FedUpUSA

Archive for the ‘US Constitution’ Category

If this doesn’t scare you, you’re not paying attention.

Ah, now we’re playing Sam Adams’ tune…….

The Constitution Working Group of Occupy Wall Street (OWS) has produced the following Statement of Beliefs as a platform for recommended future actions to solve the Nation’s problems, including BAILOUTS, CORPORATE PERSONHOOD, WAR, UNSOUND MONEY AND DEBT.  

The Constitution Working Group asks that these Beliefs now be considered by ALL People in and out of the Occupy movement.  Ponder these and make known your approval: 

·         All People have Natural Rights — Simply Because They Are Alive;

• We the People have Instituted Government to Secure our Rights;
• According to our Governing Documents, Sovereignty rests with the People - 
  Here in America, the People have the Ultimate Power;
• The Constitution & Declaration of Independence are inextricably intertwined;
• Every Principle, Prohibition, Restriction and Mandate of our Governing Documents represents a Guaranteed, Individual Right;
• The People are the Source of All Political Power – no one gets into office unless WE put them there;
• All Elected Officials are limited by our written Constitutions – If Not Authorized in writing, such acts are UNLAWFUL;
• The Constitution is not a Menu;
• The Constitution cannot Defend Itself;
• Individuals and Small Groups cannot prevail in attempts to hold government accountable to their State and Federal Constitutions;
• A Critical Mass is needed, i.e., 3-5% of population;
• Very few in and out of public office can recognize when government is obeying or violating the Constitution;
• The way our system of governance is working is in sharp contrast to the way it is designed to work;
• We don’t change the Constitution by ignoring it; there are provisions within it to make changes;
• All that is happening is our fault; the People have allowed it to happen;
• The People have always had the ultimate power in America and have always been the final arbiters of constitutionality;
• Most of what is causing our National distress NOW can be traced back to violations of the Constitution.

Where are those alleged bomb-throwing anarchists eh?

Yes, this is one of many working groups and has no force of consensus in the form of having passed a General Assembly.

Yet.

But this ought to make those of you who have claimed that the “Occupy” movement is somehow intended to remove our Constitution and replace it with Marxism (or worse) sit down and smell the coffee.

Why not tea?  Because the so-called Tea Party couldn’t be bothered to put this at the forefront of what they stood for.  They turned into “Guns” (that one’s actually in the Constitution), “Gays” (uh, that’s not, and in fact is exactly the opposite of what the tea party claims in this regard!) and “God” (uh, again, First Amendment; freedom of religion is not we choose, you obey when it comes to religion is it?)

The flame-out you’ve seen among those who claim to be in the linear descendant chain of Sam Adams’ political thought comes from the fact that they couldn’t be bothered to actually call a general strike.  To actually interrupt commerce so as to protest taxation.  To engage in proportional response to the looting that has taken place — for instance, by handing out fliers in front of every TBTF bank branch across the country asking people to boycott and naming their admitted crimes (you have so many to pick from and the best part of choosing from the ones admitted to is that it’s in their own words!) and more.  In short, to do as Sam Adams did, and believe not in the tired old divisive politics of BS and hate but rather to focus on The Constitution and its restoration.

Hell, among so-called “Tea Party” folks I can’t recall any, other than a handful of bloggers (myself and FedUp included) who have called for or participated in any sort of direct action.  We have a few over on Tickerforum sporting American Flags next to their names — they have participated in some sort of peaceful and lawful direct demonstration.  But where are the so-called “Tea Party” on this score? 

Absent, that’s where.

So into the vacuum steps “Occupy Wall Street”, and out of the Constitution working group comes this.  Not bomb-throwing anarchy, not some sort of wild proposal to re-write The Constitution to be a leftist, Marxist dream ticket, but an actual statement of principles that is fully in concordance with SAM ADAMS, THOMAS JEFFERSON and the rest of those who were part of the REAL Tea Party.

If you recall when I first started blogging about “OWS” I pointed out that there was about a two week period where I hadn’t written anything as I was feeling my way around the edges of what this movement really was — doing my own investigation, my own background work.  Since that time I’ve been a supporter predicated on it being a lawful exercise of one’s Constitutionally-recognized rights.

I also pointed out that there was real risk in this movement — that the people there had gotten the “who dunnit” right, but that most of them didn’t understand how it happened.  This is not surprising; the “how” is difficult and those who did the scamming made it intentionally so. 

