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Brian Burns

Attorney and former candidate for U.S. Congress.

Trump Revealed his Hand – How to Call the Dangerous Bluff

By / Politics / January 23, 2022

There is No Secret Master Plan

Like the inept businessman he is, Trump showed no tact, restraint, or strategic foresight last night. In the first live debate, he showed his hand to the political world. It was a dangerous mix of division, violence, and antidemocratic bullying. Biden's performance was adequate, but the Democratic Party and Joe Biden must do more - and quickly.

Most politicians try to be subtle in making their predetermined talking points. For Trump, each one was obvious. But let's recap.

Politics has taken an ugly turn at the first 2020 Presidential Debate.
Trump and Biden. Modified under creative commons license from https://bit.ly/2EMwOeh (Trump) and https://bit.ly/34eDv1o (Biden)

Cards on the Table:

  1. Divide the left. At least four times last night, Trump exclaimed how Biden's moderate position is going to alienate the left. Politics is not just about your strength, but about your opponent's weakness. His not-so-clever traps went like this: "Do you support the [progressive policy]?" If yes, "You're a communist!" if no, "You're abandoning the progressives, none of them will vote for you now!"
  2. Be the alpha. Trump doesn't interrupt because he lacks focus. He doesn't interrupt because he is offended. He interrupts to show power. Plain and simple. By talking over Biden and the moderator, he demonstrates a convoluted concept of being the, "alpha male."
  3. Attack Hunter Biden. Trump brought up how the Mayor of Moscow allegedly paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million a half dozen times. Obviously some pollster told him this was a winning topic for him.
  4. Sow distrust. By amplifying the fantasy of voter fraud, Trump creates distrust of the process among his followers. This is an obvious precursor to him claiming the election was rigged.
  5. Rally the racists. By painting a picture of American cities as "under siege" by violent antifa groups and BLM "thugs," Trump sets the stage to justify violence. He has been doing this for some time, but took it to the next level last night in two ways. First, he explicitly instructed his followers to show up and "watch the polls." Second, he explicitly told the Proud Boys to, "Stand By." This is incredibly dangerous and creates a real possibility of election day intimidation or violence. Recent altercation between Trump supporters and voters at a polling place in Virginia may be a preview of things to come.

That's it. In some sense it is a relief how simplistic his playbook is. But we cannot relax yet. Idiots can start civil wars and incompetent morons are more than capable of blowing a country up from within.

What Should Joe Biden Do?

Trump's strength and weakness are his ego. Allow him to pretend he's the alpha and he will continue to project confidence to his followers. Biden must play a delicate balance of shattering Trump's ego without alienating the swing voters. Here's my advice to the Vice President:

  1. #StopSmilingJoe. It's big, bright, and beautiful. Personally, I love it. It is undoubtedly responsible for a large part of his political success. But Mr. Biden must put his smile on the shelf, for now. Dozens of times throughout the debate, he responded to Trump's nonsense by looking down and smiling or chuckling to himself in disbelief. This is the exact reaction Hillary had - and it does not work. For the Obama-Trump voter who sees value in Trump's perceived authenticity, the smile comes off as condescending. You're not laughing at Trump, you're laughing at them. For the progressive voters, it shows a lack of seriousness. Save it for the inauguration.
  2. Treat him like a child. Don't smile at his bad behaviour. Don't laugh. When he makes an outlandish accusation, there should be only two courses of action: ignore him, or call him out forcefully. There is a reason, "will you shut up, man?" is trending today. People want to see him put in his place. Lean into it. He is a child, so treat him like one.
  3. Regarding Hunter - be empathetic once and then attack. When Biden talked about Hunter's struggles with addiction, it was humanizing. It was something millions of Americans can relate to. When it comes up again - and it will - mention addiction once and then quickly counter-punch with something like, "That's my boy and I'll be damned if I'll listen to him be bad mouthed by a two-bit failed businessman who spends $70,000 to have a horse tail taped to the side of his balding head. Grow up. This isn't about my boy. This is about the American people. And they deserve better than a tiny-handed narcissist who can't get his head out of his own ass long enough to realize that people are hurting. People are dying."
  4. Describe his eviction. People are worried that Trump will not leave. Mr. Biden should paint a picture of how exactly he will be forced from office. "When I win, and you're reduced to being a scared old man tweeting from your bunker, I'll only ask nicely once. Our military - the people you called losers - will be happy to assist me in dragging you kicking and screaming from the office you've spent four years defiling."

