Woof. What a Time...

Hey everybody, twenty-twenty suuuuuucks.

Here I am, trying to revive a moribund blog my wife and I stood up almost a decade ago. Seriously friend, look back a couple posts and you'll see the first pics taken of my son, who is now nearly old enough to shave and vote Donald Trump out in November.

Why am I off Facebook? First, I'm not. Not yet anyway. I've not yet determined whether I'm gonna delete my account. I should, because the dirtbags who run Facebook know what their platform is doing to folks and refuse to address the divisiveness revealed in their own internal research. The sad fact is that there is money in stoking conspiracy theories, bad-faith attacks and naked political rancor, just like there was money advertising cigarettes to kids and until we demand change, your feed, just like mine, is gonna be full of straight-up trash.

The sad fact is though, it's hard to stay in contact with you wonderful people, and this medium isn't ideal. (I mean, it's owned by Google, so... maybe MORE evil?) For a time, I'm gonna be posting links to this blog on Facebook, assuming I keep updating.

So what did I miss on my week sabbatical? Anything noteworthy happen? I'm kidding, right? I've got just two things to say about this week.

First, black lives matter. Everyday.

Second, I've been on that line with a stick in my hand. I know a lot of cops and a lot of soldiers, and y'all better KNOW your rules of engagement, escalation of force and/or department policies regarding the use of EVERY tool you have to hand.

Right now on the streets of America, there's an eighteen year-old National Guard PFC with a rifle in her hand. Her NCO is a thrice-divorced 30 year old with an Associates degree and a drinking problem, and her PL is a 22 year old, business major wearing butter-bars. Put yourself in her shoes. You think that officer has a deep knowledge of the application of less-lethal munitions? You think that SGT can articulate the subtleties of protecting the First Amendment as it pertains to property crime?

Tell you one thing, if I were an NCO out there, I'd be collecting firing pins from every soldier under me.

As for the police, there are a bunch of damn fool cops out there exposing both themselves and their departments to incredible liability. Civil trial is gonna go a little something like this:

Lawyer 1: "Show me where it says, in your department's policies, Officer Smith, where it permits discharging your OC spray indiscriminately from the window of your patrol vehicle as you drive by? Where it permits you to push protesters aside with your patrol vehicle's bumper?"

Your department will hang you out to dry if you are exercising force an inch outside your department's stated policy. That is your career and your savings and your house. Don't lose your head.

More important is this: everyone who has sworn to defend and uphold the Constitution has a duty to protect the rights of our neighbors and fellow citizens. These are not insurgents and they are not terrorists. You do not restore peace through shows or strength, domination or violence. Life is always more important than property.

Still working on formatting this medium, but here's some pictures I've collected this week:

That's it until next time.