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“before granting any power to government, first imagine that power wielded by the politician you hate most, because one day, it will be.”

So simple, so true, why can't more people see this?

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In Soviet America, government verifies you! Stalin would be jealous of the CBDC, ESG, DEI alphabet soup.

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author

very "yakov smirnoff"

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"Russian Express: Don't leave home."

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Stalin would be jealous. Orwell would be dismayed but unsurprized.

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Even Stalin and Orwell would be shocked by our current dystopian Regime and its ability to control and alter reality using digital technology and the internet. No more need for a Ministry of Truth to retrieve and alter newspapers and books. They can do it with a few keystrokes, "e-verifications" or "fact checks." The "journalists" who occupy the Democrats' Ministry of Truth are the Thought Police who write trite propaganda to create and perpetuate our state of constant war, newspeak, alienation, depersonalization and doublethink. They bring us their Two Minutes of Hate substituting Trump for Goldstein. They have even managed to control our thoughts by changing definitions of words in real time. Everything the Regime does is designed to destroy personal autonomy and increase tyranny. E-verify is just another weapon in their arsenal.

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founding

Yes. This.

It is astonishing to watch the velocity of this malevolent arrogation and the brazen abrogation of our autonomy/agency/rights. For a lack of a better way of saying it; it's like watching Stalin or Hitler come to power at the speed of light, while simultaneously having the sense you're watching it in slow motion, knowing how it's going to end.

What's perhaps more astonishing is the supplication and propitiation of the public to the god of government - or worse imo, blind indifference - at least those at the alter think they're getting "manna" in exchange for their gifts, appeasement and sacrifices to their gods.

"There can be no greater pleasure in life than to choose one's enemy, inflict terrible pain and revenge on him, and go quietly to bed, secure in the knowledge that one has done good."

- Stalin

Shit, today Stalin would be a narcolept having a perpetual wet dream.

These Communist/Marxist/Fascist (pick one; I can't make up my mind today) thugs are committing evil and practicing Luciferic deception for "goodness" in broad daylight - simultaneously satiating the inner sadist and moralist.

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founding

"Communist/Marxist/Fascist"

All just semantic permutations of collectivism, which subsume individual rights to some mythical "greater good", defined by whichever swine happens to be ascendent at the time.

It is this poisonous ideology that must be permanently destroyed before we can actually call ourselves civilized with a straight face.

"Fascism, Nazism, Communism and Socialism are only superficial variations of the same monstrous theme — collectivism."

~ Ayn Rand, letter of March 19, 1944

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founding

spot on.

I don't know who to attribute this to but I think it's pithy and has as perfect batting average:

For the common good, is the most common excuse for uncommon evil.

something like that

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They (99.999% of DC) are *literally* demons in meat suits.

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founding

I think you are the first person on the interwebz to aptly describe the ubiquitous "they". Kudos

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Today, Stalin would be regarded as a right-wing white-supremacist extremist by the Modern Left...

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founding

True.

The very same people who would be so lacking in self awareness that they'd be marching in perfect rows, adorned with ascetic tunics and howling like hyenas leaving a firing squad of whoever was guilty of getting in the way of their 3 meals and 4 manacles.

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Orwell and his colleague, Aldous Huxley, are collecting and comparing notes for their collaboration on their latest forthcoming blockbuster dystopian postmodernist novel. In which E Verification plays a central part in the plot.....

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founding

Indeed he would.

Just as many of today's totalitarian left (redundant?) are jealous of Stalin's Holomador, gulags and purges.

I harbor little doubt that our modern version of these barbarians would cheers for such measures today.

https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/partner_surveys/jan_2022/covid_19_democratic_voters_support_harsh_measures_against_unvaccinated

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Good link. You have either a very well indexed database of interweb posts, or one hell of a memory.

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founding

The former.

Building materials for future posts to absurdity.us substack that I keep planning to write but keep not writing...

Sigh.

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Government school for starters keep kids dumbed down and encourage the idea that government is good no matter what.

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founding

Why?

The Unholy Trinity of Fear:

1. Fear of losing power by those who wield it

2. Fear of those who are subject to it (reprisal or losing a "benefit/privilege")

3. Fear of those who's livelihood is beholden and justified by those who wield the power (bureaucrats, technocrats, etc.)

Fear of losing something is just as powerful as gaining something - if not more so.

Fear will corrupt to the core; even those who's fear is caused by the scourge of power.

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founding

Exactly so.

