~Thomas Paine

I find it necessary to once again address the subject of the United States Constitution, as it is in my opinion completely misunderstood by scholars and the masses alike. I have no idea why it is worshiped instead of denigrated, other than the apparent lifelong indoctrination and propaganda spreading that has labeled it the source of our rights. Nothing could be further from the truth.

It is first necessary to remember how and why the Constitution was drafted and forced on the people of this country. It was written by politicians with the agenda of creating a nation state controlled by a central government. When a group of politicians affect policy based on collective acceptance and compromise, the result will understandably be only as “good as its weakest member.” This was certainly the case, and worse, considering the so-called “rights granting” U.S. Constitution. These pieces of parchment that were made the law of the land were done in secret, behind closed doors and in the dark of night. As I have said in the past, this was a successful coup that created a powerful central government that has since the beginning harmed individual liberty and state’s rights.

Why would this have been necessary if liberty and freedom were truly the desired goals sought?

At the time of the Constitutional Convention, the united States were bound by the Articles of Confederation, and while those Articles were far from perfect, and in fact were inadequate in many ways, they were extremely restrictive concerning any power at the federal level.  I am not advocating here that the Articles of Confederation should have been the law of the land in the first place, or that they should be reinstated, I am only saying that they were far superior to the current Constitution. As I said in a previous article:

“Under the Articles of Confederation, there was no president. There was no Supreme Court. There was no federal taxation, and certainly no immoral income tax. This meant that there was no IRS. There was no federal control of interstate commerce. Congress could not raise an army or draft troops. What this meant, was that the states were sovereign, and no national government existed in any real sense”.

 Those drafting the Constitution were supposed to amend and improve the Articles of Confederation, but instead scrapped them entirely in order to replace them with a new ruling document. The result of that coup was the creation of the U.S. Constitution, a political set of rules that authorized a powerful central government at the expense of the states and the individual. The powers clauses alone in Article1, Section 8 bear this out.

Most argue, although without merit in my opinion, that the Constitution creates and defines our rights, and that provisions written into that document of compromise protect our rights. That is not possible because no men have the ability to grant rights in the first place.

I think it necessary to discuss the real essence of freedom and liberty, and the source of our rights. One would assume that this knowledge would be universal and embedded in the hearts of men, but sadly that seems not to be the case. Our natural rights are inherent because we are endowed with these rights due to our own humanity. All natural human rights predate men, and include the right to life, liberty and property, which encompass all our other rights. Therefore, real freedom relies on the premise that so long as one does not harm or aggress against another or his property, and does not infringe on another’s natural rights, then he should be left alone to do as he sees fit.

In order to be truly free, one has to have complete and total control of his life and property. That means of course that none have a right to aggress against or control any other. If freedom is evident, coercion and force are absent. That means that real freedom cannot exist if involuntary restrictions are imposed on the individual by any governing body.

This discussion begs the question, is there good in a constitutional government, limited or not? I believe not, but admittedly, a government that has less power of force than another would be more desired, but limited government implies that force is still evident. Can real freedom truly exist if one individual or a group of individuals have the power of force over any other individual or group of individuals? Absolutely not!

It is vitally important to remember that the United States Constitution was drafted, signed and put into effect over 225 years ago by a group of politicians dependent on compromise in order to create a powerful nation state, it was not drafted by men intent on protecting the freedom of the individual. Those who signed and accepted the Constitution in 1787 did so without the legal consent of most living at that time, and as no valid voluntary contract existed between individuals and government then, it should be understood that there certainly is no valid contract today. As far as I’m concerned, the U.S. Constitution is a dead letter.

Those who depend on a document sanctioned by the state to define their rights, those who believe that their natural rights are given and protected by a constitution, and those who worship such a system as it creates, will never be free and in fact will end up subservient to that same state. For to accept any constitutional system sanctioned by the state is to accept that government which it creates, and since government relies only on force, living under such a system is the antithesis of freedom, and is in fact a form of consensual enslavement.

The essence of freedom depends fully on the sovereignty of the individual. It is never given or secured by constitutions, nor is it dependent on what is considered to be in the best interest of the collective. If any doubt this truth, simply consider the history of the United States. What began as the freest country on earth has turned into a tyrannical fascist oligarchy, all under the so-called protection of the U.S. Constitution. This total failure is obvious, and as Lysander Spooner noted, the Constitution is “unfit to exist” because of this sorry record.

Those who drafted the Constitution used it to purposely create a powerful national government, a government with the power to tax without limit, to war with little restriction, to control trade and to provide for the general welfare, all under the deceitful and dishonest notion of “individual” representation in a republic. Is it any wonder that it has completely failed to secure liberty for the individual, when in fact it authorized exactly the opposite.

Those clamoring to go back to the Constitution are actually asking to remain under the thumb of a very strong and powerful national governing system, a system that virtually guarantees a totalitarian state. Under any representative government, the power remains in the hands of the state, and the state is the enemy of freedom. What good is there in continuing a system that relies on the hope of getting a better king and court to rule over the rest of us?

Any governing document granting powers to the ruling class at the expense of the people is not in the interest of liberty. If that is not obvious after more than two centuries of liberty destruction, one has to wonder where this experiment will end. The pursuit of our natural rights and defining of same have absolutely nothing to do with the Constitution, and in fact stand in stark contrast to that set of restrictive rules. If freedom is the goal sought, there must be a separation from the state, and the Constitution must be abolished!

In the United States today, the federal government, and in particular, the president and the executive branch, have taken it upon themselves to decide who is to live and who is to die. This is being done in many cases openly, but much more so under the cover of secrecy. It is being done “legally,” and it is being done to achieve political ends that favor the current official ruling class agenda.

The president and his official henchmen hold meetings behind closed doors to decide over coffee which unlucky souls around the world, including American citizens, should be targeted for elimination. The result of these meetings is an official “kill list,” and everyone on it, all without any benefit of due process, becomes a target for assassination. Barrack Obama, the president of the United States, has the final say as to who is going to die! This practice is nothing more than pre-meditated murder by fiat.

According to Wikipedia:

A death squad is an armed military, police, insurgent, or terrorist squad that conducts extrajudicial killings, assassinations, and disappearances of persons as part of a war, insurgency or terror campaign. These killings are often conducted in ways meant to ensure the secrecy of the killers’ identities, so as to avoid accountability.

Death squads are often, but not exclusively, associated with the violent political repression under dictatorships, totalitarian states and similar regimes. They typically have the tacit or express support of the state, as a whole or in part. Death squads may comprise a secret police force, paramilitary group or official government units with members drawn from the military or the police.

It is quite obvious that the United States government is fully and openly sanctioning death squads, and is practicing extrajudicial killings in order to advance its political agenda of perpetual war. This is being done officially, has been made “legal” by the government, and the assassinations are being carried out by the U.S. military, other government related agencies, including of course the CIA, and private contractors.

Let us consider some of those totalitarian rulers in history that have resorted to official murder as an everyday practice.

Joseph Stalin had death squads, which today would be similar to the military drone teams used to execute those targeted by the Obama administration. These death squads under Stalin’s orders were responsible in a short period of time for the deaths of over 7 million; 3 million of those were children. Eric Margolis wrote about these atrocities in his article, Stalin and the Ukrainian massacre. The U.S and others, including U.S. allies, knew of these mass killings, but turned their backs to this butchery. The official state orders given to the NKVD secret police were carried out without question.

Obviously, the U.S. kill teams have not reached the huge numbers of those murdered by Stalin, but the concept and mission are very much alike. And who is to say what will happen in the future given that this government has purchased 2 billion killing rounds of ammunition for domestic use, enough to kill each and every citizen 6 times.

Under Hitler during the preparations for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the Einsatzgruppen, special mobile killing units, had the mission of “combating all anti-German elements in hostile country behind the troops in combat.” That meant targeting individuals and entire groups, including Jews and communists, for summary execution. They were the most cold blooded killers of the time. This is similar to what the Obama administration is doing with its kill list, and subsequent assassinations without benefit of any due process.

Death Squads have been prevalent in Central and South America for a long time, and many of those killing events were due to U.S. involvement, whether in support of brutal dictators, in its illegal war on (for) drugs, or for other political reasons. The CIA and U.S. military have been a part of and trained these squads since the 60s. Brazil, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Ecuador, as well as many other countries, had sanctioned killing, and kill lists were used by those in power to target political enemies for extermination.

Although this is just a very short list indeed, it does put in context the company Obama is now keeping. Many if not most in this country will take offence with any comparison of Obama to brutal dictators of the past, but that will in the end be a fatal mistake on their part. Killing is killing, and murder is murder, regardless of who is doing it. When those in positions of power conduct secret meetings regularly so as to arbitrarily decide who is to be assassinated, then a heinous crime has been committed. Obama does not hide the fact that his office is sanctioning these murders, and recently NBC News has exposed a government memo, or White Paper that is titled “Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen who is a Senior Operational Leader of Al Qa’ida or An Associated Force.”

This memo outlines the criteria that the White House uses in order to justify when it can target an American citizen for killing. The reasons stated are simply that any American in the world can be assassinated if they are (or thought to be?) either a senior operational leader of al Qaeda, or an associated force. This leaves open the option for the Obama administration to kill any American citizen it desires, all without any due process of law. In other words, official criminal murder, this no different than similar operations prosecuted by brutal dictators in the past!

The current preferred weapon of choice for the Obama administration’s assassinations is the unmanned aerial drone. Killer drones are currently being used by the United States military and CIA in many parts of the world, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia, but they are most likely being used in many other countries as well. With worldwide killings to accomplish, there are no limits to drone deployment. To make matters much worse, 30,000 drones are expected to be in the skies of the United States by 2015, so that should make it much easier to target and assassinate American citizens who happen to end up on Obama’s kill list. Am I an “Associated Force” because I am critical of the U.S. government? Are you?

We now live in a country where the political class has totalitarian powers. With the stroke of a pen, the Obama administration now claims the “right” to detain indefinitely anyone on earth, including Americans. It claims the “right” to torture and rendition those who are being held against their will. And now, this heinous government is claiming the “right” to kill anyone in the world, including any American citizen, on the say so of one tyrant, and all without benefit of any due process.

Make no mistake, with this absolute power, and the complete control of the police and military, the Obama administration, and those who follow, will do whatever is necessary to protect and advance that power. In addition, the militarized police and the military itself, if given orders, will shoot Americans on sight!

When a president has unlimited power to arbitrarily kill anyone on earth, has the power of a military and paramilitary force, and has the power to send death squads anywhere he chooses to, all under an umbrella of “legality,” a totalitarian and tyrannical governing system is already in place. The next step domestically will be a substantial increase in police state tactics, and finally Martial Law!

Recently by Gary D. Barnett: The Lying Government and Its Socialized Healthcare Scam

In the United States today, the federal government, and in particular, the president and the executive branch, have taken it upon themselves to decide who is to live and who is to die. This is being done in many cases openly, but much more so under the cover of secrecy. It is being done "legally," and it is being done to achieve political ends that favor the current official ruling class agenda.

The president and his official henchmen hold meetings behind closed doors to decide over coffee which unlucky souls around the world, including American citizens, should be targeted for elimination. The result of these meetings is an official "kill list," and everyone on it, all without any benefit of due process, becomes a target for assassination. Barrack Obama, the president of the United States, has the final say as to who is going to die! This practice is nothing more than pre-meditated murder by fiat.

According to Wikipedia:

A death squad is an armed military, police, insurgent, or terrorist squad that conducts extrajudicial killings, assassinations, and disappearances of persons as part of a war, insurgency or terror campaign. These killings are often conducted in ways meant to ensure the secrecy of the killers’ identities, so as to avoid accountability.

Death squads are often, but not exclusively, associated with the violent political repression under dictatorships, totalitarian states and similar regimes. They typically have the tacit or express support of the state, as a whole or in part. Death squads may comprise a secret police force, paramilitary group or official government units with members drawn from the military or the police.

It is quite obvious that the United States government is fully and openly sanctioning death squads, and is practicing extrajudicial killings in order to advance its political agenda of perpetual war. This is being done officially, has been made "legal" by the government, and the assassinations are being carried out by the U.S. military, other government related agencies, including of course the CIA, and private contractors.

Let us consider some of those totalitarian rulers in history that have resorted to official murder as an everyday practice.

Joseph Stalin had death squads, which today would be similar to the military drone teams used to execute those targeted by the Obama administration. These death squads under Stalin's orders were responsible in a short period of time for the deaths of over 7 million; 3 million of those were children. Eric Margolis wrote about these atrocities in his article, Stalin and the Ukrainian massacre. The U.S and others, including U.S. allies, knew of these mass killings, but turned their backs to this butchery. The official state orders given to the NKVD secret police were carried out without question.

Obviously, the U.S. kill teams have not reached the huge numbers of those murdered by Stalin, but the concept and mission are very much alike. And who is to say what will happen in the future given that this government has purchased 2 billion killing rounds of ammunition for domestic use, enough to kill each and every citizen 6 times.

Under Hitler during the preparations for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the Einsatzgruppen, special mobile killing units, had the mission of “combating all anti-German elements in hostile country behind the troops in combat.” That meant targeting individuals and entire groups, including Jews and communists, for summary execution. They were the most cold blooded killers of the time. This is similar to what the Obama administration is doing with its kill list, and subsequent assassinations without benefit of any due process.

Death Squads have been prevalent in Central and South America for a long time, and many of those killing events were due to U.S. involvement, whether in support of brutal dictators, in its illegal war on (for) drugs, or for other political reasons. The CIA and U.S. military have been a part of and trained these squads since the 60s. Brazil, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Ecuador, as well as many other countries, had sanctioned killing, and kill lists were used by those in power to target political enemies for extermination.

Although this is just a very short list indeed, it does put in context the company Obama is now keeping. Many if not most in this country will take offence with any comparison of Obama to brutal dictators of the past, but that will in the end be a fatal mistake on their part. Killing is killing, and murder is murder, regardless of who is doing it. When those in positions of power conduct secret meetings regularly so as to arbitrarily decide who is to be assassinated, then a heinous crime has been committed. Obama does not hide the fact that his office is sanctioning these murders, and recently NBC News has exposed a government memo, or White Paper that is titled "Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen who is a Senior Operational Leader of Al Qa'ida or An Associated Force."

This memo outlines the criteria that the White House uses in order to justify when it can target an American citizen for killing. The reasons stated are simply that any American in the world can be assassinated if they are (or thought to be?) either a senior operational leader of al Qaeda, or an associated force. This leaves open the option for the Obama administration to kill any American citizen it desires, all without any due process of law. In other words, official criminal murder, this no different than similar operations prosecuted by brutal dictators in the past!

The current preferred weapon of choice for the Obama administration's assassinations is the unmanned aerial drone. Killer drones are currently being used by the United States military and CIA in many parts of the world, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia, but they are most likely being used in many other countries as well. With worldwide killings to accomplish, there are no limits to drone deployment. To make matters much worse, 30,000 drones are expected to be in the skies of the United States by 2015, so that should make it much easier to target and assassinate American citizens who happen to end up on Obama's kill list. Am I an "Associated Force" because I am critical of the U.S. government? Are you?

We now live in a country where the political class has totalitarian powers. With the stroke of a pen, the Obama administration now claims the "right" to detain indefinitely anyone on earth, including Americans. It claims the "right" to torture and rendition those who are being held against their will. And now, this heinous government is claiming the "right" to kill anyone in the world, including any American citizen, on the say so of one tyrant, and all without benefit of any due process.

Make no mistake, with this absolute power, and the complete control of the police and military, the Obama administration, and those who follow, will do whatever is necessary to protect and advance that power. In addition, the militarized police and the military itself, if given orders, will shoot Americans on sight!

When a president has unlimited power to arbitrarily kill anyone on earth, has the power of a military and paramilitary force, and has the power to send death squads anywhere he chooses to, all under an umbrella of "legality," a totalitarian and tyrannical governing system is already in place. The next step domestically will be a substantial increase in police state tactics, and finally Martial Law!

Gary D. Barnett [send him mail] has been a financial advisor for 25 years, and now resides and works in Lewistown, Montana. Visit his website.

The Best of Gary D. Barnett

Recently by Gary D. Barnett: Hunting ‘Terrorists’ and the Expansion of Kill Lists Means Perpetual War

I just received my annual letter from my medical insurance carrier explaining my annual increase in premium. When I say annual increase, I mean it. My costs, even with much less coverage than in the past, have increased over 700% since 1999. For some reason, I don't think this is calculated in the government's Consumer Price Index (CPI).

In Montana where I live, the options for "health" insurance are not very competitive, and some years ago, the least expensive plan I could find was with Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Montana. This was not my preference, but at the time, I had little choice. I have a $5000.00 deductible major medical plan that has no bells or whistles, dental, or any additional coverage.

I will preface the rest of my statements by saying that virtually no claim of any substance has ever been filed. We are very healthy individuals, and very health conscious, and only visit the doctor when absolutely necessary. And of course, any costs incurred are paid directly out of pocket, not by the insurer.

With that said, the premiums have increased dramatically every single year; averaging from 10% to a little over 20% depending on the year. This year however, things changed substantially. In the letter I just received, the premium went up by 39% in one year! That increase was well over $4,000.00 annually. To put this in context, if this continues at this same rate of increase for just four more years, my premium would be around $60,000.00 per year; an impossible situation.

The reason given by the insurance company for this massive increase:

"Your renewal rate was primarily based on an assessment of all the medical claims by all the individuals enrolled in this plan."

This is bogus, and I think it impossible that claims increased almost 40% in just one year, even with the passage of Obamacare. But once all the mandates, subsidies, penalties, and monstrous tax increases take effect in that socialistic atrocity, all bets are off. So what are the real reasons for this astronomical increase in premium?

I could speculate, and then would be faced with a never-ending debate. I could write about the current insurance climate, the structure of bogus groups, of government mandated coverage present and future, of new regulations, of tax and price increases in health care, in government subsidies funded by individual taxpayers, and on and on. Besides being boring, the absolute truth of the matter would go unanswered, because all these things and more are the problem. Or maybe its just because I'm getting older and may actually need to use the coverage I've been paying for most of my life. That certainly would not be in the interest of any state subsidized insurance company!

The bottom line is that this country is headed toward a completely socialized single payer "healthcare" system. At this point, that is not arguable. Unfortunately, my situation is not unique, and things will only worsen from here.

The system is purposely designed as a disincentive for those of us who choose to be self-reliant and self-responsible. We are being pushed out of the so-called private market, so that the state can take full control, and fully socialize the system. The advantage here is the government's, because when it fully controls the country's health system, the populace at large will be more dependent than ever before on the government. This gains for the government a huge amount of power over the individual. In turn, the individual will suffer greatly, and the quality of care will disintegrate.

Just looking at a few of the changes that will take place over the next few years is eye opening. The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) is already law, and the implementation of mandated changes will continue to take effect for the next several years. These new rules, regulations, taxes, subsidies, and mandates, should serve to enlighten any who doubt the economic devastation that this will cause. A brief timeline is telling.

