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MD Police Spied on Peace Activists, Labeled as Terrorists

baltimoresun.com — Undercover Maryland State Police officers repeatedly spied on peace activists and anti-death penalty groups in recent years and entered the names of some in a law-enforcement database of people thought to be terrorists or drug traffickers, newly released documents show.

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  • qdkk, on 07/19/2008, -4/+65Happy days. We are so secure now. If you're suspected as a terrorist, the government can spy on you, just like that! Hurray.
    • Otto, on 07/19/2008, -21/+4Err... Anybody can spy on you, just like that.

      Duh.
    • JimmySpaza, on 07/19/2008, -31/+3Hello?!? There are companies like banks and credit agencies that know more about you than the government.

      ...and YOU probably gave them that information over the years.

      Give it a rest, will ya?
      • LibrarianEtarip, on 07/19/2008, -2/+23Companies like banks and credit agencies can't send you to jail or gitmo
      • JimmySpaza, on 07/19/2008, -10/+2"Companies like banks and credit agencies can't send you to jail or gitmo."

        Yeah, like all those thousands of people behind held as terrorist suspects. /sarc

        While the basic facts remain, there is a level of hysteria that is driving these spying critiques.
      • psion01, on 07/19/2008, -1/+12Jimmy, under what interpretation of due process do you feel peace activists should be entered into a database intended to track terrorists?
      • JimmySpaza, on 07/20/2008, -4/+1@ Psion01

        "Jimmy, under what interpretation of due process do you feel peace activists should be entered into a database intended to track terrorists?"

        They are not being arrested nor are their personal liberties being violated. This is no different than a police officer video taping you all day long out in public and recording your every move on paper.

        Now, there is a point to be made here. If the government intrudes into private party contacts such as credit card transactions, then YES the government is wrong.

        Also, if these peace activists block the transport of materials for our soldiers overseas during war time, then they are guilty of aiding and abetting the enemy...BIG TIME!
    • MelvinSchlubman, on 07/19/2008, -2/+16Clarification: you don't have to be suspected of being a terrorist, they only have to say you are.
      • JimmySpaza, on 07/19/2008, -14/+1No, the people who have the power to detain you don't do so on a whim. You have to do something to garner their attention...like being a terrorist. Duh!
      • MelvinSchlubman, on 08/06/2008, -0/+1How is it even possible to miss the point as badly as you have? I'm genuinely amazed. I'll spell it out: "abuse of power". Have you ever heard of it?

        In a way, I envy your naivete -- if you're unaware of bad stuff then you don't have to worry about it.
      • MelvinSchlubman, on 08/06/2008, -0/+1> You have to do something to garner their attention ...like being a terrorist.

        Or simply being against what they're for, or vice versa. Are you old enough to know of Nixon's enemies list? That didn't bring down the republic. But, when abuse of power is not resisted then we slide toward an environment like Pinochet's Chile. That's the kind of enemy/"terrorist" list you don't want to get close to. Your naivete to such a thing is one of the factors needed to allow such a circumstance to develop.

    • MelvinSchlubman, on 07/19/2008, -2/+6Clarification: you don't have to be suspected of being a terrorist, they only have to say you are.
  • welliwonder, on 07/19/2008, -5/+33Welcome to the USA! :-D
  • dildoolielly, on 07/19/2008, -7/+97America also has the largest prison population in the world! Even countries that Bush thinks need "liberating" has less prisoners.

    Yeah, Americans have still got "freedom of speech", except now its located down the street in a penned-off place away from the public and surrounded by cops in a place called the "Free Speech Zone".

    ANYONE who condones illegal wars, treason and SPYING on Americans, is too brain-dead to make ANY intelligent comments

    But keep waving the flag Bushiites, because your bigotry is nothing to be ashamed of, and to thump the bible because your ignorance is a virtue. You should cherish your hatefulness and small-mindedness as they are family values. You are not society's rejects, but rather, you are higher on the ladder than certain other people. Right-wing radio points them out so that you know who to hate to feel better about yourself.

