[GJM] Making Martial Law Easier

[marguerite hampton]

Dear Co-learner's,

While I very much dislike sending these types of messages, which I consider
to be "reactive",
I do very much believe that we must be constantly on vigil and take action
as "we-the-people"
organize to foment action at the "grass-roots" level to preserve the peace
and prevent as much chaos as possible. Particularly as we go deeper into
economic collapse as the housing market falls, and the ripple-out effect is
felt around the world with job losses dramatically on the rise.   I  am
already receiving articles of major lay-offs in the auto industry, and
running into more and more local people out of work and on the streets -- 
all at the same time food and energy prices are escalating. 

With the number of foreclosures predicted, due to the manner in which
mortgage loans were made in the past 15 years, and the number of homeless
predicted to be anywhere from 60 to 120 million (in addition to the already
homeless) it is inevitable that we will see an increase in lawlessness as
desperate people attempt to obtain food, water and medical care, as well as
shelter. If left to the government to "keep order" the result may well be
martial law and internment in concentration camps. 

One of the major components in a crisis of this magnitude is "post-traumatic
stress disorder" as millions of people suffer from the shock of losing their
homes and the security their environment provided them.  This will be many
times more difficult than was Hurricane Katrina,
as it will be magnified by the millions all across the country.  And the
ripple out effect will be felt internationally.  

However, if "we-the-people" organize effectively to handle the stress factor
ourselves in our own communities, we can mitigate the circumstances and
deflect much of the damage.

So, let's put our heads together and come up with a plan to do this.  Then
we can think about how to put the plan into effect both nationally and
internationally -- perhaps linking it to the already-in-process
relocalization effort. This could be a major step toward securing world
peace and freedom -- learning how to maximize our personal power person by
person and community by community.  

The first thing I would like to suggest is organizing Post-traumatic Stress
Disorder Centers in 
each community to handle this dis-ease, and building from that point outward
logistically.  

And, critically important is setting up alternative education centers in
each community,

while linking everything via the Internet, but having an alternative plan
set up in case of Internet 

failure.  

So, what say ye? 

marguerite 


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http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/19/opinion/19mon3.html 
  
February 19, 2007 
EDITORIAL 
Making Martial Law Easier 
  
A disturbing recent phenomenon in Washington is that laws that strike to the
heart of American democracy have been passed in the dead of night. So it was
with a provision quietly tucked into the enormous defense budget bill at the
Bush administration¹s behest that makes it easier for a president to
override local control of law enforcement and declare martial law. 
  
The provision, signed into law in October, weakens two obscure but important
bulwarks of liberty. One is the doctrine that bars military forces,
including a federalized National Guard, from engaging in law enforcement.
Called posse comitatus, it was enshrined in law after the Civil War to
preserve the line between civil government and the military. The other is
the Insurrection Act of 1807, which provides the major exemptions to posse
comitatus. It essentially limits a president¹s use of the military in law
enforcement to putting down lawlessness, insurrection and rebellion, where a
state is violating federal law or depriving people of constitutional rights.

  
The newly enacted provisions upset this careful balance. They shift the
focus from making sure that federal laws are enforced to restoring public
order. Beyond cases of actual insurrection, the president may now use
military troops as a domestic police force in response to a natural disaster
 a disease outbreak, terrorist attack or to any ³other condition.² 
  
Changes of this magnitude should be made only after a thorough public airing
 But these new presidential powers were slipped into the law without
hearings or public debate. The president made no mention of the changes when
he signed the measure, and neither the White House nor Congress consulted in
advance with the nation¹s governors. 
  
There is a bipartisan bill, introduced by Senators Patrick Leahy, Democrat
of Vermont, and Christopher Bond, Republican of Missouri, and backed
unanimously by the nation¹s governors, that would repeal the stealthy
revisions. Congress should pass it. If changes of this kind are proposed in
the future, they must get a full and open debate. 
  
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company