Crane and the Kochs - the Fascist State Eats Its Own

What does Anna Nicole Smith (Left) have in common with Kathryn Washburn Niskanen(Right)? You might ask.

On March 1^st the Koch Brothers filed a law suit against Widow Niskanen in an attempt to force her to sell her inherited interest in Cato Institute to them. The holding of one quarter of the shares of Cato, held until his death by her late husband, was left as one third to his widow, one third to Cato, and a third to the Institute For Justice, according to TPM Muckraker.

But there is far more story here than meets the eye, part of which is the lingering image of Anna Nicole Smith, the gorgeous, blond, nubile woman who married creaky, aged billionaire Howard Marshall, II, and so laid claim to an unimaginably valuable slug of stock in Koch Industries, the only shares in the very privately held company not owned by family members. The stock amounted to 16% of Koch Industries. The case went to the Supreme Court, firing the imaginations of Americans, enticed by the provocative form and story of Anna Nicole. But Americans did not understand what was really at issue.

Today, with the parallel revelations of manipulation funded by the Kochs in covert manipulations of the initiative process across the country and intrusions into local self-determination, this may began to dawn.

In 2006 I was contacted by Hart Williams, who had begun to investigate the Kochs and the denizens of Cato. Today, you can benefit from his detailed and accurate insights at HartWilliams.com. We know more than we did, but not enough.

Despite diligent research, the corporate books for Koch Industries still hold secrets thought to reveal cost plus contracts, unusual treatment by courts and government agencies that normally are charged with protecting the public, and other information lending insights to their relations with the Bush administration. Today, given the present, very political trajectory of the Brothers Koch, these events are well worth revisiting.

The bottom line of the Koch's profits include a string of offenses against public decency and safety of monumental proportions which were 'forgiven' by the Bushes, then in power.

In late 2000 it seemed some of these corporate policies might be catching up with Koch; they were hit with a 97-count indictment related to a cover up of discharge of more than 15 times the legal limit of benzene, a carcinogen, from a refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas. Koch faced penalties of $350, 000,000.00, according to the Center for Public Integrity.

Four Koch employees were also charged individually, facing up to 35 years in prison according to the same source. The lawsuits were settled three months into the Bush Administration. Koch plead guilty to one count of concealment, agreed to pay 20,000,000. All criminal charges were dropped by the Justice Department.

According to Greg Palast, published on BBC.com, in May of 2001, Koch Industries was then the third largest industry donor to the Bush Campaign.

In another case, Koch was sued by the government in 1995 and 1997 over a reported 300 oil spills at pipelines owned and operated by the company. Those lawsuits sought from $71 million to $214 million in penalties for the spills, which dumped an estimated three million gallons of oil into lakes and streams in six states.

On January 13, 2000, the Justice Department settled that case for $35 million in fines, according again to the Center for Public Integrity.

Brad Goldstein
Corporate Communications Director
(561) 640-8822
brad_goldstein@oxbow.com

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2000/11/27/60II/main252545.shtml

But the back story is even deeper. Politico writes, “The group (Cato) had four shareholders until last year: Charles Koch; David Koch; Edward H. Crane III, Cato’s president; and William A. Niskanen,” what is left out is the curious exclusion of the founding shareholder left unnamed.

Murray Rothbard, the voice of the Austrian Economics in the last half of the 20^th Century, is the shareholder who goes unmentioned. Murray was a founding member of the board for Cato until kicked off in 1981 for the hideous crime of disagreeing with Ed Crane.

The bi-Monthly Newsletter for The Libertarian Forum for January – April of 1981 ran on its front page an article headlined as, “Purged from Cato! It Usually Ends With Ed Crane.” Sounding entirely like Murray the article begins, “On Black Friday, March 27^th, 1981, at 9:00 A. M. in San Francisco, the “libertarian” power elite of the Cato Institute, consisting of President Edward H. Crane, III and Other Shareholder Charles G. Koch, revealed its true nature and its cloven hoof. Crane, aided and abetted by Koch, ordered me to leave Cato's regular quarterly board meeting, even though I am a shareholder and a founding board member of the Cato Institute. The Crane/Koch action was not only iniquitous and high-handed but also illegal, as my attorneys informed them before and during the meeting. They didn't care. What's more, as will be explained shortly, in order to accomplish this foul deed to their own satisfaction, Crane/Koch literally appropriated and confiscated the shares which I have naively left in the Cato Witchita office for “safekeeping”, an act clearly in violation of our agreement as well as contrary to every tenet of libertarian principle.”

Murray was the spokesman for free market economics. Additionally, he had challenged the hold of Ayn Rand on the minds of Libertarians. Simultaneously, his voice was muted and replaced by Milton Friedman, who has never been a proponent of free market economics but is, rather, an adherent of the Chicago School of Economics. The difference between the two is significant. Friedman was entirely open to government intervention. As a proponent of the free market Rothbard opposed the use of legislation in human action and was a stalwart voice for individual rights, speaking out for unity between right and left. Retrospectively, this and not a 'personal conflict' was the source of Murray's ejection from Cato.

Koch Industries might have been free market during the life time of its founder, Fred C. Koch, the father of Charles and David, but, today, it is a solidly entrenched member of the Military Industrial Complex, or Greedville, as I call the constellation of banking, oil, war contracting, pharmaceutical, and other interests.

The Kochs, arguably, masterminded the conversion of the term, 'free market' into something very different, a justification of governmental subsidies which continue to fatten their bottom line, the antitheses of the direction intended by the original libertarian movement. In this, they had the eager assistance of Ed Crane, who is remembered in song, and with bitterness, by many.

“ Ed Crane is Cato's president, he keeps his standards high

He says he runs a trim, taut ship – just like Captain Bly.

The similarity is really nothing but a joke.

For there'll be no mutiny on the bounty of Billionaire Charles Koch.”

Lyrics by an obscure songster named A C Franklin, 1979

But the libertarian movement, suppressed by the actions of the Kochs and Cato, remained small. Today the mainstream believes the positions of Cato and Koch are Libertarian when nothing could be further from the truth.

It cost the Kochs to start Cato but the conversion of ideas, from freedom to those which supported the tenets of fascism, has paid off – for them. Solidifying their control of Cato was, and remains, all about the money.

The predatory strategies of the Koch Brothers were not popular, even in their own family. The Koch family came into enormous conflict on how the fortunes would be handled that reflect some of the questionable strategies that founded those fortunes, continuing to actively divide those involved.

Koch Brother, Bill, interviewed on 60 minutes August 21, 2001, said, "It was – was my family company. I was out of it," he says. "But that’s what appalled me so much... I did not want my family, my legacy, my father’s legacy to be based upon organized crime."