Fear has been the preferred tool of rulers for all of recorded history, and likely for eons prior.

The sole exception was the early American republic, birthed by the fearless who took on the most powerful empire of the time. Even then, the fearless were but a minority of the population, just as they are now, albeit arguably a far smaller slice.

The thing the rulers fear the most are the fearless, which is why they do everything in their power to destroy them.

Being fearless is dangerous, but it is the only way to truly live.

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The three Basic Human Emotions are Greed, Fear, and Greed.

See - Fear's right up there in the Top 3!

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founding

Perhaps the second 'Greed' should be replaced with covetousness, a fundamental pillar of all leftism.

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So how do you feel about "Avarice?"

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founding

I like it as a possible replacement for 'greed' as it amplifies the meaning, but does not capture the desire to steal the property of others and justify the theft by one fabrication or another, such as capitalist "exploitation" of "workers" favored by our degenerate and generally dimwitted leftist countrymen.

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founding

This was a badass post you made btw.

I'm going to share it with my boy

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"Fear will corrupt to the core". Prezactly! I have been reading history since age seven. And a common thread, in every culture, in every age, has been FEAR. Your "unholy trinity" has been inscribed on Assyrian and Egyptian tombs, and printed in millions of books, and posted on the interweb.

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founding

You know what's under the hood of fear?

Hate and/or abject sycophancy

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founding

Prolonged fear*

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Because people don't think past what THEY want in that second and anyone that disagrees with then is an idiot. = People are lazy.

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People are sheep

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Baaaaa. 😉

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I don't have to imagine power wielded by politicians I hate (and I do mean hate); I just have to read the news.

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founding

This is a primary reason I refuse to vote. I despise them all, with very few exceptions (like Massie).

I will not participate in a political system that elevates vermin like Bush I & II, Clinton, Obama, Trump and Biden to positions of power, all of whom eventually become war criminals and are absorbed into the Federal cesspool like Picard was assimilated into the Borg.

The lesser of evils is still evil, and I will never again vote for it.

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Brings to mind an old slogan from my youth:

"You can't vote the bankers out"

Used by swedish "oppositionalists" who were pro more personal freedoms and against the State using the presumption of potential wrongdoing/mis-/abuse as a basis for bans et cetera.

Like this:

Me: "I can haul my trash - sorted - to the dump (the "recycling unit"...) myself in our pick-up truck once every quarter or so and I'd happily pay a fair fee to the dump of my choice. If my neighbour wants to pay someone to sort and haul their garbage, it's up to them, and I don't mind the municipality having oversight to ensure the dump(s) doesn't violate rules and regs as laid down by actual professionals in the relevant fields, not civil servants and politician's aides, re: handing and processing.

I fully appreciate that this might not be feasible in major cities and that some other solution would be needed there, but that is no reason to impose a one-size-fits-none coercive system."

The State: "Shut up and pay your taxes, the fees for collection and a fee for using the dump andshut up about using handicapped people on welfare as conscripted labour in the sorting unit and us selling the raw materials overseas via private companies owned by politicians, for profit!"

That kind of thing; I'm sure the US is rife with that species of unprintable redacted too.

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founding

Like everything else the government watermelons touch, it is just another scam:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/palo-alto-recycling-asia-garbage-waste-rcna58633

Palo Alto has to be among the most infuriatingly woke towns in the States. The virtue signaling is so deep you can swim in it.

Great food, though...

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A Pox on Both Your Houses!

*shakes fist*

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"So simple, so true, why can't more people see this?"

I think most people do see it. They just see themselves as the one Holding the Whip After the Revolution. For many, that's intoxicating.

Some people want to Beat the Bully. Some people aspire to Be the Bully.

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Nah, I don't buy this, not for the majority. I agree with a previous poster who said people are lazy. Most people just want to get on with their lives and have little interest in telling other people how to live theirs. The problem is the minority who are all too keen to "be the bully".

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I don't think you've said one thing in conflict with my comment.

I don't believe for one minute that this Evil Lazy, Envious, Untalented Cohort comprises a majority. I said many.

I think the reason many find such power hungry, moralizing people distasteful is that they won't leave us, The Majority, in peace.

Yes, it's a minority. Yes, they're Bullies. And, unfortunately, a la "*in confused German* How could anyone support the Nazi regime?!" style, people without conviction one way or the other will almost always tend toward the side that won't slit their throats in the night.

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Exactly! I’m guilty of not thinking this through though....had always thought e-verify was a simple solution to stop illegal immigration via attrition because there are not jobs for them. But then Covid happened and it makes the abuse possible so very real - I appreciate El Gato bringing this up and forcing me to see the obvious

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Employers already have to fill out an I-9 form to verify they have seen identification & citizenship documents (two).

No reason to "e" it.

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Some saw it as soon as they instituted those supermarket rewards cards.

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May 13, 2023·edited May 13, 2023

how do you see this if you don't know e-verify exists? Nobody pays attention. "But I didn't know!" is the #1 response to any government overreach of 99% of the people. They don't think principles are worth time and effort to protect.

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A good sentence for all proposals- govt & non-govt

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That is a question we have all been asking, for AT LEAST three (3) years. Seems to me the old razor about good times leading, inexorably, to weak men leading, inexorably, to bad times is playing out, before our eyes.

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Any time I see the word "verify" I know it is a con. Fact checking is the biggest tyrannical scam on the Internet over the last 20 years. Well, maybe besides big tech spying and invasion of privacy.

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Unfortunately, it's already here. I run a small business in Georgia, I cannot renew my business license unless I have an e-Verify number. Without my business license, the county can shut me down. I can defy them, I have in the past, but to what end?

It's already here.

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Old trick. Define a "problem" (real or made-up), and create a "remedy" that will actually not solve the "problem" and will create another worse one.

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like has been done many times over. Rodent problem, introduce cats. Cats a problem, what to do? Rabbits in Australia. Kudzu all over. People think they have the solution but in fact made the problem 10 or more times worse.

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Cats are not a problem.

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Feral cats are a problem.

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We are not a problem. Humans are a problem.

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indeed. escpecially those that think they have solutions for non existing problems. Even feral cats are not necessarily a problem. We had them for years. The only remaining ones are now my 2 more or less home cats

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founding

Our gracious host is feral, and is definitely a problem.

Just not to us. He is, in fact, part of the solution.

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"If you’re not a formidable force, there’s no morality in your self-control. If you’re incapable of violence, not being violent isn’t a virtue."

- Jordan Peterson, Interview with John Stossel/Reason.com

https://thegunblog.ca/2018/08/04/be-dangerous-jordan-peterson-robert-heinlein-act-of-valor/

Let your Feral Flag Fly!

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Real, 4 legged, feral cats are a problem. They were in our neighborhood. I think the coyotes moving in took care of them.

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I rather have the cats than the coyotes. I do not trust coyotes at all, if there is more than 1 they are even dangerous to humans. I never heard of cats attacking humans unless cornered

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founding

Ok, I'll bite...

A problem how, exactly? Were they carting off the children?

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depends on how good mousers they are LOL

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I gotta eat somehow. I especially like the rodents that feed out of the dumpster by the Thai and Viet restaurants. They have a nice spicy flavor that I sort of have gotten to like.

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founding

You should go hunting in your state capital.

The vermin there are likely not as tasty as the Southeast Asian variety, but there are enough of them to feed you and your pride for a lifetime.

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Tempting but those rats are kind of big.

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...and too many Fauci’s in the hen house! - Term limits for unelected bureaucrats!

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Started to write, "unintended consequences." But they're often intended consequences. "Unstated consequences?" Yes, but not the full picture. "Unstated intended and devious consequences?" Pretty close.

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Not to mention which (but look at me mention it!) the problem is NOT people coming here *to work*. That's awesome; we want that. The problem with immigration is not that people want to live here and contribute and build lives; it's the ones that aren't here for that.

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founding

Having been born in the late Pleistocene, I nevertheless still have my original Social Security Card, which states clearly at the bottom:

"Not to be used for identification".

Quaint as it may seem today, many back then did not trust the government idea of "helping everyone with retirement" by assigning all of the tax cattle a unique number which, although certainly not tattooed on one's arm, would nevertheless stay with each bovine for life.

Well, we all know how that worked out, eh?

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I think that is now removed from your Social Security card. I remember bringing it to the SAT test to be used as identification.Yes I am that old.

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founding

Yes, it is mysteriously absent from my children's cards...

This is what the progressives call "progress".

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Ultimately, e-Verify is evil in two directions.

1 - It turns employers into the informants of the State.

2 - It guarantees the illegal immigrants who come into this country must remain in the shadows, expanding a permanent underclass in this country of people who are functionally deprived of their most basic rights, and are thus vulnerable to exploitation. The Establishmentarians will have their slaves one way or another.

