Why I Just Cancelled My Membership In PORAC

 Rant Warning. About a 7 on the scale. Disgust but limited bad words.

PORAC is the Peace Officer's Research Association of California. It's basically a lobbying and legal defense organization that has branched out to include such things as retired issues, medic care coverage, etc. In those capacities it's fine. I haven't had to utilize any of their services but I know others who have and they have done good work championing cops and the work we do. But.

I have noticed over the last few years an increasing emphasis on their lobbying effort and political activism, including but not limited to endorsing candidates and allowing promoting 'causes'. It's a couple of those included in their latest magazine offering that has caused me to speak my mind and cancel my membership.

Here's a link to their site and the E version of the magazine I get delivered once a month. This is from the August issue.Please RTWT.

Let's start with an article by Paul Villa, the Chief Lobbyist/Government Relations  for the Reno Police Protective Association for PORAN (which is an associate member with PORAC) entitled Strange Bedfellows. It's on page 16 of the magazine. Flip through and give it a quick read. I'm not allowed to reproduce any articles in part or whole so I will have to paraphrase but I encourage you to give that a good read. I think I'm Ok with giving you the title to the article strictly for the purposes of clarity.

In that article he goes to some length to acknowledge that the majority of cops are in fact conservative, of one stripe or another. He went so far as to mention a PoliceOne.com survey that found that found a majority of street officers were opposed to gun control. Here's a link to that survey. He also acknowledges that puts us at odds with mainstream democratic/liberal policies. Ok, fine so far and accurate. He then makes the point that they (he says us but I don't count myself as among his supporters) will take the opposite tack and appeal to Democrats when wages and benefits are under scrutiny. He refers to Republicans in a derogatory manner in regards to fiscal policy. Note the language in that paragraph where the PoliceOne poll is mentioned and the differing way he refers to Dems and Reps. He whines about being questioned as to why they never endorse any Republicans. And here's the payoff.

Mister Villa then goes on, in the very next paragraph, to aver that those of us in the police business hold our pay and benefits above everything else, including the Second Amendment. And that is why they routinely endorse big D candidates in spite of acknowledging that those very same politicians often make the job of policing harder. He goes on to make the argument that he's really bi-partisan and just wants to find a reasonable solution to modern policing but in my mind he has already admitted that he's sold his soul for twenty pieces of silver. In the next to last paragraph he drives that point home when he again alleges that fiscal issues take precedence over other matters when it comes to political endorsements. Essentially he's saying that fiscal conservatives need not apply.

Mister Villa is of course wrong and if he's not then may The Good Lord preserve us all. My priority, both on the job and in my evaluation of political candidates, was police work first with financial considerations taking a distant second place. Most of the cops I know felt the same. We fought for our contracts hard but win or lose, the job was the most important thing in our professional lives. It's precisely the kind of thinking espoused by Mister Villa that got us into this mess in the first place. Me first and to hell with everyone else is anathema to all law enforcement professionals hold dear and to see such printed in the pages of a magazine dedicated to those same men and women makes my blood boil. If it's only about the paycheck it's time to find another line of work and if you believe it's your primary responsibility as a lobbyist for cops to deliver money and only money then you are doing your employers and the general public a huge disservice. Mister Villa, go sell life insurance you venomous, mealy mouthed, boot licker. Make endorsements based on the public and law enforcement good and let the chips fall where they may. Your cops will both understand and support such efforts. Making the job easier and the public safer is job number one and don't you ever forget it. And you cops in Reno (and all of Nevada for that matter) better take a long, hard look at your Chief Lobbyist and start asking some hard questions lest you end up like your California brethren, living in a liberal wasteland. You're uncomfortably close right now if that little tidbit has escaped you.

But wait, we're not done yet. Let's skip ahead to page twenty shall we? There we find the article that caused me to throw my hard copy of the magazine across the room lest I be contaminated by it's mere touch. It's entitled Back to Basics: Another View by Dan Milchovich DPA, a retired Captain from Inglewood PD.

