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Is America a Police state?

Jeremy Mason

Jeremy Mason

Well-Known Member
JacobEzra said:
As much as I dislike the current state of the Government, and advocate many reforms, I still do not see the country as a Police State. In fact, I get a bit offended when hearing people say such. You want to see a Police State? Look at old Reich film and history. THAT was a police state under the NAZI regime, as well as Stalin and the Soviet satalite states. America is not even close.
Click to expand...

It might not be a NAZI or Soviet style police state yet, but they sure are ramping up to be one.
 
Revoltingest

Revoltingest

Pragmatic Libertarian
Premium Member
JacobEzra said:
As much as I dislike the current state of the Government, and advocate many reforms, I still do not see the country as a Police State. In fact, I get a bit offended when hearing people say such. You want to see a Police State? Look at old Reich film and history. THAT was a police state under the NAZI regime, as well as Stalin and the Soviet satalite states. America is not even close.
Click to expand...
I'm not so concerned with our current status, but rather some changes occurring.
 
Engyo

Engyo

Prince of Dorkness!
Revoltingest said:
"Policing for profit"
It's the strategy of enforcing laws for revenue more than for deterring wrongful behavior.
Think of it as an inverse lottery, with which authorities ensnare the unwary & fleece them.
Trash Can Tickets In Queens
A $100 ticket for putting trash cans out half an hour too early.
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Not sure of current stats, but 10 years ago, Houston made ~$8 million/year from legal parking fees, and ~ $32 million/year from parking fines.
 
gnomon

gnomon

Well-Known Member
Photo shows pepper-sprayed prisoner

Tied naked to a chair, face covered with a spit mask and repeatedly sprayed with pepper spray until he died.

Disciplinary action for the police who did this to him? Nothing according to the news story. There is a civil lawsuit moving forward.
 
Revoltingest

Revoltingest

Pragmatic Libertarian
Premium Member
gnomon said:
Photo shows pepper-sprayed prisoner
Tied naked to a chair, face covered with a spit mask and repeatedly sprayed with pepper spray until he died.
Disciplinary action for the police who did this to him? Nothing according to the news story. There is a civil lawsuit moving forward.
Click to expand...
It's interesting that Christie's attorney describes the conditions as merely "evokes thoughts of being tortured".
It strikes me as actual torture.
Perhaps we need a justice system which parallels the government operated one, which is so seldom held accountable.
 
Neo-Logic

Neo-Logic

Reality Checker
In regards to videotaping police encounters -- it's interesting to note that in many states, while citizens videotaping peace officers or other citizens may constitute illegal wiretapping per state laws, police videotaping the encounters with citizens as a tool against lawsuits does not. This means as digital recording technology gets dramatically cheaper, better and smaller, police in many states will make video recording a standard on all their car dashboards as well as helmet cams of motorcycle/ bicycle cops and wearable cameras on vests of police officers as an insurance policy against tort and civil litigation while citizens won't have the same chance.

Sure you can always request the footage through FOI request or other channels, but how much do you trust that?

But even with this, I wouldn't characterize America as a whole or the states not allowing videotaping of police officers in particular as police states because the democratic process can still resolve these issues.
 
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Jeremy Mason

Jeremy Mason

Well-Known Member
Neo-Logic said:
In regards to videotaping police encounters -- it's interesting to note that in many states, while citizens videotaping peace officers or other citizens may constitute illegal wiretapping per state laws, police videotaping the encounters with citizens as a tool against lawsuits does not. This means as digital recording technology gets dramatically cheaper, better and smaller, police in many states will make video recording a standard on all their car dashboards as well as helmet cams of motorcycle/ bicycle cops and wearable cameras on vests of police officers as an insurance policy against lawsuits while citizens won't have the same chance.

Sure you can always request the footage through FOI request or other channels, but how much do you trust that?

But even with this, I wouldn't characterize America as a whole or the states not allowing videotaping of police officers as police states because the democratic process can still resolve these issues.
Click to expand...

so you're for civilian police videos?
 
Kathryn

Kathryn

It was on fire when I laid down on it.
cablescavenger said:
My view is to stay away from criminals and the police. I wouldn't trust either of them as far as I can throw a battleship.
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You hit the nail on the head!

I trust soldiers more than I trust police officers.

I told my husband when we first started dating, "I don't get along well with men who are cops, coaches, or cowboys."

After I found out he was a cowboy (the real kind, not the wannabe kind) I had to re evaluate that particular subclass, but I still don't generally care for cops or coaches.

Too much short man syndrome going on - even when they're not short.
 
cablescavenger

cablescavenger

Well-Known Member
I think the bill just passed by Obama is interesting. US Citizens can be held without cause and imprisoned indefinitely without trial.

I hope this won't be abused and used as a tool for quashing demonstrations, because if a democracy resists a dissenting voice of the public, then it can hardly call itself a democracy.
 
Shadow Wolf

Shadow Wolf

Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
We're not quite there yet, but we are definitely heading down that road.
cablescavenger said:
My view is to stay away from criminals and the police. I wouldn't trust either of them as far as I can throw a battleship.
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I tend to trust criminals before cops. But then again the cops here are getting so bad they have recently decided that forgetting to use your turn signal is probably cause to search your vehicle. And Indianapolis Metro Police seems to be very friendly towards their alcoholic staff-members, up to getting charges against a drunken ON-duty pig who hit and killed another motorist dropped. And if you are out side drunk, you'll get arrested, but IMPD is apparently immune to that as well.
A criminal OTOH might have been caught trying to steal food or money to aid there struggling family, got caught with drugs, or a number of other things that quite frankly make them far more trustable than those who are supposed to "serve and protect."
 
painted wolf

painted wolf

Grey Muzzle
I actually lived in a town so rural that had no police.... during the summer we got a drive through by the state troopers, sometimes a couple times a day... but from autumn through spring nothing. (unless you called 911)

We had no fire department either... and that was actually a problem for us. The town contracted to do the fire coverage couldn't get their trucks down the winter road for part of the town and had to go around through the other side. About an hour drive... meanwhile the town on that side (who could make it quickly) refused to help.
Needless to say loosing a house because that town wouldn't actually fight fires caused a bit of a stink in a place where large fires depend on several towns teaming up with each other.

wa:do
 
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Shadow Wolf

Shadow Wolf

Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
I actually lived in a town so rural that had no police.... during the summer we got a drive through by the state troopers, sometimes a couple times a day... but from autumn through spring nothing. (unless you called 911)
Click to expand...
I think that is one of my favorite parts of living in a rural area. The only cops that drive by, maybe once a month, are county sheriffs that I'm acquainted with and they don't bother people unless some makes a 911 call. Fortunately though where I live there is a volunteer fire-fighter department that covers this area.
 
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