
located in Israel. The Targeted Actionable Monitoring Center is staffed
with former law enforcement, military, and intelligence professionals
experienced in the production and utilization of intelligence products.
ITRR categorizes itself as a “Targeted Action Monitoring Center” that does not function as a “clipping service, but a powerful fusion center of battle-tested operatives,
analysts, and researchers who have real-life experience fighting both
terrorists and criminal entities [...] distinguished among other
agencies by its access to a vast network of on-the-ground key-sources
in virtually every region of the world.”
In Pennsylvania, ITRR apparently considered
opponents of gas drilling, and attendees at anti-BP candlelight vigils
and a gay and lesbian festival to be potential terrorists.
And as Pittsburgh Live notes,
the ITRR may have also tracked and disabled "activist groups that
planned to protest the 2009 Group of 20 economic conference in the
city". And see this and this.
For more on "fusion centers" and the use of national security apparatus for corporate purposes, see this, this and this.
Big brother has come to the birthplace of America.
ITRR does not just operate in Pennsylvania. It's website states:
The client list of the Institute of Terrorism Research and Response is confidential.
***
Training clients of the Institute of Terrorism Research and Response have ranged
from
• US military and law enforcement personnel in Israel
• the South Central Pennsylvania Taskforce
• AMTRAK counter-terror unit
• New Hampshire law enforcement agencies
»
- advertisements -
Has nobody heard yet?
As of November 1st, 2010 anywone wishing to fly somewhere must submit his/her travel plans to DHS 72 hours in advance...
Are we all anestethized?
http://guidoromero.wordpress.com/2010/09/21/fascism-slow-but-relentless-...
[I didn't bother reading but, on face] Logistically I'd think that this is a non-starter. Sounds scary, but the amount of work necessary for people to do, and then all the processing (which includes mix-ups etc at the airports) would essentially kill airline travel. Well, airline travel IS going to die, but this would expedite the process. Would be quite the dilemma for a company like Boeing, however, in that they'd want to lobby against this for their commercial airline sales, and then on the other they'd want to support it in order to assist their airline orders, which, as everyone knows, largely happen via the US govt twisting arms of foreign govts. (stupid-ass WTO games of "you cheated! no, YOU cheated" subsidy BS aside)
"Mr. Palladium" & "PuppetRepublic" and their off topic, grandstanding verbosity are an embarrassment to themselves & ZH.
the terrorist's are those that use the term rhetorically to justify
political and economic assaults killing and disempowering innocents.
.
the country, everyone nearly, will be bled for everything they
"own" to pay for the privilege of having a money system. this
is the plan, the structure and it's function from inception. the united states
of america has been occupied by terrorists since 1913 and before.
actually the united states of america was a country founded by terrorists.
look it up.
and slave traders. terrorists. you are a fucking terrorist and a fool.
direct bailouts for the too big to fuck with, what a joke. they are terrorists.
no regulation on their, and only their, accounting fraud. taxation to
pay for financing of all government service as soon 50 percent of the cost
of "services" ( regulatory welfare for select connected and influential
con artists in education, health care and defense etc., all terrorists) will
be interest or finance outlays. all public, commons, sold off to
private interests who will need financing at interest too. more reflation, inflation
by other means, taxation being just another way of supporting the too big to
fuck with.(real terrorists with a history of committing acts of terror).
the government is becoming nothing more than an alternate means
of enforcing collection of funds for the international too big to fail/fuck with banks.
(the so terrible none call them terrorists)
banker's bag men, that is what your politicians are. they work at the pleasure of,
(terrorists) and for, the fed. your soldiers (terrorists) die for the ambitions of wall
street gamblers/fed(terrorists) ( red alert here )
owners, looking for greater domain.
......................................................................................
omnipotence. conquering worm turning
shit. terrible.
there remain debtfree populations, emerging markets, who would be indebted
given the proper preparation. ( murder of their loved ones ). fear and terror supplied
by the supplier of last resort, the fed. ( terrorist and treasonous occupier
of the usa.)
global empire emerging......terror supplied via your local terrorist banker.
