The Age Of Despotism

by Chuck Baldwin

This past Independence Day weekend, my friend, LCDR (Retired) Guy Cunningham, delivered an outstanding address here in Pensacola, Florida, in which he said that America is now in "The Age of Perfidy." He went on to say that our country is soon to enter "The Age of Despotism." I candidly confess that I believe the retired Naval officer could be more right than we might want to admit.

Commander Cunningham is no slouch. He was a Green Beret (who served in the same Special Forces company alongside his father and two brothers), an infantryman with the 101st Airborne Division, Navy pilot, mission commander and analyst. He is also the author of the now-famous 29 Palms Survey. His military credentials are unassailable. When Commander Cunningham speaks, people should listen.

Commander Cunningham revealed tremendous insight into the stranglehold that the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) holds over the U.S. military by estimating that "75% of military admirals and generals with two stars or more have been trained by the CFR." He also came to the defense of Michael New, who rightly honored his oath to the Constitution by refusing to submit to the authority, uniform, and military commanders of the United Nations when ordered to do so by his superior officers.

Speaking of the UN, Commander Cunningham rightly assessed the international body to be a sinister organization that threatened the sovereignty and independence of the United States, and from which the US needed to withdraw. He also boldly stated that any and all treaties made with the UN should be immediately annulled.

Commander Cunningham also highlighted the results of his 29 Palms Survey (conducted in 1994), in which more than 20% of those combat-trained Marines surveyed stated that they would fire upon American citizens in order to confiscate their firearms if ordered to do so and, if required, would swear allegiance to the United Nations. Cunningham said he feared that if those same questions were asked of our Marines today, the percentage would be even higher.

It was Commander Cunningham's statement that the United States is on the verge of despotism, however, that really grabbed my attention. If anyone should know the ins and outs of the science of freedom and oppression, it is Commander Cunningham. His research and analysis of history, both American and military, gives him a keen insight into the subject.

In supporting his ominous conclusion, Cunningham noted former President Bill Clinton's introduction of PDD 25 (a Presidential Directive that is still in place), which reportedly authorizes the President to use and declare martial law at any time, for any reason. He reminded us of how the US military has been used several times for action on US soil.

The US military was used directly in the government attack against the Branch Davidians at the private residence of Mount Carmel outside Waco, Texas. The military was stationed outside Los Angeles, California, during the LA riots. The military was used in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. The military even patrolled the streets of the tiny town of Geneva, Alabama, after a man went on a short, albeit bloody, shooting spree.

Commander Cunningham also reminded us of how President George W. Bush virtually expunged Posse Comitatus and set the table for despotism and martial law by signing the USA Patriot Act into existence. As a result, we now have an entire Army division assigned to the American homeland, a first in US history. He noted that even FEMA has the authority to declare martial law.

Commander Cunningham also referenced recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sponsored reports that refer to pro-life Christians, proponents of the Second Amendment, and supporters of Ron Paul and yours truly (along with many others) as potential terrorists. Such gross mischaracterizations of law-abiding people--based solely on their political views--serves only to reveal the federal government's willingness to both demonize and marginalize people for the purpose of preparing the stage for possible military and police action against them, he said.

The commander said further that his intelligence tells him that there are Muslim terrorists already in the United States who are planning to stage multi-city attacks, perhaps as early as this summer. He also expressed incredulity at the fact that our federal government certainly knows that these Muslim terrorists have been slipping across the southern border of the US for some time and there has been almost no attempt by any Presidential administration to stop them.

Commander Cunningham also expressed the fear that, should another attack occur within our country, the current administration would not hesitate to declare martial law, which would almost certainly include the confiscation of firearms. At that point, he said, America will have entered "The Age of Despotism."

I think it prudent, at this point, to make note of the fact that it was the attempted confiscation of firearms by the British Crown that precipitated the "shot heard 'round the world" and the advent of America's War for Independence. Until then, America's founders were content to use peaceful means to petition British injuries and injustices. But when the Crown moved against their guns, the colonists resisted with violence, and there was no remedy but complete and permanent separation.

