for life and liberty

3D Printer Company Aims to Block Printing of Guns

"A Danish 3D printer company has developed an algorithm that would prevent independent 3D printer owners from being able to print gun part files, adding fuel to the demonization and censorship campaign already being waged against the incredible technology’s powerful potential. According to Create it REAL’s CEO Jeremie Pierre Gay, his company’s line of 3D printers will be sold with the software already loaded that will block files recognized as gun part components before they’re printed – so far namely those needed to assemble the Liberator or Defense Distributed’s lower receiver." Continue reading →

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NSA Whistleblower: Phone Collection Data Could Be Used to Determine Active Tea Party Members

"William Binney worked for the NSA for over 30 years as a cryptanalyst-mathematician but resigned in 2001 as a whistleblower. In the clip below, he discusses the problems with mass NSA data collection and also explains how the data could be used to identify, for example, who are the key active members of the Tea Party." Continue reading →

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Traveling on a Revoked Passport…What Can You Do Next?

"In order for Snowden to depart safely from the Sheremetyevo without a second passport, he will need to procure some type of refugee travel document. So-called 'refugee passports' originated nearly 100 years ago when World War I ended. They look like regular passport booklets with two diagonal stripes in the upper left corner on the front cover. Hopefully, none of you reading this post will ever find yourself in the situation Edward Snowden is now experiencing: traveling internationally on a passport your country has revoked. But if you do, I hope that you take a precaution Snowden never did: to obtain a second passport, 'just in case.'" Continue reading →

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State Department bureau spent $630,000 on Facebook ‘likes’

"State Department officials spent $630,000 to get more Facebook 'likes,' prompting employees to complain to a government watchdog that the bureau was 'buying fans' in social media, the agency's inspector general says. The department's Bureau of International Information Programs spent the money to increase its 'likes' count between 2011 and March 2013. Despite the surge in likes, the IG said the effort failed to reach the bureau's target audience, which is largely older and more influential than the people liking its pages. Only about 2 percent of fans actually engage with the pages by liking, sharing or commenting." Continue reading →

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July 3, 1776 ~ John Adams to Abigail Adams

To Abigail Adams John Adams July 03, 1776   Yesterday, the greatest question was decided, which ever was debated in America, and a greater, perhaps, never was nor will be decided among men. A resolution was passed without one dissenting colony, “that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent …

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What Level of Taxation Is Too Much?

"It was reported that more than 8,000 French households had tax bills that exceeded 100% of their income in 2012. This occurred due to a so-called 'one-off levy' imposed by the socialist president in an attempt to 'offset' previous tax breaks. Ouch. Contrast France with these 18 countries that have no personal income tax. When it comes to confiscating wealth, desperate governments know no limit – other than 'what they can get away with.' In other words, it is only pragmatic to assume that anything within a desperate government's immediate reach becomes fair game." Continue reading →

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US institutions to expats: ‘Take your retirement account elsewhere – now’

"First American expatriates were told that their bank accounts weren’t welcome because of the growing hassles and expense banks have to deal with when they have American citizens as clients. Now, Americans’ tax-deferred retirement accounts – many of which were set up decades ago, and never touched since – are also increasingly unwanted by US financial institutions, unless these accounts are of significant size. The reason, according to a US-based adviser, is because the companies have become increasingly concerned about 'know your customer (KYC) rules' that were first introduced in the US in 2003." Continue reading →

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Dell’s Cash Overseas Is Needed at Home, But U.S. Taxes Loom Large

"Advisers working on Dell Inc.'s $24.4 billion buyout are trying to solve a problem: how to use the computer maker's foreign cash without paying a $2.6 billion U.S. tax bill. That could be the cost levied to use the money held in foreign subsidiaries. The efforts highlight a current bind of corporate America: While U.S. companies are holding more cash than ever, the tangle of U.S. tax policies and corporate cash-preservation strategies means much of it isn't readily available for some of the most important corporate decisions, such as returning cash to shareholders or mergers and acquisitions." Continue reading →

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French competition watchdog raids Apple stores

"French competition authorities last week raided several stores of US tech giant Apple following a complaint by failed local firm eBizcuss of unfair trade practices, officials said Tuesday. Officials from the Autorite de la Concurrance confirmed the raids but did not say where they took place and how many outlets were affected. Apple did not comment. The Les Echos financial daily said the the investigators wanted to probe Apple’s relations with its distributors. The firm has been accused of favouring its own stores with the supply of new devices." Continue reading →

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EBay’s double tax base prompts calls for investigation

"Britain and Germany may have missed out on a combined $1 billion in sales tax since online marketplace eBay picked a tiny Luxembourg office as its base for EU sales, a shift that lawmakers say should now be investigated. EBay, which is headquartered in San Jose, California, moved into Europe in 1999 when it established eBay International in Berne. Switzerland's low income tax regime for foreign companies was highly beneficial for the auction site. The Swiss base also meant, initially, that the company didn't have to charge EU customers VAT. But in 2003, Brussels changed the rules." Continue reading →

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