( are you more fearful of being destroyed by an explosive device or by
running out of fiat fed dollars? )
.................................................................................
not for grandmas retirement solace. the bankers will eat her too while
junior dies for their, the bankers/fed, right to foreclose/take her home and securitize
the foreclosure or tax her to death.
we are being eaten alive folks. and it is all just usury elevated to an art form.
who would do such a thing? and why? let's see, the terrorists who are becoming
billionaires perhaps? who are they? how do they do it? a terrifying mystery?
it is unbelievable what is happening to the mush between our ears.
kurt vonnegut called it the dog's breakfast, the human brain.
meanwhile we have spent 20 zillion dollars searching white vans for
fertilizer or some such what not and paid god knows who another
20 z to do nobody knows what and can't you see? it is all just
raping and stealing from the endless pot of debt/money that the fed
doles out, billionaire welfare, for the too important and big to fuck
terrorists
with
because they say so (a joke). it is just a scam ! a virtual bullshit scam
sold as civilization. a protection racket, sold as education. sold as value and science. sold as
love. sold as religion, family and country and apple pie and culture. all reduced to
work and entertainment and "sincerity" and money.
.
the android moment. the structure is master and you the slave.
you have been stripped of your humanity, impotent, overwhelmed and
overcome. you are a free/slave. now follow the meme and play the machine.
these stories of people pissing and shitting themselves for fear of missing
the next virtual offering from a virtual world are no less than horrifying.
i surrender to fear and plea insane and throw myself at the mercy of the
court(bankers)terrorist. fiat fiat dose e do.... ..... . . .. . . .. . . . .... . . . . . . . .
end the fed.
ps. news flash, someone hit a homer. this is a big deal, the ball went
all the way over the fence.
.
know where i live? great! please come and visit. we have much to
discuss. i have information that will save you from the hell you have
been employed to profess, you overtaxed terrorised and terrorist loving fool!
rage at the machine, you can do it! just do it, it is only a machine. you are
human. you creat this machine,
word world.
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
We producers also know where the state and its enablers live.
you have to remember that most public pronouncements, "signs" ..
postings etc. are institutional speak. aka bullshit. lowest common denominator
statements reduced to the most simple statement. best recognized and then
recognized for the simple stupidity that it represents. for example...
a red light at 3 am in the dead of winter when there is absolutely no one
but you on the road. or a no dogs allowed on the beach at 9 pm. or
no digging on the beach past 6 inches. what level of moronic brain death
could possibly repeat this type of regulation and who would comply?
ahhh, a reporter from a reputable media outlet. ! what has happened to
the media? servile pigs, no! a pig would dig and dig and dig.......
we have become less intelligent than fucking fleas.
sheesh........................................
....and my favorite seen on every Post Office door
"No dogs permitted, except seeing eye dogs."
wow thats just......wow. Sorry bout your luck Tom.
Just let them have the cuntry already.
ps.
the reason i come here is that, here, i think i am being tracked.
i want to be heard by everyone and everything. remember there
is always a sentient, or potential sentient, being assigned to
monitor in a surveillance state. they are learning as well as functioning
as if they were a cog in a machine. they know, if only inside, the lie they
live. teach them i say. and if they will not learn they should know they
will perish as a flea with the meaning only known by fleas.
speak out , always at all times as this is your nature to the seed and bone.
it is all good like that. we will know the truth, already know it.
peace
The Epitaph of Young Benjamin Franklin
The body of B. Franklin, Printer (Like the Cover of an Old Book Its Contents torn Out And Stript of its Lettering and Gilding) Lies Here, Food for Worms. But the Work shall not be Lost; For it will (as he Believ'd) Appear once More In a New and More Elegant Edition Revised and Corrected By the Author.Benjamin Franklin's Final Epitaph
Benjamin and Deborah Franklin: 1790 .Your future – earning points as a good human that brushes your teeth with a toothbrush that monitors you for good behaviorSeptember 20th, 2010 by stacyherbertRespond
Stacy Summary: Wow, well over a year ago, Max predicted this as what our dystopian future might look like; this guy seems to have taken these ideas on board and LOVES it:
http://maxkeiser.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrbNeOEG0GY&feature=related. the problem is that these institutions are peopled by, not sub humans, but evolving or proto sapiens.damaged and struggling children so desperately trying to be a human someone. yes. they need yourhelp. you need them to be helped. we need us to be human homo sapien. and many fall for the android moment. check this... ther is money in itYour future – earning points as a good human that brushes your teeth with a toothbrush that monitors you for good behavior September 20th, 2010 by stacyherbertRespond
Stacy Summary: Wow, well over a year ago, Max predicted this as what our dystopian future might look like; this guy seems to have taken these ideas on board and LOVES it:
http://maxkeiser.com/
http://maxkeiser.com/2010/09/20/your-future-earning-points-as-a-good-human-that-brushes-your-teeth-with-a-toothbrush-that-monitors-your-for-good-behavior/
.
