tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347922855521121652024-03-17T20:02:03.964-07:00Down and DroughtAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-19045672084287769252015-12-01T14:37:00.000-08:002015-12-10T00:04:52.872-08:00Valley Police Departments' Biggest Supporters Are Ideologically Driven Bigots And Racists<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Holding a "thin blue line" flag, and carrying a handwritten sign, <a href="https://twitter.com/catprotector" target="_blank">pro-police activist Nohl Rosen</a> held a one man protest outside of the Chandler police department headquarters in early October. This was the latest in what has become a one man show for Rosen, despite his attempts to build a mass of public support for police through his "Rally for L.E." social media presence. The Chandler Police Department took a photo of Rosen's demonstration of support and posted it on their Twitter and Facebook page thanking him for his support.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Scottsdale Police joined Rosen for a photo op outside of a police station. The photo was posted to the department's Facebook page.</i></span></div>
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A late September demonstration in Scottsdale attracted a similar response from the Scottsdale Police Department, only this time a few officers joined him in the photograph. In a comment left by Rosen on the Facebook post, he claims an officer also brought him out a bottle of water. It's the same story in Glendale, as Rosen posted photos of officers joining his pro-cop demonstration, with one officer even holding Rosen's "thin blue line" flag, and Glendale Chief of Police Deborah Black left a comment on Rosen's Twitter personally thanking him for his support of the department.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>A retweet from the Glendale Police Department and a tweet of support from the police chief.</i></span></div>
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Over the last year Nohl Rosen has become the valley's most visible pro-police activist, in addition to his one man rallies he also organizes pro-police demonstrations, and shares news from other pro-police sources through the "Rally for L.E." social media handle. According to Rosen's <a href="http://www.rallyforle.com/sample-page/" target="_blank">Rally for L.E.</a> website, Rosen organized to support police in "December 2014 after the founder of the movement Nohl Rosen got tired of
seeing law enforcement get attacked on a daily basis not just by
anti-police protests but by the media as well." Rosen has frequently described Rally for L.E. as "a movement," although he may be the group's only permanent member.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>A Phoenix police officer joins Rosen's one man demonstration.</i></span></div>
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A pro-Scottsdale Police rally, organized by Rosen in January, <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/pro-police-demonstrators-clash-with-protesters-at-scottsdale-pd-headquarters-w-video-6638339" target="_blank">attracted media attention</a> when opposing demonstrators clashed in front of Scottsdale Police headquarters. Like many of pro-police rallies organized by Rosen, this one attracted elected officials, former and current law enforcement, and far-right political activists, many of them armed. Among the note worthy Scottsdale political figures in attendance were Mayor Jim Lane, Councilwoman Suzanne Klapp, and Chief of Police Alan Rodbell, who <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY7VfOuMXw4" target="_blank">stood by even as pro-cop supporters got physical with counter-demonstrators</a>.<br />
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Also present was<i> </i>embattled ASU police officer Stewart Ferrin (who <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/officer-stewart-ferrin-resigns-asu-reversed-findings-of-second-incident-6660369" target="_blank">resigned weeks later</a>), who <a href="https://youtu.be/dOxv-p52_24" target="_blank">spoke at the demonstration</a> to thank his supporters, and to stand in support of Scottsdale police. <i>Down and Drought</i> <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/cops-say-what-they-really-think-about.html" target="_blank">covered the online police response to the incident</a> which first landed the now former ASU officer Ferrin in the news after his violent take down of a black ASU professor.<br />
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We also contributed to the coverage of the protest in Scottsdale when we<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2015/02/arizona-army-national-guard-sergeant.html" target="_blank"> published a piece on Van Berry</a>, a sergeant in the Arizona Army National Guard's military police unit, and an attendee of Rosen's Scottsdale rally who was captured on video assaulting a videographer at the rally. We published screenshots of posts from Berry's public Facebook page, including a post that linked to a white supremacist site about mosque burnings in Europe. Berry "liked" a comment left on the article which said "Burn them all!"<br />
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The rally in Scottsdale attracted another rightwing activist, Barb Heller, a die hard <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-K-r35yFSt3f49d-RjgM1-JPX_WHCG3puQzQdSq2FdZzKM4_OkvU8cK4yd6Vh9PlXFcbNc_c2I4YGanLBoOb9PCfTTDe25lKb-XBPn44Mkb9mfnXyb1Fd4aqxB0eRSEDJVZX7qeDOmcQ/s1600/barbandarpaios+-+Copy.jpg" target="_blank">supporter of Sheriff Joe Arpaio</a>, she has been a fixture at
anti-immigrant protests for over a decade in the valley, making the news years back when she wore a medical mask while protesting an immigration march with with <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/01/AR2008020103260_pf.html" target="_blank">"No TB please"</a> written on it.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Heller, seen here counter-demonstrating, at an immigrant march near Tent City</i></span></div>
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Like Berry, <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2015/02/arizona-army-national-guard-sergeant.html" target="_blank">we found </a><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2015/02/arizona-army-national-guard-sergeant.html" target="_blank">anti-Muslim comments on a</a><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2015/02/arizona-army-national-guard-sergeant.html" target="_blank"> public post made by Barb Heller on her Facebook page</a>, where she wrote "WE WILL DIP OUR BULLETS IN PIGS BLOOD & URINE!!" in response to a news article about graffiti of the word "Jihad." <br />
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Heller boasts of her proximity to law enforcement by posting pictures on Facebook of her attending citizen law enforcement classes, posing with police officers during police operations, and attending political events in support of Sheriff Arpaio.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i> Barb Heller claiming to work with Phoenix police on "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OGA0B1ph6s" target="_blank">Operation High Tide</a>"</i></span></div>
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Which brings us back to Nohl Rosen, who, like Berry and Heller has opinions leaning to the extreme fringe of the rightwing. One can easily find anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim statements made online by Nohl Rosen's by running his name through a search engine, and he's become a public supporter for the Confederate flag. Rosen participated in a pro-Confederate flag rally, organized by anti-Muslim activist Jon Ritzheimer, the served as a
hub for far-right and white supremacist activists, again many of them armed. Among those who attended
the rally was a man who identifies as <a href="http://www.realnewsaz.net/local-kkk-member-says-he-helped-organize-anti-islam-rally/october-15th-2015" target="_blank">"Johnny Rebel," the self described Imperial Cleric</a> of the Rebel Outlaw Knights Of The Ku Klux Klan, which he claims is active in Arizona.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>"Johnny
Rebel", holding the Confederate flag, yells at counter demonstrators.
Nohl Rosen stands to Rebel's left in the green shirt.</i></span></div>
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Rosen spoke to the press at the event as well, and was <a href="http://www.wtsp.com/story/news/2015/07/06/confederate-flag-rally-phoenix-walmart/29759651/" target="_blank">quoted in a USA Today article</a>
in which he was described by the writer as "[o]ne of the most animated
Confederate-flag supporters." Rosen spoke in support of the flag saying
"[t]he Confederate flag is not a racist flag; it's a part of our
history." Right.<br />
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And Rosen's opinions do tend to the extreme fringe of the right wing. A look around the internet provided plenty of inflammatory comments from Rosen. Take for example a comment left on the Fox 10 Facebook page in an article regarding a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/FOX10Phoenix/posts/856558354392713" target="_blank">Muslim complaining of discriminatory treatment</a> from an airline. Rosen responds by calling for the mass deportation of all Muslims in the United States.<br />
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And where does the law and order loving Rosen stand on Mosques,
specifically when they are the target of threatening letters? He sure
doesn't stand with the FBI investigating the case, no, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/FOX10Phoenix/posts/852152631499952?comment_id=852158141499401" target="_blank">his solution is to get rid of all mosques</a>.<br />
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And Rosen is a "Birther," <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ABC15/posts/147034728661584" target="_blank">here's a post from 2010</a> when he questions whether President Barack Obama is a US citizen.<br />
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While Rosen's political leanings are likely unknown to the police officers who join him in his one man protests, the political rhetoric he uses online and at demonstrations, often in front of police officers, is no secret. Nor is his contempt for anyone who criticizes or demonstrates against police actions, in a recent video posted online, <a href="https://vimeo.com/137706970" target="_blank">Rosen calls for "the anti-cop movement" to be destroyed</a>.<br />
If all else fails, perhaps Nohl Rosen can leverage the popularity of fringe rhetoric to make a buck off of his pro-police activism, he's currently trying to build a <a href="http://www.rallyforle.com/business-directory/" target="_blank">pro-police business directory on his Rally For L.E.</a> website. He's currently offering pro-police businesses a basic listing on his website for $20 a month, or a yearly basic listing for $240. A featured business listing runs for $480, and includes mentions on the Rally For L.E. social media accounts. No information could be found to confirm if any businesses had purchased this advertising space from Rally For L.E..<br />
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This overlap between police, military, and far right extremists must be
of concern to anyone who
believes that people should be able to freely organize and assemble to
challenge the actions of the government without coercion from the state or state
sanctioned vigilantes. Currently police departments are facing widespread protests and anger over the use of force, racial profiling, and militarization across the country. Do they also want to be known for enabling, showing support for, or protecting these most controversial supporters? <br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-68183302697264014172015-08-24T01:49:00.003-07:002015-08-24T11:21:00.723-07:00The Scottsdale police officer who killed six is now training cops when to shoot to kill<b><span style="font-size: large;">Disgraced Scottsdale police officer James Peters works as a pitch man for Tempe based police shooting simulator VirTra Systems, selling the simulator to police and </span></b><span class="st"><b><span style="font-size: large;">military alike</span></b></span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMG4b9hkxpjzU2CW5-B-o-lzsbnoGomxoHuIhehlrvj6zO1vkhdljGe24CJj5R1B7N7axrh8gAaGS55nCwpSWBmqy36HuL7Ib_BNpFZO2mn-yzW9kVYw0OmlZNaDdiDTVjgUlRCxG98vI/s1600/petersteaching.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMG4b9hkxpjzU2CW5-B-o-lzsbnoGomxoHuIhehlrvj6zO1vkhdljGe24CJj5R1B7N7axrh8gAaGS55nCwpSWBmqy36HuL7Ib_BNpFZO2mn-yzW9kVYw0OmlZNaDdiDTVjgUlRCxG98vI/s400/petersteaching.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>James Peters selling the V-300 to foreign militaries at the 2015 International Defense Exhibition in Abu Dhabi</i></span></div>
<br />
<i>Down and Drought</i> has learned that VirTra Systems, Inc., a Tempe company that produces a shooting simulator used for law enforcement and military training, employs former Scottsdale police officer James Peters who resigned from the department amid controversy in 2012 following revelations that he had tallied six fatal shootings during his twelve year career. <br />
<br />
James Peters was cleared in his final fatal shooting, that of John Loxas, an unarmed man carrying his grandchild when Peters shot and killed him. The incident <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/16965107/protestors-march-through-scottsdale-demand-justice" target="_blank">ignited anti-police protests</a> and debate around this officer who had killed so many, and resulted in the city paying out a<a href="http://archive.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/20130604scottsdale-settle-police-shooting-suit-abrk.html" target="_blank"> $4.25 million dollar settlement to the Loxas family</a>. In the summer of 2012, Peters took an early retirement from the city, and effectively dropped out of sight. But while he was no longer a police officer he continued to work alongside law enforcement in the private sector.<br />
<br />
VirTra Systems was a perfect place for the former officer to put his unique skills to use. The company offers some of the most realistic simulations for small arms training by police and military. VirTra's top product is their <a href="http://www.virtra.com/v-300/" target="_blank">V-300 shooting simulator</a>, an immersive experience in which trainees are nearly surrounded by five screens displaying a 300-degree scenario in which the trainee must choose when and how to use deadly force. The V-300 blasts sound at the trainee as well. Describing the experience, VirTra's website says the "audio system provides over 2,000 watts of audio,
and transducers mean simulated sounds feel real and adrenal is felt
during training."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPIEP3C5ORuzTXACdAcFPhBZzytpyZ56SVla70JAcZJv1M4XsNCNXdf0skElFh78v6bdoMJyQthVN2zbDKIF-dPFx4x0k5ZlhrqrOE0tPAp9PXdKmG7-lEScS9lkhczn0Uooi05Q5DT_M/s1600/simulator+-+Copy.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPIEP3C5ORuzTXACdAcFPhBZzytpyZ56SVla70JAcZJv1M4XsNCNXdf0skElFh78v6bdoMJyQthVN2zbDKIF-dPFx4x0k5ZlhrqrOE0tPAp9PXdKmG7-lEScS9lkhczn0Uooi05Q5DT_M/s400/simulator+-+Copy.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Some of VirTra's scenarios include "You're fired" and "Hooker OD"</i></span></div>
<br />
And if the adrenaline isn't pumping from the simulation alone, the V-300 has an added factor to direct officers to fire on the virtual suspects in the scenario: electrodes from the "Threat-Fire" device are also connected to the trainee to shock them, or as the company explains <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-southeast-valley/tempe/new-technology-trains-police-on-judging-when-to-shoot-" target="_blank">"to simulate them being injured"</a> during a virtual gun battle. Another explanation for the electrodes is that they are behavior forming, providing a shock when the officer is virtually "shot" during the exercise, an outcome that results when the trainee does not fire at the simulation first.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>VIRTRA AND LEWINSKI: DOUBLING DOWN IN DEFENSE OF COPS</b><br />
<br />
In <a href="http://kjzz.org/content/181395/police-trainers-tempe-companys-deadly-force-simulator-game-changer" target="_blank">KJZZ's article on the VirTra simulator and Threat-Fire</a>, journalist Jimmy Jenkins interviewed neuroscientist Beau Cronin on the impact that virtual reality simulators have on the brain. Cronin explained that his research has identified simulators as having the same effect on comprehension as real experiences, even causing the brain to form new connections between neurons as they would after a real shooting. In essence, the effect of the V-300's immersive virtual world and the negative reinforcement shocks from Threat-Fire should not be underestimated for the conditioning effect they have on trainees' behavior.<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
VirTra's pain compliance training
operates on the theory that officers who hesitate to take action,
die. The pain conditioning kicks in when the officer fails to react
quickly enough, with the goal of reinforcing training. In essence, it
recreates being shot, an outcome that VirTra's
officer-safety-first-and-foremost training strongly implies is the
losing outcome.<br />
<br />
Describing their system in a <a href="http://globenewswire.com/news-release/2015/04/22/727043/10130066/en/VirTra-Successfully-Defends-Patents.html" target="_blank">press release</a>, VirTra
said this about the role of pain in their system: “The trainee
knows they could experience pain during training, so they take the
training far more seriously, leading to more effective training. In
addition, the extra stress and pressure during training helps better
prepare the trainee for a real life or death situation where a
mistake could have dire consequences.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Former Minnesota State professor Dr.
William J. Lewinski and founder of the <a href="http://www.forcescience.org/" target="_blank">Force Science Institute</a>, agrees. A staunch defender of cops who shoot and kill, and
controversial researcher on police use of force, Lewinski has been
cited in <a href="http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=1665100" target="_blank">at least one VirTra press release</a>
and is an enthusiastic
supporter of VirTra's training technology. Lewinski singled out VirTra
systems as the best trainer available: "VirTra Systems’ has the greatest
potential to save officer’s lives by actually shaping and conditioning
their judgments and responses in a realistic format that is unparalleled
in its ability to replicate the reality of lethal force street
encounters."<br />
<br />
In an <a href="http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=3004914" target="_blank">interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram</a>, Lewinski gave a thumbs up: "Simulations
are an excellent way to move into and begin to approximate the
training required for real-life encounters.” But he went even
further. Speaking of VirTra, he was adamant,"They're sure
filling a niche. They need to get out and market themselves now."
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Incidentally, Lewinski's connections to
Tempe, VirTra's current home base, go at least as far back as a <a href="http://www.forcescience.org/articles/tempestudy.pdf" target="_blank">2003 reaction study done in cooperation with the Tempe Police Department</a>.
This research was published in the September/October 2003 issue of
Police Marksman magazine. That study states its purpose quite
directly: “The concepts addressed in this study are critical for
officers to understand, especially those who are consulted by
prosecuting attorneys or go before grand juries as firearms experts.”<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/us/training-officers-to-shoot-first-and-he-will-answer-questions-later.html" target="_blank">Interviewed for an August 2015 New York Times article</a>, Lewinski went further, saying
that officers cannot afford to wait to act. “We’re telling
officers, ‘Look for cover and then read the threat.’ Sorry, too
damn late.” Lewinski's theory basically comes down to the idea that
if police wait to see a gun, they're too late. Act first and
aggressively is his advice.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The failure of Lewinski to publish his
research in scientific journals has invited criticism from
other experts. Quoted in that same <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/us/training-officers-to-shoot-first-and-he-will-answer-questions-later.html" target="_blank">New York Times article</a>,
Washington
State University professor Lisa Fournier called his research “invalid
and unreliable.” For his part, Lewinski says he likes to publish for
popular police publications rather than scholarly journals because he
wants police to see his research. There is little doubt that Lewinski
sees himself
as a partisan in the battle over police shootings, and his objectives
jibe quite well with VirTra's mission.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But there's one more kicker with
Lewinski. If you're an officer who's facing a review of your use of
force, he's also available for hire. According to the New York Times,
Lewinski has testified on behalf of police in everything from grand
juries to trials. At a price of nearly $1000 an hour, he'll bring his
aggressive police philosophy and police-friendly research to court.<br />
<br />
<span class="_5yl5" data-reactid=".k.1:$mid=11440401360011=2a5dc541614bacddd69.2:0.0.0.0.0"><span data-reactid=".k.1:$mid=11440401360011=2a5dc541614bacddd69.2:0.0.0.0.0.0">According to <a href="http://sonomacounty.ca.gov/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=2147496954" target="_blank">Lewinski's CV</a>, he has a history of supporting police involved in shootings locally. He testified in support of the Mesa police officers who shot and killed Mario Madrigal, and as a witness in the defense of former Chandler officer Dan Lovelace on trial for murder in the on duty shooting of Dawn Rae Nelson. In both cases the cops were kept out of a prison cell, and the cities paid out large settlements, <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2009/06/10/20090610madrigal0610-on.html" target="_blank">Mesa paying $3 million</a> to the Madrigal family, and <a href="http://azdailysun.com/chandler-settles-lawsuit-with-family/article_c7df1aec-c3b2-57df-b4e9-6fbc82f045c1.html" target="_blank">Chandler paying $1.9 million</a> to the Nelson family. The <a href="http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Asset54005.aspx" target="_blank">City of Scottsdale was forced to raise its primary-property tax</a> in large part to <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/scottsdale/2014/05/27/scottsdale-proposes-property-tax-hike-legal-costs/9630337/" target="_blank">pay for the payout to the Loxas family</a>, raising serious doubts about whether VirTra's grants and confiscation payment plan makes sense financially in the long run.</span></span> </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
In a real sense, VirTra and Lewinski
are a pro-police double team. VirTra operates on Lewinskian theories
and then, if a cop gets in trouble, Lewinski is on hire to bail them
out. In fact, in an odd coincidence, <a href="http://www.forcescience.org/fsnews/47.html" target="_blank">Lewinski's Force Science Institute wrote an article for its June 23rd, 2006 issue of its newsletter</a>
about one of Peters' previous shootings (it was his third). The <a href="http://www.policeone.com/emotionally-disturbed-persons-edp/articles/138451-One-officers-wild-encounter-with-excited-delirium/" target="_blank">article was republished at PoliceOne.com</a>,
a top police website. According to the piece, investigators contacted
Lewinski about the case and he referred them to another expert from
Lewinski's Force Science Research Center, then based at Minnesota
University, who provided materials that supported Peters' side. The
investigation into Peters third shooting exonerated him. Within a week of being cleared, Peters had shot and killed again.<br />
<br />
<b>PETERS' CONTROVERSIAL CAREER IN SCOTTSDALE AND HIS WORK IN VIRTRA</b><br />
<br />
VirTra Systems hired Peters shortly after he was approved for disability retirement in July of 2012. He has since worked for the company as a director of the company's international efforts, as a product trainer to law enforcement and military customers, and assisting in product development. According to <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pub/james-peters/71/7ba/636" target="_blank">Peters' LinkedIn page</a>,
he holds the position of "Regional Director of International Business
Development and Law Enforcement SME/Trainer," (SME is Subject Matter
Expert) and is responsible for VirTra product demonstrations, sales,
training, coordinating distribution to Europe and Africa, obtaining
weapons for VirTra customers through the <a href="https://www.atf.gov/firearms/listing-federal-firearms-licensees-ffls-2015" target="_blank">Federal Firearms License</a> (FFL), and working with software and hardware engineers to develop VirTra products.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvLylrB5_41nR7iVT0WYD3soqJK5mQivoEZvmUaqj7LHNETAMBkbe74OaK91st0GP1RMJb6AUXuu2NKyBJ7hjs4BNQe8wsgEcMkZU_781N50IS-iXfpdGb7K131eGk-JN7rKAJ7U2tGSc/s1600/jamespetersstill+-+Copy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvLylrB5_41nR7iVT0WYD3soqJK5mQivoEZvmUaqj7LHNETAMBkbe74OaK91st0GP1RMJb6AUXuu2NKyBJ7hjs4BNQe8wsgEcMkZU_781N50IS-iXfpdGb7K131eGk-JN7rKAJ7U2tGSc/s320/jamespetersstill+-+Copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>James Peters speaks to the AP at 2014 France Defense Expo, far away from anyone who might recognize him</i></span></div>
<br />
VirTra has been on a local PR blitz of late with segments dedicated to the product on <a href="http://ktar.com/2015/08/14/valley-company-redefines-police-training-with-virtual-reality-simulator/" target="_blank">KTAR</a>, <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/state/police-agencies-around-valley-testing-virtual-training-simulator-tech-creates-real-life-scenarios-" target="_blank">ABC 15</a>, <a href="http://www.12news.com/videos/life/2015/08/18/31956961/" target="_blank">12 News</a>, and <a href="http://kjzz.org/content/181395/police-trainers-tempe-companys-deadly-force-simulator-game-changer" target="_blank">KJZZ</a> this week, but don't expect to see any mention of James Peters (Peters' former co-worker at Scottsdale PD, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pub/scott-diiullo/33/388/844" target="_blank">Scott DiIullo</a> is the local face of VirTra). In fact, Peters name can only be found twice on the VirTra website, once in an <a href="http://www.virtra.com/PDF/Manuals/Production/co2safetyguide.pdf" target="_blank">acknowledgment in a product manual</a>, and the other in <a href="http://www.virtra.com/policeone-roundtable-using-simulators-in-law-enforcement-training/" target="_blank">a repost of a round table discussion on simulators</a> in which he is identified as "a retired officer from an Arizona Law Enforcement Agency." It also notes "[h]e had a distinguished career in Patrol, Street Crimes, SWAT, and holds numerous training certifications." Peters can also be found on <a href="http://simunitionvssimulation.com/">simunitionvssimulation.com</a>, a <a href="http://who.is/whois/http://simunitionvssimulation.com" target="_blank">site registered to </a><span data-bind-domain="raw_registrar_lookup"><a href="http://who.is/whois/http://simunitionvssimulation.com" target="_blank">Bob Ferris</a> the CEO of VirTra Systems, Inc., where he has written a defense of the VirTra style simulation as opposed to their Simunition competitor. On this second website he is identified as </span>"a subject matter expert in the simulation industry," and VirTra Systems is not identified as his employer. <br />
<br />
While Peters is kept away from regional media, he has traveled
representing VirTra at military and police conferences around the
world. He was at the <a href="http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/-HZ-France-Defence-Expo/9a57e1308ea072608ea33ce7bed18203?query=MARGARET+THATCHER&current=12&orderBy=Relevance&hits=4107&referrer=search&search=%2Fsearch%3Fquery%3DMARGARET%2520THATCHER%26allFilters%3DUSA*%3AKeyword%2CEnvironment%3ASubject&allFilters=USA*%3AKeyword%2CEnvironment%3ASubject&productType=IncludedProducts&page=1&b=d18203" target="_blank">France Defense Expo in 2014</a> and this year's <a href="http://monocle.com/magazine/issues/82/think-tank/" target="_blank">International Defence Exhibition in Abu Dhabi</a>, and his position as "Regional Director of International Business
Development" might have a lot to do with keeping a cop known for his six deadly shootings out of sight from an American public increasingly polarized by police violence. <br />
<br />
During his career as a Scottsdale police officer, Peters was never charged with a criminal offense in any of the seven shootings, six fatal, during his twelve year career, his reputation was akin to a <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/dirty-harry-in-scottsdale-badass-cop-bags-four-bad-guys-in-10-year-career-6667766" target="_blank">modern Dirty Harry</a>. He was a physical fitness instructor and a firearms instructor; he worked in patrol and SWAT; and as a Field, SWAT, and Recuit Training officer. Peters personnel file cites seven civilian complaints against the
officer, and 376 recorded use of force incidents, in short James Peters doesn't seem to have been an
officer known to de-escalate a situation.<br />
<br />
He also was disciplined for his participation in violent episodes, for his attitude towards civilians, and, in December 2002, he was reprimanded for a violent incident involving the transportation of a handcuffed inmate. In this incident, Scottsdale Police Chief Douglas Bartosh suspended Peters for his role in the use of excessive force against a restrained detainee in a department patrol car. Peters antagonized the prisoner while a Scottsdale police trainee would hit the brakes of the vehicle while traveling on the freeway, causing the prisoner to violently hit the cage separating the front from the back of the car. This is disturbing on many levels, <span class="_5yl5" data-reactid=".r.1:$mid=11440403129361=229b63b995521e62907.2:0.0.0.0.0"><span data-reactid=".r.1:$mid=11440403129361=229b63b995521e62907.2:0.0.0.0.0.0">not least of all because Officer Peters, certified as a training officer, was with a trainee</span></span>, but also because of the incident's resemblance to the rough <a href="http://6abc.com/news/freddie-gray-case-puts-spotlight-on-nickel-rides/692160/" target="_blank">"nickle rides"</a> Baltimore cops made infamous, most recently in the death of Freddie Gray.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDnJ6A5cLSWW8OLA9AdFiKeb7mzIi39T-KuwEX6YqahQIMl3ipwf7CiJbh2LDPBgFFY1S0LoyAN3T0VvLGrQsTf5GlBT6smoVpuf1Rg9itCWVjyXp77X2buLVEY346a-HJiN6eD8NJOuk/s1600/peterssuspension+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDnJ6A5cLSWW8OLA9AdFiKeb7mzIi39T-KuwEX6YqahQIMl3ipwf7CiJbh2LDPBgFFY1S0LoyAN3T0VvLGrQsTf5GlBT6smoVpuf1Rg9itCWVjyXp77X2buLVEY346a-HJiN6eD8NJOuk/s320/peterssuspension+-+Copy.JPG" width="267" /></a></div>
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Also on his record was an incident from 2005 in which he was reprimanded for unsafe use of a gun while on duty. Peters was reprimanded by Deputy Chief of Police John Cocca for "unsafe performance, by mishandling your firearm." Peters was witnessed removing his firearm from the holster, then pointing it at his face during a department briefing. When asked why he was operating his firearm in such an unsafe manner, Peters replied that it rained hard the night before and he "wanted to check to ensure the gun was clean." As Peters is tasked with obtaining weapons for VirTra customers through the company's FFL such a glaring misuse of a firearm would presumably cause concern for a company looking to hire a trainer who shows sound judgement when using a firearm. <br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBy1Xi0gJSxRvlTD9nUy1vCwjCws89GlpxQoKaEHzVJ-9V3bTHWLATKyk5BPHGiGgzNzziAH_oIU2OC9iV8xEtvD_9IE9RpRwHAEs0_nRFgxBUbhyphenhyphen7zTopkAzcHRVQzUaDYXgSSlHeRGc/s1600/petersgunprobz.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBy1Xi0gJSxRvlTD9nUy1vCwjCws89GlpxQoKaEHzVJ-9V3bTHWLATKyk5BPHGiGgzNzziAH_oIU2OC9iV8xEtvD_9IE9RpRwHAEs0_nRFgxBUbhyphenhyphen7zTopkAzcHRVQzUaDYXgSSlHeRGc/s320/petersgunprobz.JPG" width="241" /></a></div>
<br />
Peters, like many <a href="http://getcopsofftheblock.blogspot.com/2012/08/hundreds-of-arizona-cops-retire-under.html" target="_blank">Arizona police officers who avoid discipline by retiring</a>,
receives a monthly pension from the City of Scottsdale since he resigned in
June of 2012. Peters "accidental disability retirement application"was
approved by the Scottsdale Public Safety Personnel Retirement System Board, allowing him to retire and <a href="http://getcopsofftheblock.blogspot.com/2012/06/board-oks-disability-for-scottsdale.html" target="_blank">collect a monthly pension of $4500</a> in addition to his salary from VirTra. On the VirTra backed simunitionvssimulation.com, Peters works the hard sell to encourage police departments to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars on one of the company's products. The <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-southeast-valley/tempe/new-technology-trains-police-on-judging-when-to-shoot-" target="_blank">cost of a V-300 is up to $300,000</a>,
but Peters let's interested buyers know that the hefty cost can be
partially or completely offset by "[g]rants and/or asset forfeiture
funds." <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDAtx0DKEX_iSypWj1rNCd2fY701loUeljOMVoXT4lCo3IjtlDuSHrdrEqQ8KVRNr39CmOn4mOzpw6VdNKb_1W7-OcME0_CkONem6AHJ0SQUlY-jRNPE0m4niQmeTbp7KKsG0nXVvNkU0/s1600/cityofmesa+-+Copy.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDAtx0DKEX_iSypWj1rNCd2fY701loUeljOMVoXT4lCo3IjtlDuSHrdrEqQ8KVRNr39CmOn4mOzpw6VdNKb_1W7-OcME0_CkONem6AHJ0SQUlY-jRNPE0m4niQmeTbp7KKsG0nXVvNkU0/s400/cityofmesa+-+Copy.JPG" width="400" /></a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">VirTra offered a training demo this week for valley police departments</span></i></div>
<br />
Even with Peters' endorsement, and the claim by VirTra that over <a href="http://www.virtra.com/valley-company-redefines-police-training-with-virtual-reality-simulator/" target="_blank">200 law enforcement agencies use</a> their line of simulators, no Valley police departments have purchased one of the company's products and it's not because they're not advocates. Lyle Mann, executive director of Arizona Peace Officers Standards and Training, <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2014/09/29/tempe-virtra-police-shooting-simulator-real-pricey/16424923/" target="_blank">told the Arizona Republic last year</a> that it's the price of the simulator which keeps police departments from making the purchase, even if they were to rely on grants or seized assets. In short: "They are very, very expensive."<br />
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And yet, <a href="http://www.virtra.com/virtra-reports-earnings-for-the-second-quarter-of-2015-generates-record-first-half-revenues/" target="_blank">profits are up for VirTra this year</a>, and with the latest PR push the company recently hosted departments from across the Valley at a simulator training demo in Mesa. Dr. William Lewinski is also profiting from police departments fear of an officer landing in legal trouble, he's hosted two <a href="http://sonomacounty.ca.gov/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=2147496954" target="_blank">Force Science Certification courses sponsored by the Scottsdale Police Department</a> since officer James Peters gunned down John Loxas in his south Scottsdale driveway. Lewinski's Force Science Certification courses are also expensive, he <a href="http://www.forcescience.org/certification.html" target="_blank">charges $1500 per student</a>, just $500 more than his fee for an hour of professional testimony. <br />
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It's clear that a lot of people have their eyes on police reform, and some are looking for ways to profit from it. In addition to VirTra and the Force Science Institute, companies like <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Business/sales-body-camera-type-worn-cop-indicted-death/story?id=32782534" target="_blank">Taser International have made a killing</a> on the demand for their <a href="https://www.taser.com/products/on-officer-video" target="_blank">Axon body cameras</a>, another product of dubious effect with regard to protecting the public from police violence, but <a href="https://publicservice.asu.edu/sites/default/files/ppd_spi_feb_20_2015_final.pdf" target="_blank">substantial effect in terms of protecting police from the public</a>, including public recourse for their violent actions. It's unlikely, for instance, that either VirTra simulators or cop cams would have ended Peters' career in law enforcement any sooner.<br />
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If companies like VirTra and Taser have their way, the outcome may look something like this: officers are taught to shoot first from negative reinforcement in VirTra simulators, officers are captured shooting and killing a person on their Taser body camera, and a professional such as Dr. Lewinski will appear in court to explain away the inconsistencies between the video and what the officer stated had happened. And the cops will walk, just like James Peters did seven times in Scottsdale.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-79890679624961977332015-08-15T18:03:00.002-07:002015-08-18T14:58:00.132-07:00Tempe politicians want police to run collections for campaign reform plan <div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Tempe city councilors hope people of color, poor won't mind footing the bill for politicians' backbone transplants</b></span><br />
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In what must rank as one of the most boneheaded moves in Tempe government history, the <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2015/08/06/tempe-mulls-increasing-fines-pay-elections/31222123/" target="_blank">Tempe city council is considering turning to a regressive fee tacked onto traffic tickets</a> in order to pay for a public campaign system for city council and mayoral elections, all in the name of thwarting the increasing grip that developers have on the upside-down pyramid. </div>
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Citing an electoral system taken prisoner by developers, local elected officials hope that adding a fee on top of speeding tickets will raise an independent source of revenue for funding candidates not captive to wealthy real estate interests (presumably these captives include the current council).</div>
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Speaking to AzCentral, <a href="https://twitter.com/dschapira" target="_blank">Councilman Schapira</a> described the current workings of city government in bleak terms:</div>
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“Right now in Tempe, if you’re a pro-developer council member who always votes the way developers want you to vote, developers are going to find a way to finance your campaign and you’re basically guaranteed re-election.”</blockquote>
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The evidence for his claim is plain to see for most anyone in Tempe with eyes. The pace of new building in Tempe is rapid and, fueled by tax breaks doled out left and right by the city, aims almost exclusively for the luxury market. </div>
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Locals feel increasingly squeezed out. Many have seen their rents sky rocket in recent years. Rising rents are a common complaint on a downtown Tempe neighborhood group, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/mapleashfarmerwilson/" target="_blank">Maple-Ash-Farmer-Wilson (MAFW)</a>, which boasts nearly 3300 members.</div>
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A recent <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/broker-rents-are-jumping-in-downtown-phoenix-tempe-and-scottsdale-as-valley-becomes-more-urban" target="_blank">ABC15 piece pointed out that Tempe average rents have jumped nearly $250 since 2010</a> with most of that almost certainly coming in the more current end of that range. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-To3rVU-qVNQOZ6yg5y_e352cSVFLZV0GxCjJxZ0nruRicid_PYTA3lULO_m_NCQdcy1va1C2r82rtH4abHObB5iBhrH_bl0vIb9k3J81ygC3hMa_TUnsST655uKXbNXLGrU8LgXEqK4/s1600/north+tempe+percent+change+in+rent+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-To3rVU-qVNQOZ6yg5y_e352cSVFLZV0GxCjJxZ0nruRicid_PYTA3lULO_m_NCQdcy1va1C2r82rtH4abHObB5iBhrH_bl0vIb9k3J81ygC3hMa_TUnsST655uKXbNXLGrU8LgXEqK4/s400/north+tempe+percent+change+in+rent+-+Copy.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMryT466b7K9PCJ-ixuer7z7S6otToVNTIp1PlQQmEHG9_MfTTe1cnKhQM609REui7QroWL756ymSfoRNl6242bnJ-s5KX-1CD8fhR0ZTeBXcc78-ZeDyZMagcVbH01l1DflYR7EU23YQ/s1600/north+tempe+rent+graph+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMryT466b7K9PCJ-ixuer7z7S6otToVNTIp1PlQQmEHG9_MfTTe1cnKhQM609REui7QroWL756ymSfoRNl6242bnJ-s5KX-1CD8fhR0ZTeBXcc78-ZeDyZMagcVbH01l1DflYR7EU23YQ/s320/north+tempe+rent+graph+-+Copy.PNG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Tempe rents rising steeply (<a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/broker-rents-are-jumping-in-downtown-phoenix-tempe-and-scottsdale-as-valley-becomes-more-urban" target="_blank"><i>graphs via ABC15</i></a>)</b></td></tr>
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Clearly there is a problem. City council is basically waving the white flag to developers and telling city residents quite clearly that they have no backbone and that they are helpless before the developer juggernaut. </div>
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But while almost everyone who isn't receiving a massive tax break to build luxury condos can probably agree that stemming the influence of real estate profiteers is a noble cause, there's a big problem with the solution some city councilors are putting forward.</div>
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A fee placed on speeding tickets has several serious issues, not least of all questions about the group implementing it and who's going to pay for it. Since the fee is attached to speeding tickets, the task of collection falls to the Tempe Police Department. Let's address that first.</div>
