File Under WTF: Grenade Launchers, Bayonets, And Tanks

[SFnomad]

Trump Orders Military To Give Cops Free Grenade Launchers, Bayonets, And Tanks
The decision overturns restrictions imposed by the Obama administration.

President Donald Trump will repeal restrictions that former President Barack Obama placed on police access to excess military gear, allowing the the federal government to immediately resume handing out free bayonets, grenade launchers, tracked armored vehicles and other equipment to law enforcement departments around the country.


Trump will sign an executive order on Monday that repeals the limits Obama placed on the access to some military surplus items in 2015. Obama’s move followed the “provocative” response to the August 2014 unrest in Ferguson, Mo., where St. Louis County Police officers atop armored vehicles pointed sniper rifles at peaceful demonstrators in broad daylight. Policing experts in a report for the Justice Department found that the police actions “inflamed tensions” and violated constitutional rights.

[dalton99a]

1. The occupying army needs proper equipment to quell the natives and put them in their place

[malaise]

5. Ding ding we have a winner

and the Con knows he's going to be locked up

[riversedge]

2. We made a bit of progress in demilitarizing the police but now going backwards with Sessions-Trump

in power. damn

[Lee-Lee]

3. It's not the item- it's how it's used

There are times where access to an armored vehicle is a good thing for a department. It just requires it not be misused.

For example if you have a situation where people are wounded where there are still active shooters you can evacuate casualties safely. You can use the armored vehicle as a mobile shield.

While the headlines are often sensational like this, most of the stuff released under this program is actually innocuous equipment that lets an agency with a limited budget do more. I managed the program from my department and we never got any firearms or armored vehicles but I got 4wd trucks for use in snow, generators for emergency power, blankes and cots for stretchers.

There was one PD in our county that already had an armored car like banks use they had converted over for emergency use and we had a mutual aid agreement to get it brought to us whenever needed, so we didn't see any point to get something else we had to maintain when that was available.

[Pope George Ringo II]

6. Correct me if I'm wrong

But don't those military grenade launchers launch more gas than high-explosive once they're in police hands?

[Lee-Lee]

7. They only launch gas or other less lethal because PDs can't get high explosive ammo for them

They government will provide tear gas grenades and there are companies that make things like rubber buckshot, flash bangs and other crowd control or distraction devices.

It can be very handy if you have someone who has blocked themselves in a building to get tear gas into it without exposing any officers to harm.

They can't buy the explosive ones even if they wanted.

[Igel]

10. Like a lot of things.

Batons can be abused, and have been. A bit harder to abuse on a grand scale, but much easier on a small scale.

Hard to abuse grenade launchers on a small scale. Mostly they're just scary looking.

[SummerSnow]

4. More people will die under this military police state.

If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face - forever.

George Orwell

[Takket]

8. Sounds like Don is worried about an uprising...

[dixiegrrrrl]

9. I wonder what he is planning to do that makes him worry we might uprise....n/t