Connecting the dots - Are we on the brink of calamity?

[Smiling Buddha]

I spoke of four distinct but related problems facing the world in my OP (which I posted here almost six months ago): US on the verge of civil war; Potential war with Syria(/Iran/Russia); Potential war in Ukraine; Australia's shaky economy.

Since then, all evidence has suggested that these problems/tensions have only gotten worse. See the Missouri 'riots' police state; US 'leaders' calling for the bombing of 'ISIS' in Syria; Kiev junta shelling eastern Ukrainians. On the surface Australia does not seem to be any closer to financial collapse than six months ago, and so long as we keep importing people at ridiculous rates then the charade should be able to go on indefinitely.

 

[Long Live HFC]

So where’s WW3 happening exactly?

 

[clogged]

I spoke of four distinct but related problems facing the world in my OP (which I posted here almost six months ago): US on the verge of civil war; Potential war with Syria(/Iran/Russia); Potential war in Ukraine; Australia's shaky economy.

Since then, all evidence has suggested that these problems/tensions have only gotten worse. See the Missouri 'riots' police state; US 'leaders' calling for the bombing of 'ISIS' in Syria; Kiev junta shelling eastern Ukrainians. On the surface Australia does not seem to be any closer to financial collapse than six months ago, and so long as we keep importing people at ridiculous rates then the charade should be able to go on indefinitely.

Seems like the usual background noise of what goes on around the world anyway.

I don't see any evidence of escalation.

 

[Smiling Buddha]

I don't see any evidence of escalation.

Hahahahahahaahaha.

Oh, mercy.

 

[clogged]

Hahahahahahaahaha.

Oh, mercy.

You "woke up" only a year ago, right? So maybe before then you weren't paying enough attention.

Riots in Missouri? Big deal. There are race riots in the US every 20 years.

 

[Smiling Buddha]

Were there military-equipped 'police' roaming the streets, tear-gassing reporters, and focusing guns on peaceful protestors in past 'race riots'?

'No escalation' in Ukraine?

'No escalation' in Syria?

 

[clogged]

Were there military-equipped 'police' roaming the streets, tear-gassing reporters, and focusing guns on peaceful protestors in past 'race riots'?

Are you aware of Kent State? Are you aware of the LA riots? Or Montgomery, AL?

 

[Long Live HFC]

Were there military-equipped 'police' roaming the streets, tear-gassing reporters, and focusing guns on peaceful protestors in past 'race riots'?

'No escalation' in Ukraine?

'No escalation' in Syria?

hi, my name is smiling buddha and i've been politically active for 5 minutes yet know absolutely everything, ever.

what does that look like champ?

 

[Smiling Buddha]

Why are you personally attacking me yet again, LLHFC? Can you not discuss things without resorting to childish personal attacks?

I will discuss this matter with you further once you start acting like an adult

 

[Smiling Buddha]

Are you aware of Kent State?

Are you seriously comparing Kent State to the Ferguson incident?

 

[Long Live HFC]

I will discuss this matter with you further once you start acting like an adult

no you won't. you never discuss anything, ever.

 

[clogged]

Are you seriously comparing Kent State to the Ferguson incident?

Yes. 13 people were shot and four died.

I imagine if something like that happened now you'd be off your tree.

 

[Smiling Buddha]

Yes.

Fine by me. The Commission into that incident found that the Ohio State Guard's response was

"unnecessary, unwarranted, and inexcusable."

How do you feel about the Missouri Police (police, not state guard) response to Ferguson?

 

[Long Live HFC]

7. Inability to withdraw. It's a rare day indeed when a conspiracy theorist admits that a claim they have made has turned out to be without foundation, whether it be the overall claim itself or any of the evidence produced to support it. Moreover they have a liking (see 3. above) for the technique of avoiding discussion of their claims by "swamping" - piling on a whole lot more material rather than respond to the objections sceptics make to the previous lot.

 

[clogged]

Fine by me. The Commission into that incident found that the Ohio State Guard's response was

"unnecessary, unwarranted, and inexcusable."

How do you feel about the Missouri Police (police, not state guard) response to Ferguson?

Commissions are different to the police, are they not? Maybe wait until their is a commission (or if there is never one)

 

[Smiling Buddha]

You know the difference between police and national guard, don't you?

 

[clogged]

You know the difference between police and national guard, don't you?

Yes. Do you know that the Scranton Commission was wholly independent from the national guard? I'm not sure what equivalence you're trying to draw between an independent commission's response and that of the non-independent police.

 

[Smiling Buddha]

I am saying that the police are not supposed to be like a military.

Not in a liberal democracy, anyway. A totalitarian regime, sure. But not a liberal democracy.

 

[Long Live HFC]

has buddha backed down from his claim that this kind of "revolt" and reactions to it have never happened before?

 

[Catfish Alley]

Isn't police military gear a result of increased military spending resulting in an excess of decommissioned vehicles, riot gear etc? I think that I remember reading that it was very easy for police to obtain this equipment for flimsy reasons. I don't think it's made specifically for police. Just boys with their toys trying to look big without any real training or knowledge on how to use it. Not a good thing. What did they used to do with excess military supplies? Sell them across borders? This is stupid but probably better than that.