If Commander Cunningham's educated prognostications regarding the Obama administration's intentions to confiscate our guns and put us under some sort of despotic rule are accurate, it is incumbent to remember that a British king and a Japanese emperor each "awakened a sleeping giant" within the hearts of the American people by attempting to render us defenseless. If, now, a US President wants to repeat history, all he needs to do is try and bring about "The Age of Despotism," and he will find that the "sleeping giant" is still very much alive and well in the hearts of millions of freedom-loving Americans.

P.S. We will have Commander Cunningham's video address uploaded to my web site soon. Watch for it at

http://www.chuckbaldwinlive.com/

*If you appreciate this column and want to help me distribute these editorial opinions to an ever-growing audience, donations may now be made by credit card, check, or Money Order. Use this link:

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© Chuck Baldwin

This column is archived as http://www.chuckbaldwinlive.com/c2009/cbarchive_20090707.html

Texas Hurricane Season Preparedness 2009

People living along the texas Gulf Coast should begin their preparedness for the hurricane season of 2009. You should have an evacuation plan ready, prepare an emergency kit in advance and learn the evacuation routes for your area.

Gulf Coast residents who have specialized health care needs, including those who are disabled or have other limiting medical problems can register in advance with the State of Texas for special assistance by calling 2-1-1. This must be done in advance of any storm that happens to pop up in the Gulf. The State will make special arrangements when you register to make sure you have the proper medical care available to you in case of an evacuation. If you don't have family or friends that can assist you in being able to meet special medical care needs, the State will provide the necessary assitance for you. You must register in advance of any storm to get this benefit!

Similar assistance is also available for those who lack the necessary transportation to evacuate in the case of a hurricane, you only need to dial 2-1-1 in advance and register for emergency transportation.

You can also dial 2-1-1 and get evacuation zone information for your area of the state.

For more information about these emergency services you can visit the Governor's Division of Emergency Management website:

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem/pages/index.htm

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

4 July 2009

May God bless us all. God bless the great state of Texas. We are going to need it. I pray that everyone has a safe 4th of July 2009. I suspect this may be the last one that is "normal" for years to come.

I pray that God bless the Republic of the United States of America but I fear that she is too far gone, that God has given up on her. We will reap what we have sown.

In liberty and freedom, I am.

Pickdog

The pace quickens

Seven banks fail, pushing 2009 tally to 52
Regulators close six Illinois banks and one Texas bank, setting the FDIC back a total of $314.3 million.
By Catherine Clifford, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: July 3, 2009: 12:29 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Seven banks were shut down by authorities Thursday, pushing the tally of failed banks for 2009 to 52, more than doubling the failures in 2008.

Six regional banks in Illinois and one in Texas closed their doors, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

The rash of Illinois failures are interlinked: All six banks were controlled by one family and followed a similar business model that "created concentrated exposure in each institution," according to the FDIC.

The agency said that the six failures stemmed from the banks' investments in collateralized debt obligations and other loan losses.

Twelve banks in Illinois have failed this year. Thursday's failure in Texas was the first for the state in 2009.

Last year, 25 banks failed in the United States.

Local banks have been hard hit as plummeting home values devalued mortgage-backed assets and rising unemployment rates caused an increasing number of consumers to default on their loans.

Larger financial institutions have been helped with government bailouts, but smaller regional banks continue to struggle.

FDIC fund: The total cost of Thursday's bank failures to the FDIC is $314.3 million, bringing the FDIC fund's total cost for failed banks to $12.3 billion this year. That compares with $17.6 billion in all of 2008.

The FDIC, which is funded primarily by fees paid by banks, insures individual deposits up to $250,000. The amount was increased from $100,000 late last year in response to concerns about the stability of the nation's banks.

First bank topples: State regulators shuttered John Warner Bank, based in Clinton, Ill., and named the FDIC the receiver. The State Bank of Lincoln, based in Lincoln, Ill., will assume all of the deposits of the failed bank.

