Tag: police state

Airlines urge senators to reject bill limiting facial recognition

A group representing several major airlines alongside travel companies and airports is opposing a Senate bill that would require the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to generally use manual ID verification at security checkpoints instead of facial recognition.

The bill, introduced by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), would broadly restrict TSA’s ability to use biometrics and facial recognition, carving out a few exemptions for the agency’s PreCheck and other Trusted Traveler programs. Passengers may still opt in to the use of facial recognition at the checkpoint.

In a letter Monday to Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the air industry groups said the law was a “step backward” and that facial recognition technology made security screenings far more efficient.

“The future of seamless and secure travel relies on the appropriate use of this technology to ensure security effectiveness and operational efficiency as daily travel volume continues to rise,” they wrote. “We are concerned that the vague and confusing exceptions to this blanket ban will have major consequences for the identity verification process, screening operations, and trusted traveler enrollment programs.”

Cruz and Cantwell are their parties’ highest-ranking members of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which is scheduled to mark up the bill Wednesday.

In addition to limiting the use of facial recognition, Merkley’s bill would also require TSA to delete most images collected at checkpoints within 24 hours of a passenger’s departure.

Travelers going through a TSA checkpoint are generally able to opt out of facial recognition, the agency says. Merkley has argued the agency’s enforcement is inconsistent, posting on social media in February about his difficulties navigating the policy at Reagan Washington National Airport.

“This is big government coming to take away your privacy, trying to set up a national surveillance system,” the Oregon Democrat said in February. 

The airlines, however, warned that restricting the use of facial recognition could slow down security and divert TSA’s resources toward maintaining officer staffing, rather than focusing on automated innovations. The group also said it felt it had been insufficiently consulted on the legislation, “despite the major impact the bill would have on aviation security, airports, airlines, travelers, and technology companies.”

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The FBI Took Her $40,000 Without Explaining Why. She Fought Back Against That Practice—and Lost.

Linda Martin found out the hard way that the most powerful law enforcement agency in the U.S.—the FBI—can seize your assets without articulating why. Worse: Law enforcement took her savings in a raid that was itself unconstitutional. Worse still: A lawsuit she filed met its demise last week, allowing the federal government to continue the dubious practice of taking people’s valuables without having to explain the reason it is justified in doing so.

The agency never did furnish a specific reason in Martin’s case—because she wasn’t charged with a crime. Her saga began in 2021, when the FBI sought to take more than $100 million in assets from U.S. Private Vaults, a business that offered safe-deposit boxes. That company was suspected of, and ultimately charged with, criminal wrongdoing. But the warrant expressly forbade agents from engaging in a “criminal search or seizure” of customers’ boxes, like Martin’s.

They did so anyway, rummaging through approximately 800 of them and seizing assets that belonged to a slew of innocent people. That included Travis May, who stored gold and $63,000 in cash; Jeni Verdon-Pearsons and Michael Storc, who kept $2,000 in cash, as well as approximately $20,000 worth of silver; Paul and Jennifer Snitko, whose box contained personal items, like marriage, birth, and baptismal certificates; and Don Mellein, who had invested in gold coins, many of which the FBI said it lost (to the tune of over $100,000).

A judge later ruled violated the Fourth Amendment. But it was too late for Martin, who received notice that the FBI had taken $40,200, her life savings, from her box. To justify that, the notice listed hundreds of federal crimes that would lead to a seizure. As Institute for Justice (I.J.) Director of Media Relations Andrew Wimer points out, the list included such crimes as copyright infringement and barring business deals with North Korea. But the bureau notably did not specify how Martin was supposedly involved in any of those offenses, because it is not required to do so.

So she sued. “When the FBI attempts to forfeit someone’s property, due process requires that it say why, citing specific facts and laws,” reads her appellant brief. “By sending notices that initiate and, often, consummate property’s forfeiture—all without ever saying what exactly the FBI thinks justifies the forfeiture, the FBI deprives owners of crucial information they need to protect their rights.” After she filed the lawsuit, and about two years post-seizure, the agency returned Martin’s cash. But she continued in court in hopes that the judiciary would agree that the FBI was violating people’s due process rights by seizing assets with effectively no explanation.

That died last week, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia dismissed the suit for lack of jurisdiction.

