Police Work, Politics and World Affairs, Football and the ongoing search for great Scotch Whiskey!

Friday, April 30, 2021

Tonight is what it means to be young!!!!"

Unfortunately, not for its author, Jim Steinman

A prolific songwriter, he was most known for his collaboration with Meatloaf, writing classics like Paradise by the Dashboard Light, and Two Out of Three Ain't Bad. But he also wrote for other singers such as Bonnie Tyler (Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding Out for a Hero), Air Supply (Making Love Out of Nothing at All), and Celine Dion (It's All Coming Back to Me Now). 

I've said more than once, the "artist" of today suck. Part of it is I'm am a child of the 70/80s, when the music was great. And the other is people from back then actually had talent. Sorry, singing "you're a bitch,  you're a ho!" for three minutes is not music, or art. Barely qualifies as sustainable noise. But for men like Steinman, he was a talent rarely seen. He was the man behind the artist, he put the words in the artist mouth, the music in front of the musician's instrument. And he will be deeply missed.

As a final tribute, I would like to post a lesser know example of his work. In 1984, Streets of Fire premiered, a Rock and Roll Fable. Steinman songs were not three minutes and a few seconds. His were at least six. Well, this movie didn't make a fortune, but it showed two great actors in their early career (Rick Moranis and Willem Dafoe), and featured two kick ass songs. The first, Nowhere Fast, from the beginning of the movie. And this classic of rock noir, Tonight Is What It Means Yo Be Young. Enjoy, and have a great weekend.


 

Officer Down


Master Sergeant Henry Turner
Louisiana Department of Corrections, Louisiana
End of Watch Saturday, July 18, 2020
Age 65
Tour 24 years
Cause COVID19

Master Sergeant Henry Turner died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among staff and inmates at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola.

Sergeant Turner had served with the Louisiana Department of Corrections for 24 years. He is survived by his wife and three sons. Two of his sons also work for the agency.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Officer Down


Corrections Officer V Jerry Esparza
Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Institutional Division, Texas
End of Watch Wednesday, July 15, 2020
Age 45
Tour 25 years
Cause COVID19
Incident Date Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Corrections Officer V Jerry Esparza died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among staff and inmates at the Jester III Unit in Richmond, Texas.

Officer Esparza had served with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for 25 years. He is survived by his wife and four children.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

The Oscars bore everyone…

 But who cares.


When I was at Ft Carson CO (Colorado Springs) back in 89-92, the local rock station was KATM, The Kat. Routinely you would hear the catch phrase, “The Kat Rocks Colorado Springs,” or “The Kat Rocks Fort Carson.” Occasionally you’d hear, “The Kat Rocks Kansas. But who cares.” I had to think of that when I stumbled on the fact the Academy Awards were being held on Sunday the 25th

To steal the phrase, The Oscars suck. But who cares. I think the last time I watched the show was during the Billy Crystal years, and that man was entertaining. Hell, Whoopi Goldberg wasn’t bad. Compared to the last few years, David Letterman knocked it out of the park. I didn’t watch it, but to confess, I did check a list of actors, films, etc. Of the actors (lead and supporting), I knew 2 (Sir Anthony Hopkins and Gary Oldman), actresses’ one (Glen Close), and movies…none. 

I’ve said it for ages, Hollywood sucks. I don’t mind paying money for good entertainment, but it has to be entertaining, not leftist lectures about whatever is the flavor of the week. It’s pathetic when thousands of new books are released each year, Hollywood finds time and money to put out one sequel after another, or movie versions of TV shows. Or they don’t see the demand where it is. Even have a critical and financially successfully powerhouse of Braveheart, Met Gibson could not get any studio’s to take his next big project, The Passion of the Christ. He self-produced it, and worldwide it made over 600 million dollars. 

George Lucas said his reason for writing Star Wars was he wanted to produce a movie for a generation growing up without heroes. I watched Star Wars at least eight times (it was .50 cents for a kid to get into the movie back then) because it was, get this, entertaining. I showed my wife some classics she never saw before, such as The Quiet Man (The Duke is always good), CasablancaThe Maltese Falcon, and The Caine Mutiny (Bogie at his finest). They have radical things. An entertaining story, well written script, strong characters, character development during the film. There are reasons, over 50 years after it was released, you still must pay on video services to watch 2001: A Space Odyssey. You can get the lackluster sequel, 2010: The Year We Made Contact, for nothing. 

From this past Saturday’s NY Times, I have to say, I’m in agreement with Maureen Dowd. She makes some excellent points. 

