First, brand all the children
An armed uprising won't transpire, but a time will come when people will run away from cities. Even if you disagree with prophecy, I very much doubt that you truly believe that there is men and women in great numbers that will fight. After spending 26 years on this planet, it will not be a surprise to me when my neighbors, family & friends are first in line to the inoculation centers. Why? Because it will be the simpliest of things. "And that no man might buy or sell, except he that had the mark" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve Furlong" <sfurlong@acmenet.net> To: <cypherpunks@lne.com> Sent: Thursday, October 25, 2001 6:23 AM Subject: Re: First, brand all the children
Declan McCullagh wrote:
When you have 99-1 votes in the Senate (http://www.politechbot.com/p-02651.html), can anyone seriously say that either the Democrats or Republicans can be trusted to preserve our privacy and follow the demands of the Constitution?
No. Nor have the mass of national politicians been trustworthy since FDR or before.
It might be good that Congress is likely to pass a Draconian anti-terrorism law. The nibbling away at civil rights has gone generally without effective opposition. About the only hope for the retention of our rights is a massive chunk bitten off at once, while there are still enough armed Americans to put politicians in fear of their lives. I'm not actually hoping for an armed uprising, but the fear of one is clearly the only thing which will bring Congress, the federal courts, and the President to heel.
-- Steve Furlong Computer Condottiere Have GNU, Will Travel 617-670-3793
"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly while bad people will find a way around the laws." -- Plato
On Thu, 25 Oct 2001, Anonymous User wrote:
An armed uprising won't transpire, but a time will come when people will run away from cities.
You're probably wrong on both counts. When the US falls, it will likely be from internal stress from external (and long running) events. We should hope that the fall is as bloodless as the one in the CCCP back in very early 90's. Note that people won't run from the cities, nor will there likely be mass destruction (unless somebody in 'power' gets hard headed and retains some sort of control over the military). In the case of the CCCP not only had the society in general had their fill but so did the military. The key point to a bloodless fall will be the military saying 'I think we'll sit this one out, thank you very much.' -- ____________________________________________________________________ The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion. Edmund Burke (1784) The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Choate wrote:
...When the US falls ... The key point to a bloodless fall will be the military saying 'I think we'll sit this one out, thank you very much.'
And a major key to that is militarily useful weaponry in the hands of the citizens. It would be nice to think that most US soldiers would not participate in the forceful subjugation of fellow Americans, but history (Kent State; shooting a Texas goat herd while on border patrol) and psychology (Stanford prison experiment) argue against that. And regardless, I'd rather retain some measure of control over my destiny, rather than solely trust in the good will of others. -- Steve Furlong Computer Condottiere Have GNU, Will Travel 617-670-3793 "Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly while bad people will find a way around the laws." -- Plato
On Thu, 25 Oct 2001, Steve Furlong wrote:
Jim Choate wrote:
...When the US falls ... The key point to a bloodless fall will be the military saying 'I think we'll sit this one out, thank you very much.'
And a major key to that is militarily useful weaponry in the hands of the citizens.
I'm not so sure. It certainly wasn't a major factor in the fall of the CCCP. I believe it will be a political/social issue that will transcend 'party lines'. -- ____________________________________________________________________ The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion. Edmund Burke (1784) The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------
participants (3)
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Anonymous User -
Jim Choate -
Steve Furlong