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Last November, <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/11/tempe-scottsdale-cops-arrest-blacks-at.html" target="_blank">Down and Drought broke the story locally about massive disparities in Tempe PD's African-American arrest rate</a>. Following unrest in Ferguson sparked by the shooting of Michael Brown, <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/" target="_blank">USA Today reviewed arrest reports nationwide</a>. That investigation found that the disproportionate arrest of blacks was common throughout the country, but specifically it noted that many cities, including Tempe, arrested blacks at rates higher than Ferguson PD.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRtm9UAKHrfak-YAbbaOS70wh34iRliNBEicAmxJCwMl7MlbyvIVibG-iw4S_sGvmTo0IW-llXlLJ0edGmnIT-k6BQGtuLr8tKOVepELgRiV9KeSYeEi81kCrQE82X5TTlkbJai6YvRgA/s1600/tempe%252Bpolice%252Bblack%252Bv%252Bnonblack%252Barrests%252B-%252BCopy+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRtm9UAKHrfak-YAbbaOS70wh34iRliNBEicAmxJCwMl7MlbyvIVibG-iw4S_sGvmTo0IW-llXlLJ0edGmnIT-k6BQGtuLr8tKOVepELgRiV9KeSYeEi81kCrQE82X5TTlkbJai6YvRgA/s320/tempe%252Bpolice%252Bblack%252Bv%252Bnonblack%252Barrests%252B-%252BCopy+-+Copy.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This information recently raised serious questions about the ability of Tempe PD to do their job without a racial bias. Downtown residents took concerns about this data to the city and officials discussed it at a February 10th meeting of the Tempe Human Relations Committee (<a href="http://www.tempe.gov/Home/ShowDocument?id=31632" target="_blank">.PDF</a>). </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRHrm06RpFmoKoVupElAqxGj8WwFuj0_jY3yrOPFTrLD61slIPmzG3XS2oSo3iDbBkx_u1OCxzQNES5jOYlq7R04Pfe0FuqJKFHNftcZWod4Re6eFsYY436xnWeHuvp4pKQHmZsyasf3E/s1600/city+document+tempe+black+arrest+ratio+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRHrm06RpFmoKoVupElAqxGj8WwFuj0_jY3yrOPFTrLD61slIPmzG3XS2oSo3iDbBkx_u1OCxzQNES5jOYlq7R04Pfe0FuqJKFHNftcZWod4Re6eFsYY436xnWeHuvp4pKQHmZsyasf3E/s400/city+document+tempe+black+arrest+ratio+-+Copy.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.tempe.gov/Home/ShowDocument?id=31632" target="_blank"><i>Via Feb 10th Tempe Human Relations Committee Minutes</i></a></td></tr>
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At another meeting with the city, Tempe residents were assured that in response to the data, a massive Tempe policing operation known as "Safe and Sober" would be canceled. </div>
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The operation, highly unpopular in the party-prone neighborhoods surrounding ASU, featured over a dozen and sometimes nearly 20 police agencies flooding the area, stopping thousands of drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians over the course of several weekends, ostensibly to combat what the city called "rowdyism." Partying, essentially. Something many locals consider a birthright.</div>
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Considering the USA Today data, residents of MAFW demanded that the city account for the racial breakdown in those stops. The city replied that it had no way to track that data because police agencies from other cities took those reports with them when they left. Whether true or not, claiming incompetence is not a very inspiring defense.</div>
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Considering the scale of the program and the disparities USA Today had revealed, the city wisely <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/tempe-reforms-underage-drinking-crackdown-amid-police-state-complaints-7563579" target="_blank">canceled the program</a>. Taking that data into account, for the two years it ran <a href="http://www.statepress.com/article/2014/10/we-the-police-the-relationship-between-tempe-and-its-protectors/" target="_blank">Safe and Sober may have been one of the biggest profiling operations in the country</a>, in the same category as NYC's racist "Stop and Frisk" program.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-QcNuQvXEIXOzFUzVYs4XaEaXSbQoMOTohTEW0JZVvDgiS1YXt1gAAhJGqbIKnXcGHmevFPDUoYGeYVVdiaoh7cSSymb8pKJqrFC4yS8RMF1YseCqFRjd2Et_nRylx9A23M_pXSlXuw/s1600/SafeandSober+graph+-+Copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-QcNuQvXEIXOzFUzVYs4XaEaXSbQoMOTohTEW0JZVvDgiS1YXt1gAAhJGqbIKnXcGHmevFPDUoYGeYVVdiaoh7cSSymb8pKJqrFC4yS8RMF1YseCqFRjd2Et_nRylx9A23M_pXSlXuw/s400/SafeandSober+graph+-+Copy.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.statepress.com/article/2014/10/we-the-police-the-relationship-between-tempe-and-its-protectors/" target="_blank"><i><b>Graphic via State Press</b></i></a></td></tr>
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Writing in the Arizona Republic, <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2015/06/08/tempe-addressing-black-arrest-rate-higher-ferguson-cbt/28685185/" target="_blank">Tempe City Councilman David Schapira discussed the USA Today data</a>:</div>
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In February, The Republic wrote of disproportionate Black arrest rates in the Valley. The article noted that three East Valley cities, including Tempe, "arrested Black people at a rate higher than in Ferguson, Mo." in 2011 and 2012. Despite initial challenges to the data in the article, our own internal data ultimately showed the same thing.<br />
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In the same years examined in the article, our data showed that Black Tempe residents were arrested at nearly three times the rate of White residents, a proportion that is indeed worse than Ferguson.</blockquote>
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Not long after, Tempe Police Chief Tom Ryff, the long-serving top cop in town and originator of the Safe and Sober program, resigned. Local media <a href="http://www.12news.com/story/news/local/valley/2015/06/23/tempe-police-chief-retiring-but-gets-consulting-deal/29197131/" target="_blank">reported that the USA Today data had played a role in his departure</a>. Again, Councilman Schapira spoke out, saying "I'm excited to see what a new chief can do in terms of building morale in the department and building a culture ...that's a positive one for the city and building really strong relationships in the community."</div>
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When speaking before the city's Human Relations Commission, Chief Ryff and Director Brenda Buren justified the data by saying, essentially, that it showed that police nationwide are racist and that Tempe PD may only be targeting blacks who drive through the city. Again, not much of a defense. If you have to indict your entire profession, you've lost the argument. Tempe historically was a "sundown town," a city where after sunset African-Americans and other people of color were strongly encouraged to get out of town. Tempe PD's assertion that they target out of towners lines up with this disgraceful tradition.</div>
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This is all highly relevant to the city's proposal to fund its clean elections program with speeding tickets. After all, TPD's documented racism, acknowledged by the city, will obviously effect the way it enforces speeding tickets. The truth is, not everyone catches TPD's attention equally, and as a result, these fees, tacked onto speeding tickets, will disproportionately come from people of color, particularly Tempe's black population and any African-Americans passing through or visiting Tempe.<br />
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The city seems bent on projecting a progressive attitude lately, with its recent changes to its discrimination law. But piggy-backing your election "reforms" on the backs of the Valley's non-white population, collected through a police department with well-documented and officially acknowledged racism, hardly seems in line with this objective.</div>
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Further, given the income disparities between blacks and whites, we can reasonably extrapolate that the poor in particular will also be disproportionately affected by these fees. And it just so happens that African-Americans and the poor are also the most likely to have been deliberately excluded from the electoral system through just the kind of racially-biased policing that Tempe engages in.<br />
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And the poor are the most likely to see little value in participating in formal politics, a position city council clearly must have some sympathy for, given that they themselves are about as enfranchised as it gets and yet at the root of this reform is city councilors claims that even they are helpless before wealthy developers. </div>
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>"For a city that distinguished itself recently for arresting blacks at a higher rate than Ferguson, you'd think Tempe would be loathe to court another comparison to a city emblematic of systemic racism."</i></span></span> </blockquote>
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In a recent Twitter exchange with <i>Down and Drought</i>, Councilwoman Kuby seemed averse to calling this a tax, but the fact remains that it's a compulsory contribution, administered by a racist police force, taken from those least likely to protest it. It's an easy fee to assess, passing the buck onto people who can't afford it, and for whom the disruption of arrest that would come with non-payment would be the most crippling. After all, not paying a traffic ticket can land you in jail and when you're broke even a few dollars can make a big difference.<br />
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Kuby's error seems mostly centered on a desire to accomplish what she thinks is a larger good. But this still doesn't excuse ignoring the details of how it will be implemented and who will be implementing it.<br />
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Schapira's backing of the new fee is even more troubling, indicating a peculiar selectivity when it comes to TPD's racism. While he was clear in his <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2015/06/08/tempe-addressing-black-arrest-rate-higher-ferguson-cbt/28685185/" target="_blank">June 9th Arizona Republic editorial about TPD's racism and its impact on Safe and Sober</a>, he was somehow unconcerned about it <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2015/07/02/tempe-smoking-kids-cars-schapira/29630447/" target="_blank">just a few weeks later when defending Tempe's new ordinance banning smoking with children in the car</a>.<br />
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In that case, he was not bothered by Tempe PD's documented racism and its impact on enforcement of the law. Quite a reversal!<br />
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"We fashioned the ordinance to treat violations as secondary offenses. Officers will only cite those pulled over for something else.<br />
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In other words, if a cop busts you for speeding and sees a lit cigarette in the ashtray and a kid sucking fumes in the back seat, you're going to owe $50."</blockquote>
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What's the difference? How could it be that safe and sober was a racist policing operation while somehow other enforcement measures, like the smoking law or the proposed fee-financed public campaign system, are immune from such biased policing? After all, a racist police force that is documented to target blacks will certainly likewise cite them more often for secondary offenses. You can't be cited for a secondary offense if you're not stopped in the first place, and we know who TPD likes to stop. This is carceral progressivism and should be opposed. City council needs to reverse course immediately.<br />
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In our opinion, the shocking data detailing Tempe PD's disproportionate arrests rates for African-Americans ought to have the City of Tempe pulling back on all enforcement and seriously questioning its application across the board. Instead, they seem to be charging headlong into policy territory -- public funding via criminal fees -- <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2015/08/06/news/ferguson-arrest-warrants/" target="_blank">reminiscent of Ferguson</a>. For a city that distinguished itself recently for arresting blacks at a higher rate than Ferguson, you'd think Tempe would be loathe to court another comparison to a city emblematic of systemic racism.<br />
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The bottom line is, it's not fair to make the city's most marginalized populations pay for the city council's lack of backbone. This fee is a regressive tax extracted at gunpoint by a
racist police force. Further, it will raise money from groups most
excluded from or most fed up with politics. If the city council can't find the wherewithal to stand up to developers and real estate interests seeking handouts, then maybe they don't deserve their jobs in the first place. Poor residents and African-Americans in Tempe are already paying out of proportion to their numbers, is it right to make them pay again?</div>
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Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-11619940412487723992015-04-23T15:54:00.001-07:002015-08-20T13:11:23.576-07:00Valley law enforcement's internet "Red Squad" takes center stage at International Social Media and Surveillance Conference<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A group of law enforcement officers who coordinated the crackdown on Occupy Phoenix, and regularly monitor the pages of activists through internet surveillance, are <a href="https://smileconference.com/speakers/" target="_blank">scheduled speakers</a> at next week's "Social Media the Internet and Law Enforcement" (SMILE) three day conference. The Phoenix Police Department are the host agency for this year's conference, Detective <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/cjwren" target="_blank">CJ Wren</a> and <a href="http://tlo.org/what_is_tlo.html" target="_blank">Terrorism Liaison Officer</a> (TLO) All Hazards Analyst Brenda Dowhan will be representing Phoenix, Detective Chris Adamczyk, a TLO from Mesa Police Department will also be presenting.<br />
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What they will be presenting on, should be of interest to anyone concerned with the powers given to police agencies to spy and collect information on individuals and groups engaged in political activity. While the justification has been provided that these departments are concerned with anarchists and "criminal activists," much of the documentation surrounding Occupy Phoenix revealed that these individuals and their respective police organizations (Phoenix PD and Mesa PD coordinating with other departments through the Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (ACTIC)) were using secretive technologies to identify individuals who merely criticized department policy.<br />
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<i>Phoenix police prepare to make arrests during Occupy Phoenix (Downtown Devil)</i></div>
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Journalist Beau Hodai obtained thousands of pages of documents from various law enforcement agencies on the varied multi-agency responses to Occupy Phoenix, and related events. What Hodai learned was that the counter-terrorism infrastructure established in Arizona, through the ACTIC fusion center, worked closely with corporate partners to pass information along information on protests being organized against them. <br />
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We made good use of the Hodai's source materials, which were generously posted online, to <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/OPHXFILES" target="_blank">write a series of stories that Hodai had not covered</a>, including the revelations that a <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/book-lovers-and-civil-libertarians-cry.html" target="_blank">co-owner of Changing Hands Books was passing information</a> about Occupy Phoenix along to the Phoenix PD. Another unsettling story we covered was on the <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/07/arizonas-counter-terrorism-fusion.html" target="_blank">Facial Recognition Unit within ACTIC</a> that was using a facial recognition software to scan the state's drivers license database to identify participants in protests, using photos found on social media. Given that most of the information regarding the activities of ACTIC, and the TLOs involved in targeting Occupy Phoenix, is approaching four years old, the upcoming SMILE conference affords us the opportunity to shine a light on these digital spies. Here are some highlights from the <a href="http://smileconference.com/agenda/" target="_blank">conference agenda</a>:<br />
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TLO All Hazards Analyst Brenda Dowhan is giving a presentation on <i>Using Social Media for Event Planning and Real-time Monitoring, </i>in her event description Dowhan advocates for "pro-active policing," citing an anti-police protest as an event which "could impact public safety and the community." Given what we know from Dowhan's history with the Occupy protests, anarchist events, and marches affiliated with indigenous causes, her objective is not to merely pass along information to other regional TLOs about a possible protest or activist gathering, but to coordinate disruption. Hodai noted in his <a href="http://dbapress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Dissent-or-Terror-PLAIN-TEXT-FINAL.pdf" target="_blank">"Dissent or Terror</a>" article that after Tempe Homeland Defense Unit Detective Derek Pittam wrote of a guerrilla gardening event successfully disrupted by Tempe police, Dowhan responded with "Good to hear. Every site I've been on, they know that we are watching them."<br />
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Dowhan was often aided by Mesa Detective Chris Adamczyk, a TLO and self-described expert in "subversive organizations." Adamczyk will also be presenting to other officers on the topic of <i>Unmask the Movement: Using social media to assess the risks of subversive organizations. </i>In his description, Adamczyk laughably describes the "dark side of social media," the world of street gangs, syndicates, criminal
activists, and terror organizations. In addition to his obsessing over the Facebook page of Food Not Bombs, Adamczyk has launched a private enterprise to share his unique skill set. His website and <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/protestus/id788407428?mt=8" target="_blank">smartphone app</a>, called the <a href="https://protestusproject.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Protestus Project</a>, claims to be"making sense of the world of activism," but for who? The site is updated infrequently, and appears to rely of the same open source information that Adamczyk receives on the daily from his position as a TLO at the Mesa Police Department. The website and app are uneven in what information is shared, for example the website <a href="https://protestusproject.wordpress.com/2015/01/04/carpe-locus-collective-profile-and-analysis/" target="_blank">documents an activist group involved in recent anti-police protests</a> and provides analysis of the local <a href="https://protestusproject.wordpress.com/2015/01/11/justice-for-rumain-vs-black-lives-matter-disunity-prevails/" target="_blank">Black Lives Matter/Rumain Brisbon protests</a>, while the app appears to be an alphabetized threat assessment of local activist groups. It's unclear if Detective Adamczyk writes all content for the website or app.<br />
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Perhaps nothing is more humorous than the presentation given by Detective CJ Wren on <i>Stalking 2.0 ~ Stalking in the Social Media Era</i>, which is apparently about a man who found 30 social media pages belonging to the police and saved the info to disk, and why police officers should lock down their social media profiles. Detective Wren is the Arizona Chapter President at Association of Threat Assessment Professionals, and Law Enforcement President of the Arizona Terrorism Liaison Association. Despite Detective Wren's counter-terrorism expertise and his online privacy tips for law enforcement, a simple Google search reveals that Wren himself has a revealing social media footprint. Perhaps he should consider using his own online activities as a case study! This is all the more laughable considering his employment (along with Dowhan and Adamczyk) relies on him stalking radicals, anarchists, indigenous activists, and immigrant rights groups on their respective social media pages and storing the information forever through a joint partnership with the Federal government. <br />
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Detective Wren would like to have it both ways; an open internet for for Wren, Dowhan, and Adamczyk to prowl, collecting "open source intelligence" to share with their TLO partners and the FBI through ACTIC; and, under the justification of officer safety, a closed internet to protect the identities, actions, and opinions of police officers, shielding them from criticism. These agents of the law are speaking at SMILE because they are skilled in the use of surveillance, disruption, and repression to halt protests and groups opposed to the actions of government and business.<br />
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Creepy name aside, networking hubs such as SMILE, the ACTIC fusion center, and the activities of the anti-protest "Red Squad" counter-terrorism departments must be dragged out into the light. The increasing efforts of local police departments to spy on and disrupt the efforts of activist groups and political protest goes hand in hand with the riot police using military equipment to intimidate and control people when they sign off from the internet and take to the streets.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-60051567860594678822015-03-03T18:35:00.000-08:002015-08-20T13:10:14.671-07:00ASU gives Nazis what they want: The "Problem of Whiteness" debacle reaches new lowDo white supremacists call the shots at ASU these days? The Neo-Nazi National Youth Front (NYF) showed up at ASU on Tuesday (along with <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bastard/2010/11/anarchists_nazis_and_the_battl.php" target="_blank">National Socialist Movement</a> member Harry Hughes, the former comrade of <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2012-05-10/news/why-authorities-could-ve-prevented-j-t-ready-s-murder-spree/" target="_blank">JT Ready</a>) to thank the university for silencing professors associated with the <a href="http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/angelo-john-gage-asu-problem-of-whiteness" target="_blank">"The Problem of Whiteness" class</a> and demanding their termination. And according to information provided to us, it looks like ASU is giving them exactly what they want.<br />
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Although they were straining the definition of "youth" to the point of pure absurdity, the NYF's small cadre of mostly middle-aged worn out white nationalist protesters held signs with one saying "<a href="https://twitter.com/JNo420/status/572844227803131905/photo/1" target="_blank">Thank you ASU</a>", while a crowd of about fifty surrounded them, mocked them and challenged them. They invoked "free speech" in their own defense while advocating censorship of classes they didn't like.<br />
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And they shouted their support for <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2015/02/16/asu-officer-resigns-professors-arrest/23533043/" target="_blank">former ASU police officer Stewart Ferrin</a>. Ferrin, you will recall, is the white officer who resigned last month after much <a href="http://www.myfoxla.com/story/27833141/2015/01/12/asu-moves-to-terminate-officer-who-arrested-professor" target="_blank">hemming and hawing</a> from the university, in the fallout from the violent arrest of a black ASU professor, Dr. Ersula Ore, for jaywalking on a blocked off street at night. Things got heated at one point during the demonstration as protesters and counter-protesters faced off, but the NYF, surrounded and outnumbered, didn't seem interested in following through with their <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/02/neo-nazis-threaten-arizona-state-professor-over-whiteness-course-after-fox-news-freakout/" target="_blank">threats against "the militant Left"</a> which appeared online.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbRnJOd6jDCcaD_pSLF9NXDnI6i8W9iG7saqkeVl0vIw4JrWuXe1N9CQz826qibU2xb-Ytv_-2gZy6qerqKMwxBEzGhKnun21d1I7czGLldqM6ZxftmAQVwoZlibs6do-vVMJ-Mc7s-Q/s1600/NYF+at+ASU+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbRnJOd6jDCcaD_pSLF9NXDnI6i8W9iG7saqkeVl0vIw4JrWuXe1N9CQz826qibU2xb-Ytv_-2gZy6qerqKMwxBEzGhKnun21d1I7czGLldqM6ZxftmAQVwoZlibs6do-vVMJ-Mc7s-Q/s1600/NYF+at+ASU+-+Copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NYF and NSM at ASU. That's Harry Hughes with the camera.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCRmFlPEMe7h4xVVCUlxo9VFeL4llmQKkj4hr3r2rDli0xlP0P9BxZQF7U7CIF-ds7U9ufN11fCWtWIWgHsafAFZ5iCFVnMAADRQ_Fag8imtkFbrlPvn0ATIhankbyVSWdFiFnlMSL4M/s1600/Hughes+Nazi+Flag+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCRmFlPEMe7h4xVVCUlxo9VFeL4llmQKkj4hr3r2rDli0xlP0P9BxZQF7U7CIF-ds7U9ufN11fCWtWIWgHsafAFZ5iCFVnMAADRQ_Fag8imtkFbrlPvn0ATIhankbyVSWdFiFnlMSL4M/s1600/Hughes+Nazi+Flag+-+Copy.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yup, that Harry Hughes.</td></tr>
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A little background. The "outrage" of Professor Lee Bebout's The Problem of Whiteness course was originally instigated by a right wing ASU student correspondent to a Fox News show. The controversy over "The Problems of Whiteness" class took an even harder right turn when the <a href="http://www.statepress.com/2015/01/29/anti-islamic-immigration-posters-found-around-asus-tempe-campus/" target="_blank">NYF posted anti-Muslim posters on campus</a> and <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2015/02/national_youth_front_memeber_john_hess_cops_to_anti-white_fliers_targeting.php" target="_blank">handed out fliers on campus specifically targeting Bebout</a> denouncing him as "anti-white."<br />
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The NYF won't claim credit for it, but someone distributed the fliers targeting Bebout in his neighborhood, an action clearly meant to intimidate him. Because "free speech", right? Posts about the class on Stormfront, the infamous white supremacist website tied to scores of murders, encouraged racist militants to email the university, and naturally threats of violence came with it.<br />
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Emboldened by ASU's silence on the issue, the boneheads today also demanded the termination of ASU grad student Robert Poe, who teaches at the Tempe campus, and <a href="http://www.statepress.com/2015/02/10/asu-associate-leads-problem-of-whiteness-101-teach-in-on-tempe-campus/" target="_blank">who two weeks ago led a workshop on the same topic</a>. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NMGTfwKvDmFC3u_bKeErkmOD3q-jUAs71X2Xhzc7Euj0faDxW35uGZ9PdDgAhkKftucKmZZrhVEgJD-xWAyIQso0BvcpVWgsKkHfWTM0WDYFdPJssG7_2WKO5lFtiIiy920_4z4rna8/s1600/problem+with+whiteness+flyer+highlighted+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NMGTfwKvDmFC3u_bKeErkmOD3q-jUAs71X2Xhzc7Euj0faDxW35uGZ9PdDgAhkKftucKmZZrhVEgJD-xWAyIQso0BvcpVWgsKkHfWTM0WDYFdPJssG7_2WKO5lFtiIiy920_4z4rna8/s1600/problem+with+whiteness+flyer+highlighted+-+Copy.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poe's flyer clearly says "informal and unsanctioned"</td></tr>
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Poe's teach-in was specifically labeled "informal and unsanctioned." NYF member "John Hess" attended the teach-in with a video camera and recorded it. Hess then cherry picked a moment where Poe, responding to a question from Hess, said that he supported violence "against racists who choose to politically mobilize" and posted it online in the hopes that ASU would take the bait. A moral trip about violence from a Neo-Nazi, now that's rich. And ASU apparently fell for it.<br />
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It isn't hard to find examples of the use of political violence against racists in history, or even locally. Why Poe's statement would be controversial on a campus that has poli-sci departments overflowing with advocates for war, history departments that debate the use of violence, and that maintains such a cozy relationship with the most violent organization on Earth, the US Military, is a little baffling. If advocating violence against politically active racists is forbidden at ASU, then a whole generation of WWII vets should probably stay off campus -- and maybe stop sending their grandchildren and their money there, since it's obviously not welcome.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIir7WXPVH8KrZb3mRR2VNk4pJNM17Ki6A4h5Y3EjeI5VB_LyzKC4_oV4BfZj8BCaAMGvehuY05hjAPeRtxlvUqSAhDk9FrF-oV3l6-Scdn3es9veMfpy0Np6j0NwTTEllmRXQtUXutfQ/s1600/ibb+2+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIir7WXPVH8KrZb3mRR2VNk4pJNM17Ki6A4h5Y3EjeI5VB_LyzKC4_oV4BfZj8BCaAMGvehuY05hjAPeRtxlvUqSAhDk9FrF-oV3l6-Scdn3es9veMfpy0Np6j0NwTTEllmRXQtUXutfQ/s1600/ibb+2+-+Copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A 2009 anti-Nazi riot in Phoenix that you're not allowed to talk about at ASU</td></tr>
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Of course, the university regularly grants free speech rights to all manner of right wing nuts who advocate violence. On the day before Poe's teach-in, for example, there was an anti-gay protester who called publicly for the government to kill homosexuals. And of course there's the <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2014/04/you_deserve_rape_sign_brother_dean_street_preacher_asu.php" target="_blank">"you deserve rape" guy</a> (watch a video where he advocates death for "whores" below). And anti-abortion protesters, who belong to a movement that has been killing doctors for decades, regularly set up shop in front of the Memorial Union. Apparently this is protected speech at ASU, but referencing historical violent resistance to Nazis and the Klan is not.<br />
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According to information provided to <i>Down and Drought</i>, as threats poured in, the university told both professors to be quiet, likely hoping to hunker down and avoid controversy at a time when they were <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/arizona/politics/2015/02/26/crow-rips-duceys-higher-ed-budget-mail-alumni/24095385/" target="_blank">negotiating looming budget cuts</a> with a Fox News adoring far right governor and legislature who might be agitated by the idea that such ideas are being taught on campus. <br />
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Our sources tell us that the university administration told both Poe and Bebout to stay quiet. Bebout was reminded that he is up for tenure and Poe was essentially issued a delayed termination, with the university removing his name from the class, forcing him to get class materials approved weekly, and forbidding him from teaching next semester. This looks a lot like ASU hoped to shift his official firing into the future, when there would be less eyes on it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNQvzfBZxteb7h-i8JfCUInauLjRVHCVgWc1xMKzqvwbjBjshW3oe2TRcfhG161bOIETBWgIIbrGuiSB1543OaBHMSC6F4kC_C2ICpZIiBkGh6xdlWiSx5kHE_wWz-71RAGtA6le8pk1U/s1600/Poe+class+view+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNQvzfBZxteb7h-i8JfCUInauLjRVHCVgWc1xMKzqvwbjBjshW3oe2TRcfhG161bOIETBWgIIbrGuiSB1543OaBHMSC6F4kC_C2ICpZIiBkGh6xdlWiSx5kHE_wWz-71RAGtA6le8pk1U/s1600/Poe+class+view+-+Copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Where's Rob Poe's name? </td></tr>
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We received a screen shot of the class that Poe is teaching this semester and his name has been removed from it. In his place is the name of the head of his <strike>department</strike> school, the School of Social Transformation (SST). Is the head of <strike>department </strike> SST now teaching Poe's class? Meanwhile, a search for Poe's name on the faculty website turns up no results. Where did he go? What happened to him? Did ASU throw him under the bus?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkzd5mvffwLS-5NRbKD_G2-aal4VmuJXX4wL1S3L6K78ZxxAtq2Pfv_XLdakH4LOj-_Rb-C_dOz7CEAi_jx6TSCeiGK9I0nax5C1HFeZje16F4PDKkldQ8VX4DoLJOrU7jkDpfwPwUZJc/s1600/John+Hess+Books+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkzd5mvffwLS-5NRbKD_G2-aal4VmuJXX4wL1S3L6K78ZxxAtq2Pfv_XLdakH4LOj-_Rb-C_dOz7CEAi_jx6TSCeiGK9I0nax5C1HFeZje16F4PDKkldQ8VX4DoLJOrU7jkDpfwPwUZJc/s1600/John+Hess+Books+-+Copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It appears that ASU has caved in to Neo-Nazi demands. Which, in essence, means that Neo-Nazis basically are making hiring and firing decisions at ASU, and have imposed some measure of veto power over curriculum. At today's protest, various members of the NYF ranted about eugenics, about biological differences between races and about their deep hatred for Jews. Will the biology department be the next target? You have to wonder where it will stop now.<br />
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According to the website "<a href="http://problemofwhiteness101.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Problem of Whiteness 101</a>", which catalogs the various racist posts, comments and Facebook "likes" of members of the NYF, local leader John Hess is interested in a lot of things that ought to really disturb the university, if they are indeed planning on continuing to cede curricular and staffing decisions to them. These things include the books Mein Kampf and the Bell Curve, and racist bands like Skrewdriver. The NYF likes to pretend that they are just "white activists," whatever that means, but their associations with Hughes and Hess's affinity for Nazi literature and white supremacist music tell a different story.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseOAVEI5Ajl6ilBeh4nOKUgsCU3WjFYP4_h7y05h4S74Ayk-lvzbKARNNj1ANcTJlrikaRUAQa9jgjUxKfwDF0Uggu8ryY8Pmn-cr4Uc4jRcJqGNIPN0cwNqOaMPzcU34PUTfgmMQsGw/s1600/John+Hess+Music+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseOAVEI5Ajl6ilBeh4nOKUgsCU3WjFYP4_h7y05h4S74Ayk-lvzbKARNNj1ANcTJlrikaRUAQa9jgjUxKfwDF0Uggu8ryY8Pmn-cr4Uc4jRcJqGNIPN0cwNqOaMPzcU34PUTfgmMQsGw/s1600/John+Hess+Music+-+Copy.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
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A recent State Press article detailed <a href="http://www.statepress.com/2015/02/24/muslim-asu-students-concerned-for-safety-after-chapel-hill-shootings/" target="_blank">concerns among the ASU and Tempe Muslim community</a> about a rise in anti-Islamic sentiment and vandalism following the Chapel Hill shootings. ASU giving in to Neo-Nazis certainly won't help on that front. At the protest today, one prospective student waiting for his tour of campus was overheard describing second thoughts about attending after seeing the NYF protest.<br />
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Previously the NYF has organized anonymously and avoided appearing in public. But now, thanks to ASU's surrender, they have taken their first step into the open. Just as they were encouraged by ASU's cowardice in the case of Dr. Ore, they are likewise now bolstered by the university's handling of the "Whiteness" class and subsequent fallout.<br />
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We reached out to ASU repeatedly via twitter and got no response, which is not surprising since silence seems to be their strategy. You have to wonder, though, where silence and capitulation to Neo-Nazis will get us in the long run.<br />
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<b>CORRECTION:</b><br />
The article incorrectly identified the person listed as teaching Poe's class (<a href="https://sst.clas.asu.edu/bryan-brayboy" target="_blank">Dr. Brayboy</a>) as the head of his department. Brayboy is the head of Poe's school, the School of Social Transformation.Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-42648212721749910472015-02-01T13:08:00.000-08:002015-02-01T14:37:43.743-08:00Arizona Army National Guard Sergeant posted link to white supremacist site, "likes" burning mosques<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRYRttnYAbrhZuzZg1QckwTL0AWKMTQO_Va0VIxoh8A2xeb4TcahuIxsWEdborIb_XwFLrYm-Xf6nAa-dyl1UnMLnCvktXoVWMpc7LmudgeMwiVSBT3Adts_N3mIePzQWTlYr6VksB9Zk/s1600/vanb+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRYRttnYAbrhZuzZg1QckwTL0AWKMTQO_Va0VIxoh8A2xeb4TcahuIxsWEdborIb_XwFLrYm-Xf6nAa-dyl1UnMLnCvktXoVWMpc7LmudgeMwiVSBT3Adts_N3mIePzQWTlYr6VksB9Zk/s1600/vanb+-+Copy.JPG" height="220" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Sgt. Berry, on the right, uses a poster to harass a videographer (Ray Stern/<i>Phoenix New Times</i></span>)</div>
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Arizona Army National Guard Sgt. Van Berry, of the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/856th-Military-Police-Spartans/133384936702932" target="_blank">856th Military Police Company</a>, found himself in some hot water last month after he was captured on video menacing and assaulting a videographer at a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/339256529613802/" target="_blank">pro-police rally in Scottsdale</a>. Berry, along with Ken Harris, a former cop and member of the Blue Knights MC, harassed videographer <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/Humanleague002" target="_blank">Dennis Gilman</a> in an incident <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2015/01/pro-police_demonstrators_clash_with_protesters_at_scottsdale_pd_headquarter.php" target="_blank">captured by <i>Phoenix New Times</i> reporter Ray Stern</a>.<br />
<br />
The thuggish behavior of Van Berry, Ken Harris, and others occurred
under the watch of the Scottsdale police chief, the mayor of Scottsdale,
a Scottsdale city council member, and dozens of current and former
police officers who were present. This pro-cop rally, far from being an organic display
of appreciation for the institution of policing, was instead a gathering
of those on the extreme right. <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2009-05-14/news/neo-nazis-and-extreme-right-wingers-love-joe-arpaio-and-there-s-evidence-that-the-mcso-keeps-them-close/" target="_blank">Anti-immigrant organizer Barb Heller</a> was present, and organizer <a href="https://twitter.com/catprotector" target="_blank">Nohl Rosen</a> has <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2012/05/01/20120501occupy-may-day-protest-planned-scottsdale-today-abrk.html" target="_blank">counter-demonstrated against a May Day rally</a> and considers himself a "second amendment advocate."<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/11/tempe-scottsdale-cops-arrest-blacks-at.html" target="_blank">READ: SCOTTSDALE PD ARREST BLACKS AT A HIGHER RATE THAN FERGUSON PD</a></b></blockquote>
<br />
Felipe Hemming, a writer at <i>Photography Is Not A Crime</i>, followed up on the New Times story with <a href="http://photographyisnotacrime.com/2015/01/arizona-national-guardsman-assaults-videographer-pro-cop-rally-police-chief-looks/" target="_blank">an article that identified Van Berry as a sergeant</a> in the Arizona Army National Guard's military police unit. Hemming was able to identify Sgt. Berry through Facebook after noticing that he was wearing his Arizona Air National Guard sweater which had his first initial and last name printed on the front. Hemming was able to confirm with the Arizona Army National Guard that Sgt. Berry remains active in the 856th Military Police Company, he also reported that Berry's chain of command was aware of his actions at the protest and that Berry would be disciplined. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1sWZBCAqsZgsEX8byfPSM1JJAezX0IqdlvH0N9roKHabEFVS7Dkqhx3wRxRHwGjLE6FokwZ5bCLh1uky-IsMH56QQWjZWIGWJfJt1H-f4T13frNq_LCGkavJIHacg3EWoFJQDpegGGJs/s1600/vanberry+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1sWZBCAqsZgsEX8byfPSM1JJAezX0IqdlvH0N9roKHabEFVS7Dkqhx3wRxRHwGjLE6FokwZ5bCLh1uky-IsMH56QQWjZWIGWJfJt1H-f4T13frNq_LCGkavJIHacg3EWoFJQDpegGGJs/s1600/vanberry+-+Copy.JPG" height="320" width="276" /></a></div>
Berry had posted photos from the pro-cop rally on the event's Facebook page, in which he bragged that the counter protesters were "unarmed and very undangerous [sic]," he also took a shot at the Phoenix New Times, calling it the "Pravda Phoenix Times," Pravda being the news organ of the Russian Communist Party. Despite his position as a sergeant in a military policing unit, Berry was comfortable posting his extremist opinions for public view on his personal Facebook page. Browsing through his timeline there are frequent posts about the perceived threat from radical Islamists, undocumented immigrants, the "communist" Obama administration, and the "anti-white and anti-police thuggery" of the Ferguson demonstrators.<br />
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While Sgt. Berry is entitled to his opinions, there was one post on the page which stood out from the others. It was a link to thewhitevoice.com, a <a href="http://www.politicalresearch.org/tag/white-voice-network/" target="_blank">white supremacist website</a> that claims to fight against the "<a href="http://www.thewhitevoice.com/contact-us/" target="_blank">large anti-White agenda going on in the United States and globally</a>." The article Berry posted <a href="http://www.thewhitevoice.com/news/2014/12/29/sweden-revolts-second-mosque-in-5-days-burnt-to-the-ground-in-european-uprising" target="_blank">celebrates the burning of a mosque in Sweden</a>, which the author describes as a "rape chamber," and declares that mosques have no place in "Western European Society."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpF-nQZ3-qKDVHuxGi8w6bYVCqRvFLtCohrqelGfNNtiMQl1FhD-dM6Ok-KFMwEhJfksywcusUW_RihG-OcRm-4bsCxQUaH6WvEKeHLG6Z_q-nA4h5D5bYRsLs9Svm0plt2d5EvqfVQ0/s1600/nazistuff+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpF-nQZ3-qKDVHuxGi8w6bYVCqRvFLtCohrqelGfNNtiMQl1FhD-dM6Ok-KFMwEhJfksywcusUW_RihG-OcRm-4bsCxQUaH6WvEKeHLG6Z_q-nA4h5D5bYRsLs9Svm0plt2d5EvqfVQ0/s1600/nazistuff+-+Copy.JPG" height="320" width="246" /></a></div>
We have posted a screen shot from Berry's page of the article, notable is the comment from Charlene Fossett, who commented "Burn them all!" The comment received one "like," it came from Sgt. Berry.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWTYBbsvSZydTZXTYrnPu15AgvAVP3UTlsF9JAhY6qTVY0i7ovq-Wg-qwS7xUoZMohN0BqoTcQdurX06mqDD3V0K-qkoBev4_PbrfcDWL06IaVCUd-z4DHZtYYjKCGVsprH_K123YIeFc/s1600/helikesit+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWTYBbsvSZydTZXTYrnPu15AgvAVP3UTlsF9JAhY6qTVY0i7ovq-Wg-qwS7xUoZMohN0BqoTcQdurX06mqDD3V0K-qkoBev4_PbrfcDWL06IaVCUd-z4DHZtYYjKCGVsprH_K123YIeFc/s1600/helikesit+-+Copy.JPG" height="93" width="320" /></a></div>
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Berry also posted photos from Nevada, and claimed that he "couldn't find the Bundy Ranch." These photos were posted in late April of last year, during the armed standoff between rancher Cliven Bundy and the small army of armed militiamen who came to challenge the federal government. Sgt. Berry seems unconcerned with publicly endorsing acts of terrorism against Muslims and supporting armed confrontations with federal agencies.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHa1SBn3fueAn83ga-Vr5b3FLbAvNnPFbVq2hbP4MENa5a2iBnR1ssK5TJDvU1Yovfets__sBe3fVXJp9fLiwGYTV5ApQgleqiFbaVNW4FB4jhOgeUYKN94ssGCoqqjg44cDP_KTUT5s/s1600/couldntbundybuttried+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHa1SBn3fueAn83ga-Vr5b3FLbAvNnPFbVq2hbP4MENa5a2iBnR1ssK5TJDvU1Yovfets__sBe3fVXJp9fLiwGYTV5ApQgleqiFbaVNW4FB4jhOgeUYKN94ssGCoqqjg44cDP_KTUT5s/s1600/couldntbundybuttried+-+Copy.JPG" height="320" width="227" /></a></div>
