Police State Redux

[DixieDestroyer]

Just as (earlier) stated/suspected...

Militia Probe Included Undercover Agent

Group's Leader Described as Private Man Who Nurtured Mistrust of Government

By ALEX P. KELLOGG, LAUREN ETTER, KEITH JOHNSON and TIMOTHY W. MARTIN

The leader of a Michigan militia group charged this week with conspiring to kill law-enforcement officers was described Tuesday as a private, family-oriented man who nurtured a festering mistrust of governmental authority, according to people close to the family.

"On the inside of this man's brain, something evil lurks, and until you get to know him, you don't know it," said Andrea Harsh, who was engaged to David Brian Stone Sr. until the couple broke up last year.

She described Mr. Stone, a trim 45-year-old man who wears his whitish hair cropped short over spectacles and a bushy gray mustache, as having a "bubbly personality." But he become consumed by the Hutaree, she said, a southeastern Michigan militia group that described its members as "Christian warriors."

In an indictment Monday, federal authorities named Mr. Stone as leader of the Hutaree and accused him and eight members with plotting to spark an uprising against the U.S. government by killing police. Along with Mr. Stone, seven other men and one woman from Michigan, Ohio and Indiana are in being held without bond on weapons and sedition charges.

The indictment said Hutaree had practiced attacks and other military maneuvers for more than a year, and had planned to kill a law-enforcement officer, then use homemade bombs to attack officers who attended the funeral.

An undercover agent played a role in the investigation that led to Monday's indictments. Grand jury testimony by a law enforcement officer referred to an "undercover FBI agent" who worked on the case. The FBI declined to comment, but infiltration is a common tactic for law-enforcement officials targeting domestic militia groups.

Those charged in the case included Mr. Stone's current wife, Tina Mae Stone, 44; as well as two sons, David Brian Stone Jr., 19; and Joshua Matthew Stone 21. Attorneys for Ms. Stone, David Jr. and Joshua declined to comment Tuesday; the senior Mr. Stone had no attorney as of late Tuesday.

The Hutaree appears based at Mr. Stone's home, a pair of dilapidated house trailers near the intersection of dirt roads in rural Clayton, Michiganâ€"population 303â€"about 85 miles southwest of Detroit. The yard this week held three cars, a dog house, debris and a gun leaning on an old washing machine.

Family members and acquaintances said Mr. Stone doesn't curse, smoke or drink alcohol and was a strict disciplinarian with his sons, whom he home-schooled from a young age. While he rarely attended church, he studied the Bible nightly, memorizing long passages, said Ms. Harsh, his ex-fiance. Several scripture passages appear on the Hutaree Web site.

On his page on the MySpace social-networking site, Mr. Stone, using the alias of "(RD) Merzonik," listed his interests as "GOD, Guns and Girls." He said he liked action and science-fiction movies and writes, "only dead people are true heroes ... so I guess I don't have any." He listed his hometown as, "Wasteland, America," and 73 MySpace friends include several state and county militias.

Mr. Stone is listed as a 1982 graduate of Sand Creek High School on an alumni Web site. Donna Stone, his ex-wife, said she met Mr. Stone in the mid-1990s when she worked at a deli counter and he was a customer. They enjoyed the movies, she said, and he was charming and funny.

But Mr. Stone increasingly displayed a stubborn streak, as well as an affinity for guns. Ms. Stone, 44, said she left him after about a decade together. "When he went from handguns to big guns, I said, 'Enough,' " she said.

Court documents reveal an undercover FBI agent was part of the investigation of a Michigan-based Christian militia group that allegedly plotted to spark an uprising against the government by killing police officers. Plus, in a major push against the health overhaul, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to spend $50 million to sway election outcomes; and the News Hub discusses how a six-year high in the number of stocks hitting 52-week highs is not necessarily a bad sign for stocks.

Ms. Harsh, 40, said she began dating Mr. Stone in 2008 after meeting him at a plastics recycling factory where they worked. Mr. Stone showed her a Hutaree business card when they met, but otherwise said little about the group while they dated for several months.

After moving in together, Ms. Harsh said, he spent hours on the computer, building the group's Web site and searching online for weapons. "His life was pretty much consumed by the Hutaree," she said.

Mr. Stone despised authority, Ms. Harsh said, particularly "anyone with a badge." She said his temper finally drove her away last year. Mr. Stone remarried a few months later.

