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Nov. 29th, 2011 08:13 amSo there is a bill floating around the Senate, the NDAA, which basically gives the military permission to indefinitely detain civilians and which hands the DoD the ability to run trials instead of the DoJ.
http://www.businessinsider.com/secret-bill-to-be-voted-on-today-would-allow-the-military-to-sweep-up-us-citizens-at-home-or-abroad-2011-11#ixzz1f2WASidk
I've obviously heard the "it will turn our country into a police state, nobody is safe" angle. But since the Department of Homeland Security encompasses border stuff and the wording supposedly excludes American citizens, what I worry is that this can be used against illegal immigrants. Not a citizen easily encompasses OH NO AN EVIL TERRORIST and OH NO A POOR MEXICAN TRYING TO MAKE RENT and I know that whatever stupid, brutal, vicious things get launched at illegals, they really can't do much about it. And you'll probably never hear about it unless you're in LA or whatever.
Oh, and I guess there is the obvious public relations angle, where there's no reason for resentful civilians throughout the Islamic world not to go terrorist on us - I mean, what's the worst that can happen, they might be imprisoned indefinitely or tortured? If we pass something like this, the next time a 9/11 happens, there will be a lot more people like the Palestinians who danced in the streets and a lot more people like the Brits who thought we had it coming.
As a former Michigander I used to think Levin was one of the good guys. I was pretty wrong about that.
http://www.businessinsider.com/secret-bill-to-be-voted-on-today-would-allow-the-military-to-sweep-up-us-citizens-at-home-or-abroad-2011-11#ixzz1f2WASidk
I've obviously heard the "it will turn our country into a police state, nobody is safe" angle. But since the Department of Homeland Security encompasses border stuff and the wording supposedly excludes American citizens, what I worry is that this can be used against illegal immigrants. Not a citizen easily encompasses OH NO AN EVIL TERRORIST and OH NO A POOR MEXICAN TRYING TO MAKE RENT and I know that whatever stupid, brutal, vicious things get launched at illegals, they really can't do much about it. And you'll probably never hear about it unless you're in LA or whatever.
Oh, and I guess there is the obvious public relations angle, where there's no reason for resentful civilians throughout the Islamic world not to go terrorist on us - I mean, what's the worst that can happen, they might be imprisoned indefinitely or tortured? If we pass something like this, the next time a 9/11 happens, there will be a lot more people like the Palestinians who danced in the streets and a lot more people like the Brits who thought we had it coming.
As a former Michigander I used to think Levin was one of the good guys. I was pretty wrong about that.