MUST READ- "Is Progressive Dissent Public Enemy #1?"

[Panaconda]

Is Progressive Dissent Public Enemy #1?

by Lydia Howell

After the September 26 FBI raids on peace activists’ homes in Minneapolis, Chicago and North Carolina, it appears to depend on who’s speaking and what they’re saying.

The pretext for the raids was investigating “material aide to terrorists”, resulting in grand jury subpoenas and confiscation of computers, books, music CDs and from one home, a Martin Luther King poster. The targeted Minneapolis activists have openly protested US military policy since the 1980s. The FBI certainly knows they have nothing to do with terrorism. These activists simply have the audacity to challenge bi-partisan US invasions, occupations and support for dictatorships and human rights abusers. Dissent on the left has long been seen as ‘criminal behavior’. Where once “the communist threat" was the argument for such repression, now, “terrorism” is.

When it comes to war, US government sees three roles for the American people: 1. Pay hundreds of billions for the largest military on Earth 2. Kill and possibly die or be maimed for US military and corporate dominance of other countries 3. Cheerlead war. The US government -- bought and paid for by weapons-makers and mercenaries (‘contractors’) -- does not think that We The People have the right to even question, much less challenge and resist permanent war, which is bankrupting our country and civilian deaths ignite more violence.

...

In June, the Supreme Court ruled 5-to-4 in Holder v. Humanitarian Law Center that peace groups who talked about non-violent, democratic practices and international human rights law -- that is, alternatives to terrorism -- with organizations on the State Department’s “Terrorist Watch List” may be charged with ‘material aid to terrorists’. If ending terrorism is actually the goal, then, why make working to end violence a crime? In his dissent, SCOTUS Justice Stephen Breyer warned that political speech -- the most protected speech under the First Amendment -- was being criminalized.

President Bill Clinton’s 1996 Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act made “material aid" a crime, was expanded under George W. Bush’s PATRIOT Act and is broadening to Orwellian vagueness under President Obama. He made campaign promises to close Guantanamo, yet the Obama Administration is defending Bush-era torture and imprisonment without charges, trial or conviction in court. Obama claims further powers: to assassinate anyone labeled a “terrorist’ overseas -- including American citizens.

...

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/10/05-8

[hootinholler]

1. kick for later n/t

[TexasObserver]

2. They're sworn to protect the constitution, but they work for the War Machine.

The loyalties of some in government are not to the constitution, or to the people. They are loyal to the interests which promote war for profiteering.

[liberation]

19. It is more pervasive than that, they are loyal to only one thing: CAPITAL

Wether that capital revolves around war funding, or preserving the interest of large financial corporations is irrelevant, as long as the interests of capital are preserved that is exactly the direction you will see most of our "public" officials move towards.

BTW, let's not kid ourselves, this is also nothing new. This nation was really founded by capital, for capital, and it is of capital. The definition of "people" that most founding fathers had is very different from yours or mine, we needed to amend the constitution a few times because of that.

[blindpig]

3. k&r

[nashville_brook]

4. k and r -- they make a scary good case.

[maryf]

5. "Dissidents educate the American public

about these policies as much as they protest them." K&R

[midnight]

6. K&R

[annm4peace]

7. Great article

I've sent to my senators and Rep.

Congress must repel the Patriot Act and start a Church commission

[EFerrari]

8. Kick to mark for later. Thanks for posting. n/t

[leftstreet]

9. K&R

Interesting stuff in the comments section

[Greyhound]

10. Sorry, but we did tell you so. K&R

[ThomCat]

28. Yes, and we got ridicules here for it.

But now it's happening. And Obama's administration is the one doing it, not Bush's administration. :(

Obama is even going one step further than Bush ever did, rounding up left wing activists simply for being activists, and accusing them of being in league with terrorists. :grr:

Is This What Anyone Here Voted For? IS IT? x(

[sce56]

30. +101

This is not the change I voted for!

[txlibdem]

44. It is critical that we all Vote - and Vote for the true Democrat - in November

But do not forget this when the 2012 primaries get here. I've gone from a 100% supporter of Obama to a vocal advocate of dumping the Pres. in favor of a true Democrat.

[ThomCat]

45. That's probably the best, most effective possition.

:)

Always support the most progressive options available that are available at the moment.