Of the four brothers who inherited control of Rock Island Oil & Refining Co., at the death of their father, Fred Koch, in 1967, Charles and David managed to get a lock on control, renaming the megacorporation Koch Industries. The other two brothers, Fred, Jr. and William, retreated, having lost what seems to be an attempt to change the direction of the corporation.

The guy inside Koch who orchestrates their PR and political strategy is named.....you will not believe this but I could not make it up......Rich Fink. Their money, how they get in and what they will do to lower their costs and hang onto that money are some of the things they want to keep private.

Koch Industries was hit by the largest judgment for personal liability in history over the incineration of Danielle Smalley and a friend on Aug. 24, 1996. The cause was a defective high-pressure gas pipeline that exploded, taking the lives of the two teenagers. Both were 17. The amount named by the jury was 296 million dollars. Punitive damage awards exist to make it possible to hit those with money and power who act with blatant disregard of others. This, although Koch Industries admitted in court it had not properly maintained the lines and had failed to tell the public, according to the site of the attorney representing the Smalleys, Jim Arnold and Associates. Conveniently enough for Koch Industries, the Texas court forced a reduction in the award that meant that Danielle's father had to sign a nondisclosure agreement on the amount awarded.

The Smalley case was only one of three hundred spills caused over six states in the 90s for which Koch Industries was fined according to Planet Ark.

Guess who was governor in Texas at the time? George W. Bush.

In 1992 a wedding took place at Camp David between Doro Bush and Robert Koch. When you notice the names and wonder about the relationship there you find, despite the visibility of the families, you cannot discover if Robert Koch is related to the Koch's who founded Koch Industries unless you really dig.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koch_Industries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Howard_Marshall_II

http://www.smalleyfnd.org/danielle/accident.html

That is a small part of the real story. You can't get it all in an article and someday I will get around to writing the book.

Anna Nicole Smith and her secret connection to the Bush and the Inner Cabal of power in America today.

I'm republishing this as it seems to have disappeared from the web. 

You probably think that the hysteria over the Anna Nicole Smith case is all media hype. Most of it is, naturally. Gorgeous, blond, nubile woman, married creaky, aged billionaire, inherits unimaginably enormous slug of cash and is done wrong by his rapacious, greedy relatives. Gorgeous woman goes to court and gets a hearing from the Supreme Court after being demeaned, dissed by these same pompous creeps. That is the story that had fired the imaginations of Americans. But the REAL story is actually much more exciting leading us into the inner chambers of power of the multigenerational Robber Barons who have worked so hard to file the serial numbers off the Constitution and transfer owner ship of America to themselves. 

What Anna Nicole Smith stood to inherit was stock in a secretive, NeoCon associate, Koch Industries. Privately held companies cannot be forced to reveal their corporate books by anyone but a stock holder. Anna Nicole Smith could have forced Koch Industries, the company whose stock she inherited, to show her the books if she had been so inclined. Those corporate books are thought to reveal cost plus contracts, unusual treatment by courts and government agencies that normally are charged with protecting the public, and other information that brings into question their relations with the Bush administration.a Koch presence in Vietnam with Halliburton and the same relationship going on today in Iraq. The bottom line is also purported to show just what Koch Industries will do to avoid accountability for killing people, even American teenagers not yet sucked into wars.

In late 2000 it seemed that some of these corporate policies might be catching up with Koch; they were hit with a 97-count indictment related to a cover up of discharge of more than 15 times the legal limit of benzene, a carcinogen, from a refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas. Koch faced penalties of $350, 000,000.00, according to the Center for Public Integrity.

The company faced penalties of more than $350 million. Four Koch employees were also charged individually, facing up to 35 years in prison according to the same source. The lawsuits were settled three months into the Bush Administration. Koch plead guilty to one count of concealment, agreed to pay 20,000,000. All criminal charges were dropped by the Justice Department.

According to Greg Palast, published on BBC.com, in May of 2001, Koch Industries was then the third largest industry donor to the Bush Campaign.

In another case, Koch was sued by the government in 1995 and 1997 over a reported 300 oil spills at pipelines owned and operated by the company. Those lawsuits sought from $71 million to $214 million in penalties for the spills, which dumped an estimated three million gallons of oil into lakes and streams in six states.

On January 13, 2000, the Justice Department settled that case for $35 million in fines, according again to the Center for Public Integrity. Koch Brother, Bill, interviewed on 60 minutes August 21, 2001, said, "It was – was my family company. I was out of it," he says. "But that’s what appalled me so much... I did not want my family, my legacy, my father’s legacy to be based upon organized crime."

Brad Goldstein
Corporate Communications Director
(561) 640-8822
brad_goldstein@oxbow.com
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2000/11/27/60II/main252545.shtml

Did Anna Nicole Smith understand what is at stake? Maybe, maybe not. But these are the facts of what hinged on the court case still playing out.

Most people think we are talking about the brown, bubbly drink spelled Coke when they first hear about Koch Industries, but the brown fluid at the foundation of the Koch fortune is oil. The viscosity is different, both are bad for us, but one we know about and the other lurks, unseen, for the most part, in the halls of power. Koch Industries pays a bundle every year to avoid publicity. Their holdings and business stretch like tentacles into every imaginable industry that is pumping Americans dry.

When Anna Nicole Smith became a widow she acquired a claim on the stock held in trust that her husband, Howard Marshall, II, owned. That stock amounts to 16% of Koch Industries. Like many oil families the issue of ethics often went by the way side. The Koch and Marshall families were no different. Conflict on how the fortunes would be handled that reflect some of the questionable strategies that founded those fortunes, continue to actively divide those involved.

Of the four brothers who inherited control of Rock Island Oil & Refining Co., at the death of their father, Fred Koch, in 1967, Charles and David managed to get a lock on control, renaming the megacorporation Koch Industries. The other two brothers, Fred, Jr. and William, retreated, having lost what seems to be an attempt to change the direction of the corporation.

The guy inside Koch who orchestrates their PR and political strategy is named.....you will not believe this but I could not make it up......Rich Fink. Their money, how they get in and what they will do to lower their costs and hang onto that money are some of the things they want to keep private.

Koch Industries was hit by the largest judgment for personal liability in history over the incineration of Danielle Smalley and a friend on Aug. 24, 1996. The cause was a defective high-pressure gas pipeline that exploded, taking the lives of the two teenagers. Both were 17. The amount named by the jury was 296 million dollars. Punitive damage awards exist to make it possible to hit those with money and power to act with blatant disregard of others. This although Koch Industries admitted in court it had not properly maintained the lines and had failed to tell the public, according to the site of the attorney representing the Smalleys, Jim Arnold and Associates. Conveniently enough for Koch Industries the Texas court forced a reduction in the award that meant that Danielle's father had to sign a nondisclosure agreement on the amount awarded.

