Special forces set to swarm Southwest and operate undetected among civilians in massive military

[CJCRANE]

Special forces set to swarm Southwest and operate undetected among civilians in massive military exercise

*Operation Jade Helm will see 1,200 service members including Green Berets and SEALs and special forces from the Air Force and Marines in July
*Soldiers armed with blank rounds will operate in and around towns in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah and Colorado for 8 weeks
*The so-called Realistic Military Training has some residents fearful the drill is a preparation for martial law

Excerpt:

Seven Southwestern states will soon be infiltrated by 1,200 military special ops personnel as part of a controversial domestic military training in which some of the elite soldiers will operate undetected among civilians.

Operation Jade Helm begins in July and will last for eight weeks. Soldiers will operate in and around towns in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah and Colorado where some of them wil drop from planes while carrying weapons loaded with blanks in what military officials have dubbed Realistic Military Training.

But with residents of the entire states of Texas and Utah dubbed 'hostile' for the purposes of the exercises, Jade Helm has some concerned the drills are too realistic.

Link:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3013900/Fears-martial-law-special-ops-set-swarm-Southwest-operate-undetected-civilians-ve-deemed-HOSTILE-massive-military-exercise.html

[djean111]

1. *The so-called Realistic Military Training has some residents fearful the drill is a preparation for

martial law" - Can't say I blame them. Police forces are being militarized and, essentially, given free rein, too.
Interesting times, indeed.

[CJCRANE]

2. I'm getting a "Jericho" vibe from all this.

(TV series).

[woodsprite]

6. Sounds like the population of those states could drop a bit,

especially if there are a lot of open carry citizens around. Who's gonna know who the bad guys are.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster!

[geek tragedy]

3. Daily Mail is a rw Brit tabloid, and is basing this story off Infowars hysteria nt

[CJCRANE]

4. AFAIK it's a legit story. It was also mentioned on Fox News but they took the opposite tack

and downplayed it.

[CJCRANE]

5. Stripes: Army Special Operations Command pushes back against alarmist claims about upcoming exercise

WASHINGTON — U.S. Army Special Operations Command is pushing back against alarmist claims that an upcoming U.S. military exercise is a preparation for imposing martial law or subduing right-leaning groups and individuals.

Conspiracy theories about the exercise, known as JADE HELM 15, appeared online this week. Some commentators railing against the event referred to an online slide show allegedly created by USASOC, which outlined a special operations exercise slated to take place across multiple states, outside the confines of U.S. military bases. In the slide show, a map of the southwest region of the United States labels Texas and other territory as “hostile” or “insurgent pocket.” The document also refers to coordination with law enforcement agencies.

http://www.stripes.com/news/us/army-special-operations-command-pushes-back-against-alarmist-claims-about-upcoming-exercise-1.335949

[Cheese Sandwich]

11. I think this is something serious to be concerned about

Not because they are deliberately practicing in order to declare martial law like in 10 years or something.

More because if they were just sliding down a slippery slope toward that without planning it, this is how they would do it.


Especially when there are plenty of news stories about how the government is planning to use the military to quell any major civil unrest. I mean wheat else would they do really?

Since the 2008 economic crash, security agencies have increasingly spied on political activists, especially environmental groups, on behalf of corporate interests. This activity is linked to the last decade of US defence planning, which has been increasingly concerned by the risk of civil unrest at home triggered by catastrophic events linked to climate change, energy shocks or economic crisis - or all three.

Just last month, unilateral changes to US military laws formally granted the Pentagon extraordinary powers to intervene in a domestic "emergency" or "civil disturbance":

"Federal military commanders have the authority, in extraordinary emergency circumstances where prior authorization by the President is impossible and duly constituted local authorities are unable to control the situation, to engage temporarily in activities that are necessary to quell large-scale, unexpected civil disturbances."

...

a report by the US Army's Strategic Studies Institute warned that a series of domestic crises could provoke large-scale civil unrest. The path to "disruptive domestic shock" could include traditional threats such as deployment of WMDs, alongside "catastrophic natural and human disasters" or "pervasive public health emergencies" coinciding with "unforeseen economic collapse." Such crises could lead to "loss of functioning political and legal order" leading to "purposeful domestic resistance or insurgency...

"DoD might be forced by circumstances to put its broad resources at the disposal of civil authorities to contain and reverse violent threats to domestic tranquility. Under the most extreme circumstances, this might include use of military force against hostile groups inside the United States. Further, DoD would be, by necessity, an essential enabling hub for the continuity of political authority in a multi-state or nationwide civil conflict or disturbance."

That year, the Pentagon had begun developing a 20,000 strong troop force who would be on-hand to respond to "domestic catastrophes" and civil unrest...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/earth-insight/2013/jun/14/climate-change-energy-shocks-nsa-prism

[TwilightGardener]

7. Somehow, I think we'll be alright.

[geek tragedy]

8. Maybe they can visit the Bundy ranch nt

[CJCRANE]

9. Sometimes real life events overtake exercises

as per 9/11 and 7/7.

[Blue_Tires]

10. We had a similar Navy exercise here in Norfolk a few years back...

but it was much smaller in scale...

IIRC the Navy had an announcement, said they would be operating downtown in broad daylight on such-and-such date for some 'urban combat' exercise, and said "If we do this properly, we'll never even be noticed"...And they were true to their word...

[HoosierCowboy]

12. Here's a load of FUD and speculation...

The Jade Helm exercise is occurring the same states where it is highly probable that the power grid will experience a total collapse due to the lack of cooling water from the drought.
Abnormally high temperatures are continuing in these areas and the coal fired power plants that need to be cooled by river water may not be able to function as a base load.
One day of power outage is about all a modern city can handle before riots break out. When it's 100 degrees and no air conditioning that time could be down to hours.

Maybe time to clean out the frig and stock up on MREs and bottled water.