So today you get a second edition of the blog, It is a shame that the government both local and federal are so quick to limit the rights of the honest hard working crowd in this great country. They trample the God given rights with out a second thought and then are not willing to correct the problem.
So today you get a second edition, of just Government Abuses. If i were truly diligent i could fill a blog daily about just abuses, but then, it would not really mean anything. The blog was designed to try and highlight trends and post up the important news of the day. It will end sometime after the fourth of July, after a little more then a year. I hope some of you all found it helpful.
Men Face Charges After Police Raid Wrong House
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - A father and son are furious after surviving a terrifying experience. They face criminal charges after police responded to their home by mistake.
Murfreesboro officers responded to a 911 emergency call and somehow ended up at the wrong apartment.
Roger and Justin Chilton woke to a pounding on their door at 3 a.m. Sunday. Justin - a decorated military policeman who had just returned from Iraq - answered the door holding his gun.
The officers then arrested Justin and his father.
"They held us at gunpoint, slammed us to the ground, stomped my hands and butted me in the back of the head with a shotgun," said Justin.
The officers charged the Chilton's with resisting arrest and aggravated assault for the incident.
Police did not drop the charges even after learning they responded to the wrong house.
Murfreesboro police chief Glenn Chrisman has opened an internal investigation.
http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/story.asp?S=9915358
How a Heartwarming, "Great" Father's Day Photo Shoot Ended Up Face Down in Handcuffs on the Addison Airport Tarmac
Saturday afternoon, friend of the show Danny Hurley sent word that they were offering quite the Father's Day gift out at Addison Airport -- flights on a B-24 Liberator, where everyone calls shotgun. (Pretty cool too, as only two Liberators are still flying). Danny wanted to go out and shoot some photos of the circa-'44 bomber and the men who ponied up for the ride; I told him sure, go 'head, sounds great -- very heartwarming. And, sure enough, he got some awfully nice shots and stories to go with them, as among those taking part yesterday were two men treating their terminally ill stepfather, a Vietnam vet, to a spin in the sky that might just be his last. Danny was collecting several such tales.
But when he sent along his pictures -- which you can see in this terrific slide show -- he noted that, well, he sure wishes he could've come back with more, "but my day was cut short." How so? Well, his version of the day's events follow after the jump. But I''ll provide this small hint: the Department of Homeland Security. Which, if you've ever met Danny, is hilarious. To everyone except Danny.
So, anyway. Danny had been out shooting all morning with the plane's owners and pilot's permission when he suffered a horrible case of photographicus interruptus:
I got an early Father's Day surprise from Homeland Security. It seems the public is not allowed on the tarmac. I thought the tarmac was the cement runway, but it's actually a hundred yards or so on each side.
Waiting for the plane to take off, I was surprised by the Addison police. An officer unholstered his gun, then handcuffed and held me until Homeland Security cleared my name.
I was not arrested, but according to Officer Pierce, I did break federal law and a report would be sent to Homeland Security. I will be hearing from them. I apologized to every one involved. The pilot told me the airport was shut down for a short while.
But according to one of the crew, they had ID'd me as one of theirs, and the tower knew and tried to call it off. But once the wheels were set in motion, it could not be stopped. The pilots were pretty much cool and laughed at me and were even willing to escort me to take more shots. One old-timer gruffed under his breath, "It's the U.S.A., not U.S.S.R. -- I didn't fight to protect this shit." One even offered me his seat on a ride.
However, the officer had asked me to leave, so I did. The police were professional, and I consider myself lucky.
http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2009/06/how_a_heartwarming_kick-ass_fa.php
Here is an update on the TSA heavy handed handling of the Ron Paul supporter i mention a couple of days ago.
Passenger says TSA agents harassed him
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Steve Bierfeldt says the Transportation Security Administration pulled him aside for extra questioning in March. He was carrying a pocket edition of the U.S. Constitution and an iPhone capable of making audio recordings. And he used them.
