Comments on Pro Libertate: The "Showtime Syndrome"

The blue gun thugs are much the same everywhere. ...

2007-10-26T09:06:00.000-06:00

The blue gun thugs are much the same everywhere. Just this week in our town they assaulted, beat up, and then shot a man for the "crime" of minding his own business while walking down a street in Liberty Lake, WA. The violent, out of control blue suited gun thug gangs are the greatest terrorist organization in our land. They destroy far more lives than they protect. They are the antithisis of a free country. We would all be far better off if they were rounded up and impaled in a row down Main Street by mobs of decent citizens.

Bob
Catch More of The World According to Bob at http://bobstruth.blogspot.com

1OiTzd Your blog is great. Articles is interesting...

2007-10-26T02:14:00.000-06:00

1OiTzd Your blog is great. Articles is interesting!

I am GLAD I don't live in Ohio! What a defecatio...

2007-10-22T11:38:00.000-06:00

I am GLAD I don't live in Ohio! What a defecation situation! LOL.
This is why we ALL need to put our 2nd Amendment FIRST!
-Wendy Weinbaum

Cops are just average human beings. President Bil...

2007-10-22T05:15:00.000-06:00

Cops are just average human beings.

President Bill Clinton said that, if he could, he would make ordinary citizens yet more dependent upon police protection than we are today -- by outlawing handguns -- if only the country were ready for it. And he added 100,000 federally funded cops to the streets. (If you think you have no say about the way local cops behave, just imagine if the police took orders only from Washington.)

I prefer to rely, as much as possible, on legally armed neighbors (who prefer to mind their own business) to deter burglars and muggers from working my neighborhood. Your example shows why this is better than sending cops around to look for trouble.

"You neglect to mention that the female in your fi...

2007-10-21T02:03:00.000-06:00

"You neglect to mention that the female in your first story was placed under arrest. This was not an example of house being invaded without a warrant, this was someone resisting arrest."

"YOU neglect to mention that all charges were dropped, and that neither of the victims of police violence was taken into custody -- as soon as practicing adults intervened.

Which means, of course, that the victims -- not "perps," or even "suspects," VICTIMS -- were JUSTIFIED IN RESISTING THIS NEEDLESS AND LAWLESS ARREST.

"Although you give give automatic credence to the story told by the complainant, you refuse to consider that, perchance, someone might reshape the facts or simply lie."

People lie all the time -- both suspects and police. The lies of the former are generally prosecuted; those of the latter are generally considered self-ratifying.

"Whatever the case, the fact remains that if a subject refuses to submit to an arrest, you do not have a choice about using force to make them comply. It's not always pretty and it's not supposed to be."

Until VERY recently, it was well understood that citizens had the RIGHT and the DUTY to resist an unjust arrest. This is a subject to which I'm sure I'll return.

"[Y]ou also conveniently left out the fact the subject threatened to `shank' the K9. That is an illegal threat whether given about a police dog or the neighbor's Fido."

And YOU conveniently omitted mention of the fact that the dog assaulted the young man by growling at him in a threatening fashion. (If we're going to anthropomorphize the K9, we might as well go all the way.) The "threat" was the predictable, if ill-considered, reaction of a scared kid.

Do you REALLY expect us to believe that the kid would have been charged with a crime if he had reacted the same way to a privately owned pet? The officials in the story certainly didn't think so; the judge insisted that the dog was a police officer, just like a human cop. I'm genuinely surprised that you didn't take offense at that characterization, so zealous were you in your reflexive tribal loyalty to the tax-consuming caste to which you belong.

Let's first slay the idea that police work is as e...

2007-10-21T01:51:00.000-06:00

Let's first slay the idea that police work is as extravagantly dangerous as HPD would have us believe. The militarization of police is NOT a reflection of a surge in "the dangers faced by officers constantly in our nation."

That conceit makes for gripping TV. It makes for piss-poor policy.

Joseph D. McNamara, a former police chief in Kansas City and San Jose, and a former New York City beat cop, puts matters in perspective:

In 2006, McNamara observes, 51 officers were killed in the line of duty “out of some 700,000 to 800,000 American cops. That is far fewer than the police fatalities occurring when I patrolled New York's highest crime precincts.”

So -- why the militarization of police, and the ever-escalating use of "shock-and-awe" tactics in situations that DON'T call for them?

“Simply put, the police culture in our country has changed,” insists McNamara. “An emphasis on `officer safety' and paramilitary training pervades today's policing, in contrast to the older culture, which held that cops didn't shoot until they were about to shoot or be stabbed. Police in large cities formerly carried revolvers holding six .38-caliber rounds. Nowadays, police carry semi-automatic pistols with 16 high-caliber rounds, shotguns and military assault rifles, weapons once relegated to SWAT teams facing extraordinary circumstances."

The same is true of tasers, beanbag rounds, pepper spray, weaponized flashlights, and all the other kewl 'n' bitchin' toyz our tax dollars are buying for the stalwart heroes in blue.

This Blog shows a typical lack of knowledge about ...

2007-10-21T00:44:00.000-06:00

This Blog shows a typical lack of knowledge about what really goes on for your typical patrol cop. While I would be the last to claim that abuse of authority never occurs within the police ranks, your post provides no evidence for the flood of tyranny you claim.

Your three examples(out of the hundreds of thousands LEO's on shift every day) are outstanding examples of selective editing. You neglect to mention that the female in your first story was placed under arrest. This was not an example of house being invaded without a warrant, this was someone resisting arrest. Although you give give automatic credence to the story told by the complainant, you refuse to consider that, perchance, someone might reshape the facts or simply lie. Whatever the case, the fact remains that if a subject refuses to submit to an arrest, you do not have a choice about using force to make them comply. It's not always pretty and it's not supposed to be.

In your second example you neglect that Mr Ryan said "that's what he's supposed to do", while quoting whatever parts of this story that work well with your version of events. What seems highly probable (and this is only conjecture based on my experience with this job) is that the officer was attempting to affect an arrest when someone got into his space, touching him and attempting to prevent it. In such a case, the officer is going to instantly disengage the accosting subject. I know you do not consider highly the risks taken by the officers on patrol in a typical beat, but they are considerable.

And for the third, you also conveniently left out the fact the subject threatened to "shank" the K9. That is an illegal threat whether given about a police dog or the neighbor's Fido.

The criminal element is much more vicious than you seem to want to realize. The response of patrol rifles and other such "militarization" of police forces is a reaction to the level of violence already in place.

Whether you are claiming that officers need to give warning shots or that shooting out the tires of a vehicle is a viable consideration, you seem to not consider the dangers faced by officers constantly across the nation. You need to realize what it's like to haul butt to a call (with your lights on and siren off, many people can't hear you and you often don't want to let the the person you're about to deal with know you're coming) pull up and see three men raping the female, and have them look you in the eyes and say "F--- you pig I'm going to kill you and watch you bleed out" while you realize that they are about to try to do just that. And after you do that, you need to finish a beat, just one more call to write up. . .

"...the mounting problem of the militarization of ...

2007-10-20T20:49:00.000-06:00

"...the mounting problem of the militarization of our society."

No, it's actually the militarization of our government alone. The 'people' aspect of society are being de-militarized with more restrictive firearm
"laws" and are encouraged to view weapons, especially firearms, as the exclusive instruments of the state. It has been extremely clear for a number of years now that this government is working to establish the "legal" parameters through which the state would monopolize the "lawful" use of force, barring all else from their "rightful" domain; and once they finally achieve that end, we will end.

Obstruction of justice. Someone said something ab...

2007-10-17T18:42:00.000-06:00

Obstruction of justice. Someone said something about the obstruction of justice. That is a key concept. Justice. That is a concept that is increasingly disappearing. Justice. One key question to ponder is just exactly who is obstructing justice. Often enough it will be those who are charging you with obstruction of justice. It is they who are obstructing justice. Examine it. See if that is not the truth.

All cops should be on camera 24/7 If they're not d...

2007-10-17T14:58:00.000-06:00

All cops should be on camera 24/7

If they're not doing anything wrong, then why would they object?

Exactly why I keep an AK-47 propped behind the fro...

2007-10-17T14:15:00.000-06:00

Exactly why I keep an AK-47 propped behind the front door.

I wonder at what point the frog realizes he's been...

2007-10-16T22:59:00.000-06:00

I wonder at what point the frog realizes he's been boiling... there are 7 million Americans in the prison system. 2 million behind bars and 5 million on parole. I suspect the inmate numbers are sky-rocketing. At what point do you conclude you are living in a police state? Where is your line in the sand? You have none. It's wishful thinking to keep thinking it always happens to some other poor bastard. I had my close call with "the law" in Seattle in 2003 and called it quits. I live in Hong Kong now and have never looked back. I just wish they would depeg the Hong Kong dollar from the US dollar because you think it's bad now... just wait till _that_ calamity strikes. At least in Hong Kong banks you have the option to own foreign currency accounts and can trade money across accounts without any penalties or fees whatsoever. Amazing isn't it? Freedom anyone? Never mind. Hope to catch you again on Antiwar Radio William. Maybe speculate on some great countries to emigrate to. I could name a few. It never strikes Americans that other countries are an alternative. Most people have never traveled. America has 2 great assets, it's people, and the country itself. But what does it matter while it's saddled with the most brutal oppressive political regime in the western world? Get out while you can people.

I thought it was common knowledge that the reason ...

2007-10-16T21:53:00.000-06:00

I thought it was common knowledge that the reason so many cops are violent is because of their culture of steroid abuse. Perhaps we need a federal law mandating that all police be tested for steroids at least once per month.

In a truly free society, those witnesses would not...

2007-10-16T19:52:00.000-06:00

In a truly free society, those witnesses would not just have gotten angry, they would have pulled those cops to the ground and beaten them half to death.

On Oct 10th or thereabouts I read in a Seattle new...

2007-10-16T17:50:00.000-06:00

On Oct 10th or thereabouts I read in a Seattle newspaper about some jaywalkers near the sports collisium who were attacked by police and thrown to the ground. The police were in an unmarked car and their persons were not readily identifiable as police, and did not identify themselves. The people being attacked by the police fought back as any normal people would.

