From: "Hebraic.Heritage.Newsgroup@sol.wwwnexus.com"
<Hebraic.Heritage.Newsgroup@sol.wwwnexus.com>
To: Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup <heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>, Hebraic Heritage
Newsgroup 2 <heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>
Subject: Big Brother and Banking
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 1998 15:45:25 -0800
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From: Ezra Schley
To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
Subject: Y2K Watch: Big Brother and Banking
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Y2kWatch News - Information for Education and Preparation
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Visit http://Y2kWatch.com/ November 25,1998
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I'm forwarding an article from the Y2k Newswire today. It details an
outrageous violation of your rights. It is very important that you
participate in this call to action. Please be sure that you forward
this email with comments (or better yet send an original email) to
comments@fdic.gov to protest the outrage detailed below.
Many people sit back and don't care that the president is a liar. They
don't think if affects them too much. Well, no rational person can
argue that an invasion of privacy and freedom in your personal
finances doesn't affect you. Unless you're completely jaded, you
should be mad about this.
We are losing our freedom in this country. We have lousy, immoral
leaders who are not public servants, but a ruling class. If we don't
preserve the freedom we have left, it will soon be gone. Y2k will be
a great opportunity for either a major power grab by power greedy
bureaucrats, *OR* it could be a time where WE THE PEOPLE shed the
shackles of an extortionist tax system and pork filled government. The
way it turns out is up to *YOU*. Are you going to sit back and do
nothing, or make a difference?
----from the Y2k Newswire----
WHERE ARE YOUR PAPERS? BANKS TO BEGIN CUSTOMER PROFILING
It is about to happen, right in time for Y2K. Banks are soon going to
be required to snoop on customers in Big Brother-like fashion,
creating profiles of "normal" deposit and withdrawal activity and
reporting to authorities if you veer from your "normal" behavior
pattern (i.e., take out more cash than usual or deposit more cash than
usual).
Sound like fiction? It isn't. In fact, the FDIC loves this policy,
saying, "The FDIC reassures banks that because the requirements will
be universally applied to all banks it will not hurt their business
and drive away customers." That's the same as saying, "Since we're
eavesdropping on everyone equally, nobody will be harmed."
It's no coincidence, Y2KNEWSWIRE guesses, this policy is about to
appear right in time for Y2K. The Nazi-like snooping into private
banking records will frighten some people enough to avoid taking out
their own money, which *might* save the banks from a cash run. There's
nothing like the threat of a criminal investigation to prevent people
from touching their own cash.
Without question, this policy is a violation of consumer privacy.
Nobody has the right to snoop into our banking records and then label
us a "criminal" if we happen to change our money habits. Our personal
finances should be private.
The FDIC is currently accepting public comment on this issue.
Y2KNEWSWIRE urges you to send an *original* e-mail to
comments@fdic.gov and tell them what you think about this new
"profiling" policy.
And if you'd like to write or fax the FDIC, send to
Robert E. Feldman
Executive Secretary
Attn: Comments/OES
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17thStreet N.W.
Washington, DC 20429
or fax to (202) 898-3838.
ACTION ITEM
Because this policy has not yet been put into place, Y2KNEWSWIRE urges
you to take out all the cash you might need for Y2K *right now*,
before the profiling is put in place. It looks like 1998 may be your
last chance to access your OWN money without being interrogated for
doing so.
Banks are getting aggressive and the FDIC is now threatening to
criminalize you if you take out cash after this profiling policy goes
into place, so grab you money now while it's still legal. This is no
longer just a name-calling game. The FDIC has upped the ante.
WE'RE AMAZED
We've been reporting on the banking industry for quite some time now.
We knew they would begin the name-calling in an attempt to shame
people into leaving their money in the banks. That began just last
week when they started calling people "fools" for taking their money
out. We even predicted the name-calling would heat up to where
customers wanting their own money would be called "traitors." But we
never thought the federal government would require the *monitoring* of
the private banking activity of every person in the United States.
