My first read every day is The Federalist, and there I found a very interesting article by Margot Cleveland. In it, she reveals some research that The Federalist has been doing about the federal government’s plans to monitor speech. Not just the speech of journalists and politicians, but also churches, and even individuals. What would they do with this information?

Excerpt:

Our government is preparing to monitor every word Americans say on the internet—the speech of journalists, politicians, religious organizations, advocacy groups, and even private citizens. Should those conversations conflict with the government’s viewpoint about what is in the best interests of our country and her citizens, that speech will be silenced.

[…]Research by The Federalist reveals our tax dollars are funding the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-learning (ML) technology that will allow the government to easily discover “problematic” speech and track Americans reading or partaking in such conversations.

Then, in partnership with Big Tech, Big Business, and media outlets, the government will ensure the speech is censored, under the guise of combatting “misinformation” and “disinformation.”

Here’s how they found out what the government is doing:

The federal government has awarded more than 500-plus contracts or grants related to “misinformation” or “disinformation” since 2020. One predominant area of research pushed by the Department of Defense involves the use of AI and ML technology to monitor or listen to internet “conversations.”

Originally used as a marketing tool for businesses to track discussions about their brands and products and to track competitors, the DOD and other federal agencies are now paying for-profit public relations and communications firms to convert their technology into tools for the government to monitor speech on the internet.

What’s troubling about this for me is the not only that truth-tellers would be censored, or labeled “domestic terrorists” and harassed by law enforcement. That’s already happening in the United States. Just look at the Twitter Files revelations. My concern is the freezing of bank accounts as coercion. That’s already happening in Canada. And it would be even easier to do if we converted to a digital currency, that was used by all of our banks.

Here’s a Wall Street Journal article:

“Central-bank digital currency” doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. But you might want to get used to saying it. These so-called CBDCs, or digital versions of dollars, yuan, euros, yen or any other currency, are coming, say those who study them. And depending on how they are designed and rolled out, their impact on the banking system could be profound.

[…]The U.S. is studying the issue and has run trials of various technologies to enable a digital currency, although Fed chair Jerome Powell has indicated the U.S. central bank has no plans to create one, and won’t do so without direction from Congress.

[…]First, there is the obvious issue of privacy. A digital currency could allow governments to track every transaction a person makes, no matter how minute. This level of transparency would be a powerful disincentive to using these currencies for crime or fraud, but it could also open the door to new kinds of social control, especially in countries with already-scant protections for human rights.

For example, says Dr. Prasad, a government could make it impossible to spend the digital currency on things the ruling party deems problematic… The government also could make transacting with certain people difficult or impossible—China already has a social credit system that ranks citizens algorithmically, and punishes them in various ways.

Here’s Joe Biden’s position on digital currency, reported by NBC News:

The Biden administration is putting its support behind the research and development of a “U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency,” or CBDC.

The move is part of a sweeping executive order President Joe Biden signed Wednesday instructing the federal government to explore possible uses of and regulations for digital assets like cryptocurrencies.

And here’s Ron DeSantis’ position on digital currency, reported by Townhall:

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday moved to protect The Sunshine State from the Biden administration’s potential “weaponization of the financial sector” through a Central Bank Digital Currency.

The legislative proposal would amend the state’s Uniform Commercial Code to prohibit the use of federal or foreign CBDC and calls on other states to join in the fight by instituting similar prohibitions.

There are very clear differences between Democrats and Republicans on the issues of surveillance, censorship, coercion and totalitarianism. Something to think about, as we approach the 2024 elections. Choose wisely.