Senate Bill to OK Indefinite Detention of U.S. Citizens Without Charge or Trial

[HeartofShadows]

Quote:In what may be a tale too bizarre to be believed by millions of Americans, the U.S. Senate appears ready to pass a bill that will designate the entire earth, including the United States and its territories, one all-encompassing “battlefield” in the global “war on terror” and authorize the detention of Americans suspected of terrorist ties indefinitely and without trial or even charges being filed that would necessitate a trial.

The bill could come to a vote as early as today, according to a bulletin issued by the American Civil Liberties Union. The legislation “goes to the very heart of who we are as Americans,” the ACLU statement said, describing the bill as having moved toward passage while most Americans were celebrating Thanksgiving and a long holiday weekend for millions of U.S. workers. “The Senate will be voting on a bill that will direct American military resources not at an enemy shooting at our military in a war zone, but at American citizens and other civilians far from any battlefield — even people in the United States itself,” the ACLU warned.

Labeled the National Defense Authorization Act, S. 1867 was drafted in secret by Senators Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) and approved in a closed-door committee meeting, according to the ACLU statement.

“I know it sounds incredible,” wrote Chris Anders of the ACLU's Washington legislative office. “New powers to use the military worldwide, even within the United States? Hasn’t anyone told the Senate that Osama bin Laden is dead, that the president is pulling all of the combat troops out of Iraq and trying to figure out how to get combat troops out of Afghanistan too? And American citizens and people picked up on American or Canadian or British streets being sent to military prisons indefinitely without even being charged with a crime. Really? Does anyone think this is a good idea? And why now?”

If passed in its present form, the bill would give the President the power to order the military to pick up and imprison without charge or trial civilians anywhere in the world. “The power is so broad that even U.S. citizens could be swept up by the military and the military could be used far from any battlefield, even within the United States itself,” Anders warned. Anders also noted that presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) voiced his concerns about the detention provisions in the legislation in a Republican candidates' debate. Ironically, President Obama, who has frequently been criticized by libertarians of both the left and right for exceeding his powers as Commander-in-Chief, is opposed to the legislation and has threatened to veto it if it passes both houses of Congress. Both the Secretary of Defense and the Attorney General of the United States have called the indefinite detention provisions of the bill harmful and counterproductive. But Senator Lindsey Graham has praised those same provisions for saying “for the first time that the homeland is part of the battlefield” and that people can be arrested without charge or trial, “American citizen or not.” Freshman Senator Kelly Ayotte, a New Hampshire Republican, declared that the provisions are necessary because “America is part of the battlefield.”

Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) has offered an amendment to delete the indefinite detention provisions and “[set] up an orderly review of detention power,” Anders said. “It tries to take the politics out and put American values back in.” The provisions raise a great many political, sociological, and constitutional questions, including whether all of the “homeland,” formerly known as “the land of the free,” should be designated a battlefield and whether people arrested anywhere in the world, including here in the United States, should be considered “enemy combatants” even if they were captured nowhere near a scene of actual battle.

The ACLU is pressing Americans to contact their Senators and urge them to support the Udall amendment. “Senators need to hear from you, on whether you think your front yard is part of a 'battlefield' and if any president can send the military anywhere in the world to imprison civilians without charge or trial,” Anders wrote.

What this law would do..

Quote: 1) Explicitly authorize the federal government to indefinitely imprison without charge or trial American citizens and others picked up inside and outside the United States;

(2) Mandate military detention of some civilians who would otherwise be outside of military control, including civilians picked up within the United States itself; and

(3) Transfer to the Department of Defense core prosecutorial, investigative, law enforcement, penal, and custodial authority and responsibility now held by the Department of Justice.

http://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/con...arge-trial

[UnschoolShqiponjë]

LOCK AND LOAD PEOPLE!

It seems the time to truly fight for our freedom is nearly upon us. True it has been upon us ever since the PATRIOT Act, but this might be enough to push the more moderate citizens over the edge.

[Luizao876]

Fuck, a lot of shit is going to happen if this bill pass.

Good thing I'm not American.

[HeartofShadows]

(12-01-2011 09:59 AM)UnschoolShqiponjë Wrote:  LOCK AND LOAD PEOPLE!

It seems the time to truly fight for our freedom is nearly upon us. True it has been upon us ever since the PATRIOT Act, but this might be enough to push the more moderate citizens over the edge.

This will go by quietly and with a whisper..

[UnschoolShqiponjë]

Sadly, you are probably right.

[xydougie]

Greatest Thing Ever

Not because I support it, but because this is a wake-up call

[Efs]

LOL AMERIKA!

[LOON_ATTIC]

Shit like that's already happened in the Middle East/Guantanamo bay, in history class we also watched a documentary about how they held random middle eastern immigrants in "detention" randomly, maybe because of people "reporting" them, like witch hunts, in the early 2000s.

[.Manicrose.]

WHAT

WHAT

...I agree with HoS though, no one really cares because they think they won't be affected. Apathy is what is killing America and just makes it easier for the government to pass these bills. It's like Patriot Act v. 2.0.

Quote:Transfer to the Department of Defense core prosecutorial, investigative, law enforcement, penal, and custodial authority and responsibility now held by the Department of Justice.

This is especially scary to me, because it's not about Justice anymore, it's about Defense...but not from Al Qaeda really, from people who speak out against the government.

[majesty327]

Fuck, this is just like the time when Pres. Lincoln suspended Habeas Corpus, only this time, the Gov. actually has no reason, this is why I love this country, it represents everything that humanity stands for, hate, injustice, violence, greed, and sudden authority over others.