To be clear, I don't like this. Politics should be better. But we can no longer afford to live in a world of ideals. Reality shows us that Trump is a fascist who will use violence if he thinks it can help him win. Joe Biden must do the dirty work of putting him in his place verbally to save us all from the very real danger of physical confrontation.

What Should I do?

It is easy to feel helpless, but you're not. You still live in a free country, and there are things you can do to keep it that way,.

  1. Prepare for the worst. If some of the worst case scenarios play out, you will be safer and better able to contribute if you've planned ahead.
  2. Talk to your family. Until their vote is cast, do not assume that anyone in your family is beyond saving. If you have family in Michigan, Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona, or North Carolina, call them and listen. Listen to their fears and to how they intend to vote. Try to gently convince them to vote for Biden. If they, "just can't," make sure you tell them all about Jo Jorgenson, the Libertarian candidate.
  3. Use your vacation time. There will be rallies, there will be marches, and we may even need to take a trip to Washington. If you are lucky enough to be employed, tell your employer now that you will need the week of November 3rd off. We will need every person we can get - and that means you.

Expect the Unexpected and Other Advice for Weathering this Election

By / Self Help / January 23, 2022

I probably don’t need to convince you that we are in for a bumpy next few months. Health experts are urging us to brace for a surge in Covid infections and death. The climate nightmare is turning into a fiery reality. Government officials are telling followers to stockpile ammunition. All this combined with RBG’s tragic death means there is barely bandwidth for the media to report on the latest mass shooting. In order to mentally prepare for the next few months it is crucial to take a step back and ask - what happens next?

wild fires
Wildfires on the west coast continue to destroy property decrease air quality.

Whatever happens, it will be easier to deal with if we have given it some forethought. The most obvious thing to focus on is the election on November 3rd, but if 2020 has taught us anything so far, it’s that unexpected events can change everything in an instant. Here are a few things to be mentally prepared for.

Covid gets really ugly. The virus might survive a little bit longer in the cold air. People may be slightly more likely to congregate inside or slightly less diligent with masking. Each of these can increase the spread.

Panic buying of food, ammunition, and toilet paper. The empty shelves we all experienced at the beginning of the pandemic could again become a reality.

Another police murder. Protests over the police murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Elija McClean, and others have waned in numbers and intensity since the peak this summer. Another episode of police violence could very easily bring people back to the streets.

George Floyd protests in Seattle, June 2020.
Massive protests across the country followed the police murder of George Floyd.

Normalization of police checkpoints. If protests re-erupt, authorities may crack down hard. Bill Bar has suggested charging protestors with sedition. Chicago already has a habit of shutting down all major entrances to the city, raising bridges, and blockading intersections downtown.

False Flag Event. A false flag operation is an act of violence committed with the intention of pinning blame on someone else. It is used by political actors to gin up support for war or as an excuse to take away civil liberties from their opponents domestically. Hitler famously set parliament on fire and then used it as an excuse to assume dictatorial powers.

Spontaneous Political Violence. This has already occurred. At least 17 people have died amid the unrest following George Floyd's murder.

Organized Political Violence. Aside from seemingly random violence, there is the additional threat of organized violence. By this I mean people organizing themselves for the purpose of committing or threatening violence. Kyle Rittenhouse and the so called "patriot" militias who regularly show up to protests with assault rifles, bullet proof vests, and other tactical gear fall into this category.

Targeted Political Violence (real or perceived) - The assassination of any politician would send a shockwave through our system. But even a seemingly natural death could be problematic. The internet is already awash with outlandish conspiracy theories and second, third, and fourth level repercussions could be significant.

