Communicator News - Nov 15, 2012 Edition by Communicator News

COMMUNICATOR VOL. 1 NO. 6

NOV. 15-30, 2012 • 262.930.5467 racinecommunicator.com FREE

NEWS Is Racine Watching You? License Plate Scanners 7 Wanted Information 8

INSIDE: Hate Crimes At Viper’s Lounge, pg. 9

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Social Security And The Mystery Of The Missing Boomer FICA Payments by Tom Attea

FED Chairman Ben Bernanke. Hardly a day goes by that we don’t hear FED Chairman Ben Bernanke or some other voice of the government bemoaning the sad and unsustainable expense of Social Security. You know the drill: How can it go on with all the baby boomers reaching retirement age? Here’s Bernanke at his most daring to date, addressing the Economics Club of Washington, which, we all know, wields much more influence than AARP: ‘’Reform of our unsustainable entitlement programs’’ should be a priority. “The imperative to undertake reform earlier rather than later is great.’’ But hold it a moment. Haven’t all those baby boomers watched the Federal Government neatly extract FICA payments from their paychecks for the forty or so years they’ve worked?

So where’s the money? If you really take into consideration that the number of retirees will always pretty much equal the number of people who were recently working and kicking in their share of taxes toward Social Secu-

rity, you arrive at the conclusion that all this talk about the unsustainable expenditure on “entitlements” as fiscally irresponsible is, in fact, an unsustainable bit of chicanery. You may ask, What about inflation? Isn’t it a factor? Of course, but, hey, what’s new about that? So we arrive at this very puzzling question? Why is it that with more people retiring, there is not more money available? Don’t tell me the FEDS raided the till for other priorities? Anyway, bottom line is, if we burned up the retirement funds of the boomers on bombs and idiotic wars, it’s time to moderate those expenditures, so the money that was slipped out of Social Security to fund those various insanities can be slipped back into it. We promise not to notice its temporary absence. — Tom Attea, Humorist and Creator of CN NewsLaugh.com.

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Big, Big Meanies by Heather L. Premo

It’s safe to say that right here, right now, our children have more than their fair share of life’s issues to deal with. If you ask anyone if they could go back in time to their teenage years, they will tell you no, with vigor. So the big question is, why aren’t we paying more attention to what is going on in and out of classes during school hours? Why are we not doing more to make their hectic lives more bearable when they are to be in school? I personally can tell you first hand that bullying is not a joke. I was bullied all through my school years. Each time I sought help, I was told time and time again, “Just ignore them and they will stop.” Guess what? They never, ever stopped. In fact, it always got worse until one day I snapped. I won! Although I beat this girl pretty well, I somehow had the sense of mind to say to myself, “She’s had enough,” and stop pounding on her. Even her friend tried to intervene. That didn’t work out well for her, she got her hinny thrown. The point is that once I had taken all I could take, there was no stopping me. No logical, rational thought came to me when I recieved that last punch in the arm as

she passed me in the hallway. I had taken the ridicule, the harsh words, the candy spit in my hair and the physical torment long enough, but the worst was the emotional and mental scarring. It took years to overcome the damage and to have some sense of purpose .My home life at that time wasn’t much better. My mother was busy with work and dealing with her own issues, my step-dad was never around, and for obvious reasons, no one would be my friend. So I was alone most of the time. I unfortunately didn’t have the support that I believe all children should. Those years are way past now. I am now a stronger, smarter, smart-ass because only by the Grace of God did I got through it to be able to sit here and tell you a bit about me. In truth, I am kind-hearted and I really wish I had the power to cure the world of hate, indifference, and just all the bad things that make someone, anyone miserable. Since I am only one person, I need help from time to time, just as everyone does even if they do not realize it. The damage that any kind of bullying, intimidating, or violent behavior can cause to a child during the

I was bullied all through my school years. Each time I sought help, I was told time and time again, “Just ignore them and they will stop.” They never, ever stopped.

