The Accused
submitted by Loren Pogue
I have heard English and American journalists express their shock and dismay about Israel's practice of punishing family members of those accused of commiting an offense against the state. The reporters' stance implies that such is not the case on our own home turf. Yet, it is.
In the U.S.A., when one is charged with a federal crime of some sort, it is customary for the indicted to enlist the help of his friends and family. The person may seek financial help, references, testimony, and help for his business or children or spouse.
The friends and family are invariably discouraged by the authorities from helping the indicted. They are questioned, accused, and threatened. Sometimes they are even promised (via civil lawyers associated with the criminal lawyers) financial gain through civil suits against the accused. They are threatened with legal action. They are told by the FBI that they need to be "with the FBI, for they will be up against the FBI."
This even extends to the now very vulnerable wife and young children of the accused. Junior high school children of the accused have been pulled from their classes and interrogated without a parent or any advocate present, about activities they may have been a witness to. Spouses and children have been harassed to the breaking point and pressured to divorce and to break all ties to the accused. One by one, witnesses for the defense become witnesses for the prosecution.
The terms "the accused" and "the convicted" are almost synonymous in the federal system. Ninety-eight per cent of all federal indictments result in convictions and sentences. This is not due to the government's being so clever at detecting criminal activity; they are just very experienced at simulating the appearance of a crime, greatly exaggerating the nature and magnitude of the crime, and convincing all concerned that they are defenseless against government power.
After long sentences are served, the government continues its efforts to kick all possible support out from under the "released" prisoner. Anyone willing to help the prisoner with his return to a normal life can expect to be immediately investigated, treated carelessly and rudely by government bureaucrats, harassed, and usually dissuaded from assisting. They are lied to that the government legally has the power to do as it pleases. This practice is so common that the general consensus today is esentially that our government is all-powerful and that there is no resistance strong enough to save an individual from its wrath. Often, due to non-existent associations being drawn between his crime and his profession, the ex-prisoner is forbidden from working in any field in which he would be capable of earning a good living.
Most of these illicit government activities are accomplished by lethargic, over-paid bureaucrats simply trying to justify the existence of their positions or "jobs". Quotas need to be met, so many cases must be processed, or the department will be closed. But departments are never closed. Instead, many good people and their families and friends are mangled in this senseless, unattended mechanism.
The accused -- many millions, now, in America -- are banished to the street, to join the massive and growing, desperate underclass, which foreshadows the future of a rapidly decaying nation.
In this day and age, as paranoiac government leaders are imagining more and more enemies of the state, they are creating more and more bureaus, agencies, and positions therein, which in turn grow dependent upon the creation of more enemies of the state. The first to be declared the enemy may be a stranger to you; but then perhaps, a neighbor; then a friend; then you; and then it will be too late.
If you have a family member, friend, or associate who is being unfairly processed by this out-of-control, mechanistic system, remain alert to the fact that you will most likely be subjected to the treatment mentioned above and to all of its associated propaganda. When it happens, recognize it for what it is and hold true to what you know is right in your heart. Do not give up, because your life and nation and the inheritance of your children are at stake.
