Give the FBI the tools to investigate domestic terrorism

"On Friday, the FBI arrested and charged a Florida man for carrying out the attempted bombing campaign, and the investigation is ongoing. If confirmed, the use of black powder (also known as gunpowder) would fit a pattern: It was the third most commonly used explosive charge in domestic bombing incidents last year, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Black powder (or its modern cousin, smokeless powder) has been used in countless high-profile bombings, including the World Trade Center in 1993, Atlanta in 1996, Boston in 2013, and the Unabomber’s two-decade-long spree.

It’s also untraceable in the United States, thanks in large part to the National Rifle Association’s 50-year campaign against regulations that would require the addition of trace markers, or “taggants.” The minuscule, indestructible chips can make it possible to link gunpowder back to the point of sale — information that can help investigators quickly track down the bomber.

But because many gun enthusiasts use gunpowder to make or reload their own bullets, the NRA has been successfully killing efforts to add taggants since the Nixon administration, according to a report released Thursday by the Violence Policy Center. The NRA has offered a host of reasons over the years for its opposition: There wasn’t enough credible research on their efficacy; taggants could destabilize gunpowder and affect the trajectory of bullets; adding them would be too costly for manufacturers; and implementing a tracing system would be too costly for taxpayers.

But critics of the NRA say the group’s opposition to taggants is rooted in the same rationale that animates its opposition to universal background checks and a centralized database of gun sales: Because they could be a backdoor to national gun registration."

MORE AT:

The NRA Also Makes It Harder to Trace Bombs

The gun group has long opposed taggants for gunpowder, depriving bombing investigators of a valuable tool.

People call themselves Republicans but is there a Republican Party?

In 2009 the Koch Brothers created the “grass roots” Tea Party.

In 2012 the Koch Brothers created the GOP Voter Database they named Themis, after the Greek goddess who imposes divine order on human affairs.

Also in 2012 the Republican Supreme Court Citizens United decision created a means for international corporations and foreign billionaires to fund Republican candidates. An international pool of money is supporting Republican candidates and helping to write laws.

"As Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team probes deeper into potential collusion between Trump officials and representatives of the Russian government, investigators are taking a closer look at political contributions made by U.S. citizens with close ties to Russia. 

Buried in the campaign finance reports available to the public are some troubling connections between a group of wealthy donors with ties to Russia and their political contributions to President Donald Trump and a number of top Republican leaders. And thanks to changes in campaign finance laws, the political contributions are legal. We have allowed our campaign finance laws to become a strategic threat to our country." 

MORE AT: 

DALLAS NEWS  

How Putin's oligarchs funneled millions into GOP campaigns

ALSO SEE:
How Russia’s Mariia Butina Allegedly Used Sex to “Infiltrate” the Republican Party and NR  

Ben Mathis-Lilley  July 18, 20181:03 PM

Fox News became the propaganda organ of the Republican Party "brainwashing viewers  and now in part directs an empty headed narcissistic psychopath President of the United "States who is easily swayed by flattery and calls himself “Republican” but would turn on a dime into a Democrat if the money was there for him.

A loosely organized internationally funded organization directed by foreign & U.S. “investors”, hard right politicians, with propaganda by & at times, policy by Fox News, with a pathological narcissist president are now known as “The Republican Party.”

President Dwight Eisenhower might find today’s “Republicans” strange and repulsive. 

“It is like Pulp Fiction,' the official told the New York Times." Not really. IT'S LIKE THE SHOOTOUT & DISMEMBERMENT SCENE IN DONNY BRASCO.

Maybe they'll find Khashoggi's head in the Meadowlands.

"Not long after Khashoggi entered the consul’s office, two men came into the room and dragged him away. Unbeknown to the Saudis, Turkish intelligence officials from the national spy agency, MIT, were listening in... 

According to the audio, a partial transcript of which was leaked last week to Yeni Safak, a pro-government newspaper, one of his killers is heard warning:

'Shut up if you want to return to Saudi Arabia'. 

As the mutilation starts, Tubaigy – the forensic scientist, who specialises in conducting autopsies – puts on headphones and is heard to say to his colleagues: “When I do this job, I listen to music. You should do that too.” 

Khashoggi’s fingers were cut off while he was held down, the recording suggests. He was injected with a substance, which silenced him, then carried into another room – the third to be used in the gruesome killing – where he was lifted on to a meeting table then cut to pieces. 

