General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Obama will not veto National Defense Authorization Act [View all]bhikkhu
(10,789 posts)to the extent that if they believe a law has been passed that allows them to be indefinitely detained, even if the belief is complete fiction, they will behave more furtively, speak less, and less openly, they will put a greater emphasis on conformity and less on individuality, they will look at the behavior of others differently, etc...
If you've ever read about how life in a police state is, you get the idea, whether it was Libya under Qadhafi, or East Germany, Nazi Germany, Vichy France, or most parts of the old Soviet bloc.
One important point is that it isn't necessary to actually have any laws like that, what is important is to make people believe in and fear the possibility. So, we don't have any laws in this country that allow military detention of citizens or legal residents, and the use of the military for law enforcement within our borders is also prohibited. Congress hasn't passed any such laws, the president wouldn't sign them if he did, and people here wouldn't tolerate a government of that sort.
Who is it that is so determined to make people believe it is all otherwise? And why would anyone want to promote fear?