text:
immigration banks
Banks and illegal immigration
One of the nearly-overlooked aspects of the immigration issue is the role that banks play. That's surprising since around 20 billion dollars flows from Mexican citizens in the U.S. back to Mexico each year. Some Caribbean countries (such as Haiti) get an even greater percentage of foreign income from such money flows. And, a good portion of that flow is from illegal aliens, and the money they send home was earned illegally.
While illegal immigration is presented by its enablers in the media and in advocacy groups purely as a human issue, it's actually more a matter of big money.
Plenty of banks (and the Federal Reserve) want to tap into the money that's sent from the U.S. to foreign countries, whether the money was earned illegally or not. And, plenty of banks want to tap into related markets such as opening savings and checking accounts for illegal aliens or giving them home loans. They know the money was earned illegally, but they don't care. And, they find plenty of corrupt politicians willing to help them profit from illegally-earned money in exchange for campaign contributions or other benefits.
See the entries below for specific examples of banks trying to profit from illegally-earned money in one way or another. One easy thing you can do is ask The Nation why they spent a year investigating Lou Dobbs at the same time as ignoring Wachovia, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and all the rest.
New York City Municipal ID card: profits for banks, cover for criminals and terrorists - 09/19/14
New York City has passed a law to give municipal identification cards to any qualifying resident of that city, regardless of immigration status [1]. Like similar efforts in other cities, the real goals include building up a political power base for politicians and enriching major banks.
In the case of the NYC card, they're specifically covering up for future criminals and terrorists. Here are some of the issues with the card:
Childlike Frank Keating of American Bankers Assn uses Reagan to promote amnesty, loose borders - 11/11/13
Former Oklahoma governor Frank Keating - now president of the American Bankers Association - offers "What would Reagan do?" (Los Angeles Times, peekURL.com/zyDNYet ).
Bill de Blasio's immigration position will enrich the wealthy, harm American poor (New York City) - 10/15/13
If you're an illegal alien, New York City mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio wants you to know that you're welcome in NYC. And, if you're a corrupt company or bank that wants to profit from illegal immigration, Bill de Blasio wants to help you make more money too.
Los Angeles ID cards for illegal aliens: follow the money and power (Alarcon) - 09/11/12
The Los Angeles City Council has voted to consider turning the L.A. Public Library card into an ID card that illegal aliens can use. No matter how the plan is spun, it all boils down to one of two things (or a combination): money and power.
Wachovia Bank admits laundering billions in illegal drug profits (+Bank of America; Wells Fargo) - 07/05/10
From this:
[Wachovia Bank]... made a habit of helping move money for Mexican drug smugglers. Wells Fargo & Co., which bought Wachovia in 2008, has admitted in court that its unit failed to monitor and report suspected money laundering by narcotics traffickers... The admission came in an agreement that Charlotte, North Carolina-based Wachovia struck with federal prosecutors in March... Wachovia admitted it didn't do enough to spot illicit funds in handling $378.4 billion for Mexican-currency-exchange houses from 2004 to 2007. That's the largest violation of the Bank Secrecy Act, an anti-money-laundering law, in U.S. history -- a sum equal to one-third of Mexico's current gross domestic product...
[Wachovia isn't alone...] Miami-based American Express Bank International paid fines in both 1994 and 2007 after admitting it had failed to spot and report drug dealers laundering money through its accounts. Drug traffickers used accounts at Bank of America in Oklahoma City to buy three planes that carried 10 tons of cocaine, according to Mexican court filings...
[...BofA and another bank, HSBC, haven't been charged...]
...Large banks are protected from indictments by a variant of the too-big-to-fail theory...
Also see immigration banks for domestic examples of banks trying to profit from money that was earned illegally, as well as those like Arnold Schwarzenegger who want to help them.
Doug Irving /OCR, United Way help banks profit from illegally-earned money - 02/01/10
At the end of 2008, Arnold Schwarzenegger launched "Bank on California", a California state program that encouraged the "unbanked" to open bank accounts. Since the "unbanked" are largely illegal aliens and since their wages are earned illegally, California's governor is using state resources to help private companies profit from illegal activity.
Now, Doug Irving of the Orange County Register offers "Poorest of poor urged to use banks" (link) about an affiliated local effort called "Bank on Santa Ana" (bankonsantaana.ca.gov). In his report, he tells his readers nothing about the immigration aspect and promotes the program rather than taking the banks to task. He mentions that the banks will accept Mexico's Matricula consular card as identification, without noting that that card is a very strong indicator that the bearer is an illegal alien.
As for those involved:
The city [of Santa Ana] and Orange County United Way are running the Bank on Santa Ana project. Eight banks and credit unions have signed up to participate and offer the special checking accounts: Bank of America, Bank of the West, Chase Bank, Citibank, Communidad Latina Federal Credit Union, Pan American Bank, Union Bank and Wells Fargo.
Please contact unitedwayoc.org/contact/contact.asp with your thoughts. Perhaps there's some way that their 501(c)3 status could be challenged due to this program.
The Economist in 2004: "More Mexicans, please" (promoted home loans to illegal aliens) - 12/14/09
I haven't looked into how much of the mortgage mess is due to financial institutions giving mortgages to low-wage workers, including illegal aliens from Mexico; for that, see Steve Sailer. Some but not all of it was, making the June 10, 2004 article from The Economist called "More Mexicans, please" (no author given; economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=2752598) a cautionary tale about a) giving in to corruption, and b) trusting The Economist:
NATIVISTS in Texas and Arizona may still want to keep Mexicans out of America, but in the mid-west, far from the border, a growing chorus is calling for better integration of the large Mexican population that already exists. Employers need them, schools are full of their children, politicians seek their votes and, increasingly, banks want their money.
The integration push is already under way at the Mexican consulate in Chicago. Under a programme set up this spring by the Institute for Mexicans Abroad (a government agency created by Mr Fox), daily lectures are held there on topics ranging from worker rights to banking and health care. From 7am each day, crowds of people line up to apply for an identity card known as a matricula consular, which is now accepted as valid ID by 800 law-enforcement agencies across America. As the matriculas have gained wider acceptance, doors have opened to immigrants in other areas, blurring the line between services available to legal and illegal Mexicans.
Now financial institutions are courting these hard-working people. No wonder: Mexicans sent $13.3 billion in remittances home from America last year (providing the second-largest source of income after oil), and three-quarters of those who remit funds have no bank accounts. A growing number of banks (118 nationwide, including 86 in the mid-west) now accept alternative forms of identification—generally the matricula card along with a taxpayer identification number—to open bank accounts. Thirty-three of the 48 American banks that offer international remittance services are in the mid-west, and America's bank regulators are encouraging the efforts. "Banks aren't so interested in the remittances, they're interested in the relationships," says Michael Frias, an official with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). "They're looking at this as a long-term proposition."
Indeed, and we'll be paying for the decisions made by the FDIC and those like them for a while. For more on this from around the same time as the Economist article, see this, this, this, and more recent examples of this type of corruption are listed on the immigration banks page.
America.gov promotes banks profiting from money earned illegally ("unbanked", Matt Herrick) - 05/20/09
America dot gov - run by the U.S. State Department - recently promoted Canadian-style multiculturalism. Now they'd decided to promote banks profiting from money that was earned illegally.
America.gov staff writer Matt Herrick offers "Banking the Unbanked/Alternative financial services attract immigrants" [1]:
Compared to native-born Americans, immigrants like Gama are not only poor, but also disproportionately "unbanked," meaning they do not have bank accounts. Some might be "under-banked," making minimal use of banks. Among immigrants, Mexicans are most likely to be unbanked, reports the Pew Hispanic Center.
The reasons for this are manifold... ...Another reason immigrants don't use banks is survival. Pew reports more than 80 percent of undocumented immigrants are Hispanic. They may shy away from banks for fear of revealing their illegal status and risking apprehension by immigration authorities...
...Mitchell Bank, based in a densely populated Latino community in Milwaukee, adopted immigrant-friendly practices in the late 1990s and saw its business grow. The bank decided to accept most foreign-issued identifications, allowed a low $50 minimum to open a checking account and offered low-fee remittance services. In 2000, it reached out even further by opening a full branch at a nearby high school...
Those "foreign-issued identifications" include the Matricula Consular card, a virtual guarantee that the bearer is an illegal alien. And, as discussed here and here, Mitchell Bank was involved in giving home loans to illegal aliens.
In other words, a part of the federal government is promoting profiting from money earned by those who broke federal laws. Those companies that profit from such illegal activity are not going to willingly let their customers be deported and will take steps such as donating to politicians who will fight against immigration enforcement. And, America.gov is part of that sleazy web of corruption.
