Saturday, October 16, 2010

Something to consider

I hope my readers will watch, and really, really listen to this and this.

Worth every moment taken away from your life.

26 comments:

bureaucrat said...

For those of you following this unmitigated nonsense, a definition of fascism from Wikipedia (see if the U.S. -- with 310 million "individuals" -- resembles this even a LITTLE) ...

"Fascists believe that a nation is an organic community that requires strong leadership, singular collective identity, and the will and ability to commit violence and wage war in order to keep the nation strong.[15] They claim that culture is created by the collective national society and its state, that cultural ideas are what give individuals identity, and thus they reject individualism.[15] Viewing the nation as an integrated collective community, they see pluralism as a dysfunctional aspect of society, and justify a totalitarian state as a means to represent the nation in its entirety."

PioneerPreppy said...

Sounds like a progressive wet dream to me.

A Quaker in a Strange Land said...

Pioneer:

Not the money part, me thinks... nor the small versus large... some of the other parts do have that new age smell of BS... but the end of the Fed? Here, Here.

Stephen B. said...

Wow.

He really put a lot of the pieces I've been seeing for a long time, together in a really succinct way.

I kind of already knew why I was relocalizing and trying to decouple from the formal economy in every way I could, but boy, that presentation really makes me just want to redouble every effort.

The hurricane analogy is a bit of a reach and, to a certain extent, I think "fascism" is a bit too powerful and too orderly of a word to describe where the bankers are pulling us, but still.....wow, again.

Thanks for that Mr. Jeffers.

bureaucrat said...

Jeffers,

I see your buddy Spitzer was in a video clip (below) on Shedlock's blog talking about progress in going after the banks who brought this country to its knees this time around ...

http://globaleconomicanalysis.
blogspot.com/2010/10/
smoking-gun-new-
evidence-of-how-wall.html

For a Philanderer, Mr. Spitzer is looking rather good these days. :) Hopefully he helps to rev up sentiment to tear the banks a new exit hole.

Can't find the money to fund the government? ... who do you think you are kidding? They stole it all in the first place!

A Quaker in a Strange Land said...

Pioneer:

Could you send me an email? I want to pick your brain a bit:

mentatt@yahoo.com

Dextred1 said...

That little document had all of the answers. We thought we were so smart and that man had changed. But we did not advance, we were just the same. We foolishly thought that the state could provide. We forgot the tyranny of the government we had first left behind. Step by step we destroyed the document, first with cuts and then with gashes. Now we look back at it and wonder what could have been. They tried to prevent the bankers from doing this, but to no avail. They told the people if we would only give in. That the economy would be stable with no volatility again. Boy did they lie with their self indulgent sins. Then they convinced us that the income tax was all the rage. The progressives pushed with lies and distortion, they told us it would never go above just a small portion. 3 percent, then 5, soon it was 10. Then came the Great War. 90% to no one’s chagrin, the economy soon stalled, but all was not lost. A silent man with some personal ghosts came in to office and supply sided for growth. Cutting the spending by 50%, But this did not last. The progressive soon reached the pinnacle of power with a man who was a liar, a fraud and huckster. With threats to the court and lies to the people, he maligned the staunch old men who did not trust the power of men above that of the people. These old fools did not understand the power of the state. We errantly changed our wonderful republic to failed and futile democratic state.
~ Me, I got bored :)

Bur,
I feel bad for you.

bureaucrat said...

Dex,

Remember .. less is more. :)

Also helps if there is a point.

Love Ya!

PioneerPreppy said...

I will send ya an email right after this.

As for the progressive wet dream I was referring to Bur's wikipedia fascists post not the videos you linked.

The progressives are really fascists with "diversity" as their ultimate culture.

As for the videos well the politicians and bankers/money lenders have been trying this stuff since before recorded history. Oil and it's cheap energy is what allows them so much control now.

bureaucrat said...

I can't see how we can even talk about "Fascism in America." Does anyone think that anyone, even Obama in 2008, was going to gel the population around one-party government? We appear to have one-party government because everyone agrees on the big-ticket issues: murder is wrong, we all want our Social Security, our Medicare, our defense spending, low taxes, high benefits, etc. That argument is now over.

I do not believe in "independents." You are a Democrat or Republican or some fraction thereof. Black and white. Ying and yang. Everytime someone mentions a "third party" or being an "independent," I say it's crappola. In politics, it is very hard to get a little bit pregnant. The sides are absolute and pretty well defined: pro-war/anti-war (whats the third choice?), pro-tax/anti-tax, pro-govt/anti-govt, pro-abortion/anti-abortion, pro-gun/anti-gun, and on and on.

