Were you sparked or inflamed at the clashing of chaos with anarchy?
Homeland Security and Secret Police
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Were you sparked or inflamed at the clashing of chaos with anarchy?
Delightful Life
M&M, Cascadian Lovers
(What an odd sentence you wrote here)
So you condemn the violence going on in Portland. That's good.
#MutualAid
#BeNotAfraid
#SystemicWhimsey
#JoyPrivilege
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Delightful Life
M&M, Cascadian Lovers
Delightful Life
M&M, Cascadian Lovers
Towards further empathy
(Being able to experience other perspectives is vital...ooo, sorry for the seriousness lol)
A guy got the opportunity to spend the past weekend inside the Portland federal courthouse
Start here.
To see more of his thread, after u click on the link below scroll down a bit and click on the blue "Show This Thread"underneath his first post
Yes twitter is a chaotic roiling shouting match but there are gems amidst the sturm n drang
#MutualAid
#BeNotAfraid
#SystemicWhimsey
#JoyPrivilege
(Being able to experience other perspectives is vital...ooo, sorry for the seriousness lol)
A guy got the opportunity to spend the past weekend inside the Portland federal courthouse
Start here.
To see more of his thread, after u click on the link below scroll down a bit and click on the blue "Show This Thread"underneath his first post
Yes twitter is a chaotic roiling shouting match but there are gems amidst the sturm n drang
#MutualAid
#BeNotAfraid
#SystemicWhimsey
#JoyPrivilege
It’s not odd. Throughout history, in uprisings, revolutions, anger has boiled over into violence. The feelings of anger may be justified, the violent response to them is not. Neither from police, the new state funded and endorsed militia, nor protestors.
Northwind
Stationary nomad.
- Pronouns
- She/Her/Her
Thanks for coming in and giving your perspective @Inannawhimsey. Out certainly shows these things are rarely simple or clear cut. Stay safe
Thus hyperbolic Uncertainty that really perturbs the stoics ... just so the altar form can have fun observing from out there!
Delightful Life
M&M, Cascadian Lovers
We are safe.
We plan to go again
Also things r changing SO FAST there
"Change. Real change.
---Barack Siddartha
#MutualAid
#BeNotAfraid
#SystemicWhimsey
#JoyPrivilege
Lastpointe
Well-Known Member
Inannawhimsey do you like in the USA?
i listened to an interesting point yesterday about Portland and media created hype in general. By a guy in CNN called Smerconish
his point was basically that media creates panic, panic then creates more panic and at the end of it all looking back the panic was over nothing. Discussed the year of the shark, the tourist death in DR, and now Portland
we see a small section of Portland through the lens of a strategically placed camera. So we only see what we are meant to see By media
i had a friend who lived in Belfast during the tough times at the end of the 70s early 80’s. She spoke of how it was hard to buy things. Stores wouldn’t keep stock in case of vandalism. But in fact most of the “troubles” as she called it were in a very small area of a few blocks. Yet our media made it seem like Belfast was on fire.
i listened to an interesting point yesterday about Portland and media created hype in general. By a guy in CNN called Smerconish
his point was basically that media creates panic, panic then creates more panic and at the end of it all looking back the panic was over nothing. Discussed the year of the shark, the tourist death in DR, and now Portland
we see a small section of Portland through the lens of a strategically placed camera. So we only see what we are meant to see By media
i had a friend who lived in Belfast during the tough times at the end of the 70s early 80’s. She spoke of how it was hard to buy things. Stores wouldn’t keep stock in case of vandalism. But in fact most of the “troubles” as she called it were in a very small area of a few blocks. Yet our media made it seem like Belfast was on fire.
I’m not actually sure why you’re going to the protests at this point, but be careful, be safe.
Panic only when tyrants are doing extreme things for beneficent purposes of privacy ... like hiding a lot of your life from the demos ...
Not in interest of the people! Panic opens up alien items of curiosity ... then tyrany faces fear ... the tool of gods ... some call tools probes ... may prix the conscience vs the unconscious bias ...
Not in interest of the people! Panic opens up alien items of curiosity ... then tyrany faces fear ... the tool of gods ... some call tools probes ... may prix the conscience vs the unconscious bias ...
Ritafee
Is Being Human
Ritafee
Is Being Human
The people of Portland are merely the latest victims of a department that has been terrorizing innocent victims since it was formed.
The Department of Homeland Security has been a disaster from the very start.
It was created by the 2002 Homeland Security Act, a post-9/11 bill.
