Pro-Liberty News and Opinion | Libertarian Voluntaryist

Today I thought I would take a break from my usual political commentary to share with you one of the greatest albums to hit the music scene in years. “The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me“, by the ex-emo outfit Brand New, is about as far from the popular definition of emo as you can get and that is a very good thing.

Before I listened to this album I was expecting disappointment. I thoroughly enjoyed “Deja Entendu” and I did not think these guys were capable of surpassing the above-average quality of that attempt. Boy was I wrong. Just as Deja greatly surpassed “Your Favorite Weapon“, “The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me” is a new Milestone for this band.

I decided to wait a while to write this review. Like Deja, TDAGARIM took a couple of listens to fully appreciate. At the same time, “Deja Entendu” quickly began loosing its appeal as I listened to it more and more. The new album does not have this problem. I have probably listened to the CD over fifteen times and it has failed to get old. Not only that, but every song gets played each time. There are some gems in “Degausser”, “Millstone”, “Sowing Season”, “Limousine”, “You Won’t Know”, and “Luca” but the album as a whole can be played from beginning to end without the slightest thought of skipping a track. This is a very rare trait in the music industry today, considering the constant repetition you hear on the radio and MTV.

So why is this album so good? The simple answer is that everything meshes together very well and, at the same time, does not sound repetitive. The guitars are amazing and Vincent Accardi definitely deserves credit for that. The bass rhythms provide a solid and creative backbone in every song they are present, in some places even out doing the guitar solo’s that are supposed to be more prevalent. And then theres the vocals, full of emotion and thought (as you would expect from frontman Jesse Lacey), but theres something more. A meaningfulness that can be found nowhere else in music today. And thats what makes this album great. The meaningfulness. It is very rare to find musicians who love what they do. Sure there are those who love the money and fame, but do they really love the music they play? These guys do and thats why they are going to be around for a long time.

Wiretapping is now the least of your worries. According to Fox News, the FBI is now using cell phones to eavesdrop on conversations. They can now remotely connect to the phone, activate the mic and listen to what is being said in the area. The only way to absolutely avoid this is by removing the battery from your phone. It may also be possible to cover the mic with something when you are not using it. This is ridiculous. The government is becoming more invasive day by day. Big Brother here we come.

Full story here here and here

This incident occurred when Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a UCLA student, refused to show ID when he was using a campus computer lab. When he did not immediately leave, the University Police were called. According to one article:

“Tabatabainejad was walking with his backpack toward the door when he was approached by two UCPD officers, one of whom grabbed the student’s arm.“

Thats right, the cops attacked him as he was attempting to leave the premises. When Tabatabainejad told them to let go of him to cops tased him. Tabatabainejad then repeatedly shouted, “I’m not fighting you” and “I said I would leave”, but yet they kept on tasing. The police also told him, on more than one occasion, that if he did not stand up they would tase him again. And they did. Multiple times. If that is not the definition of assault and police brutality then I do not know what is.

The Daily Bruin also had this to say:

according to a study published in the Lancet Medical Journal in 2001, a charge of three to five seconds can result in immobilization for five to 15 minutes, which would mean that Tabatabainejad could have been physically unable to stand when the officers demanded that he do so.

The cops continued to demand that Tabatabainejad stand up when it is very likely that they knew it was not possible. These officers are put through training. They know how powerful these things are yet they continued to demand that Tabatabainejad stand up after tasing him for approximately 3-5 seconds. It seems like these sadistic bastards just wanted to keep tasing to make an example out of him. They wanted to put their power on display.

Towards the end of the video you can also hear a student asking the police for their badge numbers. At this point the officer threatened the student that he would tase him too. This cop is clearly threatening an innocent bystander and refusing to divulge his badge number. What has this country become? Since when can these overzealous, authoritarian assholes threaten witnesses?

I would also like to know where the student outcry is. At one point in this countries long and forgotten history these students would have stood up for the rights of their fellow student. I can see that this is not the case anymore. This just goes to show how strong of a hold the police-state has on us. When the youth of the country does not stand up for their rights, I am afraid that no one will.Towards the end of the video you can also hear a student asking the police for their badge numbers. At this point the officer threatened the student that he would tase him too. This cop is clearly threatening an innocent bystander and refusing to divulge his badge number. What has this country become? Since when can these overzealous, authoritarian assholes threaten witnesses?

This grotesque abuse of authority is a crystal clear example of what happens when you give power hungry fools authority over others. Power corrupts and that will always be the case. I just hope that every single person involved in this blatant disregard for civil liberties will be prosecuted and put in jail for assault. I doubt it will happen, but I am still free to dream.