In the Course of Human Events

2009-05-22T07:08:00.000-07:00

The Federal Grand Jury is the 4th Branch of Government
by Leo C. Donofrio, J.D.
January 22, 2009

"Investigating seditious acts of government officials can be deemed inappropriate or unavailing by the prosecutor, or the judge can dismiss the grand jurors pursuing such investigations. Consequently, corrupt government officials have few natural enemies and go about their seditious business unimpeded."

UNITED STATES CITIZENS SITTING AS FEDERAL GRAND JURORS ARE THE FOURTH BRANCH OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT.

My input into this vital fight is no more than the analysis of a few carefully used words. It only took a small sleight of pen back in 1946 to hide our power, and it won't take more than a few words to take that power back. But a proper overview is necessary for most of you who are unfamiliar with the issue at hand. So let me provide you with some history and then we'll see what went wrong and how to correct it.

HISTORY OF FEDERAL GRAND JURY POWER

I want to draw your attention to a law review article, CREIGHTON LAW REVIEW, Vol. 33, No. 4 1999-2000, 821, IF IT'S NOT A RUNAWAY, IT'S NOT A REAL GRAND JURY by Roger Roots, J.D.

"In addition to its traditional role of screening criminal cases for prosecution, common law grand juries had the power to exclude prosecutors from their presence at any time and to investigate public officials without governmental influence. These fundamental powers allowed grand juries to serve a vital function of oversight upon the government. The function of a grand jury to ferret out government corruption was the primary purpose of the grand jury system in ages past."

The 5th Amendment:

"No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury."

An article appearing in American Juror, the newsletter of the American Jury Institute and the Fully Informed Jury Association, citing the famed American jurist, Joseph Story, explained :

"An indictment is a written accusation of an offence preferred to, and presented, upon oath, as true, by a grand jury, at the suit of the government. An indictment is framed by the officers of the government, and laid before the grand jury. Presentments, on the other hand, are the result of a jury's independent action:

'A presentment, properly speaking, is an accusation, made by a grand jury of its own mere motion, of an offence upon its own observation and knowledge, or upon evidence before it, and without any bill of indictment laid before it at the suit of the government. Upon a presentment, the proper officer of the court must frame an indictment, before the party accused can be put to answer it.' "

Back to the Creighton Law Review:

"A 'runaway' grand jury, loosely defined as a grand jury which resists the accusatory choices of a government prosecutor, has been virtually eliminated by modern criminal procedure. Today's "runaway" grand jury is in fact the common law grand jury of the past. Prior to the emergence of governmental prosecution as the standard model of American criminal justice, all grand juries were in fact "runaways," according to the definition of modern times; they operated as completely independent, self-directing bodies of inquisitors, with power to pursue unlawful conduct to its very source, including the government itself."

So, it's clear that the Constitution intended to give the grand jury power to instigate criminal charges, and this was especially true when it came to government oversight. But something strange happened on the way to the present. That power was eroded by a lie enacted by the legislative branch. The 5th Amendment to the Constitution still contains the same words quoted above, but if you sit on a grand jury and return a "presentment" today, the prosecutor must sign it or it probably won't be allowed to stand by the judge and the criminal charges you have brought to the court's attention will be swept away. And the reason for this can be found in a legislative lie of epic proportions.

Mr. Roots weighs in again:

"In 1946, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure were adopted, codifying what had previously been a vastly divergent set of common law procedural rules and regional customs.[86] In general, an effort was made to conform the rules to the contemporary state of federal criminal practice.[87] In the area of federal grand jury practice, however, a remarkable exception was allowed. The drafters of Rules 6 and 7, which loosely govern federal grand juries, denied future generations of what had been the well-recognized powers of common law grand juries: powers of unrestrained investigation and of independent declaration of findings. The committee that drafted the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure provided no outlet for any document other than a prosecutor-signed indictment. In so doing, the drafters at least tacitly, if not affirmatively, opted to ignore explicit constitutional language."[88]"

Rule 7 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (FRCP):

"An offense which may be punished by death shall be prosecuted by indictment. An offense which may be punished by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year or at hard labor shall be prosecuted by indictment."

No mention of "presentments" can be found in Rule 7. But they are mentioned in Note 4 of the Advisory Committee Notes on the Rules:

"4. Presentment is not included as an additional type of formal accusation, since presentments as a method of instituting prosecutions are obsolete, at least as concerns the Federal courts."

The American Juror published the following commentary with regards to Note 4:

"[W]hile the writers of the federal rules made provisions for indictments, they made none for presentments. This was no oversight. According to Professor Lester B. Orfield, a member of the Advisory Committee on Rules of Criminal Procedure, the drafters of Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 6 decided the term presentment should not be used, even though it appears in the Constitution. Orfield states [22 F.R.D. 343, 346]:

'There was an annotation by the Reporter on the term presentment as used in the Fifth Amendment. It was his conclusion that the term should not be used in the new rules of criminal procedure. Retention might encourage the use of the run-away grand jury as the grand jury could act from their own knowledge or observation and not only from charges made by the United States attorney. It has become the practice for the United States Attorney to attend grand jury hearings, hence the use of presentments have been abandoned.' "

That's a fascinating statement: "Retention might encourage the grand jury [to] act from their own knowledge or observation." God forbid, right America? The nerve of these people. They have the nerve to put on the record that they intended to usurp our Constitutional power, power that was intended by the founding fathers, in their incredible wisdom, to provide us with oversight over tyrannical government.

And so they needed a spin term to cast aspersions on that power. The term they chose was, "runaway grand jury," which is nothing more than a Constitutionally mandated grand jury, aware of their power, and legally exercising that power to hold the federal beast in check, as in "checks and balances."

The lie couldn't be inserted into the Constitution, so they put it in a statute and then repeated it. And scholars went on to repeat it, and today, as it stands, the grand jury has effectively been lied into the role of submissive puppet of the US Attorney.

The American Juror publication included a very relevant commentary:

"Of course, no statute or rule can alter the provisions of the Constitution, since it is the supreme law of the land. But that didn't prevent the federal courts from publishing a body of case law affirming the fallacy that presentments were abolished. A particularly egregious example:

'A rule that would permit anyone to communicate with a grand jury without the supervision or screening of the prosecutor or the court would compromise, if not utterly subvert, both of the historic functions of the grand jury, for it would facilitate the pursuit of vendettas and the gratification of private malice. A rule that would open the grand jury to the public without judicial or prosecutorial intervention is an invitation to anyone interested in trying to persuade a majority of the grand jury, by hook or by crook, to conduct investigations that a prosecutor has determined to be inappropriate or unavailing.'" [7]

What is the result? Investigating seditious acts of government officials can be deemed inappropriate or unavailing by the prosecutor, or the judge can dismiss the grand jurors pursuing such investigations. Consequently, corrupt government officials have few natural enemies and go about their seditious business unimpeded.

By the way, they made a rule to take care of runaways too, in 1946: Rule 6(g):

"At any time for cause shown the court may excuse a juror either temporarily or permanently, and in the latter event the court may impanel another person in place of the juror excused." Now judges can throw anyone off a grand jury, or even dis-impanel a grand jury entirely, merely for exercising its discretion.