Maureen Dowd

Crushed Dream Factory

Craving escapism from the Oscar contenders that reflect our sad reality.

WASHINGTON — People are talking about the Oscars this year.

Namely, how they won’t be watching. A lot of people don’t even realize the show, once an edge-of-your-seat American institution, is Sunday.

Movie stars don’t exist anymore. Movies have been swallowed by TV and streaming. The theaters are on life support; even the ArcLight on Sunset Boulevard, one of the most beloved movie palaces in a town full of cinephiles, could not be saved.

Norma Desmond’s everlasting declaration — “It’s the pictures that got small!” — has never seemed more true.

Sex, glamour, excitement and mystery are relics of a bygone era. Hollywood is now focused on worthy, relevant, socially conscious and lugubrious…

...Brooks Barnes, a Hollywood reporter for The New York Times, put it this way: “The Oscars forgot about its primary job — to sell Hollywood to the world, to be a big, fat commercial for the dream factory, the kind that makes financiers open their wallets and wannabe actresses get pinwheels in their eyes about the day they might be able to stand on that stage and give their acceptance speech.”

Truer words were never spoken. The entertainment business, is, Hollywood has forgotten, a business. The product/service they sell? Entertainment. Just like sports, etc. And when the people pushing their product spend much time insulting their customers, or their country, they wonder why the rating collapse? See below.

Surveys show that small percentages of people who watch movies have seen, or even heard of, the nominated films. (A whopping 15 percent are even aware of what the hell a “Mank” is.)

…Bill Maher made the point on his show that we could use more escapism in this year of plague and tumult.

“I don’t have to leave the theater whistling, but would it kill you once in a while to make a movie that doesn’t make me want to take a bath with the toaster?” he said, adding: “Academy nominations used to say, ‘Look what great movies we make.’ Now they say, ‘Look what good people we are.’ It’s not about entertainment, it’s about suffering, specifically yours…”  

I rarely agree with Bill Maher, but when he’s right, he hits it out of the park. And don’t worry Bill, the offended class have more to be offended by.

The Oscars Are Facing Backlash After Chadwick Boseman Didn't Win During A "Chaotic" Climax To The Show

"Did the Academy hold Best Actor until the end because they assumed Chadwick Boseman would posthumously win and then he didn't?"

The Academy is facing backlash and being accused of building Sunday night's Oscars ceremony around the late Chadwick Boseman and betting on him to win, only for the end of the show to fall into chaos when Anthony Hopkins won instead...

...When it became apparent that the Best Actor category would be the final award of the night, many thought that this would be an emotional and heartfelt nod to Chadwick Boseman, who was nominated for the first time...

...However, in what looked like a bet gone very wrong, people were left stunned when the award was eventually given to Anthony Hopkins for his role in The Father

Nothing against Mr. Boseman, but I never heard about him until his passing. I know it’s a combination of not enjoying what Hollywood is putting out, and just not caring who Hollywood is putting out. As I approach 60, I’m pretty much set in my ways, I’d rather watch my DVDs of Married with Children or All in the Family than a lecture on how we’re destroying the Earth, how we stole the United States from the Indians (but for some reason the actors will not pay rent to the Indian tribes), while capitalism sucks and socialism is great.

Back when I was in college (Mid-80s), I used to go to the movies 2-3 times a month. One, movies were cheaper then. Two, and more importantly, the movies were better. Now it’s 2-3 times a year (last one I think was A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood). Until movies improve, the product Tinseltown is putting out gets better, Hollywood will get less and less of my money. 

UPDATE:

I'm not the only person who thinks the Academy Awards suck:

Oscar ratings drop to an all-time low with unwatchable show

The Oscars ratings are in, and this year’s ceremony landed with a resounding whimper. 

About 9.85 million viewers tuned in, according to Variety, which is a more than 58% drop from last year’s all-time low of 23.6 million viewers. 2019’s ceremony garnered 29.6 million viewers. The ceremony landed a 1.9 rating for adults in the coveted 18 to 49 age demographic, a 64.2% drop from 2020. 

Despite the dismal viewership, the 2021 Oscars were full of several surprises, shockers and  charming moments... 

Yo, Hollyweird, it's not us. It's you. Get over yourself, and start working your product, not convincing us we are racists, sexists, etc. Other than that, I've got many more choices for entertainment than you.

