Tag: god bless the land of the free

Reason #987,263,429,837 why I won’t go to the US if I can avoid it: american police are a lot more militarized than they have ever been, and many of the checks and balances that made the U.S. a democratic republic have been eroded by both courts and politicians.

1. Escalation of the War on Drugs

Although the war on drugs started in the 60s, it was expanded considerably during Ronald Reagan’s two terms as president. Reagan aggressively promoting militarized no-knock drug raids, asset forfeiture laws and mandatory minimum sentences. The drug war has greatly increased the prison population and placed a heavy burden on taxpayers, as well as imperiled many innocent Americans. Since the 1980s, there have been countless examples of narcotics officers targeting the wrong house or apartment for a no-knock SWAT raid, brandishing assault weapons and killing or injuring innocent people who had nothing to do with drugs.

2. 9/11 Terrorist attacks fallout

With the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaeda was hoping to destabilize the U.S. and weaken its standing in the world. And the Bush administration played right into al-Qaeda’s hands, promoting a climate of fear and intimidation with the blessing of a Republican-dominated Congress. The Bush years brought a variety of authoritarian measures, from the Patriot Act of 2001 to no-fly lists to the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security.

After 9/11, the U.S. crossed a dangerous line when the CIA, with the blessing of the Bush administration, openly supported the use of waterboarding on detainees at the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. During the Cold War, the U.S. allied itself with a long list of fascist regimes that practiced torture. But it wasn’t until the post-9/11 era that an American vice president, Dick Cheney, came right out and flaunted the use of torture by the U.S. government itself.

3. Growth and expansion of asset forfeiture laws turns police into legal thieves

During the Reagan years, asset forfeiture laws were aggressively promoted as part of the war on drugs. But abuses in the name of asset forfeiture have become much more widespread since the 1980s, and there have been countless examples of police seizing property under the pretense that some type of crime might have been committed. If a motorist pulled over by police for having a broken taillight is carrying $600 in cash, the officer can confiscate that cash and claim there was reason to believe the money was being used in connection with a crime. Even if there is no arrest or evidence of wrongdoing and no charges are filed, the person still has to hire a lawyer to try getting the money back. The property is guilty until proven innocent.

4. Erosion of Habeas Corpus

Historically, one of the many positive things about the U.S. was its recognition of habeas corpus, the right to be spared indefinite detention without a trial. But the National Defense Authorization Act, which President Obama signed into law , gives the U.S. military the right to detain U.S. citizens indefinitely without trial. If a U.S. citizen is declared an enemy combatant, indefinite detention without trial is possible.

5. Militarization of Local Police Departments

The militarization of American police departments escalated after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Department of Homeland Security launched a program that provides military surplus equipment to American police departments (including the type of weapons used by the U.S. soldiers in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan). Police departments in Des Moines, Iowa or Fargo, North Dakota now have the type of military weapons they didn’t have access to in the past. This disturbing trend has continued in the Obama era; in 2011, the Department of Homeland Security gave $2 billion in grants for local police departments to obtain military weapons, but proper training has been lacking behind the acquisition of the hardware.

6. Growth of the Prison/Industrial complex

Anti-drug laws and prosecutions have turned imprisonment into a huge industry. From manufacturers of prison uniforms to companies that sell food to prisons, the prison-industrial complex has an interest in locking up as many people as possible. The U.S. incarcerates, per capita, more adults than any another country in the world. Especially disturbing are the growth of privately owned prisons, which the American Civil Liberties Union has vehemently opposed.

I’ll take the tranny.

Ok. So, lets get this straight. The long arm of US paranoia means that my airport experience will get even more fun. Fuck you, Uncle Sam.

US enhanced airport security checks target electronics

American officials have ordered some overseas airports with direct flights to the US to intensify screening of electronic devices. Transport officials said in a statement passengers could be asked to switch on devices, and equipment that does not power up would not be allowed on board. An official told the BBC that London’s Heathrow was among the airports.

The US announced new security measures last week, apparently in response to a terror threat, but gave no details. Analysts say the changes appear to be in response to intelligence that Islamic militants in Syria and Yemen are developing bombs that could evade airport security. American officials said earlier that there was a “credible” threat, but did not link the security changes to any specific intelligence.

