Police Prepare For (Election) Unrest

[Ryan Ruck]

I thought that due to the safety issue in question, this deserved a thread of its own.

Police Prepare For (Election) Unrest

Police departments in cities across the country are beefing up their ranks for Election Day, preparing for possible civil unrest and riots after the historic presidential contest.

Public safety officials said in interviews with The Hill that the election, which will end with either the nation's first black president or its first female vice president, demanded a stronger police presence.

Some worry that if Barack Obama loses and there is suspicion of foul play in the election, violence could ensue in cities with large black populations. Others based the need for enhanced patrols on past riots in urban areas (following professional sports events) and also on Internet rumors.

Democratic strategists and advocates for black voters say they understand officers wanting to keep the peace, but caution that excessive police presence could intimidate voters.

Sen. Obama (Ill.), the Democratic nominee for president, has seen his lead over rival Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) grow in recent weeks, prompting speculation that there could be a violent backlash if he loses unexpectedly.

Cities that have suffered unrest before, such as Detroit, Chicago, Oakland and Philadelphia, will have extra police deployed.

In Oakland, the police will deploy extra units trained in riot control, as well as extra traffic police, and even put SWAT teams on standby.

"Are we anticipating it will be a riot situation? No. But will we be prepared if it goes awry? Yes," said Jeff Thomason, spokesman for the Oakland Police Department.

"I think it is a big deal — you got an African-American running and [a] woman running," he added, in reference to Obama and GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. "Whoever wins it, it will be a national event. We will have more officers on the street in anticipation that things may go south."

The Oakland police last faced big riots in 2003 when the Raiders lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Super Bowl. Officials are bracing themselves in case residents of Oakland take Obama's loss badly.

Political observers such as Hilary Shelton and James Carville fear that record voter turnout could overload polling places on Election Day and could raise tension levels.

Shelton, the director of the NAACP's Washington bureau, said inadequate voting facilities is a bigger problem in poor communities with large numbers of minorities.

"What are local election officials doing to prepare for what people think will be record turnout at the polls?" said Shelton, who added that during the 2004 election in Ohio voters in predominantly black communities had to wait in line six to eight hours to vote.

"On Election Day, if this continues, you may have some tempers flare; we should be prepared to deal with that but do it without intimidation," said Shelton, who added that police have to be able to maintain order at polling stations without scaring voters, especially immigrants from "police states."

Carville, who served as a senior political adviser to former President Bill Clinton, said that many Democrats would be very angry if Obama loses. He noted that many Democrats were upset by Sen. John Kerry's (D-Mass.) loss to President Bush in the 2004 election, when some Democrats made allegations of vote manipulation in Ohio, the state that ultimately decided the race.

Experts estimated that thousands of voters did not vote in Ohio because of poor preparation and long lines.
Carville said Democratic anger in 2004 "would be very small to what would happen in 2008" if the same problems arose.

Carville said earlier this month that "it would be very, very, very dramatic out there" if Obama lost, a statement some commentators interpreted as predicting riots. In an interview Tuesday, however, Carville said he did not explicitly predict rioting.

"A lot of Democrats would have a great deal of angst and anger," said Carville, who predicted that on Election Day "the voting system all around the country is going to be very stressed because there's going to be enormous turnout."

Other commentators have made such bold predictions.

"If [Obama] is elected, like with sports championships, people may go out and riot," said Bob Parks, an online columnist and black Republican candidate for state representative in Massachusetts. "If Barack Obama loses there will be another large group of people who will assume the election was stolen from him….. This will be an opportunity for people who want to commit mischief."

Speculation about Election-Day violence has spread on the Internet, especially on right-wing websites.

This has caught the attention of police departments in cities such as Cincinnati, which saw race riots in 2001 after police shot a young black man.

"We've seen it on the Internet and we've heard that there could be civil unrest depending on the outcome of [the election,]" said Lt. Mark Briede of the Cincinnati Police Department. "We are prepared to respond in the case of some sort of unrest or some sort of incident."