Ron Gaydosh, 62, said he had known Mr. Stone for more than 15 years, and frequently invited the Stones over for barbecues. He described Mr. Stone as a "good guy," with "all-around good kids," and said the family enjoyed hunting, fishing and trapping.

He said Mr. Stone was easily upset by talk of the government. "Some of the things that upset Dave also upset me," said Mr. Gaydosh, who belongs to another militia group with no ties to Hutaree. They frequently discussed survivalist techniques and poked fun at government officials, he said, but "there was never any violence planned."

Mr. Gaydosh said Mr. Stone didn't like law enforcement officials driving by and shining lights at Mr. Stone's house, adding that he always referred to police as "feds." Mr. Stone also didn't like neighbors complaining about his target shooting, Mr. Gaydosh said.

It's not clear whether Mr. Stone had money troubles. Ms. Harsh said he was working at Demlow Products, an auto-industry supplier in Clayton; a person who answered the phone at the company declined to comment. Mr. Stone and his ex-wife, Donna Stone, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in 1999.

Over the past couple of years, Mr. Stone attracted more Hutaree members, Ms. Harsh said: "His goal was to have all of the states have at least one group of Hutaree."

But he scared off some potential recruits. Jon Killman said he visited Mr. Stone and his sons in December because he was interested in joining a militia to practice survival skills.

He said Mr. Stone was a gracious host and offered him coffee. But soon Mr. Killman "got a bad vibe" as the Stones started joking about police officers who'd been shot in a coffee shop in Washington state.
The family's dining room table was strewn with shotgun shells, Mr. Killman recalled. The elder Mr. Stone said the shells would be filled with gunpowder and tied to trip wires to simulate landmines.

At first "they just seemed like a down-to-earth hillbilly family," he said. "After 20 minutes into the meeting, I realized these guys are not dealing with a full deck."

Matt Savino, commander of the Lenawee Volunteer Michigan Militia near Mr. Stone's home, said in recent months Mr. Stone became "paranoid" and began asking other militia groups to join in military exercises.

Mr. Stone began talking more about how "the federal government was coming down on them" and the need to be on the offensive and retain the element of surprise, Mr. Savino said.

Ms. Harsh said Mr. Stone "always thought he could hide from the government. He thought he was invincible."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304739104575154041322442962.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[screamingeagle]

If I wanted to join an organization dedicated to the violent overthrown of our elected government, I would join the democratic party.

 

[FootballDad]

Yep, to nuture a mistrust of government means that you have EVIL lurking inside of your brain. After all, Obama tells us that all government is good and trustworthy and we must have it run everyone's lives.

 

[FootballDad]

Here is an interesting book that I've read a few excerpts from that make it fit perfectly in this thread. How, indeed, we are well on our way to a police state. I'll have to pick it up so I'll have something to read on my flights.

 

[Thrashen]

"He said Mr. Stone was a gracious host and offered him coffee. But soon Mr. Killman "got a bad vibe" as the Stones started joking about police officers who'd been shot in a coffee shop in Washington state."



If what Killman here says actually occurred, if this "militia" was actually happy to see those white officers (with white children at home) from Washington State killed by that afro-scum, set loose by the "benevolent" Zionist, Mike Huckabee...then the Hutaree care nothing for race. Thus, I care nothing for them.

Sure, I hate the government, I hate authority, I hate the PTB / NWO / MSM...but to joke and laugh about the demise of any white person, especially those randomly murdered in cold blood by an black thug, smacks of treachery and hypocrisy. Like all white men who start "revolutions," they were probably pissed off about money, or some other materialistic cause. Even the white men who have the fortitude to stand and fight lack true purity.Edited by: Thrashen

 

[Observer]

some other materialistic cause

Like race for the sake of race.

 

[Thrashen]

some other materialistic cause

Like race for the sake of race.

I'm not following. Are you suggesting that the personal longing for the preservation and continuation of one's race is materialistic, money-oriented, or somehow selfish? Quite the contrary, actually"¦but yeah, the anti-white overlords and white self-loathers would whole-heartedly agree that "race for the sake of race"Â￾ is true foolishness (unless that race is non-white, of course). Then again, every single word they've ever spoken to the white masses is the opposite of truth.Edited by: Thrashen

 

[Observer]

some other materialistic cause

Like race for the sake of race.