As of April 30, the failed bank had total assets of $70 million and total deposits of approximately $64 million.

The three offices of John Warner will reopen on Friday as branches of State Bank of Lincoln. Customers of the shuttered bank will automatically become depositors of State Bank of Lincoln.

Second bank falls: Later Thursday, state regulators closed First State Bank of Winchester, based in Winchester, Ill., and named the FDIC the receiver. Federal regulators entered into a purchase and assumption agreement for The First National Bank of Beardstown, based in Beardstown, Ill., to assume all of the assets and deposits of the failed bank.

As of April 30, The First State Bank of Winchester had total assets of $36 million and total deposits of approximately $34 million.

The two offices of the failed bank will reopen Monday as branches of The First National Bank of Beardstown. Customers of the failed bank will automatically be transferred over to the new bank.

Over the weekend, customers of the failed bank can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.

Third bank falls: Rock River Bank, based in Oregon, Ill., was shuttered by state regulators. The FDIC was named the receiver and it entered into an agreement with the The Harvard State Bank, of Harvard, Ill., to assume all of the deposits of the failed bank and almost all of the assets.

As of April 30, Rock River Bank had total assets of $77 million and total deposits of approximately $75.8 million. The Harvard State Bank agreed to purchase $72.9 million in assets and the FDIC will retain the rest to dispose of later.

The four offices of the failed bank will reopen Monday as branches of The Harvard State Bank and depositors will automatically be transferred.

Fourth bank goes down: Elizabeth State Bank, based in Elizabeth, Ill., was closed down by state regulators and the FDIC was named the receiver. Galena State Bank and Trust, based in Galena, Ill., entered into a purchase and assumption agreement to take over all of the deposits of the failed bank.

As of April 30, The Elizabeth State Bank had total assets of $55.5 million and total deposits of approximately $50.4 million. Galena State Bank and Trust purchased $52.3 million of assets and the FDIC will retain the rest to dispose of later.

The two offices of failed bank will reopen on Monday as branches of Galena State Bank and Trust. Customers will automatically be transferred over to the new bank.

Number five: The First National Bank of Danville, headquartered in Danville, Ill., was shuttered by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the FDIC was named the receiver. First Financial Bank, N.A., based in Terre Haute, Ind., entered into a purchase and assumption agreement to take over all of the deposits of the failed bank.

As of April 30, the failed bank had total assets of $166 million and total deposits of approximately $147 million. First Financial Bank, N.A. agreed to purchase $148 million of assets, leaving the remainder for the FDIC to dispose of later.

The seven offices of failed bank will reopen on Monday as branches of First Financial Bank, N.A. and depositors will automatically be transferred over to the new bank.

Number 6: State regulators shut down the Millennium State Bank of Texas, based in Dallas, Texas, Thursday and named the FDIC the receiver. The FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with an Irving, Texas bank, called the State Bank of Texas.

As of June 30, Millennium State Bank of Texas had total assets of approximately $118 million and total deposits of $115 million. State Bank of Texas will take over all of the deposits and "essentially all of the failed banks assets," according to the release.

The one office of Millennium State Bank of Texas will be open Monday as a branch of State Bank of Texas. Depositors of the failed bank will automatically be transferred over to the new bank.

The biggest to fall: State regulators shut down Founders Bank, based in Worth, Ill., and named the FDIC the receiver. The PrivateBank and Trust Company, head-quartered in Chicago, Ill., entered into a purchase and assumption agreement to take over the assets of the failed bank.

As of April 30, Founders Bank had total assets of $962.5 million and total deposits of $848.9 million. The PrivateBank and Trust Company purchased all of the deposits of the failed bank and $888.4 million worth of assets, leaving the rest for the FDIC to dispose of later.

The eleven offices of the failed bank will reopen on Monday as branches of The PrivateBank and Trust Company. Customers will automatically be transferred over to the new bank.

