Saturday, September 25, 2010

Minneapolis, Minnesota FBI raids

Yesterday morning several Minneapolis peace activists got an unpleasant wake-up call: the Federal Bureau of Investigation busted down their doors and began rummaging through their stuff. The warrants gave them authority to seize computers, documents, cell phones, etc. on the grounds that they may have "funded foreign terrorist groups." One of these groups is allegedly FARC, which is a peasant guerrilla group in Colombia. Now, I don't know much about FARC (yet) and I know there is some disagreement about tactics and stuff on the left. But I do know that the Colombian government shoots peasants and dresses up the bodies like guerrilla fighters and that they have one of the most oppressive and violent regimes in Latin America, and I know that Obama praises these tactics openly, just how many other American administrations cozy up to tyrants and dictators, especially south of our borders.

This also gives us some very revealing insights as to how the Democrats intend to use the PATRIOT Act - to clamp down not on terrorist plots, but on ordinary grass-roots organizations trying to enact positive change. The Anti-War Committee isn't an al-Quada plot to blow shit up, it is a group of US citizens who want to end the bloody conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. But under Bush the rhetoric was to paint any opposition to imperialist strategy as terrorism, and Obama has no intention of calling for the Act's repeal. No Democrat does. It serves their police state means towards their global dominance ends.

This is the real face of federal law: state-sanctioned terrorism. Forcing activists to live in fear. Making Americans afraid to stand for change. Turning our hope into dread. Close your doors, duct-tape your windows, and stay in front of the friendly glow of your corporate-mindwashing television.

Hundreds of Minneapolis activists turned out in solidarity last night against these raids. Because we don't fuck around. We know that an injustice to any group on the left is portent of injustice to us all. And without left opposition to the growing power of the right - led by FOX news, the Tea Party, and the Joint Task Force among other government agencies - then everyday Americans will live in ignorance and helpless fear.

We need a grass-roots political party that will repeal the PATRIOT Act and end the raids on peaceful activists.

7 comments:

angie503 said...

Wow--I hadn't looked into the Dem's stance or (in)action on the PATRIOT Act, I thought it was due to sunset soon.
Thanks D.

comrade x said...

Notice how the so- called " revolutionaries" of the Tea Parties are never hasseled by the Feds, except for the few that were dumb enough to openly threaten public officials. That is because these right- wing dupes support the power of the ruling class- and that includes the Democrats.
Guess we found out who they really are scared of.

Nullstellensatz said...

I like that the search warrant said they could confiscate evidence related to "Kelly's travel to and from and presence and activities in Minnesota, and other foreign countries".

http://tc.indymedia.org/files/kelly-warrant-92210.pdf

Boyle said...

Minnesota is a foreign country to me. I mean what is snow and rain. Sounds exotic to this So. Californian.

The next sunset doesn't appear to be until 2013. It was reset back in 2009. Looking on wikipedia, the dates of the passing of the original bill show that apparently congress can pass bills in less than two months. Before October 2001 was over the USA PATRIOT act was passed.

Boyle said...

"Notice how the so- called " revolutionaries" of the Tea Parties are never hasseled by the Feds"

Hello! That is because they are true AMERICAN revolutionaries. They aren't commie reds like you guys. ;-P

Hey! Reds?!? The American Revolutionaries fought REDcoats. See you reds are as bad as the British. You Tories! ~_^

And is just me or does this theory/analogy sound like something Beck would write on his big chalkboard.

comrade x said...

I forgot... true Rebels fight tooth and nail for their betters. My bad.

00000 said...

I remember when the Dems helped pass the PATRIOT Act the second time. It was a big hullabaloo between Obama and Hillary later, but of course, just like the first time it was up for consideration, there was remarkably little debate.