Please click the contact link at the end of [1] and let them know what you think.
[1] america.gov/st/business-english/2009/April/
Gordon Crovitz /WSJ: millions of Americans are unemployed, so let's ramp up immigration - 04/27/09
Former Wall Street Journal publisher Gordon Crovitz offers "We Need an Immigration Stimulus/A recession is exactly when we want innovative outsiders" (link). Bracketed by various absurdities, he offers the following stats:
Companies founded by immigrants include Yahoo, eBay and Google. Half of Silicon Valley start-ups were founded by immigrants, up from 25% a decade ago. Some 40% of patents in the U.S. are awarded to immigrants. A recent study by the Kauffman Foundation found that immigrants are 50% likelier to start businesses than natives.
Someone who supports Americans (in Crovitz' words, a "nativist") might look at those stats and wonder how we could spur entrepreneurship among Americans, such as by making an entrepreneur class some sort of graduation requirement just as other subjects are. Someone of the WSJ's bent might look into taxes that make being an entrepreneur difficult for Americans; someone to the left might suggest some sort of government program. That would be the American approach. You don't need to guess Gordon Krovitz' approach:
Gavin Newsom runs for California governor; *highlights* SF as sanctuary city, helping corrupt banks, and more - 04/21/09
San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom has announced his candidacy for governor of California.
"Bank on Los Angeles": city helps corrupt banks profit from illegal activity - 03/25/09
The City of Los Angeles recently announced a new public-private partnership called "Bank on Los Angeles" (bankonla.com) that's designed to help 10,000 low-income residents who don't have bank accounts ("the unbanked") open up accounts. It's also open to illegal aliens [1], and that means that Los Angeles City will be encouraging corruption by helping major banks profit from money that was earned illegally.
Obama 3/24/09 press conference: border initiative seeks stop flow of illegal guns and money - 03/24/09
The transcript of Barack Obama's 3/24/09 press conference is here. In addition to several of the to-be-expected useless questions from the English-language media, he took one from a Univision reporter:
Today your administration presented a plan to help curb the violence in Mexico and also to control any or prevent any spillover of the violence into the United States. Do you consider the situation now a national security threat?
Needless to say, he didn't answer that question. He was also asked whether he'd be sending National Guard troops, and only responded that he'd increase the efforts if they weren't enough. And, needless to say, he didn't say anything about actually building the border fence.
What he did say is that he wants to do something about the flow of illegal guns from the U.S. into Mexico; that flow may or may not be as great as claimed, and those highlighting the flow may be using it to hide their support for gun control.
And, he also said he wanted to do something about cash flowing back to drug sellers in Mexico. At this point in time it might be worth reviewing all the effort that banks, the Mexican government, and others have put into the Matricula Consular card that allows illegal aliens to send money home. Some of that might be more than simply chicken-plucking wages. It might also be helpful to recall "ICIRR in suit against Terry Goddard over Western Union wire transfers" and the like. If Obama actually means anything he says, expect him to make sure that no transfers by "willing workers" are involved, lest he outrages his illegal immigration-supporting friends at groups like the ICIRR.
San Francisco city ID card helps illegal aliens find work, banks profit from illegally-earned money - 02/23/09
San Francisco City Hall started issuing municipal photo identification cards to city residents on Jan. 15, regardless of their immigration status.Of course, if you're you're an illegal alien who lived in Guatamala until yesterday you can get one, just as long as you prove residency in Frisco.
"The SF ID card program is great," said Dr. Carlota Del Portillo, dean of the Mission campus. "It will be available for San Francisco residents only. If you live in Daly City, for example, you will not be able to have one."
And, if you're an illegal alien who wants to find work, San Francisco has some good news for you. From their "SF City ID Card - Business Participation" page (sfgov.org/site/countyclerk_index.asp?id=86599):
The card can help businesses streamline their hiring process because employers can use the SF City ID Card as a List B document for verifying identity for a new employee's Employment Eligibility Verification form (also known as an I-9 form).Taking a look at an I-9 form (PDF link), a "a List B document" is one that proves identity, not employment authorization. However, combined with a fake Social Security card, it can be used to obtain employment.
In other words, the city of San Francisco is facilitating companies hiring illegal aliens.
Note also the list of benefits at sfgov.org/site/countyclerk_index.asp?id=78261, including this:
Serve as a form of identification to open a checking account at participating banksAside from misguided liberalism, that appears to be one of the main motivations behind the card; see San Francisco approves ID card; corruption in plain sight; Tom Ammiano?
UPDATE: For those not familiar with the area, Daly City is directly south of Frisco; perhaps residents of that city could protest SF's xenophobia and express their displeasure at SF erecting a virtual border fence between the two cities.
Schwarzenegger helps banks profit from illegal activity ("Bank on California") - 12/14/08
In brief, Arnold Schwarzenegger and the state of California are actively helping banks profit from money that was earned illegally.
Stephen Fuller/George Mason University: are you sure you're a professor of public policy? - 04/25/08
[The money followed in the update, and also see the 9500 Liberty page.]
Stephen Fuller/Stephen S. Fuller of George Mason University - supposedly a professor of public policy - is featured on the latest video from 9500 Liberty. On the video (called "IMMIGRATION Crackdown HURTS Our Economy", link) he discusses the dire consequences of Prince William County in northern Virginia trying to do something about illegal immigration in their county. Oddly enough, for the several minutes that Fuller basically says the same thing over and over, he only discusses direct economic effects and certainly doesn't sound to me like an intellectually honest public policy expert.
He doesn't, for instance, discuss how businesses profiting from illegal activity isn't good public policy. Yet, one might expect a real professor of public policy to do that, no?
He doesn't discuss how massive illegal immigration is a symptom of massive government corruption, something one might expect a real professor of public policy to do.
He doesn't discuss the social welfare costs of massive illegal immigration. He doesn't discuss other non-financial costs, such as the cost of giving even more political power inside the U.S. to foreign governments and to homegrown racial demagogues like Walter Tejada or extremist groups like Mexicanos Sin Fronteras. Those are costs, and based on his bio (link), one might expect him to be honest and knowledgeable enough to factor them into the equation.
Not only that, but - believe it or don't - he says this:
The state makes transfer payments to the schools based on the number of school children. Start losing schoolchildren, you qualify for less money.
That's Homer Simpsonian in its stupidity, considering that those transfer payments have to come from somewhere.
He offers that argument, and he completely fails to point out any of the public policy negatives related to illegal immigration or even massive immigration. So, is he really a professor of public policy, or is he something else?
Please send him a polite email asking him what he is exactly: sfuller2 *at* gmu.edu
Note also that GMU is home to other intellectual superstars like Bryan Caplan, Donald Boudreaux, Tyler Cowen, and Alex Tabarrok of Open Letter on Immigration fame.
UPDATE: Fuller is back in yet another video, this called "Immigration Myths with Dr. Stephen S. Fuller, PhD" (link). He doesn't discuss any myths and he still doesn't discuss any negatives of what he supports.
And, 9500 Liberty doesn't disclose that in 2007 he was named Chief Economist of Cardinal Bank, which also agreed to sponsor the Metropolitan Washington Economic Index from the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis. Fuller is the Director of that Center (policy.gmu.edu/people/Fuller.html).
Candid emails from opponents Oklahoma's anti-illegal immigration law (1804, Harry Coates, Spirit Bank) - 04/11/08
Oklahoma passed an anti-illegal immigration bill (1804) last year and various forces are apparently trying to weaken it or repeal it. Late last month the Oklahoma Bankers Association released a study claiming that the bill could cost residents of the state $1.8 billion (link). One of the opponents is state Sen. Harry Coates, whose family just happens to own a roofing company.
Bill Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger promote corruption, try to fool people about "unbanked" program - 01/24/08
...[The American dream] is harder to achieve for millions of Americans because they spend too much of their hard-earned money on fees to cash their paychecks or pay off high-priced loans meant to carry them over until they get paid at work.They also mention that the William J. Clinton Foundation's Economic Opportunity Initiative will be helping spread the San Francisco scheme to other cities.
...This year, California will become the first state in the nation to launch an effort to help unbanked residents open starter accounts -- the first step into the financial mainstream...
In coordination with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, we will partner with financial institutions to increase the supply of starter accounts that work for unbanked consumers and banks. We will form regional coalitions of financial institutions, mayors and community groups to market accounts and help the unbanked build financial literacy. And we will build on work already being done in San Francisco, where city officials, working with banks and credit unions, have already signed up 11,000 individuals who previously had no checking or savings account...
The San Francisco scheme boils down to the FDIC trying to help banks profit from money that was earned illegally. Instead of fighting against such government corruption, Bill Clinton and Arnold Schwarzenegger are promoting it. Pardon me if I have difficulty thinking of both of them as little more than crooks.
