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You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / Commando Cops

Commando Cops

by Betty Cracker|  May 18, 20155:28 pm| 54 Comments

This post is in: Domestic Politics, Open Threads, Politics, Shitty Cops

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Well, this is a good start:

CAMDEN, N.J. — President Obama on Monday banned the federal provision of some types of military-style equipment to local police departments and sharply restricted the availability of others.

The ban is part of Mr. Obama’s push to ease tensions between law enforcement and minority communities in reaction to the crises in Baltimore; Ferguson, Mo.; and other cities.

I’m old enough to remember when it was startling to see cops wearing combat gear and carrying military-style rifles. Those days are gone.

But making the police force look less like an occupying army is a small step in the right direction. Now we need to figure out how to train cops to act less like an occupying force dealing with hostiles.

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Reader Interactions

54Comments

  1. 1.

    scav

    May 18, 2015 at 5:30 pm

    We all read that the other way, didn’t we?

  2. 2.

    Elizabelle

    May 18, 2015 at 5:31 pm

    I meant to watch that speech. From Camden? Maybe C-Span has it.

    Good to know. Police are meant to be guardians of the community, “protect and serve.”

    Not warriors, not an occupying force, not “search and destroy.”

    The Obama administration can do a lot of good on this issue.

  3. 3.

    Elizabelle

    May 18, 2015 at 5:31 pm

    @scav: Going commando? Tee hee.

  4. 4.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 5:32 pm

    So @POTUS is officially a twitter handle. I’ll assume maybe it’ll be handed down from POTUS to POTUS?

    Something for you all to love. Bill Clinton tweeted @POTUS and the response I’m sure ya’ll will love.

    @billclinton 1h1 hour ago
    Welcome to @Twitter, @POTUS! One question: Does that username stay with the office? #askingforafriend

    @POTUS
    Good question, @billclinton. The handle comes with the house. Know anyone interested in @FLOTUS?

    https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/600407380279566336

  5. 5.

    Valdivia

    May 18, 2015 at 5:34 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    lol, I thought of that too.

  6. 6.

    catclub

    May 18, 2015 at 5:34 pm

    Only slightly OT: Misunderstood white guy, not scary murderer-terrorist wanna-be.

    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/robert-doggart-islamberg-plot

    The recently unsealed criminal complaint, dated April 13, alleged that Doggart had threatened to burn down several buildings in a Muslim community near Hancock, New York, nicknamed by its residents as “Islamberg” — and even kill residents if it came down to that. He planned to enlist the help of members of a militia called “OAF” to carry out the plot.

    Federal marshals arrested Doggart on April 10. He ultimately signed an agreement under which he would enter a guilty plea to a single charge of interstate communication of a threat and was released from custody on $30,000 bond.

  7. 7.

    scav

    May 18, 2015 at 5:34 pm

    @lamh36: They’ve still got the quick ones, don’t they.

  8. 8.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 5:38 pm

    Cuba’s Elian Gonzalez, now grown up, hopes to return to US http://a.msn.com/01/en-us/BBjVf1f?ocid=st

    ETA: I can still remember the picture of him in a closet with military guns drawn

  9. 9.

    Gin & Tonic

    May 18, 2015 at 5:39 pm

    @catclub: I’m trying to wrap my head around what could possibly be threatening to anyone, even a lunatic, in Hancock. I’ve been there (a friend has a vacation place there) and it’s the middle of fucking nowhere, with a population of like 1,000.

  10. 10.

    Betty Cracker

    May 18, 2015 at 5:40 pm

    @lamh36: Saw that story on another site. He grew up to be a handsome young man!

  11. 11.

    Valdivia

    May 18, 2015 at 5:41 pm

    @lamh36:

    that was such a funny exchange.

  12. 12.

    lol

    May 18, 2015 at 5:41 pm

    Of course, the police have never needed military gear to suppress local minority populations.

  13. 13.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 5:43 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Was just adding that I vividly remember that picture of him in the closet in a family members armed with military guns pointed towards them..

    Wow

  14. 14.

    opium4themasses

    May 18, 2015 at 5:45 pm

    Obviously, this all a part of the plan to disarm America so Jade Helm 16 will be able to conquer the US. They almost did it this year, but Greg Abbott was too wily. After the liberal media discredited him, Abbott may be too gun shy next year.

  15. 15.

    Betty Cracker

    May 18, 2015 at 5:46 pm

    @lamh36: For years afterward in Tampa there was a billboard with that picture on it. Some folks weren’t happy that the kid was sent back to his dad, but sanity prevailed. Seems like the kid turned out okay.

  16. 16.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 5:57 pm

    @Betty Cracker: seems like.

    So I wonder what gonna happen if his wish is granted? Would be interesting with the current immigration “debates” going on her now

  17. 17.

    scav

    May 18, 2015 at 6:02 pm

    @lamh36: But’s it’s only a visit as a tourist no, so not especially relevant.

  18. 18.