Steve Bierfeldt is accusing the Transportation Security Administration of "harassing interrogation."
On a recording a TSA agent can be heard berating Bierfeldt. One sample: "You want to play smartass, and I'm not going to play your f**king game."
Bierfeldt is director of development for the Campaign for Liberty, an outgrowth of the Ron Paul presidential campaign. He was returning from a regional conference March 29 when TSA screeners at Lambert-St. Louis (Missouri) International Airport saw a metal cash box in his carry-on bag. Inside was more than $4,700 dollars in cash -- proceeds from the sale of political merchandise like T-shirts and books.
There are no restrictions on carrying large sums of cash on flights within the United States, but the TSA allegedly took Bierfeldt to a windowless room and, along with other law enforcement agencies, questioned him for almost half an hour about the money.
The American Civil Liberties Union has taken up Bierfeldt's cause and is suing Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, whose department includes the TSA. Their complaint alleges that Bierfeldt was "subjected to harassing interrogation, and unlawfully detained."
Larry Schwartztol of the ACLU said the TSA is suffering from mission creep.
"We think what happened to Mr. Bierfeldt is a reflection that TSA believes passenger screening is an opportunity to engage in freewheeling law enforcement investigations that have no link to flight safety," he said.
Schwartztol believes many other passengers have been subjected to the same kind of treatment, which he claims violates constitutional protections against unlawful searches.
The TSA wouldn't comment on the lawsuit, but said in a statement that the movement of large amounts of cash through a checkpoint may be investigated "if suspicious activity is suspected."
Unbeknownst to the TSA agents, Bierfieldt had activated the record application on his phone and slipped it into his pocket. It captured the entire conversation.
An excerpt:
Officer: Why do you have this money? That's the question, that's the major question.
Bierfeldt: Yes, sir, and I'm asking whether I'm legally required to answer that question.
Officer: Answer that question first, why do you have this money.
Bierfeldt: Am I legally required to answer that question?
Officer: So you refuse to answer that question?
Bierfeldt: No, sir, I am not refusing.
Officer: Well, you're not answering.
Bierfeldt: I'm simply asking my rights under the law.
The officers can be heard saying they will involve the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, and appear to threaten arrest, saying they are going to transport Bierfeldt to the local police station, in handcuffs if necessary.
Bierfeldt told CNN he believes their behavior was inappropriate.
"You're in a locked room with no windows. You've got TSA agent. You've got police officers with loaded guns. They're in your face. A few of them were swearing at me."
But the officers did not follow through on their threats. Near the end of the recording an additional officer enters the situation and realizes the origins of the money.
Officer: So these are campaign contributions for Ron Paul?
Bierfeldt: Yes, sir.
Officer: You're free to go.
According to the TSA, "Passengers are required to cooperate with the screening process. Cooperation may involve answering questions about their property. A passenger who refuses to answer questions may be referred to appropriate authorities for further inquiry"
Bierfeldt contends he never refused to answer a question, he only sought to clarify his constitutional rights.
"I asked them, 'Am I required by law to tell you what you're asking me? Am I required to tell you where I am working? Am I required to tell you how I got the cash? Nothing I've done is suspicious. I'm not breaking any laws. I just want to go to my flight. Please advise me as to my rights.' And they didn't."
The TSA says disciplinary action has been taken against one of its employees for inappropriate tone and language.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/20/tsa.lawsuit/index.html#cnnSTCText
Bid to expand knife ban doesn't cut it with critics
CBP rule would redefine switchblades
Hunters, whittlers and Boy Scouts, beware - your knives may soon be on the government's chopping block.
The Obama administration wants to expand the 50-year-old ban on importing "switchblades" to include folding knives that can be opened with one hand, stirring fears the government may on the path to outlawing most pocket knives.