[conservativesaint]

Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

[majesty327]

(12-02-2011 06:44 PM)conservativesaint Wrote:  Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

Even then, it can still pass with a 66% majority vote from Congress.

[SoulRiser]

lolwut

America passing laws as if they own the entire planet...

[HeartofShadows]

(12-02-2011 06:44 PM)conservativesaint Wrote:  Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

Oh pretty sure he'll sign it considering the stuff he's been passing.

[.Manicrose.]

(12-02-2011 10:23 PM)HeartofShadows Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 06:44 PM)conservativesaint Wrote:  Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

Oh pretty sure he'll sign it considering the stuff he's been passing.

Yup. Given that he renewed the Patriot Act, I'll bet money on this one.

[UnschoolShqiponjë]

(12-03-2011 04:44 AM).Manicrose. Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 10:23 PM)HeartofShadows Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 06:44 PM)conservativesaint Wrote:  Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

Oh pretty sure he'll sign it considering the stuff he's been passing.

Yup. Given that he renewed the Patriot Act, I'll bet money on this one.

Yup he is just another puppet.

[Stadium]

First I hear about SOPA now I hear about this crap. I think it's time to go to Canada...

[ModestMusic]

I am not surprised to be hearing this. Disappointed, but not surprised. I find that the biggest problem is that everyone I know could give a rat's ass about this kind of thing being passed because they believe that because this is America, their rights will always be protected. I don't believe that many American citizens would stand up if this is passed, and unfortunately, its yet another layer of our freedom chipped away.
StadiumArcadium- I will see you there!

[HeartofShadows]

And it passed(no surprise there).

http://blogs.philadelphiaweekly.com/phil...-provision

[gore goroth]

(12-03-2011 04:06 PM)HeartofShadows Wrote:  And it passed(no surprise there).

http://blogs.philadelphiaweekly.com/phil...-provision

Thats it!!!! ITS OVER!!!!!! EVERYONE RUN TO CANADA BEFORE ITS TOO LATE!!!!

[conservativesaint]

(12-02-2011 10:23 PM)HeartofShadows Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 06:44 PM)conservativesaint Wrote:  Has to pass in the house and hit Obummer's desk. I am unsure if Obummer will sign it.

Oh pretty sure he'll sign it considering the stuff he's been passing.

I hate Nancy Pelosi. "Everything will be better when a democrat is in the white house in 2008","Impeachment is off the table","We are all about bringing America together". That's the reason she did not impeach Bush. Make him look bad,get a liberal in WH, they are happy. We should had not voted Nancy Pelosi in office or as speaker. Had another democrat been speaker,say Dennis Kucinich,Bush would had been gone and we would have Mccain/Elizabeth Dole in the WH or Bob Dole,Ron Paul,John Boehner,etc for the nations highest office. Remember, GOP tried to impeach Clinton for giving Lewinksy a BJ and we got bush for 8 years. Also, another reason to dislike the dems: [

Watch on YouTubehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxMInSfanqg[/YouTube]]

---

O and the video is called "Nancy Pelosi,Barney Frank and Democrats are clueless on Freddie and Fannie".

[Elfy]

lol america

[Efs]

(12-03-2011 08:31 PM)Elfy Wrote:  LOL AMERIKA

fix'd.

[Liquid]

Time to buy guns.

[The Desert Fox]

(12-06-2011 07:57 AM)Liquid Wrote:  Time to buy guns.

Let's go shoppin', chaps!

[aCol]

(12-02-2011 08:38 PM)SoulRiser Wrote:  lolwut

America passing laws as if they own the entire planet...

Well, Russia and China are almost certain not to let the USA command them around. As so are the arabian lands ("aka terrorists"). To bad Europe will let itself be pushed, people here can be assholes, but they have deserved better.

I think we should bring "democracy" to america. The american way ofc.

[Stadium]

(12-06-2011 10:51 PM)aCol Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 08:38 PM)SoulRiser Wrote:  lolwut

America passing laws as if they own the entire planet...

Well, Russia and China are almost certain not to let the USA command them around. As so are the arabian lands ("aka terrorists"). To bad Europe will let itself be pushed, people here can be assholes, but they have deserved better.

I think we should bring "democracy" to america. The american way ofc.

The day we fuck with Russia is the day we get bent over backwards and fucked.

[aCol]

Hopefully I just have to watch, because I do not want to support some nation that rages on the whole world and then has to fight for its own incompetence. And you know, Germany and America are very good "friends".

[HeartofShadows]

(12-07-2011 09:35 AM)StadiumArcadium Wrote:  

(12-06-2011 10:51 PM)aCol Wrote:  

(12-02-2011 08:38 PM)SoulRiser Wrote:  lolwut

America passing laws as if they own the entire planet...

Well, Russia and China are almost certain not to let the USA command them around. As so are the arabian lands ("aka terrorists"). To bad Europe will let itself be pushed, people here can be assholes, but they have deserved better.

I think we should bring "democracy" to america. The american way ofc.

The day we fuck with Russia is the day we get bent over backwards and fucked.

Not to mention china.
no idea how easily China is going to take americas military apart when they finally have a need to prevent an American military response for some reason. They completely own americas military information infrastructure. At this point, they could shut down all of their fancy drones within seconds, or worse, turn them back on em, and it's all thanks to America's foreign military adventurism.

[gore goroth]

I heard Russia is getting back up since Communism ended there and It may be a good place to run to someday. Hope you guys like Vodka and AK-47s.