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California Moves to Ban Hemp Wellness Products — And the Weed Nuns Are Fighting Back

California’s Department of Public Health is pushing a new rule — and the timing couldn’t be worse.

A proposed regulation, known as DPH-24-005, would dramatically restrict access to hemp-derived wellness products across the state. The rule aims to prohibit the sale of any hemp topical, capsule, or tincture with more than trace amounts of THC (including naturally occurring Delta-9), even if federally legal and non-intoxicating. Critics say it would wipe out entire categories of hemp products — from calming balms to sleep aids — and gut small, community-driven businesses in the process.

One of the most vocal opponents? The Sisters of the Valley — better known as the “Weed Nuns” — a group of spiritual, feminist cannabis growers based in Merced County.

A Ban That Hits Small Operators Hard

“This is the Public Health Department caving to the dispensary lobby and consolidating the market further than they already have. This is a direct hit to small farms and small operators,” the Sisters warn.

According to the Sisters, the rule would criminalize their signature offerings: non-intoxicating, CBD-rich salves and oils crafted by hand in their small-scale, women-run operation. They argue that DPH-24-005 threatens not just their livelihood, but also consumer access to safe, plant-based alternatives.

They’re not alone. Dozens of California hemp farmers, herbalists, and activists are mobilizing to oppose the measure, saying it caters to the interests of cannabis corporations looking to eliminate competition from the hemp side of the market.

A Moment to Speak Out

A public hearing on the rule will be held via Zoom on Sunday, July 28, 2025, at 10:00 AM Pacific. Anyone in California — and beyond — can participate, and written comments will be accepted until July 30.

The Sisters have launched a campaign urging Californians to show up, speak out, and submit public comments before it’s too late.

“We ask our customers and fans to stand with us,” they wrote. “Not because we need more sales. But because the people’s medicine should not be outlawed by corporate lobbying.”

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German Police Raid AfD MEP’s Property For The 22nd Time

German police have raided Alternative for Germany (AfD) MEP Petr Bystron’s property for the 22nd time, using the pretext of his connection to the defunct Voice of Europe website, which was run by a man exiled from Ukraine.

The house raid came while Bystron was in Washington D.C., meeting with Trump officials, including congressmen and allies of President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance.

On early Tuesday morning, German police searched an older warehouse where Bystron conducted business a decade ago.

“This is targeted terror against the opposition,” Bystron said in a press release. “There is no other way to classify the absurd behavior of the authorities.”

Bystron was the target of Czech intelligence services last year, who decided to release a variety of allegations surrounding their investigation at a rather opportune time—right before EU parliamentary elections. The raid against Voice of Europe (VoE) and the accusations against Bystron, which Remix News covered, was widely seen as damaging the AfD’s reputation before voters headed to the polls.

Notably, Czech intelligence claimed to have voice recordings that revealed Bystron was involved with a scheme to provide politicians with money in exchange for conducting interviews with the outlet VoE.

The Czech authorities have never made the recording of Bystron public despite demands from the AfD to release it. Nobody has ever been charged to date in connection with the allegations, including Bystron himself. Bystron, however, was the only name that was released in connection with the case, although authorities claimed six European politicians received money from VoE.

The raid against Bystron may be seen as especially provocative as it was conducted at a time when Bystron was out of the country and meeting with Trump officials and congressmen. He is seen as the AfD party’s key bridge to American policymakers and is known for his connections to the Republican Party.

Bystron himself said that despite his properties being raided 21 times, the police have not turned up any incriminating information against him.

He also said that the police have even raided his elderly mother’s room in her retirement home and took testimony from her, despite her having been officially declared by the court as a dementia patient.

“Every single one of these 22 searches was illegal. Each one marks a step away from a democratic constitutional state and toward an authoritarian regime that seeks to silence dissent by any means necessary,” Bystron told the Gateway Pundit.

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UK DYSTOPIA: British Police Forms ‘Elite Team’ to Monitor Social Media Searching for ‘Anti-migrant’ Posts, as Leftist Labour Government Braces for Citizens’ Revolt

The United Kingdom continues to devolve into a totalitarian state bent on destroying British society.

Under Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Britain accelerates its descent into a thought-policing state that cares more for ‘asylum seekers’ (a.k.a. illegal invaders) than it does for its own citizens-taxpayers.

