I mentioned the other day that blogging would be light for a few days due to moving and it has been, and we are still in the process, but an event the other night has me so upset, I feel compelled to write about it here. For those who have been reading Squiggler for any length of time, you will not be surprised to hear that I'm on yet another "mad" at law enforcement and their arrogance and sadism.
We had trouble on my street the other night (an average middle class bedroom community of homes in the $400,000-$600,000 range). It started about one in the morning with some party drinkers who got too rowdy and the sheriff was called out. This was the first mistake. Unlike the military, members of California sheriff departments, seems the county makes no difference, must be sent to the "rude and vicious" school of charm. What is with these guys?
In this trouble, the witnesses were totally ignored and, in fact, in one case, were even threatened and the standard reply by the sheriff was "shut the f**k up. Over and over, this jerk-off was telling the witnesses to "shut the f**k up. Why? Well, because he had made up his mind that the person who was actually responsible for the trouble couldn't possibly be the culprit, too cute, too bouncy, too sexy, while the victim was a rather brawny big guy. The fact that the brawny big guy is known to be a big loving teddy bear and the cute, bouncy instigator is known by all to be a troublemaker was not registering with Sir "shut the f**k up." The baiting the sheriff did was designed to ratchet up the situation rather than calm it down. Taunting, confrontation, foul language, verbal put downs and attacks, all part of the sheriff's script. It was disgusting to watch.
But even more frightening was the violence. Not violence by the inebriated party goers, but violence by the sheriff. Slamming into concrete dislocating a shoulder, wrenching a wrist to the point of cracking, pushing and shoving while the pushee was handcuffed and causing the party to fall face first on concrete. And, of course, the running litany of verbal abuse and name calling.
This time I was not a victim, just an observing bystander, but this is the second time in the last five years that I've witnessed out of control sheriffs whose sadistic attitude and outright stupidity has escalated a situation to critical proportions. It makes me white hot mad, especially in light of all the handwringing by the liberal left over whether we are treating terrorists with kid gloves. What goes on right here on the streets of America and at American jails is criminal and the criminals are the ones wearing the badges. There is something very very wrong when law enforcement is called to diffuse a situation that is not yet out of control and instead turns the situation into a chance to hurt and maim the very citizens who asked for help in the first place.
And will any of the witness bystanders make a formal complaint? I doubt it, I know I won't because I know what retaliation is like if you dare complain. Some of the tactics include getting your car tags listed on the hot sheet so you get stopped constantly, harassing phone calls, midnight visits and stalking, and lies, lies, and more lies. (Criminal Justice classes at the local state-funded colleges have a course that teaches wannabe law enforcement how to lie. They devote an entire semester to the subject.) Men have it even worse as they find themselves in the middle of a "mine is bigger than yours" black comedy if they dare to speak out.
I am in pain for the rest of my life due to police brutality. I was coming off an antidepressant,,,on it because I was having a situational depression for divorcing after 29 years of marriage,,and I drank beer three days after I had stopped the med and acted alittle manic.....arrested and thrown down with my hands tied behind my back,,stopped the fall with my knee and there it is...back screwed up,,knee screwed up...I was 52 years old and I am a professional woman
Posted by: Margaret mobley | 12 October 2006 at 01:39 AM