UPDATE: Please contact Arnie and let him know what you think: gov.ca.gov/interact or better yet give his office a call and select the option to speak to a live person: 916-445-2841. And, per a note here, Kevin James of KRLA AM 970 will be discussing this on his show tonight (9:00 - 11:00 pm PST).
Chase, Citibank, Laredo National Bank get desk inside Mexican consulate in San Antonio - 11/21/07
The Consulate General of Mexico signed an agreement Monday with three U.S. banks that could make Mexican nationals more comfortable with the banking industry.Not all of those who'll become new customers for those banks are here illegally. However, the dodge the banks will use will be that they can't check someone's immigration status, even while they realize that those who use Matricula Consular cards (available from the friendly consulate) are most likely illegal aliens. Those banks will then donate a portion of their profits to politicians, who will then ensure that the banks continue to profit from indirect illegal activity.
Chase, Citibank and Laredo National Bank will take turns each day manning a desk in the Mexican Consulate on Navarro Street [in San Antonio]. They will answer questions for Mexican nationals about financial services and products with the hope of eventually turning them into customers at area branches.
"In other areas of the U.S. — New York, Los Angeles, Chicago — we have had a presence in consulates for years," said Inigo Arzac, assistant vice president and relationship manager for Citibank San Antonio...
Bank of "America" signs up customers at Dallas Mexican consulate
San Francisco approves ID card; corruption in plain sight; Tom Ammiano? - 11/14/07
[Bill author, supervisor Tom Ammiano] said banking institutions in San Francisco have signaled their willingness to accept the municipal ID card for the purpose of setting up accounts. He noted that people without bank accounts are frequently more vulnerable to theft and robbery.At least the first two banks listed as well as the Federal Reserve have in the past taken steps to profit from indirect illegal activity: the money that illegal aliens earn by working illegally. And, in fact, the Bush administration fought to allow banks to accept Mexico's ID card which is only of use to illegal aliens. And, from the Bank on San Francisco page (sfgov.org/site/bankonsf_index.asp?id=46628):
Officials with the city's Bank on San Francisco program, which helps people obtain bank accounts, said institutions such as Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Washington Mutual and US Bank had expressed interest in accepting the ID cards.
Bank on San Francisco is a city partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank. Although criteria for opening bank accounts are set in part through the USA Patriot Act, "to our knowledge that law is not a bar to a municipal ID," said David Augustine, spokesman for the city treasurer's office, which oversees the program.
Accept alternative forms of identification, such as consular identification cards. For many immigrants, the barrier to opening an account is having the proper documentation.The banks aren't going to earn that much off this; I'd imagine that due to the cost of living in Frisco they don't have a high illegal alien population (except for those living 20 to an apartment in shifts). However, this could be used as an entree to other cities, such as Los Angeles.
As for Ammiano, I'm not familiar with him and I don't know whether he's just a soft-brained far-leftie or whether he's trying to get a piece of the pie. However, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that he's received donations from those banks or he has some sort of other link. Those who live in the area are strongly encouraged to follow the money. His fellow supervisor Gerardo Sandoval is a strong supporter of illegal immigration.
Note that New Haven, CT has their own municipal ID. Their mayor John DeStefano has a possible financial interest and the person in his office who pushed the ID (Kica Matos) previously headed a group (Junta for Progressive Action) that is/was collaborating with the Mexican government.
UPDATE: The "Case Study" PDF at the sfgov link above has some interesting nuggets on the Bank on San Francisco program. First, they've got a section for those "thinking about starting something similar to Bank on San Francisco in your community", and I'm sure some are. As for how it all started:
Anne Stuhldreher, a Fellow at the New America Foundation, approached staff of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and City Treasurer Jose Cisneros with the initial concept. The Treasurer's Office convened a working group of the staff of the Mayor and Treasurer, the Mayors Office of Community Development, New America Foundation, and EARN, a citywide nonprofit that helps low-income residents build assets. The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco joined the group soon after hearing about the program.To participate in the program, banks have to accept those foreign IDs which are of use only to illegal aliens. And:
From further research, the working group learned that Latinos who are un-banked often don't realize that you do not need a social security number to open an account and that they can open accounts with Mexican or Guatemalan Identification cards.In other words, you don't have to be here legally to have a U.S. bank account.
As for government corruption at the federal level:
[at a meeting] Michael Frias, of the Federal Depository Insurance Corporation [sic], discussed how the New Alliance Task Force is helping banks learn about how they can accept the Matricula Consular Card and develop products and services to help Latino immigrants, save, send money to their home countries, and buy homes... The New Alliance Task Force is a partnership between the FDIC, the Mexican Consulate, banks, community-based organizations, federal regulators, the secondary market, and private mortgage insurance companies. The partnership has opened 50,000 new bank accounts totaling $100 million.In other words, something akin to a federal agency is collaborating with a foreign government to help nationals of that government who are here illegally get home loans, and is assisting banks to profit from money that was earned illegally.
Pro-illegal immigration performance art (funding by Bank of America and Wells Fargo)
Wells Fargo and illegal activity
remesamex.gob.mx features Bank of "America", Wells Fargo, and Western Union
Citibank "recruiting" illegal aliens for home loans
San Francisco: ID cards for illegal aliens (Tom Ammiano, Gavin Newsom, banks) - 09/07/07
San Francisco Supervisor Tom Ammiano is drafting legislation to create a city identification card for immigrants unable to get traditional ID cards, a move likely to anger advocates of tougher immigration enforcement.Once again, I urge the MSM not to follow the money.
The cards would be accepted by all city agencies and organizations that receive city funding. Ammiano plans to introduce the legislation within a couple of weeks. He also is trying to persuade financial institutions to allow residents to use the cards to open accounts.
...Mayor Gavin Newsom has been resolute in defending San Francisco's sanctuary status, and on Thursday his spokesman said Newsom supports Ammiano's idea for a card, which could be used for libraries, golf courses, public transportation and other services.
Also quoted: "immigrant-rights advocate" Renee Saucedo, "co-director of the San Francisco Day Labor Program, a project of La Raza Centra Legal."
New Haven: John DeStefano has financial interest in illegal immigration? - 07/26/07
As previously discussed, New Haven Connecticut is passing out ID cards to their residents, including illegal aliens. The program was designed by a current city employee who used to head up a non-profit organization (Junta for Progressive Action) that's collaborating with the Mexican government.
Now, it turns out that Mayor John DeStefano or others may have a financial stake in the matter. It involves DeStefano possibly going to work for a bank that was started to give loans to serve the low income "immigrant" community, and the bank was started with part of a "contribution" from another bank that wanted to change their charter. This is all just speculation, but it does need to be investigated.
7/29/07 UPDATE: From newhavenindependent.org/archives/2007/07/immigrants_line.php
The [unnamed] group claims DeStefano will profit from the ID because he is on the board of directors at the First City Fund Corp, a $25 million fund formed as a benefit to the community when the New Haven Savings Bank got converted into NewAlliance Bank. The mayor said he would probably sit on the board of directors of the new community bank, which has agreed to let patrons open a new bank account using the Elm City ID... DeStefano dismissed the issue as a bogus argument veiling underlying bigotry. "There is no compensation whatsoever" to board members, he said. "[Protesters] are afraid to articulate their ignorance and their prejudice about this population, so what they do is they lie. They lie, and they cloak themselves in the American flag as they do it."
I'm sure we're all looking forward to one day seeing DeStefano doing the perp walk.
There's more on the bank here: newhavenindependent.org/archives/2007/02/a_banker_a_drea.php
New York Times alludes to Mexican meddling via consulates (Little Rock) - 05/23/07
Increasingly, [Mexico's consulates] are also acting as influential free agents in a broken immigration system that Congress is trying to overhaul. As the consulate that opened last month in Little Rock illustrates, the Mexican government is following its citizens far from the border into the growing quarters of Latino migration, much of it illegal...Previously: over two years ago I first mentioned the planning for the outpost (with a Mike Huckabee link) and a month ago I posted about its grand opening.
...Consulate officials in Little Rock acknowledge that the 6,000-square-foot piece of Mexican territory occupying a former medical clinic serves all Mexican citizens, regardless of immigration status...
...The [Matricular Consular card] is honored in the United States by many police agencies, employers and - most important - by banks, which are used by countless immigrants to send billions of dollars home every year. But it is a lightning rod for critics of illegal immigration, who see it as a demonstration of the Mexican government's helping its citizens live in the United States illegally...
...There are 539 foreign consulates in the United States, and Mexico has more than any other country. (After Mexico, Canada has 19, Japan 17 and Britain 12)...