I'm not following. Are you suggesting that the personal longing for the preservation and continuation of one's race is materialistic, money-oriented, or somehow selfish? Quite the contrary, actually"¦but yeah, the anti-white overlords and white self-loathers would whole-heartedly agree that "race for the sake of race"Â￾ is true foolishness (unless that race is non-white, of course). Then again, every single word they've ever spoken to the white masses is the opposite of truth.

Thrashen, you're a young guy with a lot of zeal. On top of that you seem to have a quick, easy intelligence. (And more imaginative uses of the word "turd" than I would have thought possible!) Some of the things you write, especially recently, I would like to see appear edited a little bit and put in a mainstream newspaper column somewhere. You have zeal and also a good degree of skill in expressing that zeal.

I don't know you, but that statement about "other materialistic cause" jogged my memory of some who have arrived at almost a worship of the "white gene" (or brown or black or kohenic gene) -- which in itself is just material chemicals. Racial pride as an extension of family and culture then degrades into a very naturalistic, materialistic idea of tribe. I cannot think of a better example of this than what has befallen Judaism after it had rejected the fulfillment of its prophecies and become a basely naturalistic entity. Such a degradation leads only to constant conflict and exploitation of others, which you very well know and have written about.

Nature is a good thing and should not be contradicted, but room must be allowed for super-nature, things that go beyond (but not contradict) the ordinary nature of things. (This is no statement about anything you have written, other than that specific excerpt that triggered my memory.)

I could give specific historical examples of what I mean; I would say that the birth of the Mestizo culture in the Americas was a healthy development: bachelor men from Europe and no kindred women; and a new Christian society took root from this (with the help and inspiration of the miraculous Guadalupe tilma), without entirely rejecting and destroying valid elements of the old society (although, admittedly, some of these were lost as well). But this is not a common occurence.

 

[jaxvid]

Looks like the Hutaree "crime" is pure fed entrapment 101:

"When a fellow member of a Christian militia group -- really an undercover federal agent -- demonstrated a roadside bomb, David Stone Sr. allegedly was undisturbed by the raw power of the explosion.

Told that the blast would kill anyone aboard a vehicle that detonated it, Stone said he was "OK with that," according to a federal prosecutor seeking to keep eight people in jail pending their trials on charges they wanted to start a war with the government by killing cops. "

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20100401/METRO/4010413/Feds-infiltrated-militia-group#ixzz0jr6EZ6z8

 

[Thrashen]

Thrashen, you're a young guy with a lot of zeal. On top of that you seem to have a quick, easy intelligence. (And more imaginative uses of the word "turd" than I would have thought possible!) Some of the things you write, especially recently, I would like to see appear edited a little bit and put in a mainstream newspaper column somewhere. You have zeal and also a good degree of skill in expressing that zeal.

I don't know you, but that statement about "other materialistic cause" jogged my memory of some who have arrived at almost a worship of the "white gene" (or brown or black or kohenic gene) -- which in itself is just material chemicals. Racial pride as an extension of family and culture then degrades into a very naturalistic, materialistic idea of tribe. I cannot think of a better example of this than what has befallen Judaism after it had rejected the fulfillment of its prophecies and become a basely naturalistic entity. Such a degradation leads only to constant conflict and exploitation of others, which you very well know and have written about.

Nature is a good thing and should not be contradicted, but room must be allowed for super-nature, things that go beyond (but not contradict) the ordinary nature of things. (This is no statement about anything you have written, other than that specific excerpt that triggered my memory.)

I could give specific historical examples of what I mean; I would say that the birth of the Mestizo culture in the Americas was a healthy development: bachelor men from Europe and no kindred women; and a new Christian society took root from this (with the help and inspiration of the miraculous Guadalupe tilma), without entirely rejecting and destroying valid elements of the old society (although, admittedly, some of these were lost as well). But this is not a common occurence.

Observer, nice post, I understand your point.

However, if not "race for the sake of race,"Â￾ then what should this White Nationalist journey be "for the sake"Â￾ of, exactly? All other things on planet earth are entirely trifling when weighed against white family, white culture, and white race. Everything else is irrefutable nothingness, mere filler. Your statement concerning the "worship of the white gene"Â￾ is quite applicable"¦as my race is my religion.

