Cops or Soldiers? Pentagon, DHS Helped Arm Police in Ferguson with Equipment Used in War

[doxydad]

(VIDEO) The events in Ferguson over the past week have sparked a national debate over racial profiling and the militarization of local police forces. On Thursday, Attorney General Eric Holder said, "I am deeply concerned that the deployment of military equipment and vehicles sends a conflicting message." What Holder did not mention was the federal government's role in supplying local police forces with military-grade equipment. The New York Times reports Department of Homeland Security grant money paid for the $360,000 Bearcat armored truck on patrol in Ferguson. Most of the body armor worn by officers responding to the Ferguson protests was also paid for with federal money.

https://www.freespeech.org/video/cops-or-soldiers-pentagon-dhs-helped-arm-police-ferguson-equipment-used-war

[pipoman]

1. I can see a need for body armor and maybe even cop RVs

It is the everyday use of these things and other tactical gear that is troubling. An example from my own state are the officers patrolling I-70 in Kansas between 0 and 50 miles east of the Colorado state line. The only Starbucks (in Colby KS) for over 100 miles seems to be the hang out for the tacticool asset forfeiture patrol looking for those evil pot smokers coming back from Denver. It is disturbing on several levels. ..