    Roger Moore

    May 18, 2015 at 6:04 pm

    @lamh36:
    That Obama character certainly is a sharp one.

  19. 19.

    Cacti

    May 18, 2015 at 6:07 pm

    I’m only in my late 30s, and I remember when SWAT teams, and tactical gear/vehicles were pretty much limited to major urban or metropolitan police departments.

    Now, any town with more than 25,000 people has a SWAT team, and towns as small as 8,000-10,000 people have MRAPs and Humvees acquired through the DoD.

  20. 20.

    Roger Moore

    May 18, 2015 at 6:09 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    I’m trying to wrap my head around what could possibly be threatening to anyone, even a lunatic, in Hancock.

    Any community can be home to a scary crazy person. I never thought of my home town as being a scary place growing up, but that didn’t stop a nut from taking a bunch of people hostage. I don’t know that having a SWAT team helped the situation any, but I can understand why some people thought it was good to have one.

  21. 21.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 6:13 pm

    Hmmm…alot of things get thrown around in custody fights, but if I recall, wasn’t Bill O alleged to have tried to get the PD to investigate his ex-wife’s then boyfriend and there was also the story about him trying to get her ex-communicated from the Catholic church…

    Either way, just another thing to add to Bill O’Reilly is a jackass file, as if we really needed another?

    Bill O’Reilly Accused of Domestic Violence in Custody Battle

  22. 22.

    srv

    May 18, 2015 at 6:14 pm

    Yesterday Ramadi, Today Camden.

    There are a lot of cities to abandon.

  23. 23.

    Davebo

    May 18, 2015 at 6:20 pm

    Off topic but this is going to be a big problem for Obama/Clinton.

    http://www.cbsnews.com/news/report-u-s-released-thousands-of-immigrant-felons-last-year/

  24. 24.

    max

    May 18, 2015 at 6:22 pm

    But making the police force look less like an occupying army is a small step in the right direction.

    Basically they’ve barred sales of actual tanks and greater than 50 caliber machine guns. So that’s something.

    max
    [‘The MRAPs by themselves don’t bother me, but the full machine guns bug me still.’]

  25. 25.

    Mandalay

    May 18, 2015 at 6:23 pm

    Completely O/T, but the right wing Conservative Party, which decisively won the British election a couple of weeks ago, is revealing its priority:

    David Cameron will pledge to deliver the world’s first seven day-a-week universal health service that will guarantee care to patients “wherever they are and whenever they need it”.

    Kinda sad to realize that the Democratic Party here is way to the right of the Conservatives in Britain.

  26. 26.

    Sly

    May 18, 2015 at 6:25 pm

    The ban is part of Mr. Obama’s push to ease tensions between law enforcement and minority communities in reaction to the crises in Baltimore; Ferguson, Mo.; and other cities.

    Pffft. Black men just need to be better fathers and husbands, just like Bill O’Reilly says.

  27. 27.

    dedc79

    May 18, 2015 at 6:26 pm

    Good. We don’t want the texas cops to be able to join the armed resistance when the army invades that hostile territory.

  28. 28.

    chopper

    May 18, 2015 at 6:31 pm

    @Davebo:

    Immigration Studies (CIS) – a group that advocates for lower levels of legal immigration

    clearly a group without an agenda. i’ll wait to see if it actually pans out first.

  29. 29.

    JPL

    May 18, 2015 at 6:36 pm

    @Sly: Huffington and Mediate haven’t reported the Gawker story, and if they don’t, it will be gone tomorrow.

    iokiyr

  30. 30.

    Tripod

    May 18, 2015 at 6:40 pm

    Maybe dialing down the drug war and sane gun control measures would alleviate much of the need for tactical teams.

  31. 31.

    Howard Beale IV

    May 18, 2015 at 6:40 pm

    Now some of these cops are pissed they won’t have further access to grenade launchers and bayonets. WTF?

  32. 32.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 6:41 pm

    Ok, so I see lotsa of people tweeting @POTUS, do they NOT realize that EVERY tweet to this account is being archived?

    I mean I noticed this when I saw @POTUS first tweet. It say so on the page.

    On Twitter, the White House automatically archives “tweets” from official White House accounts, “direct messages” sent to or from official White House accounts, and “mentions” (tweets from other users to official White House accounts; these tweets contain an @ and the username of an official White House account (e.g., @WhiteHouse).

    Reading this Gawker post made me LMAO at people really seem NOT to understand how the internet works sometimes.

    The White House Is Archiving Every Tweet Begging @POTUS for Sex

  33. 33.

    SpotWeld

    May 18, 2015 at 6:44 pm

    Every time I hear about a police dept. that is so very proud of its MRAP or up-armored transport vehicle, I just can’t help but think … “what joker is getting stuck with the job of driving and maintaining that White Elephant”

    Somewhere in every Police Dept. or Sheriff’s Office there’s a top guy who *love* his special operations units. The ones he likes to show off with all their toys.