The Smalley case was only one of three hundred spills caused by over six states in the 90s for which Koch Industries was fined according to Planet Ark.

Guess who was governor in Texas at the time? George W. Bush.

In 1992 a wedding took place at Camp David between Doro Bush and Robert Koch. When you notice the names and wonder about the relationship there you find that despite the visibility of the families you cannot discover if Robert Koch is related to the Koch's who founded Koch Industries unless you really dig.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koch_Industries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Howard_Marshall_II

http://www.smalleyfnd.org/danielle/accident.html

That is the real story. It explains the desperate need to hold on to that inheritance. Sometimes it is the money and sometimes it is hiding the truth. When you bottom line depends on hiding the truth spending money to accomplish that end is just business as usual.

The Corporate Shell Game of Presidential Politics – Nix on Newt

One by one a long list of GOP 'hopefuls' have appeared, albeit briefly, in the role of 'contender.' One by one they have been shot down by their own fatal flaws, demolishing the carefully constructed 'image' needed to make a base of popular support credible. The focus of enthusiasm, by the media and GOP hacks, for Newt Gingrich for president, is the latest corporate entry in a line up of manufactured candidates.
As we watch the pea pass between the shells of this media game we should consider the unexpressed reality never understood by the public and carefully ignored by the media.
It is a Tail Wagging the Dog Moment, constructed to ensure there is no disruption of the filming, which no longer bears any relationship to the Constitutional, electoral, process by which Americans were intended to govern themselves. The present 'presidential' campaign is a carefully staged disinformation operation intended only to distract us.
Think of the GOP nominating process as a horse race. The 'candidates' are owned by corporate interests with two exceptions, Ron Paul and Gary Johnson. They can be disregarded for purposes of this article.
What you see is an essential component of the business plan of a relatively small number of enormously wealthy multinational corporations operating solely for their own profit and in blatant disregard of the Constitution. The presidency became a corporate sinecure many election cycles ago. The president holds power but the power is exercised from posher offices in locations far less public. Owning the occupant of the office of president is, therefore, very useful to the conglomerate of corporations who 'win the race.' Money spent on 'elections' is money well invested.
Owning the president is worth more than owning a bushel of Senators and Congressmen, though these are also essential to success. Also needed to delude Americans are public relations firms, 'think tanks,' which provide justifications for government control, publishing houses, 'political consultants' (Example, Karl Rove) and political operatives who pretend they are journalists (example, John Fund.) They in come both flavors, GOP and DEM, of course, depending on your needs.
Also indicated are 'strong relationships' with academia, who, paid relatively small amounts of money, provide a wealth of benefits, including producing studies which prove anything you need proved, despite the truth of the matter.
I use the friendly term, Greedville to refer to the constellation of banks, oil companies, chemical companies, pharmaceutical companies, and others who actually own and control our courts and government today. The history of the term originates from my interactions with one such company and the fact the absolute number of such companies involved is barely the size of a small American town, for instance Santa Barbara.
For corporations, determining which candidate to 'buy' and 'run' is a business expense, nothing, more, nothing less. Greedville may grumble at the cost but the corporate coffers open generously and they pay. They are, after all, professionals, ruthlessly sharp operators, who understand you need to pay for what you get.



The GREEDVILLE Business Model
The Greedville model depends on controlling and limiting the choices available to Americans. first and foremost. Gteedville knows where their profits originate and they use what works to ensure their profits continue to roll in unabated.
Let's look at a simplified, but real-life, scenario.
You are an oil company who really wants to pump the reservoirs in a foreign country which prefers to sell to someone else, say Russia and France. Let's say the country is Iraq. So you manufacture a justification for invading just before Russia and France begin their operations using a Tragic Event which is blamed on people who are not Iraqi but who may have distant cousins who look Arab. In this case the Tragic Event is 9/11. It works.
Ancillary benefits to other Greedville interests are enormous and they have supported you in this endeavor. In fact, nearly everyone from Greedville benefits as the money rolls in. Many of the Greedville folks have been doing exactly the same thing for generations, and have long viewed government as their natural ally and partner in business. The relationship stretched back to mercantilism – and to the Salem Witchcraft Trials, which were really about the use of state power to use asset forfeiture, never about witchcraft.
Making something illegal is nearly as profitable as war.
War is a great source for profits, if you doubt this read, “War is a Racket,” by Major General Smedley Butler. You can read the book online. Butler was the most highly respected military figure in America in the first part of the 20^th Century. Yet he came to know he was, in his words, “ a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism.”
War provides government contracts, often cost plus contracts, which enrich the corporate bottom line with heady speed. Therefore, rhetoric which keeps the nation at war is to be heavily subsidized. This is a business expense, first and last. Both large and smaller, ambitious companies are always very pro-war and 'patriotic.' Their children are unlikely to serve in the armed forces.
For our simplified purposes here let's look at the main 'industries' which fall in the Military-Industrial Multi-National category, other words, the happy neighborhoods. of Greedville.
Banking and finance, all related to the simple service of assisting people in making transactions, proved to be too fraught with the potential for theft to be resisted. So today, instead of modest profits for doing something simple you can hear the sound of sucking all the way to the Hawaiian Islands from the center of Wall Street, where the Discount Window at the FED is always busy, handing out money guaranteed by Americans to institutions who 'loan' it to back to us, charging interest while risking nothing.
Big Pharma, which traces its roots to the Opium Wars for its funding, ensures you pay hundreds of times what a 'remedy' is worth while keeping its Congresspersons and government busy at the task of denying you the full range of choices which the market would otherwise offer.
Big Food, Big Med, Big Energy, Big Finance, which includes insurance, which when it was membership based and mutual, used to lower costs, not burnish the Greedville bottom line.
GREEDVILLE = Limit choices to you to optimize profits.
Sounds like conspiracy stuff, doesn't it? Nope, just the logical outcome of the original business plan for Greedville.
But even in Greedville, all is not sweetness and light. The size of the pie is shrinking even as those who want to feed are increasing in number. Realignments are in motion.
Today there are two main factions vying for power and a third.
Faction I is a group we generally know as the New World Order. This is a coalition built on the original business plan, endlessly repeated, originating with the Rothschild Banking. Over time, it came to include all of the corporations of Greedville identified by Eisenhower as the Military-Industrial Complex, many of them newcomers to Greedville, which is still, naturally, growing.
You might not know this – but the original target of the Rothschilds was not ordinary people but the royal houses of Europe, moving out first to drain these concentrations of wealth and power and then to grasp the entire world in a gauntlet of greed. Many of these lines were completely destroyed.
From the remnant of these royal houses, those who resisted, arose Faction II, a player fewer know exists.
It took them time to organize and begin to fight back. The world, as they knew it was gone, and they had much to learn.
By the late 1800s they began to secret their ancient wealth in vaults around the world. After the establishment of the Federal Reserve in 1913 their concerns grew. By 1921 they had come together. The remaining royal houses from across the world came together. Riven by war and continuing attacks over the ensuing decades they dedicated their hidden wealth to rebuilding what had been lost.
The gleaming bars of gold, silver and jewels, a small amount of the wealth accumulated over generations, was dedicated to rebuilding the world. Over and over again they were betrayed by the same people who insinuated their way into trust positions. But a steady progress continued.
A while ago the last traitor had been excised from their ranks. But they were left drained and struggling.
Today a great battle is about to begin. You need to recognize the faces of the individuals who are, today, in command of Greedville. You need to see the face of the sole eminence whose word will launch the full force of Faction II. This will probably surprise you. It did me.
Today Faction I, Greedville, is commanded by three men, George H. W. Bush, whose long association with the CIA, along with his family background, gave him the power to kill with impunity. Tony Blair, whose antecedents are not as they seem, and Bill Clinton, who was brought up to fill the position he occupies today.
But this is an unstable coalition, and in this is their downfall written.
The forces within Greedville, insatiable for more, are turning on each other. Until recently those in control were working together. Last week George H. W. Bush had a meeting in the White House with President Obama. With him was his son, Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida. A deal was cut for a brokered GOP. Newt was always filler, his role to distract for a few weeks or months, with no potential to grab the golden ring of power.
Obama will walk away, wealthy beyond his wildest dreams. Bill and Hillary Clinton, representing the weaker component of Faction I, scripted to take a fall from a great height.
Greedville is a small in numbers, powerful in resources and ruthlessness.
And what of Faction II? What of Faction X, which has been silently in the game but invisible to most eyes?