Critics, including U.S. knife manufacturers and collectors, the National Rifle Association, sportsmen's groups and a bipartisan group of lawmakers on Capitol Hill, say the rule change proposed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) would rewrite U.S. law defining what constitutes a switchblade and potentially make de facto criminals of the estimated 35 million Americans who use folding knives.
"Boy Scout knives, Swiss Army knives - the most basic of knives can be opened one-handed if you know what you are doing," said Doug Ritter, executive director of Knife Rights, an advocacy group fighting to defeat the measure.
"The outrage is gaining steam," he said.
Customs officials dismiss fears that the new language will outlaw ordinary pocket knives, saying the change was issued to clear up conflicting guidelines for border agents about what constitutes an illegal switchblade that cannot be imported into the United States. The rule could be imposed within 30 days if not blocked.
A review of case law and "in consideration of the health and public safety concerns raised by such importations" prompted the agency to revoke the ruling that allowed the importing of knives with spring- and release-assisted opening mechanisms, CBP spokeswoman Jenny L. Burke said.
Customs officials argue the rule deals only with imported merchandise, and thus does not affect knives already in the country or that are manufactured domestically.
The rule change would affect the interpretation of the Switchblade Knife Act of 1958, which defined a "switchblade" as any knife having a blade that opens automatically by hand pressure applied to a button or other device in the handle, or by operation of inertia or gravity.
The new definition would include any spring-assisted or one-handed-opening knife.
The 1958 law bans the possession of switchblades on federal lands and prohibits the mailing or sale of switchblades across state lines. It does not mandate prohibition within states and localities, though a number of states, including Maryland, have passed their own statutes banning or limiting the possession and carrying of switchblades.
Possession of switchblades is legal in Virginia if not intended for sale.
Critics of the rule say that broadening the definition of switchblades in federal law would instantly make previously permitted knives illegal in states that have adopted the ban. Hunters and hikers who cross state lines with their knives in tow may find themselves guilty of a federal felony, they warn.
The bipartisan Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, boasting one of the largest memberships on Capitol Hill, last week sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who oversees CBP, urging her to quash the proposed rule change. The letter was signed by 61 Republican and 18 Democratic lawmakers.
"This classification could render millions of law-abiding knife owners in violation of the law and expose major market retailers, manufacturers, dealers and importers to possible federal felony charges, and could drive domestic manufacturers and importers out of business, potentially costing thousands of jobs," said caucus member Rep. Robert E. Latta, Ohio Republican.
In much the same way that gun rights issues have cut across the partisan divide in Congress, the threat of a government knife grab has especially rankled members from Western and Southern states, regardless of their party.
Miss Napolitano has not responded, according to congressional staffers.
The knife lobby does not believe the agency's assurances that the rule has only a narrow application.
"The language used ... is so broad and uses virtually every term ever applied to any knife that opens with one hand. We fear that they are attempting to bypass the will of Congress and that once they succeed in getting assisted-openers defined as switchblades, they could move against all folding knives," said the American Knife and Tool Institute, which represents knife manufacturers, distributors, retailers and custom-knife artisans.
Boy Scouts of America spokesman Deron Smith said he did not want to comment because he was not familiar with the details of the proposed rule. But he said the Boy Scout Handbook does include many references to pocket knives.
"Knives are a part of the scouting program," Mr. Smith said. "We primarily stress safe knife usage and maintenance of knives. ... We will just continue to stick to what's in the handbook."
The relatively quick pace of the rule-making process - a 30-day comment period that ended Monday, followed by a 30-day implementation schedule - has opponents looking to head off the measure in Congress.
Mr. Latta and Rep. Walt Minnick, Idaho Democrat, introduced legislation Tuesday that would block CBP from broadening the definition of switchblades.
The legislation was offered as an amendment to the appropriations bill for the Homeland Security Department, which is expected to come to the House floor soon.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jun/24/bid-to-expand-knife-ban-doesnt-cut-it-with-critics/
Report: NKorea ship suspected of carrying missiles
SEOUL, South Korea – A U.S. Navy destroyer is tailing a North Korean ship suspected of carrying illicit weapons toward Myanmar in what could be the first test of new U.N. sanctions against the North over its recent nuclear test, a leading TV network said Sunday.
