Some Notes
A wonderful old line, almost a quote from “1984”, was used
by the National Security Agency head following disclosure that his agency has
been monitoring just about every single telephone call made by almost every
single American, “If you haven’t
anything to hide, this shouldn’t bother you.” Cops love that line.
But a government that is spying on its own citizens?
People writing letters to the editors saying they think it’s
alright for the IRS to specifically target Tea Party or conservative
groups. Wonder if they would feel
the same if the IRS specifically targeted one of Harry Reid’s PACs?
Attorney General Eric Holder having his agency consider a
reporter an alleged criminal for doing his job? Without a free press a criminal administration like the
current one would be, no Virginia, not Nixonian, rather Stalin-like. Oh, my, it’s close now.
We don’t detain alleged criminals, we kidnap them and send
them to overseas prison camps where they are tortured. We don’t declare war on nations, we
send drones to kill anyone we feel might be guilty. Who needs laws?
They just get in the way of the process.
Some in congress are calling for Holder to come forth, but
why should he? They have paper
fangs. Without a special
prosecutor, that Obama henchman will evade, evade, evade, as he has been doing.
It’s a shame that someone didn’t save that plaque that Harry
S. Truman had on his White House desk.
Remember? “The Buck Stops
Here.” Maybe we should all make
one up, box it nicely, and ship it to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Or would that be considered a terrorist
plot?
There are two things missing in most of what we are
experiencing from our government today.
One: where is the outrage from the general public? The IRS, the NSA, the CIA, and the DOJ,
out of control, obviously at the behest of the boss, Mr. Obama, and we don’t
have great angry crowds marching about.
Remember Vietnam?
And two: there
seems to be a lack of gajones in the halls of congress, and this might be
because of the effects of number one, above. The New York Times editorializes that the Obama
Administration has lost all credibility, and still, congress won’t make a
move. Maybe they don’t understand
that the constitution calls for three equal parts to this thing we call the federal
government, and they are one of those equal parts?
Here’s an interesting little thing to discuss over a martini
or three. While the NSA is called
on the carpet over the phone/Internet fiasco, while the IRS is being lampooned
over the Tea Party actions, while DOJ is trying to explain away naming
journalists as criminals, the president is in China complaining that China
doesn’t allow its citizens full use of the Internet. And, promotes Obamacare. In China.
It’s way past time for a special prosecutor to come into the
picture. It’s way past time for
great crowds to gather and speechify, and for those in congress? Get off your collective duff and do
your job.
Until next time, have a great day, read good books, and stay
regular.
An excerpt from the book I'm working on - Liberty & Mental Health - You can't have one without the other - (about some of the ways the government is driving people crazy)
ReplyDeleteThe prisoners’ dilemma is an economic game theory well known to police, prosecutors, and to a lesser extent, those accused of crimes. It does have certain flaws, the most major being that it removes one of the self-correcting mechanisms from the criminal justice system. One unintended consequence is that record numbers of people are incarcerated, along with decreased respect for the legal system. It really makes a farce out of a once well respected system; although noting that certain classes of people have historically been denied due process.
In its purest form, the prisoners’ dilemma occurs when two or more individuals are held when police believe they have committed one crime and are suspected of another. The prisoners are held apart from one another and made a ‘deal’. The first one who confesses to both crimes is given a lighter sentence than he would have received for the one crime for which there is strong evidence. The remaining suspects will then face a harsher penalty, unless they also confess in a timely manner. If all prisoners remain silent they will be handed over to the courts, which pretty much has turned into a farce for all who don’t have sufficient funds to pay for their own attorney. If they can afford a good attorney they all have a good chance of also receiving this reduced sentence, or possibly being found not-guilty.
Some will confess early, even if it means implicating someone who wasn't involved in any crime. Implicating someone who has been involved in serious criminal activity could result in that individual, friends or family members extracting revenge against the early confessor. Refusing to implicate another, particularly a fellow gang member, helps build strong gang ties. If the accused are poor, they are pretty much screwed; as in most places the public defender receives his paycheck from the county, and the top official in the county is usually the prosecutor, who typically is the de-facto boss of the public defender. However, inmates may be able to get out early due to jail and prison overcrowding.