White children are not merely the most vital and most beautiful natural resource on this planet; they are the only natural resource on this planet. Fighting to build a better world for those children should be the White Nationalist model for a Utopia. All other "causes"Â￾ that deviate from that doctrine are absurdly hypocritical and (though I hate to adopt their contrived political language) "liberal."Â￾

As for what Jax posted about the undercover FBI agent's suggestion for a roadside funeral bomb"¦.I believe that situation actually defines the term "setup."Â￾ Like Randy Weaver's supposedly "illegal"Â￾ sawed-off shotgun (Ruby Ridge, ID), or David Koresh's supposedly "imprisoned"Â￾ cult members (Waco, TX)"¦the government will stop at nothing to get their (white) man behind bars.Edited by: Thrashen

 

[jaxvid]

I don't know you, but that statement about "other materialistic cause" jogged my memory of some who have arrived at almost a worship of the "white gene" (or brown or black or kohenic gene) -- which in itself is just material chemicals. Racial pride as an extension of family and culture then degrades into a very naturalistic, materialistic idea of tribe. I cannot think of a better example of this than what has befallen Judaism after it had rejected the fulfillment of its prophecies and become a basely naturalistic entity. Such a degradation leads only to constant conflict and exploitation of others, which you very well know and have written about.

Nature is a good thing and should not be contradicted, but room must be allowed for super-nature, things that go beyond (but not contradict) the ordinary nature of things. (This is no statement about anything you have written, other than that specific excerpt that triggered my memory.)

I could give specific historical examples of what I mean; I would say that the birth of the Mestizo culture in the Americas was a healthy development: bachelor men from Europe and no kindred women; and a new Christian society took root from this (with the help and inspiration of the miraculous Guadalupe tilma), without entirely rejecting and destroying valid elements of the old society (although, admittedly, some of these were lost as well). But this is not a common occurence.

I disagree on the birth of the mestizo culture being a healthy development. The net result of that culture development was a perverting of Europeon genes and a formation of a bastardized type of Christianity (which was once the guiding morality of Europeans). That culture threatens to overwhelm and replace the more traditional white Christian cultures of North America. Nothing healthy about that in my opinon.

 

[Observer]

I disagree on the birth of the mestizo culture being a healthy development. The net result of that culture development was a perverting of Europeon genes and a formation of a bastardized type of Christianity (which was once the guiding morality of Europeans). That culture threatens to overwhelm and replace the more traditional white Christian cultures of North America. Nothing healthy about that in my opinon.

I don't really disagree. If Spain had retained control longer, I think things could have been better. Mexico in the early- to mid-1800's was something like America is now in the sense of being pressured to change; but in Mexico at that time it wasn't Jews pushing for change, but Freemasonry (S.C. lodges, from what I've read) and revolutionary idealism pitting Indians vs. Whites. They've had their Marxist revolutions for generations now. Certainly, mixing of races makes this break-down of society more easily possible -- but even in a racially homogenous society this can happen because there are always levers with which an unscrupulous few can divide people, and even families.

 

[DixieDestroyer]

8 Hutaree militia members enter "not guilty" pleas (to counter these probable trumped-up charges).

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62U60220100331?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews



Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Martinsville, IN cops taser a 10 year old!

http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23017669/detail.html Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Menelik]

This is just crazy! If two cops can't subdue a 10 year old they have no business being cops.

 

[Deadlift]

Could this have police state ramifications?

Mayor of SW Illinois village fatally shot

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100401/ap_on_re_us/us_washington_park_mayor_killed


Black Revolution?

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Hutaree militia member's attorneys are pressing for their release...

http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE6304FD20100401

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Feds further crack down on air travelers...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/02/AR2010040204131_pf.html

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Judge denies bail for Hutaree militia members...

http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/According-to-Time-readers-White-more-influentia?urn=mma,231694

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Sheriff deputy & bail bonds enforcement "officer" bust into woman's home without warrant claiming..."I don't need a warrant!".

http://www.kget.com/mostpopular/story/Sheriffs-department-launches-internal/V6wT6LFFpke93tb_h6XCLg.cspx

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Don Wassall]

Here's a good article describing how the Republicans are just as guilty as the "opposition" Democrats in building the police state:

They Protest Too Much

by Butler Shaffer

It's known as "projection": the trait by which one attributes to others various "dark side" attitudes and motivations. The current practice of accusing the Iranian government of warlike intentions in order to rationalize one's own desires to attack that country is one example. Another instance is found in the efforts of numerous Democratic party supporters to explain the opposition to Barack Obama's policies as racist-driven. Such "liberal" commentators as Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, Alan Colmes, Colbert King, and Frank Rich, along with former president Jimmy Carter, have strained and contorted their minds to suggest that "much" of the criticism of Obama programs â€" particularly that found in the "Tea Party" movement â€" arises from people who are uncomfortable with a black man as president.



