An Obituary

The United States Constitution
September 17, 1787 to July 28, 2012

After repeated bludgeoning, since the 1860s, Constitution succumbed to a final mortal wound this morning, inflicted by one of her own children, Judicial. She is survived by Judicial and her other two children, Executive and Legislative. It has been said by many friends that her children were not brought up to be this way, but as they matured and grew strong on their own, they routinely bound and tortured their mother. One friend was quoted as saying, "We knew something wasn't right for quite some time, but we just didn't know what to do."
Another said, "We've seen things like this happen in other communities but gosh, we never thought it could happen here."
Service arrangements have not yet been made, as next-of-kin refuses to acknowledge her death.
We had a good run. May she rest in peace.

© the stiff lizard

Wisdom in Diversity

Just a quick little something that popped into my head tonight...

Always strive to maintain a diverse group of friends and acquaintances;

Don't be afraid to publicly disagree with popular opinion;

Talk about the subjects most people avoid;

Ask uncomfortable questions;

Think for yourself.

These things will always bring you a degree of conflict, strife and perhaps even persecution.  We are expected to conform; reject the notion.  Set yourself free to dream, create, innovate and most importantly stand your ground against that which you know to be wrong.  Be firm in your values and beliefs without imposing them upon others... you see, they too are free to think, dream and desire as they choose.  Disagree without being disagreeable.

Take care to notice when most of your friends agree with you most of the time; that is your signal to expand your circle.  Wisdom does not spawn in a vacuum.  Closed-mindedness and bigotry thrive best in homogeneity.  Guard yourself most carefully against it.

© the stiff lizard 

My Response to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey - Bite Me.

I just thought I might share my letter to the Census Bureau, in response to the American Community Survey they've been nagging me to complete.  Google the survey to get an idea how intrusive the questions are and what kind of data they want to collect on each of us, if we are willing to bend over and take it like good little sheep.

My letter is a compilation of information obtained from various sources.  I used some of what I previously wrote in my blog, back in March 2010 http://stifflizard.blogspot.com/2010/03/noncensus.html, and got some useful info from Truth is Treason http://www.truthistreason.net and The Rutherford Institute https://www.rutherford.org. I'm hoping that I will be able to count on the support of like-minded patriots if the excrement hits the turbine.

Feel free to use any of my material that might be of help to you, but understand that I am not qualified to give legal advice to anyone other than myself, so make your stand at your own peril.  I expect further harassment from the government, as others who defy them have experienced.

I have been resisting the harassment of the US Census Bureau / Department of Commerce for about four years now; I never experienced such treatment by the government before that.  This may seem to be a small matter and that I'm not risking much in this little act of civil disobedience.  That may in fact be true.  However, if I'm not willing to risk a little in a small matter, how much would I be willing to risk if the stakes were higher?

Any right worth having is worth defending.  This is a matter of principle, upon which I choose not to compromise.  I will update as this matter continues to unfold.

Here is the content of my letter:

APRIL 09, 2012

US CENSUS BUREAU

PO BOX 5240

JEFFERSONVILLE, IN 47199-5240

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing in response to my receipt of the American Community Survey questionnaire.  The letter enclosed with your questionnaire states, "You are required by U.S. law to respond to this survey."

My response to the American Community Survey is contained entirely within this letter and the questionnaire is being returned to you blank.  While the literature enclosed in your mailer implies, under color of law, that I am under legal obligation to complete and return the survey, the United States government has no authority under the US Constitution to make such a demand, nor does the Legislative Branch possess the authority to pass such a law so as to require it.

In regards to the Census itself, Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution gives the authority for and states the purpose of the Census (referred to as the enumeration), in determining the composition of the House of Representatives:

"[Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.]*  The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.  The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three."

The American Community Survey is not the enumeration referred to in Article I, Section 2 of the US Constitution.  I complied with the legal requirements of the constitutionally authorized enumeration in 2010; I am not obligated to do so again until 2020.  My name, sex, age, date of birth, race, ethnicity, telephone number, relationship, housing tenure, etc. have absolutely nothing to do with apportioning direct taxes or determining the number of representatives in the House of Representatives.  Therefore, neither Congress nor the US Census Bureau has the constitutional authority to make that information demand.  Additionally, I cannot be subject to penalty for basing my conduct on the US Constitution since that document supersedes any law passed by Congress.

