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Rand Paul: We Must Demilitarize the Police
Time ^ | 8/14/14 | Rand Paul

Posted on 08/14/2014 12:00:52 PM PDT by Valpal1

The shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown is an awful tragedy that continues to send shockwaves through the community of Ferguson, Missouri and across the nation.

If I had been told to get out of the street as a teenager, there would have been a distinct possibility that I might have smarted off. But, I wouldn’t have expected to be shot.

The outrage in Ferguson is understandable—though there is never an excuse for rioting or looting. There is a legitimate role for the police to keep the peace, but there should be a difference between a police response and a military response.

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


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government
KEYWORDS: libtardian
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To: Eric in the Ozarks
"... NOAA, the Department of Agriculture, Commerce and EPA all have their own SWAT teams."

Hardly the tip of the iceberg.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Railroad Retirement Board have SWAT teams.

Railroad Retirement Board!?

It's absurd. Who can justify this?

21 posted on 08/14/2014 12:51:38 PM PDT by The KG9 Kid
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To: Valpal1

I agree with you-the towns here are policed by the county sheriff, and it works-no pretty toys or political agendas to harass people with.


22 posted on 08/14/2014 12:52:10 PM PDT by Texan5 ("You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to draw a hard line"...)
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To: Valpal1

Me too.


23 posted on 08/14/2014 12:53:19 PM PDT by jmacusa (Liberalism defined: When mom and dad go away for the weekend and the kids are in charge.)
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To: apoliticalone

I think there should not be any paramilitary SWAT type hardware in the hands of any local police force, period. If we need it, leave it in the hands of the County Sheriffs, who are usually accountable for their actions directly to the voters. If the local cops need the equipment, it’s a phone call away, they just don’t get to play with it themselves.


24 posted on 08/14/2014 1:00:07 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: Valpal1; All
There are TOO MANY COPS with TOO MANY WEAPONS>

Every thinking citizen needs to lobby their City/County governments to REDUCE POLICE BUDGETS.

It's the only way to bring these guys under control.

At most they need to be 1/2 of what the are today.

After all, we DO have a 2nd Amendment and our founders would be aghast when a town of 8,500 can have a 12 man SWAT team with automatic weapons and a sniper and a M113 APC.

That is NOT civilian policing.

Also, at the state level, be sure you are active in the repeal of no-knock warrants. There is NEVER a good reason to use them short of a terrorist and nuke.

We on the Right bear large responsibility for this "Standing Army" and it's up to us to dismantle it.

25 posted on 08/14/2014 1:01:53 PM PDT by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: Forgotten Amendments

“Actually, it’s the “moderates” and the non-ACLU left along with a few ancient conservatives (O’Reilly watchers) who aren’t aware of this issue.”

I’m not talking about the main issue he is discussing in the article, I said I agreed with that sentiment in the first sentence of my comment. It’s his tying it to the Michael Brown affair, uncritically, without bothering to wait for the evidence or finding out the real story that is what I am talking about.


26 posted on 08/14/2014 1:02:05 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: Beagle8U

You would be correct.

Rand is grandstanding his issue which is gun control .. and/or isolationism.

Will never vote for him.


27 posted on 08/14/2014 1:09:32 PM PDT by CyberAnt (True the Vote: " MY AMERICA, ... I'm terrified it's slipping away.")
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To: Valpal1

Police of which I am aware carry a pistol and have a shotgun in the trunk of the patrol car. Back at the station house there is an arms room with additional weapons, tear gas canisters, etc. They now wear flack jackets - hardly a military unit.

Most gangs have police outgunned.


28 posted on 08/14/2014 1:18:05 PM PDT by elpadre (AfganistaMr Obama said the goal was to "disrupt, dismantle and defeat al-hereQaeda" and its allies.)
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To: Beagle8U

Agree on both.


29 posted on 08/14/2014 1:20:52 PM PDT by showme_the_Glory ((ILLEGAL: prohibited by law. ALIEN: Owing political allegiance to another country or government))
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To: CyberAnt

He lost me with his pandering to low info voters over voting rights and I myself am a former felon who votes.

Its an issue for individual states to decide and him flapping his gums about small government while actively encouraging stripping even more powers away from the states is disgusting.


30 posted on 08/14/2014 1:23:19 PM PDT by cripplecreek ("Moderates" are lying manipulative bottom feeding scum.)
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To: RIghtwardHo; All

Well, would you rather that our local police departments have to face drug dealers or terrorists .. by using the standard handgun (38) .. while the bad guys are sporting AK-47’s and other assorted bad ass weaponry ..??

People need to stop only the militarized units like those connected with Cabinet posts. These are overkill and not necessary.

Also, there was a great series a few years ago called “Manhunters”. It was a counter-terrorism unit consisting of police from city, county, state and Fed. They were the most awesome people you would ever want to meet. They went after the hard-core felons who had either escaped from prison; had some court issues, or were on parole and not reporting. These are the “militarized” police you want on our side .. they are descent and concerned about protecting the people from thugs.

If the Obama admin manages to take our guns away .. this country is over and done. Their gun programs have nothing to do with protecting anybody .. they have to do with: CONTROLLING THE PEOPLE.

