primitives want a standing army

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4295843

Oh my.

readmoreoften  (1000+ posts)        Thu Oct-23-08 06:08 PM
Original message

Why didn't Carter order a standing Army brigade on US soil back in the 70s? Why didn't Reagan? 

I'm really confused about this. In 2003 we invented a "Northern Command" to patrol the US. Now in 2008, they have arrived in order to help Americans with clean up from hurricanes, in case of biological/chemical or nuclear attack, and in order to quell "civil dissent and unruly individuals."

As far as I remember, there were hurricanes in the 1960s and the 1970s. How did Americans manage without a fighting force to help rebuild bridges?

Oh sure, hurricanes have become worse due to maybe global warming but definitely the destruction of wetlands. Couldn't we just build levees and hire environmental experts to rebuild our buffer zones? Or do we need night vision goggles and machine guns to build levees? Clearly the latter.

As far as I remember, there were biological and chemical weapons in the 1970s. In fact, we were testing them ourselves under various MK projects in the 60s. Why didn't Carter establish a Northern Command and bring a brigade of infantry to assist us in quelling civil dissent in case of biochemical weapons? Didn't Carter and Reagan and Bush 1 and Clinton care about the safety of the American people?

As far as I remember, civil dissent is the idea upon which the country is founded and the Army infantry isn't supposed to deal with "unruly American individuals" because it might interfere with civil dissent. We use police and rent-a-cops for that. We also have always used the locally run National Guard in cases of unchecked violence that the police can't handle. From what I've seen, police are so bored at protests that they are "handling" people who are peaceably assembled in public parks. The National Guard is excessive in almost all situations, so what again is the purpose of bringing thousands of 3 tour, stop-lossed infantry many with severe PTSD to quell (let's be honest) anti-war protests and other possible forms of "dissent"?

Hurricanes, Biochemical/Nuclear Weapons, and Dissent are all pre-9/11 concepts Are the never-ending chain of Al Qaeda #2s capable of causing more social chaos than, say, all-out thermonuclear war with the Soviets would've caused?

Didn't our mid-century Presidents love us? Weren't they concerned about our safety? Why didn't they care enough to rev up a police state? And however did we manage to survive?

Just askin...

Well, it seems to me the Incompetent One, Reagan, the first Bush, and the Impeached One didn't have Skins's island to deal with back in their day.

Now, with Skins's island, it makes sense.

DJ13  (1000+ posts)      Thu Oct-23-08 06:13 PM
Response to Original message
 
1. Posse Comitatus Act

The Posse Comitatus Act and the Insurrection Act substantially limit the powers of the federal government to use the military for law enforcement.

The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385) passed on June 16, 1878 after the end of Reconstruction. The Act prohibits most members of the federal uniformed services (the Army, Air Force, and State National Guard forces when such are called into federal service) from exercising nominally state law enforcement, police, or peace officer powers that maintain "law and order" on non-federal property (states and their counties and municipal divisions) in the former Confederate states.

The statute generally prohibits federal military personnel and units of the National Guard under federal authority from acting in a law enforcement capacity within the United States, except where expressly authorized by the Constitution or Congress. The Coast Guard is exempt from the Act.

`````````
On September 26, 2006, President Bush urged Congress to consider revising federal laws so that the U.S. military could seize control immediately in the aftermath of a natural disaster, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

These changes were included in the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 (H.R. 5122), which was signed into law on Oct 17, 2006, subsequently repealed in their entirety.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posse_Comitatus_Act#Recent... 

Well, if it keeps the primitives at bay, it's all good.

readmoreoften  (1000+ posts)        Thu Oct-23-08 06:20 PM
Response to Reply #1
 
3. Posse Comitatus was restored in 2007 by congress. 

Of course, Bush added a signing statement to the effect of "nunt-uh."

But, that being said, why aren't people in the street protesting this action?

Oh, right, because there's a brigade now that would quell civil di... gotcha.

OwnedByFerrets (1000+ posts)      Thu Oct-23-08 06:22 PM
Response to Reply #1
 
5. The problem with the repeal is that I thought Monkeyboy put in one of his infamous "signing statements"....saying that he didnt have to abide by it. I cant find exact wording on this as fact, but I sure seem to remember it as being true.

deaniac21 (1000+ posts)      Thu Oct-23-08 06:14 PM
Response to Original message
 
2. Both of them preferred their brigades to sit.

ArmedAmerican  (58 posts)        Thu Oct-23-08 06:21 PM
Response to Original message
 
4. stock up on daisies to put in rifle barrels after all, it's our only defense! Then again, I'm sure there's nothing to worry about. Nothing to see here folks, move along.

[Chris_]

I think a girl scout troupe could take out all the keyboard warriors at the DUmp, starting with TiT.

We don't need a standing army to deal with these pussies -- just make a fist and they will run crying back to their mommies' basements.

[franksolich]

I think a girl scout troupe could take out all the keyboard warriors at the DUmp, starting with TiT.

We don't need a standing army to deal with these pussies -- just make a fist and they will run crying back to their mommies' basements.

I know, but it's fun to play with the primitives' paranoia.

Primitives can look cute, their dark beady little eyes wide open in fear.

[Crazy Horse]

Was it not the poo flingers demanding that the President should be able to act faster instead of waiting on a poo flinging Govenor to ask??

[DumbAss Tanker]

Prior to the Global War on Terror, there were plenty of US regular units stationed within the US that weren't in any sort of rotation schedule to go anywhere in particular, and at any given time at least three full division equivalents could have been quickly deployed anywhere within the US.  Also the Guard in each state was immediately available with no Federal mobilization commitments (and three times larger than now until the early 90s), and prior to Congress wiping out the military to cash in on the "Peace Dividend" there were also combat brigades in the Army Reserve instead of just Combat Support and Combat Service Support units.

Once again, DUmmie ignorance of military affairs (and any history before the last election) is on parade.

[TheSarge]

Prior to the Global War on Terror, there were plenty of US regular units stationed within the US that weren't in any sort of rotation schedule to go anywhere in particular, and at any given time at least three full division equivalents could have been quickly deployed anywhere within the US.  Also the Guard in each state was immediately available with no Federal mobilization commitments (and three times larger than now until the early 90s), and prior to Congress wiping out the military to cash in on the "Peace Dividend" there were also combat brigades in the Army Reserve instead of just Combat Support and Combat Service Support units.

Once again, DUmmie ignorance of military affairs (and any history before the last election) is on parade.

Wait until this war is over and all we have to do is load stuff on rail cars and go out to NTC or JRTC or Yakima to train.

Imagine the tinfoil that they'll wrap around their heads over that one.

[Tucker]

I know, but it's fun to play with the primitives' paranoia.

Primitives can look cute, their dark beady little eyes wide open in fear.

On a related note, I love your avatar.