As the fed-up British start to push back against the criminal elements among the migrants, we learn that the deranged leftist government is raising an ‘elite team of police officers’ to monitor social media for ‘anti-migrant sentiment’, as Starmer and his unpopular team brace themselves in fear of the people.

The Telegraph reported:

“Detectives will be drawn from forces across the country to take part in a new investigations unit that will flag up early signs of potential civil unrest.

The division, assembled by the Home Office, will aim to ‘maximize social media intelligence’ gathering after police forces were criticized over their response to last year’s riots.”

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SEE the Videos and Images CENSORED by the UK Government As They Implement The Draconian Online Safety Act

Footage is being censored in the UK featuring the heavy-handed police crackdown on citizens showing up to hotels to protest the illegal migrant invasion, as many grow fed up after a 38-year-old Ethiopian migrant sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl.

The videos are being censored under the controversial new “Online Safety Act,” which was promoted as a way to prevent children from being exposed to graphic content on the internet… but now it’s being used to hide the tyranny of the state, the massive public uproar, and the ongoing invasion.

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Tea App Leak Shows Why UK’s Digital ID Age Verification Laws are Dangerous

The UK’s Online “Safety” Act, legislation marketed as a safety net for children, was rolled out with all the foresight of a toddler launching a space program. Now, any site hosting “potentially harmful” content could be required to collect real-world ID, face scans, or official documents from users.

What could go wrong? Ask Tea, the women-centric dating gossip app that went viral by promising empowerment, then faceplanted into one of the most dangerous data breaches of the year. Their Firebase server, housing tens of thousands of selfies and government-issued IDs, was left wide open to anyone with a link.

This is the real-world consequence of lawmakers selling digital ID mandates as a solution to online harm: private companies getting access to sensitive personal data with all the discretion of a parade float, and then dropping it into the laps of the entire internet.

Let’s pause for a moment and appreciate the cosmic genius it takes to build an app allegedly designed to protect women, and then expose all of their private data to the world with the finesse of a first-time hacker copying a URL.

Tea, the dating app that rocketed to the top of the App Store by selling anonymity, safety, and empowerment, before face-planting into the Firebase server floor, spraying driver’s licenses and selfies like a busted confetti cannon.

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HORROR: 3-Year-Old Boy Dies in Hot Car While with Child Services — Government Took Him From Father, Then Left Him to Die

A horrifying failure of state “oversight” led to the death of a 3-year-old boy after he was abandoned for five hours inside a sweltering vehicle by a child welfare contractor hired by the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR).

Ke’Torrius “KJ” Starks Jr. was taken from his family and placed into the care of a foster system that was supposed to protect him.

He was picked up from daycare at 9:00 a.m. for a court-ordered supervised visit with his biological father, which ended at 11:30 a.m., according to People.

Instead of returning him to daycare, he was allegedly abandoned in a hot car for five hours while a DHR contract worker ran errands for herself—including picking up food for her family and shopping at a tobacco store, according to the family’s attorney.

The incident took place Tuesday in Birmingham as temperatures soared above 100 degrees.

The heat index reached 108°F, meaning the temperature inside the vehicle likely exceeded a deadly 150°F, according to attorney Courtney French.

More from People:

French says that the worker, who was employed to do transport through Covenant Services Inc., went Tuesday morning to pick KJ up from a child care center to bring him for a supervised visit with his dad.

Afterward, however, the worker did not bring the boy back to his center and instead decided “to run numerous personal errands with KJ still in a car seat in the back,” French claims. The stops including getting food and going to a tobacco shop.

The employee then went home but KJ was left in the car, according to French.

“The safety net that should have been in place to protect KJ and others like him is what caused his death,” French says. “So the very system that is in place for his protection was the system that led to his death — and that’s what’s so tragic about this.”

DHR says, “A child in DHR custody was being transported by a contract provider,” and confirmed the provider has fired the employee—yet refuses to disclose identity, safety protocols, or any meaningful accountability, citing confidentiality laws.

