The DoD Thinks Protesters Are Terrorists
It reminds me of the old junkie commercials from the 90’s… “Nobody said ‘I want to be a terrorist when I grow up.’”
I certainly never thought myself a terrorist or involved in terrorist activities, but that’s not what the DoD manual says.
On the last 2 pages of the DoD manual, (PDF here) obtained by the ACLU, they state that protests are considered low-level terrorism. That means that Tea Party protesters, abortion protesters, and even David Letterman protesters are considered terrorists.
The DoD refresher course/manual begins:
“Anti-terrorism (AT) and Force Protection (FP) are two facets of the Department of Defense (DoD) Mission Assurance Program. It is DoD policy, as found in DoDI 2000.16, that the DoD Components and the DoD elements and personnel shall be protected from terrorist acts through a high priority, comprehensive, AT program. The DoD’s AT program shall be all encompassing using an integrated systems approach.”
The first question of the Terrorism Threat Factors, “Knowledge Check 1″ section reads as follows:
Which of the following is an example of low-level terrorism activity?
Select the correct answer and then click Check Your Answer.
O Attacking the Pentagon
O IEDs
O Hate crimes against racial groups
O Protests
***
The “correct” answer is Protests.
Of course the left-wing blogs like Salon associate this with “fascists” on the right. However, fascism is left-wing and totalitarian. Fascism can go left or right. It’s incredibly disingenuous to blame a group based upon the actions of lone “crazies” like Tiller’s killer. I could say the very same thing for the Arkansas murder of the Army recruiter for the left, or what we learned about the Holocaust Museum shooting (although the below shows a lack of research or knowledge of the shooter’s political leanings, blaming it on the right).
…thus giving the government under the rubric of fighting domestic terrorism unrestrained and unsupervisable power to suppress legitimate political activities, the unleashing and justifications for Christian fascists to murder those they do not like (such as the assassination of Dr. George Tiller and the killing at the Holocaust Museum a few days ago) – this news adds further fuel to the fire.
The far left fails to realize the gravity of this for all of America, not just some political ideology. We all protest and we all stand up and fight for what we believe in. To be considered terrorists for our voice is something we should all be concerned about.
Obama Resumes Military Tribunals for Detainees
But…but…but… I thought Bush was eeeeeevil and stuuuuuuuuuuupid?
What about CHANGE?
Obama will continue the military tibunal system for Gitmo detainees. This was a point of contention for Obama and part of the Bush administration that he brought up and campaigned against last year. However, Obama has flip-flopped (yet again) and will be resuming these activities.
President Obama is planning on Friday to resume the Bush administration’s controversial military commission system for some Guantanamo detainees — which he suspended in his first week in office — according to three administration officials.
Some of the high-profile terror suspects who are being charged in the military commission process include Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-confessed mastermind of the 9/11 attacks.
The administration officials stressed that the updated system will include expanded due-process rights for the suspects, which administration officials note is consistent with what Obama pushed for as a senator in 2006 in order to improve upon the widely criticized approach created by the Bush administration.
The move could increase tensions with liberal groups, led by the ACLU, which are already furious about Obama’s shift this week to block the release of photos showing prisoners allegedly being abused by U.S. personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Anthony Romero, executive director of the ACLU, called the expected new approach on military commissions “fatally flawed” despite the changes.
“The military commissions are built on unconstitutional premises and designed to ensure convictions, not provide fair trials,” Romero said in a prepared statement released earlier this week after speculation about the restart of military commissions surfaced. “Reducing some but not all of the flaws of the tribunals so that they are ‘less offensive’ is not acceptable; there is no such thing as ‘due process light.’ ”
Two of the administration officials said the president will also leave open the option of starting civilian trials on U.S. soil for some of the detainees. But that, too, is a fiercely debated issue on Capitol Hill because of concerns by lawmakers in both parties about where the terror suspects will be kept during such trials.
BWAHAHAHA!
White House Won’t Release Detainee Photos; Thank the Lord!
Time to give credit where credit is due. I’m glad to see that Obama had the sense about him to reverse his original notion to release the detainee photos which would have caused greater damage to our nation, our troops, and our national security, on top of the CIA memo release:
In a dramatic and high-profile reversal for his young administration, President Barack Obama is seeking to block the release of 44 photographs depicting abuse of detainees in U.S. military custody in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Justice Department had already agreed to release the photos by May 28 in response to a lawsuit, but Obama is shifting course.
“Last week, the President met with his legal team and told them that he did not feel comfortable with the release of the DOD photos because he believes their release would endanger our troops, and because he believes that the national security implications of such a release have not been fully presented to the court,” said a White House official who asked not to be named.
“At the end of that meeting, the President directed his counsel to object to the immediate release of the photos on those grounds,” the official said.
At least some of the polling data that is decent, such as the majority of Americans disagreeing with the photo release decision, is being listened to.
Obama’s reversal is sure to set off an outcry on the left, which has pushed the Obama administration to come clean about interrogation policies and other actions carried out by the Bush administration.
I better see some of those “coexist” people and the liberals who protest every single aspect of war, protesting this and Obama. I don’t much care for hypocrites so I hope they stand true to their principles and are upset about the change of heart… I won’t hold my breath, although I think some of the true progressives will protest just about anything (code pink?)