Again, I highly recommend you RTWT as it's a pretty nasty piece of work. It's clear from inference that Captain Milchovich is a card carrying low information voter of the first stripe. I'm going to take just  aminute here to refute some of his garbage.

1. You're arguing the wrong point which was that Congress and it's staffers were going to come under the auspices of ACA (aka Obamacare). That was the law but Obama has now 'fixed' that. Once again the political elite have found a way to insulate themselves from laws they expect the rest of us to follow. Funny how often that happens.

2. Wrong. See above. And if you're wondering how the ACA is going to affect insurance premiums wonder no more.

3. It's not  moot at all. If they have no skin in the game they have no incentive to find reasonable solutions. Here, read this and answer these questions. Where are all those SS contributions going and where will the money to pay off just the current obligations come from?

4. And? The problem here is that we have incentivized political life by making it all about the pay and benefits as opposed to it being, you know, about the public service. You and Mister Villa from PORAN appear to be cut from the same liberal political cloth. Considering a run for public office perhaps? Let's tie Congressional pay to the Average Yearly Income for Americans, kick politicians out of their retirement system and require them to live under all the rules they require us to abide by. Then we can both sit back and watch the exodus of those who are more concerned with accumulating wealth than doing the People's work and maybe we can get this ship righted again.

5. Again. And? Do you support an opt out provision for Social Security? If so then what's your point? If not then why not? How much exactly are you personally willing to sacrifice to ensure SS doesn't go bust?

6. Are you kidding me? Here, take a look at this and tell me how great that program is and how we should be funding it with taxpayer money.

7. Oh really? The real questions are how much is too much and who gets to decide that? I don't think I'm too comfortable leaving those decisions in the hands of people like you, Captain.

8. And here we go. Gun Control. This is an either/or proposition and damn you for posting your lunatic ravings under your former title, Captain. Either you support the Constitution and the Bill of Rights or you don't. If it's the former then sit down and shut up. You're just wrong. If it's the latter then you failed as a police officer and served under dishonorable terms. I think I know which side of the line you fall on in this debate and it disgusts me. And you end with this quote from Jefferson;

"An honest man can feel no pleasure in the exercise of power over his fellow citizens."

Do you understand how hypocritical you sound? You are arguing for the very thing Jefferson was warning against in a post espousing disarming Americans in violation of the second Amendment to the Bill of Rights. You're either disingenuous, stupid or a liar. Perhaps a nice combination of all of the above?

Bah. You make me ashamed to have ever worn the same uniform Captain. May my forefathers forgive me and my my children forget you were ever called an American.

So. I have sent off the following letter to PORAC in an e-mail;

A**** G*******

Membership

Retired

I just received my August issue of the PORAC magazine and I find that in the interest of maintaining my integrity and ethics I must resign from PORAC effective immediately.

I read with horror the articles from Paul Villa, entitled Strange Bedfellows and Dan Milchovich, entitled Back to Basics: Another View. In one the writer maintains that pay and benefits trumps all other considerations and in the other we are treated to a liberal screed full of nonsense and false information. Both are final straws for me.

I have witnessed the turn of PORAC, indeed much of law enforcement lobbying, from what's good for the general public to what's good for law enforcement bottom lines in general and Democratic politicians in particular. In both cases the missing element is the California Taxpayer. I cannot believe that the hardworking man and woman in California (and Nevada apparently) gets such short shrift from an organization ostensibly about protecting working cops so we can deliver a better service to those we are sworn to serve and protect. I am appalled.

Cancel my membership in RPORAC effectively this date; 8/5/2013. I will no longer support your organization in any way, shape or form. In fact I will speak out against your narrow minded and anti Tax Payer public policies at every turn. You will not turn my honorable service into something unethical and wrong. I will no longer be among PORACs supporters. Rather I will be a watchdog against your excesses and attempts to thwart public will through your political activism and pressure

Six
(I signed with my real name)

I'll let you all know how they responded though I anticipate it will be unsatisfying.