A Turkish official later said the Saudis had brought a bone saw to the consulate. 'It is like Pulp Fiction,” the official told the New York Times."

MORE AT: 

Jamal Khashoggi: murder in the consulate 

Martin Chulov Last modified on Mon 22 Oct 2018 05.42 EDT

THIS IS FROM PULP FICTION:

How to create a totalitarian America while almost no one is looking.

Seems reasonable that law enforcement would use smart home devices to solve crimes. But the national effort by Republicans to make protests illegal (See. PA SB 652) suggests smart home devices can be part of a totalitarian government electronic Gestapo. 

TC Techcrunch 

Smart home tech makers don’t want to say if the feds come for your data 

Device makers won't say if your smart home gadgets spied on you

Sunday, October 14, 2018 

SB 652 making peaceful pipeline protest a felony is a test to apply felony charges to all peaceful protest. It’s part of a Republican Party nationwide ALEC legislative campaign to make peaceful protest a crime.

"the American Putin will seed the country with cameras—it's easier than ever to use technology to suppress dissent—and undercover agents. 'Our country is led by people who were trained as spies,' a brave member of the Russian opposition told the BBC in 2006. 'The trouble is, ordinary people just don't care." 

FROM: 

How Is America Going To End? 

Five steps to totalitarian rule. 

By Josh Levin 

August 6, 2009

Benari Poulten:

"This is like at the start of World War II as Germany was consolidating power and Japan was consolidating power. Instead of having FDR as president we had Charles Lindbergh, who is sympathetic to their causes and was a willing partner. 

That’s sort of what the deal is right now on the world stage. There is a consolidation of power happening. There are dictatorships that are enhancing and growing their armies. 

And we don’t seem to be on the side of the good guys." 

MORE AT:

Friday, October 19, 2018

Benari Poulten on FAKE THE NATION. Benari organized the Kerry for President Campaign Headquarters in Coatesville in 2004.

Benari Poulten on FAKE THE NATION. Benari organized the Kerry for President Campaign Headquarters in Coatesville in 2004.

StudioPhoto-CongerPoulten.jpg

Horseface Mob
FAKE THE NATION #119
OCTOBER 18, 2018
"Cristen Conger (Unladylike) and Benari Poulten (The Nightly Show) join Negin to discuss the geopolitical implications of the missing Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Then, the panel asks: If the Democrats win the House, is a quest for impeachment politically savvy? Plus, they unpack New York Times critic Wesley Morris’s essay “The Morality Wars” and how social justice and representation impact how we talk about art."

Benari Poulten:  

"This is like at the start of World War II as Germany was consolidating power and Japan was consolidating power. Instead of having FDR as president we had Charles Lindbergh, who was sympathetic to their causes and was a willing partner. 

That’s sort of what the deal is right now on the world stage. There is a consolidation of power happening. There are dictatorships that are enhancing and growing their armies. 

And we don’t seem to be on the side of the good guys now."

Benari Poulten

@BenariLee 

Four basic groups living in Northwestern Montgomery County Pennsylvania. Original farmers. Italian Americans from S. Philly. Hippies who grow marijuana. Ordinary folks who had no idea what they got into.

1. Original mostly German American farmers. Great History: General Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, eldest son of Rev. Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, was born at Trappe October 1, 1746. 
2. Italian Americans from South Philadelphia who gradually moved along Ridge Pike to the Collegeville/Skippack area. Ask around Skippack Village. Almost every business there has a South Philly counterpart.
3. Hippies with expertise in marijuana growing moved to the Limerick/Spring Mt. area when they were forced to leave South Street because of the proposed Cross Town Expressway. South Street is still there. The Cross Town Expressway follows Spring Garden St.
4. The “Newcomers.” Rt. 422 was built and thousands of people moved to Collegeville, Limerick, Skippack, Lower Frederick area not realizing that many township officials got high every night. And that a little bit of the South Philly mob came with the people from South Philly. 

I lived near a man with a house and barn on Mine Hill Rd. In Schwenksville, PA. I could see his house from my bedroom window. Later I read that his barn was a huge marijuana growing operation. He burned the chaff in his home’s fireplace. There was a downdraft weather phenomena. The smoke went along the ground instead of up. The entire town of Schwenksville smelled marijuana. He was arrested. I call the Limerick, Lower Frederick, Spring Mt. area "Emerald Triangle East." 

