Published time: August 25, 2013 11:41                                                                            

A man is arrested during the Occupy Wall Street protest September 17, 2012 on the one year anniversary of the movement in New York.(AFP Photo / Stan Honda)

A Department of Defense training manual obtained by a conservative watchdog group pointed to the original American colonists as examples of an extremist movement, comments that have sparked fear of a broader crackdown on dissent in America.

The training manual provides information that describes, among  other things, “common themes in extremist ideologies.”

Now, if the Department of Defense has its way, historical figures  who risked their lives to free America from British colonial rule   – names like Paul Revere, Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin and  Samuel Adams – will be rebranded as dangerous extremists,  alongside the likes of skinheads and neo-Nazis.

The first paragraph of the section entitled ‘Extremist  Ideologies’ opens with a statement that has drawn heated  criticism: “In US history, there are many examples of  extremist ideologies and movements. The colonists who sought to  free themselves from British rule and the Confederate states who  sought to secede from the Northern states are just two  examples.”

In America’s early colonial period, many colonists served in  state militias under the direction of the Continental Army in an  effort to free the Thirteen Colonies from British rule. Indeed,  the Second Amendment of the US Constitution clearly states: “A  well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free  state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be  infringed.”

The   document, entitled Equal Opportunity and Treatment Incidents  (EOTI), was obtained on Thursday by Judicial Watch, a watchdog  group, through a Freedom of Information Act request.

The military manual defines extremism as a “term used to  describe the actions or ideologies of individuals or groups who  take a political idea to its limits, regardless of unfortunate  repercussions, and show intolerance toward all views other than  their own.”

Some would argue the military manual invokes a rather broad and  loose definition that may be applied to any number of persons and  organizations, including the Girl Scouts of America, for example,  selling cookies door-to-door.

The manual warns military personnel that “the objectives of  extremist organizations is [are] viewed as detrimental to the  good order, discipline, or mission accomplishment of the unit and  is [are], therefore, subject to appropriate disciplinary  action.”

The manual goes on to discuss “Doomsday thinking” under   “traits or behaviors that tend to represent the extremist  style.”

A participant in Occupy Wall Street protest is arrested by police during a rally to mark the one year anniversary of the movement in New York.(AFP Photo / Emmanuel Dunand)

“Extremists often predict dire or catastrophic consequences  from a situation or from a failure to follow a specific course,  and they tend to exhibit a kind of crisis-mindedness. It can be a  Communist takeover, a Nazi revival, nuclear war, earthquakes,  floods, or the wrath of God. Whatever it is, it is just around  the corner unless we follow their program and listen to their  special insight and wisdom, to which only the truly enlightened  have access.”

“Nowadays,” the manual continues, “instead of dressing  in sheets or publicly espousing hate messages, many extremists  will talk of individual liberties, states’ rights, and how to  make the world a better place.”

Many Americans and civil rights groups fear that in the event of  another national emergency, perhaps on the scale of a 9/11, the  US military will take over the role of ‘maintaining law and  order’ inside of American communities. These fears were increased  after US President Barack Obama signed into law on Dec. 31, 2011  the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which grants  sweeping powers to the US military.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) came out with a harsh  rebuke immediately following passage of the controversial  legislation.

“President Obama’s action today is a blight on his legacy  because he will forever be known as the president who signed  indefinite detention without charge or trial into law,” said  Anthony D. Romero, ACLU executive director.

“The statute is particularly dangerous because it has no  temporal or geographic limitations, and can be used by this and  future presidents to militarily detain people captured far from  any battlefield.  The ACLU will fight worldwide detention  authority wherever we can, be it in court, in Congress, or  internationally.”

The signing of the NDAA nullifies the Posse Comitatus Act, which  worked to prevent the US military from taking over police  functions within local communities.

“The US Congress passed a bill (on Jan. 1, 2012, known as the  National Defense Authorization Act) that repeals Posse Comitatus,  which means that we have now institutionalized and codified  martial law,” Congressman Ron Paul told a group of supporters  in June 2012, as reported by Live Leaks. “Right now the battle  against terrorism involves all of us. Everybody in this country  is a potential terrorist.”

“If you happen to visit a website, or attend a meeting that  contains a particular viewpoint…you can be accused of being a  terrorist and the bill says you have no right to a lawyer,”   Paul added.

In January 2012, a study funded by the Department of Homeland  Security (“Hot Spots of Terrorism and Other Crimes in the  United States, 1970 to 2008”) characterizes Americans who are   “suspicious of centralized federal authority,” and   “reverent of individual liberty” as “extreme  right-wing” terrorists.

Robert Bridge, RT

Bridge is the author of the book,   Midnight in the American Empire, which examines the dangerous  consequences of extreme corporate power in the United States.

http://rt.com/usa/us-military-extremism-terrorism-right-963/