In 2013:

• Medicaid payment rates to physicians will be increased, and can be no less than 100% of Medicare rates, and states will receive 100% federal taxpayer funding to cover costs to meet this requirement
• Annual limitation on contributions to Flexible Spending Accounts will begin
• A new excise tax of 2.3 % on medical device manufacturers begins
• The elimination of certain deductions for employers takes effect
• Income threshold for claiming itemized deduction for medical expenses will increase by 33%

In 2014:

• Insurance companies prohibited from not insuring any due to pre-existing conditions
• New federal insurance regulations begin
• New taxes and tax credits, including a mandate that all obtain health insurance coverage (This insurance mandate has very low limits, and the rest is subsidized)
• The employer mandate and penalties begin
• The individual mandate and penalties begin
• Federal premium subsidies for insurance begins

In 2018:

• A 40 percent tax on high-cost, employer-sponsored health plans begins. The tax falls on plans worth more than $10,200 for individuals and $27,500 for families.

Many things have already taken effect, such as:

• Co-payments for preventive care for all ages have been eliminated.
• Young adults can stay on their parents’ insurance up to age 26.
• Insurers can’t deny coverage to children with health problems.
• Policies can’t limit how much they’ll pay over a person’s lifetime.
• Older people save money through improved Medicare prescription benefits that are phasing in through 2020.
• A temporary program helps people with pre-existing conditions

Keep in mind that these are only a handful of federally mandated changes that have or will take place in healthcare over the next few years. There are many, many more changes as well, and all will be destructive to business, to the economy, and to most individuals, especially those who do not fall under the umbrella of welfare takers. Unemployment will go up due to these mandates, and employers will be forced to make drastic changes. In addition, the costs will be so prohibitive, that any who choose to insure privately will most likely be priced out of the market.

Given the recent increase in my premium, and given the changes coming over the next few years due to Obamacare, what should be expected? I can tell you, much higher costs, long waits for life-saving medical procedures, and much lower quality medical care in general will be the result. That is where we are headed, and all, even those who are parasites on the system, will be adversely affected in the long run.

I plan to self insure, but with the extremely high medical costs today, and much higher costs on the way, what will it take to prepare for those major medical situations? How will most react when they can't get the care they need to survive? Canadians now come to the U.S. for major or timely procedures, but where will they go in the future? Where will Americans go?

The political system in this country has brought us to this place, and the voters who support that system have been a major part of the cause, and therefore are much to blame. Nothing in life is free, and when the masses expect everything to be supplied by government at the expense of their neighbors, including healthcare, then all will suffer.

Get used to it, for those who choose theft as a way of life, even if government thugs on their behalf perpetrate that theft, will eventually reap what they sow!

Gary D. Barnett [send him mail] has been a financial advisor for 25 years, and now resides and works in Lewistown, Montana. Visit his website.

The Best of Gary D. Barnett

An article appeared recently in the "National Security" section of The Washington Post titled: "Plan for hunting terrorists signals U.S. intends to keep adding names to kill list." This is a misleading title to be sure, because it becomes quickly obvious that the intent of this article is to justify the government's drive toward continuous war. That of course is the aim of the government, the military, and all those corporate sponsors who are dependent on war for their very survival.

Those interviewed for this article according to the editor's note include "dozens of current and former national security officials, intelligence analysts and others." This is not an unbiased selection of "experts," nor is it a who's who of those who adhere to the non-aggression principle. The picture presented is from the perspective of the government, and is completely sympathetic to the government's agenda of theft, murder, and mayhem.

The Obama administration has been secretly developing what is called the "disposition matrix," which is a supposed new way to identify those "terrorists" who are to be targeted for assassination. One aspect of this new technology is the ability to use "sealed indictments and clandestine operations." Are there any who believe that using secrecy and clandestine operations is a new government strategy?

According to the Post article: "U.S. officials said the database is designed to go beyond existing kill lists, mapping plans for the disposition of suspects (emphasis mine) beyond the reach even of American drones. Less visible is the extent to which Obama has institutionalized the highly classified practice of targeted killing, transforming ad-hoc elements into a counterterrorism infrastructure capable of sustaining a seemingly permanent war."

The reasoning here is obviously not only to keep assassination (murder) lists secret, but also to allow the government to add many more names to its kill lists for many years to come. Senior officials at the White House said that there is "no clear end in sight." What this means in real terms is that the government is setting up its "justification" for unending war.

The so-called "War on Terror" is simply government code for perpetual war. There is no real or stated enemy, there is no geographical limit for aggression, there is no current threat, nor has there been an attack by any country on the U.S. mainland. Therefore, there is no valid reason for war. But has there ever been, with the possible exception of the American Revolution, a valid reason for any war in U.S. history? I think not!

The "War on Terror" is different than other unwarranted wars, because it is a war against the unknown, a war with no defined enemy. Instead of one or more countries being targeted by the U.S., the entire world, including our own country, has now become the battlefield.

There is much evidence to support that al Qaeda, the government's catchall term for terrorist, has been virtually eliminated, and even the despicable Defense Secretary, Leon Pannetta, said as much in the past. But without that false bogeyman, the government's drive for perpetual war would have to come up with a new enemy feared enough by the American sheep to keep them docile and compliant. Instead, the government, with full support from its complicit media, now claims that al Qaeda is establishing new roots all over North Africa and the rest of the Middle East.

The U.S. is currently prosecuting its wars of occupation in Afghanistan and Iraq. Through the use of killer drones, funding for military operations and training, supplying weapons and intelligence, implementing harmful sanctions, and other interference, the U.S. is currently aggressively involved in Libya, Syria, Iran, Yemen, Pakistan, Algeria, Mali, Egypt, as well as in other countries. This is in addition to CIA and FBI covert operations in other parts of the world.

Never ending war is certainly the "health" of the state. Without continuous war, at least in the minds of those in government and corporate America today, economic chaos would result. In reality, the economic pain would be short lived, and would mainly affect those bottom-feeding companies dependent on unholy wars for their existence. These companies that survive only due to taxpayer-funded welfare, are in the end a drain on real production. These fascist government/corporate partnerships bring massive amounts of money to these companies, and of course these same companies support monetarily those politicians responsible for doling out multi-billion dollar defense contracts.

Companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrup Grumann, General Electric, and many others, feed at the trough of war for profit. Arms sales alone in 2010 were over $235 billion for the 25 largest defense companies, and that number is higher today. Total defense spending each year is well over a trillion dollars, and continues to spiral out of control. The plunder by the U.S. empire of other country's natural resources helps to enrich oil and mining companies; this at the expense of the citizens of other nations. This is big business, and with this much money involved, powerful alliances are created; brutal alliances that have no sympathy for the mass human suffering they cause.

U.S. government sponsored war has become the primary profit center of defense companies, energy companies, and large financial conglomerates, among others. These companies run the government, not the other way around. U.S. sponsored war has become the driving force behind the massive growth of government. It has allowed that same government the ability to gain tyrannical power due to the people's unadulterated fear of non-existent enemies from afar.

Expanding the policy of indiscriminate killing by assassination, all without any benefit of just law, will serve initially to create more imagined enemies in the eyes of frightened Americans, but the end result will be the creation of real enemies in the future. This is the method currently being used by the State to expand its wars. This is nothing more than planned murder for the sake of profit and power achieved at the expense of all of us.

What now is common practice, and in many cases codified into law, things like indefinite detention, torture, assassination, and rendition; all without any due process, are accepted as normal by the American citizenry. Continuous wars of aggression, maiming, murder, and the slaughter of innocents are everyday occurrences. The United States government and its military industrial complex are little more than bloodthirsty assassins addicted to war and plunder. They are a force without limits in their drive to rule the world, and there is no apparent will by the American people to stop them!

The United States government and its military have become the most prolific and brutal terrorists on earth. The so-called "War on Terror" is really a "War of Terror." No country commits more violence against civilians for political gain than the U.S., and that is the essence of terrorism. If this madness is not stopped, history will rightly define this nation state of America as the scourge of mankind!

Gary D. Barnett [send him mail] has been a financial advisor for 25 years, and now resides and works in Lewistown, Montana. Visit his website.

The Best of Gary D. Barnett

Recently by Gary D. Barnett: The Constitution Does Not GrantRights!

The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later; in a dictatorship you don't have to waste your time voting.

~ Charles Bukowski

Voting is a fool's game. Many might find that statement offensive, but considering our plight, I can't imagine why. There are so many who have been fooled into thinking that voting is a sacred right, and one that guarantees freedom. The opposite of course is the case. The fooled among us seem completely willing to embrace this ruse; thus allowing the many to continue to be ruled by the few. The result then of voting in this country is oligarchy, making it one of the most worthless endeavors of mankind.

Voting (politically speaking) on its very face is immoral. Men of character cannot argue this, for voting pits one against another; this the desired effect sought by those who seek power. Voting allows for some to determine the fate of others, a fate that can only be accomplished by the use of force. Because of this truth, voting is the destroyer of freedom and liberty, not the protector of it.

Even in the very best of situations, voting is still an unmitigated failure. The fact that any simple majority of individuals (mob) can determine an outcome that adversely affects the minority (mob rule) is against all natural rights. In the United State today, all who vote harm others so that they might benefit. By voting, they are also sanctioning theft of private property at the point of a gun, and the redistribution of that property to those who did not earn it. In addition, those who vote legitimize all that governments do, including drafting unjust laws, waging aggressive wars against innocents, torture, progressive taxation, indefinite detention, assassination of American citizens, destruction of our money, and massive debt; only to name a few.

It is telling to compare how those who believe in freedom and liberty think about voting as opposed to those who do not. The powerful political class, the rulers and totalitarians, "think" (say) that voting is sacred, while those who love freedom understand the truth. This contrast is evident in these few quotes:

Political rulers:

The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison men because they are different from other men.

~ Lyndon B. Johnson

Voting is the most precious right of every citizen, and we have a moral obligation to ensure the integrity of our voting process.

~ Hillary Clinton

I regard voting as the most sacred right of free men and women.

~ Ronald Reagan

Freedom lovers:

Individual rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual).

~ Ayn Rand

What ass first let loose the doctrine that the suffrage is a high boon and voting a noble privilege?

~ H. L. Mencken

A man is none the less a slave because he is allowed to choose a new master once in a term of years.

~ Lysander Spooner

Many libertarians think that voting is acceptable only if one votes for someone other than those in the two major parties, or someone who is a Democrat or Republican that is accepted by a majority of "libertarian type" individuals. I disagree with this thinking entirely. I disagree because even if a good man might run for high office, regardless of who wins, every single vote cast legitimizes not only the outcome, but also the very flawed political system itself. This is not an option to my way of thinking, because libertarianism is based upon individual rights, and when voting is evident, the individual is abandoned.

Because voting supports the system, those who vote are obligated to accept the results. To accept the results means to accept the system, and to accept the system, means to accept what that system produces. What is produced in the governing system in the U.S. is based upon theft, coercion, police state force, and imprisonment, all for political gain. The laws of the land written by those elected officials in this same system support this criminal activity, so by voting, one's ability to complain is eliminated. I do realize that this is the reverse of how many think, but it is the only logical position to take.

In my mind, not voting is the only way to denounce entirely the current political system, and to not give consent, implied or otherwise, to its evil ways. By not voting, the message sent is so much more powerful than by joining in with the lemmings in their march to the polls in an attempt to satisfy a futile quest for false security at the expense of liberty. Voluntaryism is a better way.

Most all in this country are indoctrinated from cradle to grave to worship the "sacred right" to vote. On election day, they wear their "I Voted" stickers proudly, displaying them for all to see. Those who choose not to participate in this illegitimate charade are ridiculed and shunned. The brain washing has been very successful, and the masses are always ready to join the herd. This herd mentality is evident simply by a looking at this Rasmussen Report I highlighted in a past LRC article about voting. That report showed that 83% believe that one person's vote really matters. Pathetic does not begin to describe the gullibility of the American people, and their attitude toward voting for one evil or another.

The false belief that one vote counts, or that any semblance of freedom and "just governance" can be accomplished by voting, especially in a country with over 300 million people, is based on ignorance. Have we become freer due to political elections, and the choosing of those who make the laws and reign supreme? Absolutely not! I can say with authority, that in every election since I was born, and before, the government has become more powerful, more tyrannical, and more authoritarian. Individual liberty has been nearly destroyed, and State aggression has become the rule.

The problem in this country today is that all elections have winners and losers, but in every election, the politicians always win, and all the rest of us always lose. Obviously, voting guarantees that one or another politician wins. It is a rigged game for sure, so all should stay home this election. There are so many better things to do in life than to vote for one or the other evil, especially when that evil will be your master! As I have said before, if no one voted, no one would be elected, and what a wonderful world that would be!

Gary D. Barnett [send him mail] has been a financial advisor for 25 years, and now resides and works in Lewistown, Montana. Visit his website.

The Best of Gary D. Barnett

But whether
the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain
— that it has either authorized such a government as we have had,
or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case, it is unfit
to exist.

~ Lysander
Spooner

I have in the
past written about the folly of constitution worship here
and here,
but the widespread belief by most Americans that this document grants
us our rights, and that it also is meant to protect our freedoms,
is in my opinion absurd.

Natural rights,
or any rights for that matter, are inherent due to our very humanity.
Our right to life and liberty, whether one believes that those rights
come from God or not, can never be bestowed by men. For if men can
bestow rights, then they are not rights at all, because they can
just as easily be taken away. To believe then, that a group of men
that some call "founders," could with the stroke of a
pen grant rights to another group of men, is ludicrous.

Our rights
to life and liberty are evident from the time of our very existence.
These rights encompass all others, for without the right to life,
and the freedom to sustain and protect that life; no other rights
could possibly exist. Pieces of paper secretly drafted by politicians
in the dark of night cannot give or protect rights, as those same
politicians, or those who follow in their footsteps, could arbitrarily
change the rules at any time of their choosing. For any set of rules
to be valid, they first have to be accepted voluntarily by the individuals
involved, and actively defended at every turn. But today, those
individuals affected rely on a small group of corrupt politicians
called "representatives," to act in their behalf, instead
of taking responsibility for their own lot in life. That, in my
opinion, is a recipe for tyranny.

As I see it,
the U.S. Constitution is one of the most misunderstood documents
in history. Even though it is filled with contradictions, it is
accepted and revered by most all in America. As I have said many
times in the past, it is literally worshiped in this country. This
attitude has obviously gone unrewarded, but it is also telling of
the success of the indoctrination process that has been going on
for the past 200 plus years.

The most prevalent
belief it seems is that the constitution somehow miraculously limits
the power of government. One reading of Article 1, Section 8, should
dispel such nonsensical thinking. The first three clauses of that
article alone should scare the living daylights out of any who believe
in such a thing as limited government.

Clause 1: The
Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts
and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence
and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts
and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

This clause
alone negates any notion of limited government. This gives Congress
an unlimited power to tax, something that was not possible before
the drafting of the constitution. It gives Congress an unlimited
power to provide for the common defense. It gives Congress an unlimited
power to provide for the general welfare. With no limits mentioned,
and language this broad and sweeping, it is no wonder that the massive
abuse of power in this country has been evident for so long.

Clause 2: To
borrow Money on the credit of the United States;

Once again,
there are no limits whatsoever mentioned concerning the borrowing
of money by the federal government, and that borrowed money is a
direct obligation on the tax-paying citizen.

Clause 3: To
regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States,
and with the Indian Tribes;

Of course,
there has been much heated controversy concerning the Commerce Clause,
but is it any wonder? Given this broad language allowing for the
federal government to regulate all commerce, and without limits,
why is it surprising that the control over commerce has been centrally
monopolized? Why should the government be able to regulate any commerce,
let alone all commerce?

Constitutional
"experts" will generally argue that the founders' intent
was to limit government power. This is an empty argument. Had any
real intent been to limit power, the language would have been extremely
restrictive, and all powers and terms thoroughly defined. Article
1, Section 8, could never have existed if limiting power was sought.
Instead, no limits, regardless of what those drafters of the constitution
said in public or in other papers, are obvious, because they spelled
out few if any restrictions on power in the actual governing document
itself.

Many of these
same experts look to the Bill of Rights for answers, but have those
amendments ever protected us, and are they protecting us today?
The answer to this question should be clear.

The other troubling
clauses of Article 1, Section 8, are the war powers. Again, these
powers are unlimited in nature. While the supporters of the constitution
rant about restrictions on war making and standing armies, none
are present, including the toothless two-year spending restriction.
(Clause 12) And when war and standing armies are present, freedom
is not.

Clause 11:
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules
concerning Captures on Land and Water;

Clause 12:
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that
Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

Clause 13:
To provide and maintain a Navy;

Clause 14:
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and
naval Forces;

Clause 15:
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of
the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

Clause 16:
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia,
and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service
of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the
Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia
according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

In case all
these unlimited powers were not enough to allow the federal government
complete control over the entire country and its citizenry, and
all military forces and actions, Clause 18 was added to put the
final nail in the coffin of freedom. It states:

Clause 18:
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying
into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested
by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or
in any Department or Officer thereof.

This single
clause solidified the idea of unlimited government. It is in stark
contrast to any notion of the confinement of governmental power.

Constitution
worshipers once argued that only Congress could declare war, but
given Clause 18, and its meaning is clear to me, Congress can "make
any law necessary" so as to execute any power. I take this
to mean that Congress can transfer its authority to any other department
of government at its discretion. Obviously this has happened many
times in the past, as no Congressional declaration of war has occurred
since World War II, but perpetual war has been the rule. Today,
Congress simply authorizes the executive branch the power to go
to war, and when Bush attacked Iraq in 2003, most every conservative
supported that position, as did the courts. The question now is
not whether or not Congress has to declare war, but can a president
launch a war without congressional approval. Oh what a tangled
web they weave.

Many of the
so-called founders spoke eloquently about the importance of not
allowing standing armies. They said they feared that possibility,
but were they being honest?

"When
a government wishes to deprive its citizens of freedom, and reduce
them to slavery, it generally makes use of a standing army."
~ Luther Martin, Maryland delegate to the Constitutional
Convention

"A
standing army is one of the greatest mischief that can possibly
happen." ~ James Madison

Alexander Hamilton
also warned in Federalist Paper no. 8 of the danger to civil society
and liberty from a standing army, but there is no restriction mentioned
in the constitution concerning standing armies. There are no specific
rules or exceptions listed concerning the use of standing armies.
Why is this, if freedom and limited government were the goals? There
is however, specific language allowing standing armies. The real
intent of the founders is clear. It is not hidden, and it is not
secret; it is there for all to see.

No, the constitution
did not grant any rights. It does not protect our natural rights.
It was never meant to do so, and the drafting and implementation
of that document did little other than vastly increase the power
of the federal government over the states and the people. As I stated
in a past writing:

The constitution
allowed for the usurpation of power by the executive branch, it
allowed federal courts to approve and sanction authoritarianism
by the government over the people, it allowed for legalized forcible
theft by the federal government in the form of taxation, and it
allowed the federal government both the ability to collect taxes
for war, and to also prosecute those wars. These egregious powers
given by the constitution to the central government are completely
antithetical to liberty, and should never have been considered by
any men of character.

Those seeking
freedom and liberty must look to themselves for answers, not to
a very flawed piece of parchment. Individual sovereignty is key
if liberty is desired. It is apparent that those who came before
us, those called the "Founders," especially the federalists
led by Hamilton, were simple men, nothing more. They were not saints,
and they were not givers of rights, as our natural rights pre-exist
all men. Until this is understood, most will continue to rely on
those they mistakenly call "leaders" for answers. For
freedom to truly exist, the only leader necessary is self.

May
28, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
has been a financial advisor for 25 years, and now resides and works
in Lewistown, Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

The drums of
war now beat continuously in the land of the "free" and
the home of the "brave." The sound of those drums is deafening
to those few who understand the real nature of war, but silent to
most of the rest of American society, a society consumed by the
practice of false patriotism.