[txlibdem]

46. Failing to vote is not an option - and I need not say that voting for anything but "D" is suicide

...for the middle class and the poor. If any person actually thinks they will benefit in the end by having a TeaPublican in office is either 100% deluded or certifiably insane. There may be a small short term gain, but would sign a contract guaranteeing to saw off your own right leg in January if I guarantee you I'll buy you a new pair of jogging shoes every week this December?

[Hannah Bell]

11. kr

[chervilant]

12. Really?!?!

Twelve hours, and only eleven comments?!

WHEN are we going to get mad enough to SAY enough already?!

WHEN are we going to stand up to the hedonists who've usurped our nation and rendered it a Corporatocracy?!?

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results...

We can no longer afford to procrastinate. We can no longer afford to sit around on our fat asses and 'blog' our outrage. We ARE at a critical tipping point, and if we continue to respond in the same manner as we've BEEN responding over the past decade, we richly deserve the inevitable outcome.

We need a week-long 'sick out' to protest unemployment.

We need a day of no shopping whatsoever.

We need to hit the Corporatocracy right where it will get their attention: in their pockets!!

We need a revolution, people. WE THE PEOPLE need to take back our nation!

[ProudDad]

18. You noticed...

Every OP that actually touches on the BASIC problems of the corrupt, meaningless "electoral" system supporting the permanent war economy propping up the Corporate States of America and the USAmerikan Global Capitalist Empire...

The real CAUSES of the misery of humans and our fellow creatures...

Sinks like a stone...

Inconvenient Truths are not appreciated by the sleeping masses...


On edit:
Actually, We need a General Strike...

A General Strike from "the way things are(tm)"...

We need to being a PERMANENT power-down and downsizing of our lives. Starve the capitalist beast PERMANENTLY.

Relocalize! Change our local environments to grow our food locally and sustainably, downsize our housing requirements, secede from the interest-based ponzi scheme capitalist "economy" and build local steady state economies, provide housing, food, clothing, health care for all in our communities by our community effort and, metaphorically "eat the rich" to do it. (There are plenty of good raw materials in those MacMansions!)

Rebuild our local environments to live gently and sustainably on the Earth, to allow us all more leisure time to follow our passions instead of working more hours to fill endless manufactured needs in order to feed the capitalist machine.

We CAN destroy the forces that feed on our labor and creativity by removing our consent to allow them to do it any more...

[socialist_n_TN]

20. Well, I just saw it and now I'm commenting.............

as another poster said it's about CAPITAL and those who OWN that capital, otherwise known as capitalists.

I call them collectively, Satan because they're the epitome of Evil with a "capital" E.

[ThomCat]

37. Everyone here has invested a lot in the Democratic Party.

So a lot of people are so invested that they really don't want to see anything negative. Even if it's true. Perhaps Especially if it's true. They really want to believe in their hearts that anything they invest in has to be better than the alternative.

"We're the good guys."

So "We" can't believe that our administration would ever round up all those progressive activists, the anti-war activists, the anti-violence activists, the pro-health care activists, etc., you know... the people like us, and falsely accusing them of having ties to terrorists.

"We" wouldn't dishonestly accuse activists who stand up for good causes of terrorist just so we could smear them, confiscate everything in sight, and tie them up long expensive legal battles just to drive them into bankruptcy.

"We" would never do such a thing.

Except that this administration is apparently doing exactly that.

Is it still representing us? If not, then who are they representing?

More importantly, if anyone speaks up about the injustice, will the FBI start showing up at more of our houses, confiscating more of our computers and ipods and all electronic devices and notebooks and financial records internet and phone and travel records? Will they start calling all of us in front of grand juries accusing us of having ties to terrorists too just for saying that they are clearly stepping over the line in the sand drawn by the rule of law?

Once they start with the activists, and their supporters, then where does it end?

A report has already come out documenting that they FBI has been using illegal methods to collect information on activists, and this came out right BEFORE all of this started. So the FBI and this administration don't seem to care that that these are illegal tactics, and we all now know it, and we all now know that they are using these illegal tactics as a matter of routine.

So, if we all know that it's illegal, and they don't care that we know, where is it likely to end?

[chervilant]

38. Well, now,

when I was a newly minted college graduate, I was a member of Amnesty International and a subscriber to Mother Jones. Consequently, I appeared on two of the 'lists' the FBI was keeping to monitor the activities of 'radical activists.' I guess I was 'about as radical as they come,' to quote one of my fave members of the Peanuts gang.