None of these are predictions. Each could potentially cause things to slip quickly out of control and this is exactly why we must think about them. The fact that we don't want them to happen does not mean that they won't. One of the most important things we can do right now is to talk about these possibilities with friends, family, and neighbors. We are all feelings these anxieties. We do not need to deal with them alone.

What I do predict is a very tense and long election season. Here are some specifics that I think are plausible or likely to occur. I’ve included my ballpark percentage likelihood for each, and where alternative outcomes are possible, I’ve labeled them A, B, C, etc.

1. More Democrats will vote by mail than Republicans (99%). This means many Democrat votes will not be counted until after election day

2. Violence on Election Day (20%). Long lines, frustrated voters, and a potentially heavy police presence could mean very high tensions on election day. A small fight could escalate to a violent arrest. An internet rumor regarding fraud could cause “patriot militias” to show up with guns to "protect" the election.

3A. Trump declares himself the winner on Election night (70%). If it appears he is ahead in the Electoral College on November 3rd, Trump will not wait to declare himself the winner. Biden's votes are more likely to come via the mail, so he is unlikely to concede.

3B. Trump declares the election was rigged on Election night (20%). If it appears he is behind in the Electoral College, Trump will declare that the election was rigged and therefore invalid.

3C. Trump concedes on election night (10%). If there is a clear landslide on election night, Trump may be forced do concede if his inner circle, Senate Republicans, and/or military leaders force his hand.

if no one concedes, continue to step 4

4A. Election officials or courts eventually declare Trump winner (25%). Biden will likely concede. There may be sporadic violence, which Trump will crush with an iron fist.

4B. Election officials or courts eventually declare Biden winner and there is a peaceful transition of power (20%). Having declared himself the winner, Trump tweets angrily for weeks as votes are counted. Finally declared the loser, hey may call for violence, but Twitter and facebook quickly shut down his account before anyone acts on it. His generals march into his office and inform him he will be removed by force if necessary. He reluctantly concedes.

4C. Election officials or courts eventually declare Biden the winner and there is a period of turmoil and sporadic violence followed by a Biden presidency (25%). Unfortunately, I think this is the most likely end game. I don’t believe Trump will concede under any circumstance. I think he will call for “patriots” to rise up against the evil democrats. If he loses the physical fight, eventually Trump might concede, perhaps making a deal to avoid prosecution as a traitor.

4D. Civil War (5%). There is no shortage of people advocating for a civil war already. Ammunition and guns are sold out across the country. The only reason this percentage isn’t higher is because I've retained an irrational optimism that cooler heads will prevail.

4E. Intervening Event (10%). I make no attempt to describe what this event could be. Let’s call it the 2020 wild card scenario. It could be a natural disaster, a false flag operation, or a spontaneous popular uprising. It could calm the situation or enflame it. Whatever it is, it could change the landscape in an instant.

Things do not look good. There are still paths forward, but we cannot afford to live in denial. Only one presidential candidate has clearly and unequivocally denounced political violence of any kind. The other has a history of encouraging violence and demonizing opponents as evil scum.

As Maya Angelou put it, "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time." We cannot wish our way into calmer waters. We must stare the ugliness in the face, buckle down, and weather this storm, together.

Q-Anon: the Theory, the Dangers, and the Simple Solution

By / Government / January 23, 2022

Imagine that you know a secret. It’s not a rumor. It’s not a theory. It’s an absolute truth that you’ve discovered all on your own: there is a secret cabal of powerful pedophiles raping children, drinking their blood and participating in satanic rituals in order to bring about the enslavement of the entire human race. How would you feel? How would you act?

Now imagine a country where millions of people with guns not only believe this, but are eagerly awaiting instructions from an anonymous internet poster about what to do about it. These posts will lead to the, “great awakening,” and initiate the, “annihilation of the Cabal and the liberation of the people.” Welcome to the 2020 elections where - like it or not - Q is on the ballot.

