The Decision

Let me start by taking a second to say Thank You. I am completely humbled and overwhelmed at the sheer volume of responses I received on the last post. Not to mention that, to a one, they were supportive and positive. I'd be lying if I said it didn't give me pause and bring a tear to my eye. Hey, hey, watch it...remember I carry a gun.

So, it's with no small sense of responsibility, humility and a little bit of nervous anxiety that I will continue to blog...with one caveat...it'll be a couple days. I'm going to go back over the past 174 posts and make sure I've appropriately covered my tracks vis-a-vis my anonymity, removed any questionable pictures, and, perhaps, edit myself a wee bit.

After a lot of thought, prayer, talks with the Wife, and some soul searching, I think this blog is bigger than me. I have faith that God is leading me in the right direction with my decision. I think I owe it to the Wife, the Kid(s) (yes, there's one coming soon), the rest of my family, and you to continue whatever it is I'm doing here.

We'll get back to the fun and frivolity with Saturday's Question in a few days...on Saturday. Really? Did I have to explain that?

Again, thank you all very much for your comments, emails, and messages. I will be forever grateful.

PTB....blame these folks. :-)

My Dilemma

Had an interesting conversation with the Powers That Be today regarding this little venue of mine. It was not negative in the least and I appreciated the perspective as PTB is in a position I am not. Specifically, Admin.

PTB's concerns were, I think, valid. Let me be clear, here. PTB was not saying to no longer blog. PTB wanted to give me some food for thought. I appreciated the time and the effort. There is no case law on the books (as of yet and at least in CA) regarding information contained within blogs. However, there is a case out of NY in which an officer used Facebook. Apparently, one of his status updates said something about watching the movie "Training Day" and made commentary about that being the way it should be done. (Don't quote me, I read about it a couple months ago). Suffice it to say, when the defense attorney got ahold of it after the officer was involved in allegedly brutal behavior, he used it to paint a pretty ugly picture of the officer.

Now, I know there are defense attorneys that read my blog. I also realize you have a job to do. Do I think taking a snippet of something I say here and using it out of context should, God forbid, I be involved in a case where someone got hurt and then blowing it up to paint a picture of me to a jury is fair/right/ethical/morally proper? No, I don't. Unfortunately, it's also your job.

The people that truly know me know exactly where I stand and understand the humor, sarcasm, and wit behind the things I write about here. As I've stated a number of times before, this forum began as a way to vent my frustrations about the folks I run into on a daily basis. I absolutely have certain opinions about them as people, but that does nothing to change the rights they have or the professional manner in which I conduct myself with respect to those rights. I took an Oath when I took this job and I believe in that Oath. I am also human and I have opinions. I have, what I believe to be, the ability to separate my personal feelings from my professional ones. I may very well find you morally reprehensible, but that doesn't mean you don't have the same rights afforded by the Constitution as I do.

Although it did start as a forum for venting and to entertain out-of-state relatives and friends, it morphed into what I have been told is a public service of sorts. This is why I started the Saturday Question weekly post. You all have emailed me a number of questions and I try to answer them the best way I know how. Prior to starting the weekly post, I would answer as many questions within the commentary section after readers have commented on a post. I have received quite a bit of positive feedback from non-LEO readers that never gave a second thought to how to properly act during a traffic stop, why officers approach vehicles a certain way, why we ask certain questions, etc.

There also remains the possibility that the "wrong person" will be led to the blog and not particularly enjoy the comedy within. Therein lies the possibility of being removed from a "Specialty Assignment" (e.g. Motors) and moved back to a different unit. Per PTB, this can be construed as neither disciplinary nor punitive as there is no loss of employment or pay. Some of you may have a different opinion. Hell, I may have a different opinion, but with a decade or so left until retirement is that a fight I want to take on? Take a guess...

Here's something else to consider. My family and I have talked on a number of occasions about how the blog has benefited me. I think my attitude towards the public and work has vastly improved since I began blogging. It has afforded me a healthy outlet for what otherwise has the possibility of creating a very hard core jaded and cynical man. The blog has become a creative outlet for writing...something I've long enjoyed but never did enough of outside of college. The blog introduced me to two people and their families that I think will be life long friends (CCCPSC in tha house!). I never would have met them, otherwise.

So...to the dilemma. Do I worry about the what if's and the maybe never's? Do I sanitize what I have to say and how I say it? (Fuck that last one, that'll never happen) Do I hope the spirit in which I say things shine through the profane way I say them? Do I straight nix the blog? Do I make it private? Do I buy a domain name and offer memberships after a vetting process to make sure the "wrong person" doesn't misconstrue my meaning? These are the conundrums swirling about my dome today.