I sure hope American citizens are paying attention.


31 posted on 08/14/2014 1:26:28 PM PDT by CyberAnt (True the Vote: " MY AMERICA, ... I'm terrified it's slipping away.")
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To: Valpal1

Wait, what? Rand said something that’s not off the wall and I agree with? Where’s my calendar, I gotta mark this down.


32 posted on 08/14/2014 1:29:14 PM PDT by Mastador1 (I'll take a bad dog over a good politician any day!)
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To: Valpal1

This is a red herring. The police did not go into Military mode until well after the shooting. It wasn’t until the good citizens of Ferguson took it upon themselves to burn the town to the ground that the police donned their riot gear.

Rand Paul is just trying to pander to the Black voters like he has been trying to pander to the illegal alien voters.

Everything he has been saying lately is STUPID.


33 posted on 08/14/2014 1:29:45 PM PDT by P-Marlowe (There can be no Victory without a fight and no battle without wounds)
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To: Valpal1

The solution does not begin at the federal level, but for the individual states to pass “police de-paramilitarization laws”. Until this is actively debated at the state level, the worms in the woodwork who have been pushing for police paramilitarization all these years will stay hidden.

Lindsay Graham made a TV speech just a few days ago, calling for even more paramilitarization of the police at all levels, but especially the federal level. So he is definitely in the wrong column with this.

But his allies must be revealed. They like to hide their push for paramilitarization in defense and homeland security bills, but the light needs to be shined on them.


34 posted on 08/14/2014 1:36:08 PM PDT by yefragetuwrabrumuy ("Don't compare me to the almighty, compare me to the alternative." -Obama, 09-24-11)
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To: cotton1706

I was wondering if, instead of raising their hands to taunt the police, they gave the Nazi salute along with the Seig Heils. Make a great photo op as a comment on the over-militarization.


35 posted on 08/14/2014 1:42:48 PM PDT by Oatka (This is America. Assimilate or evaporate.)
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To: RIghtwardHo

“Gee ya think? Patriot Act killed a Nation. After that passed the Feds gave MAJOR grants (in the ludicrous name of ‘fighting terrorism’) to States to help them militarize the police.
We are in BIG trouble. It may indeed be too late.”

It probably is already too late.
This started in GWBs first term plenty of Freepers cheered him on.
The WOT was the top priority never mind civil liberties everything had changed and we were all in immediate danger of being killed in an attack by militant Islam.

Never mind the fact that for that super vast majority they had a better chance of getting bit by a rattlesnake than ever being anywhere near a terrorist attack.

The left screamed about the loss of freedoms, the right said it was national security and anybody against it was a traitor.
It was going to be ok because GWB was our guy.

Then we got Obama now the left had their guy and would roll back the PA and all the other outrages they’d bleated about for almost 8 years.

Except Obama didn’t. In fact he doubled down with warrentless wiretaps and unmanned drones and further militarizing of local law enforcement.

The right screamed then about loss of freedoms and the left played the patriot card.

And most Americans, left, right, and center, acted exactly like scared little kids.
We divided into 2 groups and fought each other. Both sides were happy to eat another $hit sandwich as long as it was “Our Guy” who served it up.

But we don’t have a guy and the libs don’t either. The guys at the top, both parties, have much more in common with each other than they do with anybody not in the power structure.

Us at the bottom are just the mules they rode to the top of the hill.

I never bought into the argument that Islam was anything to be afraid of but the fear of that incited millions of Americans to voluntarily grant power to a group who would undoubtedly wield it against us. Our own government.


36 posted on 08/14/2014 1:59:43 PM PDT by snarkybob
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To: CyberAnt
Meet a Town That's Had Enough of Militarized Policing

Barry Michigan recognized that they had the power to deal with the issue. People need to stop blaming everybody else and deal with it.

Ferguson MO. is a perfect example of people letting things happen and only then complaining about it. The city is more than 70% black but has a 6 man city council made up of 5 whites and 1 hispanic. Whos' fault is that? They've got an overwhelmingly white police force. Again, whos' fault is that?
37 posted on 08/14/2014 2:06:50 PM PDT by cripplecreek ("Moderates" are lying manipulative bottom feeding scum.)
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To: apoliticalone; Valpal1
Hey it’s a fine line but my beliefs on this changed enough in the past couple years to feel uncomfortable with putting military hardware in the hands of local police, and I agree with Rand Paul. SWAT teams should be rarely deployed.

They were initially developed to deal with extremely dangerous and armed individuals, hostage/rescue situations etc...

That has ALL changed now...

38 posted on 08/14/2014 2:12:55 PM PDT by dragnet2 (Diversion and evasion are tools of deceit)
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To: Beagle8U
This are cops in riot gear:

This are cops in Ferguson:

I think Senator Paul has a point.

39 posted on 08/14/2014 2:18:31 PM PDT by magellan
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To: Valpal1

I hate it when there’s a game on and no team to root for.


40 posted on 08/14/2014 2:20:17 PM PDT by 03A3 (The reset is gonna be epic.)
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