The Truth About Firearms and Self Protection

I am a former Law Enforcement Officer, with over 13 years "on the street" (with additional years in the jail). I've worked as a Patrolman, a Detective, and a Narcotics Officer. I was also a self-employed Private Investigator for over 6 years.

I have responded to hundreds of calls for help, by people who were, or were about to be, victimized. I've responded to calls of home break-ins, physical assaults (with and without weapons), robberies, etc. And for all my desire to get there in time, the best I could do was to capture a suspect when he was still there. But - the "victim", had already been victimized to some degree. I was too late to keep some degree of victimization from occurring.

Yes, there were times (thank God) that my (our) response time kept from further and/or more serious victimization. But it was a rare thing for us to get there before the impact of being a "victim" hadn't already taken place.

And it's not just injuries of victims that's relevant. But the physiological impact of being a victim, along with the feeling of being so vulnerable, has a very lasting effect on people. From that time forward, most victims no longer feel safe and secure in their own homes and/or businesses. Talk about the lack of FREEDOM! Freedom to feel safe, is often gone forever for many victims. And there was little I could do to change that for them. I was too late.

And frankly, we can't change that for law enforcement. We can't have Cops on every corner, or even in the house or apartment next door. Nor would I want such a heavy police presence!

So ... What do we do? What we do, is accept that each of us are our own FIRST RESPONDERS. Each of us must accept responsibility for our own safety. And if we accept that, then we must EACH evaluate how we can best be prepared to keep ourselves safe (or as safe as we can be).

I'll not go into the whole tyrannical government aspect of the 2nd Amendment purpose, and stick with the natural right of self protection. But every lawful citizen should have the natural right of self protection. And every lawful citizen should be allowed to decide for themselves what tools to have available for that self protection.

We already have tons of laws about the ownership and use of firearms and explosive devices. As a former LEO, I feel we already have all the laws needed (too many, in many states). What is in short supply, is strong enforcement of those laws about the felony uses of firearms and explosive devices! "Use A Gun, Go To Jail" should be the motto in every state. And the use of a gun during a person-on-person felony, should have absolute minimums imposed...period! That use of a firearm, should get its own minimum of time, ON TOP of the time for the base crime.

Otherwise, every law abiding citizen should be legally permitted to have their choice of firearm, and lawfully carry it and travel with it, anywhere in the country. Just because I might decide to travel to another state, doesn't mean my possible victimization will stop at the state line. Every lawful citizen, should have the freedom to defend themselves and/or their families. And if they choose to own and carry a firearm, then they should have that freedom. Be it in Texas, or New York, the one thing we can count on, is that Law Enforcement will be too late to "protect" us. (For this reason alone - Concealed Carry should be nationwide!)

Mean and Rude People

My wife and I were in a business the other day, and one of the clerks had such a scowl on her face, and was anything but friendly.

Last month, I was helping some older folks, and one of the men was being a real pain. He was short with those trying to help him, and was being very demanding about things that couldn't be helped.

Not long ago, I was waited on at a popular restaurant by a young woman who looked like she didn't want to be there, and treated me and a couple other guys like we were a bother to be there for lunch.

My wife has often asked ME, "What's wrong?", even though there wasn't anything that I knew of going on with me at the time. She would say that I had this "look", a scowl on my face.

All this made me think about people we run onto. People that leave us with a negative impression, and being rude to us, seemingly without cause. So why are some people that way? Maybe, just maybe, there is an underlying reason, and its not just to be rude.

The first woman I referred to, I have no idea what was wrong with her. But her "customer service" skills were totally lacking, compared to the two other people working around her. So why was she acting that way? I can't say, but will offer this up for consideration.

Maybe she was in emotional pain. Perhaps she had bad news before going to work. Maybe she was just tired (she appeared to be retirement age), and wished she was home. We can't know, but we need to think about what it could be like to walk a mile in her shoes!

The older man? He's a WWII Veteran, who saw combat during the Battle of the Bulge. Anyone knowing a little history will know that awful battle cost the United States military alone over 19,000 lives. Add to that, this man could not get around unassisted, and his children were not there to see him off. Walk a mile in HIS shoes!

The young waitress seemed distracted. Was she a single mother with kids at home, and couldn't be there with them? Any kids at home sick, while she had to work? Did she just have a bad break-up? No way to know, but people go around all the time with heavier burdens than many of us. Sometimes, those burdens are so heavy, its hard for them to not grimace under the weight that we can't see. To walk a mile in her shoes, would be the only way to know for sure.

I've been in combat, like hundreds of thousands of other guys during the Vietnam War. In some ways, I've had an underlying scowl on my face ever since. Add to that, the perfected a Cop's stare I had for many years, adding to the scowl. No excuses, and not asking anyone to walk in my shoes, but when I don't know it, I let the scowl show, and lead other people (sorry Honey!) to believe something is wrong. Most times, it's a less than conscious thought that shows on my face. Sometimes, and over the years its less frequent, it is a passing remembrance that seeps its pain outwardly.

All over the place, people carry burdens, and worries, and experiences, and can sometimes let that effect our interactions with others in a negative way. I know I need to work on my own issues. But what we can ALL do, is give other people a pass. Maybe even offer a kind word or gesture, when that's the last thing you might want to do under the circumstances.

Try it. I have, when I take the time to recognize the need. And watch the surprise on their face, when in spite of themselves, someone treats them better than the way they were treating others. (Most likely, they didn't even know.) Maybe, just maybe, that little gesture could redirect their day. It costs nothing to do really. And if it doesn't change anything, then you can go about your business, knowing you at least you didn't add to that person's burden.

A smile, a kind word, and gesture of good will, might just go a long way. Since we really can't walk a mile in other people's shoes, its the least we can do. And it costs nothing. (I would also suggest, the gesture might even up your own mood!)

Giving to others

Are you a giving person? Do you have a soft spot for some people and/or causes? My wife and I do.

In many ways, I can be very hard hearted. I don't have a lot of patience for selfish, self-centered people. I have none for bad people and predators! But for some things/people/causes, we can be generous (when we are financially able), and that also means in labor when needed. My wife and I give to dog-related and Veterans causes mostly. We just feel compelled to help in those areas.

Recently, after local flooding, a young man who was recently discharged from the Marines, lost everything in the flood. His wife was in the hospital, being treated for large gash on her leg from flood debris. And, he lost his recently trained "service dog". The dog also had a backpack on, with this young Marine's wallet, keys, and cellphone in it. The dog had been swept away from him in the flood waters, and he needed help trying to find the dog, named "Stash". ("Stash" was named because of the dark band of hair above it lip.) He had gone to the local Red Cross for some temporary help, when another Vet friend of mine called me and asked if I was available to help.

So I drove up to Austin and met with the young Marine, named Kelly. After some exchanges, I drove him to the animal shelter in hopes the dog had been turned in. He hadn't been, yet. The dog was "chipped", but the info on the chip would direct any calls to Kelly's cellphone, which was with the dog, and likely ruined by flood waters. Kelly couldn't even get back to his house, as the flood water was keeping people out, and the Police were keeping everyone away from the hardest hit homes. To make matters worse, Kelly and his wife, had spend their last $6,700 of their savings, to have the house remodeled before they moved in. Kelly wouldn't get his last government check for another week or so. No money, no phone, no family nearby, and little solace from the limited help of the Red Cross.

This young man was in real need, so I then took him to buy a pre-paid cellphone, so he could at least make calls and receive calls about the dog, if it was found. I then took him to the hospital to check on his wife. Kelly told me that the hospital had already told him he could sleep there on a sofa until his wife's released.
By then, I had already talked to my wife, and we decided to make this case our donation for the month, so I  handed Kelly some cash, telling him it was a "gift" to help him  and his wife out a little, until the Red Cross and his homeowners insurance could pick thing up for him. Kelly thanked me profusely, and went into the hospital to check on his wife. As I was leaving, I told him that I hoped his wife was okay, and to call me if he found his dog.

There's more to this whole story, but here's the thing. Kelly, as I learned a few days later from another source, was a complete fraud. He was NO Marine, had NO flooded home, had NO wife in the hospital, and had NO dog either. It was all an elaborate ruse to fraud the Red Cross, while 100's of people were flooded out and really needed help. It just happened that one of my Veteran buddies was there to help the Red Cross, and after talking to "Kelly", this guy developed more of his ruse to fit out veterans association's motto, Vets Helping Vets.