The "third option"/murky middle is just not possible in reality. Further, such polar-opposites in human existence pretty much guarantee that, unless you are using a LOT of force and fear, you will never have fascism, especially in a melting pot like America.

Stephen B. said...

Pioneer makes a point that I too had been mulling. This ultra control of money is made possible largely because oil energy has allowed such centralization of so many aspects of our economy and way of living. Then too the rise of the electronic, Internet age has enabled these central bankers to do things wannabee money controllers 200 to 5000 years ago couldn't dream of doing.

The great unwinding is going to hurt.

Dextred1 said...

Bur,

"""""That little document had all of the answers""""""

Stable currency backed by gold or silver, with a currency printed by congress so it is not debt!!!!

PioneerPreppy said...

Yep Stephen

We not only have reached the end of the frontiers we get cheap energy and ultimate control at the same time.

Too bad we don't have space ships ala firefly yet :(

Sorry I am in a pioneering spirit this evening after clearing some trees that fell over this Summer so I could finish brush-hogging. Sighting in a new rifle and testing some rounds I just reloaded and moving a bee hive after dark. ONly got stung once!!!

Stephen B. said...

Lol, Pioneer.

This afternoon I did a little extra, volunteer work at the residential school I work at. We're restoring an old pasture, the kids and I...

Today one kid had a brush cutter going while I was going after the larger stuff with a chain saw when suddenly, the kid yelled "yellow jacket!" (We were pulling up all manner of overgrowth junk in *prime* yellow jacket habitat) and I braced for the onslaught of stings, but mercifully, all we ever saw was one bug.

Those things are so damn cranky on the final sunny, somewhat warm days. Crazy they are.

I was stung just last week, clearing an over-grown trail in the woods with several kids, but worry not, the evil hymenoptera pests zeroed in on just the old man, sparing the students. It was a little colder that day and overcast too, and most of the pesky buggers couldn't fly too well. Only one got me.

Given today's stronger sun, uprooting a nest would have been - unfortunate.

bureaucrat said...

Dex,

That "little document" (I assume you mean the Constitution) is NOT the word of God, and was written by fallable men. The original Constitution said non-white men were worth 2/3rds of a white man before it was changed. The only benefit of the Constitution was that there was no PepsiCo interfering with its writing at the time of its creation, so at least the business interests were kept at bay ... a little. ;)

A Quaker in a Strange Land said...

Bur:

People that draw their authority FROM the Constitution cannot then turn around and claim the document is flawed and need not be followed.

Do you get that?

It matters not if the framers were hypocrites, perverts, drunks, alter boys, Gay... if one accepts that as the founding document analysis of the guys who wrote is moot. Not that you cannot study and consider history... have at it.... but that does not change the place from where authority is drawn.

Stephen B. said...

Greg,

While I agree with you, I'm afraid that witnessing government workers disavow and undermine the authority of the Constitution is exactly what we are seeing now.

That a bureaucrat is doing it is no surprise really, given that members of Congress and the past several presidents have been doing it for years.

The question then of course, becomes, how much longer are those so governed going to allow it?

That the Constitution was written by old, dead, white men is something that drives the Liberal lefties crazy. At some point they may attempt to throw out the Constitution in an open and notorious manner instead of via the sneaky, almost ignoring manner of the present. (And beware those on the Right doing the same thing, but under different pretenses, as the videos in your links pointed out.) Then we'll get to see what the Lefties and other non-Constitutionalists replace it with. One thing we can be sure - said replacement won't last 220+ years like the present one has/did.

bureaucrat said...

It is a living document. 200 years ago, thinking a black man was nothing but chattel was the "in thing." Someday, in the future, when many of the hard-core ideologues are marginalized or gone, I'm sure we'll see several provisions in there proved to be wrong and needed to be changed as well.

Dextred1 said...

Let’s examine the history of the 2/3 clause just for a moment. The southern states wanted to count all of the citizens and slaves for the purpose of representation. The northern states realized that if they counted them as slaves then they could not also count them as full citizens. This would lead to the lengthening of the institution of slavery because in the beginning the southern states had a larger population. Another clause pointing to the attitudes against slavery was the importation clause.

Article 1 section 9 says “The Migration and Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.”

This clause enshrines the final death blow to the slave trade. After twenty yrs from the signing of the constitution the federal government could outlaw the trade and exactly 20 yrs on the first day of 1808 the practice was ended. Although it did not end the internal sale of slaves, it ended for all purpose to transport of slaves. The thing you miss bur is that constitution enshrines these ideas of freedom and liberty, these were later given to all citizens. It is easy for some government hack to sit back and criticize them when you make 100,000 grand, live in a nice house and eat what ever you want. These men were under the constant thinking that Britain would try to repossess the land and were trying to cobble together many different states for the purpose of a general defense pack. It is a stain no doubt, but every western nation has the same stains. Africa has more slaves today then in the civil war era. I really hate that you are such a race baiter on this issue. You have said this every time the constitution comes up. Show more depth, you commit of logical fallacy of ad hominem almost every post. The principles are what is important, not the people.

