Obama has signed NDAA, even though he had "serious reservation" about it. Welcome to martial law, folks.
Happy New Year!
Don't we have to wait for the courts approval now?
This is a fucking awful thing that has happened, and Obama must explain himself NOW.
No, laws that pass congress and get the presidential seal of approval are immediately official. In order for the courts to have a say, someone subject to the law in question has to appeal their way up to the Supreme Court, who can eventually find (or fail to find) the law unconstitutional.
As for it seeing a lot of 'abuse', I honestly don't think that will happen. The United States has a long history of occasionally suspending the rights of her citizens, starting with the Alien and Sedition acts, but only taking advantage of that suspension selectively so as not to frighten the public and lose their hall pass. I'm not in any way saying that this is not awful. It is most certainly awful awful awful; but I doubt that the government is gearing up for mass arrests or the introduction of a police state.
I imagine that they'll use their new powers very selectively, against people who appear unusual, have a hard to pronounce name, have no social support system in this country, and in other equally cowardly ways.
Last edited by Deus Ex Machina; 01-03-2012 at 09:32 AM.
Hey all. First post.
My inference is the media found a lovely opportunity when they saw the NDAA passed. It feeds into the highly profitable doom-and-gloom/Big Brother conspiratorial sensationalism that Alex Jones makes a killing on. I agree with the above post in that this decree will be used quickly, and quietly. Although if I had to ballpark the intended use - I would assume it doesn't involve Iran (we're going to war with them, regardless.)
I think it has to do with Operation Fast And Furious.
Speaking of doom and gloom Alex Jones
Heres a good video of a woman's first hand experience of being detained after protesting NDAA
http://www.infowars.com/lauren-digio...-ndaa-protest/
I'm not a law student, but is it possible for her to sue over this, because first she never got the right to a lawyer? Or the fact that she got released make it so it was somehow "by the books"? I can't imagine how this would have gone down if they had arrested someone who was in some significant position/job/wealthy/celebrity.
I don't approve of the majority of police tactics, but they don't seem particularly nefarious in this case. She was not detained under the NDAA, this was just a regular arrest as far as I can tell. The NDAA is a bad, bad thing, but no one should be under the impression that this suddenly gives the police a set of new privileges. If the government wants to detain you indefinitely under the NDAA, the President, by way of the Armed Forces, has to be the one doing it. The police alone can't suddenly decide to indefinitely detain you (without consequences).
Did they violate her legal rights? They brought her in, questioned her, treated her for whatever illness she had going on, and released her within 72 hours. IANAL, but I imagine that her timely release qualifies as her access to a lawyer.
^^God DAMMIT.
That is pretty damn scary but still nothing new. It seems like they are just filling in the gaps the patriot act left open. Not to just throw this out there but it's this kind of shit that honestly makes me want to move to a different country where i can get fucked over in a different language. The pic of Mel Gibson i put up in random stupidity speaks it pretty good with the bit about no-one protesting the patriot act and how all the geeks are up in arms over the inter webs..... I digress.
This little bit i find rather scary as well, "Instead, said Obama, “My administration will interpret section 1021 in a manner that ensures that any detention it authorizes complies with the Constitution, the laws of war, and all other applicable law.” I'm glad Obama and his administration don't plan on wholesale roundups but if it is really left up to a few peoples discretion to decide that the butter side up eaters are terrorists, than I can't feel very good about any of this. I am much more worried at this point about our government than some dirty terrorist. I'm pretty sure i have a better chance of getting jumped my a group of 6th graders than being attacked by the bogey man.
What potential scenarios are people too stupid and short-sighted to see?
I think saying that people have "it won't happen to me, so I don't care" attitude is selling them short.
It's more a case of "I'm not involved in organised crime or terrorism, so it won't affect me"
If people were being locked up for non-serious things and people were saying "well it doesn't affect me", then you could accuse them of lacking humanity
Last edited by Sutekh; 02-18-2013 at 07:31 AM.