Justin’s note: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions wants to steal your property.
Since
taking office in February, he’s done all sorts of idiotic things. He’s
threatened to crack down on the legal marijuana market. He’s attacked
gay rights. And he even wants to amp up asset seizures. This is when the
government takes money and property from people. You don’t even need to
be convicted of a crime.
In this installment of our special holiday series, Doug Casey shares his thoughts on the subject…
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Doug Casey on Asset Seizures |
Justin: Doug, what do you think of Sessions’ latest “bright” idea?
Doug:
Well, let me preface this by saying Sessions was a disastrous choice
for Attorney General. He’s done nothing in his life but be a lawyer, a
prosecutor, and a politician. He has no experience—and therefore
probably no inclination or even ability—to produce things of tangible
value.
But
we almost always get undesirables as the AG. They’re hatchet men, meant
to prosecute “the enemy,” taking their pick of the hundreds of
thousands of laws and regulations on the books to do so. Look at some of
the recent AGs—Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder, Alberto Gonzales, John
Ashcroft, Janet Reno. All of them would have been willing and obedient
lapdogs to Stalin or Beria. A certain personality type is suited for the
job.
Sessions
is a rabid drug warrior, even against something as useful and benign as
hemp, or marijuana. He’s a busybody who feels no guilt or remorse at
enforcing laws that have destroyed the lives of tens of millions. I
don't know if he's stupid, bent, thoughtless, paranoid or what his
problem might be. Maybe he’s afraid that if pot wasn’t illegal he’d
become a dope fiend himself. But the proper direction, the objective, is
to legalize all drugs. Not amp the drug war up another notch, as he
wants to do.
And
not only does he want to amp up the drug war, but he wants to increase
the State’s ability to confiscate citizens’ property—especially cash—on
even suspicion of breaking a law.
In
the meantime he's not doing anything to investigate the people in
Hillary’s camp for all kinds of apparent illegality. In fact, now that
Trump's in office, what ever happened to his promise of a real
investigation of what really happened to things like Building 7 on 9/11?
Or the strange deaths that seem to have surrounded the Clinton clan for
decades?
So
far the man seems all negatives no positives. He’s just another Deep
State actor who’s climbed the political ladder a little higher. These
guys all protect each other.
But
increasingly many of Trump’s choices are disastrous, like his National
Security Advisor McMaster and White House Chief of Staff Kelly. And
wormtongues Ivanka and Jared Kushner. This is perhaps an inevitable
problem when a President is just a pragmatist with no philosophical
core. Although, I hasten to add, having no core may be better than
having a rotten core, like Obama and others in the recent past.
Justin:
Not to mention, asset seizures don’t work. Over the past decade, the
federal government has seized more than $28 billion. But that’s done
absolutely nothing to deter crime.
So, why would Sessions double down on this failed policy? Is he clueless? Or is the government just that desperate?
Doug: Good
question. Well, I’ve already speculated on some possible aspects of
Sessions’ character that might partially explain this. But all the
repressive aspects of government—civil forfeitures are just one—have
been growing and compounding for years. It’s not a conspiracy, it’s the
natural progression of all living organisms. They all want to grow,
exert more control on their environments, and become more powerful. The
problem is that government has unusual powers, and no longer seems to
have many limits. So you can expect this trend to accelerate.
I
saw the other day the government steals more from the American people
through confiscations than is lost outright to robberies and muggings.
It’s been reported that in 2015 civil forfeitures exceeded the amount
stolen by all robbers. It’s quite amazing and disturbing. There are at
least two reasons things are deteriorating.
Number
one, as a general rule, police are no longer trained as “peace
officers.” They’re trained to be, and view themselves, as “law
enforcement officers.” This is a very different thing. The police are a
bigger threat to your property and your liberty, not to mention your
life, than actual criminals. Number two, these governments are all
bankrupt. They're looking for revenue wherever they can get it.
Predators are most dangerous when they’re hungry.
The
police are the ones that actually make it happen, and they have a
vested interest in doing the wrong thing. Whenever a police department
confiscates things under these laws, they get to keep some percentage.
It varies, but can be 10, 20, 30, 50 percent of what's confiscated, and
they love it because the money goes to the local police department in
question. They can use it for buying fun cop toys, or for buying further
educational benefits, or whatever, for themselves. So, they're
profiting from this stuff as directly as the criminals do that steal
things from citizens. It's a total disaster.
And remember, the Attorney General is the country’s top law enforcement officer.
Justin: Yeah, it’s scary.
Unfortunately,
the government is sinking deeper in debt by the day. So, I’m afraid
this is going to get worse before it gets better. Do you agree?
Doug: It's inevitable.
These
governments are digging themselves into deep financial holes. They're
going to need more and more revenue. The populace has been trained to
see the government as a cornucopia. As the economy goes into the
trailing edge of the current financial hurricane, they’re going to
demand even more freebies from all levels of government. So, the trend
will continue until there's some type of a crisis. At which point
anything can happen.
The
downtrend is in motion. And trends in motion tend to continue and
accelerate until they change. I like to draw attention to France in
1789, a horrible situation with its highly authoritarian and totally
bankrupt government. A revolution was necessary and welcome. But then
things got worse under Robespierre. And worse again under Napoleon. The
exact same thing with Russia in 1917—but then they got Lenin, and then
Stalin.
Justin: Absolutely. So, asset seizures won’t even put a dent in the government’s debt problem.
With that said, how else might the government steal money and property from people?
Doug:
Well, they're now talking about making you declare your
cryptocurrencies whenever you cross a border. If you don't, and they
find out, they're eligible for confiscation. As cryptocurrencies get
bigger—and they will—this will constitute both a gigantic invasion of
privacy and an attack on your wealth.
All
governments already ask whether you have more than $10,000 when you
cross their borders, and reserve the right to search you. If this
becomes law, it means that you, your computer, and your smartphone will
always be liable to a full forensic audit.
It's another major step towards the world of 1984.
Every new law they pass has Kafka-esque possibilities. That’s what
legislatures around the world do every day they’re in session. All of
these laws have severe penalties. The trend in this direction—which
started in earnest just over 100 years ago—is going hyperbolic. And the
average human—miseducated, propagandized, and besotted by food and
drugs—wants more laws. Why? I think fear is today’s dominant emotional
tone. People want to be protected and cared for, like farm animals. They
see the State as their benevolent shepherd.
There
are no positive political trends in today’s world. They aren’t cutting
back on regulations, reducing taxes, or eliminating laws anywhere.
They're doing just the opposite.
Justin: So, how can people protect themselves from this?
Doug: It’s
increasingly hard because the statists, collectivists, socialists,
fascists, globalists, and the like have won the war for the hearts and
minds of the masses all over the world. And the world’s
governments—notwithstanding their inevitable wars and such—are
cooperating with each other far, far more than ever before.
In a nutshell, there are three things to keep in mind.
First,
become as wealthy as possible. Although they can steal anything and
everything from you, the more you have the more damage you can sustain,
and the more influence you can exert.
Second,
diversify politically and geographically. You want to have some
convenient options if your government starts looking like Russia in the
‘20s, or Germany in the ‘30s, China in the ‘50s, Cuba in the ‘60s, etc.,
etc. It’s a very long list.
Third,
keep your head down. The tall poppy is the one selected for cutting. I
observe my first two rules, but not so much this one. That’s because
sometimes we have to make a choice between what’s smart and what’s
right. In my case, almost nothing is worth feeling like a whipped dog.
Justin: Thanks for taking the time to speak with me today, Doug.
Doug: My pleasure.
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