Alex W

SHOT THE SHERIFF!



I got to thinking about our legal system...a place you don't want to see your name correct? Now I could go on and on about everything that's wrong with it today, but instead I'd prefer to draw my focus to one particular pet peeve of mine. You see this blog is for everyone who has received a ticket for driving five miles over the speeding limit, for anyone who spent the weekend in jail for a non-violent domestic disturbance calls, for anyone who has to pay 40 bucks a week for alcohol class due to a lousy ticket for partying too hard on New Years, and of course for the stoner that can't even enjoy his hobby because he got caught with an eighth. What do these poor souls have in common with me? They all hate cops!

Now, I'm not talking about the cops that catch murderers or our boys in New York that were there for 9/11...NO! I can respect that kind of cops. It's the Louisville cop that sits in his car playing old mix tapes from 1982 throwing the siren on for anyone who swerves slightly so they can fill their monthly quota. I'm talking about the cop that kills a 13 year old kid because he doesn't have enough sense to tell the difference between a super soaker and desert eagle.

A perfect example of this was at the beginning of this summer, my brother, Johnny, and his girlfriend, Marissa, had been living together for about a year. Sure they had their problems as any couple does, but I believe any couple should have the right to resolve their issues how they see fit. Now maybe they had had a little too much to drink and they began to fight. It never got to the point of violence and never would that's not who Johnny nor Marissa are. However, the cops were still called by a neighbor that had just recently moved in. For most people the logical thing would have been to first confront Johnny and Marissa personally and ask them to keep it down...but that wasn't the case. The cops were called Johnny was taken to jail for the weekend. However, that wasn't the end of it, a mandatory restraining order was placed between the two of them. They were unable to see, nor speak to each other for the majority of the summer, all because someone had to call in the bacon.

You see in my opinion there are three kinds of people who become cops; one those guys that picked on the weaklings of the play ground and once those guys went off to college and made millions they thought, "Hmmmm...How can I keep doing this? I know I'll become a cop!" Number two the kids that got picked on and are now on power trips...And of course number three those that bring in millions each year for pfizer!

The line between cops and criminals is becoming very thin. There was a time when the small town cop would smile and wave as he walked his beat saving kitties from trees and helping old women across the street...OK so maybe it wasn't Mayberry, but it is my belief that badge used to carry some dignity and respect. Maybe it's the culture, maybe it's the crime rate, or perhaps we've been glorifying these men and women since the playground playing cops and robbers, and they couldn't live up. After all we grew up believing that these were the people who were here to protect us from the "bad guys". I couldn't help but wonder when it comes to cops and criminals just who is the "The Bad Guy"?