Militarization in this country is hardly a new phenomenon. It can be traced back decades, but the process hit warp speed in the post-9/11 years, even if the U.S. still lacks the classic look of a militarized society. Almost unnoticed has been an accompanying transformation of the mindset of Washington—what might be called the militarization of solutions.
If the institutions of American life and governance are increasingly militarized, then it shouldn’t be surprising that the problems facing the country are ever more often framed in militarized terms and that the only solutions considered are similarly militarized.Read it at TruthDig (reposted from Tom Dispatch)
The Military Solution
by Tom Engelhardt
See also Glenn Greenwald: How America's Surveillance State Breeds Conformity and Fear, transcript posted at Alternet.
Creeping institutional fascism is morphing into galloping institutional fascism.
The City of Houston police department has begun to replace all their civilian police uniforms with a military style tactical gear. While the uniform isn't as important as behavior, it is symbolic and the police department claims it allows for the 'more rugged interaction' police have with the public today such as running. Righty o.
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