Land Of The Flea

Massive ACLU initiative aims to measure police state’s growth

"The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said Wednesday that chapters in 23 states have filed over 255 open records requests pertaining to the militarization of local police departments around the country since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in what the group is calling its most concentrated effort yet to assess the growth of America’s police state. The ACLU is also seeking information on the use of drone aircraft by local law enforcement, along with GPS tracking systems, any military weapons obtained from the federal government and so-called 'shock cuffs' that can be programmed to deliver electric shocks or even sedative injections to restrained detainees." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMassive ACLU initiative aims to measure police state’s growth

We Have Come Not To Bury the Fourth Amendment But To Praise It

"The folks at 'Freedom to Travel USA' have filed an amicus brief in the case Refern, et al. v. Napolitano. This lawsuit challenges the TSA’s groping and carcinogenic porno-scanners on the grounds that the Fourth Amendment prohibits such unreasonable searches. This cause was not only lost but buried under a Progressive avalanche about a century ago. Here’s why: 'the TSA claims ‘administrative search authority ... the administrative search does not require probable cause, but must further an important government need, such as preventing would-be terrorists from bringing an explosive device onto a crowded commuter train.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWe Have Come Not To Bury the Fourth Amendment But To Praise It

8-year-old girl handcuffed, jailed for two hours

"An 8-year-old girl was handcuffed and held by Alton Police for two hours after throwing a tantrum at school. Jmyha Rickman was hauled in the back of a police squad car. Her guardian said she was treated like a criminal, all 70 lbs. of the young girl. Rickman’s ordeal began at Love Joy Elementary School late Tuesday morning when she apparently had a bad tantrum. At some point, school officials called the Alton Police to handle the situation." Continue reading →

Continue Reading8-year-old girl handcuffed, jailed for two hours

Janet Napolitano Asked About DHS’s 2,700 Armored Trucks

"At an airline security conference, Luke Rudkowski asked Janet Napolitano about the Department of Homeland Security's purchase of 2,700 armored trucks that will be deployed to local law enforcement agencies around the country. It is extremely difficult for anyone to have the opportunity to talk to Napolitano as she has a large number of Secret Service around her at all times that does not allow media anywhere near her." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJanet Napolitano Asked About DHS’s 2,700 Armored Trucks

Supreme Court: Rights groups cannot prove harm from warrantless wiretapping

"The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that human rights groups do not have standing to sue the government over its warrantless wiretapping program because they have no proof that the wiretapping has harmed them. The vote was split 5-4 along partisan lines, with the conservative majority supporting the Obama administration’s argument that the FISA Amendments Act was above reproach in this case because the harms were 'speculative,' and not 'actual.' Roving, warrantless wiretaps were authorized by President George W. Bush after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, turning the National Security Agency into the nation’s spy machine." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSupreme Court: Rights groups cannot prove harm from warrantless wiretapping

Supreme Court: Rights groups cannot prove harm from warrantless wiretapping

"The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that human rights groups do not have standing to sue the government over its warrantless wiretapping program because they have no proof that the wiretapping has harmed them. The vote was split 5-4 along partisan lines, with the conservative majority supporting the Obama administration’s argument that the FISA Amendments Act was above reproach in this case because the harms were 'speculative,' and not 'actual.' Roving, warrantless wiretaps were authorized by President George W. Bush after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, turning the National Security Agency into the nation’s spy machine." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSupreme Court: Rights groups cannot prove harm from warrantless wiretapping

“The Government is US?” Not Unless We’re Citigroup

"The supposed 'countervailing power' of Big Government against Big Business turned out to be as genuine as the conflict between 'good cop' and 'bad cop' interrogators. Historian Gabriel Kolko showed that the primary force behind the much-vaunted 'progressive' regulatory agenda at the turn of the 20th century was the regulated industries themselves. Major portions of the New Deal regulatory/welfare state were backed, even drafted, by the most powerful factions of corporate capital. Don’t fall for the line that state functionaries 'work for us.' Take a look at where they worked before they entered 'public service' and watch where they go back to afterward." Continue reading →

Continue Reading“The Government is US?” Not Unless We’re Citigroup

Larger Spending Cuts Would Help the Economy

"The $825 billion stimulus program cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per job, even based on the administration's own inflated job estimates. Cash for Clunkers cost $3 billion merely to shift car sales forward a few months. The PPIP to buy toxic assets from the banks to speed lending generated just 3% of the $1 trillion that the program planners anticipated. And now? Mr. Obama proposes universal preschool ($25 billion per year), 'Fix it First' repairs to roads and bridges, plus an infrastructure bank ($50 billion), 'Project Rebuild,' refurbishing private properties in cities ($15 billion), endless green-energy subsidies, and a big hike in the minimum wage." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLarger Spending Cuts Would Help the Economy

Google Says the FBI Is Secretly Spying on Some of Its Customers

"It is unlawful for any record-keeper to disclose it has received a so-called National Security Letter. But under a deal brokered with the President Barack Obama administration, Google on Tuesday published a 'range' of times it received National Security Letters demanding it divulge account information to the authorities without warrants. It was the first time a company has ever released data chronicling the volume of National Security Letter requests. National Security Letters allow the government to get detailed information on Americans’ finances and communications without oversight from a judge. The FBI has issued hundreds of thousands of NSLs." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle Says the FBI Is Secretly Spying on Some of Its Customers

Who Could Possibly Be Safe when Police Are Around?

"According to the Arkansas Court of Appeals, police were entitled to arrest, taze, and beat a teenager for the supposed crime of walking with his mother on a street in front of their own home. A police officer accosted the young man when he saw him approaching a woman who was walking a dog. It was quickly established that the woman was his mother. The trial court in the case also acknowledged that the victim was 'a fine young man, an excellent student, and active in sports, clubs and church activities.' The trial court ordered the victim of the unwarranted police attack to serve one day in detention." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWho Could Possibly Be Safe when Police Are Around?