TSA, California And Shameful Treatment Of Our Wounded Heroes

Apparently being a severely wounded Marine Hero, and being honored as his legislative district's Veteran of the Year, means extra security scrutiny. Because it's quite obvious that wearing a Marine dress uniform with a chest full of medals, including the Purple Heart, is an indicator of terrorist activities.

The Military Times brings the story of Nathan Kemnitz. Go read the whole thing and ponder where we are and what we have become.

And the treatment by the TSA isn't even the worst of it. What he endured by the security folks at the California capitol may have been even worse. In Corpoal Kemnitz's own words.

"Kemnitz said after the incidents that he was not as annoyed with TSA officers as he was with a security screener at the California state capitol, whom he described as rude and unapologetic."

None of this is to excuse the treatment everyday Americans must endure simply to make use of the airspace, OUR airspace mind you, but it absolutely makes my blood boil to see one of those who have given so dearly to try and keep us free of the horror of War being treated so shamefully. It sickens me.

And it's my fault. I have accepted this state of affairs and allowed the creation of this attitude among those who are allegedly our public servants. I am going to be taking a zero tolerance stance from this day forward. I'll start by sending off a couple of zingers to my congressman and both senators. Not that I expect a great deal of assistance. As a veteran and member in good standing of the American Legion both the VA and the Legion will also be hearing from me. None of those I contact will ever see another dime from me nor any other assistance until the issue of wounded Vets flying, at the very least, is addressed. I'm also going to let my elected reps know that I will work actively against them should they falter or fail in protecting those men and women who have sacrificed so much to protect us. I am at that line in the sand.

This cannot stand. If any of you have suggestions please either leave them in comments or drop me a line. I'll update this post as more come in. I am as angry as I have ever been and this is hardly the first such incident, is it? It's up to us, those who are veterans and supporters of our fighting men and women to make a difference. I aim to make a stink.

Six

Some Folks Need To Get A Grip - A Rant

It's over. One is dead and the other is in custody. The cops were unbelievably magnificent. I know this is quick but if you'd indulge me for a minute I'd like to touch on what has rapidly become a sore spot for me concerning those very cops. It's really bugging me.

In perusing my blogroll and the various links and musings I have unfortunately run across more than a few who have decided that the events in Watertown, Boston and their environs constituted an occupation worthy of the Waffen SS. Yes, at least one site and it's commenters used those very words. Waffen SS. Just allow that to wash over you for a moment. Please excuse my word usage here but I'm seeing red at the moment. I really shouldn't be posting on this topic at this moment but I am a man of deep feelings and I refuse to pull punches when I think they're appropriate and necessary. The F word will be used liberally.

This wasn't a case of an armed robbery gone wrong and a suspect running loose. It wasn't a domestic violence gone bad with a significant other on the lam. It wasn't a car jacking. We used to have a name for those guys; Common Decent Criminals. Yes they are dangerous. Yes they often times killed including firing on those officers pursuing them and occasionally stray passersby. But they weren't terroristic animals who would place a bomb next to an 8 year old boy. They didn't routinely throw bombs out of a moving car willy nilly. They didn't desire to rack up the highest body count before they were finally killed in an orgy of evil, death and violence. They weren't actively working for the forces of evil arrayed against all we love and hold dear. They weren't the Enemies of America. These two scumbags were.

This was two guys who wanted to kill the maximum number of people possible and then die themselves. Want to remember what Chechen terrorists are capable of? Here ya go.  The police reacted swiftly and appropriately. Locking down the scene was the right thing to do. This wasn't a local cordon it was a desperate attempt to cut off, find and neutralize two of the most desperate and dangerous foes one can imagine. Errors weren't allowed. Miscalculations carried the highest imaginable penalties. Cutting off transportation was the right thing to do. Requiring people to stay in their homes and businesses was the right thing to do. Calling in every available officer and piece of equipment was the right thing to do. It's called Calling In The Clans and if was absofuckinglutely the right thing to do.