Benjamin Franklin's Funeral and GraveHe Was Able to Restrain Thunderbolts and Tyrants
"No other town burying its great man, ever buried more of itself than Philadelphia with Franklin," wrote Carl Van Doren in his biography of Franklin.
Franklin himself had composed the black-bordered Pennsylvania Gazette which announced his death. Dr. Jones, Franklin's physician, informed the readers of Franklin's final illness. He had been suffering from empyema, pus filling in his lung brought on by attacks of pleurisy many years earlier. His temperature was high. This made breathing laborious, and he almost suffocated. After several days of breathing woes, the pain went away for a day, upon which he left his bed and asked that it be made properly so that he might have a dignified death. His daughter, Sally, told him that she hoped he would live many years more. "I hope not," he replied.
An abscess in Franklin's lung burst and he passed into a coma. He died on April 17, 1790, with his grandsons William Temple and Bennie at his side. Benjamin Franklin was 84 years old.
On April 21, the funeral procession gathered at the State House. Leading the cortege was the clergy of Philadelphia. Though Franklin was not a regular churchgoer by any means, he had aided the churches by raising funds to help their construction. His coffin was carried by the citizenry of Philadelphia. Dignitaries surrounded the Pall including Revolutionary Era Philadelphia mayor Samuel Powell, astronomer David Rittenhouse, and several members of Pennsylvania's Supreme Executive Council. Judges and current Philadelphia politicians were also in the mix.
They were followed by the printers of the city and their apprentices. Franklin always considered himself a leather apron man, a mechanic, a printer. "Keep they Trade, and thy Trade will keep Thee."
Then came members of the American Philosophical Society, which was co-founded by Franklin in the 1740's. Next came members of the College of Physicians. Franklin was a founding member of the Academy, which became the College of Philadelphia, which had created the College of Physicians, the first medical school in the country. The Society of Cincinnati found its way into the procession, though Franklin had derided their philosophy of making honor hereditary.
On the cortege wound, composed of citizens of all stripes, headed toward the Christ Church burial ground. It is estimated that 20,000 mourners gathered for the funeral. Bells of the city church's were muffled and tolled. When Franklin had arrived in Philadelphia's port on October 6, 1723, he was a broke runaway. Now the ships in the very same harbor Franklin had arrived in flew their flags at half-mast for the man who had enriched the world.
Franklin was buried beside his wife Deborah, who had preceded him in death by 25 years. His beloved son Francis Folger, who had died at age 4 from smallpox, was also in the family plot.
As a young man in 1728, Franklin had composed his own mock epitaph which read:
The Body of
B. Franklin
Printer;
Like the Cover of an old Book,
Its Contents torn out,
And stript of its Lettering and Gilding,
Lies here, Food for Worms.
But the Work shall not be whlly lost:
For it will, as he believ'd, appear once more,
In a new & more perfect Edition,
Corrected and Amended
By the Author.
He was born on January 6, 1706.
Died 17
His gravestone would simply read:
BENJAMINAnd
DEBORAH FRANKLIN 1790
America mourned.
James Madison moved that the House of Representatives, then sitting in New York, wear mourning for a month.
France mourned.
In June, Count Mirabeau suggested that the French National Assembly should wear mourning as well. His suggestion also provides a fitting eulogy.
Today thousands of tourists annually still come to pay their respect to Benjamin Franklin. His grave is visible through an iron gate at the southeast corner of 5th and Arch Streets. Pennies dot his tombstone, as a local tradition claims that such a practice will bring the penny-tosser luck.
