The troop withdrawal created a ton of surplus armament. Through the so-called “1033 program,” police departments can acquire excess military gear from the Pentagon for free.
Source: https://www.stephensemler.com/p/how-the-iraq-war-turbocharged-police
soon patriot missile systems will be the only way to keep the local police safe
In the Bible and at the end of the Cold War, the motto was: swords into plowshares.
According to the graph there were fewer US troops deployed in Iraq during the last years of Obama’s presidency than there are now.
So Bush started the war in Iraq and Obama ended the war in Iraq?
Sorry, but this graph just doesn’t fit with the both sides forever war narrative.
I was deployed to Iraq in 2010, the mission at that time was changed and called “Operation New Dawn” this was Obama’s drawdown of forces. The base I was on had one more deployment after us then it was turned over to Iraqi forces and we pulled out, mostly.
So this guy has been getting a lot of traction lately because they basically predicted not only that the US would attack Iran, but also the specific mechanism which would cause it to happen.
I linked to the next video in the series and I think it’s worth watching, especially in the context of the above figure. I think the professor is pretty cherry picked in their examples and what they choose to bring forwards as data and evidence, however, their opinion on why Putin is doing what they are doing is especially worth considering. Effectively, the professor argued, Putin is trying to use a constant state of war to reshape the Russian self image into that if a warrior nation. You can agree or disagree with the professor, which is neither here nor there.
However, and this is why is sat their examples are cherry picked, let’s look at the parallels to the US with regards to using war to transform a people. I think the above point highlights the issue excellently, and those who can remember a time before 9-11 can attest. The US people changed after the war on terror; or perhaps, had change thrust upon them by a government interested in cultivating a police state style authoritarianism.
Before 9-11, maybe a few police forces has something akin to a special SWAT unit. It was headline news if they were ever utilized. Now every small town practically has a bearcat, and through the use of copaganda, the oppression of citizens with no due process and no probable cause is practically the point of one lice forces. Forces within the US used militarism, they used the war on terror to subvert the US constitution in a multi decade process to convert local police into military forces, which can easily be swept under federal control.
So when we criticize Putin for using war to remake the identity of a nation throughout the war, we should at least be consistent and consider how the US identity was remade through war. These p organs are the kinds of slippery slopes that those interested in bipartisanship committed us to over the previous two and a half decades.
I checked it out and his conclusions are idiotic. He’s saying Russian demography is bad because of no democracy lmao. But most EU and US are below replacement levels, the only reason this is not visible in US - immigration.
Effectively, the professor argued, Putin is trying to use a constant state of war to reshape the Russian self image into that if a warrior nation.
Hard epic fail. Over 1 million russian casualties. Tank reserves mostly depleated. Huge losses of military vehicles and gear.
If anything, I’d say russia has proved that they aren’t even a country. They’re a gas station with nukes that may or may not work.
I mean it’s kind of the professors point. He says that Putin is doing this to kill off and redefine the identity parts of the Russian population, whom Putin identifies as lazy, drunkard, directionless young men.
Ah, great plan! When they return they can be disabled, traumatized men who are drunk dealing with PTSD.
It’s a warrior state, they just happen to be very bad at it
Well yea, but you can buy a semi-automatic riffle on walmart and legally own a bump that makes that automatic…
I may be too european, but cops are not bastards here in Hungary…
Nah dawg, they only sell pellet guns, long-barrel rifles, and shotguns at Wal-Mart, but I get your point. I’ll just say, it may be important over here to own those semi-automatic death makers when SHTF.
But what sort of shit would hit the fan? I really don’t want to be an asshole, but one of the reasons I heard ‘to protect your rights’ but how? Like an armed militia against the government? If all is in favor ag the gov, then there is no need for bloodshed; and if none but your cause is just then history would would honor it without bloodshed
The other thing I heard is self defense… But like if none one had guns, would you need guns to defend yourself?
Economic and political collapse are not an impossibility, so having a way to defend myself if things get dicey is a nice reassurance. Luckily I’m in BFE and guns double as a food resource tool.
…how? Isn’t the us a first world country?
🤣 FWINO, First World In Name Only.
I may be too European but cops are not bastards
It is different in the vast majority of of the EU, true.
here in Hungary
Aren’t they Orban’s bitches? Genuine question. I have seen examples where they definitely have been.