In days gone
by, war was a time of gathering together, of celebration, of waving
flags and parades. It was a time of praying for victory; it was
a time of unbridled patriotic fervor. The streets were filled with
parents and loved ones ready to send their own off to their death
for the glory of the cause! Dreams of medals and high honor ran
high, as the soldiers began their journey into the fields of battle
with the single-minded hope of being triumphant in their glorious
adventure of maim and slaughter.

The hard reality
is that never was any war glorious or deserving of celebration.
No U.S. war has ever been warranted or necessary in my opinion,
and no war has ever been fought by those in this country for self-defense
or for "national security." In fact, the only things secured
by wars are the coffers of the banks and war-dependent corporations,
the government's advancing power structure, and graveyards.

While wars
are not as broadly celebrated in today's America as they once were,
probably due to the fact that they are never ending, those who prosecute
wars are celebrated. They are cheered on, thanked for their "service,"
and paraded around their hometowns when they return without arms
and legs. Most every sporting event showcases the military, have
fighter jets flying over the stadiums, and giant flags are proudly
displayed on the battlefields of these mock gladiators. Songs of
war are sung, and hands are placed on hearts all across this land.
It is a most pathetic display of nationalism!

One of the
most troubling aspects of this worship of killing is that it is
practiced in many so-called houses of God. This is a contradiction
almost beyond description. Many churches across the land, and many
so-called Christians take a backseat to no one when it comes to
supporting the troops and the wars they fight. They fill the pews,
and pray that their side be victorious in battle. They pray for
the defeat of those warred against, and pray for their death. They
pray for the armies to stand strong, and never relent in their effort
to destroy the enemy. They pray that God be with the troops, and
that God be on our side!

Mark Twain's
“The War Prayer”
is a most appropriate description of the despicable behavior practiced
by those who pretend to be holy, and who at the same time worship
aggressive wars of destruction and death.

“O Lord
our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to
battle — be Thou near them! With them — in spirit — we also go forth
from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe.
O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds
with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the
pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of
the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help
us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help
us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing
grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to
wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and
hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy
winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring
Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it — for our sakes who
adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract
their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way
with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded
feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source
of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that
are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts.
Amen.

I was taught
that all on earth are made in God's image. I was taught the Golden
Rule. I was taught that life is sacred, and that we should love
our neighbor. None of us are perfect, but why do so many wish harm
on others? Why do so many revel in the slaughter of our fellow human
beings? Why do so many cheer on the battle? Why do so many applaud
when the bombs rain down? Why do so many pray to God for unmerciful
war?

In the United
States, war has become a constant. War is a part of our everyday
lives, and it is difficult to even imagine peace. A better way is
to be unable to imagine war!

The evil controllers
of this country, and their military are waging many wars today.
Many more are being planned. None are warranted, and none are necessary.
All are criminal. Will this madness ever stop? Will the killing
ever end? Can human decency ever replace the wanton desire for the
carnage of war?

War is evil.
It is the essence of darkness. It is immoral. It contradicts all
that is right. War is ungodly because its aim is the destruction
of mankind. War is unholy, and God is not on our side!

May
7, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Collectivism
holds that, in human affairs, the collective — society, the community,
the nation, the proletariat, the race, etc. — is the unit of reality
and the standard of value. On this view, the individual has reality
only as a part of the group, and value only insofar as he serves
it.

~ Leonard
Peikoff

The mind of
the collectivist is empty and pitiful, and has not the ability to
think on its own. It has no uniqueness; it has no individual personality.
It does not create, nor does it possess any sense of self. The collectivist
mind can't possess these virtues because it is only a very small
cog in a wheel of the group. It is but a speck in the midst of a
mob. This is the story of America today, as collectivism runs rampant
and individualism is shunned.

This is a rather
harsh truth about the dramatic decline of individualism, of individual
thought, critical thinking, and self-responsibility. It is an admission
that once sane minds have all but disappeared from view, and philosophical
degradation has been the result. Because of this mass escape from
personal responsibility, moral, physical, political, and economic
corruption has become the norm, and now this corruption is all encompassing.

When collectivism
takes hold, individual rights naturally disappear, and mob rule
policies take root. This policy transformation of course, is affected
by the state. The progression from a system that is based on individual
self rule and individual sovereignty to one of community or nation
is not in the interest of freedom and liberty. When any political
system is in place, this negative progression is easily achieved
nonetheless. Only peaceful anarchy allows for the individual to
be truly sovereign. Only when the state is absent can freedom flourish.

Ruling "elites"
crave this merging of individuals into a societal tumor, because
this cancer destroys the power of individual thought. The result
of this diseased system can lead only to consensus and compromise.
It can lead only to corruption. Consensus leads to no real decision
at all, and the following compromise is nothing more than a mass
combining of ignorance. When political policy is decided in this
manner, it serves only to limit the individual's ability to achieve.

While freedom
is a natural right of man, it is difficult to obtain, and even more
difficult to keep. It requires that the individual be self-responsible.
Apparently, many if not most in this country today, have chosen
to follow along with the crowd instead of listening to the beat
of a different drummer. They have chosen to be dependent sheep in
the collective flock. This is unfortunate, and in my opinion, it
has destroyed any idea of real liberty in this country.

Why do people
choose to run with the mob, to exist in a mass? They do so because
it is the easiest path with the least amount of resistance. They
do so thinking they are bettering their lot in life. They do so
because they are afraid, and seek to gain a false safety. They do
so to shirk personal responsibility. They do so to hide from the
truth. They do so to hide from themselves.

In the United
States today, virtually everything is decided by the few, but with
the implied consent of the mob. The U.S. political system has major
aspects of socialism and fascism, and is certainly an oligarchy,
but most have the misguided notion that the mob is in charge. This
is due to a belief by the masses in the farce of voting. Voting
gives the false impression that the voters themselves are in control,
but nothing could be further from the truth. In essence, those voted
into office as "representatives" of the people, are fully
controlled by very powerful interest groups, and these groups are
the real rulers. This is a very flawed system, but it is one that
gives the false impression that the majority rules. That is simply
not the case, and even if it were, it would still be immoral! This
system is accepted and embraced by the crowd, but in reality, why
should anyone rule over anyone else, majority or not? How can freedom
survive in a place where one has the power to rule over another?
I can tell you, it can't!

As Butler
Shaffer pointed out in the past in his great article titled
Collectivist
Utopias:

"All
political systems are socialistic, in that they are premised
upon the subservience of individual interests to collective authority."

This truth
goes unnoticed by the masses, mainly because they have been fooled
into thinking that they are free, when in fact their lives are virtually
void of any individual thought or authority. This is a sad state
of affairs, but it is the reality in America today. Without the
individual, real freedom cannot exist, so collectivist societies
based upon the common or greater good of all, are destined only
to end in slavery to the state. This has proven to be true throughout
history.

The collective
"we" has been brainwashed into believing that self-interest,
self-responsibility, and self-sufficiency are not in the best interest
of the group, but just the opposite of course is the case. This
brainwashing has been accomplished through a long indoctrination
process that is still firmly in place.

Consider the
government's "public" school system, where most every
child in the country is taught the same nonsense for most of his
learning years, and is indoctrinated throughout childhood to love
first his community, state, and nation.

Consider the
worship for a constitution that gave massive and in some cases,
unlimited (not limited) power to a federal government, and lessened
greatly the importance of the individual in favor of the "general
welfare."

Consider the
reliance on government welfare by the people via the multitude of
social programs that are meant to make dependency on government
almost mandatory.

Consider the
mindset of the "99 per centers" that aim to force the
so-called 1 per cent to be more inclusive, fair, and responsive
to the group.

Consider the
mob's acceptance of a heavy and progressive income taxation used
as a way to equalize outcomes by redistributing private property
for the so-called benefit of all.

Consider "public"
lands or "public" anything.

Consider the
idiotic term, "giving back."

Consider today's
strict concentration on race, class, society as a whole, community,
state, and nation, all more important than the individual.

Consider the
mass acceptance of the National Anthem and the communistic Pledge
of Allegiance.

Consider the
constant call "for the greater good of society!"

Collectivism,
as a political ideology, thrives on the idea that force by the state
should determine how those in the mob can benefit at the expense
of others. It allows for the collective to force policy decisions
that serve to dictate how each individual must live his life. It
has no respect for private property. It attempts to destroy self-responsibility,
self-reliance, and self-interest. It puts the mob, whether that
is the community, the state, or the nation, above all else. It relies
on the elimination of individualism, all for the so-called benefit
of society as a whole. Collectivism is then, the epitome of immorality,
of dishonesty, and of exploitation.

Unless a
man has talents to make something of himself, freedom is an irksome
burden. Of what avail is freedom to choose if the self be ineffectual?
We join a mass movement to escape individual responsibility, or,
in the words of the ardent young Nazi, "to be free from freedom."

~ Eric Hoffer

April
30, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

It would be
very difficult for me to think of any term that disgusted me more
than those words uttered continuously in the presence of virtually
any soldier in the United States: "Thank you for your service."

What service
is actually being praised by those conditioned to say these empty
words? Why are they thanking and praising nearly every soldier they
see?

• Is it because
  hatred of the U.S. is increasing, and new enemies are being created
  in the Middle East and all around the rest of the world?
• Is it because
  thousands and thousands of innocent people are being killed now
  in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen,
  and many more are being threatened?
• Is it because
  20,000,000 to 30,000,000 foreigners, mostly innocent civilians,
  have died just since World War II due to U.S. interference and
  war?
• Is it because
  indefinite detention without due process, torture, assassination,
  and rendition are now common and accepted practices?
• Is it because
  suicide rates among American soldiers have increased 80% since
  the Iraq War began?
• Is it because
  mental problems now send more military personnel to the hospital
  than any other cause?
• Is it because
  destruction and separation of military families is rampant?
• Is it because
  civil liberties have all but disappeared due to so-called terrorism
  legislation? (terror legislation would be more accurate)
• Is it because
  of the creation of the USA PATRIOT Act, Military Commissions Act,
  NDAA, TSA, and Department of Homeland Security (DHS)?
• Is it because
  of the massive buildup of killer drones abroad and at home?
• Is it because
  the huge deficit spending to support multiple aggressive wars
  is causing economic chaos?
• Is it because
  of the surging number of double amputees of American soldiers?
• Is it because
  of increasing energy costs due to the United States unwarranted
  presence in the Middle East region?
• Is it because
  the domestic police have now become a brutal militarized force,
  bent on controlling the entire population?

I could of
course go on, but the picture is clear. Those who continue to believe
the propaganda about all U.S. wars leading to the protection of
freedom, and to our national security, are blinded by ignorance,
and consumed by pathetic false patriotism. No U.S. wars have ever
served the purpose of freedom; they have only served to destroy
it.

Due to these
wars of aggression and occupation, our freedoms are virtually non-existent
today. We are spied upon, tracked, searched without warrant, sexually
assaulted, and radiated. There are now checkpoints in many parts
of the country where it is demanded that we "show our papers,"
and killer spy drones are filling our skies. Government agents and
the military are patrolling all U.S. borders, and Blackhawk war
helicopters sporting heavily armed soldiers hanging on tethers are
flying over our cities.

Because of
these wars, the government has gained enormous power, and continues
its assault on liberty. A police state environment has taken hold,
and if not curbed soon, will lead to Martial Law in the near future.
The DHS has purchased enough killing ammunition to murder more than
twice the population, and on the say so of one man, Americans can
and are being assassinated. Why?

In order for
our national security to be defended, we first have to be attacked.
That has not happened. In order to protect freedom here at home,
all foreign wars must cease, and all the government agencies and
"terrorism" legislation created since 9/11 should be abolished
immediately! Every U.S. base on foreign soil should be closed, and
every troop stationed in another country should come home and enter
the private sector. At least that would be a good start.

There is a
reason that the young are sent as cannon fodder to die in the wars
of the politicians, bankers, and corporations. They are less likely
to challenge the orders they are given; orders meant to be obeyed
regardless of the immoral nature of those demands, and regardless
of the horrible consequences they will most certainly face. Those
who "serve" do not serve the people who falsely praise
them; they only serve one master, and that master is the nation
state and its benefactors. It is not "we the people."

Thank you for
your service? Absolutely not! We can't afford any more of this kind
of service!

April
21, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

In my opinion,
government is at best, tolerated because there is no other recognizable
option available at the time. At worst, it is an evil and tyrannical
overlord of the individual, never ceasing in its desire for power,
money, total control, brutality, war, and imperialism. This opinion
obviously does not serve as a recommendation for any governing system,
with the one exception of peaceful anarchy, or a society without
the State.

Government
is always an instrument of force, as government has nothing, creates
nothing, and produces nothing; it only steals from those who do.
Therefore, politically based government should be avoided at all
cost. Unfortunately, this has rarely happened in history.

Although government
is controlling and brutal in its efforts to remain in power, it
can only retain that power over the rest of society given that the
majority consents to be ruled. In many instances, this consent is
simply implied.

In order to
gain the consent or implied consent of the people, the state uses
many strategies that are steeped in lies and deceit. Government's
most important and necessary strategy for retaining control is fear.
Fear mongering therefore, is a constant weapon in the arsenal of
the state. For if the people were not afraid, they would have little
use for government's continuous assault on their liberty. Fear is
a most powerful driver of emotions, and the illusion of safety a
most coveted prize of the sheep. Rulers, whether elected or not,
fully understand the importance of using fear tactics and the illusion
of safety as weapons against the people. The desired effect is to
at once purposely intimidate the population at large, while allowing
for a state manufactured rescue. The result is an acceptance by
the citizenry of less freedom for an imagined safety.

To achieve
these ends, the state has to create false enemies. In order for
this strategy to be successful, one individual has to be pitted
against another; one group against another group; one nation against
another nation, and so the deception goes. This strategy is nothing
new, but it has been forever effective. It is the strategy of divide
and conquer, derived from the Latin saying, Divide et impera,
which may refer also to divide and rule.

This divisive
agenda takes on many faces, and planned divisiveness and dissension
is found virtually everywhere, this due to the stirring of the pot
by political agitators. Consider white versus black, heterosexual
versus homosexual, Christian versus Islam, men versus women, rich
versus poor, and Republicans versus Democrats. Consider Wall Street
versus Main Street, citizen versus immigrant, and the U.S. nation
state versus the Middle East. As George W. Bush said after the 9/11
attacks, a statement meant to divide if ever one was uttered, "Either
you are with us or you are with the terrorists."

Most are aware
of this great divide in our country, but most don't understand that
much of it came about by design. Division leads to separation. Separation
leads to weakness. Weakness leads to serfdom, which of course is
slavery!

Those who seek
to rule understand this concept very well, and use it in order to
gain more power. Those in power control the mainstream media, and
that media is a willing accomplice in the spread of hate. John C.
Danforth once said:

The loudest
voices we hear are those who advocate conflict, divisiveness.

This is a true
statement, and it should serve to alert all to the fact that those
who scream the most, those who spread fear, and those who would
seek a platform to pit one against another, are nothing more than
wolves in sheep's clothing. The U.S. government is just such a wolf,
and constantly seeks to spread fear and hate among us.

It is government
that should stand in fear of the people. Government is afraid of
an educated and intelligent populace. Government is threatened greatly
by self-responsibility and self-reliance. Government becomes impotent
in the presence of peace. Government cowers when confronted by a
unified people. Government loses control when the people know the
truth.

But this government
is not afraid. It is not impotent. It does not cower. It has not
lost control of its power. It is a monster!

So long as
"we the people" continue to accept the government's plan
for us, so long as the hate continues, so long as most continue
to live in fear, so long as unholy war continues unabated, and so
long as Americans hide from the truth, our future will be predestined.
If we do not alter that now probable destiny, only a life of lost
hope will remain!

Government
is in the last resort the employment of armed men, of policemen,
gendarmes, soldiers, prison guards, and hangmen. The essential feature
of government is the enforcement of its decrees by beating, killing,
and imprisoning. Those who are asking for more government interference
are asking ultimately for more compulsion and less freedom.

~ Ludwig von
Mises, Human
Action [1949]

April
14, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

I have been
watching the media circus concerning the very disturbing incident
that occurred in Sanford, Florida recently. It has been impossible
to stay away from, because the shooting of the young man, Trayvon
Martin, has become the headline story on virtually every single
media outlet. I have hesitated to write about this subject, and
will not comment on the case itself, but it has been sensationalized
almost beyond imagination. This could not have happened without
the mainstream media, and its drive to build a national story at
any cost.

My questions
would not concentrate on any racial implications because that should
be irrelevant, and because the untimely death of anyone, regardless
of color, is always a tragedy. So why is almost all the coverage
based on white versus black or black versus white?

I would ask,
why should the color of one's skin matter, and why should any greater
importance be placed on such a shallow and obvious race-related
conclusion? Aren't we all the same in that we are all human beings?
Aren't we all born with the same natural rights? Don't we all live
on this earth together? Do any of us have any say as to where we
are born, or what color we are? Do any of us deserve more favorable
consideration simply due the consequences of our birth and heritage?
Would race be such a big issue without the agitators, the politicians,
and the media's continuous stirring of the pot of hatred of one
group over another? In the scheme of things, is one man's life worth
more than another man's life, simply due to the color of his skin?
Only the truth should matter, except for those with an agenda, and
something to gain from the pain of others.

What is really
happening here? Is this story real or is it staged? What happened
is real, but those who wish to gain something from the death of
this young man have staged most of the rest. Those I speak of are
not interested in finding out the truth, and they are not interested
in the deceased or his family, they are only interested in themselves
and in gaining an audience.

Who are these
parasites? They are all different colors, and they are from the
left and from the right, but they are all the same. They are users,
and they are users with an agenda. Regardless whether they are in
the media, in politics, or just agitators looking to cause a racial
divide among us, they all come out for the cameras, and for the
notoriety they seek. They are much like scavengers who seem to gravitate
to any place where they are assured they can gain attention and
cause trouble.

And of course,
the president himself, Barrak Obama, the king of all politicians,
also came forward to speak to the nation about this particular incident.
His words and gestures were the epitome of agenda driven politics.
As usual, his phrases were carefully chosen, and delivered in such
a manner as to invoke false pity. He even made the comment: "My
main message is to the parents of Trayvon Martin. You know, if I
had a son, he'd look like Trayvon." With this statement, he
placed himself, metaphorically speaking, into the Martin family,
while at the same time using the death of this young man as a political
ploy to raise his poll numbers. What a narcissistic display by this
pathetic political performer!

There are on
average about 15,000 murders in the U.S. each year. Many more deaths
occur for other reasons every day, but Obama chose this single case
to take on personally, and spoke about it to the entire nation.
Why just this one incident? Why did he not feign sympathy for any
of the many other deaths that occur in this country? Why does he
not feign sympathy for the deaths of those innocents murdered overseas
by American forces, forces that he commands?

Obama's hypocrisy
here is beyond the pale, and is beyond the imagination of any moral
thinking person. This president has taken the aggressive wars started
during the Bush administration, and dramatically expanded the carnage.
He has presided over more aggressive interference and war in Egypt,
Pakistan, Libya, Yemen, and Syria, while threatening Iran and other
countries. His regime and its military have murdered thousands upon
thousands of innocent civilians in the Middle East. The recent attack
in southern Afghanistan by a U.S. soldier was a literal slaughter
of families, including little children while they slept. All this,
but not a whisper of real sympathy was ever forthcoming from Obama
about any of those deaths, except in the form of u2018blood money' to
pay off those relatives of slain family members in Afghanistan.

