Below is an excerpt from an article in the New York Times, Tuesday, January 26, 2025. The single image you see below is one of many the flood the media today, yesterday, last week … and God forbid, unless this nation comes to its senses, it will be followed by more such images next week and the week after that.
What does this image tell us? Minneapolis is under siege, occupied against the will of the governer, the mayor, and the citizenry. Masked men, lacking any identification, roam the streets outfitted with camouflage uniforms, glock pistols, tear gas, smoke bombs, the list goes on. It is a paramilitary force acting beyond the rule of law, detaining and disappearing people without judicial authority.
It is not the nation I recognize, and it has to stop. This week Congress has the power to extract concessions. ICE is too far gone to be reformed. Fire all the new recruits who want to dress up like soldiers and “play war,” like I did with my playmates when I was 10 years old. Shut it down and start over.
From the New York Times
In south Minneapolis, snow and ice still blanketed Nicollet Avenue when federal agents fanned out and started tackling heckling protesters on Saturday, about a block away from where Alex Pretti was shot and killed.
“Shame!” the protesters yelled. “Why did you murder another one of our neighbors?” they said. The agents charged, launching gas canisters, yelling at the protesters. “Get back!” “Get out of the street!”
The agents grabbed a protester who had only a painter’s mask covering his mouth and little else to protect himself from the gas. He gasped, choking for air as he was cuffed.
Standing in front of him was a federal agent armed with a grenade launcher, used here for launching tear gas or smoke. The agent also carried a Glock handgun with two spare magazines, a stun gun and a spare magazine for an AR-15-style rifle.
Another federal agent is seen with his grenade launcher almost at his shoulder. His equipment is not uniform. His outfit — including the patch on his helmet, Nike shoes and his vest’s camouflage pattern — mirrors a distinct look promoted by military influencers selling products to newer generations eager to define themselves.