TheFuzz

Let me do some more research, and maybe I'll take you up on it.

No, its not common knowledge. I'm currently developing a body language lesson plan to submit to the state law enforcement training body to get approved (though I keep getting "volunteered" for projects, so its going longer than necessary).

I've talked my way out of more fights than I've been in during my career. The only legitimate physical altercations I've been in, minus one, the person was mentally ill, or under the influence of narcotics. Good. I support the decriminalization of marijuana possession. The problem is, you're fighting an uphill battle for most of the country. Honestly, most officers I know don't enforce misdemeanor possession. It is not. The study of body language lends much to the decision on when to attack first.

Wow, lots to read. I haven't had a chance to reply since I was busy at work being "The Man" and "violating people's rights." Then today, my daughter had her first swim meet that actually lasted 5 hours (and that's considered short). Instead of quoting 10+ posts, I'll try to address the topics as a whole: 1. I did not make the "if you don't like it, then leave" argument. My meaning, which seems to be lost on most, was that if Carl wanted to smoke marijuana, why not leave to another state or country where it is legal. As well as moving off grid somewhere, where you can pretty much do as you please. Just because you disagree with a law, and wish to break it, does not exempt you from the consequences of said law. If you believe smoking marijuana should be legal, but decide to smoke it anyways, you run the risk of being arrested. Work on changing the law like Colorado, and other states, did. But until its changed,the rational thing isn't to let a foreign substance cause you to lose your freedom. 2. As to why I spank my child? I do it, frankly, because it works. Again, spanking has been a last resort in my household and my daughter gets spanked maybe 2-3 times a year. I'd like to get it to zero, which is why I'm on this board reading about peaceful parenting. 3. I've been a cop for about 12 years now, I don't get offended on people who don't like me. But yes, in today's society, law enforcement is necessary, but not all functions of law enforcement are necessary. 4. I also mentioned that I lean libertarian...getting closer to minarchist. The problem with libertarians is that, many of them, won't listen to you unless you're a purist. It sounds like some of the advocates of peaceful parenting are going to be the same way; not willing to discuss and debate, but shutting out immediately. 5. I'm also not full into the NAP, because sometimes you need to act first to win the ensuing fight. That violates the NAP. I'm also coming to find out, after a year or so of reading about the NAP (this isn't the first place I've heard about it), most of the advocates aren't even capable of physically defending themselves when someone is the aggressor against them. Also, those who are all in with the NAP typically don't have the survival mindset to win (live through) a fight. I'm here for debate, discussion, and personal growth, and I'm getting it all. I don't care about up votes or down votes...this is just the internet. Be hostile towards me, but make valid arguments that can be debated. I'm not set in my ways, and have changed my views before. If I missed anything, let me know. Oh, thanks MX2010 and others who have defended me, and thanks to Carl and thebeardslastcall for challenging me. Oh, I'm not a troll...I have a life to live outside of a message board, so I may not respond immediately.

Its not inconsistent, because I can leave if I want...just like Carl. Leaving is always an option, it just depends on what you are willing to do. Carl hasn't explained, and maybe this isn't the correct thread to discuss this, what he is currently doing to help his cause. Is he running for public office to try to influence legislation? Or is he just complaining, blogging, tweeting, or other forms of lazy activism? I don't know, but with as passionate (angry?) he seems to be, I hope he's doing something. If he's not, why not just leave and be happier? That does not mean he has to move to some remote wilderness, but he could move to Colorado, a place that shares his view on marijuana legalization. Or how about Vermont with the Free State Project? Then again, part of the Free State Project is trying to place liberty minded individuals in the local and state legislative bodies. If he chooses to stay where he is, he runs the risk of arrest since marijuana is still illegal in most states. I hate to make it about just one issue, because I doubt its one issue, but marijuana is an easy choice. Just because you believe a law is unjust does not exempt you from the punishments of said law. If you want to undo an unjust law, lobby for it to be stricken from the law books.

Sorry, I thought I quoted this in my last post....and I know I will never change your mind with your obvious hostility toward me, just based off of my profession. I don't feel as if I'm improving the world. I feel that I have improved individual's situations in many cases. Actually, I do smile at people when they threaten me. But let me approach your responses from a different angle. Are you not an able bodied adult, capable of free choice? If so, what is stopping you from moving to a different society that is more in line with your belief system? Or how about withdrawing from society all together and live off grid? Both are doable, and both are options. You make a conscious choice to live in a society who's belief's don't align with yours. Why not change your personal situation and be happy?