    Buy more little yellow magnets made in China because you're too stupid to understand real Democracy, too stupid to understand high treason and too stupid to find the fvcking recruiting office or a library.
    • SLockhart, on 07/19/2008, -7/+1.
    • vexingmodstwo, on 07/19/2008, -6/+2Wrong topic.
      • dildoolielly, on 07/19/2008, -4/+1You don't like it, move to another country
    • unfairunbalance, on 07/19/2008, -1/+6Free speech zones are unconstitutional. They cannot get away with that. The armed forces of this Nation have a duty to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic.
      • GovernmentsGun, on 07/19/2008, -1/+13I talked to a military man one day. He mentioned how the President had a duty to protect the country from all threats, foreign and domestic. I asked him if, just hypothetically, it could be shown that the President was a threat to the Constitution; what would he do?

        He said he would support the President over the Constitution.

        Many of America's founders said that a standing army was the most dangerous thing to liberty.
      • danthepiercer, on 07/19/2008, -0/+4...and that our means of defending against such tyranny would be an armed (and well regulated) milita.



        sorry to hint at discussion of the 2nd amendment while contributing to a discussion on peace activists.
      • siszam, on 07/20/2008, -1/+5Dan, the second amendment is there to ensure peace and protection from tyranny.
      • dildoolielly, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1-----------"Free speech zones are unconstitutional. They cannot get away with that."---------------


        RTFM!

        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_speech_zone
  • audaciousgenre, on 07/19/2008, -3/+35from the washington post article today:

    "· On Oct. 3, 2005, an undercover state police agent attending a meeting of activists ferreted out the fact that antiwar protesters were laying plans to distribute fliers at the Towson Town Center mall.

    · On July 11, 2005, an officer attending an antiwar meeting held by "an activist named Bernie" and "five middle-aged women" discovered that in a protest held a week earlier at the National Security Agency, peaceniks shared cookies with NSA guards who issued them a citation for trespassing. "

    thanks guys
    • wonderchemist, on 07/19/2008, -2/+21Yea, but those cookies could attract COOKIE MONSTER. And everyone knows how terrifying monsters are!
  • hivesster, on 07/19/2008, -3/+32Big surprise there. This is just another part of the Bush/Cheney surveillance government designed to "keep us safe" (aka. suppress our rights).
    • JimmySpaza, on 07/19/2008, -15/+3Please. This kind of spying has been going on for decades. Each president inherits these kinds of activities.
    • wavenger, on 07/19/2008, -2/+5Well, of course they're spying on peace activists to keep us safe. If we didn't bomb or invade a country every five years or so, we would appear weak, and the terrorists would attack us! Thus, by advocating peace, these activists are in fact attempting to spread terror. QED
    • vexingmodstwo, on 07/19/2008, -1/+4MD State Police do not take orders from the Executive Branch of the United States and furthermore, MD has a Democrat Governor.
      • horatiolust, on 07/19/2008, -7/+2Facts, reason, and logic - all unfamiliar concepts to mentally masturbating Digg-nuts. You should be banned from this site for attempting to confuse irrational fools
      • vexingmodstwo, on 07/19/2008, -0/+3I'm beginning to think these idiots don't actually understand the difference between local, state, and federal governments.
      • horatiolust, on 07/19/2008, -4/+2They don't understand
        They don't want to understand
        If you insist they understand, they will Digg you down
        Frackin' losers
      • GamerVer05, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1This took place under Erlich's tenure he's no longer in office, I live in VA so I dont remember/care who is in office now : p.
      • GovernmentsGun, on 07/19/2008, -3/+1Government is a structure. Arms cooperate with other arms. Each arm has the same goal - to rule. Ruling and surveillance is the culture of all government.
    • psion01, on 07/19/2008, -1/+5Jimmy and Vexing have a point here, folks. The Bush administration has gotten away with some outright thuggery in the last seven years, but the actions of the Maryland police department aren't the /direct/ fault of Bush. An argument could be made that an atmosphere of contempt for due process and constitutional rights has been created by our President (and Democrat-controlled Congress), but I see no evidence that Bush told Maryland cops to do this.

