Original Post :
I wont miss out on a what is bound to be a definitive debate, the mother of all debates. The subject matter pulsates thru the very fiber of the internet daily and is growing. But it doesn't belong in the Babylon 5 area.
I have voted either Republican and Democratic in many different primaries. The independents don't have the gas to make a good run at it yet. If I had to classify myself I would have to say I am a Libertarian socialist. But I am not a leftist. Many of my views are very conservative.
I can't be long winded since I am at work right now. I plan to respond sometime in the early a.m..
Nightwatch Lives
The Bush administration never met a bad idea they didn't like. See these links:
N A T I O N
Eyes And Ears Of The Nation
By AMANDA RIPLEY/LITTLE ROCK
Thousands of truckers, bus drivers and rest-stop workers are being enlisted to spot terrorists. Is this comforting news?
STEVE JONES FOR TIME
I SPY: ôFrom trucks to taxis, school buses to NASCAR.ö ThatÆs the exuberant motto of a program to train drivers like Larry Lawson, of the Central Arkansas Transit Authority, to identify terrorists
Sunday, Jun. 27, 2004
On a blazing hot morning last week, 75 men and women of the highway ù bus drivers, truckers and van operators ù convened at a nondescript office building in Little Rock, Ark., to be trained as terrorist hunters. The Department of Homeland Security this year gave $19.3 million to the American Trucking Associations, which is based in Alexandria, Va., to recruit a volunteer "army" called Highway Watch. So far, 10,000 truckers have signed on to become amateur sleuths. Over the next year, the goal is to add tollbooth workers, rest-stop employees and construction crews, creating a corps of 400,000 people drawn from every state.
Waiting for the training to begin, Jo Anna Cartwright, who manages the rural public bus system in northern Arkansas, said she had not yet encountered any terrorists in her job, as far as she knew. "We got a terroristic phone call the other day," she said, "but it turned out it was just the boyfriend of an employee." Her bus drivers pay special attention to a gentleman from Afghanistan who recently married a regular rider, she said. Cartwright had come to the training to learn what else she could do.
More on the web sites...
The Bush administration never met a bad idea they didn't like. See these links:
N A T I O N
Eyes And Ears Of The Nation
By AMANDA RIPLEY/LITTLE ROCK
Thousands of truckers, bus drivers and rest-stop workers are being enlisted to spot terrorists. Is this comforting news?
STEVE JONES FOR TIME
I SPY: ôFrom trucks to taxis, school buses to NASCAR.ö ThatÆs the exuberant motto of a program to train drivers like Larry Lawson, of the Central Arkansas Transit Authority, to identify terrorists
Sunday, Jun. 27, 2004
On a blazing hot morning last week, 75 men and women of the highway ù bus drivers, truckers and van operators ù convened at a nondescript office building in Little Rock, Ark., to be trained as terrorist hunters. The Department of Homeland Security this year gave $19.3 million to the American Trucking Associations, which is based in Alexandria, Va., to recruit a volunteer "army" called Highway Watch. So far, 10,000 truckers have signed on to become amateur sleuths. Over the next year, the goal is to add tollbooth workers, rest-stop employees and construction crews, creating a corps of 400,000 people drawn from every state.
Waiting for the training to begin, Jo Anna Cartwright, who manages the rural public bus system in northern Arkansas, said she had not yet encountered any terrorists in her job, as far as she knew. "We got a terroristic phone call the other day," she said, "but it turned out it was just the boyfriend of an employee." Her bus drivers pay special attention to a gentleman from Afghanistan who recently married a regular rider, she said. Cartwright had come to the training to learn what else she could do.
More on the web sites...
I have voted either Republican and Democratic in many different primaries. The independents don't have the gas to make a good run at it yet. If I had to classify myself I would have to say I am a Libertarian socialist. But I am not a leftist. Many of my views are very conservative.
Gee. implied attack right off the bat.Yes, I'm a US Citizen. Born and Raised.