This was a pig pile writ large and it was absolutely and positively the right thing to do. Witness the near total lack of civilian casualties. Witness the superb use of force control. Yes, it's horrifying to see a modern American city in total lockdown but it was still the right thing to do. Welcome to the 21st Century and what a nearly perfect police response to active terrorist shooters looks like.

Ask the people of Mumbai if what we saw in Boston was excessive. Those who survived anyway. How many of them would have welcomed such an immediate and forceful response from their own police forces with open arms and tears of joy? The Mumbai cops were a pathetic joke and people were killed because of it. It's not oppression it's fucking WAR and that war is in our neighborhoods even as we speak. It's not a fucking army of occupation taking over and running roughshod over the Constitutional rights of the people. Give me a fucking break. Yes it is bad. No it is not unconstitutional or evil of reminiscent of the Third fucking Reich. And the cops have sent a very clear message to our enemies. We ain't Mumbai. You screw around over here and we'll hunt your asses down and do it quick.

This, this very thing is one of the biggest reasons we have the Second Amendment and why I support it so vehemently. But we don't go hunting the bad guys. We hunker down and protect ours and allow the men and women we have hired and sworn in to do the job we have asked them to do. I want to see the lights and hear the sirens and watch as my police officers march to the sound of the guns. Isn't that what we expect them to do? This isn't common crime its an act of War and the responding Massachusetts police were fucking magnificent. I have never been prouder of my brothers and sisters in blue and fuck anyone who doesn't like it.

Listen, anyone who has even casually perused my blog and writings knows that I don't hesitate to criticize my fellow police officers when warranted. No one is a bigger critic of police corruption and incompetence than I am. But this incident contained none of that. This was a job well done with the correct outcome. The only people who were killed and injured were the terrorists and the cops. What more can we ask? If the blood of two cops is insufficient then I don't know what to say. I hate that one of my brothers was killed with another fighting for his life in the hospital but if you ask any officer worth his or her salt they'd tell you that it was worth the sacrifice. I have said many times that if the situation calls for it then an officer is obligated to take the bullet and even die in the performance of their duties. That happened here exactly. This response should be applauded not sneered at by imbeciles and those who wouldn't understand what a tactical requirement and textbook deployment looks like if it was spelled out in their primary reader. The Mass cops were swift, careful, courageous, decisive and on the ball. The scene commander was more than competent. The responders did all the right things without ever shooting someone they weren't supposed to even with two of their own down. I salute each and every one of those cops and hold my own honor short simply because I wasn't there standing by their sides. I am in awe of them all.

So. I have again removed a couple of blog links. No, I didn't leave them a comment. I have no patience for fools and refuse to engage them in useless argument. If you are one of those who look at the police response in Boston and Watertown as something Orwellian or Totalitarian then please just leave me the hell alone. I don't want to know you and for damn sure I don't want to be associated with you in any way. I'll take the blog down first. Yes, I am that angry at the moment. My brothers and sisters in Law Enforcement and the Military who also responded did an absolutely wonderful job in the most difficult and chaotic environment one could imagine. If you can't see that then just fucking piss off.

Six

Update:  "some officers were out of ammunition and charged the brothers’ position with their police car." 
 "While Tamerlan Tsarnaev was firing a pistol with the other hand, police tackled and tried to subdue the 200-pound amateur boxer."
Yeah, sure sounds like jackbooted thugs to me.
ht: Ace

Why I Will Vote For Mitt Romney

The ruling is in. SCOTUS has upheld obamacare with some provisions but keeping in the individual mandate as a tax. I just watched Romney stating, in no uncertain terms, that he will repeal it on his first day in office. Ok then, game on.

We got here by decades of incrementalization. A long, slow eroding of our sovereignty and basic freedom. Bit by bit. Piece by piece. Such led directly what we saw today. Well, it works both ways. I am now a single issue voter and that issue is obamacare.

I was actually skulling over a post yesterday in which I would argue that the cold civil war would never become hot. There was simply no way that we could ever come to the point that another 'shot heard 'round the world' could happen again. But today I recognize that there is indeed such a way and this ruling is half of that formula. The other half comes this November when we go to the polls to decide whether obama gets a second term or not.