We were taken in by this fraud. Ex-cop and all, I was taken in by the elaborate story, and the belief that he was a recently discharged Marine. No ID to verify anything, and no family in the area to help. It just didn't seem right to turn another "Veteran" away in a time of need, and there was no way under the circumstances to verify anything.

So this month, our usual "donation" to a worthy cause, was sidelined by that con-artist. As my wife and discussed the whole thing, we had "given from the heart", with no expectation of anything in return. The way we saw it, its on that kid and God to work out what ever happens to him next. We gave, more as being the "right thing to do", and not for anything else, so we just can't look back with regret. Regret, that could cause us to not "give" again. On this time, we got burned. But we will not be thwarted from doing what we feel is right the next time.

To us, "giving" is just the right thing for us to do for those in need, or to those entities who care for "service dogs" and/or Veterans. As for people like Kelly? We will do what we can to better screen for such fraudulent people. We'll let God work things out with "Kelly". Who knows, as wrong as it was for him to con the Red Cross and us, he may just have bigger problems than we know.

Heroes

Have you ever know of a true hero? To ME, a "hero" is one who has displayed great acts of bravery in the face of overwhelming danger to self. And with that, I have known some real heroes.

In my many writings (and rants), I get very reflective, wave the red, white & blue, and refer to my past military service in one way or another. Yes, I served in the U.S. Army, and I am a Combat Veteran. I was an Infantry Soldier, served in the rice paddies and jungles of Vietnam, and I served with honor.

But I want to be very clear. I was NO hero. Like I said, I have known heroes, and I am NOT one. I served in a combat unit, but that does not make me a "hero". Hundreds of thousands of other soldiers did too. In all honesty, I was an average soldier in many respects. I did what I was assigned to do. I did it to the best of my ability. And I advanced in rank in what I felt was at an appropriate rise as I would have expected under our conditions.

But "heroes" went beyond that. In the face of danger to "themselves", and that of the unit, they did things that would make most shutter. There were times when I would be almost frozen with fear, and it took the willingness of my "brothers" to watch over this "Friggin New Guy" (FNG), and help me gain the courage to move forward, when that was the last thing I wanted to do. (Frankly, much of my time those the early weeks, was spent trying to not let any of my buddies down while staying alive!)

Today though, I feel that our society has used that title of "hero" too loosely, and such people as movie stars, pop singers, and sports figures, have had that title thrust upon them. In fact, a very few of them have ever placed themselves in actual danger of great bodily harm or death for their fellow man. I worry that our kids will see false heroes, and fail to see and appreciate the real heroes out there.

But "hero worshiping" someone who has never placed themselves in harms way for his fellow man, just seems very wrong to me. I guess "worshiping" anyone is wrong, and a true hero would never want "worship". Most of them are very humble, even denying, of their contribution. We can learn a lot from them.

We find that in most cases, such heroes NEVER felt like a hero themselves, nor ever planned on being a hero. Most of them, for commitment to duty, or personal sudden emotions of the moment, stepped out to help their buddy, ignoring the obvious danger to themselves. Most of them, had they really thought it through, might not have done what they did. Or so they'd tell you. In most cases, I'd reject that. The need for such heroic action would not have changed, really, and the character of such a person would still have risen up. And that too, is the mark of a hero.

In today's world, heroes walk among us, unbeknown to most, and they aren't sports figures, actors, or even a President. They are otherwise average people, like our neighbors, or the man or woman working beside us. They don't boast, and they'd deny they didn't do anything "heroic", and that what ever they did ... "Anyone would have done the same thing."

I have known such people. And likely, there are others around me that I don't know. Maybe its the aging WWII Vet from down the street, helped to and from the car by a family member. Or maybe the young quiet grandpa a few doors down, who served bravely in Korea, or the young woman who recently came home from a tour in Afghanistan, and of whom may be a true "unsung" heroes. And yet, there are no TV Awards Special, no ESPN interviews, and no White House ceremonies in their honor. But there are those soldiers who only came home, because someone else went above and beyond to help make that possible.

To such everyday heroes .... while I might or might not know you, Thank You! I expect I am only here to say that, because some of those around me in the jungles and rice paddies of Vietnam, did things that made it possible for me to come home.

Most humbly yours,
Dan

Benghazi, and one man's view

On Sept. 11, 2012, an outpost of our Libyan Embassy was attacked, along with a Central Intelligence Agency annex, four of our guys were killed.

After a year, and Obama's promise to hold those who did that responsible, NO arrests and NO counter actions have taken place. NONE! (Even though one of those terrorists involved has been identified and even interviewed by 2-3 news agencies.)

I won't go into all the things that precluded at the attacks, but will take a look at the attack time-line, and the lack of response to save any of our four guys.

Sept. 11th, 2012
9:40 pm, Benghazi, Libya time (3:40 pm Washington DC time) - The first sounds of gun fire and explosions occurred at the Benghazi compound perimeter.

10 pm (4 pm DC time) - [20 minutes - Tic Toc]
Those inside, to include U.S. Ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, along with Sean Smith, had come under on-going direct fire from armed terrorists who had breeched the compound walls and gates.
An alert is sent to the CIA security team at an annex about a mile away, the State Department, and to the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli, that the compound was under attack.

11 pm (5 pm DC time) - [1 hr 20 mins - Tic Toc]
A U.S. surveillance drone arrives over Benghazi. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Joint Chiefs Chairman Martin Dempsey meet with President Barack Obama. According to testimony from Panetta, at a 5 o’clock prescheduled gathering, the president left operational details, including knowledge of what resources were available to help the Americans under siege, “up to us.”

12:07 am (6:07 pm DC time) - [2 hrs 27 mins - Tic Toc]
The State Department sends an e-mail to the White House, the Pentagon and the FBI indicating the Islamic militant group Ansar al-Sharia claimed credit for the attack.

2 am (8 pm DC time) - [4 hrs 20 mins - Tic Toc]
Embassy Station Assistant Chief Hicks informs Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that they need to evacuate all Americans from Benghazi. At about the same time, an eyewitness captures on video Stevens being pulled from the smoke-filled building.

4 am (10 pm DC time) - [6 hrs 20 mins - Tic Toc]
The attackers launch a full-on assault against the CIA annex, dropping mortars on the roof. Navy SEALs Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods are killed in the attack. (An unknown number of U.S. personnel were also wounded, and those identities and details have been kept from the Oversight Committee on Benghazi.)

10 am (4 am DC time) - [12 hrs 20 mins] The four dead had been recovered, and along with all the survivors, departed on the last plane out of Benghazi.

So - from the time the gun fire started and the Embassy compound was stormed, to the last man killed on the rooftop at the CIA Annex building, over 6 hours of gun battles and mortar attacks took place .... and NOT A SINGLE Military Response Team was put into the air. NO Gunships, NO armed drones, NO Airpower, NO Special Ops, NOTHING was even put into motion.

Some in DC, stated that they didn't "think" such assets could get there on time. HOW COULD THEY KNOW how long the assaults would take? What IF Doherty and Woods were able to hold off the assault on the CIA Annex for several more hours? WHO was coming? WHO was already in the air, while assault plans were made and finalized? NO ONE!

For the life of me, I can not wrap my head around the fact that THIS Administration DID NOTHING to even get a Military Response team into motion, from very the start of the Embassy attack. And then, for the on-going attacks, spread over a mile away to the CIA Annex, for over 6 hours....and still NO Assets put into motion?

Even IF they would be too late to save anyone....to NOT have them in-route and even circling off the coast while mission plans were made, is UNBELIEVABLE to me.

But Obama went to bed at some point that night, and then went to Las Vegas for a "political fund raiser" that next day of Sept. 12th!

Imagine this - Your home is being broken into by several armed men ... you call 9-1-1 ... gun shots ring out while you're on the phone ... the Police Dispatcher radios the Police Officers of the call and gun shots ..... the Police Officers are told by their Patrol Supervisors to hold off heading toward the scene until they know more ... and the Dispatcher tells you, "Sorry sir, but until we know what we're up against, we're not sending anyone!" THAT is essentially what Obama and Staff did to those in Benghazi!

