South Carolina measure requiring terrorists to register for $5 becomes law

[meegbear]

Source: RawStory.com

Terrorists who want to overthrow the United States government must now register with South Carolina's Secretary of State and declare their intentions -- or face a $25,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison.

The state's "Subversive Activities Registration Act," passed last year and now officially on the books, states that "every member of a subversive organization, or an organization subject to foreign control, every foreign agent and every person who advocates, teaches, advises or practices the duty, necessity or propriety of controlling, conducting, seizing or overthrowing the government of the United States ... shall register with the Secretary of State." There's even a $5 filing fee.

By "subversive organization," the law means "every corporation, society, association, camp, group, bund, political party, assembly, body or organization, composed of two or more persons, which directly or indirectly advocates, advises, teaches or practices the duty, necessity or propriety of controlling, conducting, seizing or overthrowing the government of the United States (or) of this State."

A PDF of the registration form can be found here, courtesy of FitsNews.

Read more: http://rawstory.com/2010/02/south-carolinas-subversive-activities-registration-act-force/

[tularetom]

1. Either you made that up or it's really from the Onion

Clever how you tweaked all the links to make it look real.

[NightWatcher]

2. hmmm, let's use this

Let's start to look for links of SC representatives who have accepted lobbyists funds from foreign corps

"controlling, conducting.... the government of the United States"

If Sen Graham has taken one nickle from a foreign group, BOOM! 10 years.

[NC_Nurse]

3. WTF? Are they really that stupid?

I'm sure they'll get a lot of response. I wonder what the real motivation for this is.

[jmowreader]

22. It's one of those "add-on" laws

Obviously no one who is actually a terrorist is going to send in his five bucks--although you may see a bunch of these certificates in basement bars in the future. They'll be between the "Mail Order Ministry" and "Honorary Texan" certificates. But should they actually catch someone trying to pull a terrorist act, they can charge him with terrorism, conspiracy to commit terrorism and failure to register as a terrorist.

[bulloney]

28. These same people give you the "if guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns" argument.

[Mike K]

36. The, "If Guns Are Outlawed . . . " -

- ditty makes sense. This terrorism thing doesn't.

Can it be that South Carolina's legislators have nothing better to do, or that they really are this inane?

[napi21]

4. WHAT???? I must be stupid today! WHY would any person,

group, business, or anything else that has terrorist intentions want to declare them by signing some stupid registration form?

[jberryhill]

33. It allows the state to prosecute for what might otherwise only be federal crimes /nt

[Demeter]

5. Well, that's US, then

It's a good trick--and a nifty way to balance the state budget.

When the "terrorists" outnumber the non-terrorists, can we declare the revolution is won, without even firing a shot? At $5 a head, that's a damn cheap and profitable revolution for all parties. And everybody is eligible, Tea Party, Democratic Party, Greens, even the Xtian Fundies. We all are advocating overthrow. If we were all pointing in the same direction, it would be done already.

[GodlessBiker]

6. Let's see now, what exactly does the definition of "subversive organization" imply...

By "subversive organization," the law means "every . . . organization, composed of two or more persons, which directly or indirectly advocates . . . controlling . . . the government of the United States...."

That would be, then, the Republican Party?

[CurtEastPoint]

7. Bingo! Mass enroll every GOPrick. n/t

[NJmaverick]

8. Do the tea baggers have to file?

[rcrush]

9. Alright where do I sign up?

[burning rain]

10. Funny....

sort of like how the military still asks whether you're a communist or member of another organization dedicated to the violent overthrow of the government, when you enlist. Of course, the South Carolina law provides something else authorities can charge a terrorist with.

[Romulox]

11. Um, South Carolina? A little more reading up on your Constitution is in order...

Maybe catch a Matlock marathon or something...jeesh.

[onehandle]

12. Jeez. How many terrorists are there in South Carolina? Must be a lot for this to happen.

Republicans suck on national security.

[Oregone]

13. In case people don't understand how this law could be used...

If people exercise their free speech to merely teach the necessity of a revolution (not actually advocate one), they face 10 years in jail and a $25,000 fine.

This isn't about getting people to register. Its about punishing free speech rights. You can construe so much as a violation of this law.

[Wizard777]

30. Far worse. If you VOTE you are trying to "Control" the government.

If you are not also a registered subversive. They can put you in jail for 10 years.

[apnu]

14. Kooky, what's next a $10 registration fee for bank robbers? Also, how about secessionists?

There's no end for where this can go?

$5 fee for arsonists to register. $15 fee for stock brokers. $10 fee for pusher registration.

SC just settled on a new revenue stream!

[Oregone]

15. This isn't about getting people to register

Subversive people wouldn't anyway.

