U.S. Military Preparing for Domestic Disturbances

Originally Posted by tattedupboy

Do you also remember 9/11 and what came out of it? Basically the Patriot Act and new restrictions that made it harder to get on an airplane. Other than that, has life really changed for the typical American all that significantly since then? If the 9/11 attacks didn't do it, then I doubt that someone just talking it up will do it either.

9/11 DID do it, and you just posted the results. The first attempt I made to go to the airport at FLL resulted in my being stopped by armed soldiers, not LEOs. I and my passengers had to get out of the car, and it was searched, including the glove box and the trunk. Mirrors were slid under the car to check for bombs.

Port Everglades, which is a major cruise port, got locked down. People like myself used to use it as a short-cut from US1 to the beach - now the entrance is manned by - you guessed it - military. Want to get past them? Good luck. The port is now closed, with one entrance that goes directly to the cruise ships. A popular restaurant in the port overlooking the Intracoastal had to close because there was now no access.

And you mentioned the Patriot Act. Have you ever studied the Patriot Act? Real patriots have been trying to have that repealed ever since it was enacted. Do you know the powers that it gives to the federal government? Would you like to find out?

9/11 was a wake-up call, and we have been extremely lucky that there hasn't been a real follow-up since. But we have surrendered a lot of our freedoms as it is because of that attack, and after the next one, we probably won't have any more. Doesn't the possibility of scrapping the Constitution scare you in the least? I sure as hell scares me, and it is NOT impossible under the circumstances we are facing today.

[ronwill]

Should terrorists ever get their hands on a functioning nuclear device and use it to destroy a major U.S. city, you better believe change will come. You think 9/11 resulted in some restrictions just wait. Will the military be used to stop riots and "restore order"? Most definitely.

[HK4U]

+1 gpbarth and ronwill. The stage has been set.

[tattedupboy]

Originally Posted by gpbarth

9/11 DID do it, and you just posted the results. The first attempt I made to go to the airport at FLL resulted in my being stopped by armed soldiers, not LEOs. I and my passengers had to get out of the car, and it was searched, including the glove box and the trunk. Mirrors were slid under the car to check for bombs.

Port Everglades, which is a major cruise port, got locked down. People like myself used to use it as a short-cut from US1 to the beach - now the entrance is manned by - you guessed it - military. Want to get past them? Good luck. The port is now closed, with one entrance that goes directly to the cruise ships. A popular restaurant in the port overlooking the Intracoastal had to close because there was now no access.

And you mentioned the Patriot Act. Have you ever studied the Patriot Act? Real patriots have been trying to have that repealed ever since it was enacted. Do you know the powers that it gives to the federal government? Would you like to find out?

9/11 was a wake-up call, and we have been extremely lucky that there hasn't been a real follow-up since. But we have surrendered a lot of our freedoms as it is because of that attack, and after the next one, we probably won't have any more. Doesn't the possibility of scrapping the Constitution scare you in the least? I sure as hell scares me, and it is NOT impossible under the circumstances we are facing today.

9/11 did indeed trigger something, but not IT. Are we still not free to criticize the government if we choose? Are Muslims still not free to worship in Mosques without fear that the government will step in and shut them down? While 9/11 did indeed change some things, most Americans are able to do all the things they were able to do prior to the attacks.

Originally Posted by tattedupboy

9/11 did indeed trigger something, but not IT. Are we still not free to criticize the government if we choose? Are Muslims still not free to worship in Mosques without fear that the government will step in and shut them down? While 9/11 did indeed change some things, most Americans are able to do all the things they were able to do prior to the attacks.

Yeah, except travel with ease, walk into a courthouse or an airport with a fingernail file in your pocket, go watch the ball drop in Times Square with a backpack or a couple of beers, buy a few bags of fertilizer without a background check... Shall I continue? Read the Patriot Act. Of course, if you don't do anything but pick your butt, you wouldn't know about all of the freedoms we have ALREADY lost as a result of 9/11. And after the next attack, what do you think will happen? What are you going to do when martial law is declared, and you cannot leave your house after 6 PM due to the curfew? When you need permission to buy gasoline

And because we're so damned PC, Muslims can wear a burkah during a driver's license photo shoot, but Christians can be arrested on a public sidewalk for hate speech for quoting the Bible.

You seem to think that this country could never go 'postal' at some point, and I'm telling you that it is a very real possibility. Do not discount it, or you will be unprepared for the future.

[HK4U]

Because it has not happened real fast as in over night I am afraid many do not see what is happening. As I have said before, like the frog in water. It is true that we have more freedom than most other nations. It is also true that we by no means are as free as we once were.

[revjen45]

Iraq is a laboratory for CONUS.