Monday, April 26, 2021

Officer Down


Director N. Kyle Coleman
Bexar County Fire Marshal's Office, Texas
End of Watch Tuesday, July 14, 2020
Age 69
Tour 46 years
Badge 1600
Cause COVID19

Director Kyle Coleman died after contracting COVID-19 while coordinating the county's emergency response to the pandemic.

Director Coleman had served in law enforcement for 46 years. He had retired from the Bexar County Sheriff's Office before joining the Bexar County Fire Marshal's Office, where remained a sworn law enforcement officer and served as the county's director of the Office of Emergency Management. He is survived by his wife and two stepsons.

Director Coleman was a highly respected researcher of forgotten line of duty deaths in Texas and surrounding states. He was a regular contributor and researcher for the Officer Down Memorial Page and the Texas Peace Officers' Memorial Foundation. He was personally responsible for the discovery and research of countless line of duty deaths in Texas.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Friday, April 23, 2021

The Music of the Night...

One of the really miserable features of Covid is the closing of theaters. I love the theater, even if I don’t go as much as I can. Back in New Orleans, I used to go to the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane University. Great work by local actors, saw King Lear and Much Adam About Nothing in one summer. 

Another classic I’ve seen live twice is The Phantom of the Opera. Once in the late 80s in New Orleans, and in 1998 in Houston. Hopefully it will come again this year. If you haven’t seen it, do yourself a favor and enjoy it. 

Well, here is an incredible version of the theme. Enjoy, and have a great weekend.


Officer Down


Police Officer Jonathan Shoop
Bothell Police Department, Washington
End of Watch Monday, July 13, 2020
Age 32
Tour 1 year
Badge 119

Police Officer Jonathan Shoop was shot and killed in the 10300 block of Woodinville Drive following a vehicle pursuit.

At approximately 9:40 pm Officer Shoop and his field training officer attempted to stop a vehicle for failing to display a license plate. The vehicle fled the stop, struck a man on a scooter, and then crashed on Woodinville Drive. The occupant of the vehicle emerged, made anti-police statements, and immediately opened fire on officers, who were still in the patrol car.

Officer Shoop's field training officer returned fire, during which Officer Shoop was inadvertently struck in the head and killed.

The man was apprehended six hours later, hiding on the roof of a nearby building.

Officer Shoop was a U.S. Coast Guard veteran and had served with the Bothell Police Department for one year. He is survived by his fiancée, mother, and two brothers.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Officer Down


Officer Roel De La Fuente
United States Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection - Office of Field Operations, U.S. Government
End of Watch Monday, July 13, 2020
Tour 19 years
Cause COVID19
Location Texas

Officer Roel De La Fuente died after contracting COVID-19 as the result of presumed exposure at the Pharr Commercial Facility in Hidalgo County, Texas.

Officer De La Fuente had served with the United States Customs and Border Protection - Office of Field Operations for 19 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Monday, April 19, 2021

Officer Down


Border Patrol Agent Enrique J. Rositas, Jr.
United States Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection - United States Border Patrol, U.S. Government
End of Watch Saturday, July 11, 2020
Age 53
Tour 22 years
Badge M168
Military Veteran
Cause COVID19
Location Texas

Border Patrol Agent Enrique Rositas died after contracting COVID-19 during a presumed exposure while on duty at the McAllen Station.

Agent Rositas was a U.S. Air Force veteran. He had served with the United States Border Patrol for 22 years and was assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Sector. He is survived by his wife, son, and daughter.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Sunday, April 18, 2021

Views on Black Lives Matter have changed…

Maybe it’s because people know more about this domestic terrorist group.

 As the Chauvin trial wraps up, and the Potter case starts, I found this column in FiveThirtyEight.Cominteresting. The author is obviously a supporter of BLM, and she seems confused why support for the group has fallen since June 2020. 

 

How Views On Black Lives Matter Have Changed — And Why That Makes Police Reform So Hard

By Alex Samuels

 

Daunte Wright was driving in his car through Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, two days ago when police officers…just 10 miles away from where Wright died, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was on trial for murder after kneeling on George Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes last year.

 

Floyd’s death sparked a massive movement against police brutality and a sweeping shift in public opinion. And while it’s possible that in the wake of the latest tragedy, public support for reforming policing might increase again, new calls for change face a significant obstacle in public opinion. Gains in support for reform, especially among white Americans, tend to be fleeting, and there’s no consensus on what type of reforms the public wants.

No argument there. The American people may want some real improvements and reforms (not like bail/criminal justice reform, which has jacked up crime all over the US). Radical leftist like this woman don’t want reforms of law enforcment, they want it destroyed. 

