“One of the creeping hands of totalitarianism running through the democracy is the Federal Bureau of Investigation… Because why does the FBI do all this? To scare the hell out of people… They work for the establishment and the corporations and the politicos to keep things as they are. And…

“There is no more dangerous menace to civilization than a government of incompetent, corrupt, or vile men.” — Ludwig von Mises Once again, the police state is up to its old tricks, stoking tensions over whether or not the government is forced to shut down, even partially, due to a…

“There are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.” — James Madison How far would you really go to secure the nation’s borders in the so-called name of national security? Would…

“There are instruments so dangerous to the rights of the nation and which place them so totally at the mercy of their governors that those governors, whether legislative or executive, should be restrained from keeping such instruments on foot but in well-defined cases. Such an instrument is a standing army.”…

“Since when have we Americans been expected to bow submissively to authority and speak with awe and reverence to those who represent us? The constitutional theory is that we the people are the sovereigns, the state and federal officials only our agents. We who have the final word can speak…

“If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” — George Washington What the police state wants is a silent, compliant, oblivious citizenry. What the First Amendment affirms is an engaged citizenry that speaks truth to power using whatever…

We’re not living the American dream. We’re living a financial nightmare. The U.S. government is funding its existence with a credit card. The government — and that includes the current administration — is spending money it doesn’t have on programs it can’t afford, and “we the taxpayers” are the ones…

“We Americans are the ultimate innocents. We are forever desperate to believe that this time the government is telling us the truth.” — Former New York Times reporter Sydney Schanberg Let’s talk about fake news stories, shall we? There’s the garden variety fake news that is not really “news” so…

“This country has been having a nationwide nervous breakdown since 9/11. A nation of people suddenly broke, the market economy goes to shit, and they’re threatened on every side by an unknown, sinister enemy. But I don’t think fear is a very effective way of dealing with things — of…