Briede, like other police officials interviewed, declined to elaborate on plans for Election Day. Many police departments have policies prohibiting public discussion of security plans.

James Tate, second deputy chief of Detroit's police department, said extra manpower would be assigned to duty on Election Night. He said problems could flare whichever candidate wins.

"Either party will make history and we want to prepare for celebrations that will be on a larger scale than for our sports teams," Tate said.

He noted that police had to control rioters who overturned cars after the Tigers won the 1984 World Series.

"We're prepared for the best-case scenario, we're prepared for the worst-case scenario," he said. "The worst-case scenario could be a situation that requires law enforcement."

But Tate declined to describe what the worst-case scenario might look like, speaking gingerly like other police officials who are wary of implying that black voters are more likely than other voting groups to cause trouble.

Shelton, of the NAACP, said he understands the need for police to maintain order. But he is also concerned that some political partisans may point their finger at black voters as potential troublemakers because the Democratic nominee is black.

Shelton said any racial or ethnic group would get angry if they felt disenfranchised because of voting irregularities.

Police officials in Chicago, where Obama will hold a Nov. 4 rally, and Philadelphia are also preparing for Election Day.

"The Chicago Police Department has been meeting regularly to coordinate our safety and security plans and will deploy our resources accordingly," said Monique Bond, of the Chicago Police Department.

Frank Vanore, of the Philadelphia Police Department, said officials were planning to mobilize to control exuberant or perhaps angry demonstrations after the World Series, which pits the Phillies against the Tampa Bay Rays.

He said the boosted police activity would "spill right over to the election."

Work routinely takes me into the city and other less than savory neighborhoods. Fortunately for me I am off November 4th and 5th and will hopefully be out of town after. If not, I fully intend to take some proactive measures.

I hope you all are going to be planning accordingly.

[vector7]

LAPD chief warns of terror threat before election

Wednesday, October 22, 2008
(10-22) 19:36 PDT Los Angeles, CA (AP) --

Police Chief William Bratton has a warning for Americans as the presidential election nears: Watch out for Osama bin Laden.

Bratton and R.P. Eddy, former director of counterterrorism at the National Security Council, co-wrote an opinion piece in Wednesday's New York Daily News in which they predict the al-Qaida leader is either planning an attack on the U.S. or perhaps a less violent tactic to influence who wins the White House.

Either strategy, Bratton and Eddy wrote, would likely be aimed at helping John McCain because the Republican candidate "is more likely to engender Muslim anger and resentment than would his opponent" Barack Obama.

"Bin Laden probably realizes it could become markedly more difficult to paint the United States as the 'Great Satan' with a new president who is admired internationally," Bratton and Eddy wrote.

They predicted that any terrorist attack would likely include truck or car bombs in "high-value financial sites."

"The remaining 14 days before the elections should be seen as a time of high threat, and state and local police should be on high alert," they wrote.

Bratton and Eddy noted bin Laden's previous attempts "to make his opinion count" before an election. Four days before the 2004 presidential election, Bin Laden released a videotape in which he addressed Americans and criticized President Bush's response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Bratton and Eddy asserted that bin Laden seemed to support Kerry in the tape, causing more votes to go Bush's way.

The article also cited the al-Qaida train bombings in 2004 that killed 191 people in Madrid, Spain, just days before that country's national elections.

Bratton and Eddy wrote that the attack swung the election away from Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, who was an ally in the Iraq war.

"This is a critical election for al-Qaida," Bratton and Eddy wrote. "The U.S.-led invasions of two Muslim countries during the Bush years and scandals such as Abu Ghraib have been a boon for bin Laden's demagoguery. He and other Islamists continually and dishonestly cite these wars as evidence of a U.S. war on Islam. That has helped create a steady stream of suicide bombers eager to destroy U.S. targets on their way to paradise."

Bratton has directed his department to prepare for another bin Laden scheme in the next week or two. Deputy Chief Michael Downing, head of the Police Department's anti-terrorism bureau, told the Los Angeles Times that surveillance teams have been assembled in Los Angeles' downtown financial district in case an attack is planned. Officers have also directed private security firms and area commanders to watch for suspicious activity, Downing said.

