From the Editor

Government Extortion

By:  David Deschesne

Editor/Publisher, Fort Fairfield Journal January 22, 2014

I know this may seem like an impossible way to live, but my wife and I do not have satellite or cable television.  We do not even have a digital converter box to get local WAGM television.  I’m not sure why we would want to pay for satellite, or cable, because nothing worth watching is on anymore (I can see some of you nodding in agreement as you nurse the carpal tunnel in your thumb from pressing the remote so many times).  As for WAGM, as I said, nothing worth watching is on anymore. 

  We do have a pretty good DVD collection, though and have accumulated a variety of television shows from yesteryear to fill an hour or two a day while I’m relaxing in between projects and writing this paper.  My favorite show is The Dukes of Hazard.  I also like Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, CHiPs, Comer Pyle: USMC and The Andy Griffith Show.   I think you get the gist of where our TV watching is.

   Last week, we were going through season five of Hawaii Five-O—not the modern day version, which I understand isn’t worth the time invested in producing or watching it—but the original version from the late 1960’s thru early 1970s.  You remember, Steve McGarett, and “Book ‘em, Danno.”  Yeah, that’s old school, the way cops used to be.

  At any rate, we happened upon an episode entitled “Engaged to be Buried.” What got my attention was the theme of organized crime and an extortion racket that Five-O was fighting.

   The episode opens with a couple of goons from the Vidalgo crime family, operating as the Star Island Company, shaking down pool hall owner, Mr. Hanolo.  They were trying to convince him to install their coin operated pool tables and get rid of the ones he currently owns.  The belligerent owner put the drive to them and said he was not interested.  They promptly left and another one of the Vidalgo goons showed up shortly thereafter to park a car with a bomb in it outside of the pool hall—as a warning, of course, to Mr. Hanolo.

   McGarret and Dan show up, along with Chin to investigate the bombing.  They know it’s the Vidalgos trying to open up new territory and try to get the pool hall owner to cooperate.  Dan comes out of the pool hall with Mr. Hanolo and tells McGarret he knows nothing.  “A car gets blown up; it happens,” says Hanolo.

   McGarret then proceeds to lecture him on the extortion racket and organized crime, which is the line that perked up my ears.  McGarret says, “Okay Mr. Hanolo, play it your way, knuckle under, rent from the Star Island Company, pay four or five times the going price and keep your mouth shut, you've got plenty of company.  But remember this, if you start paying the extortion to the Vidalgos, you'll never stop.  They'll own you and your business.  The only way you'll be free of them is to find enough guts to fight them.”

   That’s when I had the epiphany and drew parallels with the organized crime syndicate that is the current U.S. government, as occupied by foreign lien holders and domestic Marxists, and the organized crime that exists in the large cities like New York and Chicago.  Both crime syndicates—the U.S. government and the “bad guys” out in the street—operate under the same M.O.; they use threat, duress and coercion, along with fear and intimidation to force people to do business with them; to force people to give them money.

   For example, here’s an allegory I drafted in February, 2010 to illustrate how the U.S. government tricks us into contracting with them:

   What if the Caribou city council sent their police officers to Fort Fairfield to enforce Caribou ordinances and collect property taxes from Fort Fairfield inhabitants? Do you think our local police and town council would have something to say about that? How about if the City of Bangor sent their police officers to Fort Fairfield to summons people in Fort Fairfield for violating Bangor ordinances? Imagine the commotion if the Canadian government sent their Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to Fort Fairfield to collect property taxes and vehicle registration fees from Fort Fairfield inhabitants on behalf of Canada. Should we all pay and submit to those police officers?

   Those who hold a strict constructionist view of the Bible would mindlessly spew out the “render unto Caesar” verse (Mat. 22:21) as they rationalized paying those organizations since they are all legitimate, duly elected governments and we must pay whatever they demand of us. Of course, that is ridiculous, because the question of jurisdiction is not addressed in that Bible verse.

   Jurisdiction is what is being discussed here. It would be unlawful for the City of Caribou, City of Bangor, or government of Canada to come to Fort Fairfield, or any other town or city in the U.S. for that matter, and demand those citizens follow their laws and pay taxes to them because they have never been granted jurisdiction to do so. This is plain to see.

   Just as the Bangor city council has specific jurisdiction where it can exercise legislation, the U.S. Congress is limited to where it can exercise its legislative jurisdiction...Congress’ limited jurisdiction is described in Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17 of the U.S. Constitution, which shows the U.S. Congress has no more authority to enforce their laws inside the town of Fort Fairfield than the city of Caribou, city of Bangor, or government of Canada does.

   Just as Bangor, Maine has a certain, limited geographic area where it can send its police to enforce its local ordinances and collect local taxes, the U.S. Congress is also limited.

   According to the U.S. Constitution, Congress only has authority to enforce its laws in the District of Columbia, military installations, navy dockyards, federal buildings and land that is owned by the Federal government. For example, the Federal income tax can only be enforced and collected within those strictly defined areas, just as Bangor property taxes can only be collected on land within the city of Bangor. Is this too difficult to understand? If so, start back at the beginning and read again, more slowly. The rest of the class will wait for you.

   Now, what if the city of Bangor made arrangements with the local businesses in Fort Fairfield to require all new employees to sign an agreement to follow Bangor ordinances and made similar arrangements with the local banks to extend to their new customers? That would mean in order to have a job and earn money, or open a bank account, one would have to voluntarily sign an agreement to abide by Bangor city council rules. Does that sound ridiculous? Since there’s no enforceable law that would allow them to mandate it, how many of you would sign on to that agreement?

   Well, that’s exactly what the U.S. government has done all across the united States. They have tricked everyone into accepting a Social Security number - which is voluntary - and sign W-4 or W-9 forms before being allowed to work and earn money. [This is the contract the federal government uses to enforce collection of income taxes it otherwise would not legally be allowed to collect.]

  You see now, you can take McGarrett’s quip about extortion, previously cited and replace “the Vidalgos” with “the Feds” and the meaning would still be exactly the same.  As long as we continue to give the feds our acquiescence and let them rule us through fear and intimidation they will continue to own us and our businesses, until they no longer have a use for us (we cease being profitable to them) at which point they will wait until we get sick and assign a death panel bureaucrat to oversee our “health care” under the new Obamacare law.  I don’t think I have to explain to you what will happen then since you will be “cared” for all the way to your grave as swiftly as possible.

    Now, if you enjoy the arrangement this criminal government has made with you, then by all means continue to contract with them.  But, if you want to take McGarrett’s advice on extortion rackets, you may just have to find enough guts to fight them.

More Editorials by David Deschesne