Police State

Stop-and-Frisk: How Government Creates Problems, Then Makes Them Worse

"Ask yourself why after so many decades of apparent failure — drugs are plentiful, accessible, and inexpensive — prohibition persists, as if spending more taxpayer dollars or coming up with some new law-enforcement gimmick will bring success. Maybe prohibition has not failed at all. Maybe the purpose is simply to spend the money and expand law enforcement. Maybe all the moralizing is simply a ruse. And maybe what Thomas Paine said about wars also applies to the war on drugs: 'a bystander, not blinded by prejudice nor warped by interest, would declare that taxes were not raised to carry on wars, but that wars were raised to carry on taxes.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingStop-and-Frisk: How Government Creates Problems, Then Makes Them Worse

Texas Police Hit Organic Farm With Massive SWAT Raid

"Members of the local police raiding party had a search warrant for marijuana plants, which they failed to find at the Garden of Eden farm. The real reason for the law enforcement exercise appears to have been code enforcement. The police seized '17 blackberry bushes, 15 okra plants, 14 tomatillo plants ... native grasses and sunflowers,' after holding residents inside at gunpoint for at least a half-hour, property owner Shellie Smith said in a statement. The raid lasted about 10 hours, she said. She said the police didn't produce a warrant until two hours after the raid began, and officers shielded their name tags so they couldn't be identified." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas Police Hit Organic Farm With Massive SWAT Raid

Bill Bonner: Thank You, TSA, NSA, FBI, and CIA!

"Respect for authority is cyclical. And presently, the authorities are enjoying an upswing. People look to them to get things they can’t get on their own. Health care paid for by someone else… a retirement they can’t afford… and foolish pride they don’t deserve. U.S. troops patrol the streets of towns we never heard of… American drones wipe out families we never met… the NSA listens in on the world’s conversations… Yes, thanks to the NSA, TSA, CIA, IRS, FBI, and Pentagon, no sparrow can fall anywhere in the world without it setting off alarms in America’s command centers." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Thank You, TSA, NSA, FBI, and CIA!

Texas deputy sues woman for ‘mental anguish’ after he kills her son-in-law

"Corina Padilla, who witnessed the incident, said that her brother-in-law never touched the officers and was backing away with his hands up when they shot him. 'At no moment did Kemal assault the officer,' she insisted. 'An unarmed man, a family guy, father and husband of three girls was killed. He had no criminal record. He was self-employed in import-export of very expensive rugs from Turkey and Persia.' Padilla said that Yazar was suffering from stress and had consumed some tea that caused him to hallucinate. She lashed out at Pullen for the 'outrageous' lawsuit. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia agreed that the suit was 'unprecedented.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas deputy sues woman for ‘mental anguish’ after he kills her son-in-law

Drawing Down: How To Roll Back Police Militarization In America

"The damage inflicted by the country’s 40-year drug fight goes well beyond prisons. It’s also been the driving force behind America’s mass police militarization since at least the early 1980s, and the best way to rein in the trend would be to simply end prohibition altogether. Complete legalization is, of course, never going to happen. But even something short of legalization, like decriminalization, would take away many of the incentives to fight the drug war as if it were an actual war. The federal government could also leave it to the states to determine drug policy, and with what priority and level of force it should be enforced." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDrawing Down: How To Roll Back Police Militarization In America

Texas deputy accused of raping mother in front of her children resigns

"A deputy in Texas accused of raping a woman in front of her children has resigned, according to KHOU 11 News. Lisa Rodriguez of of East Harris County told local media outlets earlier this week that the deputy came to her home to question her about harassing phone calls. During the questioning, the deputy allegedly sexually assaulted her in her own home. Rodriguez said the deputy, who has not been named, told her they should talk in a bedroom upstairs. She said the deputy then grabbed her hands and put them on his crotch. Rodriguez said the deputy told her if she resisted he would take her to jail." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTexas deputy accused of raping mother in front of her children resigns

Louisiana Deputies Bust Gays with Unconstitutional Sodomy Law

"Baton Rouge, Louisiana suffers from the eighth highest murder rate in the nation, and yet local law enforcement apparently considers it a top priority to conduct sting operations on gay men seeking consensual sex. According to an investigation by The Advocate, deputies have been going undercover and busting gay men using an anti-sodomy law the Supreme Court had declared unconstitutional ten years ago. (Sheriff Sid Gautreaux says he hadn't heard about the Supreme Court decision.) Meanwhile, the local murder rate has jumped 40 percent over the past decade." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLouisiana Deputies Bust Gays with Unconstitutional Sodomy Law

City Reduces Police Force By Placing Public Under Constant Surveillance

"The Camden County Police Department recently created the Real Time Tactical Operation Intelligence Center in order to 'help a reduced police force' by installing 120 cameras across the city, according to My9NJ. The police department also monitors the public with a mobile 40-foot high sky booth called the 'Sky Patrol.' The booth is high enough for police to intimidate the population below while scanning a wide area of the city with cameras, thermal-imaging, and other sophisticated spy tech. The Camden County police have already covered one-third of the city with microphones, calling them 'gunshot detectors' as the cover story." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCity Reduces Police Force By Placing Public Under Constant Surveillance

On Target Pressure Points: Educational Compliance

"As John W. Whitehead explains in his new book, A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, our nation's children are not being spared from the police state mentality which is slowly gripping all aspects of American society. While parents get ready to send their children back to school, Whitehead provides a chilling reminder that the police state mindset is pervasive in our public schools, with students becoming the victims of inflexible zero tolerance policies, mass surveillance, and arrest for childish, noncriminal behavior." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOn Target Pressure Points: Educational Compliance

On Target Pressure Points: Educational Compliance

"As John W. Whitehead explains in his new book, A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, our nation's children are not being spared from the police state mentality which is slowly gripping all aspects of American society. While parents get ready to send their children back to school, Whitehead provides a chilling reminder that the police state mindset is pervasive in our public schools, with students becoming the victims of inflexible zero tolerance policies, mass surveillance, and arrest for childish, noncriminal behavior." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOn Target Pressure Points: Educational Compliance