"We do not want them to be paranoid or anxious, but to orient our troops to potential threats," he said.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...n190806D01.DTL

[Ryan Ruck]

Some of you all might want to refresh your memories with Election day coming up...

Cincinnati 2001 (sorry it is from COFCC but there is really no video on YouTube of Cincinnati 2001 riots):


And some footage from L.A. 1992. Take note of the footage from the numerous other cities. I think this is what we will see November 4th-5th-???:

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Military Prepares for Threats During Presidential Transition

First Wartime Handover in 40 Years Is Seen as Vulnerable Time

By Ann Scott Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, October 26, 2008; A18

The U.S. military, bracing for the first wartime presidential transition in 40 years, is preparing for potential crises during the vulnerable handover period, including possible attacks by al-Qaeda and destabilizing developments in Iraq or Afghanistan, according to senior military officials.
"I think the enemy could well take advantage" of the transfer of power in Washington, said the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Michael Mullen, who launched preparations for the transition months ago, and who will brief the president-elect, the defense secretary nominee and other incoming officials on crisis management and how to run the military.

Officials are working "to make sure we are postured the right way around the world militarily, that our intelligence is focused on this issue, and in day-to-day operations the military is making sure it does not happen," Mullen said in an interview. "If it does happen, we need to be in a position to respond before and after the inauguration."

Mullen, who will serve at least another year in his two-year appointment as the nation's top military officer, expects to provide critical continuity between the two administrations at a dangerous juncture, the senior officials said. He "will be in effect the bridge between the two," said a senior military official familiar with Mullen's transition team, made up of 14 senior officers from across the services.

The military's primary focus during the transition is twofold: to heighten preparations for a crisis requiring military force, and to anticipate and advise the incoming administration on likely new directions in Iraq and Afghanistan, officials said. High-level briefings on the risks and benefits of new strategies in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as longer-term issues such as military modernization, are already being prepared for national security officials of the incoming administration, they said.

Historically, transition periods are times "of significant vulnerability. . . . The number of major incidents is alarming," Mullen said. In presentations he uses a chart that highlights pre- and post-inauguration crises from the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. A second, classified chart shows the biggest threats today. "I run out the worst-case scenarios," Mullen said.

A presidential transition in the midst of two major conflicts and the ongoing threat of terrorism raises the stakes even further, officials said. "It is particularly important now because we're turning over in wartime. . . . The last time was in 1968, when we turned over from President Johnson to President Nixon," said a senior military official. "You'd like to think that certainly now military advice has got a lot more respect than it did in 1968 and 1969, but nonetheless the pressures of a wartime transition of authority are great, particularly in a democracy."

In recent days, commentaries on Web sites linked to al-Qaeda have suggested that a terrorist strike might swing the U.S. presidential election in favor of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), leading to an expansion of U.S. military commitments in the Islamic world and further "exhausting" the United States.

Senior military officials and national security experts say major threats before and after the elections include an al-Qaeda strike on the United States that would originate from Pakistan's tribal areas, as well as a terrorist attack involving nuclear, biological or chemical weapons.

"With the election, the economic issues and what is going on in Pakistan and Afghanistan, all this converging at once, it makes a pretty enticing target for al-Qaeda to consider disrupting U.S. national security interests in the short term," said John Rollins, a terrorism expert at the Congressional Research Service.

Recent examples of terrorist activity during political transitions in the United States and elsewhere include the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993, just after President Bill Clinton's inauguration; the Sept. 11 attacks, within the first eight months of the Bush administration; as well as the Madrid train bombings in 2004 and the discovery of the London car-bomb plot in 2007, both of which fell within days of major political events.

The goals of such an attack could include swaying the election, testing a new administration and demonstrating a continued ability to attack U.S. interests at will, Rollins said.

