Hope2012

US Cities Increasing Use of Armed Mercenaries to Replace Police - OpEd News 4/23/09

The United States is in the midst of the most radical privatization agenda in its history. We see this in schools, health care, prisons, and certainly with the US military/national security/intelligence apparatus. There are almost 200,000 “private contractors” in Iraq (more than US soldiers) and Obama is continuing to use mercenaries there and in Afghanistan and Israel/Palestine. At present, 70 percent of the US intelligence budget is going to private companies. Some estimate that private security inside the US actually outnumber police 5-to-1.

Oakland hires private security - Raw Story 4/20/09

‘Force multiplier,’ money motivates merger of feds, AZ cops - Raw Story 4/24/09

Botched Paramilitary Police Raids: - CATO

An Epidemic of Isolated Incidents: Map, details and searchable results

 Reagan’s DOJ Prosecuted Texas Sheriff for Waterboarding Prisoners - TruthOut 4/27/09

Filling the Skies with Robot Assassins: The Drone Wars Have Begun - Alternet 4/8/09

Court: Cops may use Tasers to obtain DNA – Raw Story 6/4/09

Tasers Are the New Killers: Watch Their Popularity Surge! - Alternet 4/2/09

Watch out: 50,000-volt Tasers are deployed in London this week; meanwhile, a new model can ‘instantly incapacitate’ multiple people at a time.

Obama Has 250,000 ‘Contractors’ Deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan and is Increasing the Use of Mercenaries - Alternet 6/1/09

Obama’s Blackwater? Chicago Mercenary Firm Gets Millions for Private “Security” in Israel and Iraq  - Alternet 4/2/09

Federal records obtained by AlterNet reveal a multi-million dollar contract for a private U.S. paramilitary force operating out of Jerusalem.