Feedback Friday - May 25th, 2012

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It's time again for Hate Mail Friday... or as we politely call it, Feedback Friday!  Let's get right to it.

READERS QUESTION GUN OWNERSHIP IN MEXICO 

IN RESPONSE TO: THE WEEKEND VIGILANTE 5/9/2012

Dear TDV,

How can you consider yourself to be free in a nation (Mexico) that would put you in prison for many years for possession of a firearm or even ammunition?  

A couple of years ago, an American crossing into the USA from Mexico had inadvertently neglected to thoroughly inspect his vehicle before entering Mexico, and on his return Mexican customs found one single cartridge in his truck. He spent several months in jail and was only released due to the pressure of publicity and political help otherwise he might still be in a Mexican jail. Also, although Mexico has dropped criminal charges against people in possession of small amounts of drugs, possession of largeamounts of drugs is still a criminal offense punishable by prison time. 

Laws prohibiting guns (the best means of personal self defense) and drugs would not exist in a free nation.  If it were not for those two things I would probably emigrate to Mexico myself.

RD

And... 

Dear TDV,

In Mexico, you cannot own a firearm without the express permission of the government.

Sorry, I value owning a firearm without having to ask the government's permission, far more than riding some stupid scooter without a helmet and a license.

In Liberty,

PD

TDV'S REPLY: 

First off, we want to make it clear that Mexico is no anarchic paradise.  There is plenty of government involvement in the daily lives of the people – although nothing like up north.  And, even an event like the spontaneous motorcycle event in Acapulco would likely not take place in that form in an anarchic world.  In an anarchic world all property would be privately owned, including the roads and it would therefore be the right of the owner to allow or disallow whatever conduct it likes on its own property.  As well, most of what goes on in Mexico is more of a culture of not caring much about government rather than having a strong philosophical ideal for liberty.  But, given how unfree the US has become, Mexico is beginning to look quantum leaps further ahead in terms of the ability to live free.

As for the topic of gun ownership it is true that a license is required by the government to own a gun in Mexico and that is terrible.  But, anyone who has participated in the festivities of Mexico's Dia de la Revolucion (Revolution Day) knows that so many shots are fired into the air almost everywhere that it is practically raining bullets.  Almost everyone has a gun.  In fact, you could turn the tables on the commenters above and state that they are particularly enslaved because they believe they NEED the government's permission (in the Constitution) to NOT need a license.  Whereas, in Mexico, most people just don't care what the government says.  And, even if they do get caught breaking one of the rules a $10 tip usually makes the nuisance go away.

As one recent poster put it, there's a difference between having paper "liberties" in the U.S. - which you can only enjoy if you have a lot of money and a good lawyer - and living in a culture of liberty.  In the US you currently have a culture of slavery with a veneer of "freedom". In Mexico, it is more of a culture of freedom that doesn't need paper "liberties".

And in response to the comment that being caught entering Mexico with a gun as an American can end up in jail time, the same can be said of a Mexican entering the US with an undeclared weapon.  But, even worse, if that Mexican has even a couple of dried marijuana flowers in his car he will likely be put in a cage for years.  Which place is worse again?

The funny part is that the US is by far the biggest police state and kidnapper of people on Earth.  The US has 5% of the world's population but has 25% of the total global amount of people in cages.  If you are really worried about being put in a cage the last place you'd want to be is in the US.  And, to speak further on the topic of 'safety in Mexico', Americans who are truly concerned about safety should be on the first flight to Mexico.  As the Huffingpost stated recently in an article entitled, "Are You Safer In Mexico Or America?":

"According to FBI crime statistics, 4.8 Americans per 100,000 were murdered in the US in 2010. The US State Department reports that 120 Americans of the 5.7 million who visited Mexico last year were murdered, which is a rate of 2.1 of 100,000 visitors. Regardless of whether they were or weren't connected to drug trafficking, which is often not clear, it's less than half the US national rate."

Them's just the facts.  But, who cares about those anymore, right?

WHO IS REALLY FREE?

IN RESPONSE TO: THE WEEKEND VIGILANTE 5/9/2012

Dear TDV,

I just read your article about the motorcycle rally in Acapulco. It brought to mind an article I read years ago in Easy Rider magazine. The author mentioned he had been working outside the country for over a year and said it gave him a chance to think about what freedom really means. He said he really got thinking about it one day as he rode down a road with no lines painted on it and no speed limit signs, on his un-licensed motorcycle, with no motorcycle driver’s license and no helmet. He then asked the question “where is this bastion of freedom?” The answer was communist China.

There is also a documentary on Iran that has been linked to a couple of times on LRC. Very early in the documentary the host is showing the busy traffic in downtown Tehran. He notes that motor scooters are one of the best ways to get around and that there are even “scooter taxis” who will whizz you through the traffic. Then he makes the statement, “helmet laws are largely ignored”. It made me think about what would happen to me here in the “freest country in the world” if I largely ignored our state helmet law in the People’s Republic of Georgia?

