Send in the National Guard Few people realize that the National Guard was a late 19th century device invented to "deal with" so called civil disturbances, also known as labor movements. The Guard was created to solve a problem: local cops could not reliably be counted on to brutalize strikers. The railroad strike of 1877 which created vast protests nationwide highlighted the need for an internal, federal anti-labor army. Membership in the Guard was originally WASP only (Irish, Italians and Poles were not to be trusted) and staffing came from the "upper crust" of society. You'll note that most armories from the founding era of the National Guard are located "uptown" in affluent neighborhoods. Elite members saw the armories as their last refuge in case of a class war which in the late 19th century was threatening to boil over at any minute. The question "would an American shoot a fellow American?" is not a recent one and it was determined over 100 years ago that yes, he would - and should if ordered. "Speaking at the annual convention of the Wisconsin National Guard in 1884, Colonel Charles King advised his fellow officers in a riot. 'Do not shoot until you have to, but when you shoot, shoot to kill"; he also spoke of the Milwaukee mobs, 'on whom it might be a municipal blessing to fire.'" A member of 19th Regiment of Pennsylvania summed up his understanding of his responsibilities this way: "It'll be a hard thing for me to shoot into a crowd of men who are bound to me by all the ties of human interest and friendship, but when I have my uniform on and the command of 'Fire' is given, I will shoot." These quotes come from "America's Armories" a book by Robert M. Fogelson, Professor of Urban Studies at MIT in a book published by Harvard University Press. Tyrants have a real problem when it comes to the challenge of getting otherwise decent people, men sworn to uphold the law, to commit atrocities against their own people. It's a problem, but not an insurmountable one. The solution, I'm afraid, is simple: deliberately put the law enforcers in harm's way (or create the illusion that they are in harm's way) and let nature take its course. A heavily armed force, strained, disoriented, and then threatened will "defend" itself with force and once the bullets start flying it's impossible to take them back and hard to cool things down. Take Kent State. It is a little known fact that the troops sent to Kent State to put down what amounted to little more than college hijinks at the demand of a paranoid and politically connected university president, were transferred to the campus straight from the burning streets of Detroit where they had regularly come under real gun fire in one of the most destructive riots in US history. The real problem in Kent State was not an anti-war protest, by the way, but a riot that occurred the previous weekend that had more to do with heavy drinking and spring fever than politics. It was *after* the shootings that the Guard then became an occupation force on the campus, imposing the equivalent of martial law. Take Tiananmen Square. When local forces would not act against the pro-democracy forces and in fact showed outright support of them, *rural* troops, many of whom had never seen a big city, were brought in. Carefully controlled as to the information they received, the imported troops were told that the protestors were led by dangerous foreigners who wanted to enslave the country. As a finishing touch, they were warned that the square was filled with all sorts of contagious disease and were advised to wear surgical masks and given "inoculations" right before the assault. The inoculations contained amphetamines which added to the country-raised soldiers terror as they were propelled into what they were told was a square of assassins and violent saboteurs. Take Chile. The most stable and democratic country in South America, suddenly the scene of a anti-civilian blood bath. Why? A carefully orchestrated psychological warfare campaign, that included assassinations of uncooperative military leaders, convinced the military that if they did not eliminate "the Left," the Left in Chile was actively making plans to eliminate them violently and replace them with a people's militia. A fable, but it was believed and acted upon. Even in a small riot in a US city, in order to get large numbers of police to behave viciously, the information given to them must be carefully controlled and they must be put in a situation where they are convinced that *they* are in danger and is kill or be killed. That's how it will happen here. Currently, National Guard members are being conditioned to project authority over average citizens in every day activities, in airports, in train stations, in bus stations. They are also, no doubt, being told that *everyone* is suspect and that anyone, at any time can suddenly 'snap' in the service of Osama bin Laden. Guys with funny shoes. Patriotic, good hearted kids in air planes. I expect soon we'll see a grandma join in. That's why I find the following story about the Iowa National Guard's ambitious training campaign so interesting. Some quotes: "... officers will be making their presence known around town as part of their terrorist training. "... the exercises are meant to serve as a reminder to Iowans. That attacks could happen here and we all need to be better prepared". I agree. We all need to be better prepared. http://www.rense.com/general19/gulag.htm