THE HARDIN MONTANA MYSTERY

Gawker - Unorganized militia's played quite the role in America's revolution, and they've been experiencing a bit of a revival in the scary recent past. The anti-immigrant Minute Men are out in full force down Arizona way, while the once-defunct Michigan Militia seems to have revived itself: they just had a training exercise called Operation Pita Storm.

But those groups are small potatoes compared to a new, ultra-mysterious "security force" called the American Police Force, which just agreed to take over an indebted prison in Hardin, Montana. And sounds a lot like a militia, only far more organized, less forthcoming and, therefore, more frightening.

The prison in question was built two years ago, but, sadly, never got off the ground. Earlier this year, desperate for funds, the prison put in a bid to take some prisoners from Guantanamo Bay. That effort failed, apparently, because the city's economic group, Two Rivers Authority just called on the APF to take over the prison's operations, although there's no official contract just yet. . .  APF's website claims that the group "successfully provided assistance in training foreign military organizations in combating transnational terrorism" and boasts that it's "recognized as one of the top security and investigation forces in the world." Too bad no one's ever heard of them - not even the U.S. government, a group with which APF says it has worked.

Al Jazeera, May 2009 -  Could terror detainees from Guantanamo be housed in [a] prison in Hardin, Montana?. . . Al Jazeera's Rob Reynolds travelled to the town of Hardin in the US state of Montana to find out why it has offered to take in some of the detainees. . . I toured the empty, never-used jail with Greg Smith, Hardin's economic development director. It is a windowless, low-slung tan concrete hulk surrounded by a double row of high mesh fence topped with gleaming coils of razor wire. Earlier this month, Hardin's town council voted unanimously to offer the US government a deal: Send Hardin the detainees that most foreign countries and other cities the US are afraid to take. . .

Hardin's streets are full of empty storefronts and shabby houses. Intoxicated men and women stagger out of the numerous bars and alcohol stores lining the main road. This town has been down on its luck for a long time. "We're the poorest county in the state and one of the poorest counties in the nation," Smith says.

The prison, built to hold 464 inmates, was authorised five years ago. Hardin officials raised $27m in municipal revenue bonds to build it. But then, a new governor was elected and decided not to use it. Now the bonds are in default. Hardin has pleaded with state officials to send them prisoners, any kind of prisoners: inmates from out of state, sex offenders, criminal illegal aliens. Every effort failed.