Now let me add my two cents to this argument:

Most of the discussion about Note 4 to Rule 7 of the FRCP takes for granted that the common law use of "presentments" (as codified in the 5th Amendment) was made "illegal" in 1946 by this act. Nothing could be more false. Note 4 does not contain language that makes the use of presentments "illegal," although it had chosen its words carefully to make it appear as if that is what the legislative branch intended. But let's look at Note 4 again:

"4. Presentment is not included as an additional type of formal accusation, since presentments as a method of instituting prosecutions are obsolete, at least as concerns the Federal courts."

The key word is, "obsolete." Obsolete means "outmoded,", or "not in use anymore", but it does not mean "abolished" or "illegal." And therein lies the big lie. The legislature knew it could not directly overrule the Constitution, especially with something so clearly worded as the 5th Amendment, which grants a power to the people which has a long and noble purpose in criminal jurisprudence. But the federal beast legislative branch sought more power to protect themselves from the oversight of "we the people," and in its vampire like thirst for more governmental control, it inserted this insidious Note 4 in the hope that scholars and judges would play along with their ruse, or in the alternative, their ruse would appear to be legally viable.

Let's look at some authoritative legal resources which discuss Note 4:

Susan Brenner, THE VOICE OF THE COMMUNITY: A CASE FOR GRAND JURY INDEPENDENCE:
"Finally, federal grand juries' subservience to prosecutors was exacerbated when the federal system eliminated the use of presentments, which allowed a grand jury to bring charges on its own initiative. (N35) Now, federal grand jurors cannot return charges in the form of an indictment without a prosecutor's consent. (N36) Elimination of the presentment demonstrates the historical trend towards elimination of proactive features in the grand jury system."

Did Brenner fall for the lie or did she cleverly further it when she said, "[T]he federal system eliminated the use of presentments?" The federal system did no such thing. Note 4 said the use of presentments was "obsolete." First of all, Note 4 is not a law in itself. It is a Note to a law, and the law as written, does not have anything to say about presentments. You see the leap Brenner has made? The Constitution provides for "presentments", then the FRCP are enacted and the Rules therein do not mention presentments, nor due they ban presentments, and if they did, such a ban would be unconstitutional, since an administrative enactment regarding procedure can not overrule the Constitution.

Regardless, it's irrelevant, since the FRCP does not mention "presentments." Note 4 simply states that "presentments" allowed for in the 5th Amendment of the Constitution have become "obsolete", or outmoded, which is not to say that they were "eliminated." Shame on you Susan Brenner. You know damn well that the Constitution can only be changed by an official Amendment to it. Nothing can be "eliminated" from the Constitution by an administrative note.

The use of presentments had become obsolete because the grand jurors were not aware of their power. So the use of "presentments" became more and more rare, and then in 1946 the legislative branch seized upon the moment to make this power disappear by waving its magic wand over the Constitution.

Mr. Root got it wrong in the Creighton Law Review as well:

"Before the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, which made independently-acting grand juries illegal for all practical purposes, grand juries were understood to have broad powers to operate at direct odds with both judges and prosecutors."

The FRCP did not make it "illegal for all practical purposes." That's patently false. I don't know if Mr. Root, and/or Susan Brenner, were acting as the magician's assistant, but I can't imagine how these educated scholars could be so incredibly ignorant of basic Constitutional law. Give me a damn break.

But if enough people repeat the lie, the lie appears to be the truth.

But we have it on good authority, the Supreme Court, that the lie has no legal effect.

Justice Powell, in United States v. Calandra, 414 U.S. 338, 343 (1974), stated:
"The institution of the grand jury is deeply rooted in Anglo-American history. [n3] In England, the grand jury [p343] served for centuries both as a body of accusers sworn to discover and present for trial persons suspected of criminal wrongdoing and as a protector of citizens against arbitrary and oppressive governmental action. In this country, the Founders thought the grand jury so essential to basic liberties that they provided in the Fifth Amendment that federal prosecution for serious crimes can only be instituted by 'a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury.' Cf. Costello v. United States, 350 U.S. 359, 361-362 (1956). The grand jury's historic functions survive to this day. Its responsibilities continue to include both the determination whether there is probable cause to believe a crime has been committed and the protection of citizens against unfounded criminal prosecutions. Branzburg v. Hayes, 408 U.S. 665, 686-687 (1972)."

The Note 4 lie is smashed on the altar of the U.S. Supreme Court, "The grand jury's historic functions survive to this day." Take that Note 4!

Antonin Scalia effectively codified the unique independent power of the Fourth Branch into the hands of all citizens sitting as federal grand jurors. In discussing that power and unique independence granted to the grand jury, the United States Supreme Court, in United States v. Williams, 504 U.S. 36 at 48 (1992), Justice Scalia, delivering the opinion of the court, laid down the law of the land:

" '[R]ooted in long centuries of Anglo-American history, Hannah v. Larche, 363 U.S. 420, 490 (1960) (Frankfurter, J., concurring in result), the grand jury is mentioned in the Bill of Rights, but not in the body of the Constitution. It has not been textually assigned, therefore, to any of the branches described in the first three Articles. It "'is a constitutional fixture in its own right.'" United States v. Chanen, 549 F.2d 1306, 1312 (CA9 1977) (quoting Nixon v. Sirica, 159 U.S. App. D.C. 58, 70, n. 54, 487 F.2d 700, 712, n. 54 (1973)), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 825 (1977). ' "

I submit to you that this passage sets the stage for a revolutionary knew context necessary and Constitutionally mandated to "we the people," THE FOURTH BRANCH of the Government of the United States. Besides, the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches, I submit that there is a fourth branch, THE GRAND JURY, and "we the people? when sitting as grand jurors, are, as Scalia quoted in US v. Williams, " a constitutional fixture in its own right." Yes, damn it. That is exactly what the grand jury is, and what it was always intended to be.

Scalia also stated, that "the grand jury is an institution separate from the courts, over whose functioning the courts do not preside." Id.

And finally, to seal the deal, Scalia hammered the point home:

"In fact, the whole theory of its function is that it belongs to no branch of the institutional Government, serving as a kind of buffer or referee between the Government and the people. See Stirone v. United States, 361 U.S. 212, 218 (1960); Hale v. Henkel, 201 U.S. 43, 61 (1906); G. Edwards, The Grand Jury 28-32 (1906). Although the grand jury normally operates, of course, in the courthouse and under judicial auspices, its institutional relationship with the Judicial Branch has traditionally been, so to speak, at arm?s length. Judges'direct involvement in the functioning of the grand jury has generally been confined to the constitutive one of calling the grand jurors together and administering their oaths of office. See United States v. Calandra, 414 U.S. 338, 343 (1974); Fed.Rule Crim.Proc. 6(a). [504 U.S. 36, 48] "

This miraculous quote says it all, "the whole theory of its function is that it belongs to no branch of the institutional Government, serving as a kind of buffer or referee between the Government and the people." The Constitution of the United States, as interpreted by the Supreme Court, gives rise to a FOURTH BRANCH of Government, THE GRAND JURY. We the people have been charged with oversight of the government in our roles as grand jurors.

And at this critical time in American history, we must, for the protection of our constitutional republic, take back our power and start acting as powerful as the other branches of government.

The law is on our side. So please spread this knowledge as far and wide as you can. We the people have the right and power under the 5th Amendment of the Constitution to charge this government with crimes by returning presentments regardless of whether the US Attorneys or the federal judges agree with us. As the Supreme Court has so brilliantly stated, we are the "buffer between the Government and the people."

