bill of rights

What Reasonable Person WOULDN’T Avoid the Cops?

"In 2000, the US Supreme Court ruled that warrantless narcotics checkpoints in Indiana were unconstitutional. Police in at least two states have responded by setting up fake checkpoints, and then stopping motorists who seek to avoid them. Police in Mayfield Heights, Ohio are now using the same tactic by placing 'Drug Checkpoint Ahead' signs in the express lanes of Interstate 271. Although such checkpoints are illegal, observes Professor Ric Simmons of Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law, lying about one is not, because police 'can lie to anybody.'" Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: Special Independence Day Edition

"Eventually history will tell the story of how Edward Snowden came out and revealed the extent to which the feds - under the guise of protecting us from terrorism - were laying the foundation for a police state. This was deeply disturbing to thoughtful people...if there were any...who feared the rise of an all-knowing, all-powerful Big Brother, from whom no secrets are kept, from whom no desires are hidden. And it was disturbing too to the Big Brothers themselves. They insisted on knowing everything about everybody else's business. But they made it a crime to reveal what they were up to! In short, nobody likes a snitch...and a snoop especially dislikes a snitch." Continue reading →

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More Texas women sue police over ‘unconstitutional’ roadside body cavity search

"The Houston Chronicle reported that the suit names Trooper Nathaniel Turner, who claimed he smelled marijuana in the car and called a female trooper even though a 'search and seizure was highly unreasonable.' The suit also names the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, responding officer Brazoria County Sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Kindred and the Brazoria County sheriff. In dashcam footage, Hamilton can be heard saying 'Do you know how violated I feel?' to Trooper Jennie Bui as she was searched. Randle said that the she only had one glove that was used to search both of them." Continue reading →

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Chief Justice Roberts Is Awesome Power Behind FISA Court

"Chief justice of the U.S. is a pretty big job. You lead the Supreme Court conferences where cases are discussed and voted on. You preside over oral arguments. When in the majority, you decide who writes the opinion. You get a cool robe that you can decorate with gold stripes. Oh, and one more thing: You have exclusive, unaccountable, lifetime power to shape the surveillance state. The 11 FISA judges, chosen from throughout the federal bench for seven-year terms, are all appointed by the chief justice. In fact, every FISA judge currently serving was appointed by Chief Justice John Roberts, who will continue making such appointments until he retires or dies." Continue reading →

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Warrantless Window-Smashing Weapon Search At U.S. Border Patrol Internal Checkpoint

"I was detained for 9hrs and cuffed 6 of that. I went from an outdoor bench to a detention trailer, fingerprinted, photographed. Did a criminal history search. Brought to admin trailer and cuffed to a bench. My Cameras, Computer, Phone, iPod cataloged. A high clearance Agent was sought view my recent FBI Interrogation. I was trucked to a permanent detention center. All was confiscated. They set me on foot 200miles from home, 100miles from my destination with ID and credit cards." Continue reading →

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“Mental Illness” Diagnoses Are the Slippery Slope to Gun Confiscation

"The definition of someone who is officially 'mentally ill' could be changed at a moment’s notice once these types of laws are in place, making them an extreme danger to rights. So far, only California and New York have implemented them, but other states may follow. As the situation stands now, the New York law mandates that all mental health professionals, psychiatrists, and psychologists must report any patient they believe may be 'dangerous' to local officials, who will then have the authority to seize all firearms that individual might own — don’t make your psychiatrist angry." Continue reading →

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CIA Whistleblower John Kiriakou’s Open Letter to Edward Snowden

"Former CIA officer John Kiriakou, who is serving a thirty-month sentence in prison in Loretto, Pennsylvania, has written another letter. It expresses support for former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, who has exposed secret US government surveillance programs and policies, and provided a glimpse of the ever-expanding massive surveillance apparatus the government has built. Kiriakou was the first member of the CIA to publicly acknowledge that torture was official US policy under the administration of President George W. Bush. He was convicted in October of last year of violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act." Continue reading →

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Teen Jailed For Facebook Comment Beaten Up Behind Bars

"The family of Justin Carter, the 19-year-old Texas gamer who made offensive Facebook comments that landed him in jail, is working with new urgency to get his $500,000 bail reduced because they say he's getting beat up behind bars. 'Without getting into the really nasty details, he's had concussions, black eyes, moved four times from base for his own protection,' says Carter's father, Jack. 'He's been put in solitary confinement, nude, for days on end because he's depressed. All of this is extremely traumatic to this kid. This is a horrible experience.' Carter has been in jail since his arrest in February." Continue reading →

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U.S. Postal Service Logging All Mail for Law Enforcement

"Leslie James Pickering noticed something odd in his mail last September: a handwritten card, apparently delivered by mistake, with instructions for postal workers to pay special attention to the letters and packages sent to his home. Mr. Pickering was targeted by a longtime surveillance system called mail covers, a forerunner of a vastly more expansive effort, the Mail Isolation Control and Tracking program, in which Postal Service computers photograph the exterior of every piece of paper mail that is processed in the United States — about 160 billion pieces last year. It is not known how long the government saves the images." Continue reading →

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Redacted FBI Documents Show Plot to Kill Occupy Leaders If ‘Deemed Necessary’

"When the Houston Police department was asked about its knowledge of the plot, public affairs officer Keith Smith said it 'hadn’t heard about it' and directed future questions to the Houston FBI office. The obvious question to ask in attempting to determine the identities of the planners is this: Who has sniper training? A number of Texas law enforcement organizations received special training from Dallas-based mercenary company Craft International, which has a contract for training services with Homeland Security. The company was founded by a celebrated Army sniper who was killed by a combat veteran he accompanied to a shooting range." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRedacted FBI Documents Show Plot to Kill Occupy Leaders If ‘Deemed Necessary’