Greg G., Georgia, USSA

MORE ON EDUCATION

IN RESPONSE TO: A COMMENT FROM A READER IN LAST WEEK'S FEEDBACK FRIDAY

I don't know about you, but whenever I hear "public education" I hear slavery, since they are forced by the LAW to attend. So I just replaced some words in the comments from Jakob J. last week and it makes sense:

"Hey, sorry slavery was awful for you. It is for many. But to try to take your story, a couple other random anecdotes, and pretend that you're diagnosing a real systemic problem is going too far.  Just so everyone knows, I'm a small government guy who supports Ron Paul, buys precious metals, and knows that the welfare state we live in based on fiat currency is destined for disaster.

I have also been in public and private slavery throughout my whole life. I have been in the slave's desk and the slave masters desk. I've come away knowing that there are good slave masters and bad ones. There are good slave-hunters and bad ones. And there are good slaves and bad slaves, too.

Slavery, as we know it, is a very complicated and flawed idea. But for a lot of kids, it's the best thing that ever happened to them. I've seen kids with nothing good in their home life... actually pure neglect and/or abuse in their home life...I've seen those kids come to a good state indoctrination center (mine and other slave masters) and find sex, develop criminal skills, and learn how to smoke weed.”

Jesse S.

REACTIONS TO THE PROPOSED EX-PATRIOT ACT

IN RESPONSE TO: CHARLES SCHUMER TELLS AMERICANS THEY CAN'T LEAVE SO EASILY

Dear TDV,

There are going to be a number of problems getting a law passed that would punish people for leaving with all of their money. First: the Lower House is still controlled by Republicans who are for the most part averse to legislation limiting a person's  financial freedoms. Second: Let's say by some odd turn of events it does get passed.  The law could not be enforced because it's illegal.  Schumer and company want to make it retroactive for 10 years; that's an Ex-Post-Facto law which is specifically prohibited by Article 1 Section 9 of the the U.S. Constitution.

Every one of those laws that have passed the legislative process, and there were only a few, were all ruled  unconstitutional.  Sen. F. Lautenberg of N.J. got one past about 10-12 years ago to have LEOs guns removed if they ever had a domestic violence case filed against them. It passed and was signed by the President but ruled unconstitutional by the courts. So, Schumer can go pound sand with his  phony laws. In the meantime, all he's done is speed up the exit by telegraphing the government's intent to raid the rich and anyone else they can. Anyone who can should get a second passport from a friendlier country and start moving some of their assets abroad for protection before some form of Berlin Wall really goes up.

Right now anyone can take as much money out of the country as they want by simply filling out a monetary reporting form either through the bank with a transfer or while at the airport with with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). By the way, failure to do so at the airport can lead to confiscation and possible forfeiture of all funds. And yes, CBP has the authority to check you and your outgoing luggage for undeclared monetary instruments. Do what you have to do while it's still legal and while you still have time.

Gregory M.

TDV'S RESPONSE:

We agree with your prognosis completely Gregory but disagree that somehow the Constitution or Bill of Rights will stop the US Government from doing whatever it wants.  Nearly every single thing passed in the last 100 years, including the Federal Reserve Act, income tax, anti-drug laws and countless others are all unconstitutional.  People need to stop putting their faith in a piece of paper which is a long dead document and take control of their own lives.

THANKS FROM A TDV PASSPORTS CLIENT

Dear TDV,

Thank you so very much for your intervention regarding our Dominican Republic passport process that were facilitated through your service at TDV Passports.

But most importantly, however, THANK YOU for helping save our FREEDOM.

We are eternally grateful;  for without your insights and help – it would be/have been an almost impossible task for us.

Keep up your great work.  Your services are absolutely invaluable, necessary and greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

FH

TDV’S RESPONSE:

For some background, FH and his family recently visited Santo Domingo to begin the process towards Dominican Republic citizenship and had a few pitfalls that seemed so large to them at the time that they wrote that they may just give up on the process.  The biggest issue was that the DR Government wrote and said that they made an error when doing the X-RAY which is part of the medical check and they required them to return to the DR solely to re-do the X-RAY.  Since FH is putting his entire family through the process and they all have busy schedules this seemed like a very large and costly expense to all return just for an X-RAY.  But, this is why facilitating the process through an experienced facilitator like TDV Passports is well worth the money.  Once we were alerted to this we used our connections and the top legal firm in the DR, which we regularly use, to pressure them into accepting the X-RAY as it was.  Twenty four hours later and we heard back that they would not all need to return and they would accept it as it was their fault.

Getting citizenship in a foreign country, especially ones where the governments are even more inept than usual, is never a completely smooth process… but that is exactly why working with experts is such an advantage.  With our knowledge and contacts we can often smooth out wrinkles that people without these connections could not.

We were thrilled to see how happy FH was.  This is a big part of the reason we do what we do, because we know how important this is to people regaining their freedom and we regularly get that warm and fuzzy feeling helping people who otherwise may not be able to accomplish their goals.

UNTIL NEXT FRIDAY

That's all for Feedback Friday.  Please email any comments or feedback to TDV@dollarvigilante.com.  Have a great weekend!