One must wonder what the author of Poor Richard's Almanack might think of such a practice though. On the one hand, a man famous for the line, "A penny saved, is a penny earned," would not like throwing money away; on the other hand surely Franklin would recognize, it is only "common cents" that we would look to him for inspiration.
.
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/franklin-epitaph.html
.
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/bf0061s.jpg
.
here lies the body....
http://www.ushistory.org/franklin/philadelphia/grave.htm
.
The body of Benjamin Franklin, printer (like the cover of an old book, its
contents worn out, and stript of its lettering and gilding) lies here, food for
worms. Yet the work itself shall not lost, for it will, as he
believed, appear once more In a new and more beautiful
edition, corrected and amended by its Author
Benjamin Franklin
R.I.P
.
i like the last one as it includes the word printer which is fitting
as he was also a printer, a printer of the words of authors among
other things, including currency.
If anyone's interested, someone did a ripping "Hitler Meme" parody of the PA "Tax Nazi" ads - very clever and funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q34LnP2dRZc
...perfect..
Best meme ever.
Big Brother isn't watching. Big Brother is collecting.
I run a medium size computer system for a multi campus healthcare facility. 700+ employees. 65 servers. 400+ computers. A nearly complete EHR system. A lot of medical devices are wirelessly connected. Pharmacy dispense is barcoded. Patients are barcoded. We're looking into RFID for patients. Employees may be next.
From the minute you pull into the parking lot you have basically entered my borg. We have over 200 video cameras inside and out. Every door that requires a code or a card records the hit. When you log on, well, I have your every move recorded. Forever. Every email is instantaneously backed up. Every database has an audit trail for every field. Every website browsed is tracked. Every document you create is instantaneously backed up. Phone conversations are recorded in our billing department. Terabytes of data are archived continuously and moved off site weekly.
I could shadow your desktop if I wanted to. Do I have the time to do that? Fuck no.
But when you get fired for sleeping on the job it looks really bad at the unemployment hearing when the HR staff comes in with a laptop and that shows you snoozing on the job in a patient bed. Or with a complete history of your web browsing on non business related sites. Or with copies of your emails excoriating your fellow co-worker. People do really stupid things...
But that is secondary to our fights in federal court with insurance companies who promise to pay benefits and then deny the claims. Fuck medicare, we don't accept it for the obvious reasons.
We've never actually been to court, ahem...they always settle. Not without a fight mind you but, tis I the lawyers come to for discovery. And that is when little brother goes to work.
I'd hope that people don't believe that all of this could continue. ALL of this is only possible with cheap, abundant energy. As soon as the power starts to dim, so too will their hold. Further, as economic wind-down continues such facilities will become less and less frequented. Remember: 2/3 of the world's population lives on $3/day or less; all of this shit is just TOO expensive, and, as we're currently finding out, you cannot force people to borrow. The growth system that feeds this crap is starting to starve, and because it doesn't actually contribute to the fundamentals (Food, Shelter and Water), it'll eventually be shunned: I think that the Amish have it right, in that they look to operate as their own system; this is, IMHO, a better approach than trying to "beat" the system via violence.
I have no doubt he is telling the truth.
This works until the databases, the hard drives, the building containing the hard drives, burn to the ground in the riots and looting.
Guess what? The FEDS are building computer storage in Salt Lake City (Treasury, FED). Why? Obedient populace in a middle of the country city with nearby military bases and National Guard that will likely be one of the last to burn; talk about backup...
double wow. you should write a book mate. a modern day notes from the underground maybe?
This sounds a bit like the NSA. They never forget a thing.
And Google.
I'm sure ITRR gots lots of experience in Gaza etc. "key-sources"=diaspora screw you you fascist fucks! I almost wish they would come get me, then I could prove there is a "conspiracy"! Son's of Liberty time?
Not surprised that the Israelis are somehow involved in this.
Scum attracted to this line of work.
Look at how many software security companies have been bought by them.
Amazing how desperate people are to drag Israel into every single ZH thread they can possibly find.