...[Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies] said Mexico went further than other countries that issue such cards, including the United States, by lobbying banks and law enforcement agencies to recognize the cards as valid identification, knowing full well that most legal residents would not need such a card...
...The [Matricular Consular card] was "one of the major areas of activity" at consulates, he said, adding, "The point being to 'document' the undocumented and make an end run around Congress."...
Bob Barr takes Bank of America's side; did the ACLU get to him? - 03/02/07
Former Republican Georgia Congressman Bob Barr - also an advisor to the ACLU, a group indirectly linked to the Mexican government - comes out in support of Bank of America's credit card for illegal aliens in "Immigration indigestion" (link). He ends up sounding like Bill Press, and makes the same fundamental error as he did:
When word surfaced recently that some banks, such as Bank of America, were allowing individuals to open accounts, apply for credit cards and obtain home mortgages even though they did not possess a Social Security number, it was not Big Government Liberals who rose up in arms to stop "greedy" financial institutions from offering such services. It was Small Government Republicans, like Colorado's Tom Tancredo and Californians Ed Royce and John Doolittle, who waxed indignant that banks engaged in such a free market activity as extending credit to someone who proved creditworthy but did not have a Social Security number.
The problem is that that isn't the "free market", it's the "corrupt market". Banks were not originally allowed to accept Mexico's Matricula Consular ID card, but the Bush administration fought to change that. That's despite both the FBI and the DOJ pointing out that the cards were not a reliable means of identification and would provide "an opportunity for terrorists to move freely in the United States". As detailed at the last link, the Mexican government is allowed to visit their outposts in the U.S. and distribute them like candy.
The "natural order" of things was not to accept those cards; political corruption and the Bush administration's support for corporatism led to the change.
Wells Fargo considers credit cards for illegal aliens - 02/27/07
Apparently, Chris Casacchia of the Business Journal of Phoenix contacted various banks asking whether - like Bank of America - they were going to give credit cards to illegal aliens. A JPMorgan Chase & Co. spokeswoman said they have no such plans. Compass Bank "were not prepared to comment" for the story.
However, as could be expected, the bank that put support for illegal immigration on the map says that they're considering it.
Wells Fargo vice president of regional banking communications Marge Rice says:
"We are exploring the possibility of offering unsecured credit cards to Wells Fargo checking account customers who do not have Social Security numbers... Wells Fargo recognizes a great need for equal access to financial products and services for all customers who want to build credit, establish financial security and achieve the 'American dream'".
If you're a member of the media, you can contact Wells Fargo at email@example.com. Others, please use this form: https://www.wellsfargo.com/contactus
If you'd like to move your accounts to a bank that supports our immigration laws, refer to this list.
The Bank of America boycott - 02/16/07
Via this and this we learn that alipac.us has started a website called bankofamericaboycott.com. They're boycotting that bank due to their decision to give credit cards to illegal aliens.
Wells Fargo knows many of its customers are illegal aliens - 02/14/07
"At face value the program seems to be problematic," said Russ Knocke, a [Department of Homeland Security] spokesman. "It seems to be lending itself to possibilities of perpetrating identity theft or creating more risk for money laundering."Then, almost at the bottom of the article, we're treated to the news that another bank knows exactly who it's dealing with:
...[Rep. Tom Tancredo] said he sent a letter to U.S. Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff asking them to look into the program.
"I hope the administration will shut down this reckless and illegal program before Bank of America extends a line of credit to a potential terrorist," said Tancredo, a hard-line foe of illegal immigration...
Since then, Wells has opened more than 1 million accounts for Mexicans using the consular card. It also accepts Guatemalan, Argentine and Colombian identity cards. The assumption is that most immigrants using the cards to identify themselves are here illegally, Wells Fargo spokeswoman Trigg said, but the bank doesn't ask.
Bank of "America": credit cards for illegal aliens - 02/12/07
Bank of America is currently offering credit cards to residents of Los Angeles County who only have ITIN numbers and who don't have either a social security number or a credit history. That strongly implies that those credit recipients are illegal aliens. Later this year the bank hopes to expand the program nationwide.
For those who don't understand why this is horrifically bad, this bank is indirectly profiting from unlawful activity. And, they're explicitly going after that market. If you're one of those people who don't agree this is bad, imagine some form of illegal activity that you believe is bad for society. Then, imagine BofA going after that market.
And, the bank couldn't do this if they knew the government wasn't going to turn a blind eye to it. And, the bank no doubt donates to political candidates, and they will almost certainly only donate to politicians who will help the bank make more money.
Let's imagine that a few years from now BofA is making a handsome profit from this card. Then, some politician proposes forbidding banks from engaging in this practice. Do you think BofA is going to just let some politician cut off the money flow? Isn't it more likely that they're going to donate to those politicians who'll allow more illegal immigration and who'll support companies trying to profit from that indirect illegal activity? (A tangible example: when Tom Tancredo merely suggested taxing remittances, Western Union/First Data began publicly supporting - and funding - his Democratic opponent).
In summary, Bank of "America"'s actions rely on and will lead to political corruption. And, the bank would not do this if the Bush administration were not completely corrupt.
As for what you can do about this:
- Hopefully, BofA will eventually face both civil suits and criminal prosecutions for their scheme, and that might have a serious impact on their stock price. If you're a shareholder, express your concern. Even better, if you belong to a pension plan that invests in the bank, express your concern to the manager of the plan, and tell others to do the same.
- Watch for news reports and editorials concerning the card, and write letters to the ombudsman or editor, or leave comments.
- Contact your representatives and urge them to remove any loopholes that allow banks to engage in this activity or to investigate their activites.
- If you have any business with BofA, transfer it to some other bank; make sure they don't have a similar policy on ITIN numbers or Matricula Consular cards first.
- Stop supporting anyone linked to the Bush administration.
U.S. Treasurer wants Mexico to become even more reliant on remittances
Have Oklahoma banks admitted to aiding and abetting illegal immigration?
St. Peter Catholic Church, Jupiter Florida, supports illegal immigration
Arizona Republic almost does expose on Western Union
remesamex.gob.mx features Bank of "America", Wells Fargo, and Western Union
Profiting off illegal activity in Santa Ana, California
Georgia Sen. Sam Zamarripa involved with a bank
Bank of America was the title sponsor of the NCLR Annual Conference
Citibank "recruiting" illegal aliens for home loans
"Banks aim to help immigrants send money home"
Bank of "America"
Their money or your safety
UPDATE: An unconfirmed comment here says:
All of you Bank of America customers call the number on the back of your ATM cards and push ZERO to speak to a customer service representative. Then ask to fill out a voice of the customer form. The representative will enter your comments and it will get mailed to the quality assurance & customer satisfaction department. The bank takes these forms very seriously. Lodge your complaint and make your voice ring loud and proud to Bank of America President Ken Lewis.
UPDATE 2: According to this:
[Bank of America] executives said participants needed another form of identification, such as ID cards issued by foreign consulates.
In Mexico's case, that refers to the Matricula Consular card. In 2004, the Bush administration twisted arms to allow banks to accept that card as identification, despite both the FBI and the DHS admitting that the card was a security risk.
UPDATE 3: From this:
Bank of America wants all media inquiries about the credit cards for illegals program to be directed to Betsy Weinberger at 1-704-387-7376. This is your chance to be a John and Ken Assistant Producer for the day!
Pahrump anti-illegal immigration ordinance; bucks rotting in the banks? - 10/12/06
Banks worried about being called felons just because they may have aided and abetted illegal aliens - 05/09/06
As discussed below [1], if a bank knows that someone is here illegally, and then gives them a home loan that allows them to stay here illegally, hasn't that bank committed a felony under current law?
Blagojevich gives illegal aliens better deal than veterans - 01/27/06
"Banks aim to help immigrants send money home" - 01/27/06
"New ID Cards Help Immigrants Keep Their Money Safe" - 09/30/04
The Mexican consulate has announced a program which puts a face, literally, on thousands of Mexican immigrants.
Authorities say something as simple as an identification card will save money and lives.
It's an important day for immigrants. Many of them live and work in the shadows, with no formal identification card and no place to put their money.
Who is the FDIC? And, why are they working with a foreign government to subvert our laws? - 09/20/04
The FDIC - "an independent agency of the federal government" - is working with the Mexican consulate in Chicago, banks, and community groups to give home loans to "immigrants." If they're legal immigrants, and thus American citizens (or on their way), why is a foreign government involved?
The article "NWI banks offer home loans to undocumented immigrants" (link) explains why:


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The Multiverse Theory – and Batman
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subset: commoncrawl


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So, you know how I sometimes review games on here that I really like? Well, I think it's about time I reviewed a game that I DIDN'T like.
