This originally aired on The Final Straw radio show.
I think I have a solution to the immigration problem. But before I reveal what the solution is, maybe I should first point out what the immigration problem is. The problem is that governments regulate it in the first place. If you think about it, corporations aren’t regulated at the border. They can cross all borders and transcend all boundaries. Corporations are multinational. Money also passes freely across borders. Products. There are treaties the size of phone books that were signed in order to liberate products from being regulated at national borders. And we all know that jobs travel across national boundaries all the time.
In fact, the only thing regulated at the border is….people. That means corporations have more rights than you. So do green pieces of paper with dead slave-owners faces on them. Sneakers and cheese puffs have more rights than you. Even jobs. That means the machinery we use to toil all day for food rewards can cross a border before we can.
The reason for this makes perfect sense if you think about the purpose for national borders existing. Corporations need national borders. Those borders are essential for creating artificial pockets of poverty. Consider the situation on the U.S.- Mexico border, for instance. There you have a situation where you find hungry people on one side Continue reading
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I.W.W.
This originally aired on The Final Straw radio show.
X380847. That’s my membership number in the Industrial Workers of the World. The I.W.W. has been around since 1905, making typical unions with the bosses and bureaucratic party, nervous, since the stated goals of the I.W.W. is the abolition of the wage system altogether rather than reformist efforts to “improve” the conditions of the owners and union bosses. Unlike every other union that sought to divide the workers into trades, the Wobblies, as the I.W.W. was called – had the ambitious program of unionizing all workers into one big union and thereby put the power into the hands of all workers collectively to shut down the industrial production system entirely.
Like the famed anacho- syndicalist unions of Spain, the F.A.I. & C.N.T, Wobblies promoted worker direct action. In the teens and 20’s, Wobblies were targeted with charges of criminal syndicalism, sabotage and sedition.
Yeah. It was treason to demand a fair shake, to imagine power wrested from the hands of Crapitalists.
Still is, of course.
After FDR’S New Deal and the rise of the more reformist and industrial friendly unions like the AFL-CIO, Teamsters, and United Workers , the threat and the influence of the I.W.W. faded. Between state repression and the major unions collaborating to squeeze out the Wobblies, the I.W.W. was largely neutralized during a time when anarchists were evolving new strategies and approaches that didn’t necessarily involve the seemingly impossible task of organizing all the workers of the entire of the entire world into the same union. But the Wobblies did not go away. They didn’t become extinct. They’re still Continue reading
Anarchist News Award Acceptance Speech.
“Hey, Gary… how’s this repression working out for you?”
Anarchist prisoner Sean Swain receives his award from AnarchistNews.org, who named Swain the “Stalwart Anarchist Prisoner of the Year” for 2013!
The effort to get the award to Sean at his cell in Ohio’s supermax facility wasn’t easy! It involved difficult plumbing access, a lot of coordination, and virtually miles of prison sheets torn into strips and knotted together!
Swain has said that all credit for this award rightfully goes to Ohio Department of Retribution and Corruption Director Gary Mohr and his fascist repression! “The only way for him to improve upon this dubious distinction of creating the anarchist prisoner of the year would be to approve commissary sales of vodka bottles, rags, matches and gasoline,” said Swain.
In response, ODRC Director Mohr approved statewide commissary sales of rags, matches, gasoline and vodka bottles. After signing the policy change, the ODRC Director reportedly said, “fuck my life,” and crawled under his desk.
“Uh… WINNING!”
Since the Final Straw Radio show, for which Swain has a segment each week, has been broadcasting Thursday nights at 9PM in Columbus Ohio, at WCRS, Director Mohr has cancelled the Thursday night naked twister officer party. This latest policy change could signal that Ohio’s ruling fascists have totally given up on swivilization.
Sean Swain’s acceptance speech.
Sean’s Security Level Reduced!
Our call-in efforts have proved successful. Sean’s security level has been reduced to 4AT. Here’s Sean’s description of what that is:
“Good news. I was moved to 4AT. It’s not much different than 4B, but I get 2 ½ hours with three other prisoners and I have access to phone everyday. I get contact visits again, on contact visit days, whenever those are designated.”
SUPPORT ACTION: Flood the ODRC Records Office
In the midst of the Army of the 12 Monkeys persecution, which got Sean sent to level 4B at Ohio State Penitentiary, Ohio’s supermax facility, there were a series of disciplinary hearings before the Rules Infraction Board (RIB). Sean says these hearings were completely absurd, blatantly unjust, and terribly embarrassing to the prison authorities. I don’t know about you, but I’d love to hear Sean run debate circles around the bumbling (and sometimes intoxicated) ManCI investigators and officials.
We haven’t had a good laugh in a while, so we’re trying to get access to the recordings, or at least transcripts of these hearings. It’d be awesome to get audio or video of fascist fuckweasels drunkenly informing Sean that he has no rights and they don’t care about how obviously manufactured and inane the “evidence” used against him is. We expect a good mix of tragedy and comedy for maximum entertainment value. Unfortunately, the Ohio Department of Retribution and Corruption is living up to Sean’s name for them, by giving us the run around and losing track of our requests for the last few months.
So, we’re asking ya’ll to help us out. They can “misplace” one public records request, they might even be able to overlook or ignore a half dozen more, but we’re betting they’ll have trouble slipping twenty, thirty, a hundred through their many bureaucratic cracks. You may have heard or read stories about angry prisoners plugging their sinks and toilets, setting off fire sprinklers and flooding the range. Well, now you can participate in the office paperwork equivalent. Filing a request is easy. Just copy the information below, put in your personal information, and send it to the ODRC at the address provided.