 

[Smiling Buddha]

The issue isn't how/'why' the police became militarised. The issue is that the police has been militarised.

 

[Freo2012]

Isn't police military gear a result of increased military spending resulting in an excess of decommissioned vehicles, riot gear etc? I think that I remember reading that it was very easy for police to obtain this equipment for flimsy reasons. I don't think it's made specifically for police. Just boys with their toys trying to look big without any real training or knowledge on how to use it. Not a good thing. What did they used to do with excess military supplies? Sell them across borders? This is stupid but probably better than that.

It is actually a highly organised fed govt initiative - Pentagon program 1033 - using mainly unused weapons (billions US$) and used infrastructure (vehicles, helicopters etc) - there is a federal register of exactly what weaponry and equipment has been issued to each state and local police force, and it is not just riot type gear - it is publicly available for a search by specific police force locations giving all the details of the weaponry. Someone want to search and post the link to the register? Interesting that some local police and even a couple of states have been "suspended" from the program for having "lost" military weaponry issued to them.

Perhaps the US govt with its massive military lobby group determined that given the massive quantitative $ that they fed into their economy to save it from collapsing due to the GFC some should also find its way into the military manufacturing, beyond their military requirements, sector satisfying a few wishes for them. It certainly is a quick fix solution for part of the manufacturing downturn (consumer spending downturn) that occurred given that military equipment can be long life and with the us way of life would be used in the future, as well as immediately contributing to their economy. Certainly the firearms industry has been pumping out massive levels of ammunition the last several years and yet it is very hard to come by for hunters and "all the others" that use those ammunition calibers. Also interesting that some say they have reduced the manufacturing capacities in the lower calibers, although this could be a function of production re-tooling for the larger calibers as well as the increasing "prepper" mentality of the us people. Look up FEMA and you will see to some extent the us govt is also fueling the prepper mentality directly.

Whatever the underlying reasoning of the us govt, local police forces are now far more extensively equipped with very serious military weaponry.

Note that us police forces have always had military type semiautomatic weaponry, just not the fully automatic and more extreme stuff they have now - they have definitely needed at least the same weaponry as the criminals (and general public) has had "legal" access to. Australian police have never had the broad access to even the base level that us police have had and never needed it (except for some special tactical units). We should be extremely thankful that we have never had the constitutional right to bear arms and as such the very major problem of trying to de-arm the public when the criminals and other extreme elements are never going to be de-armed.

 

[Long Live HFC]

It is actually a highly organised fed govt initiative - Pentagon program 1033 - using mainly unused weapons (billions US$) and used infrastructure (vehicles, helicopters etc) - there is a federal register of exactly what weaponry and equipment has been issued to each state and local police force, and it is not just riot type gear - it is publicly available for a search by specific police force locations giving all the details of the weaponry. Someone want to search and post the link to the register? Interesting that some local police and even a couple of states have been "suspended" from the program for having "lost" military weaponry issued to them.

Perhaps the US govt with its massive military lobby group determined that given the massive quantitative $ that they fed into their economy to save it from collapsing due to the GFC some should also find its way into the military manufacturing, beyond their military requirements, sector satisfying a few wishes for them. It certainly is a quick fix solution for part of the manufacturing downturn (consumer spending downturn) that occurred given that military equipment can be long life and with the us way of life would be used in the future, as well as immediately contributing to their economy. Certainly the firearms industry has been pumping out massive levels of ammunition the last several years and yet it is very hard to come by for hunters and "all the others" that use those ammunition calibers. Also interesting that some say they have reduced the manufacturing capacities in the lower calibers, although this could be a function of production re-tooling for the larger calibers as well as the increasing "prepper" mentality of the us people. Look up FEMA and you will see to some extent the us govt is also fueling the prepper mentality directly.

Whatever the underlying reasoning of the us govt, local police forces are now far more extensively equipped with very serious military weaponry.

Note that us police forces have always had military type semiautomatic weaponry, just not the fully automatic and more extreme stuff they have now - they have definitely needed at least the same weaponry as the criminals (and general public) has had "legal" access to. Australian police have never had the broad access to even the base level that us police have had and never needed it (except for some special tactical units). We should be extremely thankful that we have never had the constitutional right to bear arms and as such the very major problem of trying to de-arm the public when the criminals and other extreme elements are never going to be de-armed.

this was a good post. with respect to the highlighted- surely the majority of requisitioned equipment is moving from the military to the state police (and others), and that much of this equipment was in existence prior to the fed's QE?

 

[Freo2012]

this was a good post. with respect to the highlighted- surely the majority of requisitioned equipment is moving from the military to the state police (and others), and that much of this equipment was in existence prior to the fed's QE?

yes, but being replaced at far increased rate for the military. So police get the new old models, military get the new new models - still has the same effect.

 

[Long Live HFC]

yeah ok, thanks. i think any decision to do so at the federal level would come via fiscal purchases and be unrelated to central bank QE though.