Consent of the Enslaved
Source: LewRockwell.com
--The establishment of tyranny, La Bo�tie points out, is most difficult at the outset, when it is first imposed. For generally, if given a free choice, people will vote to be free rather than to be slaves: "There can be no doubt that they would much prefer to be guided by reason itself than to be ordered about by the whims of a single man."[29]
--It is true that in the beginning men submit under constraint and by force; but those who come after them obey without regret and perform willingly what their predecessors had done because they had to. This is why men born under the yoke and then nourished and reared in slavery are content, without further effort, to live in their native circumstance, unaware of any other state or right, and considering as quite natural the condition into which they are born ... the powerful influence of custom is in no respect more compelling than in this, namely, habituation to subjection.[30]
--Consent is also actively encouraged and engineered by the rulers; and this is another major reason for the persistence of civil obedience. Various devices are used by rulers to induce such consent. One method is by providing the masses with circuses, with entertaining diversions:
Plays, farces, spectacles, gladiators, strange beasts, medals, pictures, and other such opiates, these were for ancient peoples the bait toward slavery, the price of their liberty, the instruments of tyranny. By these practices and enticements the ancient dictators so successfully lulled their subjects under the yoke, that the stupefied peoples, fascinated by the pastimes and vain pleasures flashed before their eyes, learned subservience as na�vely, but not so creditably, as little children learn to read by looking at bright picture books.[34]
Another method of inducing consent is purely ideological: duping the masses into believing that the tyrannical ruler is wise, just, and benevolent. Thus, La Bo�tie points out, the Roman emperors assumed the ancient title of Tribune of the People, because the concept had gained favor among the public as representing a guardian of their liberties. Hence the assumption of despotism under the cloak of the old liberal form. In modern times, La Bo�tie adds, rulers present a more sophisticated version of such propaganda, for "they never undertake an unjust policy, even one of some importance, without prefacing it with some pretty speech concerning public welfare and common good."[35]
Read full article at:http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard78.html
COMMENT: La Bo�tie wrote his observations back in the 16th century. See any similarities to today?
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Chris Hedges: Obama Worse Than Bush On Civil Liberties (Video)
Source: YouTube.com
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and war correspondent, Chris Hedges, discusses the dangerous police-state powers that are being rolled out in the name of "safety."
Watch video at:http://youtu.be/3I0-u8Z6LAs
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Police may have acted as provocateurs
Source: RawStory.com
--According to Occupy Austin supporter Kit OConnell, the occupiers figured out �Butch�s� true identity after their encampment was evicted last winter. Affadavits from Occupy Austin members have pointed to Dowell as the person who pushed for the use of the lockboxes and allege that he would regularly pull participants aside �in order to express his frustration with debate and eagerness for more aggressive and provocative actions.�
Read full article at:http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/08/31/police-admit-to-infiltrating-occupy-austin-may-have-acted-as-provocateurs/
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http://ByeByeMissPie.info
Previous Week's News 09-03-2012
Former RNC Chairman Defends Ron Paul (Video)
Source: YouTube.com
Former RNC Chairman, Michael Steele: "What the Republican National Committee did to Ron Paul was the height of rudeness and stupidity..."
Watch video at:http://youtu.be/RqOoDX_TcdQ
COMMENT: Full interview available here:
Part 1
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-august-30-2012/exclusive---michael-stee...
Part 2
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-august-30-2012/exclusive---michael-stee...
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The inJustice Department Strikes Again
Source: WashingtonPost.com
The Justice Department said Thursday that it would not file charges in connection with the deaths of two prisoners held in CIA custody a decade ago, closing the last active criminal investigation into the agency�s treatment of prisoners after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The decision marks the culmination of a criminal probe that took nearly five years, examined the treatment of about 100 prisoners and branched out far beyond its initial scope � but ultimately produced no charges against any CIA officer.
--The American Civil Liberties Union criticized the decision as �yet another entry in what is already a shameful record� of the Justice Department.
