Meet the Military-Industrial-Wall Street Complex: Blackstone Hires General Wesley Clark

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So how’s a private equity company snatching up homes all across America, pushing average citizens out of the market and then renting these homes back to the once middle class, but now indentured servitude masses supposed to hedge itself against future backlash?  Simple, put a former General and NATO Supreme Allied Commander in Europe on your payroll.  That’s exactly what Blackstone has just done.

According to Bloomberg, Blackstone has hired General Wesley Clark to “to advise on its investments in energy companies.”  This makes perfect sense since General Clark may be privy to information regarding which countries’ oil wells and refineries may be next in line or liberation by America.  From Bloomberg:

Blackstone Group LP hired Wesley Clark, the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and a one-time U.S. presidential candidate, to advise on its investments in energy companies.

Private-equity firms hire high-ranking executives and former officials to expand relationships with corporations and governments worldwide, as well as to benefit from their industry experiences. KKR & Co., the buyout company run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, hired former CIA director David Petraeus last month to run a new unit for public policy and economic research at the New York-based firm.

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The Liberty Mastermind Conference: Less than 2 Weeks Away!

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The Liberty Mastermind Conference is now very close at hand, and everyone involved is extremely excited to meet each other, interact with the attendees and share ideas about how to restore freedom and the rule of law to this once great nation.  As a reminder, the conference will be held in Dallas the weekend of … Read more

Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Discusses The Constitution, NSA Spying and Torture

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When I was brought up we were taught that Communist Russia were the ones that were going to kill us, bomb our country and all this.  That Communist Russia was so bad because they followed their people, they snooped on them, they arrested them, put them in secret prisons…they disappeared them. These sorts of things … Read more

“Bought with Bitcoin” T-Shirts

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Liberty Blitzkrieg is pleased to announce an experiment in Bitcoin related retail.  As regular readers know, I am a strong supporter of Bitcoin as a weapon in free humanity’s arsenal to combat the ever encroaching authoritarian corporate-fascist state.  One of the major gripes about Bitcoin has to do with the limited places in which to … Read more

The Brazilian Spring: President Rousseff Booed at Soccer Match as 20,000 Set to Protest

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A political earthquake has started to grumble underneath the streets of Brazil.  Last week, there was considerable violence in Sao Paulo, where as many as 100 protesters were injured including several journalists during demonstrations against a bus fare hike.  As is typical in cases of sudden bursts of widespread activism, it’s difficult to know in advance what event will catalyze a population already fed up with grievances.  In the case of Turkey, it was an announcement to raze a park and build a mall.  In Brazil, it is a hike in public transportation costs in a nation already frustrated with high inflation and rampant political corruption.

Today will be a very important test-case to see whether or not the unrest will escalate.  While it appears the “authorities” are expected to exercise restraint during what may be as many as 20,000 protesters in Sao Paulo today, these situations are inherently volatile.  It is particularly intense in Brazil after spectators at a soccer game this past weekend humiliated President Dilma Rousseff by booing him for more than a minute.  From Bloomberg:

As many as 20,000 Brazilians are expected to march in Sao Paulo today in what organizers vow will be the biggest yet in a wave of protests to rock Latin America’s largest economy in little more than a week.

Authorities are pledging to keep riot police at bay to avoid a repeat of clashes June 13 that left dozens wounded when rubber bullets and tear gas were fired upon activists protesting an increase in bus fares.

The demonstrations have grown larger and spread across the country as discontent about inflation and the economy mount, fueling dissatisfaction with President Dilma Rousseff.

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Congress at Work: The House Votes to Uphold the Indefinite Detention of Americans

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In case you missed it, last Thursday our illustrious House of Representatives voted on an amendment that would have blocked the possibility for the President to lock up American citizens without a trial.  Unsurprisingly, our so-called “representatives” once again voted against protecting the constitutional rights of the citizenry in the name of the Orwellian, never-ending “war on terror.”  If you need a refresher on the NDAA and the authoritarian power it grants the executive branch, I suggest you read one of my most popular posts ever: NDAA: The Most Important Lawsuit in American History that No One is Talking About.

After the amendment’s failure, its sponsor Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash) correctly called out Republicans for their complete and total hypocrisy when it comes to “big government.”  He stated:

“This is a vote against the United States constitution and it is a vote against due process.  It is mind-boggling and extremely disappointing that the party who claims to fear big government overreach has voted against an amendment to prevent the government from indefinitely detaining individuals detained on U.S. soil –- including U.S. citizens.”

Now from the Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives voted again Thursday to allow the indefinite military detention of Americans, blocking an amendment that would have barred the possibility.

Supporters of detention argue that the nation needs to be able to arrest and jail suspected terrorists without trial, including Americans on U.S. soil, for as long as there is a war on terror. Their argument won, and the measure was defeated by a vote of 200 to 226.

But opponents, among them the Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), who offered the amendment to end that authority, argued that such detention is a stain on the Constitution that unnecessarily militarizes U.S. law enforcement.

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Silver Circle: An Excellent New Movie

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When I originally heard about the idea of a animated movie on silver and The Federal Reserve I was highly skeptical.  While I applaud all efforts to spread the word about honest money and the corrupt practices of Central Banks, the odds of making an impactful, enjoyable film on these topics seemed quite low to … Read more

Mayor Bloomberg Compares the NYPD to a Paramilitary Force

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“I don’t listen to Washington very much, which is something they’re not thrilled about.  I have my own army in the NYPD, which is the seventh biggest army in the world.” – NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg in November 2011. It’s been a few weeks since New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg exhibited one of his … Read more

The Scorecard: Snowden Approval Rating 54%, Obama 46%, Congress 17%

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The results are in and they are devastating for the establishment.  There’s no spinning these poll result numbers. Americans rightly have almost no faith in their institutions of power and the cronies that are somehow in charge of them. Nor should they. The spilt in opinion on Snowden also exhibits a massive gulf between the older generation and the younger. This is very encouraging as time itself will sort this out. First from Time:

Fifty-four percent of respondents said the leaker, Edward Snowden, 29, did a “good thing” in releasing information about the government programs, which collect phone, email, and Internet search records in an effort, officials say, to prevent terrorist attacks. Just 30 percent disagreed.

But an almost identical number of Americans —  53 percent —  still said he should be prosecuted for the leak, compared to 28% who said he should not. Americans aged 18 to 34 break from older generations in showing far more support for Snowden’s actions. Just 41 percent of that cohort say he should face charges, while 43 percent say he should not.  Just 19 percent of that age group say the leak was a “bad thing.”

Now the latest from Gallup regarding Obama:

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Now Congress.  Also from Gallup:

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IRS Agents are Training with AR-15 “Assault Weapons”

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Another day, another headline that must surely be “conspiracy theory,” but unfortunately for us all turns out to be conspiracy fact.  While Obama was rolling out intense anti-gun propaganda and demonizing “assault weapons” such as the AR-15, his Administration seems to have no problem with the political group targeting, corrupt beyond belief IRS using them in training.  It’s simply mind-boggling to think about this bureaucracy being armed with such weapons, and totally exposes what I wrote at length about earlier this year:  The Gun Control Hypocrite.  From Politico:

As chairman of the House Homeland Security oversight subcommittee, Duncan (R-S.C.) toured a federal law enforcement facility in late May and noticed agents training with the semi-automatic weapons at a firing range. They identified themselves as IRS, he said.

While Duncan acknowledges that the IRS has an enforcement division, he questions if that level of firepower is appropriate when they could coordinate operations with other agencies, like the FBI, especially in a time of austerity.

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