The Youth of Today - My Own Included

I've been engaged in a small scale war with my offspring recently. Over the last week this young person who has placed little or no value on scholarship or studying for the past twelve years (chill Dad, I got a 'D' - I passed) has decided he wants to go to college. And he expects Daddy to pay for it.

I hate to say it folks, but I gave up on the school issue years ago out of frustration. I was an excellent student as a kid. I didn't even have to try. He could have been, too, but there was always something more important to do. I tried every punishment and incentive I could think of. I even gave him three months of what life was like when I was a kid. I pulled his game console and blocked all but three television stations and made the remote disappear so he had to get up and change the channels. Don't get me wrong, the kid is NOT dumb, he's just been lazy. Despite repeated efforts to stress the importance of studying and getting good grades, nothing improved.

I tried explaining the realities of life but my words had little effect. A) I am a public servant (b) in a southern state (c) who makes half (or less) of what officers in northern or western states make. Gotta love those 'right to work' states, or as I call them, 'right to fire your ass for no good reason and no collective bargaining' states.

Due to issues in my own past, such as the lack of, or simply poor, parenting, I never really learned to handle money or invest it. As a result I don't have any. My wife and I live paycheck to paycheck and most of the time we are one paycheck away from being tossed out on the street. "But Dad, tuition is only $5000 a semester." As you can see, dear readers, paying for college is simply not an option. Neither is the $700 apartment he wants to get because he wants to go to school in the same upstate town as all his friends. Yeah, it's nice that the place is furnished and the utilities and cable are included. It still doesn't change the fact that I can't fund it.

As much as I owe it to her, I can't pay for my older daughter's tuition so what makes him think I can pay for his? This has been a very frustrating week, but I did learn something I didn't know before. If I should die in the line of duty both of my kids would get a free ride through college. Every time I get into a dangerous situation and my wife complains or tells me how crazy I am I simply reply, "I don't fear death. In fact, I welcome it just to see what, if anything, is on the other side." Of course, this only serves to get her fired up and launches her on a tirade detailing how I don't care about her or my children. While I do not fear death and even welcome it eventually, my children will just have to figure out other options. Accepting death doesn't necessarily mean I'm ready to try it on anytime soon.

I have also told my son my life story - how my mother made me pay rent from the time I was 14 years old, how I worked three jobs at one time when I was sixteen, and how I signed on with the U.S. Army when I was seventeen. I have been paying my own way for 32 years. I gave him the talk about how it's time to step up and learn to be a man and take care of himself. Everything I DO have I have struggled to get. Some of it I am still struggling to keep.

I spent time talking to him about other options for him, like enlisting in some branch of the military and exchanging his patriotic services for a government paid education. We talked National Guard, Air National Guard and Coast Guard Reserve. When he discovered he would have to attend basic and advanced training prior to starting school he swept that idea off the table. If he did this, he argued, he would end up a whole year behind his friends.

This brings me to something else I have noticed in recent years. Patriotism and a desire to serve one's country - even for a short time - seem to be rare commodities when dealing with Generation Y, or Z or whatever the hell the call themselves now. Yes, I know many fine examples of these groups are bravely and valiantly serving in all branches of the service, but there seems to be less emphasis placed on these qualities by the majority of their fellows.

As has been the case throughout our history together, I can't get this kid to see reason. He is still making plans as though he believes Daddy will miraculously come up with a bucket load of cash and all will be right with the world.

I'll tell you right here, right now, son - It. Ain't. Going. To. Happen.

However, I am sorry and I do love you, with all my heart. Even though you won't be able to see it through your disappointment and anger.

Ugh!

Too morose to type tonight. I'll give you this instead:

What are your plans?

As I get closer to retirement I am constantly asked, "What are you going to do then?" I will still be relatively young so I know I will have to work. Sitting around on my ass watching the History Channel is good for a few days, but it will drive you nuts after awhile.

My formative years were the 1970's. I might have mentioned this before, but I grew up in a rough area and I don't exactly fit the mold of the typical cop that gets hired now. I have plenty of life experience from roaming the streets as a teen and roaming the world while in the military. When you have to fight for respect, and to respect siblings and friends, you tend to gain insight that the typical suburban kid doesn't. I believe in honesty so I will once again inform my readers I have participated in some activities and ingested some substances in my younger days that weren't exactly legal. I ran with a rough crowd and engaged in some nefarious activities. A sudden realization of where I was headed put an abrupt stop to that and initiated a drastic change of direction in my life. I owe a debt of gratitude to the U.S. Army for helping me to straighten out my life and keep me from going to prison.

