Via the Silicon Graybeard, we find a family facing $90,000 in fines from the Fed.Gov. It seems that if they don't pay up, they're on the hook for $4 Million in additional fines.
Woah. What sort of nefarious activity have they been up to? What antisocial activity makes them such a threat to the Republic that they're staring down the barrel** of Four Large?
Selling rabbits:
I shouldn't joke about this. Facing a $4 Million dollar fine for selling a few (dozen) bunnies is not funny and could completely ruin this family. It's not funny. It's just that it's at least a little better than executing them on the spot, as the police state did with Jose Guerena in Arizona the other day or Erik Scott in the Las Vegas Costco last summer, or (you can insert a list here).I guess this is the time for me to pro-actively get my TJIC on and say that Catholic Just War Doctrine does not (yet) justify the assassination of Fed.Gov Jack-Booted Thugs® breaking doors down and shooting someone thirty times because they had the wrong house, or thought someone was selling unlicensed rabbits, or something.
Instead, let me offer this up: GOP, you suck and I hate you. It seems that this particular statute was passed in 1989, in the flush of the Reagan Renaissance™, when Conservatives™ Walked The Earth and Small Government™ was signed into law by George Bush major. Glad we had the GOP to keep government small and off our backs. Otherwise, we might have a rabbit infestation, or something.
Oh, and Mitt Romney? You're the reincarnation of George H. W. Bush. You suck, too.
As TJIC used to say, before the Massachusetts Super Cranial Beings*** got their panties in a wad, rope. Some men just need hangin'.
And note to any overly sensitive would-be Philosopher King swooning over my "violent rhetoric", I have two words for you: Bill Ayers. And then you could go look up Will Rogers: There ought to be one day that was Open Season on Senators. Good Lord, the Founding Fathers would have wept. And then they would have been the first to toss the rope over the lamp posts.
And so I say to everyone once again, the problem isn't the Democrats, and the solution isn't the Republicans. The problem is a permanent Political Class who has contempt for you and me. Vote them out.
All of them. And Mitt Romney, I'll take this all back and apologize handsomely if you:
- Say that your first act as President will be to apologize to and pardon Mr. and Mrs. Dollarhit,
- Say that your second act as President will be to fire the entire FDA Department responsible for this atrocity to American Freedom,
- Say that your third act as President will be to fire the U.S. Prosecutor who filed the case, and
- Say that your fourth act as President will be to issue a R-gram**** to the entire Federal workforce saying "Cut the Crap"
* Yeah, yeah, I'm told that Massachusetts doesn't have a proper Soviet. Great. They have an improper Soviet.
** It's a fine backed up by police with guns. Guns with barrels. Duh.
*** You, know, these guys:
**** Look it up, Romney.
16 comments:
Sometimes I wonder what it was like to be a non-Jew in Germany in ... say 1937.
A legally-elected, "tough-on-crime" government - mostly going after "them", not "us". What rights did "us" people legally have vs. what "us" really had? When was it too late for the "acceptable" citizens?
Sept 1, 1939? Sooner?
Dec 8, 1941? June 6, 1944? Later?
Hard to find information on pre-war Germany that doesn't focus almost exclusively on various nastinesses of the Nazi Party. What was day-to-day life like for "us"?
I have a hard time shaking this idea that we're getting to be something like Germany in the mid-30s...
Q
Why? Why even have this stupid law? What were they trying to accomplish (admittedly this probably wasn't the way, but still). Saturation of the rabbit market? Can't be that because it says "over $500 worth of rabbits" not "500 rabbits". If I sold one rabbit for $501 I would be in violation. Tax evasion? Not their department? My best guess is "not getting their cut"... i.e.: if you sell over $500 of whatever, you need a "license" (read: extra tax) so we can "regulate" (read: find more ways to tax) you.
Thanks, Borepatch.
One of the commenters to the original story says (to paraphrase) this is how the government works: they go after the little guy, the law-abiding guy who does everything he knows to do properly and can't afford a great law team. The USDA agent told the guy, "I've never lost a case yet". Yeah. I'm sure that's attempted intimidation and I'm sure it's because you haven't bothered to go after someone the size of Monsanto.
Monsanto probably has more lawyers on call as the USDA has agents, and will squash them like bugs.
But, as genedun says, why? Why $500 of rabbit sales? What major social travesty are they preventing, that doesn't happen at $499 worth of rabbits? And $500 in 1989 is about $850 today. At some point, the way the Fed is going a single rabbit will be more than $500. Then what?
This post gets my Rant of the Week vote.
The question that must be asked about "Vote them out" is...who to vote *for*? If there's an R in a given office, not voting doesn't seem to have much value, and voting D isn't likely to send the right message, and I don't think I can write "Mickey Mouse (he'd do a better job) everywhere.
Graybeard, thank the Republicans.
Rick C, vote against the incumbent.
@Graybeard:
Sometimes, I think that it's all about keeping the average person hopping on one foot while touching his or her nose with one finger.
In other words, the rule ('law') itself isn't so important, nor is its purpose or justification, what's important is that the rule is there, ready to be uncorked when needed. Just so you can get an object lesson on your proper relationship with respect to the modern state.
Voting is a complete waste of time. Have 100' of 1/2" Dacron line (won't stretch), will travel. NO MORE.
Now, see, that what happens when a perfectly rational citizen of Massachusetts ends up in Texas.
Awesome, Borepatch, f'n awesome. And that picture is the awesome sauce on top.
MA increasing sounds like a state full of subjects, not citizens.
Jim
The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the government.
- Tacitus
Yeah ... they had this in ancient Rome ... How did that end up, again?
@Quizikle -
My maternal grandfather's parents were from Germany, and he and his mom visited the old country in 1938.
He rarely spoke of the visit, except to say he was ashamed. For a time, he referred to himself a Dutchman instead of a Deutcher.
He wasn't a nazi and he wasn't Jewish. He was an American, and proud he married his D.A.R. wife.
Borepatch, if the incumbent is a D (or an R) and the only other name available is an R (or a D) I don't see that the parties are going to take the proper lesson, but are more likely to think "the people love my party again!"
"And so I say to everyone once again, the problem isn't the Democrats, and the solution isn't the Republicans. The problem is a permanent Political Class who has contempt for you and me. Vote them out."
Quote of the day.
Unfortunately, we seem to have progressed from a Republic to a Plutarchy. We are ruled by a political class, and you cannot join the political class at anything above the local level without being effectively rich. And it is becoming increasingly difficult to defend yourself against this ruling class and it's foot-soldiers without being effectively rich.
Government by a rich elite, with greater protection for the rich than the average person, is not a republic.
Great post - couldn't have represented my position better myself!
http://socyberty.com/politics/mitt-romney-supports-ndaa-and-detainment-john-mccain/
Mitt Romney supports martial law.
http://socyberty.com/politics/haley-and-mccain-endorse-romney-for-president-so-what/
Should I be a sheep?
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