Such observations are no longer amusing. As I blog my concerns about the Corporatocracy, I am well aware that I may at any time flash brightly across their radar screen. I am confident they'll have a protocol to silence me if I am perceived as too much of a threat.

[Sixathome]

13. With Bush the enemy was obvious

With Obama , those that worked for him are now in the blinded forces that defend him. No matter who allows it, a Dem or Repub , they are one in the same. I find it more sinister with Obama BECAUSE we hate to give up hope. But this is reality and just like Bush, he knows what these agencies are doing

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/10/2010105104959212813.html

Cindy Sheehan Is not blind to this administration, we need to wake up! This is scary!!

[SammyWinstonJack]

14. +1

[DirkGently]

15. Progressive action has long been characterized as criminal; fascism as "law and order."

[bvar22]

16. Campaign Obama vs President Obama:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-june-15-2010/respect-my-authoritah

[asdjrocky]

17. Perfect. nt

[HCE SuiGeneris]

32. Pretty disheartening...

Sigh

[Name removed]

43. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[nashville_brook]

21. kicking for visibility

[Thav]

22. How dare we...

"The US government -- bought and paid for by weapons-makers and mercenaries (‘contractors’) -- does not think that We The People have the right to even question, much less challenge and resist permanent war, which is bankrupting our country and civilian deaths ignite more violence."

How dare we question their business model!

[bobbolink]

23. You know you're doing something right when you piss off the gestapo AND the party!

:patriot:

[Octafish]

24. Government wants you to know it's now un-American to think you're free.

Corporate Run Government. Invisible Government. Secret Government. Spies for Hire Government. Gestapo Government.

[TBF]

25. K&R nt

[Individualist]

26. K&R

[Starry Messenger]

27. k & r

[hfojvt]

29. so basically you are saying this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ixNPplo-SU

[Enthusiast]

34. Not hardly.

Bad government is the problem. We see it every day.

Bad government reached a pinnacle under Bush and continues under Obama. These right wing actions by the government were not the problem government Reagan was speaking of. The government Reagan was speaking of was the one of regulations that protected the American workers, the environment and consumers. Reagan started us on the path to dismantling regulations that protected us from the damages that we have had to live through since. Damages like the S&L crisis and the massive wave of mergers and acquisitions that began under Reagan.

[Larry Ogg]

36. You are absolutely right, and might I add...

The goal of the Oligarch predator class has been to bankrupt the government, mentally, morally and financially, to do this they financially supported venal candidates in both parties who were, and are, well indoctrinated and amenable to a system that has been usurped by the very type of people it was designed to guard against. The end part of the goal is that the American people will get sick of government (both parties) and abolish it all together...

Say good by to incompetent government and pretend Democracy...

And nothing about this well contrived has ever been been an accident...

[Enthusiast]

39. Yes, it is no accident.

The campaigns in this election, the first after Citizens United decisions, cost far more than previous elections. And just look at the nature of these TV political advertisements. In Ohio these ads are downright disgusting. This is not the path to a 'good' representative democracy. Individual donations can't begin to keep up with the massive influx of corporate money.

[dotymed]

41. Of course, the C.U. decision is unconstitutional.

If it were constitutional and we still had strong Unions, we would at least stand a chance. We don't.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

31. War! War! War! USA! USA USA!

"When it comes to war, US government sees three roles for the American people: 1. Pay hundreds of billions for the largest military on Earth 2. Kill and possibly die or be maimed for US military and corporate dominance of other countries 3. Cheerlead war."

A million :puke:

:grr:

[EnlightenedOne]

33. What crap.ola.

Its the joint chiefs who won't close down Guantanamo. The torture happened under the Bush/Cheney regime - I do not believe this White House is authorizing torture.

Sounds like to me there's a war STILL going on in the branches of government - between the good guys and the bad guys.

[Panaconda]

35. What are you talking about?

That is about as confused and in denial as I have seen.

You don't have to dig very deep to find how it is that Obama admin has continued with many of the BushCo. policies including the two you touch upon. C'mon just do the basic leg work.

[blindpig]

40. Then why doesn't he fire them?

He is the Commander in Chief, ain't he?

[Odin2005]

42. It has ALWAYS been public enemy #1.

These raids have destroyed any remaining respect I have for Establishment Dems. Corporatist fuckers, every single damn one.