It's 'comply or die' in the new United States

In perhaps one of the most bizarre and shocking stories to come out lately about police violence, a Texas man is now permanently brain damaged after he was repeatedly tased him while handcuffed and having a seizure.

Austin police arrived at the home of Scott Sheeley last November after receiving a call requesting medical assistance. Once there, police used pain compliance techniques including a taser to get Sheeley under control.

But it doesn't stop there.

Once paramedics arrived, Sheeley was administered two drugs that are usually used to treat psychotic disorders and have been known to cause cardiac arrest and sudden death. Sheeley then had a heart attack. It took paramedics 11 minutes to revive him.

As a result, Sheeley claims he suffers from several ailments including continued cardiac arrest, respitory arrest, brain injury, and loss of vision. He is currently seeking $1.5 million dollars for emotional distress and anguish and medical bills.

While many would have us believe that such interactions between police and ordinary citizens are few and far between, incidents of police using tasers and other weapons inappropriately seems to have become the norm here in the US. In what seems to be an attempt to foster an environment of automatic compliance, police are increasingly using pain compliance too early and to aggressively in their interactions within the community. It's an unfortunately fact that, in many cases, these officers are never held accountable for their actions are continue to serve on their forces.

As Americans, we should not fear Police. We should be able to feel secure in knowing that they will act both professionally and in our best interests when we encounter them. But that doesn't always seem to be the case and the police in many communities fear the officers who are sworn to protect them. Deaths at the hands of police are at an alarming hig and the lack of accountability for abuse is stunning.

We don't yet know how Sheeley's case will turn out but we'll follow it and continue to update you as things develop.

A few announcements

I want to make Dissenter News as power packed of a resource as possible. One of the best ways I believe to do that is through multimedia. So starting next Friday, I'll begin producing "Dissenter News Weekly", a weekly 10-20 minute podcast that discusses the weeks happenings through the eyes of alternative media.

To really be able to pull this off, I would like your help. If you're interested in providing content to the podcast, reach out to me by email and let's talk. Content can include anything from audio commentary and interviews to videos of things you find interesting. The only rule is that all media has to be created and owned by you.

I'm really excited about the podcast. I've wanted to do one for a while but never found a topic. What better topic than what's going on in fight for American freedom!

Additionally, we're starting up a Twitter feed. If you use Twitter and want instant updates when the blog is updated, follow us there today.

I've got a lot of plans to expand the site but I'm always open to suggestions. If you've got them, send them to me via email!

Nestle Candy Company Putting GPS Tracking into Candy Bar Wrappers!

Yes, friends, it's true. In one of the most misguided product promotions ever conceived, the Nestle Candy Company will begin putting tiny GPS tracking devices into select candy wrappers and will then 'surprise' the lucky holder of the bar with $10,000.  To add to the creepiness of this whole promotion, the Nestle commercial that announces this features imagery of satellites zooming in on the candy bar owners location and a millitary swat team approaching them to deliver their money.

I have to admit, I've seen some pretty creepy stuff over the years but this takes the cake. Is this promotion the beginning of the widespread use of GPS technology in the products we buy? Or is it just the unveiling of what's been going on for a while now? Either way, I don't think I'll be buying Nestle candy anymore.

For freedom, we must dissent economically too

A society cannot have true freedom unless they people have control of their money.  Today, we don't have control of our money and those that do have proven they cannot be trusted.  It would stand to reason that, in order to enjoy greater freedom, we need to take control of our money. Whoever controls the purse strings control the populace.

Some would say the way to taking control of our money is to buy precious metals like gold and silver.  While that's certainly good advice, I'd argue that we should consider how precious metals faired (particularly gold) in 1933 when President Roosevelt issued a call on citizen gold. Everyone had to turn in their gold and you could go to jail if you were found with any unauthrized caches. Looking at history, it's not too far fetched to believe something similar might happen again and that's why I believe we need to rely on something more intangible than precious metals.

For me, that 'something' is Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a computer generated, cryptographically secured, digital currency. Think of it as 'digital cash'.  The currency exists entirely on the Internet and your ownership of it can be easily hidden if push comes to shove. Using Bitcoin, money can be quickly transferred from person to person regardless of location and, because it's all digital, value can't be manipulated like regular currencies can. That means artificial inflation and deflation are a thing of the past and governments can't use the money supply to control its citizens by destroying its value. In fact, Bitcoin isn't controlled by any central authority. There's no one 'controlling the flow of bitcoin' and no central authority is creating it. It's completely decentralized. In essence, you become your own bank.

Bitcoin is as near to the perfect currency we're going to see in a long time and I strongly recommend investing in it (though this is NOT investment advice). I've put as much as 30% of my money into it and have been happy to watch the price rise over the last few months. Indeed, I've made quite a profit. But I'm not selling! No, I'm holding on to my Bitcoins for when I really need them. Plus, I believe the value is going to skyrocket if and when a financial meltdown happens. The bigger the crisis, the better Bitcoin will appreciate.

:If you're interested in learning more about Bitcoin, take a few minutes and view the video at the top of this post. It's a great explanation of what the currency is and why you should use it. And, of course, if you have questions, feel free to post them here.

Welcome to Dissenter News

Welcome to Dissenter News. This blog was created to serve as an alternative media source covering news, views, and information that most in the mainstream media won't touch.  My goal is to create a place where those seeking 'the story behind the story' can come and find intelligent information and commentary on current events and politics.

I hope you enjoy your visit here and, please, if you have a story you think I should cover, feel free to email me and tell me about it. I also accept video and audio submissions as long as you own the rights to it.

Again, thanks for visiting Dissenter News. I look forward to serving you in the future.