_Celebration Of Americans Turning In Their Neighbors, Family Membe_
(http://prisonplanet.com/articles/may2008/051908_family_members.htm) rs
Now this is just too dang creepy.
Sure the police need leads and community support but "paying" and turning
average citizens into CI's only ensures ultimately, more revenge violence,
less
police actual street work, and using anonymous tips will add the names of
enemies, old beaus, and parties in neighborhood disputes to a police list and
database from which the innocent can not be expunged - or even aware - and
the lying or opportunistic snitches go unpunished.
Below, is the odd comment of approval from the NYT's and a reply from the
excellent essay which addresses this disturbing development.
The NYT article link is below and so is the full essay reply. Go to the
essay link for a beautiful tie into to the old Arnold Schwarzenegger's 1987
movie
The Running Man:
"...Forget Orwell's 1984, this purebred tyranny is about as sophisticated as
the wacky dictatorship portrayed in Arnold Schwarzenegger's 1987 movie The
Running Man, where citizens are reminded by huge TV screens that they can
"earn a double bonus for reporting on a family member!"....'
* NYT: "...Economic problems for families, Ms. Routte acknowledged,
were good business for Crime Stoppers. “We’re kind of banking on that, really,”
she said. “If it helps put dinner on the table for somebody, that’s
wonderful...."
* PP reply ":"..As any budding dictator will tell you, the creation of
an informant society where individuals self-regulate their behavior in fear
of being turned in by a citizen spy is one of the key stepping stones to
tyranny. To have the media celebrate the fact that people are reporting on
their
neighbors and grandchildren puts the icing on the cake..."
Peace, Hugs, and Purrs
Carolyn Rose Goyda
Saint Louis, Missouri USA
[EMAIL PROTECTED] (mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED])
_Celebration Of Americans Turning In Their Neighbors, Family Members_
(http://prisonplanet.com/articles/may2008/051908_family_members.htm)
Celebration Of Americans Turning In Their Neighbors, Family Members
Officials, media praise "wonderful," "creative" informants for making a
living from reporting friends to the authorities
Paul Joseph Watson
_Prison Planet_ (http://prisonplanet.com/index.html)
Monday, May 19, 2008
Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers and the New York Times are heartily
celebrating the fact that an increasing number of Americans are becoming
informants
and turning in their neighbors and family members to the authorities in
return for cash rewards.
Citing gas prices, foreclosure rates and runaway food price inflation, The
Times lauds the fact that citizens are reporting on each other, ensuring "a
substantial increase in Crime Stopper-related arrests and recovered property,
as callers turn in neighbors, grandchildren or former boyfriends in exchange
for a little cash."
The fact that people turning in their own neighbors and family members for
payoffs is one of the hallmarks of a Stasi-like police state doesn't seem to
register with reporters Shaila Dewan, Brenda Goodman, or Crime Stoppers U.S.A
President Elaine Cloyd, who hails the snitches for getting "creative" to
offset a rough economy.
Forget Orwell's 1984, this purebred tyranny is about as sophisticated as the
wacky dictatorship portrayed in Arnold Schwarzenegger's 1987 movie The
Running Man, where citizens are reminded by huge TV screens that they can
"earn a
double bonus for reporting on a family member!"
[see clip at this articles link site ]
10 minutes into the clip from 1987's The Running Man: "Don't forget -
October is bonus recruitment month - earn a double bonus for reporting on a
family
member!"
It's difficult to judge the most disturbing aspect of this story - the fact
that people would slavishly turn in their grandchildren and neighbors for
instant cash - or the horrible spectacle of having to endure the the New York
Times celebrating it.
"For tips that bring results, programs in most places pay $50 to $1,000,
with some jurisdictions giving bonuses for help solving the most serious
crimes,
or an extra “gun bounty” if a weapon is recovered. In Sussex County, the
average payment for a tip that results in an arrest is $400," _according to
the
report_
(http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/us/18crimestopper.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss)
.
A poster from the First Coast Crime Stoppers program.
“Crime doesn’t pay but we do,” say the mobile billboards cruising
Jacksonville, Fla. A poster in Jackson, Tenn., draws a neat equation: “Ring
Ring +
Bling Bling = Cha-Ching.” The bling, in this case, is a pair of handcuffs."
Enthusiastic spies are assured that they can earn as much as $700, $750 per
week for information leading to two or three arrests, more money than a
minimum wage job. The tattle-tales' identity is kept anonymous and they can
even
report people by text message.