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In an article by David Sterman published in <i>The Atlantic</i> last year on <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/04/the-greater-danger-military-trained-right-wing-extremists/275277/" target="_blank">the danger of right-wing extremists with military training</a>, former Department of Homeland Security domestic terror analyst Daryl Johnson cited a "government survey of 17,080 soldiers found that 3.5 percent of them had
been
contacted in order to recruit them into an extremist organization
and that 7.1 percent said they knew another soldier who they believed to
be part of an
extremist organization." While there is no public knowledge of Berry's involvement in any far right-wing extremist organization, he is an active member of the US military with no qualms about posting content from far right-wing outlets on his public Facebook profile or participating in aggressive protest activity. <br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/cops-say-what-they-really-think-about.html" target="_blank">READ: COPS SAY WHAT THEY REALLY THINK ABOUT ASU PROFESSOR ORE IN ONLINE FORUMS AND IT'S NOT PRETTY </a></b></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
The only terrorism being discussed in relation to the rally in Scottsdale had to do with some anti-police graffiti reading "Cops Kill so Kill Cops" that was found in a park the week before. Scottsdale mayor Jim Lane described the graffiti as a "terrorist act" in <a href="http://ktar.com/22/1799484/Propolice-rally-set-for-Saturday-outside-Scottsdale-PD-station" target="_blank">an interview with KTAR</a>. Lane continued: "It was done in order to intimidate
or bully the police department from doing their job. Somebody who makes
those kinds of threats is completely outside the realm of the law." Yet, Lane was comfortable standing alongside anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim extremists like Berry who shared a white supremacist article, or Barb Heller who <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bastard/barb.jpg" target="_blank">would wear surgical masks</a> at anti-immigrant protests mocking immigrant demonstrators with <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/01/AR2008020103260_pf.html" target="_blank">"No TB please" written across the front</a>.<br />
<br />
Heller has her anti-Muslim credentials as well, in a public post to her Facebook wall in 2013 she wrote "WE WILL DIP OUR BULLETS IN PIGS BLOOD & URINE!!" in response to a news article about a wall with "jihad" written across it in Florida. And Heller wasn't the only one on the far right with such anti-Muslim sentiment. A group of "patriots" from Idaho were <a href="http://gawker.com/terrible-people-selling-pork-laced-bullets-to-better-ki-576045292" target="_blank">selling boxes of "Jihawg Ammo</a>," with individual bullets dipped in pig blood in an effort to force Muslims shot with that ammunition to be Haraam, or unclean, upon entering the afterlife. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWMwE1uP1b0Hl4bS9X3dHtt_Ge5YuVDlg-F6HlpNFYOXjX6HnQdOKRpAm5AEtx7rTcajkpbZWRm1wClzIa73RXzefZPhi1R1XqVGvA85P7inNLhf-nPfuXL4Z5sZ0bfzvjAcM78k6bkA/s1600/stayclassybarbheller+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWMwE1uP1b0Hl4bS9X3dHtt_Ge5YuVDlg-F6HlpNFYOXjX6HnQdOKRpAm5AEtx7rTcajkpbZWRm1wClzIa73RXzefZPhi1R1XqVGvA85P7inNLhf-nPfuXL4Z5sZ0bfzvjAcM78k6bkA/s1600/stayclassybarbheller+-+Copy.jpg" height="249" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
And it was Scottsdale Police Chief Alan Rodbell, and his
officers, who shook hands and thanked these supporters of the police. The pro-cop demonstrators who had intimidated, threatened, or
assaulted anti-cop counter-protesters had the support of the establishment. This overlap between police, military, and far right extremists must be of concern to anyone who
believes that people should be able to freely organize and assemble to challenge the actions of the government without coercion from state sanctioned vigilantes. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-2585536287448065582014-12-11T20:46:00.001-08:002015-02-02T10:05:14.968-08:00Phoenix cops chase down fleeing white guy with weapon and drugs, don't kill him Did you notice? Maybe not because only one news outlet covered this seemingly unremarkable story. Yesterday the Phoenix police apprehended a man they accused of a set of crimes that ought to sound very familiar to you if you've been following the local case of Rumain Brisbon, an unarmed black man shot dead by Phoenix Police last week.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/8334042135d7f679c06190b7cdf533ced74a407e/c=15-0-465-600&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/2014/12/10/Phoenix/Phoenix/635538013521479548-jarrod-nixon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/8334042135d7f679c06190b7cdf533ced74a407e/c=15-0-465-600&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/2014/12/10/Phoenix/Phoenix/635538013521479548-jarrod-nixon.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jarrod Nixon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Jarrod Nixon was taken into custody by Phoenix cops after residents reported a man acting suspicious, trying to open doors and asking for people who didn't live there. Nixon is alleged to have fled from police and, when apprehended, according to <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/12/10/central-phoenix-burglary-arrest-clarendon-abrk/20187293/" target="_blank">AZ Central, the only news outlet that reported it, they charged him</a> with "burglary, possession of a weapon by a prohibited person and drug-related offenses."<br />
<br />
And, notably, they did <i>not </i>kill him in the process. They spared him. Amazing, <i>right</i>? After all, that list of charges and allegations sounds exactly like what Phoenix cops have said about Rumain Brisbon! Except the officer who responded to a dubious tip about Brisbon gunned him down in the process. Now, far be it from me to allege that Phoenix PD or its officers are racist, but there's one key difference between these cases that might be obvious to the attentive observer. Unlike Rumain Brisbon, Jarrod Nixon was white.<br />
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To put some context on this, it's worth turning to a recent <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/" target="_blank">USA Today report on the disproportionate rate at which blacks and everyone else gets arrested</a> in America's cities. We <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/11/tempe-scottsdale-cops-arrest-blacks-at.html" target="_blank">reported recently that Tempe and Scottsdale rank at the top of the list for Valley cities whose police agencies target blacks for arrest</a> at starkly different rates than they do whites.<br />
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Phoenix, while not scoring as ridiculously high as either of those two cities, still ranked way up there. If you're black in Phoenix, your rate of arrest is 220.5 out of 1000. But if you're not black, your chance is only 77.6. That's almost three times more likely if you're black and, incidentally, it's also a higher rate than that at which the Ferguson PD arrests blacks. Yeah, that's right. Phoenix is worse than Ferguson.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsMVmlA5cVweyXAOUjVlSI7A6etFfbXLN9gM8rHoQOiGGMqFWYSsGz3GjsVAOnKID6pFK_mmuVP3lbDmX_jxn-MepsICfgAjx1FcV8_HIoJQohxgHchFpcOi7HkqPg43Jb4V79TKRJok/s1600/city+of+phoenix+rate+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsMVmlA5cVweyXAOUjVlSI7A6etFfbXLN9gM8rHoQOiGGMqFWYSsGz3GjsVAOnKID6pFK_mmuVP3lbDmX_jxn-MepsICfgAjx1FcV8_HIoJQohxgHchFpcOi7HkqPg43Jb4V79TKRJok/s1600/city+of+phoenix+rate+-+Copy.PNG" height="165" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/" target="_blank">USA TODAY</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
These figures jibe with the experience that is driving the outrage pouring out into Valley streets night after night. <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/protesters-march-after-phoenix-police-kill-rumain-brisbon-n261836" target="_blank">Speaking to the media a few days ago, Jarett Maupin</a>, one of many organizers taking protests to the streets, said, "The Phoenix Police Department does not treat white people this way. What that officer did was harass and accost them." These comments could very easily sum up the discrepancy in the treatment that Brisbon and Nixon received. Just in the last couple months, the names of black men and women killed at the hands of Phoenix police have become all too familiar. Not just Rumain Brisbon, but also <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Phoenix-police-shoot-woman-at-an-apartment-complex-271321941.html" target="_blank">Michelle Cusseaux</a> and <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2014/10/phoenix_police_department_death_balantine_mbegbu.php" target="_blank">Ngozi Mbegbu</a>.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, in the four years since Bill Montgomery took over as Maricopa County Attorney, <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/County-attorney-defends-285317651.html" target="_blank">there have been 145 shootings by Valley police, <i>including</i> 14 where the person shot was unarmed</a>. And yet Montgomery hasn't seen fit to bring an indictment in a single case against an officer. Zero. Zippo.<br />
<br />
The idea that policing is racist and that blacks and other minorities are disproportionately targets of police attention and violence is only controversial among whites, who generally experience policing in its most benevolent form, such as directing traffic or responding to property crime. Whites, without knowing it, are in a real sense the constituency of police, which becomes obvious the minute you look at the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/11/28/ferguson-exit-poll-shows-racial-polarization-in-views-of-police/" target="_blank">way statistics documenting support for the police break down by race</a>, especially in times like this.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/cops-say-what-they-really-think-about.html" target="_blank"><b>COPS SAY WHAT THEY REALLY THINK ABOUT ASU PROFESSOR ORE IN ONLINE FORUMS AND IT AIN'T PRETTY </b></a></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
If you take the police at their word, the cases of Brisbon and Nixon compare very similarly and go towards exactly the point that angry protesters are making. And yet here we have starkly different outcomes. Brisbon, black, was killed when Officer Rine claimed he feared for his life, mistaking a bottle of pills for a gun. Meanwhile, Nixon, white and apparently armed in some fashion, was taken into custody without lethal force.<br />
<br />
Cops were quick to say that Brisbon had a weapon and pot in his vehicle, and to suggest that this amounted to something of a retroactive justification for his killing. A black man with a gun and drugs -- that's meant to evoke the now common racist code word "thug." Meanwhile, according to the one news agency that bothered to cover Nixon's arrest, <i>he </i>was actually in physical possession of both drugs of some kind and a weapon when apprehended. Again, there is no hint from cops that this would have been a justification for shooting him.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/71e0cd988bb75a05f05e8307598e50b8f9bace51/c=0-0-360-480&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/Phoenix/Phoenix/2014/12/04/635532944352170263-Rumain-Brisbon-w-child.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/71e0cd988bb75a05f05e8307598e50b8f9bace51/c=0-0-360-480&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/Phoenix/Phoenix/2014/12/04/635532944352170263-Rumain-Brisbon-w-child.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rumain Brisbon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Nixon is also reported to have run from officers, charging into an occupied home and causing a resident to flee out a window. And yet still there is no claim that any officer feared for his or her life, and no officer shot at him. Although witness accounts dispute that Brisbon fled from Officer Rine, the department's public reasoning for his shooting hinges in no small part on their allegation that he did so.<br />
<br />
Going by what the police have said, here we have two very similar cases. Indeed, where they differ slightly, the case reported against Nixon is worse. After all, the worst that is alleged about Brisbon is that he may have been selling drugs. The police say Nixon was breaking into occupied homes. And yet only one of these two men is now dead, killed by Phoenix police. The other will get at least a chance at a day in court. The only remaining chance for justice for Brisbon now lies in the streets.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/phoenix%20police" target="_blank"><b>READ MORE DOWN AND DROUGHT COVERAGE OF THE PHOENIX POLICE DEPARTMENT</b></a>Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-47455509852492791242014-12-01T14:20:00.001-08:002014-12-01T15:02:09.277-08:00CBS 5 trashes local protester, gives pass to former Steubenville coach who started fight with protesters<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlsRgrdGiL9I0JHau1XJbDWGaYVIxLB2piTlytmEzkmK0HvpXPNOFXGjmYIhBczBFzXd4dLwGrg6UI7SDV_lH0yuw4TVj9msWeJIpHOkvBh5M4Qs33PsKWYU_v0Y6Mc4EvWXT-KYLjasM/s1600/belardine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlsRgrdGiL9I0JHau1XJbDWGaYVIxLB2piTlytmEzkmK0HvpXPNOFXGjmYIhBczBFzXd4dLwGrg6UI7SDV_lH0yuw4TVj9msWeJIpHOkvBh5M4Qs33PsKWYU_v0Y6Mc4EvWXT-KYLjasM/s1600/belardine.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Belardine (in black) attacks demonstrators in Scottsdale on Saturday <i>(Dennis Gilman/Phoenix New Times)</i></div>
<br />
CBS 5's Karla Navarrete's <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/27509037/3-arrested-in-scottsdale-protest-over-ferguson-decision" target="_blank">story on a protester, arrested at an anti-police protest,</a> featured details on the man's family background, including naming his father and occupation. When it came to the other two men arrested that night, who were accused of attacking protesters, there was no such effort, despite one of the men's involvement in a crime which prompted international outrage. Had Navarrete googled either of the other men who were arrested after instigating a fight with demonstrators, she might have learned that one of the two men arrested, Matthew Michael Belardine, was involved in the Steubenville rape case.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVSQyxMVvP4GLPcHxL1tu1LMb2_aO-NARFjhr5Tc9wg8GmCZr2vsQN0bvme03tVkFFdXuZTKxvKdAvNk08e_YGbuBWtpF3E6ipTT7pD5rVUCKbyS0lw-nPMDqqaECmTgfADT0z7rEB74/s1600/460x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVSQyxMVvP4GLPcHxL1tu1LMb2_aO-NARFjhr5Tc9wg8GmCZr2vsQN0bvme03tVkFFdXuZTKxvKdAvNk08e_YGbuBWtpF3E6ipTT7pD5rVUCKbyS0lw-nPMDqqaECmTgfADT0z7rEB74/s1600/460x.jpg" height="219" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Belardine in court in Steubenville last April <i>(AP Photo)</i></div>
<br />
Matthew Belardine, while never a suspect in the rape, was at one time the volunteer coach for the Steubenville High School football team and hosted the party that the Steubenville students attended the night that the sexual assault occurred. In April he was<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/22/justice/ohio-steubenville-rape-case/" target="_blank"> sentenced to 10 days in jail</a> after he plead no contest to serving alcohol to a minor and making false statements to investigators. Belardine could have faced up to six months in jail for each of those charges, in addition he was <a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/local/east/2014/04/22/Former-coach-pleads-no-contest-to-allowing-underage-drinking-at-party/stories/201404220169" target="_blank">sentenced to one year of probation</a>, due to expire in April of 2015. Belardine was arrested after an<a href="http://www.cleveland.com/steubenville-rape-case/index.ssf/2014/04/volunteer_steubenville_coach_p.html" target="_blank"> investigation into other crimes tied to the rape</a> of a student by Steubenville football players in 2012. The volunteer coach was <a href="http://www.cleveland.com/steubenville-rape-case/index.ssf/2013/11/four_indicted_by_grand_jury_in.html" target="_blank">charged along with a district principal and the Steubenville superintendent</a> for their roles in knowing or covering up the assault of the student.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/watch-as-troy-hayden-magically-turns.html" target="_blank">WATCH AS TROY HAYDEN MAGICALLY TURNS A STORY ABOUT DPS DROWNING A MAN INTO A PRO-MCSO FLUFF PIECE </a></b></blockquote>
<br />
Matthew Belardine's arrest for <a href="http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Police/newsPIO/Ferguson_protest_in_Scottsdale?DateTime=635528936400000000&PageMode=View" target="_blank">assault and disorderly conduct on Saturday night</a> occurred after he and a friend attacked participants in the anti-police demonstration on Saturday night, some of whom were wearing the notorious Guy Fawkes mask. His
companion Samuel Lee Busic was charged with assault. Videographer Dennis Gilman captured Belardine's pal Samuel Busic charging through the crowd screaming "Fuck Anonymous!"<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="161" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/113246365" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="350"></iframe> <br />
<br />
Why was Busic so angry with Anonymous? Well maybe because Anonymous played a central role in driving the Steubenville story into the national media and ensuring that charges were brought by officials, who up to that point seemed more inclined to ignore the whole thing, covering up for a popular sports team and players. Specifically, Anonymous doxxed Belardine. Anonymous has also been active in the protests in Ferguson, in particular <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/11/as-promised-anonymous-dumps-kkk-leaders-personal-info-online-in-ongoing-ferguson-dispute/" target="_blank">outing Klan members publicly, including dumping the data of a local KKK leader</a>. <br />
<br />
Why was Channel 5, which was so vigorous in digging into the life of a protester accused of a property crime, so curiously negligent when it came to a man now charged with assaulting people at that same protest? The protest on Saturday night was in opposition to police brutality, specifically in Ferguson but also in general. KPHO has been accused over the years of <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2011-03-10/news/is-kpho-in-mark-spencer-s-pocket/" target="_blank">being too cozy with police and specifically the local police union</a> PLEA. And apparently the tool kit of the modern KPHO reporter doesn't include the modern classic, the Google search. And do we need to mention the obvious racial difference between those arrested and the treatment they got? This latest story is another stain on their credibility.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>More local media follies:</b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/08/new-times-reporter-takes-mulligan-on.html" target="_blank">Emails reveal: New Times Reporter Took a Mulligan on Occupy Phoenix </a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/02/fox-10-producer-thankful-for-drunk.html" target="_blank">Fox 10 Producer "Thankful" for drunk driver crashing into Phoenix home</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-12677571592404303242014-11-24T16:57:00.001-08:002015-01-12T12:12:30.394-08:00Tempe, Scottsdale arrest blacks at a higher rate than the Ferguson PDTruly shocking numbers were released today in a <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/" target="_blank">USA Today report detailing the massive disparities in arrest rates for blacks</a> compared to, well, everyone else. In the Valley, Tempe and Scottsdale police stood out for particular distinction, with starkly high figures per capita.<br />
<br />
The USA Today analysis of arrest records for police departments across the country found that almost 1600 police agencies nationwide took blacks into custody at rates above those in Ferguson, Missouri, the city well-known now for aggressive and racist policing following the shooting of Michael Brown and the turmoil that resulted.<br />
<br />
According the the article, blacks were "more likely than others to be arrested in almost every city
for almost every type of crime. Nationwide, black people are arrested at
higher rates for crimes as serious as murder and assault, and as minor
as loitering and marijuana possession." If you're not black, you're more likely to escape arrest for comparable crimes. Notably, the data, which came from the FBI, does not track arrests of Latinos, which in the Southwest is a major shortcoming. That number would be very good to have.<br />
<br />
Of particular note, two Valley police agencies, <b>Tempe </b>and <b>Scottsdale</b>, not only have arrest rates for blacks higher than Ferguson, but take blacks into custody at more than double (<i>triple </i>in the case of Scottsdale) that which has set the Missouri city on fire with accusations of police harassment of a black population by white police agency.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0JFSSkOlU2G-dm-OG3iUEaT93NEdHGmuUsYjtfC1g5lQCX5eiV_OfRqLeaDgeZmFNCHjrG64VMfawRiZODpxsfa8gEGpwCTsv49tYPZ__tlSsJqCSsiwVT8pW77YSgCVqR9T5H6Dfs8/s1600/scottsdale+black+arrest+rate+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0JFSSkOlU2G-dm-OG3iUEaT93NEdHGmuUsYjtfC1g5lQCX5eiV_OfRqLeaDgeZmFNCHjrG64VMfawRiZODpxsfa8gEGpwCTsv49tYPZ__tlSsJqCSsiwVT8pW77YSgCVqR9T5H6Dfs8/s1600/scottsdale+black+arrest+rate+-+Copy.PNG" height="170" width="320" /></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLBnfKKqsxlgMN0RFtXOkfPqdnXFuD5ikejREc2_PgPVyhbvWR1jhasYkB4AM7QDzW1jwaWD8MeXNkl7y7cvypPT0mmnzW9x552xcgOpYkZD6RPc-FxeaM7wQPfdJ3eZt9Xu-3v4sJRJ8/s1600/tempe+police+black+v+nonblack+arrests+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLBnfKKqsxlgMN0RFtXOkfPqdnXFuD5ikejREc2_PgPVyhbvWR1jhasYkB4AM7QDzW1jwaWD8MeXNkl7y7cvypPT0mmnzW9x552xcgOpYkZD6RPc-FxeaM7wQPfdJ3eZt9Xu-3v4sJRJ8/s1600/tempe+police+black+v+nonblack+arrests+-+Copy.PNG" height="197" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/" target="_blank">USA TODAY</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Tempe, this year found itself embroiled in controversy when <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/if-asu-cant-protect-faculty-from-its.html" target="_blank">ASU professor Dr. Ore, who is black, was stopped off campus by a white university cop</a>. The stop, which many viewed as unnecessary, aggressive and racially-motivated, set off a media firestorm and enraged many residents of the college town, some of whom <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2014/07/09/asu-professors-arrest-addressed-at-tempe-forum/12424781/" target="_blank">took their anger to a Tempe city council candidates forum, disrupting the event</a>.<br />
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Tempe, which likes to brand itself as a progressive city despite its history as a Klan bastion, will have a hard time making the case that these numbers don't indicate a serious problem for a police force that many see as out of control. While Ferguson's arrest rate for blacks was 186.1 (versus 66 for whites) out of a thousand, Tempe's came in at a staggering 405.5! Anglos, on the other hand, got arrested at a rate of 120 per 1000 in Tempe, still almost twice that of Ferguson but over a third less frequently than blacks. If you're black, Tempe PD has its eyes on you.<br />
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Tempe police have come under scrutiny lately as a result of a program called "Safe and Sober", which involves upwards of 20 police agencies flooding downtown with officers, making thousands of stops of all kinds, ostensibly to battle alcohol consumption. Locals report harassment and profiling.<br />
<br />
The city hasn't released final numbers on this years' program (which has run for two years now) -- including data on the race of those people that were stopped -- but numbers like those compiled by USA Today lend support to suspicions that racial bias is very likely at work. Back of the envelop calculations by local activists put the rate of stops during the three weeks that "Safe and Sober" runs in Tempe at per capita levels comparable to NYC's highly controversial <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/13/nyregion/stop-and-frisk-practice-violated-rights-judge-rules.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank">"Stop and Frisk" program, which was ruled racially biased this year</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.statepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/SafeandSober-01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.statepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/SafeandSober-01.png" height="277" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <a href="http://www.statepress.com/2014/10/20/we-the-police-the-relationship-between-tempe-and-its-protectors/" target="_blank">STATE PRESS</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The City of Tempe has suffered a series of public black eyes around the issue of policing in the last couple years. In 2013, during the first year of "Safe and Sober," local cops gunned down <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2013/09/tempe_police_didnt_have_to_sho.php" target="_blank">Austin Del Castillo in broad daylight</a> in downtown Tempe, sending bullets into a nearby restaurant. Before that, in May of the same year, <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/trigger-happy-buzz-killing-tempe-cop.html" target="_blank">Tempe police opened fire on a man who had broken into the wine cellar</a> of a local restaurant downtown. Then there was the <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/cops-say-what-they-really-think-about.html" target="_blank">Dr. Ore incident</a>. In July, Tempe police were caught on video beating a homeless man, again on Mill Avenue downtown. An internal review <i>by </i>the police <i>of </i>the police ruled the violence justified, although they admitted that proper procedure wasn't followed when officers failed to file the use of force paperwork that should accompany such incidents. Tempe has also raised concerns by failure to come clean on their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank">possession and use of a StingRay cell phone spy device</a> and whether and how that is being used to snoop on residents. <br />
<br />
Critics of the Ferguson PD point to giant disparities between the percentage of cops who are white on the force compared to the general population. A recent NY Times article. "<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/09/03/us/the-race-gap-in-americas-police-departments.html?smid=fb-share" target="_blank">The Race Gap in America’s Police Departments</a>", highlighted these discrepancies in several departments nationwide, including half a dozen in Arizona. The study didn't give stats for Tempe, but it did show clearly that whites were over-represented in all the Valley departments surveyed, sometimes skewing (in the case of the Phoenix Police Department) as much as 35% more white than the local population they police. The Phoenix PD, by the way, ranked in the USA TODAY study at 220.5 for blacks, and 77.6 for everyone else. Incidentally, the city with the smallest gap between population and police, demographically, was Scottsdale. But that was only because Scottsdale is 84% white. There isn't much room to go higher than that, although SPD does manage to still put 6% more whites on their force than the general population.<br />
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Changing the racial makeup of the police force won't solve the problem of police brutality and profiling, but the fact that they are so out of whack with the general population again gives cause to believe, combined with those radically skewed arrest stats, that profiling is probably going on. And a lot of it.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="189" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/lAPn_AdNYVY" width="336"></iframe>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>We asked TPD if use of force paperwork was </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>filed in the above case and they never replied</i></div>
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This data also shows how little things have changed in the Valley. Tempe and Scottsdale, both historically <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/20140220tempe-ferry-tales-file-black-history-more-readily-available-curators-book.html" target="_blank">"sundown towns"</a> where nonwhites were strongly encouraged, to put it mildly, to make themselves scarce when nightfall came, obviously still put a heavy emphasis on the policing of blacks within city limits. As troubling as Tempe's outrageous data is, Scottsdale's is even more disturbing. It wasn't that long ago that scandal wracked the SPD when it came out that some officers were <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/1998-05-21/news/overdressed/" target="_blank">enforcing what they called a "no n*gger zone" in the wealthier parts of a generally very well-off city</a>. These stats show an inexcusable gulf between the policing that blacks and everybody else gets in Scottsdale.<br />
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Either way, if you're black in Scottsdale and Tempe you have good reason to worry about the police. Just like Dr. Ore, you may very well find yourself attracting the special attention of local law enforcement, for no other reason than your skin color. Perhaps data like this is the reason why Tempe has been so reluctant to release the racial breakdown of the "Safe and Sober" stops. But that's all the more reason why they should.Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-5424637813357672052014-11-13T13:26:00.000-08:002014-12-16T00:12:31.445-08:00National League of Cities Prepares to Pressure Congress for More Military Equipment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<br />
As an expected grand jury decision could arrive this week in the case of the white Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson shooting and killing black Ferguson resident Michael Brown. Brown, who was unarmed when confronted by officer Wilson, died after being shot six times. Brown's killing <a href="http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.ssf/2014/09/reports_cite_the_police_and_co.html" target="_blank">triggered long existing tensions</a> between police and the residents, resulting in riots, and then protests in Ferguson. The rebellion in Ferguson also sparked <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2014/08/19/pentagon-defends-program-supplying-military-gear-to-ferguson-police/" target="_blank">a national debate in response to the images of the police</a> and how the military grade weapons and equipment used to quash the protests got into the hands of the police.<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/police-militarization-ferguson-2014-8" target="_blank">militarized show of force</a> in the small community of Ferguson shattered any illusions that it was only the major cities that relied on such equipment. The proliferation of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/09/us/war-gear-flows-to-police-departments.html" target="_blank">military equipment and weapons into small town police departments</a> could be traced to America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and had its <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/how-americas-police-became-army-1033-program-264537" target="_blank">origins in the drug war hysteria</a> of the late 1980s. This movement of surplus military goods from the US military to police departments, both big and small, is run out of the Defense Logistics Agency's the <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCcQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dps.mo.gov%2Fdir%2Fprograms%2Fcjle%2Fdod.asp&ei=odRhVNvRBpbqoATS14LQDw&usg=AFQjCNHvObZVxdvSy5chteT0WyuvcTAvqA&sig2=jIvZcjDmoGTWhH5LSldlug&bvm=bv.79189006,d.cGU" target="_blank">Department of Defense Excess Property Program</a>, or more commonly known as the 1033 program. <br />
<br />
This program faced a <a href="http://thehill.com/regulation/217136-senators-blast-dod-program-to-militarize-police" target="_blank">critical review from the </a><a href="http://thehill.com/regulation/217136-senators-blast-dod-program-to-militarize-police" target="_blank">Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee</a> in the wake of the Ferguson rebellion, with senators questioning why the Department of Defense continues to provide used, and often new weapons to local police departments. Despite the increased coverage from journalists, outrage from protesters, and scrutiny from senators, the program is not <a href="http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=765&issue_id=122005" target="_blank">without its supporters</a> (principally law enforcement) and the advocacy group the National League of Cities may be joining them.<br />
<br />
The National League of Cities (NLC) is an advocacy group for more than "<a href="http://www.nlc.org/about-nlc" target="_blank">19,000 cities, villages and towns it represents</a>," and one of the key tasks of the NLC is to influence federal policy by lobbying Congress. The NLC will be holding <a href="http://the%20congress%20of%20cities/" target="_blank">the Congress of Cities</a>, their annual conference, later this month in Austin, Texas. Among the resolutions up for a vote during the meeting is a pro-1033 program resolution passed by the Public Safety and Crime Prevention (PSCP) Steering Committee during their <a href="http://www.nlc.org/media-center/news-search/city-leaders-meet-to-debate-public-safety-policy" target="_blank">annual meeting held in Tempe</a> this past September. <br />
<br />
The <a href="http://www.nlc.org/Documents/Fall%202014%20PSCP%20Agenda%20Packet.pdf" target="_blank">resolution supporting the 1033 program</a> takes into account that the majority of the equipment received from the Department of Defense are "non-military" items, such as office equipment, computers and recording gear, and other supplies for disaster response. However, the resolution makes note of the criticisms raised over the transfer of specifically military hardware, such as "Humvees, mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles, aircraft (rotary and fixed wing), boats, sniper scopes and M-16s." <br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
While these concerns are noted, the resolution highlights the use of military equipment in the response to the Boston Marathon bombing, and "other incidents where police officers have been under attack by heavily armed criminals." The resolution concludes by supporting increased pressure on the Presidential administration and Congress to "ensure local law enforcement agencies continue to have access to the 1033 program." The PSCP Steering Committee approved the resolution, as confirmed in an email response from Yucel Ors, the NLC's Program Director of Public Safety & Crime Prevention. Ors explained that the next step is for the resolution to be voted on by the full membership of the PSCP committee, then, if passed, it will face a final vote by the NLC's membership during the annual meeting.<br />
<br />
There is much to worry about for the residents of Ferguson in the coming days. Amnesty International <a href="https://news.vice.com/article/amnesty-intl-denounces-human-rights-abuses-in-ferguson-as-police-gather-riot-gear-ahead-of-grand-jury-decision" target="_blank">denounced the human rights abuses</a> committed by the assembled law enforcement agencies against those protesting the police. Ferguson residents ready for the repressive police presence, comparing the possible upheaval from the grand jury decision as akin to "<a href="http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2014/11/10/ferguson-resident-we-are-getting-prepared-for-war/" target="_blank">getting prepared for war</a>." Ferguson police are indeed also gearing up for war, preparing to turn the city streets of Ferguson into a war zone once again,<a href="http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2014/11/10/new-riot-gear-at-the-ready-in-ferguson/" target="_blank"> having spent $100,000</a> on new helmets, shields and batons, in addition to restocking their supplies of pepper spray, smoke canisters and rubber bullets. If the NLC's membership approves the 1033 resolution this month, then they will have <a href="http://www.guns.com/2014/08/25/swat-team-lobby-asks-congress-not-to-cut-military-gear-pipeline/" target="_blank">joined the side of the domestic militarists</a> in working to persuade Congress to keep the flow of military weapons and gear into police agencies for the foreseeable future.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-43561726501288996002014-10-29T18:55:00.004-07:002014-10-29T19:32:13.859-07:00Megapolitan in a Mega-Drought? A Guide to the Sun Corridorfrom the <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Stop CANAMEX</a> project <br />
<br />
Plans for massive new transportation projects in Arizona such as the
Interstate 11, South Mountain Freeway Loop 202 Extension, and High Speed
Passenger Rail seem out of touch with reality. As the urban heat
island effect expands and the drought gets worse, it may be inevitable
that residents
will have no choice but to use expensive water piped in from
desalination plants on
the coast of Mexico or California. The massive amounts of energy
needed to construct this infrastructure for desalination and
transport also requires an immense amount of water--an endless
ridiculous cycle--but one that is profitable to a few. Will those with
the
vision for the future of the so-called Sun Corridor, a "megapolitan"
including Phoenix and Tucson, ignore these
problems, and simply promote growth by building new roads like
Interstate 11 and the South Mountain Freeway to allegedly improve the
region's
position in the global economy and provide the private sector with
opportunities to make money on transportation projects?<br />
<br />
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Even the authors of the <a href="http://morrisoninstitute.asu.edu/products/megapolitan-arizonas-sun-corridor">report</a>
to which most of the popularity of
the Sun Corridor concept is owed admit that they're not so sure about
the environmental sustainability of such a concept, yet at this point,
many city and state officials as well as others take the Sun Corridor as
inevitable. According to some in local government, media, and academia,
it is both already the Sun Corridor, as well as a work-in-progress that
requires
strategic planning, infrastructure such as Interstate 11 and high-speed
passenger rail
connecting Tucson and Phoenix, intentional branding, and a
regional identity.<br />
<br />
Sun Corridor cheerleaders have projected that the area would double
in population from 5 million to 10 million by 2050. The Sun Corridor is
taken as a given, or inevitable because of this growth. It is allegedly
justified both to accommodate the projected growth and to encourage it.
The relationship between Phoenix and Tucson is described as natural and
organic, despite the fact that the entire basis upon which the cities'
settlement and expansion has been achieved has been through theft and
exploitation of land, water, and other resources.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Primarily a project of think tanks with funding by large foundations,
the Sun Corridor is one
of several "megapolitans" in the US which were defined only
about ten years ago based on projected population, proximity between
two or more urban areas, an
economic integration across boundaries, and their importance in global
trade. In some ways it is a prediction based on a
trajectory, but mostly it is an agenda for profit-seekers. The Sun
Corridor concept is by no means homegrown. Some local officials adopted
it after being informed by consultants of the “benefits” of the global
competitiveness it would bring, or by the institutions pushing
public-private partnerships or state trust land reforms for more
developments or infrastructure.<br />
<br />
Megaregions, Global-City Regions, Mega-Cities, etc. as trade hubs that
surpass the metropolitan scale are not at all specific to the US, nor
are they new. These and the
accompanying finance, infrastructure and governance projects arose out
of free-market-oriented models across the
world, largely promoted and pushed by the World Bank specifically
through structural adjustment programs and development over the last
couple decades. The economic
integration mirrors that of arrangements such as NAFTA paired with
infrastructure like CANAMEX/I-11, or the the European Union with their
passenger rail system. The Sun Corridor is part of a much broader shift
towards large private companies attempting to gain access to
decision-making and tax dollars to carve their design into the land in
effort to increase economic competitiveness.<br />
<br />
Profit-making opportunities abound for the few who are in a position to
take advantage if the Sun Corridor comes to fruition. First, a
megapolitan is seen
as an important node in global trade, a way for the region to become
economically competitive, or at least this is the justification used for
promoting growth. It is also an opportunity for companies to win
infrastructure deals, since pushing the megapolitan concept
brings along "necessity" for infrastructure like roads and rail. It may
allow for changes to laws regarding state trust land, which would enable
transportation projects and new
development projects. Megapolitans, along with other megaregions,
span municipal and sometimes state or even international lines and
render the area vulnerable to imposition of new methods of organization
and governance, with the full intention of providing
private interests access to decision-making and new "partnerships." An
arrangement called a public-private partnership (P3) is an integral part
of the megapolitan plan.<br />
<br />
<b>Financial Interests </b><br />
<br />
Big banks, consultants, engineering and construction
companies, and real estate developers all have interests in these new
projects, even if they're not quite all on the same page. Those with
the most power and influence are the large financial institutions
with their relationships to think tanks, foundations, and
academia.<br />
<br />
Despite the high degree of interest in the construction of new
roads and such, the the overarching motivation mustn't be overlooked.
As explained in <a href="http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/sites/thecornerhouse.org.uk/files/Bricks%20and%20Mortar.pdf">More
than Bricks and Mortar</a>, the primary incentive is likely a
growing effort on the part of financial institutions and those who
see common interests to find more profit-making opportunities.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://locateinarizona.com/images/AZSC-logo.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://locateinarizona.com/images/AZSC-logo.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://locateinarizona.com/" target="_blank">Arizona Sun Corridor Partnership</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<blockquote>
"... 'infrastructure' is less about financing
development (which is at best a sideshow) than about developing
finance..." "what is being constructed are the subsidies,
fiscal incentives, capital markets, regulatory regimes and other
support systems necessary to transform 'infrastructure' into an asset
class that should yield above average profits."
