Ashcroft calls for more restrictions on use, transport of cash
According to the Wall Street Journal online -
Mr. Ashcroft said Congress should: 7 Make bulk cash smuggling a crime. Mr. Ashcroft said the only law currently on the books to combat smuggling is a requirement that shipments of more than $10,000 be accompanied by a report from the U.S. Customs Service. The Supreme Court has ruled that failing to file reports isn't a serious enough offense to warrant confiscating the cash, so at worst couriers for organized crime serve a short jail sentences -- "a virtually meaningless penalty for a drug-trafficking organization," Mr. Ashcroft said. 7 Make it a federal offense for people to transport more than $10,000 in cash proceeds from a criminal offense over highways or on airplanes. Mr. Ashcroft said a court threw out a case in which $10,000 in cash was seized from the trunk of a car driven by men who had prior drug convictions because it isn't a crime to transport drug money down the highway. 7 Expand money-laundering laws to include crimes other than drugs, terrorism and bank fraud. Mr. Ashcroft said federal prosecutors often must turn down money-laundering cases involving corrupt foreign public officials and organized-crime groups because their crimes aren't covered under U.S. money-laundering laws. Mr. Ashcroft said the Justice Department also may ask Congress to outlaw wire transfers of tainted money and the laundering of proceeds from terrorism and to deny U.S. visas to suspected foreign money launderers and their families.
.. ugh. Guess who's likely to end up with the burden of proof following the seizure of cash pursuant to his proposals .. and guess how hard it's going to be if your evidence consists of oral testimony to the effect that the cash was saved $10 or $20 at a time over a number of years. Everybody knows that people with drug convictions don't save money, and they especially don't save it at home because they have trouble getting a bank account to save it the ordinary way. I guess the bright side of this is that the harder the feds clamp down on legitimate or almost-legitimate uses of existing infrastructure, the faster less-controllable less-trackable infrastructure will be constructed within and by the black market. -- Greg Broiles gbroiles@well.com "We have found and closed the thing you watch us with." -- New Delhi street kids
On Tue, 7 Aug 2001, Greg Broiles wrote:
According to the Wall Street Journal online -
Mr. Ashcroft said Congress should: 7 Make bulk cash smuggling a crime. Mr. Ashcroft said the only law currently on the books to combat smuggling is a requirement that shipments of more than $10,000 be accompanied by a report from the U.S. Customs Service. The Supreme Court has ruled that failing to file reports isn't a serious enough offense to warrant confiscating the cash, so at worst couriers for organized crime serve a short jail sentences -- "a virtually
.. ugh. Guess who's likely to end up with the burden of proof following the seizure of cash pursuant to his proposals .. and guess how hard it's going to be if your evidence consists of oral testimony to the effect that the cash was saved $10 or $20 at a time over a number of years.
Never mind that. They drop to $5k/mule (talk about absurd - there's this story about this Chinese emporer, some bloke who made him happy, a chess board, and a bunch of rice...). Doubles the transport cost. I predict an almost immediate increase of marijuana cost of approx. 20-25%. Stock up now! (just kidding, really) At some point they'll have to come face to face with the fact that there is no (zero, nada, nil, none, nope, not happen') ethical or moral justification for regulation of 'consensual crimes' in a democracy. That the only thing it demonstrates is that power corrupts. That to stop somebody from willingly smoking a doobie is about the silliest fucking thing any 'rational' man can come up with. When they see the light they will see that taxation will more than make up for any social 'disruption' it might cause. People are people, outside of murder, physical assault, or theft as long as both parties say "I do!" it ain't nobodies business. -- ____________________________________________________________________ natsugusa ya...tsuwamonodomo ga...yume no ato summer grass...those mighty warriors'...dream-tracks Matsuo Basho The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------
participants (2)
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Greg Broiles -
Jim Choate