Technoccult

An eight-month McClatchy investigation in 11 countries on three continents has found that Akhtiar was one of dozens of men — and, according to several officials, perhaps hundreds — whom the U.S. has wrongfully imprisoned in Afghanistan, Cuba and elsewhere on the basis of flimsy or fabricated evidence, old personal scores or bounty payments.

McClatchy interviewed 66 released detainees, more than a dozen local officials — primarily in Afghanistan — and U.S. officials with intimate knowledge of the detention program. The investigation also reviewed thousands of pages of U.S. military tribunal documents and other records.

[…]

The McClatchy reporting also documented how U.S. detention policies fueled support for extremist Islamist groups. For some detainees who went home far more militant than when they arrived, Guantanamo became a school for jihad, or Islamic holy war.

Full Story: McClatchy

See also: Talk of the Nation interview with Roy Gutman and Matthew Schofield

Troy Molde awoke at 3 a.m. Thursday to police flashlights shining in his face. Two uniformed Lakeville officers were in his bedroom, knocking on the wall to wake him up.

They were there, they said, to warn him to keep his doors closed and locked.

Their surprise visit was part of a public service campaign. Officers had fanned out across the city, leaving notices on doors to remind residents how to prevent thefts by keeping garage doors closed, not leaving valuables in cars and locking windows or doors.

But at Molde’s house, they went further.

His two sons, ages 5 and 7, and 5-year-old twin nephews were having a sleepover in the living room. They awoke to find the officers in the house.

“I was violated, but … I wasn’t physically damaged,” Molde said of what he considers an invasion of privacy.

The officers told Molde his garage door was open, the TV was on, keys to his truck were left in the ignition and the door to his house was ajar.

Police said the intrusion was justified because the officers’ initial door knocks went unanswered. Police went inside to check if anything was wrong, Sgt. Jim Puncochar said.

Full Story: twincities.com

(via Cryptogon)

Also:

How Cops Really Want to Police. Summary: they want to be cop, jury, and judge all in one, like Judge Dredd. (via OVO)