      I sure hope, after Obama gets elected, folks here on Digg remain as vigilant about civil rights as they are today. I'd hate to think such concern is solely motivated by hatred for one despicable leader.
    • JrtD, on 07/21/2008, -0/+0When Bush/Cheney spy on us to "keep us safe," they don't mean "us the common person" -- they are referring to a smaller group ("keeping us -- the Bush/Cheney crowd -- safe"). They want to stay out of jail and avoid impeachment. Spying is a great way to know who your opponents are and what their strategies are. It gives them info that can be used to blackmail their opponents into keeping them safe from accountability. There's no way for us to know what they've learned when spying -- if anything -- that's keeping Pelosi or others from pursuing impeachment.
  • AlienMushroom, on 07/19/2008, -3/+10Check out Starship Trooper 3 about what's so-called "peace terrorists".
  • hamobu, on 07/19/2008, -1/+32You have a freedom as speech ... as long as you sit in this cage where we can monitor you.
    • JimmySpaza, on 07/19/2008, -12/+3Hey, it's not just the government that wants you in a cage when it comes to free speech and demonstrations. Colleges and universities, especially the liberals ones, do this routinely. You would think that the leftists at these universities would be all about free speech no matter what...but they aren't. They don't care about free speech unless you're promoting an anti-Christian, anti-Israel, or anti-Bush agenda...then they bend over backwards to accomodate you.

      Check it out:

      http://www.thefire.org
      • mikelieman, on 07/19/2008, -3/+5Explain please, given the total mess they've made, that anyone should support the Loyal Bushie Christians?

        They've *destroyed* the notion of the Rule of Law by conspiring to place these Christian Fundamentalist wackos in the DOJ, and they're more loyal to other Christian Fundamentalist wackos, then they are to their own sacred oaths.
      • JimmySpaza, on 07/20/2008, -2/+1"Explain please, given the total mess they've made, that anyone should support the Loyal Bushie Christians?"

        Why do you ask me to do so? I don't support Bush, his policies, nor his intentions.

        "They've *destroyed* the notion of the Rule of Law by conspiring to place these Christian Fundamentalist wackos in the DOJ, and they're more loyal to other Christian Fundamentalist wackos, then they are to their own sacred oaths.""

        Now THAT is a wacko statement with all due respect.

        Rule by law was destroyed during the U.S. Civil War when the North invaded the South to get them to do what the FEDERAL Government wanted even though the Constitution limits the Federal Government.

        Bush is NOT placing all these Christian Fundamentalists in the Department of Justice. If he had, then you would have the DOJ swooping down and defending Christians left and right from anti-Christian government actions at the state and local levels. We don't see that happening.

        The rest of your post...I guess I cannot answer unless you get more specific with your assertions.
    • mikelieman, on 07/19/2008, -1/+3Don't forget: They *are* collecting and monitoring *all* on-line activities and communication. Why make people sit in a cage, when the whole communication infrastructure *IS* the cage?

      I wonder how much AT&T is getting paid for each intercept. It must add up to make them willing to break the law for the profit.
      • danthepiercer, on 07/19/2008, -0/+5who needs dollars when the government owes you a favor?

        besides, if the legal challenges to telecom immunity fail, i guarantee they'll be advertising how they were defending the homeland (fatherland?) against all those damned terrorists, especially the domestic ones who have the nerve to actually dissent from the mob mentality, err...i mean popular opinion.
  • cran, on 07/19/2008, -21/+4Realize, though, that there really ARE anti-American groups who even go so far as to call themselves communists and declare war on America. Many of these are your garden-variety, coffee-house, flip-flop-wearing hippies who are really good at organizing protests and printing out cool-looking postcards, but every so often they stockpile up weapons and do crazy stuff like kidnap politicians, rob banks, etc.

    I don't think they are categorizing anyone who protests as a potential terrorist, but I wouldn't be surprised if their watch-list consisted of entire groups of these types of people. I would also not be shocked to learn that those people simply called themselves "law-abiding protesters."
    • com2, on 07/19/2008, -2/+7Yah but they are not what the article is about.

      "declare war on America" isn't that what bushies grandpap did when he tried to overthrow the govt?
      • RRJackson, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1Yep. It's too bad that plan didn't succeed. We might have avoided WWII.
      • com2, on 07/22/2008, -0/+1They succeeded they just went about it a different way.
    • mbelleghem, on 07/19/2008, -2/+4What percentage of socially-engaged groups are likely to engage in militant violence, would you figure?
      • cran, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2You're missing my point.

        I doubt they are watching anyone just because they are activists. They are largely watching people who were, completely aside from their activism, determined to be a threat. In America, these folks tend to also be activists, protesting until they decide protesting doesn't work anymore and then they move on to other tactics.