    But when it comes down to the budget, some guy at the bottom of the ladder is told to make sure it’s all shiny, but don’t spend a dime more than necessary on those patrol cars.

    (I’ll hold back on my criticism for towns with rugged terrain, flooding, or heavy snows where a military grade vehicle is somewhat needed for search and rescue or similar)

  34. 34.

    Davebo

    May 18, 2015 at 6:45 pm

    @chopper:

    The group is irrelevant. DOJ’s new FIFO policy is just beginning to cause ripples but there is a tidal wave there.

    You can discount CIS but when the word spread’s of Holder’s FIFO policy people are, rightly, going to be pretty angry.

  35. 35.

    debbie

    May 18, 2015 at 6:49 pm

    @lamh36:

    Hope they get that knock on the door.

  36. 36.

    Baud

    May 18, 2015 at 6:51 pm

    @lamh36:

    @FEMAcamps

  37. 37.

    lamh36

    May 18, 2015 at 6:51 pm

    @debbie: Gawker is mostly focusing on the sexual tweets, but still, it amazes me how some of the same people who distrust gov’t and such are so quick to post and say and do stuff online, all willy nily…especially young people who are supposed to be more internet saavy?

  38. 38.

    different-church-lady

    May 18, 2015 at 6:53 pm

    @Mandalay: The Brits have a loooooooooooooooong head start on us in regards to a sane approach to health care.

  39. 39.

    shell

    May 18, 2015 at 6:55 pm

    @Betty Cracker: And he’s engaged!

  40. 40.

    Poopyman

    May 18, 2015 at 6:56 pm

    @lamh36: Uh huh! Maybe that’s why Bill was interested in the account “for a friend”.

  41. 41.

    debbie

    May 18, 2015 at 6:56 pm

    @lamh36:

    This reminds me of one of my brothers who, when a little kid, would stand behind a rail post fence and because he couldn’t see my mom standing at the back door, he figured she couldn’t see him. Clever is as clever does.

  42. 42.

    Omnes Omnibus

    May 18, 2015 at 7:02 pm

    @debbie: Your brother is a ravenous bugblatter beast of Traal? The holidays must be interesting.

  43. 43.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    May 18, 2015 at 7:06 pm

    There’s that number again.

    Yes, as we saw above, rank-and-file Republicans said the Iraq War wasn’t worth it by 63-27. But in the context of a primary season, that 27 can be as loud as or louder than the 63. It’s probably the 27 who are more likely to vote or attend caucuses, which means the minority would have inordinate influence over the shape of the candidates’ rhetoric.

  44. 44.

    Germy Shoemangler

    May 18, 2015 at 7:07 pm

    Inside Amy Schumer: Babies & Bustiers

  45. 45.

    jl

    May 18, 2015 at 7:08 pm

    Probably another plot by the nefarious Obama to disarm the US so those people can take over. And there are many many ‘those people’ waiting in the wings. Too many to count.

    Maybe the well armed patriotic Texas biker gangs can keep us safe.

  46. 46.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    May 18, 2015 at 7:14 pm

    @efgoldman: Didn’t you just have like 9 feet of snow? That cannon might come in useful.

  47. 47.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    May 18, 2015 at 7:17 pm

    Now put cops in those ugly little compacts with the baby wail siren.

  48. 48.

    Monkeyfister

    May 18, 2015 at 7:23 pm

    One thing is unclear to me.
    Do they have to give back what has already been provided?
    If not, isn’t the toothpaste already out of the tube?

  49. 49.

    catclub

    May 18, 2015 at 7:29 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Just be sure to know where your towel is.

  50. 50.

    chopper

    May 18, 2015 at 7:39 pm

    @efgoldman:
    how else do you deal with errant yetis when on a snowy search and rescue operation?

  51. 51.

    justawriter

    May 18, 2015 at 7:39 pm

    It’s all Robert Urich’s fault
    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072560/?ref_=nv_sr_3
    Of course, 40 years ago these guys needed to be specially trained. Now its 10 weeks at a community college. Barney Fife would take away most of these guy’s bullets. (if you got the references, you’re old too)

  52. 52.

    Omnes Omnibus

    May 18, 2015 at 7:47 pm

    @efgoldman: That’s why you need the bayonets.

  53. 53.

    bemused

    May 18, 2015 at 8:06 pm

    Waco PD issued Officer Safety Alert that biker gangs ordered to kill “anyone in uniform”.

    Today Texas lawmakers had hearing on bill to allow licensed open carry in public. Austin Asst Police Chief said open carry would have complicated efforts of law enforcement in Waco biker violence.

  54. 54.

    Ruckus

    May 18, 2015 at 10:34 pm

    @SpotWeld:
    Most departments that have rough terrain or lots of snow have had some vehicles suited for that for decades. A decent civilian 4×4 does that. What the police departments want is an armored vehicle and some want heavy firepower, like .50 cal automatic machine guns, for crowd control I imagine.

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