And Then There Were Three: Third Grand Jury Refuser Goes to Prison

[HiPointDem]

42. so all those folks in nazi germany who said they didn't know about the camps were lying?

i doubt that everybody in a police state knows what's going on.

look, we incarcerate a higher percentage of our people, by far, than any other state on earth. In 2010, 1 out of 10 black men were in the prison system, 1/15 of black children have a family member in prison, and 1/3 of black men will be in prison at some time in their lives.

Does everybody 'know what's going on" there? I doubt it. If you're not black, it's pretty easy to be oblivious or to believe that 'those people' deserve it. Same thing is true, to a lesser degree, the lower your income -- the more likely you are to get involved in the prison system. and obviously, as these kids are finding out, if you step outside the lines you are likely to get involved with the prison system.

and if you don't have good connections, look out. that's why bill ayers (son of a CEO) & bernadine dohrn got basically 0 jail time for leading the weathermen, while david gilbert & a bunch of black people whose names nobody knows still rot in solitary. you can go through the list of 60s activists and you'll find the working class ones are way more likely to still be in prison today, or to have served long sentences, than the preppie types like ayers.

Plus -- everyone who's on-line is effectively spied on. consumer purchases, finances, employment records, etc. are all tracked. If you go to a homeless shelter or access government services your name will go on a data base. It is very difficult to participate in the economy without your activities being tracked. Even if you recycle stuff for money, you have to present ID.

What's your definition of a 'police state'?