Well, this Statement of Beliefs is not the end of the debate as to whether OWS will turn into something both powerful and positive, but it is a clear statement of purpose in the right direction.

Those of you on the right who have claimed that this is all some sort of anarchist or communist movement have egg on your face this morning.  The knee-jerk reaction will undoubtedly be to both ignore this document and work product and sling mud.

The constructive thing to do is what I’ve been trying to do since I made my decision on how to proceed — engagement, education and promotion of both a positive and lawful message and set of principles.

You now have a a platform from an actual OWS working group that no true Sam Adams’ political devotee can argue with.

We will now find out from the commentary and actions of these groups within the next days and weeks whether those who claim to be “Tea Partiers” really are Constitutionalists or whether they are in fact defecating on Sam Adams’ grave.

Ps: Yes, before you ask, I am well-aware of who owns that domain.  This is called engagement folks, and it’s what I’ve been preaching.  See….. it works!

It’s time for the protesters to bone up on the law.  Specifically, due to this:

Tennessee state troopers for the second straight night arrested Wall Street protesters for defying a new nighttime curfew imposed by Republican Gov. Bill Haslam in an effort to disband an encampment near the state Capitol.

And for a second time, a Nashville night judge dismissed arrest warrants of the arrested protesters.

The Tennessean newspaper reports that Magistrate Tom Nelson told troopers delivering the protesters to jail that he could “find no authority anywhere for anyone to authorize a curfew anywhere on Legislative Plaza.”

Now these cops are cooked — and not just the city either — the cops are PERSONALLY liable.

Here ‘ya go folks… here’s your ticket to own some cop homes, cars, boats (if they have them) and other possessions.

Every person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress, except that in any action brought against a judicial officer for an act or omission taken in such officer’s judicial capacity, injunctive relief shall not be granted unless a declaratory decree was violated or declaratory relief was unavailable. For the purposes of this section, any Act of Congress applicable exclusively to the District of Columbia shall be considered to be a statute of the District of Columbia

Go get ‘em Nashville protesters.  It’s time to take these cops willful and knowing violation of your civil rights, as you have a judge who has declared your arrest unlawful and in violation of those rights, right back to court and tattoo each and every one of them with a nice fat civil judgment.

In short, you’ve been screwed out of your house.  Now go get some redress and evict a few of these jackbooted thugs from theirs, legally, and render them homeless.

The best way to stop this crap is to render the so-called “law enforcement officers” doing it penniless.

And A Note To Governor Haslam:  You were elected GOVERNOR, NOT King.  It was during the middle ages that Kings commonly decided to unilaterally impose or change laws upon the peasants when they did something he didn’t like.  You see, Mr. Haslam, we live in a Constitutional Republic, not in a feudal state.  I’d like to refer you to the 1st Amendment to our Constitution.  You might try reading it.  You also might want to try looking at Article 1 of the Tennesee State Constitution.  For your convenience it was also apparently posted  in the Courtyard.

If it isn’t becoming clear by now, our overlords have utterly no regard for the rights we have as human beings; the rights that are supposed to be clearly protected under the US Constitution.

He was Standing Stone Still Amid Tear Gas in Oakland – Clutching a Copy of the U.S. Constitution

In our coverage of the police assault on peaceful Occupy Oakland demonstrators Wednesday, we ran the inspiring photo of a man standing in front of a line of riot police, wearing a sailor’s uniform, holding a Veterans For Peace flag and clutching a copy of the U.S. Constitution.

But what we didn’t realize at the time — not apparent from the photo, but seen in the following, remarkable video — he was also standing stone still as tear gas canisters were exploding all around him…

I can’t help but look at the faces of the police in gas masks, presumably from the Oakland PD (though there were some 17 other agencies there that night) in that haunting video, as they look at the sailor, and wonder what they must be thinking to themselves as that hero stands facing them. We have previously written about the extraordinary violations of the First Amendment that have occurred across the country during these otherwise peaceful demonstrations. What thoughts are going through the minds of those men — all of whom are undoubtedly also a part of the same “99%” for whom Occupy protesters are fighting — during that moment?