A substantial percentage of the population - potentially millions - believes the Q-Anon narrative. We need to wake up to the potential that this could lead to significant violence and do everything we can do to avoid that outcome. Rather than ignoring or laughing, we must seek understanding and connection. So let’s start with some terms you should know:

Q - A person (probably multiple people) who began posting anonymously on the internet in October 2018. They claim to be high level officials in the white house or the military. They work on behalf of the 99% against the Deep State and the Cabal. Their earliest posts contained specific predictions that did not come true. Since then, their posts have become more cryptic, encouraging followers to connect the dots on their own.

Anons - People who believe in the Q narrative.

Sheep - Anon term for people who are not Anons.

Deep State - The Deep State consists of government officials who work in the shadows to thwart Trump and take away our freedoms.

The Cabal - The central group of elites who are pulling the strings behind the scenes. They are the bankers, business people, politicians, and Hollywood elites who are systematically working to enslave humanity by controlling our money, government, and culture. They are also pedophiles and satanists.

Q-Drops - Posts from Q.

Breadcrumbs - Q-Drops contain Breadcrumbs - cryptic messages with hidden meanings. One post, alleged to be a cypher encoding an important message, was shown by a cyber-security consultant to be consistent with patterns created by someone randomly slapping at a keyboard.

”So my conclusion here is these are not actual codes, just random typing by someone who might play an instrument and uses a qwerty keyboard.” Mark Burnett, security consultant.

4Chan - An image and message board website (warning, NSFW!) for anonymous posting. After Q posted here in October 2017, three users quickly shared the information across social media platforms, apparently spreading the narrative for financial gain.

8kun - A website (warning, NSFW!) similar to 4chan. Q has posted here as well.

PizzaGate - In late 2016, WikiLeaks published about 20,000 emails from John Podesta’s account. Podesta was Chief of Staff to Bill Clinton, worked for Obama, and was then working on Hillary Clinton’s campaign. Anons believe these emails contained coded messages discussing child sex trafficking. The conclusion drawn by some was that elites within the democratic party were running a sex trafficking ring out of the pizzaria, complete with child sacrifice and satanic worship. The New York Times has a good summary of the alleged coded messages here.

Fall Cabal - A series of You Tube videos produced by a European woman who summarizes Q Anon for new people. A friend of mine who is an Anon recommended it to me. I watched all ten videos, each of which is 15-20 minutes. They are filled with really intense music, emotionally triggering photos, leading questions, and well-crafted cliff-hangers at the end of each video to keep you watching. Using the math found here, we can estimate that channel has earned between $70,000 and $120,000 from their 23 million YouTube views.

Red Pilling - A term adopted from the Matrix, red pilling is the process of recruiting people to Q-Anon.

The Great Awakening - Phrase used often by Anons to refer to the moment when all the Sheep wake up. Fall Cabal uses phrases like, “all will be revealed,” constantly and speaks about the annihilation of the Cabal.

Question Everything - Popular slogan for Anons.

WWG1WGA - Acronym for “Where we go one, we go all.” The slogan is inscribed on JFK’s memorial. Anons take this as proof of a master plan involving the Kennedys. It seems more likely that the anonymous poster adopted this slogan because it is related to JFK.

Importantly, there is not one Q narrative. Anons are decentralized, each of them connecting their own dots. There are a few common threads outside of the pedophelia and devil worship mentioned above:

  • Trump is Q, or is part of Q, or is being used by Q for Q’s agenda.
  • Trump’s gaffes are actually secret messages to the public. Drinking water with two hands was a clue about child trafficking in fiji. Misspelling covfefe was a code, etc.
  • The Deep State is trying to destroy Trump.
  • JFK Jr. (who died in the 90’s) is actually still alive and well and working with Trump. He will reveal himself as Q.
  • Migrant caravan in 2018 was fake and consisted of actors.
  • Masks are a hoax intended as a test of population control methods.

I could go on, but if you’ve read this far, you get the picture. And while the fact that there are millions of Anons is a valid cause for concern, we should not react with fear or ridicule.