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I sympathize with those on the right thinking this is good in terms of immigration problems, but the e-verify program (even if never abused) is a huge pain for actual businesses to administer and is setup in such a way to open companies up to various legal/discrimination claims.

It is not just a simple put the info in -> green light or red light. It is an administrative pain and a process filled with easy trip wires that permit EEOC and other lawsuits. For small/mid size companies it is especially a net negative risk/return even if they agree that they dont want to hire illegal immigrants.

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This is a great point, and e-verify would only be effective if governments applied it equally to fortune 500 companies. But lobbiests have a strange way of convincing corrupt politicians not to enforce it equally.

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I used to work in HR many moons ago when E-Verify was first rolled out. I hated it back then and I hate it now. This is exactly what I thought of when I read that DeSantis is making this mandatory in Florida. What a train wreck.

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I’ll still accept e-verify until the border is secure and the illegals are returned to their cartels.

Term limits for stupid laws!

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I'm surprised you commented here without reading the article above.

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eVerify would be unnecessary if the borders are sealed, and DHS Prime Objective is to deport all illegals and visa violators.

Cleary, you can't have tryanny and freedom in the same society. So seems tyranny is the easier ideology to implement.

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It's still unnecessary. We seemed to be doing okay without it. Which proves it is unnecessary.

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Umm...E-Verify was implemented in 1996. It's alive and well.

So, on the one hand, the Feds have a program in place to keep you from hiring illegals. On the other hand, they are busily helping millions upon millions of illegals enter the US. Which leaves me wondering how all the illegals in this country are supporting themselves.

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recently I watched a film about Albania. A person stated his daughter had lost her employment because she did not have the right party card. Imagine that. You are a rep and the dems are in the WH. You lose your job. And vice versa. Everyone would be a govt employee in some way. And if you are independent forget it! No job for you!

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You are more correct than you may have thought, if you pay taxes, you ARE a government employee. You work for the government on average 20% of the time.

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Think about it this way: while you're at work, glance at the clock now and then. Between :00 and :12, you're working for Uncle Sam.

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I had indeed not even considered that. Most people probably don't think of that! Good remark George !

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Get rid of the welfare state. That would solve a whole host of problems.

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This is a false framing. We already have government requiring proof of right to work for decades. E-verfify only makes it harder for illegal workers.

Only who wants illegal workers, big business like the Kochd who use libertarians as their tools. When Trump raided the chicken plants in Mississppi, they were full of illegals and owned by the Kochs.

The Kochs are not our friends. They have zero concern for America and just want open borders, free trade, low taxes and freedom to cheat.

Massie is a decent Congressman, but is carrying water for the Kochs here.

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This would be an awesome takedown of Teh Evil Koch Brothers and Those Wacky Libertarians... if only Koch Foods was ever a part of Bond Villian Koch Brother Industries.

From their own website:

"ARE YOU RELATED TO OTHER COMPANIES WITH THE KOCH NAME?"

"Koch Foods is an independent, privately held company that specializes in the processing of poultry. We are in no way affiliated with the Koch brothers, Koch Industries, Koch Companies or any other organization that uses the Koch name."

https://kochfoods.com/about-us/frequently-asked-questions/#:~:text=ARE%20YOU%20RELATED%20TO%20OTHER,that%20uses%20the%20Koch%20name.

Libertarians generally see immigration control as a restriction on the free movements of people. Whether or not it was their aim to get cheap labor is not the question. It's more in keeping with their general ideology.

Being a libertarian shouldn't be a sufficient condition to demonize someone. They should actually be at fault for something.

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May 11, 2023·edited May 11, 2023

No, it is the proper framing.

It will absolutely cause problems for citizens who have every right to work in the US on a daily basis.

Setting aside malice by government agents (an all to common reality these days), government databases are notoriously incorrect with high frequency. Getting the government to fix its cockups is a bloody nightmare.

Its no different than needing to be on an approved government list of people who are permitted to possess firearms before you can purchase.

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My grandfather was 20 when the 16th Amendment (which made an income tax legal) was passed.

When I was a teenager, he told me that the pro-tax faction promised that it would only ever affect the very richest Americans.

So: How did that work out?

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Florida has had a version of e-verify for a while, maybe since Jeb was gov. It has been touted as the best way to discourage the hiring of illegals, but I’m thinking it’s just one more tracking device. Florida has a surprisingly high number of those devices. I would guess that the many military bases here have something to do with that.

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