And, as another photograph now reveals, look who happens to be standing right next to the sailor seen above, in the moments just prior to the Oakland PD’s tear gas assault…

That’s right. That’s Scott Olsen standing next to him on the right, the former U.S. Marine and two-tour Iraq vet whose skull was fractured just minutes later that night by a police projectile, sending him to the hospital in critical condition. The two short videos below document the incident, and the moment when cops actually toss in a flash-bang grenade amidst a number of demonstrators trying to frantically administer first aid to Olsen…

This one specifically highlights what happened during the attempt to aid Olsen…

A bit of somewhat encouraging updated news on Olsen: His condition has been upgraded from “critical” to “fair” and he is reportedly now breathing on his own and “responding to his mother who is at his side.”  His parents flew in from Wisconsin to be with him yesterday.

There are still worries about the possibility of brain damage, though a report I saw late last night said that, for the moment, doctors have determined he won’t need to have surgery in hopes of reducing the brain swelling he experienced in the hours following the injury.

VFP has created a Scott Olsen Fund to collect donations to help offset medical expenses.

Finally, last night, Oakland’s Mayor Jean Quan (D), who had ordered the police assault on the two prior evenings, decided to not wait in line last night to speak to demonstrators at their General Assembly meeting, according to on-the-scene tweets from Mother Jones’ Gavin Aronsen.

Instead, after claiming she was not allowed to speak, she issued the following statement on her Facebook page…

Well, she had me right up to her last request, #4: “We are asking you not to camp overnight. Frank Ogawa Plaza is open for free speech activities between 6 am and 10 pm.”

I guess I missed the asterisk in the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment where “free speech activities” are confined to certain convenient hours.

Anyone who has that little understanding of our nation’s owner’s manual — particularly after allowing her police to behave as they did — needs to resign immediately. It’s time for you to step down, Mayor Quan.

BradBlog

While the debate over the raising, lowering, or demolishing the debt ceiling is new(ish), the fact that the federal government’s financial house is in disorder is a situation that has existed for over a century. The last few Presidents (of both parties), in collusion with an all too compliant Congress (regardless of which party was in the majority), have spent money on a scheme of government expansion that would drive any nation into the abyss of fiscal desolation in which America now finds itself.

For example, Democrats, whether in the White House or on Capitol Hill, zealously protect their core bloc of voters by throwing themselves in front of any legislative attack on any of the myriad entitlement programs that assure their electoral success and support.

Republicans, on the other hand, are equally vigilant in their watch over the corporate welfare that lines the pockets of their big oil, big bank, military industrial complex-connected cronies. Some of this money, they rightly assume, will find its way into their own campaign coffer, thus perpetuating the cycle of deceit and destruction.

In a constitutional analysis of the misplaced loyalties of the two major political parties and the eviscerating effect they have on the economic stability of our country and the long-term existence of the Constitution upon which it is built, we find that there is more than profligacy at the heart of our current dire situation.

While the dedication on both sides of the aisle to careering headlong into the unforgiving brick wall of bankruptcy is reckless and deplorable, it isn’t the spending that is the disease eating away the very nerves and fibers of this nation.

Fortunately for us and our posterity, within the four corners of our founding charter are found both the cause and the cure of the malady threatening the body politic.

Our Founding Fathers spoke often of the sovereignty of the several states and of the restraint on unchecked growth that they were meant to be on the federal authority. Witness this statement from Alexander Hamilton in Federalist Number 28:

It may safely be received as an axiom in our political system that the State governments will, in all possible contingencies, afford complete security against invasions of the public liberty by the national authority.

And this from James Madison from the same set of letters:

But ambitious encroachments of the federal government on the authority of the State governments would not excite the opposition of a single State, or a few states only. They would be signals of general alarm.

By another name this ingenious structure is known as federalism. This uniquely American experiment was declared by the “Father of the Constitution” to be the only form of government “reconcilable with the genius of the people of America.”

Given the sine qua non of this vital aspect of our governing structure, it should be alarming to all the citizens of this republic that our elected representatives have ignored this fundamental principle (often purposefully); worked year after year, decade after decade to demolish the walls that protect the sovereign states from unlawful and unconstitutional attacks by the federal government; and have passed one bill after another that increases the size of the behemoth on the Potomac and makes resistance to its usurpations nearly futile.

This assault on federalism is not limited to those presently occupying offices in Washington, oval or otherwise. Potential presidential candidates espouse a variety of causes that betray their ignorance on the importance of the perpetuation of our federal structure.

State sovereignty, of course, is one of the two legs upon which federalism stands. The other is a federal government endowed with a very specifically limited enumeration of powers.

It is often difficult for self-proclaimed advocates of the Tenth Amendment to accept the full panoply of possibilities present in that one little sentence of constitutional and republican genius.