How has race played into the Obama presidency? To begin with, we must identify the factors that led to this man being elected to that office: (a) he was the "not George Bush" candidate, and (b) for many, he was the opportunity for the United States to have its first non-white president. These considerations, alone, led to his victory in 2008. He offered no clearly-defined programs or policies: "change" and "hope" were about the only words to appear on his behalf on billboards and bumper-stickers. He did not campaign on promises to escalate American wars in the Middle East; to expand the American empire; to nationalize the banking, insurance, auto manufacturing, and health-care industries; or to circumvent the often dilatory processes of Congress by his appointment of "czars" to run the varied sectors of American society. "Hope" and "change" were sufficient bromides to persuade a thoroughly befuddled Boobus to stagger into voting booths to elect this man.



In these post-2008 years, I totally dismiss everything establishment Republicans and conservatives have to say about Obama's shortcomings and their own "alternatives." It was the unprincipled mindlessness of this crowd â€" cheering on every utterance offered by the Bush/Cheney/Rove/Rumsfeld contingent, as well as their neocon media flacks â€" that produced the immoral and destructive policies that got Obama elected; policies he now kicks into high-gear! Ron Paul was â€" and continues to be â€" the only Republican to condemn the GOP's embrace of rampant statism. The dismal state of this party is seen in its contemptuous treatment of Ron.


If race is to be considered a major factor in the assessment of Obama, what is to be said of the support he received during the 2008 campaign? I saw a number of post-election polls indicating that, among black voters, Obama received some 95% of their support. Some 40% of white voters, on the other hand, selected Obama. While traditional party loyalties may explain some of this differential, that 40% of white voters favored Obama, while only 5% of blacks voted for McCain, may introduce a racial factor that "liberals" want to overlook. When, on election night, MSNBC's Chris Matthews announced "I'm going to do everything I can to make this thing work â€" this new presidency," to what "thing" was he referring? It certainly was not the success of any announced policies, as nothing of any substance had been promised. I received similar comments in e-mails from "liberal" friends, causing me to wonder if a black president's programs were to be favored over those of a white president and, if so, why? Are those who try to convince you that race motivates many of Obama's critics, projecting their own sense of uneasiness for allowing race to be the basis for their support?
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One cannot understand modern political behavior without grasping a basic truth of which your high-school civics class teacher did not inform you: we have a one-party system consisting of two interconnected franchises, each under the complete control of the political establishment. If you would like to put Janus-like faces to this arrangement, think of that frequent media guest, David Gergen, a man who served as a bipartisan presidential advisor to Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. Or look upon the married couple, Mary Matalin and James Carville: she a valued GOP advisor to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney; he a Democratic advisor to Bill and Hillary Clinton.


The political establishment loves the imagery of bipartisanship, a word reflecting satisfaction with either political party's policies. If Boobus thought, for even a moment, of the necessary implications of "bipartisanship," he would quickly become aware of the racket being played at his expense by the entire system. But thinking, even for a moment, is something establishment forces cannot tolerate. This is why Ron Paul is persona non grata to both parties, the establishment's media lapdogs, and other institutional interests intent on preserving their places at the beltway trough. Thinking â€" like information generally â€" is threatening to power interests dependent upon an unfocused group-think. Would the Iraqi/Afghan wars have been possible if Americans had used their heads for other than locations upon which to place their "U.S.S. Missouri" baseball caps?