The perversity and corruption of "ex law enforcement" knows no national boundaries.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/8016628/FBI-investigated-Greenpeace-for-terror-links-after-911.html
Now these dudes could qualify.....LOL
I've known and worked with a whole lot of them. Even the women have more balls than the assholes who berate them--in spite of how hot most of them are!
I assume you mean that in jest, and i agree Greenpeace are a bunch of loons. I was however disgusted with this comment:
"the FBI classified some investigations relating to non-violent civil disobedience under its Acts of Terrorism classification."
Since when is "non-violent civil disobedience" terrorism? It is clear this is just more government over reach. They even wasted man hours investigating PETA, who as far as i can tell are made up entirely of naked women.
I couldn't give a shit about either of these special interest groups but any libertarian can see right through this bullshit as the government power grab that it is. They will use the guise of "terrorism" to break the law whenever convenient. There is no accountability, only the states brazen shredding of the constitution at every available opportunity.
GW, thanks again for --whats goin on. The folks need to be reminded that to retain what freedom they have, they must be aware of infringements and dangers. Under Bush we seemed to have our ear to the railroad tracks. Under Obama there appears to be a suppression of news that would reflect badly upon that government. And looking at your web site George, there is more than one story of a problematic nature. Good for you that there is an exposure outlet for us to check in on.
It is an obligation to openly question acts of aggression that our government appears to act out. If the aggression appears to be valid, action has to be taken. The counterpoint to this is that the proud nail gets hammered. This is a reality in the USA today in industry, and government. If you are not ready to stand and fight, then you are lost. That may be part of the reason we are lost because there are real problems with standing up against huge power and money.
Pennsylvania ain't got nothin' on the UK, whose IRS equivalent wants to one-up the US's wimpy income tax withholding racket with, you guessed it, "a proposal that all employers send employee paychecks to the government, after which the government would deduct what it deems as the appropriate tax and pay the employees by bank transfer."
http://www.cnbc.com/id/39265847
Oh yeah, read about that one. 'Bout fell out of my chair. That is some truly delusional shit.
But when you think about it, wouldn't one have said the same thing about income tax withholding, to say nothing of the "heavy progressive or graduated income tax" that is item number two in Marx & Engels ten-point plan for the creation of a Communist Manifesto (not forgetting the other nine, and especially items 3, 5, and 10?)
http://www.cddc.vt.edu/marxists/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manife...
And when (not if) the UK follows through on this abomination, will the US not follow suit, having first confiscated the people's 401(k)s?
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig11/okst1.1.1.html
It's all delusional shit, in other words, and one should therefore do one's best to be as far away from the fan as possible when it hits.
Speaking of big brother - IIRC, in New York suburbs they were using google maps to help find tax cheats. This practice was recently halted.
What exactly is a "tax cheat?"
so, they're spending tax money to make commercials threatening people to pay their taxes. Excellent model for doing business.
I think Thomas Merton would be humbled that TPTB still think that the people who follow his teachings are a threat to the good order of things.
Thomas Merton was traveling around in the early 60's looking to bridge cultures and religions and fostering peace. He died under mysterious circumstances - alone - in his Bangkok hotel room.
That's one of the great unsung conspiracy theories of the 20th century. If a person adjusts his tinfoil hat properly, he can almost hear the upper levels of the Curia whispering for Merton's death.
That was especially amusing.
This is six months old...
The ITRR story is brand new and hot off the press ...
I first saw this ad on a Pittsburgh station about six months back.
Yes, this sums it up quite nicely:
http://www.motifake.com/in-soviet-russia-waldo-soviet-russia-finds-you-p...
Most of your "wackos" are only concerned about their guns, a case of beer, Wal-Mart, and NASCAR. You're no different. You're all conditioned, domesticated, and trained like indoor pets that are only concerned about your fantasy football team, facial moisturizers and personal vices.
And you've come to this delightful insight how?
It's not insightful at all. It was an insensitive and ridiculous comment.
Thanks for saying that Genius; takes an adult to admit when we make a mistake.
Removed...
The audio says "we know who you are" but the video screams "we know where you live."
If our public "servants" keep this up, they will make libertarians out of us all in no time.
Time to start renting and move every all assets to gold and re-locate at least once a year.