Eleven months after Floyd’s death, support for the Black Lives Matter movement has fallen, while America’s trust in law enforcement has risen. Sixty-nine percent of Americans, according to a USA Today/Ipsos survey from March, now trust local police and law enforcement to promote justice and equal treatment of all races versus 56 percent who felt the same way last June.  

 

Meanwhile, in the almost four years Civiqs has been asking about support for the Black Lives Matter movement, a majority of white people have never supported the movement.1 Support peaked at 43 percent last June, just days after Floyd’s death. Since then, white Americans’ support for the movement has dipped back down to roughly where it was before Floyd’s death and is currently at 37 percent. 

 

Some of the biggest drops in support among white Americans occurred among older people (between the ages of 50 and 64), Republicans and men. Black Americans, meanwhile, have remained steady in their support of the movement. Overall, 85 percent of Black Americans say they support Black Lives Matter, compared to 88 percent last year…

The reasons for the decline in support among white Americans are myriad. Some experts have chalked it up to a decline in protests and less media coverage of ongoing calls for police reform, making it easier for white people to tune out issues of police brutality. It’s also worth noting, of course, that many protests for Black and civil rights start off unpopular, and people’s perception of the current movement might change over time; white Americans have gradually become more liberal on issues of race, for instance…  

Interesting, could it be the fact BLM (like Antifa) is an organized domestic terrorist group, and they don’t want to support them? Since the beginning of the riots BLM/Antifa in June 2020, damage cost have exceeded one-billion dollars, dwarfing the 1992 Rodney King riots in Los Angeles, or the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. And it has not stopped. On April 17, 2021 these groups burned an Apple computer store, causing major damage to it and the businesses near it.  

And the fact is we don’t have a plague of police shooting unarmed black men. American police interact with the public over 70 million times a year. And in those interactions, police shoot and kill around one-thousand people a year. Of the one-thousand, how many are black males? Generally fifteen. Not exactly a swarm. 

Sorry Ms. Samuels, but the American people can see a false narrative when they see one. Looks like a fraud, sounds like a fraud, smells like a fraud, it’s a fraud. 

Friday, April 16, 2021

Officer Down

Police Officer Edelmiro Garza, Jr.
McAllen Police Department, Texas
End of Watch Saturday, July 11, 2020
Age 35
Tour 9 years

Police Officer Ismael Chavez
McAllen Police Department, Texas
End of Watch Saturday, July 11, 2020
Age 39
Tour 2 years, 6 months

Police Officer Edelmiro Garza and Police Officer Ismael Chavez were shot and killed from ambush while responding to a domestic disturbance call at a home in the 3500 block of Queta Street.

They had approached the front door of the home when they were suddenly ambushed and shot before drawing their weapons or making an emergency broadcast. Other officers who were sent to check on them came across the scene and immediately requested backup.

The subject who ambushed them committed suicide as additional units arrived on scene.

Officer Garza had served with the McAllen Police Department for nine years.

Officer Chavez had served with the McAllen Police Department for 2-1/2 years.
Rest in Peace Gentlemen…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

Good news from Iran: The Israelis are still working to stop the Iranian nuclear program

American Thinker was good enough to publish my article on the “power failure” at the Iranian nuclear weapons develop facility Natanz.

Good news from Iran: The Israelis are still working to stop the Iranian nuclear program


One of the many disasters of the Obama years was the Iran nuke deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). In exchange for one billion seven hundred million dollars (400 million in cold, hard, cash), we got...their promise they will be good.

Well, no one expected the Iranians to keep their word, and yes, they have continued to work toward nuclear weapons.  But today we've heard of some good news from the Iranian desert.  Their nuclear research facility took a hit.

According to the New York Times on Sunday:

A power failure that appeared to have been caused by a deliberately planned explosion struck Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment site on Sunday, in what Iranian officials called an act of sabotage that they suggested had been carried out by Israel.

How the Obama Crew Makes Things Worse

The blackout injected new uncertainty into diplomatic efforts that began last week to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal repudiated by the Trump administration.

Iran did not say precisely what had caused the blackout at the heavily fortified site, which has been a target of previous sabotage, and Israel publicly declined to confirm or deny any responsibility. But American and Israeli intelligence officials said there had been an Israeli role.

How bad is to be determined, but we can credibly assume the Israelis did it.  Thank God we've got the Israelis.

Here's a link to a photo of the Natanz Nuclear Facility, Iran.

