CONVERSATIONS with CASEY

In point of fact, though, I generally feel more at risk at a traffic stop in the U.S. these days. It seems that U.S. cops have been brainwashed into thinking that any contact with the public may actually be with a terrorist, or rampaging militia member, or a heavily armed religious cultist. Things have definitely changed in the last ten years, and these guys all seem to be on a hair trigger. I really don't like getting near droopy-eyed teenage soldiers in the Congo, but I now consider U.S. cops almost as dangerous.
All those soldiers and police in Belarus were essentially average people – although I'm sure, like police everywhere, more than a few have extra Y chromosomes. The key is that when they put on uniforms, they do as they're told. They're no different from their U.S. counterparts. Always remember with cops and soldiers: their first loyalty is to each other. Their next loyalty is to their employer. They aren't there to "protect and serve" the people in the street. People are all potential criminals and rioters. The people are the last priority, contrary to the fairy tales.
L: Hm. You know, things didn't go over the edge that night I was on the streets in Minsk, but I was thinking about how quickly things can change. The blood the police shed, beating peaceful, unarmed people, including women, reminds me of the amazing speed with which the "thin veneer of civilization" can be stripped away. The former Yugoslavia comes to mind: a relatively wealthy European country turned into a bloody chaos of multiple warring factions, war crimes, and mass graves, all in a matter of weeks.
Doug: And as you point out in this month's edition of the International Speculator, no matter where you live, even in the United States, it's dangerous wishful thinking to tell yourself, "It can't happen here."
L: Maybe especially in the United States. I used the links you sent me of the videos showing the police joining the looting in New Orleans, and National Guardsmen confiscating guns from people who wanted to be able to defend themselves from looters, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.