Hmm...I believe the last time I spanked my daughter was a few months ago. Her offense? Extreme and repeated disrespect to my wife and I. After taking away privileges, and receiving many "I don't care" statements, the disrespect continued. She was spanked once. I will say that I spank less and less every year. I am also a person that can have his opinion changed, and I have changed many of my opinions multiple times. There are still issues I struggle with, because I can justify both sides of the issue. The world is a lot of gray, and Stefan even mentioned it in a video of different cultures viewing things differently. Lets use marijuana possession as an example, since its a hot topic. To many, especially our friend Carl here, its a black/white issue; to me its a gray area. This also goes along with your view of good/evil. You believe that because I have spanked my daughter, I've done evil. There are many who believe that the lack of spanking is the reason there is so much disrespect toward others. Then there's people like me, who view it as a gray area. I see being black/white on most issues is not a good thing and limits your thinking. As to the reason I spank my daughter, frankly, it corrects behavior problems when no other action has. I'm not convinced for, or against peaceful parenting...hence one of the reasons I'm here. Also, I don't automatically default to spanking, its a rare occurrence, and last resort. That comment, "Be good or the police will take you away!" always irks me. We don't want children to be frightened of the police, especially if they're in need of help. I also interact with kids, mostly high school age, and do what I can to mentor them. We have a large truancy problem at the high school in my jurisdiction. Now this is a gray area for me, since I'm against forced schooling. However, much of our daytime crime is linked to kids skipping school. Not to mention, these kids are not educating themselves outside of a school environment, but are more likely to become a larger burden to society in the future if they do not educate themselves. I agree. If you're the one in handcuffs, its definitely a black/white issue. Sorry, but I don't buy the whole kid analogy. There are too many variables associated with each independent incident to be clear cut every time.

MMX2010, at first I thought your post was an insult...it took a second read to realize it wasn't (or maybe it is and the slight excess of adult beverages from a lazy day grilling at the neighborhood pool has me out of whack). That "Federal Stop a Douchebag Project" was incredible! I wish I could get away with doing that over giving tickets or making arrests...it might work better. Honestly, the day I stop caring is the day I quit. I live in the city in which I work, so I have a vested interest in how my department is run. Secondly, I believe that the younger generation is moving more toward libertarianism and I might have a greater influence to those coming up the ranks. All it takes is the right influence to the right officer who becomes chief somewhere and is able to influence an entire department. My department has moved from a numbers based merit system (the more tickets/arrests you make, the "better" officer you are) to one more geared toward crime prevention (where your worth is judged by how few crimes are committed in your assigned area).

I'll get my second post in for the day (wohoo only 6 more, then I can post freely)... I chose the screen name "The Fuzz" as sort of a joke. One, obviously, because I'm cop; and two, I can't grow facial hair to save my life.