And here's Iran's reaction:

Iran Calls Natanz Atomic Site Blackout 'Nuclear Terrorism'

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran on Sunday described a blackout at its underground Natanz atomic facility an act of "nuclear terrorism," raising regional tensions. Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, stopped short of directly blaming anyone for the incident. Details remained few about what happened early Sunday morning at the facility, which initially was described as a blackout caused by the electrical grid feeding the site.

Many Israeli media outlets offered the same assessment that a cyberattack darkened Natanz and damaged a facility that is home to sensitive centrifuges…If Israel caused the blackout, it further heightens tensions between the two nations, already engaged in a shadow conflict across the wider Middle East. It also complicates efforts by the U.S., Israel's main security partner, to re-enter the atomic accord aimed at limiting Tehran's program so it can't pursue a nuclear weapon…

"…We still do not know the reason for this electricity outage and have to look into it further," Kamalvandi said[.] ... Asked if it was a "technical defect or sabotage," Kamalvandi declined to comment[.] ...

Natanz suffered a mysterious explosion at its advanced centrifuge assembly plant in July that authorities later described as sabotage. Iran now is rebuilding that facility deep inside a nearby mountain[.]

We can only hope that the Israelis' work against the Iranian nuclear weapons program is successful.  The United States will not oppose it for the foreseeable future.

If you want an excellent book on the Israeli's targeted program, read Rise and Kill First.  Originally, the Mossad targeted former Nazi officials and Palestinian terrorists.  But as the years have gone by, the Nazis and the Palestinians have gone mostly quiet, and now the Israelis have a more pressing enemy.

Iran also blamed Israel for the killing of a scientist who began the country's military nuclear program decades earlier. The Stuxnet computer virus, discovered in 2010 and widely believed to be a joint U.S.-Israeli creation, once disrupted and destroyed Iranian centrifuges at Natanz[.]

The recent M.O. of the Mossad is to assassinate the target (e.g., a couple of motorcycles drive up and shoot him, or a bomb is used, etc.), and within a few hours, the operators are no longer in Iran.  And by the next day, the co-workers of the now deceased scientist/technician/official get an email with pictures of his body.  The message is clear: "you're next if you don't stop."  Remember, Israel was founded on two words: "never again."  The men and women who work these operations have no issue with killing nuclear scientists working to give the mullahs the means to wipe Israel off the map.

It's has been an open secret that Israel developed nuclear weapons by the early 1970s, and an open source says they have as many as 500 warheads (like America, they will neither confirm nor deny).  Reportedly, Tel Aviv was close to using them in 1991, when Iraq launched SCUD missiles toward Israel in the first Gulf War.  But I find something very disturbing.

In a Facebook discussion with a very liberal friend of mine, when I asked about the Iranians developing nuclear weapons, he said, "Who are we to say they can't have them...they have as much right as any other nation."  I looked at his post and wondered how much he had to drink this past week.  The problem is that his view reflects many on the left.  Part is their innate anti-Semitism.  And part is the naïve belief that the West in general, and the United States in particular, has no standing to criticize any other nation.  See the usual canards (slavery, mistreatment of the Indians, etc.).

Again, it's an open secret that the only nuclear-armed nation in the Middle East is Israel and has been for a half century.  And in spite of multiple attacks on the Jewish homeland, it has not used them.  Does anyone with a two-digit I.Q. think that if the mullahs in Tehran had nukes over the last forty years, they would have not used them?

As the idiot with the cognitive decline in the White House (actually, Obama and the other real powers behind the throne) rush to restart the Iran nuke deal, and start an Operation Warp Speed for Tehran's weapons program, let us hope Tel Aviv can keep knocking the program down.  Israel will not let Iran have nuclear weapons and will use any method it can to peacefully prevent this.  Otherwise, the Israelis will choose other methods.

Michael A. Thiac is a retired police patrol sergeant and a retired Army intelligence officer.  He can also be found on A Cop's Watch

Image: Omid Vahabzadeh, Fars News Agency via Wikimedia CommonsCC BY 4.0.        

Officer Down


Lieutenant Bobby Almager
Corpus Christi International Airport Department of Public Safety, Texas
End of Watch Friday, July 10, 2020
Age 53
Tour 24 years
Badge 4104
Cause COVID19
Incident Date Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Lieutenant Bobby Almager died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak within the agency, including multiple officers on his squad.