There are those out there, some who I admire and greatly respect, who would say "Good. Bring it on and get it over with." I am not in that camp. In fact I reject that line of reasoning absolutely. Now is the time to begin incrementalization on our side. Now is the time to begin the long, slow restoration of a representative republic as our founding fathers envisioned it. Now is the time for all good men and women to rise up and say No More. This far and no farther. Now is the time to elect a Republican president who will once and for all banish this abortion to the trash heap where it belongs. Now is the time, God help me, to elect Mitt Romney President.

I know, I know. I've heard and read all the arguments. Mitt is an elite, more concerned with power than individual American freedoms. Mitt will simply preside over a slower eradication of freedom than obama and the dems. Nothing will change except the whip holders political affiliation.

But the fly in that ointment is us. It's been said many times that all politics are local politics. Look no further than the formation of the Tea Party to see the truth in that. The Tea Party that was formed in the wake of the passage of the Affordable Care Act in the first place. We responded in the 2010 election and we must be heard again this year. In that is our salvation and the answer to any ideas that Mitt may have about accommodation with the left. Congressional and Senate elections. If we get those right, if we make sure we send only those who believe in America to DC, then we can exercise local control over national politics. It's up to us, where we must now recognize it should have been all along. We cannot rely on 9 men and women in black robes to rescue us and safeguard our basic freedoms. We can, indeed we must, take the reins of power back into our own hands to ensure the future of our children and grandchildren. And the first step is the 2012 elections.

So. I will support, contribute time and money to and vote for Mitt Romney for President in 2012. The alternative is too horrible to contemplate. Like some of you I have seen violent death, not wholesale but on a smaller scale. It's enough to understand. Death is ugly. It can be mind searing. Open war should be avoided if there exists a reasonable alternative. I've heard and seen written, many times, that we cannot vote our way out of this crisis. I disagree. What's been done to us we can reverse and do unto others. What we have lacked is an ignition source, a clear understanding of the stakes by the general populace and the will to exert our sovereignty. The moment has come and our path is now clear. Obama must go and he needs to take all his friends with him.

Romney isn't perfect, I acknowledge that, but we have a chance to exert our will upon him and his policies. We have zero chance to do the same with obama. Why would we put him back into a position to do more damage to our country? And doing nothing is in fact supporting 4 more years of obama and pushing us ever closer to the day when the cold War becomes very hot. Some who are arguing against Romney and for a return of obama do it because they say they want to fight the War themselves to spare their children and grandchildren. Honorable but much mistaken. War knows no boundaries. Respects no gender or age. Kills wantonly and without rhyme or reason.

No. The War may come of it's own accord but I will not take any action to hasten it's arrival, including inaction. Ridicule me if you will but I have made my decision and I have no qualms or regrets about it. Honor and my own concern about my grandchildren's future compel me to make my stand here.

Mitt Romney 2102.

Six

Please Carry

The anti 2A folks must be proud of themselves today after watching this video. I mean it's much better that she didn't have the means to defend herself against a violent thug rather than being safe. Better to let him have what he wants rather than shoot and possibly kill him. Right? Except that what he wanted was her and she's now missing after being beaten and thrown into his car.

If you're a member of the disarmament crowd this is indeed your fault. Yours. Step up and take credit.



From the story;
In this surveillance video, the man police are seeking is seen knocking down a woman who had just exited a LIRR train. The two then exchanged words inside a shop before he forced her to leave the store. Once outside, he again knocked her down and dragged her off camera. According to witnesses, after the video ends, the man placed the victim over his shoulder and threw her in the back seat of a nearby car against her will. The suspect then drove away in the direction of the Long Island Expressway.

Please carry. If all you have is a .22 then that's all you have but please carry it and use it if you must. That woman's life is important as is yours and all the panty wadding and hand wringing by those who wish to control all aspects of our lives and put us in the hands of the violent and deranged is just a cover for an ongoing war on freedom. Don't fall for it. The casual person on the street cannot be counted on to preserve your life in a crisis. It does happen but all too often they'll pass by without a thought to intervene. You are the final arbiter of your fate and don't ever forget it.