        Before 9/11, most of our terrorism was home-grown. Symbionese Liberation Army, etc. Prior to 9/11, if a bomb went off in America it was more likely to be a Patty Hearst sort of individual than someone wearing a turban.

        My point is that there is an intersection between activism and home-grown terrorism. It doesn't mean a protester is to be suspected of terrorism. But it does mean that if you have good reason to suspect a group of people of plotting something violent in America, it's almost guaranteed they will identify themselves as some sort of activist group and claim to be harmless protesters standing up to the man.
  • tkhooker, on 07/19/2008, -3/+7Oh how I love living in MD, the "Free State"...
    • insanebrain, on 07/19/2008, -1/+6The state is free, but the people ain't.
    • ajwinder, on 07/19/2008, -1/+4This was coordinated by the homeland security office in MD, but I'm sure it was known up the chain of command to the national level. The resources they devoted to this had to be substantial from the look of it, I don't think they would have gotten away with it without approval from the higher ups.

      I don't know, I mean, fellow marylander here, I don't really blame it on the state. I don't want to take any blame time away from the bigger MD issues, I'm tapped out between the BGE power deregulation, the utter failures of O'Malley, and the massive state debt thats going to end up biting me in the ass during tax season someday soon. Not that this isn't a big issue, I'm just more inclined to focus that on the national level rather than the state. Can't we surveil some ALF asshats or christian extremists, you know, actual crazy people who are probably the most likely to pull something?

      **EDIT** More info by the way. So these documents were requested by the ACLU years ago. This article wasn't nearly as good as the Washington Post's article yesterday, but in there I was reading that they had to fight to get this released, I think it was requested in 2005 but I could be wrong.

      Well, anyway, heres an article on the national program, which was running in 2005, to monitor the same types of groups. Tisk tisk Maryland, but I'm still blaming the national level for this one :P

      http://www.democracynow.org/2005/12/15/pentagon_ca ...
      • secrity, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1The MD state police did the surveillance. They may have been working with the feds, but the state police are the ones who were doing the surveillance.
      • ajwinder, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1oh im fully aware, I'm just saying it seems pretty clear that the orders were coming from higher up. I'm going to get mad at both parties, but I'm not blaming the henchmen ;)
    • danthepiercer, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1ironical aint it?
    • ipodman715, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1I live in MD too.. this made me facepalm.
  • itignition, on 07/19/2008, -12/+3poorly written article, more run on sentences than Carl Louis.
    • IIAmusedII, on 07/20/2008, -1/+2You begin your sentence with a lower-case letter. You have no verbs in your sentence. You fail to put the hyphen in the compound adjective "run-on." You have a poorly written comment.
  • hauntedchippy, on 07/19/2008, -3/+12Land of the free
  • uncwidiot, on 07/19/2008, -13/+6This was posted yesterday... Goddamn duplicate *****.
    • Xiata, on 07/19/2008, -2/+1You wanted 4chan posts instead?
    • IIAmusedII, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1And you're the third person to point out that this is a duplicate. Goddamn duplicate commenters!
  • BikerDude69, on 07/19/2008, -4/+20Previously featured on Digg, - Kucinich to investigate police surveillance of protest groups -
    http://rawstory.com//news/2008/Kucinich_to_investi ...

    "Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), who has figured prominently in recent political news for his attempts to begin impeachment hearings against President George W. Bush, today announced that the congressional subcommittee he chairs will look into reports of peace groups being surveilled by police and private investigators."

    The current Administration is SERIOUSLY out of hand in thinking they are above the law.
    • vexingmodstwo, on 07/19/2008, -2/+6MARYLAND is a STATE. You know this right?
    • GamerVer05, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1This is completely separate from that, the state decided it had powers the federal government doesnt have and acted on its own.
  • scheibs14, on 07/19/2008, -20/+8Buried as MBM
  • SatoriSeeker, on 07/19/2008, -2/+7This is the thin end of the wedge.
  • insanebrain, on 07/19/2008, -3/+35Please give the statue of liberty back to France.
    • GovernmentsGun, on 07/19/2008, -6/+3Sorry. Both us and France are too far in debt to pay the shipping costs. Us because of war, them because of socialization.
    • danthepiercer, on 07/19/2008, -0/+3youre going to get 200+ diggs from all of the right wingers who completely miss the point of your comment.