Star Fox Zero is a remake of Star Fox 64 which was a remake of Star Fox on the SNES, and despite remaking the same game twice now over 23 years, Nintendo still has not been able to figure out what made those first two games great. As a standalone game, Star Fox Zero is mediocre at best; a short, forgettable three-hour romp that does very little to justify it's $50 price-tag ($60 if bought bundled with Wii U tech demo Star Fox Guard). As a successor to Star Fox 64, it is a disappointment in almost every regard. And since the game itself relies so heavily on piggy-backing off Star Fox 64, this review will exclusively be based around comparing the two. Don't worry, Zero does nothing to stand-out on its own, so its not really worth judging it based on its own merits.
Star Fox 64 is a great arcade-style on-rails shooter with occasional free-flying sections. Star Fox Zero is a mediocre motion control-based free-flying shooter with occasional on-rails sections. The major focus of Zero is on all-range mode sections, but while Star Wolf is more mobile and maneuverable than ever, you're still piloting a slow, clunky piece of junk from 1997. Let's be frank here, Star Fox is no Ace Combat. The on-rails sections were always the strong point, while all-range mode was serviceable. The Arwing is slow, takes turns way too wide, and but u-turns and somersaults momentarily take you out of the combat while a long animation plays. Granted, this worked in 64, all the enemies were built around those limitations. However, Zero's Arwing controls exactly the same as it did in 64, but now the enemies (especially Star Wolf) are faster, more agile, and can do all sorts of crazy shit you can't keep up with. To make up for the Arwing's lack of mobility, you can now aim and shoot all over the screen using your Wii U gamepad, a thing that constantly needs to be recalibrated mid-combat and is never as reliable as you'd like it to be. While shooting and flying went hand-in-hand in 64, you need to really focus on one or the other at times in Zero. If you want to shoot some annoying little fucker dancing all over space, then you need to take your eyes off the TV and glue them to the gamepad. Both screens don't match up, so while you're looking left on the gamepad to shoot, your Arwing is flying straight into a rock. And if you want to just focus on flying without looking at the gamepad to shoot, then your TV reticle is never going to match with what your gamepad is actually looking at. The seperation of flying and shooting is even more apparent by the game's co-op, where one player is designated the shooter and the other is the pilot.
The on-rails sections are fine. They work, but there's not enough of them. There's a huge lack of variety in this game, something that I figured would only be improved on from 64. Almost every all-range mode mission in Zero boils down to "fly around, shoot generic enemies for a few minutes, wait until the boss shows up, shoot the boss, leave". While the all-range sections in 64 were few, they still had unique objectives. You'd have to fly around in an Independence Day-style scenario where you have to take out key points of a giant moving mothership, or fly around a constantly rotating sattelite to shoot the power structures of a force field. Even the on-rails missions had interesting scenarios and deviations. Follow a train, and shoot the rail switches to skip a bossfight AND find a new planet. Travel across the fucking sun as it constantly does heat damage to your ship (oddly enough, the sun is missing in the new Lylat System). But when Zero isn't just lifting scenarios from 64 (and not even doing a good job of that, which I'll complain about later), it's giving you nothing else even remotely as unique or memorable. Instead of interesting mission objectives, most of the time the game will just force you to use the new chicken-walker transformation for a section or even worse, the Gyrowing. I just beat the game a couple of days ago and replayed several missions, and I'm honestly struggling to remember most of them since none of them have anything interesting going on, either visually or in their objectives. Titania's the one that stands out for me, and even then, it was just a graphically better version of a 64 mission.
Star Fox 64 was an incredibly short game, but it was built to be replayed. Every level had two different ways to beat it, and through each playthrough, you could trek a completely different route to the end. While Zero borrows 64's map system and short length, it completely botches alternate routes. Your first playthrough is completely restricted to one set path through the Lylat System since you can only unlock Corneria's alternate exit once you unlock chicken-walker later in level 2. If you were good enough in Star Fox 64, you could head to the hardest planets on your very first time playing the game. There's only two deviations that lead to completely unique planets, while the few other levels that have alternate exits simply lead you to remixed versions of levels you've already played. 64 never had to recycle entire levels just to pad out its map. Even then, the way you unlock different "routes" in Zero is so limp compared to 64. Remember the level in 64 where you had to dodge spotlights, and if you get caught, you'd be set on a route to a different planet? That gimmick is in Zero, too, only if you get caught, you get some small enemies swarming on you for a brief few seconds until they forget you (no alternate exit). Or how about that mission in 64 where you had to blow up oncoming missiles before they damage the Great Fox? If they hit you, the Great Fox takes damage but the game carries on, forcing you to go to an easier planet. That mission is in Zero too, only if you let the missiles hit, you get a game over and have to redo the level. "But Brad," you say, "these don't sound like alternate route unlocks!" And you're right, they're not. To unlock alternate routes, you'll sometimes have to play other levels until Star Wolf shows up in a completely different level. Then you'll play that level, and when Star Wolf shows up about 1/4 through the on-rails section, you simply lock-on to him and the level ends, bringing you to a completely different level (still a planet you've been to) where all you do is fight 1-2 Star Wolf members. It's the lamest shit.
It's just mind-blowing how lacking this 2016, triple-A current-gen release is compared to a Nintendo 64 game from 1997. Every bossfight in 64 had a unique voice and personality behind it. Some would trick you, taunt you, insult you. There were southern train conductors, guys in mech suits, a malfunctioning robot, and a weird golem that just runs from you as you chase it down. What made Star Fox 64 so memorable and so damn quotable was just how much personality the characters and even the bossfights had. In Zero, bossfights for the most part are dead silent (outside of one fight on Fortuna that can occasionally trigger some funny banter between Slippy and Falco). When the game isn't simply reusing lines from 64, it's adding new ones that just suck ("You just got Slipped!"). The characters just lack the charm and bite they had before. Even still, you might expect some sort of deviation or subversion with the plot, but no. The entire theme of the game just seems to be "It's Star Fox 64 again, but worse". There's not even multiplayer, something which the 64 game had three variations of!
I cannot recommend Star Fox Zero. Whether you're new to the franchise or a die-hard fan, it would honestly do you better to skip it and replay the 64 release on N64 or 3DS. You'd get the same general experience, only it'd be more infinitely more enjoyable. So many reviews are focused exclusively on the game's controls, and while I dealt with them well enough, I can see why they're such a point of contention. You either hate them or tolerate them, which should be a huge red flag to anyone interested in the game. But while the controls certainly are an issue, there's so much else wrong with this game that it's impossible for me to recommend it to anyone. The worst part is is that it's not a laughably terrible entry like Metroid: Other M. It commits the more unforgiveable crime of being so painfully mediocre and boring. Still, I expect it to share the bargain bin with Other M in the next few months. If you're absolutely dying to play it, please wait until then, don't pay full-price for this game, please.


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Miranda Devine
Pill testing advocates are on another planet
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, March, 02, 2016, (12:14am)
DRUG use in Australia is at an all-time high, and not in a good way. The number of methamphetamine users has tripled over the past five years to 268,000, the Medical Journal of Australia has just revealed, with 15- to 24-year-olds the fastest growing demographic.
Continue reading 'Pill testing advocates are on another planet'
|16 comments | Permalink
Oscars political correctness shows just why Donald Trump is so popular
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, March, 02, 2016, (12:12am)
IF you're wondering what drives Donald Trump's popularity, look no further than the amusing spectacle of Hollywood's establishment, hoist with its own petard at the "#OscarsSoWhite" ceremony.
Continue reading 'Oscars political correctness shows just why Donald Trump is so popular'
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The injustice of the witch-hunt against Cardinal George Pell
Miranda Devine –, Saturday, February, 27, 2016, (10:46pm)
TOMORROW, at 8am our time, Cardinal George Pell will give evidence via videolink from the Hotel Quirinale in Rome to the child sexual abuse royal commission.
It will be the third time he has testified to the commission - the fourth, if you count the Victorian parliamentary inquiry which preceded it. He has hardly been hiding.
And yet the point of much of the unrestrained vitriol spewed at him is that he is a coward who has refused to "come home" to testify.
But Pell, 74, has a heart complaint and has been told by doctors not to fly, a fact accepted by royal commissioner Peter McClellan after some delay, which only served to add to pressure on the star witness of the $500 million exercise.
Watching Pell tomorrow will be a self-invited group of about 120, including 50 journalists and assorted victims, supporters and Pell-haters who have travelled to Rome, largely on the proceeds of an abusive ditty by anti-Catholic crooner Tim Minchin, calling Pell "scum" and "coward".
The royal commission has sent "support staff" and media people, at unknown cost, to assist this unofficial lynch mob.