Lieutenant Almager had served with the Corpus Christi International Airport Department of Public Safety for 24 years. He is survived by his wife and three daughters.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Monday, April 12, 2021

Officer Down


Officer Alfonso H. Murrieta
United States Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection - Office of Field Operations, U.S. Government
End of Watch Thursday, July 9, 2020
Age Not available
Tour 32 years
Cause COVID19
Location Arizona
Communicable Disease, COVID-19

Officer Alfonso Murrieta died after contracting COVID-19 in a presumed exposure while on duty at Tucson International Airport in Arizona.

Officer Murrieta volunteered to assist with local policing duties at the airport after an outbreak of COVID-19 amongst members of the Tucson International Airport Police Department disrupted staffing.

Officer Murrieta had served with the United States Customs and Border Protection - Office of Field Operations and the former United States Immigration and Naturalization Service for 32 years. He is survived by his wife and four children.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Friday, April 9, 2021

Officer Down


Captain Glenn Allen Green
Pike County Sheriff's Office, Mississippi
End of Watch Monday, July 6, 2020
Age 73
Tour 12 years
Cause COVID19
Incident Date Monday, June 29, 2020

Captain Glenn Green died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak amongst staff and inmates at the Pike County Correctional Facility.

Captain Green was a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War. He had previously served with the Mississippi Highway Patrol. He was predeceased by one son and is survived by his wife, daughter, and two grandchildren.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Thursday, April 8, 2021

This is too stupid for TV or the movies...

So it has to be real!

Ages ago, I was ordered (like the entire unit) to an Army sensitivity class. Can't recall if it was sex, race, gender identity, panning, bi-ing, or questioning status. After loosing an hour of my life which I'll never get back, I walked out with a completely disgusted look on my face. And a friend said it well, "I can summarize that hour into two words. BE PROFESSIONAL!" If you can't tell, I am no fan of the racial/sex complaint industry. Talk about a waste of manpower, money, and time. 

Well, to give a classic example, I just finished an excellent book, Concepts of Nonlethal Force: Understanding For from Shouting to Shooting, by Charles Heal. In Chapter 14, he covers canines, aka dogs or K9s, used in police operations. And Mr. Heal said it well, "You can't make this up." A city council person wanted the dog euthanized because he was, ready...racist

Dog cleared of profiling, back on duty

"Simply stated, there is no evidence that Dolpho (the dog) was dangerous or uncontrollable in the past," said a 13-page report by borough Solicitor John A. Bacharach...

...The report absolves Dolpho and his owner-handler, Officer Shawn Barger, of any wrongdoing in a June 7 incident when Dolpho attacked Brandon Livingston, 9. The dog bit the boy on the thigh to the point where Barger had to lie on the dog to force him to release his grip. 

The officer had been chasing a drug suspect who is white. Brandon is black. 

Livingston's mother brought the matter to the attention of Councilwoman Wanda Jones Dixon, who suggested the dog attacked Livingston because he is black and should be put down because of that. 

Jones Dixon doesn't entirely agree with Bacharach's conclusion. 

"There was wrongdoing because the dog bit the child," she said. 

She called it an injustice that the dog was returned to duty Wednesday and said she will warn parents. 

The June 7 incident started when Barger saw an apparent drug deal and followed a car containing the suspect, later identified as Donald John Wilczak, the report said. Wilczak eventually jumped from the car and ran, and Barger chased him. During a struggle on a porch in 700 block of Boquet Street, the remote release device on Barger's belt apparently was activated unintentionally, and the door on the police wagon opened, the report said. As Barger radioed for assistance, the suspect got away and ran west. 

The report said Barger saw Dolpho standing on the sidewalk next to the police Jeep, looking at Wilczak as the suspect turned onto Margaret Street. Barger yelled "pletz," the command for "down," but Dolpho ran to the top of Margaret Street. Barger turned onto Margaret and saw 10 or more children running away, screaming. One was Brandon, whom Dolpho grabbed by the thigh and pulled from the porch steps to the street, the report said. 

Barger ran toward Dolpho yelling for him to stop, but the dog did not release the boy. The report said Barger tackled Dolpho and choked him off Brandon, then lay on Dolpho until the dog calmed down. 

Carol Carlin of Frank Street told Bacharach that she saw Wilczak between her house and the one next door. That path would have taken Wilczak through or near the children on Margaret Street and within a few feet of the Livingston's porch, the report said. 

At a borough council meeting three days after Brandon was bitten, Brandon's mother and Jones Dixon charged that the dog had been trained to attack blacks. 