And, so, Ron Paul and all others who insist on analyzing government policies on the basis of facts and focused reasoning, must be marginalized. Like the fable of the boy who saw the emperor's nakedness, the political order will send out its reporters to impress upon Boobus the beauty of non-existent fabrics. In order to discourage questioning by others, establishment voices resort to the tactic upon which deceit is always dependent: name-calling. The power of intimidation is called into play: those who suspect there may be dishonest purposes underlying government policies, are accused of being "paranoid conspiracy theorists." Persons who condemn the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians are labeled "anti-Semites." (During the George W. Bush administration, we were told that criticism of "neocons" was really a cover for anti-Semitism.) Now we are told that men and women who disapprove of the increased collectivization of the economy; or of the crony-capitalism that shovels hundreds of billions of dollars into corporate coffers; or of the state's increased control over their daily lives; or of government policies that enhance the economic collapse of America; are doing nothing more than indulging in racist bigotries!
Those who disapprove of government, itself, are accused â€" by those who use state power to feed on the energies of others â€" of promoting "violence." Herein lies another example of projection. What political science student does not recognize the basic definition of "government" as "an agency with a monopoly on the use of violence within a given geographic territory"? As distinct from the marketplace â€" which consists of a system of voluntary, contractual exchanges among individuals â€" all political systems are characterized by the lawful authority to use violent force to compel those subject to it to obey. Policemen are the coercive enforcers of state authority. When Randolph Bourne observed that "war is the health of the state," he was getting to its violent essence, a truth easily confirmed by the 200,000,000 deaths inflicted upon humanity through government wars and genocides during the 20<SUP>th</SUP> century. Are we really to believe that those who oppose such practices, and favor free and peaceful social systems, are advocates of violence? You will not hear questions of this sort discussed in the mainstream media. If Boobus is to be kept in harness, in service to his masters, his blinders must be kept in place.


Such queries will, however, continue to energize the growing number of minds who know that the political order â€" as well as the society victimized by political thinking â€" is in a state of disrepair. They know that if present practices remain unchallenged, their lives will suffer the adverse consequences. As they intensify both the depth and scope of their questioning, they will have to endure the intimidation and defamation of a statist regime desperate to keep its herd intact. Rather than seeking out the insights of those whose reasoned analyses strike at the heart of the vicious racket being played at the expense of humanity, they will be encouraged to turn to the comic relief, contradictions, and distractions provided by the Tea Party, and the likes of Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, and John McCain.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/shaffer/shaffer212.htmlEdited by: Don Wassall

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Welcome to Oceania...2010.

An American metropolis where eyes are everywhere

Tony Washington AP â€" Chicago Police Officer Tony Washington watches surveillance videos at the 18th District Chicago Police "¦

By DON BABWIN, Associated Press Writer Don Babwin, Associated Press Writer â€" Tue Apr 6, 9:00 am ET

CHICAGO â€" When the body of Chicago's school board president was found partially submerged in a river last fall, a bullet wound to the head, cameras helped prove it was a suicide.

Friends had speculated someone forced Michael Scott to drive to the river before shooting him â€" and maybe even wrapped his fingers around the trigger.

But within days, police recreated Scott's 20-minute drive through the city using high-tech equipment that singled out his car on a succession of surveillance cameras, handing the image from camera to camera. The video didn't capture Scott's final moments, but it helped convince police his death was a suicide: He wasn't followed. He wasn't following anyone. He never picked up a passenger.

The investigation offered a riveting demonstration of the most extensive and sophisticated video surveillance system in the United States, and one that is transforming what it means to be in public in Chicago.

In less than a decade and with little opposition, the city has linked thousands of cameras â€" on street poles and skyscrapers, aboard buses and in train tunnels â€" in a network covering most of the city. Officials can watch video live at a sprawling emergency command center, police stations and even some squad cars.

"I don't think there is another city in the U.S. that has as an extensive and integrated camera network as Chicago has," said Michael Chertoff, the former Homeland Security secretary.

New York has plenty of cameras, but about half of the 4,300 installed along the city's subways don't work. Other cities haven't been able to link networks like Chicago. Baltimore, for example, doesn't integrate school cameras with its emergency system and it can't immediately send 911 dispatchers video from the camera nearest to a call like Chicago can.

Even London â€" widely considered the world's most closely watched city with an estimated 500,000 cameras â€" doesn't incorporate private cameras in its system as Chicago does.

While critics decry the network as the biggest of Big Brother invasions of privacy, most Chicago residents accept them as a fact of life in a city that has always had a powerful local government and police force.

And authorities say the system helps them respond to emergencies in a way never before possible. A dispatcher can tell those racing to the scene how big a fire is or what a gunman looks like. If a package is left sitting next to a building for more than a few minutes, a camera can send an alert.

Cameras have recorded drug deals, bike thefts and a holiday bell ringer dipping his hand into a pot outside a downtown store. Footage from a camera on a city bus helped convince a suspected gang member to plead guilty to shooting a 16-year-old high school student in 2007.

In the death of the school board president, the cameras helped diffuse mounting suspicion and anger.

