Good Morning from the Travis County Sheriff's Office

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 07/18/2019 at 09:51 • Filed to: None

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This was the scene outside my window when I woke up this morning (my house is at a T intersection, and this is looking out my front window down the cross street). The TCSO had brought their urban assault vehicle and SWAT team to perform a drug raid on a house down the street. Lots of heavily armed cops, and more than a few UC cops wearing balaclavas or face scarves. I’ve often wondered about that house; it’s always been kind of shabby, with four cars in the drive (one of which is a Miata). All the cops would say is that they were serving a warrant, but the neighbor who lives directly across the street from the house used to work for the local news and he made some called and confirmed the drug bust. He also said that the owner is actually pretty nice, but “he opens his house to lots of friends.”

The guy in the tee shirt is a detective, and I think I talked with him a couple of years ago when some neighbors got together and asked the cops to keep an eye on a house with some weird goings on.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 10:03

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/me is having that moment where he can't tell if cop or army

ttyymmnn > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 07/18/2019 at 10:10

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Kind of hard to tell sometimes these days. 

MKULTRA1982(ConCrustyBrick) > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 10:16

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why do they feel they need to be anonymous when deploying this kind of force? If it’s a safety concern then why is the officer in the t-shirt in the last shot wearing a face covering, but it doesn’t look like he’s wearing any armour? I’m usually very critical of the U.S. police but there may be a genuine answer in this case? 

ttyymmnn > MKULTRA1982(ConCrustyBrick) 07/18/2019 at 10:23

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The guys not in uniform are undercover deputies or detectives . Showing their face would make it impossible to work undercover. You can see the guy on the left is wearing a balaclava. He is one of the undercover deputies.

random001 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 10:31

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ttyymmnn > random001 07/18/2019 at 10:33

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That would be the same county. Austin is in Travis County. 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 10:41

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Miatas are always a sign of trouble. 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > random001 07/18/2019 at 10:42

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Dude puts on a great live show. 

random001 > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/18/2019 at 10:49

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I think it was you who turned me on to him with a post about going to see him.  Thanks again!

random001 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 10:49

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Awesome! 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > random001 07/18/2019 at 10:53

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Oh, nice!

DipodomysDeserti > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 11:10

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I really hope this was all for something like marijuana.

GLiddy > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 11:36

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I’d always thought of myself as conservative, but I guess I’m libertarian. I cringe when I see this kind of thing. Police should not be in fatigues. That is not an appropriate uniform for policing a civilian population. Running around in combat gear in ersatz MRAPs is about terrorizing people IMHO. I guess I get the entry guys wearing protective gear, but then I see the regular cops on the street with their paramilitary uniforms and I cringe. I guess this is just the America we have now. I hope I’m dead before they finally field a national militarized police shock force...our own little Einsatzgruppen. It’s for the children!

ttyymmnn > GLiddy 07/18/2019 at 11:58

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My 13-year-old slept through all of this, and I showed him the pictures after he woke up. I said, “They made a drug raid on that house this morning .” And he said, “Who, the Army?”

There’s no reason why these guys can’t be wearing navy blue uniforms, or even the tan uniforms that the regular deputies wear. I was thinking about emailing our Sheriff with that quote from my son.

450X_FTW > GLiddy 07/18/2019 at 12:09

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I always thought the same when Blue Lives Matter group started using images like these. Are you trying to intimidate the public? Make them fear you? Because that’s the only type of thoughts that go through my head when I see someone with a Punisher logo

haveacarortwoorthree2 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 12:26

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I had a lengthy response to this, but deleted it. If folks can’t understand why the SWAT team needs tactical gear that can work in the various environments in which they find themselves , nothing I say will matter.

ttyymmnn > haveacarortwoorthree2 07/18/2019 at 12:29

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I said in my followup post that I have no problem with the cops matching firepower and protecting themselves. I’m just not crazy about them looking like, and being mistaken for, the Army. 

haveacarortwoorthree2 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 12:35

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They need uniforms that work in different tactical environments - they can’t stop to change clothes. They might be in a building, so the uniform doesn’t matter as much. They may need to blend in with the outdoors, so the uniform then very much matters. I haven’t seen many navy blue combat uniforms out there.  

ttyymmnn > haveacarortwoorthree2 07/18/2019 at 12:42

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But civilians shouldn’t be wearing “combat” uniforms. That’s my point.

haveacarortwoorthree2 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 12:45

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You think a SWAT team is a bunch of civilians? 

ttyymmnn > haveacarortwoorthree2 07/18/2019 at 12:47

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They may be former military to a man, but they are civilians now, or at least reservists. And they work for and  represent a civilian agency.

haveacarortwoorthree2 > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 12:56

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Then nothing I say will matter to you. They are highly trained tactical officers — me n and women — that are deployed in the most dangerous of situations. It doesn’t matter if they are former military or not.

ttyymmnn > haveacarortwoorthree2 07/18/2019 at 12:57

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I don’t think we disagree on anything accept the color of their uniforms. 

ttyymmnn > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/18/2019 at 14:25

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There is a Saab out front, too. 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 07/18/2019 at 14:29

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Only someone on drugs would own a Saab. 

Stef Schrader > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/19/2019 at 03:09

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Agreed.

Stef Schrader > ttyymmnn 07/19/2019 at 03:10

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yikes, dude

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Stef Schrader 07/19/2019 at 08:39

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LOL

How’s it shaking Stef?

Make it out to Harris Hill lately? I need to book a track day at Hallett this fall...

Stef Schrader > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/19/2019 at 11:34

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my life is disappointing garbage, I feel deeply unwanted and unneeded by all of humanity, and I really feel like I have no reason left to live , but I do at least have a glittery pink flamingo floatie I’m gonna hang out on later this afternoon and a ‘Ring trip I’m getting dragged along on later this month, so those are cool things , I guess

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Stef Schrader 07/19/2019 at 11:43

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Damn... I sorry, Stef. I hope you know in your heart that that’s not true (the unwanted and unneeded part). You’ve got lots of folks you love you and want the best for you.

I’m jealous of your flamingo floatie and ‘Ring trip, fwiw. Looking forward to the trip write, but you should probably do a glittery pink flamingo floatie OPPO review as well...

Hit me at davesaddictionOPPO@gmail.com if you ever need to chat offline. Anytime, seriously. Wish I was closer so I could buy you lunch & a beer. 

Stef Schrader > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/19/2019 at 14:55

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Thanks, man. Things feel bad today. I’ve been plowing through emails all day trying to sneak in a review to the ‘Ring trip, heh. Otherwise, I’m gonna loaf and be a passenger. I thought about renting some weirdo car off Turo, but I don’t think I have the money.

(FWIW, Floatie Review is probably this week’s parshletter.)

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Stef Schrader 07/19/2019 at 15:16

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Anytime. So, you definitely should crowdfund your Turo ‘Ring rental (through your Patreon page, with a link shared here ?). I’m guessing a lot of your fellow Opponauts would help make it happen.

Stef Schrader > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/22/2019 at 16:18

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Yeah. I’m currently in unpaid invoice hell, so I’m a little worried about being able to afford.......anything. Yikes.

Patreon’s here if you want that, and I also have a Ko-fi if folks are averse to commitment.

Stef Schrader > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 07/23/2019 at 21:30

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O h wow, that was a surprise this morning. Thank you so much!