by David Seaman

I go into further detail in my latest videocast, but here’s what you need to know about H.R. 347 at a glance: It’s outrageous, it’s atrocious, and it’s ludicrously un-American.

Oh, and it passed the House yesterday 388 to 3.

Here’s what foreign media is saying about the bill — in this case,
Russian state-owned news network RT:

Just when you thought the government couldn’t ruin the First Amendment any further: The House of Representatives approved a bill on Monday that outlaws protests in instances where some government officials are nearby, whether or not you even know it.

The US House of Representatives voted 388-to-3 in favor of H.R. 347 late Monday, a bill which is being dubbed the Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011. In the bill, Congress officially makes it illegal to trespass on the grounds of the White House, which, on the surface, seems not just harmless and necessary, but somewhat shocking that such a rule isn’t already on the books. The wording in the bill, however, extends to allow the government to go after much more than tourists that transverse the wrought iron White House fence.

Under the act, the government is also given the power to bring charges against Americans engaged in political protest anywhere in the country.

And here’s what our media is saying — in this case, Congressional news site The Hill:

Members approved the bill, H.R. 347, under a suspension of House rules, by a 388-3 vote. The non-controversial bill was subject to just a brief debate in the afternoon, seeing the easy vote.”

Oh, non-controversial. OK. Nothing to see here, citizen. Move along.

(Hat tip to the Reddit hivemind for The Hill and RT links.)

About David Seaman:
David Seaman is an independent journalist. He has been a lively guest on CNN Headline News, FOX News, ABC News Digital, among others, and is the host of The DL Show. Some say he was recently censored by a certain large media corporation for posting a little too much truth… For more, find him on G+ and Twitter.

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NDAA 101: Fact Vs. Fiction

by David Seaman

SG Political Contributor David Seaman sits down with investigative journalist and author Greg Palast to find out what’s not so super about the unprecedented amount of funding being poured into politics by corporations and private individuals via the new breed of political action committees (PACs) created following the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling. Palast has made it his raison d’être to expose the vultures who prey on our political system for their own gain at the expense of the masses it’s supposed to serve. Here he explains why talk of corporate personhood is taking the focus off an aspect of campaign finance that could potentially be even more troubling. – Nicole Powers, SG Ed.

Check back here for Parts 2 and 3 of David’s interview with Greg tomorrow and Monday.

Producer: Lindsey Miller

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by Nicole Powers

“Omfgomfgomfgomfgomfg you have no idea how amazing you are!!!!!” was the exact turn of phrase used by my Twitter friend @EisMC2 when I told her I’d just interviewed Little Brother author Cory Doctorow and had returned with a signed copy of the book for her. Indeed it was @EisMC2 and her fiancé @JackalAnon who first turned me on to Doctorow’s epic updated spin on George Orwell’s Big Brother vision, which was first published in 2007. Uncannily prophetic, the novel serves as a veritable playbook for the Occupy movement, and with online pranksters turned hacktivists as its heroic protagonists, it is also an inspirational work for many Anons (hence the need for at least five omfgs). Combining an action packed and V-relevant plot with a solid historical perspective on activism, in retrospect, Little Brother may be considered one of the great civil liberties texts of our time.

The math, science, and sociopolitical commentary spun into the prose of Little Brother is pure genius, while the story makes for a gripping reading experience. As @EisMC2 puts it, Doctorow has a knack “for distributing the #Truth in a manner everyone can understand.” For example, during an expository paragraph regarding a key plot point, Doctorow also manages to simply and concisely explain how Bayesian mathematics (which puts the spam in your filter) is being deployed in an unscientific way to find “statistically abnormal” people to put under the security microscope – irrespective of whether they’re actually likely to have done anything wrong. Even if advanced probability theory isn’t your thing, by the time you’ve finished Little Brother, you’ll have a deep understanding of how this kind of statistical analysis – which government agencies routinely rely on to make policy and find targets in the war of terror – can be misinterpreted and manipulated with chilling effect.

Though set in an unspecified near future, much of the fictional dystopian world Doctorow depicted when he wrote Little Brother five years ago is now a reality (such as the indefinite detention of US citizens without trial or due process). It’s a tale of terrorism, society’s overreation to it, the psychology of fear, and the erosion of our constitutional rights. It also contains many elements occupiers will be all too familiar with: protests, out of control cops, pepper spray, tear gas, smoke bombs, police brutality, and a biased and lazy media “reporting” on it all.

At the start of the year, having spent some quality time at OccupyLSX, I met up with Doctorow at his North London workspace. Surrounded by cool gadgets, toys, and all manner of geek memorabilia (such as an original 1973 set of D&D boxed game instructions), I chatted at length with the author, digital rights champion, and Boing Boing co-editor about Little Brother, its forthcoming sequel Homeland, the realities of Big Brother, and how to stay under the radar when living in a surveillance state.

Read our exclusive interview with Cory Doctorow on SuicideGirls.com.

For more on Cory Doctorow visit craphound.com/. A free copy of Little Brother can be downloaded under a Creative Commons license here.

A staged version of Little Brother by The Custom Made Theatre Co. is currently playing through February 25 in San Francisco. Visit Custommade.org for full details.

by David Seaman

Rep. Lamar Smith, who was responsible for introducing SOPA, wants to get all up in your private business again, this time with the misleadingly named Protecting Children From Internet Pornographers Act (PCIP) a.k.a. H.R. 1981. Of course protecting youngsters from kiddie fiddlers and the like is no bad thing, problem with this Orwellian bill is that it treats every American as if they were one, and infringes on their privacy accordingly. If H.R. 1981 passes, Big Brother will not only be watching what you browse, but will be recording your every click. In his latest video post, SG political contributor David Seaman discusses its ramifications with web developer and IT expert Chalise Grogan. – Nicole Powers, SG Ed

David Seaman is an independent journalist. He has been a lively guest on CNN Headline News, FOX News, ABC News Digital, among others, and is the host of The DL Show. Some say he was recently censored by a certain large media corporation for posting a little too much truth… For more, find him on G+ and Twitter.

