Falling into Traps

The best defense, ordinarily, against being targeted by law enforcement is to obey the law.  All that goes out the window in an authoritarian regime.  I never understood this last century.

When we visited Argentina around 2001, I said "hi" to an Argentine cop and the family about had a heart attack. In authoritarian or corrupt country interacting with police can be fatal. That was the beginning of my education.

We went to many major events in DC & Baltimore together. Once, soon after, we were in Baltimore and there were mounted police. I was able to pet the horses nose, but my wife was frightened. Police were always civil to me. But that was about the time I started learning about the two systems. Anyway, how to survive...

Extra legal lawlessness under color of law

When the system is on its way to lawlessness, authoritarian cops start to use color of law for arbitrary purposes. Ironically the most lawless authoritarians are in authoritarian countries where law and order protects privilege against the people. 

Reading my "Origins of Totalitarianism again" I realized that:

What we do in colonies, we wind up doing in the homeland. It starts with unfavored groups; gays, minority ethnicities, women and spreads to include political enemies. Political enemies usually means people disrupting the authorities self aggrandizement.

Extralegal crimes [police, authorities] become;

1. You annoyed them.

2. You witnessed them doing crime.

3. You protested their behavior.

4. They don't like you.

Surviving extra legal law

We aren't completely. For now we can rely on facts as a defense. When tangling with authorities prone to breaking the law to go after you, under color of law. There are things you can do to protect yourself.

Always assume that if you are tangling with authorities they are looking for excuses to arrest you. The best defense there is recording devices, the buddy system & you have to be super lawful.

The buddy system is to keep a recording device armed friend with you as much as possible and record any suspicious encounters. Bad cops do things like planting drugs or weapons. Undercover cops often are also bad cops.

And we have to be aware, that as rw police infiltrate law enforcement and courts, these steps eventually won't be enough.

In these times, and for at least 55 years now. Anyone trying to preserve and improve our system has to behave super lawfully except where breaking the law by challenging lawless laws is necessary, such as demonstrating or voting. 

We are in a fight. But we have to arm ourselves with facts and evidence not rocks and bricks. If you are at a demonstration and someone put a molotov cocktail or bricks in the street. Don't pick it up fool. You are likely on candid camera.