Richard Telofski on The War on Capitalism

FBI Launches Economic Espionage Awareness Campaign

Richard — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:14:58 +0000

The FBI has recently started an awareness campaign to caution American citizens against economic espionage in their workplaces.

What is economic espionage exactly?

Briefly economic espionage is defined by the United States Government in Title 18 U.S.C., Section 1831:

(a) In General.— Whoever, intending or knowing that the offense will benefit any foreign government, foreign instrumentality, or foreign agent, knowingly—

(1) steals, or without authorization appropriates, takes, carries away, or conceals, or by fraud, artifice, or deception obtains a trade secret; (2) without authorization copies, duplicates, sketches, draws, photographs, downloads, uploads, alters, destroys, photocopies, replicates, transmits, delivers, sends, mails, communicates, or conveys a trade secret; (3) receives, buys, or possesses a trade secret, knowing the same to have been stolen or appropriated, obtained, or converted without authorization; (4) attempts to commit any offense described in any of paragraphs (1) through (3); or (5) conspires with one or more other persons to commit any offense described in any of paragraphs (1) through (3), and one or more of such persons do any act to effect the object of the conspiracy.

Economic espionage has over the last few decades become an increasingly more serious problem in American business with estimates of lost value to the American economy ranging from a low of $13 billion to a high of $300 billion ($300 billion source is CIA, Inc., by FW Rustmann, page 121).

To help resolve this problem, the FBI has launched an awareness campaign designed to educate the public on the warning signs of this illegal and economically damaging activity. In this campaign, the FBI highlights nine behaviors that may indicate coworkers are stealing secrets from your employer:

They work odd hours without authorization. Without need or authorization, they take proprietary or other information home in hard copy form and/or on thumb drives, computer disks, or e-mail. They unnecessarily copy material, especially if it’s proprietary or classified. They disregard company policies about installing personal software or hardware, accessing restricted websites, conducting unauthorized searches, or downloading confidential material. They take short trips to foreign countries for unexplained reasons. They engage in suspicious personal contacts with competitors, business partners, or other unauthorized individuals. They buy things they can’t afford. They are overwhelmed by life crises or career disappointments. They are concerned about being investigated, leaving traps to detect searches of their home or office or looking for listening devices or cameras.

The FBI requests that if you suspect anyone in your company of committing economic espionage, that you contact your company security department or your local FBI office.

President Hollande’s Opus

Richard — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:11:51 +0000

This is NOT a picture of President Hollande.

Today is a day of change for France. And regarding that change, for many economic observers, today’s inauguration of François Hollande, a socialist, as president of France spells economic disaster not only for France but for the EuroZone in general, as well as the United States.

The thinking behind this sky-is-falling philosophy is that as le nouveau president plays his socialist symphony in a country already wracked with debt and marred with a sliding credit rating the individual motivation to produce will be discouraged, disinviting growth, decreasing tax revenue, and will ultimately result in a call for only more socialist intervention.

Certainly this logical sequence of events might play out if the supreme Gaulist socialist does indeed implement his collectivist passions. But there is one thing he’s going to need before he can even begin to do this.

D’argent. Delneros. Moolah. Money.

The country is already wracked with debt and suffers from a declining credit rating, remember? How is he going to get the financing for the conducting of a socialist symphony that would make Lenin weep with joy?

As a member of the EuroZone, France cannot simply print more money in the same manner as we do here in the Etats Unis. (You’ve heard of quantitative easing?) And selling more debt is likely to be dicey given their declining credit rating. (But then, of course, the Chinese might always be willing to take a chance.)

In order to get the financing to implement his socialist nirvana, le nouveau president will need to go hat in hand, almost literally, to Brussels as the seat of the European Union, or actually more practically speaking to Berlin. He’ll be looking for a loan. Angela Merkel is effectively the “banker of Europe” at this time, and getting a loan from that Teutonic loan officer is not going to be easy for the new French president. Complicating the landing of this loan is that fact that le nouveau president has not had any actual experience in managing anything. Not a café au lait stand, not a beret store, not a government bureau, not a French département (in the U.S. we know these as states), and certainly not a national government. Other than being a professional socialist (rather oxymoronic, isn’t it?) he has no experience, but yet he’s going to run a major world economy. (Where have we seen this before?)

Here’s what I think is likely to happen. Angela’s not going to like the look of his résumé. She’s not going to see any collateral on his loan application, she’s not going to like the slumping credit rating, and she’s certainly not going to like the theme of his opus that he’s written for the French people.

Do you think he’s going to get the Euros to present his concert?

Not bloody likely, as the probability would be assessed by another EU member.

So as far as all the recent economic sky-is-falling bemoaning goes, yes on the surface the election of this new socialist French

Continue reading President Hollande’s Opus

Greenpeace Wrangles the Law

Richard — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:59:01 +0000

On this site during this past March I wrote “Shell Plays Unique Legal Tactic.” The post dealt with some legal maneuvering undertaken by Shell Oil in order to pre-empt Greenpeace protest actions on its vessels headed to the American Arctic for summer drilling. The action took place in a United States District Court.

The result of the legal wrangling was that Shell successfully obtained a restraining order against Greenpeace which prevented the environmental activists from interfering with Shell operations in American waters.

As you know, Greenpeace likes to board vessels in order to chain themselves to the ship, preventing its operation. What Greenpeace also likes to do is read restraining orders very carefully. The federal court said that Greenpeace could not interfere with Shell operations in American waters.

A week ago today several Greenpeace activists were arrested by Swedish authorities for illegally boarding a Shell Oil-contracted ice breaker in the Baltic Sea.

Make a note. Greenpeace, like corporate lawyers, likes to read the fine print.

The Wait for Free Trade

Richard — Wed, 09 May 2012 12:58:09 +0000

If you happen to be sitting around right now, tapping your foot, waiting for free trade with China to materialize, then I’m glad I’m not you. I’ve got better things to do; so do you.

Learn why in my US Daily Review article “Waiting for Free Trade” that published yesterday.

A Long Journey Into Oblivion?

Richard — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:34:49 +0000

On February 28, 2012, to obtain a copyright registration, I sent the requisite two copies of my latest book, Living On a Meme, to the U.S. Register of Copyrights. I sent the package certified mail, return receipt requested.

On April 14, 2012, I received the return receipt postcard, which showed a receipt date stamp of March 5, 2012.

The return receipt took one month and nine days to journey to me, in New Jersey, from Washington DC. And please note that the return receipt was mailed from a U.S. Government agency and handled by a U.S. Government agency.

Just keep this in mind. These are the people who want to take responsibility for your health care.

Are we ultimately headed for a long journey into oblivion?

Get With It, America.

Richard — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:10:21 +0000

A couple of days ago, my article “America, Get the Lead Out” was published over at Business Excellence Online.

In the article I discuss a malaise of thinking that appears to be permeating the American mindset; one that holds us back from breaking through our current economic doldrums.

As a source of inspiration, please give the article a look.