</blockquote>
Public-private partnership (P3), a variation on privatization, is the
increasingly preferred “innovative financing solution” used
to accomplish arrangements for transportation projects, sometimes
involving toll roads for example, but often instead, companies get paid
through taxes. P3s may be somewhat new to the US, but they're not new
to the world. Since the 1980's, investment banks have developed new
ways of making sure they receive full repayment for loans to
countries across the world, rather than accepting when they've made
bad investments. Repayment was ensured through the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, which saw major neoliberal
influence in the early 80's, with a major role played by the
Rockefeller Foundation, whose sway did not stop there. Indebted
countries were then required to make institutional reforms called
"structural adjustment programs" which cut back on social
welfare programs and opened the country up to privatization and
further foreign investment. Increasingly, investment banks and others
have sought opportunities for profit-making in various developing
countries, but also in Europe and North America through P3s for
infrastructure projects. While structural adjustment programs had
largely functioned as austerity measures and accepted only as
conditions for accessing loans (with little to no choice), P3s in the US
are portrayed as smart
options for building roads and such.<br />
<br />
In the early 2000s, financial institutions began to arrange for
public-private partnerships (including the reform of state laws to
enable P3s) to fund infrastructure
projects in the US. These ranged from preservation and repair of old
transportation
infrastructure to development of new infrastructure, specifically
trade corridors and transportation that would facilitate <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conurbation">conurbation</a>,
such as intercity passenger rail. The
relationships between the World Bank, Rockefeller Foundation (and other
Rockefeller institutions and individuals), JP Morgan
Chase, the Brookings Institution, and beyond is integral to this
direction. The projects that get completed will have more and more to do
with what these elite institutions decide to arrange financing for.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/MapofEmergingUSMegaregions.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="BOTTOM" border="0" height="266" name="graphics2" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEgAx9l9-SggjiDbCI2Xl3cwPsHCSnALv6JCoOIylPRvsu2H-BaGKp69i4qJ4OwWMPvqTD_CMyJpTWDDmOElQaQ32cSlu3hGVVYFPOH8_fVowSCSfWYSsatczsui8M1vHfVOa3MCJ1U-VQ3-0YtzTV_mNy4_TYWSkc2hg7EV0snFBJcEdqyTh4QZtxpj9sxIx4M=" width="400" /></a>The "Megapolitan" in particular was conceptualized in
the mid-2000s. It largely arose out of a graduate urban planning
studio at University of Pennsylvania School of Design in 2004 called "Plan for America" involving the Regional
Planning Association (RPA) and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
(with connections to the World Bank and close ties to the Brookings Institution). RPA and the Lincoln
Institute, sometimes along with the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Rockefeller Foundation, and/or the Ford Foundation
sponsored several more forums, conferences, studies and documents. Out of this came
<a href="http://america2050.org/" target="_blank">America 2050</a> (funded by the Rockefeller Foundation through RPA, as well as the Ford Foundation), which is
a primary proponent of the megapolitan concept, along with high-speed
passenger rail.<br />
<br />
Central to the definition and promotion of megapolitans and the Sun Corridor is
Robert E. Lang, originally of Virginia Tech, with fellowships through the Lincoln Institute of
Land Policy and the Brookings Institution and involvement in America
2050. He co-authored numerous papers on US megapolitans, as well as
the book <i>Megapolitan America</i>. Making the "Sun Corridor" a much more recognizable name, he worked with the
Morrison Institute (with Grady Gammage Jr.) on the <a href="http://morrisoninstitute.asu.edu/products/megapolitan-arizonas-sun-corridor">Megapolitan:
Arizona's Sun Corridor</a> while a
visiting professor at Arizona State University. Lang became a spokesperson for the
concept.<br />
<br />
In 2008 when this Morrison report came out, the <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/viewpoints/articles/0504vip-langhall04.html" target="_blank">Arizona Republic</a> printed an article in which Lang (with John Stuart Hall) revealed some of the primary reasons
for interest in the Sun Corridor:
<br />
<blockquote>
Mega regions will be closely watched because of the
importance of more people to federal funding formulas (such as with
transportation), marketing targets and venture-capital options.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
The Sun Corridor also has unique challenges. For example,
how state trust land will be developed is a <i>critical wild card</i> since
more than a quarter of the Sun Corridor is managed by the State Land
Department. </blockquote>
<b>State Trust Land</b><br />
<br />
In the context of a major drought, imagine a whole new city
of another million residents being planned south-east of Phoenix. The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
has been particularly interested in state trust land reforms, notably
in Arizona for this project called the Superstition Vistas.<br />
<br />
State trust land was provided to various states by the United States
Congress for each state to lease or sell as a way to generate revenue to
benefit public institutions such as schools. Currently, Arizona state
law requires that parcels of land are sold at
auction to the highest bidder, making it nearly impossible for such a
large section of land to be purchased with one central plan in mind.
Most of the planning
for Superstition Vistas dropped off due to the recession, but the land,
or some of it, will likely be up for <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/money/real-estate/2014/04/05/pinal-county-state-land-development/7367977/">auction soon</a>. The planning has taken place with the hopes that <a href="http://drussellotf.wordpress.com/2014/04/11/smart-development-of-state-land-requires-a-new-approach-to-selling-it-reformers-say/">legal obstacles can be overcome</a>.
<br />
<a href="http://www.sonoraninstitute.org/images/stories/2010/superstition/SuperstitionVistasEdits-sm.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img align="BOTTOM" border="0" height="160" name="graphics3" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEjXLcEYUFIqVu5a1wKobkP0GY0nrtLm8VD1KZ9BCU4g8D0-ZXO3FC3MLHgm-oto6E_ZLQ2qbI9aRMJDX4SRpmUyjPyqedAAqIF84TGXr59Mu5grvrp8ZO0fcviiMg9fAKMrJLMhEwcQOqGwp6kwFJO6W3ElyCH5p1foeIGnjprdlFegICgsCjGZo9Aii0Um-DIGZOaSLEVoGhhg-z48Sw=" width="200" /></a><br />
Prior to the Sun Corridor report, the Morrison Institute (with
Lang and Gammage) was commissioned by the Superstition Vistas
steering committee for a study on the development of the land which
they published in 2006 (<a href="http://www.superstition-vistas.org/wp-content/uploads/treasure_superstition_vistas.pdf">The
Treasure of the Superstitions</a>). The <a href="http://www.hcn.org/issues/41.7/the-growth-machine-is-broken/print_view">steering
committee also brought in</a> the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and the so-called
conservation group, the Sonoran Institute based out of Tucson, around which time, the two groups <a href="http://www.lincolninst.edu/news-events/news-listing/articletype/articleview/articleid/1659/new-director-named-for-lincoln-institute-sonoran-institute-joint-venture" target="_blank">created a joint venture</a>.<br />
<br />
Interest in this project and the involvement of Lang and the Lincoln
Institute seems to have been integral to the advancement of the
megapolitan concept and the Sun Corridor in particular. Characterizing
the area as a megapolitan region could be used to justify a
development project like the Superstition Vistas and the necessary state
trust land reforms, and accommodate
cross-boundary governance which could more easily bring in private
interests. Changes to the state trust land laws in Arizona would
facilitate other development and transportation infrastructure
projects, such as Interstate 11 connecting Las Vegas with Phoenix and
potentially beyond. According to <a href="http://morrisoninstitute.asu.edu/products/megapolitan-arizonas-sun-corridor">Megapolitan:
Arizona's Sun Corridor</a>,
"...this effort could become a model for
mega-scale thinking about state trust land and its role in the future
of Arizona."<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
To recap and add
some context, Robert Lang and the Lincoln Institute got involved in
the Superstition Vistas project around the time that Lang (with his
fellowship from the Lincoln Institute) was working on the megapolitan
concept. The Morrison Institute Sun Corridor report was published two
years after the Superstition Vistas report.
Also significant may be that in 2005, the Lincoln Institute hired a
new president, Gregory Ingram, who had worked for the World Bank and
International Finance Corporation (the World Bank's private arm that
is heavily involved in infrastructure investment). Ingram remained
president until 2012 and may have had influence on the direction of
the Institute in favor of the megapolitan concept. Also
significant is that the Arizona state land department Commissioner as
of 2012, Vanessa Hickman, sees importance in the success of
Superstition Vistas and is now also on Arizona's Transportation and
Trade
Corridor Alliance (TTCA), a public/private entity that promotes the
importance of "key commerce corridors"--essentially trade
infrastructure.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
The Morrison
Institute <a href="http://morrisoninstitute.asu.edu/products/sun-corridor-competitive-mindset">reiterates</a>
the importance of this land in their 2012 report. "The 2.4
million acres of State Trust Land that make up 18% of the total Sun
Corridor area will be critical to the future growth of the area."
Additionally, they emphasize the role of this land for high speed
rail. "It is possible to site a high speed rail line between Phoenix
and Tucson largely on state trust land. While there are considerable
legal challenges to this, the rewards would be substantial." </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
<b>Freeways and High Speed Passenger Rail</b><br />
<b> </b> <br />
The importance
of high speed rail (HSR) to the megapolitan and megaregion concepts
can not be overstated. It is difficult to determine whether
rail-builders' interest was what
boosted the megapolitan idea, or if it is the megapolitan concept that
requires the intercity rail. What is clear is that HSR would play a very
important role in tying the urban areas together.<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
The Arizona Department of Transportation has a study in the works for a
high speed passenger rail between Phoenix and Tucson. Of the three
routes they’ve narrowed it down to, the eastern-most (orange)
alternative runs right through the area some planners still hope will be
the Superstition Vistas. The central (yellow) route could also serve
this area.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The first of five objectives of the Sonoran Institute, one of the main
promoters of the Superstition Vistas project, was to “promote a commuter
rail system linking Phoenix and Tucson," according to their 2010
publication “<a href="https://duckduckgo.com/l/?kh=-1&uddg=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sonoraninstitute.org%2Fcomponent%2Fdocman%2Fdoc_view%2F1354-riding-the-rails-to-sustainability-facts-about-the-economics-and-ecology-of-rail-travel-04012010.html">Riding the Rails to Sustainability</a>,” as part of their Sun Corridor Legacy Program.<br />
<br />
While the best selling point for
megapolitan development is high speed passenger rail as an
alternative to driving, it is not as incompatible with new
highways as it's made to seem. Certain environmental non-profit
organizations citing research on megapolitans and population are
promoting studies that show a decreasing number of drivers and
therefore less need for new highways, and yet the megapolitan vision
requires new roads as well, particularly the important trade
corridors. Specifically, USPIRG and AZPIRG are funded by the
Rockefeller Foundation for their HSR projects, and their
publications reference America 2050, the primary promoter of the
megapolitan concept, which is also funded by the same foundation. Aside from
America 2050, most of the promoters of pairing the megapolitan
concept with passenger rail also see CANAMEX or trade corridors
in general as necessary endeavors.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
While AZPIRG has solicited support for
their HSR campaign from groups opposing Interstate 11 and
the South Mountain Freeway, they likely will not join the opposition to these roads
themselves, other than releasing a report naming the I-11 as one of several money-wasting “<a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2014/09/24/report-calls-proposed-project-boondoggle/16139199/" target="_blank">boondoggles</a>.” It may be lost on them that the Sun Corridor concept
justifies and even requires the trade corridor that I-11 would
become, and the truck bypass that the South Mountain Freeway/Loop 202
extension would provide. The megapolitan is nearly always portrayed
as an international trade hub, which requires massive multi-lane
roads for freight trucks. "A successful Interstate 11 will be a smartly designed multi-modal trade
corridor that yields multiple benefits for rural and underserved
communities on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border," is the <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/letters/2014/09/27/international-corridor-letters/16366589/" target="_blank">opinion of the Sonoran Institute</a>, or at least its Sun Corridor program director, who recently wrote in favor of the I-11. Dowdy lists rail specifically in an <a href="http://www.ahwatukee.com/opinion/article_6d81c436-4b80-11e4-a21f-b3460cc2deb9.html" target="_blank">October 8th pro-I-11 commentary</a>.<br />
<br />
This is not the only mention of I-11 having multiple modes for
transportation (and possibly for energy and even water). Potentially,
the
excitement for HSR could inadvertently be used to facilitate an
acceptance of I-11, even despite PIRG's portrayal of I-11 as a
boondoggle in their vaguely pro-HSR <a href="http://www.uspirg.org/sites/pirg/files/reports/Highway%20Boondoggles%20USPIRG.pdf">report</a>
(the report is largely based on their Rockefeller Foundation-funded
research by both PIRG and the Frontier Group including the more
blatantly pro-HSR "<a href="http://libraryarchives.metro.net/DPGTL/harvested/ocm682224672.pdf" target="_blank">A Track Record of Success</a>"). In a September 29th letter to the editor from AZPIRG, the director
wrote, "We agree that 'this isn't about cars vs. transit' and that there
should
be a larger vision for an Intermountain West multi-modal corridor." The <a href="http://www.aecom.com/deployedfiles/Internet/News/Global%20Cities%20Institute/AECOM_GlobalCities_SunCorridorFutureCorridor.pdf">AECOM
Sun Corridor report</a> states that there's a potential to share
right-of-way between rail and highway. Additionally, <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/docs/planning/state-rail-plan.pdf">ADOT's
2011 Rail Plan</a> (prepared in part by AECOM as a consultant,
including Mike Kies and John McNamara who are involved in the I-11
Study) stated, "The proposed Interstate [11] route may be
developed as a multimodal corridor, including freight rail, and is
part of the Canamex high priority corridor, which is envisioned to
include intercity or high-speed passenger rail service." Again,
even if the I-11 is not justified by pairing it with HSR, there is
demand for trade corridors with or without HSR.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0.19in; margin-top: 0.19in;">
Due to issues with increased development contributing to pollution, the
urban heat island effect, increased water usage, impacts to wildlife,
displacement of people, and damage to South Mountain in the case of
the Loop 202 extension, the Sun Corridor's architects know that this
megapolitan idea will only be accepted if it can be portrayed as
“green”--as environmentally sustainable and responsible. But
there are many ways of making something appear green that really
isn't, such as can be seen with market-based mechanisms which
involve turning things into commodities such as <a href="http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/sites/thecornerhouse.org.uk/files/Socialist%20Register%20Neoliberal%20Climate%20Policy%20Contradictions.pdf" target="_blank">carbon for trade</a>.
<i>Greenwashing</i> is a term used to refer to the "unjustified
appropriation of environmental virtue by a company, an industry, a
government, a politician or even a non-government organization to
create a pro-environmental image, sell a product or a policy,"
according to <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Greenwashing">SourceWatch</a>.
This is not to imply that the benefits of HSR are enough to greenwash
trade corridor infrastructure. HSR also requires a certain amount of
greenwashing to justify itself. And this is not the only way that
paving over the land to make space for transportation will be
greenwashed.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ushsr.com/images/810_US_HSR_Phasing_Map.gif" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ushsr.com/images/810_US_HSR_Phasing_Map.gif" height="258" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HSR map overlaying Megapolitan map from <a href="http://www.ushsr.com/info.html">USHSR</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
High speed rail would not only be used to make the megapolitan or trade
corridors acceptable. It supports the concept of the megapolitan as a
node in international trade, it is meant to facilitate regional identity
and economic integration, it is another piece of infrastructure that
provides finance opportunities, and would contribute to the destruction
caused by increased development. It is true that HSR makes sense to many
in an era of diminishing oil. But the political and economic stability
sought by having alternatives to oil-based transportation is meant to
support commercial and financial productivity, not to save the planet.</div>
That which primarily inspired early
proponents of HSR including Robert Lang to promote US megapolitans
paired with HSR is the European model of regionalism and the ways
HSR facilitated economic integration (the EU) and regional identity.
Lang and a couple of RPA/Lincoln Institute colleagues promoted HSR as
early as 2005, while most others (Brookings Institution, AECOM, PIRG,
and even Lincoln Institute as a whole) didn't pick up on it in any
significant way until <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0gpaVwcKyI">2009 when Obama promised</a> billions of dollars in federal funds for HSR,
at which point the HSR lobby grew exponentially. State officials, but
especially the private sector, have gathered that alternative modes
of transportation are necessary and desired, yet profit is the underlying motivation. <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/5449/text" target="_blank">Legislation continues</a> to be introduced to facilitate more HSR in the US. Rockefeller Foundation/America 2050's U.S.
High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program has made investments of
$10.1 billion in high-speed and conventional passenger rail corridors
across the country, according to a <a href="https://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/dl/1948_1268_High-Speed%20Rail%20PFR_Webster.pdf">2011
report</a>. How much money would their associates (board members even?) stand to make from these projects?<b> </b><br />
<br />
<b>Private-Sector Imposition</b><br />
<br />
Most likely any high speed rail project in Arizona, if it gets built, <a href="http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/22809468/high-speed-tucson-to-phoenix" target="_blank">will be a public-private partnership</a> (P3), like many are in Europe. The way things are going, the
same could be said for roads as well. P3s can involve concession such
as rail fares or tolls on roads, but can in some cases allow for an
arrangement in which private companies can access financing that they
couldn't otherwise, in the form of low-interest federal loans,
tax-free bonds, and payments from tax-payers via local government.
P3s are more attractive to governments because the arrangements allow for getting transportation projects
finished without relying on the minimal government funding, although they often <a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/business/2014/08/13/States-learn-partnerships-come-with-hazards/stories/201408130003">don’t work out</a> in the public’s favor. The companies
themselves are interested in profit, and on a larger scale, financial
institutions are able to make money as well.</div>
As described in <a href="http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/sites/thecornerhouse.org.uk/files/Bricks%20and%20Mortar.pdf">More
than Bricks and Mortar</a>, "Under PPPs, the private sector builds,
finances and manages a
project in return for the government guaranteeing a revenue stream
from the project’s users (in the case of a toll road, for instance,
the government undertakes to pay should usage fall below a minimum
number of cars per day) and giving other contractual undertakings." The
report explains that the situation has been described as a “'build now,
pay later' scheme that
is 'no different from the credit card consumerism boom that
contributed to the global financial crisis.'" An illusion is created in
which it seems that financing is coming from a private source, but in
the end, taxpayers or service users are making the payments. Elsewhere,
P3s are often compared to mortgages, and we've seen how well we can
trust banks and the government to keep these debt-based transactions
from impacting the broader economy.<br />
<br />
Nearly any document promoting megapolitans and/or trade corridors
also touts P3s for their indispensable benefits, even including the
early megapolitan-related 2004 City Planning Studio/Lincoln Institute document, <a href="http://www.america2050.org/2005/09/toward-an-american-spatial-dev.html" target="_blank">Toward an American Spatial Development Perspective</a>. The
Brookings Institute in particular has been producing documents and
policy recommendations for P3s for years. The primary Brookings
document related to the Sun Corridor is by Robert Lang called
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/Mountain%20Megas:%20America%27s%20Newest%20Metropolitan%20Places%20and%20a%20Federal%20Partnership%20to%20Help%20Them%20Prosper">Mountain
Megas</a> (2008).<br />
<br />
<div align="CENTER">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Also
check out</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/06/plans-for-privatization-of-i-11.html">Plans
for Privatization of I-11</a> </span></span>
</div>
<br />
Other publications that advanced the Sun Corridor concept, trade
corridors, P3s and megapolitans include <a href="http://www.azmag.gov/Documents/MAG_North-American-Opportunities-and-the-Sun-Corridor.pdf">North
America Next: North American Opportunities and the Sun Corridor</a>
(2009) prepared by the North American Center for Transborder Studies
(NACTS) at ASU (now defunct); and the <a href="http://www.aecom.com/deployedfiles/Internet/News/Global%20Cities%20Institute/AECOM_GlobalCities_SunCorridorFutureCorridor.pdf">Sun
Corridor, Future Corridor</a> report (2010) by AECOM Global Cities
Institute.<br />
<br />
As with many neoliberal-leaning institutions, the view is
that the federal government's role is to facilitate free-market
policies such as free trade. In chapter five of Brookings' <a href="http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2008/07/20-mountainmegas-sarzynski">Mountain
Megas</a> document, entitled "Forging a New Federal-Mega Agenda
for the Intermountain West" which highlights the Sun Corridor,
the authors emphasize CANAMEX/I-11 and high speed passenger rail
along with P3s. <br />
<br />
Brookings and other think tanks have had success in moving the federal
government in the direction of P3s. The megapolitan/P3 project has
increasingly been taken on by the federal government as shown by
tax-breaks and other forms of corporate welfare, as well as providing
resources for local governments to implement policy changes. Case in
point is the September 9, 2014 announcement of the federal government’s <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/09/09/fact-sheet-build-america-infrastructure-investment-summit">Build America Investment Initiative,</a> although this is not the first effort to promote P3s. According to <a href="http://www.chadbourne.com/US_Government_Moves_Encourage_More_P3s_projectfinance/">Chadbourne.com</a>,<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The part of the President’s new initiative that could provide the
most immediate benefit is creation of a new office within the US
Department of Transportation called the Build America transportation
investment center. The center will open by November 14. The President
said it will serve as a “one-stop shop for cities and states seeking to
use innovative financing and partnerships with the private sector to
support transportation infrastructure.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The center will play an informational role. It will make federal
resources more understandable and promote access to federal credit
assistance programs to help finance transportation infrastructure.</blockquote>
This initiative includes a joint investment between the Rockefeller
Foundation and the Ford Foundation of “over $1 million to support
innovations in U.S. infrastructure. The new partnership will expand the
infrastructure pipeline by incubating innovative public private
collaborations, including... Provide seed capital for promising regional
collaboration models, including regional infrastructure exchanges, that
make it easier for localities to attract private finance…” “Regional”
here likely implies megaregions or megapolitans.<br />
<br />
It is worth noting that large foundations serve many roles. In addition
to acting as tax shelters, foundations often have political agendas
relating to the interests of their board members and/or the companies
they invest in. For example, there has been a long-standing <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Rockefeller_Foundation">relationship</a>
between the Rockefeller Foundation and JP Morgan Chase. Many think of
foundations as simply a provider of charitable donations and grants to
non-profits. Tax law requires foundations to spend a minimum of 5% of
their taxable assets on grants and administrative expenses,
which allows much of the rest to be invested. Foundations such as Ford
and Rockefeller are not politically neutral, but instead are
particularly interested
in proliferating free-market capitalism, managing dissent, maintaining
economic and political stability, and strengthening US hegemony. They
are part of the power elite. Governance allows for participation not
just from the companies that foundations have relationships with, but
also from non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) who often do their
bidding--all with an appearance of being more democratic. <br />
<br />
Another example of obvious involvement of the federal government is the
Federal Highway Administration website and their promotion of
megaregions such as in their<a href="http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/megaregions/reports/megaregions_report_2011/"> Megaregions Report</a>
and literature review prepared by Catherine Ross (member of the
National Committee for America 2050) in 2011. This,
along with their promotion of P3s, has likely resulted due to lobbying.
Although it may appear as a more horizontal governance approach through
incentive funding and relaxation of current laws rather than top-down
state power, the intention is that private interests will benefit
from federal
government-given protectionism and subsidies. This is a variation of
“actually-existing
neoliberalism,” a form that utilizes the state to allow the private
sector into decision-making and financing that it previously had little
access to. Governance facilitates an entry of the private sector into
official decision-making such as for more infrastructure and more P3s.
In the case of these types of governance structures, decisions tend to
be made behind closed doors.<br />
<br />
Brookings also promotes a new method of
governance. In their Mountain Megas report, they advocated for tweaking
Municipal Planning Organization (MPO) law and creating governance
structures such as the Joint Planning Advisory Council (see below),
and to incentivize other innovations in governance for megapolitans. This echos Lang's
<a href="http://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/projects/projec44.html">early
writings</a> on the megapolitan concept: "...new super MPOs
could result from future legislation that directs Megapolitan Areas
to plan on a vast new scale." <br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
The junction of megapolitans/megaregions, governance, and P3s is rooted in "new regionalism," as <a href="http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/megaregions/reports/megaregions_report_2011/megaregions02.cfm">Ross' FHWA report</a> discusses:</div>
<blockquote>
...'new regionalism', proposes an institutional shift in
regional emphasis from government to governance, and emphasizes
public and private-sector partnerships and joint ventures... The new
institutional forms require a strong coordination of governments at
different scales, and public and private actors...The territorial and
functional reorganization of the power of the national government
means the changes of its boundaries in terms of roles, emphasizing
the coordination of the boundaries between public, private, and other
actors.
</blockquote>
In this same <a href="http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/megaregions/reports/megaregions_report_2011/megaregions03.cfm">report</a>
it was argued that the Sun Corridor "will have to consider a
different form of governance, regional cooperation and infrastructure
investment that will promote its global perspective and shift the
paradigm to solidify it as a new geographic entity."<br />
<br />
Described
as a <a href="http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/megaregions/reports/megaregions_report_2011/megaregions03.cfm">milestone</a>
in Sun Corridor efforts, a Joint Planning Advisory Council (JPAC) was
formed in 2009 by the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), the
Pima Association of Governments (PAG) and the Central Arizona
Association of Governments (CAAG). They are joined by their private
“partnering agencies," the Arizona Mexico Commission (a P3 unit that is said by their
CANAMEX expert to be the "godfather" of CANAMEX), the
CANAMEX Coalition (also a P3 unit), AECOM, and the Morrison
Institute.
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
<b>Trade with Mexico</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
This same collaboration as initiated with
JPAC is considered highly important according to the <a href="http://www.azmag.gov/Documents/MAG_North-American-Opportunities-and-the-Sun-Corridor.pdf">NACTS
report</a>, which the authors argued "should be implemented to
take advantage of international opportunities." NACTS, the
now-defunct ASU establishment, was an extension of the Security and
Prosperity Partnership via the Council of the Americas. They have been
a major proponent of NAFTA and the CANAMEX Trade Corridor and they
conceptualized the Sun Corridor as a multi-modal inland port.</div>
</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Also
check out <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/05/filling-in-i-11canamex-gaps.html">Filling
in the I-11/CANAMEX Gaps</a></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
CANAMEX
is a NAFTA trade corridor stretching from the western Mexican port of
Guaymas up through five US states to Alberta, Canada. Interstate 11 is
needed to create a better truck route between Las Vegas and Phoenix, but
is intended to extend the length of the CANAMEX corridor or some
variation on it
called the Intermountain West Corridor, therefore going through or near
Tucson to Mexico (read more on the I-11 confusion at <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/05/filling-in-i-11canamex-gaps.html">Filling in the I-11/CANAMEX Gaps</a><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">)</span></span></span>. AECOM defines the Sun Corridor as a
piece of the CANAMEX Corridor and envisions the Sun Corridor as an inland port
with a strong trade relationship with Mexico. Their <a href="http://www.aecom.com/deployedfiles/Internet/News/Global%20Cities%20Institute/AECOM_GlobalCities_SunCorridorFutureCorridor.pdf">Sun
Corridor, Future Corridor</a> report (2010) was written by AECOM
Global Cities Institute. One author was AECOM's John McNamara who is
now instrumental in the Interstate 11 Study and was involved in the
<a href="http://azmemory.azlibrary.gov/utils/getfile/collection/statepubs/id/8494/filename/8786.pdf">Arizona
Trade Corridor Study</a>, an early CANAMEX document of 1993. </div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
AECOM, which is one of the private
partners within JPAC, seems to have entered the megapolitan game when
they got a board member on RPA in 2006 (Kevin S. Corbett, DMJM
Harris). They are involved in various types of transportation
infrastructure and P3s, including high speed passenger rail and roads,
the I-11 Study being only one of them. Just like
the Brookings Institution's Mountain Megas report, both AECOM in their <a href="http://www.aecom.com/deployedfiles/Internet/News/Global%20Cities%20Institute/AECOM_GlobalCities_SunCorridorFutureCorridor.pdf">Sun
Corridor, Future Corridor</a> report (2010), and the <a href="http://www.cagaz.org/CAG/CAGLibrary/CEDS/Ceds%20July%202011.pdf" target="_blank">Central Arizona Association of Governments</a> (2011) prioritized
I-11/CANAMEX and high speed rail as central to the Sun Corridor
project. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
<div align="CENTER" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Also
check out more on AECOM and I-11 at </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/07/privatized-roads-privatized-water.html">Privatized
Roads, Privatized Water</a></span></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span>
</div>
<br />
The Sun Corridor and its position within the CANAMEX Corridor claim to
provide business opportunities such as for the Casa Grande-based
PhoenixMart, a massive wholesale trade center involving a foreign trade
zone. Casa Grande is planning an "inland
port" involving proximity to one or
more Foreign
Trade Zones (FTZ) and increased rail infrastructure. FTZs and other such
zones are being increasingly
created to provide incentives to big companies to do business in those
areas,
allowing them to avoid paying certain taxes and fees. Last year, in <a href="http://www.trivalleycentral.com/florence_reminder_blade_tribune/news/phoenixmart-seen-as-catalyst/article_8e83db5c-262d-11e3-84b1-001a4bcf887a.html" target="_blank">"PhoenixMart seen as catalyst"</a> Melissa St. Aude wrote (likely confusing the term megapolitan with megalopolis): <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Casa Grande could someday be the epicenter of a sprawling Sun Corridor
megalopolis, spanning from Tucson to Phoenix. That was the vision given
Friday by PhoenixMart Chief Executive Officer Steve Betts and AZ Sourcing
President Jeremy Schoenfelder... </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
At the center of the megalopolis would be PhoenixMart, a nearly
2-million-square-foot sourcing center with 1,750 manufacturer showroom suites,
attracting wholesale buyers from around the world and triggering development of
various spin-off businesses ranging from hotels, restaurants and warehouses to
other services.<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6230622378312417464#1" name="top1"></a> </blockquote>
The promise of Arizona's economic growth has everything to do with trade with Mexico. As <a href="http://tucson.com/news/opinion/column/guest/albert-lannon-building-interstate-through-avra-valley-would-hurt-people/article_65320343-ad84-570e-b9a8-c99b55a87f39.html" target="_blank">Albert Lannon of the Avra Valley Coalition pointed out</a>, the I-11 Corridor Justification report use of certain projections to explain the benefits of the Interstate is telling. <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The key words in the projections are “nearshoring” and “integrative
manufacturing.” The planners predict that, as Chinese wages rise, Mexico
will become more attractive to corporations. With U.S. manufacturing
labor costs at 100 on an ADOT index, China is 5 and Mexico 12. As “trade
with Mexico expands,” the report argues, so will “the current trend of
moving manufactured goods production … to Mexico. ... Mexico was the
most popular choice for nearshoring, where hourly compensation costs are
nearly as low as China.”</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The report suggests “industry clusters”
and “integrative manufacturing” to house the making of parts in the
U.S., with assembly in Mexico. Kies told the stakeholders, “Mexico is
happening!”</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The report discusses planned improvements at the
Mexican port of Guaymas for container traffic. That impacts high-paying
jobs in the West Coast stevedoring, trucking and warehouse industries.
The report discusses receiving even more goods from Asia as another
“alternative future scenario.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In their discussion of marketing I-11 to the public, the pitch is
“enhancing economic vitality” and “commercial opportunities.” I-11 is
being sold as a way for corporations to make more money. Period. There
is no expressed interest in workers except as cheap labor across the
border. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aP2VTBPayD0htM0v233FIHevBXJ9B5_Scar-URGRqZP7YfQBtTnn0DMoaunpKQwr08_MpVS_pXf9uVS9DSBgU-u0DcF8X47BOjPnQ0Wyk9vcxQhYC-hA9zQwvEiWAddmJ1EpuifjCjo/s1600/ari-son-mega-region-630x420.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aP2VTBPayD0htM0v233FIHevBXJ9B5_Scar-URGRqZP7YfQBtTnn0DMoaunpKQwr08_MpVS_pXf9uVS9DSBgU-u0DcF8X47BOjPnQ0Wyk9vcxQhYC-hA9zQwvEiWAddmJ1EpuifjCjo/s1600/ari-son-mega-region-630x420.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
The
Megaregion/megapolitan, due to its alleged promise of prosperity, is
popping up everywhere, with different interests promoting varying
concepts with a lack of coordination. Arizona and Sonoran government
officials recently <a href="http://www.yumasun.com/news/yuma-joins-effort-to-form-arizona-sonora-megaregion/article_522d4e04-e7a2-11e3-b9ac-001a4bcf6878.html" target="_blank">signed a partnering agreement</a> called the Arizona Sonora Binational Megaregion. One of their listed guiding principles is to "Use the
megaregion as a framework to further enable the development of local
relationships to advance projects/initiatives of regional
significance on both sides of the border in areas such as
transportation and infrastructure, education, economic development,
border security and public safety, trade area promotion, commerce and
tourism."</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
And there's also the Southwest Triangle
Megaregion, seemingly having everything to do with I-11. This specific megaregion is a new concept notably used in
the <a href="http://i11study.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/I-11CCR_Report_v14.pdf">I-11 Study documents</a> by AECOM and CH2MHill. The triangle
connects the Sun Corridor, Southern California Megapolitan, and Las
Vegas. Older plans for high-speed passenger rail making this same triangular connection
likely play a part in the creation of this megaregional
conceptualization. Additionally, some other people came up with the nearby <a href="http://calibaja.net/cbdb/p/" target="_blank">Cali-Baja Binational Megaregion</a>. Perhaps all of this will turn into the Southwest-Sonoran Trapezoid Mega-mega-region.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Somehow the logic of globalization does
not acknowledge the absurdity that the population growth in the Sun
Corridor is used to justify the area's role in global trade,
specifically NAFTA, even though it is policies like NAFTA that
have caused the displacement south of the border, leading to
migration and population growth in Arizona. The population projections
for
the Sun Corridor are based on the growth of the region leading up to
the primary studies on the concept around the mid-2000's. More recent
estimates show lower numbers but still project a few more million in the
area by
2050. Pro-NAFTA institutions such as the Rockefeller Foundation,
Brookings Institution, NACTS, etc, would have us believe that we can
still expect trickle-down benefits from these sorts of trade
arrangements. We are to accept the idea that this the Sun Corridor
should be a trade-hub, with its accompanying foreign trade zones
allowing tax- and duty-free transactions for corporations.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Migration from
south of the border is a primary factor in local population growth and
encouraging or embracing that growth through Megapolitan development
would seem to hasten the likelihood that white people will become the
minority, a rather silly concern. Nonetheless, Robert Lang dedicated a
portion of his book, “Megapolitan America”
to easing the fears of white people about getting out-numbered. He
reasoned that the definition of whiteness is fluid and will be
expanded. There are a number of environmentalists who also concern
themselves with the ethnic and racial composition of population growth.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://i.vimeocdn.com/video/443106518_640.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i.vimeocdn.com/video/443106518_640.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Recent history has shown us that
racists and xenophobes use environmental concerns to try to push
their population control policies, ranging from border security to
sterilization (not to mention the Rockefeller
Foundation's role in population control campaigns across the world).
The real problem with megapolitans in the context of
environmentalism is that they don't just accommodate population
growth, they encourage expansion and consumption on a mega scale. The infrastructure
and accompanying resource extraction are the much bigger problems.</div>
<br />
<b>Environmental Sustainability</b><br />
<br />
A new study shows that Arizona may be amidst a <a href="http://www.ktar.com/?nid=22&sid=1763065">mega-drought</a>, depending on how the next couple decades go. Yet the Morrison Institute's <a href="http://morrisoninstitute.asu.edu/products/sun-corridor-competitive-mindset">2012 Sun Corridor</a>
report describes the Sun Corridor as natural and organic. While they
may see the ways that a tendency towards conurbation has occurred
without much private or state intervention, a glaring omission of
perspective is the basis upon which the settlement and urbanization
occurred in the first place.<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
What isn't acknowledged is, for
example, "a coalition of lawyers,
businessmen, and politicians engaged in 'legal theft' to turn this
high desert, called Black Mesa, into one of America’s largest strip
mines. The energy from that coal would power the excesses of Las
Vegas and pump the Colorado River over three mountain ranges to
Phoenix as part of the Central Arizona Project, the world’s most
expensive water system," as described in a <a href="http://www.onearth.org/articles/2014/07/remind-us-again-why-we-built-cities-in-the-desert">review</a>
of Judith Nies new book "Unreal City." Also ignored is that Tucson as a settler city was able to survive and grow
due to the pumping of groundwater from the Tohono O'odham San Xavier
reservation, that O'odham water rights have been undermined, and that
their access to Central Arizona Project water was contingent on not
having the power to prevent more pumping and pollution (e.g. from
mining) of their groundwater.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Morrison Institute
report, <a href="https://duckduckgo.com/l/?kh=-1&uddg=http%3A%2F%2Fmorrisoninstitute.asu.edu%2Fproducts%2Fwatering-sun-corridor-managing-arizonas-megapolitan-area" target="_blank">Watering the Sun Corridor,</a> a follow-up to the original Sun Corridor document, contains concluding remarks that are
rather myopic, and pretty much racist, with this in mind. They write, "The Sun Corridor
exists only because past Arizonans worked together tirelessly to
build a vast, complex plumbing system. Using the power of government
to do this represented the <i>clearest consensus imaginable</i> about
serving the needs of society through collective action" (my emphasis).