The military is also watching closely for destabilizing events in Iraq and Afghanistan, while monitoring Iran's nuclear activities, Russia's military presence in Georgia and other areas of concern, a senior military official said.
The Joint Staff transition team -- with input from the Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Navy chiefs and regional military commanders -- is now focused mainly on preparing the briefings that Mullen will use to advise the incoming president and the presumptive defense secretary.

After the Nov. 4 elections, the team will facilitate Mullen's top-level briefings while starting immediately to instruct new senior administration officials on how to run the military.

"The day after the election, the winning party will come over and occupy this building, and they will be the first wave of the transition," said the senior official familiar with Mullen's team. A new defense secretary is likely to be named in December, and he or she will then bring a second wave of new officials to the Pentagon, the official said.

"A new administration will certainly want to do some things differently; whether it's Senator Obama or Senator McCain, they're going to approach problems from a different angle," the official said. Mullen must therefore be prepared to offer advice on a range of new policies for the war zones, such as a more rapid withdrawal from Iraq.

Yet while senior military officers typically view themselves as a bridge between administrations, the incoming political team may distrust their loyalties.

"Despite the military's self-image that they are above politics and are servants of the nation, there frequently is the perception that the senior levels of generals are the choices of the previous administration and are somehow tainted," said one retired Army general. "We saw this at the beginning of the Clinton era and the Bush era. There is a suspicion these are somebody else's generals and not as objective." As a result, senior military leaders must work hard to "navigate the center course," he said.

Mullen has asked the transition team, led by Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., to anticipate and prepare for a number of changes -- from whom the new administration will pick for its top defense officials to what new policies it may adopt, particularly for Iraq and Afghanistan.

The team reports to a senior Pentagon steering group set up for the transition that includes Mullen, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, and other senior military and defense leaders and is chaired by Gates's special assistant, Robert Rangel.

Mullen's team will carry out exercises to show new administration officials the mechanics of handling a crisis. "We will . . . show them how you actually operate the levers of the military power of the United States," said the official familiar with the team.

"You don't want to go cold in a crisis, without having established a common framework of understanding" and a rapport between the incoming Pentagon leadership and Mullen and other top military officers, he said. "Anything we can do to shorten the learning curve . . . will help."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...501944_pf.html

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Marines, Army Get Ready to Wield Stun Guns

By David Hambling October 27, 2008 | 7:00:00 PMCategories: Less-lethal

The Marine Corps has been buying Tasers for years. But the military has only used the stun guns sparingly in the field. Now, all that is set to change, thanks to new training guidelines for the electroshock weapons. What's Arabic for "Don't Tase me, bro"?

“We would expect the use of [devices such as the Taser] to grow over time, now that we have this long-term policy in place,” Maj. David Nevers, a tells Marine Corps Times.

In the new policy, outlined in Marine administrative message 560/08, officials approve use of the X26E Taser, the most popular law enforcement device sold by Taser International Inc. The weapon fires two probes attached to electrical wires, providing the ability to “tase” someone.

There are already lots of "amusing" videos out there of Marine Corps Taser training –- the part where trainees get Tasered themselves. But there are doubts over whether existing training is adequate:

Marine officials said the Corps began discussing using the Taser in 2003, and sent its first 122 units to Iraq’s Multi-National Force-West in spring 2004.

But its use was scuttled after concerns were raised over whether the training in place was sufficient and whether its use would hurt efforts to gain the trust of Iraqis.

Adding the police-style X26 Taser to the Marines' arsenal might be useful in some situations. But the Marines are not police. In the long term, the Taser they are likely to fond most useful is the wireless XREP Taser projectile, which is fired from a standard 12-Gauge shotgun. As we reported last year, this projectile was developed by Taser Inc under an Office of Naval Research (ONR) contract specifically to meet the Marines requirements:

The Marine Corps Systems Command conveyed an interest in this type of technology to ONR. The requirement was to 'clear facilities,' basically what our Marines are doing today in Iraq and elsewhere, going building to building and room to room." stated Mr. John Beadling, an ONR support contractor.

