Whatever You Do, Don't Call the Police

That's not snark; that's life-saving advice.

The plan is working: undermine public confidence in government while turning law enforcement agencies into militarized gangs of thugs so that everyone needs a personal arsenal to protect themselves and voila! It's the North American Somalia, where only the super rich enjoy civilization.

Digby:

A man called police to report a bicycle accident. The police arrived and thought he failed to respond to their orders for him to leave the street quickly enough. He was brutalized, arrested and thrown naked into solitary confinement for the night. He made the mistake of thinking he had rights.

No charges were filed.

One friend told me that I should chalk this up as another of life’s brutal lessons, that I should just be quiet, move on, and record this in my personal diary (if I must), and only return to these thoughts again if I am one day rich and powerful, when my decisions and donations can make a difference in the police force and civil affairs, and even then I might not really care. Stay coy until you are out of reach of the system, he emphasized. You think you’re clear now, but how many things went the way you expected?

Is there a weird middle ground, an uncanny valley, where you have no access to justice? Unless you’re severely beaten with cameras rolling or really have nothing to lose, your wiser friends will tell you to shut up and deal.

Yes they will. This is how authoritarian societies get normal, everyday people to keep their heads down and be wary of involvement, worried that they don't have enough power to fight the system and too much to lose if they try. Don't get involved. Don't make waves. Move along.

And if it isn't the state, it's some power mad civilian with a gun looking for trouble.

Liberty.

Read the whole story. It could be you or me. It most certainly is anyone who makes the mistake of interacting with the wrong people without having white skin.