Protests

SAMI

Formerly Beardy McGee
Location
SLC, UT
Pentagon Orders Active-Duty Military Police Unit to DC Region Amid Protests

1 Jun 2020
Military.com | By Matthew Cox and Gina Harkins
The Pentagon has ordered an active-duty battalion of military police soldiers from Fort Bragg, North Carolina to deploy to the Washington, D.C. area as the city braces for more violent demonstrations.
CNN was among the first to report the deployment order for between 200 and 250 MPs from Bragg. A Pentagon official confirmed to Military.com that the MPs are from the XVIII Airborne Corps.

The official did not specify what orders the MPs had been given. ABC reported, citing a Defense official, that the troops were being sent into the D.C. region but only on standby capacity, in the event that they are needed.

The move comes after the Pentagon on Friday put active-duty MP units from Bragg, Fort Drum, New York; Fort Carson, Colorado; and Fort Riley, Kansas on alert to deploy on short notice to reinforce police dealing with civil unrest in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a unarmed black man who died in police custody May 25.

Demonstrators protesting police brutality have clashed with law enforcement in major cities which led to the deployment of thousands of National Guard troops over the weekend.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark Milley joined President Donald Trump on a Monday call with governors that was leaked to news outlets. In the call, Trump urged governors to "get much tougher" on protestors. The call followed days of sometimes-violent clashes between protestors and police.

Trump called the protesters "anarchists" who needed to be arrested and tried. He also told the governors, "most of you are weak."
"They're going to run you over and you're going to look like jerks," Trump said.

Esper added that "we need to dominate the battlespace."

"I stand ready, the chairman stands ready, the head of the National Guard stands ready to fully support you in terms of how they mobilize the Guard at doing what they need to do," the defense secretary said.

Trump said Milley was put in charge of the military's response, though he didn't elaborate what role the chairman would play. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, later told reporters Milley will oversee a command center, but declined to provide additional details, saying, "I'm not going to get ahead of any actions that will be announced."

The president also on Monday tweeted support for Republican Sen. Tom Cotton's call to send active-duty soldiers to respond to protests.

The boldness of protestors prompted Cotton to call for the deployment of active-duty combat units such as the 101st Airborne Division, 10th Mountain Division, 82nd Airborne Division, 1st Cavalry Division and 3rd Infantry Division to do "whatever it takes to restore order."

Meanwhile the National Guard has presented a less aggressive message in talking about the 17,000 Guard troops deployed in 23 states.

"We are here to protect life and property, and preserve peace, order, and public safety," Gen. Joseph Lengyel, chief of the National Guard Bureau, said in a statement released today.


 

SAMI

Formerly Beardy McGee
Location
SLC, UT
That phrasing is disturbing.

True... but, have you seen videos emerging each night? It's nothing short of a battlefield. LV officer executed with a shot to the back of head, St Louis gun battle with 4 officers shot, Jacksonville officer throat cut during protest, store owners being beaten for defending their businesses, cops & protesters being run over, white woman kidnapped then gang raped then murdered, highway protesters lighting a truck and horse trailer on fire killing the horses and putting the woman in ICU, rioters lighting houses on fire and then preventing FD from reaching the buildings - causing children to die in the blaze... it's beyond fcked up out there, and sure as shit sounds like a battleground.

I'm of the camp that the rioting/looting needs to be swiftly dealt with via force; swift, heavy force. Then investigate who is organizing it, and funding it.
 
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Jesser04

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville Utah
I’m worried this goes on much longer without the government stopping it will have someone/group resort to vigilantly justice resulting in unnecessary death.
 

Noahfecks

El Destructo!
I am extremely surprised how long this has been allowed to go on. Plenty of non-lethal options that should be immediately deployed in every case as soon as any violence starts.

If they start coming into the suburbs and rural areas it's going to be a bloodbath. I would have zero remorse for what happens to someone who tried to hurt my family
 

TRD270

Emptying Pockets Again
Supporting Member
Location
SaSaSandy
I am extremely surprised how long this has been allowed to go on. Plenty of non-lethal options that should be immediately deployed in every case as soon as any violence starts.

