Column: The militarization of U.S. police forces

Reuters ^ | 10/22/2013 | Michael Shank and Elizabeth Beavers

[stevie_d_64]

This month, more Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected vehicles (MRAPs) have found their way from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to the Main Streets of America. These are just the latest acquisitions in a growing practice by Pentagon that's militarizing America's municipal police forces.

Police departments in Boise and Nampa, Idaho, each acquired an MRAP, as did the force in High Springs, Florida. The offer of war-ready machinery, at practically no cost, has proven hard to resist for local police departments. Increasingly, they are looking like soldiers equipped for battle.

The growing similarity between our domestic police forces and the U.S. military is a result of the Pentagon's 1033 Program. This allows the Defense Department to donate surplus military equipment and weapons to law enforcement agencies. In addition to the frightening presence of paramilitary weapons in American towns, the program has led to rampant fraud and abuse.

[mandaladon]

“To Serve and Protect” is now “To snoop and Intimidate” we’re fast becoming a police state.

[henkster]

In 1928 the average German would have said the same thing with the same sarcasm. In 1941 they rounded up Jews. In 1955 they all asked “how could we have let this happen?” And they lost their sense of sarcasm.

[ZULU]

SCARY, SCARY stuff.

The National Guard is the one military force CLOSEST to the people. The police establishment is a union-controlled conclave of special interest groups and Obama is steadily gathering personal control over the regular military forces.

[calico_thompson]

It only took Hitler about a year to place the local police and the town’s mayors and local governments under his national control.

[Theoria]

'The US military cannot be used for enforcement of civil order within the United States, because of something called the Posse Comitatus act of 1878, which is still in effect. When soldiers are deployed to enforce civil order, they are National Guard units, state militia, ostensibly called up by the state governor of the particular state involved, but if the Guard units are nationalized, they must cease their efforts at maintaining law enforcement.'

That is no longer true.

The Pres now has the power to use fed troops to enforce the law, as long as it meets the designated 'terms'.

Section 1068.

'Sec. 333. Interference with State and Federal law

`The President, by using the militia or the armed forces, or both, or by any other means, shall take such measures as he considers necessary to suppress, in a State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy, if it--

`(1) so hinders the execution of the laws of that State, and of the United States within the State, that any part or class of its people is deprived of a right, privilege, immunity, or protection named in the Constitution and secured by law, and the constituted authorities of that State are unable, fail, or refuse to protect that right, privilege, or immunity, or to give that protection; or

`(2) opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws.

In any situation covered by clause (1), the State shall be considered to have denied the equal protection of the laws secured by the Constitution.'.

(2) PROCLAMATION TO DISPERSE- Section 334 of such title is amended by striking `or those obstructing the enforcement of the laws' after `insurgents'.

(3) HEADING AMENDMENT- The heading of chapter 15 of such title is amended to read as follows:'

That is alot 'better' than a few years ago. When the Pres took over the National Guard[pdf]. Lol.

[hoosierham]

You said,no doubt as a smart-ass:

“Yep, during infantry training we were instructed how to kill mom and pop while they sleep and eat babies. Our instructors were Himmler eisengruppen and we pledged fealty to Hitler. All soldiers and Marines are Nazis. All sailors fly the skull and bones and are really pirates who while away the day burying treasure on islands.”

Ridiculing the complainant and not answering the concern.

BUT way back in 1995 my co-worker ,who was in the Ohio National Guard ,bragged about their training to “handle” protesters including using bayonets .
He asserted that he WOULD follow orders to bayonet sitting protesters.

Perhaps you missed seeing those law enforcement firearms training targets featuring pregnant women,women with children,old man in home,etc.

People will respond as they have been trained;that is why there IS training.

Training works. And the police are being trained to protect only themselves and the “rulers”.

Decades of “call 9-1-1” have conditioned Americans to think the police are needed for every situation, rather than the citizen taking prudent action.How else explain calls to 9-1-1 over Happy Meals and such? And look at the number of mentally ill shot down by police, or the people murdered in their own home by police raiding the wrong address?

The Founders rightfully feared a standing army,because in the best case it is a temptation for politicians to use as the hammer for every problem;and in the worst case the standing army is the tool used to oppress and terrorize the citizenry.

Even as far back as Rome they understood the dangers of the army under a charismatic leader turning on the people.

The current police view of all non-police as civilians as though police officers are something other than civilians is a very dangerous mindset.Allowing the police to feel too special is a threat to freedom of everyone. I have been stopped on my way home from work by state police who were young and very aggressive.The offenses were a headlight that had burned out literally moments before DURING the drive on one occasion,and license plate lights that had burned out unknown to me(how many people really think about checking those).I realize the officers hoped to make a DUI arrest or something;and finding just someone going home from second shift work was a let-down.The state officer in the license light stop refused to give a reason for the stop when demanding my license and a few minutes later returned with a printed violation .(computer printed right in his car,those are mobile offices).Not polite or friendly at all in either case. Today's police are just too confrontational. There has been a real shift in attitudes of police in America,and if it doesn't concern you, you are part of the problem.

