Thursday, January 13, 2011

Conservatives and law enforcement

One of the things about so-called Conservatives that really chafes my bottom is their adoration for law enforcement.  Cops are all heroes who accepted a calling from God to be protectors of the citizenry.  Prosecutors are all heroes who eschewed the Siren call of lucrative jobs with prestigious law firms to fight crime and see to it that the guilty are punished.

As has been witnessed by anyone who has read more than a handful of Will Grigg's posts, the reality doesn't match the fantasy.

Prosecutors tend to be bastions of corruption, more concerned with their won-lost record than whether they've sent an innocent man to prison (because it was easy) or let a guilty man walk free (because the case was too hard to win).  On multiple occasions it has been discovered that exculpatory evidence has been hidden by prosecutors to assure the "win"! (See here for one example).  Why do they do this?  What's in it for them?  Why, they have political aspirations, of course!  A prosecutor with a tremendous won-lost record makes an excellent candidate for state or federal office.  Bastards.

Think I'm wrong?  See here, here, and here.  Again, William Grigg has MANY more examples than that.

Cops tend to be fatass bullies, quick to anger, quick to shoot those who don't react immediately to their commands.  Examples of this are legion - particularly on Will Grigg's site, but I've documented a few myself, here, here, here, and especially here.

A prime example of "quick to anger, quick to shoot" is the case of John T. Williams (H/T to Debra Farver).
The police shooting of a talented, aging Native totem carver has sparked anger and outrage in Seattle’s Native community, and beyond.

John T. Williams, long time Seattle resident and a Ditidaht member of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations of Canada’s Vancouver Island, was shot four times and killed Aug. 30 by police officer Ian D. Birk, a two-year veteran of the Seattle Police Department.

Police said Williams advanced towards Birk when the officer spotted him sitting on a ledge with a knife and shouted three commands at him to drop it.

As eyewitnesses came forward with a different version of events police then said Williams was crossing an intersection with a knife and piece of wood in his hands, refused to drop the knife and advanced towards the officer.

“His body stance did not look threatening at all,” an eyewitness told The Seattle Times. “I could only see the gentleman’s back, and he didn’t look aggressive at all. He didn’t even look up at the officer.”

Williams died between 1811 Eastlake, a private nonprofit home for chronic drinkers where he’d lived off and on, and the Pike Street Market in downtown Seattle, where he sold his carvings.

Williams was crippled with arthritis and hobbled more than he walked, Randy Lewis, a leader of the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation said. He was capable at most of turning towards the officer when he heard him shouting, to show him what he had in his hands.

That’s if he heard him shouting. Williams’ friends say he was deaf in his left ear from an infection eight years ago.
To summarize:
  • A cop orders a man walking down the street minding his own business to drop the knife he's carrying.  Never mind that the block of wood he's carrying is what's known as "a clue" as to what said person's intention is for said knife.

  • The cop doesn't get the response he desires; that is, the person in question doesn't immediately comply like a cowering sheep to John Law's demand.  He most likely didn't comply because he couldn't hear him.  This matters not one whit to the man in blue.

  • The cop shoots him 4 times.  In broad daylight.  Like a dog.
What do you think of your "hero" cop, Conservatives?  You think he's in law enforcement because he's been called by God to protect the masses?  Or is it because he's hung like a thimble and needs a license to throw his weight around, that license being the sanction of the State in the form of a badge?

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