THAT, to me, should have been enough reason to Impeach Obama, and charge Leon Panetta with dereliction of duty! And if anyone reading this is not disgusted and pissed off ... they ain't paying attention and only see their beloved "Black President"!

By the way - Just MY view - But for ANY Military Commander to sit in silence while this goes unchallenged, is also committing a dereliction of duty to those under their command. Silence, is condoning!

Using Deadly Force, On An Unarmed Person

Well, the criminal trial against "John Smith" is over. JS was accused of killing an unarmed 17 year old during a fight. While there is likely more we may never know, what we do know suggests to me that the Not Guilty verdict was the correct one.

In a very short version, and in MY evaluation of the information known to the public, here is what I believed to have happened:

JS's neighborhood has had a number of residential burglaries and thefts. JS's wife was even a witness to one neighbor's such "home invasion". JS became a Neighborhood Watch volunteer, to try help prevent such crimes, or to help get suspects arrested. And, for his personal protection, JS was legally armed with a licensed handgun.

One night, JS saw someone he did not know or recognize as a neighbor, who was walking in the rain, and seemed to be looking around. To JS, this person seemed suspicious and out of place, so he called the Police while he continued to observe the person.

The person, learned to be little "Jimmy Jones", a 6 ft+ black 17 year old, drew JS's attention. While JS was continuing to observe JJ, and talking to the Police on his cell-phone, JJ came back around to meet JS. JJ confronted JS, asking what his problem was, and quickly thereafter, JJ punched JS in the nose, knocking JS down, then got on top of JS, hitting JS in the face and slamming JS's head onto the concrete.

At some point, in what JS described as a fear for his life and/or serious bodily injury, and completely unable to stop the beating, JS pulled his gun and shot JJ, to death.

The jury found for the defense, as Not Guilty.

Now a few things come to my mind about this, and such matters.

1.  I have personally known a man, who loved fighting. He was strong as a bull, a tough fighter, and he loved beating people unconscious. He admitted to enjoying the feeling his victim's facial bones break under his fists. This man, MAIMED people. In the course of an interview with him, I told him I'd never fight him, and that if confronted by him, I'd just shoot him, because he's already told me he has maimed his victims in the past. Make no mistake, if confronted by this animal, I'd shoot him.

2.  I was reading some FBI statistics about Police Officers killed. In 2010, about 8% of those killed, were killed with their own guns. This means that in some way, they were overcome, and their gun was then available to the assailant. When a Police Officer goes down and is beaten in a confrontation, his gun is then open to be taken and used against him (or anyone else!). At some point, if a Police Officer feels he is losing a confrontation, thus losing control of his own weapon, he can, and should, shoot such an assailant.

3.  The above, should also apply to any legally armed civilian. And in the case of JS and JJ, once JS was down, and in his case, feeling he was in real trouble of serious bodily injury or death, he used his firearm to end the battle.

4.  Aside from the first guy I spoke of, I have also know, and such things have been reported all over the nation, that some people, when their victim is down and defenseless, will continue to beat them to the point of very serious injury or death. Last year, a returning Marine was beaten to death that way.
In the NY Bronx, as just one example, a 61 year old man was mugged, and beaten to death by two people. Also in the Bronx, a 59 year old man was robbed of $20, and beaten to death. In neither case, was a weapon used.

At what point in such an confrontation, does one then fear serious injury or death? Such a beating, even without a weapon, is a felony in most (or all) states, and one CAN use deadly force to stop a felony assault. Unarmed, is not the same as being non-deadly. In about 5-6% of murders in the US, the reported weapons were hands and feet.

I expect some to recall observing a school or neighborhood fight, where one of the "fighters" went down, and the fight was over. One person won, and one loses. However, I know of fights (as well as read about such fights) where one person was down-and-out, and the other person just kept pummeling them. At that point, it ceased to be "mutual combat", and became a felony assault. If engaged in a fight with anyone vicious enough to beat you when you're down and no longer able to defend yourself, you become completely subject to the other person's will. And if that will is seriously injures you, or beats you to death, what could you do about it?

"Fair fights", can no longer be depended on. Too many incidents of "beat-downs" occur, and anyone finding themselves in a situation where they are no longer able to defend against a stronger opponent, one who continues to beat them, has every expectation and fear of death or serious bodily injury.

So you've been rendered defenseless, what can you do? In many cases, nothing but pray you will live through it. In the case of JS and JJ, JS resorted to his legally carried handgun. It could be, that JJ would have stopped the beating at some point. When? At what point, would JS have never been able to defend against a vicious or deadly beat-down? How long should JS have waited? Would he soon have been rendered totally defenseless or unconscious? Would he have further head injuries, causing brain injury? Would anyone is such a position, pinned down, having their head battered against the sidewalk and unable to defend against the stronger person, resort to a weapon? Unless you're there, you can't be sure. But I can tell you that I would. I would NOT allow anyone to put me into a hospital, or a coffin.

Side-note: "Profiling" IS appropriate in may cases. IF those home-invasions and thefts were committed mostly by young males of a particular group, then anyone of that group would be observed long enough to see if they were a possible offender. "Racial" profiling - that is profiling only because of a persons race, may be wrong. But profiling a person of a race, when that "race" is predominately involved in crime, is NOT "racial profiling". That is just profiling, in which race plays a part of the descriptors of offenders.

Rushing To Judgement

We ALL do it. Something happens that in some way touches us emotionally or some other sense of identifying with the situation, and we take a position before we know all the details.

I know I have done that, only to later back away from my first perspective after learning more details. Even as a Law Enforcement Officer, I have found myself in a position to assess a situation one way, only to reverse it later as more facts are learned. (Victims, are not always "victims".)

But I have a real problem with President Obama, and his rush to judgment. If anything, HE should never rush to judgment. His judgment affects the lives and welfare of all our nation's citizens, in one way or another.

Take the case with the Cambridge (MA) Police Officer (who is white) and the Harvard College Professor Louis Gates (who is black). While opinions vary of what the Police should or should not have done, Obama came out of the gate pretty early on, stating, "...the Cambridge police acted stupidly." Obama took a side, and ... sorry ... it APPEARS that Obama took the side of a Black man, over a White Cop, and all before the investigation was fully completed. In my view, Obama had NO business stepping into that situation, and choosing a side. Particularly in a "local" police matter.
(see: http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2009/07/obama_cambridge.html )

Then, we have the death of a 17 year old unarmed Black kid (Trayvon Martin), who was shot by a Hispanic (George Zimmerman) "neighborhood watchman" during a scuffle. This happened on Feb. 26, 2012. On Mar. 23, 2012, while commenting about the case, Obama said, "If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon." Obama, in some attempt to identify with the Black community, says such thing, and takes a side before all the facts are known ... and even before the trial (which, by the way, is going on as I type this, on July 12, 2013!). Obama had NO business commenting to such a degree, and to choose a side in a pending criminal investigation. NONE!
(see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/23/obama-trayvon-martin_n_1375083.html )

Fact is, and while NOT a reason to shoot anyone, Trayvon Martin is suspected of being a burglar, a pot-smoker by his own photos, and may have been in procession (illegal, as he was 17?) of a handgun in the past. Really President Obama? THIS is the type son you would have had? Really?

Furthermore, from THIS former Law Enforcement Officer's viewpoint, while George Zimmerman will be judged by a jury for his use-of-force, had Martin kept walking, the police would have arrived to check on him. But he didn't. He went back and confronted Zimmerman. Zimmerman had a right and a purpose for being in that apartment complex. Martin was passing through. Zimmerman may have been following Martin, but Martin was not "likely" in fear, or he would never have come back around to confront Zimmerman. A person in fear, unless there is no exit, will head for an exit from the danger, real or perceived. All that is for the court case to unravel, but point is .. Obama should never have commented in any way to take a side.

As for Professor Gates, had he simply stayed calm, and provided the identification and verification the Officer requested, that matter would never escalated. But instead, the Professor took immediate offense to being questioned, and referred to the Officer with "your mama", which jumped to the racial right away. The Professor was wrong. But Obama took a side.

In any case, Obama had NO business, as THE President of the United States, to make such comments on the Cambridge or Martin matter!  In both cases, he rushed to judgment. Hardly presidential. And to me .... to ME .... it smacks more of taking a racial side, than an objective one.