No, actually they and the military quite a bit dislike Orban regardless of their political standing! He started his first 4 year by fucking over their benefits and retirement plan… What did you see?
What did you see?
Police declining to execute European Arrest Warrant, inconvenient to Orban.
Not one person, not in the public sector is going to stand up in defiance alone?
My dad works in the army, he and his colleagues were out on the pride (which was kinda a protest too since the Orban said we can’t have a pride)! He didn’t agree with… well anything (gonna be a fun day when he finds out I am bi) but in a face mask, a face covering shawl and a sunglass he was out there
Generic sentiment that Orban is dictatorial coupled with an association of dictatorships and a dependency on the military? That’s probably enough to be getting on with, ain’t nobody got time to know about everything. But actually not OP, I probably would’ve drawn the same inferences and am enlightened by you.
Orbans rule is not that of military one? Despite his best efforts we are atill a European country
His rule can be thanked to a multitude of reasons mainly: -Gerrymandering: With 43% of vites he received 76% mandate somehow in the last cycle -Insane levels of corruption that among other thing were used to buy and build a media empire to control the narrative -Lack of real opposition: all were bought or their rep destroyed by the before mentioned news empire! Peter Magyar seems like he will finally finally win ag Orban, as his name is kinda impervious (he used to be the husband of the formal minister of justice; someone who were forced to stepped down after she gave pardon to the pedofile friend of Orbans brother) and to some degree he was a party member, tho neither site is willing to reveal how much… And tho every election cycle had the same hype: that fidesz is finally going to prison…
ACAB, but some are more bastarts than others.
ACAB is a very good slogan, but only if we understand it.
It’s very specifically referring to cops like the American police system, not the concept of policing. Community policing and ensuring people are safe and have someone to help them in emergencies is a good thing, community policing makes community livable, it’s a basic feature of society.
Cops in America trace their roots to violent thugs who were paid by wealth slavers to return their slaves. Their job is literally to protect the property of the rich, not to protect or serve the community as they claim.
I would really disagree, I haven’t the faintest clue whats its like in the US but as someone of gypsy descent and as someone who grew up in a soviet era 10 story building I have never had a singular bad experience with them!
Wal-Mart does not sell guns for the most part anymore.
Mine does, redneck town, but it’s all hunting style rifles and shotguns, nothing tacticool. I won’t buy from big corpo, too big a pain. I just use guns.com for the most part.
Huh… Kinda glad! Studied a semester out there in 2019 and was really really shocked when I saw a weapon stands in almost every larger supermarket!
What?! I’ve lived in gun happy states almost my whole life and have never seen guns sold in grocery stores. Walmart might be considered weird, but everywhere else is a sports store and a dedicated gun shop.
I definietly saw a gun stand in target in florida!
It wasn’t widespread, but I’ve been in gas stations in Florida that sold firearms.
LOL WUT!? Never been anywhere that redneck and I live in the panhandle. Wonders never cease.
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Gotta be careful not to link correlation with causation here. Could just be that vendors started selling to cops a lot more in the 2010s for different reasons.
no… this is literally what happened. the us military has been giving local police assloads of hardware for decades, and thats why you have cops running over dogs with APCs
Maybe, but this plot doesn’t show that.
I got some stuff that was meant to go to Afghanistan through Pakistan. Some containers get stolen after they port in Karachi and the stuff gets sold around. NATO containers fkr the us military there.
Still have some of that stuff. Surprisingly unseedy place.
Only tangentially related but had to mention it.
Hey, remember when Bush was 100% certain that Iraq had “weapons of mass destruction”, and then USA swept in, and reported back “Well, we killed Sadam, took over the region, opened a power vacume that allowed the formation of ISIS, and the rise of power of the taliban, and all in the name of finding nukes? Yeah…they didn’t have them. Whoopsie doodles!”
Remember that?
Yeah. Found where they went. This guy has them.
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Lmaooo.
What’s funny is that when Iran moved their nuclear stuff before the us bombed them, there were theories that it was moved to Pakistan too. (Unlikely IMO)
Pakistan has possibly also helped Iran in their nuclear project
i wonder if russia did, and the ccp too, china helped develop pakistans nukes.