It doesn't matter that Pell is in frail health and will have delivered 21 hours of testimony after tomorrow's stint, which starts at 10pm, Rome time, and goes till 2am.
The worst accusations are that he helped move paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale between parishes in the 1980s, when he was a junior priest in Ballarat under Bishop Mulkearns. However, as Father Eric Bryant has testified to the commission, at a 1982 meeting he attended with Pell, Mulkearns simply said Ridsdale was being moved because he had a "problem with homosexuality".
Bryant said he didn't link homosexuality with paedophilia and was offended by the suggestion put to him: "I know a number of clergy who are homosexual and who are the most decent people in the world… who have lived their celibacy to the letter. There's others who have fallen weak and make mistakes but they don't abuse children."
Pell's accusers must expect that he should have made that terrible link, which is ironic, because the central reason for his unpopularity is that he is a conservative priest who upholds the teaching of the Church and raised the eternal ire of homosexual activists by refusing to give them communion.
So he is fair game. But the indifference of much of the media to any semblance of fairness or legal restraint is astonishing.
The ABC has illustrated stories about Pell with images of a red toy truck, a cutout of his face glued into the driver's side, and festooned with rocks and spiders, a blatant reference to "rock spiders", slang for paedophiles.
On Channel 10's the Project, Minchin debuted his vicious song in full, along with an illustration of a hollow cross with Pell inside with two altar boys.
There is no justification for this abuse of Pell in anything before the royal commission.
Pell denies the accusation that he tried to "buy" the silence of Ridsdale's nephew and victim David Ridsdale, and at the time police were already investigating the paedophile, so there is no logic to the claim.
Anthony and Chrissie Foster, who have received $750,000 compensation from the church, accuse Pell of a "sociopathic lack of empathy" when he met them as the new Archbishop of Melbourne, to discuss the abuse of their two daughters by a priest a decade earlier.
But Pell was the most senior churchman to meet them and the first to respond with a plan to help victims, his Melbourne Response.
This is the profound unfairness of the attacks on Pell. He alone of any church leader in Australia responded to the crisis of child sexual abuse and set up a system in which claims would be investigated, counselling and compensation offered and victims would be directed to police.
He became Archbishop of Melbourne on 16 June 1996. Sick of the dithering inaction of his fellow bishops, within a month he had instructed Corrs lawyers to come up with a plan. By mid-October Peter O'Callaghan QC had been appointed the first Independent Commissioner, who went on to investigate 351 complaints of abuse, of which 97 per cent were upheld.
Pell acted with his usual decisiveness and efficiency, qualities invaluable to the Pope now as the Vatican's top financial official, bringing integrity and transparency to Church finances.
Yet he has become the whipping boy, and even on the eve of his testimony this week, was betrayed by Victoria police who leaked vague allegations that Pell himself had sexually abused boys in the past.
This was an appalling intervention by police who are in the firing line themselves for failing to investigate complaints of child sexual abuse and for telling untruths about the church to the Victorian parliamentary inquiry.
Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton claimed 43 suicides related to child sexual abuse in the Victorian Church, but, after an internal investigation, only one could be confirmed. That's one too many, of course, but the exaggeration cast doubt on the motives of police. Ashton also claimed police had not "had a single referral of a child sexual abuse allegation by the Catholic Church''.
Wrong. As O'Callaghan has testified, of 304 complaints under the Melbourne Response, 97 were reported to police, and 76 victims he encouraged to go to police.
So pleased were Victoria police at Pell's initiative in 1996 that they issued a press release praising the Melbourne Response, and NSW police royal commissioner Justice James Wood also lauded the Catholic Church's response then as a "model" for other institutions to follow.
For its time, Pell's response to the child sexual abuse plaguing the church was groundbreaking. Not perfect, but it acknowledged a problem, helped victims and referred offenders to police if possible.
There is evidence, however, that Victoria police seemed to drop the ball, whether because prosecutions in those days were too difficult or for some other reason, we don't know.
Last week, for instance, former priest and psychiatrist Dr Peter Evans told the commission he was contacted by police in 1975 about the paedophile Ridsdale, who Bishop Mulkearns had asked him to assess after an allegation of child sexual abuse had been made against him.
"The police were certainly investigating it and knew about it. The police informed me that they would not be pressing charges. However, the policeman added that they … thought, he was guilty."
So what you have today is one potential scapegoat accusing another of covering up paedophilia, and leaking untested allegations to bolster their case.
If all the abuse heaped on him would ensure that children never again suffered sexual abuse, perhaps even Pell would say it is a cross worth bearing.
But it does the opposite. By targeting the one man who tried to do the right thing it ensures that no future church leader in their right mind would take decisive action again.
To save his own skin, Pell would have been better to leave it to the hopeless cowards and naive bumblers who had presided over the evil in the Church for so long.
|87 comments | Permalink
An officer's plea for justice to David Morrison
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, February, 17, 2016, (12:29am)
AUSTRALIAN of the Year David Morrison said this week that he refuses to be "defined by his critics". Unfortunately, that is not his decision.
He also said he would make no effort to reach out to the troubled former Lieutenant Colonel he unjustly sacked over the so-called Jedi Council affair.
The most senior officer caught up in Morrison's purge, known simply as "Ken", knew nothing about the Jedi Council sex ring and never opened the emails.
He has twice attempted suicide since the scandal broke.
Today Ken writes an open letter asking Morrison to set the record straight. It's the least he should do.
Dear Lieutenant General Morrison,
Congratulations on winning Australian of the Year, but I write to inform of the humiliation, injustice and betrayal you showed me by publicly stripping me of army unit command on August 21, 2013.
That was when you acknowledged I was not a part of the Jedi Council but that you were removing me from command because I "failed to remain aware of issues and events affecting me, my unit and the army".
You determined that I was accountable for inappropriate and unsolicited emails from a civilian that I had not read.
This is despite the fact that if I had read emails from a civilian at that time, the compulsory annual online training directed that I could delete them without reporting.
You were a late starter on this matter, claiming you were unaware of the Jedi Council, even though I informed my chain of command on March 28, 2013 that NSW Police had contacted me to ask what I knew of the Jedi Council. My answer was "nothing".
In June 2013 you told the Australian public that a group of 17 personnel were "in production and distribution of highly inappropriate material demeaning women". You told the media "there is one Lieutenant Colonel that is part of this group".
Perhaps my anonymity could have been preserved if I was a private but there were not many Lieutenant Colonels in Townsville subjected to an Australian Defence Force Investigative Service (ADFIS) office raid and interview on June 5, 2013. Within hours I was fielding calls from friends asking why I was locked in my office.
Then on July 11, 2013 my name and image were released in the media. Despite knowing I had done nothing wrong, you made no effort to protect my name. Indeed, ADFIS told me two days before that I would be named nationally.
As Chief of Army, you failed one of your commanding officers.
On July 4, 2013 I attended a meeting in Townsville to look you in the eye and tell you I had nothing to do with the Jedi Council. You looked at my nametag and fobbed me off. I was then amazed when you stood and spoke about the Jedi Council, saying: "These alleged individuals, and I use the term alleged because I have to, I will have them removed from the army." I knew then that, despite the evidence, you would let me down. And you did.
So now you are the Australian of the Year and I am unemployed. I won a bravery commendation and have three masters degrees, a loving wife and two beautiful children.
But none of this matters because my Chief of Army has not told the public that "the Lieutenant Colonel was not a part of the Jedi Council".
I have a letter that states that fact but it will only count to my family, friends, and colleagues if you say it publicly. Please tell Australia what you told me on August 21, 2013, so that I can be at peace.
UPDATE: Thursday, 18th February.
No word from Morrison but this comment from Maurie is typical of reader feedback:
Dear Ken,
I wish I could write to you personally but given we have never met I think this is my only avenue to communicate with you.On behalf of my wife and our 5 children, thank you for your dedicated and exemplary service. Thank you for your bravery and for the work you have done in our military. Thank you for serving our country.What you have had to endure is reprehensible. That it came from someone who possesses so few (if any) of your principles must be even more galling.I'm sure this is of very little comfort to you, given the inner turmoil you are dealing with on a daily basis, but I am thankful for your bravery and your decency. You matter. You matter to me. You matter to my wife and children.And above all else, you matter to your wife and children.Please Ken, when the darkness descends and you wonder why you shouldn't just end it all - please remember that you matter. And that the world would be worse in your absence.
