Monday, June 21, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
A political theory advocating an authoritarian hierarchical government (as opposed to democracy or liberalism)
If you've ever been involved with the Greene County, Virginia, Sheriff's Office and/or court system, you quickly realize 3 things:
There's a minor I know, we'll call her 'Kate'. Kate's friend's shirt was stolen. Not while she was wearing it of course, but out of her locker or something.
Soon after, another girl (we'll call her 'Emo girl') was spotted with a very, very similar shirt. Well, Kate and her friends spot Emo Girl's bag with the shirt hanging out of it, and they vote Kate to sneak over and grab it. She does, and it is Kate's friend's shirt after all. No problem, right? At worst, Emo Girl and Kate should get a little talking to about the value of other people's property and personal space.
Wrong. Kate's mom get's a phone call from the resource office (Greene County-speak for on-school Greene County Police) informing her he had Mirandized her daughter. Kate's mom misheard the statement, thinking he was asking permission to Mirandize her daughter. Kate's mom says "Hell no, wait til her father or I are there."
The cop (we'll call him Ignorant Fascist) neglected to elaborate to Kate's mom that he had already Mirandized her daughter, in private, with no school authority present, and had her sign some document.
There are other stories.
Another friend of mine got a call because her daughter (we'll call her M) was driving around with M's boyfriend. Turns out a Greene County cop pulled her over. Why? Well, for driving around her boyfriend, of course. Held her for more than an hour, if I remember correctly. What, you thought this was a free count(r)y?
M and I both got speeding tickets for speeding on the same stretch of road. We were speeding, yes, but we didn't know it, because the closest speed limit sign to the point of the infraction was miles away, and we never passed it on the path we took leading to the road. The cop couldn't prove it in court because he lost sight of us several times in the ensuing 'chase' and had no proof that the car he pulled over (me or M's) was the same one he clocked. The judge literally told me 'Well, you say you were there around the time the officer clocked a car that looked like yours, and he thinks it was you driving, so I have to give the judgment to the officer.' In other words, guilty until proven innocent.
I called the police when a neighbor shot her gun at my kindergartner, who was trespassing on her property. He said "Yeah, there's a lot of good old boys and girls back in there that'll shoot at anything." Since I had already gone and 'talked' to this neighbor, that's how they handled my complaint.
No, really.
- You are considered a nuisance. At best. At worst, you're an ignorant nuisance.
- You are guilty until proven.. well, you're guilty if they think you are. Proof doesn't count for a whole lot in Greene County, from what I've seen.
- There's no real concern about upholding the letter of the law. Upholding the generality of the law is OK, because that way they still get paid.
There's a minor I know, we'll call her 'Kate'. Kate's friend's shirt was stolen. Not while she was wearing it of course, but out of her locker or something.
Soon after, another girl (we'll call her 'Emo girl') was spotted with a very, very similar shirt. Well, Kate and her friends spot Emo Girl's bag with the shirt hanging out of it, and they vote Kate to sneak over and grab it. She does, and it is Kate's friend's shirt after all. No problem, right? At worst, Emo Girl and Kate should get a little talking to about the value of other people's property and personal space.
Wrong. Kate's mom get's a phone call from the resource office (Greene County-speak for on-school Greene County Police) informing her he had Mirandized her daughter. Kate's mom misheard the statement, thinking he was asking permission to Mirandize her daughter. Kate's mom says "Hell no, wait til her father or I are there."
The cop (we'll call him Ignorant Fascist) neglected to elaborate to Kate's mom that he had already Mirandized her daughter, in private, with no school authority present, and had her sign some document.
There are other stories.
Another friend of mine got a call because her daughter (we'll call her M) was driving around with M's boyfriend. Turns out a Greene County cop pulled her over. Why? Well, for driving around her boyfriend, of course. Held her for more than an hour, if I remember correctly. What, you thought this was a free count(r)y?
M and I both got speeding tickets for speeding on the same stretch of road. We were speeding, yes, but we didn't know it, because the closest speed limit sign to the point of the infraction was miles away, and we never passed it on the path we took leading to the road. The cop couldn't prove it in court because he lost sight of us several times in the ensuing 'chase' and had no proof that the car he pulled over (me or M's) was the same one he clocked. The judge literally told me 'Well, you say you were there around the time the officer clocked a car that looked like yours, and he thinks it was you driving, so I have to give the judgment to the officer.' In other words, guilty until proven innocent.
I called the police when a neighbor shot her gun at my kindergartner, who was trespassing on her property. He said "Yeah, there's a lot of good old boys and girls back in there that'll shoot at anything." Since I had already gone and 'talked' to this neighbor, that's how they handled my complaint.
No, really.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Stop for a Moment
I freakin' love my Samsung Moment. I think it's highly underrated in the Android phone buzz. It's fast, clear, with an amazing screen and Sprint service is great for me in Central Virginia. Rumor is it's getting the Android 2.1 update on February 22... w00t.
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