"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary." ~ H.L. Mencken
Sulla Marches Into Rome
I can hear Sulla marching through the streets of Rome. It was illegal to bring troops into the capitol city, back then. Unfortunately, a brilliant
The conflict started simply. Sulla was returning from a campaign of conquest
Thousands died in Sulla's reign of terror, which lasted for four long and
What do we have before us now? An ex-National Guardsman, not brilliant by the standards of many, but smart enough to get himself elected President. He wants something too, but his wants are a little harder to pin down than Sulla's. Shrub says he wants security for the American people. Ok, so do I. He says he wants peace, freedom, and what have you else. Ok, so do I.
It makes you wonder why a nice guy from Texas who wants only freedom and
It's great to hear the spin that those in the Bush government are putting on
So what exactly is Posse Comitatus, and why should you be up in arms if your government overthrows it? Basically, it's a law against martial law. It says that the Federal Government cannot use any branch of the military (save the National Guard, Coast Guard, and troops under the direct control of the governors of individual states) to enforce any domestic law. Period. That means that the Army can't arrest you for theft or speeding or jaywalking, the Navy can't come after you for illegal interstate commerce, and that the Air Force is not going to fly over your house if you should water your lawn during water rationing.
Why don't we want the Army patrolling our neighborhoods? Besides creating a scene that looks something like mid-'90s Bosnia, besides terrorizing old women and young children when a paratrooper with a machine gun comes to the door, and even besides the ugly suits (I'm still waiting for them to roll out that Storm Trooper-like armor) the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines are not trained law enforcement officials. Bringing them in would cause more trouble than it would help prevent.
Tom Ridge (here's another brilliant fellow) says he wants to talk about
Once upon a time, the government and military of our nation were servants of
Posse Comitatus is the only barrier (and a thin one at that) protecting us from martial law. Can you imagine your cities looking like military bases?
"But the military will just be an option! They won't declare martial law right away!" you say. True. It will be only a temptation, to start with.
Now if you thought Operation TIPS was bad, look where the "security at any
U.S. Mulls Military's Domestic Role
Domestic Role for Military Gains Support