NOT THE PROBLEM! Cops and GIs Are the Solution to Criminals and Terrorists
by Les Weaver
Clash Daily Contributor
Cops & G. I’s. are Not the Problem, Rather the Solution to Criminals and Terrorists!
The rules of engagement for the soldier have drastically changed since WW II; the last war that the USA has won without spin and bulls**t on the outcome. WE WON! Profiling was not just encouraged, it was trained. If the enemy was out of uniform or found wearing ours, summary execution was near immediate and did not require reading Miranda Rights or a drawn-out trial. Traitors were executed, they too without 15 years of court argument. The G.I. was trained and accepted to sometimes be the judge, jury and yes, sometimes the executioner.
Although collateral damage, (civilian casualties) was hoped to be avoided, it was accepted as sometimes the only path to surviving and winning. If we were outgunned or out manned by the enemy, reversing that was the highest priority. Most important was that the target for every bomb and bullet did not require the preapproval of the White House. Prisoner of War Camps were not resorts, but where the “inmates” were granted only what our fighting soldiers in the field were furnished except weapons.
And the primary assignment of the soldier was to defeat the enemy, not coddle politicians. Most decisions were made immediately in the field by those that had the assignment to win and their decision was almost always later supported up the chain of command. Second guessing was left to the historians, not the politicians of the moment. The USA and its allies won that war at great cost but they won quickly and undecidedly!
Let’s not forget about the rules for cops since the 1930’s. The police then had the right to protect not just the citizens but themselves. Attacking a cop would most likely lead to the attacker’s immediate death. Now the rules are to pamper every suspect from solo felons to gang riots that take over the streets of our cities and destroy property with total disregard and worse, without fear of punishment. And almost before the report is filed, mama complains that when junior shot at the cop, the return fire should have been a Taser and that only after negotiations.
My how things have changed since WWII. There still does not exist a peace treaty about Korea, Technically we continue to abide by a cease fire that the other side ignores at their pleasure, (Micro-management by politicians?) We were pushed out of Viet Nam,(Micro-management by politicians?) We departed Iraq without long term planning and in effect have lost that war, (Micro-management by politicians?)
Many now retired staff and flag officers report that Afghanistan was and is micro-managed. The present enemies are terrorists that are hiding under the blanket of the Muslim religion and are taking control of all territories from Indonesia across the southern area of the Mediterranean to the Atlantic and south to middle Africa. And daily, this enemy is being exposed as having already established growing roots in Europe and the USA but remain undefined by the White House. I charge that this growth is again due to Micro-management by politicians that are totally unqualified to direct a war; and this is a war! I dare to say what the President won’t; “War against Muslim Radicals”!
I possess front page articles from August 1954, Maricopa County AZ, (Yes, Sheriff Joe’s beat) where gang members were even then being coddled by the mamas with phrases like: “They are just boys letting off steam”. (Makes me think of the “boys” in Ferguson, MO and more).
Yes, we have to abide by the Constitution but have we spun its intent to favor the “bad guy” over law abiding citizens and our “protect and serve” police departments! Here I review the police “limited rules of engagement” and note that many of these same rules now apply to the soldier in the field, replacing the rules that let us once win both domestically and abroad.
Profiling is not allowed even if the suspect is known to have a long rap sheet and displays waist-band bulges. (Although stop & search in NY reduced weapon crimes, it is now disallowed). Attire, distinctive tattoos, actions, accents and even words are not to be considered as a reason to gain police attention. Some municipalities now discourage the words, “white”, “black”, “Hispanic”, “Asian”, etc. to describe a suspect.
Presenting and assuring that the person understands Miranda Rights is a necessity to prevent the officer from becoming the defendant. In court, it is becoming habit that the defendant has rights far exceeding those of the victim. The growing defense for the accused is to find fault with the arresting officer(s). Prior record is often disallowed for the accused but not about the victim or arresting officer. While attire of a suspect may not be a hint to profile a suspect, “those in blue” are now overtly identified as targets. Every action by our police is under close scrutiny by politicians from city level to the White House. There seems to be a movement by many elected officials to portray the police as the bad guys and the accused as the one to receive accolades of appreciation and even reward. Second guessing police by politicians and sometimes superiors has elevated to an art form. Which weapon to use and the severity of application is not without second guessing by high officials and/or the media and almost always by those that could not pass the most fundamental requirement to them-selves qualify as a cop or G.I.
The latest trend now results in fear beyond just anxiety for themselves. That is the media and politicians broadcasting unsupported conclusions before forensics and even taped evidence are organized and released. More and more often, the cop or G.I. is said to be in violation of “something” even before that officer’s shift is over and event recordings downloaded. Both the cop and his/her family must hide out from the public they “serve and protect”.
Even, when most often, these preliminary media and political charges are proven false, the cop and his family have been permanently injured. In the last six years, (from the Boston professor incident on) false accusations have nationally attacked the police, these from the President down. I for one cannot find where these false accusations against cops were equally retracted by the political accusers and repair so much as attempted. Even Obama’s beer summit was but a political photo-op.
Lastly, jails and POW camps now are best described as near emulating Hilton or Best Western. The exception is Maricopa County, AZ where Sheriff Joe Arpaio has attempted to make his jail accommodations no better than what our government has approved for soldiers in the field. I praise Joe’s attitude that; “What’s good enough for our military is good enough for felons, and if you don’t like it; don’t give reason to come back”!
And now we note that the military is being “brought into line” to operate under these same politically promoted “rules for cops”. Until the media and their political friends are restrained and condemned by being penalized for false accusations against the police or military, this country will have no chance of winning a foreign war let alone any domestic war, i.e.; the war on drugs, gangs, terrorists, or other felons.
The first step is for the public is to rise up to support our civilian police and military as separate and unique organizations as the Constitution provides. If not, we face the possibility of a single combined police/military that reports only to the President and his/her non-elected political advisors that will continue to make and/or change rules of engagement on whim of the moment.
Next is to accept that if a cop is threatened, at that moment his life is not of just equal, but of greater value than the person threatening him/her. We must back our police until such has been PROVEN unmerited on an individual basis. Not until then will we benefit by a drop in domestic crime across this nation nor will the USA again win a war.
Image: http://aupcareeroutlook.wikispaces.com/police+officer-angel+arias