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Federal court sides with Oregon Christian mom after she was prevented from adopting children based on religious beliefs

A federal court of appeals has sided with an Oregon woman who sued the state over an adoption rule by the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) that went against her Christian beliefs. The woman was seeking to adopt children and prevented from doing so by LGBTQ laws.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a preliminary injunction barring the ODHS from applying Oregon Administrative Rule Section 413- 200-0308(2)(k) to Jessica Bates while the lawsuit plays out in lower courts.

The rule states that those seeking to foster or adopt children in the state must “Respect, accept and support the race, ethnicity, cultural identities, national origin, immigration status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disabilities, spiritual beliefs, and socioeconomic status, of a child or young adult in the care or custody of the Department, and provide opportunities to enhance the positive self-concept and understanding of the child or young adult’s heritage.”

The appeals court stated that “The state denied Bates’s adoption application under this policy after Bates, based on her sincerely held religious beliefs, objected to using adopted children’s preferred pronouns or taking them to medical appointments for gender transitions.” Bates sued the state for violating her rights to free speech and free exercise of religion.

Circuit Judge Daniel A. Bress wrote in the court’s opinion that materials from an instructor-led course called the Resource and Adoptive Families Training (RAFT) from the ODHS state, “whether or not a youth in your care openly identifies as LGBTQ+,” parents should consider “displaying ‘hate-free zone’ signs or other symbols indicating an LGBTQ-affirming environment (e.g., pink triangle, rainbow, or ally flag.)'”

“Again without regard to whether a child in their care identifies as LGBTQ, parents should consider ‘providing acces to a variety of books, movies, and materials, including those that positively represent same-gender relationships’ while ‘pointing out LGBTQ+ celebrities, role models who stand up for the LGBTQ+ community, and people who demonstrate bravery in the face of social stigma,” Bress wrote.

He later added, “Of particular importance to this case, the RAFT materials specifically reference religion in several places. Among other things, the materials state that for LGBTQ youth, ‘prejudice and rejection can occur’ in certain settings, listing among them ‘faith-based communities.’”

Bates, a widowed mother of five, applied in May of 2022 to adopt two children under the age of nine and took the RAFT course. Bates viewed the requirements laid out by the course as “incompatible with her religious beliefs.” The opinion later stated, “Bates represents that she will love and support any adopted child, but she will want to share her beliefs with them.”

Bates’ application was denied in November of 2022 because she could not “meet the adoption home standards.” The letter she received explained, “On July 28, 2022, you completed RAFT Training. After the training you emailed your certifier that the training emphasized SOGIE (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression) as it related to the requirements that Applicants comply with OAR 413-200- 0308(2)(K). You wrote that you ‘cannot support this behavior in a child,’ and that you ‘would not encourage them in this behavior.’”

The letter later added, “You indicated that if a child became aware of their sexual orientation or gender identity and expression and that it was inconsistent with your expected sexual orientation or gender identity or expression for that child while in your home, you would love and treat them as your own but would not support their lifestyle or encourage any behavior related to their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. When asked what it would look [like] if the agency requested you to take the child or youth to medical appointments regarding hormone shot appointments as an example, you indicated you would not take them to the appointment and further indicated you think it ‘would be considered child abuse.’”

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GOP Senator Threatens To Block Spending Bill If Hemp THC Product Ban Stays In, Sources Say

A GOP senator is threatening to hold up a major spending bill unless changes are made to provisions that would currently ban most consumable hemp products, which stakeholders say would decimate the industry.

Multiple sources familiar with discussions around the legislation tell Marijuana Moment that Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is intent on preventing the outright ban that was included in the Senate’s agriculture appropriations bill that advanced out of committee and now awaits floor action.

The prohibitionist organization Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) Action sent out an alert to its supporters on Friday, urging them to contact their representatives to push back against Paul’s efforts.

“The United States Senate is poised to overwhelmingly pass legislation banning hemp intoxicants, but Kentucky Senator Rand Paul is holding the bill hostage until he kills the hemp language,” it said. “Senator Paul wants to create a carve out for THC products like hemp beverages, in effect legalizing marijuana federally.”

While one source indicated that the senator was primarily focused on creating a carveout for hemp-derived THC beverages, two others who are aware of the conversations told Marijuana Moment that wasn’t the case. The exact scope of what Paul is aiming to achieve is unclear, but they say the senator is seeking a more holistic change to the controversial hemp language in the bill.

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