Soon, Grasshopper, you will know.

 
All you need to know about the Newt
Newt Gingrich has lived a life of lies. He is personally irresponsible to the point one can reasonably wonder if he is a psychopath.

Time Line:

• Married his geometry teacher, Jacqueline Battley, to escape his bipolar mother.
  
• Demanded a divorce from Battley while she was recovering from cancer surgery. Battley had put Newt through college, paying all of their expenses. Jacqueline, according to Gail Sheehy. "The Inner Quest of Newt Gingrich." Vanity Fair. 9/1995 supported and, “finished raising him,” Newt, she goes on to say, could not balance a check book.
  
• According to Newt, published in the New York Times in an article by Katharine Q. Seelye,November, 24 1994. "Gingrich's Life: The Complications and Ideals. " She's not young enough or pretty enough to be the wife of a President. And besides, she has cancer."
  
• Newt also found it inconvenient to support his wife and children. Private people at the family church stepped in to ensure they survived.
• Newt's Contract with (on) America catapults him to fame and wealth beyond any expectation along with the entire Congressional Class of '94.(The Contract was NOT Newt's idea, he stole it.)
• Newt had already met and asked his next wife, Marianne Ginther, to marry him before asking his wife for a divorce. The Ginther marriage would break down when, as the world now knows, Newt demanded he be allowed to carry on a relationship with his present wife, Callista Bisek, who is 23 years younger than he. The two carried on a six year affair before he demanded an open marriage from Marianne and then pursued a divorce and an annulment after 18 years of marriage.
  
• The time line on Newt's marriages is available on about.com
  

Alexander, 13th Duke of Manchester – Making Sense of the Totally Bizarre

In the past several weeks public interest has again been piqued regarding several items published on the web either by Alex, Duke of Manchester, his wife, Laura, and more mainstream journalists.. These varied offerings are fleshing out a picture of this unusual peer of the realm, adding to the barrage of articles published last summer around an unusual trial held in the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division on July 19, 2011.

The trial took place due to a report by the Duke himself, admitting he was not divorced from his first wife at the time of his 1993 wedding to Wendy Buford, the mother of his children. Thus his children were illegitimate by law in England. The Chancery Court however found the children could continue to receive monies from the Manchester Trust, much to the Duke's displeasure. 

This callousness and lack of empathy shown by the Duke bears striking similarity to one characteristic of a sociopath. But there is more to come. 

An affidavit by second wife, Wendy Buford Montagu, given under penalty of perjury, revealed a time line suggesting motives, on the part of the Duke, which were simply appalling. The Duke seems to have believed he would benefit by $3,000 a month if the two children's support, which he refused to pay, and was being made up by the Manchester Trust, became unpayable by the Trust according to his former wife and the mother of the two children, Wendy Buford Montagu. 

Wendy also believes the Duke married her because he needed a regular source of support and planned all along to eventually leave her, alienating the children to his own advantage. This view is supported by psychological reports in the divorce court documents and also conforms to sociopathic behavior. 

The deluge of articles appearing in the wake of the July 2011 trial were typified by such language as this, appearing in the Telegraph by Philip Sherwell , "His scandal-ridden life has thus far seen him married three times, imprisoned twice in Australia, deported from Canada and exposed as a bigamist. But, even now, in his 50th year, the 13th Duke of Manchester shows no sign of tempering his famously erratic behaviour.”

 

In the wake of the trial the Duke's expressed concerns were to 'clear his name,' in regards the charges of bigamy, though an examination of the evidence leaves no doubt as to the sequent of events. Duke Alex blames everyone else, refusing to acknowledge or accept his own acts. He is glib, using his superficial charm to manipulate his listeners and readily changes his story, again the behavior of a sociopath. 

On January 8^th this low in human decency was challenged by yet another appearance by Duke Alex, this time in a comment appearing on the Huffington Post website. The Duke intimated the Royal Family might be involved in the murder of a girl whose body was found on their Sandringham Estate while the Queen was staying there. 

An article, written by journalist Richard Kay, writing for the Mailonline.com, soon followed, appearing on January 16^th. titled, “Duke in sick attack on the Royal Family.”