We are living in the most psychologically stressful era in human history. Our senses are constantly bombarded with information and our biological impulse is to identify patterns. Add to the mix the fact that people can profit considerably from attention-grabbing headlines, posts, and videos, and it is not surprising that some have gone down the rabbit hole.

Instead, we should seek understanding, communication, and common ground. Personally, I can think of at least four areas of common ground with the Anons.

The elite are killing us. I don’t like the phrase “cabal” because it has anti-semetic connotations which are disgusting. But rhetoric regarding the 99% v. the 1% is something I can get behind.

Question Everything. I like the Q community’s emphasis on thinking for yourself and questioning the motives of people feeding us information. I think it's equally important to question yourself. Question your ego. Question the limits of your knowledge. Question the biases that may be affecting how you see the world.

Pedophiles are bad. Totally agree with them here. I’m not sold on the existence of an organized pedophile ring of Democratic operatives. That said, the Epstein saga definitely changed how I think about pedohelia as it relates to the elite. The fact that the President visited his island and that the jail was under his jurisdiction is suspicious. Until there is more tangible evidence, however, I’m not prepared to say that Donald Trump ordered Epstein killed to cover up Trump’s history of pedophelia. I don’t like Trump, but that would be an unfair leap at this time.

WWG1WGA. I don’t say this in solidarity with the Q community. Their fervor, anger, and self-righteousness makes me very uneasy. I say it as a metaphysical fact. As Dr. King said,

“In a real sense all life is interrelated. All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

For better or worse, we are a single human family on a tiny planet. And I, for one, hope to God that we can figure this out together.

Tech-Enabled Authoritarianism: 3 Things Every American Must Recognize Now

By / Technology / January 8, 2022

Full blown authoritarianism takes many forms, which makes it difficult to define. Still, oppressive regimes historically share common characteristics. They all control their populations actions and thoughts through a mix of surveillance, propaganda, and violence. Most are all ruled by a single individual or small group of elites who lie, cheat, intimidate, and use brute force if necessary to maintain power. Undemocratic governments around the world are arming themselves with powerful technology. This enables mass oppression with an efficiency that the murderous dictators of the 20th century could only have dreamed of.

Surveillance in the 21st century will combine old techniques and new technologies.
Police using a telescopic lens to photograph every counter-protester at a recent pro-Trump rally in Wrigleyville.

I recently took a close look at the particular question of aerial drone surveillance and how it can become a powerful tool for oppression. Here’s what I’ve learned.

It is important to remember that the U.S. Constitution safeguards against authoritarianism in two ways. First, it divides and limits the powers of the government. Second, it explicitly names several rights belonging to every individual. The government is forbidden from violating these rights, one of which is our Constitutional right to privacy. Privacy is crucial to the free exchange of ideas. Without it, we risk self-censorship by limiting our thoughts and actions to those deemed acceptable by the regime. Once the modern surveillance tools are entrenched and accepted by a population, it's merely a matter of, "flipping the switch," from the psychological influence of an all-seeing eye to the outright oppression of an iron fist.

The tools available to the modern surveillance state are immense and precise. These technologies include smart networks of thousands of cameras, mass capture of phone and internet data, ubiquitous facial recognition, automatic tracking of every license plate on public roads, and missile-launched drone swarms called LOCUSTS that can both perform surveillance and deliver explosive payloads. These technologies are already widely used in China as it methodically perfects the art of totalitarianism in the 21st century. At the same time, U.S. law enforcement agencies are procuring Chinese equipment and - presumably - training in how to use these tools of oppression.

Exactly how these technologies are deployed against the American public is shrouded in secrecy. In Chicago, the police have a long history of spying on citizens. They’ve used signal intercepting technologies to spy on the cell phones of peaceful organizers. They've tortured an unknown number of people at a secret black site. They maintain a controversial “gang database” to track people and their relationships with near-zero transparency. At a recent protest, they formed a ring around demonstrators and then ordered them to disperse – a tactic called kettling. Eventually, they forced every protestor to exit through a narrow opening in the wall of police, taking video and searching their bags as they left. The chilling effect these techniques have on free speech and expression threaten the foundations of our free society.

