And so early in the morning, too!
It’s not every day that I read something in the newspaper that literally makes my jaw drop, but the Independent has certainly managed to do it this morning:
Britain’s armed forces could be used on a regular basis on the streets of Britain to confront the threat of terrorism, under the terms of a strategic defence review announced yesterday.
I beg your pardon? What threat of terrorism would that be? Despite the government’s most vigorous efforts to frighten us to death, I hardly feel like I am living in a society under regular threat from terrorism. And even if I were, I’m not sure that having a large number of uniformed, armed men wandering around with completely uncontrolled authority would be any better. The purpose of the military is defence of the realm, and we are under no threat that justifies them wandering around our streets!
And if that didn’t put the willies up you, try this:
Stronger, more effective partnership with other Whitehall departments, the intelligence agencies, police forces and others at the national level will become even more important to achieving our security objective.
In other words, the military will become integrated into a bureaucratic monster along with all the government departments, increasingly politicised spooks and the very politicised police, all acting at the behest of our political masters. If that doesn’t frighten you to death, then you probably are already dead.
In reading the article, it seems that no-one is in the slightest bit perturbed about this: not the Tories, not the LibDems, not even the Independent’s journalists! Am I alone in viewing this astonishing bit of news as a rather worrying development? The Times and the Telegraph aren’t even covering the story (yet) and the Guardian hasn’t even mentioned this little wrinkle in its rather bland coverage.
Are we really blithely sleep-walking into the genesis of a fascist panopticon Britain? We already have more CCTV than anywhere else in the world, and ANPR cameras to keep track of our cars’ movements. Loyalty cards and credit cards can be used to track all our purchases and the data will be happily provided to the government if “the national interest” is invoked. Your next passport will cause you to be registered into the National ID database. If you add a military integrated into the Whitehall “machine” along with the police and the spies, we really will be in a frightening place.
I really do not like the looks of this.
- Defence & Security: Is it British? « IanPJ on Politics
- February 4, 2010 at 17:33
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
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1
February 4, 2010 at 09:16 -
I suppose that’s one way of saving cash – assimilate the army into the police force! Mind you, I bet they still won’t have the right equipment.
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2
February 4, 2010 at 09:43 -
‘Stop Thief’ he cried, as he he unleashed the full force of the 50 cal into Tescos.
Its the called the Police State
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3
February 4, 2010 at 09:55 -
Read “The Aachen Memorandum” – written years ago. the book was hilarious at the time, it’s rather terrifying now as too much of it has come true.
I did like the bit about the last British trawler being caught fishing illegally in the Irish Box by a Spanish Frigate.
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4
February 4, 2010 at 10:04 -
They have already won. The fascist state is active now.
I am expecting a knock from the police at any time.
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5
February 4, 2010 at 10:23 -
It’s ok though. We have the people’s representatives in Parliament to hold the Executive to account.
What could go wrong?
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6
February 4, 2010 at 10:31 -
No resistance? Abandon hope? Thats exactly how these situations develop.
When will we take to the streets? Not until a long time after our own liberties have been removed and life becomes positively uncomfortable.
Not long now.
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7
February 4, 2010 at 10:37 -
“Are we really blithely sleep-walking into the genesis of a fascist panopticon Britain? “
Yes. And there’ll be no shortage of people willing to cheer it on, it seems…
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8
February 4, 2010 at 11:38 -
When the squaddies charged with protecting the State from terrorist activity are told they can’t buy booze in Tesco’s, their zeal may abate, somewhat.
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9
February 4, 2010 at 12:22 -
We’ve been sleepwalking into this for years – it’s just like deja-vu, all over again. Of course, in the good old days, it was “Reds under the bed”, or “the enemy within” – nowadays, we prefer to repeat history and isolate one religious group, as the source of all evil. Now, where have I heard that one before?
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10
February 4, 2010 at 12:25 -
We’ve been sleepwalking into this for years – it’s just like deja-vu, all over again. Of course, in the good old days, it was “Reds under the bed” and “the enemy within” – nowadays, we prefer to isolate a single religion as the source of all evil. Now, where have I heard that one before?
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11
February 4, 2010 at 13:11 -
When I wrote about this in March last year I was called a conspiracy nut.
Time always proves whether the conspiracy is true or not.
But note, both Labour and Tories are implementing this policy plan, so MoD only doing as they are told.