      dugg for potential confusion of simple minds!
  • nastronomical, on 07/19/2008, -18/+7I have never seen a protest that didnt turn violent. Its hilarious seeing the anti-war kooks go ape ***** yet still holdup a peace sign.
    • xGuerrillaRadio, on 07/19/2008, -2/+7You've never been to a real protest, have you?
      • Dawnrazor, on 07/19/2008, -0/+2He's never been out of his mommy's basement.
    • malex, on 07/19/2008, -1/+6You should have just stopped with "I have never seen a protest."
    • KLBP, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1As said you should have stopped with "I have never seen a protest".

      In my life time I've been to many protests related to peace, the environment, etc. and NEVER did any of these protests turn violent in any shape form or fashion.
  • hawkeyeted, on 07/19/2008, -17/+6Peace Activist is an oxymoron.
  • mbelleghem, on 07/19/2008, -4/+7Surely no one who's completed a single history course is in any way remotely surprised...
  • voteforblank, on 07/19/2008, -8/+6It is about time the military who have taken an oath to protect this country from enemies foreign or domestic to take action.
    • X86BSD, on 07/19/2008, -3/+3haha good luck on that! US Military: FAIL.
      Thanks guys! We really appreciate it! Start up your local militias people. The storm is coming.

      • hawkeyeted, on 07/19/2008, -2/+1You're an idiot. Like the military has any legal basis to wage combat on it's own without higher authority. THAT would be an illegal war.
      • hawkeyeted, on 07/19/2008, -2/+1You're an idiot. Like the military has any legal basis to wage combat on it's own without higher authority. THAT would be an illegal war.
    • Galaxylander, on 07/19/2008, -2/+3Is that the same military that's fighting a pointless war caused by the Bush administration without reason to get oil in the eastern countries or a different one?

      Because the military I know of gets too much respect for adding flame to the fire.
    • Midtowner, on 07/19/2008, -0/+5Your advocating a military coup d'état?

      Are you daft? When has something like that ever ended well.

      -- you might start with Julius Caesar, you might even get lucky enough to have an Augustus, but somewhere down the road, you're going to have a Nero.

  • prgrmmer1000, on 07/19/2008, -16/+5While they aren't terrorists, all those activists ARE idiots and should be put on the "Do not procreate" list. Or maybe the "I'm a dumbass and fight for stuff I know nothing about cause I'm just follower" list. Either one would do.
  • 9bpm9, on 07/19/2008, -14/+5Don't you people get that peace activists are a potential threat to any government.

    Peace protests in the 60's were rather violent sometimes IIRC.
    • rottencod, on 07/20/2008, -0/+3Maybe, but it isn't the *Government* that needs protecting in a democracy - it's the *People.* Peace protests might be a threat to the government, but the government is getting to be a threat to the People.
  • Bannedx5, on 07/19/2008, -12/+5As it should be.
    • cmapes2, on 07/19/2008, -3/+2So I guess you don't support peace then? Doesn't that make you one of "dem terrorists"?
  • asmith1243, on 07/19/2008, -6/+8***** tha po-lice
    comming straight from the underground
  • theeother, on 07/19/2008, -4/+8from the article:
    "Using a fake e-mail address and an alias, an undercover agent joined the e-mail list of the death penalty group, the documents say."

    I would love to know how an agent can join a email list with a fake address. Wouldn't it be very hard to receive such mail without a real address.
  • Arcueid01, on 07/19/2008, -5/+8This ***** is crazy. I mean here is the problem. Although I don't care for police, it isn't really their fault. It is the fault of the people who control them. This probably came from some higher up with some type of freedom destroying agenda. Protesting a fiscally irresponsible unconstitutional war is completely legal and within our rights as citizens of our country.
  • nick1971, on 07/19/2008, -4/+12Frequently the difference between terrorism and freedom fighters or protestors are who writes the history book.