Obama, to my dismay, IS our President, and with that, should be the President to ALL Americans, and should hold his tongue until all the facts are out. Even then, local matter should be left to local people, and for any President to comment in a way that takes one side over another, is just wrong.

The rest of us may well keep jumping to early conclusions, but for the most part, such rushing to judgments do not impact a nation.

Our Pledge of Allegiance

The Pledge of Allegiance and the Flag, and what it means to me -

What do those things mean to you? What do they mean to those who come here, legally or not? I don't know those answers, but I can tell you what they mean to me.

Our Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting oath -

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

I see this oath, not one to take precedence over God, or a pledge to obey any "god", but as an oath to keep an allegiance to America over all other nations. "America" and the "Flag" represents ALL citizens of this great nation. It was never meant to me to be loyal to any one political party, President, or other entity. America - What a wonderful and beautiful word - is a word that, to me, stands for freedom. As too does the "Flag of The United State of America". And our Pledge of Allegiance is TO America.

As for the "under God" part... I've never felt that meant I must believe in "God", or that I must be a Christian follower, but is a simple acknowledgment that America was founded on the Christian beliefs of conduct toward our fellow man. There are many, many quotes from texts and letters of our Founding Fathers that prove this out. It is a FACT that one of the guiding forces behind their drive toward a new nation of freedom, was their Christian beliefs. And, at no time in modern history, has any man, woman, or child, been denied justice and/or freedom, because he or she wasn't a Christian or didn't believe in God, or was a follower of any other religion.

I pass my thoughts on - and forgive me for being so bold to do so and think you might value them - so that anyone, citizen, or wannabe citizen, might consider them. IF you choose to live here (excluding legal visitors), if you want to live here as a free citizen of The United States of America, as an American, then I suggest that you take an allegiance to America above ALL other countries. Otherwise, what ever country anyone wishes to hold some allegiance to, go there and live.

This IS America. The citizens of The United States of America have historically invited people from all over the world to come here and share in our freedoms and opportunities. But hear this - IF any one's true allegiance is to ANY other country, don't come here, and if you are here already, don't stay. Forget politics. Forget foreign policy when it comes to my point here. Make those changes from within, as active and participating citizens. But to hold ANY allegiance to any other country, is UN-American, and such a person doesn't belong here.

As for flying the Flag - Untold hundreds of thousands of men and women fought, and died, for this country and the flag they fought under. Please, what ever your protest, don't burn our Flag or fly her upside down. Those who served before, those serving now, and those who will serve tomorrow, deserve to have the Flag of their country treated in a respectful way. Burn all the likenesses of elephants and donkeys you want, but not our Flag. Yes, a citizen would be free to do so. But having a "right" to do it, doesn't make it "right" thing to do. It isn't.

This is America, the United States of America. While I won't say, "Like it or leave it", I will say, "Pledge allegiance to the United States of America above all other nations, or leave it." There are things that may need changing. We're not perfect by any measure, but our Pledge, should be looked at as the constant drive to be better, and to be all the Pledge implies. While there may be things you don't agree with or don't like, I'm fine with that, so long as you get involved to help make it better. But if anyone holds ANY allegiance to another country over America, LEAVE NOW. If you want to be a free American citizen, then come on in and help us be better, and take the Pledge of Allegiance to The United States of America, and proudly fly our Red, White & Blue Star Spangled Banner.

I pledge MY allegiance to MY country, America. I hate the politics, but I love my country. Land of the free. Home of the brave.

Happy 4th of July!

Life Goes On

Summer time is just made for families, friends, and various outings. A breeze keeps the heat down, as a pair of young adults picnic by a river bank. Children laugh, as they play on the mega-gym in the playground. Older adults can be seen playing shuffle-board, while others pitch horseshoes. Not far away, there's a old-fashioned drive-in burger joint, and you almost make out the loud speaker as orders are called out. Making their way to a big parking lot, several custom cars, adorned with custom paint and shinny wheels, began arriving for their own car show.

Life goes on for most people in America. When it's not work, it's time with family and friends. Yep, life goes on, in seeming immunity from the cost paid each day by those who put on our nation's military uniforms. In some manner or other, our folks in the military stand at the ready to defend our freedoms. And to those families who suffer the greatest loss for such freedoms, life will never be the same. To those who pay the ultimate sacrifice, life will not go on.

Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, and to those who connect the dots, July 4th, are dates which we acknowledge the costs of freedom. To the families of our military losses, it may not seem fair that life goes on ... without their loved one here to go on too.

Even in the hearts and minds of those who do come home, there's an emptiness for those who can't come home again ... ever. I remember vividly, coming home from my own war time experiences, and seeing "life going on". I would see everyday, people doing everyday things, and thought to myself (although near boiling to the surface), "What's wrong with you people? Don't you know that today, someone died so you can do what you're doing? Can't you stop and acknowledge that?"

Some do. Too few, I feel. Even flying our Flag, isn't done as much as it was right after 9-11-2001. It seemed that every house had a Flag out. Today, its maybe one in thirty. Or even less.

It's not that people don't care. I think some just get so wrapped up in their own lives, that it simply doesn't occur to them. Then there are those, with whom it's just too much trouble to even consider our Troops, our Veterans, or anyone else for that matter. And, there are those few who actually are anti-war, and they don't want anything to do with the Military, and that means even to acknowledge them in any way. Powerful freedom they have, isn't it. Agree or not with any military action, the fact such people can choose to be against those who actually help preserve those very freedoms, is actually puzzling to me. From the days at Concord and Lexington, there have been those who decry such acts of violence, yet live under the benefit of it. If they really believed what they protest against, they'd remove themselves from their freedoms, paid for in blood.

To those families with family and friends serving, and dying, for our freedoms, life does go on. Forgive us, as it just does, as it should. But along our way, we OWE it to remember those who have given so much, so we can enjoy the freedoms we have. And we MUST to our part politically, to see that those who stand at the ready with arms, are supported, and that WE will not let our freedoms slip away through the fingers of loose dealing politicians.

God Bless our Troops, their families, and God Bless America.

My Visit to an IRS Office

I am SURE there are many hard working people within the IRS. But "The IRS" just stirs images of a big bad boogie-men coming to take our money.

Lately, we've learned that the IRS, or at least some within it, have used their positions to stop people and organizations from obtaining tax exempt status, because someone in the IRS doesn't agree them or their cause. So the fear many have had of the IRS, seems to have been born out.

Now, add in two things. It has come to light, that in just one of the many conferences held for some IRS employees, cost the American Taxpayers 4 MILLION DOLLARS. Some of those expenses, were for $3,500 a night motel rooms! And that was just part of some 50 MILLION DOLLARS spent on many conferences.

And the Obama sequester, that has our local Austin office, closed 2 days per month, as part of those cut-backs.

But, I owed the IRS money. We filed our taxes on time, but could only send a partial payment. We have been waiting for a notice of the remainder so we could send it in. This past Friday (the21st), we got our notice of the balance, and a due date of Monday (24th). Wow, not enough time to mail it, so I drove to the only IRS Taxpayer Assistance Office listed for Austin. I "assumed" (bad on me) that they would open at 9 am. I arrived at 8:50, and there was already a line outside. The office had opened at 8:30 am, so I was later than I thought. I soon learned that the inside waiting area was already full, and the outside line was waiting for chairs to open inside, to wait further.

In my case, I just wanted to pay my taxes, in full, and leave. I had the check ready, as well as the form the IRS had provided, so easy enough. Wrong! But I was told there was no way I could do that, without waiting in line.

At about 10:25 am, I finally made it to the inside. And inside, was a line just get to a counter, where I would have to get a number to wait further. So, I waiting in that line. That line was shorter than the outside line, and I reached the receptionist desk after only about 15 minutes, and I asked if they accepted payments. They did. GREAT! But she couldn't. The receptionist said that I'd have to take a number, and see an IRS Customer Service (?) person. "How long?", I asked. I was told it would be another 2-1/2 hrs, at least.

I hate lines. I won't even wait in much of a line for restaurants and movies, and I LIKE those! So I looked at the full waiting area, and then looked at the numbered IRS customer service cubicles. There were 16 cubicles, numbered with a digital light by each. But only 4 had their little numbers lit up. Only 4 people were working, out of the 16 cubicles that could have been serving taxpayers. Now I saw why it would be another 2-1/2 hrs, or so.

