Tuesday, August 13, 2013

August 13, 2013
On June 23, I referred to a bill introduced in the New Hampshire legislature which was based on fantasies about a false "corporate" federal government created some time in the 1860s or 1870s. (In some iterations, it is a foreign-owned corporation). The groups which spread, and apparently believe, this nonsense are instances of the "sovereign citizen" movement. There seem to be two branches of the movement, those who think that everything about the "corporate" government is illegitimate and awful, and those who agree but think that they have somehow replaced it with a new regime.
One of the latter began life as The Guardians of the Free Republics, famous — if that is the word — for delivering eviction notices to the governors in 2010. A falling out among its founders led to its rebirth that year as the "Republic for the united [sic] States" (RuSA) The President of this imaginary entity is James Timothy Turner, who had been a founder of the Guardians. RuSA has declared: "De Jure Government is Restored! The re-inhabited Republic for the united States of America has been Restored circa 1791 Constitutional Law[.]"[68] (Jargon and peculiar syntax are marks of this movement). However illusory all that may be, when drafting manifestos the sky is the limit for the RuSA:
We no longer give our consent for the "UNITED STATES" corporation or any of its . . . representatives of any type to use any of the lands, national parks, . . . resources, . . . air, water, . . .public buildings, . . . roads, . . . lakes, rivers, . . . military men and equipment, . . . technologies, . . . vehicles, ships, . . . aircraft, . . . trains, . . .or any other thing within our national and/or territorial borders that was purchased, developed or leased with funds that were derived from any assets within our territorial borders or from revenues received from our people within our borders.[69] 
(Within the ellipses are listed still more things the false federal government must abandon). 

In their saner moments, the RuSA folk recognize that, although "the Republic for the United States of America has been the only lawful de jure government in America" since 2010, the evil corporate government has, for some reason, not gone away. Therefore RuSA will exist "as a parallel provisional government in America while the UNITED STATES municipal corporation collapses."[70] Imminent collapse is expected, from "failed economic/financial policies," or so they pretend.
The other branch of the sovereigns, apparently having no new entity, simply tells us how awful things are under the false government. Again, this is all fantasy; here are a few samples:

• America is a British Colony.
• A 1040 Form is for tribute paid to Britain.
• Britain is owned by the Vatican.
• The Pope can abolish any law in the United States; but somehow,
• The U.N. also holds all of the land of America in fee simple.
• The IRS is not a US government agency.
• The U.S. Treasury is now the IMF (International Monetary Fund).
• Social Security numbers are issued by the U.N. through the IMF.
• Social Security is not insurance or a contract, nor is there a trust fund.[71]
In practice, "sovereign citizens" concentrate on schemes to avoid paying taxes or other debts, a program which is somewhat less noble than remaking the world, but more revealing of their true impulse. An FBI report noted that they also "create false license plates, driver’s licenses, and even currency."[72] According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, they also don't like child support obligations.[73] The RuSa proposes to end the use of "covert contracts" such as Form 1040, car registrations, birth certificate applications, and bank signature cards; deeds and marriage licenses will go as well.[74]


The despised federal government has, not surprisingly, disapproved of their tax-avoidance schemes. James (Tim) Turner and Sam Kennedy,[75] another Guardian founder, were indicted last year on charges of tax fraud; Turner has been convicted and sentenced. Other sovereign citizens have had the same fate, including two locally.[76]  Though most sovereign citizens are peaceful, there have been several armed confrontations with police, as documented in the FBI report.


Leaving aside any criminal activities, several themes run through the tales by various members of the sovereignty movement: the illegitimacy of the federal government; extreme independence, free of government tyranny; a strange (and ludicrously false) view of American history; a general detachment from reality; a desire to turn the clock back to an earlier and largely imaginary time; a sense of mission; paranoia. Like nullifiers, they think that they can decide which federal laws to obey, but take it a step further and apply that theory to state and local laws as well. The sovereigns clearly are around the bend, but it is estimated that there are about 300,000 people who subscribe in one degree or another to their notions, not an inconsiderable number. More importantly, sovereign themes bear considerable resemblance to those found on the far right edge of the GOP, and have some specific influence within the Party, as shown by the New Hampshire bills.[77]

_____________________________
71. Provided by Winston Shrout, identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a leader of the sovereignty movement. The full list is at http://www.wssic.com/updates.html.
74. http://www.republicoftheunitedstates.org/restored-american-history/
75. "Sam Kennedy" is an assumed name of Glenn Unger.
77. The 13th Amendment bill was introduced by Republicans, as was the bill to mandate following Magna Carta.

Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)
Posts © 2011-2012 by Gerald G. Day