August 5, 2019
…when you need them?
I already feel relaxed in this attempt — as I won\’t be entertaining The Fool…it leaves me a wider playing field…
I\’m glad it takes me 7-8 days to accomplish one-of-these attempts — because we\’ve had 2 mass shootings since I began this…
Far-be-it-from-me to piss-off-the-cops (because they know where I live) — but a quote in my beloved Times caught my eye (before I could write about Alex Villanueva\’s nepotism). And then the mass shooting in Gilroy happened — and it reportedly took only 60 seconds for the cops to dispatch the shooter…and new information kind of factors into this essay: the Gilroy gunman killed himself — even though the police initially reported that they shot him dead…
Still, an article RE: the MS-13 gang in our San Fernando Valley motivated me to write this.
The quote that pissed me off reads: The high school (Panorama H.S.) has emerged as a disturbing backdrop to what authorities describe as a reign of terror in the San Fernando Valley by the notoriously violent street gang — with strong presence in both US and El Salvador.
MS-13 = Mara Salvatrucha — which was originally set up to protect Salvadorans from other gangs in Los Angeles. They are a nasty bunch — but if anyone has seen Salvador! (with James Woods) — you might have a better understanding of the underlying bases to their viciousness.
Be-this-as-it-may — I\’m quite sure that our Southern California police agencies are much better funded than MS-13 (assuming that it is the police who are being referred to as the authorities). It\’s not like the police don\’t know where bad actors live — what with their drones and comprehensive data bases and paid informants.
As for weaponry — our police have para-(and sometimes \’full\’-) military capabilities. So, how any organization is capable of pulling off a \”reign of terror\” in the San Fernando Valley (essentially the 5th largest city in US [if you were to put together all of the municipalities]) — with the knowledge and fire power of our police agencies — certainly deserves a logical explanation.
According to the official police motto, their duty is to protect and to serve. From my vantage point — I don\’t see much protecting or serving. I DO see plenty of picking-up-the-pieces (following threatening and/or violent incidents). It is hilarious to see the number of law enforcement agencies picking up overtime when someone has been killed and/or a violent offender is being taken into custody. There were even cops patrolling the Gilroy fairgrounds on Tuesday — earning good money, I\’m sure — for what purpose, exactly I have no clue (as the shooter is dead and the town is in mourning).
I get it! The reality of police work is a far cry from the steady diet of heroes in uniform we\’ve seen on television for the past 50 years. But, at times, it seems that the boys (and girls) in blue are more concerned with protecting their fat pensions.
Don\’t get me wrong!!! I know that policing can be a very dangerous job (not quite as dangerous as Hollywood would have us believe); and, that many a good officer has been downed in the line-of-duty (actually protecting and serving) — but many law officers can go their entire career and not see action. I wonder how many are like officer Scot Peterson (of Parkland H.S. infamy) who lied about his protecting and serving? And what about those who shoot first and ask questions later (referring to the unfortunate shooting of Ron Helus struck by friendly fire in the Borderline Massacre)?
I wonder…if we had a grass roots movement of instilling law and order (beginning with something as simple as traffic stops) might this dynamic spread upward? Or something even more simple like cleaning up all this Bird shit (the scooters left lying around).
I know that just making people drive the speed limit and stop at stop signs in Woodland Hills — would definitely raise the necessary monies to fund pension funds — which, along with fire fighter pensions — can bankrupt cities!
But it\’s rare to see our local constabulary out-and-about. I would love to make the old donut shop joke — but I don\’t even see police cars stopped there?! I truly don\’t know where the police hide out when they are protecting and serving?!
I don\’t expect them to be trapping in 100-degree-plus weather — but I got pulled over just yesterday in 100-degree weather (because I am awaiting registration on my car) and we both survived just fine. As a matter of fact, the officer was a decent fellow who seemed to have much more than just a high school education (this being another problem for police forces: too many undereducated officers) — and the flashy new patrol SUVs look damn comfortable to ride around in…
Ah well, here\’s hoping that a combination of local police forces and the FBI can stop MS-13\’s reign of terror: they are very easy to spot by the way — what with their head-to-toe tattoos! But I doubt they were responsible for the aforementioned massacres — or the Dayton one…