This
report is also laden with admissions of the limitations regarding
knowledge about whether the Sun Corridor area has enough water to
sustain it. Overall, it recommends proceeding with caution, and
attempts to legitimize the development even if it takes more drastic
infrastructural changes to accommodate it, along with a few less
swimming pools.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeMIDtUj8ywVieS_9POSHio_nSOCvVPp3P8-4fY1HAhuXRwxWf9QAyI2mpddoOB49_U4r6g-1D2nNZUKQAM7b3y3TNM5dbPPelXjvhZOq7LsLO1Kx2x-PcGpO0g-Wt4SguMxoXyVbrIA/s400/l_83d6169edbe245a3bb22229cc101d12f.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeMIDtUj8ywVieS_9POSHio_nSOCvVPp3P8-4fY1HAhuXRwxWf9QAyI2mpddoOB49_U4r6g-1D2nNZUKQAM7b3y3TNM5dbPPelXjvhZOq7LsLO1Kx2x-PcGpO0g-Wt4SguMxoXyVbrIA/s400/l_83d6169edbe245a3bb22229cc101d12f.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
The impact of settler infrastructure projects on indigenous communities
is not a thing of the past, but continues, for example in the building
of roads like the South Mountain Freeway, which would be central to the
junction of the Sun Corridor and the I-11 Las Vegas-Phoenix Corridor.
Its function as a truck bypass would cut through the mountain sacred to
the O'odham and cause damage to the environment and to health.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In addition to the impacts of global warming, the urban heat island effect, largely due to roads, will raise
temperatures. In one
<a href="http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/v3/n1/full/nclimate1656.html">study</a>,
the researchers show "the intensification of observationally
based urban-induced phenomena and demonstrate that the direct
summer-time climate effects of the most rapidly expanding megapolitan
region in the USA—Arizona’s Sun Corridor—are considerable."
Can't we just paint all the roofs white to reduce the impact of the
heat island effect? Well, that might be nice if it didn't also
decrease rainfall by as much as an additional 4% on top of the 12%
from Sun Corridor growth as discussed in <a href="https://asunews.asu.edu/20120907_urbanheat_tradeoffs">"Researchers
emphasize need for evaluation of tradeoffs in battling urban heat
islands."</a></div>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="260" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/HBooNwPnXMQ" width="500"></iframe>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Just like the impact of coal mining in northern Arizona has been
overlooked, so too have repercussions of copper mining. Freeport
McMoran, the largest copper producer, with various mines in Arizona (and
elsewhere) and an office in downtown Phoenix, has interests in state
trust lands; they're buying up farmland for water rights; and they're
scheming
to gain access to more tribal water rights across Arizona. With one of
the highest paid CEOs in the world, Freeport has finagled <a href="http://arizona.sierraclub.org/political_action/tracker/SB1417.html" target="_blank">Arizona water legislation</a> to allow them to pollute ground water (not to mention
what they've done in <a href="http://alibi.com/news/45049/The-Toxic-Tales-of-Susana-Martinez.html">New Mexico</a>). In January, Freeport <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/politics/articles/20140128arizona-water-resources-chief-steps-down.html" target="_blank">hired the previous director</a>
of the Arizona Department of Water Resources as their director of water
strategy.
Freeport is a major participant and sponsor of the Arizona-Mexico
Commission--self-identified as the god-father of the CANAMEX
Corridor--most likely because of their interest in the Port of Guaymas.
Mining requires an exorbitant amount of
water, yet individual residents will be made to feel guilty about how
long
they shower.<br />
<br />
"Follow the money" is more than a cliché. The infastructural projects
are clearly a means to make a few people money. Furthermore, the Sun
Corridor is a fantasy at best, a heat- and drought-ridden, abandoned and
perhaps apocalyptic scene at worst. Or there is no Sun Corridor.
Growth, development, resource/energy extraction, can all be slowed or
stopped with enough effort.</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="color: #444444;">Published with the permission of the <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/10/megapolitan-in-mega-drought-guide-to.html" target="_blank">Stop CANAMEX blog </a></span></i></div>
</div>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitAs4VHSuZjvA79KSn4jYXQs7tCRQn8lNirgsa-_e0jbG4T3KIZCKqcmyHUdhiLUR5pp7D5izKT0eoM-qUHE3V4kgcOsNkGx1U9g3Ftiq3zxlV_8kU-MluByxQRbn-mJOl7VhF99d658/s1600/ore+police+22+comment+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitAs4VHSuZjvA79KSn4jYXQs7tCRQn8lNirgsa-_e0jbG4T3KIZCKqcmyHUdhiLUR5pp7D5izKT0eoM-qUHE3V4kgcOsNkGx1U9g3Ftiq3zxlV_8kU-MluByxQRbn-mJOl7VhF99d658/s1600/ore+police+22+comment+-+Copy.PNG" height="73" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">REM870 is a reference to a <a href="http://www.remingtonle.com/shotguns/870synthetic.htm" target="_blank">shotgun commonly used by police</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
On August first, ASU English professor Ersula Ore will be sentenced for "<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">passively resisting an unlawful arrest</span></span>" after Officer Stewart Ferrin confronted her for jaywalking and obstructing traffic in closed off a construction zone near the university.<br />
<br />
The case sparked outrage, protest and even some <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2014/07/09/asu-professors-arrest-addressed-at-tempe-forum/12424781/" target="_blank">drama at one of the Tempe city council candidate forums</a> when outraged community members vocalized their frustration with local cops. As the scandal put pressure on ASU, the officer was put on leave and <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2014/07/11/asu-police-chief-pickens-step-early/12511339/" target="_blank">the two top bosses at the university cop shop were eventually replaced</a>. Local dissident cop blog, The Integrity Report, <a href="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/2014/07/10/in-this-edition-of-asupds-hunger-games-hardina-and-pickens-are-immediately-removed-from-their-positions/" target="_blank">has been documenting the internal shakeup</a> which at least some officers seem to hope will create an opportunity to rein in a police force that they allege (with a good deal of evidence) is unaccountable and out of control.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/ore-ersula-asu-headshot.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/ore-ersula-asu-headshot.jpeg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Professor Ore (<i>Photo via <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/ore-ersula-asu-headshot.jpeg" target="_blank">Phoenix New Times</a></i>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
But <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2014/07/09/asu-professor-pleads-guilty-abrk/12413373/" target="_blank">since Ore took responsibility for her act of self-defense</a>, much of the tension has dissipated from this once highly controversial and contentious case. Coverage was mixed in the media but it has mostly dropped off the radar as she moves towards sentencing.<br />
<br />
Notable exceptions include a recent exchange of letters to the editor, one by <a href="http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/columns/east_valley_voices/article_ffb9a74c-0ec2-11e4-b561-0019bb2963f4.html" target="_blank">former Mesa cop Bill Richardson</a> defending Ferrin's character, followed by a response challenging it ("<a href="http://www.statepress.com/2014/07/29/letter-police-officers-personality-doesnt-matter/" target="_blank">Letter: Police officer's personality doesn't matter</a>"), both run in the State Press, ASU's east campus newspaper. Over the course of the scandal, one particular local weekly news blog/magazine left some very interesting things out of the story, but we'll come back to that at the end.<br />
<br />
We at <i>Down and Drought</i> pay a lot of attention to the police, including cop online forums. So when we saw last week that New York Magazine had run a piece focusing on the <a href="http://How Anonymous Cops Online Are Reacting to the Death of Eric Garner" target="_blank">comments from officers on various cop websites regarding the recent death of a cigarette vender,</a> who appears to have died as a result of very rough treatment by the NYPD, we thought we'd give the Ore case the same treatment. We thought: let's see what cops have to say online about her case, under the cover of (what they think is ) anonymity.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1849057.1404128435!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_970/ersula-ore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1849057.1404128435!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_970/ersula-ore.jpg" height="177" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
As the NY Magazine article points out, in order to post on cop forums like PoliceOne.com, you have to register and be verified as an actual cop or retired law enforcement officer. <a href="https://secure.policeone.com/registration" target="_blank">PoliceOne.com boasts over 200,000 members</a> and claims that they "confirm the status of all officers registering... by calling that officer’s department directly." Which means when you read opinions from commentators on their forums, you can be pretty sure you're getting the thoughts of a cop or former cop.<br />
<br />
We were able to track some of these officers back to their departments ourselves through basic internet searches and confirm that they are in fact cops, but we weren't able to link any of them directly to ASU -- although some of the comments we looked at demonstrated knowledge of policing in Tempe and Arizona.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank"><b>READ: TEMPE POLICE HAVE A STINGRAY CELL PHONE SPYING DEVICE BUT THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT IT</b></a></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
That said, it's important to note that the comments we're sharing here, while outrageous, weren't out of step with the general tenor of comments we found. No comments defended Ore and most posters thought that Ferrin had been too forgiving with her. As we've demonstrated before, Phoenix and Tempe police have notoriously bad senses of humor (see <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/02/why-does-phoenix-cop-want-to-see-west.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/bullying-humor-tempe-cops-jokes-fall.html" target="_blank">here</a>). So there's no reason to think that they are any better than online cops in terms of their opinions.<br />
<br />
So let's dig in and see what some cops had to say about the Ore arrest. To get things started, here's one officer <a href="http://www.policemag.com/channel/patrol/news/2014/06/30/video-campus-police-accused-of-excessive-force-in-professor-s-arrest.aspx" target="_blank">making a joke referencing sexual assault</a>. Remember, Ore objected vocally on the video about Ferrin's manhandling of her causing her dress to hike up. Thus an officer naturally thought this was an appropriate joke to make.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cU-Yw8E48-CUsgMc6OXU1zeTeOWuM7lv9feboQ-xGPse1AZHc4RmsOJ3tNXdRJMRbZsJWg9lG9xSSGd-c5vMd2WYzxkcIZaj_DY2vIjqUXfV4rXRhAnWVda8PWhw3z-gxWsnlCpXj14/s1600/ore+comments+1+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cU-Yw8E48-CUsgMc6OXU1zeTeOWuM7lv9feboQ-xGPse1AZHc4RmsOJ3tNXdRJMRbZsJWg9lG9xSSGd-c5vMd2WYzxkcIZaj_DY2vIjqUXfV4rXRhAnWVda8PWhw3z-gxWsnlCpXj14/s1600/ore+comments+1+-+Copy.PNG" height="40" width="400" /></a> </div>
In the same comment thread, another officer chimes in:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFe4KisY7LBCs9KgEFXhHxWeY1DOzjblWBJvqZEqCMHEluyvhygtl6MODKbv9-trVdVskk7t-o1bIz4Fj4OsiTQalLQabnk1wTcGDAokBK7YQyMJ6bJ86kgU540cgbIZQnulbsI_ILc-k/s1600/ore+comments+2+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFe4KisY7LBCs9KgEFXhHxWeY1DOzjblWBJvqZEqCMHEluyvhygtl6MODKbv9-trVdVskk7t-o1bIz4Fj4OsiTQalLQabnk1wTcGDAokBK7YQyMJ6bJ86kgU540cgbIZQnulbsI_ILc-k/s1600/ore+comments+2+-+Copy.PNG" height="47" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
In a different post on the same site, <a href="http://www.policeone.com/arizona/articles/7346351-ASU-wants-FBI-civil-rights-investigation-following-arrest-of-professor/" target="_blank">user "SgtDavidWilliams" rushes to Ferrin's defense</a>, counseling that she's lucky she didn't get the rougher treatment he thinks she deserved:<br />
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<br />
Advocating for less tolerance and a higher degree of violence was common in the online cop forums we looked at. Most officers took the position that Ferrin had been too kind in his interaction with Ore.<br />
<br />
Officers also frequently argued for liberal use of the Taser. One user
hinted in a "wink, wink, nudge, nudge" sort of way that "I did see a
taser on his belt, correct?" In the comment below, the reference to "sparky" (the taser) may or may not be a double entendre also alluding to the ASU
mascot, but it certainly indicates a casualness that is disturbing
when it comes to the use of a weapon that <a href="http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/press-releases/amnesty-international-urges-stricter-limits-on-police-taser-use-as-us-death-toll-reaches-500" target="_blank">has been linked to many deaths over the years</a>.<br />
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Along similar lines was another comment boasting that the "college professor would've met the pavement far sooner had I been arresting her." Yet another joked that Ferrin should "probably work on that straight arm bar takedown." Later in the thread another member says, "She really needed to taste the color of the paint on the hood." <br />
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<br />
Another set of comments focused on Ore's race and gender, reflecting the usual tact and sophistication that one tends to expect from the reactionary right.<br />
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<br />
In an era of increasing skepticism and worry about the police, <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/07/23/conservatives-libertarians-and-liberals-should-all-worry-about-militarization/" target="_blank">even on the traditionally law and order right</a>, comments like those we found don't do cops any favors in the PR department. If white middle class people -- the traditional base of support for law enforcement, no matter how brutal -- are worried about their interactions with police then it's an indication of something significant going on. Police should be worried. The carte blanche they've had for, well, basically forever may be in danger.<br />
<br />
And those curious omissions I mentioned at the beginning? One of the curious features of the Ore coverage was the oddly reactionary treatment from the Phoenix New
Times, spearheaded by Ray
Stern. <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2014/07/ersula_ore_asu_professor_pleads_guilty_asu_wont_say_if_cops_back_on_duty.php" target="_blank">Stern went pretty hard against Ore</a>. He conceded Ferrin's approach appeared "mildly thuggish," but when Ore pleaded guilty he pronounced somewhat smugly that, "it
looks like Ore's done fighting the good fight. We're not expecting her
to follow up on the threat she made in the video to sue the (bleep) out
of the officer or ASU."<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/07/if-asu-cant-protect-faculty-from-its.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;"><b>Read: If ASU can't protect faculty from its violent police, what does it mean for the rest of us? </b></span></a></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
In one article, Stern in passing gives us a brief history of Stewart Ferrin, who it was revealed early on <a href="https://asunews.asu.edu/20120412_Dispatchfamily" target="_blank">hails from a law enforcement family</a>
and had long harbored aspirations of continuing that legacy. But what legacy? Strangely, Stern fails to mention another little bit of
Ferrin law enforcement family history -- one detailed in the very
archives of the Phoenix New Times itself!<br />
<br />
In a September 1998 article entitled <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/1998-09-10/news/thrust-and-parry/" target="_blank">"Thrust and Parry,"</a>
the New Times detailed in a feature article the story of Alvin
Yellowhair, a Native American student at ASU who alleged that Stewart
Ferrin's father, John Ferrin, then an officer with the Tempe PD, had
beaten and sodomized him with a nightstick after arresting him at a
party.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>"Advocating for less tolerance and a higher degree of violence was common in the online cop forums we looked at." </b></span></blockquote>
<br />
The case, which involved missing evidence and
allegations of obstructionism from city officials, was eventually ruled
in Ferrin's favor, <a href="http://members.tripod.com/phoenix_copwatch/mud/police-news/cw1134.html" target="_blank">and he came out the winner in a lawsuit by Yellowhair</a>,
too, which was finally resolved by jury in 2005. But the case led to
allegations of an out of control police force without proper supervision
and the revelation that the senior Ferrin, at that point, had had four
citizen complaints against him which the city didn't want to reveal. Does any of this sound familiar?
White cop, civilian person of color, ASU, use of force, out of control police force, potential cover up and lack of investigation? Quite an
omission, if you ask me!<br />
<br />
But <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2014/07/asu_officer_stewart_ferrin_remains_on_leave_under_investigation_after_ersula_ores_guilty_plea.php" target="_blank">Stern's probably right when he says that</a> "ASU's very sensitive to the pubic perception, especially given
President Michael Crow's goal to attract 100,000 students to lucrative
online-degree programs." Indeed, the University should be concerned about how they will be viewed by prospective or returning students and their parents. Especially if those students aren't white. <br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXr-oYiKkGhcyGYcX2BUZnmmDCvwdcBNk4g2ggcF-l9AsZqo2E-mNQpGMqypM42Ic2r_iMGdfcaMs2A4Krv880cD_uFCrAYpa38yLk57AysEvFR9STBoO2AGeUEtad1IFNdH80fvu-4pY/s1600/tempe+citizens+review+board+grab+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXr-oYiKkGhcyGYcX2BUZnmmDCvwdcBNk4g2ggcF-l9AsZqo2E-mNQpGMqypM42Ic2r_iMGdfcaMs2A4Krv880cD_uFCrAYpa38yLk57AysEvFR9STBoO2AGeUEtad1IFNdH80fvu-4pY/s1600/tempe+citizens+review+board+grab+-+Copy.PNG" height="241" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nothing to see here!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
As Professor Ore faces sentencing, with a shakeup going on at ASU PD, and with residents in the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/mapleashfarmerwilson/" target="_blank">surrounding neighborhoods increasingly fed up with both the actions of local cops</a> <i>and </i>the complete failure of the politicians to do anything about it, the university and the city would each be well-advised to consider taking immediate public steps to address these concerns with concrete actions.<br />
<br />
Locals have put forward several options, from repealing the loud party ordinances that so quickly can escalate under heavy handed policing, to canceling the upcoming "safe & sober" campaign (in which cops invade the neighborhoods and detain residents at rates higher than NYC's "stop & frisk" program), or selling off controversial <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank">spy equipment like the Stingray mass cell phone monitoring device</a>.<br />
<br />
How about a program of de-militarizing TPD in general? In an era of mass corporate tax giveaways downtown, why not raise some cash by selling off that useless cop clutter? On a related note, does the <a href="http://www.tempe.gov/city-hall/city-clerk-s-office/boards-and-commissions/boards-commissions-committees-and-other-public-bodies/tempe-citizens-panel-for-review-of-police-complaints-and-use-of-force" target="_blank">Tempe Citizens’ Panel for Review of Police Complaints and Use of Force</a> even meet? <i>Down and Drought</i> has been following the public page for this supposed oversight board for a year now and have yet to see a single posting for a public meeting nor any updates on what they're up to.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile candidates for city council have to be forced by angry crowds to discuss the police, and the only solutions they seem to have is lavishing them with even more expensive toys which residents can be assured they will abuse. Increasingly, Tempe government looks completely out of step with a public that is asking themselves just what the hell is going on with the cops that patrol their neighborhoods. Does the city have any answers for them? It appears that answer is, no.<br />
<br />Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-55553508656506176692014-07-18T02:27:00.000-07:002014-07-18T02:28:41.882-07:00Interstate 11: Privatized Roads, Privatized Water<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkSWEfikyAnMan8KNLxosWxL-b3tPt-bLRuMO7Pq-MAB3gLJL_blP8L6g8O8IQZJQbsOr1LdkydOOagxYQTUDUlLSmA_PZOwjHO80LoRpZbGEulCm78TfSg1xz1H6zScxAOzzFfbFaxrs/s1600/3-21-14-INTERSTATE-11-ELISE-WILSON-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkSWEfikyAnMan8KNLxosWxL-b3tPt-bLRuMO7Pq-MAB3gLJL_blP8L6g8O8IQZJQbsOr1LdkydOOagxYQTUDUlLSmA_PZOwjHO80LoRpZbGEulCm78TfSg1xz1H6zScxAOzzFfbFaxrs/s1600/3-21-14-INTERSTATE-11-ELISE-WILSON-2.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a><br />
<i>Last year <b>Down & Drought</b> published three articles from the excellent <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Stop CANAMEX</a> blog, perhaps the only local resource for researched and detailed information on proposed infrastructure projects in Arizona. In post after post, the blog produces the names of the projects and the players behind the push for massive new highway projects, international trade deals, and how they relate to economic zones like the proposed "<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B-e_jRA0uX8AdF9ES281ZmFaMUU/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Sun Corridor</a>" megaregion. As bloggers, academics, and journalists debate and opine over the future supplies of the region's water and the potential for shortages in the very near future, this latest piece from the Stop CANAMEX project names the names of the developers and how they plan to profit, while the potential for drought and water scarcity looms.</i><br />
<br />
<br />
You might not think Interstate 11 has anything to do with water
privatization, but it does, and considering our water shortages, we should
be worried.<br />
<br />
Pushes for water privatization cannot be separated from the increased
move towards public-private partnerships (P3 or PPP) for infrastructure
projects--especially when both consultants for the I-11 study are
steeped in P3s in transportation and water.<br />
<br />
This is not to imply that these consultants, <a href="http://www.ch2m.com/corporate/" target="_blank">CH2MHILL</a> and <a href="http://www.aecom.com/" target="_blank">AECOM</a>, are
involved with Interstate 11 because they also want to privatize our
water (although it's possible). But the depth of their involvement in
water privatization and P3s in general shows a likelihood that I-11, or
parts of it, is intended to be a P3. The more experience Arizona has
with P3s, the easier it will be to implement various projects including
water. Water is privatized in many other countries, often due to
conditions for loans by the <a href="http://www.newsforage.com/2014/04/world-bank-wants-water-privatized.html" target="_blank">World Bank</a>,
a tendency seen with structural adjustment programs. P3 arrangements
make it more likely that the private side will call the shots. We might
get a road we don't even want, just because some companies can make some
money. And we may end up with a bigger water problem.<br />
<br />
Obama made water privatization in the US easier, when on June 13 of this year, <a href="http://www.processingmagazine.com/articles/127448-obama-signs-water-resources-bill-into-law" target="_blank">he signed</a> the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) into law. This included the <a href="http://www.waterworld.com/_search?q=%22Water+Infrastructure+Finance+and+Innovation+Authority%22&x=0&y=0">Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority (WIFIA)</a> which is a 5-year pilot program providing financing for P3s for water projects.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="2014 618 priv st" src="http://truth-out.org/images/images_2014_06/2014_618_priv_st.jpg" height="320" style="margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="288" /></td></tr>
<tr align="center"><td class="tr-caption"><span class="wf_caption" style="display: inherit; float: right; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 5px; max-width: 304px;"><span style="display: block; margin-left: 3px; margin-top: 3px; max-width: 303px; text-align: left;">Image: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/66944824@N05/8716048703" target="_blank">Denis Bocquet / Flickr</a></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
WIFIA, mirroring the "Transportation Infrastructure Finance and
Innovation Act" (TIFIA), was a concept developed and promoted by the <span class="body"><a href="http://www.awwa.org/" target="_blank">American Water Works Association</a> (AWWA). What does this have to do with the I-11 Study consultants? AWWA, a non-profit, is <a href="http://www.omi.ch2m.com/about/affiliations.html" target="_blank">supported by CH2MHILL</a> and closely affiliated with AECOM. </span>AECOM Senior Consultant <a href="http://www.awwa.org/resources-tools/public-affairs/press-room/press-release/articleid/2479/donahue-begins-term-as-awwa-president.aspx" target="_blank">Jim Chaffee was president of the AWWA</a> until very recently. <br />
<br />
There is no doubt that both consultants are immersed in the world of infrastructure P3 promotion. CH2MHILL supports <span class="body">
<a href="http://ncppp.org/" target="_blank">The National Council for Public-Private Partnerships</a></span> and has a couple members on the <a href="http://www.ncppp.org/about/members/institutes/water-institute/" target="_blank">steering committee</a> of the NCPPP's <a href="http://www.ncppp.org/about/members/institutes/water-institute/" target="_blank">Water Institute</a>. The Senior Vice President of the investment arm of AECOM, Samara Barend's <a href="http://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Barend%20Testimony.pdf" target="_blank">testimony to congress</a> back in May was meant to encourage federal facilitation of P3s on a larger scale. <br />
<br />
AECOM put out the white paper, <a href="http://www.aecom.com/deployedfiles/Internet/Brochures/FosteringWhitePaperExecSummary.pdf" target="_blank">Fostering a Larger Private-Sector Role in United States Infrastructure</a>
in which their number one recommendation in the executive summary
reads, "Expand the use of PPPs for surface transportation projects. This
can be achieved by extend [sic] the successful TIFIA and [Private
Activity Bond (PAB)] programs before they expire in 2015." Number 2
includes, "Pass the proposed 'WIFIA' pilot program to provide long-term,
flexible low-interest subordinated debt financing terms to water
utilities...Enable the WIFIA program funds to be partnered with PABs, as has proven successful with TIFIA."<br />
<br />
TIFIA loans and availability payments, and possibly tax-exempt PABs, are
being considered for I-11, especially since collection of tolls on the
future Interstate 11 would be controversial, even while concessions are
still an option. You can listen to AECOM's Samara Barend, brimming with
enthusiasm, break down different types of P3s and the financing options
in the video <a href="http://youtu.be/brzqM2fn3Ac?t=8m51s" target="_blank">Public-Private Partnerships: Lipinski Symposium On Transportation Policy & Strategy</a>.<br />
<br />
A previous post on this blog, <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2013/08/companies-seek-partnership-with-adot-to.html" target="_blank">Companies seek partnership with ADOT to profit on freeway, Part 2: The Methods</a>,
explains the draw these options have for companies seeking to make
money off of infrastructure projects. These and more are listed as
options in the I-11 Study draft <a href="http://i11study.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/I-11_ImplementationProgram_Draft_v14.pdf" target="_blank">Implementation Report</a>.<br />
<br />
As Ellin Dannin of Truthout <a href="http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/24359-water-privatization-coming-to-a-century-old-system-near-you" target="_blank">pointed out</a>, with programs like TIFIA and WIFIA, "rather than the private partner coming to the rescue of
cash-strapped governments, it is the public that must subsidize private
contractors." <br />
<br />
ADOT just released a <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/business/engineering-consultants/advertisements/view-advertisement-doc?advdoc=80" target="_blank">Request for Information</a> regarding its Statewide Assets, on July 2 as part of their <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/business/engineering-consultants/advertisements/public-private-partnership-%28p3%29-initiatives" target="_blank">Public Private Partnership Initiative</a>.
Since ADOT has several projects on the table, this step allows them to
feel out the industry's interest before putting out a Request for
Proposals, either for the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, the
Interstate 11, a North-South corridor, SR 189, or other projects listed
on their <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/business/programs-and-partnerships/Public-PrivatePartnerships%28P3%29/p3-projects" target="_blank">website</a>.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/P3s" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">READ MORE COVERAGE OF PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS (P3s)</span></a></div>
<br />
While P3s are often framed as a better option for the public sector to
accomplish their goals with their limited resources, in that they can
leverage their assets, P3s are widely promoted by large companies who
seek to make money. Construction companies, engineering firms,
consultants, and banks all see dollar signs in these projects, and they
host conferences and make other efforts to reach out to local officials
to steer them in that direction. For example, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley,
and Goldman Sachs are involved with P3 conferences like the <a href="http://www.imn.org/Conference/National-Public-Private-Partnership-Symposium/Agenda.html" target="_blank">National P3 Symposium</a>. Both AECOM and CH2MHill are sponsors and attendees of the <a href="http://www.artbap3.org/sponsorship-information/" target="_blank">ARTBA P3s in Transportation Conference</a> and the <span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}"><a href="http://watermeetsmoney.com/" target="_blank">2015 Global Water Summit</a> who uses the phrase "the water value revolution" and whose website is watermeetsmoney.com.</span><br />
<br />
Many such companies worry about their fate if the economy doesn't allow
for governments to implement as many infrastructure projects. For
example, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/presenting-the-companies-that-would-go-over-the-fiscal-cliff-with-the-government-2012-5?op=1" target="_blank">Goldman Sachs listed AECOM</a>
as one of the companies that would go under if government spending was
severely limited, considering that AECOM has 62% sales exposure to
government. Their survival largely hinges on access to P3 deals. No
wonder they're pushing the idea.<br />
<br />
They have already made some money from the the I-11 Study which cost
approximately 2.5 million dollars. While it would likely be a conflict
of interest for either consultant to get a Design-Build, etc. deal on
I-11, their interest in P3s remain. Corporate Accountability
International <a href="http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/sites/default/files/resources/cai_troubledwaters_whitepaper_webres.pdf" target="_blank">warns</a>
that private water companies often get a foot hold on further water
privatization deals by entering into consultation partnerships first.<br />
<br />
An interesting fact is that Mike Kies, the ADOT project director for the
I-11 Study has worked for AECOM. He worked for AECOM on the Arizona <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/docs/planning/rail-framework-study-final-report.pdf?sfvrsn=0" target="_blank">Rail Framework Study</a> and the <a href="http://www.azdot.gov/docs/planning/state-rail-plan.pdf?sfvrsn=0" target="_blank">State Rail Plan</a>. He was an AECOM project
consultant on an ADOT project to make <a href="http://explorernews.com/news/pima_pinal/article_a7243ea4-8801-5e30-8c26-94ce6aa9bce8.html" target="_blank">I-10 5 lanes each way</a> from Tangerine
Road to I-8. The article on this project stated, "An improved I-10 can 'support the objectives of the CANAMEX
trade corridor, which includes this important segment of I-10,'
literature indicates. The CANAMEX corridor presumes greater traffic
between Mexico and Canada through the U.S. I-10 is 'not only an
important east-west freight route,' but decision-makers 'expect
freight movements to increase north and south.'"<br />
<br />
Also interesting is that John McNamara of AECOM, then of BRW, Inc., was involved back in 1993 on an <a href="http://azmemory.azlibrary.gov/utils/getfile/collection/statepubs/id/8494/filename/8786.pdf" target="_blank">Arizona Trade Corridor Study</a>, which is one of the earliest references to CANAMEX. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span>The Arizona Transportation and Trade Corridor Alliance (TTCA), which <a href="http://www.azmc.org/panel-of-experts/jim-kolbe/" target="_blank">"encompasses the former CANAMEX Task Force"</a> just released their <a href="http://www.azttca.org/PDF/Roadmap.pdf" target="_blank">Strategic Roadmap</a>,
which primarily promotes trade corridors through Arizona, and P3s, with
an emphasis on encouraging an effort to get local policy makers and
others to understand the "benefits" of trade infrastructure and private
involvement in financing. The TTCA was started in 2012, bringing
together the public and private sector, including Jim Kolbe, CANAMEX
expert of the Arizona Mexico Commission (AMC). This sort of
public-private partnership unit allows private interests to influence
policy behind closed doors.</div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://energyskeptic.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/where-to-be-day-2013-WORST-PLACES.bmp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://energyskeptic.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/where-to-be-day-2013-WORST-PLACES.bmp" height="181" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From "<a href="http://energyskeptic.com/2014/scientists-on-where-to-be-in-in-the-future/" target="_blank">Scientists on where to be in the 21st century based on sustainability</a>"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Trade and transportation infrastructure of the scale intended by
organizations like the AMC/TTCA would require massive amounts of natural
resources including water. In addition, the more roads, the more
traffic, the more sprawl, the more pollution and use of resources. It's
an endless cycle. At the <a href="http://stopcanamex.blogspot.com/2014/07/phoenix-i-11-meeting-report-back.html" target="_blank">June 25 I-11 in the Phoenix</a>
area, Franco Habre asked, "With the current and looming water shortages
shouldn't we be applying a moratorium on proposed infrastructure
projects?" to which ADOT's Mike Kies responded that it's not his job to
be concerned about water. Those whose job it <i>is</i> to be concerned about water, such as the Arizona Department of Water Resources, <a href="http://www.azwater.gov/AzDWR/Arizonas_Strategic_Vision/documents/StrategicVisionOutreach-Feb27_AMWUA.pdf" target="_blank">toured Arizona</a>
stating that water desalination is a likely necessity a few years from
now. The desalination would likely occur in Mexico or California and be
transported to Arizona.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.azmc.org/category/press-releases/" target="_blank">AMC is already moving forward on this, and just announced</a> that, <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"This year’s plenary included the signing of an Agreement of Cooperation
between the states of Arizona and Sonora through the Arizona Department
of Water Resources and Sonora’s State Commission on Water. This
agreement allows both states to jointly evaluate the feasibility of Sea
of Cortez desalination to augment and increase water supply resiliency
in Arizona and Sonora. This agreement is signed at a time where the
Arizona-Sonora region is facing critical water supply challenges and
experiencing extended droughts."</blockquote>
It is highly unlikely that water desalinated and transported from the
ocean will not be privatized, especially if the pro-P3 Arizona-Mexico
Commission gets in the middle. Desalination plants are increasingly
being built in the US for use
with brackish water, including one in California which is a <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-01/california-desalination-financing-closes-on-1-billion-project.html" target="_blank">public-private partnership</a>, and incidentally, Poseidon Resources Corp, the company behind this plant, held a presentation about this facility for the AMC <a href="http://www.azmc.org/committee/environment-water/" target="_blank">2014 Plenary Environment and Water Committee</a> (titled 2-IDE Powerpoint Arizona.pdf within the zip file). Is a water pipeline a possibility for AMC's god-child CANAMEX/I-11?<br />
<br />
AMC's interest in water may also have something to do with their
relationship with Freeport McMoran, one of their biggest sponsors who's
also had someone on their board for several years. Freeport is
responsible for massive pollution and human rights violations,
particularly in West Papua. In January, Freeport <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/politics/articles/20140128arizona-water-resources-chief-steps-down.html" target="_blank">hired the previous director</a> of the Arizona Department of Water Resources as their director of water strategy. And while Freeport has been key in changing <a href="http://arizona.sierraclub.org/political_action/tracker/SB1417.html" target="_blank">Arizona water legislation</a> to be in their favor, they might be worrying that Arizona will mandate that mines use desalinated water as <a href="http://www.minerandina.com/en/chile-mining-companies-required-to-build-desalination-plants/" target="_blank">Chile</a>,
another location of Freeport's mines, has recently done. Even if
Freeport is not worried about being required to use desalinated water,
they may be looking ahead to when they've used all other options, having
bought up farm land for their water rights and swindling native water
rights from various tribes. It may also be significant that Michael J.
Lacey, Director of Arizona Department of Water Resources is co-chair of
AMC's Environment and Water committee.<br />
<br />
The AMC and the <a href="http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/sites/default/files/resources/shutting_the_spigot_on_private_water_corporateaccountabilityinternational.pdf" target="_blank">World Bank</a>,
are interested in opening up public services to market forces, and
businesses want to make money off of these deals. Private water
companies across the world have experienced
resistance to their plans. They therefore know they have to frame their
project in a
way that is more acceptable to people, such as a public-private
partnership leveraging the assets of the municipal government, despite
many of the <a href="http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/sites/default/files/resources/cai_troubledwaters_whitepaper_webres.pdf" target="_blank">pro-P3 arguments being false</a>.