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12
February 4, 2010 at 13:25 -
It won’t just be British troops on the street. What with the EU’s plans for its own armed services and various members states already organising joint militias between themselves AND the current British political class seriously considering an ‘entente’ with the French military (yes, the French!) it’s only a matter of time before we see foreign troops ‘policing’ us.
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13
February 4, 2010 at 13:30 -
In fact, our Political parties are only doing what is being handed down to them by the EU.
If you want to see our future as part of the EU, here is the final report from ESRIF (European Security Research & Innovation Forum) – a directorate and part of the European Commission.
http://www.statewatch.org/news/2009/dec/esrif-final-report.pdf -
14
February 4, 2010 at 14:11 -
Well done Anna, the piece had precisely the same effect on me. But you can’t tell people – yet. You may never be able to.
The reason is simple: I think if we wiped out most of the anti-British immigrant elements in the UK, shot all the bankers and lawyers, withdrew from the EU, made 500-day detention the norm for all the Harmans and Tatchells, armed the police and used the Forces to shoot drunken Yoof on sight, the national applause would be deafening.
You see what I mean? Silly softness + loopy, controlling ideas +people who won’t take no for an answer = Police State within no time. But how many people in Britain really understand (let alone value) liberty? They spout the word democracy, and think it means the same thing.
I’d suspend democracy to protect liberty. But not the other way round – and anyway, as British democracy has been a sham for decades, defence of one’s liberties is the only thing left.
xx
PS Sorry, I forgot the bit about garrotting Murdoch http://nbyslog.blogspot.com/2010/02/signs-in-times.html -
15
February 4, 2010 at 15:06 -
“I beg your pardon? What threat of terrorism would that be? Despite the government’s most vigorous efforts to frighten us to death, I hardly feel like I am living in a society under regular threat from terrorism.”
Huh? What planet are you living on? Daily I see evidence of the general populace being terrorised, the attacks are unrelenting and yet you can’t see this?
Oh, you probably meant being terrorised by Muslims, rather than our own politicians.
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16
February 4, 2010 at 15:50 -
I agree with ‘The Slogger’ regarding the sham of democracy, not that I have a solution.
Arguably, its better to have an elected dictatorship than one which can never be removed (except through armed force).
Once we cease to be a ‘Christian State’ and become a Muslim dominated one, the elements of the machinery for an oppressive regime will all be in place for the new sovereign power to simply pick up.
Ordinary folk, busily responding to the Governments expensive ‘climate change’ propaganda and warnings of heart disease resulting from an occasional glass of red wine (somehow good for the French but fatal for what’s left of the English) have not noticed the loss of sovereignty to Europe, the twisting of the ECHR and the swelling of the non-Christian population.
You only have to notice that Peter Mandelson is, incredibly, a Government Minister, to realise that something is badly wrong with the UK system of government.
To think that I hated Thatcher – little did I know what was to come!
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17
February 4, 2010 at 17:09 -
Having just skimmed the green paper, the Independent may have slightly exaggerated it.
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18
February 4, 2010 at 19:45 -
British armed forces patrolling our streets – what, all 5 of them AND their dog?
New Labour have pursued the traditional socialist authoritarian approach when dealing with the Forces: starve them of funding and deploy them several thousand miles away so they don’t have the resources to mount a coup against this traitorous government. They haven’t forgotten the Army’s unannounced deployment to Heathrow in 1974 when Harold Wilson was at the helm.
If any organisation is going to be used to repress internal dissent, it’ll be SOCA and the other politicised police forces. Note that SOCA officers do not swear an oath of loyalty to the Crown like all other constables.
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19
February 5, 2010 at 09:49 -
I’m just so gonna get my ass out of here soon…. Seriously, this country has gone nuts.
You’re so right Thaddeus; perturbed would be the bare minimum reaction I’d expect, mass rioting though being the proper response surely?
I think its time some of us started writing to the Editors and reminding them they won’t be immune either come a manufactured ‘national emergency’. They just need only ask their counter-parts in Putin’s Russia… Ooops sorry, I forgot, of course many of them have since ‘retired’.
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20
February 5, 2010 at 10:58 -
Foreign troops policing our streets would be an act of war. If they do so with Parliaments permission then every Cabinet Minister and MP who voted on it would be traitors. Civil War ain’t very civil.
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