Posted: 9/2/2014 8:33:55 PM EDT
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I identify with those who think that Police should not have/need MRAPs etc. However I understand the reasoning that they have/are receiving them. Are any of you thinking about how many surplus vehicles are coming back from Iraq/Afghanistan? These vehicles can either be scrapped, set in a boneyard to collect dust, or given to police agencies that MAY need them at some time. I would support the selling of these to the public in auctions etc, but we need to keep in mind here that these vehicles were not built with the intention that they would end up in bumfuckville Iowa for a 3 person SWAT team. |
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I've decided the topic of the "militarization of the police" will be what my next 5 long research papers revolve around. In for ideas/opinions/facts/citations for various articles and so on.
My intentional fuel to the fire opinion: It is the equipment (and lack of training for when to use said equipment) the police receive that fundamentally changes their mindset from "Lets go arrest people by doing what has always worked, which is announcing our intentions, and acting civil against people SUSPECTED of crimes" versus "We are now a fucking badass light infantry unit, let's act accordingly!" |
To say that the typically poorly trained local police need MRAPs in quaint towns all across the country, but our own border with trained fed agents get an F150
Seems like there more concern with the citizens then all the drug cartels, human trafficking, and terrorist coming here 
My local police have a MRAP.....pretty sad b/c easily 3/4th of the bubba squad would not pass military fitness or mental standards. Equipment we didn't even have for the last ground invasion is a free for all for my local bullies to play soldier......it's quite pathetic. |
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It just goes to show that those who manage and run our military equipment programs dont seem to understand what the fuck theyre doing. Like OP said, the citizens, congress, and everyone who was calling for a upgrade over the humvees during the Iraq war did not go into it with the intention that these same military vehicles would end up on our own soil, being used by local police departments - literally for "show of force".
The number of these "excess" MRAPs (in other words, we wasted tens of millions or perhaps billions of tax payer dollars by ordering the production of way fucking too many of them) hasn't been reliably identified yet. CNN claims the number is 600. Other sources are 400, some 1200. At $500k a pop, even an excess of 100+ is too much money wasted. |
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Quoted:I would support the selling of these to the public in auctions etc, but we need to keep in mind here that these vehicles were not built with the intention that they would end up in bumfuckville Iowa for a 3 person SWAT team. Most if not all military vehicles sold to civilians at auction by DMRO were not built with the intention they would be used in the manner that civilians who buy them are using them. I could have a ton of fun with one, installing all of my amateur radio station gear inside of it and using it as a mobile ham station. I did that for a while with a deuce and a half and a communications shelter that I bought from DMRO A guy offered me three times what I paid for that setup so I let it go. I'm looking to put together another such setup soon. I am a proud member of the ........ http://www.mvpa.org EVERY VEHICLE in the below images are CIVILIAN OWNED !!!! 
I also believe the vehicle below is civilian owned and bought at auction from DMRO 
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Quoted:
Seems like it would be cheaper to leave them overseas to begin with. Yup. Pay some goat fucking schmuck to keep the batteries charged and the gas tank topped off so they're ready when we go back in a couple years. Seems like a no brainer compared to shipping them all back over here and giving them away to PDs. |
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Option A: Buy a new, purpose built, armored SWAT vehicle and pay an ungodly sum of money on said vehicle
or..... Option B: Take delivery of a free government surplus MRAP that may not be an ideal SWAT vehicle, but will serve the purpose just fine Gee, I wonder why so many agencies are choosing option B. 
And BTW, no I don't have a problem with this. I mean it isn't like these agencies are being given M1 Abrams Tanks and Bradley IFVs. They are just trucks designed to absorb blasts from IEDs. I don't have a problem with LEOs wearing body armor. Why would I care about them possessing vehicles that offer them a little armor protection? If I am going to be concerned with anything about modern policing in this country, that concern is going to center around certain TACTICS being used, not the equipment. |