A prayer goes out to that woman. May she be found alive and may her attacker pay the penalty. Preferably terminally.

Six

Profiting From The Murder Of Innocents

I was a street cop for more than 24 years. In that time I investigated basically every crime imaginable, from the minor to the horrific. That includes the depredations some are so capable of inflicting on those weaker than themselves.

I ran across this article on some websites that are auctioning or otherwise selling and profiting from the works and scribblings of the most vile and evil amongst us.

I understand the nature of the market about as well as any other ignorant line dog layman. Find or create a product or service. Create a business and marketing plan. Sell your product/service for what the market will bear. Expand your inventory and customer base and grow your business. Make money. Get rich. It's the American Way.

But.

I find it beyond contemptible to profit from the death and suffering of the innocent. I've been there. I've seen the blood and horror and the ugly death. I've seen the torn bodies and the tears of inconsolable family and loved ones. I've looked stone cold killers in the eyes and seen the evil, the dispassion, the total lack of remorse. Eyes, not of predators but of scavengers. Jackals who kill the sick and weak and then only when the Lion isn't around to teach them the lesson of who the true predators are.

Those who sell the 'memorabilia of murder' are doing more harm than just making a buck from the suffering of past victims, they're advertising those murderers. Their product is the lunatic ravings and disturbing effects and images of those who have committed the very worst crimes imaginable. They're offering them up as if they were no more than a signed baseball or an autograph from the latest celebrity fad. They're keeping them in the public eye and presenting them to us as something worthy, even desirable.

Whether you support the death penalty or not (I do. I think it does more good than harm) clearly even those not scheduled for an appointment with the executioner deserve to do their time in darkness and anonymity. Their memory should fade as their lives tick away in a cell. Their writings, images and thoughts should die with them. Forgotten and dishonored. We, as a civilized society, owe it to those we failed to protect and their loved ones who must endure every day with the memories of the departed and the circumstances of their death. To keep the memory of these sadistic and depraved murderers alive is spitting in the face of every innocent victim touched by their evil.

They are in fact our monsters. In them there is nothing to admire. Nothing to inspire. Nothing that should endure. Every thing they have done, every thing they have produced, every thing they have touched should be destroyed and they should be utterly forgotten by a nation that abhors them. To do less is to stamp their actions with a seal of approval and inspire others to emulate them so they too can become famous.

May they and those who would celebrate them suffer as they have caused suffering.

Six

Kipling On 9/11

Like Borepatch, I'm still angry. This photo sums up why. I get angrier every time I look at it or watch those horrible videos. I look at it often to remind me of just how personal and horrific the attacks on that day were.

That is an American plumeting to his death on that evil day. Whether he jumped or simply fell, trying to escape the killing smoke and flames, matters not at all. That is my countryman. A fellow American. My brother, my father, my son. Killed by evil men who rest not to this day. A fate he didn't choose but accepted when it was thrust upon him. Caught unawares by the cowardly.

10 years.  Time has failed to dim my wrath or that of my fellows. I count not the timid, weak, cowardly and apologetic. They are not my brothers and sisters. This man is my brother. Those who lost their lives on that day and those who selflessly gave theirs on the battlefields fighting against the rising tide of evil are. Yes, I served on that day and many after. No, I will never be worthy of their sacrifices, honor and bravery.

I will remember. I will honor them. I will never surrender. For their memory if for no other reason.


Covenent
1914

We thought we ranked above the chance of ill.
Others might fall, not we, for we were wise
Merchants in freedom. So, of our free-will
We let our servants drug our strength with lies.
The pleasure and the poison had its way
On us as on the meanest, till we learned
That he who lies will steal, who steals will slay.
Neither God's judgment nor man's heart was turned.