school age years can be so devastating that we can guarantee it will cause problems at some point. Not everyone is as fortunate as I am to be sane enough to write an article like this one. Some children hide out, becoming anti-social; some fight back at the time and don’t have issues any longer, some have severe self-esteem issues for much of their lives; and some strike back with alarming and fatal vengeance that cannot be fixed once that line is crossed. Trust me when I say that I do understand that feeling of complete an utter helplessness, the overwhelming fear, the anger that turns to hate, and the pure rage that surrounds all the pain. I know it very well. Thoughts of smashing that kid over the head with my chair in high school came across my mind; thoughts of embarrassing a certain someone, by some means came to mind, and overall general wanting to cause harm to those I felt wronged and hurt me were always a constant. I never acted on any of these things, fortunately, but I do understand the wanting anything but the hand I got dealt. Suicide was a thought on several occasions as well. I don’t believe anyone asks to be

picked on. No child walks into school thinking of the dumbest thing they can do, say, or be just so they can draw a negative comment to them every time the teacher’s back is turned. They sure as heck do not ask to be physically hurt! So, here is what we are dealing with now, mass school shootings, bomb threats in school like the 14 year old at Park High School just a short time ago; Teen suicides on the rise, and meds, lots and lots of meds, not all being the legal brand. So what is being done? To be honest, from where I stand, not much. I do think some people care very much about what is healthy for our youth, but not enough. I think in the case of the 14 year old at Park High School, we are being given a chance to wake up. Waking up to realize that there are some really unhappy kids out there and they need help. Otherwise if we do not do something, I do believe that we are playing with fire here in Racine, and that fire is going to get bigger until it is too late. My heart is aching about this matter. Right now I just want to cry for the kids that need the help and cannot seem to catch a break. For so many reasons, we just aren’t doing a good enough

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NOV. 15-30, 2012 job to keep these children safe, healthy, and happy. Who is going to pay the price when it all hits the fan because it always does? In Tuscaloosa Alabama, Lt. A.B. Green came up with an idea to save lives in the attempt that a mass school shooting should occur. The program is A.L.I.C.E., Alert-Lockdown-InformCounter-Evacuate. Finally someone is doing something. AMEN!!!! In the 4 hour training program, it is instructing students and teachers to throw objects at an assailant with a gun entering. They naturally react to protect themselves by putting their hands up to guard themselves and this gives everyone a chance to get away. It also teaches that if any gunman were to get too close that many attacking together can save lives and hold the gunman there until authorities

a potential to occur. This could help in so many areas. It could identify bullying and proper punishment if it is occurring, and counseling for all involved if and when needed. This can also identify some behavioral issues that might be due to some mental illness that a child is having problems with and then they can get properly evaluated and helped. Also being a school liaison can help in the relation with parents, the school, and authorities. Seminars for parents and how to handle issue with their child(ren) and in-services for people working with and for the school system that they can help identify and work with students to better support them as a whole. Groups can be established for the students that seem to have a hard time fitting in or just feel unsure, and self-esteem or self-respect workshops can be created so that stu-

The damage that any kind of bullying, intimidating, or violent behavior can cause to a child during the school age years can be so devastating that we can guarantee it will cause problems at some point. arrive. This is one way that might be able to protect life in the event of a school shooting. I desperately encourage you to read about it and you can do this by looking up Tuscaloosa Alabama on the web. I do think this is a fantastic idea, however, it only solves one problem and that is an incident like a school shooting. It won’t protect children from a bomb like at Park, s uicide, and other violent acts. In much of my research, I found that the best solution to this problem is that every school system and / or city needs one or two people that can act as a school liaison; an observer. A person with knowledge of child psychological behaviors and needs; a person that is non-judge-mental or biased; a person that most certainly has common sense; and a person that is loving and wants the best for all children. The school liaison would be able to go into every school in any part of the school that they deem necessary to observe all students and identify problems that occurring and might be

dents can learn that they are worthy and beautiful and they do belong here! This is not a difficult concept and this can leave the teachers to concentrate on teaching and the rest of the school faculty to concentrate on their jobs as well. However, should a problem arise, teachers need to be understanding and work with this process. Our children are worth whatever time and energy we can give them, otherwise it seems as though we are raising a lot of angry, resentful, kids. Those kids are going to be running the county someday; got to say, I want a happy kid running for President and not some whack job that we couldn’t heal when we had the chance. Not only that, but I don’t want to have to worry about my children each and every day that they leave for school, wondering is this going to be the day that one of these kids snaps, and we didn’t do a damned thing when we had the chance. — Heather L. Premo

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Colorado And Washington Go Sane!