Anonymous said...

Living Document = Ignore at will

Regards,

Coal Guy

Donal Lang said...

I think some of you guys are missing the point. There is a hierarchy who (at best) believe they know what's best for everyone else, or (worse) want to control the economy for their own individual or corporate aggrandisement, and who have hijacked the economy, the dollar, and all of the principle levers of power.
You have three basic resonses to this situation;
1. Oh well, there's nothing I can do (except maybe whine about it).
2. I'm going into The System and I'll fight it and build a better politics from the inside.Vote for Me!
3. I recognise what's going on but also see that its unsustainable and will self-destruct, so I'm going to help my community build a resilient life on the edge of The System, and have a Plan B economy prepared for its eventual demise.

No. 3 is the Transition route that is mentioned in the 2nd vid. Its what I'm involved in now.It includes low carbon businesses, real food, local currency, creating sustainable businesses. In the last 4 years we've gone from one startup community in Devon, England to 350 all across the World.
http://www.transitionnetwork.org/about and the first Transition Town:
http://totnes.transitionnetwork.org/
If you don't like The System and don't want to be part of it, and see how dangerous its all becoming, don't just talk about it - DO SOMETHING!

PioneerPreppy said...

Dex as usual a top notch reply. Your understanding of constitutional law and politics is outstanding to say the least.

As for the Constitution being a living document. It is, but only when it lives in the way it was written. Another words when the States ratify a change under popular vote NOT because some judicial activist or progressive appointment wishes to change it or bend it or take it out of context.

There are proper and legal ways to amend the Constitution and progressives hate that.

Also Donal has some good advice local communities are the wave of the future and we should all participate in helping ours. Just no social engineering :)

Donal Lang said...

PP. Yes, social engineering! Socially engineer YOUR neighbourhood into the kind of community you want your family to live in, and your kids to grow up in.
Arguing about what the Constitution says or means is going to get you exactly nowhere if those who run the top levels of hierarchy aren't listening. The good news is that most of what they do doesn't really have to affect your life, unless you want to live your life according to their marketing campaign. Its the high-debt, oil-powered, industrial food model that powers the government hierarchy, so vote with your wallet and make a real difference.

BTW there is this American 'Head for the Hills' attitude culminating in a lonely shack, a few well-oiled guns, and hiding in some wilderness somewhere miles from anyone. If that's your idea of your future family life well, good luck to you!

But ground floor movements like Transition can make a real difference to real families now.

For me, I'd prefer some friendly social interaction, my kids having a proper job and grandkids having some friends, fun and going to a decent local school. If it isn't there now, then why not 'socially engineer' if for yourself and your community?

Dextred1 said...

Donal,

I really appreciate people of action and you seem to be in that vein. I just like to correct subjective statements. The constitution was made to be the law before the energy boom, the industrial revolution and the modern tech-revolution. I think the principles which were based on a pragmatic view of human nature are timeless and will help in a low carbon world as much as they did in a high growth, integrated global fiat currency regime. We won't be as wealty, but that has never been equated with happiness. People have a amazing ability to adapt and become content in what ever situation. I think a lot can be taken from a slower pace of life based on family, friends and community. Good luck to you.

PioneerPreppy said...

Building a school is not social engineering it is community investment. If you build the school and then give it extra money to recruit brown eyed, green haired monkeys over humans..thats social engineering.

Social engineering is creating biased laws or rules meant to encourage one group over another. No matter what the initiator had in mind for reasons, social engineering never works out well. In fact in most cases it is nothing more than victim switching and also turns the social engineering proponent into the very thing he or she proclaims to be against ie: a biased antagonist.

As for an American head for the hills mentality. It has served us and the world well. Producing personages like Andrew Jackson and opening up the bread basket of the world. It's amazing what comes out of "them thar hills" when the need arises.

Dan said...

Excellent point Dex. The constitution was also written at the pinnacle of the enlightenment, the odds of getting anywhere near the wisdom embodied in it today, in our current age of ignorance, is essentially nil.

Also, keep in mind, Donal; that our current head for the hills mentality is a product of social engineering. By favoring one group over another via preferences TPTB have also set us against one another and destroyed the cooperative spirit that Tocqueville admired about us. It clearly is a case of divide and conquer.