Are YOU a Republican or a Bush Supporter?
(I realize the two are Not the same.)
Now, Back to the topic:
I was looking at the nice innocuous way the program is starting out:
First, give them a neat window sticker. And a little wallet card.
Second. An occasional meeting where they can pat each other on the back and congratulate themselves on their patriotism. And, of course, maybe have a few beers.
Third. Give them a phone number so they can report "Suspicious" characters. Oh, and anyone with a bumper sticker they don't like...
Once you've done that, wait a while, then start creating "Solidarity" among the membership.
How about everybody just sort of agrees to wear the same style and color shirts & pants. Not a "Uniform". Just let's show out Pride in our Patriotism where Everyone can see who we are.
Well, OK, a Uniform.
Then, the cheerleading at meetings gets very "Pro Bush" and the mesage becomes make sure all your Family, friends and neighbors Vote and that they Vote The Right Way, of course.
Keep track of those Unpatriotic Traitors who disagree with you. Maybe call that phone number about some of the more articulate ones. (Them smart bastids is Dangerous.) For the rest of them, well, their day will come.
(It worked for Adolph in Germany. I think they called the payoff "The Night of the Long Knives".)
What sort of people will this sort of program attract? Busybodies, goes without saying. Guys who think anyone who Disagrees with the "Party Line" is a commie pinko terrorist. Especially those who think CPTs should have their Butts Kicked and are ready to Join Up for a chance to get a boot or two in.
It'll be Most attractive to the guy who wasn't quite acceptable as a Police Officer because he was just Too Much of a bully to stomach. The sort of guy who is all too willing to "Enforce the laws" the courts are too liberal wimpy to enforce. The Laws of GHOD as revealed by the voices in the beer can.
We had that sort of organization once before in this country. It went by the initials KKK. They worked for "Free" and enforced all sorts of "Unwritten Laws of Ghod".
And this time, they don't even have to buy new sheets for the bed.
Now do you see the slippery slope ???
Are YOU a Republican or a Bush Supporter?
(I realize the two are Not the same.)
Now, Back to the topic:
I was looking at the nice innocuous way the program is starting out:
First, give them a neat window sticker. And a little wallet card.
Second. An occasional meeting where they can pat each other on the back and congratulate themselves on their patriotism. And, of course, maybe have a few beers.
Third. Give them a phone number so they can report "Suspicious" characters. Oh, and anyone with a bumper sticker they don't like...
Once you've done that, wait a while, then start creating "Solidarity" among the membership.
How about everybody just sort of agrees to wear the same style and color shirts & pants. Not a "Uniform". Just let's show out Pride in our Patriotism where Everyone can see who we are.
Well, OK, a Uniform.
Then, the cheerleading at meetings gets very "Pro Bush" and the mesage becomes make sure all your Family, friends and neighbors Vote and that they Vote The Right Way, of course.
Keep track of those Unpatriotic Traitors who disagree with you. Maybe call that phone number about some of the more articulate ones. (Them smart bastids is Dangerous.) For the rest of them, well, their day will come.
(It worked for Adolph in Germany. I think they called the payoff "The Night of the Long Knives".)
What sort of people will this sort of program attract? Busybodies, goes without saying. Guys who think anyone who Disagrees with the "Party Line" is a commie pinko terrorist. Especially those who think CPTs should have their Butts Kicked and are ready to Join Up for a chance to get a boot or two in.
It'll be Most attractive to the guy who wasn't quite acceptable as a Police Officer because he was just Too Much of a bully to stomach. The sort of guy who is all too willing to "Enforce the laws" the courts are too liberal wimpy to enforce. The Laws of GHOD as revealed by the voices in the beer can.
We had that sort of organization once before in this country. It went by the initials KKK. They worked for "Free" and enforced all sorts of "Unwritten Laws of Ghod".
And this time, they don't even have to buy new sheets for the bed.
Now do you see the slippery slope ???
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