By Doug Newman
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From the US Bank surveillance camera.

This morning, just after 9 am, Aurora police put 10 schools on lockdown while investigating an armed robbery at a US Bank branch at Colfax and Havana.

Even though the suspects remained – and still remain – at-large, the lockdown was lifted a little over two hours later.

Now wait just a cottonpickin’ minute here:

• Don’t school lockdowns keep children safe from armed wackjobs that might be roaming the neighborhood?
• And if so, why were the schools taken off lockdown while the suspects remained at-large?

This is not the first time Aurora Police put schools on lockdown because of “police activity.” Just over three weeks ago, Gateway High School and Jewell Elementary School were put on lockdown for over eight hours because of a police investigation at an apartment building at Mississippi and Sable.

This is also not the first time the Aurora PD has grossly overreacted to a bank robbery. In early June, they unlawfully detained 40 innocent people for two hours when apprehending the suspect in a robbery at a Wells Fargo branch. (And a federal judge has ruled in defense of this.)

It’s for the children.

If people are going to tolerate school lockdowns, it is only a matter of time before police put places where adults congregate – office buildings, grocery stores, shopping malls, hospitals, gyms – on lockdown. How will adults like it then?

School lockdowns, as this morning’s episode demonstrates, have nothing to do with the safety of children and everything to do with advancing the police state via terror. When enough people accept this as the norm, what other forms of totalitarianism will the powers that be get them to sign off on?
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UPDATE – 12/4/12: Meanwhile, the Aurora PD arrested a suspected serial rapist today without any extracurricular drama. Why can’t they do it this way every time?
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IT’S NOT JUST AURORA: In Denver yesterday, a preschool was put on lockdown after a bank robbery. The lockdown was lifted even though the perps were still at-large.
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