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by David Seaman

What if we voted for Barack Obama, a rational moderate, and instead got one of the most irrational, secretive, and authoritarian presidential administrations of the past 100 years? 
What if Ron Paul and Buddy Roemer are right about the election process, and about the erosion of our core civil rights? And what if Barack Obama truly DOES think the Constitution is an outdated joke?

In the video above, I’m not actually expressing my own opinion, instead I’m reading – verbatim – from an article in The Atlantic. In it, staff writer Conor Friedersdorf poses the following question: How would you have reacted in 2008 if any Republican ran promising to do the following?

1) Codify indefinite detention into law; (2) draw up a secret kill list of people, including American citizens, to assassinate without due process; (3) proceed with warrantless spying on American citizens; (4) prosecute Bush-era whistleblowers for violating state secrets; (5) reinterpret the War Powers Resolution such that entering a war of choice without a Congressional declaration is permissible; (6) enter and prosecute such a war; (7) institutionalize naked scanners and intrusive full body pat-downs in major American airports; (8) oversee a planned expansion of TSA so that its agents are already beginning to patrol American highways, train stations, and bus depots; (9) wage an undeclared drone war on numerous Muslim countries that delegates to the CIA the final call about some strikes that put civilians in jeopardy; (10) invoke the state-secrets privilege to dismiss lawsuits brought by civil-liberties organizations on dubious technicalities rather than litigating them on the merits; (11) preside over federal raids on medical marijuana dispensaries; (12) attempt to negotiate an extension of American troops in Iraq beyond 2011 (an effort that thankfully failed); (14) reauthorize the Patriot Act; (13) and select an economic team mostly made up of former and future financial executives from Wall Street firms that played major roles in the financial crisis.

(Source)

The 14 points Friedersdorf highlights are, to the best of my knowledge, firm facts. For example, it is a fact that Obama’s administration has continued to preside over federal raids on medical marijuana dispensaries, and that the TSA has greatly expanded its grasp (no pun intended) since he took office. And, obviously, the indefinite detention of US citizens without due process, was signed into law by Obama when he ratified the NDAA – that alone being a treasonous act given it clearly runs counter to America’s Constitution.

David Seaman is an independent journalist. He has been a lively guest on CNN Headline News, FOX News, ABC News Digital, among others, and is the host of The DL Show. Some say he was recently censored by a certain large media corporation for posting a little too much truth… For more, find him on G+ and Twitter.

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by David Seaman

This is breaking news. More information will be added in subsequent videos as it becomes available. Journalist David Seaman calls for a nationwide boycott of News Corporation, Fox News, and Fox Business Network following the channel’s cancellation of Judge Andrew Napolitano‘s prime-time show, Freedom Watch.

Judge Napolitano was one of the few mainstream television anchors covering NDAA, economic unrest, and political corruption. The cancellation of his show is a major blow to free speech in the mainstream media, and the final nail in the coffin of our bought and sold press. He’s one of the TRULY good ones, even though we don’t always agree with his libertarian take on things.



Disobedience is civil. Disobedience is called for. Support Judge Napolitano. Say no to fuax news. Cancel Fox News and Fox Business on your cable or satellite package.

UPDATE
Here’s a clip of the fearless Judge Napolitano telling us how it is – and a fine example of what you’ll be missing. (Thanks to @Lymski for forwarding this link.)

David Seaman is an independent journalist. He has been a lively guest on CNN Headline News, FOX News, ABC News Digital, among others, and on his humble YouTube channel, DavidSeamanOnline. Some say he was recently censored by a certain large media corporation for posting a little too much truth… For more, find him on G+ and Twitter.

[..]

by David Seaman

Fresh from my week-long trip to New York, I’m back in South Florida – and seething. Here’s the Top 10 reasons why…

1. When I fly, the choice is “microwave oven” or multiple full-body gropedowns. I’ve flown for many years, and only recently is this happening to travelers on a regular basis. It’s unconstitutional and scary.

2. The President, in collusion with a fascist Congress, literally signed away a large part of our Bill of Rights, ending our right to due process, trial, attorney, etc and opening the door to outright military dictatorship.

3. This has received very little media coverage.

4. When I report on this, I receive personal attacks and all kinds of online harassment.

5. Congress also tried very hard to push through fascist Internet censorship bills, which would curtail online freedom and innovation around the world. Now they’re trying to pass similar legislation under the guise of a different bill name. No one will notice this time.

6. When people here in the U.S. protest this corruption and total tyrannical insanity, they are met with “less than lethal” rubber-coated shotgun bullets, tear gas, and other chemical agents. I’ve heard people say some protesters have been covered in so much chemical agent it has led to seizures and other serious health problems. Protesters have also allegedly been forced to urinate on each other, and have been kept in inhumane conditions for hours.

7. This has also received very little media coverage.

8. Congress thinks its OK to literally profit from insider knowledge, and have been blatantly doing so, at a time when many Americans are out of work, in foreclosure, and genuinely hurting.

9. This has also received very little media coverage.

10. Most of the people you forward this article to won’t care, and won’t take action. Stop distracting me from Super Bowl post-whatever, bro.

David Seaman is an independent journalist. He has been a lively guest on CNN Headline News, FOX News, ABC News Digital, among others, and on his humble YouTube channel, DavidSeamanOnline. Some say he was recently censored by a certain large media corporation for posting a little too much truth… For more, find him on G+ and Twitter.

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