What better way to kill the entrepreneurial spirit in its cradle and set us up for the day when we all work for the state?
Have we lost Common Sense as Introduced by the Founding Fathers?
If push does come to shove – history teaches us – government will not hesitate to clamp down on its subjects by whatever means necessary to preserve itself. History has also shown that the best way to mute resistance is to prepare its citizens ahead of time for escalating levels of police control. An enhanced law enforcement presence must be accepted as the new normal. But rest assured, it’s “for our own good.”
And that disclaimer can now be heard all over the nation, even though it has been used to hoodwink decent folk forever. The truth is that the application of this time-tested political axiom confirms that the more fearful people are, the easier they are to control. We’ve seen this principle at work for centuries in dictatorial, autocratic societies. Actually the North African Country of Libya just closed the door on another dictator coming off a forty two year term of suppression, who was brought down by what got him into power: pure violence and fear. In what is now recognized as the Spring and Summer of Muslim Dictatorial Liberation, 5 Dictators (Ben Ali, Mubarak,Saleh, Assad and Ghadafi) so far have been ousted by populations that wouldn’t take it anymore.
Yet, politicians here continually pass more intrusive laws; and “law enforcement” is empowered by them to take increasing liberties with our rights, content that the courts will back them up… which they have done, as spineless career judges hand them larger and larger cartes blanche to act however they please. The first ten amendments to the Constitution have been largely gutted and the things the Founding Fathers cared most passionately about have been tossed into the dustbin.
And now we’re told: that our homes are no longer safe from no-knock entries, habeas corpus is no longer the case and warrants be damned (precisely the abuse that most riled the American revolutionary colonists); that we should rat out our neighbors at the first sign that something is “amiss,” just as in any autocrat state you care to mention; and that it should be regarded as okay that warrants of all kinds are commonly served to good folks and normally law abiding citizens by gangs of helmeted thugs, covered with body armor and toting a dizzying array of lethal weapons.
Police Officers Once were Called Peace Officers
I remember when the police were called peace officers, as their job was primarily to maintain the peace. My older brother heeded the call and became an officer of the peace and saw the system changing in the almost 35 years that followed. He was happy when retirement afforded him to walk away with his life and his self respect as he noted over the years how especially in the bigger police forces, bullies became the preferred police man profile. Peace officers are dead, they are now law enforcement officers, and they are entering a war with a widening swath of the citizenry by order from the political establishment.
And as a consequence we have seen that the targets of overwhelming force are no longer just murderers, rapists and armed robbers. SWAT teams are now routinely dispatched to deal with bickering spouses, zoned-out pot smokers, parking ticket violators, jay walkers, and even those delinquent in loan payments. And as fear grows and arms possession increases, excessive action grows, even though it may seem odd that they’re going after ever less-violent people like children, seniors, women and even handicapped.
Yet it makes perfect sense if we accept that authorities around the country have gotten the message from Washington that a complacent populace is required. Just imagine what they can do to you, if the weak and the wary are not even sacred anymore.
Exposure Power of the Internet
The Internet reports many of these instances as they keep growing exponentially in numbers and ridicule.
Take, for instance, the case of Rawesome Foods in California, a private buying club dedicated to bringing the most wholesome, natural food products to its members. Does that sound like a criminal conspiracy? Not to all of us who are getting fed up by all the manipulated food that is on many Supermarket shelves these days. But it did to local and federal officials, who staged a joint SWAT-style raid on the club on August 6. Without a warrant, officers entered the storefront, seized cash, destroyed inventory, and jailed the club’s founder.
On October 6, two months later, almost 1,100 pages of “discovery” documents were presented in court proceedings, illuminating how government sponsored terrorism is trying to break the American Spirit.
The other day I posted a Big Brother story about the hundreds of thousands of cameras around the nation that follow us every step of the way, always ready to catch us in an unlawful act. Today I expose a counter balance on this troublesome development as millions of iPhones and Smartphones are documenting a rapidly increasing explosive confrontation in the making. One that shows law enforcement as it is used by politicians to create a docile population, and another one that potentially shows a growing population that doesn’t take it anymore
That the situation is getting tense is underlined by the fact that Law enforcement is now ordered to criminalize children. Yes, children.
No, I’m not talking about SWAT raids here. But in a way, this is even more insidious, because the effort is directed at teaching kids at an early age that Big Brother is always watching and that you’d better be sure you obey the letter of every law (as if anyone could possibly know what they all are) or you’re in for trouble with the Man.
The Summer of the Lemonade Stand Busts
A couple of summers ago we had our own little showdown here in Fernandina Beach, when icon Felix Jones was the target of “the Law is the Law” fascism. This last summer has been – and I swear I am not making this up – the summer of the lemonade-stand bust. Yep, children’s lemonade stands have been closed down in states all over the country, including California, Oregon, and Texas – and even, astonishingly, in such bedrock, sensible-values American heartland states as Wisconsin and Iowa.
And the latest of these hugely important police actions came in small-town Georgia just north of us here on Amelia Island in the township of Midland south of Savannah, where the local police chief advised three girls with summer vacation plans financed by the proceeds of a lemonade stand, that they had to cease and desist from selling their lemonade until they forked over $50 a day for a business license. Watch this news report only if you have a strong stomach and your outrage button is not easily pushed. Mine is, as I envision my rage if law enforcement would come and shut down the many lemonade stands I have tried, during Saturday morning garage sales on our island.
That video is instructive in oh so many wonderful ways.
First, take a good look at the head cop as she explains their actions. “The law is the law” is about as close as you can get to “I was only following orders.” Squint your eyes a little. She’d look perfect decked out in SS lightning bolts, or maybe as a member of Ghadafi’s Amazon Squad. Wouldn’t she?
Next, consider the little girl who says, “… but we had to listen to the cops.” She’s learned her lesson.
Then there’s mom. I’m sure that if she were one of my regular readers that stand would’ve been up and running the next day, and every day until the police were forced to take those kids to court over this. But not in Midland Georgia. This mom is backing away from the issue, saying, “I’m trying to teach my kids good, and I don’t think it’ll teach ’em good if I keep on an’ on with this.” Right, the lesson wasn’t only for the children.
Finally, in addition to instilling fear of authority in our most impressionable citizens, there’s an added kicker to this incident. What better way to kill the entrepreneurial spirit in its cradle and set us up for the day when we all work for the state?
So here is my Question to all of you: What’s the point when we finally announce that we’re not going to take it any more? If that point isn’t when they go after our children, then there isn’t one and we’ve reach the end of the line.
In my opinion it all harkens back to founding father Thomas Payne and his 1776 publication of “Common Sense“. We have lost our common sense; we’ve lost the true meaning of what it means to be an American and what freedom means.
