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Sheriff Lott's New Toy
Reason.com ^ | 9.01.2008 | Rdley Balko

Posted on 09/11/2008 10:27:19 PM PDT by Oyarsa

The Richland County, South Carolina Sheriff's Department (that's them above) just obtained an armored personnel carrier, complete with a belt-fed, .50-cal turreted machine gun. Sheriff Leon Lott has charmingly named the vehicle "The Peacemaker," and insists that using a caliber of ammunition that even the U.S. military is reluctant to use against human targets (it's generally reserved for use against armored vehicles) will "save lives."

(Excerpt) Read more at reason.com ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events; US: South Carolina
KEYWORDS: bigbrother; donutwatch; govwatch; jbts; leonlott; lott; omg; richlandcounty; sheriff; tyrantsoncall
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To: jakerobins; Centurion2000
You will think that right up until the day that you are on receiving end of it; then you will be wide-eyed, open-mouthed, and wondering "What happened to my freedoms!?!?!?"

Although you may be being sarcastic. If you're not, you're nuts.

41 posted on 09/11/2008 11:25:40 PM PDT by FlyVet
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To: Oyarsa
Operation Garden Plot
42 posted on 09/11/2008 11:28:03 PM PDT by endthematrix
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To: Oyarsa

I can see the armored veheicle being of use in a hostage situation, or maybe a meth lab raid, if they need a reinforced door knocked down.

But the .50 MG ? The bullets from that thing will carry for miles and could kill people in the next block or the next county.


43 posted on 09/11/2008 11:28:28 PM PDT by buwaya
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To: Oyarsa

I can see the armored veheicle being of use in a hostage situation, or maybe a meth lab raid, if they need a reinforced door knocked down.

But the .50 MG ? The bullets from that thing will carry for miles and could kill people in the next block or the next county.


44 posted on 09/11/2008 11:29:46 PM PDT by buwaya
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To: noutopia

Under what exact circumstances would *police* be justified in using a weapon that can go completely through buildings and has a lethal range of well over a mile ?


45 posted on 09/11/2008 11:32:26 PM PDT by PLMerite ("Unarmed, one can only flee from Evil. But Evil isn't overcome by fleeing from it." Jeff Cooper)
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To: Oyarsa
The lefty gun grabbers wet their pants over citizens owning a single-shot .50BMG rifle with a scope. This jackass Sheriff wants to use a belt fed version against his fellow citizens.

We have a local firearms collector with a similar belt fed .50BMG mounted "rat patrol" style on his truck. It's a bit costly to keep the beast fed. I've never heard the familiar sound of the rifle being fired here over the 8 years I've lived in the area.

46 posted on 09/11/2008 11:41:07 PM PDT by Myrddin
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To: jakerobins
But I don’t like to see them spend money on toys when better uses could be made.

Something like Drug Diversion programs or a Drug Court to free up jails not have to spend tax dollars building new ones and maintains old ones.

no offense, but properly utilized, this hardware is not intended to fill jails (body bags maybe)

47 posted on 09/11/2008 11:44:53 PM PDT by daku (Obama has experience pouring out of those big ears of his.)
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To: PLMerite

Raiding a meth lab? I have read those are some crazy people!! Not your average druggie paranoid/Violent/and well armed! Bad STUFF! I would like to get this drug off the street it destroys people inside and out. Somehow there is always a child inside as well?? But i’ve read the fumes are toxic I think you might have to call in HAZ/MAT for that cleanup. But ordinarily you aren’t going to find too many heavily armed dealers in SC. That’s why I Get angry. THE Results are never what’s promised. Sure drug arrests are up! But thats people with small amounts of the drug. And other drugs very small ammounts not dealers. The cops are either too lazy or uninformed to find the big guys. But I don’t beleve in taking a guy who has a small crack problem and putting him in prison. That doesn’t help anyone out. He needs help. And he’s not a dealer with one rock don’t know how they fudge the numbers on those busts. We really need to reform our system. We could save money and stop having to dish out Millions to build a super jail every few years. Need judges with common sense and alt sentencing no matter how bad you think Marijuana is someone carrying it in their car doesn’t deserve 5 years in PRISON. Thats excessive. They are in there with all types of violeent offenders. Generally I think Marijuana smokers are Non violent. Make them pay their debt or whatever just not so HORRIBLY OUT OF WHACK!


