Ideological Meltdown
Jul. 21st, 2002 11:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bryantSo President Bush thinks we should re-examine the Posse Comitatus Act, which prevents our military forces from acting as law enforcement officials on U.S. soil. Senator Joe Biden (D-Delaware) thinks that amending that particular law is a dandy idea. Within limits. Hollow laughter on my part ensues.
You know, I'm not really big on governmental power in the first place, but I can acknowledge that there's training involved in being a cop. It is not the same as the training involved in being a soldier. Things could be worse. Putting the Army on the streets is worse, because you wind up with armed individuals who are not in any way competent to make the necessary decisions.
Conversely, military training is about securing and holding territory against opposition. I can't see why you'd want to confuse that with making 'em act like policemen, from a military point of view. "Yeah, we were short on MPs..."
Biden has said that he doesn't think the military should be arresting people, but it should be OK to use them in a support role. Interestingly, precedent says that the military is permitted to provide equipment and supplies, technical assistance, information, and training to law enforcement agencies. I kind of wish Biden had been a bit more specific. What more did he want, precisely?
This is why I'm not a Democrat. I know I have some friends who I've confused by that. Biden is a Democrat. Feinstein is a Democrat. Democratic politicians are not fighting for my civil rights. Screw 'em.
You know who is? Dick Armey, House Majority Leader. He just scrapped the entirely scary TIPS program, which would have set up a national system for reporting terrorist-related activity. The basic concept was getting mail carriers, meter readers, and other workers who see a large segment of the community daily to report suspicious things. The Postal Service said the other day that they weren't having any part of it. That warmed me; Dick Armey warms me even more. (Not a sentence I would have imagined typing a couple of years ago.)
Then again, Armey wants to roll the Coast Guard, Secret Service, and Border Patrol into the Department of Homeland Security. Never mind. It's not safe anywhere.
Tom Ridge, your U.S. Homeland Security Director, was quoted yesterday as saying "It's disconcerting and somewhat alarming that somebody is walking in with $12 million of currency, whether legit or not." Really? Whether it's legit or not? I think that if someone brings $12 million into the country, and it's legal money... maybe they're a weirdo, and maybe they have dark plans, but I don't think I'm automatically alarmed.
Bad times.
You know, I'm not really big on governmental power in the first place, but I can acknowledge that there's training involved in being a cop. It is not the same as the training involved in being a soldier. Things could be worse. Putting the Army on the streets is worse, because you wind up with armed individuals who are not in any way competent to make the necessary decisions.
Conversely, military training is about securing and holding territory against opposition. I can't see why you'd want to confuse that with making 'em act like policemen, from a military point of view. "Yeah, we were short on MPs..."
Biden has said that he doesn't think the military should be arresting people, but it should be OK to use them in a support role. Interestingly, precedent says that the military is permitted to provide equipment and supplies, technical assistance, information, and training to law enforcement agencies. I kind of wish Biden had been a bit more specific. What more did he want, precisely?
This is why I'm not a Democrat. I know I have some friends who I've confused by that. Biden is a Democrat. Feinstein is a Democrat. Democratic politicians are not fighting for my civil rights. Screw 'em.
You know who is? Dick Armey, House Majority Leader. He just scrapped the entirely scary TIPS program, which would have set up a national system for reporting terrorist-related activity. The basic concept was getting mail carriers, meter readers, and other workers who see a large segment of the community daily to report suspicious things. The Postal Service said the other day that they weren't having any part of it. That warmed me; Dick Armey warms me even more. (Not a sentence I would have imagined typing a couple of years ago.)
Then again, Armey wants to roll the Coast Guard, Secret Service, and Border Patrol into the Department of Homeland Security. Never mind. It's not safe anywhere.
Tom Ridge, your U.S. Homeland Security Director, was quoted yesterday as saying "It's disconcerting and somewhat alarming that somebody is walking in with $12 million of currency, whether legit or not." Really? Whether it's legit or not? I think that if someone brings $12 million into the country, and it's legal money... maybe they're a weirdo, and maybe they have dark plans, but I don't think I'm automatically alarmed.
Bad times.