Two of the less talked about issues in the 2012 election were the Colorado and Washington State initiatives to decriminalize cannabis (marijuana) for recreational use. The initiatives passed and now place the states in official disagreement with the federal prohibition that effectively began in 1937 with the Marijuana Tax Act. The Tax Act was a bit of legislative creativity designed to get around the Tenth Amendment, which prohibited the Federal Government from meddling in “local” (state) affairs. The backers of cannabis prohibition wanted to avoid the necessity (and probable failure) of a Constitutional Amendment such as had to be created to ban alcohol. It’s a shameful part of American history, driven by greed and ambition, fueled by racism and bigotry and enabled by the worst of yellow journalism. The final vote in the U.S. Senate, that passed the Tax Act, was encouraged by a blatant lie. Dr. William C. Woodward, Legislative Council of the American Medical Association, had appeared before the

Congressional Committee that was reviewing the legislation before it went to the full house for a vote. He denounced the legislation as having no medical or scientific foundation and a dangerous deception of the public, most of whom did not realize that “marijuana” was basically the same plant as hemp. Why would this matter? Some of the primary uses of hemp were the manufacture of fabrics, rope and paper. Two of the most powerful advocates for criminalizing cannabis were William Randolph Hearst (who owned several print publications and also owned vast tracts of pulp wood forests used for paper) and DuPont Chemical Company (which had developed Nylon and other synthetic fibers that were in direct competition with natural hemp fibers). Several pharmaceutical companies went along for the ride because cannabis had medicinal value but little potential for commercial exploitation. When the final debate on the Tax Act was held in front of Congress, one representative inquired as to the AMA’s po-

sition. A member of the committee, who had heard Dr. Woodward’s testimony, leapt to his feet and boldly lied “They support this bill 100%!” The Tax Act passed and cannabis/hemp (marijuana) has effectively been illegal ever since. In the years since, millions of ailing citizens who would have benefitted from the use of cannabis for medical purposes have been denied access while millions of others who have used it for recreational reasons have been imprisoned or otherwise had their lives disrupted by law enforcement. Billions upon billions of tax dollars that could have been directed to other uses, have instead gone to enforce a “drug law” that never should have come into being. The old, untrue stories that were told so long ago in such a convincing way have taken on a life of their own and are now firmly entrenched in American mythology. Politicians fall all over each other in an attempt to be the toughest on crime, which too often means they support the failed policy of being tough on pot smokers. Many citizens have dis-

covered the benign reality of cannabis use and enjoy it despite the sanctions. Because buying, selling and using cannabis is illegal, it has evolved into a major criminal enterprise generating billions of dollars in sales, much of which goes to ruthless “drug cartels” who readily resort to violence in defense of this highly profitable business. Perhaps now, through the courage and wisdom of voters in Colorado and Washington State, an alternative approach will prove to be a saner way of managing this human fascination with cannabis. The relationship between mankind and this plant is many thousands of years old. The prohibition has lasted for approximately 75 years in America. It will be interesting to watch how the federal government responds to this citizen led revolt against what is perceived by many as unjust repression. — James Green

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NOV. 15-30, 2012

License Plate Readers Or Police State

The Racine Police Department earlier this year have installed license plate readers on their squad cars, Two cameras in the front of the vehicle extract data from vehicles license plates. Every time the squad mounted camera recognizes a license plate it snaps a picture, the data then is instantly available to the officer in the vehicle. Stolen vehicles, registration violations, date, time type of vehicle, all aid in the apprehension of violators. Each time you encounter a police car behind you, coming at you from the opposite direction, or just plain driving past them, your plates and information was just compiled. Up to this point individual citizens were aware of surveillance on the street, surveillance in certain parts of town, banks, grocery stores but now the data is being compiled as you drive. Sources say the Racine Police Department has compiled over 900,000 in data reads. The International Department of Police Chiefs acknowledges that license plate readers raises privacy concerns, because it can “reveal an individual’s driving habits,” placing them at “political protests, doctors offices or religious places of worship. Modern communications mean most individuals today walk around with a beacon that transmits their location. Mobile phones register to a nearby tower as the owner moves through space and the phone company can col-

lect that data. GPS enabled phones enable far more precise location placement. Many cars now have GPS devices installed some of which transmit the vehicle’s location to a centralized service. As the devices get cheaper and smaller law enforcement agencies can more easily attach GPS trackers to cars and individuals enabling precise round-theclock surveillance without ever leaving the station. The way technology is expanding Police Departments, and governmental bodies are almost able to keep a 24 hour surveillance upon individuals. While our privacy rights are being trampled. Privacy advocates say it’s possible for police to consistently monitor someone without their knowledge, particularly with tracking devices. “We don’t want to be in a situation where the police just decide to throw a tracker on everybody because it’s easier,” said Rebecca Jeschke, spokeswoman for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Next issue: What’s being done with the data? — Communicator Staff