If they start coming into the suburbs and rural areas it's going to be a bloodbath. I would have zero remorse for what happens to someone who tried to hurt my family
ckOuBLz.gif
 

Hickey

Burn-barrel enthusiast
Supporting Member
I just got a quick run down of today's events at some of our stores in my region today.

1 driver had to slowly force his way through some people trying to block him from getting to the back of the store with his truck. They threw trash and plastic water bottles at the truck as he drove by. This was in Compton, CA. I personally would not have attempted that delivery this week.

Several stores are reporting gunshots heard in the parking lots at all hours of the day.

Several of our Las Vegas stores are closed indefinitely. Las Vegas has FAR more stores than all of Utah and Idaho combined, and more than 90 percent are in low income areas of that valley.

Farmington, NM had some light looting. I'm not sure what light looting means, but freaking Farmington, NM?

I had an easy rural day delivering to Grand Junction. I will definitely be stopping in the most rural of rural places if I need to stop. My tire thumper and other "tools" have nice fresh polish on them.
 

nnnnnate

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Location
WVC, UT
We went to chik-fil-a for some dinner last night and it was odd to see the walmart parking lot pretty empty at 5pm. There were pallets piled up in front of the entry doors up to nine or ten feet high. It was kind of crazy. This was the walmart on 5600 w and 3100 s in west valley.
 

Hickey

Burn-barrel enthusiast
Supporting Member
We went to chik-fil-a for some dinner last night and it was odd to see the walmart parking lot pretty empty at 5pm. There were pallets piled up in front of the entry doors up to nine or ten feet high. It was kind of crazy. This was the walmart on 5600 w and 3100 s in west valley.
I think there are 7 stores in the Salt Lake valley that are closing from 5pm to 7am during this BS. No employees on site during that time. That puts quite a damper on our ability to deliver their freight.
 

nnnnnate

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Location
WVC, UT
I didn't realize they closed that early but it would have been about 5:15 that we were there.
 

Troop92

Well-Known Member
Location
Layton, UT
...was odd to see the walmart parking lot pretty empty at 5pm.

Had a Target shift last night. The Centerville store backs up to a Walmart, and we had all the overflow when everyone realized Walmart was closed. It was madness, glad I was in the back most of the time.
 

Stephen

Who Dares Wins
Moderator
My feelings on the protests are that people have the right to be heard. You want to draw a misspelled sign and yell and scream at the top of your lungs in front of a police station; go for it. I'll even tip my hat to you as I walk by, despite not agreeing with you.
The tragedy of these protests is that it is largely due to years, decades, of misinformation. There is no overwhelming evidence that black people are specifically targeted by police in fatal incidents. Do they have a higher rate of such encounters than relation to their percentage of the population, yes. But, it is a far cry from a "death sentence" to be a black male in America. There are legitimate grievances. These people should be heard and listened to. Action and reforms should be considered and implemented through proper, legal avenues. But not rioting.
Many of the people connected with the legitimate, peaceful protests have openly condemned the violence that has erupted; but not enough of them. And sadly, this has de-legitimatized their cause. I, as a law abiding citizen of these United States, cannot sympathize with a group like Black Lives Matter and their cause if their members and leadership do not openly and vehemently condemn their followers burning down my country; despite my agreeing with some of their grievances. Half-felt apologies only drive me, a generally sympathetic individual further from being willing to support their organization and its tenets. Additionally, furthering the half-truths and down right lies I mentioned above, do little to help the cause among the group of people that they need to convince; me and people like me.
The majority of the country, regardless of race, creed, political affiliation; are sitting on the sidelines of all this watching and waiting to see what our elected officials do. The wedge that has been driven between minorities, specifically blacks, and the police for decades to gain political favor is disgusting and these riots are the result. Many mayors and governors who have spent their careers bad mouthing the police to get votes are going to have to make a choice soon. Do they embrace the violence and carry the radicals, or do they back law and order. Historically, law and order wins the day at the polls. No matter your political affiliation, people want their families, property, businesses, etc to feel safe. These leaders who are apologizing for the rioters should be fearful for their futures. But these are strange times, so maybe I'm wrong and they won't pay a price.
At the end of the day, I just hope these events lead to people actually listening to each side of the argument and doing something about it.
 
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