Unlike many states, Illinois does have a law intended to protect our privacy rights from aerial surveillance. The law bans the use of drones by law enforcement except for specific situations: to counter terrorism, if they have a warrant, if they have reasonable belief that quick action is needed to prevent harm, if they are looking for a missing person, or if they are using it for crime scene or traffic crash scene photography. It is easy to see how these exceptions could be broadly interpreted to make the ban meaningless. We have no reason to presume the Chicago Police Department, which has failed to meet 70% of its deadlines under a Federal Consent Decree, would exercise restraint in this area. The law also has a reporting requirement, but this appears to be openly flouted by law enforcement agencies as well.

Specifically, the law requires every law enforcement agency in Illinois to report the number of drones they own to the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. This agency, which consists mainly of law enforcement and court officials, is required to publish an annual report detailing which law enforcement agencies own drones and how many. Surprisingly, of the 877 law enforcement agencies in Illinois, only 20 reported owning a drone in the 2020 report. Considering the potential usefulness for law enforcement, it seems highly unlikely that so few law enforcement agencies are using drones. I requested clarification from CPD on twitter:

My initial request for clarification from he Chicago Police Department and the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority was ignored.

After getting no reply, I forwarded the question to several local elected officials (please like and retweet if you want answers too!):

Getting no response, I forwarded my question to Alderman Harry Osterman, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, Mayor Lori Lightfoot, the Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, my Illinois House Representative Kelly Cassidy, and my Illinois Senator Heather Steans.

One of them replied, and looped in the expert from our state legislature. The expert never replied, but my state representative did put this on her to-do list

This seemed too important to wait around on, so I made use of the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). Like many states, Illinois’ FOIA allows citizens to request records from government agencies. I filed a FOIA request with the Chicago Police Department on on July 30. The law requires agencies to reply within 5 business days unless they have a legally justifiable reason for an extension. Almost immediately, the CPD responded that they were extending their deadline by a week due to Covid. When the first week passed, they extended their deadline again in order to consult with another public body having a substantial interest in the request. 21 days later, I received their reply. The reply stated that CPD had no responsive records, and instead directed me to the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) and the Chicago Department of Aviation. This was the first time I’ve ever used the FOIA process, and while I have not yet received the substantive answers I was looking for, I have learned a lot. I will post an update when I get more information, but for now here are my important takeaways so far:

First, it seems highly unlikely that CPD is not using drones. A simple “no” does not take three weeks to formulate and does not require conference with other agencies. The FAA has a Law Enforcement Assistance Program (“LEAP”) that appears to be geared toward helping law enforcement agencies formulate and implement drone policies. More research is needed, but as of now, I would be very surprised if CPD were simply not using drones at all.

Second, the gaps in a poorly written law can make it useless. Illinois’ Freedom From Drone Surveillance Act does not apply to federal agencies like the FAA, FBI, or DHS. It does not prohibit law enforcement in Illinois from using information gathered by the feds or from non-law enforcement agencies like the Chicago Department of Aviation. The reporting requirement only applies to law enforcement agencies that own a drone. It does not take much creativity to imagine how this law could become worthless as a practical matter. Laws purporting to protect our privacy must keep pace with technology. If they fail to do so, they are toothless distractions that create a false sense of security. We cannot afford to be distracted.

Third, the separation of powers is only useful if each branch is playing an active role in protecting our rights. Police without oversight don’t protect our rights. Laws without enforcement don’t protect our rights. Politicians who fail to act with the urgency this moment demands certainly don’t protect our rights.

Authoritarianism in the 21st century will not take the same form that our founders fought a revolutionary war against. It will not require an explicit moment where all government powers pass to a single person, such as the Enabling Act did for Hitler prior to WWII. It can happen in the shadows of ambiguity. As governments around the world begin to leverage technology to build the police departments of the 21st century, we must be explicit about what is acceptable in a free society and what is not. We must be vigilant to ensure this historical moment does not slide into authoritarianism. We cannot afford to have any of us asleep at the wheel right now.

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