Land Of The Flea

800 U.S. police round up 129 gang suspects in Mexican Mafia raid

"About 800 local, state and federal law enforcement officers arrested 129 suspects indicted on a variety of murder, extortion, racketeering, drug and weapons charges in Orange County as part of 'Operation Smokin’ Aces.' Police said they seized 22 pounds of methamphetamine, 1.5 pounds of heroin and 3 pounds of cocaine, and the FBI said undercover officers purchased 38 handguns and 29 rifles in connection with the sweep. Investigators said members of the prison gang ordered assaults on 12 inmates, including one man whose head was stapled 20 times, in the Orange County Jail for failure to pay drug taxes." Continue reading →

Continue Reading800 U.S. police round up 129 gang suspects in Mexican Mafia raid

Justice Department: ATF misplaced 420 million cigarettes in stings

"Government agents acting without authorization conducted dozens of undercover investigations of illegal tobacco sales, misused some of $162 million in profits from the stings and lost track of at least 420 million cigarettes, the Justice Department's inspector general said Wednesday. In one case, ATF agents sold $15 million in cigarettes and later turned over $4.9 million in profits from the sales to a confidential informant — even though the agency did not properly account for the transaction. The audit came as a new blow to a beleaguered agency still reeling from congressional inquiries into the ATF's flawed handling of the Operation Fast and Furious weapons tracking probes in Mexico." Continue reading →

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‘Monsanto Protection Act’ attached to Obamacare defunding bill

"The House Republican government funding bill, which passed in the House last week, contains a three-month extension of the Monsanto Protection Act, which shields companies like Monsanto and Dow Chemical from legal action resulting from Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) crops. The Act also places the authority of whether or not GMO crops can be grown and sold domestically into the hands of Federal Department of Agriculture rather than with the courts or public referendum. The Democratically-controlled Senate is making no plans to work to keep the rider active beyond its current expiration date." Continue reading →

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IRS official caught in tea party scandal retires with $50,000/year pension

"Lois Lerner, the IRS official who presided over a partisan program that targeted conservative organizations because of their political beliefs, will retire on Monday with a full pension package, a source at the Department of Treasury told MailOnline. Lerner, 62, has been a federal government employee since at least 1981, making her eligible for the most robust retirement package the federal government offers career employees. In May Lerner herself launched the scandal that would eventually claim her job, by answering a planted question about how the IRS handled politically oriented groups that applied for tax-exempt status." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIRS official caught in tea party scandal retires with $50,000/year pension

The IRS Rewrites Obamacare

"Obama and his IRS are bypassing Congress and rewriting Obamacare on their own. The IRS is imposing health insurance mandates on employers and individuals even in states where by law they're exempt (http://shar.es/iI2HW). Obama also broke the law by extending the deadline for the employer mandate by a year. He bypassed Congress in making these arbitrary changes. He's picking and choosing which provisions to enforce, and when. Neither Obamacare nor the Constitution give him that discretion. His actions are illegal. And he's setting a precedent that will allow future presidents to ignore or rewrite legislation. But his lawlessness exposes a truth..." Continue reading →

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The Larger the Deficit, the Greater the Default

"There will be a day of reckoning, of course. There always is. But a majority of voters at that time will be sure to see to it that previous lenders will suffer the losses. There will be a Great Default. The lenders will cry: 'But you promised.' And the borrowers will cry: 'That’s life in the land of Keynes. In the long run, we’re all dead. You go first.' The big losers will be the suckers who lent Uncle Sam the money. The biggest lenders are those who trust the federal government to pay their retirement bills, including medical bills. Those who believe in the welfare state will be the biggest losers. They have believed in something for nothing. They will get left with a pile of IOUs and a note: 'Sorry, Charlie.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Larger the Deficit, the Greater the Default

Mark Thornton on “Government Shutdown”

"Mark Thornton presents a Misesian commentary on why politics is to blame for the impending U.S. government 'shutdown,' and how a gold standard could provide real fiscal discipline. Thornton is a Senior Fellow at the Mises Institute. For more information, visit the Mises Institute online at mises.org." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMark Thornton on “Government Shutdown”

What Will ObamaCare Cost You, Beginning on January 1? Do You Know?

"They call this insurance. It’s not insurance. It’s free care for the already ill. Someone must pay. Guess who? You! How much will your premiums be raised? Have you been told yet? If not, do you know how to find out? Have you made the household budget revisions that will be required on January 1? Or are you just waiting to see what happens? This gigantic change in American health care is due to go into effect on January 1. Everyone is supposed to enroll on October 1. Are they ready to comply? Do they know how to comply? The IRS will administer this. What if most people fail to comply? What will the IRS do then? With what percentage of its employees?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhat Will ObamaCare Cost You, Beginning on January 1? Do You Know?

Government Shutdown: An Oxymoron for Real Morons

"The words 'government shutdown' do not mean 'government shutdown.' They mean 'boondoggle shutdown.' They mean 'special-interest-group-subsidy shutdown.' What about the Post Office? Will it get shut down? No. What about the CIA? Will it get shut down? No. What about the NSA? Will it get shut down? No. What about the TSA? Will it get shut down? No. What about the Department of Homeland Security? Will it get shut down? No. My suggestion: stop worrying about a government shutdown. Instead, keep worrying about the government staying open . . . just like you did before." Continue reading →

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“The Fed Made It Possible For Many People To Leak It”

"Zero Hedge is publishing information from a tipster who explained how easy it was to get information into traders about the Fed monetary policy statement before it was officially released. This really sounds very similar to what happened at the BLS in the old days (the 1980s). I outlined how that went down, here. We are talking about big time money here, people made millions on the leaked information. They will also be tough to catch, especially if they used throw away phones. If no direct connection can be made between a leaker and a trader, then all a trader has to do is stick to his story that he bought on some kind of technical trading activity and who will be able to prove otherwise?" Continue reading →

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