    Its also a matter of fact that one of the easiest way to reduce civil liberties is to say you are protecting the greater good.
    A single terrorist incident the burning of the parliament building in Germany laid the way to the passing of the enablement act. This was a massive rollback of constitutional protection for civil rights. Arrest based upon being identified as an enemy of the state, imprisonment without trial, interception of mail, cables telephone calls among others were some of the powers granted.
    The definition of enemies of the state (terrorists) started with the communists - one of them committed the arson, the prisons overfilled leading to the 1st concentration camp in Dachau.
    It spread to those committing acts of sedition.
    spread to those in political opposition
    It was then argued that the Nazi party needed to suspend elections to protect the state.
    What then happened is known history. Compare the legislation passed with history of countries who set up totalitarian regimes.
    Once the avalanche starts the pebbles don't get to vote any more. It seems to me you are starting to broaden the definition over time. If you fall under the definition of a terrorist, what rights do you not have and if the definition is now so broad what stops them from coming for you.
  • rz8472, on 07/19/2008, -1/+4Was Officer Rivieri among them? You know if he's watching if you see a Police Rascal nearby.
  • GovernmentsGun, on 07/19/2008, -6/+4Anyone who disagrees with the government is a possible terrorist.
  • krnldmp, on 07/19/2008, -2/+5If the cops think honest to goodness Terrorists are going to parade around in demonstrations or even associate with any open political opposition group we got bigger problems than they're aware of.
    • hawkeyeted, on 07/19/2008, -2/+0I'm sure that's what Fulgencio Batista said when they saw Fidel Castro and Che Guevara in the crowd.
  • pintomp3, on 07/19/2008, -2/+11peace and opposition to death? obviously terrorists of the highest order.
  • DiggGeek24, on 07/19/2008, -7/+2Do we has facts maybe the group was planning to fire a army recruitment center etc.
  • DiggGeek24, on 07/19/2008, -9/+3Do we has facts maybe the group was planning to fire a army recruitment center etc if the cops where smart they would release the tapes etc..
  • Stieffers, on 07/19/2008, -2/+6This had to have gone through the Maryland legislature, which means it went through a liberal office.
  • iancgi, on 07/19/2008, -4/+4Are you all waiting for a invitation? Nothing is gonna happen unless WE make it happen. Get involved if you want to live in free society who's species is on the brink of galactic enlightenment.
  • sexydarin, on 07/19/2008, -10/+4They are traitors. No surprise here that most of them support terrorists and communism. Deport all the treasonous leftist scum.
    • GovernmentsGun, on 07/19/2008, -4/+5YEAH! We only need patriotic red-blooded Americans here! People who will support the government no matter what we say or what we do! YEAH! Remember... doubt is treason!

      But, if leftist scum get into office, do we still support them?
    • malex, on 07/19/2008, -1/+4You know, liberals are often criticized for abusing the term "fascist" in a hyperbolic and kneejerk manner... and admittedly, not without cause.

      But sometimes, there's just no better term available to describe the extreme nationalism, jingoism, and utter contempt for basic human freedoms that the opposition is displaying. This is one of those times.
  • thirdcoastborn, on 07/19/2008, -3/+4And the police wonder why everyone hates them. ***** the Police.
  • zaptoman, on 07/19/2008, -7/+3Proposed title edit: "Suspected Terrorists and Drug Traffickers Entered into Database for Suspected Terrorists and Drug Traffickers. "
  • homercles337, on 07/19/2008, -5/+4And so it begins...
    • cmapes2, on 07/19/2008, -1/+1Sorry, it began a wayyy wayy long time ago.

      *So the end begins...
      • homercles337, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1Agreed. I meant this is the beginning of us *knowing* about it.
    • mike17032, on 07/19/2008, -0/+1Except of course police have been smart enough to go undercover for a long ***** time now.
  • Izult, on 07/19/2008, -3/+3For those of you who have laughed off those people that have concern over the H.R. 1955: Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007this is EXACTLY what the concerns have been about. But I suppose it’s all ok right because they weren’t actually ever detained or subjected to mistreatment? Don’t you feel safer that the people who are doing nothing more than exercising their 1st amendment rights are being watched? Shall we go burn the evil Harry Potter books too? Abuse of power is perfectly ok as long as it doesn’t affect you right?
    • mike17032, on 07/19/2008, -1/+1To bad HR 1955 doesnt have ***** all to do with this case, police have been doing this for years.
  • joe8pack, on 07/19/2008, -3/+4How Hitler got started...Except we've all ready hired all the Nazi's to show us how..google project paperclip. The government is out of control in nearly every area and level, spending is outrageous and most of it is wasted on things like this, surveillance of legal citizens committing legal acts in the furtherance of legal activities. Tapping phones, under FISA without warrants, to establish intimidation and obedience in the citizenry and large FEMA camps, for those who don't toe the line. The future is bleak, we can only hope the economy will crash and deprive them of the funding to continue this madness, but what a price to pay. Living in squalor in a 3rd world country that used to be the U.S.A.
  • farfromok, on 07/19/2008, -2/+10First they came for the Jews
    and I did not speak out
    because I was not a Jew.
    Then they came for the Communists
    and I did not speak out
    because I was not a Communist.
    Then they came for the trade unionists
    and I did not speak out
    because I was not a trade unionist.
    Then they came for me
    and there was no one left
    to speak out for me.

    Pastor Martin Niemöller
  • adougy, on 07/19/2008, -1/+3...and so begins the death of our "freedom."
  • LoneRanger85, on 07/19/2008, -7/+3You can't blame this on Bush. Maryland is a one party state -- Democrat.
  • mike17032, on 07/19/2008, -6/+4Tough *****. Some protest groups do in fact break the law to "make their point". These assholes are ***** it up for everyone else. So the police keep tabs on the groups that they think might commit crimes. There is nothing anywhere that prevents police from going undercover, it doesnt even require a warrant.

    You can thank Greenpeace, PETA, and all the other eco and political criminal groups for the need to do this kind of stuff.
  • tonyteetime, on 07/19/2008, -2/+3Wasting money and resources to spy on peace and anti-death penalty group... while Osama and those terrorist are still running loose. Umm ok .. whatever . What a joke .. this has become.
  • EntreLangdon, on 07/19/2008, -2/+4I for one am just happy that the government rightfully identifies war protestors as terrorists. They don't want our troops to die in Iraq, but without troops dying in Iraq, how will halliburton make money? Has anyone thought of that? All Cheney's kid wants for christmas is an island in French Polynesia, but will he get it?

    Without more lucrative contracts, I see an island without an owner. Lock these war protestors up so Cheney's kids can get the island already!
  • teamgwho, on 07/19/2008, -1/+2Some one earlier made a point that in MD, the governor is a democrat.

    It matters little that the governor is a Democrat. Every dept of law enforcement, whether it's local, county, state, or federal wants to get more control, more power, more toys and access to more information. Many of those both on the streets as well as those in charges of those agencies believe that they are acting in the best intrerests of the people.

    The sad fact is that it all comes down to money and bean counting.

    When given $$$ these groups will find something to spend it on. Newark, NJ got anti-terrorism money and spent it on air-conditioned garbage trucks. Whatever budget they get will be cut unless they can justify their needs. So they have to show that without them, things would fall apart.

    Unfortunately just like we can't leave Iraq because the violence is too high and we can't leave because it's too low, it doesn't matter whether or not crime is low or high. If it's high, you need more money to fight it. if it's low then you still need the money to prevent it from getting worse. And of course if you can put panic in the streets because there's some huge looming threat, whether it's terrorism or pedophiles or music sharing college students, well then you need $$$ to fight that then.

    The simple fact is that crimes rates, particular homicide and youth crime are at historic lows, in some cases 40 year lows. Yet pour prison population is double what it was 20 years ago. And yet these beuracrats and "defends of the peace" continue to say "Gimme gimme gimme" and reach for the piggy bank. Thanks to 24 hour networks, the supposed experts who man the talk shows on radios or who are guests on them, as well as the snowflaker protector crowd, there's danger everywhere, and we need to all surrender our rights to protect "us" from "it/them".

    ***** that.
  • RRJackson, on 07/19/2008, -5/+2Excellent. The only problem is that none of them have been sent to Gitmo yet. Start hooking a car battery up to their nuts and you'll get your appropriations. A little spying on them just isn't going to do it.
    • Bushlied, on 07/21/2008, -1/+2Your a ***** scumbag.
      • RRJackson, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1That should be "you're"...if you're going to talk *****, at least try to get the grammar correct.
      • prgrmmer1000, on 07/21/2008, -0/+0And you're a terrorist supporting jackass.
  • pauls88, on 07/19/2008, -2/+4Help Support The Bury The Baby Campaign!
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