What does a tyranny look like from the inside?

It looks like this:

Evidence appears to be mounting that the Obama administration has systematically targeted for closing Chrysler dealers who contributed to Republicans. What started earlier this week as mainly a rumbling on the Right side of the Blogosphere has gathered some steam today with revelations that among the dealers being shut down are a GOP congressman and closing of competitors to a dealership chain partly owned by former Clinton White House chief of staff Mack McLarty.

The basic issue raised here is this: How do we account for the fact millions of dollars were contributed to GOP candidates by Chrysler who are being closed by the government, but only one has been found so far that is being closed that contributed to the Obama campaign in 2008?

It also looks like this:

SAN DIEGO -- A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they continued to hold bible studies in their home, 10News reported.
Attorney Dean Broyles of The Western Center For Law & Policy was shocked with what happened to the pastor and his wife.Broyles said, "The county asked, 'Do you have a regular meeting in your home?' She said, 'Yes.' 'Do you say amen?' 'Yes.' 'Do you pray?' 'Yes.' 'Do you say praise the Lord?' 'Yes.'"The county employee notified the couple that the small bible study, with an average of 15 people attending, was in violation of county regulations, according to Broyles.Broyles said a few days later the couple received a written warning that listed "unlawful use of land" and told them to "stop religious assembly or apply for a major use permit" -- a process that could cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Friends of the tyrant get special deals, not-friends get taxed really hard, and active opponents are singled out for extra attention by the little faceless jerks who hide within the bureaucracy. If you want to do well, you loudly support the tyrant and give him gifts.

You also start seeing things like this:  Nancy Pelosi speaking in China said this in answer to a question about the USA's efforts at taming carbon emissions.

"We have so much room for improvement," she said. "Every aspect of our lives must be subjected to an inventory ... of how we are taking responsibility."

Now, a generous reader of that out-of-context remark would naturally assume Speaker Pelosi meant to describe the actions of a conscientious citizen, things such a person would voluntarily do to curb global warming.  But in view of Speaker Pelosi's perfidious lies regarding water boarding briefings at the CIA, Mr. Obama's nomination of a member of La Raza for a seat on the Supreme Court, and recalling the two examples given above, I'm not feeling particularly generous.

I think she's planning an actual inventory of private holdings, for the purpose of taxing them based on some arcane carbon cap-and-trade calculation.  A wealth tax if you will, where the government takes a percentage of everything you've got, instead of "just" a percentage of everything you earn in a year.

Well my friends, it may come to pass that Americans will be fleeing to Canada for the lower taxes and the personal freedom.  That will be irony indeed.


The Phantom