No thanks. I'll pay what ever penalty for the payment to be late, but this was just ... stupid. I didn't like "The IRS" before this year. But with the IRS scandals, wasteful spending of OUR money, and now a local office ill equipped to ever serve the taxpayers properly, and I really don't like "The IRS"!
And I suspect, this is just one small example of how our government takes care of us.

 With all that's going on - that is, the Benghazi cover-up; the Fast and Furious cover-up; the IRS scandals; the Dept. of (In)Justice and their targeting of a Fox News reporter; the National Security Agency's spying on ALL of our phone calls, texts, emails, and who know what else; Dept. of Homeland Security buying an unexplainable huge amount of ammunition, Armored vehicles, and Assault Rifles; and who knows what else .... let's not allow any of that keep Obama from taking an estimated 100 MILLION DOLLAR vacation trip to Africa!

Man's best friend

My wife and I love dogs. Both of us have had a canine pet around most our lives. We have two today, and they live indoors with us, sit with us on the couch, sleep on the bed, and are treated like one of our kids. And non-dog owners, would likely not understand any of that. (I would NEVER just keep a dog outside on a chain!)

DO you get a dog video sent to you? Maybe one of those Soldier comes home to dog" videos? Or a bunch of puppy pictures? I'm a sucker for all of those, and except for those that pull at the heart-strings, bring a smile, even in todays often depressing news.

There are dog rescue groups, many are even breed specific. We've bought puppies (not from a puppy-mill), as well as rescued some from a humane society or animal control. My daughter's dog, was rescued from what was to be euthanasia. he rescued dogs, seem to know they were truly "rescued". They seem to be more lovable, staying close all the time.

Our dogs miss us if we've been gone all day. But if either of us is gone for several days, they just go crazy when we come home. We know we are missed. But I've never been gone a year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0zMzfegs5s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysKAVyXi0J4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD3cgDRsDck

Have you ever felt this loved? There are loads of videos out their like these.

I also follow this Blogger -  http://khanrahan.com/ (check him out)
This guy is an Army Veteran, and his blog has true heart warming stories, as well as the sad ones of "man's best friend" giving their all for their Soldier handlers and those around them. Great Job Kevin!

Service Dogs are proving to be a great asset for returning Soldiers dealing with physical disabilities, and growing help to those suffering with PTSD. Any web-search can yield service dogs for most any purpose.
http://www.hero-dogs.org/veterans.html
http://4pawsforability.org/paws-for-veterans/

Last year, we lost our Irish Setter of 13 years. Age got to her, and letting her go was one of the hardest things I could ever go through. I can barely type this, without getting a little teary eyed at seeing her in my mind's eye, and this picture.

I am not a cat lover, but I've been around cats. I know they can be loving (so I've heard), but I've never seen a pet that loves, unconditionally, like a dog does. I've often joked, "If Timmy fell down the well, a cat would just look down at him." Lassie, always ran for help!

I grew up with indoor dogs around. And I loved the TV shows about dogs, like "Rin Tin Tin", or my first puppy love with "Lassie", and then there was Yukon "King". And a great many movies about dogs, like the movies "Hachi" and "Eight Below" (have tissues handy) and "Turner and Hooch" or "Snow Dogs",  and my first tear-jerker movie, "Old Yeller".

Our two girls today, greet us every time with wagging tails. They are ALWAYS glad to see us. And we're always glad to see them. Both are great and loving companions. And each has their own personality. Hannah has mellowed over the years. And Sadie .... well, even at 3 years old, she bounces off the walls with greetings and antics!

"Man's best friend" is very true, as far as we are concerned. If WE could be as unconditional as our dogs, we'd have a better world. Somehow, I can't imagine our girls not being in Heaven when I get there, greeting me with wagging tails, and slobbering dog-kisses.

(Adopt a rescue dog today. It just might be YOU who gets rescued!)

Obama wants us to TRUST government

On June 7^th (2013), in response to the wide-spread complaints about the National Security Agency’s (NSA) domestic surveillance program, Obama sated: "If people can't trust not only the executive branch but also don't trust Congress, and don't trust federal judges, to make sure that we're abiding by the Constitution with due process and rule of law, then we're going to have some problems here."

Well, I DO have a problem Mr. President!

We have a Bill of Rights. Some of those rights, may seem to protect “guilty” people. That is to say, WHY would anyone need to protect themselves from speaking against themselves, if they didn’t do anything wrong; or, be protected from unlawful searches and seizures, if you’ve nothing to hide; or, own firearms, if the government can protect you from any “enemies, foreign and domestic”?

The Bill of Rights, aren’t there to protect “guilty” people. The Bill of Rights, are there to protect ALL people, against a powerful government doing whatever they wanted.  The Bill of Rights are there to protect us from a government that could use such powers to for all kinds of nefarious reasons.

Obama mentioned the trust of “federal judges”. What IF, like in the case of US Attorney General Eric Holder, law enforcement went judge shopping for a judge that would allow them to do most anything they wanted. After all, they’re Cops, right? In the case of the Department of Justice, they went to three judges, before they found one that would rubber-stamp a really pathetic warrant to search the records of a reporter’s phone and emails, as well as those of his parents!

Second to that example, what IF the government, through the massive power to get information from personal files, phones, emails, etc., found something very embarrassing against a federal judge or other official? Could THAT be used to sway someone to go along with things he or she wouldn’t otherwise do? So there’s my take on federal judges, and unbridled trust.

Trust Congress? I don’t think so. They are elected to “represent” us. But how many times have we seen an elected official do things in their own best interest? How many find themselves getting very rich, while “serving the people”? And WHO in their right mind, would dare trust an attorney who would recommend a client sign an unread contract, yet that is exactly what they did on our behalf, with the Obamacare crap! (and how many more unread bills?) An attorney would be fired, if not brought up before the Bar for malpractice!

And then there’s Obama. There is NO WAY in hell I trust him. He lied about the circumstances around the failed DOJ/ATF Fast and Furious gun running operation, where a couple thousand guns went across to Mexico, and they lost track of them. Then to have at least two show up at a murder scene, where Border Agent Brian Terry was killed! Obama said he wasn’t involved in that, but ended up saving Eric Holder’s ass with an “Executive Privedge” order, which if there was no involvement by Obama, then there shouldn’t have been any communication between him and Holder for an EP to apply! He abused his power and authority, and/or HE LIED!

He LIED about the cause of the attack on our Embassy in Benghazi, and what lead to the deaths of four of our people.  He had a re-election coming up, and he lied to protect his imagine. He’s a lying bastard in my opinion!

As for the 2^nd amendment - It isn’t about hunting. It’s about protection, and that protection includes protection from a tyrannical government, which is what our Founding Fathers experienced with King George. It was added because King George, in order to avert the growing dissention, tried to take the weapons from “the people”. Our Founders included, “the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed”, just because of the actions the British army tried to take against the Colonials.  No sir, I will NOT surrender my arms. I firmly believe that a government that would disregard our other “rights” (currently, the 4th amendment), is more than capable of being the tyrannical government our Founders warned against, and try to disarm us of our means to stop an out-of-control government.

Lastly, the Bill of Rights are in place to protect all of us from such a government that would stretch any law they choose, to get the end result they may want, even if they felt that result was in the best interest of the country. We should NEVER blindly trust this, or any, government. “Rights” given up, may be impossible to regain.

As Lord Acton said in 1887, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Big Brother, 2017

March 23, 2017

“Sir, we now have that break-through we’ve been working on”, said Director Bryan Omar. Omar had just entered the Oval Office at President Zane Ayman’s request.

“So, tell me how it will help us make the changes we’ve worked so long for?”, asked President Ayman.

“The Comprehensive National Security Agency (the newly expanded NSA) can now pull any name in America, even those in most industrialized nations, and we can see every piece of data ever typed onto a keypad of any kind. And with that, we can retrieve any voice communication, along with whomever that person spoke to.  We can do the same with every email, text, social network, and any digital form of communication. And with the new system sir, that data is automatically cross checked.”

“We still have the problem with snail mail, even if it is nearly extinct?”, asked President Ayman.