Obama endorsed such openness during the campaign – and even released memos detailing interrogation practices critics call torture.
Obama has come nowhere near keeping his promise of transparency in the government. He has had several opportunities to do so, not just regarding national security items, and he has chosen the opposite.
All I can say is that I am pleased with this decision from his administration at least!
CIA “Torture” Memos Released by Obama Administration
Our enemies rejoice! They can now know what it is we do and or did and can train accordingly. We officially have just shot ourselves in the foot thanks to Obama and his ridiculous appeasement, anti-American and apologetic beliefs and the rest of his incompetent administration.
Four former CIA directors protested the release of these Bush-era memos and although the natural argument from the left would be because they had things to hide, this is not the case yet again when dealing with terrorists and individuals whom do not fall under article IV of the Geneva Convention. The major concern was the trust in D.C.’s Intelligence operations and trust in the CIA for accepting the release of these documents and also releasing them for the rest of the world to see and to know what it is we actually do to obtain crucial information. This means we would have to start from scratch on different methods.
Former CIA chiefs Michael Hayden, Porter Goss, George Tenet and John Deutch all called the White House in March warning that release of the so-called “torture memos” would compromise intelligence operations, current and former officials say. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in order to detail internal government discussions.
President Barack Obama ultimately overruled those concerns after internal discussions that intensified in the weeks after the former directors intervened. The memos were released Thursday.
Obama’s personal involvement grew as the decision neared, and he even personally led a National Security Council session on the matter, said four senior administration officials.
Senior White House adviser David Axelrod, who said he also talked with Obama about the pending release of the memos in recent weeks, said the CIA directors’ opposition was considered seriously but did not impede the decision-making process.
So let me get this straight… A man who has never served in our armed forces, never worked in the defense industry and has never been in charge of a national guard (being a governor) thinks that he personally knows what is best for the country in regards to national defense and intelligence operations? Just wonderful… I once again believe this to be an act to appease his liberal base who has wanted to persecute Bush and his administration for some time now and believe him to be some torturous, murderous dictator, of which they will most likely be sorely mistaken – and will wind up doing more harm to our country than they could possibly even know.
The most well known technique used for detainees was called water-boarding and liberals make it sound like it’s some horrible torture – it is annoying more than anything since water is poured continuously on the neck of the individual to give the sensation of drowning – but stipulations were enacted for the amount of time allotted among other measures so that there would be nothing considered harsh or cruel punishment. These types of methods were drawn up and created by the Bush administration, lawyers well versed in the torture treaties and the CIA. I would love to know what liberals think of the torture techniques used in China, Cuba, North Korea, punishment in Singapore, by Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and the rest of the Middle East. How about visiting a torture museum in Spain to see what used to be used during the Spanish Inquisition?
Not everything in life is roses and gum drops and I hope that some begin to wake up and realize that in this life we all have the capability of evil, cruelty, anger, violence and all those other emotions and actions that can be considered the negative aspects of human nature. Reality is not sunny and reality can and will be painful at times and this is what needs to be understood. Those who live in reality and know suffering can see the best when it comes and can appreciate those things that are better than the worst they have seen and experienced in their own lives.
Obama gave the matter “the appropriate reflection,” Axelrod said. He said Obama’s deliberations revolved around “the issue of national security versus the rule of law,” and amounted to “one of the most profound issues the president of the United States has to deal with.”On March 18, the Justice Department told CIA Director Leon Panetta — as he was leaving for a foreign trip — that it would be recommending that the White House release the memos almost completely uncensored, officials said.
Which rule of law was Obama referring to? Sharia? (sorry I had to be snarky).
Senior CIA officials objected, arguing that the release would hurt the agency’s ability to interrogate prisoners in the future. They also said the move would further tarnish CIA officers who had acted on the Bush officials’ legal guidance. And they warned that the action would erode foreign intelligence services’ trust in the CIA’s ability to protect national security secrets, current and former officials said.
On March 19, the Justice Department requested a two-week delay in a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union that asked for release of the memos. Justice officials told the court dealing with that lawsuit that it was considering releasing the memos voluntarily.
Two weeks later, Justice lawyers told the court the memos would come out on or before April 16.
This is the prime reason as to why the ACLU must be stopped and must be abolished. What they do to our society is detrimental to us all, whether you understand that now or in the future is up to you.
The Justice Department argued that the ACLU lawsuit would in the end force the administration to release the documents anyway, officials said.
Obama eventually agreed. The administration decided it would be better to make the release voluntarily, so as to not be seen as being forced to do so, the officials said.
How can a president, the person holding the highest office not have enough “chutzpa” to hold his ground against an agency like the ACLU? If he can’t stand up to the ACLU how would anyone ever be able to think that he could stand up to the leader of another nation? Something we are seeing play out currently. This is just unbelievable and so pathetic. This sets a horrible precedent for the ACLU and any other organization that wants to question an administration after they have left office. I hope that Obama understands that the very same thing can be done to him.
Obama took the unusual step of accompanying his decision with a personal letter to CIA employees. He also devoted a big share of his public statement to saying — and repeating — that he believed strongly in keeping intelligence operations secret and operations about them classified. And he said he would not apologize for doing so in the future.
Actions speak louder than words Obama, something that you just don’t have. All you have are words – mostly downloaded onto a teleprompter.
For the PDF memos:
