There is a discussion taking place over at TL's Summit site about secure Comms. Beyond the nuts and bolts of how, some folks are discussing the why of it all. Obviously, if you are going to get into serious resistance with other people, you need to be able to communicate securely. The tradecraft is essential in operations.
Many folks are afraid of LEO and other minions of the State snitching them out. This is prudent. This Community is infested with active LEO and willing Collaborators.
What is your litmus test for a trustworthy associate? This is where folks get themselves tripped-up.
Benjamin Franklin comes to mind first: Three may keep a secret so long as two are dead.
That applies to everyone: lifelong friends, family, wives, moms...
Most of you know that I assume everything is compromised. I will not discuss reindeer games with anyone. I know I am compromised. LEO is in my computer, my car, my smartphone, my credit card receipts. I do not want to know your plans. I will not listen if you try to include me. If you get tripped-up or into something I do not condone, I will have no suspicion for snitchery cast upon me. If I do not know your secrets, I can not surrender your secrets. That is a two-way street.
The only place that is safe from the State is between my own ears.
Facts are facts.
I have no fear of the public forum. I operate in the spotlight. It isn't my first choice, but it is simply my reality as a result of circumstances.
As you choose people with whom to network, I would suggest that you be far more discriminating than what I am seeing many of you write online.
When the Feds want you, they will come at you with what you like...
That is LEO 101.
You want hush puppies, rock & roll, things that go big-bada-boom? They'll come at you with it, and some member of your network will have access.
You want sexy women? They'll ping that vulnerability. You want cash, they'll present a money-making opportunity...
You want secure Comms? Riddle me this: How well do you trust the people offering secure Comms answers? Will the company offering the service comply with a Federal Warrant and give up your "secure" details?
How do you know that the network being recommended is not already compromised, or even a creation of your enemies? Would you put it past the Enemies of Liberty to build a company or network that provides "secure communications for Patriots" that lures you in, just so they can move you into the low-hanging fruit category?
Many of you, from what I have watched you write on threads, are making it very, very easy to be manipulated.
Consider the people you are meeting and contemplating to trust. They say the same things you say, but does that mean they believe it, or are they simply coming at you with what you want to hear?
There is a lot of former military in our Community. As former members of the State, do you discount these people immediately as compromised, or do you simply trust them...or something between? We have several former LEO in our midst. These are people who chose, daily, to violate the very Rights you espouse in return for a paycheck from the State.
We have some folks in our midst who have banged heads with the State. Some won, some lost. Alan Gottlieb and yours truly come to mind. Do you trust these people more or less than the former cop? Do you trust the former cop more or less than the active duty OathKeeper?
We have some amongst us who take Government checks today, the very Entitlements that are financed through theft from you. We have some among us who choose to stand with active ATF whistleblowers. Mind you, before he was an ATF Whistleblower he was an ATF Agent who went to work every single day with an agenda to deny your unalienable Rights, and received a paycheck from the State to do so.
Our Founders were all, at one point or another, Loyalists. They all became hunted Enemies of the King...criminals. They faced the same issues as do you when it comes to networking and Tribe-building.
How do you determine who you can trust?
Go to Bill's PatCom and TL's Summit and look others in the eye, and take your own measure of the man or woman before you. Keep your mouth shut and be very, very careful about anything you let into your ears.
You underestimate the sophistication and resources of the Enemies of Liberty at your peril.
You trust the wrong person, you will die or spend a very long time in prison.
Kerodin
III
Very, very good post.
ReplyDeleteEach decision made to network or communicate is a risk/reward decision to be evaluated and decided upon.
Same applies to verboten items that are, by and large, unnecessary.
Pay the frickin $300 permission slip fee and wait for the suppressor. It isn't worth 20 or worse.
Right now, with most people's responses to tyranny securely in the category of "good ole fashioned US consumerism" aka, buy more crap, the risk isn't worth the reward.
I gotta admit, I wondered the same thing about the "secure comms solution". Excellent point.
ReplyDeleteExcellent summary, Kerodin. The most concentrated wisdom I've seen in my blog reading in quite a while.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of swapping "public keys" at a meet that will surely be swarming with undercover Feds or their AK-toting CI's (like the one the Fibbies are hiding right now who was involved in killing Brian Terry) sounds like a recipe for disaster to me.
ReplyDeleteI've shot my mouth and my keyboard off too much to worry about going silent or secret now. And as a former peace officer, I wouldn't trust me either. Leaderless resistance is going to be the ticket in this day and age.
A book I'm reading now pretty much sums it up..."Trust No One."
ReplyDeleteThanks, folks.
ReplyDeleteTrust is something to be earned by deeds. Once the festivities begin, we may then begin to trust in a genuine manner, based upon the actions taken by each individual.
Stay safe.
Kerodin
III