My past helps explain my liberal/libertarian views when it comes to the 'drug war' and the waste of time and resources spent on enforcement of what I perceive to be bullshit marijuana laws. I do believe that marijuana should, at the very least, be decriminalized and regulated like alcohol, but I do not support those that want the same result for drugs like cocaine, heroin, crack, methamphetamine, ecstacy, GHB, etc.

In light of my past, I sincerely believe my youthful experiences and indescretions helped me to become a better,smarter and more compassionate police officer. I have also had the sad opportunity to see exactly what addiction to heroin and crack cocaine have done to close family members.

So, what am I going to do when I retire? Once again, in the interest of honesty I will tell you. On the day I turn in my cruiser, my badge and my gun, I am going to sit in my garage and hollow out a twelve pack of my favorite beer while I roll and smoke a fatty. For the completely innocent or those not up on the current lingo - I'm going to fire up a nice, fat joint, doobie, spliff or whatever you called it in your day - just one - for old time's sake. I'm looking forward to this because I understand the potency of the plant has increased quite a bit since the last time I fired up a stick of Acapulco Gold or some nice red haired bud. Then I'll take a few weeks off to clear the system out, go find some other form of employment and revert to being an old guy again.

I know some of the new breed of officer and some members of the public will be offended by my retirement plan, but I have never been the type to give a damn about what people think. Opinions can differ, but we can still be friends.

Doc1490 responded to a previous post and I feel I should take the time to address a few points he made.  Doc's comments are in red.


"Regarding the Islamic comment....Seriously dude, pull your head out of your ass."

 Seriously dude, I checked in the mirror - I am happy to report my head is still sitting squarely atop my shoulders.  Whew!  I was kinda worried there for a bit. 

"Every religion has its own problems with fundamentalists. It's beyond irresponsible to label 1.5 Billion people as violent based on the actions of a minority (albeit a loud and violent one). I'm not even making the historical argument (do not forget Christianity's well documented history of violence throughout its history).

I have undertaken my own personal forays into the various religions since I was a wee lad in an effort to determine which branch was the true path to God and salvation.  While I am far from being an expert on any one religion I have learned enough to engage in and enjoy an earnest debate around a fire with a few beers.  It is an unfortunate fact that I have found very few 'believers' of any faith that can take on the challenge.  Most end up in an unreasonable rage when confronted with questions they don't have the answers to.  So, yes, every religion has its problems with fundamentalists, with the operative part of that word being the word 'mental.'

As a student of history I have reams of information on the shelf regarding religious history.  I will posit some theories here that some might find interesting and others will find infuriating.  Throughout the span of recorded history (and well before) man has felt the compunction to believe in a higher power.  I have come to consider this to be man's greatest failing.  When things happened that seemed inconceivable (e.g. natural disasters) or were not well understood, man tended to lay it off on the wrath of the 'gods.'  As religion(s) evolved good things happened due to the blessings of God and bad things happened because of the "devil."

When the Jews fled Egypt they brought with them the underpinnings of Egyptian religion.  A subjugated culture can’t help but absorb and reflect some of the religious beliefs of their masters.  These beliefs morphed into the first monotheistic religion - Judaism.  Christianity and Islam are both based on Judaism, thus it follows they are also based on the polytheism of the ancient Egyptians.  Books were written - the Bible, the Torah, the Koran - full of parables and violence and threats from God.

Man, however, had the final say as to exactly what went into the final versions of those books.  A quick Google search of the term “apocrypha” will show the reader how much was left out.  Man included what suited him at the time.  The Muslim prophet was especially bad about this.  When he wanted his brother’s wife – he added a bit to the Koran that stated Allah had approved it.  What choice did his brother have but to acquiesce?  Want to marry a nine-year-old?  No problem.  You are THE prophet after all.  Just add it to the Koran and say Allah told you to.  The sheeple will buy it.

“Today, in our own country, fundamentalist Christians are behind some of the most atrocious acts of terror. Do not forget about Timothy McVeigh, Eric Rudolph, a whole range of other murderers of abortion clinic personnel.”

