Local LE Agency gone nuts!

Status
Not open for further replies.
cdf, 12-34hom, you two were posting at exactly the same time I was - I want to respond to both of you.

cdf, TFL is not full of cop-haters, and it is a bastion of support for honest LEO's - which, again, is the vast majority of them. Many of my favorites on this forum have been LEO's or reserve LEO's. It's the easy way out to simply say we don't like cops. But LEO's occasionally deserve criticism.

The truth is, some of us don't like the crap LEO's have gotten into, as well as some of the tactics. That is just as much (if not more) an issue of public policy as it is police procedure. But, we all know that many of these changes have also been at the behest of LEO management. A lot of departments love the fruits of their seizures (i.e. thefts), and they like all the new equipment. It is 'unfortunate' when an innocent civilian or two gets caught in the crossfire.

I believe it was stated well above - many of us believe the 'benefits' of no-knocks are more than offset by the negatives. And, one of those negatives is that you are creating a huge number of people who are losing respect for LEO's. Continue these policies, and you will probably increase the number of people who view LEO's as a threat - not as a community resource. This is a natural consequence of such behavior.


12-34hom, my friend, I would respectfully ask you to step back and think hard about your 'Drug War'. Yes, it is bad stuff, in varying degrees. Some of the illegal drugs are real killers, and some of it is probably less damaging than your beer. So what? Your 'War' isn't going to end this - it just makes it a more profitable industry. Alcohol Prohibition is a very good, almost perfect analogy for what we are currently experiencing. Consider reading a book called 'Drug Crazy'.

Keep up your 'Drug War', and you'll kill more LEO's, more BG's, more civilians, and the drug industry will still get bigger. What's the point? I see this as analygous to many of the gun debates - we don't want to punish bad behavior, we want to banish products and substances. And, strip our rights. Is that one of the goals?

Drugs aren't going to go away, but our civil rights are certainly headed south. I hope I can still buy government beer when this is all over ... maybe we'll have Shiner Bock approved by the DEA? ;)

Take care.
 
LawDog and others;
Being a LEO or a reserve officer or whatever will expose you to one certain fact: It is a difficult and relatively thankless task. There are people out there who are purely evil and cannot be dealt with in the same manner as you would deal with a reasonable and peaceful individual such as myself or Rich.

Actually if you read the posts nobody is suggesting that you be soft on crime or criminals. Good people in general are tired of giving up their constitutional rights to make your job easier or safer. And when there is an incident where a clearly innocent person is killed by the very people who are sworn to protect him it will cause an outcry. Instead of trying to justify the action or to excuse it because it is is rare, the emphasis should be on eliminating the cause.
If you really want to do the Audie Murphy thing, join the military. Their mission is to break things and kill people. Yours is still to serve and to protect.

------------------
Better days to be,

Ed
 
Jeff, in Texas you swear an oath to Keep the Peace before Enforcing the Law. Also, you aren't limited to working Reserve for the City/County you live in. Most of the small towns around my neck of the woods are desperate for Reserves.

Law Enforcement for small town is VERY different from that of big cities. Despite what people will tell you, politics in a small town Dept are not much different from that of a big city. There was one prostitute working the county that was my first LE job. Enforcement on her consisted of getting enough complaints from outraged wives, sending an officer over to her house and saying, "Dammit, Annie, knock it off."

Back on track, Jeff, do the Academy, if you decide that semantics won't let you do the job in good conscience: Quit.

Just going through the Academy will give you a whole new outlook on LE life.

LawDog
 
Ed, good Rushism!The military's job is to kill people and break things. Wich is why it should never be doing any "peacekeeping".
Of cource actions that caused an inocent to be killed need to be reviewed.But those actions were mistakes, not SOP.
 
Mr. Thomas: Yes the war on drugs is being lost. Until the insatiable appetite for controlled sunstances is curbed by those Americans who ingest them and the huge profits for selling them are taken away this plauge will continue on our society. But does that mean i should give up and turn a blind eye to this problem? I can't control morality, and it can't be legislated. That's just what the drug sellers are banking on, Until the public's perception and moral values change in this society things will remain the statas quo. . I can only do what i do and change things in a very small way, hopefully make a difference in few peoples lifes. What is your suggestion for solving this problem?.[please enlighteen me] Giving up is not an option for me, i will plod along until a better solution is found.
 
In response to the last post of 12-34hom: You give all of the reasons that all drugs should be decriminalized and regulated in the manner of tobbacco and alcohol. Only then will the profit incentive and reasons for crime to support habits go away. The tax collected on the products could more than off-set the problems caused. (And when you add the billions wasted on the WOD to the pot, there would be no excuse for anyone not getting treatment or free maintenance drugs.)
 
Lawdog, I tend to read a lot and post very little so you probably don't know me. I have been a reserve Deputy in GA while stationed at Ft. Benning many years ago. I have personnal expierance in no knock raids, but, in a war time situation in the military. I have retired after 20 years in the US infantry. I AM NOT QUALIFIED TO BE A LEO. I have been trained to kill what is in the house not arrest him/her. This is why I feel that to militarize the police force in this country is wrong. Someone said the military is to kill people and brake things, he is right. That is the way I was trained, I was not trained in public relations, and it seems to me a LEO really needs the trust of the public. You don't get that by kicking in doors at two in the morining. In my area you would end up fighting the intire block. Most of us are ex or retired military and we look out for each other, and none of us trust the government. We worked for it to long and we know it too well. Keep safe.
Rew.
 
By way of clarification, I'd like to state right here and now that I have no problem with cops who do their jobs. The guy who pulls me over for a burned-out light, the guys out there busting their asses trying to catch *REAL* criminals, the guys looking for murderers... they have my absolute support.

The ones I despise, and whom I consider to be just as bad as Manson or Bundy or Gacy, are the cops who don't give two $#!+$ for the rights of the law-abiding. The ones who kick in doors screaming at the tops of their lungs, red-dotting four-year-old kids and killing pets. The ones who sodomize prisoners. The ones who shoot unarmed people, then shrug and say, "Hey, just an honest mistake. Sorry."

If you zero-tolerance-for-LEO-trashing types can actually support those guys, ask Cornered Rat about his experiences growing up in Russia. Ask Ismael Mena's kids (the guy who was murdered by cops in Denver this week) how they feel about being caught in the crossfire in this totally insane War On Some Drugs.

But if you want to tell me I suck because I utterly detest criminals with badges, well... come say it to my face.

I'm done.

------------------
"The right of no person to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person and property,
or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall be called into question.."
Article 11, Section 13, CO state constitution.
 
There's a Law Enforcement board with this same format that is just starting up that may be a great place to discuss this scenario.

Since there are presently only 17 members, including myself, a citizen, I thought it would be better to post their URL here rather than TFL's there, and maybe suck their membership dry. It will probably end up as a cross-pollination anyway.

It's mighty lonesome at -- http://forums.law-enforcement.com
 
Lawdog: I see your consistant refence to "critters". Are these anything like krauts, gooks, or ragheads? Soldiers, during wartime, use names to dehumanize the enemy. It helps them stomach the inhumane action of combat. Like it's not really 'PEOPLE' that they are pointing guns at.
Cops shouldn't need this technique.

There are "critters" on this very forum (myself being on of them) so watch it! ;)
 
Jordan,

From LawDog's earlier post, he noted, "... I have never, ever trivialized the death of anyone, be they critter or civilian." (stress added)

Therefore I believe that is LawDog's expression for Bad Guys and Good Guys.

I'll stick my neck out and say you probably don't qualify for "critter". (Am I in trouble yet? :D)

At least that's how this Mick takes it. ;)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top