I've mentioned this before, but I don't understand the hate for The Drudge Report. The site simply links to other media outlets.

With that said...

The Drudge Report has been running two interesting articles all day. The first, from The Rocky Mountain News (CO), reports that the Denver Police Department has recently purchased a large amount of "guns that fire a pepper spray-like substance instead of bullets." The department plans to spend $25 million of a $50 million federal grant on equipment to better deal with protesters during the Democratic National Convention.

The general populace is already beginning to speculate:

Some organizers of protest groups believe police are buying extended-range Tasers and weapons that incapacitate people with high-intensity sound.

The second story, from the same publication, is a bit more interesting. Evidently Black Hawk helicopters have been busy in Denver "in a training exercise to prepare for a possible terrorist attack."

From Lt. Nathan Potter, Special Operations Command:

"It's nothing more than Special Operations Command training with local authorities"

Nothing more? I'll say this: people should start to wonder why United States Special Operations Command (read: Army Rangers, Special Forces, Navy SEALs, Marine Special Operations Battalions and so forth) is working with local law enforcement.

I doubt it's an ominous and sinister plot, but there should be caution when the line between Special Operations and domestic law enforcement is blurred. Training together is one way for that to happen, in part because each arm has a very different mission.

In essence, the government is having local law enforcement work with individuals who - in many cases - have been in combat for as long as the United States has been at war.

[Lt. Potter] said that Special Operations Command has been conducting similar exercises in other cities as well.

Unfortunately, one can understand why the government may be getting skittish. One organization - Recreate '68 - has a stated goal of taking to the streets of Denver and fighting "a two-party system that allows imperialism and racism to continue unrestrained." Here's a line from the Statement of Non-Violence and Principles:

To be conscious that if violence or property destruction does occur, we will do what we can to help prevent it from being blown out of proportion and dominating the media coverage.

They don't want to stop violence; they want to make sure it doesn't get blown out of proportion.

For a local link - after Google-ing "Recreate 68" - you can see a short blurb stating "Dead Prez Benefit Concerts for R-68 May 6 at the Boulder Fox Theater $20 at the door, doors open at 8pm."

The group lost out on a protesting permit back in March, after which Glenn Spagnuolo, an organizer for Recreate '68, said: "When things blow up because the police have to enforce a permit that the Democrats got, don’t blame us for that."

If little old Olympia can generate the type of protesting witnessed over the last six months, I imagine we're in for a pretty good showing at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.