Posted on 03/18/2024 11:53:47 AM PDT by george76
Another step towards implementing a Social Credit system..
Financial privacy is a right under the constitution, as is free speech.
Under the guise of “credit review”, Stripe is now rolling out a requirement that appears to target conservative or "anti-vax" Substack authors. Stripe is requiring that these authors provide all of their current and historic financial records associated with the bank account into which Stripe deposits Substack subscriber payments (after taking 10% off the top for Substack and 3% for Stripe). Stripe already has information concerning this bank account (including deposits from Stripe), as we have been doing business with Stripe via this account for over two years.
If I or anyone else agree to these new terms, this newly implemented arbitrary, capricious and overreaching requirement will provide Stripe with complete records of all financial transactions associated with this account. Consequently, this will provide Stripe with comprehensive information on all of my customers, patients and clients, all of my travel (historic and planned), all of my purchases, and any donations (and donor information). This information from my account and those of any others who comply with this demand can be hacked or sold, provided to the US Government, used to fuel predictive algorithms (AI), used to derive insights into my political orientation, weaponized against me by press or other hostile actors, or used to support future social credit score-based restrictions.
Stripe has a history of financially de-platforming (or de-banking) for political reasons, including removing support for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. Despite its relatively recent entry into the financial transaction business, Stripe has become a major global financial organization, and processed one Trillion US Dollars in payments during 2023, and is now expanding its credit charge program.
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Substack requires that authors use Stripe for all Substack-related financial transactions including subscriptions. This policy on all subscriber transactions is despite the availability of alternative payment processing organizations, which refuse to engage in debanking. In other words, Stripe has been granted a monopoly over all Substack transactions, and so if a Substack author wishes to accept paid subscriptions, they must use Stripe. This enables Stripe to function as a gatekeeper for Substack content. Although Substack has touted its commitment to free speech, the reality is far different from the pretty words.
For example, although Substack claims to not permit harassment, there are multiple Substack authors who continually harass and cyberstalk me (and others), including expressing claims that that I am a mass murderer and should be tried and hung. Complaints to Substack fall on deaf ears. Cyberstalking is a crime.
With that in mind, we commit to keeping Substack wide open as a platform, accepting of views from across the political spectrum. We will resist public pressure to suppress voices that loud objectors deem unacceptable. … Of course, there are limits. We do not allow porn on Substack, for example, or spam. We do not allow doxxing or harassment. We have content guidelines (which will evolve as Substack grows) with narrowly construed prohibitions with which writers must comply. But these guidelines are designed to protect the viability of the platform at the extremes, not act as a filter through which we see the world. There will always be many writers on Substack with whom we strongly disagree, and we will err on the side of respecting their right to express themselves, and readers’ right to decide for themselves what to read.
And now this. Stripe is requiring access to all financial transaction records from selected (targeted) authors’ bank accounts which receive subscription revenue from their Substack work product. The following is the key clause included in Stripe’s demand statement. While the initial message indicates that this is a request, subsequent communication from both Stripe and Substack has demanded that I comply within seven days or Stripe will cease transferring funds into my account.
“When you first set up your Stripe account, we asked you to connect your bank account in order to receive payouts. We are now requesting that you link your bank account, which involves sharing details and activity relating to your bank account with Stripe. This includes your current account balance and transactions, as well as historical transactions.”
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In reviewing the Stripe 2023/2024 US Verification Requirements Update and Services Agreement, I do not see anything that requires a linking of an account to continue doing business. It appears that this may be unfair targeting of this account.
In response to this financial threat, I immediately retained an experienced California-based first amendment Attorney (Mark Meuser of the Dhillon Law Group) to guide my response. This comes at considerable personal expense, but I knew that if I did not respond immediately and appropriately, I would lose my only source of revenue and many others would likely be targeted by the same policy. This was clearly another case of needing to promptly “do the right thing” to push back against this new form of censorship, which appears to be an attempt to vacuum up financial transaction data from myself and others which can then be weaponized, traded and/or sold to third parties including the US Government. I have been told to anticipate that the legal case against this new Stripe/Substack policy will require approximately $100,000 to prosecute.
I have now been contacted by other politically conservative Substack authors who have received the same demand correspondence from Stripe and Substack.