And what is a worse to privatize than a basic need which is a finite
resource? Privatizing water means poor people go without it, and
conservation is counter to the profit-interest of companies.<br />
<br />
With all these plans for transportation infrastructure, water is an
issue even if it's not privatized. The more development, the more
pollution and wasting of water. They may try to sell their projects as
"green" or "sustainable" but increased growth in this region is not
sustainable. Additionally, private or not, desalinated water will cost
more. We need to halt development and many of the wasteful industrial
projects such as the Freeport McMoran mines.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-84261950387659866832014-07-01T11:25:00.000-07:002014-07-01T11:26:04.022-07:00If ASU can't protect faculty from its violent police, what does it mean for the rest of us?If you read the outline "<a href="http://president.asu.edu/about/asuvision" target="_blank">ASU Vision and Goals: 2013 and Beyond</a>" hosted on the page of the Office of the President, the first two objectives are as follows:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Maintain the fundamental principle of accessibility to all students qualified to study at a research university<br />
<br />
Maintain university accessibility to match Arizona’s socioeconomic diversity </blockquote>
Which may seem more than a bit ironic in light of the recent ASU PD beat down of a black professor who refused to passively submit to a college cop's street harassment. As anyone knows who lives in the area, this particular street is blocked off to traffic for the construction of a pedestrian mall (this is ASU's vision for the future boiled down to its essence, by the way). People routinely cross at this location in other than legal ways as a result of debris, construction materials or because they feel unsafe walking at night.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.azfamily.com/images/6-27-14-ASU-PROFESSOR-ARREST-VIDEO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://media.azfamily.com/images/6-27-14-ASU-PROFESSOR-ARREST-VIDEO.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo via <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/ASU-professor-arrested-on-campus-accusing-officer-of-excessive-force-264991871.html" target="_blank">AzFamily</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
While some dispute the assertions of profiling and racism being made about this particular interaction, the fact that this is a white cop stopping a black woman can't be ignored, not least of all given the stark and long history of police racism in both Arizona and the US. The stop has all the hallmarks of "walking while black," the selective harassment and enforcement of often petty laws by law enforcement against blacks. But regardless, the image speaks for itself, and countless people, including potential students and their parents, will now associate ASU with what looks on the face of it to be a racialized and violent police over-reaction and power trip.<br />
<br />
<b>IF PROFESSORS AREN'T SAFE FROM ASU POLICE VIOLENCE, WHO IS? </b><br />
<br />
On video Dr. Ore is heard asserting over and over that she is a professor at the school, to no avail. The cop, like police in general, isn't about to back down just because there's a more reasonable alternative available (a warning, for instance). And Ore's appeal to her status fell on deaf ears.<br />
<br />
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
Indeed, Dr. Ore's lawyer, Alane M. Roby, is quick to reiterate this status in his public appeals. In <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/30/justice/arizona-jaywalking-arrest/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1" target="_blank">a statement to CNN</a>, he said, "Professor Ore's one
crime that evening was to demand respect that she deserves as a
productive, educated and tax paying member of society." </div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<br /></div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
But, of course, it isn't just the "productive, educated and tax-paying" members of society who deserve not to fear getting interrogated and beaten by cops on Tempe streets, it's everyone. So what does this mean for residents and students of lesser stature?</div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/del-castillo-top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/del-castillo-top.jpg" height="224" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A memorial to Austin Del Castillo (<a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2013/09/austin_del_castillo_shooting_tempe_police_asu.php" target="_blank"><i>photo via New Times</i></a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<b>A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE AND ESCALATION </b></div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<br /></div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
Last year, during the height of its ASU-supported "Safe & Sober" invasion of the neighborhoods surrounding the Tempe campus, <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2013/09/austin_del_castillo_shooting_tempe_police_asu.php" target="_blank">Tempe police shot and killed Austin Del Castillo</a> in plain daylight at one of the busiest intersections in the city. At least one bullet reportedly missed and hit the now closed but then operational Chili's restaurant. Del Castillo was shot, in part, because he was not acting like a "productive, educated and tax paying member of society." Witnesses disputed police claims that Del Castillo was lunging at officers when they opened fire on him.</div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<br /></div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
Likewise when police let loose on <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/trigger-happy-buzz-killing-tempe-cop.html" target="_blank">William Barret, who had broken into House of Tricks' renowned wine cache for a taste of the good stuff</a>. Police blasted on him when he supposedly lobbed an empty bottle at an officer. The officer was uninjured, but from jail Barret said, “They shot me in the hand. If I stuck my head out they could have shot my head off.” When in doubt, escalate seems to be the ethic of the cops patrolling ASU and the surrounding neighborhoods.</div>
<div class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/files/2014/06/req-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/files/2014/06/req-2.jpg" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purchase order for spy camera (Image via <a href="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/" target="_blank"><i>The Integrity Report</i></a>)</td></tr>
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Or, when escalation isn't the go-to option, Tempe cops go for humiliation, as in the now <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/04/us/04tempe.html" target="_blank">infamous case of </a><span class="st"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/04/us/04tempe.html" target="_blank">Sgt. Chuck Schoville</a>.</span> Here at <i>Down and Drought</i>, we've cataloged TPD's many gaffes and abuses, including their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/bullying-humor-tempe-cops-jokes-fall.html" target="_blank">really awful sense of humor</a>, their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank">expansion of their secret surveillance powers</a>, their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/09/everything-to-gain-tempes-two-pronged.html" target="_blank">crackdowns on Tempe's traditional party culture</a>, their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/01/tempe-pd-offered-protection-to-frat-at.html" target="_blank">protection of racist frats</a>, their <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/10/tailgate-phoenixs-surveillance-scandal.html" target="_blank">surveillance of tailgaters at football games</a>, and much more.</div>
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Not covered by us, but equally troubling is the <a href="https://asunews.asu.edu/20140610-asu-police-chief-john-pickens" target="_blank">post-retirement career of former ASU top cop John Pickens</a>, who will continue to head up University Security Initiatives, ASU's surveillance apparatus (why do they need one?). Note ASU PD's <a href="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/files/2014/06/req-2.jpg" target="_blank">recent purchase of a KJB Security Wall Outlet Hidden Spy Camera</a>. What's that for? Who's getting spied on? Is ASU a university or an intelligence agency (a tip of the hat to <a href="https://webapp4.asu.edu/directory/person/66195" target="_blank">Michael Crow and his time working with CIA tech fund In-Q-Tel</a>)?</div>
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Meanwhile TPD continues to spend $5 million a year on its own SPARC surveillance center, recently taken to task by <a href="http://www.statepress.com/2014/06/27/letter-tempe-police-fails-asu-community/" target="_blank">former Mesa cop Bill Richardson</a> in the pages of the State Press. In other troubling news, <a href="https://network23.org/theintegrityreport/2013/11/20/excessive-use-of-force-cases-who-watches-the-watchmen/" target="_blank">dissident cop blog "The Integrity Report"</a> cites an ongoing history of questionable use of force and lack of accountability at the ASU cop shop. Bloggers there report several uses of force that received no review at all from department bosses. Is anyone in charge over there? Less CIA and more Keystone Kops, it seems.</div>
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All together, what we're seeing is the emergence of a local police state in Tempe operating like an army of occupation, not answerable to anyone -- regardless of social status, and apparently not accountable to anyone. In this situation, everyone has reason to be concerned about whether they will land in its cross-hairs, not just professors.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cache3.smarthome.com/images/72377big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://cache3.smarthome.com/images/72377big.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">KJB Security Wall Outlet Hidden Spy Camera</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b>CAN ASU LIVE UP TO ITS DECLARED COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY?</b></div>
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Indeed, students and parents of prospective students have good reason to be concerned. If ASU can't protect a black professor from the cops, what chance do those of lesser status have? Can ASU live up to its self-appointed diversity goals if it doesn't reign in its police force?</div>
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Round two of "safe & sober" is likely going to commence with the return of students in the Fall. During the last iteration (canceled abruptly after the shooting of Del Castillo), TPD, ASU PD and MCSO (the infamously racist department run by Sheriff Joe) blanketed the streets around the university with cops, making thousands of stops. In fact, as a proportion of the population, "safe & sober" rivaled NYPD's infamous "stop and frisk" campaign. Funded by the Feds, it was likely a real windfall for the city once all the fines were added up. Almost a year later, police have yet to release any details on the racial breakdown of those stops, but if history is any guide, it likely skews heavily towards people of color and other marginalized groups.</div>
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<b>WHAT ASU NEEDS TO DO</b></div>
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ASU has an easy choice here, but that doesn't mean they'll make it. First of all, they should drop the charges against Dr. Ore. Then they need to fire Officer Ferrin. ASU needs to send a message that they honor their commitment to diversity and equal access to ASU and its many scattered off campus facilities. Students and residents need to know they are not going to suffer the same fate -- or worse -- as Dr. Ore. Finally, they should withdraw from future "safe & sober" campaigns and demand the release of data on the race of those people stopped by all police forces involved, including MCSO. ASU likes to talk big about its commitments to the community. It's time to step up and make good on them.</div>
Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-44422750891955744282014-07-01T06:15:00.003-07:002014-07-01T06:15:39.514-07:00Arizona doubles down on school to prison pipeline, expands cops in schoolsA big story broke for Arizona students the other day and it wasn't the tear-jerker faux apology of state school Superintendent and compulsive racist internet troll John Huppenthal. <br />
<br />
While the media has been safely distracted with the important questions raised by the <span class="st">Huppenthal mess, such as just what would a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/24/john-huppenthal-racist-comments_n_5527107.html" target="_blank">menu at a Mexican restaurant look like if it couldn't use Spanish</a> (i.e., "Can I interest anyone in a corn flour flatbread wrap stuffed with mashed pinto beans and cheese?"), meanwhile the legislature passed a <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/06/24/million-okd-school-officers-districts/11342691/" target="_blank">massive expansion of Arizona's school resource officer program</a>. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">This program, partially funded by <a href="http://www.yumasun.com/news/crane-district-to-get-another-school-resource-officer/article_9c15276e-fe48-11e3-ab54-001a4bcf6878.html" target="_blank">Proposition 301 which passed in 2000</a>, was expanded last week, growing it to include 137 schools and </span>118 officers with an added price tag of $12 million. Aside from more officers, the deal also includes the addition of three juvenile probation officers. And here's where we get to the crux of the issue.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/azstarnet.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/26/a26829ac-fcb0-11e3-929d-001a4bcf887a/53ab40e43d720.preview-620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/azstarnet.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/26/a26829ac-fcb0-11e3-929d-001a4bcf887a/53ab40e43d720.preview-620.jpg" height="301" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <a href="http://azstarnet.com/news/state-and-regional/huppenthal-cries-refuses-to-resign-over-blog-posts/article_8e6c2764-fcb0-11e3-aac9-001a4bcf887a.html" target="_blank"><i>Arizona Daily Star</i></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Over the last several years, students, activists and parents have expressed increasing concern about what's called the "school to prison pipeline." As the adult prison population has expanded in this country, so has the number of children behind bars. And even with a relatively recent rise in the use of diversion programs in Arizona, the consequences for students can be severe, as the presence of SROs in schools leads to the increasing criminalization of student behavior, particularly students of color. Police become involved in behavior problems that previously had been treated as administrative discipline issues.<br />
<br />
According to a Justice Policy Institute report on SROs in schools: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"In 2001, the Pinellas County (Florida) School District Police made 146 arrests, of which 54 percent were of black students. Comparatively, 19 percent of the District’s enrollment is black.<br />
<br />
In South Carolina, black students are more likely to be referred to law enforcement than their white peers. Black students make up 42 percent of student enrollment, but 75 percent of disorderly conduct charges, of which 90 percent are referred to law enforcement.<br />
<br />
In the 2001–2002 school year, Latino students were 22 percent of student enrollment, but 34 percent of referrals to law enforcement agencies in Colorado."</blockquote>
Disparities of this order ought to concern anyone and should be part of the discussion around further expanding the role for police in schools.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJ59rbU9_BY7h6zJuoJ3sRiSGF68kbXMuGU7TBya_-G9LN_pESYcsirKmICyA7mNtupqfwzxnvU0yDkANDqjpEiIkmhDSEYO0JT7eXmMfaJg4k3H1y8VhqEjIslA4jbMfUS2PvqRcU78/s1600/zero+tolerance+racism+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJ59rbU9_BY7h6zJuoJ3sRiSGF68kbXMuGU7TBya_-G9LN_pESYcsirKmICyA7mNtupqfwzxnvU0yDkANDqjpEiIkmhDSEYO0JT7eXmMfaJg4k3H1y8VhqEjIslA4jbMfUS2PvqRcU78/s1600/zero+tolerance+racism+-+Copy.PNG" height="293" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <a href="http://www.justicepolicy.org/uploads/justicepolicy/documents/educationunderarrest_fullreport.pdf" target="_blank">Justice Policy Institute (.pdf)</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Further, racial disparities plainly evident in policing outside school also prevail behind school walls. The <a href="http://www.acluaz.org/sites/default/files/documents/STPP%20SUMMARY%20ACLU%20OF%20ARIZONA%20OCTOBER%202009.pdf" target="_blank">ACLU Arizona has also documented the disproportionate criminalization of students of color</a>, noting that both Latino and black youth are over-represented throughout the process, from referral and arrest to incarceration. These disparities result, in no small part, from the proliferation of "zero tolerance policies" in schools, which combine with the presence of SROs to funnel students into the criminal justice system.<br />
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These policies, which emerged from the white suburban paranoia in the 80's and 90's over drugs and violence in inner city schools, and solidified as national policy with the passing of the Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 (perhaps offering a lesson in the unintended consequences of gun control legislation), have had greater effect in schools attended by nonwhite students.<br />
<br />
The Justice Policy Institute has shown a direct correlation between zero tolerance policies and the proportion of students of color in a school, as well as the way that youth of color are targeted at far greater rates than white kids for all manner of disciplinary processes. In Arizona, for instance, suspensions for Native American youth ranks second in the nation and well above the national average. Likewise, according to the <a href="http://www.prisonpolicy.org/profiles/AZ.html" target="_blank">Prison Policy Initiative</a>, Indigenous Peoples number 5% of the Arizona population and yet total 10% of its prison population. More SROs will only further exacerbate that disturbing trend.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvO_j9EgcXb1rfMfpPWO72lqNH7Vj4_MYiTrHz8qPaEPMdfwOTbmdSTjiS31tWN1wSu6cTAWYfdIHkay_dYL61V3xGcNONuMoik2x-CxnSctkPx9LSaz6W8sc9lfWgN3DaPA5BbiIWZk/s1600/suspension+rate+native+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvO_j9EgcXb1rfMfpPWO72lqNH7Vj4_MYiTrHz8qPaEPMdfwOTbmdSTjiS31tWN1wSu6cTAWYfdIHkay_dYL61V3xGcNONuMoik2x-CxnSctkPx9LSaz6W8sc9lfWgN3DaPA5BbiIWZk/s1600/suspension+rate+native+-+Copy.PNG" height="320" width="293" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: <span class="st"><a href="http://nmpovertylaw.org/WP-nmclp/wordpress/WP-nmclp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/STP-2012-REPORT-2012-03-26.pdf" target="_blank"><em>New Mexico</em> Center on <em>Law</em> and </a><em><a href="http://nmpovertylaw.org/WP-nmclp/wordpress/WP-nmclp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/STP-2012-REPORT-2012-03-26.pdf" target="_blank">Poverty (.pdf)</a></em></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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And SROs in schools pose a particular threat to immigrant youth in the land of SB1070. In 2013, the <a href="http://www.acluaz.org/sites/default/files/documents/02.15.13%20Ltr%20to%20Sunnyside%20School%20District%20Re.%20SRO_Redacted.pdf" target="_blank">ACLU Arizona filed a complaint (.pdf)</a> with the then <span class="st">Superintendent of Sunnyside Unified School District, Dr<wbr></wbr>. Manuel L. Isquierdo over an incident in which a student was turned over by a school resource officer to Border Patrol over his immigration status.</span> Again, data from the Justice Policy Center shows that, "Even when controlling for school poverty, schools with an SRO had nearly five times the rate of arrests for disorderly conduct as schools without an SRO." SROs also pose a safety risk to students. In Tempe in February, a <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/20140307tempe-officer-accidentally-fires-taser-school-probe-stikes-student-abrk.html" target="_blank">SRO accidentally tased a eight grader</a> when teaching a class on bullying. <br />
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<span class="st">Flooding Arizona schools with cops is obviously seen as uncontroversial among media types, as not one single article I could find had even a solitary voice of dissent on the matter. More cops in schools, in the age of school shooting paranoia, is viewed as a universal good, just like zero tolerance policies were during a previous wave of school violence fears. Meanwhile, the admittedly offensive and reactionary internet comments by Superintendent Huppenthal have created a national media firestorm.</span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">While Huppenthal's racism is a serious issue, and certainly his attacks on ethnic studies were clearly racist, banning books in school doesn't prevent students from reading them. Ideally, students do most of their reading outside of class. Libraries exist, the internet exists. Huppenthal running the schools is certainly a problem, but the presence of police in those schools is a direct every day force for institutionalized racism with real, lifelong consequences for students. The silence that has greeted this expansion of the police state is telling. </span><br />
Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-80001140056047044292014-06-14T13:47:00.000-07:002014-11-25T10:10:50.181-08:00Scottsdale Police join ranks of Valley cops using "Stingray" device to spy on cell phones<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWKlE5yJgCofyCK06jwMRQ4Uc9nNeoDHd8QljUzfaOlsT1U87_uDjuLkzia1gdMFaPqc71s3p3AuKxMBaiRJZ4Hj1rmxOoH6pmj8GYdIekGfViY6ai6dj3Vwmwmwd_fexwAjRhWFfM3z8/s1600/P1-BC606_Stingr_G_20110921180755.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWKlE5yJgCofyCK06jwMRQ4Uc9nNeoDHd8QljUzfaOlsT1U87_uDjuLkzia1gdMFaPqc71s3p3AuKxMBaiRJZ4Hj1rmxOoH6pmj8GYdIekGfViY6ai6dj3Vwmwmwd_fexwAjRhWFfM3z8/s1600/P1-BC606_Stingr_G_20110921180755.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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As we revealed in a recent post, the <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank">Tempe Police Department has made at least two purchases of the Stingray device from the Harris Corporation</a>, both shrouded in secrecy due to a non-disclosure
agreement. We can now reveal that another valley police department is
in possession of a Stingray device. <i>Down & Drought</i> has learned that the Scottsdale Police
Department used the controversial Stingray surveillance device on 29 "missions" in 2010,
citing a Scottsdale police report which identifies the device by name in a
section on the department's Technical Operations Unit.<br />
<br />
The 2010 annual report appears to be the only public admission of Scottsdale's use of a
Stingray, no other web searches by <i>Down & Drought</i> could find any other
reference of the device by the City of Scottsdale or Scottsdale
Police Department. In the <a href="http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Assets/Public+Website/police/Annual+Reports/2010AnnualReport.pdf" target="_blank">2010 City of Scottsdale Annual Report</a>,
the Stingray is mentioned briefly in the section on the Scottsdale
Police Department's Special Investigations Section Technical Operations.
According to the report, the Technical Operations Unit is "responsible
for the installation and maintenance of technical surveillance
equipment and systems. The Tech Ops Unit assists other work groups
within the police department, including Patrol, with special technical
investigative assistance." <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuO3gHk0m_pvvq3R7JT-BUDbJkqKRkPai0onMPv4rXKLXA5D_rv2m42LsCuzh-XZ8y3mcUolArG9M7wdrNqf0sYs5JXPtzib36HfhwCh2XRbWScn-JQIDPwMu91LBDWGt4a-GO_anmaE/s1600/scottsdalesting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuO3gHk0m_pvvq3R7JT-BUDbJkqKRkPai0onMPv4rXKLXA5D_rv2m42LsCuzh-XZ8y3mcUolArG9M7wdrNqf0sYs5JXPtzib36HfhwCh2XRbWScn-JQIDPwMu91LBDWGt4a-GO_anmaE/s1600/scottsdalesting.jpg" height="400" width="250" /></a>Police departments across the valley, and through out Arizona, are increasingly utilizing electronic surveillance devices to eavesdrop and record information with very little public knowledge about the techniques being used in the mass gathering of private and confidential information of individuals. In an article published in March on <i>Down & Drought</i>, we raised <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/will-tempe-pd-use-phone-data-gathering.html" target="_blank">concerns over the civil rights implications of the Tempe Police Department's use of an electronic surveillance device</a> called the Stingray by citing the secrecy surrounding the devices as a result of a contractual confidentiality agreement between the City of Tempe and the manufacturer of the Stingray, the Harris Corporation.<br />
<br />
It has been confirmed, through <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/arizona/articles/20131203arizona-police-agencies-tracking-cellphones.html" target="_blank">articles from the Arizona Republic</a> and <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/20120403gilbert-police-can-track-cellphones.html" target="_blank">statements from the Arizona branch of the ACLU</a>, that police departments in the valley, and across Arizona have purchased Stingray technology. The AZCLU's Alessandra Meetze identified the Maricopa County Sheriff's
Office, the Gilbert PD, and Glendale PD as valley departments in use of
the Stingray device, and the Pinal County Sheriff's Department and
Flagstaff PD as agencies outside the valley with Stingrays. A subsequent Arizona Republic article from December 2013 identified the Mesa PD and
Phoenix PD as departments using the Stingray, with Phoenix having one in
use since 2001.<br />
<br />
The Stingray is a surveillance technology used by police to imitate a cell phone tower causing every cell phone and wireless device within range to connect
with the police tower and unwittingly sharing data. As of now, there is
no way for an individual to know if their cell phone or wireless device
is currently having its communications and data intercepted by police. <br />
<br />
Scrutiny from media outlets over the Stingray technology has intensified in recent weeks after US Marshals intervened in a public records request regarding a Florida police department's use of the device. <i>Wired</i> writer Kim Zetter has followed the <a href="http://www.wired.com/2014/03/harris-stingray-nda/" target="_blank">legal battles over the non-disclosure agreements which protect police departments</a> from releasing any information on their purchases from the Harris Corporation. In her most recent piece on the Stingray, she covered the eyebrow raising actions of the <a href="http://www.wired.com/2014/06/feds-seize-stingray-documents/" target="_blank">US Marshals seizing records</a> requested by the ACLU regarding the Stingray's use by detectives from the Sarasota Police Department. While this brazen intervention by federal authorities has shocked civil libertarians, such efforts to thwart a public records request are common. The <a href="http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/5548583-74/fbi-technology-projects#axzz34amFuD8c" target="_blank">FBI routinely has its agents working to obscure the price, function, and uses of the Stingray device</a> by testifying in courtroom hearings that the secrecy is necessary to stop criminal targets from learning how police may be monitoring their activities.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/surveillance" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">READ MORE COVERAGE OF LOCAL POLICE SURVEILLANCE</span></a></b></div>
<br />
Most troubling is the revelation, which came from the Associated Press, that the <a href="http://bigstory.ap.org/article/us-pushing-local-cops-stay-mum-surveillance" target="_blank">Obama administration is actively advising local law enforcement</a> agencies to not disclose the details of their agreements with the Harris Corporation, or the applications of the secret surveillance technology used for the Stingray device. Whereas the FBI's public defense of the non-disclosure agreements concerned "criminals" evading the device's detection, the Obama administration is defending the secrecy surrounding the device on the grounds that to reveal any information could constitute a threat to national security. As Washington Post columnist <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2014/06/12/insert-most-transparent-administration-in-history-comment-here/" target="_blank">Radley Balko remarked this week</a>,
if revealing the particulars of this device is such a threat to
national security, then why is it being widely used by local police departments
across the country?<br />
<br />
Since it seems likely that these devices will continue to be used in greater number across the country, and not seized as Balko jests, then it is imperative that the core questions regarding these devices be answered. How do they work, how many are they, how many people are going to prison due to their use, and how can an individual prevent such a device from accessing their personal information on a wireless device. Until that occurs, it's safe to presume that the Stingray, and similar devices, can do a lot more than log call information and triangulate an individuals location, and the public deserves to know how they're being spied on <i>this time</i>. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-62165317966104411462014-05-22T08:59:00.001-07:002014-07-28T14:44:16.798-07:00Phoenix Police threaten wave of terror, plan to murder their way towards pay raises<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Are Valley police threatening to murder their way to a pay raise? Are they gunning to take food off the plates of poor children? All indications point to "affirmative."</i></span><br />
<br />
With <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/05/09/phoenix-police-union-wants-voters-to-overturn-pay-cuts/8908947/" target="_blank">Phoenix cops threatening to go to the ballot</a> to protect their bloated pay packages and fast lane pay increases -- raises that have gone far beyond that of other city workers -- the fight over police pay may not be over just because the <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/25559778/phoenix-city-council-passes-budget" target="_blank">City of Phoenix passed a budget</a>.<br />
<br />
<b>STRANGE BEDFELLOWS</b><br />
<br />
The surprise moment of political clarity that threatens to <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/05/08/police-contract-vote-opens-fissures-phoenix/8866571/" target="_blank">finally cut back on the bloated pay of Phoenix Police officers</a> has led to some odd political moments already, such as local civil rights advocate <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Police-call-for-public-vote-on-proposed-pay-cuts-258703991.html" target="_blank">Jarett Maupin rushing to the defense of the boys in blue</a>, who so often dish out the black and blue -- and worse -- in Valley neighborhoods, especially poor neighborhoods of color.<br />
<br />
Sal Diccicio, generally a right wing opponent of unions, voted with the union thugs this time. Will Buividas, the cops' bargainer-in-chief on this one, <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/ejmontini/2014/05/08/plea-phoenix-law-enforcement-association-city-council-contract-pay-benefit-cuts/8856469/" target="_blank">had this to say</a>: "It's weird, of course. And politics makes these strange bedfellows. The people supporting us last night were some of the
same people who support The Goldwater Institute and got Goldwater to sue
us on release time. It's a very interesting blender we find ourselves
in."<br />
<br />
<b>SOCIALISTS IN BLUE</b><br />
<br />
Local libertarian activist Jason Shelton, however, showed up to the city council debate as a lone dissenter, speaking after a long line of cops and police-advocates had their chance. Known for his <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2008/08/photo_enforcement_arrest_in_sc.php" target="_blank">past organizing against the hated freeway cameras</a> and border checkpoints, Shelton <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/videos/news/local/phoenix/2014/05/07/8833063/" target="_blank">denounced the police union and Phoenix officers as "socialists" and "pirates."</a> It's nice to see the libertarian hatred of government and unions aimed in a direction that doesn't first and foremost screw over the poor for once.<br />
<br />
Watch Shelton's comments in the the video below. Start it at 4:55 if it doesn't queue up automatically.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/M72wm-et7vQ" width="420"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
Shelton rightfully goes after several police myths, including the
alleged dangerousness of the job and the nature of most police deaths on
the job. In his remarks, Shelton mentions the leading cause of death for police: being hit by oncoming traffic.<br />
<br />
Nevertheless, policing is universally revered in media and government. The death of any officer, for any reason, gets treated as a tragedy for the whole community, leading to civic responses quite out of proportion not only to the cause of death, but also the notice given to any other worker.<br />
<br />
This city would be nothing without air conditioning repair technicians, for instance, and yet when is the last time we witnessed a public funeral for one of them? And yet on May 20th, the City of Phoenix <a href="http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/25569646/2014/05/20/historical-marker-dedicated-to-fallen-police-officer" target="_blank">placed a historical marker to commemorate the death of Officer Daryl Raetz</a>, who was hit and killed by a vehicle while heroically making a DUI stop.<br />
<br />
<b>STEALING BREAD FROM THE POOR</b> <br />
<br />
Shelton also raises the issue of the regressive food tax,
putting his finger on a crucial element of this debate that isn't
getting much play: the salaries of Phoenix cops have depended in no
small measure on a direct tax on the city's poorest residents. <br />
<br />
Indeed,
the <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/02/02/20100202phoenix-food-sales-tax-approved.html" target="_blank">Phoenix food tax was passed in 2010 specifically to preserve police jobs</a>,
among others. It's a real case of the poor paying not just more -- but
twice! -- because, as a recent NPR study showed, it's the poor who are
the overwhelming targets of police harassment and violence, <a href="http://www.npr.org/2014/05/19/312158516/increasing-court-fees-punish-the-poor" target="_blank">including the fees and fines that keep the police in business</a>.<br />
<br />
In an April 30th position paper filed with Phoenix City Council (.<a href="http://phoenix.gov/webcms/groups/internet/@inter/@dept/@hr/documents/web_content/108831.pdf" target="_blank">pdf</a>), PLEA (Phoenix Law Enforcement Association), one of the unions that represents Phoenix cops in the pay dispute, specifically blamed the repeal of the food tax as the cause of the pay cuts.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0KbafQ8EtKiC83WqNp13Bw4y9i8YW2JxikRdz5pwI2QpAUcwjcxGOwA5jt6huZpne6dEzQIlU4a_2NdH3u1E0G_iBtoCzLKeF8uO83pHjvIl16SIEfU8hEUPXJenn6Mc64XXWVG2naQ/s1600/plea+statement+food+tax+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0KbafQ8EtKiC83WqNp13Bw4y9i8YW2JxikRdz5pwI2QpAUcwjcxGOwA5jt6huZpne6dEzQIlU4a_2NdH3u1E0G_iBtoCzLKeF8uO83pHjvIl16SIEfU8hEUPXJenn6Mc64XXWVG2naQ/s1600/plea+statement+food+tax+-+Copy.PNG" height="315" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Police unions, used to the never-ending gravy train of raises, high tech
toys, tax transfers, and Homeland Security grants, reacted with shock at the sudden
reversal. Advocating for denying food to the poor is disturbing indeed. Taking it and putting it on your own plate even more so, which is essentially what the cops are advocating. <br />
<br />
<b>KILLING FOR A RAISE</b><br />
<br />
The debate over the pay cuts come at a time of great concern over real and perceived increases in the use of lethal force by local cops (euphemistically referred to in the media with the passive voice term "officer-involved shootings"). Thus it was only natural that the two issues would become entwined in the debate over pay.<br />
<br />
Returning to PLEA's position paper, the union itself draws the connection between increasing violence and cuts. While championing the reduction in crime by 40%, the union <a href="http://phoenix.gov/webcms/groups/internet/@inter/@dept/@hr/documents/web_content/108831.pdf" target="_blank">laments that the same hasn't been true for cop violence</a> (.pdf) "Unfortunately, the same trend cannot be said for violence involving Phoenix police officers. In 2013 Phoenix police officers were involved in 31 officer involved shootings. Already in 2014, Phoenix police officers have been involved in 15 officer involved shootings, on pace for 60 officer involved shootings this year, almost double the amount from 2013."<br />
<br />
As a side note, consider that both the cops and the media are happy with that tidy little bit of obfuscatory grandiloquence, the "officer-involved shooting," a politically useful bit of Newspeak that removes all blame, situating the violence in a space detached from time, space and, importantly, causality. As if the armed officer's presence were mere unfortunate happenstance.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;"></span></a></div>
<span style="color: red;"></span>Police bosses had already been on the defensive about shootings by cops thanks to some local coverage in the media, although local news <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/phoenix%20police" target="_blank">hasn't exactly done a stellar job</a> in covering it, as we have highlighted here at <i>Down and Drought</i>.<br />
<br />
Beyond PLEA, prominent cops have linked cuts to staff and budgets to a rise in shootings, too. Jeff Hynes, a former Phoenix cop and current professor at ASU in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, said in a March interview with Channel 5 that<a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/25012718/asu-professor-increase-in-officer-involved-shootings-tied-to-reduction-in-force" target="_blank"> rising police violence ought to be blamed on "the reduction of police forces" and cut budgets</a>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;"><b>READ MORE ABOUT THE MARYVALE PRECINCT</b></span></a></div>
<br />
Speaking to Channel 5, Hynes made the connection between current and future police violence and budget cuts clear: "You're going to see more assaults, more shootings. You're going to see more violence." He continued, "I truly believe it's a connection with the reduction of police forces
around the country and taking your officers out of the community
interaction area and putting them back into a patrol function." <br />
<br />
Channel 5 neglected to tell its readers, however, that Hynes, a former member of the PPD's Professional Standards Bureau, which is responsible for internal investigations of use of force, was <a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bastard/2010/10/maricopa_countys_brady_list_an.php" target="_blank">himself placed on the infamous Brady List</a>, a federally-required database of officers identified, as the New Times reports, as having done something that "calls into question their honesty." Many of these officers are on the list for use of force complaints and violations.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/56hXjCaKbwI" width="420"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
PLEA has made officers available for media interviews, in which they plead their case. One of them, <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/phoenix-police-officers-not-happy-about-potential-pay-cuts" target="_blank">Officer Mike "Britt" London, spoke to ABC15</a>, complaining (with a very spacious and modern kitchen in the background) about tight budgets at home as a result of tight budgets at City Hall. ABC15's interview ended with an ominous comment from London: "I would like to know why it came to this, why they have to take from those of us who protect them."<br />
<br />
London ran successfully for a position of <a href="http://azplea.com/about-plea/plea-board-of-trustees/" target="_blank">trustee in the union in 2011</a>. While campaigning for that position, <a href="http://azplea.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/RECAP-June-2011.pdf" target="_blank">London opened his candidate statement</a> in the association's newsletter with a quote: "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far”. He declared, "I have always liked this expression and I think it can be applied to many areas of life." London prides himself on his status as a "street cop" where, presumably, he puts his philosophy into practice. Later, London described policing (he is based out of the perpetually scandal-plagued Maryvale Precinct) as "a job that sometimes feels isolating and thankless."<br />
<br />
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<br />
Meanwhile, <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Mesa-police-chief-talks-about-officer-involved-shootings-fallen-detective-257721051.html" target="_blank">Mesa PD Chief Frank Milstead claimed in a May 2 interview with Channel 3</a> that he didn't really believe that shootings by officers were on the rise. "I don't know that there's a real spike in violence as some of these
pieces of violence as these events have been close in proximity
timewise, which makes it very apparent to us that it happens," Mistead said.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/true-detectives-branding-ppds-major.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;"><b>READ MORE ABOUT PPD'S MAJOR OFFENDER'S BUREAU</b></span></a></div>
<br />
Interestingly, Milstead, who started the <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/true-detectives-branding-ppds-major.html" target="_blank">controversial and scandal-plagued Major Offenders Bureau</a>, was speaking to the news in order to mark the addition of the name of Detective Hobbs (also from MOB), recently killed in a gun fight on duty, to the Phoenix Police Museum's fallen officer display.<br />
<br />
We've <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/true-detectives-branding-ppds-major.html" target="_blank">written about the Hobbs case already</a>, but since that article ran, we have come into possession of a new document regarding Hobbs' past history with use of force. As we disclosed last time, previous public records searches had raised some questions about Hobbs' career.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/03/true-detectives-branding-ppds-major.html" target="_blank">From our previous article:</a> <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Further research revealed <a href="http://statecasefiles.justia.com/documents/arizona/court-of-appeals-division-one-unpublished/CR100767.pdf?ts=1323885151" target="_blank">a court document detailing an encounter</a>
that resulted in the imprisonment of a man who confronted Hobbs on a
stakeout. Hobbs was in plain clothes in an unmarked car. Haidar Muhsin
al Bazony, eventually convicted of aggravated assault in the incident,
was responding to a call from his wife who was concerned about men
lingering outside her townhouse.<br />
<br />
Bazony, armed with a handgun and backed up by a friend he recruited to
aid him, approached the car, peering inside. The document in question,
an appeal, disputes the timing of the encounter as described by the
state. The appeal claims that Hobbs pointed his gun at Bazony first not
the other way around. Each testified in court that the other had aimed
their weapons first. According to the appeal, the timing was critical to
the conviction. Keep in mind that Hobbs wasn't dressed in a uniform and
wasn't in a marked vehicle. The request was denied and Bazony was
sentenced to the absolute minimum by the court.</blockquote>
<br />
This new document is a version of the previously-cited court filing, but this one includes the court's footnotes. These notes include one very important fact which was not included in the previous version that we had. The case rested on a very simple but hard to determine fact: which of the two men, Hobbs or Bazony, had drawn their weapon first.<br />
<br />
As noted above, the previous version of this document, lacking the court's comments, had indicated a "he said, she said" kind of situation, as both men testified that the other had pulled his weapon first. However, the court notes reveal something else. Footnote number 5 states, "Hobbs denied taking out his sidearm at this time. Another member of the surveillance team reported that Hobbs admitted to taking his sidearm out when he lay down, but this statement was not introduced as evidence."<br />
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<br />
<br />
This is important because, according to the document, while Hobbs was warned of Bazony's approach, the surveillance team had not seen the weapon. Hobbs himself, again, according to the court record, claims he did not draw his weapon until he saw Bazony's weapon. This excluded testimony changes the nature of this case substantially, especially given that Bazony went to prison as a result. It also casts further doubt on Hobbs in general, beyond that which we already managed to discover through cursory Google searches (a technique apparently unknown to local reporters, or at least conveniently forgotten when police shootings occur).<br />