"It really closed that piece of the puzzle," police Superintendent Jody Weis said. "We don't know what was going through his head, but we definitely know he was alone."

The network began less than a decade ago with a dozen cameras installed in Grant Park to deter violence during the annual Taste of Chicago festival. It now includes private cameras as well as those installed by a variety of public agencies.

While authorities won't say exactly how many cameras are included, with 1,500 installed by emergency officials, 6,500 in city schools and many more at public and private facilities, nobody disputes an estimate of 10,000 and growing. Weis said he would like to add "covert" cameras, perhaps as small as matchboxes.

City officials from around the world have visited Chicago to see the system and how effective it is.

Chicago police point to 4,000 arrests made since 2006 with the help of cameras. And, an unpublished study by the Washington-based Urban Institute found crime in one neighborhood â€" including drug sales, robberies and weapons offenses â€" decreased significantly after cameras were installed, said Nancy La Vigne, director of the institute's Justice Policy Center.

"It does stop people from coming out and acting the fool," observed Larry Scott, who lives in one of the city's last remaining public housing high rises.

He said residents rarely complain, unless they get caught for a minor offense or the cameras fail to record a violent attack.

"People were upset when that boy was killed by the 2-by-4 and there were no pictures," he said, referring to the beating death of a high school student that was recorded by cell phone but not city cameras last year.

Police say they usually hear from Chicago residents about the cameras only when they want one installed in their neighborhood or worry one will be removed. Such a claim is supported by an unlikely source: The American Civil Liberties Union, which has criticized the use of cameras as an invasion of privacy and ineffective crime fighting tool.

"It does appear that people only object is when they get a ticket (because of a camera) for running a red light," ACLU spokesman Edwin Yohnka said.

Although courts have generally found surveillance cameras placed in public don't violate individuals' privacy, Yohnka said they could too easily be misused.

"What protections are in place to stop a rogue officer from taking a highly powerful camera and aim it in a way to find or track someone who is perhaps a former love interest or something like that?" he asked.

Aric Roush, director of information services at the city's 911 center, responded that dispatchers see nothing officers wouldn't see if they were on the scene.

"You can't afford to put a police officer on every single corner (and) it is a lot more cost effective and efficient to put a camera where you don't have eyes," he said.

Chicago residents tend to be tough on crime and are likely to support any tool police use, said Paul Green, a Roosevelt University political science professor. Many literally applauded the officers who swung billy clubs at protesters during the 1968 Democratic National Convention, he recalled.

Mayor Richard Daley, he said, "could put 10,000 more cameras up and nobody would say anything."


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100406/ap_on_re_us/us_chicago_cameras_everywhere

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

More on "Big Brother" techniques in government indoctrination centers...

Oceania 2010 : Students Monitored via GPS Device

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Don Wassall]

Is it North Korea, is it the USSR, is it Cuba, no it's the "land of the free." Even Dana Milbank

of the government worshipping Washington Post is becoming unhappy. Read this article and see how the "terrorists" have indeed won:

Obama's disregard for media reaches new heights at nuclear summit



By Dana Milbank
Wednesday, April 14, 2010; A02






World leaders arriving in Washington for President Obama's Nuclear Security Summit must have felt for a moment that they had instead been transported to Soviet-era Moscow.


They entered a capital that had become a military encampment, with camo-wearing military police in Humvees and enough Army vehicles to make it look like a May Day parade on New York Avenue, where a bicyclist was killed Monday by a National Guard truck.


In the middle of it all was Obama -- occupant of an office once informally known as "leader of the free world" -- putting on a clinic for some of the world's greatest dictators in how to circumvent a free press.


The only part of the summit, other than a post-meeting news conference, that was visible to the public was Obama's eight-minute opening statement, which ended with the words: "I'm going to ask that we take a few moments to allow the press to exit before our first session."


Reporters for foreign outlets, admitted for the first time to the White House press pool, got the impression that the vaunted American freedoms are not all they're cracked up to be.
Full article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/13/AR2010041303067_pf.htmlEdited by: Don Wassall

 

[FootballDad]

So much for the Obama administrations claims that it will be and "open administration". But we all knew what was coming when he was elected. I also like how all of the news outlets today were giddy pronouncing the Summit a "success". Says who? Nobody saw any of it, they have to rely on a White House memo that says so. Not like a memo from the administration is going to say that it was a failure!