Lew: Of course, the real purpose in having the Marines patrolling the highways is to test public resistance – or lack thereof – to having such a more generalized presence. If Boobus raises no objections (“these are the young men who have fought for our freedom!”) the troops will then start appearing at shopping malls, government schools and, eventually, neighborhood garage sales. When we were visiting Guatemala a number of years ago, there were machine-gun-armed government soldiers guarding our motel, the post office, etc., etc. As with the TSA jack-boots, the purpose of a military deployment throughout society will be to remind us of the disparity of power the state holds over us; to reinforce the mindset that it can mess with us – and even destroy us – anytime it chooses to do so.

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