Meanwhile, the Army is starting to field Tasers. The 3rd Infantry's 1st Brigade Combat Team has already been issued with Army's first ever package of "nonlethal weapons designed to subdue unruly or dangerous individuals without killing them," including Tasers and bean-bag rounds. And although the 1st BCT is now stationed in the U.S. for "on-call federal response force for natural or manmade emergencies and disasters, including terrorist attacks," the Army Times makes it clear that they won't be using non-lethals to control civil distrubances at home. "The package is for use only in war-zone operations, not for any domestic purpose."
[Photo: USMC]

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/1...s-get-tas.html

[American Patriot]

The first time a fucker uses a taser on me, he's the one going to be in for the shock... of his life.

[vector7]

Police fear riots if Barack Obama loses US election

US police fear riots could break out if John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, wins the election next month.

By Catherine Elsworth in Los Angeles
Last Updated: 7:51AM BST 24 Oct 2008


Commentators point to the surge in voter registration and large turnout in the primaries as reasons why there could be problems on election day Photo: AP

Law enforcement officials say the intense public interest and historic nature of the vote could lead to violent outbreaks if people are unhappy with the results, encounter problems casting their ballots or suspect voting irregularities.

Police departments say they cannot rule out disorder and are mobilising extra forces and putting SWAT teams on standby.

In Oakland, near San Francisco, police will have tactical squads, SWAT teams and officers trained in riot control on standby.

"We always try to prepare for the worst," said Oakland police department spokesman Jeff Thomason.

"This election is going to mark in history a change in the presidency: you're going to have a woman in the presidency or an African American as president. I think everybody around here is voting for Obama, so if he gets in the White House everybody's going to be happy.

"But we'll have our SWAT teams on standby and traffic teams here, so if something goes off we'll organise and take care of the problem."

There have also been internet rumours about plans for protests or civil disobedience by supporters of Democratic candidate Barack Obama if he is beaten by Republican rival John McCain on November 4.

He said Oakland was prepared to deal with unrest as Oakland Raiders fans rioted in 2003 following their Super Bowl loss.

Other cities that have experienced unrest include Detroit, Chicago and Philadelphia and are also planning to deploy extra officers on election day.

James Carville, a strategist for former President Bill Clinton and advisor to his wife Hillary's 2008 presidential campaign, hinted Democrat supporters could be angry if Mr Obama lost, given his lead in the polls.

"If Obama goes in and he has a consistent five-point lead and loses the election, it would be very, very, very dramatic out there," he told CNN.

James Tate, of Detroit's police department, which dealt with violent celebrations after the Detroit Tigers won the baseball World Series in 1984, told congressional newspaper The Hill that problems could flare whichever candidate wins.

"Either party will make history and we want to prepare for celebrations that will be on a larger scale than for our sports teams," he said. "The worst-case scenario could be a situation that requires law enforcement."

In Chicago, where Mr Obama will hold a rally on November 4, the police department has been meeting to discuss security plans for the night. Law enforcement departments in Philadelphia and Cincinnati are also making preparations in case of problems.

Commentators point to the surge in voter registration and large turnout in the primaries as reasons why there could be problems on election day, questioning whether the system will be able to handle so many extra voters.

Election officials in Virginia are stepping up security at polling booths amid concerns over long waits and issues such as voter registration and identity verification.

Despite efforts to improve voting systems after the problems of 2000 and 2004, the Pew Research Centre has warned high turnout could again cause problems such as lengthy delays at the polls. Unexpectedly high number of voters in states with early voting such as Florida have already encountered long waits.

Hilary Shelton, director of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People's (NAACP) Washington bureau, said there could be a repeat of problems witnessed in some black inner cities in 2004, where voters waited for up to eight hours to cast their ballots.

In response to the expected high turnout among racial and ethnic minority voters, intense interest in the election and online rumours about unrest, the NAACP has written to election officials in every state asking them to try to prevent any problems that could lead to voters being "stymied" or "disenfranchised" such as too few voting machines or staff.

He was also concerned about the possibility of extra police presence causing intimidation.