I agree with you on this.  There are nut-jobs and fruitcakes in every religion.  There is one HUGE difference, though, between Islam and the rest of the religious world.  When an Eric Rudolph bombs an abortion clinic you hear a chorus of Christians of various sects decrying that act of violence.  What have you heard from the Muslims since the Ft. Hood incident, or 9/11?  The only thing I’ve heard from them goes like this, “Don’t profile Muslims.  Islam is the religion of peace.  Stop picking on us.”  The Koran is probably one of the most violent texts ever written.  The power hungry, wealth mongering, child raping nut that wrote the bulk of it simply put down what he thought would keep him in power and keep the wealth and ass rolling into his tent.

The conflict between the Palestinians and the Jews goes back millennia.  It is a problem that will only be solved when one group is completely wiped off the face of the earth.  The Jews have tried to come to a workable peace time and time again, but the Islamic fanatics will have none of it.  They refuse to negotiate in good faith and do not honor agreements they have made.  Why?  Because the Koran dictates what they do.

Every other religion has, for the most part, evolved to suit the times.  Not so with Islam’s holy book and its followers.  They still advocate the killing and subjugation of you and yours and everyone else who doesn’t believe as they do.  Even if you were to convert to Islam, you would still be considered a third class citizen.  It would appear from your comment that you have fallen into the politically correct trap set for you by decades of liberalism run amok.  That same trap caused so much fear in the U.S. Army that NOTHING was done to prevent an attack that any high school student could have predicted given the facts the Army, the FBI and the intelligence community had on hand at the time.  Don’t forget the FBI also had leads on the 9/11 plot, but failed to follow through.

Make no mistake about it, my friend, Islam wants you dead.  They will settle for nothing less than world domination.  Various and sundry imams and other Islamic leaders have plainly stated that goal.  Who would have ever thought that a bunch of goat herders living in mud huts would ever get so close to achieving that goal?  How do you bomb someone back to the stone-age when the bulk of them have never evolved past it? 
Rest assured this war WILL come to our shores.  We are only seeing the first wave.  The sad part is that we have done it to ourselves.  We are so anxious about appearing to be tolerant and all-inclusive that we have invited the enemy in.  Any student of history would know that the Islamic world threw in with Hitler during WW II.  Even a prominent imam recently declared, “Not all Muslims are terrorists, but most terrorists are Muslim.”

Britain and Denmark have the same problem.  Denmark has realized the error of their ways and are trying to backtrack.  I hope it isn’t too late for them.  Read some of their on-line newspapers once in a while and you will see exactly what you are in for.  The only true way to rid the world of this scourge is to give them what they want – a true ‘holy war.’  It is my considered opinion that that particular part of the world should be turned into a large glass plate with a few nukes.  Eliminate the threat, quarantine those affected by the plague known as Islam.

“For God's sake, there are even Hindu terrorists (see India and Sri Lanka)! While I understand the desire to label Islam as a source of the violence (it's easily identifiable and easy to isolate), it is a simplistic way of looking at the problem. It's like trying to blame the drug problem on a porous border without taking into account the demand.”

 Sometimes the simple way is the best way.  Here is an easy solution to both problems mentioned above.  Bring our troops home – now, and withdraw all aid from Muslim countries.  I’d rather have our men and women in uniform stationed on our porous border preventing the flow of illegal narcotics and illegal aliens that are bleeding our country dry.  Let the goat-herds fight it out amongst themselves or let Israel smack them down when they stand too tall.  Profiling works, so keep tabs on the ones we have already allowed in and close the entry points to any others trying to gain access.

Unfortunately, this will not happen.  The U.S. will continue to follow the path of complacency then appear to be shocked when shit blows up around us.  You might call me paranoid, but I’m ready for the coming battle.  Are you?

Spacer

I'm working up a reply to a comment by Doc1490, but in the meantime I'll leave you with this:

Let's Not Forget Sgt. Mark Todd

Due to the media hype a very courageous police officer was overlooked and overshadowed by the actions of his fellow officer Sgt. Kimberly Munley.  Sgt. Mark Todd showed the same willingness to sacrifice himself in order to save the lives of innocent, unarmed victims who were catching hell from a Muslim terrorist during the recent massacre at Ft. Hood.  Scroll down to the 'Sergeant's Story' section to read about Sgt. Todd.

Sgt. Todd also did what all officers are trained to do - he ran TOWARD the gunfire and engaged the suspect.  There seems to be some debate over which officer's rounds brought the suspect down, but in my opinion, it really doesn't matter.  The fact is the suspect WAS taken down by two officers whose performance was exemplary.  It may be true that the wounds sustained by Sgt. Munley make for heroic news, but pushing Sgt. Todd to the periphery of the incident does not do justice to his heroic actions.