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wanted information Pushed to the extreme and without clear democratic oversight, it becomes the mark of a totalitarian state, when authorities feel that they never have enough information on the people. It is because information is power and state bureaucrats and politicians naturally like to be in control; on the one hand, releasing as little information about their own actions through an imposed secrecy, and on the other, accumulating as much information as possible about the citizens. And today, modern governments have all the tools to transform their country into a creeping police state, more so now than ever before, in this electronic age. They have access to information technology that previous full-fledged “police state” governments could only have dreamed about. Nowadays, with super computers and revolutionary new models to gather information and build databases, governments, i.e. bureaucrats and politicians, are in a position as never before to accumulate and correlate tremendous amounts of personal information on their citizens, from public (federal, state and local) as well as from a plethora of private sources. Government intelligence on each and every citizen is thus rendered much easier and, I would add, much more frightening. Indeed, the potential for abuse is enormous. In 2002, for example, retired Vice Admiral John Poindexter proposed that the U.S. government create a tracking and monitoring system called “Total Information Awareness”, in order for the U.S. government to gather

COVER STORY

information in a preventive way about individuals from widely varied sources, including tax records, telephone calling records, credit card charges, banking transactions, airline or ship reservations, and various biometric databases, without taking into consideration civil liberties or a citizens’ right to privacy, the U.S. Privacy Act of 1974, or without having to request search warrants and without having to give prior notice to the persons involved. —The pretext was to allow the government to thwart possible terrorist activity, thus creating an unlimited appetite for information. Well, there are clear signs that this massive data mining system on individuals is now solidly in place and is in full operation and can be expected to grow over time. First, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s network of fusion centers, launched in 2003, has allowed the government to centralize a host of previously disparate information about Americans and foreigners alike, whether related to

personal and business records, drivers licenses, local taxes, local infractions, police records, etc., through a host of coordinated information-sharing networks. (N.B.: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was established on November 25, 2002 and is the domestic equivalent of the Department of Defense.) Secondly, central provisions of the USA Patriot Act, signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001, allow the government to operate roving wire taps, search any individual’s business, personal, and even library records upon presentation of a

VOL. 1, NO. 6 national security letter, and spy on socalled “lone wolf” suspects, i.e., foreign nationals who have no known links to groups designated as terrorist. On this, the current Obama administration, by extending those provisions, is scarcely different than the previous Bush administration. Thirdly, since passports and tight intelligence screening have been made a requirement for most international travel by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, since January 1, 2008, every individual traveling in and out of the United States has all his or her whereabouts and movements recorded so the government knows at all times his or her address and the places he or she has traveled to and from. For instance, U.S. Transportation Security Administration’s recent decision to use full-body airport X-ray scanners and full body groping at airports is another example where so-called security procedures are applied blindly and indiscriminately. There is more to come, since it has been announced that such invasive intelligence screening is coming to hotels and shopping malls, as well as to trains, buses and ports, etc. These are some of the main features of the new government apparatus to gather information on people. There are many others. —Take for instance the requirement, since 2002, that all American high schools must give Pentagon military recruiters the names and contact information of all their juniors and seniors. Failure to comply on their part may result in the loss of government funding. The logical next step for the U.S. government would be to follow a recent Italy’s lead and outlaw outright the use of cash for most transactions, except for small ones, thus providing the government even more minute information about an individual’s income, purchases and displacements. Nothing will escape the watching eye of the government in the electronic age. People will be filed, photographed and corralled. — Communicator Staff

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NOV. 15-30, 2012

hate crimes at viper’s lounge Vipers lounge located at 501 High Street started a business 1998 making slow cooked Tennessee barbecue. Along with the barbecue restaurant, he was a bar/nightclub on the weekends and old-school dancing called ‘Stepping on Sundays.’ The owner, Wilbur Jones, a transplant from Tennessee ran a successful business catering such events as , neighborhood watch functions, multiple events throughout the city, including barbecuing for City Hall employees functions. Many times these events would go unpaid as Wilbur would donate his time and food for the worthwhile events. As political winds changed, Jones found himself being called into the Public License and Safety Committee numerous times for activities at his bar. In 2006 Jones was called into the Pub-

never had a stabbing, never had underage drinking, but bars with much worse problems are still in business.” At the Common Council meeting on November 5, 2008, Jones spoke to the Council members stating, “I feel this is very unfair. “The committee used the police calls from the police that I hired, who work for me! I paid to have my license taken away. Jones continued, addressing Alderman Kaplan he said, “I called him a racist and we got into it. I objected to him sitting on the Council! He can’t be fair. I felt this has been very unfair.” Alderman Kaplan responded,

“Someone threw a brick through my window, I had my locks glued shut, I had white powder put on my locks to make me think it was Anthrax.” lic License and Safety Committee five times, in 2007 Jones was called in one time, and on November 5, 2008 Wilbur Jones’s liquor license for Vipers lounge was revoked. “ I never had a shooting. I