[Robert Teesdale]

If I may be blunt...

As the trend in question accelerates, so does responsive adaptation.

No one likes to lose. Least of all a free people.

[Political Junkie Too]

I grew up watching "Officer Joe Bolton" on TV after school, introducing Dick Tracy and The Three Stooges.

They're not your grandfather's police officers anymore!

-PJ

[Robert Teesdale]

I would be interested in seeing any calculations performed by one mathematically inclined, demonstrating the identifying the necessary size of a crowd intent on simply toppling a MRAP onto its side.

Occupants of an immobilized vehicle must at some point exit if they do not wish to incinerate within it.

[Robert Teesdale]

As a matter of fact, it's been done already.

MRAP specifications

This one went off a bridge when the crowd had enough:

[Domangart]

Many or our local police and sheriff officers are, or have been in the guard at one time or another. Due to policy changes at the end of the Vietnam war our reserves were tasked to fight in the recent war of civilizations. When they came home, the had developed an aversion from getting shot by the town jerk. The bells and whistles make them feel better. You are always going to have losers show up from time to time.

[stevie_d_64]

We are rapidly learning across the country that our Sheriff’s (most of them) understand the situation, and can be counted on to back “our” play when the time comes...

Those jurisdictions in urban areas can be a little suspect to say the least...So I probably wouldn’t rely on them as much as I would a rural Law Enforcement authority...

[stevie_d_64]

True...

[stevie_d_64]

What is interesting about that comparison is that police forces today, they would never respect the work ethic of those that came before them when times were a little more civil...

But just as dangerous at times...

The forces today that would align themselves against the people of their community would find out very quickly how dangerous their underestimating our resolve would be...

Ohhh, and with that thought, remember during/after Katrina, the local police forces were suplemented by police volunteers from all over the country...And those folks didn’t give a rats about the populations sensibilities...Or rights for that matter...

That’s another aspect of how it can get out of control, if you inject outside help during “emergencies”...

[Robert Teesdale]

The Conditional Effect of Violence as a Political Tactic: Mass Insurgency, Welfare Generosity, and Electoral Context in the American States

Not what I was looking for, but the abstract is interesting enough.

[Mears]

“Go back and look at how Boston handled their crisis...For two little twerps that quite a few agencies already had a line on in the first place...They just didn’t put all the dots together, and having the force to subdue an entire city in this country was more acceptable than applying preventative medicine to the sore...”

—

What did the Boston PD do——the chaos after the bombings was in Cambridge and Watertown?

What city was subdued? I live in that area and I wasn’t “subdued”.

.

.

[Political Junkie Too]

On thing, though, is that "Officer Joe Bolton" was a TV character who hosted daytime children's shows on WPIX Channel 11 in New York City after school.

He was paired with "Captain Jack McCarthy," who ran the Popeye cartoons.

-PJ

[Robert Teesdale]

The Tactics of Insurgent Groups in the Republic of Chechnya

Written by a Russian colonel and translated by the Foreign Military Studies Office at Fort Leavenworth. Some comments:

When estimating the composition and numbers of the insurgent groups, their “reserves” must also be considered. These are sympathetic groups of the populace who have permanent places of residence and are outwardly law-abiding citizens but who almost always have hidden weapons caches. Former members of the insurgent groups may also belong to the reserve. These are people who, during disarmament programs, “voluntarily” refused to support the insurgents, laid down their arms, and gained legal status. From time to time, these two types of reserves merge into active rebel detachments to take part in large-scale actions. They also perform intelligence work and spread disinformation among the forces of order...

Baron von Steuben falls under the next item.

insurgent groups also include mercenaries and volunteers from other regions and from abroad. The mercenaries are the best-trained and most combat-ready fighters and are utilized for the most difficult missions that require a high degree of competence. They also work as advisors for detachment commanders and as instructors at training centers. They may be combined into separate detachments (or comprise their core) that are used for specific combat involving terror and special actions.

Which raises, of course, an interesting question. Assume for a moment that there is open civil insurrection in the United States. What dispersal of foreign fighters might one find in, say, Dearborn v. Laredo?

Might make the basis for an interesting story.

[stevie_d_64]

If I had said the “Boston area”...Would that have been more accurate??? I don’t know all the little suburbs and townships in that area...

What I said was a blanket term...Not intended to insult or harm...

If you were not subdued, or told to remain in your homes under lockdown, then you were fortunate...If you were not dragged from those homes with your hands in the air (like ya just don’t care) till the police cleared your home, then again, you were fortunate...

My bad if I misspoke about the Boston PD, I’m sure they are a great group of guys and gals just doing their jobs everyday for their community...

[sneakers]

My husband and I were going through a small town (practically middle-of-nowhere) in Western Pa last week. In front of us was a heavily armored vehicle on a flatbed truck. The front was facing us and it said “TerraDyne”. I got some cellphone pics of it. Really creepy looking vehicle.