Tag: power

Beware of the Police

“You can’t handle the truth!”  That famous line was delivered by Colonel Nathan Jessep, played by legendary actor Jack Nicholson in the 1992 film, A Few Good Men.  Most of you probably remember the line, but many likely do not remember that A Few Good Men had an important moral to the story. 

(Spoiler alert) In the film, two young Marines are accused of murdering another Marine.  In the climactic scene, Col. Jessep is put on the witness stand and delivers that line before admitting that he actually ordered the attack on the Marine who was killed.  At that point viewers think that the bad guy got caught and the two Marines who carried out the order will be acquitted, but that is not what happens.  While they are cleared of murder and conspiracy charges, they are found guilty of “conduct unbecoming a United States Marine.”  In other words, “I was just following orders” is not a good excuse for doing the wrong thing.

This leads to my plea to the police in our country.  I have always been very supportive of law enforcement and we should all appreciate what they do.  They put their lives on the line to fight crime and keep us safe.  They are often frustrated to see the criminals that they apprehend get away with their crimes or get weak consequences because of pro-criminal Democrat district attorneys and judges.  They are also slandered as racists by obsolete race-baiters trying to stay relevant and a media that loves to stoke conflict and anger.  These officers deserve our respect, gratitude, and support. 

This should not, however, be blind support.  In fact, we need to beware of the police.  Most of you are probably surprised to hear that from me.  It is certainly not for the reasons that the left tells us to beware when they claim that the police are racists who are out hunting black people.  That is a lie.  The police are not likely to do evil things because they are terrible people who plan to do them.  The danger is that they will do evil for the same reason that the two Marines did in A Few Good Men. They will do it because they are following orders.

It is already starting to happen.  We saw the Canadian Mounted Police cracking down on truckers who just wanted to do their jobs.  We saw the Australian police beating down people in the streets for disobeying ineffective, unnecessary lockdown and mask orders.  Police have even been used in some places to shut down churches.  Governments around the world are testing not only if their citizens will obey ridiculous, overbearing, and inhumane decrees, but whether the police in their countries will put following orders ahead of morality and carry them out. 

This is not a new phenomenon.  Tyrannical, totalitarian governments need a way to enforce their edicts and make sure the people do as they’re told.  This requires a police force that will robotically follow orders.  The Gestapo, the SS, and the KGB probably come to mind first, but every brutal dictatorship or despotic regime in history has had an enforcement arm to keep the people in line.  Without it, governments do not have the power to oppress their people. 

This is why I am warning you to beware of the police.  The left is getting bold and is already trying to take more control over our lives.  They will eventually need to rely more and more on force to crack down on innocent citizens who are simply trying to live their lives and support their families.  Authoritarian governments will need to use police, along with massive economic pressure, to enforce overbearing rules on businesses, guns, “climate change,” and speech codes to silence opposing voices, among other things.

Does that mean we should defund the police?  Of course not.  It just means that we should remind them why they chose to become police officers in the first place; to help people.  To the police officers reading this, here is my plea to you:  Please do not let corrupt politicians use you to do their bidding.  In the past couple of years, some of you may have been asked to use force to shut down businesses that were not obediently closing or that were not requiring customers to wear masks.  If you took part in that, you engaged in “conduct unbecoming a police officer.”  You are probably not cut out for that job and should find a new career.  Might I suggest opening your own restaurant and not allowing people to go there? 

Am I saying that police should disregard orders as a general rule?  No.  There certainly has to be a chain of command.  Just laws need to be enforced.  If laws are enforced inconsistently then criminals will run wild on our streets like is happening in Democrat-run cities all around the country as we speak.  So, where is the line police officers should use to determine if they should follow orders without it becoming a slippery slope into lawlessness?  The long answer is a little more difficult and requires some biblical wisdom and discernment.  On the bright side, there is a cheat that you can use to illuminate that line.  It is similar to a cheat my wise father told me about voting.  He said, “If you look at the Los Angeles Times endorsements and vote the opposite, you will almost always be voting correctly.”  Likewise, right now, Democrats and the media demonize the police.  You may soon hear Democrats and the media coming out in support of the police and saying that law enforcement should be taking a larger role in enforcing certain rules (especially new rules).  At that moment you will know the police are being used for evil.  It is then that officers should start to question their orders, and also when the citizens should beware of the police.

