The Militarization of Local Law Enforcement

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Thursday December 30, 2010 · 1:43 PM PST

2010/12/30 · 13:43

This issue has been bothering me for some time. One obvious example is the increasingly common paramilitary-style uniforms that are designed and selected to intimidate. Another common example is that every call or traffic stop now seems to require overwhelming force. I live in the metro Washington, DC area, and here a traffic stop with only one law enforcement vehicle present is the exception. Typically there are 2-3 vehicles, and, often, some of them are unmarked. But something happened today near my house that really brought the issue "home" to me.

envwq

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Friday July 27, 2007 · 3:04 PM PDT

2007/07/27 · 15:04

This diary started as a reply to a comment in the recently recommended (and cleverly titled) diary by OrangeClouds115. Unfortunately my reply became too long to post as a comment, so this becomes my first diary.

It is great to see the recent diaries about the farm bill. It is time that more people paid attention to their food and considered where and how it was grown (or, in some cases, synthesized...), how it got to them, and what was done with/to it in between.

For some of you, agriculture might conjure images of family farmers: toiling to produce wholesome food, to earn enough to support their family, and to protect the land and natural resources that were likely passed down to them from previous generations. However, as the priorities in the Farm Bill demonstrate, this image is, unfortunately, becoming like a Norman Rockwell painting of a previous, idyllic age.

For others, agriculture might conjure visions of the wholesale degradation and poisoning of the natural environment. Many people project opinions of big-business agriculture onto their local farmer-neighbors. Fortunately, in most cases, this image is misguided.

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The Militarization of Local Law Enforcement

Agricultural Research and Education are Great Investments