Take the reins America. Pass it on. The Fourth Branch is alive and kicking.

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About the Author

Mr. Leo Donofrio is a semi-retired New Jersey attorney who brought a case in 2008 against the New Jersey secretary of state for allowing three legally unqualified presidential candidates to be placed on the general election ballot in that state. This case was reviewed and dismissed by the Supreme Court of New Jersey, and then was reviewed by all nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court in a private closed-door session. At least five of the nine U.S. Supreme Court justices felt that this case should not be heard in a public session of the Court.

In addition to being a prominent legal scholar and essayist, Mr. Donofrio is also a nationally known chess champion, poker champion and musician.

All of us may one day serve as grand jurors in federal court, and I hope this article will educate the reader to his/her true power as granted by the Constitution. For that power, despite having been hidden for many years behind the veil of a legislative fraud, still exists in all of its glory in the 5th Amendment to the Constitution. The US Supreme Court has confirmed and reinforced that power.

So please, copy this report and paste it far and wide. It is not spin. It is not false. It is not for sale, it is not copyrighted by me, so paste and quote it freely. This report is the truth and we need truth, now, more than ever.

The Constitutional power of "we the people" sitting as grand jurors has been subverted by a deceptive play on words since 1946 when the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure were enacted. Regardless, the power I am going to explain to you still exists in the Constitution, and has been upheld by the United States Supreme Court despite the intention of the legislature and other legal scholars to make our power disappear with a cheap magic trick.

Repeat a lie with force and repetition and the lie becomes known as truth. In the case of the 5th Amendment to the Constitution, the power of the grand jury, to return "presentments" on its own proactive initiation, without reliance upon a US Attorney to concur in such criminal charges, has been usurped by an insidious play on words.

Most of this article is going to quote other scholars, judges and legislators as I piece together a brief but thorough history of the federal grand jury for your review. But the punch line is my personal contribution to the cause:

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December 2, 2008 A Letter from Ron Paul

2008-12-03T06:10:00.001-08:00

December 2, 2008

Dear friend of Liberty,

This past presidential season I saw a renewed enthusiasm from our country’s youth.

An excitement for liberty gripped the college campuses unlike I have ever seen before. Young people were energized for real change.

Still to my amazement, our college rallies attracted thousands of young people. Students were hungry for the message of freedom, peace, and prosperity.

For this reason, a youth-based movement for liberty is essential to our cause. It is these young men and women who will become tomorrow’s champions of liberty.

That's why I am giving my enthusiastic endorsement to Young Americans for Liberty (YAL); an organization that is built directly on the success of Students for Ron Paul.

My National Youth Coordinator, Jeff Frazee, is launching this organization with an ambitious goal of starting over 100 campus chapters in 2009. They have already started 47 chapters this semester.

Jeff worked with me exclusively to start the Campaign for Liberty (C4L) and host the Rally for the Republic in Minneapolis. Now, he is leaving to follow his real passion and lead Young Americans for Liberty.

The Campaign for Liberty has supplied $25,000 in seed money to help start YAL. I hope you will join in support as well.

Young Americans for Liberty is the continuation of Students for Ron Paul.

Students for Ron Paul established over 500 college chapters in all 50 states. Over 26,000 students joined our campaign. With this network and my support, Young Americans for Liberty is essential to building a genuine liberty movement in America.

You and I must remain serious about our ideas and goals. I am. I believe you are too.

Back in the 1960s, an influential youth movement formed around another anti-establishment presidential candidate. His name was Barry Goldwater. The organization was called Young Americans for Freedom; and without it, we may have never seen Ronald Reagan in the White House.

I have high hopes for Young Americans for Liberty, and wish them a similar fortune.

Please visit the Young Americans for Liberty website, sign up for their weekly E-Newsletter, and read about their plans for next semester.

Their website is at http://www.YALiberty.org

The importance of YAL to the future of liberty cannot be overstated.

Young people have the passion, energy, and dedication that many of you can relate to from this past year and a half. But, young people do not have very much money. It is up to you and me to give them our support.

So please go to Young Americans for Liberty's website http://www.YALiberty.org , sign up for their free E-Newsletter, and read about the future of our youth.

In liberty,

P.S. – Join me today to continue the Revolution on campus. Please visit the Young Americans for Liberty website http://www.YALiberty.org to read about their mission and join their effort.

Free Affiliate Program Update

2008-11-12T09:51:00.000-08:00

I have been working with my team pretty intensely over the past 36 hours on releasing a free version of our SuperAffiliate program that offers Free Websites, services and support. This is in response to our initial launch that saw strong success among our partners but little outside of that.

The Free Affiliate Program will have 2 tiers of recurring commission payouts of 20% (tier 1) and 5% (tier 2) and there will be no bonus for referrals. The commissions will be paid on subscriptions to Paid Website Plans. There are two plans that can be purchased:

Ad-Free
$14.95 per month
$149.50 per year

Value
$24.95 per month + $19.95 Setup Fee (one time)
$249.50 per year + $19.95 Setup Fee (one time)

Commissions are paid upon each time the plan is renewed and the setup fee is a onetime charge and therefore is only given commission on once. We hope you all will check it out, as there are no catches to signing up and we have worked very hard in getting all of this up and running in such a short time. We have also put up lots of marketing tools, banners and ads to help our Affiliates and SuperAffiliates promote themselves without having to come up with their own advertising!

That's all for right now and hopefully I can bring you good news of the new program before 6:00pm EST.

Network Marketing...HELP!!!

2008-11-11T08:14:00.000-08:00

Since I have delved into the world of network marketing with the omnEpresence launch of website services and their new affiliate program I have come across several places along my journey. Just looking around for sites that offer pointers and people that can help me better the product offering or tweak affiliate settings to better promote the program and increase leads I have found the number of people that feel you spam them when asking for advice is astounding ( I really shouldn't be surprised on the internet, but I digress). I recently joined a site: http://www.netmarketingforum.com and have had my share of ups and downs. I learned about Traffic Exchanges which seem to offer a mixed bag of results, I get hits on the site and some look around but not really any generated leads or signups.

I also learned about affiliate networks are REALLY big on free stuff. The more you give them, the more they are willing to give you program a try. Since joining that forum there has been a "revelation" on my part as to needing a free Affiliate program before asking people to just shell out $199.00 and so this was brought up to my employers and we are revising the program. I tried asking for some advice on the forums as to the nature of free affiliate programs and what should be offered but got little help See This Thread. I was really disappointed in regards to more people were concerned with me trying to spam the forums, and while I respect their effort to help keep their forums free of people joining to just spam the forums with affiliate marketing nonsense, I was actually asking for help. One post was actually helpful while the others wanted to shower me with spamming and yet a mod hasn't removed the post (thank you). I found a few people their who have messaged me privately and are working with me so I view it had moderate success, but I also feel that I shouldn't have to defend myself when asking for legitimate help, again, I digress.

I have spent the last 6 months working as a developer for this project and so when I ask for help it tends to be legitimate and I have a lot of attachment to here with all the work and effort I have put into it.

Anyone who runs through this entry please, if you have any advice to give me on what would make this program better feel free to let me know what I am doing wrong, right, or just offer advice. It would all be much appreciated. Thanks and the FREE affiliate program is in the works right now.

Affiliate's Rep Site
Affiliate Marketing Page (coming soon)
SuperAffiliate Marketing Page
Free Website Product Page

New Free Website Service

2008-11-07T20:02:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of little startups out on the internet that offer free website services. Most of them, to be honest, are just down right terrible. They offer no support outside of a small, useless FAQ, or if they have any kind of support you find yourself wishing you had just gone and spent the money to get a paid hosting plan and hiring a developer before you even get a response back from the company. I do a lot of web development work personally, however not everyone needs to pay for a developer to make a site that just fits basic needs. A developer, like myself, does have various site templates at my disposal that just require tweaks in colors, Look and Feel, and content to speed up production and ease however there still is a price tag to be paid.

I do a lot of affiliate marketing and ended up stumbling upon a free website service to resell. www.omnegold.com/jameys

The site links to both the website service and the affiliate service but that carries a $199.00 price tag and I won't bother ranting too much about that until I start getting paid back on my work. If you take a look at the free website section it goes into detail about the various plans they offer. I was really shocked to see that they offer technical support with the free plans. You get a phone number to call, leave a message and someone calls you back, or you can submit trouble tickets and get responses in < 24 hours (I played dumb and sent a few just to be sure).

I decided to give it a sample run and signed up for the free website service and a free subdomain so I could get out without paying anything. After I was all signed up I had to wait about five minutes to actually be able to log into my account. I was immediately presented with breaking down the categories so it would narrow down my choices of which templates I would look at. I selected a template and began customizing my site. Once I was finished with the customizations I published my site, and everything looked pretty good. I didn't care for only being restricted to 4 pages, but I guess that's where they make their money. They also have a lot of features locked out of their control panel, such as e-commerce shopping carts, picture galleries and other nice configurations that you have to purchase any plan other than the free plan to gain access to.

Anyhow, that's my short, sweet little review of this little nugget I found. Let me know what you think, or comment with your own review.

Ron Paul's Letter on the Great Bailout

2008-09-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Dear Friends,

Whenever a Great Bipartisan Consensus is announced, and a compliant media assures everyone that the wondrous actions of our wise leaders are being taken for our own good, you can know with absolute certainty that disaster is about to strike.

The events of the past week are no exception.

The bailout package that is about to be rammed down Congress' throat is not just economically foolish. It is downright sinister. It makes a mockery of our Constitution, which our leaders should never again bother pretending is still in effect. It promises the American people a never-ending nightmare of ever-greater debt liabilities they will have to shoulder. Two weeks ago, financial analyst Jim Rogers said the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac made America more communist than China! "This is welfare for the rich," he said. "This is socialism for the rich. It's bailing out the financiers, the banks, the Wall Streeters."

That describes the current bailout package to a T. And we're being told it's unavoidable.

The claim that the market caused all this is so staggeringly foolish that only politicians and the media could pretend to believe it. But that has become the conventional wisdom, with the desired result that those responsible for the credit bubble and its predictable consequences - predictable, that is, to those who understand sound, Austrian economics - are being let off the hook. The Federal Reserve System is actually positioning itself as the savior, rather than the culprit, in this mess!

• The Treasury Secretary is authorized to purchase up to $700 billion in mortgage-related assets at any one time. That means $700 billion is only the very beginning of what will hit us.

• Financial institutions are "designated as financial agents of the Government." This is the New Deal to end all New Deals.

• Then there's this: "Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency." Translation: the Secretary can buy up whatever junk debt he wants to, burden the American people with it, and be subject to no one in the process.

There goes your country.

Even some so-called free-market economists are calling all this "sadly necessary." Sad, yes. Necessary? Don't make me laugh.

Our one-party system is complicit in yet another crime against the American people. The two major party candidates for president themselves initially indicated their strong support for bailouts of this kind - another example of the big choice we're supposedly presented with this November: yes or yes. Now, with a backlash brewing, they're not quite sure what their views are. A sad display, really.

Although the present bailout package is almost certainly not the end of the political atrocities we'll witness in connection with the crisis, time is short. Congress may vote as soon as tomorrow. With a Rasmussen poll finding support for the bailout at an anemic seven percent, some members of Congress are afraid to vote for it. Call them! Let them hear from you! Tell them you will never vote for anyone who supports this atrocity.

The issue boils down to this: do we care about freedom? Do we care about responsibility and accountability? Do we care that our government and media have been bought and paid for? Do we care that average Americans are about to be looted in order to subsidize the fattest of cats on Wall Street and in government? Do we care?

When the chips are down, will we stand up and fight, even if it means standing up against every stripe of fashionable opinion in politics and the media?

Times like these have a way of telling us what kind of a people we are, and what kind of country we shall be.

In liberty,

Ron Paul

Site Launch: Copacetic Computers

2008-08-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to post an update that I have started my own company: Copacetic Computer Corporation. The site is officially live but still undergoing some minor development. We currently service the Treasure Coast and Palm Beaches of Florida and are looking to expand soon. If you need any assistance with computers, we are here to help you. If you found the company through this blog, mention 'In the course of Human Events' and receive 15% off your visit.

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Computer Backups, Wireless Security Analysis, Virus/Spyware cleaning and prevention, Hardware Upgrades, Custom Built Computers.

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Copacetic Computer Corporation

The downfall of American pseudo-capitalism

2008-04-16T16:28:00.001-07:00

Some say capitalism is failing, but it's not really capitalism when it's plagued with fiat money manipulated by a central bank, incomprehensible rules on mergers, acquisitions, and stock sales, not to mention wage controls, price controls, protectionism, corporate subsidies, managed trade, punishing taxes, and privileged government contracts.

read more | digg story

Economics? Did Someone Forget?

2008-01-25T09:18:00.000-08:00

So I came across an article today that analyzed the economic plans of the candidates both Dem and Republican. I initially started this letter because Ron Paul was neglected and I address that briefly, but actually address the general economics that people seem to forget or just utterly disregard. Enjoy my letter and feel free to correct me if I made some mistakes so I can learn, because in the end, that is all that matters.

Here is the article that got me inspired: Whose Stimulus Makes the Grade

Here is my Letter to her:

Dear Ruth Marcus,

Thank you for your article explaining the candidates new economic plans. I see a lot of the Democratic candidates are all about spending money to stimulate the economy and this I do not agree with. Yes, our economy is going through a rough time and a lot of people are hurting, including myself.

I don't understand how George Bush's plan to send money back to Americans is going to help stimulate the economy in the long run. Once the American people get their money, Bush is hoping the spend this money so it will go right back into the economy. This does nothing to help the actual income levels of these people and does nothing to create new jobs. Coming from the business side, this will not create any new jobs because this will be a predictable, one time increase in revenue for businesses because Americans will spend it, and then go back to the same hurt they were feeling before.

The other candidates on the Democrat side, Obama wants to send more tax credit out, which will cause the same issue, as I have mentioned, about George Bush's plan. If the economy continues to go badly, and it will for reasons discussed later, He will issue another $250 tax credit. Then Obama wants to issue another set of credits to a specific class of citizens, in hopes they will spend this money.

Edwards, I am not entirely clear on everything he wants to do, aside from stimulate jobs, is to be seen as another deficiency. Why invest in a certain job type and try to stimulate that way? Sure, it is a better plan for economic relief in the long run, but which jobs specifically do you stimulate? How do you stimulate them? Tax credits? Reduced tax rates? This part is very unclear for me and I hope you can clarify this part.

Hilary wants to just dump money is needless things, like heating saving. This really makes little sense, because this does nothing for energy independence and will not be recognized by Americans. If your heating gets cheaper, most people will see that as a good thing and will do little to watch their cost for this area and it will end up staying around the same.

I watched the debate last night from Florida and most everyone on the stage seemed reluctant to say they support the Bush program but wants to expand it. This can generically be applied the 4 of the 5 candidates about cutting taxes to businesses but not individuals and nothing to help the savings of the people and helping them have something to look forward to at the end of this economic downturn.

Now in your article, you did not mention Ron Paul's plan. This is most upsetting since there were 5 candidates on stage in Florida last night and you only care to talk about 4. In your article I noticed a few basic, and incorrect assumptions and strangely enough Ron Paul's plan addresses these assumptions and the consequences of these, while at the same time will provide a permanent relief.

The first assumption is that of economic cycles and business cycles, apparently we think we are exempt and our economy grows somewhere between a linear and exponential rate. A free market economy will always have recessions and growths, booms and busts. That is just the natural tendency of any economy. I don't know why so many people do not seem to understand this very basic nature that I was taught back in Macro-Economics in College. Austrian economics This recession has been predictable and expected. The reasons behind, why this one is expected to be pretty bad will be discussed in the second false assumption made by the general public about the economy. We have been living in a great time of economic growth, that has jumped by double digits for some 19+ quarters and that is great. The problem is that according to the business cycle, this will eventually come to an end for a period of time and then return to a greater or equal growth prior to the downturn. So, since this is expected, why is everyone trying to stop it, it is the same as trying to prevent a hurricane or tornado. It happens, its natural, just ride it out and wait for the sun to come out.

The second assumption is a major failure that results from the first assumption and comes down to government involvement in delaying or correcting a recession and is precisely what the Austrian School of economics addresses. Although the Austrian School blames government regulation for the business cycle in general, it does attribute worse recessions with regulation and trying to correct the inherent problems with the Federal Reserve. The answer given by Bush to pour more money into the economy, which Democrats want to expand up is precisely the problem. Pouring money into a broken system will accelerate and/or worsen the downturn. Since 1971 the US has printed over 13 Trillion dollars. That is 13,000,000,000,000 of new wealth that came out of thin air. Why has the dollar's inflation gone up and is only worth .04 compared to the dollar of 1913? Why is the price of gold floating around $900? These questions are simply answered to our intervention in markets and the money supply. As long as the government is will to create new money and play with the natural realm of interest rates there will be booms and busts as the market tries to compensate for the fluctuations.

Now, that was a very brief thought so I can move on and not write another book. Ron Paul understands these concepts and wants to remove the tax burden, but that is only a small step. Unlike the other Republicans, he understands that it is impossible to lower taxes and at the same time increase spending. Our foreign policy is costing us over 600 billion per year and that doesn't include Iraq and Afghanistan. We give out hundreds of billions of dollars in aid to countries around the world because we can print money and borrow. This has to stop if we want to take care of ourselves. Taking care of countries around the world with aid and troops is something an empire does. We are not an empire!

I am getting tired of talking about this becuase I am sure you will read this and discard it, however I could not just be silent. I am sick of people disregarding general economic theory and thinking that just because they want to do something, everything will turn out ok. Ron Paul does not want to do anything. He wants to do less, because we can't afford what we are doing anymore. We have no more money, inflation is around 10-12 percent, we are out of money so we borrow from China and other countries and print more. ANY business would have long be under with these circumstances. Why should a government be any different if it is playing a role in the economy? The only bodies that play roles in economies are businesses, therefore the Government is not exempt from this.

Ron Paul's Secret Plan

2008-01-10T12:12:00.000-08:00

Just passing along a word from GodLikeProductions

Remember the secret plan? You’re about to see it

The money was purposefully saved, prepare to get sick of Ron on national TV.

and,

I just gave you all I knew.

They were undershooting so they could get 3rd in the first two states…they weren’t far off in either. They didn’t WANT first, as it’s politically bad with super tuesday so far off (call it the buchannon effect).

Then comes the media blitz, you WILL see the money, and they WILL be targeting proper demographics now that they have the info, this is how he has won all of his elections. No other republican can effectively use the demographic information (fix the economy, end the war).

I don’t know anything beyond that other than they are hoping for others to drop out so he gets more air time during debates.

Others shared these thoughts:

“The media has been saying all along he is not viable, so we didn’t really lose much, yet.”

“It was hardly a very far fifth place finish it was damn close.”

“I have heard this too from the campaign! I had a good cry last night, but I am over it and ready to keep fighting the fight!

This aint over till the fat lady sings!”

“This would be good, especially since all the candidates have blown all their money on the first couple of states, and then Ron Paul comes in and blasts all the states on Super Tuesday with ads to take the lead right out from under everybody….BRILLIANT!”

“Facts we do know here
Based upon expenditure reports from air time being bought in NH and IA
1. RP appears to have about $20 million still stashed
2. RP is asking for another $23 million
3. RP Campaign has played it low key at first - look at the first few ads
4. RP Campaign came out with 4 great ads recently
5. RP campaign is starting tv and radio ads in 10 states this week based upon press releases
6. RP campaign definitely didn’t do an early state strategy in spite of funds raised and looking back if you think how much time and resources spent there by all campaigns RP was never going to stand out from the pack in IA and NH.”

“Gotta really think about it. It would be a good idea. This giga Tuesday thing is new. We cannot look at Iowa and NH as significant at all. It may be that Ron’s campaign has thought outside the box on this. If you think about it…here in California, I talk about the primaries with people and the majority cannot even name a candidate. This especially applies to the republican candidates.”

“The more that I think about this….and from the snippets I heard while in IA the more it becomes obvious that they have taken this course.
For three reasons:
1. Its impossible to stand out from the crowd in IA and NH
2. The field is way too crowded right now… let it settle out some first and let everyone beat up on each other and get bloodied up
3.. Most of their money in all honesty came in in the last month… too late to be spent on IA and NH but perfect for laying out a post IA, NH media blitz that will be unrivaled as other campaigns starve for cash”

“Is Ron Paul not the “thinking man’s candidate?” Once you consider this, “aiming for 3rd” strategy, it really does make sense, whether the poster was privvy to inside info or not. If Ron is sitting on a pile of cash now, why the hell would he continue to hold onto it? I’ll assume he plans on spending it!

Without having to spend a dime, Ron Paul, in a clever way, could be said to have used these two events in IA and NH to fish out all manner of valuable demographic information. Now that he’s got this info on so many important particulars, he can put his war chest to better use than ever before, instead of having to dump piles of cash into various efforts and cross his fingers. If you’ve got less money, overall, than people like Romney, Giuliani, Clinton, Obama, you’d better do your research first so you can get the most for your money when it comes time to spend. Does this not make perfect sense?

This is an intelligent man and regardless of what happens, this is not over until 2009.

Eyes on the prize”

“Ahh I love speculation… though so much of it makes sense… because if you think about it… the campaign really didn’t try hard at all for either of IA or NH, RP and Kent Snyder have had 20 years to plan this… RP has beaten the establishment before big time so everyone cheer up, don’t lose heart and donate some more money!”

