Re: Hey Police Officers RANT
kvwelch, that's funny, I don't remember inviting you. No, I shouldn't say that. If you don't like my opinions, that's fine. But if you're not ready to defend your opinions and engage in strong debate, maybe you shouldn't be in a boat with me all day. <br /><br />The thing is, I'd be glad to fish with either of the officers here. If you've carefully read this thread, you'll see we have a lot more in common than not. Those things we disagree on are natural perspectives, the way we see the same thing from two points of view. If any person I spent any time with agreed with everything I said, or vise versa, something would be very wrong. This is how ideas get exchanged, and problems solved. Do you think the founding fathers of this great nation agreed on everything? Not hardly. That's why it took several years and 10 amendments to create the Constitution. It wasn't one person telling the others how it was going to be, it was a group, debating, arguing, and coming to a common resolution.<br /><br />As a whole, I think the cops here have been very honest, sharing personal experiences with total strangers. One with a family history of jail time, and another going "Serpico" on a fellow officer. They have defended their position with passion, enthusiasm, and solid reasoning. I believe, and hope, I've done the same. Again, it seems to me we agree on more than you might think.<br /><br />1. We don't like crooked cops.<br />2. We don't believe cops should be babysitters.<br />3. Every American citizen, not in jail, nor on probation, should be allowed to carry a handgun.<br />(I'd like to interject here that I believe if the above were reality, we'd still have four airliners, two towers, an undamaged pentagon, and thousands of innocent Americans still alive.)<br />4. Citizens should take more responsibility for their lives and problems.<br />5. Fishing good - not able to fish, bad.<br /><br />Mostly where we disagree is in how the job is done. They believe they need to do certain things that I believe go beyond what the law should be. It may be legal for some police actions, but I don't think the law is right. Take RICO for instance. Enacted to combat organized crime, it basically says, "If you are a member of a group whose members are known to commit crimes, you are guilty by association." It may be the law, but it's not right. It's a way frustrated prosecutors can convict people on whom they have no real evidence. I'm all for getting bad guys off the street, but not at a cost of losing my liberty. Under the RICO act, I'd damn sure not be a Democrat! Kennedy's a murderer, Lehey's a traitor, and Kerrys a coward and a traitor. Plus the fact they get most of their money from the unions that are known mob organizations, I would expect to be in jail. (BTW: I'm NOT a democ rat)<br /><br />Every day, we're losing more and more of our rights and liberties. The amazing point is that it is with the full support of some Americans. To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin - "Those who would sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither" <br /><br />I understand you are doing your job according to the law. Some laws are wrong, reguardless what congress or the courts say. And you would agree if the tables were turned. Say there are 16 officers in your department. Seven of them are taking bribes from drug dealers or other corrupt persons. Your citizens file a lawsuit under the RICO Act, and because you are a member of that organization, and the crime was for profit, you find yourself in court facing charges based solely on your fellow officer's actions. Would you consider this a good law?
