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Just in case the above comes to pass, it may be a good idea to get a head start on the the process of residency. I understand that one doesn’t have to reside in CR to begin the process. It can be done from anywhere else by simply converting 1000 USD to colones every month via a CR bank.
But by the time this all comes to pass, sprite, won’t the sky have already fallen? And won’t the dollar have decreased in value to zero, so Costa Rican banks won’t exchange them for colones? And won’t we all be shackled together at the ankle? What good will Costa Rican residency do if you can’t get out of line to relieve yourself?
Seems like we should just all jump off the bridge now and avoid the rush, no?
This one should do the trick, don’t you think David?
But seriously, most people obviously have no idea of the severity of the situation and how fast your “freedom” and “democracy” have been destroyed in the U.S., the U.K. and many others…
Wouldn’t you agree?
That looks suspiciously like the bridge we cross on our way to Atenas from Grecia via Santa Eualia. If so, I can provide GPS coordinates so that those in the know can get a head start.
I can’t speak to the situation in the U.K. Certainly at the very extremes, some freedoms have been affected in the U.S. Such things as the airport screenings come to mind. But the question remains, just how great an imposition is that? A pain in the ass? Fer shure. But hardly unbearable.
And, of course, the illusion of privacy has been just that for my entire lifetime.
In order to address the destruction of democracy, you must first begin with an assessment of where we were. For example, for as destructive as the baseless voter identification laws that (far too) many states have passed, it is easily arguable that the democratic right to vote has been eroded.
But from where did we begin? In the early days of the republic (the U.S., that is) only property owners could vote and of them, only the males. Then the property ownership restriction was removed but Jim Crow laws (including the poll taxes in the south) discouraged voting by minorities. Then universal suffrage (male and female, that is) became the law and ultimately the Voting Rights Act outlawed poll taxes and granted a pretty much universal right to vote. And that was the law of the land until the past couple of years.
So, do the voter identification laws which solve no problem, which protect us against no observable threat, serve to destroy democracy? Unquestionably, the answer is a resounding “Yes”. But look how far we’ve come . . .
The recent losses of freedoms are real and there is a long history that indicates that cultures which have suffered such incremental losses of freedoms have usually continued to march in a particular direction ending in absolute tyranny. There is also a long history of disbelief by the masses that things could ever get so bad…until they did.
I am only suggesting that perhaps it is advisable to take to heart the tendency that things WILL get very bad once a certain threshold of restrictions of personal freedoms is reached. Some of the dots listed and connected in the article already exist. Connecting the others is no stretch of imagination. In fact, as the article states, the system was perfected by the USSR.
David instructs us to look how far we have come. But we would not be the first people to have begun as a republic only to degenerate into a tyrannical empire. In fact, we wouldn’t even be the second or the third or the fourth to do so. It seems to be the way things normally play out.
So before Rome burns, I would prefer to leave rather than jump off David’s bridge.
I’m not referring to a “pain in the ass” type of problem David.
[url=http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2012/09/25/usa-continue-wars-long-dollar-remains-reserve-currency/]Paul Craig Roberts[/url] (who was was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal) stated it quite clearly in an article earlier today:
“Bush asserted and established by assertion, the power to negate Constitutional protections, such as habeas corpus, and [i]confined US citizens to indefinite detainment[/i] (life in prison) [i]without any evidence or court proceedings[/i]. Nothing was done about this violation of constitutional order. President Obama has declared that [i]he has the power to execute US citizens on suspicion alone without evidence or due process of law.[/i] These are the most extreme police state measures of modern times.”
As a very intelligent, freedom loving U.S. citizen, you can’t possible be in favour of this surely?
Scott
sprite, if you leave for Costa Rica, you’ll be that much closer to the bridge. Why not come now and avoid the sky falling on your head?
Scott, Presidents at least as far back as Bush the Lesser have been writing memoranda of intent to Congress in which they state what of the laws they will or will not comply with or enforce. That’s nothing new. Nor is the warrantless indefinite detention or murder of citizens whether of the United States or any other country. I think this behavior goes much farther back.
What we have seen in recent decades, however, is a general abdication of power by Congress to the Executive branch. And the more power they give up, the looser the reins on the actors. To be certain, the decision to murder anyone without trial or due process, whether face-to-face or by a missile fired from a drone, is a usurpation of power by those who wield it.
The question is, however, whether it’s really getting worse or just assuming a different form. How, for example, is it significantly different to murder a U.S. citizen than to conscript him into the armed forces, ship him off to a war no Congress has ever declared, leave him underarmed and underprotected, and get him killed for no good reason? Isn’t he pretty much just as dead?
How is it different to put an innocent person on trial for a capital crime, afford him grossly inadequate counsel, withhold exculpatory evidence, sentence him to death, and execute him for a crime he didn’t commit as a (sometimes mentally ill or retarded) juvenile? Isn’t he pretty much just as dead?
You don’t have to convince me that the U.S. and state governments wield too much and too arbitrary power. I just wonder if it’s really getting worse or if it’s simply assuming different forms.
And in some respects, things are better.
Scott, I want to add this about your concern for warrantless murder of Americans . . .
I have a theory which simply states that in any conflict, the aggressor defines the terms of the aggression. If you and I get into an argument and you punch me, I punch back. Shoot at me and I’ll shoot back. It’s the same in warfare.
When Al Quaida has attacked the U.S. or its legitimate interests (see U.S.S. Cole, the east African U.S. Embassies, and the September 11, 2001 attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center for examples), they defined the terms of the conflict — sneak up unannounced, strike without warning, use unconventional means, and do all the damage and take all the lives you can, innocent or not.
How is a strike from an unseen drone materially different from (say) a 747 strike?