Give credit where credit is due.  To the soldiers who helped their comrades by dragging them out of the free fire zone and/or administering immediate care - you had a direct effect on saving the lives of your brothers and sisters in arms.  If not for you, the death toll would have been higher. 

To those assholes that still insist Islam is a religion of peace - fuck you.  I'm sick of hearing it.  I am an expert in collecting and analyzing evidence.  When it comes to Islam, the evidence more often than not points to a tendency toward radicalism, a desire to impose that sharia shit and a willingness to kill, maim and subjugate those that don't agree.  Hell, they can't even live in peace with other believers.

As I have stated before, I have issues with all religions but I am a "live and let live" sort of guy.  If your belief gets you through the day - super.  Just don't proselytize to me and try to convert me and we will get along great.  As of today I have decided to withdraw that courtesy from the religion dreamed up by the self-serving, conniving and child molesting piece of shit known as Muhammed.  What?  You don't like that statement?  As we used to say in the Army, "Come get some!"  I'll be waiting.

Nice Job Fellas

Florida inmates save a deputy's life.

Man, the hit from that first guy looked like it hurt - a lot.  Job well done, fellas.  And all because "Moon's a good guy," as the rescuers said.  Just goes to show that treating with dignity and respect unless they insist on rejecting that treatment can pay off.

Comment Response

Andrew left a comment on an older post and he made some salient points.  I chose to address them in a new post because I didn't want them to be overlooked.  Andrew's comments are in red, my responses are in the standard white. 

"I agree with most of what you said. Community policing has screwed up policing more than it has helped. Finally we are geting to the enforcement area and have target teams that target prolific offenders and put them away. No big surprise that 10% of the folks cause 99% of our problems.

BUT customer service IS OUR JOB..not at the cost of screwing up DOING your job. But after the COM has been dealt with they should feel that the police are doing whatever they can to remedy the reason for the complaint. Because if you leave average Joe with the thought that he was neglected or ignored you didn't do your job. Of course some folks just can't be pleased..but most actually like police and will feel good if treated right. Yes it is important."

True.  My squad was having this discussion the other day. Ninety percent of the citizens in most jurisdictions will never directly use the services they pay for via their taxes.  The normal encounter a 'producer' has with law enforcement is a traffic citation or a traffic collision report.  The repeat 'customers' are those that are a drain on society and always have been.  Generations of welfare and free housing recipients who engage in 'baby mama drama,' narcotics activity and what I have termed "Shaniqua theater" suck up the bulk of our time and resources.  I don't consider the latter group 'customers' and I get a lot of heartburn from the constant 'community outreach' we have to engage in within these areas.  Nothing ever changes with this group and very little of what we do for them is appreciated.  We are simply an occupying force in these areas.

These facts are the big reasons cops tend to spiral from idealistic rookies to cynical old timers.  I try to be as honest as possible so let me lay it on the line here.  If I respond to a burglary at a 'producers' home or business I always try to go the extra mile, e.g. I will take the time to dust for latent prints, pass out advisories in the neighborhood, etc.  On the other hand, when I respond to a burglary at the home of a 'non-producer' who has been sucking the life blood of the 'producers' for years I have reached the point where I really don't care.  "Let's see, the 'producers' pay for your housing, your food, the medical bills accrued by you, your children and your "grands," and your utilities, but I see a late model Cadillac parked in the driveway and the twelve people living in this house are all decked out in gold.  I have a hard time really giving a shit that your sixty inch high definition plasma television and your drug dealing son's "grill" was stolen from your living room."

As far as stats go, Andrew, we don't receive funding from them.  Any funds we receive from fines levied by the court are minimal at best and are deposited into the general fund, not the police budget.  Putting pressure on officers to make marginal arrests and taking away officer discretion violates the concepts of "letter of the law" and "spirit of the law" us old timers try to impress on those officers just starting out.  

 "Also new guys do need to learn from old guys and get that valuable info from them. Don't forget sometimes an old guy can learn from a new guy too!!"

Once again - true.  There isn't a day that goes by that I haven't learned something new and I've been doing this a looooong time.  The new guys can teach the old ones a thing or two.  Even today I watch them when I back them on calls.  The combat vets and those recently graduated from the academy remind of the officer safety techniques where some of us older guys tend to slack off a bit.