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Scott Olsen Talks About The Militarization of the Police Against OWS
Here is the video from Current:
Keith Olbermann asked Scott Olsen if the degree of the militarization of the police at Occupy protests shocked him. Olsen answered, “I don’t know. On one hand, it shocks me a lot. On the other hand, it doesn’t because our nation’s peace officers have been militarized over the past ten years to combat terrorism, but they’re combating anybody with an opinion.”
Later, Olbermann asked Olsen what he wants to see Occupy achieve. Olsen said, “Really, I just want to see more people get involved with real democracy to build a democratic nation. With that I think we need to end our wars, all of them, and that’ll do our country a great service.”
Scott Olsen made two really important points. One of the largest legacies of George W. Bush and the neo-cons isn’t in Iraq or Afghanistan. It is right here at home where police departments all around the country have been transformed into paramilitary operations that are designed to react to a terrorist threat or event, but as we have seen with the reaction to Occupy Wall Street, this same apparatus can also be used to suppress the rights and liberties of American citizens.
Police departments by definition are supposed to keep the peace, but in the hands corrupt, terrified, or weak politicians, the mission to keep the peace has morphed into a violent suppression of speech. Not all police officers and police departments have engaged in this activity, but those who do are disgracing an entire profession and soiling the reputation of law enforcement.
Scott Olsen defined what the Occupy movement represents to many Americans when he discussed democracy. Occupy Wall Street arose because many Americans feel like they no longer have a voice in a political system which is for sale to the highest bidder. Occupy is real democracy in action. It is the people standing up and speaking out, and that is what terrifies the one percent and the governmental puppets that they have purchased.
The 1% wants to kill Occupy because they dread the prospect of the American people waking up and getting a taste of real democracy. Instead of destroying the desire for real democracy, the tactics of intimidation and brutally are nourishment that cause the dream to grow.
Scott Olsen isn’t a victim or a symbol. He is the embodiment of the resilience of a movement. They may have fractured his skull, but they couldn’t kill his ideas. Those ideas burn in millions of minds, and they represent a flame that can never be extinguished.
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7 Responses to Scott Olsen Talks About The Militarization of the Police Against OWS
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Gov. Quittypants
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 12:34 am
GOP wants to limit peoples’ rights to vote. Not to mention all those nasty unbathed people wearing pajamas in their basements on the internet who shouldn’t have freedom of speech to express their opinions. They are just spoiling everything!
RoughAcres
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 1:04 am
Many police departments around the nation have adopted the motto, “to serve and protect.” And ALL police departments are charged with protecting citizens against crime.
Since when is it a crime to express one’s opinion? And who are the police protecting, against free speech?
My own city, New York, has a police department better equipped than some countries’ military – Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s police chief, Ray Kelly, even noted it has the capacity to shoot down a plane.
While NYC is obviously a greater terrorist target than many other cities in America… Kelly’s (or Bloomberg’s) response to OWS has been of a magnitude not seen since Mayor Richard Daley’s treatment of protesters in 1968. Peaceful marches, peaceful encampments, have been treated as if they possessed WMD…
and maybe they do: the power of the First Amendment is disrupting the Status Quo.
JahLove63
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 1:17 pm
“and maybe they do: the power of the First Amendment is disrupting the Status Quo.”
And thank JAH for that!
newmeximan
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 1:27 am
The police departments have not only been trained in counter terrorism, but many of the police officers are members of the reserves who have been called up, and seen active duty in war zones.
I have been waiting for anyone to link the number of police officers who left their jobs in the US to serve overseas, and return to their jobs here with a whole new skill set to deal with perps – and living and working in a war zone creates the same problems that returning vets deal with daily.
The questions are: how many of our police officers are recent combat vets, and how many are being treated for PTSD and related combat related disorders?
I wonder if the police unions would even be willing to divulge this information?
newmeximan
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 1:49 am
I found a source for a journalist to follow up -
www.cops.usdoj.gov/files/...
Shiva (Moderator)
Dec. 3rd, 2011 at 9:22 am
Partially this is a problem of government officials at ALL levels being comfortable and protecting their own interests while beating back any threat. This goes from our so called representatives right down to township officials. Term limits for all elected officials would go a long way to cure this. Being afraid to have their shortcomings exposed is another reason why these people beat the peoples 1st amendment rights back so vigorously
I have a feeling there will be lots of lawsuits coming and most will be over the 1st.
As for ending our wars, he is right. Poeple like Bachmann are using fears or terrorists in our backyards to scare us with. Bring our troops home to protect Americans if that is such a threat. We are doing nothing overseas.
Lets not forget we have exactly zero laws about being here illegally, terrorists can come and go as they please anyways. They can stand on our street corners night and day with impunity. Thats where all the car bombings in US cities are coming from.
Our terrorist threat is our governments. Local and state representatives