Kind regards,Maurie
PS - Thank you Miranda for pursuing this extremely important story.
|71 comments | Permalink
Loopy lockout laws serving up red tape on tap
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, February, 17, 2016, (12:27am)
Our oppressive liquor laws hit peak stupid on Melbourne Cup day last November, when a 61-year old advertising executive recovering from a double knee replacement took his usual table at The Oaks Hotel in Neutral Bay
Continue reading 'Loopy lockout laws serving up red tape on tap'
|28 comments | Permalink
Lock our door to keep the jihadi kids in Syria
Miranda Devine –, Saturday, February, 13, 2016, (10:27pm)
THE latest plea for sympathy from the mother-in-law of the (maybe) dead Islamic State terrorist Khaled Sharrouf is too convenient for words.
Continue reading 'Lock our door to keep the jihadi kids in Syria'
|29 comments | Permalink
David Morrison: Too ruthless to give our boys a pat on the back
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, February, 10, 2016, (2:36pm)
AFGHANISTAN war veteran "Charlotte" was excited to be attending a speech by her former chief of army David Morrison at a Women in Mining summit in Perth on September 11 last year.
Now working in the mining industry after 11 years as a soldier, she expected empowering words from the recently retired general and "diversity" maven who is now Australian of the Year. Instead, Charlotte felt ashamed at Morrison's denigration of the Army she loved, as he embarked on his now familiar stump speech decrying a "systemic" sexism she never experienced.
"I felt like it was Army bashing, bringing it into disrepute. Those were my exact thoughts," she said.
David Morrison: Too ruthless to give our boys a pat on the back
It's jobs for the Bofs in NSW
AFGHANISTAN war veteran "Charlotte" was excited to be attending a speech by her former chief of army David Morrison at a Women in Mining summit in Perth last October.
Now working in the mining industry after 11 years as a soldier, she expected empowering words from the recently retired general and "diversity" maven who is now Australian of the Year. Instead, Charlotte felt ashamed at Morrison's denigration of the Army she loved, as he embarked on his now familiar stump speech decrying a "systemic" sexism she had never experienced.
"I felt like it was Army bashing, bringing it into disrepute," she said. "Those were my exact thoughts."
Morrison told the audience of 400 women and 100 men at the Hyatt Hotel about how women had been ill-treated in the Army, about female soldiers being raped, and the Skype scandal in which a cadet filmed himself having sex with a fellow cadet and broadcast it without her permission.
"He was portraying the Army as a really unattractive place to be. I find it ironic he runs a Women in Army campaign to boost numbers and then gives a speech like that.
"If I was a woman in that room with the slightest inkling to join the Army I would have picked up my bag and run the other way."
Morrison also described how he visited troops in Afghanistan to spruik his sexism mantra.
"We've got hardened men on the frontline," says Charlotte, who joined the Army at 17. "If that was me, I would want some encouraging battle-ready words, not a discussion on the treatment of women."
Charlotte was affronted because all the male soldiers she worked with in 11 years in the Army had been supportive.
"There's not one moment I can remember that was bad at all," she said. "I was not mistreated. I have a lot of close female friends and I can't think of one who was. I had a couple of bosses in the Army who were like father figures who I could ring right now if I needed help."
So Charlotte decided to confront Morrison after his speech. "I'm never disrespectful. He did hold an important role in the Army but I approached him afterwards and gave him my opinion."
She introduced herself and Morrison asked: "What did you think of my speech?"
Charlotte said: "Honestly, I really think you could have mentioned all the decent men in the Army and industry that look out for women."
Morrison replied: "Well, that's not really where I was going with that."
No, because this is a former chief of Army who has carved out a lucrative career disrespecting by association all the decent men and women who have risked their lives in service of their nation.
This is a man who dismayed veterans when he declared his priorities as Australian of the Year were diversity, the gender pay gap and the republican movement instead of highlighting serious problems of mental illness and suicide among ex-soldiers.
In fact, when he was Chief of Army from 2011 to 2015, suicides more than doubled from an average six per year in the previous decade to 14 per year, according to the Australian Veterans Suicide register run by an Iraq War veteran with post traumatic stress disorder.
In 2014, the year after Morrison's famous Jedi Council speech accusing male soldiers of "systemic" sexism, the number of suicides of Army veterans peaked at 22.
It would be unfair to draw any link. But the blameless lieutenant colonel he stripped of his command two months after that speech for failing to be aware of sexist, offensive emails (which had been cc'd to him but which he hadn't opened) was almost another statistic. Afflicted with PTSD exacerbated by the injustice, "Ken" has attempted suicide twice since being medically discharged.
Yet, among all of Morrison's celebrated speeches about "diversity" and gender equity very little can be found about suicide and PTSD.
A new generation of combat veterans could have done with a high profile champion in a military Australian of the Year. Instead, as Morrison himself boasted at that Women in Mining conference, they got a man whose ruthlessness was "life ruining".
"We discharged over 300 people involuntarily in the Army in the last three years of my time as chief," he told the audience.
"This was serious stuff and when I spoke to my workforce in the wake of a particular incident in 2013, I made it very clear that I would be ruthless in holding people to account, and then people were surprised and disappointed I was ruthless in holding them to account.
"And I didn't care."
No, he didn't care.
* The date of the conference has been corrected from October, 2015 to September 11, 2015
|47 comments | Permalink
The ABC's monstrous lie disguised as journalism
Miranda Devine –, Wednesday, February, 10, 2016, (6:14am)
THE ABC's news division needs a brutal overhaul, now it has been caught red-handed broadcasting the monstrous lie that a five-year-old boy was "raped" on Nauru, in an Australian offshore immigration facility.
For an entire week, night and day, on its most prestigious programs, on TV, on radio, online, this falsehood was repeated as if it were fact, apart from the odd "alleged" thrown in, without the most rudimentary fact-checking having been done.
They wanted so much for the story to be true that they didn't even apply the most basic bullshit detector.
It's hard to think of more shoddy, irresponsible, or cynical journalism.
The story was never credible, which is why no one got worked up about it.
It was "advocacy disguised as journalism", as Department of Immigration and Border Protection secretary Michael Pezzullo put it.
There was "no evidence, whatsoever, anywhere" that a five-year-old had been raped on Nauru", he told a Senate hearing, in a cold fury, on Monday.
"It's getting to a point where there is advocacy parading as journalism that is actually deleterious to a sensible discussion about these matters.
"We've gone beyond journalism when you've got certain segments of the media undertaking essentially pamphleteering of almost a political nature and then in that context the facts just get bent.
"The allegation that my department is somehow complicit in a regime where children are raped and they are returned to a brutal regime of detention, I reject that utterly."
That is what the ABC's foul untruth meant, that we all were complicit in a child's rape, the Prime Minister, the Immigration Minister, the department, the slandered Nauruans, the complacent Australian public, everyone except the moral narcissists of the ABC and the refugee lobby.
It was designed to whip up public opposition to our border protection policies, cruelly raise false hopes among asylum seekers, and try to force the Turnbull government to weaken, just as Kevin Rudd did so disastrously.
There are good journalists at the ABC, but they increasingly are being tarnished by association.
At least, this time, the ABC has acknowledged its error and apologised, unlike in previous cases, such as the unforgivable smear in 2014 that our navy was torturing asylum seekers.
How could such an egregious error have been broadcast without someone raising a quizzical eyebrow?
The national broadcaster is the best-funded media outfit in Australia by a country mile, employing armies of producers and entire fact checking departments while looking down its nose at commercial media and posing as a paragon of journalistic credibility.
For the most part the public has bought the myth that this extravagantly funded behemoth produces superior journalism, instead of agenda-driven propaganda. Not for much longer.
|21 comments | Permalink
Veterans slam Australian of the Year David Morrison for $1000 an hour job with defence contractor
Miranda Devine –, Tuesday, February, 09, 2016, (6:27am)
I don't think this Australian of the Year caper is working out so well:
AUSTRALIAN of the Year David Morrison has landed a $200,000 a year job as a diversity adviser to a major defence contractor in return for just 25 days work a year.
The cushy job with Deloitte Australia came after it was awarded a string of army contracts, including a $2.6 million deal to revamp its website during Mr Morrison's time as chief of army.
The $1000-an-hour position has outraged some veterans who say Mr Morrison only got the role because of his time as military boss. "It's jobs for the boys," said Bruce Relph, NSW president of the Australian Peacekeeper and Peacemaker Veterans Association.
"It is disgusting he can land a job like that when ex-servicemen and women are left on the scrapheap."
AUSTRALIAN of the Year David Morrison has landed a $200,000 a year job as a diversity adviser to a major defence contractor in return for just 25 days work a year.
The cushy job with Deloitte Australia came after it was awarded a string of army contracts, including a $2.6 million deal to revamp its website during Mr Morrison's time as chief of army.
