..."Balko traces the trend toward militarization of police forces to the early years of the Reagan administration when the president "and a compliant Congress passed the Military Cooperation with Law Enforcement Act, which allowed and encouraged the military to give local, state, and federal police access to military bases, research, and equipment." This measure, he wrote, "authorized the military to train civilian police officers to use the newly available equipment, instructed the military to share drug-war–related information with civilian police and authorized the military to take an active role in preventing drugs from entering the country." This involvement of the military in domestic drug matters came despite the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which prohibits the government from using the U.S. military in domestic policing."... (emphasis added NjW)
..."In the 17 years since 1994, Balko wrote, "literally millions of pieces of equipment designed for use on a foreign battlefield have been handed over for use on U.S. streets, against U.S. citizens." ...
""in the eyes of the state we are increasingly no longer citizens with constitutional rights but enemy combatants." - Chris Hedges
cop POLICE MILITARIZATION - THE 'BLACK WALL'
If you think the Black Wall is intimidating, try facing down a line-up of these monsters from building-line to building-line across Times Square:
cop ROBOTIC OSTRICH RUNS 20MPH - DARPA's FastRunner gizmag 11-16-11
cop QUANTICO, VA PROTEST (for Bradley Manning) EXPOSES STATE's LIMITED RESPONSE OPTIONS #14.52 youtube 03-21-11
I believe 'overreacting' best describes the attitude of law enforcement today, as in this example:
cop NO I.D. RESULTS IN 36-HOUR DETENTION IN NYC mathaba.net
Nigel Watson freethinker 727.493.1990 skype orbizen2
Blog: ORBizen Memo http://orbizenmemo.blogspot.com/
"There is no greater disaster than greed." – Lao-tzu
"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." - Krishnamurti
2 comments:
You hit the nail on the head. Protest the tyranny of the 1% and you get classified and treated as a terrorist.
We are on the cusp of very interesting times.
The teabaggers and police, who should be supporting protests against the criminality of wall street and a corrupt government that looks the other way (and has taxpayers handing money over to the wealthy) either sit on their hands or criminally assault peaceful protesters. It just shows them as authoritarian junkies, lap dogs of the 1%. This, I think, will not end in peaceful change by a government suddenly representing all of us but. An oppressed population's coherent response, when self-government is denied them can lead to violence against the ignorant authoritarians, the 1% and the representatives who have done so much to make our lives meaner.
Thanx for your thouhtful feedback, Sue. We are indeed headed for a dark place, but the cavalry may yet arrive in the nick of time to salvage our conflicted species.
Many good folks are doing their darnedest to move us the right way - for the good of all. Do what you can an so will I.
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