Since Mr. Mark Meuser responded with a formal legal letter to Stripe and Substack one week ago, as of this moment Stripe has NOT followed through with their threat to stop processing Substack subscriber payments.
In their correspondence, Stripe indicates that selected Authors must link the account for Stripe review due to the US Government’s KYC policy, and with this KYC policy Stripe is that they are just doing what the government bureaucrats are telling them to do. As such, if they are really being required to link Author accounts because the government is telling them to, they should have no problem producing the evidence that the government has told them to link your account. This evidence has not been provided to date, despite a legal letter sent to Stripe (with a copy to Substack) by the Attorney which I have retained to guide me in my response to this demand.
To date, neither Stripe nor Substack have responded to the legal letter regarding this matter sent a week ago by Mr. Meuser. I have received multiple inquiries by Substack suggesting that I speak personally and informally to their corporate liaison at Stripe, but they refuse to communicate directly with Mr. Meuser, so he has again sent an email requesting a meeting. Based on the nature of their outrageous demands, I have been advised to not enter into informal discussions with Stripe, and have redirected these inquires back to my Attorney.
UN Agenda 21 , 2030 , Great Reset, ( Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)
I am confused, why can’t the author get another bank account and use it only for stripe payments ?
Because the revenue stream comes via Substack, and Substack uses only Stripe for payment processing.
This sort of thing is why Gab set up their own payment processing system.
You should still be able to open a clean bank account at a new bank just for the stripe transactions. “Here’s my transaction list: 3/18/2024 $10 opening deposit. End of list.”
Sounds like Substack needs to set up their own payment processing system, like GAB did.
I wonder which FR $hot $hill is in charge of Stripe payments 🤔
Fair. And you shouldn’t have to jump through that hoop. It is long past time to push back on these Fascists.
I had an online business that used Stripe. Talk about fascist pigs. Started by two Irish POS in SF. The thing is, it’s easy to find some credit card processor that doesn’t give a crap about your politics or what you sell as long as it’s legal. Drop these pigs and get another one.
Indeed. This is creepy. Everyone will need a separate bank account exclusively for stripe deposits just to maintain financial privacy. Then you can perhaps transfer the funds out, but they could end up seeing those transfers as well, and find another way to snoop on more of your accounts without you even knowing. You could come up with an elaborate process where you use the funds to buy crypto, use a crypto tumbler, then cash them out and deposit the proceeds. But even that isn’t foolproof especially with computers that read the blockchain and follow the coins. It’s silly if people need to go to extremes just to monetize their creative skills without fear of financial retribution or cancellation.
It is a shame but maybe Congress needs to pass a law guaranteeing that people cannot be de-banked for anything other than maybe fraud on the bank.
The guy is an idiot for using the same account for substack and regular business transactions.
Just have a separate bank account just for substack.
We need someone with deep pockets to fund lawsuits. This is not legal or allowable. It’s certainly not constitutional, but it takes money to fight.
Bkmk.
bookmark
Time to boycott businesses that use Stripe to process payments.
Annnnd they find out all about your subscribers...I figure that’s the real reason for this new tightening the screws.....
Thanks for posting this article.
I received it via email today.
None of this is surprising, but it is revealing about why Stripe is changing policy, with addition of their new staff members.
The Weaponizing of Fed Gov and financial agencies access to what should be private data.
Feds conducted ‘broad’ and ‘unjustified’ surveillance of Americans’ private financial data: House Judiciary (Mar 6, 2024)
Feds used terms like MAGA, Trump, Biden, Kamala, as well as some religious terms, to search private transactions
Thanks
Hearing on the Weaponization of the Federal Government (Mar 7, 2024)
https://judiciary.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/hearing-weaponization-federal-government-6
https://judiciary.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings
Thank you.
Fyi please share
We are in the midst of ecological disaster near Hornbrook Ca.
Today Siskiyou County will declare a disaster, ask for relief for CITIZENS being persecuted, robbed of their homes and lives.
We must stop the completion of breaching of Irongate Dam or the land will never recover.
Complete media coverup!
A law firm is flying in today to meet with residents
https://www.siskiyou.news/2024/03/17/klamath-river-dams-krrcs-sediment-plan-a-ticking-time-bomb/
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