"Our antennas go up in terms of what happens when law enforcement moves to provide additional security and support and what happens on election day and how that comes across.

"The issue we're raising now is are they being sensitive to the issues and the possibilities of intimidation and disenfranchisement, which could very well come out of them being too heavy handed. (Sometimes) the wrong strategy by law enforcement can actually create a problem rather than prevent one and it is our hope that we don't see those kinds of problems on election day and people are able to enjoy the security of our democracy."

Right-wing websites and blogs have been fuelling speculation about election unrest with unconfirmed reports of an online petition that pledges "civil disobedience" if Mr McCain wins.

Meanwhile, in a blog posting entitled 'A McCain "Win" Will Be Theft, Resistance Is Planned', David Swanson, Washington director of Democrats.com and a board member of Progressive Democrats of America, writes: "If your television declares John McCain the president elect on the evening of November 4th, your television will be lying.

"You should immediately pick up your pre-packed bags and head straight to the White House in Washington, DC, which we will surround and shut down until this attempt at a third illegitimate presidency is reversed.

"We may be there for days or weeks or months. But we must be there. We must be there by the millions. We must show each other, and the nation, and the world that we have had enough, that we will not stand for one more stolen election, that we will not give in to fear, lies, theft, and intimidation."

Mr Carville told The Hill that "a lot of Democrats would have a great deal of angst and anger," if Mr Obama lost. He predicted that on November 4, "the voting system all around the country is going to be very stressed because there's going to be enormous turnout."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/news...-election.html

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California Cities Cut Police Budgets

Housing Downturn, Weak Economy Sap Revenues, Forcing Public-Safety Reductions

VALLEJO, Calif. -- When the economic crisis deepened
this fall, this city already was losing scores of police
and firefighters because it could no longer afford the
rich salaries and benefits it offered after the Sept. 11,
2001, attacks. Now, with crime on the rise and tax
revenue sinking, this San Francisco Bay area city faces
more cuts in police and fire department budgets.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122540831980086085.html

[Ryan Ruck]

Toledo Police Brace for Possible Civil Unrest

Toledo police are gearing up for possible "Civil unrest" during and after tomorrow's elections.

In an internal memo obtained exclusively by NBC 24 News, officers are ordered to "Have their riot equipment with them Tuesday and Wednesday". Police chief Mike Navarre confirms, officers will have gear similar to the equipment they used during the 2005 race riots. "They have been asked to have their helmets and their gas masks available tomorrow and Wednesday.", Navarre says, "That's the equipment they would not normally carry with them on a normal day".

Navarre also says, officers will not be stationed at individual polling stations. But the memo says otherwise. It reads, "On Tuesday, units shall be directed to patrol the polling locations".

Toledo Police Memo: http://www.wnwo.com/uploadedFiles/wn...day%20memo.pdf

[Ryan Ruck]

Just a reminder, you can tune in to online Police/EMS scanners here: http://www.scanamerica.us

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Are Riots Being Planned for November 5?