48 posted on 09/11/2008 11:46:38 PM PDT by jakerobins
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To: Oyarsa
Weren't those old M-113s made out of aluminum? And I wouldn't worry too much about these Keystone Kops and their new toy. I will predict that within 6 months, both the vehicle and the .50 BMG will be permanently broken down, nobody in the department will be able to fix them, and their budget won't pay for any qualified repairs.
49 posted on 09/11/2008 11:47:25 PM PDT by ozzymandus
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To: wardaddy

LOL as long as I was allowed to have the same goodies. A couple blocks of C4..M60 depleated uranium rounds. MY shoping list goodies would go for days.


50 posted on 09/11/2008 11:48:44 PM PDT by jakerobins
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To: jakerobins

Cops on average are good guys but can get a little too into it if you know what i mean. They like to play war with military weapons. I hate to say it...but his guy gives GUN TOTIN REDNECKS...A BAD NAME!! LOL


51 posted on 09/11/2008 11:51:21 PM PDT by jakerobins
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To: Centurion2000
Isn’t a .50 cal illegal to use on humans according to UN international law?

Laws of Land Warfare and the Geneva Convention.

Untrue as evidenced by fielding .50 cal sniper rifles.

AFI 51-402

Due to certain target effects of the Mk211, the Army is also working on a match grade .50-caliber ball ammunition specialized antipersonnel round for the XM107, designated as the XM1022 long range tactical sniper cartridge. The idea is to match the ballistics of the Mk211 in the new XM1022 round.

M2 Ball In marksmanship training, against personnel, and light materiel targets.

52 posted on 09/12/2008 12:19:05 AM PDT by xone
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To: jakerobins

Wow. Brevity is the soul of wit. Formatting is your friend.

The thrust of my question was why do the cops need a fully-automatic weapon with extreme penetration and range? Their job is to arrest people, not puree them.


53 posted on 09/12/2008 12:21:27 AM PDT by PLMerite ("Unarmed, one can only flee from Evil. But Evil isn't overcome by fleeing from it." Jeff Cooper)
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To: PLMerite

They don’t is exactly my Point. Just buying big trucks and Guns to make ovmpensate for something else. This man can’t be trusted with our tax dollars. I don’t want to fund this man...What do you need next an M1A1 Abrams tank? An ICBM with a nuke....What dear god will save us from the evil men.
Someone needs to reign in his spending and teach him about a budget.


54 posted on 09/12/2008 12:43:12 AM PDT by jakerobins
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To: jakerobins

Okay, that I understand and I agree with.

My apologies for not getting it the first time.


55 posted on 09/12/2008 1:10:44 AM PDT by PLMerite ("Unarmed, one can only flee from Evil. But Evil isn't overcome by fleeing from it." Jeff Cooper)
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To: T.L.Sink

well you know when you do enough no nock drugraids and kill the family dogs at enough wrong houses people start looseing respect for their lawenforcement officers, this little toy will just help to bring back the respect that they think they deserve.


56 posted on 09/12/2008 2:19:19 AM PDT by rednekelmo
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To: null and void

Don’t ya think just maybe the cops are a little over the top here?


57 posted on 09/12/2008 3:27:58 AM PDT by Joe Boucher (An enemy of Islam)
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To: null and void

How better to collect guns from the masses.


58 posted on 09/12/2008 3:30:46 AM PDT by bmwcyle (Vote McWhatshisname and PALIN)
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To: Tublecane
Kevin Costner was right to lock him away...

Wow! I never thought Costner was that old. Looks pretty good for being over 100!

59 posted on 09/12/2008 3:37:44 AM PDT by Fresh Wind (Tom Manion USMC '08!!)
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To: Oyarsa

This is precisely why I like the idea of elected sheriffs in law enforcement rather than police appointed by politicians.

With an elected sheriff, law enforcement is accountable to the people via the ballot box. The citizens can go to the ballot box and vote the sheriff out of office if they don’t like what he’s doing. That can’t happen with unelected police accountable to whatever Marxist politician currently holds office.


60 posted on 09/12/2008 6:13:23 AM PDT by sergeantdave (We are entering the Age of the Idiot)
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