I submitted this story to Digg: http://digg.com/po...

2007-10-16T16:37:00.000-06:00

I submitted this story to Digg: http://digg.com/political_opinion/Showtime_Syndrome_Cops_Violently_Mimicking_the_Violent_Cops_On_TV

Excellently written and reasoned. If you'd like to join a community of liberty lovers like yourself, check out http://www.freestateproject.org/

hmm, you need a tipline so you can publicize more ...

2007-10-16T15:42:00.000-06:00

hmm, you need a tipline so you can publicize more incidents like this...here's one about a 14 year old boy with sickle-cell being killed by guards:
http://healtheland.wordpress.com/2007/10/13/martin-lee-anderson-the-state-gets-away-with-murdering-the-poor-again/

Thank you, Mr. Grigg, for your fine blog and for h...

2007-10-16T10:54:00.000-06:00

Thank you, Mr. Grigg, for your fine blog and for highlighting the mounting problem of the militarization of our society. And thanks, specifically, for giving me a platform to speak my mind on an issue I've thought about over and over!

I initially should mention something that will clarify my views. I do know the workings of the Constitution and the laws that have developed over the last couple of hundred years, as I have been both an assistant Attorney General and worked as an attorney for my state's highest court for over 25 years reviewing literally hundreds, if not thousands, of fourth amendment claims. (One of the more popular bases for criminal defendants' appeals.) Having worked on behalf of the State criminal judicial system, I certainly have no love for criminals and their evil ways. (Surely no one does, and that, of course, only needs emphasis for the benefit of those who cannot think clearly about the issue of individual rights.)

That said, I'd like to comment on the TV program "COPS." It's been years since I've seen any kind of a TV show, but one aspect of the COPS program that I recall most, from when I did watch the tube, is how the producers choose scenes that feature the police wantonly violating suspects' rights to be free from unlawful searches and seizures under the fourth amendment. After watching the show more than a few times, I formed the opinion that the producers were intent on inculcating the view in the public that such searches and seizures were not only normal but lawful. (Recall that, unlike Jack Webb's "Dragnet," they never show the results of prosecutions, if any.)

It appears the show is being used, primarily, to acclimatized the public to the removal of its constitutional rights in the name of "peace and safety." Tellingly, the producers open each segment, spending valuable airtime, with an interview of the officers in a way that portrays the officers as ordinary citizens just wanting to help their communities, while spending the rest of the show demonstrating the suspects as scum-of-the-earth losers. Add to the mix commercials "selling the dream," and you have brainwashing at its finest. After all, how can a good citizen ever realize the dream of possessing that fine Cadillac when scum like those are prowling the streets? Unless, of course, police are given carte blanche to restrain those element of the public who might someday scratch and dent that fine machine.

negator said..."...I know there have been racial r...

2007-10-16T10:45:00.000-06:00

negator said...
"...I know there have been racial riots and police brutality to minorities, but it has spilled over and now average Joes and Janes are getting the treatment...."

Thanks, negator--I'm sure that victimized racial minorities will be glad to know that they aren't "average Joes and Janes"--above average, perhaps?
Reminds me of the comment from a west coast police chief years ago, that black people didn't respond to chokeholds the way "normal people do."

Here you go, William. Another one.http://www.ajc.c...

2007-10-16T08:35:00.000-06:00

Here you go, William. Another one.
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/printedition/2007/10/15/coparrested1015.html

Just like the Martha Stewart case, obstruction of ...

2007-10-16T08:28:00.000-06:00

Just like the Martha Stewart case, obstruction of justice. If you are falsely accused and make the attempt to defend yourself....you are charged with obstruction of justice. This is a trend that is happening more and more.

Check out, BUSTED: The Citizen's Guide to Survivin...

2007-10-16T07:32:00.000-06:00

Check out,
BUSTED: The Citizen's Guide to Surviving Police Encounters at

You can view it for Free on YouTube, Google Video and Myspace Video

The more reports of this sort which I hear about, ...

2007-10-16T06:28:00.000-06:00

The more reports of this sort which I hear about, the more I am inclined to accept the theory that some police officers and mad dogs are interchangeable in behavior. Certainly, that observation does not apply to all of them but as many of them become more militarized and regard citizens as the enemy, logic requires that we look at them in the same way and treat them in that manner as much as possible.

Dum spiro, pugno...Being a home schooling father, ...

2007-10-16T03:50:00.000-06:00

Dum spiro, pugno...

Being a home schooling father, and having taught Latin in that role, and since many readers are the sad products of outcome based education and "no child left behind" here is the meaning of Brother Grigg's moto:

"While I breathe, I fight"

(It helps, too, that being a native South Carolinian, I know my state's moto, "dum spiro, spero" =while I breathe, I hope")

Mr. Grigg,If you do NOT want the 'Astrological Sig...

2007-10-16T00:18:00.000-06:00

Mr. Grigg,

If you do NOT want the 'Astrological Sign' and 'Zodiac Year' to appear on your blogger profile... You should be able to remove them by editing your profile and removing/deleting your birthdate information...

:-)