I apologize in advance to the Mod that this is not so much a news article, but coming from a military background, I firmly believe that this is ‘intel’ that needs repeating loudly. I hope you understand.
Folks, we all know where things are headed in the United States. The tactics being used by ICE, the goalposts being moved for who the targets are, and the recent news that even “homegrown” people are going to be included soon on the planes to foreign supermax prisons where there is no escape from, this country is absolutely resembling pre-WWII Germany. People being taken off the street by masked individuals in unmarked vehicles and without any judicial hearing or oversight, being shipped off to a prison in a country they’ve never even been to, this is a 1:1 buildup of rounding up the “undesirables” in Germany. We know the fate of those when it happened back then, and make no mistake; the people who are sent there, even if they are US citizens (taken “by mistake” or not), they’re not coming back. They will not live long enough to serve out any prison term.
Which, leads me to the cause of this post: Protecting yourself and your family. Do not discuss, under any circumstances, Trump, MAGA, politics, or related news events with strangers, or to anyone who voted for MAGA. This even includes spouses (need I remind people about the MAGA supporter whose wife was deported, and felt no regret about his vote and said he would do it again).
If you are pressed into a corner for an opinion, play dumb. Say that you have so much going on with your own personal life (work, hobbies, sports, family, etc) that you can’t really follow what is happening anywhere else. The last thing you want to do is paint yourself as a potential political dissident; as someone who does not ‘toe the line’ when it comes to Trump’s policies and what is happening. There is little doubt that in the coming months, there will be a ‘tipline’ opened for people to report those who do not fall in line with the new rules.
In the military, we have something called “OPSEC”; Operations Security. You may recall hearing such saying as “loose lips sink ships”, and the literal meaning of that was to tell sailors that when in port, that when they go to the nearest bar and start discussing things (even amongst themselves) like where they came from, where they’re going, and what they’re carrying on board, they say things that can be overheard by adversaries who can take bits of info from each individual conversation and put together the big picture. Right now, this is how you need to operate. You need to go ‘grey man’, in a sense. Political bumper sticker on your car? Get rid of it. Still have a Harris flag hanging in your yard, or some other flag that is seen as ‘potentially dissident’ by MAGA? Take it down. Social media profiles like Facebook? Though the info has likely already been taken for analyzing, I still recommend scrubbing it entirely, even for things that are years old from Trump’s first term in office. Any keychains, clothing, or other identifiable markers that allow someone to place you as someone who, even loosely, “hates America” (since that will be the bar for who gets deported), you need to hide them away.
We’re not *at *a turning point in history, friends. We went around that bend months ago. We are firmly at the part where you need to be more cautious than you’ve ever been, to the point of not just paranoia, but I would say damn near **extreme **paranoia.
Here is what you can do to further protect yourself:
-If your phone still uses SMS, either get a phone and carrier that uses RCS. SMS is not encrypted, and can be intercepted and easily read.
-Even better, use a form of encrypted communication that is not stored on any server and can be set to be automatically deleted after a set time (like Signal, only don’t invite people you don’t want in the conversation).
-Cell phone calls are not recommended. Use Signal for voice calls.
-If you prep with close ones using Baofeng or other clear-comm radios, consider getting licensed for using encrypted voice radios known as DMRs.
-Look into other methods of encrypted communication as well, like Meshtastic.
-VPN. Get one. Worth it.
-If you protest, take care to hide your identity. Mask up, do not wear clothing that you’ve worn in any social media posts, do not take your own vehicle there, pay cash for public transit. For months, Federal agents have been gathering intel (to include photographic and video intel) on protesters.
-If you go to protests, or to any meetings with any similarly like-minded individuals to discuss anything in person, leave your phone behind. Same with smart watches. If you have a car with “smart” features (anything with satellite communications or cell data communications), pull the SIM card/satellite antenna cable, or yank the fuse to kill power to that functionality if you can. Might even be worth considering getting a ‘dumb’ vehicle. If you get a burner phone, pay cash only for it, at a smaller place that isn’t likely to keep video surveillance footage for long. Try to get one with a removeable battery. Do not insert the battery or turn the phone on while at, or driving to/from home. Look into de-Googling an older Android phone to allow you to completely shut off the cell antenna, and you can use that for Meshtastic communications, or going on wireless hotspots (but only as long as you can randomize or change your phone’s MAC address, and use a VPN).
In short, think of now as a time of war, and treat your communications, travels, and life accordingly. What you share, with whom you share it, where you share it. You make a mistake, it could end up with you being bagged and sent to a death camp.
Stay safe.
Further reading: https://www.thoughtco.com/who-supported-hitler-and-why-1221371 https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/z3bp82p/revision/6 https://www.tpr.org/podcast/the-source/2024-11-01/the-rise-of-adolf-hitler-and-the-parallels-with-u-s-politics-today
I hate that I have to up vote this post.
It absolutely enrages me that I had to write it.
Stay safe.
I agree we should all be doing most of the further steps you mentioned. Honestly I have been doing many of them, and still assuming that there is never a guarantee of privacy.
I will say, I feel the no discussion of politics rule will lead to fewer people being able to speak out while they still can.
Clearly, you should always be cautious about what you say around people you don’t know, but intimidating people into silence is definitely a win for this administration.
I live in a red state and while there will always be die hard MAGA supporters, these tariffs have definitely gotten many people understandably pissed off.
Both of our senators are conservative. One is a “moderate,” and has gone against Trump in the past but fallen in line way too often over the last year. He’s up for re-election next year, and trying to delicately dip his toes back into the questioning of Trump’s decisions.
The other could easily be considered a die hard MAGA senator. Even he went on Fox News last night, and said he believes Trump’s heart was in the right place but he wasn’t sure what was going on in his head when it comes to these tariffs. Which I know sounds weak AF as a criticism, but compared to his attitude a month ago, it actually seems like a small sign of progress.
I know even before Trump actually made it to office there were many Republicans who didn’t vote for him or support him after he won, but were afraid to speak out. I will also say, there are many federal employees who have been diverted to ICE as punishment, and who are being intimidated by the administration to crush dissent.
The administration is cracking down, and doing this show of force bc they are aware they do not have as much control as they would like people to believe. They know that the power they hold over many is mostly psychological.
I’m offering this advice as someone who has unfortunately dealt with too many nrcissistic bullies with authoritarian tendencies. Do not give an inch. If they can take something they will. There will certainly be situations when you cannot speak, but you shouldn’t comply in advance. Be smart and vigilant, but don’t be fearful.
-If you protest, take care to hide your identity. Mask up, do not wear clothing that you’ve worn in any social media posts, do not take your own vehicle there, pay cash for public transit. For months, Federal agents have been gathering intel (to include photographic and video intel) on protesters.
No phones! If you absolutely have to, use a burner phone: no biometric unlock, no PII (personally identifiable information) on the device/lockscreen. Take photos from the lockscreen without signing into the device. Do not connect cell service or to any WIFI access point.
Thanks, forgot to include that. Editing the post to include that and a few other things I meant to include similar to what you added.
