Month: September 2003

Assault Rifles are Only Good for Killing Large Numbers of People

Or are they?

According to this Greenville (South Carolina) News story, an AK-47 rifle was among the weapons used to apprehend two burglars at a car dealership. The story (note, please, the headline):

Lawmen often scarce in county’s rural north

The break-ins wouldn’t stop at Shupee’s 4×4, so the owner says he grabbed an AK-47 assault rifle and two friends and staked the place out all night.

In the darkness and quiet of northern Greenville County, the three vigilantes say they hid in trucks and a shed until two suspects pulled into the dealership’s parking lot.

Vigilante: : a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law appear inadequate); broadly : a self-appointed doer of justice.

I submit that these men did not punish crime, they simply suppressed it by doing their duty as citizens to stop crime when police were not available to do so. The use of the word vigilante has extremely negative connotations today, but I’m certain its use was quite deliberate in this story. Imagine the gall of mere citizens defending their property without government sanction! Anarchy! Anarchy!

When one tried to break into a black Jeep, Ken Shupe, Jeff Cartee and Dwayne Johnson say they jumped out and made the suspects lie face down in the gravel parking lot until deputies arrived.

The men said they had to police the lot themselves because there aren’t enough deputies to cover the county’s rugged northern terrain.

See “Is the Government Responsible for Your Protection.”

“It’s not the cops’ fault,” Cartee said. “It’s whoever needs to put the cops on the street.”

County Councilman Joe Dill said budget constraints have kept the county from hiring more deputies this year. With drug labs, break-ins and a growing population, the need for deputies will only grow in northern Greenville County, he said.

“We’re still a long way from having the number of deputies that’s required to really patrol that properly,” Dill said.

Sheriff Steve Loftis said that most of the time six to 10 deputies are on patrol north of Greer and Furman University, a mountainous area comprising about 170 square miles.

The number of deputies usually suffices, but a big event, such as a homicide, or a large volume of calls, can slow response times, he said.

“There’s always room for additional help,” Loftis said, “but we try to staff the beats as best we can.”

Jeff Moore, spokesman for the South Carolina Sheriff’s Association, said there isn’t a good rule of thumb for sheriffs to use to determine an appropriate number of deputies. He said what’s appropriate for one county may not be appropriate for another county that’s more thickly populated.

While the fight over funding continues, residents are finding other ways to protect their homes. That includes forming CrimeWatch groups.

And apparently “vigilante” groups.

Volunteer firefighters in Gowensville, a rural area north of Greer, help by occasionally driving by houses when residents leave town, said Fire Chief Terry Wilson.

“It’s basically neighbor looking after neighbor,” he said.

In the Shupee’s 4×4 incident, a suspect tried to remove a box and some speakers from a Jeep at 3 a.m. on Aug. 10, an incident report states. Cartee stepped out from the shed and told him to get on the ground, the report states

“Going through your mind is, ‘It’s on. You’ve messed up,'” Cartee said.

When the suspect “began to mess with something on his side,” Cartee fired a warning shot from a 12-gauge shotgun, the report states. The suspect dropped to the ground, the report states.

Cartee then told another suspect, who was standing by the road, to get on the ground, too, the report states. The suspect dropped the wrench he was holding and did so, the report states.

Shupe said he said he wasn’t interested in a gunfight. He said he just wanted the break-ins to stop at his business, which is a few miles south of the North Carolina line on U.S. 25.

“It’s just because of the remote location that they think it’s open game up there, which it’s not,” Shupe said.

Warrants charge Helge Christian Gresser, 31, and James Brian Killough, 27, both of Hendersonville, N.C., with possession of burglary tools and breaking into an automobile.

When it comes to catching suspects, Loftis said he encourages the community to help by calling deputies when they see a crime. But he said he discourages citizens from taking up arms.

“I would advise against anything like that because I don’t want to see any citizens get themselves hurt,” Loftis said.

Would that be because you believe that ordinary citizens are incapable of using firearms responsibly? That it’s not their job to defend their lives and property? That they’re not qualified?

Loftis said the growing population of northern Greenville County will require more deputies, but he doesn’t yet know how many.

He said budget constraints kept him from asking for more deputies this year, but he will ask for some in the 2005-06 budget.

In the meantime, Johnson said he hopes the Shupee’s 4×4 incident sends a message to thieves.

“A word to the wise: We’re watching,” he said. “A word to the unwise: We’re waiting.”

Damned straight.

Dept. of Our Collapsing Schools

I have already concluded that the reason our school systems are collapsing (or have collapsed, depending on just how far gone you feel they are) is due to the fact that it’s far easier to lead a nation of ignorant people than a nation of intelligent, questioning, reasoning people. In fact, I found this quote at A Life of Freedom this morning that says it better than I can:

“Reason and Ignorance, the opposites of each other, influence the great bulk of mankind. If either of these can be rendered sufficiently extensive in a country, the machinery of Government goes easily on. Reason obeys itself; and Ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it.” — Thomas Paine

So here’s another example of what our school system is doing to our children, allowed by our apathy, via Emuse:

Gently, gently, Mama began to probe with her 8-year-old the ramifications of grading a whole class based on the behavior of a few students (especially those identified since kindergarten as incapable of marshalling self-discipline, let alone of expressing learning skills). What, I asked, were individuals assessed upon?

That may seem a bit over-wrought — unless you have children partaking of the current public education system. And, as I always hasten to add, ours is a very good public education system.

Unfortunately, more and more, “very good” is coming to mean: I’ll teach your children to read, write and cipher in exchange for being allowed to indoctrinate them in socialist, entitlement, tolerance dogma. “Bad” is coming to mean: I’ll indoctrinate them in the same, but won’t bother to teach ’em to read, write and cipher.

