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I think a point you may not be considering is that the reason why they use these paramilitary squads for stupid shit is not just to have fun, but instead to justify the purchase of all of this gear and training in the first place. If you never use the stuff then it stands to reason that it may not make the budget in the future (assuming budgeting competence).

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The training/gear isn't a budget issue, because it's externally funded via grants and seizures. Except for the largest cities, nobody is going to the mayor for $1M to buy something like this: http://gs.flir.com/integrated-systems/skywatch . But when the Feds are giving away money for lookout towers, speedboats, etc, everybody needs two.

What they DO need to justify is the overtime and the extra pay for being in the SWAT detail. That's where driving tanks through buildings to liberate and euthanize chickens comes in.

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