According to an article on the Huffington Post website, “The Battle Plan III: Deployment and Its Dangers“:

On October 1, 2008, President Bush deployed a brigade — which means three to four thousand warriors — somewhere in America.”

The article goes on to describe the threats of such a brigade, if used unwisely or unscrupulously, and notes:

The First Brigade is Bush’s force: they are not answerable to Congress or to the Governors of states: they are answerable to the Commander in Chief. In an Alternet posting, I interviewed Air Force Colonel (retired) David Antoon who noted that the troops must obey the president, even if he asks them to arrest Congress or fire on civilians or attack media outlets.

The article then reminds readers of recent trends in domestic “terrorist” accusations, as well as examples of domestic police brutality. These are very important examples demonstrating the dangers of living in an increasingly militarized society.

There is a link in the article to a video of a recent unaggravated mass arrest, which is quite shocking. Seeing so many police offers dressed in riot gear in a U.S. city, closing in on peaceful protesters, was a bit disconcerting.

I’ve been enjoying the audiobook version of John Adams, by David McCullough. One of the statements Adams made, in respect to British troops in the early American colonies, was that military forces stationed in a city will create three riots for every one that they stamp out.

All of this is a great reminder of the blessings of living in the country.