That’s it precisely. And it defines the difference between “collapsing” and “collapsed.” Go read the whole post.

Nod to Acidman for the pointer.

OK, I MUST Comment on This (From work…)

The BBC is reporting that Mr. Kevin Morris, chairman of the Police Superintendents Association in England wants “every Briton” in a DNA database.

I am not surprised.

Disappointed, but not surprised.

Orwell was just a little off in his dates.

And I am once again reminded of our Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. –That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

—

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security

The Britons who understood this idea apparently left to come here.

But here’s the money asshat quote from the article:

“Experience has shown that the general public come forward in their thousands when they believe their sample will help police to detect a serious crime.”

Right. Step forward and prove yourself innocent like a good little prole. We’re from the government and we’re here to help you.

To the brits: I hope your chains rest lightly upon you. You’ve spent the last sixty years forging them.

Short Blog Hiatus

Comcast service is still intermittent. They tell me it’s between me and the cable office somewhere, and they’re looking.

In the mean time, I’m very busy at work so posting from there ain’t happening.

Right now I’ve got access. By the time I’m ready to post this, I may not.

[arnold voice]”I’ll be back.”[/arnold voice]

Give or take a couple of days.

More Political Cartoons!

Somehow I don’t think Mike Ramirez of the LA Times will be winning

another Pulitzer for this one. But I like it.

This one from Steve Breen of the San Diego Union-Tribune

made me laugh out loud.

Larry Wright of the Detroit News weighs in on Estrada’s withdrawal.

THAT explains it. From Henry Payne, also of the Detroit News.

And here’s one I hadn’t seen before:

In Contempt by another Kevin – Kevin Moore.

I’d say he has his finger on that particular pulse

Now, gotta get back to work.

That’s Enough for Tonight

We’ll see if I have internet access tomorrow.

This is Why I Read Donald Sensing

He has an excellent post up entitled Wealth and Poverty in America and the world. If you read The Smallest Minority but not One Hand Clapping do yourself a favor and go over there and read.

Oh Sweet Jebus, Don’t These Blithering Morons Listen to Themselves?

From the Austrailian newspaper the Daily Telegraph comes this story of a robbery in which 34 handguns were stolen by armed bandits. The unarmed guard of the appropriately named “Obliging Security Services” was confronted by two armed men, and forced to open a safe in which the firearms were (legally) stored. Here’s the money quotes:

Police Minister John Watkins asked Commissioner Ken Moroney to suspend the licence of Obliging Security Services yesterday after the robbery was revealed in yesterday’s Daily Telegraph.

Right. They followed the rules, so it’s obviously their fault.

The company was the subject of a security audit by police in August last year and met all the requirements of the Fire Arms Act.

This wasn’t enough to keep thieves from breaking into the premises at 11.45pm.

Mr Watkins said he would be looking at changing the Act to introduce mandatory time delay locks on safes, surveillance cameras and better staffing of security offices where guns are held.

Thus making it even more expensive to stay in business, without actually affecting the real problem – violent criminals.

“If a crackdown on the security industry, or greater penalties for failing to secure weapons, puts people out of business – then they don’t deserve to be in business anyway,” Mr Watkins said.

Right! It’s the job of government officials to determine just who does and who does not deserve to be in business. That’s why they get elected, right? To tell everybody exactly what to do and how, and when things still don’t go as advertised, the elected officials get to blame the electorate for it!

“There’s two possibilities here – they didn’t follow the rules and are to blame, or they did and the rules aren’t tough enough. Whatever the case, I’m changing that from today. It’s a sad fact that there’s a growing black market in handguns.

And you’re surprised why? You had England’s sterling example to look to.

“Every gun police take off the streets makes the price of another illegal gun go up.”

You understand this, but you’re still going to blame everybody but the government and the criminals? Yup, you’re a politician. Head so firmly up your fundament that you fart to blow your nose.

I See Darwin is Still With Us or FIRE IN THE HOLE!

Man’s horror firecracker injuries

AN horrific firecracker accident which left an Illawarra man incontinent and unable to have sex has prompted warnings from police and health authorities.

The 26-year-old man suffered a fractured pelvis and severe burns to his genital area after a firecracker exploded between the cheeks of his buttocks.

An ambulance was called to Dapto’s Reed Park about 2.30am on August 10 after reports that the man was haemorrhaging from the buttocks. He was transported to Wollongong Hospital in a serious but stable condition, and he is expected to remain in hospital for several months.

The man suffered extensive injuries from the explosion and required emergency surgery. He now has a colostomy and a catheter, and is sexually dysfunctional.

He will be assessed by a colorectal surgeon to determine whether his injuries can be corrected.

Illawarra Health emergency surgeon Dr Robert McCurdie, who operated on the man when he was taken to Wollongong Hospital, likened the man’s condition to “a war injury”.

Dr McCurdie said he believed the man had stumbled while the firecracker was in his buttocks, and fell down on it.

“By virtue of the fact that the explosion was confined in an upward direction, it went up into his pelvis, blasted a great hole in the pelvis, ruptured the urethra, injured muscles in the floor of the pelvis which rendered him incontinent.

“His pelvis was also fractured,” Dr McCurdie said.

He said he had never seen a similar injury to the genital area before.

“I have seen instances … where people have tried to remove items from their rectum and rupture the sphincter muscles, but not anything like this,” he said.

It is not known whether the man had been imitating the cult prankster film Jackass, a hit in the United States.

In the low-budget film, the men place firecrackers in their buttocks and they shoot into the air.

There’s more, but you get the idea.

A bit more chlorine in the gene pool.