Why I think Jim Bell is getting railroaded

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I think that the Government is trying to make an example of Mr. Bell.  I
think 
that much of the charges reported in the news are flase.

Here is why...

1) They claim that Jim was actively trying to disrupt 911 service and poison 
the Bull Run water supply.  These are non-political targets.  Jim only thinks 
in political targets.  (I remember trying to get him to come to grips with
the 
idea that such a system as AP would not be used just for government types.  
That is would be used against anyone who had enemies.  Could not even make a 
dent...)

2) The warrent is sealed, yet the media is reporting all sorts of things
about 
the case.  Where is the information coming from?  Sounds like planted 
information to keep people from complaining too much when they send him up
the 
river for a few years...  (Whether he survives long in custody is another 
story.  I would be willing to bet that if he does not "cooperate" that he
will 
have some sort of "accident" while in government hands.)

3) The suspected crimes list keeps changing.  How many times has the 
"official" story changed?  Each time it gets more and more lurid.  (And many 
of the crimes are ones that get used against damn near every case the 
government tries against someone who threatens the security of the state.  
Belief starts to wear a bit thin after a while...)

Of course, i do not expect anything like the truth from standing in the way
of 
a conviction...

"Paranoia strikes deep...
  Into your soul it will creep...
   It starts when you're always afraid...
    Step out of line, the man come, and take you away..."



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Alan Olsen wrote:
> 
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> 
> I think that the Government is trying to make an example of Mr. Bell.  I
> think
> that much of the charges reported in the news are flase.
> 
> Here is why...
> 
> 1) They claim that Jim was actively trying to disrupt 911 service and poison
> the Bull Run water supply.  These are non-political targets.  Jim only thinks
> in political targets. 

He only mouths off on cypherpunks about FBI agents and such but 
I know a lot of terrorists who consider the 911 system a political
target. The UVF in Ulster blew up a dam (so they could blame it on
the IRA). 

I would not depend on Bell to any extent in any circumstance to
be reliable.



> 2) The warrent is sealed, yet the media is reporting all sorts of things  about
> the case.  Where is the information coming from?  

Who says they have any at all? The US press does not need
information to publish articles. Bell has published his stuff
very widely.


> 3) The suspected crimes list keeps changing.  How many times has the
> "official" story changed?  Each time it gets more and more lurid.  

Expanding is the word. Put someone under a microscope and you
are liable to find out quite a bit about them. 

Bell is not the kind of loon to stick one's neck out for. It may
well be that he did not explicitly advocate murder but he danced
awfully close to that line. My understanding is that the original
charge relates to statements made in person that were interpreted 
as threatening. Each act individually may not amount to a 
criminal act but together they could well do so.

For example in the 1970s a series of articles was written
under the pen-name "Brownie" advocating the "Ballot Bomb"
strategy in which political action would be used to compliment a
terrorist campaign. Now it is arguable that the articles were or
were not protected speech under the first amendment but consider 
the situation if that person were to say to someone such as a policeman 
"I know how to fix you". If as would be quite likely the policeman 
was aware of the "Brownie" letters the intent to communicate a
threat of murder would be quite plain.

Before charging to the rescue its a good idea to make sure
that you are rescuing the right person. Government agents
also have the right not to be threatened with murder.


The first amendment has never been interpreted as making
threatening speech or fraud legal, even by those such as
Jefferson who argued against libel laws.


	Phill

At 8:25 PM -0800 5/20/97, Alan Olsen wrote:
>-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
>
>I think that the Government is trying to make an example of Mr. Bell.  I
>think
>that much of the charges reported in the news are flase.

Yes, it appears the fuckers are ignoring the lack of any significant
criminality (no bombs, no water poisoned, nobody murdered, no buildings
blown up, and no national capitals extinguished) and are throwing him to
the wolves.

They know that civil rights groups won't touch Bell with a 30-foot pole,
because of his advocacy of murder as a solution to the Problem, and because
he is not a good "poster boy" for a long public trial over free speech
issues.

And they probably have a pretty good case, given the American judicial system.

>Here is why...
>
>1) They claim that Jim was actively trying to disrupt 911 service and poison
>the Bull Run water supply.  These are non-political targets.  Jim only thinks
>in political targets.  (I remember trying to get him to come to grips with
>the
>idea that such a system as AP would not be used just for government types.
>That is would be used against anyone who had enemies.  Could not even make a
>dent...)

Exactly. This just doesn't compute. Bell never talked about poisoning water
supplies, in connection with his theories. (I don't deny that he might not
have speculated with his friends about how easy it might be to do X, or Y,
or Z. We all do such things, and this is the nature of any inquisitive
mind. But it ain't a crime, folks.)


>2) The warrent is sealed, yet the media is reporting all sorts of things
>about
>the case.  Where is the information coming from?  Sounds like planted
>information to keep people from complaining too much when they send him up
>the
>river for a few years...  (Whether he survives long in custody is another
>story.  I would be willing to bet that if he does not "cooperate" that he
>will
>have some sort of "accident" while in government hands.)

Actually, in most cases like this the "perp" is found to have hanged himself.

I never met Bell, but I sure hope this doesn't happen to him.

>3) The suspected crimes list keeps changing.  How many times has the
>"official" story changed?  Each time it gets more and more lurid.  (And many
>of the crimes are ones that get used against damn near every case the
>government tries against someone who threatens the security of the state.
>Belief starts to wear a bit thin after a while...)

The cops are clearly working with the media whores--that guy Painter is an
example--and are "tuning" their story to maximize the PR value.

It's the American Way.

--Tim May




There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
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