Various Stuff..

[flacaltenn]

Hey CombWork! You still there???

Police have warned residents of Kent and Surrey, England, not to put mesh wire on the windows of their sheds. They say the wire could injure burglars who try to break into the sheds.

That could be us folks.. If only we were civilized.. Apologies (and above all sympathies) to our freedomless Brit buds..

Don't need no waterboard in Canada....

Toronto, Canada, Constable Christopher Hominuk has pleaded guilty to threatening bodily harm. Hominuk was caught on video threatening to Taser the genitals of two suspects and slapping one of them in an effort to get them to help him catch a third suspect in a break-in.

Someone here said that minors have no rights. Maybe this is what they had in mind..

Jonathan Villareal, 17, pulled his pants low on his hips after school ended one day in Derby, Kansas. School resource officers spotted him and ordered him to pull his pants back up. Villareal said he could wear them any way he wanted because school was out. Villareal says they then threw him to the ground. Derby Police Chief Robert Lee says Villareal resisted when officers tried to take him back in the school. Regardless, the confrontation ended with Villareal getting Tasered and having his arm broken and his eye swollen shut.

It takes a village.. A dysfunctional village sometimes..

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent John Deasy says he's going to push to remove chocolate and strawberry-flavored milk from school cafeterias. Critics say that flavored milks contain too much sugar. But supporters, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, say their nutritional value outweighs the added sugar.

Sorry CombWork, but you guys are getting even more attention..

In Essex, England, Tracy St. Clair Pearce found a gang of "travelers" [flacaltenn -- gypsies] trespassing on her property and cutting down her trees for firewood. When she told them to leave, they allegedly threw stones at her and threatened to kill her and harm her animals. So she called the police. When the police finally arrived, they didn't do anything about the travelers, but they did seize a shotgun that St. Clair Pearce legally owns as a "sensible precaution."

Yup, that's what's in store after the 2nd Amendment is chewed up...

And ... the war on drugs continues..

An Independence, Missouri, man, who was not identified by local media, says he was surprised when police showed up at his home searching for marijuana. They found he was growing only tomato plants. Police say they targeted the man simply because he had purchased hydroponic growing equipment.

Want to know why I am a govt skeptic? Because I read these every week at:

http://reason.com/brickbat/weekly/2011-04-24

[flacaltenn]

I just had to verify that "wire mesh" story. It just sounded unreal..

But it is for real...

Surrey Police have defended the move but outraged residents have attacked the force for seemingly trying to protect criminals.
Thomas Cooper, of Tatsfield, Surrey, said he put the mesh around three of his garden sheds after two break-ins over the past four years.

He said he decided to take action after reports of a rise in shed burglaries in the area near the Kent and Surrey border. 'I have three sheds and had two break-ins in the past four years,' Mr Cooper explained.

'I reinforced my shed windows with wire mesh, but was told by the police I had to be very careful because thieves can actually sue you if they get hurt.

'"I mean, what are you meant to do? Let them take your stuff? It is ridiculous that the law protects them even though they are breaking it.'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...den-sheds.html

Simply -- this is what happens when :

THe criminals KNOW that you are defenseless..

Law enforcement and courts are more concerned about the welfare of the criminal than you or your stuff.

The nanny state has enough time and money to advise you in shed protection..

[noonereal]

Originally Posted by flacaltenn

Simply -- this is what happens when :

THe criminals KNOW that you are defenseless..

Law enforcement and courts are more concerned about the welfare of the criminal than you or your stuff.

The nanny state has enough time and money to advise you in shed protection..

good grief

the sky is falling the sky is falling!

[JJIII]

Originally Posted by noonereal

good grief

the sky is falling the sky is falling!

It's already fallen in England and is falling here.

[d-ray657]

The first story was a Constable's interpretation of tort law, not a warning of a criminal offense. Not being particularly familiar with English tort law, I don't know whether there is a precedent to support the constable's opinion or not. I would expect that any case would have had to do with much more than mesh wire, but it is usually only the simplest or most absurd sounding portions of a case that get reported.

If you'll notice, the cop in the second story was convicted for his wrongful conduct - or is it his conviction that has you up in arms?

The third story shows the overreaction by cops, but there is no follow up on what consequences they faced. I would be shocked if there were not severe consequences for the officers who engaged in misconduct.

The fourth story had to do about the LOCAL official who was in charge of the school district providing the meals for children. It sounds like even the highest ranking official in the school district could not make such a change merely by issuing an edict. It wasn't the nanny state, it was the nanny school district, which is what many parents expect.

I would like to hear what the follow-up was on the fifth story. That was a clear dereliction of duty by those peace officers. One would expect that one could rely on local law enforcement officials to take action against trespassers threatening a property owner. Not sure that this anecdotal evidence establish that criminals have become a favored class over property owners.

The sixth story - yeah I agree that the "war on drugs" consumes far more resources than it is worth, and I would rather see such resources used for things like - education maybe.

Regards,

D-Ray

[JonL]

Thank you D-Ray. People love sensationalism and love to get their chains pulled when it reinforces their world view. The "rest of the story" is almost always much more REASONable than what the ideologically driven web sources would have you know.

[piece-itpete]

I was watching 'In From Holland' the other week (it's actually an interesting show) and they interviewed some teachers who were retiring or quitting because of increasing violence from students, that goes unpunished.

I'm uncertain whose worldview that reinforces...

Me Grans' best friend was an English magistrate and she was definately, not exactly pro-crook, but believed it was because of society, not personal choices, no personal responsibility.

My take, that most Europeans are really, really nice people and really want to do the 'right' thing. Whether their take on that is correct or not would be open to interpetation.

Pete

[piece-itpete]

Btw, I can hear my grandmother now, indignant, "I'm NOT 'European', I'm English" Miss that tough old lady something fierce.

Pete

[flacaltenn]

Good Morning D-Ray...

The first story was a Constable's interpretation of tort law, not a warning of a criminal offense. Not being particularly familiar with English tort law, I don't know whether there is a precedent to support the constable's opinion or not. I would expect that any case would have had to do with much more than mesh wire, but it is usually only the simplest or most absurd sounding portions of a case that get reported.

If you followed the Daily Mail link in the 2nd post, you'd find this..

Residents in Surrey and Kent villages have been ordered by police to remove wire mesh from their windows as burglars could be injured.
Home owners in the villages of Tandridge and Tatsfield in Surrey and in Westerham, Brasted and Sundridge in Kent have said they are furious that they are being branded 'criminals' for protecting their property.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz1OW7inss6

You know -- at the point where the guys with wigs are ORDERING you to do something --- then maybe the law they are misinterpreting is too vague or too silly. At point I don't care about technicalities.. Except that I KNOW the law has granted relief to several burglars who ALREADY injured themselves in their craft.. It's that "slippery slope" all nicely set in motion and displayed for even the senseless..

Same goes for your excuse of mere "overreaction" of the cops for the 3rd and last stories. If it's not the Drug War, then it's the "lock-down" mentality of our schools. There's always a faulty policy or law behind it..

[BlueStreak]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

I was watching 'In From Holland' the other week (it's actually an interesting show) and they interviewed some teachers who were retiring or quitting because of increasing violence from students, that goes unpunished.

I'm uncertain whose worldview that reinforces...

Me Grans' best friend was an English magistrate and she was definately, not exactly pro-crook, but believed it was because of society, not personal choices, no personal responsibility.

My take, that most Europeans are really, really nice people and really want to do the 'right' thing. Whether their take on that is correct or not would be open to interpetation.

Pete

Seems be equivalent to that great faith in humanity that the American right claims when asked about "businessmen" doing the right thing, sans regulation............

Dave