The South Korean news network YTN, citing an unidentified intelligence source in the South, said the U.S. suspects the cargo ship Kang Nam is carrying missiles and related parts. Myanmar's military government, which faces an arms embargo from the United States and the European Union, has reportedly bought weapons from North Korea.
YTN said the U.S. has deployed a destroyer and is using satellites to track the ship, which was expected to travel to Myanmar via Singapore.
South Korea's Defense Ministry, Unification Ministry and National Intelligence Service said they could not confirm the report. Calls to the U.S. military command in Seoul were not answered late Sunday.
The ship is reportedly the first North Korean vessel to be tracked under the new U.N. sanctions.
Two U.S. officials said Thursday that the U.S. military had begun tracking the ship, which left a North Korean port Wednesday and was traveling off the coast of China.
One of the officials said it was uncertain what the Kang Nam was carrying, but that it had been involved in weapons proliferation before. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula have spiked since North Korea defiantly conducted its second nuclear explosion on May 25. It later declared it would expand its atomic bomb program and threatened war to protest the U.N. sanctions imposed in response to its nuclear test.
The sanctions toughen an earlier arms embargo against North Korea and authorize ship searches in an attempt to thwart its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
The Security Council resolution calls on all 192 U.N. member states to inspect vessels on the high seas "if they have information that provides reasonable grounds to believe that the cargo" contains banned weapons or material to make them, and if approval is given by the country whose flag the ship sails under.
If the country refuses to give approval, it must direct the vessel "to an appropriate and convenient port for the required inspection by the local authorities."
A senior U.S. military official told The Associated Press on Friday that a Navy ship, the USS John S. McCain, is relatively close to the North Korean vessel but had no orders to intercept it under the Security Council resolution and had not requested that authority. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive issue of ship movements.
The Navy ship, a guided missile destroyer, is named after the grandfather and father of former U.S. presidential candidate Sen. John McCain. Both were admirals.
McCain said Sunday that the U.S. should board the Kang Nam even without North Korean permission if hard evidence shows it is carrying missiles or other cargo in violation of U.N. resolutions.
"I think we should board it. It's going to contribute to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to rogue nations that pose a direct threat to the United States," he said on CBS' "Face the Nation."
President Barack Obama said the U.N. sanctions would be aggressively enforced after talks Tuesday with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Washington. Obama also reaffirmed the U.S. security commitment to South Korea, including nuclear protection.
In its first response to the summit, North Korea's government-run weekly Tongil Sinbo said Obama's comments revealed a U.S. plot to invade the North with nuclear weapons.
"It's not a coincidence at all for the U.S. to have brought numerous nuclear weapons into South Korea and other adjacent sites, staging various massive war drills opposing North Korea every day and watching for a chance for an invasion," it said in a commentary published Saturday.
North Korea says its nuclear program is a deterrent against the U.S., which it routinely accuses of plotting to topple its communist regime. The U.S., which has 28,500 troops in South Korea, has repeatedly said it has no such intention and has no nuclear weapons there.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090621/ap_on_re_as/as_koreas_nuclear_45
And i have a bridge for sale
White House to Abandon Spy-Satellite Program
WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration plans to kill a controversial Bush administration spy satellite program at the Department of Homeland Security, according to officials familiar with the decision.
The program came under fire from its inception two years ago. Democratic lawmakers said it would lead to domestic spying.
The program would have provided federal, state and local officials with extensive access to spy-satellite imagery — but no eavesdropping capabilities— to assist with emergency response and other domestic-security needs, such as identifying where ports or border areas are vulnerable to terrorism.
It would have expanded an Interior Department satellite program, which will continue to be used to assist in natural disasters and for other limited security purposes such as photographing sporting events. The Wall Street Journal first revealed the plans to establish the program, known as the National Applications Office, in 2007.
