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The Secret Raids of Alberto Gonzales
Operation Falcon: 10,000 Swept Up
By MIKE WHITNEY
18/05/08 "Counterpunch" -- - There's only one way to
make sure that the machinery of state-terror is operating at
maximum efficiency; flip on the switch and let er rip. That
was thinking behind last month's massive roundup of 10,000
American citizens in what was aptly-christened Operation
Falcon.
Operation Falcon was a massive clandestine dragnet that
involved hundreds of state, federal and local
law-enforcement agencies during the week of April 4 to April
10, 2005. It was the largest criminal-sweep in the nation's
history and was brainchild of Attorney General Alberto
Gonzales and his counterpart in the US Marshal's office,
(Director) Ben Reyna.
The secret-raids "produced the largest number of arrests
ever recorded during a single initiative," Reyna boasted.
The details are mind-boggling. Over 960 agencies (state,
local and federal) were directly involved acting on 13,800
felony warrants and spending nearly $900,000 on the
operation. As the conservative Washington Times noted, "The
sweep was a virtual clearinghouse for warrants on drug,
gang, gun and sex-offender suspects nationwide."
It's clear that the Marshal's office knew where the vast
majority of the suspects were or they never would have had
such stunning success rounding them up; which, of course,
begs the question, "Why did they wait to apprehend alleged'
murderers, when they already knew where they were hiding?"
According to the press releases, which celebrated the
dazzling display of law enforcement, the raids netted "162
accused or convicted of murder, 638 wanted for armed
robbery, 553 wanted for rape or sexual assault, 154 gang
members and 106 unregistered sex offenders." (CNN)
Okay, that's roughly 1,000 criminals; what about the other
9,000? Traffic tickets, late child-support payments,
jay-walking???
"We're really amazed. We had no idea we'd apprehend more
than 10,000 bad guys," said one federal law enforcement
official who asked not to be identified. "We didn't know
what to expect, but the response from law enforcement
personnel everywhere was truly amazing." (CNN)
The media's approbation does little to disguise the real
purpose of Operation Falcon. (which is an acronym for
"Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally.")
The Bush administration is sharpening its talons for the
inevitable difficulties it expects to face as a result of
its disastrous policies. With each regressive initiative,
the governing cabal seems to get increasingly paranoid,
anticipating an outburst of public rage. Now, they're
orchestrating massive round-ups of minor crooks to make sure
that every cog and gear in the apparatus of state repression
is lubricated and ready to go.
Rest assured that Attorney General Gonzales has absolutely
no interest in the petty offenders that were netted in this
extraordinary crackdown. His action is just another
indication that the noose is tightening around the neck of
the American public and that the Bush team is fully prepared
for any unpleasant eventualities. They want to make sure
that everyone knows that they're ready when its time to thin
out the ranks of mutinous citizens.
(Note: to date, the US Marshall's office has issued no
public statement to the press as to whether the 10,000
people arrested in operation Falcon have been processed or
released.)
Mike Whitney lives in Washington state. He can be reached
at:
fergiewhitney@msn.com
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