Yet there remains His Mercy--to be sought
Through wrath and peril till we cleanse the wrong
By that last right which our forefathers claimed
When their Law failed them and its stewards were bought.
This is our cause. God help us, and make strong
Our will to meet Him later, unashamed!

May it ever be so. May our enemies, those who attacked us and killed us and those that remain taste the bitter tears of death down to the least of them. May we remember and meet our Maker and our Forefathers unashamed. The fight goes on.

Six

Business Practices

Murphy's Law at Lagniappe's Lair has a post up here about the Dealer Showroom out of Klamath, Oregon and it's owner, John Bush. Now I've never done business with these people but I trust Murphy's Law's judgement and after reading about his experiences with this company and owner I can safely say I'll never do business with them unless and until they radically change their customer service practices.

Lu and I have a rule. We'll pay a little extra for excellent service and refuse to give our hard earned money to any individual or company who treats customers as irritations or sources of one time only income.

Don't give money to anyone who hasn't earned it. Sounds like an indictment of the government now that I think on it.

Six

A Liar Is A Liar Is A Liar

I came across this blurb whilst surfing the interwebs. It tells the tale of Rafael Mora-Lopez, a police officer in Alaska. Apparently he was a good and well respected lawman. The only problem is he's here illegally.

Lopez stole the identity of Rafael Espinoza, a U.S. citizen. Frankly, it doesn't speak well of the law enforcement profession that he passed the background check to get the job in the first place. Part of that process is a federal fingerprint check. You know, so someone who is say, a criminal, can't get such a job. It's kinda a big deal.

His chief, the US Attorney for Alaska and others praise him for his good work. Of course, the local defense attorneys are going to be inundating the local court system seeking the overturning of pretty much every criminal prosecution and arrest he's ever made. And that's as it should be.

One of the crash landing offenses for any law enforcement officer is, indeed must be, integrity. If you lie you die in the parlance of the job. An officer must be honest above all other things. It is as basic as breathing. If one will lie about one thing he'll lie about any thing. It cannot be tolerated.

This is part and parcel what is wrong with the idea of allowing, sheltering and supporting those who are here illegally. Obfuscation and dishonesty are a disease of the soul. Once down that path it is nearly impossible to get off, especially when the culprit refuses to come clean, admit what they've done and make amends.

I love this quote;
There are no immediate plans to file state charges, said John Skidmore, a state attorney. He and other officials stressed that the case was still under investigation. "At this time, we have no reason to believe, from what we know so far, that this gentleman or this officer's good work for APD has in any way been compromised or questioned," Skidmore said.

Nonsense. The very fact that he was working while here illegally definitely compromises the work he did. Without question. Lopez should be charged and prosecuted the the extent the law allows and when his sentence is done shipped back to the country he is a citizen of. Every case he investigated and was responsible for must be reviewed and those cases where another officer's testimony is insufficient for conviction must be overturned and the accused turned free. No matter how disgusting or unfair that seems to be. Lopez cannot be trusted. His word is worthless.

Another black eye for my profession and my honest brothers and sisters who work so hard to do things the way they're supposed to be done. I have absolutely no sympathy for mister Lopez. He deserves exactly the same consideration he's shown for the laws of this country. None. A dishonorable man who has earned his infamy.

Six

Over Regulation and Quality Of Life

Lu and I had a funny conversation yesterday. There's an old elementary school down the street, the very school Lu attended as a child in fact. It's no longer an institute of learning. When the new one was built, the city took it over and it's a community center now. Hurricane also has a community newsletter they put out once a month. In it they were warning of vandalism to the building and asking neighbors and parents for help. Here's a snippet;
"I call on all citizens to actively participate in efforts to stop this kind of criminal activity. Parents - I especially enlist your efforts......Active supervision - including knowing where your children are, whom they are with and enforcing family curfews can go a long way toward eliminating destructive behavior."
The conversation Lu and I had was about the "vandalism" we had seen at the old school. What we saw last time we were there was some small magic marker graffiti on some of the playground equipment. I made me wonder what they city fathers and residents might think about some of the vandalism at active California schools. That got me to thinking on the differences between this small southern Utah community and most every town or city in California.