Crime Stoppers coordinator Trish Routte described the ability to make a
living from reporting friends and family members to the authorities as
"wonderful".
Lest we forget that from this same wellspring of tyranny emerged Operation
TIPS, which was supposedly nixed by Congress, _a DOJ, FBI, DHS and FEMA
coordinated program_ (http://www.prisonplanet.com/news_alert_071602_tips.html)
that would have recruited one in twenty-four Americans as domestic informants,
a
higher percentage than was used by the Stasi in East Germany.
Government funding was cut after an outcry but private funding continues and
the same program was introduced under a number of sub-divisions including
AmeriCorps, SecureCorps and the _Highway Watch program_
(http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/september2004/300904recruitedforhomeland.htm)
.
More recently, _ABC News reported_
(http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/07/fbi-proposes-bu.html) that "The
FBI is taking cues from the CIA to
recruit thousands of covert informants in the United States as part of a
sprawling
effort.....to aid with criminal investigations."
Since authorities _now define mundane activities like _
(http://prisonplanet.tv/articles/april2006/260406likelyterrorists.htm) buying
baby formula, beer,
wearing Levi jeans, carrying identifying documents like a drivers license and
traveling with women or children or _mentioning the U.S. constitution _
(http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/may2008/051208_feds_accuse.htm) as the
behavior of potential terrorists, the bounty for the American Stasi to turn in
political dissidents is sure to be too tempting to resist.
As any budding dictator will tell you, the creation of an informant society
where individuals self-regulate their behavior in fear of being turned in by
a citizen spy is one of the key stepping stones to tyranny. To have the media
celebrate the fact that people are reporting on their neighbors and
grandchildren puts the icing on the cake.
_As Prices Rise, Crime Tipsters Work Overtime - New York Times_
(http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/us/18crimestopper.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=
slogin)
Peace, Hugs, and Purrs
By _SHAILA DEWAN_
(http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/d/shaila_dewan/index.html?inline=nyt-per)
and BRENDA GOODMAN
Published: May 18, 2008
To gas prices, foreclosure rates and the cost of rice, add this rising
economic indicator: the number of tips to the police from people hoping to
collect
reward money.
Daron Dean for The New York Times
A poster from the First Coast Crime Stoppers program.
Calls to the Southwest _Florida_
(http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/national/usstatesterritoriesandpossessions/florida/index.html?inline=nyt-geo)
Crime
Stoppers hot line in the first quarter of this year were up 30 percent over
last year. San Antonio had a 44 percent increase. Cities and towns from
Detroit to Omaha to Beaufort County, N.C., all report increases of 25 percent
or
more in the first quarter, with tipsters telling operators they need the money
for rent, light bills or baby formula.
“For this year, everyone that’s called has pretty much been just looking for
money,” said Sgt. Lawrence Beller, who answers Crime Stoppers calls at the
Sussex County, N.J., sheriff’s office. “That’s as opposed to the last couple
of years, where some people were just sick of the crime and wanting to do
something about it.”
As a result, many programs report a substantial increase in Crime
Stopper-related arrests and recovered property, as callers turn in neighbors,
grandchildren or former boyfriends in exchange for a little cash.
On Friday, a woman called the Regional Crime Stoppers line in Macon, Ga., to
find out when she could pick up her reward money for a recent tip. She was
irritated to learn that she would have to wait until Monday.
“I’m in a bind, I’m really in a bind,” she told the hot-line operator. “
There’s a lot of stuff I know, but I didn’t open my mouth. If I weren’t in a
bind, I wouldn’t open my mouth.”
When she learned the money was not available, she said she would call back
with the whereabouts of another suspect whom she had just seen “going down the
road.”
Elaine Cloyd, the president of Crime Stoppers U.S.A., a national organization
of local tip programs, said that not all of the 323 programs in the country
had reported an increase in calls, and that some, like those in Lafayette,
La., and Broward County, Fla., attributed most of their spike to increased
publicity or technological improvements like accepting tips by text message.
But
there was no doubt, Ms. Cloyd said, that the faltering economy was a
significant factor.
“When the economy gets rough, people have to be creative,” she said. “They
might give a tip where they wouldn’t have in the past.”
For tips that bring results, programs in most places pay $50 to $1,000, with
some jurisdictions giving bonuses for help solving the most serious crimes,
or an extra “gun bounty” if a weapon is recovered. In Sussex County, the
average payment for a tip that results in an arrest is $400, Sergeant Beller
said.
“Usually you deliver the money in an unmarked car and meet them somewhere,”
he said. “But these people come right to the office and walk right through
the front door.”