Ms. Dixon, just curious. How can you train a dog to attack black people (or people of color, as opposed to people of pallor) when dogs are, by nature, color blind

Bacharach's report said Dolpho's trainer, Kenneth J. Molen, said the dog might have become confused or overstimulated by the noise and confusion. Molen said he does not train dogs to distinguish or focus on any race and that his training regimen does not use decoys that appear African American, according to the report...
K9s can sometimes get confused, especially with multiple people in the area. One thing patrol cops are trained to not do is get in front of a K9 pursuing a suspect. If he confuses you with the bad guy...you will have a bad day, and the bad guy has a better chance of getting away. And yes, an agitated K9 is a bear to control at times. Every K9 handler I've know has scars on their arms from controlling the dog. As one friend of mine said, "Occupational hazard."    

As this incident occurred two decades ago, I have no doubt Dolpho has crossed the Rainbow Bridge by now. Hopefully this bull s%^& complaint didn't adversely affect his service to the public, and he enjoyed a long and healthy retirement, sharing this war story with his buddies. Remember, if you ain't getting complained on from time to time...you are likely not doing your job. :<)

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Officer Down


Corrections Officer Kenneth Harbin
Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Institutional Division, Texas
End of Watch Saturday, July 4, 2020
Age 60
Tour 30 years
Cause COVID19
Incident Date Sunday, June 28, 2020

Corrections Officer Kenneth Harbin died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among staff and inmates at the Daniel Unit in Snyder, Texas.

Officer Harbin had served with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for over 30 years.

In early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. Many of these first responders died as a result of COVID-19.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Monday, April 5, 2021

Officer Down


Police Officer Anthony Dia
Toledo Police Department, Ohio
End of Watch Saturday, July 4, 2020
Age 26
Tour 4 years
Badge 2755
Cause Gunfire

Police Officer Anthony Dia was shot and killed after responding to a disturbance at a Home Depot store at 1035 West Alexis Road at about 12:30 am.

A drunk subject had started to harass participants of an informal car show that was in the parking lot of the store. Officer Dia was the first officer on the scene and attempted to contact the subject. The man produced a handgun and opened fire, striking Officer Dia in the chest. Despite his wounds, Officer Dia was able to return fire as the man fled.

The subject fled into a nearby wooded area where he committed suicide.

Witnesses to the shooting began to provide medical aid to Officer Dia. Another responding officer transported him to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.

Officer Dia had served with the Toledo Police Department for two years and had previously served with the Mercy Health Police Department for two years. He is survived by his wife, two sons, and parents.
Rest in Peace Bro…We Got The Watch

Nemo me impune lacessit

Day is done, Gone the sun, From the lake, From the hills, From the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh. 

Sunday, April 4, 2021

This is unfathomable. Arresting a child who barely understands law.

When I was in the police academy, we discussed Texas penal code, and the assistant district attorney made a point. Children were classified as those under ten years of age (i.e. nine years and below), and the could not held criminally responsible for their actions. A eight year old shoots someone, he cannot be put in jail for murder, aggravated assault, etc, because he is too young to understand his actions. Now the state can take civil actions against the child, such as placing him into a reform home, removing him from his parents, etc. Juveniles (ten to sixteen years of age) could be held (to a degree) responsible for their actions.  

Now comes from North Carolina one screwed up abuse of the law. 

Virginia Bridges The (Durham) Herald-Sun

DURHAM — The 6-year-old dangled his legs above the floor as he sat the table with his defense attorney.

He was accused of picking a tulip from a yard at his bus stop, his attorney J Boyer said, and he was on trial in juvenile court for injury to real property.

The boy’s attention span was too short to follow the proceedings, Boyer sai she handed him crayons and a coloring book.

“I asked him to color a picture,” she said, “so he did.”

He didn’t know it, but no matter what the judge decided, the experience could change the boy’s life, from how he sees the court system to increasing his chance of getting into trouble again and being sent to alternative school.

Boyer and others say children that age don’t have the mental capacity to understand the juvenile justice process and its consequences. They can’t make informed decisions, like whether to talk to police and what to tell them, when to go to trial and whether to admit to the accusations against them...

...“Should a child that believes in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the toot fairy be making life-altering decisions?” asked New Hanover County Chief District Court Judge Jay Corpening...

The answer, your Honor, is no. In Texas, we detain/arrest a juvenile, a parent or an attorney must be present because the kid cannot make informed decisions. That's why children cannot vote, sign contracts, or decide they want to change their sex (sorry, had to put that in).

