Those idiots just can't get it right can they!
Who in the hell supports this type of shit???
It's a little misleading to have addressed this thread as "Police to seal off city," that's a blatant exaggeration. What they're actually doing is tightening the screws, so to speak, in Trinidad, a neighborhood IN D.C.
And have you ever been to the Trinidad area of D.C.? Probably not. Do you know why you've never been to that part of town? Because any individual that's not retarded would immediately recognize it as one of the most dangerous places in the country and either avoid it like the plague, or flee if they wandered into it accidentally. It's like Compton. In fact, statistically, it's worse.
These are not checkpoints in neighborhoods where people work hard, exercise good values, and take pride in their community. Trinidad is one of the filthiest, most drug infested communities in the nation. It's not Bethesda, it's not Fairfax, it's the ghetto. You will never go there, you will never be asked to show ID, you will never feel unwelcome, you will never feel like you're being watched. Do you know who will? The crew of homies that piles into cars and drives to the suburbs to break into your neighbor's car on Saturday night. The junkie who barges into the QuickieMart one night while you're inside paying for gas and shoots the place up so he can steal $8 from the register. The degenerate that tries to sell your kid crack while he plays on the playground at school. The gutter punk that breaks into your house while you sleep. The asshole that buys and sells guns ILLEGALLY and makes it impossible for law abiding citizens to change policy and legalize the possession of firearms in Our Nations Capital. If you're worried about hurting those people's feelings, then by all means, bitch away. Me? I kind of wish they'd just put barbed wire around the neighborhood and firebomb it.
D.C. has implemented this type of strategy before, and it worked. Checkpoints are nothing new to Washington, don't think this is the first time they've had to do this. The last one was 10 years ago but no one feels like applying their memory long enough to recall it. Are these checkpoints a long term solution? No, absolutely not. Are they a temporary fix? Absolutely. Would I prefer that law abiding citizens be allowed to have guns in Washington and be able to defend themselves? Without a doubt. But, quite frankly, no one is getting a gun in D.C. until they can get a reasonable hand on the crime problem, and that's the fact of the matter.
New York City was forced to take the same measures in 1992, during which time The Bronx was plagued with violence and drugs. In 1996 a Federal court of appeals defended the legality of such measures by saying they, "served an important public concern" and were "reasonably viewed as an effective mechanism to deter crime in the barricaded area." So it's not like people haven't questioned the legality of issue before.
After hurricane Katrina, New Orleans had checkpoints and a military like police presence in areas where crime had become nearly unmanageable. It had nothing to do with the hurricane itself, it was a direct response to the crime and violence that occurred after it.
In the past, checkpoints have proven to be a reasonable way to control crime in areas of cities that resemble a war zone. Trinidad is one of them.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and make a comparison that I know is going to encourage some moron to tell me I'm comparing two completely different things, but here it is: DUI checkpoints. DUI checkpoints are used to control a problem; drunk driving. Have they proven to be effective? Definitely. Do they stage them in areas where there is a known drunk driving problem? Yes. Are they intimidating and sometimes a little scary? Yes. Do they drag you out of your car, shake you down on the side of the road, make your girlfriend cry, and threaten to set your house on fire? Ummm...no. They stop you, ask you where you're heading, hand you some anti-drunk driving propaganda and send you on your way. Pretty straight forward, huh? Last time I checked, the only people who were angry or terrified over DUI checkpoints were the people who had been busted at one.
Believe me, no one in the area of town in question is complaining about this latest effort to control crime. People are living in fear. Should something have been done sooner? Yes. Unfortunately, drastic measures are required during drastic times, so a checkpoint it is.
Additionally, this story first broke in The Examiner. For those of you that don't know, The Examiner is a liberal rag. It's almost entirely democrat propaganda. I've read that story, I've read the stories comparing D.C. to Soviet Russia, and they all paint a relatively unfair picture of the objectives and intentions of this effort. The media is asking for comments from the ACLU for God's sake. Give me a break.
For those of you that are comparing this to The Third Reich, well, that's just ridiculous.
Believe me, no one in the area of town in question is complaining about this latest effort to control crime. People are living in fear. Should something have been done sooner? Yes. Unfortunately, drastic measures are required during drastic times, so a checkpoint it is.
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And have you ever been to the Trinidad area of D.C.? Probably not.
I spent 22 there, I moved to Tennessee in August of last year, so thanks for asking. And yes, I completely support this decision. When will they do this in my city? Never, probably. You see, it's not a shit hole, that's kind of why I moved. There aren't 15 to 20 murders a month in my city, probably not in the entire state for that matter. And you think what, this is the first step in a New World Order? You think they're going to be marching down the streets in a few months? I mean Jesus Christ, man. You just can't accept the possibility that the decision to put up check points was out of necessity? Fine. So what's the plan then, today D.C., tomorrow the world? Ok, great. Assume they put up check points in my city. Assume for a moment that they, whoever they is, have "expanded their tactics." You know what? I could care less. You know why? Because I don't live in the hood, and I'm not a crack pusher or a gun smuggler. And, if for some God forsaken reason, my presence IS required in that part of town, and if the police need to ask for my ID at a checkpoint to ensure I'm in the neighborhood for a legitimate reason, have at it. That 30 seconds won't ruin my day. And yes, I'm sure you're right. I'm sure there's some bumbling idiot out there bitching about how horrible everything is is and how they've been violated and whatnot. There ALWAYS is. ALWAYS. But you know what? They're the same people that will be saying, "Gee, it's super nice to be able to walk to the market in the afternoon and not worry about my 9 year old being gunned down."
Just to light a fire what is the difference between this and a "Gated Community" which no one seems to have a problem with.
These are not checkpoints in neighborhoods where people work hard, exercise good values, and take pride in their community. Trinidad is one of the filthiest, most drug infested communities in the nation. It's not Bethesda, it's not Fairfax, it's the ghetto. You will never go there, you will never be asked to show ID, you will never feel unwelcome, you will never feel like you're being watched. Do you know who will? The crew of homies that piles into cars and drives to the suburbs to break into your neighbor's car on Saturday night. The junkie who barges into the QuickieMart one night while you're inside paying for gas and shoots the place up so he can steal $8 from the register. The degenerate that tries to sell your kid crack while he plays on the playground at school. The gutter punk that breaks into your house while you sleep. The asshole that buys and sells guns ILLEGALLY and makes it impossible for law abiding citizens to change policy and legalize the possession of firearms in Our Nations Capital.
i think most of us here have not bought in to the idea that BIG Brother is the ansewer to all our problems but rather understand that it is the cause of most of them. Letme ask you this. If you are willing to give up a few rights for a little security where are you willing to draw the line? Or are you willing to abanden all your rights?
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.
When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.
Stand for something or fall for everything.
Dude, what is that supposed to mean. No one is coming for anyone. They're attempting to deter criminal activity, and hopefully, restore some order to a neighborhood that is slowly killing itself. Those comparisons to genocide, to political imprisonment, and religious persecution, are way out of line. That's just silly. So, are you concerned you may be next? Well then don't sell drugs or murder people. Don't turn your neighborhood in to a slum.
And they're not demanding that people give up any rights by submitting to a stop at a security checkpoint. That's why the fed's ruled this method of crime prevention acceptable in the 90's, it's not asking anyone to forfeit any inherent rights. They're not kicking in doors, they're asking for ID, and intention. That's not against the law, nor is it unreasonable.
Every time you fly you go through a metal detector and have your bag x-rayed, right? Why? To protect innocent people from getting hurt. It's that simple. The FAA determined that a security check point in an airport is the single most effective way to ensure innocent people aren't hurt or killed by people with bad intentions.
A security checkpoint in Trinidad is, at the moment, the single most effective way to ensure order can be restored and innocent people can be safe and protected from bad people.
The Nazi's set up checkpoints in Warsaw because of a "crime threat"...then began harassing the Jews.
The Communists set up checkpoints in Berlin to keep dissidents from escaping to the West.
The Somali Warlords set up road blocks to control the flow of food and potential soldiers (boys as young as 12 pulled away from parents and made to fight men's battles with men's guns.)
Sudanese Warlords in Darfur set up roadblocks and checkpoints to hunt down Christians...killing the adults and selling the children as sex slaves (Legal under their laws as Christians rank lower than dogs).
Chinese communists set up checkpoints and road blocks to keep the population from moving to better areas and keep the workforce in place (while hunting for Christians).
The US Border patrol sets up roadblocks to check for citizenship and will give you a hard time even when they know you are American if you don't play nice. (If you don't believe me, drive through NM and hit a USBP checkpoint. Ask them under what constitutional authority they have to detain a US citizen and be prepared to wait it out, get a free body cavity search, and have your car taken apart while they look for "suspected" drugs...which by the way they do not have to reassemble it).
The Whole idea is a crock. It is not a good Idea to let the Government control your comings and goings for any reason.
It is Illegal Search and Seizure without probable cause. It is a violation of both the fourth and fifth amendments. Yes I know the fifth is the right to remain silent, but if you don't answer their questions they will run you in.(more body cavity searches and vehicle disassembly because you stood on your rights and ticked them off).
It is a power trip plain and simple. The purpose of this exercise is prove an unarmed populace can be controlled.
Now Herr Walther...PAPERS PLEASE!
Dude, what is that supposed to mean. No one is coming for anyone. They're attempting to deter criminal activity, and hopefully, restore some order to a neighborhood that is slowly killing itself. Those comparisons to genocide, to political imprisonment, and religious persecution, are way out of line. That's just silly. So, are you concerned you may be next? Well then don't sell drugs or murder people. Don't turn your neighborhood in to a slum.
And they're not demanding that people give up any rights by submitting to a stop at a security checkpoint. That's why the fed's ruled this method of crime prevention acceptable in the 90's, it's not asking anyone to forfeit any inherent rights. They're not kicking in doors, they're asking for ID, and intention. That's not against the law, nor is it unreasonable.
Every time you fly you go through a metal detector and have your bag x-rayed, right? Why? To protect innocent people from getting hurt. It's that simple. The FAA determined that a security check point in an airport is the single most effective way to ensure innocent people aren't hurt or killed by people with bad intentions.
A security checkpoint in Trinidad is, at the moment, the single most effective way to ensure order can be restored and innocent people can be safe and protected from bad people.