For example, there is no constitutional grant of authority to the federal government to establish rules for marriage, immigration, health care, or education, yet with the exception of Ron Paul, the entire slate of Republican candidates for President supports one or more of the preceding initiatives.

Why would these soi-disant proponents of small government reach so deeply into their pockets to surfeit big business’s appetite for tax breaks, grants, sweetheart loans, and bailouts? Regardless of the rhetoric, these “Republicans understand they can’t cut as deep as necessary and with a few notable exceptions, don’t really want that,” writes Bill Flax in Forbes. “They spend too, just on different constituents.”

On the other side, the Forbes piece notes, “Democrats realize it’s much easier to spew class warfare than devise meaningful plans. Besides, increased dependency trends well for their statist tendencies. [Treasury Secretary Timothy] Geithner we’re up to 80 million checks a month.”

Everyone is familiar with the dance. And, although the dancers occasionally rotate, the beat remains the same. That is likely due less to the fact that Americans aren’t bothered, than by the fact that the same coterie of DJs has been spinning the records for at least 80 years.

How does that familiar tune go? Republicans brand Democrats as “tax and spend liberals” who are closet socialists. Democrats slam Republicans for being mean to seniors, children, the poor, and minorities. Neither side is ready to make any admissions against their own interests and rededicate themselves to timeless and proven principles of federalism.

A brief restatement of the situation was provided by the Forbes piece quoted above:

If Boehner doesn’t budge on taxes, Obama threatens to deny social security. Like a local school board who loses a levy and stops busing, politicians relish punishing recalcitrant taxpayers. Obama would rather slam seniors so he can blame Republicans than lead. Washington underwrote a study measuring the impact penis size has on the sex lives of gay individuals. There is plenty to cut before curtailing payments to retirees.

Another understood, though unspoken, truth is that if something doesn’t change quickly and drastically, then the brilliantly illuminated fabric of our republic will continue unraveling until all that remains is a tattered cloth suitable only for inspection by historians and archeologists. For example, during the debt ceiling pantomime, Republicans, specifically Paul Ryan, offered a “Cut, Cap and Balance” proposal that, despite its name, called for increases in spending and the national debt (the “cuts” were only cuts in future projected increases; they were not cuts in the absolute sense).

The Forbes piece described the flaw in the plan: “Both plans maintain the fatal flaw of social spending: federal involvement.”

And what of the much-touted block grants, beloved by “conservatives” and neo-conservatives alike.

Block grants would likely improve efficiency, but why even involve federal agencies? Why funnel money to Washington and back just so Congress can attach strings? These programs ought to revert entirely back to states. Such would honor the Founders’ intent and put decisions closer to taxpayers keeping them engaged. State governments, sans printing presses, might even better maintain fiscal discipline.

Again, the cure for all the nonsensical and nefarious half-measures (many if not most of which are created, designed, and promoted by the same shadowy cabal of globalists) is a rapid return to the safe harbor of federalism.

reinvigoration of the sovereignty and manly spirit of resistance among the states is the remedy for most of what ails the country. Constitutionalists know that less talk of “cutting spending” or “reducing the size of government” and more undiluted talk of holding our elected representatives accountable for every vote cast that permits the federal government to exceed the boundaries of the narrow, specifically defined sphere of authority that was originally granted it by the states and the people.

Apart from his work as a journalist, Joe Wolverton, II is a professor of American Government at Chattanooga State and was a practicing attorney until 2009. He lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The Tenth Amendment Center

No, not in theory; I mean literally.

Readers of FedUpUSA know that I don’t post Alex Jones.  This is primarly because I disagree with his positions on a number of things, but on this point he is correct.  The Super Congress has officially made the United States a dictatorship.  Snuck in with the debt ceiling legislation that was supposed to ‘save us all’ – is a frightening circumvention of the checks and balances of the power of our 3 branches of government.

This is not a partisan issue, either.  Both Republicans and Democrats agreed to this.  Indeed, NO ONE on either side of the aisle objected to this!

Alex Jones covers the high points of the horrifying new powers that this new small group of people has in this video.  Watch it.  Pass it to everyone you know.

It is also worth reading the article from the Huffington Post:  Super Congress Getting Even More Super Powers In Debt Deal

Our Republic is being destroyed right before our eyes – all because those in power refuse to stop borrowing, spending and giving money to the banks.