I'm just shocked (couldn't find the full detains of the arrest) that this was ever brought to the cops. If someone had called me, I would have told the complainant to get with the parent and you two work this out (I assume a six year old has adult supervision nearby). 

The article mentions a Democrat member of the legislature is working on correcting this. Let's hope it happens soon. This is an abortion of law, and something that brings disrespect, and disregard, for the law. 

Saturday, April 3, 2021

More books, more books!

My wife Beth is always on me about buying books, and I have to say it, she has a point. My "To Read" bookshelf have over 100 books on it. But my retort is, "There are worse habits to have." And I've discovered buying used books for a lot of what I'm reading now. I just picked up a four volume biography of General Marshall, hardcover, used and in good condition, for less than fifty dollars.

I am currently re-reading The Leader's Bookshelf by retired US Navy Admiral James Stavridis, and R. Manning Ancell, which is a review of fifty books on leadership. I read the summary of Dereliction of Duty by retired Army Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster, and yes, I immediately got on Amazon and ordered a slightly used copy. I promise Beth, I will get to it. 


But while I was reviewing this, I found this article by General McMaster, and found it fascinating. I agree with the general that Ronald Reagan did the proper thing in challenging the Soviet Union. In the Gipper's immortal words, Reagan,  “Here’s my strategy on the Cold War: We win; they lose.” Rawhide was always to the point. 

Now with China rising as our new major advisor (Although Putin is trying to make Russia the Soviet Union 2.0), I find this article very insightful.
Among the best remembered summits of the 20th century are those of Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. Reagan’s commitment to dialogue with America’s primary adversary and what then-Secretary of State George P. Shultz called his “personal chemistry” with his Soviet counterpart were hallmarks of his presidency. But even more important was the fact that Reagan had a clear strategy for victory in the global contest with the Soviet Union.

Reagan’s approach — applying intensive economic and military pressure to a superpower adversary — became foundational to American strategic thinking. It hastened the end of Soviet power and promoted a peaceful conclusion to the multi-decade Cold War. 

Now it is useful to ask if a similar approach would be equally successful in America’s contest with an even more formidable rival, the People’s Republic of China, a challenger with whom the free world’s economies are intertwined and increasingly interdependent.

In 1983, Reagan approved National Security Decision Directive 75, which set the course for an assertive, competitive approach to the Soviets, in contrast to the “live and let live” aspirations of détente... 

...Working from (George F.) Kennan’s original intuitions (on containment), the operational approach that Directive 75 emphasized was “external resistance to Soviet imperialism” and “internal pressure on the USSR to weaken the sources of Soviet imperialism.” Rather than trying to reduce friction with the Soviets as prior administrations had done, Directive 75’s aim was “competing effectively on a sustained basis with the Soviet Union in all international arenas.” Within nine years, the Soviet Union collapsed, worn out by economic pressure, an arms race it could not win and internal political contradictions.

The goal of a competitive strategy versus Chinese Communist Party aggression should be different. The United States and like-minded liberal democracies must defend against the expansion of the party’s influence, thwart its ambitions to dominate the 21st century global economy, and convince Chinese leaders that they can fulfill enough of their aspirations without doing so at the expense of their own people’s rights or the sovereignty of other nations.

These efforts must apply Reagan’s fundamental insight — to win against a rival of China’s magnitude requires sustained pressure against the true sources of the adversary’s power.

China is an economic juggernaut. Through its engagement with the United States and other major markets, it has made itself central to global supply chains, moved to dominate strategic industries and emerging technologies, and built up a military designed to win a war with the U.S. and its allies. Numerous multinational corporations and global financial institutions pump capital, technology and know-how into China. This transfer of capability and competitive advantage can be used against the free world to devastating effect. As the CCP puts it, China is poised to “regain its might and re-ascend to the top of the world.” 
To foil China’s plans for preeminence, the United States and its partners should restrict investment into Chinese companies and industries that support the CCP’s strategic goals and human rights abuses. The U.S. should work to block China’s access to Western technology in areas that contribute to military advantage and to construct a new global trade and supply chain system that reduces dependency on China. With India, Australia and Japan, the U.S. must also maintain preponderant military power in the Indo-Pacific to convince Chinese leaders that they cannot accomplish their objectives through threats or the use of force....

H.R. McMaster, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, was national security advisor from 2017 to 2018. He is the author of “Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World.” Jonathan D.T. Ward is the author of “China’s Vision of Victory” and the founder of Atlas Organization.