There are also hundreds of lobbyists for the defence industry who work for Congressional committees and federal agencies. ibid.
If it came to it, would we be able to defend ourselves? Are we clearly under threat? And if we were dragged into a war, how would we measure up? Tonight: Can We Defend Ourselves? ITV 2019
Senator Levin, you and other Democrats in the Congress have voiced fears that you simply don’t have enough for the large increases in defense that the Pentagon is seeking, especially for missile defense. Does this sort of thing convince you that an emergency exists in this country to increase defense spending? Donald Rumsfeld berating Senator Carl Levin, then Chairman of Senate Armed Services Committee, evening of 9/11
The age that we have just left – the 45 years since the end of the Second World War, was overshadowed by a strange partnership between Science and Fear. It began with a weapon created by scientists that threatened to destroy the world. But then a group of men who were convinced they could control the new danger began to gain influence in America. They would manipulate terror; to do so they would use the methods of science. Out of this would come a new age free from the chaos and uncertainties that had led to terrible wars in the past. Adam Curtis, Pandora’s Box II: To the Brink of Eternity, BBC 1992
Research and Development: RAND was funded by the air force, but staffed by young academics who believed the scientific method could help bring the Cold War back under America’s control. ibid.
They were no longer advisers to the military, they had become the masters. ibid.
In a controlled nuclear war populations of cities would become like pawns in a game of bargaining with nuclear weapons. So the strategists persuaded America’s leaders to take civil defense seriously. ibid.
In the end President Kennedy ignored any idea of controlled war. Instead, he told the Russians that if they launched one missile from Cuba, he would retaliate with America’s entire arsenal. To the strategists, this threat was irrational and humiliating. ibid.
The systems and numbers approach dominated the Pentagon. McNamara’s whizz-kids were convinced that the battle against the Viet-Cong could be managed in a rational, scientific way. ibid.
What they [the Strategists] left behind was MAD – mutual assured destruction – a giant system of nuclear defence with the two sides locked together, watching each other for the slightest move. But by the mid-’70s it seemed to have become an end in itself. ibid.
The system of deterrents had begun as rational. It now seemed a dangerous trap. ibid.
‘But what are we going to do? We come from poverty.’ Cartel Land, opening scene, 2015
‘So they took their revenge by killing all his workers.’ ibid. grieving woman
‘Every autodefensa keeps his usual job … but they all volunteer to protect our towns.’ ibid.
‘It’s time we defend ourselves.’ ibid. autodefensa leader
I don’t even call it violence when it’s in self-defense; I call it intelligence. Malcolm X
Since when do you have to agree with people to defend them from injustice? Lillian Hellman
A journey to investigate the incredible structures that have stood the test of time and their ground during what was to become a global war. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler I: We Shall Fight on the Beaches, Yesterday 2020
Construction began on an epic project transforming this green and pleasant land into an impregnable island fortress. ibid.
Thousands of seemingly random structures still litter our countryside. In many cases they are just blocks of concrete … But if you know what you’re looking at, behind these remnants of bricks and mortar there’s a much darker story to be told. ibid.
I’m on the south coast to seek out the buildings on and around our beaches. ibid.
Braced for a German onslaught, Britain raced to defend the parts closest to the enemy. They filled the English Channel with a network of mines. ibid.
Essex Mine Control Tower: 360-degree defensive capability with firing slots for seventeen machine guns. ibid.
Over 100 emergency gun batteries were built along Britain’s coastline. ibid.
Many of the south coast’s existing historic bases were pushed back into service. ibid.
These fortified constructions gave the soldiers shelter and protection to stand their ground.
Construction began on an epic project transforming this green and pleasant land into an impregnable island fortress. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler II: We Shall Fight Them in the Streets
I’m in the south of England home to the town and city buildings that stood right in the line of fire. ibid.
A vast network made up of pillboxes, trenches, barbed wire, to prevent the Germans from spreading out and roaring across the country. ibid.
The war rooms became fully operational on 27th August 1939. ibid.
What if these defences had failed? What was the plan if the fighting on the beaches was lost and the battle moved on to the fields and hedgerows? Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler III: We Shall Fight Them in the Fields
Engineers and military strategists quickly drew up plans for around 50 static fortified stop lines. ibid.
Winston Churchill may have been confident that Britain could win the war, but to do so they had to be a nationwide effort to build robust military strongholds and incredible tactical structures. By keeping the fight away from our shores and instead looking to the skies. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler IV: We Shall Fight Them in the Air
Our army battered after the beaches of Dunkirk, the only way of keeping the enemy away was the air force. ibid.
Radar stations were now coming into range of enemy aircraft. ibid.
‘About 100,000 women served in the WRAF.’ ibid.
The Observer Corps ran for 70 years until 1995. ibid.
Difficult decisions had to be made about what we’d do in the event of defeat. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler V: We Shall Never Surrender
Reigate fort in Surrey was part of an age-old Victorian defence system across the south of England. ibid.
Armed with these basic weapons, the auxiliaries would attempt to disrupt and sabotage an enemy occupation. ibid.
Britain was using every available building and possible asset to fight Hitler. ibid.
Every available farm field, factory and building now needed to be used to take the fight to Hitler and keep Britain’s home fires burning. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler VI: Keep the Home Fires Burning
As early as 1935 shadow factories were being built. ibid.
Over 1,500 POW detention centres had been created across the country, at their peak housing over 500,000 German and Italian troops. ibid.
Britain no longer stood alone. It was time for the Allies to go on the offensive. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler VII: Fighting Back By Sea and Air
Over 400 buildings that back in the day were producing vast amounts of cordite. ibid.
The invasion of the French coast would be the largest and most complex amphibious assault in history. Rob Bell, The Buildings that Fought Hitler VIII: The Day of Days
The Condor has given its name to a new weapon of mass terror – a missile being developed by Argentina in a secret hilltop bunker. But the Condor will fly not only in South American skies but over the deserts of the Middle East where Egypt and Iraq are Argentina’s collaborators in the project. Panorama: The Condor Conspiracy, BBC 1989
Broward County, Florida, 24th August 2019: Somebody just shot somebody … He got off the motorcycle and yelled at him, and then the other person shot him. Accused: Guilty or Innocent? s1e6: Road Rage Shooting or Stand Your Grand? 911 call, ITVX 2022
Stephen Tripp: first-degree attempted murder. ibid.
Stephen claims the bikers chased his truck. ibid.
Stephen has been given less than twelve months to live. ibid.
He [Stephen] didn’t open that [that] door and he was completely justified in the shooting. ibid. defense
Order Granting Defendant’s Motion For Declaration of Immunity And Dismissal: This cause comes before the Court upon Defendant’s ‘Motion for Declaration of Immunity and Dismissal’ based on Florida’s ‘Stand Your Ground Law’ … ibid. judge
People here are fighting. I don’t know what’s going on. They’re fighting right now! … Accused: Guilty or Innocent? s1e7: One Punch Assault or Self-Defence? 911 call, ITVX 2022
Just one punch and he hit the ground. ibid. Brandon Joyner
Brandon is currently charged with Assault & Batttery of a high and aggravated nature … He felt he had to invervene [assault of disabled person] … and Mr Turner was a rather belligerent person … Brandon at that point feels he is about to be next ... ibid. defense
David Turner suffered life-changing brain damage. He lost the ability to talk. ibid. caption
I just got scared and threw a punch. ibid. Brandon
Brandon lives at home with his parents. ibid. caption
Not Guilty. ibid.