The department was given a broad mandate: “Prevent terrorist attacks within the United States,”
Because “terrorism” isn’t really a defined term, we end up with the situation in which we find ourselves today.
"To fulfill its mandate, the DHS absorbed a hodgepodge of other agencies, but (as this Washington Post article from way back in 2005 explains) the process of determining which agencies to place under the DHS umbrella was haphazard, resulting in an incoherent collection of powers.
The DHS was, after all, George W. Bush’s idea, and the department’s organization reflects his administration’s general incompetence.
Part of the DHS mandate is to “assist in the recovery from terrorist attacks that occur in the United States" (and it took over FEMA?)
The DHS’s broad mandate is the reason Trump can turn whole sections of the department into his personal storm troopers.
It would be illegal, say, for commandos operating under a directive from the Central Intelligence Agency to be deployed under Trump’s “Operation Legend” to protect statues; the CIA is not allowed to operate on domestic soil.
It would be a violation of the Posse Comitatus Act for Trump to deploy the Army, because the armed forces cannot be used for domestic police actions.
And it would be illegal to deploy FBI agents on the streets to “keep the peace” against citizens who are not charged with nor suspected of committing federal crimes.
But with the DHS, Trump doesn’t have to worry about any of this.
The DHS isn’t hamstrung by any of the laws that normally prevent the government from using troops on domestic soil, because “preventing terrorist attacks” can mean pretty much whatever the president says it means, including teargassing protesters to protect federal buildings.
Still, the reason the DHS has teeth doesn’t actually have much to do with terrorism.
For much of its existence, the department has been used to continue this country’s war on drugs.
Homeland Security was given control over Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “monitor connections between illegal drug trafficking and terrorism,” and that is why this Frankenstein’s monster of an organization has troops to deploy against citizens far from the border.
The “Wall of Moms” are, in many ways, just the latest victims of this country’s drug war against its own people.
"An organization that can deploy troops on the ground in your town at the sole discretion of the president, without consent from state or local officials or oversight from Congress, is too dangerous for any president to have control over—not just this one."
Some weapons cannot be used for good, even when they’re wielded by those with the best of intentions.
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote three books you could consult for a more thorough examination of this point.
"The DHS has been a Trojan Horse for state-sponsored violence since the day it was written into existence."
It’s just that, up until now, brown people have borne the brunt of the violence.
It is Muslims who have been snatched out of line at the airport and questioned without an attorney.
It is Mexicans whose homes and places of business have been raided.
It is brown children who were denied toothbrushes in those cages at the direction of former director of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen.
"The brutality and terror being visited upon Portland is just a taste of what some communities of color have been experiencing for going on 20 years.
And moms in Portland know it.
These moms are out there putting their bodies on the line to protect protesters.
They know what the government is capable of doing.
Some pundits are more interested in saving the DHS from Trump than saving citizens from the DHS.
This view will hold sway with the next Democratic administration.
Instead of removing the power Trump has abused, Democrats promise only to use the power more appropriately.
“Don’t give unaccountable power to that guy. Give it to me, because I’ll use it only against the people who deserve it. Promise.”
When Trump is gone, will the structure Trump used be removed, as opposed to just removing Trump from atop the structure?
www.thenation.com
The Department of Homeland Security has been a disaster from the very start.
It was created by the 2002 Homeland Security Act, a post-9/11 bill.
The department was given a broad mandate: “Prevent terrorist attacks within the United States,”
Because “terrorism” isn’t really a defined term, we end up with the situation in which we find ourselves today.
"To fulfill its mandate, the DHS absorbed a hodgepodge of other agencies, but (as this Washington Post article from way back in 2005 explains) the process of determining which agencies to place under the DHS umbrella was haphazard, resulting in an incoherent collection of powers.
The DHS was, after all, George W. Bush’s idea, and the department’s organization reflects his administration’s general incompetence.
Part of the DHS mandate is to “assist in the recovery from terrorist attacks that occur in the United States" (and it took over FEMA?)
The DHS’s broad mandate is the reason Trump can turn whole sections of the department into his personal storm troopers.
It would be illegal, say, for commandos operating under a directive from the Central Intelligence Agency to be deployed under Trump’s “Operation Legend” to protect statues; the CIA is not allowed to operate on domestic soil.
It would be a violation of the Posse Comitatus Act for Trump to deploy the Army, because the armed forces cannot be used for domestic police actions.
And it would be illegal to deploy FBI agents on the streets to “keep the peace” against citizens who are not charged with nor suspected of committing federal crimes.
But with the DHS, Trump doesn’t have to worry about any of this.
