Fort Lauderdale, Florida now has a most obnoxious surveillance vehicle patrolling the streets called the “Peacemaker.”
The truck is a new weapon for the Fort Lauderdale Police Department “in the fight against drugs and neighborhood nuisances.” It may be a first in South Florida. There is nothing hidden about this particular privacy invasion, but that doesn’t keep this from being a police state intrusion, and one that certainly violates the Fourth Amendment “Make no mistakes about it,” said Detective Travis Mandell. “We want people to know that we are watching the bad guys.”
The police in Fort Lauderdale now have two of these armored vehicles, and who knows what they will be used for in the future. These vehicles have been retrofitted with cameras that stream live video back to the police station. The videos contain images of private citizens going about their daily business, and any “illegal” activity spotted will be captured without the benefit of a warrant. This situation is becoming normal in today’s police state environment.
These vehicles can gather over 700 hours of footage without changing out the cameras, and they also come equipped with bullet-proof windows. I guess it is just another armored military style weapon used for domestic policing. How absurd, and how very dangerous!
Every step taken toward a more active police state brings with it the probability of Martial Law in the future. Why would these local police need such militarized weaponry? Why do they need this massive amount of firepower, including tanks in some towns and cities? There must be a reason, and that reason is an expectation by the state agents of force of civil unrest in the future. They are simply getting more and more prepared to use deadly force against the American citizenry when the need, at least in their minds, presents itself.
Each and every time the government’s arsenals grow, the more dangerous it becomes for the populace at large. We all should take heed of this open power grab, because it appears that it won’t be long until these weapons will be unleashed on those who choose not to comply with government mandates!