This has gone too far.
The *good* news is that if enough people scream loudly enough about
this, it won't be enacted right away. Your effort can make a
difference.
TELL THE FDIC THIS IS UNAMERICAN
Tell the FDIC how much you dislike this policy, and forward this
e-mail to your friends. The FDIC e-mail is:comments@fdic.gov and the
person in charge is Robert Feldman. Tell Mr. Feldman we live in
America, not in Nazi Germany circa 1939. As Americans, we want our
privacy, and we think government-monitored "profiling" of private
banking behavior is outrageous. The FDIC needs to stop treating
everybody like criminals and start treating us like valued customers.
You can read more details in this World Net Daily story at:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_exnews/19981123_xex_big_brother_.
shtml
If you'd like to check out the web site of the group fighting against
this legislation, visit:
http://www.networkusa.org/fingerprint.shtml
----end Y2k Newswire article----
// Y2k Weatherman Comments //
There are 12,000+ plus people on this list. I hope that thousands of
you will TAKE ACTION on this issue. It won't take you 5 minutes to
draft a letter expressing your outrage. Fax it, mail it, and email
it. Forward this email to everyone you know and encourage them to do
likewise. We do have a voice, and this is where we should be
expressing our views.
If you sit back an do nothing, you'll have no room to complain when
even more intrusive and invasive actions are taken by the government.
We must take action now. The battle lines have been drawn.
The Y2k Weatherman
+1998 by Y2kWatch.com
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From: John Killian
To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
Subject: Big Brother and Banking
Article from the Website
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_exnews/19981123_xex_big_brother_.
shtml
The federal government will soon track all financial transactions at
banking institutions and businesses. The use of cash for payments
over $100 may soon be illegal, and all paychecks will be made
through direct deposit -- like it or not.
One group doesn't like it, and is making a concerted effort to
inform the public of what it sees as an invasion of privacy and
government interference in the lives of innocent, law-abiding
citizens.
Thousands of pastors and concerned Christians have recently been
asked to send letters of protest to the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation. The proposed regulation has been targeted by the
Christian Alert Network for defeat, according to Rev. Curt
Tomlin.
The national group tracks issues that threaten the principles and
standards of Christians and traditional families. Tomlin recently
warned his members of threats to personal freedom and privacy caused
by the FDIC proposal. The public has until Dec. 27 to offer
comments.
The proposed regulation will require FDIC insured nonmember banks to
develop and maintain "Know Your Customer" programs. All other
federal supervisory agencies will also enact the same regulation to
prevent bank customers from moving their funds to avoid the
regulation. All banks, savings associations, federally-chartered
branches and agencies of foreign banks, as well as credit unions
will come under the regulation. Even broker-dealers and other
non-bank financial institutions will face the same regulation to
investigate and report customer's activities.
The proposal to turn banking institutions into investigators and
informants is outlined in a report recently obtained by
WorldNetDaily, and Tomlin is warning his members that it is just
the beginning of complete loss of privacy.
"As proposed," the FDIC document begins, "the regulation would
require each nonmember bank to develop a program designed to
determine the identity of its customers; determine its customers'
source of funds; determine the normal and expected transactions of
its customers; monitor account activity for transactions that are
inconsistent with those normal and expected transactions; and report
any transactions of its customers that are determined to be
suspicious, in accordance with the FDIC's existing suspicious
activity reporting regulation. By requiring insured nonmember banks
to determine the identity of their customers, as well as to obtain
knowledge regarding the legitimate activities of their customers,
the proposed regulation will reduce the likelihood that insured
nonmember banks will become unwitting participants in illicit
activities conducted or attempted by their customers. It will also
level the playing field between institutions that already have
adopted formal 'Know Your Customer' programs, and those that have
not."
Tomlin is well informed on the capabilities of government database
systems, because he has helped design many of them. He has spent
over 48 years as a data processing systems analyst. He helped design
and install such systems for President John F. Kennedy's battle
staff, Congress, the Department of Defense, and others. He has
served in the Army, Navy, and Air Force. In recent years he has
taught college courses.