In October
of last year, Obama boasted of the assassination of an American
citizen, Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen. Two weeks later, the assassination
of al-Awlaki's 16-year-old son, an American citizen, took place,
and his 17-year-old cousin, and nine other young innocent people
died in that deliberate attack. Al-Awlaki's son was the third American
purposely murdered by the U.S. government in this two-week period.
None were given any benefit of trial or due process, and no sympathy
was forthcoming.

Does Obama
really care about the deaths of innocent people, including children?
Apparently, he wants the masses of apathetic state worshipers (voters)
in this country to think so, or why would he specifically choose
the Martin boy's death as his personal cause? There have been many
thousands of deaths of civilians overseas, and there are over 14,000
murders that occur in this country every single year, but he chose
only one to speak about. Why?

The answer
of course is obvious. This is pure hypocrisy! But it is not just
hypocrisy, but also political grandstanding used for Obama's personal
gain, this at the expense of the truth. What in the world has become
of humility, real sympathy, sensitivity, morality, and honesty?
What has become of love for one another? What has become of sanity?
I can tell you that none of these things exist in the White House,
and none exist in most of the mainstream media.

All those who
would use a "convenient" death to benefit themselves at
the expense of others, who would attempt to advance an agenda of
hate, and who would use their position to do these things, are calculating
and without principle. I concentrate on Obama here, not because
he is alone, but because of his powerful position. His behavior,
behavior that is also shared by those who support him, and those
who would act as he acts, is beyond contempt, and should serve as
evidence of the continuing decline of this society!

March
28, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Edwin
Starr said it best in his song War.
"War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing!"

As a libertarian,
I continually struggle with the widespread acceptance, and in many
cases, love of war by Americans. Since I detest aggression, I therefore
despise war. The only legitimate force that is acceptable in my
opinion is that for self-defense of life, liberty, or property,
and self-defense should not allow for any use of force that extends
past defense to aggression. It is irrelevant to me whether one's
defense is protected individually or collectively, so long as the
non-aggression principle is followed.

I was reminded
of the lack of understanding of morality, and the lack of any adherence
whatsoever to any idea of non-aggression or compassion, when I listened
to the testimony by the Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, during
a hearing
held by the Senate Armed Services Committee recently. The questions
and testimony seemed to concentrate not on any just cause for continuous
wars, or on war itself, but on who gets to make the decision to
go to war. I came away with the distinct impression that there was
no concern at all for those being sent to die, or for those foreigners
being killed, but only for those on high who get to claim the glory
for the slaughter!

Just today
in the news was the story of a sergeant in the Army who methodically
murdered 16 innocent civilians in southern Afghanistan. After he
shot and killed these people in their homes, 9 of which were children,
he proceeded to pile their bodies, and burn them. President Obama
and Leon Panetta expressed their condolences, and of course promised
investigations. They also said, with unmitigated audacity, that
this "incident" does not represent the "exceptional
character" of our military. This statement is beyond pathetic,
and is without conscience! No apology for an immoral war of aggression
was forthcoming, but only a statement lauding the murderers themselves!
These people are not fit to represent anyone, and are complicit
in all these barbaric acts!

What Panetta
said in the senate hearing was revealing about the mindset of a
dictator or king, and exposed the Obama administration's lust for
absolute power. In reality, the same could be said about most any
presidential administration, especially those to come in the future,
as the expansion of executive power is continuous and ongoing. His
comments were staggering to say the least. He basically said that
the president could wage war, commit troops, and build foreign coalitions,
by gaining "legal" authority from international bodies.
He said that this could be done "legally" without the
consent of Congress. This particular statement is incorrect, but
could it not be in the future?

Of course,
the constitutional worshippers who immediately came forward, may
have had a point, but both sides were fighting about the same thing,
waging war, and who gets to make that decision. Nothing was discussed
about the immorality of wars of aggression, and that is very telling.

The increase
in the power to wage war by presidents has been around a long time.
What is considered the First War Powers Act was the War Powers Act
of 1941 signed by Roosevelt, but that was not the first time that
war powers increased. The "legal" authority today to wage
war is not gained from any direct constitutional authority, or congressional
declaration, but from the War
Powers Resolution of 1973, which was supposed to be a "restriction"
on the power of the executive to wage war. That has hardly been
the case.

The power to
declare war according to Article
1, Section 8 of the constitution rests only with Congress, but
no declaration of war has been evident since WWII. Today, the War
Powers Resolution of 1973 is an accommodating tool for both the
Congress and the executive branch when it comes to the authorization
for waging aggressive wars. The 1973 document allows Congress to
simply give an "authorization" for war instead of using
a formal declaration of war. This gives them political cover, while
vastly enhancing presidential power. George W. Bush used this to
his advantage as his so-called constitutional grounds for his aggressive
wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Conservatives accepted and applauded
his claim proudly, but they were being very deceitful in that approach.

To understand
the massive constitutional power that Congress holds over waging
war, one only has to read the war powers given in Article 1, Section
8, of the constitution, including the all inclusive final words
in that section. It says that Congress has the power:

To make
all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution
the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution
in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or
Officer thereof.

The powers
given to Congress concerning war in the flawed piece of parchment
called the U.S. Constitution are broad and immense, and don't define
the reasons necessary for war, but only the power to raise armies
and declare war. In addition, Congress can make any law necessary
to execute its powers! This was and is an open invitation
for abuse, and that abuse has been with us for a long, long time.
Given the above language, can Congress simply make any laws it chooses
to, without constitutional amendment, to affect its intent concerning
war? Can it legally transfer it obligatory duty concerning war to
another branch of government? Will Congress in the future draft
another resolution to turn the power to make war over to international
bodies, as it did when it transferred that power to the president?

The bottom
line is that regardless of the so-called "legal" authority,
all U.S. wars are wars of aggression, which means they are immoral,
unholy, and murderous. They are waged for purposes of imperial conquest,
for power, to steal or control the natural resources of other countries,
and to enrich all those government supporters who are dependent
on warmongering, such as government contract corporations, and the
big banking sector. While most don't want to hear this, it is the
truth of the matter, and that by any standard is an evil truth!

The United
States has become the poster child for imperialism and perpetual
war, and now stands as the single most powerful nation on earth.
It is that lust for power that has driven public policy for over
100 years, and now is expanding almost beyond imagination. Millions
of innocents have died, and tens of millions have been displaced
from their homeland due to U.S. aggression.

War is hell,
as the old saying goes, so why do so many support war and those
who prosecute them? Why are all those doing the murdering considered
heroes to the masses in this country? Why do soldiers follow orders
to kill, when that killing is unjustified? Why are American flags
constantly waving, and why is the national anthem, a celebration
of war, always sung at every local and national event? Why do so
many pledge their allegiance to a flag, an allegiance that is the
communistic epitome of worshiping the state regardless of its actions?
Why do Americans love war?

The prosecutors
and benefactors of war are the lowest among us. They are the politicians
who gain massive power with every conflict. They are the parasites
that lobby for war in order to gain profit. They are the central
banks that supply the capital for war. They are the military that
builds its ranks in the presence of war. They are the complicit
citizens who swell with pride in the presence of death, and revel
in the glory of battle.

War is the
health of the state; it is not the health of a nation of free individuals.
War always leads to less freedom, not the other way around as so
many falsely believe. War is devastation and sorrow. War is the
destruction of families and innocent lives. War is death and maiming.
War is torture. War is terrorism. War is murder. War is immoral
and unholy. War is without mercy.

Is war worth
the lives of your sons and daughters? Is war worth the lives of
your friends? Is war worth the torment and anguish that is brought
on loving families? Is war worth the carnage? Is war worth a lifetime
of tortured minds? Is war worth all the orphaned children left with
nothing? Is war worth the mass graves of innocent unknown souls?
Is war worth anything? No! What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!

March
13, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Democracy,
which I consider to be the first step or beginning of socialism,
thrives on propaganda, and uses this propaganda to indoctrinate
the people. Once this indoctrination is complete, totalitarianism
is the end result, and then propaganda is replaced by the razor's
edge of the state's sword. This is our lot today. Propaganda has
labeled those of us who desire to protect freedom as dissenters,
and as enemies of the State. Given the now "legal" ability
of the State to imprison indefinitely or murder any it chooses to,
the sword has become the state's weapon of choice. The circle is
nearly complete!

According to
a Reuter's article published recently, the "FBI
warns of threat from anti-government extremists." "Anti-government
extremists opposed to taxes and regulations pose a growing threat
to local law enforcement officers in the United States, the FBI
warned on Monday." The article went on to say that: "These
extremists, sometimes known as "sovereign citizens," believe
they can live outside any type of government authority.

Pay careful
attention to who is now considered to be an extremist according
to the FBI. Those who refuse to pay or even those who oppose taxation,
those who defy government environmental regulations, and those who
believe the United States went bankrupt by going off the gold standard,
are now all considered to be extremists!

To expand on
this matter, it is a point of fact that any real libertarian is
opposed to forced government taxation, is opposed to government
mandated environmental regulations, and all real libertarians fully
understand that the creation of the Federal Reserve and the destruction
of the gold standard have bankrupted this country. Or is losing
97% of the value on our money not considered bankruptcy?

One thing that
was correct in this article was this statement: "Routine encounters
with police can turn violent "at the drop of a hat," said
Stuart McArthur, deputy assistant director in the FBI's counterterrorism
division." Yes, any wrong look or posture by any citizen can
result in extreme violence against that innocent citizen by police.
This is proven every single day around this country, but I should
mention that McArthur was mistakenly referring to violence by the
citizen against police. What a queer position to take!

State and local
police departments are inundating the FBI with requests for training
to protect themselves from sovereign citizens. This statement has
obviously been reversed, as I always thought that the sovereign
citizen was to be protected by local and state police, not the other
way around. It seems the idea of sovereignty is now reserved only
to the nation state and its agents of force. This of course is backward,
but then again, what in this country remains proper, and in the
interest of liberty? Little or nothing remains, as the U.S. has
become nothing more than a tyrannical, fascist oligarchy!

We are very
close to the bottom of the sleigh run on our way down that slippery
slope toward a total police state. Most of the pieces of the puzzle
are now in place, and all that is left for the government authorities
to do is to round up those "extremist sovereigns" still
practicing their anti-government ways. With the passage of the National
Defense Authorization Act of 2012 (NDAA), and the now new expanded
FBI definition of an extremist, all that remains to be done is to
actually capture and incarcerate all those who believe themselves
to be sovereign individuals.

Consider that
being anti-government, or even speaking out against the government,
or wanting to protect your hard earned property by insisting on
real money, or not agreeing with government regulations, can now
literally lead to indefinite military detention without any due
process or trial. Consider that any who believe in individual sovereignty
can now be sent away to black sites around the world, tortured,
or worse, via the rendition process. Consider that any resistance
to the State can now lead to arrest, imprisonment, beatings, or
death. Consider that this once (so-called) free country is now a
total police state bent on the destruction of all natural rights
of individuals, and the U.S. government is desirous of total power
and control over the entire population.

In reality
these things do not have to be considered, because they are already
happening! Some of the state's indiscretions are still partially
isolated at this time, but the fact of the matter is that legally,
nothing stands in the way of this government's desire to reach a
dictatorial pinnacle.

The NDAA gives
the government, mainly the executive branch, Carte blanche power
in its march toward rounding up any American that it deems as a
threat to its false sovereignty. This power not only extends to
the capture and detention of citizens, but the president also claims
the power to assassinate any he chooses to on his say so alone.
He claims this power without fear of law, and without fear of judicial
scrutiny. The powerful in government you see, are now in a position
that puts them "legally" above the law, and therefore
they answer to no one. This situation is a travesty beyond imagination,
but it is real, and it is firmly in place.

Given the horrible
USA PATRIOT Act, the Military Commissions Act, the NDAA, and all
the other rights destroying legislation passed since September 11th,
2001, what chance do we have to regain freedom? Given the massive
power now evident in the Department of Homeland Security, the military,
the TSA, the NSA, the CIA, the FBI, does liberty have a chance?
Can freedom be regained in an environment tainted by the malignancy
of this monster we call the U.S. government?

Who among us
could be considered by this government's definition to be an enemy
belligerent, an enemy combatant, an unlawful combatant, a terrorist,
an extremist, a believer in gold as money, a survivalist, or a libertarian?
If you answered yes to any of these things, you could be subject
to arrest, prosecution, incarceration, indefinite detention, citizenship
loss, torture, or assassination. This is the country that has been
built by all those who support this flawed system of government,
and who continue to allow its aggressive march toward totalitarianism
by their implied consent and apathetic behavior. Those I speak of
have no understanding of freedom or liberty, and have not the courage
to fight for right. They either worship authority, or fear it, but
either way brings a deserved slavery.

Those of us
who fight for freedom will never accept slavery. Those of us who
believe in the sovereignty of the individual will never bow to the
state apparatus. Those of us who seek the truth will never hide
from it. Those of us who believe in the sanctity of life and liberty
will continue to fight.

The State understands
this courage and commitment, and will take every step to stop it.
But if those who are willing to fight for the liberty of all are
no longer present due to government mandate, what will become of
the rest of society? What will become of freedom?

February
10, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

As
reported recently, heavily armed agents of the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) stormed a Leesburg, Florida Social Security
office. This supposed drill was unannounced, and was understandably
frightening to the local visitors to that office.

The armed DHS
thugs arrived in swat team fashion, surrounding the building with
their blue and white SUVs, and posting at the door of the Social
Security building a guard with a semi-automatic weapon. Some began
randomly checking the identification of locals, while others with
drug sniffing dogs rifled through the rest of the building. One
can understand their caution and hard-handed behavior due to the
extreme risk posed to our country by Florida retirees.

There was obviously
no cause to accost any of these innocent citizens, but when in this
day and age, given the police state we now live in, do the feds
care about cause? Apparently, the governor, the attorney general,
and all the state police forces were absent, probably hiding behind
their desks until the feds left after their fascist style raid!

The DHS had
the audacity to call this assault "Operation Shield."
This sounds more like a name of a war operation in the Middle East
than a raid on the elderly. This was done under the guise of a surprise
drill with a mission to detect the “presence of unauthorized persons
and potentially disruptive or dangerous activities.” None of these
existed of course, but why should that matter to the DHS, the most
abominable agency of the federal government. The real mission of
the DHS is to intimidate and terrorize innocent people so as to
habituate and control them. It will be necessary to break down the
resistance of the citizenry, so that the people will not take aggressive
action against the state when civil unrest becomes the norm, and
Martial Law is implemented. Obviously the government plan is working.

These DHS
"checkpoints" are becoming far too common. What began
just recently in
Tennessee as a test has now spread to many other parts of this
country. This was expected by those of us who understand the nature
of the federal government's aggression against freedom, but the
speed at which it is progressing is dangerous. These checkpoints
will continue to increase in number, and will continue to expand
in area. A pattern is already obvious, and allowing this invasion
of our rights to go unanswered is a fool’s game.

The remedy
lies with individuals, and with individual states. We as sovereign
individuals have to be prepared to resist the fascist advances of
the federal government, and its preferred agency of force, the Department
of Homeland Security. Most still cringe at the thought of Nazi or
Stalinist enforcers who detained people and demanded to see their
papers, but what difference is there between those enforcers of
old and the DHS? When a heavily armed DHS or TSA thug dressed in
combat gear and armor forces you to submit to his orders, and without
any provocation, what else can that be called but tyranny? Refusing
to acquiesce to this assault on our liberty should be the first
step taken.

The individual
states also have an obligation to protect their residents from federal
invasions and bad laws, and should take immediate action to stop
the feds from terrorizing citizens with these criminal raids. When
DHS thugs come into any state to set up these fascist checkpoints,
the sheriff’s office, and all other state police forces, by order
of the governor or states attorney general, should immediately instruct
them to leave. If they do not obey, then they should be arrested
and jailed.

This may sound
extreme to some, but in reality, this is the only proper course.
There are many more of us than there are of them. There is no reason
for the states to bow down to the federal government or any of its
agencies, or allow them to run roughshod over us. The states should
not allow this Stalinist behavior by the DHS to continue. The use
of nullification by individual states and their police forces is
necessary, and would be enough to squelch any threat by the feds!

If in fact,
this avenue were taken, the feds would have but two choices. They
could either leave the state immediately as ordered, or they could
go to war against that state. Would they dare risk the latter? I
think not, as that would turn the entire country against the federal
government, and without the implied consent of the people, the central
government would be forced to stand down.

This strategy
would simply be an act of actionable nullification by the states
against the feds. Drafting a worthless resolution will not get the
job done, but a real nullification with teeth would keep the feds
at bay.

Considering
the fact that the executive branch of this government now openly
claims the "right" to assassinate any American citizen,
and given that any American can now be "legally" captured
by the military, held indefinitely without trial, and tortured or
worse, the current actions by the DHS become even more ominous!
Every time the DHS sets up one of these criminal checkpoints, any
resistance by a citizen could be used as an excuse to brand them
as a belligerent, and that could be enough reason to detain any
according to Section 1021 of the final version of the
National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal 2012.

(b) COVERED
PERSONS. — A covered person under this section is any person as
follows:

(1) A person
who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks
that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored those responsible
for those attacks.

(2) A person
who was a part of or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban,
or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the
United States or its coalition partners, including any person
who has committed a belligerent act or has directly supported
such hostilities in aid of such enemy forces.

(c) DISPOSITION
UNDER LAW OF WAR. — The disposition of a

person under
the law of war as described in subsection (a) may include the following:

(1) Detention
under the law of war without trial until the end of the hostilities
authorized by the Authorization for Use of Military Force.

(2) Trial under
chapter 47A of title 10, United States Code (as amended by the Military
Commissions Act of 2009 (title XVIII of Public Law 111–84)).

(3) Transfer
for trial by an alternative court or competent tribunal having lawful
jurisdiction.

(4) Transfer
to the custody or control of the person's country of origin, any
other foreign country, or any other foreign entity.

There are virtually
no limits placed on government in this atrocious piece of legislation.
The importance of eliminating the power of the federal government
and its agencies of force by the states is imperative. We have little
time left, as all the legal obstacles holding back the federal government
have now been removed. Action is necessary by not only the individual
states, but by all individuals, for if we fail in our efforts to
rein in the federal government, especially concerning the provisions
above, we will be nothing more than residents in a fascist police
state!

Our own government
is the real enemy of freedom, and while the goal of the feds and
their controllers may be world hegemony, it is not just foreigners
who are at great risk. All here in this country are now in the crosshairs
of this corrupt government's wrath, and any who stand in the way
will be targeted so long as the government has the upper hand. For
the feds to succeed in their efforts to control all, we the people
must remain silent. If we remain silent, then we will deserve the
slavery and pain that will surely result!

All that
is needed to set us definitely on the road to a Fascist society
is war. It will of course be a modified form of Fascism at first.
~ John T. Flynn

January
7, 2012

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

For many years,
the state has been attempting to disarm the citizenry. While not
understood by the mainstream, the success of these efforts has far
exceeded the imagination of most. Those who own guns, and live in
remote areas, don't fully grasp the problem, as they are somewhat
insulated from the norm. But many, especially those who live in
the cities and more populated areas, know that they are heavily
restricted, and for the most part accept this condition of helplessness
voluntarily.