"It's being shut down," said a homeland security official.
The Bush administration had taken preliminary steps to launch the office, such as acquiring office space and beginning to hire staff.
The plans to shutter the office signal Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano's decision to refocus the department's intelligence on ensuring that state and local officials get the threat information they need, the official said. She also wants to make the department the central point in the government for receiving and analyzing terrorism tips from around the country, the official added.
Lawmakers alerted Ms. Napolitano of their concerns about the program-that the program would violate the Fourth amendment right to be protected from unreasonable searches-before her confirmation hearing.
Once she assumed her post, Ms. Napolitano ordered a review of the program and concluded the program wasn't worth pursuing, the homeland official said. Department spokeswoman Amy Kudwa declined to speak about the results of the review but said they would be announced shortly.
The lawmakers were most concerned about plans to provide satellite imagery to state and local law enforcement, so department officials asked state and local officials how useful that information would be to them. The answer: not very useful.
"In our view, the NAO is not an issue of urgency," Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton, wrote to Ms. Napolitano on June 21.
Writing on behalf of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, Chief Bratton said that were the program to go forward, the police chiefs would be concerned about privacy protections and whether using military satellites for domestic purposes would violate the Posse Comitatus law, which bars the use of the military for law enforcement in the U.S.
Rep. Jane Harman (D., Calif.), who oversees the House Homeland Security subcommittee on intelligence, said she was alarmed when she recently saw that the Obama administration requested money for the program in a classified 2010 budget proposal. She introduced two bills that would terminate the program.
"It's a good decision," Ms. Harman said in an interview. "This will remove a distraction and let the intelligence function at [the department] truly serve the community that needs it, which is local law enforcement."
Supporters of the program lamented what they said was the loss of an important new terrorism-fighting tool for natural disasters and terrorist attacks, as well as border security.
"After numerous congressional briefings on the importance of the NAO and its solid legal footing, politics beat out good government," said Andrew Levy, who was deputy general counsel at the department in the Bush administration.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124572555214540265.html
Ohio governor backs plan for livestock standards
June 23, 2009 - 4:25am By TERRY KINNEY Associated Press Writer
CINCINNATI (AP) - Ohio should have a state board to set guidelines for livestock care, Gov. Ted Strickland said Monday, adding to the debate between farm interests and the nation's biggest animal welfare organization.
The head of the Washington-based Humane Society of the United States said such a board would give farmers too much leeway and wouldn't guarantee a ban of crates that are used to confine breeding sows or cages that are too small for laying hens.
"It provokes us to do a ballot initiative," said society president Wayne Pacelle, who has guided successful initiatives and legislation in several states. "It almost forces our hand to seek a measure for November 2010 on confinement practices."
The constitutional amendment backed by Strickland, who didn't cite any current standards for the care of farm animals, would create a 13-member Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board. If approved by the Legislature, which planned to take it up Wednesday, the plan would go before voters this year.
"The board," Strickland said in a statement, "will ensure that Ohioans continue to have access to a safe and affordable local food supply and will make our state a national leader in the level of animal care and responsibility."
He didn't say who would be on the board.
Pacelle called the council "a transparent attempt by agribusiness interests" to thwart a ballot initiative on animal confinement.
"It would create an industry-dominated council that would seek to embrace the status quo in Ohio agriculture," he said.
State Rep. John Domenick, who heads the House agriculture committee, said even though he was named the Humane Society's Ohio legislator of the year for his bill last year that would have made cockfighting a felony, he doesn't necessarily agree with all of the society's ambitions.
"It's important that we stand up for our rights as agriculture people," Domenick said. "We're a farming state. We don't need a downturn in farming at this point to affect us even more."
The 11 million-member Humane Society already had targeted Ohio for its next comprehensive action on a range of issues from livestock confinement to puppy mills. On Monday it released a survey it said shows Ohio is ripe for the taking, with 67 percent public support for a ballot initiative in November 2010.
