“Don’t be surprised to see an Army tank rolling down a street near you”
No, that quote doesn’t refer to an Obama presidency, though I suppose we can’t rule out the possibility of a domestic occupation under his rule, especially if some conservatives continue to “insult” the Dear Leader by making use of his middle name. Rather, it refers to Cobb County, Georgia, where the police are now sporting an armored personnel carrier:
The vehicle, which retails for $500,000, is a Light Armor Vehicle that was used by the U.S. Army in Panama. The county paid $45,000 to upgrade the vehicle for police use.
Equipped with thermal sensors, computerized tracking devices, night vision, tear gas launchers and other gadgets, the all-black six-wheel unit can hold up to nine SWAT officers.
[…]
“In these times, you don’t know what you are facing,” Cobb police chief George Hatfield said.
Oh, sure. As Radley Balko notes, “you never know when Marietta’s going to turn into Fallujah.”