I will reply as I can, but I am currently limited to 2 posts per day (hence the delay in answering). I will reply with my 2nd reply tonight if there are more questions/discussions. You can call BS all you want, but from my perspective its not. I'm also not expecting to be popular on liberty/freedom oriented message boards. I usually get the whole, "You're a cop and can't be liberty minded" replies. That is quite close minded for people claiming to be open minded. Now if I had you in the car for cannabis possession, you would've had to do something else as well. If you were driving, and admitted to being under the influence of marijuana, you'd be going to jail. If you admitted to being under the influence of marijuana, planned on driving, but refused to find another way home, you'd be going to jail. There are other reasons as well, but if your marijuana possession will effect the personal liberties of others, then you'd be going to jail. Side note on marijuana possession that most people don't think about....where does most of America's marijuana come from? The drug cartels in Central and South America that are run by the cartels. By purchasing marijuana from a cartel grown operation, you're funding an organization that directly violates the liberty of hundreds of thousands of individuals. Just some food for thought. (And yes, I'm against the "War on Drugs." The almost and might have to do with ability to use officer discretion. If my supervisor is standing over my shoulder and he orders me to arrest an individual for marijuana possession, I will have to without argument. If I disobey a lawful order from my supervisor, which arresting someone for something that is currently illegal, I can be fired. If I am by myself, or with other officers that think like I do, I can get away with flushing the marijuana and a warning that most officers aren't like me (which happened just a few days ago). Also, if I destroy the marijuana, without charging someone, then it is not evidence. If I charged someone with marijuana, then destroyed it after I charged them, then I'd be violating the law. I am also currently assigned to the road on patrol, but I also teach at the police academy, as well as train new recruits as they come into our department. My generation was the one in between Generation X and the millenials. I was also raised differently than most and have always been an outlier of my peers. I can't point to specific incidents in my past that have made me different, but I've always been rebellious...yet practical. If many of the listeners are millenials, they're outliers of their generation. Those I'm seeing apply in law enforcement are the "typical" millenials, not the outliers. I will say, millenials tend to be strongly influenced by the strongest leader in the room (which I strive to be). I think the fight against typical policing is working. Its a slow process, and I'll probably be long gone before its completed. Lets say I'm able to influence 10 officers to a more liberty oriented view of policework, then my hope is that those 10 will be able to influence 10 more, and so on. I've been responsible for training two recruits that are policing toward the more liberty oriented side of things, and my two most recent are so moral (religiously) that its against their nature to violate the liberty of others. That's just within the last year and not counting the other recruits I've influenced at my other department (though, my last department was numbers driven and I doubt they've kept up with what I've taught them due to the other influences around them). I also won't persuade anyone, in this day and age, to become a police officer. If they want to, I won't dissuade them, but I'll answer their questions honestly. As for being ordered to kill anyone that would violate a non-aggression principle....if I did, you'd see my face on the news because it'd be illegal. We have to meet a certain set of criteria (same as non-law enforcement) to utilize violence against an individual. What a lot of people who agree with the non-aggression principle don't understand is that sometimes to stop an escalation of violence, one has to initiate violence first. A good example is that if I'm talking to someone, and watch them ball their fist and move their strong leg behind their back leg, I'm going to initiate violence first to keep the fight from escalating further. Once you've been in a few fights, you start to notice the body language indicators that violence is about to occur (not to mention, I'm quite studious of body language, micro-expressions, and statement analysis). Also, this isn't about good an evil...especially since you're implying that I am on the side of evil by staying in my profession.My profession often gets generalized and lumped into one group, so I'm used to it. Looking forward to more discussions. Gotta love the over-reading into my statements. I'm not looking for support or confirmation, but further discussion and personal growth through those discussions and debate. I'm satisfied by my choice to stay, trying to do good in a profession that can easily be corrupted, as well as having the fear that my replacement wouldn't be able to do as well. I'm also not a conformist at work...which doesn't make me popular . I've been a cop for going on 12 years now. I worked at a large department, where your worth as an officer was how many tickets you wrote and how many arrests you made. Needless to say, I didn't fit in there, and left for a smaller department that didn't have those same views. I started questioning the morality of law enforcement in general about 6 years ago. I was assigned to a specialized unit that dealt with gangs, but that was combined with a newly formed "street crimes" unit that was tasked with going into high crime areas and arresting as many people as possible. That is where I saw the violation of rights on a large scale. I spoke up about it, and was removed from the unit. Shortly after that, I realized I was "black listed" from any specialized units, promotions, and training, so I left for another department. I also started listening to FDR about 6 months ago. Sorry, but I believe NH is not a right to work state, so I won't be going any time soon. I like the idea of the Free State Project, but I thought they'd be better off going out west, or south, instead of the NE.

I'll admit, I'm not fully sold on peaceful parenting, but I'm still researching. That being said, in my household, spanking rarely happens (maybe once or twice a year for egregious offenses). Now as for stopping kids from spanking children in public, its still legal in my state. You can even use an object (such as a switch, wooden spoon, belt, etc) as long as it doesn't leave marks. I do inform parents, however, if they're going to spank, its best to do so with an open hand on a clothed bottom. As for compromising my values at work, its a basic cost benefit analysis: does my ability to influence a new generation of officers to a more liberty oriented police style outweigh having to arrest someone for marijuana a few times a year. Short term it doesn't, long term it does....lots of gray areas in my line of work. I believe I can do more good by staying, than leaving the profession.

I'm sure there's not too many law enforcement on this page, especially since the profession has been dumbed down over the years. I've listened/watched for about a year now and I'm interested in a lot more discussions about real issues. As a police officer, I get to deal with the reality that there are unjust laws that I am almost made to enforce, or my career is over. I have contemplated leaving, but if I leave, I know I will be replaced with a millenial that is incapable of thinking for himself. Another reason I stay is the fact that I get to train new officers on a regular basis. This enables me to steer them towards more liberty oriented policing (baby steps, I know, but the more officers I influence, the better chance we have). This means I might have to take someone to jail for marijuana, prostitution, or another victimless crime. I'm looking forward to learn and discuss!