tinydancer
Diamond Member
As many are finally becoming aware that our men in blue aren't in blue but in full scale combat gear these days Salon lays out some very chilling facts based on findings by the ACLU, the New York Times.
Disturbing to say the least. I know I've been witnessing an escalation of militarization of not only the police but of government agencies as well.
And although the bulk of this is occurring "in the Obama era" NYT piece the blame goes right across the board because all local governments and state governments are footing the bill for this equipment along with federal monies.
I think it's time to really put representatives from all levels on the hot seat. And if they weren't directly responsible for the funding, they were at the very least at fault for not being aware of what has become the militarization of the police and government agencies.
Bi partisan rant here.
Solid article at Salon that links to the NYT.
11 chilling facts about America's militarized police force (Credit: Reuters/Philip Andrews)
The war on terror has come homeand its wreaking havoc on innocent American lives. The culprit is the militarization of the police.
The weapons used in the war on terror that destroyed Afghanistan and Iraq have made their way to local law enforcement. While police forces across the country began a process of militarization complete with SWAT teams and flash-bang grenades when President Reagan intensified the war on drugs, the post-9/11 war on terror has added fuel to the fire.
Through laws and regulations like a provision in defense budgets that authorize the Pentagon to transfer surplus military gear to police forces, local law enforcement are using weapons found on the battlefields of South Asia and the Middle East.
A recent New York Times article by Matt Apuzzo reported that in the Obama era, police departments have received tens of thousands of machine guns; nearly 200,000 ammunition magazines;
thousands of pieces of camouflage and night-vision equipment; and hundreds of silencers, armored cars and aircraft.
The result is that police agencies around the nation possess military-grade equipment, turning officers who are supposed to fight crime and protect communities into what look like invading forces from an army.
And military-style police raids have increased in recent years, with one count putting the number at 80,000 such raids last year.
In June, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought more attention to police militarization when it issued a comprehensive, nearly 100-page (appendix and endnotes included) report titled,War Comes Home: The Excessive Militarization of American Policing.
Based on public records requests to more than 260 law enforcement agencies in 26 states, the ACLU concluded that American policing has become excessively militarized through the use of weapons and tactics designed for the battlefield and that this militarization unfairly impacts people of color and undermines individual liberties, and it has been allowed to happen in the absence of any meaningful public discussion.
11 chilling facts about America?s militarized police force - Salon.com
Disturbing to say the least. I know I've been witnessing an escalation of militarization of not only the police but of government agencies as well.
And although the bulk of this is occurring "in the Obama era" NYT piece the blame goes right across the board because all local governments and state governments are footing the bill for this equipment along with federal monies.
I think it's time to really put representatives from all levels on the hot seat. And if they weren't directly responsible for the funding, they were at the very least at fault for not being aware of what has become the militarization of the police and government agencies.
Bi partisan rant here.
Solid article at Salon that links to the NYT.
11 chilling facts about America's militarized police force (Credit: Reuters/Philip Andrews)
The war on terror has come homeand its wreaking havoc on innocent American lives. The culprit is the militarization of the police.
The weapons used in the war on terror that destroyed Afghanistan and Iraq have made their way to local law enforcement. While police forces across the country began a process of militarization complete with SWAT teams and flash-bang grenades when President Reagan intensified the war on drugs, the post-9/11 war on terror has added fuel to the fire.
Through laws and regulations like a provision in defense budgets that authorize the Pentagon to transfer surplus military gear to police forces, local law enforcement are using weapons found on the battlefields of South Asia and the Middle East.
A recent New York Times article by Matt Apuzzo reported that in the Obama era, police departments have received tens of thousands of machine guns; nearly 200,000 ammunition magazines;
thousands of pieces of camouflage and night-vision equipment; and hundreds of silencers, armored cars and aircraft.
The result is that police agencies around the nation possess military-grade equipment, turning officers who are supposed to fight crime and protect communities into what look like invading forces from an army.
And military-style police raids have increased in recent years, with one count putting the number at 80,000 such raids last year.
In June, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought more attention to police militarization when it issued a comprehensive, nearly 100-page (appendix and endnotes included) report titled,War Comes Home: The Excessive Militarization of American Policing.
Based on public records requests to more than 260 law enforcement agencies in 26 states, the ACLU concluded that American policing has become excessively militarized through the use of weapons and tactics designed for the battlefield and that this militarization unfairly impacts people of color and undermines individual liberties, and it has been allowed to happen in the absence of any meaningful public discussion.
11 chilling facts about America?s militarized police force - Salon.com