If it came down to it, I'm willing to no longer post. I would miss it terribly (never thought I'd say that, by the by), but my family comes first. If PTB's PTB say, "The blog or the bike", it's bye bye blog.

The flip side to this is kind of ironic. For a guy that basically tells people what to do for a living, I really don't like being told what to do. Weird, right? I find it particularly loathsome when I feel like I haven't really done anything wrong and my First Amendment rights are called into question. Part of me wants to literarily thumb my nose at the Man (again, weird) and forge ahead with a "Damn the torpedoes" attitude. I don't know that I have that luxury, though. If I was a few months from retirement, it'd most assuredly be different, but again, not the case.

I've made it more than obvious I am not a political animal. At this point, I've no desire to promote. I like what I'm doing far too much. I have posted repeatedly about "Selective Enforcement" and how I feel about it. I don't do what I do to please PTB or PTB's PTB (a mouthful, I apologize....cost of remaining anonymous). I think PTB knows that and, believe it or not, understands and respects it. However, PTB's job description doesn't really allow for personal feelings to enter into the equation. So, while PTB may very well appreciate my point of view, having it out in the public eye isn't the easiest for PTB to deal with. I get that. The thing is, I don't care about the political ramifications of it all outside of the obvious impact it could have on me directly with regard to my current assignment.

I installed statcounter back in February. To date, I've had 19,523 unique visitors to my blog in over 50 different countries. That freaks me right the fuck out. I'm not saying all of them like what they read, but enough of you have come back repeatedly to check out the latest shenanigans I've experienced (or created, as the case may be). I must admit to feeling no small responsibility in continuing what I'm doing here. I feel connected to you and I appreciate all the emails and comments. Believe it or not, even the negative ones. What is life without conflict? F'n boring, that's what. Besides, out of conflict, understanding can grow. There is nothing wrong with seeing another side to the same blessed equation.

I don't know that I have a final point that can properly put the bow on this convoluted package. I don't know if I'm looking for your feedback or if I just needed to vent (how full circle is that?). I don't know what the outcome will be. I've long felt that the blog was going to lead me to something bigger or something positive. Have I reached that point? Is making two new friends the pinnacle? Did I educate enough of you that I can call it good? Or is there more to come? Is there some other outlet for me to both shirk off my yoke at the end of the day and maybe relay a much needed chuckle to you after a rough day on your end?

I guess time will tell. I'll sleep on it. Maybe for a few nights. I'll pray about it. Maybe for a few nights. If you're so inclined, feel free to do the same. If not, keep a happy thought for me. I'll do the same for you.

You're much nicer than the other guy

Whaaaa?

Yup. Some knucklehead actually said that to me on a traffic stop yesterday. I started laughing. Out loud.

MC (after filling out cite): Ok, I just need you to sign the highlited yellow portion.
Violator: Man, you are much nicer than that other guy.
MC: Which other guy?
V: The other motorcycle guy.
MC: Really?!?
V: Oh yeah. That guy is a son of a bitch. Mother fucker.
MC (laughing): Older guy? Younger guy?
V: Younger guy. Looks like his face his crammed into his helmet.
MC (still laughing): Honestly, it's usually the other way around.

My partner is quite a patient guy. He'll stop and explain things on a stop for much longer than I would. He rarely (if ever) gets complaints. I've no interest in selling my cites and I'm not a PR guy, so I'm usually pretty straightforward. "You did XYZ. Please sign here." On occasion, I'll get into a little more detail, but only if the driver has a good attitude. I've been accused of being curt and/or short (not height wise, by the by). Neither of which is a violation of policy. I'm not in the business of holding your hand and making you feel better about getting a ticket.

All of this is not to say my partner does any of those things, mind you, he's just a more gregarious guy with folks on a stop. Consequently, I found it monumentally entertaining that my driver called him a s.o.b. and a mother fucker. He must have really pissed off my partner.

Do you have any questions? Anything Else?

Seems like a simple question, doesn't it? Let's put it into context...

For those of you who've never been to traffic court (the smart ones who just pay the fine 'cause you know damn well you did something you shouldn't have), this is typically the procedure:

MC will get up and testify. You have the opportunity to ask questions. Then you have the opportunity to make a statement. If the judge feels I, as the representative of the State, have not met the burden of proof, you will be found not guilty (I just stop typing for a second because I was laughing too hard). More often than not, at least in my experience, the defendant is found guilty.

