Crop of image by David D/C via FlickrACLU – by Jay Stanley

At a panel in Toronto recently I was asked whether I thought the United States had become a “surveillance state.” How to answer that question? At first glance it’s an impossibly fuzzy question, the answer to which is relative depending on whether one has in mind life in an 18th century American town, or the Stasi. At the same time, if we can impose some structure on how we approach the question, it is an opportunity to take stock of where we stand—probably a healthy exercise.

Thinking it over, I came up with a five-part test by which we can consider the question:   Continue reading “Have We Become a “Surveillance State”? A Five-Part Test”

Pirate Morgan’s Innermost Thoughts

“Whenever the legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any further obedience and are left to the common refuge, which God hath provided for all men, against force and violence.” ~ John Locke, 2nd Treatise on Government.   Continue reading “Dear Connecticut Read This and Take Heart!”

You Can't Spell Progressive without an S.S.Canada Free Press – by Tim Dunkin

Sinclair Lewis was wrong—when fascism came to America, it was actually wrapped in a rainbow flag and wearing an ascot.

How else can one describe the ongoing left-wing commitment to the stamping out of free speech, whenever that speech contradicts the gay agenda, as well as other parts of the “progressive” platform? With the resignation of newly-minted Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich, the “progressive” Left, especially its social wing, has once again shown itself to be the enforcers a political correctness in speech and thought that ought to be chilling to any person who actually cares about individual liberty.   Continue reading “You Can’t Spell “Progressive” without an “S.S.””

companies closing storesOff the Grid News – by Daniel Jennings

The economy appears to be in far worse shape than the major media outlets would have us believe.

In fact, if you want to see how bad the economy really is, simply visit your local shopping center. There you will find that headlines about a retail tsunami – as CNBC put it — are accurate.   Continue reading “Economic Reality: 16 Major Chains Closing More Stores”

The Global Recording Initiative: Yes, Your Grocery Store is Forcing You Into Agenda 21Canada Free Press – by Gretchen Olson

Agenda 21, the United Nation’s open plan for global sustainability, is widely understood to be voluntary. Critics of the scheme, however, insist the UN is engaging in double-speak, and that this so-called “volunteer” status is actually creating a world government through the interlinking of UN bureaucracies and international corporations.

It is appears now they may be right, this time involving a place most households in the Western world cannot avoid, the grocery store.   Continue reading “The Global Recording Initiative: Yes, Your Grocery Store is Forcing You Into Agenda 21”

obama_saudi_01New Eastern Outlook – by Tony Cartalucci

US President Barack Obama’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia confirms what many even causal political observers have begun to suspect regarding recent US political history, that Washington’s values aren’t just nonpartisan, driven entirely by special interests permeating both sides of the political aisle, but are altogether non-existent. To understand why requires an understanding of both US-Saudi relations, not just during the Obama administration, but over the past several decades, as well as a basic understanding of Saudi Arabia itself.   Continue reading “Obama, the Sauds, and Bottomless Hypocrisy”

Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden

As Daniel Kay Hertz explains, the goal of these maps is not merely to depress you (you’re welcome!), but to suggest just how dramatically the reality of Chicago’s “two cities” has changed over the last few generations, how non-eternal its present state is, and that a happier alternate reality isn’t just possible, but actually existed relatively recently.

Daniel Kay Hertz goes on to note, he feels relatively comfortable telling the story of how Chicago came to be so segregated by race; but is much humbler about his ability to explain this, except inasmuch as the ever-widening ghetto of the affluent could not exist without, yes, radically exclusionary housing laws.   Continue reading “Visualizing The Collapse Of Chicago’s Middle Class”

Image Associated PressThe Wire – by Philip Bump

Democratic Rep. Jim Moran of Virginia wants you to know that, at $174,000 a year,members of Congress are underpaid. Because Jim Moran, like others, doesn’t understand actual economic hardship and, frankly, isn’t that great at politics either.

Moran is not the only public official to make a dubious claim about salary hardship in the past 24 hours. Larry Schwartz is secretary to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a position that’s a sort of like chief of staff in the state. Schwartz was discussing a proposal backed by Cuomo that would freeze property taxes on people at certain income levels. After all, middle class folks like those making $500,000 shouldn’t pay exorbitant taxes. Yes, that’s right. Middle class. “I would consider someone making up to $500,000 as upper middle-class,” Schwarz said, according to The Journal-News. “I wouldn’t classify them as rich.” OK.   Continue reading “Your Political Leaders Are Unsurprisingly Terrible at Empathizing with Your Salary”

cerealThe Daily Sheeple – by Lily Dane

If you needed another reason to avoid taking your children down the cereal aisle at the grocery store, here it is: insidious cereal box characters seem to be trying to make eye contact with your kiddos.

While it’s no surprise that marketing techniques like product package design and placement in stores are used to attract buyers, some methods are more exploitative than others. Directing advertising to adults who understand marketing tactics and have the ability to make informed decisions is quite different than employing psychology-based tricks designed to lure innocent kids into brand loyalty.   Continue reading “Creepy! Are Cereal Box Characters Designed to Make Eye Contact With Your Children?”

kipp acadamen lockdownThe Daily Sheeple – by Daisy Luther

What is the best way to ensure that gun control takes place within a generation?

Forget trying to change the minds of those who already have guns.  The best way to do this is to encourage a culture of fear among young people.

And the public school system, with all of its zero tolerance lunacy, is doing just that. They are setting the stage for tyranny.    Continue reading “Setting the Stage for Tyranny: Public Schools Deliberately Create a Culture of Fear”

fort hood guns galoreThe Guardian

Guns are wall-to-wall at the Guns Galore shop near Fort Hood, and so are posters: No Idiots Allowed. This Isn’t a Place for Children to Play. Firearm Trafficking is Illegal.

But now that a second mass shooting at the Texas military base has been linked to guns bought at the squat brick store, which promises “3,000 Guns In Stock,” the message Guns Galore clerks are emphasizing is don’t blame them.   Continue reading “Fort Hood: Guns Galore reportedly sold guns to both shooters”