The Bucky Fuller geodesic homes in Limerick Township PA is one of the many concepts brought into the area by people moving from South St. in Philly.

The people there are very nice mostly mellow people. But no way is it ordinary suburban style living.

I like the CAPPICOLA at the Italian Market in Skippack PA

Cappicola with sharp provolone tomato, red onion, sweet roasted red peppers, oil, balsamic vinegar, parmesan, and oregano - $8.50 

PS
I forgot one subset of people, not large enough in number for a group but significant for the potential for mayhem.  The skinhead/KKK. 

In spite of the construction of the Perkiomen Trail they still have cross lighting ceremonies along the Perkiomen Creek. Not exactly "Deliverance" but it's a little scary finding Nazi skinheads while fishing. 

A woman with 2 children living in a row home in Schwenksville called me when I was a planning commission member of Lower Frederick. I don't know why she picked me to call. She told me that 3 skinheads lived next door. She felt threatened. She was aware they didn't pay rent & they sold drugs. All I did was let the Mayor of Schwenksville know about it. The problem was solved. 

Around the same time some skinheads were arrested for bank robbery.

SB 652 making peaceful pipeline protest a felony is a test to apply felony charges to all peaceful protest. It’s part of a Republican Party nationwide ALEC legislative campaign to make peaceful protest a crime.

The International Center for Not-For-Profit Law

 ICNL 

US Protest Law Tracker  

Pennsylvania Senator Andy Dinniman released the following statement on Wednesday:

“This is part of a concerted effort that is going not only in Pennsylvania but across the nation to silence and stifle any opposition, criticism or concerns related to growing network of pipelines crisscrossing our communities. Yes, our critical infrastructure needs to be safe and secure, but this isn’t the way to do it. 

Furthermore, if pipeline companies, like Sunoco, are so concerned about safety why haven’t they taken the necessary steps to ensure that our schools and local emergency first responders have access to the information they need to adequately respond to potential emergencies? Instead, we want to throw people in jail for up to a year for peaceful protests or ‘trespassing’ on an easement that may be in their own backyard? That’s not only wrong; it’s downright un-American.”

MORE AT:

Bill in Harrisburg would make protesting at pipeline site a crime

Bill Rettew brettew@221st-centurymedia.comOct 11, 2018

https://rightsanddissent.org/news/pennsylvania-criminalize-protest/

“Going to the mattresses” Does Prigozhin do meatballs? “Infamous St. Petersburg 'Troll Factory' Set on Fire” “Yevgeny Prigozhin-Putin’s “cook.” U.S. indicted Prigozhin &12 other Russians- defrauding the U.S. government-interfering political process.

"The Fontanka.ru news website cited police as saying that an unknown suspect broke the agency’s ground-floor window and threw a Molotov cocktail inside at around 3 a.m. on Tuesday. 

Surveillance footage published by FAN showed flames erupting at one of the empty workstations and a female staffer stationed on the opposite end quickly exiting the office. 

“I believe this is tied to FAN’s activities,” its chief editor Yevgeny Zubarev said. “We’re most often attacked online, but these types of attacks have already taken place offline.”

 FAN said its office came under another arson attack on the eve of the 2018 presidential elections in March.

The troll farm is believed to be run by billionaire restaurateur Yevgeny Prigozhin, known as President Vladimir Putin’s “cook.” A U.S. special counsel indicted Prigozhin and 12 other Russians this year on charges of defrauding the U.S. government by interfering with its political process. 

St. Petersburg police told the RBC news website that they were looking for the culprit and planned to launch criminal proceedings."

MORE AT:

The Moscow Times

Infamous St. Petersburg 'Troll Factory' Set on Fire

UPDATE:

"Many expected this indictment would be the end of the “troll farm” story, since everyone involved was Russian and surely wouldn’t come to the US to face charges. But one company charged, Concord Catering, did decide to contest the indictment in US court. However, it seems that Mueller has largely handed off the matter to other prosecutors in the Justice Department."

“Never in his wildest dreams,” Pinedo’s lawyers later wrote, “could he have foreseen that providing bank account information to set up Pay Pal accounts could be used to interfere with a presidential election…” 

“In contrast to George Papadopoulos, who Mueller’s team said provided them no “substantial” assistance, the special counsel has praised Pinedo’s cooperation. Pinedo’s “prompt acceptance of responsibility saved the government significant time and resources in the investigation,” Mueller’s prosecutors later wrote. About two months after the raid, Pinedo agreed to a plea deal, pleading guilty to one count of identity fraud. 