 

Duke Alex's first comment, now removed from the site, is quoted below without correction was, “This is not a Joke my name is Alexander Montagu the 13th Duke of Manchester I have been accused of bigimie and it is all a lie I have documented proof that my trust and lawyers and mother has set me up for something I have never done the Royal family has a lot of power and will do what ever they can to cover up any sort of embaraseme­nt even if the victim is 100% in the write and has the legeal documentat­ion to proove this you should look up the duchess of manchester under google and you will see the documentat­ion to see how the royal family will do what ever they can to cover any thing they can stop look investigat­e I can also let people know maybe people should look into the cameras around Sandringha­m around the Queens property.” It is all about him, no one else matters and he cannot even see how his inconsistency impacts those around him. Sociopathic. 

The case of murder has no apparent connection to the Royal family except for the disposal of the victim's body, according to authorities. Alex, who must embarrass any member of the aristocracy, was, as of last November, living in Las Vegas and receiving his mail at “8414 Farm Rd. # 180, Las Vegas, Nevada, 89131” He has been using “220 Newport Center Drive Suit (sic)# 11, Newport Beach, California 92660” for years – but, according to his own statements, is afraid to return to California because, “the police want to kill him.”

However, the ducal removal from California was arguably more likely related to the evasion of debt collectors than these more lurid causes. Based on information from several sources, the first of these being the former wife of Duke Alex, and the mother of his two children and his present, or nearly present, wife, Laura. 

It became known to Wendy in 2008 that Alex was buying cars with bad checks when a Detective Anderson from Redondo Beach contacted her in an attempt to locate one of these vehicles for repossession. At the time the newly estranged Duchess Laura was living with Wendy, having exhausted her other options for housing. Wendy assisted Detective Anderson in the repossession attempt. The vehicle in question was a red P. T. Cruiser. In late September of 2011 Laura, then reunited with the Duke for some time, told this reporter, “Alex always writes bad checks for cars.” The Duke lurches through life without any long range plan.

 

Laura lived with Wendy from mid-October 2008 until the end of the year when she returned to Alex because she was without funds to keep her cherished cell phone number, which she has had for twenty years, active. The number is 213-926-0952. While Laura was living with Wendy and the two children the youngest child moved in to her mother's room so Laura, their guest, could have her room. Wendy gave Laura regular cash so she would not be without funds. 

Wendy Buford married Alexander on 7^th May 1993. The couple had met, according to an affidavit filed before the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division by Wendy Buford Montagu on 17^th April 1992 while she, “attended a country music night club,” located in Orange County, California. According to the affidavit she was then, as now, employed at a law firm in the same county. 

The same affidavit states he asked her to marry him soon afterward, making claims of an income of around $150,000 a month. She was, she says, to find his claims were heavily larded with lies in the years to come, which statement is validated by court documents. 

After giving birth to their first child, a son named Alexander Michael Charles David Francis George Edward William Kimble Drogo Montagu (Alexander),Wendy continued to work, bringing in their only regular income. Although the then Viscount claimed to always be on the brink of making money, usually by selling German Bonds left to him by his grandfather, these long and arduous negotiations always fell through. This writer has learned from dealers these bonds are deemed to be nearly impossible to cash. This source of income never materialized yet Duke Alex, still today, continues to scheme and depend on obtaining the money.

 

In 1999 a second child, a daughter named Ashley, was born to the couple. Wendy continued to work. Alex assumed the role of stay-at-home mother, according to Wendy, who has been employed continuously at the same firm since the time of the marriage. 

Duke Alex, according to Wendy, occasionally found a job but these were of short duration, generally ending in his being fired for a similar reason on each occasion. This was Alex's assumption he knew better how to run the company than did his employer, in this exhibiting a Grandiose Sense of Self.

 

“Alex went upstairs to his room the moment I came in the door. I was responsible for shopping, cooking, cleaning, and other domestic needs,” Wendy said, when interviewed for this article.

Although he had assumed the role of care-taker Wendy also reports the Duke would take off at a moment's notice. Finding alternative care was then her responsibility. The Duke demonstrated the train of emotional shallowness and self-serving.

 

After the birth of a daughter and 13 years of marriage the two divorced, at which time Duke Alex demanded custody of the children and alimony, this affirmed by records from the Orange County Family Law Court. The divorce was long, drawn-out, and acrimonious by all reports. 

After many attempts to keep his financial affairs secret Duke Alexander was questioned on the stand from the records obtained through subpoena from his bank. The court took note of an amount amounting to around a million dollars then in his possession, this, according to Wendy Montagu, obtained from the sale of Manchester family heirlooms. 

The Duke asked for, and was denied, alimony and lost temporary custody. At a hearing in August of 2007 Duke Alex asked the issues to the divorce be bifurcated. This was granted, the remainder of the issues being finalized in 2008. But the judge cautioned him not to, “run out and get married again.” Less than a month after the divorce from Wendy was final, Duke Alexander married his present wife, Laura Ann Smith, and relocated, rarely seeing the children thereafter. He did, however, leave in his wake thousands in debts, which his former wife is now being forced to pay. 

According to documents from the court record and recent witnesses, the Duke's finances have been severely reduced since the end of his marriage to Wendy. From a capital base of around a million in 2007 the Duke, last summer and autumn, was reduced to asking for money to pay for ongoing projects from the people he had retained to work for him. Reluctant to assist, the people involved found themselves conned into helping, later realizing they had been skillfully manipulated. Money 'loaned' to the Duke they believed were used to pay for his gas, food and medicine, which includes psychotropic prescription drugs. 

These funds were transferred to him through services supplied by Walmart in Las Vegas, where he had noisily broken up with his wife, Duchess Laura, reporting her to police for stealing the only remaining copies videos he had taken of Michael Jackson while married to Wendy Buford Montagu, who also appears in the photos. As these were community property it is not clear Alex was in legal possession of these materials. They had been stolen from the family home at the time of the divorce. 

The same people found themselves paying for the Duke to file a divorce action against his wife. They then asked a contract be signed, something he had asked them to 'put off, as they could trust him.” When they pressed their request he blew up and began attacking them verbally and then threatening to kill them. These ended when these threats were reported to both their local police and to the FBI. 

The most perfunctory of glances at posts, emails, and letters written by Alex prove he can neither punctuate or spell. Comments from others note he also finds logical thinking somewhat challenging. 

Probably no one posting subsequent comments on the Huffington site believed Alex was, in fact, the Duke of Manchester. But Alex, no matter how unlikely, given his educational deficiencies, is without a doubt the present holder of the title and was raised with the full attention of his mother and grandfather. 

The education accorded to Duke Alex included highly respected and expensive schools on at least three continents.

While this lack of proficiency would be viewed as tragic, if exhibited by a person with a disadvantaged background, having it appear in  a peer of the realm is far more shocking and difficult to explain without further thought. 

