Police State

Democrat Senator Ron Wyman from Oregon, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, says the surveillance state is as bad as Snowden says.

More on the fallout from the defeat of the Amash Amendment to limit NSA.

"Even in the frightening aftermath of 9/11, when large majorities told pollsters they were ready to trade in some personal protections for greater security, any effort to monitor phone calls or emails of average people was considered a step too far. In a Pew Research Center survey the week after the terrorist attacks, 70 percent said no to that."

Apparently it hasn't changed, but the government did this stuff in secret anyway. Snowden exposed that secret, and the people are pushing back.

NSA is not allowed to spy on NSA personnel. The law won't stop them.

You know how government officials keep telling us that red light and speeding cameras are for safety, not revenue? This article exposes that lie.

"Some Ohio cities and villages, already hurting from recent state changes that reduce their funding, will lose millions more if a proposed ban on automated traffic cameras goes through."

The article pays lip service to safety - that's probably required by law - but it's all about money.

"Traffic cameras netted around $16.5 million for eight Ohio cities and villages that had them in 2012, according to the Ohio Legislative Service Commission, the state legislature’s research arm. That doesn’t count camera revenues in six other communities — including Elmwood Place, the Hamilton County village that inspired the ban after raking in $1.5 million in just six months before a judge shut ordered its cameras shut down — for which the LSC couldn’t obtain 2012 full-year data.
“If we pass this bill as is, this is going to be a tax increase, because communities are going to have to make up that (loss of revenue) somehow,” Rep. Rex Damschroder, R, Fremont, said last month before voting against the ban."

How about cutting spending?

"Traffic cameras raised about $2.4 million for Dayton in 2012, or about 1.5 percent of the city’s $155.1 million general revenue fund."

And the looters don't want to give it up.

"“The combination of cutting funds and eliminating tools we can use — taken in total — places additional pressure on local budgets trying to provide public services with less resources,” Biedenharn said. “In this particular case, the loss of the camera enforcement tool could end up diverting police away from more serious crime issues to address speeding and red-light violations.”"

It's as if the police never managed before the cameras. And our job is to have more of our money stolen to make life easier for police.

"West Carrollton Police Chief Rick Barnhart said turning off the cameras would have a substantial impact on the city’s budget. Cameras brought in $112,000 to the city’s general fund, which funds city operations, in 2012.
“There’s no doubt it would be at least an overall $100,000 a year cut. So, that would be kind of like losing another major business in the city,” Barnhardt said."

It's as if these guys don't understand this money comes out of the economy. It harms the economy and makes everybody poorer. That has a negative effect on local budgets too. This motivates people to move elsewhere, doing even more damage. But never fear. If the cameras are banned, local government will figure new ways to steal our money.