Conditioning Us To Troops In Streets Is Cover For Masked Agents Leading To Masked MAGAs

There has been plenty of talk about troops, be they National Guard or even federal troops in our city streets “assisting” local law enforcement. Whether local LE wants them or not. (It’s almost always a case of NOT) That, combined with speculation by pundits and many of us regular folks about Trump itching to invoke the Insurrection Act has led to a consensus that deploying troops the way he has is Trump’s way of “conditioning” us to accept federal troops in our streets. What I’ve come to believe has been overlooked is something else is going on, and perhaps even that the federal troop deployments are cover for it.

We’ve seen MAGAs not just with assault weapons but decked out in tactical gear at times. Including I might add at polling places during elections. It’s a clear threat and intended to be seen as such but lots of states have open carry laws. In Red states in particular a threatening show of force in locations where Democrats might be expected to cast ballots it’s a truly blatant form of voter intimidation. For all the ‘Meal Team Six’ wisecracks the fact is even if the MAGA goober follows the ‘Trump hamberder Diet’ religiously those weapons they carry are lethal. Worse, when these goobers parade around in groups even being as fat as I am nowdays doesn’t diminish the threat people feel coming from them.

Now consider what you see on the news daily. ICE and other federal agents who are supposed to be doing other things being tasked to them geared up wearing masks and hiding their identity. Sometimes even hiding what agency they work for!  When all this started more often than not under all that tactical gear and the masks one saw a uniform. Sometimes full military fatigues and sometimes what was clearly a uniform of some sort. Now? Not so much. I’ve been struck by how often we now see these masked federdal agents wearing civilian clothing like jeans and t-shirts or other ‘civilian’ shirts under their gear. And masks. Think about that:

This article from rsn.org (Reader Supported News) delves into an article by Sam Levin of the Guardian UK where he recounts an interview with a former FBI agent. The agent, Mike German now works at the Brennan Center but once worked undercover inside white militia groups. What he had to say is more than sobering. I find it almost terrifying:

Mike German, a former FBI agent, said officers’ widespread use of masks was unprecedented in US law enforcement and a sign of a rapidly eroding democracy. “Masking symbolizes the drift of law enforcement away from democratic controls,” he said.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has insisted masks are necessary to protect officers’ privacy, arguing, without providing evidence, that there has been an uptick in violence against agents.

But, German argued, the longterm consequences could be severe. The practice could erode trust in the US law enforcement agencies: “When it’s hard to tell who a masked individual is working for, it’s hard to accept that that is a legitimate use of authority,” he noted.

And, he said, when real agents use masks more frequently, it becomes easier for imposters to operate.

All of that is important but it’s that last bit that’s been on my mind. It should be on yours too. More importantly it needs to be written and talked about by news outlets, pundits and even our politicians. It’s not like this country hasn’t been through periods of sick, disturbed (and yes, racially motivated) groups of masked men terrorizing others. Imagine if you will the Klan, Trump version. Instead of white robes groups of MAGAs geared up to the max and wearing masks roaming about. Literal Masked Marauders.  With every reason to believe Trump would pardon them if somehow their identities and crimes were discovered. At that point he’d have found a way to eliminate the Constitutional provision limiting his pardon powers to federal crimes.

Who thinks Trump’s “gang” would limit themselves to immigrants?  The possibilities on who these asshats would go after is almost endless. I can assure you it would include plenty of white people. “Radical Libs” of course. Jews and Catholics or actual Christians who don’t subscribe to prosperity gospel. Business owners they don’t like, especially if they sell/provide service to non-Trump worshipers.  A farm, or really nice house they covet. Someone who stile the heart of a woman they were obsessed with. As I said it’s a long list of grievances and white skin/heritage won’t save those the MAGAs decided to go after.

Institutions we’ve counted on, even when we’ve found them far from perfect wouldn’t be able to stop it. Police departments, as was the case at times when the Klan has risen to power either look the other way or provide support to cover their own butts. Even then local LE might not be safe. How many MAGAs have gotten arrested and done time in jail or even prison due to local LE just doing its job?  The linked article is an interview with German you really should read. Then get others to read.  I’d like to pull out some quotes of German’s, parts of longer answers to profound questions:

• When it’s hard to tell who a masked individual is working for, it’s hard to accept that that is a legitimate use of authority. It’s particularly important for officers to identify themselves when they are making arrests. It’s important for the person being arrested, and for community members who might be watching, that they understand this is a law enforcement activity.
• I’m not aware of any period where US law enforcement officials wore masks, other than the lone ranger, of course. Masking has always been associated with police states.
• Once police think of themselves as domestic intelligence agents rather than law enforcement sworn to protect the public, it creates this attitude that the public doesn’t have a right to know what they’re doing. And now that includes even hiding their identities in public.
• I have not had conversations with current officers, but I imagine some are masking because they don’t normally work for Ice or do immigration enforcement, but are now being sent to do these jobs… When these officers go home at night, they may not want people in their communities to know it was them. Maybe they have upstanding reputations because of the work they do for the FBI or ATF, and they don’t necessarily want to be identified with this kind of indiscriminate targeting of immigrants. And that reluctance to be identified as engaging in those activities really highlights the illegitimacy of those actions.
• I’m not aware of any general authority authorizing an agent not to identify themselves during public law enforcement activity. As a former FBI undercover agent, I tried to avoid getting my picture taken as much as possible. But it is a small number of individuals who engage in undercover operations who would require any kind of masking, and they have the option of not participating in arrests where they are going to be in public

Those are partial answers to questions German was asked. Then he truly drives the point home about how dangerous all this is:

The recent shootings of two Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota, by a suspect who allegedly impersonated an officer, highlights the danger of police not looking like police. Federal agents wearing masks and casual clothing significantly increases this risk of any citizen dressing up in a way that fools the public into believing they are law enforcement so they can engage in illegal activity. It is a public safety threat, and it’s also a threat to the agents and officers themselves, because people will not immediately be able to distinguish between who is engaged in legitimate activity or illegitimate activity when violence is occurring in public.

Charles Manson had a vision taken from a Beatles song of the same name he labeled Helter Skelter. Ignite a race war, which he believed blacks would win and because he and his followers had hidden deep underground they’d be the only white people left. Manson was certain the blacks wouldn’t know what to do and would turn to him to lead everything. Trump is I truly believe hoping to create his own version of it. A white power war, and one in which he will designate any white conservative who might challenge his leadership as an enemy and therefore a target for his Masked MAGAs. That would include MAGAs with actual military experience and training who would help subjugate our armed forces. They too would be eliminated once their usefulness is over.

Trump believes, probably correctly such a nation where MAGAs can go around doing and taking whatever the hell they want will be people who don’t  have a clue on how to run things, so he and his folks will provide guidance in exchange for letting the goobers have their way.  Yes, Trump is old and crazy. Stephen Miller and others are just vile, sociopathic thugs who assume they or a new Trump figurehead can carry on when .  Trump himself keels over dead.

At best the linked article is deeply sobering. At worst it is as I said downright terrifying. Yet I again say THIS is the actual method to the Trumpian madness we see unfolding. Why the chattering classes are ignoring it is almost as troubling/terrifying. I supposed one could make the case they don’t want to go giving MAGA asshats crazy thoughts they might decide to put into action. Personally, I believe that as with January 5 organizers have been out there laying the groundwork. And, just as on Jan. 6 the goobers will be waiting for the “Go” order.

I’m glad there’s discussion about Trump trying to desensitize the public to the sight of armed federal troops in our streets enforcing his agenda and helping masked federal agents ‘disappear’ not just immigrants but American citizens deemed to not be loyal enough. Sunshine as the old saying goes is the best disinfectant. What’s going on with masked federal agents, now wearing ‘civilian’ clothes needs the same kind of sunshine from out pundits and politicians.

One of the things I noted above that German talked about is federal agents who’ve been tasked to ICE. Agents who are rightly ASHAMED of what they are doing and don’t want their families, friends, neighbors, members of their churches etc. to know. ICE Agents get off on the cruelty but even some of them don’t want many in their lives to see them doing the things they are doing. I’m sure some, and their spouses kids who know daddy is an ICE agent catch some sh*t. It’s not right that some have done so but some of those throwing insults have likely even made threats. However as German notes we don’t see any significant trend in violence towards ICE/federal agents or their loved ones. At least at home.

One last time I urge you to read the linked article. Then to share it and encourage others to do so. Better still contact your elected representatives and tell THEM about it. And if you’re adept on social media start giving a ration of sh*t to journalists for ignoring this matter.  We look back at 1930s Germany and Hitler’s brown-shirts and have told ourselves “It can never happen here.” Well, it IS happening only the brown shirts are federal agents wearing masks and even too often hiding what agency they work for. It’s only a matter of time before this spreads to civilian White Nationalists, MAGAs etc.

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