<br />
These questionable incidents included a case where Hobbs ran over and killed a pedestrian at night and yet was not administered a DUI test. Court record searches revealed at least one lawsuit that led to a payout by Hobbs to the plaintiff in the amount of $6328.10. Hobbs was defended by the city in that case, leaving the impression that this was work-related.<br />
<br />
But since the media has found itself incapable of challenging the myth of policing, or the powerful police unions that perpetuate it, it frees the cops up to trot out their fallen comrades when politically expedient to do so. Long time regular columnist for the Republic, EJ Montini ran an <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/story/ejmontini/2014/03/27/phoenix-police-goldwater-institute-pension-politics/6971113/" target="_blank">anonymous letter from a cop in his March 27th column</a>. The officer denounced city officials playing politics with officers' lives.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
When an officer is killed in the line of duty you have a
congregation of politicians lined up saying how sad they are. A week
later it is business as usual -- attacking public safety. What a bunch
of hypocrites. I would rather them stay away. Every cop knows they don't
mean it. </blockquote>
Nevertheless, PLEA itself is quick to drag out the corpses of cops like Hobbs when they think it will score them points. In an <a href="https://azplea.com/plea-news/city-wants-cuts-while-violence-increases/" target="_blank">editorial on its own website entitled, "City wants Cuts While Violence Increases"</a> (<i>sic</i>), the union invokes his name while warning of the consequences of a "dangerously understaffed and demoralized police force." PLEA's position paper itself trots out Hobbs' corpse in its conclusion, a paragraph that uses the word "sacrifice" three times in the last two sentences.<br />
<br />
While Valley cops may be confused about when it's appropriate to use a dead cop for political purposes, one thing they're sure of is that the residents of Greater Phoenix had better watch out. Take warning. The cops are looking out for number one this time around. Even your dinner isn't safe, and if they have to kill you in order to prove their point -- that they deserve a raise despite the fact that <a href="http://azstarnet.com/business/local/arizona-s-predicted-job-growth-stagnant-slow-subpar/article_85cdcd2d-547e-58d4-9107-1a99a996cc64.html" target="_blank">wages over all in Arizona for workers are still down</a> since the recession -- then they will. <br />
<br />
Maybe now's a good time to listen to Mesa Chief Milstead. Continuing his comments about policing, violence and risk in another interview, <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Mesa-police-chief-talks-about-officer-involved-shootings-fallen-detective-257721051.html" target="_blank">he put it this way</a>: "We worry about putting people in the line of fire and in danger, but it is what we signed up for." Enough with the pity party, PPD. Stop complaining and take your hits like the tough, duty-bound toughies you claim to be. And most of all, stop killing us.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/phoenix%20police" target="_blank"><b><i>Read more Down and Drought coverage of Phoenix Police and the Major Offenders Bureau.</i></b></a></span>Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-17376155953982343612014-03-14T18:45:00.000-07:002014-07-28T14:45:15.583-07:00Is Tempe PD planning to use cell phone data to identify participants at an anti-racist rally?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ_XSc8OJK76_D-9EUEaAj3rjxS5Os0vSibuUggU1EondIPNZb9psCNBXVG-UpY6w337BI6onWcKcZth2xsPTcaijylFAVwACCj6a2TZPB42TKg11jbNu37W1UuHl3MBMxAdGg5rS-7wU/s1600/stingray1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ_XSc8OJK76_D-9EUEaAj3rjxS5Os0vSibuUggU1EondIPNZb9psCNBXVG-UpY6w337BI6onWcKcZth2xsPTcaijylFAVwACCj6a2TZPB42TKg11jbNu37W1UuHl3MBMxAdGg5rS-7wU/s1600/stingray1.jpg" height="277" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2014/03/white_man_march_comes_to_tempe.php" target="_blank">According to local media</a>, the Tempe Police Department are preparing for a potential clash between a group of white supremacists who have announced a "White Man March" on Mill Avenue on Saturday, and a counter-demonstration organized by local anarchists and anti-racists, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/434402700028066/?ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular" target="_blank">including residents of the surrounding neighborhood</a>.<br />
<br />
The TPD has a less than stellar history when it comes to dealing with protests. With that in mind, we want to put a spotlight on a secretive tool in the arsenal of the Tempe cops, one that can easily be used for spying on demonstrators in real time by using something almost everyone carries with them these days: a cell phone. The question is, will the TPD use it -- and what will be the implications for civil liberties if they do?<br />
<br />
The Tempe Police Department's history of political repression through intimidation, electronic tracking, and surveilling of activists, radicals, anarchists, and participants in Occupy Phoenix, has been <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/tempe-anti-terror-cops-sent-undercovers.html" target="_blank">documented here at <b><i>Down & Drought</i></b></a> (and also quite <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Government_Surveillance_of_Occupy_Movement" target="_blank">extensively by journalist Beau Hodai</a>, and by the anarchists themselves (<a href="http://firesneverextinguished.blogspot.com/2012/04/tempe-police-homeland-defense-unit.html" target="_blank">1</a>,<a href="http://firesneverextinguished.blogspot.com/2012/09/tempe-police-and-arizona-anti-terror.html" target="_blank">2</a>)), and includes using anti-terror cops to spy on gardeners and deploying mobile surveillance to gawk at tailgaters.<br />
<br />
Knowing this historical context, and considering statements from TPD about their preparation for Saturday's protests, we decided to do a little to research on the use of technology for the purpose of remote electronic surveillance. This led us to the Stingray, a device being discreetly used by law enforcement agencies across the United States to covertly collect data.<br />
<br />
The Stingray is known as an “IMSI catcher”, meaning that the device records the International Mobile Subscriber Identity of a particular wireless device, such as a cell phone. According to <a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424053111904194604576583112723197574?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424053111904194604576583112723197574.html" target="_blank">documents obtained</a> by The Wall Street Journal, the "Stingray works by mimicking a cellphone tower, getting a phone to
connect to it and measuring signals from the phone. It lets the stingray
operator 'ping,' or send a signal to, a phone and locate it as long as
it is powered on."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQJJ_CGWeC6h9OwokAy1oPJaFOsMFrSWrlGmbGz_dEn7Y2Ff9Puo9b5-3ArgGDotlOUk2zPP9AR7EQDVM_l9ObaeONfuPSBvnh3wAVZmwuItZRLm4oegwPCcUtypQTGWiYWxS6Z8Egk4o/s1600/stingray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQJJ_CGWeC6h9OwokAy1oPJaFOsMFrSWrlGmbGz_dEn7Y2Ff9Puo9b5-3ArgGDotlOUk2zPP9AR7EQDVM_l9ObaeONfuPSBvnh3wAVZmwuItZRLm4oegwPCcUtypQTGWiYWxS6Z8Egk4o/s1600/stingray.jpg" height="222" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Stingray has the ability to connect to all cell phones within a mile of the device, without police having to contact a wireless service provider, by collecting data on the identification and location of all phone communications within range, and then forwarding the signal on to the nearest cell phone tower. Among the data collected by the Stingray include all outgoing numbers dialed for phone calls and text messages, and the identification for a phone which can be used to obtain call and text history. As the Stingray is usually mounted in a police vehicle, it can stay mobile and, due to the lack of familiarity the public has with the device, would be difficult to identify.<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">A handful of valley police departments admitted that they use the device in an <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/arizona/articles/20131203arizona-police-agencies-tracking-cellphones.html" target="_blank">Arizona Republic article</a>, among them Phoenix, Mesa, and Gilbert departments. These devices are generally purchased with grant funds made available by the Department of Homeland Security. According to the Republic<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">, a number of valley police departments refused to acknowledge the use of the Stingray device, including the </span></span>Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, which denied any knowledge of the Stingray device. </span></span><br />
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In a similar instance, journalists in Sacramento<a href="http://www.news10.net/story/news/investigations/watchdog/2014/03/06/cellphone-spying-technology-used-throughout-northern-california/6144949/" target="_blank"> researching the use of the Stingray in the region</a> were told by the <span class="asset-metabar-author asset-metabar-item" itemprop="name">the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office that the department had no knowledge of owning or using the Stingray. When confronted with documents from other departments, including a purchase order from Sacramento County, which confirmed that the </span><span class="asset-metabar-author asset-metabar-item" itemprop="name">Sacramento County Sheriff's Office did own a Stingray and related technology, the department never fessed up to owning a Stingray, instead telling the journalists that their "legal counsel is coordinating a response" to the inquiry.</span><br />
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<span class="asset-metabar-author asset-metabar-item" itemprop="name">The Stingray is a product of the </span>Harris Corporation, a company which specializes in high tech surveillance technology, and made the Stingray a sought after device for law enforcement after <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/12/08/cellphone-data-spying-nsa-police/3902809/" target="_blank">years of developing the technology for the US military</a>. Harris Corporation refuses to answer reporters' questions about the Stingray and related products, telling them to ask the police agencies about the device, which would be great if Harris Corporation wasn't also requiring departments to sign non-disclosure agreements upon purchase. This is the case with one of the notable local departments absent from the Republic's article, the Tempe Police Department, who paid Harris Corporation $60,321.75 for a Stingray package in October 2012.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8HCN3uDiWXvsyazUzZk8sRKXYSaiybo-hmzTscgWlwVmalOby_PIKGJ5gscF0lnBr0OtR0XLsplq9LRNgMNRC2ysQQ-_LrGs5aeuFertB7Xe3Pjidh4K2scPqVXr85QKSJiVtZdhTIq8/s1600/harriscontracttempe+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8HCN3uDiWXvsyazUzZk8sRKXYSaiybo-hmzTscgWlwVmalOby_PIKGJ5gscF0lnBr0OtR0XLsplq9LRNgMNRC2ysQQ-_LrGs5aeuFertB7Xe3Pjidh4K2scPqVXr85QKSJiVtZdhTIq8/s1600/harriscontracttempe+-+Copy.jpg" height="206" width="320" /></a></div>
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The contract, which the Public Intelligence project <a href="https://publicintelligence.net/harris-wpg-terms/" target="_blank">downloaded and hosts on their site</a>, was removed from the City of Tempe's website in the weeks after the purchase. The removal of the contract, between the Harris Corporation and the City of Tempe, was likely due to the non-disclosure agreement that Tempe probably violated by posting the document to the city's website. A subsequent <a href="http://documents.tempe.gov/sirepub/view.aspx?cabinet=published_meetings&fileid=17202080" target="_blank">request for an additional purchase</a> from Harris Corporation to not exceed $123,497.50 was approved by the Tempe City Council at their<a href="http://documents.tempe.gov/sirepub/mtgviewer.aspx?meetid=779&doctype=AGENDA" target="_blank"> August 22, 2013 meeting</a>. Naturally, the details of the recent purchase by the Tempe Police Department from Harris Corporation are not available to the public.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXvPconSodKDo4bBD0AtDY_sfRBBnhRNsk-zhU-Wk3S-XXFD7Y7uFjJhkvSIiLPN2lUxMygt35NKmAkqHA1mPs88o1lFzUMQ8UfJYbN_nA6BR2MBhH3hmXUxYWSys1jTsj8IisWvFxZ4/s1600/councilaction+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXvPconSodKDo4bBD0AtDY_sfRBBnhRNsk-zhU-Wk3S-XXFD7Y7uFjJhkvSIiLPN2lUxMygt35NKmAkqHA1mPs88o1lFzUMQ8UfJYbN_nA6BR2MBhH3hmXUxYWSys1jTsj8IisWvFxZ4/s1600/councilaction+-+Copy.jpg" height="269" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">The use of nondisclosure
agreements between the government and private industry to hide the
acquisition of spy equipment with very serious civil liberties
implications is troubling, to say the least! Why doesn't the city want
its residents to know about this technology? As noted in the USA Today expose on the Stingray, there is a concern that the device could be used to identify the participants of a rally or protest for a political cause. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">As we have previously noted in our <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/07/arizonas-counter-terrorism-fusion.html" target="_blank">article on the </a></span></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/07/arizonas-counter-terrorism-fusion.html" target="_blank">Facial Recognition Unit</a> of the Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (ACTIC), </span></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">local law enforcement have repeatedly used tools that were purchased under the pretext of "fighting crime", but were actually used to spy on the participants in protests and activist events, many of whom had never been accused or convicted of a crime. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">So what does this mean for the future of protest in Tempe, or any town where the cops have a Stingray? It likely means that anyone carrying a cell phone could have their identity placed at the scene by police, despite any other precautions (such as wearing a mask to conceal the face). With the lengthy history of the Tempe PD's Homeland Defense Unit's efforts to stifle free speech and assembly, and the coordination between valley Terrorism Liason Officers (TLO) to identify radicals and anarchists in the valley, it seems quite likely that the Stingray could be discreetly deployed at this weekend's <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/733037416728029/" target="_blank">anti-fascist counter-protest</a> to the "White Man March."</span></span><br />
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And if you think the Tempe Police Department using the Stingray on Saturday to collect the identities of people protesting a white supremacist march (or just anyone on Mill Ave who may get lumped in) is without precedent, think again. In 2003, the <a href="http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/miami-dade.pdf" target="_blank">Miami-Dade Police Department purchased a Stingray</a> in anticipation of protests aimed at the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) conference. The department claimed the device was needed to monitor protests, and the "anticipated criminal activities" which they claimed would be organized by cell phone. Following the FTAA protests, the City of Miami, the Miami Police Department, and its officers, faced a number of lawsuits concerning the level of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2QfHaFitMs" target="_blank">violence and brutality</a> used by police against demonstrators, as well as complaints over the use of <a href="https://www.aclu.org/national-security/fbi-targeted-journalist-covering-free-trade-meetings-miami" target="_blank">surveillance to target journalists for arrest</a>.<br />
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With concerns over the use of the Stingray, and the Tempe PD's history of repression towards protest groups, we reached out to Sgt Michael Pooley, the Press Information Officer at Tempe. We asked Sgt Pooley for comment on the use of the Stringray by the Tempe Police in regards to the possible "White Man March" and counter-demonstration this weekend. We also asked about any past use of the Stingray by police at protests, and if the department has any concerns over the privacy concerns of anyone ensnared in the department's data collection. As of the time this article was published, there has been no response from Sgt Pooley, continuing the silence from Tempe on what appears to be a serious attack on civil liberty.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-3187551730188515332014-03-10T14:45:00.003-07:002014-12-04T13:41:23.813-08:00True Detectives: Branding PPD'S Major Offenders BureauThanks to the popularity of the HBO show, "True Detective," Americans are pretty familiar with the concept of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter_egg_%28media%29" target="_blank">Easter Egg</a>, the inside joke or hidden message buried within the larger story. The recent media coverage of the killing of Detective Hobbs also contains just such a buried theme: the coming out party for the Phoenix Police Department's Major Offenders Bureau (MOB) and the return of the police apparatus of political repression. But we'll get to that in a minute.<br />
<br />
What words would you use to describe the local media's coverage of police shootings? Comprehensive? Surely not. Critical? Hardly. Dismal? Getting warmer. Ass-kissing? Yeah, that's more on the money.<br />
<br />
Let's start with this because it's kind of a metaphor for the general
failures of Valley media to critically cover police shootings. <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/20140303officer-involved-shooting-database-map.html" target="_blank">AzCentral's map of officer-involved shootings</a> in the Valley leaves a lot to be desired. By our count Monday's two shootings by Phoenix PD brings the number of times <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/24867421/search-on-for-more-suspects-after-officer-involved-shooting" target="_blank">Valley cops have opened-fire on residents to at least 12</a> (note, by the time of publication and on the day of Hobbs' funeral, <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/20140310tempe-fatal-shooting-closes-us-60.html?nclick_check=1" target="_blank">DPS had shot another man in Tempe</a>). Their map lists six. Absent from their map, for instance, is <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Glendale-police-identify-suspect-killed-in-officer-involved-shooting-244354751.html" target="_blank">a man shot by Glendale PD's fugitive task force in February</a>. Also missing is the shooting of <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/24559816/az-burglary-suspect-shot-by-us-marshal-outside-grocery-store" target="_blank">Juan Nino by a US Marshall in front of the Food City</a> on 48th St. and Southern. Updating the map seems to be a low priority for them.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSAuHK7XI_7IEp9Awvv-xv7a0hSQZNAJtn1_nGLhMXGbL7Wxg3BR0cSpU9XeQRLmyiaivpQEGSGc_t4_9a22duaePOvKl9OmLtzEE8rRdiBcduIgJTCCn9NCftj1m7s65kRFYEXZJVj4/s1600/AzCentral+map+police+involved+shootings+out+of+date+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvSAuHK7XI_7IEp9Awvv-xv7a0hSQZNAJtn1_nGLhMXGbL7Wxg3BR0cSpU9XeQRLmyiaivpQEGSGc_t4_9a22duaePOvKl9OmLtzEE8rRdiBcduIgJTCCn9NCftj1m7s65kRFYEXZJVj4/s1600/AzCentral+map+police+involved+shootings+out+of+date+-+Copy.PNG" height="309" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Missing a few killings, but what's a few<br />
shootings between friends? (<a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/20140303officer-involved-shooting-database-map.html" target="_blank">Via AzCentral</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
And, if following police shootings wasn't your thing, you'd be hard-pressed, given any of the coverage of the two shootings -- one of which involved the death of an officer -- to know that cops in the Greater Phoenix Area are on <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/arizona/articles/20131118arizona-officer-involved-shootings-up.html" target="_blank">another one of their epic shooting sprees</a>. In fact, just hours before the shootout involving Detective Hobbs and his partner, Detective Casados, <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Burglary-at-gun-shop-ends-in-officer-involved-shooting-Light-Rail-affected-248180321.html" target="_blank">police opened fire on alleged burglars fleeing a break in at a gun shop</a>. In 2012, there were 47 shootings involving cops, and according to AzCentral themselves, by November 2013 the cops were already safely in record territory with 50, with a grand total of zero charges filed against any officers.<br />
<br />
That's a heck of a record. The system works, right?<br />
<br />
And despite what you might think based on the recent wave of effusive praise emanating from editorial boards and Twitter accounts since the most recent shooting, policing is not a terribly dangerous job. In fact, despite the assertions in a recent <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/opinions/articles/20140304phoenix-detective-john-hobbs-dedication.html" target="_blank">editorial from the Arizona Republic</a> that plays more than a little loose with the facts (opting for an 11-year average rather than the <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/nation-world/nation/article/Police-officer-deaths-continue-downward-trend-5084812.php?t=a2d475167922438ca1" target="_blank">decades-long downward trend</a>), <a href="http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-police-deaths-20131230,0,2076517.story#axzz2qQfpcqu1" target="_blank">officers killed by gunfire nationwide is at its lowest since 1887</a>. More officers are killed in traffic accidents.<br />
<br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/10/tailgate-phoenixs-surveillance-scandal.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: small;"> READ MORE ABOUT PPD'S SURVEILLANCE PROBLEMS</span></span></a>
</h3>
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In fact, overall deaths on the job among law enforcement is at its lowest since 1959, and that includes the car wrecks. The fact that they work in a profession that <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/08/22/americas-10-deadliest-jobs-2/" target="_blank">requires a lot of driving and yet still rate a safer profession that truck driver</a> says a great deal about the amount of risk that officers really take. So, as policing has gotten safer, and threats to officers have declined, cops have been shooting more people.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglCNflisfV67msMyyhfEYQXNDSoti9J_m9Q2chZMnFh1OEwDK_eSegfQITJIi0tVeIBizZieRaujYV2Uo_6iW_uvDQYOeWKmaJoTMKz3AkdsoKBvO2bTgo2SjXTy3f3U7JY0hoO9mNUNo/s1600/Chris+Hrapsky+12+news+officer+memorial+tweet+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglCNflisfV67msMyyhfEYQXNDSoti9J_m9Q2chZMnFh1OEwDK_eSegfQITJIi0tVeIBizZieRaujYV2Uo_6iW_uvDQYOeWKmaJoTMKz3AkdsoKBvO2bTgo2SjXTy3f3U7JY0hoO9mNUNo/s1600/Chris+Hrapsky+12+news+officer+memorial+tweet+-+Copy.PNG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Also noticeably missing from the coverage is any kind of critical analysis. When the shooting happened, the media eagerly jumped on the pro-cop band wagon, instantly transforming into direct advocates for officers. Channel 12 made a sign for people to write their condolences on and placed it at the memorial, making sure to tweet it out for the PR points. <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/100-Club-of-Arizona-ready-to-help-officers-families-248369141.html" target="_blank">Channel 3 organized a telethon with the 100 Club of Arizona</a>, a group that supports law enforcement.<br />
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Meanwhile, reporters made sure to tag <a href="https://twitter.com/phoenixpolice" target="_blank">@PhoenixPolice</a> in their tweets, as if seeking approval from the authorities. What other kind of news event warrants this level of unquestioning fealty to the official story as delineated by the authorities? When else is journalism suspended in a similar way? Certainly not for the victims of police violence, where reporters are always careful to get "both sides of the story." Meanwhile, the trend of rising shootings of civilians by police shows every sign of continuing. But we at <i>Down and Drought</i> couldn't find a single article about the Hobbs shooting that even mentioned it, something that occurs to us as crucial to contextualizing a situation like this. Certainly it would be hard to argue that it's not relevant.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/tempe-anti-terror-cops-sent-undercovers.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">MORE ON HOW TEMPE ANTI-TERROR COPS SENT UNDERCOVERS INTO A LOCAL BAR TO SPY ON COMMUNITY GARDENERS</span></b></a></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
Local media seem to be some kind of competition to outdo each other in heaping praise on the police, both specifically and in general. <a href="https://twitter.com/NatalieBrand/" target="_blank">KTVK Channel 3 reporter Natalie Brand</a> has obsessively
covered the shooting death of officer, writing over 50 consecutive
tweets in response to the officer's death and subsequent publicity and public relations events organized by PPD. While a clear standout, Brand's behavior is in line with that of her colleagues, who tweet photo after photo of the memorial and dutifully praise the police who, despite scandal after scandal, are immediately transformed into saints the moment one of them is shot or killed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZlh63oMZCCdrC3XiZWqKuuEtvds3h5RgfwsUmG3f0kwcVQqCeuzQD5OIr0O7qkWYtiOE7wW5Yy0_TOWjkDTIAoBFKZCmIOI_v4fIXU_AOzMhyphenhyphenOEk6QLlFPeHmZOg8dFuv2vot-gw6zhU/s1600/officerbrand.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZlh63oMZCCdrC3XiZWqKuuEtvds3h5RgfwsUmG3f0kwcVQqCeuzQD5OIr0O7qkWYtiOE7wW5Yy0_TOWjkDTIAoBFKZCmIOI_v4fIXU_AOzMhyphenhyphenOEk6QLlFPeHmZOg8dFuv2vot-gw6zhU/s1600/officerbrand.PNG" height="235" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
We here at <i>Down and Drought</i> understand the desire not to speak ill of the dead. But it doesn't take a deep understanding of the history of Valley police misconduct to feel betrayed as news consumers by the coverage that follows police shootings. <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/video/3258113087001" target="_blank">Consider the example of the recent expose of Mesa PD's antics in their so-called "Fun House,"</a> and the department's expressed desire to purge employee records that would include complaints. We have to wonder when exactly criticism will take place if the records are purged and media are active partisans for the boys in blue when they are at their most violent. In this context of disappearing information, treating slain cops as heroes by default seems questionable at best, and certainly bad journalism.<br />
<br />
<br />
Indeed, just a cursory Google search of Detective John Hobbs turned up several interesting tidbits. For instance, an October 2000 article in the Arizona Republic reports that Hobbs was involved in a fatal accident with a pedestrian. According to the piece, Hobbs was off duty and driving at around 10:30 at night when he ran over Burdice Monson, who was walking along an I10 entrance ramp after his car broke down. The Republic story says no alcohol test was administered to Hobbs, though police said despite this that they didn't believe drinking was involved in the accident.<br />
<br />
A search of <a href="http://www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/docket/CivilCourtCases/caseInfo.asp" target="_blank">Maricopa Superior Court records revealed</a> (CV1998-001445) what appears to be a lawsuit involving Hobbs in which he was defended by the city. It resulted in $6328.10 payout to the plaintiff. Unfortunately, we don't have the resources as humble bloggers to research this further but we'd sure like to know what it was about.<br />
<br />
Further research revealed <a href="http://statecasefiles.justia.com/documents/arizona/court-of-appeals-division-one-unpublished/CR100767.pdf?ts=1323885151" target="_blank">a court document detailing an encounter</a> that resulted in the imprisonment of a man who confronted Hobbs on a stakeout. Hobbs was in plain clothes in an unmarked car. Haidar Muhsin al Bazony, eventually convicted of aggravated assault in the incident, was responding to a call from his wife who was concerned about men lingering outside her townhouse.<br />
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Bazony, armed with a handgun and backed up by a friend he recruited to aid him, approached the car, peering inside. The document in question, an appeal, disputes the timing of the encounter as described by the state. The appeal claims that Hobbs pointed his gun at Bazony first not the other way around. Each testified in court that the other had aimed their weapons first. According to the appeal, the timing was critical to the conviction. Keep in mind that Hobbs wasn't dressed in a uniform and wasn't in a marked vehicle. The request was denied and Bazony was sentenced to the absolute minimum by the court.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, a simple internet search on Hobbs's partner, Albert Casados, returns <a href="http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/arizona/azdce/2:2011cv00119/579599/10/0.pdf?1310711512" target="_blank">an excessive force complaint made in 2011 against Casados</a>. The document further alleges denial of medial aid. Parsing the legalese, it appears that the court found sufficient cause to allow the charges to move ahead against Casados. Again, we don't have the resources to pursue this further, and we couldn't find any additional information about it on the internet. Another casual internet search turned up another instance in which <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2008/08/02/20080802officershooting-ON.html" target="_blank">Casados fired his weapon on the job</a>, in this case killing Ricky Campillo Ramirez, who police said had a knife.<br />
<br />
The point in bringing these cases and allegations forward is to show that there is ample reason for skepticism when considering the actions of both officers, and also to warrant holding off on the parades and beatification of the officers as automatic heroes merely because of the job they do. A <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/20140306phoenix-police-shooting-squad-in-spotlight.html" target="_blank">March 7 Arizona Republic article on the Major Offenders Bureau (MOB)</a>, the division for which Hobbs and Casados worked, is practically a hagiography for the unit. The article, which serves as a coming out party of sorts for MOB, fails to mention that the MOB doesn't just go after the “worst of the worst.” The suspension of the media's critical role in this case, however, has rubbed off onto coverage of MOB, which has made it possible for the PPD to present this unit to the public without criticism.<br />
<br />
But the media's reporting on MOB doesn't cover the whole story. As emails released to the <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/05/12112/dissent-or-terror-how-arizonas-counter-terrorism-apparatus-partnership-corporate-" target="_blank">Center for Media and Democracy</a> detail, MOB was also heavily involved in the repression of Occupy Phoenix, despite the total lack of felonious or violent activity on the part of occupiers. Sgt. Saul Ayala, a member of MOB was dispatched by his superiors to infiltrate Occupy Phoenix, where he advocated violence, perhaps hoping to provoke the very actions the MOB publicly claims to police. Ayala got his orders from another MOB member, Career Criminal Squad Sgt. Tom Van Dorn.<br />
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<a href="http://www.prwatch.org/files/images/saul_delara_fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.prwatch.org/files/images/saul_delara_fb.jpg" height="320" width="265" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Sgt. Saul Ayala (right) poses with an occupier in a photo from his phony Facebook page</span></div>
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Just last month <i>Down and Drought</i> uncovered a <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/02/why-does-phoenix-cop-want-to-see-west.html" target="_blank">Facebook post by Van Dorn joking about wanting to pull over parents selling Girl Scout cookies</a> in his new beat, the poor and heavily Latino, Estrella Mountain Precinct. As we said, the response to the killing of Officer Hobbs is at least understandable (although not excusable), but just why such lack of critical reporting should also apply to MOB in general isn't clear. Natalie Brand tweeted that the PPD's press conference "made me cry," making us wonder, are the media being played by PPD?<br />
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We here at <i>Down and Drought</i>, even with our limited tools, routinely uncover examples of police racism and misconduct. Surely the media, with its vastly greater resources, can do more. Just in the last year we uncovered officers' <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank">racist tweets</a> and <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/02/why-does-phoenix-cop-want-to-see-west.html" target="_blank">Facebook posts</a>, and we delved into the <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/OPHXFILES" target="_blank">police surveillance and infiltration of Occupy Phoenix</a> (while the media almost entirely ignored the revival of the political repressive functions of the police). And when stories about police violence have broken, we contextualize them, as we did in the case of a <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/08/phoenix-police-school-resource-officer.html" target="_blank">Phoenix Police Lieutenant accused of domestic violence</a> (another epidemic of police violence that reporters refuse to connect). Why this is impossible for local media completely baffles us. <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/02/public-relations-love-affair-between.html" target="_blank">Are local reporters too cozy with the cops?</a><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR97zL5xXbfPNH5CSMwnffaUOYmr-1WxNRXCPM9xHdD3VFDTzXTev51C38y3d6juTFSM4nxDwhZ9ZBm_wYCzmAW41yWKIy6boh3aw-A3hnFzLzogNZpleRdX5-PaPY9BXu-rTib9AEXjc/s1600/second+chances+cop+killer+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR97zL5xXbfPNH5CSMwnffaUOYmr-1WxNRXCPM9xHdD3VFDTzXTev51C38y3d6juTFSM4nxDwhZ9ZBm_wYCzmAW41yWKIy6boh3aw-A3hnFzLzogNZpleRdX5-PaPY9BXu-rTib9AEXjc/s1600/second+chances+cop+killer+-+Copy.PNG" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Second chances are only for cops</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's worth noting that the media had no problem reporting on the target of the Hobbs/Casados raid that day, William Thornton. To the media, the civilian's record was fair game, but not the officers. The Republic's Lauri Roberts went so far as to declare that <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/insiders/laurieroberts/2014/03/07/cop-killer-given-too-many-second-chances/" target="_blank">Thorton had been given too many second chances</a>. This piece came on the heals of another she authored <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/insiders/laurieroberts/2014/03/06/show-your-support-for-fallen-phoenix-officer/" target="_blank">ordering us to support the boys in blue</a>. Thornton's past is deemed sufficient justification for his shooting, but past allegations and suspicions abut the two officers is off limits. Cops get as many chances as they need. Reporters like Brand got on the internet more than 50 times to tweet praise for officers but couldn't be troubled to visit Google once and report on what she found. In the case of shootings by police, especially when an officer is wounded or killed, the past is irrelevant. Off limits, even.<br />
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The local media may be enamored of the police, seeing them as defenders of order and all things good. But many Phoenicians live in a completely different world. One in which the police act a lot differently than they do at press conferences. When reporters purge their critical faculties with regard to the police, and operate instead as the megaphone boosting and bolstering the cops' public image, they don't just do us a disservice, they discredit their own trade. Even more so in cases of deadly force. And in this situation, the collective media suspension of disbelief has allowed PPD to pass off a unit that poses a serious threat to civil liberties instead as a thin blue line protecting civilization from violent thugs. In the era of mass protest and increasing alienation from the political system, the importance of that shouldn't be lost on anyone.<br />
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<b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/search/label/OPHXFILES" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">CLICK HERE FOR MORE OF DOWN AND DROUGHT'S COVERAGE OF THE OCCUPY PHOENIX FILES AND POLICE POLITICAL REPRESSION</span></a></b>Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-24314912535313569942014-02-24T14:21:00.000-08:002014-12-03T12:29:13.750-08:00Why does a Phoenix Cop want to see West Phoenix Girl Scouts profiled by police? Eight year old Girl Scout Lexi Carney made national news this week after
she and her family <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/24792246/girl-scout-makes-money-off-munchie-crowd" target="_blank">set up a table selling Girl Scout cookies</a> outside of
the TruMed medical marijuana dispensary in East Phoenix. Her mother Heidi had been inspired after hearing the news that a <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/02/21/280730201/enterprising-girl-scout-sells-cookies-outside-marijuana-clinic" target="_blank">Girl Scout in San Francisco</a> had sold out of her entire stock of cookies in a single day after setting up her table outside a pot shop. <br />
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For its part, the local Girl Scouts chapter said that the medical marijuana dispensary would not have been approved because it would not be considered a "kid friendly" location. But the reality is that, in 2014, a family can set up a table at an East Valley medical marijuana dispensary and face no threat from law enforcement, even if Girl Scout leaders frown on the practice. However, it's a different story in the Southwest Valley, if the Facebook post of a Phoenix Police lieutenant is to be believed.<br />
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In a February 6th posting on the public wall of his face book page, Lt. Tom Van Dorn posted a status update describing how he is a "cynical cop" because of his reaction when he saw a black Chevy Tahoe advertising the sale of Girl Scout cookies. Below is a screen shot of Van Dorn's original post:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif2XowgPIiYq2KJeaCHwoP2IKqqR4RF0DLKmGL74r3pJ4oHAFrPtR9YWjydfDtUYyrnU3Z-hpuuJSZXHgp2gHhbDjhK3syXNus7CWmV63qqbr8WrRIGhjMyh7v0QYLd_9bRg2mPchFcnY/s1600/cynical+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif2XowgPIiYq2KJeaCHwoP2IKqqR4RF0DLKmGL74r3pJ4oHAFrPtR9YWjydfDtUYyrnU3Z-hpuuJSZXHgp2gHhbDjhK3syXNus7CWmV63qqbr8WrRIGhjMyh7v0QYLd_9bRg2mPchFcnY/s1600/cynical+-+Copy.jpg" height="275" width="320" /></a></div>
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In other words, Lt. Van Dorn has a message for anyone driving a black Chevy Tahoe in the southwest valley: he is profiling your vehicle and is especially suspicious of anyone advertising their kid's Girl Scouts cookies from their vehicle in that part of town. When he sees your truck his first thought is, "WHO DID YOU ROB FOR THOSE COOKIES? [<i>sic</i>]" And, "I should pull you over."<br />
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According to the Girl Scouts of America's <a href="https://www.girlscouts.org/program/gs_cookies/faq.asp" target="_blank">Girl Scout cookies FAQ</a>, "parents and Girl Scout adults may assist, [but] it is the girl who
makes the sale, sets learning and sales goals, and learns the
entrepreneurial skills that are part of the program." By these definitions the driver of the Tahoe is most likely following the rules, not that the police are empowered to enforce the Girl Scout handbook. <br />
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Furthermore there's any number of scenarios which could explain why a parent would advertise that they have Girl Scout cookies for sale, for the suggested retail price of four dollars, as stated on the <a href="http://www.girlscoutsaz.org/cookie-faq" target="_blank">Arizona Cactus-Pine Council's FAQ</a>. And the driver in the West Valley who advertises they have Girl Scout cookies for sale is not alone in this tactic, as the <a href="http://www.duncanbanner.com/local/x1783686056/Girl-Scouts-Cookies-car-creates-sales" target="_blank"><i>Duncan Banner</i> reported</a> over the weekend. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDHlz7vzhkA8x9pTJWrb8TROiWEmB4VRZ5bW9mFChpjjTYmf_Un9ceaFVhb-NPYZVHKZLvEMLHKRMI1E7oWPh1rfL3N48nA-PW3eyCj4CQ5q0uiRg79vwqqT4wcisPpSpIVE-IeleotI4/s1600/duncanbanner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDHlz7vzhkA8x9pTJWrb8TROiWEmB4VRZ5bW9mFChpjjTYmf_Un9ceaFVhb-NPYZVHKZLvEMLHKRMI1E7oWPh1rfL3N48nA-PW3eyCj4CQ5q0uiRg79vwqqT4wcisPpSpIVE-IeleotI4/s1600/duncanbanner.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Tyler Boydson<i>/Duncan Banner</i></span></div>
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The Watson family of Duncan, Oklahoma said that the painted message on their vehicle has helped them sell more cookies than they expected. Luckily for the Watsons, they don't live in Southwest Phoenix where their support for their daughter's Girl Scout group would be interpreted by a Valley police officer as suspicious, and the cookies as likely stolen goods. <br />
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What's interesting is that you'd be hard-pressed to come up with a more wholesome, American middle class activity than selling Girl Scout cookies. In other parts of town, parents who participate in such activities are viewed as engaged and responsible parents. But not if you live in Lt. Van Dorn's beat. To him, you're just a thief.<br />
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This sets up a lose-lose situation in which parents are damned if they do and damned if they don't. Violating traditional middle class parenting values invites police intervention, but emulating them draws police suspicion. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9LJfuXGqUCGYmOt-DuD27ZL_bt6XJeSNxmvaYwwIgn09UImQberUh0X-NEsKZUW5DTqSGXbOplautgeyp4uyzS937zhsodArGakOBN7mUvg9N-HUcyaVDGZMOqCQZZjz40MmDIEjQb4/s1600/33+area+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9LJfuXGqUCGYmOt-DuD27ZL_bt6XJeSNxmvaYwwIgn09UImQberUh0X-NEsKZUW5DTqSGXbOplautgeyp4uyzS937zhsodArGakOBN7mUvg9N-HUcyaVDGZMOqCQZZjz40MmDIEjQb4/s1600/33+area+-+Copy.PNG" height="307" width="400" /></a></div>
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According to his <a href="https://www.facebook.com/jdourne" target="_blank">public Facebook wall</a>, Lt. Van Dorn was transferred to the <a href="http://phoenix.gov/police/precincts/estrellamountain/" target="_blank">Estrella Mountain Precinct</a> in early January, working the <a href="http://phoenix.gov/webcms/groups/internet/@inter/@dept/@police/@emp/documents/web_content/33beatmaps.pdf" target="_blank">33 Area</a> which encompasses Estrella and Laveen in Southwest Phoenix, both heavily minority parts of the city.<br />
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Before his transfer to the Estrella Mountain Precinct, Tom Van Dorn worked in the Career Criminal Squad, a division of the Phoenix Police Department's Major Offenders Bureau. Van Dorn was referenced in journalist Beau Hodai's "<a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/05/12112/dissent-or-terror-how-arizonas-counter-terrorism-apparatus-partnership-corporate-" target="_blank">Dissent or Terror</a>" investigation into various local law enforcement agencies' surveillance of Occupy Phoenix participants, as well as individuals associated with anarchist protests and events.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/did-phoenix-police-and-fbi-fusion.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #990000;"><i><b>Did Phoenix Police and FBI fusion center information-sharing on protesters extend to Freeport-McMoran, too?</b></i></span></a></blockquote>
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According to emails released in that investigation, it was Lt. Van Dorn, then a sergeant, who was responsible for sending <a href="https://www.facebook.com/saul.delara.1" target="_blank">undercover officer "Saul DeLara"</a> to spy on protesters, and he encouraged his colleagues at the <a href="http://www.azactic.gov/" target="_blank">Arizona Counter Terror Information Center</a> (ACTIC) to broaden the scope of their internet spying on protest groups. Several people who interacted with officer "DeLara" reported that he advocated violence and claimed to have connections to Mexican anarchists. He was quickly outed by Occupiers and was further revealed in the "Dissent or Terror" investigation to be Detective <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/saul-ayala/12/750/762" target="_blank">Saul Ayala</a>.<br />