Places like
Washington D.C. and New York City, where gun control is not only
evident, but all encompassing, are now places filled with defenseless
citizens. Many of these higher population centers are hotbeds of
police abuse; abuse including no-knock raids, warrantless searches,
protest restrictions, beatings, high incarceration for victimless
crimes, and even murder of citizens. This situation is not improving,
it is actually getting much worse, and now is spreading to other
areas of the country that are not necessarily high population areas.

With the accelerated
growth of the Department of Homeland Security, a most loathsome
and dangerous government agency, the militarization and arming of
the domestic police forces continues in earnest. All the government
agents of force, including local, county, state, and federal, are
combining strengths, and consolidating into a single unit. This
is an ominous display of fusion by almost every department of force
in America, and it is a picture of an out of control nation state
living in fear of what it surely knows is coming.

My belief is
that what is coming is an economic collapse; a collapse that will
bring bank closures and bankruptcies, bank holidays, suspension
of "entitlement" payments, global market selloffs, and
general chaos. Should any of these things happen, the almost immediate
result would be civil unrest, not just a few protesters chanting
in the street, but large numbers of American citizens consumed with
panic and rage.

Any situation
of this magnitude would surely bring out the "State" police
forces. Panic and chaos in the streets, regardless of where it occurred
in the country, would bring forth police and military
armed to the teeth, sporting combat gear, wearing Kevlar helmets
and tactical vests, carrying automatic weapons, and possibly arriving
in trucks with rotating gun turrets. Some areas could even be invaded
by the use of tanks and drones! Local cops are now militarized,
and since the 9/11 attacks, many police departments now look like
battlefield ready forces.

Just in the
past ten years, there has been over $34 billion dollars of federal
grants sent to local police departments for the purchase of military
weaponry. This spending is slated to dramatically increase over
the next few years. This is always done in the name of protecting
us from terrorism, but the only way we can be protected from terrorism
is to disarm the agents of force of this government, even the local
police.

There can be
only one reason for this audacious display of power by police and
other so-called enforcement agencies, and that is as preparation
for domestic war due to civil unrest and active dissent. That would
mean a police state environment with probable Martial Law. This
is an untenable situation, and it is spiraling out of control right
before our eyes.

The new mission
for police nationwide is not to protect citizens, but to control
them by any means necessary. Given that police these days get nearly
full immunity from their aggressive and in some cases, murderous
activities, and that they are now being armed with military weaponry,
the risk to us citizens is gargantuan. It is a risk that can only
have horrible consequences, and one that can only end in terror.
Not terror from so-called enemies from afar, but homegrown terror
from those state thugs supported by DHS and the rest of this government!

What can be
done to stop this assault by the heavily armed state? Gun control
is the answer to this question. The tables should immediately be
reversed, and a full out gun control policy should be implemented
against all government and government sponsored entities. No government
employee, no government official, no politician, no police, local,
state or federal, and no military personnel should be allowed to
own a weapon. This is the only gun control that can save liberty!

If in fact
there were an actual attack on our mainland by another country's
military force, then all citizens could bear arms to stop any real
invasion, but only for the period of time needed to repel that particular
enemy.

If indeed this
type of gun control were implemented, the only people that would
have guns would be the citizens. It would be in every citizen's
best interest to not only own a weapon, but to also know how to
use it. This would be even a better system than that of Switzerland,
because no state force whatsoever could be used against the people.
The people would become self-reliant and self-responsible, and the
state's power would then be lost. An impotent "State"
is a free state, and an impotent government would fear the people,
instead of ruling over them. This is as it should be!

The current
trend is to disarm the citizenry, and that trend should be reversed.
The citizenry should fully disarm the government and all its agents
of force. If real freedom is the desired end, then gun control of
the entire government is the obvious answer.

"Have
we the means of resisting disciplined armies, when our only defense,
the militia is put in the hands of Congress?"

~ Patrick Henry

December
26, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

I recently
wrote an
article about this atrocious piece of legislation, (S-1867)
but at that time, it had not made it through the House of Representatives,
and Obama had pledged to veto it upon its arrival to his desk. It
is no surprise that the dishonest Obama lied again, but it is telling
that both the House of Representatives and the Senate passed this
overwhelmingly. These are the same "representatives" that
most of the lemmings in this country believe protect their interests,
but the opposite of course is the case.

It is difficult
to put into words just how absolutely obnoxious this anti-freedom
monstrosity is, and it is even more difficult to imagine the future
consequences of this heinous law. How on earth can this be allowed
to happen? If this stands, we can openly admit that we are now in
an executive dictatorship.

When any American
can be "legally" apprehended by the military, held indefinitely
without the benefit of any due process, be shipped off to hidden
prisons or concentration camps, and tortured or worse, what have
we become? What have the people become when they sit idly by and
let this go forward without complete and total resistance? They
have become slaves to the state, and they have become slaves voluntarily!

There are many
attempting to refute the fact that the military has the authorization
to indefinitely hold American citizens, but it is very clear that
under this piece of legislation, the National Defense Authorization
Act of 2012, the military can do just that. While the bill is filled
with many deplorable aspects, mostly ignored I might add, the detention
language is clear. Glenn Greenwald of Salon explains the myths concerning
the detention portion of this bill in his brilliant article: "Three
myths about the detention bill."

There is not
a lot more that one can say about this new law, because it is the
finishing nail in the proverbial coffin of totalitarianism. When
any American on the say so of the executive branch of government
can be "legally" captured by the military and held indefinitely,
and without charge or trial, then the state has won.

Who will the
government thugs target first? They will target those who are willing
to stand up to them. They will target those who expose the corruption
and lies that are ever present in the political arena. They will
target writers of truth. They will target protesters, and all those
who actively dissent. They will target those who expose the state
propaganda for what it truly is.

When the truth
tellers are rounded up, who will speak for the rest? When those
among us who are unafraid, and who do not fear the state gendarmes,
are in concentration camps, which of you will step forward to replace
them? Which of you will risk everything to protect your liberty?
Which of you will fight to be free? When all the guardians of the
sheep are gone, then the wolves will have an easy slaughter, and
this bill is meant to allow the roundup of all the guardians of
liberty.

We are all
born with certain natural rights; those rights being the rights
to life, liberty, and property. These rights cannot be separated,
for to have one is to have all, and to lose one is to lose all.
If one has a right to his life, then it stands to reason that he
also has the right to defend his life. If he has a right to defend
his life, then he has a right to defend his liberty. If he has a
right to defend his liberty, then he has the right to defend his
property. If the government attacks any of these rights, then we
all have the right to defend ourselves from that same government.

I am purposely
avoiding here any argument based on so-called constitutional rights.
Obviously, indefinite detention without trial invalidates the 5th
Amendment, but it is also completely inconsistent with our natural
rights. The natural rights mentioned above are inherent; they come
from no piece of parchment. For if men can give rights by constitution,
then those rights can legally be taken away. That is much of the
problem, for when we look to a political document to see what we
are allowed to do, then we have already lost our sovereignty.

Until the people
in this country understand what their inherent rights are, and where
they come from, the continual destruction of our liberty by this
government will continue. Our rights, depending on one's beliefs,
either come from God or our own humanity. They predate men. Judge
Andrew Napolitano has made this point on many occasions, and it
should be considered as absolute. Since our rights are inherent,
it is up to us as individuals to protect those precious rights,
for if we do not, we will have none nor deserve none!

December
17, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

A really
efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the all-powerful
executive of political bosses and their army of managers control
a population of slaves who do not have to be coerced, because they
love their servitude. To make them love it is the task assigned,
in present-day totalitarian states, to ministries of propaganda,
newspaper editors and schoolteachers…. The greatest triumphs of
propaganda have been accomplished, not by doing something, but by
refraining from doing. Great is truth, but still greater, from a
practical point of view, is silence about truth.

~ Aldous Huxley

Men are born
with free will, so why do they behave as slaves? Most in this country
believe that the politicians are civil or "public" servants,
while the common man is king. Most believe because they cast a ballot
to choose their "leaders" that they are free, but the
politicians among us are really the masters of a population of slaves.
To paraphrase Charles de Gaulle, the politician simply poses as
a servant, in order to become the master.

In America
today, the many are ruled by the few. The many allow this tyranny
voluntarily, and with open arms. The only men who can be reduced
to servitude are those who choose to do so. For men who cling to
liberty with passion can never be ruled, and will never allow their
freedom to be taken from them. These are men of truth and character,
and sadly, they are the extreme minority. These men of integrity
are now directly in the crosshairs of this oligarchy called America,
and without them, the rest of society is doomed to a life of serfdom.

To obey the
restrictive rules crafted by the politicians, and without resistance,
is to guarantee the destruction of liberty. It is not only a fatal
form of apathy, but it is also the basis for the destruction of
our soul. Politicians after all, are the lowest form of man, and
do not deserve respect when their aim is to rule over and control
the rest of us. For what are we if we simply do as others in power
demand, without the courage to stand up for what is right? What
are we if we bow our heads in fear when our fellow man is being
trampled? What are we when we allow all that we have earned to be
taken from us by force, and say or do nothing to stop it? What have
we become when the worth of a man is judged by his allegiance to
the state?

It is time
for these questions to be answered honestly, because those who are
willing to fight against tyranny are now being targeted for extinction.
The nefarious Senate of this land just passed Senate
Bill 1867, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012. If
accurately titled, it would be called instead the Sedition Act of
2012. Most of those opposed to this horrible legislation are concentrating
on just two sections, those being Sections 1031 and 1032. While
Section 1031 allows for any American to be captured, held indefinitely
without charge or trial, tortured or worse, the rest is not much
better, and the entire bill should be scrapped immediately!

It is instructive
to understand that the U.S. government and its military have been
for the past ten years capturing and incarcerating foreigners and
Americans, and without benefit of due process. The president now
"claims" the power to assassinate any on earth he chooses
to, including American citizens, and without charge or trial. But
this new legislation will in my opinion not only massively expand
these so-called powers, but also bring them under the guise of legality.
This is more dangerous than most realize, because it will help keep
the sheep at bay when mass roundup of American citizens becomes
the norm. This is due to the nonsensical popular belief that just
because the ruling class makes a law, it must be followed, even
if it is bad law.

And now
fusion center documents have labeled any who investigate the
Oklahoma City bombing as terrorists. Pair this with the passage
of S. 1867, and the terrifying picture becomes clear. The government
now holds the position that any who question what goes on in this
country, or even any who question the government story line, are
practicing terrorism. This cannot be doubted, especially considering
the fusion center story, and the passage by the senate of S. 1867.

What this means
in real terms is that all dissenters, all truth tellers, all protesters,
and all who question "authority," can in the eyes of government
be captured and imprisoned indefinitely, and without benefit of
trial. All of us who question what this government does and what
its motives are, can now be hauled away to concentration camps,
and even tortured or murdered, all under the umbrella of the "law!"

As for me,
I question every single thing this government says and does, and
I investigate most every government action. Because of this despicable
legislation, what will become of the truth tellers? What will become
of honest libertarians? What will become of those of us who are
unafraid to expose lies and corruption? What will become of all
of us?

The scope of
this legislation is far reaching, and without limit. The literal
barbarity of this is obvious to any right thinking person, and the
probable consequences of speaking one's mind in the future could
be deadly.

The most dangerous
sound now could be the sound of silence, for if we do not speak
out and rebel against this travesty, we will be doomed to a life
of servitude. When we finally refuse to serve no more, then we will
at once be free. No man should serve another by force, and no man
deserves to be free if he does.

It is incredible
how as soon as a people become subject, it promptly falls into such
complete forgetfulness of its freedom that it can hardly be roused
to the point of regaining it, obeying so easily and willingly, that
one is led to say that this people has not so much lost its liberty
as won its enslavement.

~ Etienne de
la Boetie

December
5, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

War, war, and
more war seem to be the primary objective of the U.S. government
and its military. Of course, the corporations dependent on these
merchants of death for their booty are also salivating for more
foreign carnage by this nefarious government. After all, so long
as foreigners and the children of regular Americans are the ones
dying for the state, the "elites" have all the cannon
fodder necessary to continue this profitable and imperialistic venture.

The latest
threats, and these are serious threats, are being directed at Iran.
Regardless of the fact that the U.S. is still considered the world's
super power, any aggressive war against Iran could come back to
haunt even the most evil and powerful designers of U.S. foreign
policy.

Iran is a country
with 8o million people. Given the trouble the U.S. has had in dealing
with places like Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq, what on earth do
they think will happen if they wage war on Iran? Keep in mind that
the U.S. is already involved in multiple wars of aggression, and
now is attempting to take over Africa as well. This type of imperialism
will eventually lead to the destruction of the empire, but if either
Israel or the U.S. attacks Iran now, all hell could break loose!

Iran is the
world's forth largest oil producer, which makes it attractive to
many hostile neighbors, and to big oil companies. This is reason
enough for concern, but Iran is also geographically important, at
least in the eyes of American foreign policy makers. Iran is bordered
by Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey, and Turkmenistan, and is
just across the Persian Gulf from Saudi, Arabia. Iran literally
is the middle of the Middle East. Iran also borders the Caspian
Sea, and the U.S. has long been after those huge stores of oil.
Much of the reason for the war in Afghanistan was based on building
and securing the north-south oil pipeline that would allow oil delivery
from the Caspian through Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and into Pakistan.
Securing Iran would take the U.S. a step closer to gaining access
to the oil in the Caspian, but at what cost?

China and Russia,
both nuclear powers, are very important trading partners with Iran.
China now has very extensive oil and gas contracts with Iran. Iran
currently supplies 12% of China's oil, making Iran the third largest
supplier of crude to China. The Iran/China annual trade value is
expected to increase to 50 billion dollars just over the next few
years. Russia and Iran trade ties have expanded to include agriculture
and telecommunications, as well as energy and other goods, and Iran
exports many products to Russia. Will Russia and China sit back
while aggressive attacks are taking place, or will they protect
their interests in Iran?

This is only
the tip of the iceberg, but it is obvious that any unleashing of
force against Iran would probably come with many unintended consequences,
very dangerous consequences at that. War with Iran would force the
other Arab states to take sides. The entire Middle East would become
a boiling pot of turmoil. The region is already a powder keg, and
little agitation is necessary to turn this situation into total
chaos.

In the past
100 years or so, Iran has not aggressively attacked any country,
much less any western country. During that same period, the U.S.
and its complicit military have aggressively attacked, and in many
cases occupied, country after country, nation after nation, and
now are interfering with entire continents. The U.S. has become
the leader in perpetual unholy wars of aggression against innocents,
and most in this country still cling to the misguided notion that
America is exceptional. It is only exceptional in its desire to
gain total hegemony in its quest to conquer the world!

I fear that
any attack of Iran by United States forces would bring cataclysmic
results never before seen on this earth. Considering all the players
involved, the entire Middle East, including Israel, China, Russia,
the NATO countries, and probably others, the ramifications would
be deadly. This could easily turn into World War III, and with this
many countries involved, it might only be a matter of time until
nuclear weapons were used. If that happened, where would it stop,
considering the nuclear capabilities of the U.S., China, Russia,
Pakistan, India, and of course Israel? It is evident that without
the use of nuclear weapons by Israel or the U.S., Iran would be
difficult if not impossible to defeat. This truth is not escapable.

The Pentagon
is building and testing monstrous flying bombs that can travel anywhere
on earth within an hour, killing all people in any given location.
Killer drone bases are being constructed everywhere. Our liberty
at home has disappeared, and torture and rendition are commonplace.
And while indefinite detention without trial is now accepted, and
while the president on his say so alone can assassinate Americans
or anyone else he chooses, most are sitting in their living rooms
waiting to see Dancing with the Stars or Monday Night Football.
I have never seen or experienced anything more pathetic in my lifetime.
This sickens me!

World War III
might be just around the corner. The possibility of nuclear war
is now a real threat, and that threat is too dangerous to consider.
Do these loathsome politicians and war makers know the real risks?
Do they understand what consequences will befall us should these
wars continue? Do they even care? If they don't know, then they
are all fools playing a fools game, and that game does not have
a happy ending!

November
22, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana. Visit his website.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

It is the
invariable habit of bureaucracies, at all times and everywhere,
to assume…that every citizen is a criminal. Their one apparent purpose,
pursued with a relentless and furious diligence, is to convert the
assumption into a fact. They hunt endlessly for proofs, and, when
proofs are lacking, for mere suspicions. The moment they become
aware of a definite citizen, John Doe, seeking what is his right
under the law, they begin searching feverishly for an excuse for
withholding it from him.
~ H.L. Mencken

"If
You See Something, Say Something" is the detestable slogan
of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This is nothing more
than a campaign by this monstrous government bureaucracy to pit
citizen against citizen due to false fears instilled in the people
by that same bureaucracy. The government is spying on everything
we do, and it is now fooling the fools into spying on themselves.
This is the ultimate in serf-like behavior.

Currently,
the state of Tennessee is acting as a testing ground for the federal
government's assault on the citizen's right to privacy. TSA goons
dressed in state sanctioned garb, and heavily armed "law enforcement"
cretins with drug sniffing dogs, are harassing the people of Tennessee
on interstate highways and bus stations. They are doing this of
course all in the name of stopping terrorism. It is interesting
how these state simpletons can at the same time terrorize the general
populace while protecting them from terrorism.

The object
of this charade of course is not to stop terrorism, but to intimidate
(terrorize) the people, and to habituate them, so that they will
come to expect and accept this kind of treatment in order to be
"safe." This indoctrination training by the state is meant
only to beat down the individual into submission, so that state
thugs can gain more control. This is not a new concept, but in the
U.S. today, police state abuses are not only greatly increasing
in numbers, but also are becoming more invasive as every day passes.

The mainstream
media claims that Tennessee is the first state to fight terrorism
statewide, but illegal checkpoints are now being set up all across
the country. The DHS now claims the right to stop and harass anyone,
ask for their "papers," and search them within
100 miles of any U.S. border. This invasive and illegitimate
nonsense affects over 190 million citizens, or about two thirds
of the entire population. The very abusive conduct by these agents
of the state is not restricted to Tennessee, it is evident nationwide.
Checkpoints are everywhere it seems, and the numbers are increasing.

Warrantless
searches are already common at airports, and take place also at
train stations, bus terminals, and subway systems, but once this
fully expands to our roads and highways, there will be no limits
left. Those who choose not to fly so they can escape the groping,
radiation, and humiliation of airport "security" dished
out by the evil TSA, may now find themselves at risk of this same
type of treatment when they simply choose to take a Sunday drive.
We are quickly becoming consumed by this fascist state called America!

Another
news report tells of warrantless searches taking place in Flint,
Michigan. Roadblocks are set up, and drug-sniffing dogs are turned
lose to check the vehicles of unsuspecting motorists. The Genesee
County sheriff has set these up at least seven times this month.
Actually, warrantless searches are now common, everyday events,
and many get the blessing of the very corrupt U.S. Supreme Court.
Last May in an 8 to 1 ruling, the Supreme Court gave a green light
for police to break into anyone's home should they "think"
that the resident was hiding evidence. Justice Samuel Alito said
that "Residents who attempt to destroy evidence have only themselves
to blame" when police bust down their door. This moronic thinking
completely negates the idea of freedom.

