The Gadfly postulates that there is something very, very wrong and disturbing with our country and our culture at this point in time:
"It was like a SWAT team," shelter employee Ray Schulze said.
Two weeks ago, Schulze was working in the barn at the Society of St. Francis on the Kenosha-Illinois border when a swarm of squad cars arrived and officers unloaded with a search warrant.
"(There were) nine DNR agents and four deputy sheriffs, and they were all armed to the teeth," Schulze said.
The focus of their search was a baby fawn brought there by an Illinois family worried she had been abandoned by her mother.
"When it made a little noise, it sounded like it was laughing," Schulze said.
Schulze videotaped the fawn they named Giggles during the two weeks she was there. The Department of Natural Resources began investigating after two anonymous calls reporting a baby deer at the no-kill shelter.
The warden drafted an affidavit for the search warrant, complete with aerial photos in which he described getting himself into a position where he was able to see the fawn going in and out of the barn.
Agents told staff they came to seize the deer because Wisconsin law forbids the possession of wildlife.
"I said the deer is scheduled to go to the wildlife reserve the next day," Schulze said.
It was to go to a wildlife reserve in Illinois that allows the rehabilitation of deer. Schulze said agents corralled workers near the picnic area and then set out in search of the fawn.
"I was thinking in my mind they were going to take the deer and take it to a wildlife shelter, and here they come carrying the baby deer over their shoulder. She was in a body bag," Schulze said. "I said, 'Why did you do that?' He said, 'That's our policy,' and I said, 'That's one hell of a policy.'"http://www.wisn.com/news/armed-agents-raid-animal-shelter-for-baby-deer/-/9373668/21272108/-/wvh1n7z/-/index.html
This story puts a glaring spotlight on the creepily increased militarization of America's civilian police organizations. Who in The Flying Spaghetti Monster's fucking name could possibly justify sending 13 heavily armed law enforcement officials on a military/SWAT style assault mission to blitz an animal shelter for having a baby fawn on their premises, AND, once there round up employees like prisoners of war and then kill the baby deer and chalk it up to department policy? Who in their right fucking mind could possibly justify this??
The people of this country had better wake the fuck up. If this pernicious trend of converting civilian police forces in to military-equipped battalions of club and taser wielding warriors, who are ready to drive their tanks through people's fences and in to their homes just because they can, is allowed to continue unabated, the slow-motion destruction of what little is left of democracy as we know it is a foregone conclusion.
Time to start speaking up folks -- silence and timidity is complicity.
----TFG
P.S. --- The Gadfly posted the picture of Radley Balko's book at the top of this post for it's infinitely relevant to this story and The Gadfly has read a good portion of it and recommends it to anyone who is concerned about the alarming trend of this kind of bullshit. You can find Balko's book at Amazon.com
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