First Published: July 2, 2009: 4:48 PM ET







Find this article at:
http://money.cnn.com/2009/07/02/news/companies/bank_failure/index.htm?postversion=2009070219

Federal agents hunt for guns, one house at a time

Federal agents hunt for guns, one house at a time
By DANE SCHILLER Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
June 30, 2009, 9:36PM


In front of a run-down shack in north Houston, federal agents step from a government sedan into 102-degree heat and face a critical question: How can the woman living here buy four high-end handguns in one day?

The house is worth $35,000. A screen dangles by a wall-unit air conditioner. Porch swing slats are smashed, the smattering of grass is flattened by cars and burned yellow by sun.

“I’ll do the talking on this one,” agent Tim Sloan, of South Carolina, told partner Brian Tumiel, of New York.

Success on the front lines of a government blitz on gunrunners supplying Mexican drug cartels with Houston weaponry hinges on logging heavy miles and knocking on countless doors. Dozens of agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — sent here from around the country — are needed to follow what ATF acting director Kenneth Melson described as a “massive number of investigative leads.”

All told, Mexican officials in 2008 asked federal agents to trace the origins of more than 7,500 firearms recovered at crime scenes in Mexico. Most of them were traced back to Texas, California and Arizona.

Among other things, the agents are combing neighborhoods and asking people about suspicious purchases as well as seeking explanations as to how their guns ended up used in murders, kidnappings and other crimes in Mexico.

“Ever turning up the heat on cartels, our law enforcement and military partners in the government of Mexico have been working more closely with the ATF by sharing information and intelligence,” Melson said Tuesday during a firearms-trafficking summit in New Mexico.

Firearms dealers visited
The ATF recently dispatched 100 veteran agents to its Houston division, which reaches to the border.

The mission is especially challenging because, officials say, that while Houston is the number one point of origin for weapons traced back to the United States from Mexico, the government can’t compile databases on gun owners under federal law. (Pickdog comment - Ummm yeah right, like some silly law stops them.)

Agents instead review firearms dealers’ records in person. (Pickdog comment - then those records are databased perhaps?)

People who are legally in the United States and have clean criminal records, but are facing economic problems are often recruited by traffickers to buy weapons on their behalf in order to shield themselves from scrutiny.

Knocks at the door of the shack that looked to be the definition of hard times went unanswered.

“I am out of here,” Sloan said a few moments later, as a pit bull lazily sauntered from the back yard. “I don’t like pit bulls walking up behind me.”

Best information source
On second thought, Sloan switched to Spanish and interviewed a neighbor.

The neighbor said the woman left a month ago after a fight with her husband or boyfriend, who still lived there with what she called “other degenerates.”

“An angry ex-girlfriend or wife is the best person in the world, the greatest source of information,” Sloan said.

The night before, the duo were in a stakeout where they watched a weapons sale.

They also combined efforts with the Drug Enforcement Administration for an aircraft to stealthily follow traffickers to the border.

On this day, agents weren’t wearing raid jackets or combat boots and weren’t armed with warrants.

Guns were hidden under civilian shirts.

Another tip took agents on a 30-minute drive from the shack to a sprawling home with a pool in the back and an American flag out front.

It turned out two handguns, of a type drug gangsters prefer, were bought by a pastor for target practice.

Some stories, they say, are hard to believe.

The lamest so far came from a police officer: He said he bought a few military-style rifles, left them in his car and — on the same night — forgot to lock a door. He couldn’t explain why he didn’t file a police report or why he visited Mexico the day after the alleged theft.

dane.schiller@chron.com

LA RAZA CALLS FOR HEALTH REFORM THAT INCLUDES ALL WORKERS AND FAMILIES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jun 15, 2009


NCLR CALLS FOR HEALTH REFORM THAT INCLUDES ALL WORKERS AND FAMILIES

Washington, DC—As our nation’s leaders consider health care reform in the coming weeks, NCLR (National Council of La Raza), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States, strongly urges President Obama and Congress to make every effort to ensure that health care reform reaches all communities. No single community stands to gain as much from this important debate as Latinos. In the U.S., one out of every three uninsured persons and roughly 40% of all uninsured children are Latino. NCLR stands for health care reform that makes coverage affordable and accessible for everyone—all families and all children.