Cars can now
be searched in many instances without the officer having to obtain
a warrant. This is happening often, and in addition, the private
property of those stopped or arrested by low IQ state agents of
force is in many cases stolen via the search and seizure process.
Many police departments are funding their entire operations by thievery.
This should come as no surprise to anyone, as policemen as a group
commit as many violent crimes per capita as does society, so is
there any difference between police and criminals? Actually, the
police and all government agents are much more dangerous than the
common criminal!

According to
the National
Police Misconduct Statistics and Reporting Project, the police
commit more violent crimes of assaults, sexual assaults, murder,
and fatal excessive force, per capita than the rest of society.
Those who are commissioned to "protect and serve" do nothing
of the kind. Given that the numbers of police crimes reported are
in my opinion far undercounted, the problem is much worse than is
imaginable.

We are all
now subject to search and seizure without warrant. We are subject
to groping, sexual assault, and radiation by the TSA. Our homes
can be invaded, and our pets or family members killed without cause.
The advent and acceptance of the Taser has allowed the state's gendarmes
to brutally inflict pain, suffering, and sometimes death to anyone
they choose, and usually without consequence.

And now, these
same tactics will be used on our roads and highways, which means
that lowly citizens across the entire country will be accessible
to these hoodlums.

Police and
government agents, including the military, are training and preparing
for civil unrest. What do they know that the masses don't? They
have military equipment, even in some cases tanks, and they are
receiving ongoing military training. They are actively and sometimes
brutally, going after dissenters brave enough to assemble. This
preparation by the Leviathan state is now happening nationwide,
especially in the larger cities. New York City has been especially
aggressive in its civil unrest planning.
This does not bode well for our future. It is a blatant show of
force, and the intent of the Department of Homeland Security, and
all its police partners across the country is total control of the
citizenry.

Our situation
is worsening by the day, and the state apparatus is preparing to
fight against its own citizens here at home. This is a precarious
situation that could spiral out of control, and we are terribly
close in my opinion, to being in an uncontrollable police state
environment.

When this happens,
the obvious next step will be Martial Law. Once that stage is reached,
it may be too late to stop the coming onslaught of the totalitarian
state. This is a serious threat, and one that could result in violence
and chaos in the streets of America. All need to be aware of this
progression, and all need to prepare to stop it. Anything less will
result in a complete loss of what little freedom we have left, and
our lives may be forever harmed.

The state is
always and forever the enemy of the people. It has nothing, it creates
nothing, it produces nothing, and it lives and survives by looting,
stealing, beating, and murdering. It is time to remove the power
the state holds over us, and to try liberty instead of slavery.
I say its time to abolish the state!

October
24, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

The U.S. economy
has continued to falter since the housing bubble burst. Virtually
every part of the economy has worsened, and continues to do so.
This is also true on a global scale. Whether discussing unemployment,
housing, inflation, GDP, retail sales, etc., the picture is clear,
we are still in a depression. Even though the economic picture is
bleak, the stock markets have continued to go up in value during
this period. Why is this happening?

After the market
collapse of 2008 and 2009, where losses were generally around 55%,
the markets have gone up substantially. During that same period
were QE1 and QE2. This is no coincidence. Bernanke took
full credit for the rise in the stock markets, and for good
reason. The "Quantitative Easing" programs were structured
to transfer money (out of thin air) from the New York Fed to its
primary
dealer banks. This is done when the Fed purchases treasury bonds
from these dealers, some of which include Goldman Sachs and J.P.
Morgan, along with 18 others. This process infuses the banks receiving
this money with instant liquidity. During QE2 for example, from
November 3rd of 2010 through June 30th of 2011, the New York Fed
bought from its primary dealers $770 billion worth of treasuries,
not the $600 billion it claimed. These banks acquired many of these
treasuries during the bailouts by trading worthless securities for
full value treasuries. This was, by the way, at taxpayer expense.

There is a
direct correlation between these bond purchases and stock market
performance. When QE1 ended, after an increase of approximately
90% in the markets, the markets began to fall.  After falling
about 23% from those highs, QE2 was announced, and began in November
of 2010. The markets proceeded to go up again until QE2 ended in
June of 2011. After the money stopped flowing, there was a sudden
drop of over 18% from July through September of this year.

Now it gets
even more interesting. In just the past two weeks, the stock markets
have gone up about 11%. During that same time frame, the Fed has
purchased $39.9 billion of treasuries from its dealer banks, in
the same manner as it did during QE1 and QE2. If continued, this
is an $85 billion a month pace, similar to that of QE2. But remember,
there is no announced QE3, and no report that I've seen has mentioned
anything about this bond buying, but it is going on nonetheless.

The only survivor
left standing in this economy seems to be the stock market. This
performance should not be happening given the dire economic conditions
we're in today. This tells me that when the money stops for good,
and the markets crash, all else will follow. In my opinion, the
New York Fed is doing everything possible to make sure that the
markets remain somewhat stable, and it is taking a lot of money
to keep up this sham. Every time the money starts flowing, the markets
rise, and when the money stops flowing, the markets go down. There
is now a clear pattern, and it is directly related to money pumping
by the Fed, money that goes directly to its primary dealer banks.
This allows the banks to make large trading profits running up the
markets, and allows the government to point to the markets as a
sign that things aren't so bad after all. This is a lie!

By going to
this
page of the New York Fed Permanent Open Market Operations, you
can easily see how many purchases, and in what amounts, have taken
place in just the past two weeks. Then compare what has happened
in the stock markets over this same time frame. The same can be
done for QE1 and QE2. This direct correlation is not accidental
nor is it coincidental. Something is very wrong here, and the Federal
Reserve is smack in the middle of this fraud.

The Federal
Reserve System is not only destroying the value of our hard earned
money, but it is involved in lies and manipulation, and is cloaked
in secrecy. It is bailing out banks all over the world with fake
money. The Federal Reserve is rotten to the core! How could any
sane people allow one entity, a very corrupt one at that, to control
the entire monetary system? That is a travesty, but it can be remedied.
The Federal Reserve should be abolished immediately, and those running
it should be prosecuted for their crimes! If it is not abolished,
the value of our hard earned money will simply disappear into the
dustbin of history, and most will be left with nothing!

October
17, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

We are now
living in a world consumed by killing, murder, and torture, and
the very government that claims to be the most righteous on earth
is responsible for most of these heinous crimes. That government
of course is the United States government, now the largest empire
on earth. There are supporting players involved like the U.S. military,
the NATO countries, and those banks and corporations who profit
from the slaughter of peoples overseas, but without the full sanction
of these unholy wars by the government and the populace, these other
players would be left to fend for themselves.

The continued
annihilation of human beings at the hands of government is entering
a new automated phase. This new phase should fully satisfy those
all-powerful political and corporate parasites and their cold-blooded
thirst for more carnage. While they may think that their hands will
be cleaner, the opposite effect will be evident. The stench of death
can never be washed away, even if human designed machines do the
killing.

Recently on
MSNBC's Innovation section, this
story appeared titled "U.S. Army orders its first batch
of suicide drones." They really aren't "suicide drones"
though, because the person controlling them is doing so in order
to kill others, however the drone called the "Switchblade"
does not survive. (I have yet to discover how a machine can commit
suicide) It can fly in either autonomous robot mode, or can be remotely
piloted to quietly approach "targets" without warning.
Once on target, it can be armed and flown at high speed into the
enemy camp, of course killing and maiming along the way.

Yesterday,
another article
titled "A future for drones: Automated killing," was published
by the Washington Post. According to that article, autonomous robotic
killing poses some problems, and could cause a "range of fundamental
legal, ethical and societal issues." I'm surprised that these
are even concerns, considering what is now happening in those countries
not even at war with the United States. Killer drones piloted from
thousands of miles away are already firing on people in Yemen, Pakistan,
and Somalia. Obviously, they are also being used in Afghanistan
and Iraq. I doubt seriously that these are the only countries being
targeted, and it is obvious that more plans are in the works for
robotic murders in the future.

The desired
end result of the ruling class is to leave the decision to kill
supposedly in the hands of inanimate objects. Killing the "enemy"
would then be based on calculations made by software, and not by
humans. How convenient for those responsible for causing all this
death and mayhem, as they literally would not be giving the order
or pulling the trigger. Obviously, this same inanimate object with
magical software could not be tried in court for its crimes. So
how could any be held responsible for criminal murder when no explicit
order was given, and no individual was in control? This sounds like
a recipe for non-responsible sanctioned murder without consequence!

Ronald
C. Arkin, author of "Governing Lethal Behavior in Autonomous
Robots," in a study funded by the Army Research Office said,
"Lethal autonomy is inevitable." He fully believes that
building "ethical" military drones and robots capable
of using deadly force is possible. The mere fact that he believes
a machine can commit murder ethically is scary enough, but what
if he and others, especially those in control of government, could
convince the now ignorant masses that this was possible? The implications
of this are staggering, and the danger of what the future would
hold in a world such as this is unimaginable! I think even George
Orwell would struggle with this notion.

Killer drone
attacks engineered from afar are now commonplace. They happen every
day, and my guess is that they happen much more often than we are
led to believe. Military drones are also now used for many domestic
operations, and that use will in my opinion expand greatly given
any major civil unrest or Martial Law situation. Police forces are
already using these computerized machines for domestic surveillance.
When drones come to a neighborhood near you, the same lies as always
will be forthcoming from the government. You will be told that it
is important for your safety, and for national security, but how
safe will you feel when those drones are armed, and allowed to use
deadly force?

Dehumanizing
killing will lead directly to dehumanizing humans. Many in this
country now and in the past have gone down that horrible road of
perdition. In the world wars, it was the hatred of the "Krauts"
and the "Japs," or "slant eyes." In Vietnam
it was the "Gooks." Now, a large majority in this country
believes that all Muslims or "rag heads," are out to kill
them. These derogatory terms and hate filled attitudes toward those
we may not understand serve as nothing more than a way to dehumanize
them. By doing this, apathy wins the day, evil wars and the slaughter
of innocents are legitimized, and the population follows along.
These attitudes and feelings did not happen accidentally, as little
agitation by the ruling class is necessary to stir the hatred inside
the citizenry. Fear is the only tool needed to cause this effect,
and fear is easy to administer to the dependent sheep by those who
control the country and the media.

Hermann Goering
said it best:

Naturally,
the common people don't want war…. Voice or no voice, the people
can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders…. All you have
to do is to tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists
for lack of patriotism.

Killing made
easy seems to be the motive of the rulers. Killing with emotionless
robots spares the conscience of the murderers. Killing without consequence
allows for more killing, and no justice. Killing for the sake of
killing then becomes the norm.

The most precious
gift of life is our humanity. Because of our humanity, love, compassion,
and individuality are present. Without our humanity, we will have
nothing. Without our humanity and love for one another, we will
become cold. Without our humanity, we will become slaves. Without
our humanity, man will not survive!

September
23, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Lew Rockwell
recently
outlined what he calls the five republics of the United States.
As he correctly points out in my opinion, the fifth republic began
on September 11, 2001. While I agree, I think that this will also
be the final republic.

I say this
not because I am a pessimistic person, but because I think this
country, at least as we have known it, is finished. The times ahead
I fear will be much more dangerous than most believe, and in fact,
worse than most can imagine.

To look at
any timeline of atrocious government behavior since 9/11, one can
easily see the path we're following. It is a path that leads directly
to disaster. Not the type of so-called disaster that government
warns us about daily, but a real disaster resulting in the complete
loss of liberty.

The USA PATRIOT
Act, the Military Commissions Act, the TSA, the FDA, the CIA, renditions,
assassinations, multiple and continuous wars, torture, bailouts,
inflation, false flag events, secrecy, illegal searches, spying
on citizens, private property confiscations, and much, much more
is now commonplace! It is now considered to be a crime to grow your
own food, to film the police, to sell lemonade on the street corner,
to protest, and in many cases just to speak out against the State.

It is no coincidence
that I am writing this on the "celebrated" anniversary
of 9/11, as the hoopla over this weekend was enough to cause nausea
to most any libertarian, or any critical thinker. The planned events
unfolding are nothing shy of nonsense and propaganda, but they do
serve a purpose. That purpose of course is to continue to advance
nationalism and state worship. Everywhere one looks, every television
channel, every sporting event, and every parade, the talking heads
will be spewing lies and waving flags. The remembrance of that day
will be evangelical in nature. It will be a banner day for politicians,
as they will un-abashedly practice false patriotism, and swim in
a cesspool of self-interest.

War will be
celebrated, and continued war will be justified. Every event of
this nature serves to promote more killing than anything else, and
never serves as a time to question as it rightly should. Tempers
will flare, and hatred will reign among the masses, while the innocent
people in war-torn countries in the Middle East now being destroyed
by the U.S. government and its minions in the military will continue
to live in fear. Live in fear they must, as the unholy prosecution
of unjust war by the largest imperial force on earth is upon them.

It is not only
those people with darker skin and different religious beliefs in
the Middle East that should fear this beast, we all should be wary.
The rulers of empires and their accomplices in crime are never satisfied,
and are never complacent. Their brutality and lust for power and
money only grows with each and every aggression. That aggression
has now come home to roost in the form of intimidation, regulation,
police brutality, and a nearly complete destruction of liberty.
The economy is failing, and the coming total police state seems
closer at hand than ever before.

In other words,
prepare to be assaulted! Those of us unwilling to accept this assault
will be targeted, while those willing to bow down to authority will
lose any chance to be free men. At this time, the masses fall into
the latter group, and will continue to do as they are told. I hope
that this apathetic behavior has a transformation of some magnitude
before it is too late. After an economic collapse, the risk of massive
civil unrest increases, and the danger of Martial Law, and increased
police and military involvement in domestic affairs, becomes almost
imminent. If allowed to escalate to that level, it will be increasingly
difficult to turn the tide, and at that point, any peaceful solution
will be rendered ineffective. Since only peaceful means should be
used to destroy the power of government, waiting until state forces
are patrolling the streets is not a viable option. Acting in advance
of any economic or political cataclysm is the proper course of action.

Take heed of
the coming reign of authoritarianism. While tyrannical behavior
by this government is already evident, it can get much worse. We
are not far away from patrolling drones watching our every move,
if in fact that is not already a policy in place or being planned.
We are not far away from economic collapse due to government and
Federal Reserve policies. We are not far away from a global war.
As this government continues to spiral out of control, these things
become more possible, and more probable. We simply cannot wait any
longer to stop this assault, and we must spread discontent!

The most
dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think
things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions
and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the
government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable,
and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he
is not romantic personally he is apt to spread discontent among
those who are. ~ H.L. Mencken

September
13, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

"I
am an anarchist. I suppose you came here, the most of you, to see
what a real, live anarchist looked like. I suppose some of you expected
to see me with a bomb in one hand and a flaming torch in the other,
but are disappointed in seeing neither. If such has been your ideas
regarding an anarchist, you deserved to be disappointed. Anarchists
are peaceable, law-abiding people. What do anarchists mean when
they speak of anarchy? Webster gives the term two definitions – chaos
and the state of being without political rule. We cling to the latter
definition. Our enemies hold that we believe only in the former."
~ Lucy Parsons

"If
we look at the record of mass murder, exploitation, and tyranny
levied on society by governments over the ages, we need not be loath
to abandon the Leviathan State and … try freedom." ~ Murray N. Rothbard

Anarchy in
its purest form is based on peaceful behavior and voluntaryism in
a stateless society, while government is based on aggression, theft,
force, and deceit. These two systems are completely opposite. The
only moral social system worth having has to adhere to the ideas
of non-aggression, private property, free and voluntary exchange,
and self-responsibility. This ideology is based entirely on the
individual as sovereign. A political order where the individual
is not sovereign, such as what we have now in this country, is the
type of system that eventually leads to tyranny and serfdom. We
are already far along in that process.

In my opinion,
peaceful anarchy as a near perfect social system must go unchallenged,
because anarchy is based on the truism that the individual is sovereign.
Philosophically, anarchy is the only workable system if freedom
is the desired goal. All other political systems are based on a
top-down structure, with those in charge holding power over all
others. This type of structure, which is our current political system,
is simply one of force, and force is the antithesis of liberty.

While to me
this seems to be not only simple but also logical, to most others
this thinking is blasphemous. The mere mention of anarchy causes
grave reactions from those from the "elite" class to the
common laborer. No one it seems understands the simple concept of
anarchy, and certainly can't grasp the concept of anarchy as a viable
social system. This says a lot about the "success" of
the government indoctrination prisons called "public"
schools. Obviously, the worship and acceptance of the State is now
the primary driver in the American thought process. This is unfortunate.

Those who believe
that anarchy is chaos without justice fail to understand that anarchists
simply want to be left alone. The fact that they want to be left
alone should naturally convey that they also don't want to infringe
upon the liberty of others. Self-rule means that one's life is directed
from within instead of being controlled from without. This concept
should not be foreign to any man who desires to enjoy a free life.
But it is this simple notion that escapes so many.

Obviously,
simple humans are a mixture of good and bad, so believing that a
stateless society will remedy all ills is silly. The idea of anarchy
assumes that most will not aggress against others, and that voluntary
cooperation will be a primary factor for success. This of course
seems impossible given our circumstances today, but any critical
thought should help to relieve the fears of most.

If we all were
self-reliant and self sufficient, if no forced welfare existed,
if taxation was abolished, if positive law was not a part of society,
would the manner of men change? If no standing armies were allowed,
would wars cease? If the only act of force tolerated were for self-defense,
would crime lessen? If none could benefit at the expense of another,
would cooperation replace extortion? If no man ruled another, would
there be incentive for peaceful and voluntary behavior? In my view,
the answer to all these questions is a resounding yes! Would this
kind of society be perfect … Of course not, because people are not
perfect. No societal system can be perfect. But a system without
the state would at least offer us the best chance for a long and
peaceful existence, and one without the chains of governmental tyranny.

Our society
has long been force-fed the propaganda that we cannot survive and
prosper without the State. Our training in such matters begins at
a very early age and continues throughout our lives. The transformation
from a somewhat free society to our current one of servitude has
taken a long time, but it has happened nonetheless. Now, most in
this country are knowingly or unknowingly dependent on the government
in one fashion or another, but many more thrive exclusively on government
largess, and due to government protectionist practices. Did this
happen accidentally or did it happen by design? I think the latter
is the obvious answer to this question.

Given that
the masses of people in this country believe so strongly in "their"
government, what has that government done to deserve this confidence?
What has the state brought us? What has been accomplished due to
our political system these past two hundred plus years?

• Standing
  armies
• Continuous
  war and mass murder
• Massive
  progressive taxation
• State-sponsored
  welfare
• Eminent
  Domain
• Central
  banking and the Federal Reserve
• Destruction
  of our money
• The "War
  on Drugs"
• The largest
  prison system in the world with the highest incarceration rate
• Government
  schooling
• FDA
• EPA
• TSA
• NSA
• CIA
• FBI
• USA PATRIOT
  Act
• Military
  Commissions Act
• Killer Drones
• Guantanamo
  Bay
• Torture
• Rendition
• Police brutality
• Imperialism
• Wiretapping
  and spying
• Illegal
  searches
• Bailouts
• Monopoly
• Recessions
• Depressions

I could of
course go on and on as this is a partial list, but I think the picture
is clear. If this is what the State produces, how could a stateless
society be worse? As I see things, it could not! Just imagine how
different life would be if all the horrible things mentioned above
were removed from our society. Imagine peace? Imagine a country
of non-aggressive individuals working strictly through voluntary
efforts? Imagine that all your property, including your own body,
is yours and yours alone to do with as you see fit? Just imagine?