Domenick, noting that the Humane Society waged a $10 million campaign to win in California, said, "If it makes it to the ballot, the Humane Society is going to win."
Pacelle has said that Illinois, Massachusetts and Washington state also are in the group's sights.
One farm group, the Ohio Farm Bureau, is bracing for a fight. Another, the Ohio Farmers Union, says a fight is pointless, expensive and unwinnable.
"We've come to the conclusion that a negotiated settlement is the best way to go," said Roger Wise, a third-generation farmer and president of the Ohio Farmers Union. "It's misguided to draw a line in the sand and say it's us versus them."
He said a fight would result in acrimony, vitriol and "ugly images on television to portray extremes as the norm to drive a wedge between producers and consumers."
The Farm Bureau is going the other way, saying it doesn't want debate on the issue to be driven by one point of view. It has created a Center for Food and Animal Issues to address all farm animal, family pet, zoo and research issues.
"It's very easy for the public not to have all the facts," spokesman Joe Cornely said. "We hope to bring a lot of voices to the discussion and not lose out in the public policy area because we didn't show up."
___
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ North Carolina agriculture leaders urged farmers Monday to have their wheat tested after officials found high levels of a toxin in wheat samples from parts of the state.
Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said vomitoxin has been found in samples from central and northeastern North Carolina. The toxin is a byproduct of a fungus often caused by wet weather during the early April pollination stage.
Troxler said testing is urgent because farmers harvesting their wheat now may not know the fungus is on their crop, so he warned it may continue contaminating wheat as it moves storage bins. He said the state would provide free testing.
Dan Weathington of the North Carolina Small Grain Growers Association said he's confident there are enough protections in place to prevent harmful grain from entering the food supply.
North Carolina wheat brought in more than $100 million in 2007, according to state statistics. http://wtop.com/?nid=111&sid=1680226
GAO Cites Gun Sales to Those on Watch List
People named on the government's terrorism watch list have successfully purchased firearms hundreds of times since 2004, government investigators reported yesterday. In one case, a known or suspected terrorist was able to obtain an explosives license, the Government Accountability Office reported.
U.S. lawmakers requested the audit to show how people on the watch list can be stopped from boarding airplanes but not from buying guns. Under federal law, licensed firearms dealers must request an FBI background check for each buyer but cannot legally stop a purchase solely because someone is on the watch list. The study found that people on the list purchased firearms 865 times in 963 attempts over a five-year period ending in February.
Those who were denied gun purchases were disqualified for other reasons, such as a felony conviction, a drug violation or being an illegal immigrant.
Citing a "terror gap," Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Reps. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Robert C. Scott (D-Va.) released the study, and Lautenberg introduced legislation yesterday to give the U.S. attorney general authority to stop the sale of guns or explosives to terrorists.
"The special interest gun lobby has so twisted our nation's laws that the rights of terrorists are placed above the safety of everyday Americans," Lautenberg said in a written statement. "The current law simply defies common sense."
Chris W. Cox, the National Rifle Association's chief lobbyist, said that his group opposes terrorists having access to firearms but that many people are placed on the watch list erroneously. The NRA cited a Justice Department inspector general's report in March that found that about 24,000 of 400,000 people on the list -- or about 6 percent -- were named based on outdated or irrelevant information in FBI files, sometimes after their cases had been closed.
"Law-abiding Americans should not be treated like terrorists," Cox said in a written statement. "To deny law-abiding people due process and their Second Amendment rights based on a secret list is not how we do things in America."
In 2005, the GAO reported that people on the watch list were able to buy weapons in 35 of 44 attempts between February and June 2004.
Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd said the department had no comment on the GAO audit, which was first reported by the New York Times. Boyd added: "We're reviewing the [Lautenberg] bill."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/22/AR2009062201766.html?hpid=topnews
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