“Not really. We’ve made headway there too sir.  We are now documenting every piece of mail with the new see-thru scanners, and each piece is coded from each drop-off point, so any piece of mail can be traced back to the sender, as well as automated cross referencing the sender and receiver with the Master Data Bank. Sir, it gets even better. With the new digital postal system tied in with the CNSA, we are tied into each and every public thoroughfare surveillance camera and we can see who drops that mail off! You need anything, on anyone, we can get everything you’d ever want to know about them, and every contact they ever have. Bottom line, there is no more privacy or unauthorized communications. Sir, we OWN all communication in the country!”

“So all I need, is to give you a name, and you can get everything Id ever want to know about that person?”, asked President Ayman.

(Smiling) “Exactly Sir. Tell me who you want about, and we can pull everything you’d ever need to know on that person. Every secret they’ve ever said or put into words, we’d have it for you.”

“Well Mr. Omar, I think we’re ready to commence Phase I of Operation Round-Up. I will issue the Executive Order today, and have all my agency heads to begin tomorrow. It’s time to roundup the dissenters and I WANT those Tea Party leaders locked up. Oh…and I want that NRA disbanded! Have the ‘list’  ready for each department, and the teams can get started.”

“Yes sir, Mr. President. … It’s time sir.”

“Oh thanks Omar, your prayer rug is still here too. Please join me my Brother Omar, and let’s kneel toward Meca.”

March 26, 2017

“Mr. President…I have an update for you”, said FBI Director Lilly Gafar.

“Okay Ms. Rachel, that’ll be all”, says the President as his personal secretary leaves the room. “Go ahead Ms. Gafar.”

“Sir, we have successfully obtained persuasive background information on those targets you wanted, and they have all been contacted personally by my Special Agents. We now have their full cooperation. They’re in a real bind Mr. President, so they’ll give you no problem. Even a couple of the Supreme Court Justices had some things they didn’t want out, so they’ll side with the other Justices on anything you want.”

“I love it. GW had no idea how that Patriot Act could be fine-tuned to do more than he ever dared to dream of. Then, with Barry moving that up, and CNSA completing the system to a full-fledged domestic spying system, we now can find out anything on anyone”, Ayman went on.

“Yes Sir, and those Congressmen that gave you so much trouble during your campaign … well, they have their hands full now putting out their own little fires, so they’ll be hard pressed to do anything against you.”

“Splendid, Ms. Gafar”, the President replied. “I called Barry too. He was elated that we have been able to continue his project. Let’s move forward now with those signed warrants, and begin Phase II of Operation Round-Up.”

April 19, 1017

“Mr. President, can we have a word?”, asked Ms. Gafar, standing in the hallway with CIA Director Alan Rayan.  All three enter the Oval Office.

“Sir, we have begun executing those arrest warrants on all key people on your newest list”, said Gafar.

“Any problems? Anything that could hit the Underground News Corp”, asked President Ayman?

Rayan stepped in closer, “Not really sir. Most were arrested quietly and without incident. We did have a few, like that asshole National Rifle Association president. We had to use a stun gun on him twice. But when he arrived at Bureau Area 6, Dr. Xavier ordered an injection for him. We’ll not hear anything from him anytime soon!”

“How have the black-outs gone?”, asked President Ayman.

“Great sir. Our people have rolled into a neighborhood, commenced Operation Black Out, and we’re in and out of the target location before people know we’ve been there”, said Gafar.  “With the build-up of the Department  of Homeland Security, Marco’s people have simply overwhelmed any attempt of any radicals to form militias. ….(laughingly)…. Sir, it’s been pathetic really. Much of the remaining Tea Party members ran out of ammo days ago. Some are still holding up in remote areas of the country, but they’re completely shut off, and surrounded by DHS.”

“What about the Military?”

“Mr. President”, responded Saad, “the command structure you put in place, is keeping all military off-shore and out of the way. And all civilian communications with them, has been blocked. They are mostly in the dark about what going on, and the Command and Control will keep them from attempting any interference.”

“Yes sir”, Rayan chimed in, “The civilians are powerless too. The gun buy-backs of 2013 & 2014, coupled with the confiscation of all personal firearms in 2016, the civilian population can only stand by and watch if they do see us roll into a neighborhood.”

 “Okay, keep me informed”, said President Ayman.

As the two were leaving the Oval Office, CIA Dir. Rayan stopped and turned to the President. “Sir, that situation with Senator Benyamin has been taken care of. Our office was able to Photoshop some of his family webpage photos, and they’re being released this afternoon. You can expect a recall election!”

June 20, 2017

WHNA (White House News Agency) opened their daily all-channel newscast. “My fellow Americans, it is a great day”, as President Ayman (shown on the screen, with the former President along his side) announced today, “as America is finally free of any religious intrusion in any public place. With the exception of government sponsored sects, all religious signage, symbols, on-air messages, and so on, are out-lawed, and no American will again be offended by such unwanted Christian or Jewish messaging and influence. Special thanks to the ACLU for helping us pin the ears back on some of the stubborn communities.

We are also announcing the appointment of my dear friend, Salim Hasad, to fill the vacated Senatorial seat of Senator Benyamin. We are sorry for the sudden loss of Senator Benyamin in his bout with cancer, and we wish his family well.

My administration is also announcing today, that certain elements of anti-government organizations and those outspoken against the many good things we have been doing, have been effectively dealt with, and the people of America can enjoy the many benefits we have to offer without the descent that has stalled our efforts in the past. And with that, we are a safer nation. While many have complained about the rise in taxes, those taxes have paved the way for a better, safer America, where more citizens can share in the wealth of the many.

Thank you, and good day my American friends.”

 August 5, 2017

In a growing number of areas across the nation, street thugs and bandits plague neighborhoods, with robberies and assaults upon citizens, and even the reported abuses by federal agents. Street thugs are running in gangs, armed with guns bought off the black market, mostly from the open border of Mexico, as well as the open ports of Florida. China has increased their USA sales of AK-47s, using Muslim Brotherhood members of the Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms to sell them on the streets.

While complaints go largely unchecked, many families are upset with federal agents entering their homes with no cause, just to search for possible contraband. The courts have sided with President Ayman’s administration, in that warrantless entries are legal under Patriot Act IV, so long as no arrests result from the search. Federal Law Enforcement continues to seize property in what used to be “Red States”, and political opposition has been all but squashed, except for the Rebel State of Texas, who has all but seceded from the nation. The Rebel State of Texas is the one border area President Ayman has tried to secure, and DHS is patrolling the borders of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana. DHS has been unable to patrol the Gulf of Mexico area, as the Rebel State of Texas has developed its own Navy, and has sunk many DHS patrol boats.

 October 20, 2017

President Ayman has completed Operation Round-Up, and began Operation Constitution Revocation.

 “Sir, Director Saad is here to see you”, said Ms. Rachel. Saad Steps into the Oval Office.

 “Tell me Ms. Saad, are we ready to move forward? Are ‘the people’ (he smirks) ready to go along with the New Order?”

 “Yes sir”, replies Saad. “With the people polling positively to do away with the old document, they’re ready for your New Order.”

 “Good, the time has finally come. We’ll schedule a public burning of the ‘constitution’. Then we release the balloons and fireworks, when we unveil the New Order that I’m having etched in marble. That will also stop any remaining hold-outs, and what’s left of that fucking NRA, from throwing that whole 2^nd amendment thing up to the courts.”

 “Yes Mr. President, I’ll get with the other directors, and we’ll have security ready for the Burning of the Constitution  celebration.”

==========================================

While the above is an obvious piece of fiction, at what point could the gradual giving up of freedoms and the rule of law, could we see drastic changes to our Constitutional liberties? Obama said during his first campaign, “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.” From where I sit, it looks like he is getting down that road pretty far, and we are losing our grasp of the freedoms that we’ve known for over 200 years.

 Today, the White House is waste deep in scandals. The newly revealed NSA taking of cellphone, email, and social sites data from EVERY American, WITHOUT a proper warrant; the use of the IRS to go after “conservative” organizations, even sharing “confidential” information with one group’s political  adversaries; the Dept. of Justice, using the ruse of going after a DC leaker to tap into the personal phone call records of a FOX News Reporter, James Rosen, and even Rosen’s parents; lying about the circumstances and cause of the attack on our Embassy in Benghazi, where Ambassador Stevens and three other brave men were murdered (and still the terrorist are at large); Sec. of State Clinton lying about protests causing the attack; Obama lying in front of the United Nations; Obama supporting a UN resolution to control “small arms”, that has the potential of by-passing our 2^nd amendment; the failed Fast and Furious arms running, that got one of our Border Agent killed by Mexican drug cartel members using one of the ATF guns; and it has all the markings of a nation is serious internal trouble.