“We all use doctors and hospitals for care, so it’s right that everyone in the U.S. should contribute to a new health system. Latinos accept their responsibility, and if they have the opportunity, they will pay their fair share for the health coverage they need,” said NCLR President and CEO Janet Murguía.

NCLR cautions, however, that the positive impact of several reform proposals on the table may be undermined by additional measures that would severely restrict access to health coverage by mandating new, expensive verification and documentation procedures. “This debate should be about health care for all, and setting the nation on a pathway to future health and well-being. Adding layers of immigrant verification and bureaucratic red tape to a new health care system would guarantee that millions of citizen children are effectively barred from accessing preventive care and would raise the cost of health care,” Murguía noted.

“For this reason, we are extremely concerned that some view health reform as a way to scapegoat immigrants,” Murguía continued. “We agree that the immigration system needs to be fixed, but address that problem separately through immigration reform. The best way to reduce costs in our health care system is to ensure that people do not have to follow a long paper trail to get to the doctor and that everyone shares the costs of a new system. Making health care easier to use and accessible for all workers and children is simple common sense.”

For more information, visit www.nclr.org.


Pickdog comment - Hmmm sounds as though La Raza wants free health care for all illegals. How about we deport all illegals and then work on health care and immigration reform. This would help alleviate unemployment, reduce state and Federal expenditures and reduce crime rates. Nah, that would be prudent.

But there is more...

http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2009/06/red-alert-la-raza-if-american-people.html

"Suzanne", a female caller to Mark Levin's show on June 25th, revealed the ominous secret of the Democrat health care reform effort.

I want to tell you that last week I attended a conference on health care reform sponsored by La Raza. And I will tell you that what they had to say, Mark, is scarier than anything that's been said so far on the health care plan.

The kind of comments that were made and the notes that I took... they started the conference out by saying "America does not need health care reform, but Latino immigrants need health care reform."

And someone from Menendez' office [Ed.: Sen. Robert Menendez, D-NJ] promised that he would make sure that "the useless barriers of citizenship would not be in this bill" and that he would make sure that they would use keywords like "streamline"...

It was La Raza, the Childrens Defense Fund and Senator Menendez from New Jersey, a representative from his office...

...Yes [they said they would get free health care for illegal aliens], these are my notes, Mark. They actually got up and said "Latino children need health care more than whites". And then they would say things like "you must go out into your communities, use words like 'streamline', use phrases like 'all workers' and 'all families'," because they said -- and I quote -- "If the American people find out that this bill is about giving health care to non-citizens, they will rise up against it."

...One of the quotes they said was, "We want to make sure we take care of barriers like verification, but we can streamline programs to the more affluent" and, quote, "Useless treatments for the elderly can be gone because we don't need to spend money for people who are going to die anyway."

That's a direct quote from that meeting. They also said, "We are very concerned there will be an effort to include" the illegal immigrants in this argument, so "we must make sure that we focus this" to the American people that it's looking like we want "health care for everyone".

And they also said that 75% of the children who will be picked up in this will be non-citizens and that 44% of the uninsured are non-citizens and they can't possibly allow the American people to know this." [Ed: Oops!]

Menendez' office said that he's going to make sure that "a family of four that makes $66,000 a year or less will pay nothing at all for the new health care. And he was the one who said he was going to get rid of specifics like "citizenship status" and focus on, quote, "equity for all workers".

And he said he's going to make sure that the Latino immigrants are the focus of the health care reform.

And La Raza said if they get this, they don't even care about amnesty, because they've fixed it so that one family member can apply for all extended family members. And... Mark, if you think we have a problem with illegal immigration now, wait 'til you see the borders when this thing gets passed.

Pickdog comment - What is sad about La Raza and their ilk (Neo-Nazis etc) is that this type of mind set just divides America much like the Balkans. Of course, divide and conquer is SOP for the Socialists and NWO.