The US does not directly control security at overseas airports. But airlines and airports are obliged to meet security standards set by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in order to carry on operating non-stop flights. The TSA’s statement for the first time gave details of enhanced screening of electronic equipment. “During the security examination, officers may also ask that owners power up some devices, including cell phones,” it said. “Powerless devices will not be permitted on board the aircraft. The traveller may also undergo additional screening.” Reuters news agency reported that officials had singled out mobile phones made by Apple and Samsung for extra checks.

The UK, France and Germany have all said they would comply with the American demands. But it is still not clear how many airports will be affected, or if passengers will be delayed.

Any growing interest in soccer a sign of nation’s moral decay

If more “Americans” are watching soccer today, it’s only because of the demographic switch effected by Teddy Kennedy’s 1965 immigration law. I promise you: No American whose great-grandfather was born here is watching soccer. One can only hope that, in addition to learning English, these new Americans will drop their soccer fetish with time.

I’ve held off on writing about soccer for a decade — or about the length of the average soccer game — so as not to offend anyone. But enough is enough. Any growing interest in soccer can only be a sign of the nation’s moral decay.

Individual achievement is not a big factor in soccer. In a real sport, players fumble passes, throw bricks and drop fly balls — all in front of a crowd. When baseball players strike out, they’re standing alone at the plate. But there’s also individual glory in home runs, touchdowns and slam-dunks. In soccer, the blame is dispersed and almost no one scores anyway. There are no heroes, no losers, no accountability, and no child’s fragile self-esteem is bruised. There’s a reason perpetually alarmed women are called “soccer moms,” not “football moms.”

Do they even have MVPs in soccer? Everyone just runs up and down the field and, every once in a while, a ball accidentally goes in. That’s when we’re supposed to go wild. I’m already asleep. Liberal moms like soccer because it’s a sport in which athletic talent finds so little expression that girls can play with boys. No serious sport is co-ed, even at the kindergarten level.

No other “sport” ends in as many scoreless ties as soccer. This was an actual marquee sign by the freeway in Long Beach, California, about a World Cup game last week: “2nd period, 11 minutes left, score: 0:0.” Two hours later, another World Cup game was on the same screen: “1st period, 8 minutes left, score: 0:0.” If Michael Jackson had treated his chronic insomnia with a tape of Argentina vs. Brazil instead of Propofol, he’d still be alive, although bored. Even in football, by which I mean football, there are very few scoreless ties — and it’s a lot harder to score when a half-dozen 300-pound bruisers are trying to crush you.

The prospect of either personal humiliation or major injury is required to count as a sport. Most sports are sublimated warfare. As Lady Thatcher reportedly said after Germany had beaten England in some major soccer game: Don’t worry. After all, twice in this century we beat them at their national game.

Baseball and basketball present a constant threat of personal disgrace. In hockey, there are three or four fights a game — and it’s not a stroll on beach to be on ice with a puck flying around at 100 miles per hour. After a football game, ambulances carry off the wounded. After a soccer game, every player gets a ribbon and a juice box.

You can’t use your hands in soccer. (Thus eliminating the danger of having to catch a fly ball.) What sets man apart from the lesser beasts, besides a soul, is that we have opposable thumbs. Our hands can hold things. Here’s a great idea: Let’s create a game where you’re not allowed to use them!

I note that we don’t have to be endlessly told how exciting football is.

It’s foreign. In fact, that’s the precise reason the Times is constantly hectoring Americans to love soccer. One group of sports fans with whom soccer is not “catching on” at all, is African-Americans. They remain distinctly unimpressed by the fact that the French like it.

Soccer is like the metric system, which liberals also adore because it’s European. Naturally, the metric system emerged from the French Revolution, during the brief intervals when they weren’t committing mass murder by guillotine. Despite being subjected to Chinese-style brainwashing in the public schools to use centimeters and Celsius, ask any American for the temperature, and he’ll say something like “70 degrees.” Ask how far Boston is from New York City, he’ll say it’s about 200 miles.

Liberals get angry and tell us that the metric system is more “rational” than the measurements everyone understands. This is ridiculous. An inch is the width of a man’s thumb, a foot the length of his foot, a yard the length of his belt. That’s easy to visualize. How do you visualize 147.2 centimeters?

Ann Coulter is a syndicated columnist [and also a right-wing nutjob].

[Emphasis, mine]