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• Sunday, August 31, 2008 06:08 AM

  Very disturbing

  with semi-automatic weapons drawn, entering homes of those suspected of planning protests, handcuffing and forcing them to lay on the floor, while law enforcement officers searched the homes, seizing computers, journals, and political pamphlets.

  This is how a drug raid is conducted. Considering all the years we have been at the drug war (to no avail), the political mood of the country and the level of fear and anger achieved by 8 years of the Bush regime, this should surprise no one. I hope it will keep the NLG, and others, busy for a few years and result in some landmark civil liberties cases. It damn well should. During this kind of raid all weapons are drawn and locked and loaded with the safety off. Maybe they thought Bill Ayers would be there.

  In the house that had just been raided, those inside described how a team of roughly 25 officers had barged into their homes with masks and black swat gear, holding large semi-automatic rifles, and ordered them to lie on the floor, where they were handcuffed and ordered not to move.

  SOP for a drug raid or any clearing and take down of a building or structure. Typical CQB.

  One quibble: Assault rifles.

  I'd bet there were few, if any, actual assault rifles. This isn't Iraq and over there they use the M4 rather than an M16 for confined spaces like buildings and structures. The longer barrels just get in the way, (try swinging one around in a cramped hall or stairway) and there is the concern about penetration if shots are fired. A .223 round will go through the target, the wall behind the target and into a neighbor's house and maybe into a neighbor. I suspect it was something like an H&K MP5 submachine gun, probably chambered for 9MM or .40 caliber, which might look like an assault rifle to the guy on the tape. They are fully automatic but would be set to burst, 3 shots per trigger pull, or single semi. Still a very dangerous weapon and this is obviously overkill for hippies.

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_&_Koch_MP5

  Minneapolis police: Cowboys

  http://www.startribune.com/local/26083024.html

  —L.W.M. Read L.W.M.'s other letters
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