If you can send it certified mail, they’ll have a harder time denying that they received it. If you fax it you can save on postage and also get a record that they received your fax. If you don’t have free access to a fax machine, just google “free fax” and they’ll be a handful of sites that send faxes for you. The ODRC records fax number is: 614 752 1086
If you get a reply, please contact us at insurgent.ben@gmail.com to let us know.
Custodian of Records
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction
770 West Broad Street
Columbus Ohio 43222
[DATE]
RE: RECORDS REQUEST
Dear Sir or Madam:
I make the following request for public records pursuant to Revised Code Section 119.032 and in accordance with Ohio Administrative Code Section 5120-9-49, which defines a record as “any item that is kept by the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (Department) that: (1) is stored on a fixed medium, (2) is created, received or sent under the jurisdiction of a public office and (3) documents the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the department.” The records requested are not precluded by OAC 5120-9-49 subsection B:
-
The digital recording of disciplinary hearing identified as MANCI-12-007219, held 24 October 2012 at Mansfield Correctional Institution,
-
The digital recording of disciplinary hearing identified as MANCI-13-002794 held on 13 May 2013 at Mansfield Correctional Institution, and
-
The digital recording of disciplinary hearing identified as MANCI-13-002907 held on 09 May 2013 at Mansfield Correctional Institution.
Please be advised that, pursuant to Subsection E of OAC 5120-9-49, this constitutes a request for “specific, existing records,” requiring the department to provide a prompt inspection at no cost and that you may with hold or redact these public records only with “explanation and legal authority.” Be advised also that the requester of records is willing to provide the necessary medium for the requested records, such as a disc or flash drive at requester’s cost, and is willing to provide an email address or other such information for the direct transfer of the information requested.
The requester of records may be contacted for “negotiation” to help in identification, location, and delivery of the requested records at the information below.
Thank you for your time and kind consideration.
Respectfully
[YOUR NAME]
[street address]
[PHONE NUMBER]
[email address]
Les Dillon
Les Dill
on (416-607) was transferred to the Ohio State Penitentiary after a year of the Twelve Monkey regimen at Mansfield Correctional. Les admitted to being Monkey # 9 of the Army of the Twelve Monkeys. Les was offered “deals” several times. These “deals” would dismiss his disciplinary convictions if only he would identify Sean Swain (243-205) as a member of the army of Twelve Monkeys. Les refused and now spends extended time in total isolation at Ohio’s super max.
Les Dillon could use a pen-pal, some embossed envelopes and reading materials (zines or “appearing new”softcover books from publishers/ distributors only). His interests include Irish history, learning Gaelic, anarchist theory and practice and the Insane Clown Posse (I.C.P.). He is a skilled artist.
Write to Dillon at:
Les Dillon (416-607)
OSP
878 Coitville-Hubbard RD
Youngstown,Ohio 44505
Sean Recommended for Transfer
Few weeks ago we asked you to call Sean’s case manager Scott Nowak and ask him to give Sean a security level reduction. Nowak has recommended Sean be transferred to 4AT pending approval of Unit Management Chief Ms McDonnough.
Please call McDonnaough at (330) 743-0700 ext. 2164 and ask her to approve the recommendation.
Thank you.
Call-In, Write-In, E-Mail Campaign: Security Level Review Hearing
A cell block at Ohio State Penitentiary
In the month of July, Sean goes up for a security level review. This gives him the opportunity to drop from level 4B to 4A and get out of solitary confinement. These are some guidelines for anyone who feels moved to call, write, or e-mail his Case Manager Scott Nowak to encourage his lowered status:
Scott Nowak
Case Manager, D-Block
Ohio State Penitentiary
878 Coitville-Hubbard Rd
Youngstown,Ohio 44505
(330) 743-0700 ext. 2437 scott. nowak@odrc.state.oh.us
Sean has suggested a few talking points…
“First, a list of things not to say:
1) Don’t mention that you are naked and that your in the OSP Parking lot…waiting
2) Don’t talk about your gun collection
3) Don’t refer to prison staff as “fuckweasels” “assclowns” “fascists” “pigs” or “turds”
That pretty much covers what not to say.
Radio Essay: Calling Gary Mohr
This originally aired on The Final Straw radio show.
Director Mohr? If you are there pick up the phone. Director Mohr? This is Sean Swain, calling you from the Super-Duper Max…. You know the guy who exposed how your sell-out policy for Jpay mega-profits was illegal? Yeah. You had my communication blocked for eight weeks to stop my participation in the Final Straw radio show….apparently somebody at your office there figured out how to use the interweb and discovered that I was still telling the truth about you from the Super-Duper Max, so you pulled the plug on me? Well, I’m back on the phone now. I wish you would pick up <sigh> No? You’re just gonna hide under your desk and pretend like your not there?
Okay. I guess I’ll just leave you a long message to play back. Continue reading
Radio Essay: In Support of James Kilgore
This originally aired on The Final Straw radio show.
Have you heard about the case of adjunct professor James Kilgore at the University of Illinois, in Urbana-Champaign? Kilgore is an interesting guy. In the early 1970’s, he was a member of the Symbionese Liberation Army, which makes him a personal hero of mine. The SLA was an urban guerrilla faction that robbed banks, kidnapped Patty Hearst, and- along with the Weather Underground- effectively brought an end to the Vietnam War. As one demand for the release of Patty Hearst, the SLA had Hearst’s father, the publishing magnate, deliver millions of dollars in free food to the inner-city poor of Oakland.
There is a PBS documentary called “Guerrilla”about the SLA it’s inspiring.
Starting in 1975, Kilgore went underground and lived overseas until 2002. Kilgore came back to the U.S. and plead guilty to possession of explosives from 1975 and to passport fraud. He served six years in prison and since 2010, Kilgore has been on the faculty of the University of Illinois in Urbana, teaching classes on Urban Planning and Global Studies. Continue reading