I live in a community that has a military base, and work with a lot of people who retired or got out and stayed in the area when their hitch was up. When I posed a question to them along this idea, most said that if they were given the order to fire on American civilians they would shoot the officer who gave the order.

Now weather that would really happen I don’t know, and hope I never have to find out and I don’t know what scares me more, a combat vet trying to enforce some kind of civil order, or some poge trying to do the same thing. As for local LEO’s, well most of the ones I have had dealings with on accident and fire scenes make me nervous that they carry guns.

From http://www.usafa.af.mil/jscope/JSCOPE00/Pfaff/Pfaff00.html

"To underscore this point, as well as underscore the gap between how police and military consider the application of force, consider the following example that occurred during the riots in Los Angeles in 1992:

Police officers responded to a domestic dispute, accompanied by marines. They had just gone up to the door when two shotgun birdshot rounds were fired through the door, hitting the officers. One yelled `cover me!' to the marines, who then laid down a heavy base of fire . . . The police officer had not meant `shoot' when he yelled ‘cover me’ to the marines. [He] meant . . . point your weapons and be prepared to respond if necessary. However, the marines responded instantly in the precise way they had been trained, where ‘cover me’ means provide me with cover using firepower. . . . over two hundred bullets [were] fired into that house."

Joint operations invariably have little things like that. Its a matter of varying terminology. The cop didn't think, the Marines didn't think, and with two hundred rounds fired, I can only say that if no one was hurt, I'm very glad, but also very disappointed in the marksmanship of those riflemen.

I remember reading something about a British unit that got hammered in Korea becuase the Americans they were near didn't understand that when the Brits say the situation is "complicated", they mean "come save our butts!"

Marshal Law is MARSHAL ( Military ) LAW The Military will be in charge, The Civial authorties will have relinquished power.

I have no doubt...

As it happens the exact term used was "Getting a bit sticky."
When a British Army Officer starts to use those terms, along with "interesting" & "complicated," the exact American equivalent is " OH S....T, OH S.......T. WE ARE GONNA DIE!!!! "
That's the problem with us Brit's, we are much too fond of understatement. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />