A few months ago we warned about the SWATification of America [3], mapping the surplus military gear by state [4]. Having already documented America's conversation to a turnkey totalitarian [5]banana republic (confirmed over a year later by Edward Snowden), we note the following six charts from The NY Times that show the spread of military-style equipment - including aircraft, vehicles, body armor, grenade launchers and assault rifles - since the creation of the free Defense Department program in the 1990s [6].
The Summary:
[7]
The Details...
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
[13]
Click here for full interactive NY Times charts [14]
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Which begs the question: just who is America's police force - and by extension the Obama administration, which is behind this quiet militarization of local police forces with weapons that would normally be seen in a warzone - preparing for war against?