“I’ve been mulling this all over tonight, and in reading this, the thought occured to me - does Ron Paul now hang his head and hang it up? and I honestly think the man would laugh at such an idea. He’s been a lone voice for decades - these results are nothing but encouragement for him.

The votes have not proven he’s a front runner, but they do NOTHING to prove his ideas wrong. Nothing whatsoever. He knows he’s right, we know he’s right. He’s got the Constitution, the founders, history and economics on his side, and he’s going to keep fighting the good fight as long as we stand with him.

Let’s stand with our man and march with him all the way, to the end.”

“Remember the field was too crowded at first.
Now Romney is hurting bad, Rudy is tanking, Thompson is sleeping, Huckabee is bogus, and McCain is still insane.”

“You all are missing the big picture.

We are a few % points away from #3. You want everyone else to kill everyone else. Then you step in to fill the void.

It is political strategy. If you think Dr. Paul is smart enough to understand the fed, the war, and so on: Why not understand that he knows what he is doing. He is playing the fiddle just like Huckabee….

Wait and watch”

“This thread is making me think. Even moreso, maybe Paul is crazy… just crazy like a fox.

1) You’re sitting on the largest Republican war chest
2) All your opponent’s fundraising is on life support, or they blew all their money in the first two or three primaries.
3) Each of the other candidates has a huge huge negative that will show up and turn off republican voters

If they can pull the following off, it would be the greatest election coup in history:

Parity of wins gives each candidate a few days in the sun, or a few days of good grilling by the conservative media for their undesirable chances. Huck’s vast tax and spending, McCain’s amnesty fiasco and McCain-Feingold, all of Rudy’s baggage from NYC, and Thompson’s lack of enthusiasm and personality all weigh on the mind of the Republican voters. Look at the first two primary winners for Iowa and NH:

Do you think people from the more liberal states are going to look at Huckabee and actually say, “I’ll vote for him”? No, they’re gonna see that record of his and remind themselves that they would never do that. He won Iowa, now he placed 3rd in NH.

Do you think people from the South and West are going to look at McCain and not remember the amnesty BS? They’re not going to vote for him. He placed 3rd in Iowa. In NH he pulled off a win. Is he going to win in Michigan or SC? No way.

As for second place, do you think people are going to look at Romney after he blew all his chances on two states, and consider him an electable candidate? When he polls at 12% nationally? And all of those flip flops from his days as governor?

He notices that Hillary is being built up as the comeback girl, which causes splinters in Obama’s support among independents. They end up looking for a new option, and it ain’t Edwards.

Meanwhile, Paul sits back; he lets the media in Iowa and NH do his polling work for him - with real election results, not opinion polls. He lets his opponents spend themselves into debt. He allows each one of them a few days in the spotlight to allow Republican voters to remember why they suck. He figures out what voting blocs are voting on what issue, and how independent voters are swinging. Using this he super-targets on the winning issues with his 20 million dollar war chest in the 2 weeks prior to super Tuesday (to get the most bang for the buck) while the grassroots continues, and the blimp flies on in SC and Florida.

URGENT Irish Stock Market Has Crashed, MSM is silent

2007-12-30T18:51:00.001-08:00

Did you know the Irish stock market (ISEQ) has crashed and lost over 40 billion Euro in one year? If your not one of the few stock investors in Ireland then your answer will probably be no. Not surprising since you’re not really being told.Honestly, I am not surprised. It is starting to happen in American where big companies are downsizing, big players are selling stocks (some of the who's are insider information so I can say who, sorry) I don't think we are immune to this and it is just a matter of time.

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Fox News is Scared

2007-12-29T20:30:00.001-08:00

Fox news is Propaganda and Lies and are afraid of being exposed as frauds

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Voting Fraud, Get your Absentee Ballots Now

2007-12-28T09:04:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone,

I have bad news for those in Florida and possibly anyone else in this current condition. I had changed my registration to Republican in order to vote for Ron Paul in the Florida Primaries, mainly because we're awesome and have closed primaries :( I did this change back in October and have not received my registration yet. Being a concerned voter, I went down to the registration office in St. Petersburg to verify I had been changed to Republican, since Florida registration closes at the end of the December. They had changed me to Republican, however managed to spell my name wrong, that is now corrected. I was under the impression, through inquiry, that we would be using some form of scanned voting where a paper trail is created. I asked, just out of curiosity, about how we would be voting. Much to my dismay, I was told that we are using the electronic voting machines, the same ones used at the Saint Petersburg Straw Poll at the Saint Petersburg Debate. You know, the same ones that had all the problems, voting fraud and incorrectly told you who you voted for. These are the rebranded Diebold machines that are under much controversy in their accuracy. They could not tell me why they are using them and so I asked what my options were. They told me, if I wanted a paper vote I would have to do an Absentee Ballot, which has to counted by hand. I want to urge everyone, who cares about their vote to do the same, regardless of voting type that happens to be electronic. Please get this message out and help us, regardless of your choice in candidate, and make your vote count for something and not be subject to error or problems with the machines.

Ron Paul and White Supremacy

2007-12-20T07:05:00.001-08:00

What kind of money will Ron Paul refuse? I'm not from his official campaign but I don't think he would refuse much regardless of source unless it was obtained by illegal means. Since no one seems to take notice, Ron Paul hardly gets any solicitations from lobbyists in Washington. Why? Because they know that if they give him money to push a bill he won't do so because they gave him money. He will accept the money as a donation, but will continue to do as he has always done, defend our rights and the constitution.

Now, he has received some money from corporations from a site that track it, I wish i could find the link but he doesn't outright refuse the money. The people, corporations(few there are) and others will donate to him with full knowledge that it is just a charitable donation with no influence on the 72 year old candidate. If he is already fighting for your cause and you don't have to lobby to him to get him to work to your benefit, at least give him money to keep doing what he's been doing.

I don't by any means defend the views of Don Black, however, money is money, is money, is money. Unfortunately you need a lot of it to fight the political battles and if Mr. Black feels that Ron Paul is helping America and stands for ideals, even if they don't endorse his specifically, I say go for it. I don't know much about Mr. Black and I don't think not giving him his 500 back with hurt him much. If he gives the money back it is almost against Ron Paul's message. That would be telling Mr. Black that sorry, your practice of freedom is not as good as someone else's. Mr. Black just happens to wear his negative views on his sleeve and is proud of them. What about the people that donate money to campaigns and watch kiddy pron, commit violent acts against their family, sell/use illegal drugs? I mean, I'm sorry but everyone has their rights, and if they are exercising them in a bad manner then they will get the justice they deserve upon being caught or making a mistake.

Hannity & Colmes report Ron Paul 3rd in IA poll 12/07/2007

2007-12-10T08:31:00.001-08:00

Hannity & Colmes report Ron Paul 3rd in IA poll 12/07/2007

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Tucker on Ron Paul Blimp

2007-12-10T08:29:00.001-08:00

Tucker Carlson discusses the Ron Paul blimp as well as the Revolution in our country.

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Meet the Press omitts Ron Paul. Didn't the Hearst Era End?

2007-12-10T08:21:00.001-08:00

Again it happens. Ron Paul is not on the list of candidates worth talking to. Ron Paul will raise more money than three candidates combined who are invited but MSNBC is part of the "New Media" mind, that the country needs to know what we tell them they should know. Shame on Meet the Press for letting the "press" be the news, not report it!