“I was “going to let sleeping dogs lie, but anyone who knows me knows I am not a racist.” Alderman Shakoor in the November 5th meeting stated, “The due pro-

I had white powder put on my locks to make me think it was Anthrax.” But the one incident that seems to stick in his mind is the word NIG*ER written across the side of his building. “They caught the person who did it. The police just told me they’ll come back and paint over it. They never did. Another incident was when neighbors would be calling my customers Nig*er’s, and then used their testiWilbur Jones, owner of Viper’s Bar. mony against me to take my license. I made out reports and told them this was ‘hate cess was held through the media in my crimes,’ but once they get you painted opinion. It was not handled in the best way.” Jones agreed. “Once they start bad, they can do whatever they want.” using the media against you, it’s hard to get out from under that.” Wilbur had his own problems that were never addressed by the public license committee or the Racine Police Dept. “Someone threw a brick through my window, I had my locks glued shut,

— Communicator Staff

Watch the video at racinecommunicator.com.

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VOL. 1, NO. 6

Pattern Or Practice: Shaking Up The Shakedown A pattern or practice of discrimination, means that there’s a policy or a practice of discrimination or a pattern of discrimination. It is been conducted against a group of persons or an issue of general public importance. In the past six years in the City of Racine 13 minority owned bars or nightclubs and 2 white owned bars with minority patrons have been closed while in contrast no white establishments have been affected.

his all started:

With the documentary Pattern or Practice, the documentary was going to bring awareness to the fact that minority businesses were being close an alarming rate by the City of Racine.

hat happened ?

As the film crew interviewed each business owner and as we dove into the meeting minutes of the City of Racine. We saw a disturbing pattern of how targeted business owners, particularly Hispanic and Black owners were subject to different standards. As we interviewed persons affected by the policies instituted by the City of Racine, we discovered the systematic closing of minority businesses in particular areas.

hy?

A “cleanup” effort by the City of Racine in three targeted areas, where the majority of these businesses were operating.

ame together :

As we brought each business owner together they discovered that they were not alone in the way things were handled by the City of Racine in the closing of their business. Individuals started to step out and discuss the institutional racism that was happening in the City of Racine.

hat we need:

We need funds to stop the continue action of the City of Racine. We need funds to be used for pretrial investigations, open records requests, depositions, vandalism reports, police reports, subpoenas, specialists. None of the funding will go toward the documentary, Attorney fees, or anything not associated with bringing this case to court.

• Where is the NAACP? • Where is the Justice Department? • Where is the ACLU? All three have been contacted. The NAACP has never gotten back to us. The ACLU said they were too busy. The Justice Department has been contacted “no response.”

We decided to come to you.

hat we will do for you:

First and foremost is to keep you informed of what is happening. This is a very complicated case with a lot of twists and turns and heartache. We will post videos, comments, and anything

pertinent that would be of interest to our supporters. And of course the cool perks, download of the documentary, T-shirts, movie posters etc. all items will be sent out at the close of our fundraising. The documentary Download or DVD will be released after the film Festival Circuit is complete approximately January 2014 all other items will be sent on close of fundraising.

Please Like Us On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/PatternOrPractice Watch the Video. Go to: http://igg.me/p/273672?a=1091822 ...and help make this a reality. Or go to racinecommunicator.com and click the link.

NOV. 15-30, 2012

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Things we want you to know:New svc. and $20 or $50 (depending on plan) act. fee required. Add. fees, taxes and terms apply and vary by service and eqmt. Use of svc. constitutes acceptance of agmt terms. In order to receive plan minutes the monthly charge must be paid before due date. You may be charged at any time of day on your due date and should refill before that date to avoid svc. interruption. You will be unable to use phone if account balance is negative. Roaming, directory assistance, and international calls require additional account funds to complete calls.Promotional Phone subject to change. U.S. Cellular MasterCard Debit Card issued by MetaBank pursuant to a license from MasterCard International Incorporated. Cardholders are subject to terms and conditions of the card as set forth by the issuing bank. Card does not have cash access and can be used at any merchants that accept MasterCard debit cards. Card valid through expiration date shown on front of card. Allow 10-12 weeks for processing. Application and data network usage charges may apply when accessing applications. 15-Day Guarantee: Act. fee is not refundable. Phone must be returned undamaged in the original packaging. Applicable feature phone Data Plans start at $10/month. See store or uscellular.com for details. Limited time offer, while supplies last. Trademarks and trade names are the property of their respective owners. ©2012 U.S. Cellular.PROPRE_9_75x11