�That the Justice Department will hold no one accountable for the killing of prisoners in CIA custody is nothing short of a scandal,� Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director of the ACLU, said in a statement. �The Justice Department has declined to bring charges against the officials who authorized torture, the lawyers who sought to legitimate it, and the interrogators who used it.�
Read full article at:http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/justice-closes-cia-probe-without-charges/2012/08/30/04e8ea22-f2da-11e1-892
COMMENT: It's like expecting a judge, guilty of murder, to initiate and preside over his own prosecution.
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Texas Students Revolt Against Mandatory RFID Tracking Chips (w/ Video)
Source: PrisonPlanet.com
Students and parents at two San Antonio schools are in revolt over a program that forces kids to wear RFID tracking name tags which are used to pinpoint their location on campus as well as outside school premises.
Read full article at:http://www.prisonplanet.com/texas-students-revolt-against-mandatory-rfid-tracking-chips.html
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Reality Check: RNC Fraud (Video)
Source: YouTube.com
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Watch video at:http://youtu.be/f2O248VaDpA
COMMENT: As shown in the video, �The 'ayes' have it� is displayed on the teleprompter before the voting is even finished. There was no opportunity for the Chair to fairly assess the vote.
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Gary Johnson's Speech At PAUL Fest (Video)
Source: YouTube.com
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Watch video at:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tLN5NBZ5KU
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Black Hawk Helicopter Training Zone
Source: CBSlocal.com
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - If you see military helicopters flying low over Minneapolis, don�t be alarmed. They�re just training in an urban environment.
The U.S. Special Operations Command will be conducting exercises until the beginning of September. This week they�re using helicopters, including Black Hawks.
Read full article at:http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/08/27/downtown-mpls-serves-as-black-hawk-helicopter-training-zone/
COMMENT: I posted this mainly for the comments that appear beneath the "nothing-to-be-alarmed-about" story.
Example:
"unmanned drones, spy blimps, face scanning cameras on every street corner, NSA recording and keeping every e-mail, cell phone conversation on every single American citizen,household appliances that can spy on you (see General Patreaus), local police buying armored vehicles, TSA groping your children, check points on the highway, bus terminals, free speech zones, U.S. Army conducting police duties inside the U.S. Helicopter gunships doing urban exercises in major cities across the country....all very, very routine. now take your paxil, drink some fluoride water, eat some gmo food, turn the tv on. this is just another day in the free-est country in the world, nothing to worry about..."
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Airport Security Theater
Source: Mercola.com
--On March 6, 2012 engineer Jonathan Corbett posted a video on YouTube, demonstrating how easily the "nude body scanners" can be defeated, and why these machines actually make air travel LESS safe, if we're actually worried about terrorists boarding planes with guns and other lethal objects on their person.
Furthermore, as explained by Miles O'Brien in the video in the next section below, these machines are also unlikely to detect certain explosives, and likely would NOT have caught the infamous "underwear bomber" � the case that presaged the rapid release of these backscatter scanners in the first place.
--Last year, ProPublica published a letter to John Holdren, senior advisor to President Barack Obama on science and technology, written by five professors who reveal that there has not actually been any verifiable scientific testing of the safety of airport scanners � and that the levels of radiation being used are likely much higher than the public has been led to believe. These scientists believe the high quality images produced cannot possibly be obtained with the low levels of radiation described, and that the actual level may be 45 times higher than what the manufacture is claiming.
Read full article at:http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/08/29/airport-body-scanner.aspx?e_cid=20120829_DNL_artNew_1
COMMENT: Holdren coauthored a book advocating government-enforced "compulsory abortion" and "involuntary fertility control" (achieved by adding sterilants to our drinking water and or food supply.) Forgive my cynicism, I just don't think somebody with that kind of mindset is going to worry about the carcinogenic effects of airport body scanners.
For more on Holdren's book, click here:http://stopthelie.com/sterilize-population.html
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