The DHS isn’t hamstrung by any of the laws that normally prevent the government from using troops on domestic soil, because “preventing terrorist attacks” can mean pretty much whatever the president says it means, including teargassing protesters to protect federal buildings.
Still, the reason the DHS has teeth doesn’t actually have much to do with terrorism.
For much of its existence, the department has been used to continue this country’s war on drugs.
Homeland Security was given control over Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “monitor connections between illegal drug trafficking and terrorism,” and that is why this Frankenstein’s monster of an organization has troops to deploy against citizens far from the border.
The “Wall of Moms” are, in many ways, just the latest victims of this country’s drug war against its own people.
"An organization that can deploy troops on the ground in your town at the sole discretion of the president, without consent from state or local officials or oversight from Congress, is too dangerous for any president to have control over—not just this one."
Some weapons cannot be used for good, even when they’re wielded by those with the best of intentions.
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote three books you could consult for a more thorough examination of this point.
"The DHS has been a Trojan Horse for state-sponsored violence since the day it was written into existence."
It’s just that, up until now, brown people have borne the brunt of the violence.
It is Muslims who have been snatched out of line at the airport and questioned without an attorney.
It is Mexicans whose homes and places of business have been raided.
It is brown children who were denied toothbrushes in those cages at the direction of former director of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen.
"The brutality and terror being visited upon Portland is just a taste of what some communities of color have been experiencing for going on 20 years.
And moms in Portland know it.
These moms are out there putting their bodies on the line to protect protesters.
They know what the government is capable of doing.
Some pundits are more interested in saving the DHS from Trump than saving citizens from the DHS.
This view will hold sway with the next Democratic administration.
Instead of removing the power Trump has abused, Democrats promise only to use the power more appropriately.
“Don’t give unaccountable power to that guy. Give it to me, because I’ll use it only against the people who deserve it. Promise.”
When Trump is gone, will the structure Trump used be removed, as opposed to just removing Trump from atop the structure?
Trump’s Secret Police Have Never Been a Secret to Brown People
The Department of Homeland Security, now menacing Portland, has been terrorizing Muslims, immigrants, and other vulnerable populations since its inception.
www.thenation.com
BetteTheRed
Resident Heretic
- Pronouns
- She/Her/Her
That is a very good analysis.
I had not connected those dots as to why the President is being allowed to direct mercenaries against American people on American soil. I now absolutely see those connections, AND the associated problems. I think DHS should demote itself to FEMA, return to that role and relinquish oversight back to the government, where it belongs.
I had not connected those dots as to why the President is being allowed to direct mercenaries against American people on American soil. I now absolutely see those connections, AND the associated problems. I think DHS should demote itself to FEMA, return to that role and relinquish oversight back to the government, where it belongs.
Mendalla
Happy headbanging ape!!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
DHS is really a bad idea that came out of desperation. The government saw the intelligence and security failures that allowed 9-11 to happen and decided the solution was one big, ugly agency to look after security. I'm not sure the Bush people really considered that they were basically creating something that could turn into an American version of the old Soviet KGB (which handled all internal security as well as foreign intelligence) but Trump and his crew clearly recognized that potential. The problem with the KGB was that with its massive internal network and forces, it ended up pretty much running the show, instead of being part of the show. Even 30 years after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia is being run by an ex-KGB officer who used those connections to help his rise to power (and Soviet-era leader Yuri Andropov was a former head of the KGB).
How long before a ex-DHS officer ends up as POTUS? Such a person would be more competent than Trump, but similarly authoritarian. At least Trump's bumbling and bluster keep things out in the open and make it easy for congress and the courts to block him. Someone from that background could probably manipulate the system more capably. An American Putin, IOW.
Trump couldn't organize this by himself. As bumbling a leader as he seems to be, he has help and advice (Barr, Pence, others...Banon laid out the roadmap before he was fired, or err "socially distanced" from the WH might actually be a more apt description - and it seems to be still in play to an extent - the long con is still on...Putin himself??)
They need a whole new set of ethical minded people in the WH. It's not going to happen this year, but that's what needs to happen sometime.
BetteTheRed
Resident Heretic
- Pronouns
- She/Her/Her
No, more than that, they need a congress and senate who have figured out that this monster DHS needs to be dismantled. I don't know if they can get there from here.
And much as I'd like to think that Bush Jr was a criminal mastermind, I agree that it was probably 'merely' an unfortunate response to 9/11.
And much as I'd like to think that Bush Jr was a criminal mastermind, I agree that it was probably 'merely' an unfortunate response to 9/11.