The next day, Mueller indicted the Internet Research Agency, two other Russian companies, and 13 Russian individuals in connection with the troll farm. He alleged that they tried to interfere with the US election with social media posts, online ads, and rallies organized in the US — often to hurt Hillary Clinton’s candidacy and help Trump’s. 

Many expected this indictment would be the end of the “troll farm” story, since everyone involved was Russian and surely wouldn’t come to the US to face charges. But one company charged, Concord Catering, did decide to contest the indictment in US court. However, it seems that Mueller has largely handed off the matter to other prosecutors in the Justice Department. 

Pinedo’s sentence is the third handed down in Mueller’s probe so far — and the longest. The two previous sentences, for Papadopoulos (14 days) and Dutch lawyer Alex van der Zwaan (30 days), were both for making false statements to investigators. Pinedo, however, pleaded guilty to a different crime, identity fraud. And now it seems his bit part in the Russia probe is over.”

MORE AT:

Richard Pinedo sentenced in Mueller investigation

A small fry caught up in the Russia probe gets his sentence.

Andrew Prokop Oct 10, 2018, 11:15am EDT

The DNC is putting Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court.

Republicans needed Democrat Joe Manchin III W.Va to get Kavanaugh. 

Manchin’s unique brand makes him “incredibly valuable to the Democratic Party,” according to FiveThirtyEight’s Harry Enten, who used statistics to show that a successful primary challenge would effectively guarantee Democrats lose the seat. 

But Swearengin and other progressives don’t believe the conventional wisdom that only Manchin can win the seat for Democrats — they argue that Democrats have lost their way in the state because they are running too close to Republicans. 

“The Democratic Party has failed us, because we haven’t run the progressive platform we’ve been promised. … That’s why people have moved their votes to the Republicans,” she said. 

THE HILL 

Manchin faces primary challenge from the left 

Ben Kamisar06/20/17 06:00 AM EDT

The New York Times

How Every Senator Voted on Advancing Kavanaugh’s Confirmation 

By ANNIE DANIEL, JASMINE C. LEE and SARA SIMON OCT. 5, 2018 

The Senate voted 51-49 on Friday morning to advance the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was the only Republican to vote no, while Senator Joe Manchin III of West Virginia was the only Democrat to vote yes.

Watch “Trump’s Showdown” on Frontline and know that a vote for any Republican is a vote for Russia and Vladimir Putin

"That now-infamous meeting in the Seychelles with Trumpworld associate Erik Prince was a single strand of a broader campaign. In the days before Donald Trump’s inauguration, an ally of Vladimir Putin’s reached out to at least three additional individuals in close contact with the Trump transition team, according to materials reviewed by The Daily Beast.

“We want to start rebuilding the relationship in whatever is a comfortable pace for them. We understand all of the sensitivities and are not in a rush,” according to a November 9, 2016 communication from Kirill Dmitriev, the head of one of Russia’s sovereign wealth funds. That communication was sent to George Nader, the Lebanese-American businessman who helped broker the meeting between Dmitriev and Prince in the Seychelles, and forwarded on to third parties. Nader is cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of foreign influence in the American political system.

“I think that we can be helpful in guiding this relationship understanding each of the sides well :). My boss sends his warmest greetings and I will see him again early next week.”
— Kirill Dmitriev

Part of Dmitriev’s power, those who have worked with him said, comes from his reputation in the both the political and financial realms in Russia. Three people who either know Dmitriev or have worked with him say he has been in close contact with President Putin and at times refers to him as his "boss," according to communications reviewed by The Daily Beast. By Russian law, Putin appoints the CEO and the supervisory board of RDIF. Dmitriev met publicly with Putin several times throughout 2017 and 2018.


“Dmitriev is a very mild guy—a calming influence. He is very much a bureaucratic player in Russia and is good in his role.” Rodzianko said. “RDIF is the Russian door-front for investment. If you look at their supervisory board its a who's who of the Russian government. If you open their website there are pictures—the faces of those who run the country.”

DAILY BEAST

Erik Prince’s Russian Connection Trawled Trumpland for ‘Boss’ Putin

In the days after the 2016 election, a well-connected Moscow executive started pitching Trump associates on a bold plan for renewed U.S.-Russian cooperation.

10.03.18 9:01 PM ET