A quick perusal of the Profile of a Sociopath reveal many of the characteristics associated with the condition as being present in the ducal behavior. 

If the Duke of Manchester is, indeed a sociopath his behavior is perfectly understandable.

Mitt Romney accused of abuse

NEWS RELEASE - Pillsbury-Foster Presidential Campaign
Pillsbury-Foster for President
pillsbury-foster4president@gmail.com


ROME, Ohio - Meow-Meow, animal companion to Arthur Foster, eldest son of Democratic candidate for president, Melinda Pillsbury-Foster, today  called for Mitt Romney to be strapped to the roof of the car for a trip to the dog house. 

While Meow-Meow, an orange tabby, also known as M&M, is not overly fond of dogs he called all species to move for solidarity on this issue of outrageous cruelty.  M&M pointed out the heinous act included washing the Romney animal hostage down with water when he could not hold himself and then, ignoring the wind-chill factor, returning Seamus to the POW camp on the roof of the car.   (see news report)

At the same time M&M, calling for an investigation by a to-be-called pack of senators, averred that Romney should not be spayed until or unless there is a second incident. 

END

###

Mitt Romney Desperate to hide truth - Debate will take place

Pillsbury-Foster, Democratic presidential candidate, says Mitt Romney is desperate to hide the truth.

NEWS RELEASE – Pillsbury-Foster for President

pillsbury-foster4president@gmail.com

ROME, Ohio - Two speeches made to different groups of supporters last Tuesday evening may change the world. The remarks were given by the winning and second place candidates vying to be the GOP nominee for president at two locations in New Hampshire minutes after the polls closed. Between these two, enunciated in word, delivery and the reaction of supporters, the watcher could see, in sharp relief, demarcation lines revealing ideas and values which define an America reaching for the future. If you have not watched the links below you should do so.

The two men themselves are both registered Republicans but live in, by and for, very different values. The winner of the GOP primary in New Hampshire was Mitt Romney, a monied and manicured contender whose campaign funds come from corporate sources. Leading the list provided through Open Sources is Goldman Sachs, donating $367,200, followed by Credit Suisse Group.

The second man is Dr. Ron Paul, whose campaign funds originate from the efforts of grass roots people, hungry for the truths Paul has lived all of his life. Paul's top donor - Beefcarver Restaurants contributed $1,000. It takes a lot of donors to raise over $12,000,000, the amount reported for Paul for money raised. U. S. military serving now contribute more to Paul than to all other candidates combined.

The words of Romney and Paul spoke the shattering truths which are today changing the face of the Republican Party, repopulating its ranks from the grass-roots.

Ron Paul, whose supporters are responsible for those changes, is the People's candidate, his supporters including a strong flow of Democrats and Independents who otherwise have no one to vote for.

The Tea Party, captured in its infancy, by money supplied by Charles and David Koch, have done all in their power to stave off the assault of the simple, direct words supplied by Dr. Ron Paul but they have, again, failed.

Both text and audio of the speeches are linked here. Dr. Ron Paul Mitt Romney

Commentators feverishly attempt to explain away the showing of a campaign entirely originating in the grass roots efforts of ordinary Americans with analysis. These graphs and exit polls caught on the question of 'electability.' The unspoken subtext, present but unstated being, “well, you can't have what you want so which corporate candidate is the least offensive?” These analyzes originated with the driving need to get people to forget Paul is in the race, necessary to the powers that be. Unlike the other candidates Paul's loyalty is not to the GOP, a corporately-controlled tool for political organizing, but to the people of our nation and to the Constitution.

Speaking straight off the cuff, as is his way, Dr. Paul thanked his supporters humbly, delight and gratitude for what they, not he, had done, clear in his face. As he said during the 2007 race, “thank you for inviting me to the Revolution.” Paul went on to enumerate, the wrongs done to Americans and the changes he would enact, if elected. It was a lengthy list, detailed and specific, leaving no doubt as to what voters will get the day he is inaugurated. Over and over again his supporters interrupted the speech with cries of “President Paul, President Paul,” and tumultuous applause.

Dr. Paul noted a first in election history, as did Romney on a very different subject. Ron Paul proudly noted he is the first to mention the Federal Reserve as a dominant issue and call for its end. He promised the 'token' of his intentions by pledging to cut one trillion from the budget in his first year in office. Our monetary system said Paul, is “sneaky, deceitful.”

Paul left no doubt as to his views on war, individual rights, the impact imposed by the regulatory role undertaken by the federal government ,or the hunger of people for the America, which once held so much hope to people around the world.

In 2007 Paul was also the first candidate to mention, “blow-back,” a term coined by the CIA to explain the growing hostility to America by countries where their operations are taking place. Paul called for the orderly withdrawal of troops and an end to the role of 'policeman to the world,' for America.

Paul's vision for America evokes a very different vision for the future than continuous wars, which profit no one but the corporations who donate to the campaigns of his opponents. Paul calls for a world at peace. His supporters chanted, “bring them home, bring them home.” Paul is a real conservative who showed visible concern for people attempting to subsist on Social Security today and the continued reduction of spending power which is causing real suffering for older Americans.

On the subject of the Constitution Paul said, “the Constitution was written for a very precise manner. It was not designed to restrain the individual -- not to restrain you -- it was to protect your liberties and to restrain the federal government.”

The Paul vision is clear, unambiguous, straight from the heart, and consistent. His delivery was unstudied, warm, sincere.

And then you have Mitt Romney. On a positive note Mitt's supporters were far more polite. They rarely interrupted with cheers or applause.

As Mitt's speech went on he had no problem blaming Obama for the disappearance of the Middle Class, the huge bail-outs, and the myriad of other problems plaguing Americans today. Unfortunately, though he, having a firm background in economics and the financial realities of recent years, was less than candid when he blamed Obama for the US loss of the AAA credit rating, now gone. The AAA was already going before Obama was elected due to financial decisions and legislation originating in the Bush presidency, indications of which were present in 2007.

Sometimes it is small things which are most telling.

In October of that year W. Leon Smith, publisher and editor of the Lone Star Iconoclast, wrote a check to Alltel, his phone company, to pay his monthly bill. The check was run through, debiting his bank account twice, causing him to bounce checks. Smith investigated how this could have happened, resulting in an article titled, “Paper or Pretense,” which ran in the Lone Star Iconoclast January 30, 2008.

Smith's article closes with the illuminating statement by the FBI, who Smith contacted to file a complaint, that they work for the banks. Now that is a real 'Ah Hah!' moment, the FBI takes orders from banks, such as JP Morgan, a leading donor to the Romney campaign.