How much more will we accept from a government, that is taking liberties with OUR freedoms? Like the frog in the pan, are we need to be asking ourselves, “Are WE the frog?”

Our Modern Times, Terrorism, and Our Rights

Admittingly, the world is a dangerous place, with terror incidents occurring in a number of countries around the world. We’ve been at war against terror for over 12 years now, and the actors of bombings, mass murders, and such, have even been in our own country.

Inside the United States, our Law Enforcement, Federal and local, have had to constantly upgrade their training, their exercise of enforcement, and the weapons and tools to counter such threats.

Along with all that, we have technological advancements available to citizens. We have cell phones and smart phones and laptop computers, enabling us to work wirelessly from most anywhere in the country, if not the world. What we hold in our hands today, can do more than the biggest of computers many decades ago. We can conduct business, communicate (voice, text, visual) with friends and family, take and share photos, and search the world of Internet news and information, all while sitting on a park bench thousands of miles away from home.

This also means that any potential “bad guy” has all those same technological advantages. And our Law Enforcement (Fed, State & Local) have their hands full to combat the every growing advantages the “bad guys” have to conduct their evil intentions.

So what do our Law Enforcers do? They use every technological advantage they can, balanced with the constitutional rights of lawful citizens. That’s a tall order, indeed. And with the goal of gaining an advantage, our leaders wrote and passed, The Patriot Act. That act, gives Law Enforcement extended powers to get easier access to communications on potential terrorists.  Many thought from the start such an act went too far, and permitted the government to have too easy of an access to private information. And we have learned recently that our National Security Agency (NSA) has gained access to millions of citizens phone calls, internet searches, texts, emails, on-line photos, etc. Of those millions and millions of data bits on ALL OF US, the NSA does not know who might be the “bad guys”, so they cast the big net to gather information on everybody.

So, what of our Fourth Amendment - The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

But the Patriot Act seems now to allow our Law Enforcement (government) to bypass our 4^th amendment, for the purpose of national security and to go after the terrorists.

Now, if a citizen has no terrorist ties, and hasn’t anything to hide, the government is saying, “Hey, it’s for the safety of our nation, so it’s okay.” But is it?

What IF, someone who gets access to an innocent citizens data, and because of some unauthorized reason, uses some information to get back at someone? Maybe for revenge on a personal matter? Or for a friend, who wants to use it for a child custody dispute? What about gathering embarrassing information, and use that to extort money from a fellow citizen? And then there’s the potential for using such information for an edge over political enemies?

All it takes is for just ONE person with unbridled power, to be less than a top professional in seeking ONLY terrorists, for the abuse to start. And once it starts, then all bets are off. THAT is why the 4^th amendment  exists, and it says it “shall not be violated”. But it is. For the sake of finding the “bad guys”, all “good guys” are subject to losing our civil rights.

I’m not okay with that. And sadly, I understand the difficulty our Law Enforcers are having, but I’m still against the seemingly unbridled power the government has taken. So, what is the answer? Where IS the balance?

Part of the answer, in MY view, is for us, and that means YOU and ME, to help be the eyes and ears of Law Enforcement. We need to be more diligent in reporting suspicious people. But be prepared, reporting suspicious people or activities will be more often be a false alarm than not. But from that reporting, those Federal and Local Law Enforcers can then take a closer look to see if THAT information fits the criteria for then going into the privacy of those suspicious people, and a properly documented and sworn-to application for a search warrant can then be obtained. Not obtained for all of us, but obtained by particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized . Having someone report a suspicious person or activity, would be like a National Crimestoppers! (I’ve used Crimestoppers information in the past, to conduct Narcotics Investigations, and it is a good tool.)

Such a call  by itself should not be the sole basis for a search warrant, but once alerted, authorities can check against other intel, and then move to the next step. (It called, investigating!)

But if “we, the people” place all of the onus on Law Enforcement to deal with evil, then be prepared for Law Enforcement to find other ways to do their difficult jobs!

Giving up essential freedoms, for the sake of security, is a most dangerous proposition. And freedoms once given up, might not ever be recovered.

God Bless America’s Peace Keepers, Law Enforcers, and the American Citizen!

The 2nd Amendment and Your Personal Safety

While gun law debates continue across the country, and even with the United Nations casting some views on “small arms”, our 2nd Amendment remains a sacred part of our Bill of Rights for American citizens. While I have expressed many times my views on the subject, I'm compelled to again dive into the deep end.

With this writing though, I'll stick with the "personal security" aspect of gun ownership. While not a "retired" Law Enforcement Officer (LEO), I do have over 13 years street experience in that field (plus many more years in the private sector), and use those experiences to formulate my own opinions on the subject of personal defense and firearms.

If we, each of us at home, in our cars, or at work, present an easy target of robbery or assault, then it is luck, or a matter of time, that we haven't been victimized. Bad guys, whether consciously or not, calculate their personal risk against any perceived gain in the engagement of a criminal act. If any of us present a low risk to the bad guy, then our own risk increases. If we present a high risk to the bad guy, one that will most likely get them arrested, or seriously hurt, then they will move on to a less risky target. They’re human, and won’t typically walk into a dangerous situation where they don’t have an upper hand.

I believe that by permitting citizens to have "Concealed Carry Licenses", we send a message to the would-be bad-guys. That is, anyone they may consider targeting, may be armed and prepared to defend themselves with deadly force. When states have openly supported such a lawful and licensed "carry" law, the statistics show a decrease in personal crimes.

One only needs to do an on-line search, and any number of stats will either prove out, or argue against the effects of such "carry" laws. But I can’t think of any LEOs who wouldn’t "carry" if they weren't Cops anymore. Most LEOs I know, would never leave home without a handgun for personal protection, even if they stopped being Cops. Speaking only for myself, I don't recall an "armed" citizen that I encountered who was successfully victimized. But I encountered a lot of "victims", who had been ill prepared for what came upon them. The fact is, the only stat that really means anything anyway, is your own!

As an ex-Cop, I don't go anywhere without a handgun on or near me. Am I fearful? No. But I've seen enough people who were unable to adequately defend themselves, and don't choose to be one of them. It’s a matter of being prepared, for the unexpected. As a case-in-point, we recently saw the news footage from London of two Muslim men who had attacked an off-duty British Soldier, hacking him up with a knife and meat clever, nearly beheading him. The only thing the on-looking London citizens could do, was watch! (20 minutes later .... 20 minutes later .... the London Police showed up and shot both suspects, "wounding" them.)

As our 2nd Amendment provides, I have the "right to bear arms", and I choose to do so wherever it’s legal. NO ONE should be able to take MY right away, effectively disarming me at a time I may need to protect my family or myself.

Oh ... Magazine capacity - Who the hell knows how many rounds anyone will need at any given time? NO ONE knows. Cops don't know either, and that's why most of them carry a handgun with an average 15 rounds in the pistol, plus another two mags in their pouches (45 rounds total!). Even then, there have been "Officer Involved" shootings, where magazines had been expended by multiple officers, and the suspect still lived! It's just stupid for anyone to think just 6 or 7 or 10 rounds should be enough for a citizen to have. It sure isn't for a trained professional Police Officer! And a citizen will not have a back-up officer at their side or coming to their aid.

Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity

On May 13th, Colorado mass murderer James Holmes's attorney entered Holmes plea of "Not Guilty", by reason of insanity. His attorney said Holmes was "mentally ill". Well, I have a problem or two with that, and other cases like it.

To start with, while "the law" entitles him to a fair trial with the burden of proof on the "state" to prove he is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, I am not a court and I KNOW he is guilty as hell. He was found at the scene, by the police with his weapons, identified by people at the scene, and ALL information points to him killing all those people. There's a lot more to that, but NO ONE has any question that he killed those people. NO ONE! So there really isn't ANY doubt, but he must have his day in court (which I do support).