Some Crime Stoppers coordinators say their program appeals to community
spirit and emphasize that not everyone who calls is after money. But their
advertising makes no bones about the benefits of a good tip.
“Crime doesn’t pay but we do,” say the mobile billboards cruising
Jacksonville, Fla. A poster in Jackson, Tenn., draws a neat equation: “Ring
Ring +
Bling Bling = Cha-Ching.” The bling, in this case, is a pair of handcuffs.
Some coordinators suggest that rising crime rates might be driving up the
number of tips. But in Jackson, Tenn., Sgt. Mike Johnson said his call volume
had gone from two or three a day to eight or nine. He theorized that rising
crime there was not a factor because the program advertises steadily regardless
of trends. “People just need money,” Sergeant Johnson said.
Sergeant Johnson has been a Crime Stoppers coordinator for 15 years, watching
crime rates and tips fluctuate. But, he said, “I’ve never seen an increase
like it is now.”
Crime Stoppers programs strictly protect the anonymity of callers. Each tip
is assigned a number, and if the tip results in an arrest, the caller can
collect a cash reward, usually by going to a designated bank. Some programs pay
tipsters within hours of an arrest; others have monthly meetings to approve
reward amounts.
Not only have the number of tips increased, several program coordinators
said, but people are also more diligent about calling back to find out if and
when they can collect.
Jim Cogan, director of the Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers program in
California, said most of the rewards offered by his program used to go
unclaimed. But
with large numbers of foreclosures and heavy job losses, Mr. Cogan said, “
now we’re seeing rewards get picked up right away and our tipsters being
frustrated when tips aren’t available as quickly as they need the money.”
Karen Keen, the tips coordinator for First Coast Crime Stoppers in
Jacksonville, said she had, on occasion, been given approval to pay tipsters
early, if
they persuaded her that they needed the money to pay a light bill or some
other necessity.
Some people have made a cottage industry of calling in tips. Although repeat
callers do not give their names, operators recognize their voices.
“We have people out there that, realistically, this could be their job,”
said Sgt. Zachary Self, who answers Crime Stoppers calls for the Macon Police
Department.
“Two or three arrests per week, you could make $700, $750 per week,”
Sergeant Self said. “You could make better than a minimum-wage job.”
He said that his program typically averaged 215 arrests per year, but that
this year it had already hit 100, and he projected it would make more than 300,
a record, by year’s end.
In some cases, the quality of the tips is lagging as people grasp for any
shred of information that might result in an arrest. A woman in Macon, for
example, recently called to report that a family member — who was wanted for
burglary and whose name and address were already known to the police — was at
home. His home.
Such a tip might seem worthless on its face, said Jean Davis, who took the
call. But many police departments do not have the personnel to watch a suspect’
s comings and going. In that case, the young man was arrested.
Typically, the greatest number of calls comes in response to news coverage of
a specific crime or a weekly list of wanted suspects. At other times, people
call to report a crime the police might not even be aware of. Or, they might
just call to report the whereabouts of someone with an old warrant. Warrant
tips for minor crimes generate the lowest rewards, but that has not stopped
people from turning in suspects.
“We’re getting a lot more calls related to wanted persons,” said Sgt. Tommi
Bridgeman, who coordinates the Beaufort County Crime Stoppers program. “
People who know that these people have warrants out for their arrest are
calling
to turn them in.”
Sergeant Bridgeman said her calls were up 25 percent even though the program’
s one advertisement, a patrol car emblazoned with the hot-line number, was
out of commission.
“Folks around here need the money,” she said. “There’s not a lot of jobs
here. We try to pay out every two weeks because we know they need the money.”
Places with quick payments and particularly bleak economic conditions tended
to report increases in call volume. Lee County, Fla., had the highest rate
for home foreclosures in the United States in February and March, and its
once-plentiful construction jobs have dried up.
Last week, the Crime Stoppers coordinator there, Trish Routte, got a call
from a man reporting drug activity, a tip that paid him $450. It was his second
call in a week, said Ms. Routte, who recognized the caller’s voice.
“He told me he really didn’t want to call but he just had a new grandbaby
and he needed the money,” Ms. Routte said.
Economic problems for families, Ms. Routte acknowledged, were good business
for Crime Stoppers. “We’re kind of banking on that, really,” she said. “If
it helps put dinner on the table for somebody, that’s wonderful.”
**************Wondering what's for Dinner Tonight? Get new twists on family
favorites at AOL Food.
(http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
