Militarized Police Respond to Mall Shooting
Source: prisonplanet.com
A photo shows armed, militarized police responding to a shooting at a mall in Portland, Oregon last night during which three people were killed, including the gunman.
The photo (click here for enlargement) was tweeted by Randy Rasmussen, a photojournalist with the Oregonian and also emailed to us by a reader who stated;
This picture was retweeted by the Oregonian this evening. They say it is a picture of “police patrolling the parking lot” so the picture looked weird to me. I zoomed in and as far as I can tell those are soldiers. They have the digital ACU pattern, helmets, rifles, and some even look to be wearing body armor. I was in the Oregon national guard and did a tour in Iraq so I’m pretty familiar with the get up. The only thing different is the helmets. No digital ACU covering. I also could not tell of any of them had unit patches on their left shoulders. My resolution is not good enough.
I really just want this to get out. I’ve listened to you for years and have never seen this in real life. This is further strong evidence that the military and the police are merging In this country in a way that is not healthy for our liberties or what’s left of our republic.
Whether the men in the photo are police or National Guard, the image again illustrates how the militarization of America is becoming normalized off the back of shooting incidents like the one last night which occurred at the Clackamas Town Center mall, one of Portland’s busiest shopping centers with 185 stores and 20 cinema screens.
According to witnesses, the gunman wore camouflage fatigues, a bullet proof vest and a white hockey mask. He began firing rounds from a military-style rifle near the shopping mall’s food court. The shooter killed two people and badly injured another before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide.
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Read the full article at: prisonplanet.com
More than a hundred armed police officers responded to the Clackamas Town Center mall after reports of a shooting, Clackamas, Oregon, Dec. 11, 2012. Source
