Still Trying to Kill Grandma, Now With Hollow-Point Bullets!

As if the infamous death panels Obama is creating weren't enough, now we receive word that the Social Security Administration has ordered 174,000 hollow-point bullets. What on earth does the SSA need with an ammo cache like that?

Maj. Gen. Jerry Curry, USA (Ret.), writing in the Daily Caller (sorry, no link on offer) has concluded the obvious:

Potentially each hollow nose bullet represents a dead American. If so, why would the U.S. government want the SSA to kill 174,000 of our citizens, even during a time of civil unrest? Or is the purpose to kill 174,000 of the nation’s military and replace them with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) special security forces, forces loyal to the Administration, not to the Constitution?

So there you have it--the secret second-term plan to assassinate 174,000 God-fearing Americans. Curry speculates at another point in the article that the plan is to "arm illegal immigrants." The "story" has been touted by several different right-wing sites.

Meanwhile, back on planet Earth, the SSA responds that it in fact employs nearly 300 investigators who go out into the field to investigate Social Security fraud and the like. Their jobs are dangerous, or can be in some situations. And the SSA makes a request like this every year:

Currently, about 295 special agents and supervisory special agents work in 66 offices across the United States.  These investigators have full law enforcement authority, including executing search warrants and making arrests.

Our investigators are similar to your State or local police officers. They use traditional investigative techniques, and they are armed when on official duty. 

Media reports expressed concerns over the type of ammunition ordered. In fact, this type of ammunition is standard issue for many law enforcement agencies. OIG’s special agents use this ammunition during their mandatory quarterly firearms qualifications and other training sessions, to ensure agent and public safety. Additionally, the ammunition our agents use is the same type used at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.

Our special agents need to be armed and trained appropriately. They not only investigate allegations of Social Security fraud, but they also are called to respond to threats against Social Security offices, employees, and customers.

The truth turns out to be so much less interesting than the paranoid fantasy. There will never be any end to this sort of thing as long as the guy is president.