John Oliver just keeps getting better and better, doesn't he? One thing he doesn't mention, though, is why military gear is being distributed to police departments across America (including Ferguson's).
This almost certainly has a lot to do with the political power of military contractors and their lobbyists, don't you think?
Sure, America has far and away the biggest military in the world. And sure, we give away even more equipment, worldwide. (Thus, the terrorists in ISIS are using American armored personnel carriers and weapons, which they captured from Iraqi soldiers who just turned and ran away.)
But when it comes to making money, the military-industrial complex never thinks that enough is enough. So what better way to make more money from our tax dollars than to militarize our police forces nationwide?
The military gives away equipment, so they need to buy more of it from contractors. It's win/win for the contractors and their lobbyists. (Only America loses.)
Of course, it's different when you don't look on a whole group of people as the enemy. Here's the police at a demonstration in St. Louis:
(from Pharyngula)
But the protestors looked like this:
See a little difference from the scene in Ferguson?
The police don't have an easy job. I certainly wouldn't want to do it. And yes, it's a dangerous job, too. There are violent criminals out there. But if you're this afraid of our own people, you shouldn't be a policeman in America.
And keep in mind that you can always join the military, if you want to play with military gear. (Of course, the military won't let you behave like this towards peaceful protestors.)
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