America: Freedom to Facism

"This is a documentary about an honest search for the truth about the Federal Reserve Bank (a private bank) and the legality of the Internal Revenue System. Through extensive interviews with recognised [sic] experts and authority, the director shows an astonishing revelation of how the Federal Government and the Bankers have fooled the American public by taking their wages and putting it in the pockets of the super-rich. The director goes so far as to interview one of the "master-minds" of the IRS Code, and you the viewer can draw your own conclusions as to how the system works. This is NOT a documentary filled with opinions, conjecture or editorial comment. It is a true documentary with a purpose, and that is to educate every wage earner about the Federal Reserve Bank, and the IRS, how they got started, and where the money goes. It is well done, and it will make you laugh, and it will make you ANGRY!" ---excerpt from imdb.com


After having viewed this documentary my first reaction was that of anger and betrayal. This was one of the first pieces of evidence I saw that brought the issues I am writing about to my attention. After careful consideration of the information presented in the film I have much to say. First, the premises of the documentary is at very least thought provoking.  The first issue he present is in regard to the Federal Reserve. The film purports that that system is based upon three main groups: a board of governors, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), and 12 privately-owned banks. This assertion is enough alone to arouse one's suspicions.  This would mean that, according to the filmmaker, the group responsible for the regulation of our currency is at least in part not a government agency (via the 12 private banks). Mr. Russo also mentions that the independent association the Reserve's board of governors hold with the U.S. make them largely unaccountable to Washington for their actions and decisions regarding the state of the US dollar. Additionally, he discusses the current system of monetary backing the US and many countries world wide, fiat money. This is essentially a credit based system of money that has the pronounced disadvantage of inflation as it's byproduct (his main point being the superiority of a gold standard). I find my self more or less in agreement with Mr. Russo on many of the ideas in this film. I too am in favor of switching back to a gold standard to help curb the dramatic loss in value the dollar has since in the last half a century, but that is a subject that to fully explain and report accurately would really need it's own article and will in a future installment. As far as the composition of the Federal Reserve and how that should be handled I have decide a much more in-depth look into its inner workings is more that warranted.

Next, the issue of income tax is presented under the premise that a tax on one's wages from labor is unconstitutional and that the income tax fails to meet the apportionment requirements of article 1 section 8 of the U.S. Constitution. Also, the filmmaker debate the fact that there is no law requiring an American citizen to pay a direct unapportioned Tax on their labor via our current system of income tax. This I believe he convincingly argues, despite the rather murky logic applied by the IRS. Russo argues that title 26 was not a law, stating that it was only made up of IRS "regulations" and was not enacted by Congress. In the U.S. statutes are enacted by Congress, and "regulations" are issued by the executive branch of government to enforce the statutes, so to speak. The statutes can be found in the United States Code and the regulations are found in the Code of Federal Regulations. The argument I believe he was making was that the Internal Revenue Code is not "positive law," and variations of these arguments, have been officially identified as legally frivolous by U.S. courts. As an added bonus, the fee for a frivolous tax return penalty imposed under Internal Revenue Code section 6702(a) is $5,000. Which, to me, seems like the governments way of saying, "...sure you can dispute a law you view as unjust, (a fundamental right, and the basis on which the founding fathers formed this country via our split with Britain) but we will fine you and drive you into poverty with litigation if it gets in the way of us collecting 'our money'."

Conclusion: Is this a perfect exposure of the full extent of the injustices perpetuated on the American people at present time? No, but it does serve as a great exercise to begin to think critically about the role our government currently plays in our lives and whether or not we agree with that. My opinions though will not be exactly the same as your own, but they may be closer than either of us think. The only way for you to truly have your own opinion of the information Mr. Russo presents is to experience this documentary for yourself. Luckily the copyright owners have seen fit to see past the ever powerful strangle-hold the dollar has much of Hollywood in, and obviously want as many to see this film as possible. The film can be viewed in many places across the web for free including the link below, enjoy!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1656880303867390173&q=freedom+to+facism+duration:long#