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Interestingly, a search of the <a href="http://wikileaks.org/gifiles/" target="_blank">the Global Intelligence Files</a>, five million emails from global intelligence firm Stratfor and leaked thanks to the work of Jeremy Hammond (who also <a href="http://firesneverextinguished.blogspot.com/2011/07/hazy-shade-of-criminal-antisec-police.html" target="_blank">hacked Arizona law enforcement as a part of the Antisec group</a>), reveals that <a href="http://search.wikileaks.org/gifiles/?q=&mfrom=saul.ayala%40phoenix.gov&mto=&title=&notitle=&date=&nofrom=&noto=&count=50&sort=0&file=&docid=&relid=0#searchresult" target="_blank">Saul Ayala contacted Stratfor</a> at least twice offering advice on alleged radical jihadists in Mexico, a common far right wing talking point, but something that seems a bit out of the jurisdiction of your average undercover cop. There's quite a bit in these files about local police and unfortunately the media has largely ignored it.<br />
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Nevertheless, the connections between local police and private national security firms like Stratfor (<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/did-phoenix-police-and-fbi-fusion.html" target="_blank">and Infragard, as we have previously reported</a>) raise serious questions, just like Van Dorn's thinly-veiled profiling operating under the guise of cynicism. Last year <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank"><i>Down and Drought </i>revealed a racist tweet from Phoenix officer Yuliana Sobarzo, out of the South Mountain Precinct</a> mocking the mentally ill. Social media posts, like those from Sobarzo and Van Dorn, reveal the casualness with which officers feel they can display their racism and bias on social media and raise questions about general attitudes among the force.<br />
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As we covered in a previous piece, the Phoenix police department has had ongoing <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/10/did-former-phoenix-cop-union-boss-just.html" target="_blank">problems with racism and their heavy handed approach to policing</a>, so it is no surprise that the police consider the residents of Southwest Phoenix to be always under
suspicion, just like how anyone outraged enough by the looting of the
economy to join popular protests was a potential target of police surveillance and infiltration. And, of course, when a police officer like Van Dorn, who ordered the infiltration of a popular protest movement, jokes about profiling, it's not a far leap to believing he may in fact do it.<br />
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Further reading: <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank"><i><b>Phoenix cop mocks Olympic athlete, the mentally ill, and wins gold medal in anti-black racism</b></i></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-84235692442530462092014-02-20T09:05:00.000-08:002014-12-04T14:19:38.006-08:00Scumbag Tempe creates free public transit, criminalizes using itLet's hearken back to 2007, shall we? Tempe was dreaming big. <a href="http://southwest.construction.com/southwest_contractor_news/2011/0330_West6thTempeCondos.asp" target="_blank">Centerpoint Towers</a>, now reborn as W6 after temporarily pooping out mid-development, was still in progress. The twin towers steadily rose to unprecedented heights, along with the city's prospects, it was hoped.<br />
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<i>So can this can be used arbitrarily? Yes. </i></div>
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And Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman was championing the transformation of the city's public transit system to reflect <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2008/10/13/20081013newtempe10110.html" target="_blank">its New Urbanist vision -- a city of easy transport and just as easy-to-get-to entertainment and work.</a> Easy money, you might call it. The city envisioned an expansion of the existing free transit system, the Flash Forward and Back, into a neighborhood system. Small free buses would snake through the areas surrounding the university, delivering students and shoppers to various city destinations.<br />
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Quoted in an official city press release at the time, <a href="https://asuwebdevilarchive.asu.edu/issues/2007/07/16/news/701286" target="_blank">Mayor Hallman described the purpose of the free Orbit system in broad, inclusive terms.</a> Not only was the system meant to be a simple, green means of getting to work, it was also supposed to serve the old and disabled. "Many residents — young, old, disabled or those simply desiring to reduce vehicle emissions — are in need of alternative transportation," he said.<br />
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<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/09/everything-to-gain-tempes-two-pronged.html" target="_blank"><i><b>Read about Tempe's counter-insurgency strategy in downtown</b></i></a></div>
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So it might be surprising to know that a few weeks ago Tempe essentially made taking the city's neighborhood buses a crime for elderly and disabled people. And probably poor people, too. And probably just about anybody that doesn't fit into the city's yuppie vision for the future. And not only that, the may have turned taking the bus into a potential Fourth Amendment nightmare.<br />
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On January 24, 2014, the city council passed a troubling expansion of the city's sidewalk sitting ordinance into the surrounding neighborhoods, effectively criminalizing sitting on the ground while waiting for the free bus. <a href="https://www.tempe.gov/index.aspx?page=428" target="_blank">Given that the system utilizes a “flag” stop arrangement</a>, meaning that residents and visitors can essentially wait for and wave down the bus anywhere along the circuitous route where it is reasonably safe for the bus to pick them up, this change in the law represents a dangerous expansion of the ability of police to harass and criminalize people using the system, or just hanging out in front of their own homes minding their own business.<br />
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The only no vote came from Councilman Kolby Granville, who questioned the broad language and potential arbitrary enforcement of the ordinance.<br />
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Before the vote, Granville questioned legal counsel, asking, "So if I was sitting on the sidewalk in front of my own house, conceivably, could I be violating this rule?" To which counsel responded in the affirmative. Cops would use their discretion, came the reassuring response. And when it comes to the police, we know what that means: it will be open season on the poor, people of color and mentally ill and other perceived undesirables. <br />
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The passage of the original Tempe sidewalk sitting ban was controversial at the time. Starting in 1999, community members engaged in a series of protests against the law, and then local ASU graduate student (now a professor at Prescott College) <a href="http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-9th-circuit/1054256.html" target="_blank">Randall Amster challenged it in court</a>. In an unusual move, the 9th Circuit Court, based out of San Francisco, took up the case and heard the case in Tempe, in a public forum at ASU. Sadly, the court upheld the law. Ironically, it went into effect on Martin Luther King Day.<br />
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<i><b>Down and Drought </b></i>contacted several city officials for comments on the new ordinance, including Councilman Corey Woods. As the only African-American council member, we were curious if he would have any concerns about potential profiling that may result from the law. In his response to us via Twitter, Woods said the city had considered the effect of similar laws in Phoenix and Mesa, and that their "analysis didn't show profiling happening in those cities."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAK8naoZVwS47xJ5ORb2VgQnJmnaIRPdo9ve5uB4vuqrR77_sSBchR31yq9n4HE5c1OYtqk5cFrRIsrinS6-3EXyg4Tu8jG58CDCO59pQezVvL_iBE8NkRUvqkMaesalJFTWoB-SbRIWM/s1600/corey+woods+data+request+-+Copy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAK8naoZVwS47xJ5ORb2VgQnJmnaIRPdo9ve5uB4vuqrR77_sSBchR31yq9n4HE5c1OYtqk5cFrRIsrinS6-3EXyg4Tu8jG58CDCO59pQezVvL_iBE8NkRUvqkMaesalJFTWoB-SbRIWM/s1600/corey+woods+data+request+-+Copy.PNG" height="183" width="400" /></a></div>
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We requested that data and followed up with Woods via email, who then put us in contact with Bill Amato, police legal advisor to the city. Amato didn't include any data in his response but reiterated the claim that the city had run a "best practices analysis with other jurisdictions that had similar language," and found no reason to suspect increased "4th Amendment or racial profiling claims."<br />
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The term Fourth Amendment claims refers to cops using the pretext of police contact made via enforcement of the sidewalk sitting ordinance as cause for a search, which otherwise wouldn't happen. This troubles Granville, who told us via email that while he's not a legal expert on the question, 'I do not know if violation of the city code is considered to be "an arrest" subject to a search, or if it is something different. However, my concern is that it may be.'<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/tempe-city-council-pushes-plan-to.html" target="_blank"><i><b>More coverage of how the City of Tempe is trying to domesticate downtown for developers</b></i></a></div>
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But after those initial comments, things get a little tricky. In his response, Amato reminds us that racial profiling and police harassment are not "ordinance specific," meaning that a police force that generally profiles is just as capable of profiling with any law at its disposal. Neither Phoenix nor Mesa have stellar records in this regard.<br />
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Readers may recall in 2010 when police <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/03/20/20100320johnson0320.html" target="_blank">assaulted and handcuffed Phoenix City Councilman Michael Johnson</a> as he was checking on a neighbor whose house was on fire. Indeed, we here at <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-jokes-on-us-phoenix-cop-mocks.html" target="_blank"><i><b>Down and Drought</b></i> broke a story last year involving a racist tweet from a Phoenix police officer</a>. In 2012 <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/community-group-claiming-racial-profiling-done-by-phoenix-police-department-during-traffic-stops" target="_blank">a community group accused PPD of racial profiling</a> during traffic stops. And a statewide <a href="http://www.acluaz.org/sites/default/files/documents/DrivingWhileBlackorBrown.pdf" target="_blank">review of traffic stops by DPS in 2008 by the ACLU revealed widespread bias in police stops in Arizona</a>. And of course, many Tempe residents <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/04/us/04tempe.html" target="_blank">remember the Sgt. Schoville affair</a>. And just recently we saw <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/01/tempe-pd-offered-protection-to-frat-at.html" target="_blank">allegations that Tempe police offered protection to a frat that threw a racist party</a>. So there is certainly cause for concern.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicTBmIns3ECYDLl6W0MOw_4Be_QgA4ZupJ4bm2j93qVt8oYZQ86Fn7tHkpOF6h5Q4VyW9jL9xHQSV45R1-JxgcnNs-d_hbJhVyLwAShdps0A7LxtpVCv_nwHd9i1tnEo4F_pMpqWtBg7k/s1600/lemonade+stand+-+Copy+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicTBmIns3ECYDLl6W0MOw_4Be_QgA4ZupJ4bm2j93qVt8oYZQ86Fn7tHkpOF6h5Q4VyW9jL9xHQSV45R1-JxgcnNs-d_hbJhVyLwAShdps0A7LxtpVCv_nwHd9i1tnEo4F_pMpqWtBg7k/s1600/lemonade+stand+-+Copy+-+Copy.jpg" height="400" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Criminals up to no good in Tempe?</td></tr>
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So essentially Amato's message to us is that we should just trust the police, despite ample cause for skepticism. However, it seems even the city is having some second thoughts. Amato tells us, 'As one final note, staff will be bringing this ordinance back to Council to add some additional language. The proposed language will add additional safeguards by requiring the conduct to “unreasonably impede the right of way or cause a safety risk”.'<br />
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<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/tempe-anti-terror-cops-sent-undercovers.html" target="_blank"><i><b>Tempe police sent anti-terror cops to spy on gardeners in a bar</b></i></a></div>
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So, if there's no reason for concern, why the need for additional language to prevent the abuses they claim won't happen in the first place? It certainly begs the question as to why the ordinance is needed at all. Is this a solution looking for a problem? Or is this push for increased policing related to other standardization measures in North Tempe, such as <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/06/tempe-city-council-pushes-plan-to.html" target="_blank">increased enforcement of noise ordinances and yard codes</a>?<br />
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To us, it looks like a part of a broader attempt by the city to domesticate the valuable downtown area, to make it safe for development and high end condo owners, and to enclose all social life in Tempe in one of three places: in city sanctioned mega events and the bars of Mill Avenue (where they can be taxed and policed), or quietly and meekly inside residents' homes. Our guess is that's exactly what this is, and that's another big reason all residents should oppose it.<br />
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To the sidewalks!Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-53860281373029574782014-02-19T13:32:00.000-08:002014-12-22T14:48:37.299-08:00Public Relations: The love affair between Valley cops and the news media<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfiuLPsR0ElyDKWuVttlks2Asf_HFM8kY-T9mXO2dNMtQP2y7Dq1Ra7nsth8Soevzwr_3-n04vgX2z7INPXQGQwAcUrGExkIatw_yHcC4lUNS73XTDf-K1AtwROJjIiDrUZ2FEeK2ixP4/s1600/floresmartos+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfiuLPsR0ElyDKWuVttlks2Asf_HFM8kY-T9mXO2dNMtQP2y7Dq1Ra7nsth8Soevzwr_3-n04vgX2z7INPXQGQwAcUrGExkIatw_yHcC4lUNS73XTDf-K1AtwROJjIiDrUZ2FEeK2ixP4/s1600/floresmartos+-+Copy.jpg" height="313" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i> A Symbiotic Relationship: 3TV news crew poses for a selfie with Phoenix PD's Press Information Officer (PIO) <a href="https://twitter.com/SgtMartos" target="_blank">Steve Martos</a></i></span><br />
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It's no surprise that local news content is full of pre-packaged "video news releases" which make up much of the content that supplements the local coverage. While some of the news is received via satellite from international news organizations such as the <a href="http://www.aptn.com/80256FE9003EF444/%28httpSatellites%29/F05F126152FE1D9480257035004D2CF6?OpenDocument" target="_blank">Associated Press</a>, often there are stories planted by <a href="http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=1572" target="_blank">public relations firms and advertisers</a> disguising their product in a news story. Local television stations have relied on video news releases to keep the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Video_news_releases#VNRs_and_TV_Stations.27_bottom_line" target="_blank">costs of producing a newscast</a> low and the profits for the station's owners up, even as audiences for local newscasts have been dwindling for years. The pervasiveness of the video news release has reached such absurd proportions that even late night talk host Conan O'Brien has a regular feature on his show <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIevazPIPzU" target="_blank">lampooning</a> the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAkxR9T01pw" target="_blank">frequency</a> of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFsDnn9FjOQ" target="_blank">local newscasts</a> that <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7RnDQwFRw" target="_blank">report</a> the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46-fI18pJyw" target="_blank">same story</a>, word for word, in markets across the country.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="250" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TM8L7bdwVaA" width="445"></iframe>
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However, it is not just PR firms and ad agencies making the most of local news media's need for content that is cheap and easy to obtain, police departments have also become experts at using the media to boost their image by adapting the methods used by advertisers to craft a "brand identity" for consumer products. In "<a href="http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=265&issue_id=42004" target="_blank">Branding Your Agency: Creating the Police Department's Image</a>", a 2004 article published in <i>Police Chief Magazine</i>, police chiefs Gary J. Margolis of the University of Vermont and Noel C. March of the University of Maine encouraged police chiefs to seize control of their department's public image by turning to the strategies of advertising and PR firns in creating a brand identity for policing.<br />
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Margolis and March cite a 2001 <a href="http://www.theiacp.org/The-Public-Image-of-the-Police" target="_blank">"Public Image of the Police"</a> report from George Mason University which concluded that negative perceptions of the police stem from personal experience, rather than the success of police in reducing crime or an individual's favorable interaction with a law enforcement officer. Key to the study was the finding that people's perception of the police are often formed by their exposure to police actions in the media, that the media is the primary source for most people about crime, and in the absence of a narrative controlled by the department it may appear that police are unable to stop crime. <br />
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Valley police departments were taking notes, as Press Information Officers (PIO) make frequent appearances on the evening newscast to share information that departments want released to the public. In addition to the various departments' de facto anchors making regular appearances on the local news, press releases from law enforcement agencies are often reprinted with minor changes made in the arrangement of sentences to avoid plagiarism. That these press releases are appearing on local news websites and newscasts as news items, complete with all the authenticity associated with a journalist's byline, should be prompting outrage at the local news and police agencies. <br />
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We here at <i><b>Down and Drought</b></i> follow the local news pretty closely, so we thought we might have some fun comparing the press releases <i>from law enforcement agencies</i> with news articles from our esteemed "free and independent" fourth estate. How bad is it? Take a look at two recent stories in the Phoenix
news, compare the police press releases to the slightly altered news
content and ask if it stands on its own as an independent piece of
journalism.<br />
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Below is a screen capture from the <a href="http://resources.mohavecounty.us/File/Sheriff/PressReleasesArchives/2014/01-27-2014_Press_Release.pdf" target="_blank">January 27, 2014</a> press release from the <a href="http://www.mohavecounty.us/ContentPage.aspx?id=131&cid=711" target="_blank">Mohave County Sheriff's Office</a> announcing the search for a suspect involved in a bank robbery in Golden Valley, Arizona. The press release includes photos of the alleged robber as well as information specific to the person's build, their behavior during the alleged robbery, and the the appropriate contact information for the department(s) investigating, in the case a viewer might have information the cops would find useful.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidRGsls9cMFZ1uxdFT0t-Cu9jo3txVc_NYqqj9B7Nq33GktBrHfk2MFselWpscCUNiFQFDq0fuAbiXFlgZJoewBIDrFYDPRrtJ9M-KXfxHEoH3cXCsLhTjELuYCc0jj83dn1VxCmb6vmw/s1600/mohavecopr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidRGsls9cMFZ1uxdFT0t-Cu9jo3txVc_NYqqj9B7Nq33GktBrHfk2MFselWpscCUNiFQFDq0fuAbiXFlgZJoewBIDrFYDPRrtJ9M-KXfxHEoH3cXCsLhTjELuYCc0jj83dn1VxCmb6vmw/s1600/mohavecopr.jpg" height="320" width="247" /></a></div>
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The photos below are both screen captures from articles published on the website for <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Man-wearing-ski-mask-robs-Golden-Valley-bank-242256941.html" target="_blank">KTVK Channel 3</a> and <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/24557030/mcso-man-robs-golden-valley-bank" target="_blank">KPHO Channel 5</a>. Both websites ran the press release with slight modifications from the
original writing and were published under the names of employees at the
station. The KPHO article, credited to <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/stephen-stout/7/384/288" target="_blank">Steve Stout</a>, a longtime editor of valley news publications from the East Valley Tribune to his current gig at KPHO, is nearly identical to the press release.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirt-8LU9qQDrfTHh5aKBhD6x9xSZmTQL99H3ZuNKIAGwSHJRaT3HJGJPc67h6ahGWKsFaEmPbeTh161AdrLFE3Apvgme2xJmQpQDPqzlRrdDL9D5XQODar42zoiE87rwjNxVSWcNjG0x4/s1600/kphogoldenvalley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirt-8LU9qQDrfTHh5aKBhD6x9xSZmTQL99H3ZuNKIAGwSHJRaT3HJGJPc67h6ahGWKsFaEmPbeTh161AdrLFE3Apvgme2xJmQpQDPqzlRrdDL9D5XQODar42zoiE87rwjNxVSWcNjG0x4/s1600/kphogoldenvalley.jpg" height="185" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFCdWre0sMpdCqw85roq1pzBk9jTaRTJFcjT17TPVuaD0b_YwCmrdLuhyphenhyphen5yQde162Zx_jM3s48NamBWZI_cHnJZMnvzi6lK0L4h8XJomTlm1GonrhISj_vi_8NNdE-LeWn6m3_nPz4JCE/s1600/azfamgoldval.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFCdWre0sMpdCqw85roq1pzBk9jTaRTJFcjT17TPVuaD0b_YwCmrdLuhyphenhyphen5yQde162Zx_jM3s48NamBWZI_cHnJZMnvzi6lK0L4h8XJomTlm1GonrhISj_vi_8NNdE-LeWn6m3_nPz4JCE/s1600/azfamgoldval.jpg" height="320" width="170" /></a></div>
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Both articles come pretty close to qualifying as <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plagiarize" target="_blank">plagiarism</a>, as they are nearly identical to the Mohave County press release, and yet they are not the exception. Again, the same pattern with a <a href="http://www.tempe.gov/index.aspx?page=31&recordid=2415" target="_blank">Tempe police press release</a> on the arrest of an alleged bike thief: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUUTqe0S0AEockjiRoEid-v0ce9g-1URRJHSSbRVOzhht1cpme2BOgZoGvV-lzO4TuOeZPIEiDcBtH-ESlUzByg7EcigTGJZVCH9r2kTHjUOBL1yM75LiYMu5cGYJgVBrD0yw2g8AnBM/s1600/tempescreencap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUUTqe0S0AEockjiRoEid-v0ce9g-1URRJHSSbRVOzhht1cpme2BOgZoGvV-lzO4TuOeZPIEiDcBtH-ESlUzByg7EcigTGJZVCH9r2kTHjUOBL1yM75LiYMu5cGYJgVBrD0yw2g8AnBM/s1600/tempescreencap.jpg" height="319" width="320" /> </a></div>
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Followed by screen shots taken from <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Tempe-man-accused-of-buying-stolen-bikes-reselling-them-242278661.html" target="_blank">two articles</a> from <a href="http://www.kpho.com/story/24557753/pd-man-bought-bikes-from-criminals-resold-them" target="_blank">local news</a>
websites which include large sections of the press release which are
rearranged just enough to keep it from being a plagiarized article.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjIGRVaswgHypsT2CKZWeisBvOInD0ubMmCsMaOL4RHWv7xaV2t1AxUyx2WqvumvV-j_Az8nW20jXO8TiGEz04q2NnhapGrlokmzcmdMHONmadxwztBo7S1Li3u2vU_RAJUTGNcKcyGJI/s1600/ktvkbike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjIGRVaswgHypsT2CKZWeisBvOInD0ubMmCsMaOL4RHWv7xaV2t1AxUyx2WqvumvV-j_Az8nW20jXO8TiGEz04q2NnhapGrlokmzcmdMHONmadxwztBo7S1Li3u2vU_RAJUTGNcKcyGJI/s1600/ktvkbike.jpg" height="320" width="120" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjit6mpKeHpy-oghLQqOYSOC8qklxeyX0FufpNV-d1ewKf9IKlKq7v2Gx_Rw-I3ptrG1r9fdVeWrUnqjSLE0aCd8m9EYnkXU0OU5px3xCUn8zTvbEhiBPLx8CgClCbtfzUbOLZFym8VYXE/s1600/kphobike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjit6mpKeHpy-oghLQqOYSOC8qklxeyX0FufpNV-d1ewKf9IKlKq7v2Gx_Rw-I3ptrG1r9fdVeWrUnqjSLE0aCd8m9EYnkXU0OU5px3xCUn8zTvbEhiBPLx8CgClCbtfzUbOLZFym8VYXE/s1600/kphobike.jpg" height="286" width="320" /></a></div>
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The local press, and as seen above KTVK and KPHO, have no qualms about reprinting police news releases and remaining completely uncritical about the information contained within. Just like the video news releases released to stations by PR agencies, law enforcement agencies know they have an open door with the local media, forever hungry for cheap, garish stories which come to them, saving any of the employed journalists from having to do any of the actual leg work and research required for a balanced piece of journalism.<br />
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In plain terms, there's lots of advantages for the police in crafting a brand identity which portrays the police as the solution and final word to the problems of the community. Aside from that, they need the good publicity! Just last year valley cops killed over 50 people in shootings alone, a key community relations officer was arrested for sex with minors, and Phoenix officer Richard Chrisman went to prison on assault and manslaughter charges.<br />
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<i><b><a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/watch-as-troy-hayden-magically-turns.html" target="_blank">READ MORE ABOUT THE MEDIA'S LOVE AFFAIR WITH COPS</a></b></i></div>
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It was during the week that Chrisman was sentenced when the Phoenix police's PR division may have tried to deflect attention from the Chrisman verdict by planting a story about officers helping a needy family at Christmas. The story, which appeared on KNXV ABC15, cited <a href="http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/phoenix-police-save-christmas-for-single-mom" target="_blank">Phoenix police officer James Holmes</a>, as he described Phoenix cops as having a "tough and dangerous job", and frequently coming to the aid of the citizenry, at what now sounds like potentially great peril to their well being. Whether out of laziness or complicity, the journalist Lauren Vargas deemed it unnecessary to also include the information that James Holmes is a PIO for the Phoenix police, and the story aired on December 20, 2013 the day that one of the most notorious cops in Phoenix's history was sentenced to seven years in prison.<br />
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Writer JJ Hensley at the Arizona Republic <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/news/arizona/articles/20131118arizona-officer-involved-shootings-up.html" target="_blank">wrote a lengthy article on the police shooting spree of 2013</a> and tackled a number of contributing factors which critics and defenders of the police say have contributed to so many shootings in the Valley. Hensley cites the rate of assaults on officers and the continuing militarization of the police as two of the main reasons for the change in policing.<br />
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Hensley ends the article with a section on the public's response to trigger-happy cops, noting a lack of public outrage to the well-publicized shootings. But he fails to consider one of the biggest factors as to why there may be a lack of outrage when officers gun someone down: that his own profession treats the local police department as an in-house bureau which provides the footage that often bleeds and leads on the local news.<br />
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While the public's passivity to police killings cannot be entirely attributed to the media's coverage and working relationship with the police, it is worthwhile to return to Margolis and March's article in <i>Police Chief Magazine </i>and their emphasis on manipulating the public's perception of the police. Utilizing the media is useful for police in expressing their department's brand identity, and to seize the narrative from their critics to ensure that, whether they are rescuing a cat from a tree or shooting over 50 people in a year, they must be seen as the community's only solution to their problems.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-37926742159867802622014-02-19T09:34:00.002-08:002014-02-19T10:00:52.499-08:00WAGES TUMBLE AS THINGS CONTINUE TO GET WORSE AND WORSE FOR ARIZONA'S POOR AND WORKING CLASS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As if things weren't bad enough for Arizona's poor and working class, what with the way the <a href="http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2014-01-28/education/4th-grade-reading-gap-follows-arizona-income-gap/a37174-1" target="_blank">education system fails us</a>, or how <a href="http://www.wmicentral.com/business/business_news/arizona-ranked-among-worst-for-residents-financial-security/article_073f72e2-94f9-11e3-a90e-001a4bcf887a.html" target="_blank">we live under constant threat of “financial devastation,”</a> yesterday brought new bad news for people trying to get by on low incomes.<br />
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It should come as no surprise then that <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/30/stateline-war-on-poverty/5060597/" target="_blank">Arizona's poverty rate has spiked upwards to almost 20% post-recession</a> when we see these <a href="http://www.epi.org/publication/wage-workers-experienced-wage-erosion-state/" target="_blank">recent figures from the Economic Policy Institute</a>. While rich people and politicians threaten "economic apocalypse!" over proposed minimum wage hikes, hold the unemployed hostage, and cut food stamps, the poor have continued to suffer the brunt of the deepening and continuing economic crisis.<br />
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<a href="http://s3.epi.org/files/2014/snapshot-wage-stagnation-by-state-02-18-2014.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://s3.epi.org/files/2014/snapshot-wage-stagnation-by-state-02-18-2014.png" height="400" width="376" /></a></div>
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According to the EPI data, Arizona ranked ninth worst in the country in wage erosion, with paychecks for the bottom 20th percentile dropping in constant dollars significantly beyond the 68 cents national median.</div>
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According to the report:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The figure below shows that low-wage earners— wage-earners at the 20th percentile— have experienced wage erosion in nearly every state. Between 2009 and 2013, low-wage earners’ wages declined in every state except three (West Virginia, Mississippi and North Dakota). Real (i.e. inflation-adjusted) wage erosion was greatest in Maryland (-$1.24), Massachusetts (-$1.18), and New Jersey (-$1.16) during this period. The national average decline over this period was $0.68 or 6.4 percent. Further, wage erosion was not confined to this portion of the wage spectrum. Wages at both the 10th percentile (“very low wages”), and the median wage saw erosion in forty-five states and the District of Columbia over this period.</blockquote>
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With the recent <a href="http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/1/davos-inequalityeconomicsinstability.html" target="_blank">Davos gathering of billionaires identifying income inequality as the most significant threat to stability</a>, you wonder just how far Arizona ricos are willing to push things. <a href="http://www.scotsman.com/news/world/brazil-rio-riots-over-bus-fare-hike-1-3298874" target="_blank">The riots that have repeatedly broken out in Rio and other places over things like increased bus fares</a> must certainly have been on the minds of the masters of the universe when they made that declaration from the safety of their luxury retreat. </div>
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Meanwhile, the <a href="http://azstarnet.com/news/opinion/brian-flagg-tucson-has-a-moral-imperative-not-to-raise/article_821ed785-8e70-5a71-8fe8-d484f718a827.html" target="_blank">Tucson city council is debating raising ticket prices tonight</a>, tightening the squeeze even further on the already strained budgets of the poor and working class. <a href="http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/money/article_d646e3f0-3095-11e2-a1d0-0019bb2963f4.html" target="_blank">Arizona already ranks second in income inequality, and the disparities between rich and poor are growing.</a></div>
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Maybe Arizona isn't Rio, but politicians and rich people should be thinking carefully about just how far they can push Arizona's poor and working class. We have already borne a disproportionate share of the costs for a crisis we didn't cause, and <a href="http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/money/article_d646e3f0-3095-11e2-a1d0-0019bb2963f4.html?mode=image&photo=0" target="_blank">we can't help but notice that the rich are doing better than ever</a>.</div>
Agualarchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17855835030239599234noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-27077119892472044042014-02-04T18:36:00.000-08:002014-07-18T02:32:23.655-07:00Fox 10 Producer "Thankful" for drunk driver crashing into Phoenix home<b>UPDATE</b>: After media journalist <a href="http://jimromenesko.com/2014/02/05/tv-producers-problem-is-solved-she-has-a-story-when-a-drunk-crashes-into-a-home/" target="_blank">Jim Romenesko</a> picked up on the exclusive <i>Down and Drought</i> coverage of Fox 10 producer Juliana Vasquez's twitter meltdown, the story spread across the internet, largely being reposted by others in the news business. The media blog <a href="http://www.mediabistro.com/tvspy/phoenix-producer-tweets-shes-thankful-for-drunk-dude-driving-into-a-house_b114826" target="_blank">TVSpy reported</a> that Vazquez had been reprimanded by station management as a result of our story and the coverage it received from media outlets. In a statement to TVSpy regarding the <i>Down and Drought</i> story on Vazquez, KSAZ vice president and GM Mark Rodman stated that “This is unacceptable behavior and will not be tolerated.” TVSpy also reported that other sources had said that Vasquez was reprimanded by the station for her twitter posts.<br />
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/producerjulz">@producerjulz</a> Did you lose this? <a href="http://t.co/F7L170IbGT">pic.twitter.com/F7L170IbGT</a><br />
— Down and Drought (@DownAndDrought) <a href="https://twitter.com/DownAndDrought/statuses/430830523254972416">February 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Juliana Vasquez, a <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/juliana-vasquez/26/301/208" target="_blank">morning news producer</a> at KSAZ Fox 10 Phoenix, may have been venting about the difficulty of finding content for the morning program when <a href="https://twitter.com/producerjulz" target="_blank">she tweeted</a> that she was "thankful" that an alleged drunk driver crashed into a Phoenix home last night, but her logic in posting such a statement is questionable. The Fox 10 producer tweeted: "Sometimes you just gotta be thankful that some drunk dude drivers [sic] into a house..no one was hurt, but I needed news #producerproblems".<br />
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The tweet was removed from Vasquez's twitter profile this afternoon after <i>Down and Drought</i> posted responses challenging the ethics of a news professional publicly posting such sentiment, and callously treating the real life problems of people impacted by an event as a "#producerproblem". Fox 10's <a href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/Driver-arrested-after-crashing-van-into-home-243493301.html" target="_blank">morning news coverage of the accident</a> featured reporter Anita Roman boasting of the "first look" inside the home, describing how the van crashed mere feet away from where a resident had been sleeping.<br />
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<script src="http://KSAZ.images.worldnow.com/interface/js/WNVideo.js?rnd=737358;hostDomain=www.myfoxphoenix.com;playerWidth=430;playerHeight=285;isShowIcon=true;clipId=9801545;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=News;advertisingZone=;enableAds=true;landingPage=;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript;controlsType=fixed" type="text/javascript"></script><a href="http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/" title="FOX 10 News | myfoxphoenix.com">FOX 10 News | myfoxphoenix.com</a><br />
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Had the residents of the home been aware of Vasquez's excitement over the crash, would they have granted the station "first look" access into their home to video tape the destruction? Would the 17 year old family member who told reporters that he and his family were "lucky to be alive" be "thankful" that he was able to help a news station fill two minutes of air time? Vasquez's tweet that she "needed news" is emblematic of the troublesome <a aiotarget="false" aiotitle="what bleeds still leads" href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/insidelocalnews/behind_leads.html" target="_blank">"what bleeds leads"</a> mentality of local news, and a reminder that, despite the sympathy in the voice of the reporter, it's these stories which drive the advertising revenue and keep producers needing the next big tragedy.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34792285552112165.post-68314312704249202542014-01-24T17:50:00.003-08:002014-05-23T08:32:17.834-07:00TEMPE PD OFFERED PROTECTION TO FRAT AT CENTER OF RACIST MLK PARTY<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6kxoxRRNrDS6R3uqI5mEf3nGPDyiG2FXnsgp_JksZCvc_Nidjv4cosufORkdNhoa9WGdcZtcMBsiimFZ30oUy64Qza3QdXXSCVxlMHnkCqerumag1R9EK5paiFwZ1WG0C8ioBFALqutk/s1600/tempe+pd+-+Copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6kxoxRRNrDS6R3uqI5mEf3nGPDyiG2FXnsgp_JksZCvc_Nidjv4cosufORkdNhoa9WGdcZtcMBsiimFZ30oUy64Qza3QdXXSCVxlMHnkCqerumag1R9EK5paiFwZ1WG0C8ioBFALqutk/s1600/tempe+pd+-+Copy.png" height="141" width="320" /></a></div>
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The president of ASU'S expelled Tau Kappa
Epsilon (TKE) fraternity tweeted that the chapter had been offered escorts by the Tempe police. The fraternity's president <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/syed-shafqat-huq/58/7b7/156" target="_blank">Syed "Shafqat" Huq</a> posted on his <a href="https://twitter.com/shafqathuq" target="_blank">twitter account</a>, which is now private, on Thursday that he had been contacted by a sergeant from the Tempe police who offered police escorts to protect fraternity members. It's unclear what threat the Tempe police believe the TKE frat boys are facing, but Huq laughs off their proposal in his tweet.<br />
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It's interesting to note that while the Tempe police regularly <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2013/05/tempe-anti-terror-cops-sent-undercovers.html" target="_blank">coordinate with the FBI to spy on activists</a>, and <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/2009/12/18/20091218tr-hazardlist1219.html" target="_blank">place department critics on "hazard" watch lists</a>, they are willing to provide police protection to a fraternity with a history of racism and violence. Nor is this the first time the police have come to the aid of ASU's fraternities during a racist outburst. <a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/01/party-foul-racist-asu-frats-are-ruining.html" target="_blank">As noted in our previous piece on the violent, racist, and sexist frat culture at ASU</a>, the gangster themed MLK party hosted by TKE members has a historical precedent in the racist actions of campus frats of the past.<br />
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As Michael Lacey reported in his Phoenix New Times article on <a href="http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/1989-04-26/news/the-phoenix-press-race-riot-what-race-riot/full/" target="_blank">the April 1989 race riot on frat row</a>, the frats faced no consequences from their 500 strong attack on four black students, whom drunk Greeks and party-goers surrounded and pilloried with anti-black racist epithets, in what turned out to be a case of mistaken identity.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeve6tBUpuyGulAz9PhzXk0eUR3OJF9BVdLvMu0MGwv-0L2kgE1Wq8fh5cd6Fjl0gpOOtWRtdzlFX6hp5X6HZi26ZME3XGdGiUjVZRADycFJnoyu6jF1KtOxxKz-GS3xIoC0HV88rDfEg/s1600/frat+pres+-+Copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeve6tBUpuyGulAz9PhzXk0eUR3OJF9BVdLvMu0MGwv-0L2kgE1Wq8fh5cd6Fjl0gpOOtWRtdzlFX6hp5X6HZi26ZME3XGdGiUjVZRADycFJnoyu6jF1KtOxxKz-GS3xIoC0HV88rDfEg/s1600/frat+pres+-+Copy.png" /></a></div>
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Indeed it was two of the attacked black students who were taken in handcuffs to the police station, and one of the men detained by the police recalled the cruelty of police officers during his detention, reporting that his "handcuffs were so tight that he was in pain as he sat in
the back of the squad car." And that "[a]s he shifted positions, he remembered an
officer warning him that if he moved again, the cuffs would be tightened
until tears came to his eyes." Lacey also documented the efforts of ASU police to downplay any racist elements of the attack, as the national press cooperated by not reporting on the scale of the attack and the racism of the students present.<br />
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The offer of police protection for TKE members is not the only troubling news since the expulsion of the ASU chapter, as more racist skeletons in the TKE closet emerged despite the national organization's attempt at sanitizing their image. After Arizona State University announced on Thursday that the Tau Kappa
Epsilon (TKE) fraternity would be expelled from campus, the
national TKE fraternity <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/20140124asu-fraternity-tke-national-chapter-disciplline.html" target="_blank">announced its support for the ASU chapter.</a> The national body followed the announcement of expulsion by putting the <a href="http://www.tke.org/news/2014/01/24/tke_at_asu_investigation_statement" target="_blank">frat on internal probation</a>, placing the blame for the party on 16 of the chapter's 125 members, and offering to provide a "a professional program on cultural diversity" or something.<br />
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The tone of the national TKE is at odds with the efforts of the supporters of the ASU chapter, who created a "<a href="https://www.facebook.com/SaveASUTKE" target="_blank">SAVE Arizona State University Tau Kappa Epsilon</a>" to rally support for the troubled chapter. However, the support did not arrive in the way that the backers might have hoped. A Facebook user named Micheal King, who claimed to be a TKE alumni, posted a racist frat party photo (see below) of two men in a stereotypical gangster attire, and in black face, with the following text: <br />
<blockquote>
<div data-textannotation-id="794da5b36ab2e58554fe911cb1d4f249">
Full
support on the issues of freedom of speech and expressing controversial
opinions and ideas. Save our consititutional rights. here’s a pics from
1990 at Kent state univ. when TKE was allowed to express our rights. if
the university or TKE nationals causes you problems, ,seek independent
legal advise.</div>
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<blockquote>
<div data-textannotation-id="794da5b36ab2e58554fe911cb1d4f249">
More
throwback, 1990, Who is that dark skinned brother on the left ? . Kent
State , TKE fraternity party, back when we were allowed to express
ourselves. damn, times have changed for the worse.<i> [sic]</i></div>
</blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYcIyYYZzH_6Wr0zTaDibraglm_GCbvwtgpYCSQKB-Ltd7BXXWuyi9c43UG-6MH-il8x8M_E1jBeK_ky4hctLTsBHjL6fYYGHCqCX3MZ0trIxZiNihs7BEsGjKnYdd7Lc4cFQbB6NAT4/s1600/asu-tau-kappa-epsilon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYcIyYYZzH_6Wr0zTaDibraglm_GCbvwtgpYCSQKB-Ltd7BXXWuyi9c43UG-6MH-il8x8M_E1jBeK_ky4hctLTsBHjL6fYYGHCqCX3MZ0trIxZiNihs7BEsGjKnYdd7Lc4cFQbB6NAT4/s1600/asu-tau-kappa-epsilon.jpg" height="205" width="320" /></a></div>
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The post has since been removed from the Facebook page. Meanwhile, the official message from the exclusive organization, that "<span class="fbLongBlurb">[t]he poor taste and acts of a few are not reflective of the whole" continued to look more and more ridiculous. As thegloss.com writer Julia Sonenshein noted, 'TKE clicked “like”' on the <a href="http://www.thegloss.com/2014/01/24/culture/racist-asu-fraternity-tau-kappa-epsilon-chapter-expelled-likes-blackface-pictures/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=racist-asu-fraternity-tau-kappa-epsilon-chapter-expelled-likes-blackface-pictures" target="_blank">black face photo</a>. </span><br />
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<a href="http://downanddrought.blogspot.com/2014/01/party-foul-racist-asu-frats-are-ruining.html" target="_blank">READ MORE COVERAGE OF ASU FRATS HERE.</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11174477050634865327noreply@blogger.com0