Here are a couple of procedural things that always nut me up....1) After both the defendant and I have done our thing, the judge will ask the defendant something to the effect of "Do you have any questions or anything else to say?" I swear that probably about 75% of people will reply in the negative....and then go on to say something else. Hey! Moron! When you say you have nothing further, how's about just shutting the fuck up and being done. Not to mention that neither I, the judge, or the audience needs to hear for the eighth fuckin' time how you totally stopped at the stop sign. 2) Here is where Booted Cop and I may differ a bit. BC takes a minor issue with our judge's procedural view...I think the guy has the patience of Job for maintaining decorum when faced with idiocy at virtually every turn. While I understand BC's point of view in that particular post, I offer an opposing view. Immediately after I've testified, the judge will ask "Do you have any questions for the Officer?" Almost 9 times out of 10, the defendant will begin by saying something like, "I was driving...". Did you catch it? That's right. Statement. Not a question.

Now, I can understand the first couple of defendants doing this. I understand nerves. But after a handful of cases, you'd think they'd wise up. Or even worse, I've seen defendants repeat their statements not twice, not three times, not even four times, but in excess of five times. reTarded.

Is it really that hard to differentiate between a question and a statement? I'd love to think it wasn't. Apparently, I'd be sorely mistaken. And again, if you've nothing further to say, don't continue to flap your gums. It's irritating. And it makes you look stupid because it appears you can't listen. Or follow directions. Wait...that's what got you here in the first place. Carry on.

The three second rule

So, here's the scenario:

I stop someone for running a stop sign. I ask the driver if they know why I stopped them. They say, "Because I didn't stop for three seconds?" Huh?

Can someone explain this to me? I can't count the number of times I've heard someone say, either in court or on a traffic stop that they didn't stop long enough and they tend to use the 'three second rule'. Where in the hell does it say in the CVC that there is any kind of requirement for how long you have to stop? What's that? There isn't one? Right. Refer back to the Stop post.

So, where do people think this originates from?

Saturday Question

Even though it's Sunday...

Ian actually asked two questions, but I'm gonna break 'em up between a couple weeks:

What do you feel someone interested in a career with a police/sheriff agency should do to prepare themselves for the application process and to prepare themselves upon entering their police/sheriff's respective academy?

Well, Ian, probably the best thing to do initially is do a ride along with an agency you're interested in. You can usually ride during any shift. Come to think of it, do a few on different shifts. Each shift has it's own vibe. Day shift is a little more paper heavy (cold details), swings and graves tend to have more in-progress details. When you're on a ride along, ask lots of questions. Hopefully, the agency you ride with and the Officer you are assigned to will be willing to answer them. Lots of us aren't always keen on a ride along, so you might consider just riding for a couple of hours. (We are a territorial lot and we set up our cars like an office, so anything that upsets the feng shui throws off our chi, you know?)

If you are further along in your pursuit of a LE career and you know some folks in the biz, have them sit down with you and do some practice oral board questions. That is by far the toughest part of the process. A retarded monkey could pass the written exam. Even the physical test isn't difficult. Oral boards are always the toughest bit.

Once you are accepted by an agency and sponsored to complete the Academy, the best way to prepare is to run your ass off. PT (Physical Training) is by far the most demanding and challenging part of the Academy. You can also sponsor yourself through the Academy, by the way, but I couldn't tell you the cost (I assume it's around 5K or so). I would start training as early as possible to get yourself into physical shape. Most Academies these days are no joke and a number of people wash out early because they can't hang. (I thank God almost daily I went through the Academy when I did, because there's much less of a chance that I'd make through now).

If you've got a four year college degree, all the better. It doesn't necessarily have to be in Criminal Justice, mind you, I was a Poli Sci major. However, the college experience is invaluable for a number of reasons with respect to a LE career. It prepares you to be a better report writer, increases your critical/analytical thinking skills, and exposes you to a myriad of different people/cultures. All these things are beneficial to you in your career. Not to mention you actually get a pay bump sooner in your career rather than later.

Lastly, study, study, study. Buy a copy of the Penal Code (PC), Vehicle Code (VC), and Legal Sourcebook. All of these books will be your LE Bible(s) until the day you retire. No time like the present to familiarize yourself.

Hope that answers your question, Ian. I'll get to your second one next week!

I don't control them, people.

I've gotten a number of odd emails of late regarding google ads. And one Hi-larious 'fail' comment from HM....smartass. Apparently, google ads has taken it upon themselves in their oddly framed thought process to ask "Is your man gay?" in the ads beneath recent post(s). Of course, with just about each comment, I ask, "What was the result?" I have yet to receive replies after that.

Huh.

I find it funny that when I saw the ad, again courtesy of HM, it was right before the "Hey! You! Stop being a pussy" post. You'd think the proper ad would say something like "Is your man addicted to Internet porn?" or something along those lines. Weird.

At any rate, I guess the only way to avoid google using ads like that one is to stop saying things like phallus, dong, a-hole, prick, and the like. I shall do my utmost to do that. After today.

Cock.

Couldn't resist. And I apologize to my Mom and the Wife. And eventually to the Kid...I assume some day she'll learn to read.