"In the field of electronic data processing, your only limitation is
your own imagination," Tomlin tells his students. "If you can
rationalize it in your mind, electronic data processing can do
it."
Tomlin is greatly concerned about the requirements of the FDIC
regulation which will make banks and their employees the ones who
decide what profiles will be established for customers. If a
customer normally makes a certain amount of deposits and withdrawals
per month then suddenly changes that profile, banks may report that
customer to the FBI for investigation.
"Who will be responsible for establishing, defining and controlling
the limitless number of possible profile parameters," asked Tomlin.
"Who will be responsible for adding, changing, and deleting
established profile parameters? Who will be responsible for insuring
that this awesome and massive capability will not be misused and
abused by the various departments of the federal government?"
It is a responsibility at least one major national bank branch
president doesn't want.
"I could see this coming for a long time. It's not pleasant to have
to do," said the bank president in a confidential phone interview
Monday. "As far as I know, the bank is not planning to oppose the
move by the FDIC. I think they actually welcome it. The potential
for higher profits is astounding."
By converting society to electronic financial transactions, banks
will be able to charge more fees, save on manpower, and earn greater
profits. Implementation of the new FDIC regulations will lead to
more regulations which will force employers to pay workers through
payroll deduction. Virtually all federal benefit payments are made
through direct deposit already. Military pay will convert to
electronic deposit very soon for those who have not done so
already.
The banker added that his expectation is that all financial transactions
"within a few years at most" will be by electronic transfer, rather
than through the use of cash.
"When banks can get such high fees for every ATM transaction, don't
you think they see what would happen if they were paid for every
single transaction by every person in the country -- in the world for
that matter?" he asked rhetorically. He says he expects new laws
prohibiting any cash transactions between individuals or companies
in excess of $100.
Calls to the public relations office of six of the largest U.S.
banks were met with surprise. Each bank spokesperson said that banks
welcome a uniform standard for "Know Your Customer" so that
customers will be treated the same at all institutions. They also
spoke of the need to prevent funds obtained through illegal
activities from getting into banks.
Tomlin also predicts a complete change to a cashless society in the
very near future. He pointed out that all military retirement
checks, government benefit checks, and many government payroll
checks are being paid through direct deposit. He says all military
and government payroll will also change to direct deposit very soon.<p><p>
The next step will be legislation that requires all forms of pay be
made through direct deposit. Tomlin says businesses will not object
and banks will make additional fees. Convenience, safety, and
accuracy will be the selling points.
Like the banker, Tomlin believes some form of legislation will
outlaw or limit the amount of cash that can change hands between
individuals. All transactions will have to be "traceable."
"At that point, the federal government can then trace, track, and
control all transactions," said Tomlin. "The ability to exercise
absolute control over individuals is absolutely mind boggling."
The proposed regulation is, according to the FDIC, authorized by
current law. It comes from the statutory authority granted the FDIC
under section 8(s)(1) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12
U.S.C. 18189s)(1), as amended by section 259(a)(2) of the Crime
Control Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-647).
Calls made to banks by WorldNetDaily did not find that any major
banks are planning to protest the proposal. Each expects to offer
suggestions on how to more effectively implement the proposal.
Tomlin says that unless the public reacts quickly and strongly the
FDIC will move forward.
Comments from the public may be sent to Robert E. Feldman, Executive
Secretary, Attn: Comments/OES, Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, 550 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20429 or faxed to
(202) 898-3838. The deadline is December 27.
David M. Bresnahan (<A
HREF="mailto:David@talkusa.com">David@talkusa.com</A>) is a
contributing editor of
WorldNetDaily.com, is the author of "Cover Up: The Art and Science
of Political Deception," and offers a monthly newsletter "Talk USA
Investigative Reports."
http://www.WorldNetDaily.com/
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