The 'bank error,' ignored by most analysts, had, in this once instance, impacted 27,000 customers, each having their check run twice. As time passed Smith began to hear of other instances with other companies. The result had been to allow JP Morgan Bank, then attempting to maintain a AAA rating, to gain millions of dollars in interest on the combined small amounts held which staved off the loss of their rating until recently.

Today Mitt is not running against Obama. He, and all other GOP candidates, are running against each other. Therefore comments on the positions expressed by Paul, the second most popular candidate, would be most useful – if Mitt actually wanted to provide the public with a comparison of what they will do, if nominated and then elected.

Romney offered “I stand ready to lead us down a different path, where we are lifted up by our desire to succeed, not dragged down by a resentment of success. In these difficult times, we cannot abandon the core values that define us as unique -- We are One Nation, Under God. Make no mistake, in this campaign, I will offer the American ideals of economic freedom a clear and unapologetic defense.”

Can you tell what this means?

I'm sure the line causes shivers of happiness to ripple through the faces of Dave and Charles Koch as they cash government checks issued for cost plus contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Evidently, Mitt thinks what we have today is free enterprise, which is economic freedom and nothing could be farther from the truth. What we have today is corporate fascism, control by corporations through government.

Otherwise, the Romney speech was stilted, filled with platitudes and meaningless rhetoric, such as, “We still believe in the America that is a land of opportunity and a beacon of freedom. We believe in the America that challenges each of us to be better and bigger than ourselves. This election, let’s fight for the America we love. We believe in America.”

Here is the translation.

The strategy underlying the highly repetitive Romney speech is entirely understandable if you realize this. If Mitt had been clear or specific it would be impossible for people to fool themselves into believing him. The only way to lie to large groups is to allow them to deceive themselves by using emotionally charged images with little real meaning. Words like, “America” “One Nation” and “God” allow the listener to substitute an image, idea, or words from their own minds. The listener persuades themselves to 'believe.' You would not hire a plumber like this, you should not hire a CEO in this fashion, either.

But Romney's haircut was perfect, his teeth shiny white. He was craggy and attractive.

But a real debate on the issues needs to happen and, fortuitously, one will be taking place. 

Meow-Meow is ready

Along with being a columnist for the Iconoclast I was drafted to run, as a Democrat, for president, much to my surprise. The campaign is registered with the Federal Election Commission. W. Leon Smith is my Campaign Chairman. Leon's draft letter is here. While Obama might not want to debate me you will be able to view a debate between the First Dog, Bo, and my son's animal companion, Meow-Meow in a matter of days. There will be specifics, substance, and dollops of humor.

The debate will really dig in to all the things, as Mitt so ably demonstrated, candidates are desperate to evade. And although I'm running as a Democrat for the nomination of the Democratic Meow-Meow is ready for action

Party, no corporate candidate will be left behind to languish any longer in the present rhetoric of the absurd.

Even Meow-Meow knows about reality.

Short Platform

• Ratify the ERA
• Fully fund Social Security
• Hold the Bankers accountable
• Give our veterans what they need to heal
• Give the world peace, withdraw the troops
• Abolish the FED
• And force restitution from the corporations for all those victimized

END

###

Occupy the .War Contractors

.Greedville - The short name for the long game - Take the Greedville tour in Santa Barbara!

As America begins to awaken and take to the streets let us remember the happily profitable defense contractors who are scattered across the country. Over decades past, and up until today, they have received billions for designing, building, and transporting the weapons of war which have destroyed other nations and are now being deployed here at home against us.

Do you feel safer because a river of weapons is being produced from the money you sweat to make?

Some of these weapons, for instance the Sound Cannon, also known as the Long Range Acoustic Device, are already being used against us as we protest. LRAD Corporation and is only one example.

From the wikipedia:

“ Against protesters:

The LRAD device was on hand at protests of the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City[6] but not used; it was extensively used against opposition protesters in Tbilisi, Georgia, in November 2007.[7]
The magazine Foreign Policy has revealed that LRADs have been sold to the government of the People's Republic of China. American companies have been banned from selling arms to China since the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
Local residents of Dusit in Bangkok witnessed it in use during protests of Triumph factory employees against dismissals on August 28, 2009.[8] The LRAD was used for the first time in the United States in Pittsburgh during the time of the G20 summit on September 24–25th, 2009.[9][10] Pittsburgh police again utilized LRAD as a precautionary measure to prevent unruly crowds from getting out of control following the 2011 Super Bowl. LRAD systems were also purchased by Toronto Police for the 2010 G20 summit.
In 2009, the government of Honduras used it on at least two occasions, on September 22 and 25, to communicate to those seeking refuge in the Brazilian embassy. In addition to embassy staff, these included the deposed president of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, his family, and some supporters and journalists.
LRAD was also used against college students in the city of Macomb, Illinois at the Wheeler Block Party at Western Illinois University ("WIU")[11] on May 1, 2011.[1]
LRAD was also reportedly[12] used by the Oakland Police Department during the clearance of the Occupy Oakland encampment on the morning of 25 October 2011.
Polish Police also acquired LRAD on december 2010 and used them to communicate with protesters during 11 November 2011 riots in Warsaw city. [13]
LRAD use was also reported as the New York City Police department cleared protestors during the Occupy Wall Street protests in Zuccotti Park on the morning of 15 November 2011.”

LRAD Corporation is located at 15378 Avenue of Science, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92128 USA
Phone:             858.676.1112.

The company which produces tasers, Taser International, their subtext is "Protect Life,” has its international headquarters at 17800 N. 85th St. Scottsdale, AZ. Another office is located in Arlington, Virgina, and yet another, TASER Virtual Systems at 5464 Carpinteria Ave, Suite I, Santa Barbara, CA 93013.

On August 28^th Anonymous released the following information on the producer of drones, which many expect will soon be deployed against Americans within the United States, are all paid for by tax payers.

“August 28, 2011, Alastair Stevenson reports in the International Business Times: The hacker collective Anonymous has released a fresh batch of data taken from Vanguard Defense Industries, a Pentagon and FBI contractor.

The data release was revealed via a post on tor2web.org and later publicised (sic) on the group’s AnonymousIRC Twitter account. In it the group claimed to have released “1GB of private emails and documents belonging to Vanguard Defense Industries (VDI).”

But these are the obvious problems, the end products also imply subcontracters who provide software and other essentials without which the products could not be produced.

There are also the old line, military-industrial complex corporations which are very conscious they are a corporate military presence on alien territory, for instance Northrop Grumman. A friend of mine, a mind-mannered software engineer, and his partner, inadvertently drove into the company parking lot during broad daylight in Maryland to be met by 'security' wearing flack jackets and carrying AK47s.

