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It's remarkable how totalitarianism seeps in.
by cwillu 3y ago
It's remarkable how totalitarianism seeps in.
- jonahbenton 3y agoIt's interesting, it really isn't totalitarianism, actually the opposite, in a way that 20th C writers were simply not able to imagine. There is no centralization/dictatorial dynamic for this in the US, at all. It is all decentralized, at best these outcomes fall into the "unintended consequences of regulation" category, which is rather well studied, but in a much more simplified world model than we face today.
- wrycoder 3y agoThe actors know their lines well, they don’t need direction. In German, it’s called Gleichschaltung.
- BlueTemplar 3y agoHow is it not ? > If the bank has filed a SAR, it isn’t legally allowed to tell you, and the federal government prosecutes only a small fraction of the people whom the banks document in their SARs. Sounds worryingly similar to an effective violation of habeas corpus ? P.S.: To make the matters worse, it looks that trying to rely more on cash as an insurance against getting debanked, raises your risk of getting debanked !
- pas 3y agothat's not totalitarianism. it's a shitty system with a ridiculously bad trade off (catching some money launderers versus fucking innocent customers) the problem is that banks can't handle this requirement well. if they think something is suspicious, sure file the SAR/CTR, and then if they think there's a need for KYC, tell the customer that. the customer provides information about the transaction, the bank then can chill the fuck out. if this keeps going on they can eventually tell the customer that okay, it's too much work for them, please close the account in 1 month. but no, they immediately switch into this crusader mode, because it's just easier for them, and customers have no recourse.
- salawat 3y ago>There is no centralization/dictatorial dynamic for this in the US, at all. You are incredibly incorrect on that assertion. There is, in fact, a centralization/dictatorial dynamic at play, and it's called the Bank Secrecy Act. Now it doesn't read like it, which most acts of american legislature don't, but on further observation of what it actually does, the intent becomes clear. There is one financial system in the U.S., you will play by it's rules or be excluded, it won't tell you why, it will not be a dumb pipe either. It is directly coupled to law enforcement, and the Federal Government, and yes, there is a Master list that if you get on it, will lock you out of withdrawing from (but not depositing into!) every U.S. bank. Part of why I no longer do finance work. Once you see how the sausage is made, there is no shower hot enough to slough off the slimey feeling.
- CamperBob2 3y agoRead the comments on the article at the NYT, as well. Notice how many people take the banks' side. Whatever happens to you is fine and dandy as long as it doesn't happen to them... and it probably won't happen to them.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- blooalien 3y ago> "and it probably won't happen to them." Until it does ... at which point they'll scream "Bloody Murder!" and ask "How could this happen to me?"
- gorbachev 3y agoThe most tragic thing about this is that most of the legislators are exactly the same. There's no problem until it happens to them. It's acceptable for "others" to be thought of as drug dealers and other miscreants who don't deserve to have bank accounts.
- genewitch 3y agoLeopards ate my face? Reminds me of that D.A. that walked into a bank during the covid masking era and ruminated that they'd locked up people for less. I'm unsure if they changed their tactics or whatever because of this.
- throw08112023 3y agoLol, NYT subscribers, what did you expect? Those people are clinically retarded
- obviouslynotme 3y agoMost people are totalitarian in a few ways. Some people hate drugs. Everyone hates crime. The homeless cause social issues. Some people want their religion enforced. Some people hate foreigners. Most people grant these powers to the government hoping to get their pet peeve taken care of, and are surprised when the government not only doesn't do what they promised, but turn those powers onto its own favorite victims instead.
- advael 3y agoI don't see any of those "pet peeves" as justifying totalitarian policy, and people who do are useful idiots for authoritarian projects
- nostrademons 3y agoI think that was the point. There are a lot of useful idiots out there.
- junofan 3y agoTotalitarianism means the state has total authority. There’s no such thing as à la carte totalitarianism. How we deal with crime, drugs, religion, homelessness, and assimilation falls under social contract theory.
- motohagiography 3y agoThat word, I do not think it means what you think it means. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Origins_of_Totalitarianism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Origins_of_Totalitarianism