I submit, as further evidence of a lack of constitutional authority, the following SCOTUS references:

As indicated in Interstate Commerce Commission vs. Brimson, 154 U.S. 447, 479 (May 26, 1894) Supreme Court:

"Neither branch of the legislative department [House of Representatives or Senate], still less any merely administrative body [such as the U.S. Census Bureau], established by Congress, possesses, or can be invested with, a general power of making inquiry into the private affairs of the citizen. Kilbourn v. Thompson, 103 U.S. 168, 190. We said in Boyd v. U.S., 116 U. S. 616, 630, 6 Sup. Ct. 524, -and it cannot be too often repeated, -that the principles that embody the essence of constitutional liberty and security forbid all invasions on the part of government and its employees of the sanctity of a man’s home and the privacies of his life."

Pacific Ry. Commission, 32 Fed. 241, 250 Justice Field stated, and was upheld in the following:

"…of all the rights of the citizen, few are of greater importance or more essential to his peace and happiness than the right of personal security, and that involves, not merely protection of his person from assault, but exemption of his private affairs, books, and papers from inspection and scrutiny of others. Without the enjoyment of this right, all others would lose half their value…"

While the Census Bureau states that Title 13 requires the information collected to remain strictly confidential, I hold such assurance to be suspect, with historical justification.  Data from the 1940 Census was used to identify Japanese, Italian and German Americans for internment during World War II.  Beyond providing geographic information to the War Department, the Census Bureau released a wealth of personal information to the Treasury Department on Japanese Americans, in response to an "unspecified threat" against President Roosevelt in 1943.  The release of "strictly confidential" data was perfectly legal during World War II, under the Second War Powers Act, and more recently in 2001 and 2003, under the terms of the Patriot Act, when the Census Bureau turned over information collected on Americans of Arab decent to the Department of Homeland Security.  Such are the reasons our founders crafted the constitution with such strict limitations on the authority and powers of the federal government; it is incumbent upon the responsible citizen to be aware of such protections.

I further argue that, as there is no constitutional authority to demand such information, any further pursuit toward this end, absent a warrant, constitutes clear violation of my rights under the Fourth Amendment and shall be responded to accordingly.

If any further attempt is made to distort the law or threaten me with a fine or other penalty, I shall refer this matter to both local law enforcement and the US Department of Justice, requesting prosecution of any individuals making such threat(s).

Respectfully,

A Citizen of the United States of America


© the stiff lizard 

Is the Constitution Still Relevant Today?

Wonderful thing about the internet: it’s never been easier to find someone who disagrees with you.  I find that to be valuable and desirable.   When we only surround ourselves with people of like mind, we become rather narrow-minded.  Once in a while I encounter a question or comment that forces me to really challenge my presuppositions and think things through to remind myself why I hold what I consider to be some of my core beliefs.

While this isn’t exactly the question, word for word, I think this is essentially the spirit of it:  Why should we still be bound by the Constitution today; shouldn’t we be able to change our government as we see fit; what was really so extraordinary about these guys who authored the document 200+ years ago?

Essentially, I think a way to summarize it is: Why is the Constitution still relevant today?

I must say, I had a Joe Dirt moment when I first encountered this question; I’m thinking, “Why does the Pope wear a funny hat?  Why does a bear shit in the woods?  Why’s the sky blue?  Why are titties good?”  The answer to some questions is "Just because."

Saying that something is, just because it is, has never been a good enough answer for me and I owe a better answer than that to anyone else.  This question, which may seem rather simple, requires a quite complex response in order to adequately answer.

“The US Constitution is the oldest written national constitution still in use today.  For over 200 years it has stood at the center of American political life and been celebrated by people from all walks of life and across the political spectrum.” – The Constitution Project

The US Constitution is a work of art; it is a masterpiece.  It has endured because of the wisdom of its crafters and, amazingly, there has yet to be a procedural situation it has failed to adequately address.  Do I consider it as ‘inspired’ or of ‘divine’ origin?  No, but it’s pretty damn close.

To begin to understand how the founders were qualified to draft such a document, you must consider not only the colonization of North America and our revolution, but also feudal England, the Magna Carta, and other significant events even further back in history.  You see, the principles articulated in our Constitution and the Bill of Rights were nothing new.  In fact, it had for some time been recognized that human beings are endowed with natural rights; this has not changed in millennia.  Our founders were clearly educated in these principles, which sowed the seeds of revolution and shaped the writings that eventually culminated in the drafting of our constitution.