Some defense contractors are open to their relationship with us. Others are covert.

Santa Barbara, that lovely resort where so many 1%ers live on the Pacific coast above Los Angeles, is also the headquarters for Green Hills Software, yet another defense contractor located at 28 Sola St., Santa Barbara, CA 93103. Notice the significant partners on their “defense customers” page for this company who are more easily recognizable.

Complex weapons systems, high level encryption, and other expensive toys used in war, are produced behind the seemingly safe and friendly doors of businesses which donate to local charities as they cash their government checks and pump out their products of death. We need to rethink our attitude here.

War is the health of the corporate state. General Smedley Butler said this of corporate war profits in his book, “War is a Racket,” written in 1937. “The normal profits of a business concern in the United States are six, eight, ten, and sometimes twelve percent. But war-time profits -- ah! that is another matter -- twenty, sixty, one hundred, three hundred, and even eighteen hundred per cent -- the sky is the limit. All that traffic will bear. Uncle Sam has the money. Let's get it.

Of course, it isn't put that crudely in war time. It is dressed into speeches about patriotism, love of country, and "we must all put our shoulders to the wheel," but the profits jump and leap and skyrocket -- and are safely pocketed. Let's just take a few examples:
Take our friends the du Ponts, the powder people -- didn't one of them testify before a Senate committee recently that their powder won the war? Or saved the world for democracy? Or something? How did they do in the war? They were a patriotic corporation. Well, the average earnings of the du Ponts for the period 1910 to 1914 were $6,000,000 a year. It wasn't much, but the du Ponts managed to get along on it. Now let's look at their average yearly profit during the war years, 1914 to 1918. Fifty-eight million dollars a year profit we find! Nearly ten times that of normal times, and the profits of normal times were pretty good. An increase in profits of more than 950 per cent.
Take one of our little steel companies that patriotically shunted aside the making of rails and girders and bridges to manufacture war materials. Well, their 1910-1914 yearly earnings averaged $6,000,000. Then came the war. And, like loyal citizens, Bethlehem Steel promptly turned to munitions making. Did their profits jump -- or did they let Uncle Sam in for a bargain? Well, their 1914-1918 average was $49,000,000 a year!”

The Occupy Movement is about confrontation, about letting those profiting know we are on to them and will no longer tolerate their assumption of moral justification. Instead, we will non-violently disrupt their lives, never stopping until we, who produce the wealth, control what we justly earn so that our world can be safe for all of humanity.

.Research each contractor, each part and component of what they spend. Occupy all of them.

Reclaiming America - Enter the Man from Pray, Montana

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster, November 15, 2011 .

As the Occupy Movement gathers momentum against Wall Street and the corporate banks, a man stepped up to the lectern in Billings, Montana He quietly took his place among eight other candidates for the Republican nomination for governor. They faced an audience of around 200 Republican activists and scant media. Montana is a state rich in beauty and resources, home to fewer than one million Americans.

The forum, sponsored by the Yellowstone Republican Women on Saturday, November 12^th, had invited all the declared GOP candidates The candidate from Pray, Robert Fanning, stood out from the rest in every way. He came into politics with a fire in the belly and a plan for change which goes far beyond Montana.

During the forum Fanning announced his running partner, candidate for Lt. Governor, will be Chuck Baldwin, former presidential candidate for the Constitution Party. The slate will also include a candidate for Attorney General and a partnership with every county in the state. The issues are many, says Fanning, but have a common source.

A consummate expert on finance, Fanning learned about the markets during his years .at the Chicago Board of Trade, ending that part of his career at Gelderman Securities, Inc., Chicago, IL , Member NASD, SIPC and CBOE; Clearing House member CBOT, CME, Director, Institutional Sales, Associate Member. Other traders called him, “The Mayor.” He knows the Pit, its split second timing, and the realities of it's world.

Fanning also understands the fraud which has been carried out through securitization of mortgages and the other systemic financial cons which have transferred wealth into the pockets of the already bloated greedy from hard-working Americans.

Jobs, health-care, real security, education, the forum questions rolled on. Fanning took his 90 seconds to respond to each question read out. But his plan for change is founded on facts, not empty words, political rhetoric or glad-handing. Fanning knows Montana can turn from a growing poverty to real prosperity rapidly. He has the moves down cold.

Moving from trading into direct ownership as Sole Shareholder, Director and Officer as CEO of M. H. Detrick Co., Mokena, IL in 1994 Fanning confronted head on the problems visited on Americans by previous generations of irresponsible corporate action, steering the company through tort claims resulting from decades of asbestos issues while increasing profitability. Fanning negotiated multi-million dollar settlements and worked one-on-one with attorneys representing large blocks of claimants in 50 states. The plan was thereafter templated by other companies impacted by the asbestos mass tort contingent liability burden. The innovative solution was reported with respect in Fortune Magazine.

The troubled company exited bankruptcy in 2002, at which time Fanning retired and headed to Montana. to the life of a rancher, living his love of the land and hunting, tossing his cell phone out the window of his car. He believed he was leaving the corporate world behind him when he bought Next Best Thing Ranch. But the Federal government and the ugly realities of wolf reintroduction forced him to reconsider his options.

Fanning holds in his mind the image of a pack of wolves holding down a pregnant cow elk as they eat out her unborn calf before finishing her off, leaving her body to rot. The herd, once numbering 16,000 today waivers at around 4,000 and its members are aging rapidly as they are not being replaced. 

The Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd, beset by the reintroduction of wolves in numbers which guaranteed the end of their existence, needed a friend. They found that friend in Bob Fanning. Founded in 1999 Friends of the Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd, Inc., in Pray Montana. The group, headquartered in Fanning's home, which overlooks Yellowstone, grew to 3,742 members.

It took twelve years, three experts in biology, a constant reiteration of the facts and six million dollars of Fanning's money to accomplish the goal achieving the delisting of introduced wolves who are destroying the existing ecosystem. .

Fanning, with his background in the corporate world, saw clearly where Maurice Strong's Agenda 21 was headed, forcing rural residents into towns and cities, and was determined to stop it.

Fanning's cowboy hat is in the ring for the governorship of Montana because he understands the noose tightening around the necks of Americans today. He will return Montana to the people.

Bob Fanning is better qualified to run for president than anyone presently campaigning for that office - but he understands the problem cannot be solved at the Federal level. Let the reclaiming of America begin in Montana, Fanning says. “We have the Tenth Amendment and we will use it.”

If you care about your freedom turn your eyes north to Pray, Montana.