When American citizens ally themselves with that enemy, that behavior, they have no right to expect more consideration than they afford.
(None of the foregoing means I like it.)
sorry David
but you are so wrong it’s not even funny.
please.. do some dilligence
do you think we have NOT been the aggressors over history.
do you think we have been guilty of false flag deployments in order to trigger predictable responses??
do you think we have not been responsible directly or indirectly for millions of deaths both americans and non americans
for what
freedom????? democracy???
Cmon David..
the U.S. is the most violent country in the world..
we are just the masters of disguise like the wizard of oz..
sad to think someone of your intelligence actually believes what he does
what about our debt????
[quote=”DavidCMurray”]
How is a strike from an unseen drone materially different from (say) a 747 strike?When American citizens ally themselves with that enemy, that behavior, they have no right to expect more consideration than they afford.
(None of the foregoing means I like it.)[/quote]
David,
AL Qaeda is a western asset, used covertly (Serbia, Afghanistan, Iraq) and openly (Afghanistan, Libya, Syria). This is now in mainstream news. How is it terrorism if a citizen allies himself with this CIA asset?By the way, the new bailout plan (quantitative easing infinity), in which the government buys up junk bond mortgages, is now also in the mainstream news. It is posed that the Fed plans to criminalize any delinquency, default, foreclosure or short sale. This way, the banks reap property from citizens who default on mortgages and then they reap the fruits of prison labor when citizens are jailed. Debtors’ prison is coming back in vogue. (At least the US will then be able to compete with Chinese slave labor.)
It is posed that the Fed plans to criminalize any delinquency, default, foreclosure or short sale. This way, the banks reap property from citizens who default on mortgages and then they reap the fruits of prison labor when citizens are jailed. Debtors’ prison is coming back in vogue. (At least the US will then be able to compete with Chinese slave labor.)
[/quote]
Please provide substantiation for this. Where is it “posed” that delinquency, default, foreclosure or short sale will be criminalized? What is already criminal is lying to get a loan and writing bad checks. Just because someone poses something is no reason to believe it, without more.hakesup,
I will look for the articles to substantiate. In the meantime;
How about let’s first look at the basics of this criminal transaction between government and banks. See if you can follow this;Phase I (happening now)
The Fed (the banks) creates an undisclosed amount of new digital currency from thin air. It lends this currency to the government at interest. The government takes this currency and buys from the banks the toxic mortgage securities on the banks’ books at 100% listed value.Phase II (proposed)
The government turns around and sells these very same securities back to the banks at a fraction of the 100% value it paid for them. The banks then proceed to foreclose on the homes.Phase III (pending proposal)
The government passes legislation making it a criminal offense for a borrower to strategically default on a mortgage ” loan” even though contractual law allows such defaults and even though the “loans” are collateralized.. (the loan is backed by the home) and the bank gets the home anyway in foreclosure.This is crazy! The people get screwed so many times over one loses count.
1. The Fed devalues the currency when it creates trillions in these quantitative easings
2. Taxpayers pay income taxes so that the government can make interest payments to the FED for the new currency it created from nothing and to cover the cost of gifting of the securities back to the banks .
3. And finally, to add insult to extreme injury, borrowers might be jailed for their inability to pay off a mortgage “loan” after losing income due to the banks destroying the economy.
This is outright class war against working people by the criminal elites,[quote=”hakesp”]Where is it “posed” that delinquency, default, foreclosure or short sale will be criminalized? [/quote]
Actually, this has already begun and it’s been reported in the popular press.
In Illinois (I think), debtors in default are being sued in court for collection, but they are not being effectively notified of the suits, so they don’t appear. In the absence of the defendant, a judgement is entered against them. Then the debtor sues to collect, the defendant is again not effectively notified and doesn’t appear, and a criminal warrant is issued.
In effect, the debtor is being jailed for non-payment of a judgement of which s/he was not even aware.
(By the way, this same tactic has been used for years, in Michigan and elsewhere, against parents who are delinquent in their child support payments.)
[quote=”DavidCMurray”][quote=”hakesp”]Where is it “posed” that delinquency, default, foreclosure or short sale will be criminalized? [/quote]
Actually, this has already begun and it’s been reported in the popular press.
In Illinois (I think), debtors in default are being sued in court for collection, but they are not being effectively notified of the suits, so they don’t appear. In the absence of the defendant, a judgement is entered against them. Then the debtor sues to collect, the defendant is again not effectively notified and doesn’t appear, and a criminal warrant is issued.
In effect, the debtor is being jailed for non-payment of a judgement of which s/he was not even aware.
(By the way, this same tactic has been used for years, in Michigan and elsewhere, against parents who are delinquent in their child support payments.)[/quote]
scary times indeed. I am also noticing more police aggressiveness to citizens more so thank before.
I seen a video of a guy who a cop from NYC just took his camera and beat him up. luckily a different cell phone caught the act
it seems unless its caught on video.. there is no recourse for the victim.
[b]question: should there be any correlation to america being the free nation in the world which also has the highest incarceration rate?[/b]
For me, want to leave for a less toxic and more relaxed environment…..more and more, my countrymen are looking crazier and crazier, what happens when one lives thinking they are #1, has no regard to even know anything about the rest of the world and sees paranoia more and more-everyone otu to get you mentality……Seeing it more daily, people more stress, less open minded.
Cannto speak 100% for UK, but as an avid reader and one that is largely British in much of my make up, I know that the UK is ahead of rest in the police state, perhaps, some of the old colonialism on the rise again, albeit, differently applied.TSA is a problem the leering and the crimes and behavior that is now well documented.Thefts, humiliation,etc.
Dr. Roberts is a good source of info!
Scott, like that pic, pretty and harrowing looking to cross.
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