Murray
N. Rothbard was one of the staunchest defenders of a stateless
society, and presented here
a great argument for anarchism as a social system. Once those skeptical
souls who hunger for authority instead of freedom are shown the
way to clear those imaginary anarchy hurdles, progress has a chance
to flourish. This is no easy task, but if enough are shown the way,
could it happen? Could it be successful? I think that it could,
but major obstacles would first have to be removed.

The
obstacles I speak of are those that allow one to prosper at the
expense of another. If all government forced welfare were eliminated,
all would then be forced to take care of themselves and their own.
This alone would make a huge difference in the minds of the masses.
Immediately, self-reliance and self-responsibility would become
necessary for life to continue. When the majority of society is
self-responsible, liberty is the natural result, and becomes the
driving force of that society.

Accepting the
idea of sovereignty of the individual brings much responsibility,
but that responsibility leads to a freer society. A freer society
leads to a society based upon voluntary cooperation. Voluntary cooperation
is the basis for free markets. Voluntary cooperation and free markets
leads directly to prosperity.

It is time
to break the chains of government and try freedom. It is time to
throw off rule by the few for rule by self. Government has failed
and failed miserably every time it has been tried. Why then continue
along this path of failure? Why continue to allow rule over of the
many by the few?

A stateless
society has not the power to destroy the individual. I say abolish
the State!

August
1, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

"It
is morally tragic whenever a citizen's only choice is between two
wrongdoersu2014that is, between two trimmers.

~Leonard
E. Read … The
Lesser of Two Evils

I am constantly
amazed by my fellow citizen's reverence for voting. This blind worship
for this worthless endeavor is troubling to say the very least,
but nonetheless firmly entrenched in the minds of the masses. Almost
from birth in this country, we are taught that voting is a "sacred"
right, a right so important as to be one of, if not the greatest
right. I must not have been indoctrinated properly by the government
school system, as I consider the most sacred rights as those natural
rights to life, liberty, and property, certainly not casting a ballot
for one or another criminal in politics.

I consider
voting today only as an avenue that allows one group to legally
plunder another, and a process that fully legitimizes a corrupt
political system. Those who vote are obviously supportive of the
political process and the political actions taken in this country,
and are responsible for those they elect, and for what they do in
office. This is why I think the old adage that "those who do
not vote have no right to complain" is backward. Those who
vote to allow the political carnage are the ones responsible for
the problems, while those who don't vote have nothing to do with
electing criminal politicians. Therefore not voting is in and of
itself a political statement denouncing the system, while voting
shows favor of that same nefarious system.

One of the
major problems of voting as I see it is that those who vote for
this, that, or the other, are setting policy that affects all those
who voted differently, and all those who did not vote at all. This
is democracy or mob rule, the first step toward a socialistic and
collectivist system. The reason this is so is due to the fact that
we live in a forcibly run dependent society where one can vote to
benefit at the expense of another. This truth is overlooked by the
"I Voted" crowd, but nonetheless is the lynchpin of redistributive
politics.

So who are
the big winners due to this scheme called voting? Who benefits the
most? The government and all its corporate sponsors, including the
banking system, are the real winners of the voting process. They
are the controllers; they are the takers and users. They use force
in order to gain power, and to steal via extortion the honestly
earned wealth of others. They gain the "right" to rule
over the country and us, and are legitimized by this scam. By selling
the notion that voting gives everyone a say in politics, little
is questioned after the fact. The politicians controlling the government
sit back and revel in the notion that they have been chosen the
new Caesars by the people's vote. They were properly elected in
a democratic process you understand. They are the people's choice.
The dust has settled, and the people have spoken!

How can any
sane individual believe that this political process is not fatally
flawed? How can any not understand that voting leads directly to
one group ruling over another, this regardless of whether a minority
or majority wins the day. Either way, those elected to power rule
over all others when voting is the method used to choose, and this
type of rule ultimately eliminates liberty and leads to tyranny.

While the government
benefits most from this procedure, the supportive public is just
as responsible for the harm caused. Their votes authorize government
action, and give willing consent to the elected king and his court.
This group consent determines our individual lot in life, thereby
destroying our individuality. If our society were based on self-reliance
and self-responsibility, if our laws were based only on our natural
rights to life, liberty, and property, if the individual were sovereign,
would voting be necessary or would it even exist? Would we need
"rulers" in a truly free society?

Politics breeds
corruption, and voting supports that corruption. The masses in this
country have been force-fed the notion that voting is their sacred
right. They have been brainwashed into believing that the vote is
what sets them apart from slaves. The exact opposite of course is
true. They have been taught to ridicule all those who would question
this "sacred" right, and are not embarrassed to do so.
Voting in the "minds" of most in other words cannot be
questioned.

Consider the
recent Rasmussen
Report highlighted on Lew Rockwell's Political
Theater showing that over 83% of the lemmings
in this country believe that one person's vote really matters. In
a country of well over 300 million people, how in the world could
anyone think that their single vote counted? Even if they thought
this possible, how could they accept that this voting was moral,
when that same voting legally allows for one to be abused for the
benefit of another?

The act of
voting has become so entrenched into this society that its validity
cannot be questioned without rebuke. It is considered by many to
be the rock of democracy, the literal cornerstone of liberty. While
this thinking is nonsense, it is still the mainstream position,
and therefore important because our lives are ruled by this dangerous
and asinine process. Even if the current system we live under were
not present, would voting then be more legitimate? Would the fact
that one could not benefit at another's expense be enough to justify
voting? I don't think so, because the act of voting would still
always pit one against another in deciding the outcome of life.
These things should be based only on natural and inherent rights,
and all disputes should be handled privately. This way, one part
of society is not constantly at odds with the other.

I can think
of only one instance in which voting could be considered legitimate.
That would be in a system where all those who wanted to vote acted
voluntarily, and accepted the outcomes of their own actions, while
all non-voters ignored the entire process. In other words, all who
did not participate in voting would be completely exempt from all
decrees passed down by those elected by the voters. There would
be no consent given, and therefore none granted. This is a just
way to eliminate the rule of one over another within a corrupt system.
It is a way to stop rule by a majority, or even a minority over
those who disagree.

No one who
had any belief in freedom could ever have come up with the idea
of voting. Voting by definition and design eliminates the individual
in society for benefit of the collective. Individualism epitomizes
freedom, while collectivism epitomizes slavery. Voting then is simply
mob rule, the bane of freedom, and the fodder necessary for a society
based on servitude!

"What
ass first let loose the doctrine that the suffrage is a high boon
and voting a noble privilege?"

~ H.L. Mencken

June
14, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Last year I
wrote an article titled "I’m
Fed Up With Constitution Worship!" Since that time it seems,
I hear more and more every day about "getting back to the constitution,"
mainly from "conservatives" and those of the Tea
Party persuasion. I always wonder not only have any of these
people ever read and studied the constitution, but also do they
even understand why it was secretly drafted in the first place?
All indications show that they aren't at all familiar with the enabling
power of that document to create a strong central governing system
that reduced severely the sovereignty of the states.

I have this
contrarian view not because I am cynical or pessimistic, but because
I have thoroughly studied this set of rules or "law of the
land," and found them to be antagonist to individual liberty
and state's rights, and sympathetic to big government. When one
compares the constitution that was replaced, The
Articles of Confederation, there is little doubt of this truth.
Lysander Spooner said this:

"But
whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much
is certain – that it has either authorized such a government as
we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case,
it is unfit to exist."

In my opinion,
there is no doubt that the constitution fully authorized the government
that we had and still have today. It is also true that any set of
rules is powerless to stop tyranny unless the people enforce and
demand compliance on a constant basis. This has never been the case.
Even if it had been followed to the letter, it is obvious that liberty
would still have been compromised.

Before the
current constitution was drafted, there was never any mention or
acceptance of the notion that there was a (U)nited States, or that
any single nation existed with power over the states. Quite the
contrary was the case. It is very troubling that so many Americans
have been fooled into believing that the constitution is the basis
of our freedom. Nothing could be further from the truth, and nothing
could be more misunderstood!

Recently, those
like Tom
Mullen and Bill
Buppert have explained thoroughly why the constitution is not
what it is made out to be, and many others have properly denounced
this misleading document as well, but the general thinking is still
very misguided. Most continue to laud and worship this very flawed
piece of parchment, and continue to believe that it is the creator
and savior of liberty. Liberty lies in the essence of man, not in
documents secretly drafted in the dark of night by the few. The
free spirit of the people must awaken before any real freedom becomes
evident, and in that awakening they must realize the great importance
of the individual and of individual responsibility.

My intent here
is not to claim that our original constitution, The Articles of
Confederation, were a perfect set of rules, or that any set of rules
established by simple men could be perfect. My intent is to expose
the lie that is our current constitution. If we as a people could
see the truth of why our original constitution was completely scrapped
in favor of our current one, maybe a more widespread anger would
arise. Once it is accepted that the Hamiltonians in 1787 staged
a coup to destroy states rights in favor of federal power, and to
destroy individual liberty in favor of nationalism, then maybe more
will begin to question their false idolization of the constitution.
One could only hope for such an awakening.

Before this
constitution, there was no power whatsoever for the federal government
to tax. That was left entirely to the individual states. Now the
Feds have an unlimited power to tax. In Article 1, Section 8, the
taxing clause states, "Congress has the power to lay and collect
taxes, duties, imposts, and excises for the common defense and general
welfare of the United States." I see no limits mentioned here
whatsoever, and given the term "General Welfare" of the
(U)nited States, there is no reason to believe that any restriction
was intended. Many so-called constitutional scholars will argue
this, saying that all spending must be "constitutional",
or within the confines of the taxing and spending clauses, but these
arguments can easily be refuted given the broad and sweeping language
in this section. This was in my opinion done explicitly by design.
Article 1, Section 8 is nothing if it is not an all-encompassing,
unrestricted, and explicit enabler of unlimited governmental power.

Anyone can
check the definitions during that period by simply going to the
dictionary of that time, Samuel Johnson's A
Dictionary of the English Language. It is immediately obvious
that there was little difference in the meaning of general welfare
at the time of the founding as there is today. But this is just
one example of the obvious misunderstanding by so many in modern
times.

Under the Articles
of Confederation, there was no president. There was no supreme court.
There was no federal taxation, and certainly no immoral income tax.
This meant that there was no IRS. There was no federal control of
interstate commerce. Congress could not raise an army or draft troops.
What this meant, was that the states were sovereign, and no national
government existed in any real sense. Because of this, freedom flourished,
and tyranny was not evident. So how is it then that this very pro-central
government, federal controlling, and powerful national governing
system could be created by the same constitution that supposedly
set us free? Why were the Articles scrapped entirely if freedom
of the people and state's rights were the objectives sought? I can
tell you; at no time did those who supported the drafting and ratification
of the U.S constitution in 1787 consider individual freedoms!

There are those
who would offer that the Bill of Rights adopted several years later
corrected the obvious problems that plagued the constitution, but
that thinking is based on the false logic of gullible minds. While
those amendments certainly were restrictions on government power,
they did nothing to change the original intent, that being one of
granting massive and in many cases unlimited power to a federal
government.

The constitution
allowed for the usurpation of power by the executive branch, it
allowed federal courts to approve and sanction authoritarianism
by the government over the people, it allowed for legalized forcible
theft by the federal government in the form of taxation, and it
allowed the federal government both the ability to collect taxes
for war, and to also prosecute those wars. These egregious powers
given by the constitution to the central government are completely
antithetical to liberty, and should never have been considered by
any men of character.

The people
did not establish our constitution, nor was it inspired by divine
intervention as so many suggest. It would be difficult for me to
imagine that God would have a hand in the destruction of our inherent
and natural rights. No, this flagrantly flawed document was designed
and implemented by a few corrupt men led by Alexander Hamilton.
Their agenda was guided not by any desire to achieve liberty for
all, but by a grand lust for power and control. Had that not been
the case, the Declaration of Independence would have been the guide
for any new set of rules, and our original constitution would have
been even more scrutinized instead of being replaced.

Instead, after
224 years, we now have exactly what the original ruling class desired,
an all-powerful central government ruling over the lower classes.
This is a rule by the few over the many. As Aristotle said: "rule
by the few is aristocracy in its ideal form and oligarchy in its
perverted form." The elite class holds all the cards, while
the rest of us now struggle under the thumb of tyranny!

June
4, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

There has never
been such an opportunity for the U.S. government to stage a false
flag event in order to start yet another war as there is today.
The set up is obvious to libertarians and some sane others, but
it eludes most all Americans who are busy dancing in the street
after the so-called killing of Osama bin Laden.

Consider the
timing of this attack by U.S. Navy SEALs, and then consider recent
events. First, the economy is in shambles, unemployment is sky high,
price inflation is excessive, and the U.S. military has been bombing
civilians in an attempt to assassinate Gaddafi, including murdering
innocent little children. Our money is being destroyed before our
eyes. The wars are not going well for the ruling elite, and Obama's
ratings are horribly low at the beginning of his presidential crusade.
One very important factor is that criticism of these wars has been
growing at an accelerated pace. Hatred of the insidious TSA is also
becoming much more evident. While civil liberty destruction is still
rampant, it is being questioned more often, and with increased intensity.

What better
reason then for an event to solidify the masses, and put them on
guard for the now coming "terrorist" attacks due to the
death of bin Laden. This stone kills a lot of birds it seems, and
in my opinion this is no coincidence. In a matter of a few hours,
the serfs were in the streets carrying flags, and screaming "God
bless the U.S.A." All the media was abuzz with fervent displays
of renewed patriotism.

But what came
next should have been expected. We were told that the scourge of
the east was dead. One would think that the head of the monster
had been forever severed, and that the war would end, but that would
not be the case. The politicians and talking heads in the media
immediately went on the offensive, and stated that we should be
even more vigilant in the war on terror because there will be more
attacks due to bin Laden's death. Hillary Clinton began her
talk this morning by praising the troops for their "courage
and commitment." Yes, the troops had once again become our
saviors, literally pulling us from the mouth of the beast. In her
next statement she strongly exclaimed "we will continue taking
the fight to al Qaeda and their Taliban allies." She next talked
about even more massive interference and imperialistic goals. "All
over the world we will press forward, bolstering our partnerships,
strengthening our networks, investing in a positive vision of peace
and progress, and relentlessly pursuing the murderers who target
innocent people." (Emphasis added) Really! The U.S. killing
machine is going after all those who target innocent people, and
all over the planet? That is hypocrisy beyond understanding.

These events
are shaping future foreign policy, and the window of opportunity
in my opinion is short. All that is necessary is to rally the sheep
around the flag, and that was accomplished by the charade in Pakistan.

Police in some
areas have already increased security measures, and intelligence
gathering has intensified. In New York, more police have been sent
to patrol subways, airports, and bridges. This is just the beginning.
More fear has been instilled in the minds of Americans once again,
and conditions are ripe for a false flag event staged by those who
would gain power and money with more war. Certainly, Obama has an
obvious incentive to be the protector of the country given his current
presidential run. But many others stand to gain from such an event
as well.

All that is
now necessary to prosecute the next war by the U.S. Empire is an
attack or threat of an attack. Whether manufactured by our own government
or not, that event would serve as the lynchpin of yet more U.S.
aggression. Aggression not just against those in far away lands,
but aggression here at home aimed at our liberty and our freedom.

Nothing is
what it seems, and the risk to us all is great. Much scrutiny should
be evident concerning anything coming out of Washington D.C. or
the mainstream media. Lies abound, but this set up is obvious, and
is staring us square in the face. Believing otherwise is foolish
as far as I'm concerned, and this is no time for gullibility or
flag waving.

What the triggering
event will be is not easy to discern, but whatever it is will be
obvious once it occurs. Any event that heightens the terror alert
or brings calls for retaliation should be examined carefully. It
could be a downed airliner, an attack on a U.S. embassy, a bomb
inside our borders, or any number of other things. Regardless of
the type of aggression, take heed, and don't assume anything. The
government lies continuously, and any attack is in this government's,
its military, and its corporate partner's best interests.

I understand
that many are afraid, but we should not fear any foreign invader.
We should only fear our own government because the threat will come
from within. We are in a very precarious situation, but because
this new threat is so conspicuous, we should be able to see it coming.
We are moving inexorably toward the next false flag, but this time
even more could be at stake. Nothing should be taken for granted,
and none should be surprised by anything that happens.

The monster
of the east is gone, but the beast that is the U.S. government is
alive and well, and planning chaos. Our eyes should be open and
our minds clear, for what is coming is vile. War is criminal and
it is unholy, and our government is planning even more aggression.
This bin Laden farce is evidence enough. Those who purposely cause
and wage war, and do so to gain money and power, are savage, depraved,
and evil. But those who applaud the murdering of others in the name
of false defense are the enablers. Without the consent of the people,
the government would be forced to stand down. It is time to stand
up and stop this insanity!

Naturally
the common people don't want war…. Voice or no voice, the people
can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders…. All you have
to do is to tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists
for lack of patriotism.

~ Herman Goering

May
4, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

I must've
have dreamed a thousand dreams
Been haunted by a million screams
I can hear the marching feet
They're moving into the street

~ From the
first verse of the song Land
of Confusion by Phil
Collins and Genesis [1986]

Obviously,
those in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, and other parts of
the Middle East understand fully the sound of marching feet in their
streets. U.S. soldiers carrying out the orders of those in command
over them have been marching there for many years. They have brutalized
those mostly innocent people all over that region, and in the process,
entire infrastructures have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands
of people have been killed and maimed, and aggressive occupations
have become the norm. This is only the beginning, and most Americans
don't expect nor do they realize that the probability of marching
feet in our own streets is great. This will not come from invaders
from abroad, but by our own federal government and its agents in
the police and military.

These things
rarely happen all at once due to the danger to the ruling class
of an uprising by the people. Generally, liberty and freedom are
taken away over long periods of time, and the masses at large are
little aware of this very dangerous slippery slope. That slope however,
has become much steeper and now is covered in ice. Just consider
the time line of liberty destruction in the past ten years since
9/11.

George W. Bush
created by Executive
Order 13228 the Office of Homeland Security and the Homeland
Security Council just 11 days after the 9/11 attacks.

On October
26, 2001, Bush signed the horrible USA
PATRIOT Act into "law." This in my opinion is not
only the lynchpin in the devastating assault on civil liberty, but
the most liberty destructive piece of legislation ever passed into
law in United States history.

In January
of 2002, the
Information Awareness Office (IAO) was established to bring
together several government projects focused on applying surveillance
to monitor "terrorist" and "other" threats to
national security. This was to be done by achieving Total
Information Awareness which entailed creating an enormous computer
database to capture and store the personal information of everyone
in the United States, including personal emails, credit card records,
social networks, phone records, medical records, and much more without
any requirement for a search warrant. Although defunded by Congress
in 2003, these projects continued to be funded, and continue to
take place under different names.

The Department
of Homeland Security was established on November 25, 2002. This
monster has grown to become a massive bureaucracy that controls
most every single aspect of our lives today.

The now groping
and child molesting Transportation Security Agency (TSA) was moved
from the Department of Transportation to the Department of Homeland
Security in March of 2003. This was the beginning of the end for
all those U.S. citizens who want to have free movement in their
own country. Now, one has to be baked in radiation, sexually assaulted,
or both by the cretins at the TSA in order to travel.