The American Revolution also just happened to be rather unique.  As opposed to most revolutions before and since, ours was not a revolution of the ‘have-nots’ but rather a revolution of the middle and upper class.  Rather than descending into revolt over perceived economic injustices, our forefathers choose to take a stand and demand that they not be taxed unjustly, that they have a representative system of government, and maybe most importantly, that their natural rights be protected from violation at the hands of the state.

Our forefathers had experience, up close and personal, living under tyranny.  They also had a pretty good perspective about the conditions that are favorable in culturing a tyranny.  Great lengths were taken to craft a foundation of limited government, with checks and balances, which could logically never lead to a tyrannical centralized government, if the rules were followed.  The fact that the Constitution has endured to this day, despite the changes in our society, technological developments and other significant factors, is a testament to the wisdom contained within the document.  Many of the problems we are experiencing today (economy, foreign policy, etc.) could be directly tied to failures in following our nation’s instruction manual.

There’s quite a bit more I’d like to expand upon, but it’s late and I’m extremely short on time these days.  I hope to continue this in my next posting, which I’d like to get to in the next few days.

© the stiff lizard 

An Interesting Parallel

As a young man, I put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ and experienced the joy of salvation. All seemed wonderful until I started talking about it; it made some uncomfortable, convicted others, caused some to view me as a nut job; I was ridiculed and I lost several friends. However the reward has been great and those who share in this joy understand.

I find myself in an interesting parallel today: I have always believed in liberty - what our founders describe in this nation's early documents. I have become much more aware in recent years and know that life in this country would be unrecognizable to those who founded it. I further educated myself in the principles of liberty; I am a libertarian. It all seems wonderful until I start talking about it; it makes some uncomfortable, convicts others, causes some to view me as a nut job; I am ridiculed and I lose friends because of my beliefs. However the reward is great and those who share in this joy understand.

Nothing worthwhile is easy or convenient; truth, justice and liberty come at a price. If we are not willing to pay it, we are not worthy of it.

© the stiff lizard

Keep the US Congress Accountable to the People

A proposal that ties their compensation to our financial success

I've been fooling with ideas on these kinds of things for some time, but this is the first I have reduced my thoughts on this particular matter to writing.  I’m sure there are details I’m missing but you should get the general gist.  If you agree, pass it on; although I think it would be difficult to get anything like this to the floor for a vote... but you never know.

This would, number one, be a different kind of federal legislation.  It gives the power and authority back to the individual states to determine what their congressional representatives are paid but sets a cap on compensation, based upon the income of the people represented.  Here’s how I envision it:

*****

Salaries and retirement plans for members of the US House of Representatives and the US Senate shall be funded by the states represented.  All federal tax monies previously budgeted for the compensation of Senators and Congressmen shall no longer be considered when determining rates of taxation at the federal level.  It is required that these funds remain with the individual states, and their respective tax rates be adjusted (and offset by the federal tax reduction) to fund such obligations.

Salaries for members of the US House of Representatives and the US Senate shall be determined by the legislative bodies of their respective states, within the following guidelines:

• The annual salary for members elected to the US Senate shall not exceed the annual median income of individuals in the state from which the senator was elected;
• The annual salary for members elected to the US House of Representatives shall not exceed the annual median income of individuals in the congressional district from which the representative was elected;
• The state legislatures, in both instances, may provide additional compensation to the degree necessary for the elected senator or congressman to contribute and participate in the same health care and retirement plans offered to their state’s employees;
• Eligibility requirements for retirement shall be determined by the state legislature.

*****

I think this might accomplish a number of positive goals.  While compensation for members of Congress is not a huge portion of the federal budget, the compensation they currently enjoy has some affect in the financial decisions being made on behalf of their constituents.  We are also, in an ideal world, less likely to attract the types to run for office who will not represent us well.  When our income improves, their income improves.  When unemployment is high, they will also take a hit in the wallet.  Promising lots of things to people who don’t work will suddenly not look like such a good idea.

Just some random thoughts.  If you like where I'm going with this, comment and pass it on.

© the stiff lizard