Its about throwing people in jail because you don't like what they are saying. Its a violation of free speech in a guise

[denverbill]

16. Pretty funny. Wasn't SC the first state to secede from the Union? n/t

[benh57]

17. Fees for hard-working terrorists

It's not right that in today's economy, the hard-working terrorists of our nation should be subjected to such unnecessary fees. This is why we have a high unemployment rate in our industry. I'm writing my congressperson and going to talk to my jihadi cleric about this.

[tinrobot]

18. Very dangerous law...

It easily could be used to throw dissenters into jail, and I suspect those dissenters will be overwhelmingly liberal.

[M155Y_A1CH]

19. Do Democrats have to register?

I am a member of a political party that aims at
conducting the government towards change.

That language includes just about everybody, doesn't it.

:shrug:

[LiberalLovinLug]

23. that's the point

They could target peace groups, animal rights groups, gay rights groups etc...anyone who speaks out against the status quo. If this is real, its actually not that funny.

[populistdriven]

20. i for one definitely advocate overthrowing the south carolina state government

[dixiegrrrrl]

21. So, language in the Declaration of Independence is now illegal in SC.

And if any SC Duers ever posted a direct quote from the Declaration of Independence, DU is in trouble.
Somebody should tell Skinner that DU may be illegal in SC.

"That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
and
"it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.-"

[Flaneur]

24. I think I'll register. And keep the card right next to my marijuana tax stamp.

[Rambis]

25. I will be getting one of those right after my drug tax stamps

:evilgrin:

[Dappleganger]

26. I'd like to see this fiasco of a law pass Constitutional muster.

Sincerely doubt that it will.

[MidwestTransplant]

27. I'll kick in the $5 filing fee for the Teabaggers.

[Wizard777]

29. Introducing the $5 bill bomb brought to you by the makers of the shoe bomb and underwear bomb.

:eyes: Ron White was right. You can't fix stupid.

[KamaAina]

31. And Jon Stewart gets another installment of "Thank You, South Carolina"

Charleston native Stephen Colbert was busy spoonfeeding his Grammy and could not be reached for comment. :-)

[struggle4progress]

32. Unless SC applies this to secessionists, they'll have trouble with unequal enforcement

[TheCowsCameHome]

34. Maybe it's included in the official Appalachian Trail hiking permit.

I'll ask Mark Sanford.

[LiberalFighter]

35. Why don't they require anyone with intentions to murder anyone to register?

[sakabatou]

37. ::facepalm::

[aquart]

38. Sarah Palin advocated revolution today, did she not?

That said, South Carolina is the state where the governor went AWOL? Nutty place.

[superconnected]

39. Sounds like right wing "patriots" making a law, to me.

[AlienGirl]

40. Why this could go very wrong:

The Subversive Activities Registration Act applies to “every member of a subversive organization, or an organization subject to foreign control, every foreign agent and every person who advocates, teaches, advises or practices the duty, necessity or propriety of controlling, conducting, seizing or overthrowing the government of the United States ....”

First question: who defines "subversive"? Is the campus socialist club subversive? How about the IWW?

Second: "organizations subject to foreign control" could include the Catholic church, which is led by the Vatican--a foreign nation. (This was one reason JFK was such a controversial candidate: would he be loyal to America, or to the Vatican?)

Third: what exactly constitutes a "foreign agent"? Will people with dual citizenship have to register? How about people who qualify for dual citizenship, for instance a child of parents who immigrated from Ireland and became US citizens? (That child qualifies for Irish citizenship, so is a potential dual citizen.)

Fourth: advocating "controlling or conducting" the government is pretty vague and sounds like what every politician, political action group, and political party does.

There seem to be too many ways this could go terribly wrong.

Tucker

[regnaD kciN]

42. Exactly...this has nothing to do with "terrorists"...

It has to do with an extra hammer to use on anyone considered "subversive."

Say, you are part of a progressive group, and participate in a peaceful protest march against a future Republican government. Protesting peaceably is, of course, protected by the First Amendment, but, using this law, South Carolina authorities could simply round the protesters up, declare that their organization was "subversive," show that everyone there failed to register with the state as a member of a subversive organization, and -- ta-daa! -- all those participating in the protest get ten-year sentences, plus a hefty fine.

Connecting it with "terrorism" is merely a smokescreen -- this is about criminalizing political action against the rulers of the time.

[New Dawn]

41. McCarthyism.

[Odin2005]

43. WTF is this shit?

[Blue_Tires]

44. so the klan has to be the first to sign up??

[Spoonman]

45. Along with the following:

La Raza,
Black Panther Party,
New Black Panther Party,
Socialist Workers party,
Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA)

This is simply a "State" extension of the Smith Act (1940).