I've always assumed they were profiling protesters. I go to to protests head-to-toe in full costume because of it.

They can try to profile me, but they're just going to get a costume that millions of people own.

its probably much worse.

Well, if anyone had wanted to change the laws, they had 70 years to do it. COINTELPRO started in 1956 and nobody has put any kind of brakes on surveillance or even torture.

Fascists love that kind of stuff. They always do lists of the people they would like to kill.

Americans are in genuine danger from their government and this is only going to get worse. If the midterms fail to affect change through the democratic system, you all are going to have to make a choice between complete capitulation to a group of child raping tyrants, or actually fighting back together. I hate this timeline.

Of course they are. Who doubted they would?

After the 9/11 attacks suspected terrorists were put on the no fly list and the Interpol Terrorism Watch List, and we said nothing because they were, well, terrorists.

Except they weren't. Any agent of numerous departments could put anyone on these lists. Soon random Americans with Arabic names discovered they couldn't board their plane. Journalists and protesters found themselves subject to extra search protocols and harassment by law enforcement.

Americans discovered they could be deprived of civil liberties by any officer of the law, who could add them to a list. No justifying reason. No due process. Just, fuck you, civilian.

Eventually existence of these lists became public. At first courts had to compell DHS to allow people to check if they were on the list, and then more suits were necessary to create a process for someone to petition to be taken off the list.

Before Trump 1.0, the process was still labyrinthine and a heavy administrative burden to submit such a petition. I don't know what happened after Trump.

it's entirely in the character of this SCOTUS to decide law enforcement and national security agencies can make lists of enemies of state as they see fit, and deny people on the list equal protection under law.

And now we have super database engines like Palantir, so of course, Ice has a little list / has a little list. It'll be more interesting to see how the courts respond. Due process isn't what it used to be.

I still fantasize that NGOs should create a database of ICE employees so they can be tracked and brought to justice. Dunno if that's actually happening.

These bad trees keep bearing bad fruit, makes sense, they always bear poison.

People are still protesting?