As you drive through Hurricane, Utah it's like any other small city anywhere in the country. What's different about this city as compared to those in that state we fled is unnoticed, beneath the surface. It's an attitude.

You will find small signs scattered about Hurricane. It's a representation of a four wheel ATV. It designates those streets open to ATV use. Paved public city streets. And why not? The original idea was to have lanes that ATVs could use to get back and forth to gas stations but I think it's become more than that. I regularly see all kinds of folks motoring along, going about their business with nary a care or a concern. Utah also lacks a helmet law for adults. We still have burn days. The attitude is one of hey, we're all adults here.

As you drive down our streets you will see long stretches of white and stucco walls. Graffiti free. Not painted over graffiti free but never having been defaced at all. The police department does not have a Community Policing program or a community outreach because they don't need either. The community already understands the rights and obligations that goes along with being a citizen and they act accordingly. The police department is expected to do it's job, no more, no less and to leave the rest to the citizens.

Here's a truth. Less government oversight and downright meddling reinforces the idea that we are all sovereign and ultimately masters of our own fate. If we are less dependant on government we will be more dependant on our own God given skills and the work ethic we've developed. We become less dependant on government by having less government. Les government produces a society of independent adults. More government produces a society of needy children.

I've met the Mayor. He's a great old guy. He owns and runs a barbershop on the main drag. Government is his duty not his job. When you go into the city offices you find competent, friendly, helpful people who exercise a minimum of authority. They exist to find a way to help instead of hinder. Lu and I have been going through the permit process to build a garage/ storage building on our property. It's been a breeze. Every government office and every utility we've contacted have been easy to work with with a maximum of "yes sir" and absolutely no hoop jumping. We got most everything done in a day and the only reason we didn't get it all done was because I got lazy and decided to finish another day. Even the police department notarized our paperwork gratis because "The city paid for my Notary Public and since I'm on duty it's free". It's been eye opening.

Let's contrast and compare with a California city. Pick one, it hardly matters. Years ago when we put up a simple 10x12 shed on our property we had to wait a month for the city inspector. If you are required to fix or alter something, and you can bet you will, you'll need to make another appointment, wait another month and pay another fee. It's all revenue driven and they squeeze you for every drop they can. The attitude is overwhelmingly "you're bothering me. I'm in charge. You will do as you're told." You will not find a single open space without fresh graffiti or the painted over signs that the gangs and taggers have been there. It's everywhere and it's just accepted. We had a graffiti abatement program at my city because of the massive scope of the problem. We took graffiti vandalism reports each and every day of the year. We had a Community Policing program because the citizens are so neutered they have no problem solving skills nor are they encouraged to develop any. "Leave it all to us" is the motto for empire building. I've had parents turn their children over to me. Not because they didn't care but because they recognized a lose-lose situation and lacked the willpower and fortitude to do what was necessary and take on the system while parenting their kids. You can decry the parents while still recognizing the root cause; Government regulating away the very rights and obligations that make us who we are supposed to be. Who we can be.

I could go on and on but this is just a modest blog and you all get the idea. We become accustomed to government intrusion into our lives until we forget that we're supposed to be the decision makers and not beholden to political masters. We get the government we're willing to accept until we get the government we can no longer control.

Time is shorter than we think. We're at a crossroads. Do we go the California route or the follow the Hurricane example? Are we Americans or something else? A bastard stepchild of government control and willful ignorance. Now living free, I grieve for my brothers and sisters in California and everywhere that government has been allowed to run amok. Get out while you still can. Free America does exist.

The only question is for how long?

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The Violent Left

From Gateway Pundit. A republican staffer and her boyfriend are attacked and seriously injured in an attack autside an SRLC dinner.

Yeah, it's the right who are violent.

Speaking of violence. Anytime one of you punks wants to beat up a conservative or Tea Party member just go ahead and look me up. I promise you'll get the chance to see how good that free socialised medicine is.

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