The Military
Commissions Act of 2006 was an act of Congress signed by Bush
to authorize trial by military commission of so-called violators
of war and for "other purposes." One can only imagine
all the "other purposes." This legislation basically stripped
all rights from any individual captured or targeted by the U.S.
government, so they could be held indefinitely and without proper
charge or trial. This suspension of rights virtually eliminates
any semblance of freedom or justice. This Act was amended in 2009,
but as amended, still falls far short of providing any real due
process as required by the constitution. While there is argument
as to whether this Act affects the rights of habeas corpus, only
an agent of the state could believe otherwise. Habeas corpus has
been effectively rendered moot for any, including Americans, targeted
by the government.

In October
of 2008, the 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Brigade
Combat Team, a very "elite" combat squad, became the first
active duty military unit to be dedicated and deployed for domestic
use. This means the virtual elimination of the protections afforded
us by the Posse
Comitatus Act against federal military forces acting as domestic
police. This is certainly an important step toward the implementation
of Martial Law.

In January
of 2010, President Obama signed Executive
Order 13528, which established the Council of Governors. These
governors are appointed directly by the president for the stated
purpose of building a state/national police partnership. This fascist
partnership was put into place to build a "legal" partnership
between the federal government's national military force and the
domestic police agencies, so that they became one and the same.
The scariest part about this is that this force would be fully controlled
by the executive branch of government, making this a federally controlled
domestic police force! I wrote about this here.

In 2010 Obama
authorized the targeting of U.S. citizens for assassination, thus
continuing another heinous Bush policy. Glenn Greenwald of Solon
discusses this policy in detail in this
article.

I have only
touched the surface of course, as these things are only a few of
the most obvious invasions of our liberty, but as you can see, these
past ten years have brought an avalanche of liberty destroying policies
and legislation to our doorstep. We are being bombarded continuously
with more bad laws and more police state abuses. This behavior is
increasing at an alarming rate, and the populace it seems is still
mostly unresponsive to these intrusions by government.

Due to all
these government actions, the stage has been set for Martial Law.
But will it come, and if so, what events will trigger this state
assault on us all? First, just consider where we are currently as
a nation. Economically speaking, we are in dire straits. The national
debt now stands at 14.3 trillion dollars. That doesn't count all
the hidden debt owed by the taxpayers that is sitting at Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac, which is several trillion dollars more. Also
not included are the unfunded liabilities of Social Security, Medicare,
and Prescription Drugs, which total over 113 trillion dollars. Current
annual deficits are running above 1.5 trillion dollars with no end
in sight. And the Fed continues to create money out of thin air,
and the government keeps spending. This is a recipe for disaster.

Real unemployment
as calculated by the well-respected John Williams at Shadow
Government Statistics is 22%, which means that approximately
33,000,000 people are now out of work. The government is only reporting
8.8% by its fraudulent U-3 method, or 13,000,000. When this many
people are out of work, a huge drain on the system is the result,
and desperation takes hold.

The U.S. killing
machine is now openly advancing aggressive wars in Afghanistan,
Iraq, and Libya, and is covertly involved in military actions in
several other countries. Besides murdering innocents abroad, the
cost to run the military and to prosecute these immoral wars is
over a trillion dollars a year.

Predator drones
are being used to murder people in the Middle East on a regular
basis, but they are also being used for domestic law enforcement.
These computer game-like spying drones can be used for surveillance,
and they can also be used for target killing. The fact that they
are flying over our towns and cities is frightening.

Our money is
being purposely destroyed every single day so that this corrupt
government can monetize the massive debt it created. The Federal
Reserve is a most willing accomplice in this scheme to bankrupt
our society. If in fact our money continues to lose value at this
pace, and massive or hyperinflation is the result, our wealth will
simply disappear.

The state governments
are in deep trouble as well, and they don't have the power of the
printing press to temporarily cover up their mistakes. State pensions
are broke in some cases, and vastly underfunded for future obligations
in most others. When the checks stop going out, frustration and
anger will take over.

The TSA gropes,
fondles, and intimidates those traveling daily. This is done to
instill fear, and to habituate the sheep like populace into a herd
mentality. It is meant to turn the citizens into serfs. The abusive
and brutal behavior by state and local police, and other agents
of the government, is increasing dramatically. It is increasing
in numbers, but it is also increasing in severity. In 2007, Paul
Craig Roberts wrote about this in his article titled America’s
Police Brutality Pandemic, but since the time of that writing,
this problem has increased exponentially, and is still worsening.

As I said earlier,
the stage is set for a police state takeover of our streets. The
government has in place all the legislation, tools, and gendarmes
it needs to implement Martial Law. It has a militarized police system
armed and ready to act. It has a domestic military force trained
in urban warfare. It has holding centers ready to house those who
don't go along or who practice civil disobedience. The government
has the capability to listen to every conversation, to track our
location, to monitor all our computers and email, and can shut down
our communication systems, including the Internet at will.

Given this
capability, and all the problems evident in our country today, the
implementation of Martial Law in my opinion is imminent! When large
numbers of people in this country continue not to find work, when
they don't have enough to eat, when their money won't buy the necessities
of life, when they can't afford to travel because of high fuel prices,
and when they continue to lose their homes, they will become desperate.
This desperation will result in civil unrest. That will be the government's
reasoning for declaring Martial Law. I don't believe this will happen
all at once nor do I think it will be immediately widespread. Like
most government interventions, it will probably be incremental,
beginning in the inner cities, and expanding to other areas as the
ruling class sees fit.

We are living
in dangerous times. We are facing a dangerous enemy. That enemy
is the State. It is now all-powerful and armed to the teeth. Most
of those armed government agents in the police forces and the military
will act on orders without question. They will attempt to disarm
the public, just as they did in New Orleans during Katrina. They
will round up any who don't obey government commands, and they will
kill any who forcibly resist. These things are not far-fetched,
but likely in the near future.

The time to
act is now, not after this government aggression begins. By then,
it may be too late. The signs are everywhere, so why do so many
not see them? Why is this continuous buildup of the police state
tolerated? Why are so many Americans blind to this reality? Has
the "public" government run "education" system
been that effective, or is the majority so dependent on government
that their apathy consumes them?

Time is running
out, and we are at great risk of losing what is left of our freedom
at the hands of our own corrupt government. We are now in a fascist
state, and if this government assault on our liberty is not stopped
soon, expect Martial Law in this land of confusion!

Either some
Caesar or Napoleon will seize the reins of government with a strong
hand, or your republic will be as fearfully plundered and laid waste
by barbarians in the twentieth century as the Roman Empire was in
the fifth, with this difference, that the Huns and Vandals who ravaged
the Roman Empire came from without, and that your Huns and Vandals
will have been engendered within your own country by your own institutions.

~ Thomas Babington
Macaulay, Letter to Henry Stephens Randall [October 9, 1858]

April
23, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Like
all the members of the military profession, I never had a thought
of my own until I left the service. My mental faculties remained
in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of higher-ups.
This is typical with everyone in the military service.

~ Smedley Butler,
Major General USMC

Is there any
order given to U.S. military personnel that is not obeyed? Is there
anyone that the U.S. military won't kill (murder) when given an
order? Is there any order that any in the U.S. military thinks is
unconstitutional, considering that all in the military have taken
an oath to uphold that set of rules? Will there ever be an order
that U.S. troops will disobey? As far as I can tell, the answer
to all these questions is no!

There has been
a lot of talk lately about the war against Libya being unconstitutional,
but one has to wonder why these questions are coming now? It certainly
isn't due to any sudden moral awakening by the politicians or most
of their constituents, because every single war since WWII has been
unconstitutional. And in my opinion, every single war since the
Revolution has been completely unjust and unnecessary. If I am correct
in my opinion, that means that every order to kill, maim, occupy,
and destroy those in other lands obeyed by American forces has been
not only unconstitutional but also immoral.

This blind
following of orders by all U.S. military forces scares the living
daylights out of me. Am I alone in this thinking, or do others in
this country understand the implications of this policy? What if
there is civil unrest here at home? What if due to the destruction
of our economy by our own government, American citizens take to
the streets as is happening now in Africa and the Middle East? Does
anyone honestly believe that U.S. troops given orders to shoot to
kill their own countrymen won't do so? Believing that it would be
different if it happened on our own soil would be a fool's game.

Given the buildup
and militarization of police, the expanded powers of the Department
of Homeland Security, and the domestic deployment of federal troops
via the Army service component of NORTHCOM, plans are already in
the works for military control of U.S. citizens. In my opinion,
any orders given by military leaders to fire on Americans would
be followed just as all other orders are followed. There would probably
be more dissent than is now present, but there would be plenty willing
to do the bidding of their masters. Considering that they are now
willing, and have been in the past, (remember
Vietnam) to murder, rape, and mutilate women
and children, why would any think they aren't capable of gunning
down American dissenters?

The United
States is currently in three unconstitutional and unholy wars in
Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. U.S. troops are also causing havoc
and killing innocents in several other countries as well, and threatening
even more. But are any orders being ignored or disobeyed? Of course
not! Not only are these gruesome orders to war against those who
have never harmed us being followed, but they are being followed
with gusto. Just consider recent reports
of cold-blooded murder and mutilations of innocent Afghans by U.S.
troops who are called "kill squads." These aren't the
only atrocities being committed by U.S. soldiers, just the latest
in a brutal string of events that are seemingly never-ending.

Acts of terrorism
perpetrated against other countries by the U.S. military and its
willing and parasitic order takers in uniform are being spread like
wildfire, and the orders keep coming and the killing continues.
Just today this story titled “Lejeune
Marines prepare to deploy off Libyan coast”
appeared out of North Carolina. Camp Lejeune Marines were given
orders to go to Libya, and they accepted those orders with pride,
and offered no questions as to the justness of the cause.

The wife of
Sergeant Lewis Cochran, a Marine being deployed to Libya, said she
"is confident her Marine is prepared for the mission."
Sgt. Cochran said, "Whatever the president decides, he's ready.
My Marines, all the Marines the whole PLT is ready to go."
This kind of statement and sentiment of course is common, and is
telling of the mindset of those willing to do anything they are
told to do regardless of the moral implications. This willing behavior
is pathetic in nature, and serves no purpose other than to help
those in power advance their wickedness. This literally sickens
me! I believe exactly as did Herbert Spencer when he said:

"When
men hire themselves out to shoot other men to order, asking nothing
about the justice of their cause, I don't care if they are shot
themselves."

The bottom
line is depressing. We now live in a country where wars of aggression,
occupation, torture, and murder against those who never attacked
or harmed us is common. These wars are now started on the say so
of one man, and those under his command follow his orders to the
letter. These orders are unquestioned by not only the officers in
the military and their vassals in uniform, but by the congress and
by most Americans. How could we have arrived at such a depraved
state of existence? How can most of our society stand by and watch
the slaughter of millions of innocent people; these acts of horror
done in their name?

Many who commit
horrible deeds have excused these acts by simply saying, "I
was just following orders." This is an empty excuse, and has
been used in the past to give cover for some of the most heinous
crimes of mankind. Most of those crimes were carried out in the
name of war, and those willing to prosecute those unjust wars are
just as responsible as those who start them. Guilty all those who
purposely participate in these heinous crimes against mankind, every
damn one of you!

March
31, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

The
Best of Gary D. Barnett

Do U.S. politicians
and their puppets in the mainstream press really want to talk about
terrorism and genocide happening in other countries? Do they really
think that these accusations will not come back to haunt them? Contradictions
and hypocrisy abound in this conversation, and it is about time
that the truth is told.

According to
Wikipedia, the word “terrorism”
has over 100 meanings, and currently has no universally agreed upon,
legally binding, criminal law definition. This is unfortunate, but
most understand the real meaning whether they choose to apply it
properly or not. The word "terror" comes from the Latin
verb terrere meaning to be frantic with fear or terror. Generally
speaking, terrorism is the use of violence or threats to intimidate
or coerce, especially for political purposes. It is violent acts
intended to create fear, and these acts are perpetrated for a religious,
political or ideological goal, and deliberately target or disregard
the safety of civilians. In November of 2004, a United
Nations Secretary General report described terrorism as any
act "intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians
or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population
or compelling a government or an international organization to do
or abstain from doing any act." I think of terrorism as any
act whatsoever intended to harm in any manner any innocent citizen
or his property for the sake of gaining politically or economically,
or by instilling fear so that these same ends can be achieved. In
other words, any individual, group of individuals, or government
apparatus that carries out any deliberate act of aggression that
harms innocent civilians is committing a terrorist act! So who are
the real terrorists in this world?

Certainly,
anyone who straps a bomb to his body with the intent to harm others
would be considered a terrorist. Any group that planned and carried
out any act that would maim or kill innocents in order to make a
political statement would be considered terrorists. But also, any
government or nation-state that ordered and carried out aggressive
military exercises that resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians,
whether purposeful or not, would be committing acts of terror in
my opinion. But those who practice self-defense by protecting themselves,
their families, their friends, their countrymen, and their property
from harm, whether individually or collectively, are certainly not
terrorists!

So where does
this leave us? The answer to a few questions might help us understand
who or what is the real threat. Who instills the most fear worldwide?
Who maims and kills the most civilians and non-combatants? Who gains
more power, control, and wealth, and benefits the most due to terrorism?

If you answered
al-Qaeda, you
would be dead wrong. Of course, we in this country have been programmed
by government and the media to immediately equate all terrorism
with Muslims, the adherents of Islam, and while there are certainly
plenty of Muslim terrorists, their numbers pale in comparison to
the real terrorists among us. In fact, if one takes the time to
research modern terrorism, it is evident that most believe it only
applies to those individuals and fringe groups who are outside so-called
democratic nations. Most, especially the neo-conservatives think
that terrorism is the scourge of only democratic governments. The
Arab world is far and away considered the main source of terrorism,
but in my opinion, that is because of not only a lack of understanding
by the masses of what terrorism really is, but also because governments
and their puppets in the press have continually lied about the atrocities
being committed.

I will make
few friends with the following statement, but let me say clearly
that in my opinion, the United States government, and those in the
U.S. military who willingly do the bidding of the government by
prosecuting immoral and aggressive wars and acts of hostility, and
those who are partners in these crimes, are the worst terrorists
in the world today! Bold as this may sound, let me explain why this
is so.

Without question,
the worst single terrorist act in United States history was the
attack that took place on September
11, 2001. On that horrible day, 2,996 people were killed, and
many others wounded. It was truly awful, and was purposely meant
to harm the innocent. If one goes to Wikipedia and does a little
research to find out what are supposed to be the worst terrorist
attacks in history, the worst event listed since the 1940s is 9/11.
But it is important to understand that the nuclear bombs purposely
dropped on civilian centers in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in WWII, (remember
our definitions) bombings that killed 200,000 innocent people, are
not even mentioned as terrorist attacks for that period. The slaughter
of innocents including many women and children at Waco by our own
government is also not listed. Obviously, those entities reporting
on such matters simply do not consider any attacks against innocents
by the U.S. government as terrorism. They also ignore all U.S. attacks
during wars, aggressive or not, even if targeted purposely against
civilians, and do not consider them terrorist acts. This is telling.
Remember, those bombs were dropped after the Japanese government,
military, and Emperor had agreed to surrender, only asking that
the Emperor remain in place. (John
V. Denson explains the truth about these horrendous terrorist
attacks in his article, The
Hiroshima Myth.) These unwarranted attacks against Japan were
far and away the two single greatest terrorist attacks in history!

No individual,
group of individuals, or any country's government and it's complicit
partners have in recent history caused as much death and maiming
of innocents as the U.S. Empire. None! In my opinion, the U.S. has
never been in any morally legitimate war since the American Revolution,
and in the past century only the two world wars were congressionally
declared. Even if I leave out all war and aggression prosecuted
by the U.S before 1946, the list of aggressive actions and undeclared
wars since is staggering. Over that period of time, American
military interventions have been responsible for the death of
millions, the wounding of many millions more, and the displacement
of untold millions more; over 10 million refugees
in just Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq alone. Many, if not most
of these casualties were innocent civilians and non-combatants.
No country or foreign government has attacked the U.S. during this
period of time, yet U.S. forces have continually practiced aggression,
including total war and occupation, against countries worldwide.
These are but a recognizable few of the places that the U.S. has
intervened militarily against in the past 65 years: The Philippines,
Puerto Rico, Korea, Iran, Vietnam, Central America, Iraq, Cuba,
Somalia, Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Haiti, Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan,
and Syria.

According to
the study I linked to above, which is a partial list, American military
interventions against foreign countries have occurred 80 times since
1946. Not a single one of these countries ever attacked the U.S.
mainland. There were certainly terrorist attacks against American
interests during this period, but those were criminal acts, not
acts of war. Almost all of them happened outside of this country
where American military presence was felt. If they were aimed toward
civilians, they were evil, and if they were aimed at our military
during any aggressive occupation, then they were in most every instance
not acts of terror, but of self-defense. It would be no different
here if we were aggressively occupied by a foreign power, regardless
of the so-called reasoning. We would, and properly so, defend ourselves
with all our might. Would we then also be terrorists?

My intent is
not to just target or bash America, but any who practice terrorism
individually or collectively. My aim is to expose that which is
hidden by governments and the mainstream media, but known in the
hearts of most around the world. That is that governments are the
worst terrorists among us. It is time to tell the truth about the
horrors of terrorism and war because these things are now one and
the same. Immoral acts of evil now occur almost every day, and all
around the world. Innocents are terrorized constantly, and are at
more risk than ever before of being harmed due to this lunacy.

This nation
has become the poster child of aggressive war and occupation, of
murder, of imperialism, of torture, and of imprisonment without
trial. Our government over just the last few decades has been responsible
for the deaths of millions of innocents, and to this day is continuing
to advance that reign of terror. Leslie Stahl on 60 Minutes in 1996
ask our own Secretary of State at the time, Madeline Albright: "is
the price worth it?" when speaking of the deaths of 500,000
thousand Iraqi children; their deaths due strictly to brutal U.S.
sanctions. These innocent children were all 5 years of age or younger.
Her reply: "I think this is a very hard choice, but the price
– we think the price is worth it." What an admission!
Was it worth it for our national security or was it worth it for
the oil? Neither reason of course is legitimate.

As I write
this, the U.S. Empire has once again started and is waging another
war of aggression against Libya. This is by all accounts an evil
display of force that will surely result in the deaths of many more
innocents. It is also the third war being waged by the U.S. at one
time, with other wars surely in the works. While those warmongers
clamoring for yet another war to "save" the people of
Libya are applauding, their hypocrisy is evident. More innocent
civilians will perish from this earth while the politicians scream
about protecting the innocent. What a tangled web they weave with
their lies. Their terrorism continues in earnest!

This madness
must be stopped, not only for the sake of all those innocent victims
overseas, but also for the sake of all of us. These atrocities are
being done in our name by our own corrupt and evil government. The
more terror that is spread by the U.S. governing apparatus, the
more reprisal we all will face in the future. For the sake of humanity,
I hope the masses take their heads out of the sand and accept this
truth. The country that currently poses the greatest threat to the
world is the United States, and the U.S. government and its accomplices
are also the primary instigators of world terrorism. All of us have
a moral responsibility to stop those in government who would terrorize
others. Who will stop them if we don't?

Aggressive
war is the epitome of terrorism, and the U.S. is the king of aggressive
war!

March
21, 2011

Gary
D. Barnett [send him mail]
is president of Barnett Financial Services, Inc., in Lewistown,
Montana.

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