Written by William F. Jasper

Monday, 03 November 2008 20:30

"Police departments in cities across the country are beefing up their ranks for Election Day, preparing for possible civil unrest and riots after the historic presidential contest," reported The Hill, a Washington, D.C.-based newspaper and Internet site, on October 21. Public safety officials said in interviews with The Hill that the election, which will end with either the nation's first black president or its first female vice president, demanded a stronger police presence. Some worry that if Barack Obama loses and there is suspicion of foul play in the election, violence could ensue in cities with large black populations. Others based the need for enhanced patrols on past riots in urban areas (following professional sports events) and also on Internet rumors. Similar articles have broached the issue and the Internet is rife with speculation about possible post-election violence. One of the hints frequently pointed to is a statement by Democratic Party campaign strategist James Carville on CNN: But you stop and contemplate this country if Obama goes in and he has a consistent five point lead and loses the election, it would be very, very, very dramatic out there. Are ultra-radical elements planning nationwide riots in the event that Barack Obama loses the election? It certainly appears that the fires have been stoked and the dials pre-set for rage and violence if the "Messiah" does not win in this down-to-the-wire race in which most polls and media predictions have Obama beating McCain. A McCain win, say many Obama supporters, would be intolerable not only because McCain is unacceptable but because it would be evidence of "another stolen election." It would be, they say, evidence of election fraud and disenfranchisement and intimidation of people of color. The official Obama campaign and its surrogates have been feeding this notion for months with angry accusations that Republican election officials have been targeting black and other minority voters to have them removed from the voter-registration rolls before election day. The Congressional Black Caucus, the NAACP, and the Obama campaign have charged election officials in Michigan, Ohio, and other states with trying to disenfranchise black voters. To dramatize this alleged Republican conspiracy to disenfranchise ethnic minorities and steal the election from Obama, a coalition of far-left groups appealed to the United Nations on October 30 to intervene and send UN monitors to observe our November 4 elections. More ominously, the same coalition, marching under the banner "No More Stolen Elections!," has issued a "Call to Action" calling for demonstrations on November 5. The "Call to Action" states: The assault on American democracy in recent years has been so extreme and so consistent that, months before Election Day 2008, we already know what to expect. Millions of Americans will be denied the right to vote. Millions more will be prevented from voting for the candidate of their choice. And with Black Americans [Barack Obama of the Democratic Party and Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party] leading two presidential tickets, the intentional suppression of voter turnout in communities of color will continue to be not just a threat but a virtual certainty as those who cannot win the Black vote seek to suppress it. Recent experience and mounting evidence tell us beyond any reasonable doubt that powerful interests are prepared, at the very least, to attempt to steal another presidential election. The "Call to Action" concludes by urging Americans to take the "Pledge of Action," which reads: I remember Florida 2000 and Ohio 2004, and I am willing to take action in 2008 if the election is stolen again. I support efforts to protect the right to vote leading up to and on Election Day, November 4th. I pledge to join nationwide pro-democracy protests starting on November 5th, either in my community, in key states where fraud occurred, or in Washington D.C. I pledge: No More Stolen Elections! What is of particular concern in all of this is the heavy concentration in the coalition of activists who have long histories of turning demonstrations into riots. The list of signatories accompanying the "Call to Action" include: • Tom Hayden — founder of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), 1960s riot organizer, collaborator with the Vietcong and North Vietnamese communists during the Vietnam War, and continuing Marxist activist. • Marcus Raskin — SDS theoretician and co-founder of the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), the infamous Marxist activist center and think tank closely tied to the Cuban DGI and Soviet KGB. • Leslie Cagan — Militant lesbian, Marxist, feminist, professional activist; currently national coordinator of United for Peace and Justice, one of the nation's largest anti-war coalitions of far-left organizations; longtime member of the Communist Party USA and early member of the Venceremos Brigades that went to Cuba in the 1960s for communist training; left the CPUSA with other top communist leaders in 1991 to found a splinter group, the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism. • Jesse Jackson — Founder and president of Rainbow/PUSH. • Michael Lerner — SDS leader and a founder of the Seattle Liberation Front (SLF), an ultra-left terrorist organization that committed acts of bombing and sabotage; later became famous as publisher of Tikkun magazine and Bill and Hillary Clinton's guru on "the politics of meaning"; now an ordained rabbi promoting the same Marxist nostrums with a religious veneer. • Sharon Lungo — Organizer for the anarchist, violence-prone Ruckus Society. • Maude Hurd — National president of ACORN. • David Swanson — Washington Director of Democrats.com, board member of Progressive Democrats of America, and working-group member of Leslie Cagan's United for Peace and Justice. On October 21, David Swanson posted this incendiary blog, adding kerosene to the "Call to Action": A McCain "Win" Will Be Theft, Resistance Is Planned If your television declares John McCain the president elect on the evening of November 4th, your television will be lying. You should immediately pick up your pre-packed bags and head straight to the White House in Washington, D.C., which we will surround and shut down until this attempt at a third illegitimate presidency is reversed.... We will see McCain supporters on November 4th challenging people's right to vote, seeking to force people to vote on provisional ballots, and seeking to have provisional ballots discarded. And we will see electronic vote counts wildly out of step with the most recent polls, although not with exit polls - which we will be denied any access to unless they have been "adjusted" to match the official counts.