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Religion Crapping on America

2007-12-06T20:10:00.000-08:00

U.S. constitution
Article VI.
"The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

There, now that everyone is clear on that subject we can move on with this election. I don't care who you are, or what your religion is. In America's Elections, keep your religion to yourself. You are sworn to uphold The Constitution of the United States, not the Bible, not the Book of Mormon, not the Koran, nothing religious...period. Your religious beliefs are important because they display a role of character and trust, they do not qualify you to run the country, in particular, mine. I want an advocate of my rights, my privacy and my money. I know this sounds incredibly selfish, however, it is not. If you are running for office and you can satisfy those basic needs for me, then I think you are doing a great job for everyone because mine are simple...stay out of my life and protect me. I got really sick watching the debates in Saint Petersburg (what's worse is that I live here) and they asked that God awful question. How dare you (CNN) violate our laws like this. You defame our Constitution with such a disregard for our founding principles. I know I support Ron Paul, and frankly that doesn't matter. Why? Because I don't support Ron because he's the hype, the craze of this election, and not even because he's GQ's Dark Horse Candidate. I support Ron Paul because he supports me and my rights in this country. I'm not loyal to him in any way other than these. I was registered Democrat before this because I wanted change. I'm not affiliated with either party because of small issues. I'm affiliated with the party that has my rights in mind. Right now, RP has done the best job of improving the GOP and they won't even recognize it. I'm Republican because there is change coming and it is starting here. If it had happened on the Democrat side, then I would be there, but it didn't. You people need to wake up, it is not about party affiliation, it is about restoring our country, our liberty and our rights. Before I go, lets make one thing clear, I don't want to hear crap about religion unless it is from my friends and family. You politicians should damn well know better than to use your beliefs as leverage on my vote. Whatever God you choose to believe in, you better know that they are aware of the crap you are putting out. Religion is not a dog and pony show for you to better your standing in life, it is there to help you as a person grow and make it through life. Don't throw your beliefs in my face ever again!

Ron Paul on The View 12-4-07

2007-12-06T11:32:00.001-08:00

I just called the Ron Paul Campaign about his abortion views and something I had been thinking about. One of the arguments used on The View, was that only rich people would be able to afford abortions, since the federal government will not subsidize the clinics. Now if the Ron Paul campaign is successful in cutting out all these taxes that are a result of our excessive government spending and size. Now under a Ron Paul administration we would all be a lot better off financially because of the lack of government intervention. If I am a christian, I don't want my tax dollars subsidizing abortion clinics, because it is a religious contradiction to my beliefs. Now if you are pro-choice and you aren't taxed to subsidize abortion clinics along with an income tax and the plethora of taxes on a federal level, why not donate your money to fund these clinics? The person I spoke to a the campaign office said that many states subsidize abortion clinics on their own to provide this opportunity to those in need. The rich will not be the only ones who have access because the divide between the rich and the poor will shrink and money will be more freely available. This will not be a option left only to the rich and powerful but will remain about the same because of WORKING monetary, foreign and domestic policies that allow americans to keep more of their money and spend it on taking care of themselves, as opposed to everyone.

In the event that your state does make abortions illegal, it does not rule out you going to another state to have one. It also tells you and every other pro-choice individual in your state to do your jobs on the local government level to move things in your favor. The whole idea is to get people to take responsibility for themselves and get involved with their local governments, because you don't have to worry so much about what's going on in your community, city, county, state, and federal level. You cut the federal government out of the picture and you immediately have more voice on a local level. I really hope everyone understands this and the Ron Paul campaign confirmed that this is how things are supposed to work.

Personally, my position is pro-life, however, it is not my right to take away your right for an abortion. As mentioned before, I do not want my tax dollars going to subsidize something I feel is morally incorrect. That is what the money of the pro-choice people is for. They have a responsibility to themselves and all the others who support their position to donate, volunteer and work for reform to allow abortions on their local and state levels.

How America Lost the War on Drugs

2007-12-01T23:55:00.001-08:00

An interesting article done by Rolling Stones outlining how America Lost the War on Drugs.

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Ron Paul Tea Party 07

2007-11-30T23:40:00.001-08:00

One of my favorite videos from the Tea Party

Official: Google's quest for 700MHz is so on

2007-11-30T21:16:00.001-08:00

Hear that America? That's the sound of the hammer dropping on our beloved cartel of carriers. Google's bid for the 700MHz "C Block" is on. Eric Schmidt, Google Chairman and CEO, says the following: "We believe it's important to put our money where our principles are. Consumers deserve more competition and innovation than they have in today's..."

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Stand Up for America

2007-11-29T13:45:00.000-08:00

We need to do something about this. I had recently emailed our senators regarding the HR 1955 Act and asked them to vote NO. I got my response back from one of them today. It does not look good. If you are not familiar with this act please read it here: S 1959, Known as the HR 1955 This will sacrifice our constitutional rights because of loose wording (SHOULD not violate constitutional rights) and will expand our government, requiring more money that we don't have. If we want to best protect our borders and our country, BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!
We need to send emails, letters, phone calls to them and let them know we support our freedom. My Senator currently wants to support the sacrifice of our freedom for security. This is even better because we are going to lose both. Please, I urge you to spread this to the meetups and everyone you know and write to our senators and tell them we don't want our rights trampled on. Our Senators WORK FOR US and REPRESENT US, they do not have office to make decisions on what they feel is best for us. They are our tool and voice put there by the US Constitution for our protection!

Here is the email I received from him:
"Dear Mr. xxxxxxxxx:

Thank you for letting me know your concerns regarding the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 (H.R. 1955). I appreciate hearing from you.Our nation is currently at war with a ruthless enemy who exploits the openness of our free society, has no regard for human life, and is prepared to go to any lengths to harm our people and our allies. It is imperative that we engage in a robust effort to gather intelligence information from suspected terrorists, and that we understand and address the root causes of terrorism to avoid future attacks on the American people. These goals can be accomplished without undermining our Constitutional civil liberties. As you know, on October 23, 2007, the House of Representatives adopted H.R. 1955 by a 404 to 6 vote. This bill would authorize several measures to analyze and prevent terrorism in our nation, including looking at what other nations have done in this area. Section 899F of this bill explicitly prohibits these efforts from violating the constitutional rights of U.S. Citizens and legal residents to ensure that we remain well within our constitutional framework as we protect our nation.H.R. 1955 currently awaits consideration by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs. My highest priority is to safeguard our homeland. Please know that I will keep your concerns in mind should the full Senate consider the provisions of this bill. Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. Do not hesitate to contact me with any additional questions or comments you may have. For more information about issues and activities important to Florida, please sign up for my weekly newsletter at http://martinez.senate.gov.

Sincerely,

Mel Martinez
United States Senator"

I understand and feel that it is easy for them to ignore us. However, as per our constitution, they are ELECTED officials and that the voices of a few can be ignored. What I am trying to get everyone to do is All the Florida and all the meetup groups across the nation need to do the same thing. There are many of us out there. More than any of those in power want to recognize. The concept is we are the voice of change. They have to listen to us if we all stand up. We are growing day by day and so our power as a people grows. We vote the same number of times they do to get someone elected. Those with money and power pay off their votes and we know that we cannot be bought. Our votes can and will outweigh theirs and we will get someone into office that will listen to us. First task is simple. We make requests, on this subject, request to get the HR 1955 voted down. We engage in warm, friendly, and concerned conversation so we have appeal and they don't discount our requests. By then we have built rapport with them and when they don't listen to us is when we make ourselves clear to them. We are the votes that elect you into office. We voted them into office to voice OUR opinions, not for them to make decisions for us (We are perfectly capable of that). They don't respect our voice, they don't get to keep office, period.