The $1000-an-hour position has outraged some veterans who say Mr Morrison only got the role because of his time as military boss. "It's jobs for the boys," said Bruce Relph, NSW president of the Australian Peacekeeper and Peacemaker Veterans Association.
"It is disgusting he can land a job like that when ex-servicemen and women are left on the scrapheap."
And there's this:
FORMER chief of army David Morrison attempted to block a combat unit of Vietnam veterans from getting formal recognition that would allow them to qualify for higher pensions.
The Australian of the Year, as deputy army chief in 2008, argued against a proposal to formalise the "ghost platoon" which fought a decisive ambush against far superior forces at Thua Tich in Vietnam in 1969.
Documents obtained under Freedom of Information show Mr Morrison wrote in bold type that the proposal should not be approved. "Setting such a precedent in amending archives is unprecedented and attracts high risk," he wrote.
Platoon veteran Don Tate said: "He has never done anything for the current serving soldiers and has done nothing for veterans."
FORMER chief of army David Morrison attempted to block a combat unit of Vietnam veterans from getting formal recognition that would allow them to qualify for higher pensions.
The Australian of the Year, as deputy army chief in 2008, argued against a proposal to formalise the "ghost platoon" which fought a decisive ambush against far superior forces at Thua Tich in Vietnam in 1969.
Documents obtained under Freedom of Information show Mr Morrison wrote in bold type that the proposal should not be approved. "Setting such a precedent in amending archives is unprecedented and attracts high risk," he wrote.
Platoon veteran Don Tate said: "He has never done anything for the current serving soldiers and has done nothing for veterans."
|25 comments | Permalink
Lt Col "Ken" speaks out over "Jedi Council" witch hunt
Miranda Devine –, Monday, February, 08, 2016, (1:37pm)
Hello everyone, I am the "Ken" that has been referred to by Miranda et al. I was a Lieutenant Colonel in Command of a Unit at the time of this matter. I appreciate the mainly positive support for the plight of others and myself on this Jedi Council issue.
I can assure you that none of the Army personnel caught up in this matter were afforded justice both from a Military Justice and Military Administrative action. My own ADFIS (military police) interview lasted all of 10 minutes with only one question "what do you know of the Jedi Council?" My answer was "I do not know anything about it." At that point the investigators took a statement from me as a Witness. One of the investigators at one point said "Sir, I don't even know why we're here."
I then went back to commanding my military Unit knowing that I had not done anything contrary to Defence Orders. The AOTY GEN Morrison then made his famous speech and while doing this asserted that a LTCOL was involved. This immediately identified me as there was only one LTCOL who had his office raided in Townsville. This news spread quickly through the Army and I quickly began to feel betrayed and hopeless.
Because GEN Morrison had no evidence to apply Military Law he switched to Military Administrative Law. Once again in my opinion GEN Morrison failed to follow the CDF's own directive on Defence Inquiries by not conducting a proper Senior Officer led inquiry. GEN Morrison then issued Notices to Show Causes for why we should not be discharged from the Army to all people who received an email from Fredrickson. This was done without having asked the accused their version of events, showing them the evidence against them or applying human factors.
The bias was demonstrated to me when I heard GEN Morrison speak in Townsville the day after his speech to Army. He said in front of all the senior officers and soldiers at Lavarack Barracks when referring to the accused Jedi Council, "these alleged individuals, and I use the word alleged because I have to, I will remove them from the ADF." This was said before he had issued Show Causes to the alleged Jedi Council members and heard each person's story.
We never had a chance when the AOTY was biased, unfair and most importantly, did not seem to care about many soldiers who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan on multiple tours of duty. There is no excuse for the email that caused this issue and my heart goes out to the poor lady. However, consideration could have been given to the effect of war, PTSD and mental illness before casting out soldiers.
Let me finish by saying once again: There was no Jedi Council. It was just a small group of men sending crass emails. There was one email that was deemed inexcusable and the person who sent it has been rightly charged and convicted. Also please note that many, many people did not open or even ignored the emails.
Thank you for listening to the real version of events.
|7 comments | Permalink
Miranda Devine is a leading columnist with The Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun.
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5 Ways To Get Off The Couch And Help Your Brain Work Better.
As well as all the risks we already know about – heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity – it seems a laid-back, lazy lifestyle could also damage your brain health.
A new study of middle aged men and women has found that their physical fitness levels at about age 40 can predict how mentally fit they will be at age 60+. That means the brain volume – or put another way, how much the brain has or hasn't shrunk.
The study of over 1000 people, by doctors and researchers at Boston University School of Medicine, Mass., concluded that a high blood pressure in middle age is associated with lower brain volume in later life.
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Lifestyle Change and The Sugar Rush. How I Quit Sugar.
In the 1980s and 90s it was low fat. In the 2000s it was low carb. Today it's sugar. All the recent brain research indicates that it's addictive in the same way that nicotine and alcohol can be, that it can trigger diabetes, may aggravate inflammatory diseases, and (as we already know) leads to obesity.
Nothing to love about sugar – except that we all do. Well, at the risk of seeing a bandwagon to jump on, here's what happened when I tried going sugar-free. It's the story of a lifestyle change. Continue reading
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The NMR LipoProfile test is an advanced cardiovascular diagnostic test that uses nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to provide rapid, simultaneous and direct measurement of LDL particle number and size of LDL particles, and also direct measurement of HDL and VLDL subclasses. This detailed lipoprotein particle information allows health professionals to make more effective individualized treatment decisions than previously possible based on standard lipid panel testing. The atherosclerotic culprit not LDL cholesterol, but LDL particle number.
Why should you take the NMR LipoProfile® test?
You should take the NMR LipoProfile® test because it provides a more accurate picture of cardiovascular (CVD) risk than the standard lipid panel. Each year, heart attacks kill more than 8 times as many women than breast cancer and 15 times as many men than prostate cancer. According to a major study, 50% of the people who suffered a heart attack had normal cholesterol levels. If your cholesterol is normal, being lowered by treatments like diet, exercise, or medication; or you have any of the conditions listed below, the NMR LipoProfle test may be right for you:
- Diabetes
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Additional Information
|Also Known As
|Cholesterol, Lipoprotein Analysis (LDL-P, HDL-P, LDL Size), Expanded.
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The NMR LipoProfile test is the only test that will report LDL particle number and size.
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2014 Sochi Olympics: Loser Gets Bieber? Now THAT'S Motivation (Pic)
2014 Sochi Olympics: T.J. Oshie's Six Shootout Attempts vs. Russia in One GIF
by: JamieD On Friday, February 21, 2014
T.J. Oshie is tied for the NHL lead in shootout goals this season with seven in ten attempts. That was a major factor in Team USA's decision to take him to the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, and it payed off when he shocked the host nation by converting on four of his six shootout attempts during a round robin victory over Russia.
Now you can watch each of those six shootout attempts at the same time. Check it out:
Hat Tip to Deadspin for the gif. They also took the time to analyze the secret to Oshie's shootout success. You can view the entire article here.
Lead Editor and contributor for TotalProSports.com
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Hart Brock
Published: Monday, February 2, 2009 at 3:15 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, February 1, 2009 at 8:12 p.m.
LANDRUM, SC-- Graveside services for Hart Brock will be held at 11:00 a.m. Monday, February 2, 2009 at Evergreen Memorial Gardens conducted by Dr. John Fortner.
Memorials may be made to Southside Baptist Church, 445 Sunset Road, Landrum, SC 29356.
Condolences may be left at www.pettyfuneralhome.com.
Petty Funeral Home and Crematory - Landrum, SC
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Friday, November 2, 2012
Members of the Odell Methodist Church invite the community to come and join them for a free community Harvest Dinner on Nov. 10, 5 p.m. in the fellowship hall.
Everyone is welcome; bring a side dish if you'd like — or simply come and partake of the bounty.
The congregation holds its annual Celebrate the Harvest worship on Nov. 11, 10 a.m.
Food and cash gifts to FISH will be collected both days.
"We are so grateful for the bounty the Lord has provided, and the hard work of those who gather it in," said Pastor Christy Matson.
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Parallel processing to generate radar signatures for multiple objects
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United States Patent #7750842
In one aspect, a system to generate a radar signature of an object includes electromagnetic processing modules that include a first module including at least one processing unit to perform a shooting and bouncing (SBR) technique to solve for physical optics and multi-bounce characteristics of the object, a second module including a processing unit to perform a physical theory (PTD) technique to solve for material edges of the object and a third module including a processing unit to perform an incremental length diffraction coefficient (ILDC) to solve for material boss/channel. Results from the first, second and third modules are coherently integrated by frequency to generate radar cross section (RCS) values of the object in real-time. Performance of the system is scalable by adding processing units to at least one of the first, second or third modules.
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