[Jag]

Black Panthers In Philly.....



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCeD1RcJjAg

Jag

[Jag]

Obama’s civilian security force: Billy club-wielding security guards at Philly polls

November 4, 2008 01:04 PM by Michelle Malkin
82 Comments | 9 Trackbacks

“I think it might be a little intimidating that you have a stick in your hand.”


Black Panther intimidation at the polls?; NBPP: “We will be at the polls in the cities and counties in many states to ensure that the enemy does not sabotage the black vote, which was won through the blood of the martyrs of our people”

November 4, 2008 12:25 PM by Michelle Malkin
81 Comments | 20 Trackbacks

Hope. Change. Nightsticks.

http://michellemalkin.com/

Jag

[American Patriot]

They are showing the BPs on Fox now. Looks like they escorted one away.

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Black Panthers Intimidating Voters, Reporters

Tuesday, November 4, 2008 2:34 PM

By: David Alliot

A poll observer in Philadelphia called police after witnessing what appeared to be voter intimidation by two members of the Black Panthers.

The two Black Panthers stood in the doorway of the polling location where the observer attempted to enter. One Panther was brandishing a nightstick, Fox News reported.

The observer reported that one of the Panthers members said to him, “black people are going to win no matter what,” and stood shoulder to shoulder so that the observer had to push his way through.

“Anyone . . . in front of a polling place with a nightstick, that is intimidating for all voters,” the observer stated. While a local university student filmed on a camera phone, one Panther member, when asked by Fox’s reporter why he was standing in front of the polling location, said, “We’re security,” though polling personnel did not acknowledge such security.

Police were dispatched to the scene and the nightstick-toting Panther member was ushered away.

© 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

[Ryan Ruck]

Brought the vid here...

[vector7]

Mercenary Firm Offers to 'Detain Troublemakers' on Election Day (Updated)

By Nathan Hodge November 03, 2008 | 11:39:00



CIA-linked private military contractor Evergreen Defense & Security Services offered to post sentries at Oregon election offices on Tuesday, "detaining troublemakers" and making sure voters "do not get out of control."

In an e-mail to local election supervisors, obtained by the McMinnville, Oregon News Register, Evergreen president Tom Wiggins said he "recognized the potential conflict" that could occur on November 4th. "Never has there been a more heated battle in the race for president."

The company, he said, 'proposes to post sentries at each voting center on November 4th to assure that disputes amongst citizens do not get out of control. All guards will be unarmed, but capable of stopping any violence that may occur and detaining troublemakers until law enforcement arrives.'

Evergreen's website describes its security arm as having "nearly five decades of experience working with the U.S. Armed Forces, the Department of Defense, the Department of Interior, the United Nations, NASA, and the U.S. Air Mobility Command. Many of our contracts include highly sensitive work-scope, and take place in locations ranging from the deserts of the Middle East to the jungles of South America to the highest peaks of Mt. McKinley in Alaska."

According to the News Register, Evergreen "exudes the gung-ho patriotism that is associated with the company founder, a political conservative who enjoys close ties with the federal government and military."

No kidding. Back in the late '80s, the company "acknowledged one agreement under which his companies provide occasional jobs and cover to foreign nationals the CIA wants taken out of other countries or brought into the United States." More recently, Evergreen's parent company flew Bill O'Reilly into Kuwait in 2006, according to SourceWatch.

But rest easy: The Oregonian reports that the company struck out with its sales pitch.

UPDATE: As several commenters have pointed out, Evergreen's offer is particularly weird, since the state does its voting by mail. Voters get ballots sent to them, and can then return them to county election offices by 8pm on Tuesday. Perhaps that's where Evergreen was looking to keep the peace.

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/1...y-defense.html