Our system has a process for us to speak and be represented through, this is a republic afterall and not a democracy. Not many people take the time to have their voice heard. We have all come under Ron Paul because he is reviving the process and reminding us of the Republic that makes this nation so great. We have a responsibility to support Ron Paul because the President is a major voice for the people. We also have a social responsibility to ourselves and our neighbors to make sure we do our part to get our representatives to represent us and give us our republic back. Holding a political office is not an office of power, it is an office of grave responsibility to make sure they are taking care of US and meeting our needs that we voice to them.We, together, speak for freedom of America, we want our country back. Ron Paul alone, though a great tool, can not do this job and get his changes passed, if we don't do our part to make sure congress will vote with him. Save the Republic, vote Ron Paul, and Do your part!

Harvard Physicist Plays Magician With the Speed of Light

2007-11-23T23:53:00.001-08:00

Lene Vestergaard Hau can stop a pulse of light in midflight, start it up again at 0.13 miles per hour, and then make it appear in a completely different location.

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Moments of Crisis Carry Seeds of Opportunity

2007-11-21T16:33:00.001-08:00

Yesterday a letter from Ron Paul Headquarters made a valid point. Advertising money is needed now. This is due to the delay that occurs between the ad purchase date, and the date that purchased ads can begin to run.

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Paid for by Plastic and your Local Merchants

2007-11-16T09:02:00.000-08:00

"A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor and bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government."

--Thomas Jefferson

Ron Paul Activity Alert
Tomorrow (11/17) will be "The Great Freedom Rally" of Ron Paul supporters, hosted in Clearwater, Florida. The purpose is to raise awareness of Ron Paul, in preparation of the CNN/Youtube Debates @ the Progress Energy Center in St. Pete.
Link to Freedom Rally's Site and Registration: http://ronpaulfreedomrally.com/index.php
Link to my meetup group's event: http://ronpaul.meetup.com/242/calendar/6455850/

In Honor of Freedom
Since I had started college, I have held multiple jobs that have always handled high volume transfers of monies. It has been my experience that the worst thing that could happen to a business is if something were to happen to credit card processing. We, as Americans, cherish our plastic and often deem it as a secure way to disperse our funds for bills, clothing, food, and pleasure. The inconvenience of going into a business and at the time of purchase, you are told that their credit card system is down or that your card is not accepted at their business.

Until recently, I never understood why it was so difficult for a business to do credit card processing and what the big deal was around it. Truth be told, the industry itself is the biggest problem.

Level 1 The bank
It all starts with the banks. They issue the credit cards that are either tied to your bank account(s) or credit line. These are the people that you pay all your fees and interest to. When it comes to any disputes you may have over a transaction, the bank has ultimate say in the resolution since they are issuing the card and usually tend to favor the customer, because you pay their bills.

Level 2 The Processor
Next in line are the credit card processors that handle the credit card transactions. They provide the communication line from the point of purchase, to you bank for authorizations and credits on your card. This is, by no means, a free service and they usually tack on a rate/fee to the merchants that is variable, depending on what information was provided with your card number.
The role of the processor is to receive any card transactions and distribute the transaction requested to the authorizing bank or company (Amex, Bank of America, Etc) and once they receive a response (usually declined or approved), they will relay that to the merchant to be handled accordingly.

Level 3 Merchant Services
On top the of that most merchants do not process directly through these companies, they usually go through a third party processor that provides the service of setting up their merchant account, maintenance and any other merchant services they provide. These companies will generally add a price tag for their services that is either a direct payment or an additional rate on top of what you already pay to the previously mentioned processors. Most sales reps for these companies make a commission off of how much business you do and you usually will see better service (if this is the case) if you have a higher volume of transactions.

Level 4 swipe where?
Currently there are a myriad of solutions when it comes down to how you are going to process a customer's credit card. Most consumers will be familiar with the stand alone terminals that you see in gas stations or mom&pop shops. This is the most widely used form because it is simplest to setup and usually is received from the company you set your merchant account up with for credit card processing. This is not the only solution, however, in the day and age of computers there is software everywhere and it all depends on the needs of your business.

-MODEMS
The first to come along outside of terminals was computer software. With the (now dead) technology of dial up, programmers could make software that would take in credit card data and use the modem to dial out. This took some time and became started to have considerable drawbacks as businesses with high volumes were forced to wait for the modem

-INTERNETS
In the golden age of the Internet, information is readily available and with each generation of service, it gets delivered faster and faster. Programmers saw this as a great opportunity to do transactions at faster speeds and this was a big must for high volume stores. Most processors will charge extra for processing on the Internet, but some do not.
Recently, it has been a growing trend to be able to process credit cards wherever the merchant may be at the time of sale. With the growth of the Internet spreading to every corner of the globe and most places having access, companies have begun taking advantage of mobile processing. They use the web as an interface to processing your transactions. As a result the only thing preventing them from running your card is access to the web and a browser. Usually the companies that provide this service will set up your merchant account for you and charge you in one, or both, of the following ways. Since they are paying for the servers and providing a merchant service you will be charged a monthly fee for keeping your account and service and/or they will charge you a small fee on top of what you pay your processing company for the account.

FIN
In the end, there is still a lot more to this industry than I care to go into, but probably will at a future date. In the world of plastic payments the only people that win are the processing companies and the banks that back the cards. The merchant is extremely vulnerable if a customer is to dispute a transaction and by them providing the service of allowing you to use your Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Disc and etc card they are giving up money every time you buy. If you ever wondered why places have a minimum purchase or convenience fee when you pay with your card, this is why.

"All wars are follies, very expensive and very mischievous ones."
--Bejamin Franklin

1st Post

2007-11-15T14:40:00.000-08:00

"When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. "

--Declaration of Independence

That was the inspiring quote that made me a Ron Paul fan. I have always had an outside interest in politics, economics and foreign affairs, however it all seemed just to be something out of my reach and place in life. I accepted that I will stick to my lifestyle and stop trying to understand the things made out to be beyond basic, human understanding. I started moving into investing to appease my appetite for business and finances, which also grew my understanding of the role for money and currencies.

After witnessing the mess that was the 2004 elections, I had determined that it was useless to vote between a lesser of two evils, because in the end, you still don't get what you voted them in for. Then I heard Ron Paul from Digg.com and this man changed my view and took me by complete surprise. The consequences that the war with Iraq, Afghanistan and, soon to be, Iran is posing to the American culture and way of life, along with many implications of a major economic recession, there seems to be only one person who acknowledges these problems and wants to take immediate, corrective actions to save our country. This blog is not about Ron Paul, it just helps to know who he is, what he stands for, and understand that we know what to expect from this man as President, so you can better understand my point of view.

I have had many ideas floating around that I want to share with anyone who stumbles upon this blog, so that when they read they are to understand that under free market (we do not have a truly free market) the life of an individual is much happier and simpler than you think. These ideas is what this blog is for, to open up my world the everyone in order to contribute to the community. So, on that note of my first blog post I hope you enjoy my view on the world.

America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. -- Abraham Lincoln