Secondly, in some respects, any person who would commit such a heinous crime like the murders in a Colorado movie theater, must surely have something wrong inside. But, I believe that "something", is just evil that gets in a persons head. But that doesn't mean by itself that the person is "insane" and had no reasoning skills to know that what they were doing was right or wrong. They just didn't care and maybe even took evil delight in such a deed. Did Homes know right from wrong? From the information that has come to light, his plan to commit such a murderous deed, was formulated and prepared for, for some time. That took planning. And "planning" sounds like he knew full well what he was doing.

Then, there's the whole "Not Guilty" aspect of such an insane act and plea. Doesn't that seem wrong? Doesn't that "Not Guilty" part seem all wrong, when all the evidence proves they did it? Seems to me, we need to change that part of the system, and make it a plea of "Guilty, but Insane". At least that way, a finding of actual guilt for the deed could be determined, and then the court could address the insanity part for any sentencing. People died at the hands of another, and there must be a reckoning.

I could buy into a "Guilty but Insane" plea one hell of a lot better than that whole "Not Guilty" part. People died. In fact, 12 people died and dozens were wounded. There has to be an accountability for such crime. "Guilty, but Insane", could also mean that if he should ever be "healed", he would still pay for the crime his ass committed. Otherwise, if found "insane" enough to not be held responsible for the murders, he could again walk the streets one day. THAT would be a bigger crime, at least in my view.

URGENT 2nd Amendment Warning

I am passing this blog post on to everyone I know, and hope every freedom loving, Constitution supporting, America reads this and passes this on.

This is a WARNING that we are about to lose our 2nd Amendment right!

The gun control fervor is reaching a point that may very well open the door to repealing the our 2nd Amendment. And I can PROVE IT.

But first, for any regular citizen concerned about violence upon our children, as am I, do NOT be fooled by the Obama side. Don't believe that they do not want to take our guns away, but simply want "common sense" gun control measures. That is a LIE. And according to some cited polling, many well meaning and concerned citizens are falling for that LIE.

It seems very reasonable to many for such simple measures be added, like the "universal background check" for all buyers. On the face of it, and if it were just that, then I understand that. And it may sound reasonable for some, to limit magazine capacities, or ban certain type of firearms that are currently legal. That I do not agree with at all, but we'll go there another time (I have before in prior posts).

But in Austin yesterday (4/10/2013), Democratic City Council member and potential next mayor Mike Martinez, admitted during a speech that the Obama administration’s long term gun control agenda is focused on banning firearms altogether.  Martinez continued, by pointing out a sign held by a protester which read, “stop gun ban!,” and remarked, “someone needs to inform him that there is no gun ban currently, but because of the work we’re doing here today, we will make your sign legitimate shortly, so you hang on to that.” The crowd cheered as Martinez made his vow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4EjvyX_Q_M

Dianne Feinstein told '60 Minutes' in an interview, “If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States, for an outright ban, picking up [every gun]… Mr. and Mrs. America, turn ‘em all in.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJAvULtsQAQ

Chuck Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg, and many others, also want to do away with gun ownership by average citizens (the 2nd Amendment). These elected and sworn officials took an OATH to protect and defend the Constitution! In effect, they want to repeal of the 2nd Amendment, or at least a violate of our rights.

Do I oppose a "universal background check"? On the pure face of it, No. But what I oppose, as does the NRA, is the subtle infringement of our rights, buy whittling them down a little piece at a time. And ANY capitulation with these people, IS letting them advance their real desire to repeal of the 2nd Amendment. SO because of their subtle diluting of all our rights, I oppose ANY attempts to do so. And these so-called "common sense" gun control measures, are BULL SHIT! All they want, is a little giving in here, and a little giving in there, and the door would be open to do what they really want - to repeal the 2nd Amendment.

I'm calling my Texas reps this morning, and ask that for every freedom loving, Constitution supporting American, to do the same.

"A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

The US Supreme Court has confirmed, that the 2nd amendment right to bear arms, is an INDIVIDUAL right! District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008).

One if by land...

While there are those, to include some friends I expect, who think that I am an alarmist. I do not  believe so, and is it my believe that Paul Revere and those other Patriots of that day, were also thought to be alarmists before that famous ride. I don't mean to equate myself with Paul Revere, but would we recognise such a person today? I believe there are many who are trying to wave the lantern of alarm on the coming threat to liberty.

I saw a Youtube video today ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1ABw6IMKn0 ) that everyone should watch. Even if you don't like guns and want them banned, you should still watch this. This is not the first I've seen either. While this man had come from Communist Cuba, I've seen a presentation from a woman who survived NAZI Germany too ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvLdRz5pF7s ).

I have been alarmed about Obama since he started campaigning the first time. The vetting process by an engaged media, never happened, and the connections with Bill Ayers, Bernadine Dohrn, Rev. Wright, were just ignored by at least HALF the nation, and most all the media.

And when Obama said, "We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.", ALL my alarms went off.  ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tt2yGzHfy7s )

WHY would our government, with the best civilian law enforcement in the world, and the best military in the world, need its own "civilian national security force" Sorry, but that smacked of Hitler's SS to me. Call me an alarmist if you want, but at what point should the frog in the pan get out of the friggin' water!

Today, while our government is broke, the DHS (Department of Homeland Security [George W did us no favors with starting this!] has purchased at least 1.6 BILLION rounds of ammunition, at least 7,000 Assault Rifles, and over 2,000 Armored vehicles. WHO is this to be used against? The DHS is NOT our military, yet that agency is arming itself to more than match round for round our fighting military in Iraq and Afghanistan, for the next 20 years! I wish I could say they are arming to protect our borders, but those DHS vehicles are NOT being sent to the borders to support the Border Patrol.

Janet Napolitano has said that the purchase of that ammo is for spending efficiency. Really? Enough for how many years? When we are broke? Sorry, but that's a bullshit explanation. And I am suspicious as hell that THIS is Obama's move toward having the DHS be that "civilian national security force". THAT should cause everyone to be alarmed. It should be especially alarming to all those 60's types who so fervently opposed BIG GOVERNMENT back then!

Until "the people" are alarmed enough to wake up, I will continue to wave the lantern, and in this case, it's One if by land!

Drugs, Murder, and the American Drug User

Recent Headlines:
January 31,2013 - "Kaufman County Courthouse Shooting: Two Suspects Open Fire On Prosecutor In Texas"
April 1, 2013 - "Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland, wife killed "

While the investigation into all three murders go on, I'm jumping in ... with both feet ... to condemn a group of people.

While it is entirely possible that the murders, 2 months apart, are unrelated, I can't imagine them not to be. And it is also possible, the murders were part of some revenge for other than gang/drug related convictions. But I seriously doubt that.

What I do suspect is that when the investigation is concluded, drug trafficking will play a part, in part or in  whole. Whether its the Aryan Brotherhood, who funds themselves in large part by trafficking in drugs, or drug gangs working directly/indirectly for Drug Cartels, I'm betting the bottom line is drug money related.

Now add to that, the drug related murders in the US and Mexico, over the turf wars and enforcement of, the drug trade. The murders do not just involve other gang members, who no one would miss, but public officials (like the Kaufman County DAs), uninvolved bystanders, and those who have some peripheral association with those killed (death by association).

So where am I headed with all this? Here it is - ANYONE, who buys cocaine, heroine, imported marijuana, etc., are CONTRIBUTORS to all that death. I know many will jump on this with some justification or denial, but here is the absolute truth of the matter -

Regardless of any one's argument for legalized pot or such, we ALL know such substances are currently ILLEGAL. We also know that by buying any of those, we are committing a crime, most often a felony. So those who engage in those activities, KNOWINGLY commit crimes, to include felony crimes. And we ALL know that with cocaine especially, the Mexican cartels run the drug trade and are behind most of all the drug related deaths, in one way or another. Those illegal drug cartels, and all the dealers big or small, make money off the drug trade, and that money helps fuel the  the murders.

So ... EVERY purchase of illegal drugs, contributes to the end result of death. And by extension, bare some responsibility for the deaths of those Prosecutors, and one wife, in Kaufman County Texas. YES, they DO! The profits, which start at the lowest street user, helps pay for guns, assassins, government pay-offs, even drug production slavery. Like any legitimate business, every dollar gets pieces of it taken out for each participating entity along the way to the top.

If ANYONE buys/deals drugs, that person CONTRIBUTES to the DEATHS of all those murdered for that drug dollar! If you use illegal drugs, those murderers KILL to get and keep YOUR DOLLARS!