Always remember, Germans who put Jews on trains to Auschwitz were just following orders.  Russians who sent “political dissidents” to the Gulag were just following orders.  Officers, if you are ordered to close businesses for “climate” violations, instead defend the business.  If you are told to crack down on “hate speech” or to arrest “political dissidents” in a country where our Constitution protects the God-given right to free speech, you are obligated to refuse.  You are the good guys.  Please stay that way.

Give Us the Same Courtesy That We Gave You

The first paragraph of this article is here for a very specific reason. To promote the article on social media I had to make sure that there was no political speech in the first couple of lines so that it wouldn’t be censored. The original started here:

Democrats now control the White House and both chambers of Congress.  They are calling for unity, but what they mean by that is, “Now everybody needs to agree with us.”  That is not going to happen.  I am not saying that in an obstinate way.  I’m just being realistic and honest.  People disagree and that is alright.  Republicans were in charge for the last four years and many people disagreed with them, and I expected that as well because that is how life works. 

This leads me to my one request to Democrats.  Now that you’re in charge please give us the same courtesy that we gave to you when we were.  That courtesy is this:  When people disagree with you, don’t force them to do what you want. 

This may surprise some of you after being told by the media for four years that President Trump was a fascist dictator, but I cannot think of anything that he forced us to do during his term.  If you disagreed with President Trump and the Republicans, they did not make you do anything against your will.  Republicans let people agree to disagree.  

If, for example, you disagreed with the tax cuts that were passed, Republicans did not force you to go along with it.  They implemented no penalties for people who wanted to keep paying the higher tax rates voluntarily.  Yes, you can do that.  Surprisingly, wealthy Democrats who complain that rich people don’t pay their fair share do not opt to pay more themselves when given that choice.  Alright, maybe not so surprisingly.

Ultimately, this is the main thing that Republicans want:  to be left alone.  We want to control our own lives and let others control theirs.  Another example; we may understand that homosexuality is immoral, but we do not block people from the practice.  In fact, the Trump administration started a global effort to end the criminalization of homosexuality.  (In contrast, Democrats kowtow to countries like Iran who put homosexuals to death.)  Republicans also disagree with divisive groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter, yet do not want them prevented from speaking or kicked off of social media.  Another Republican belief is that God is central to the American way of life and necessary for our success, but we do not want to require church attendance.  In other words, Republicans would like everybody to act in particular ways but think that people should be free to choose for themselves.

This approach is not a new one.  It is actually one of the principles that our country was established on.  Our Founding Fathers were wise men who understood that people would not always agree as to what should be done.  They also knew that throughout history, when the powerful forced those who disagreed with them to conform to their will it sowed contempt, division and conflict.  Their solution was liberty.  If one group wants to do “A” and another group wants to do “B,” the answer is not to have the group in power force the other group to do what they command.  Instead, the first group can do “A” and the second group can do “B.”  They can try to use persuasion to win the other side over but they should not use coercion.

If Joe Biden really wants unity this is what he should do.  Refrain from taking away our liberty.  Allow people to have free will and do what they think is best for themselves.  He can disagree with our choices but he should not overrule them.  Here are ten great suggestions that the Democrats can do to respect the liberty of Americans:

  1. If you decide to raise taxes, make it optional to pay the old rate like the Republicans did for you. 
  2. If you want people to wear masks, make it optional like the Republicans did.
  3. Let scared restaurant owners who want to shut down do so, and let the ones who want to remain open choose to do that.  If patrons want to show up they can but if they are afraid they should also be free to stay home.
  4. Let churches decide whether to remain open or close down.  If congregants do not want to attend they should not be forced to, but those who do should be allowed in.
  5. President Trump stopped enforcement of the Johnson Amendment, which threatens to take away tax-exempt status from churches if the pastor endorses a political candidate.  Continue with that policy and allow pastors to decide for themselves what to say from the pulpit without threat of retaliation from the government.
  6. If somebody wants health insurance that covers pregnancy and drug rehabilitation they should be allowed to purchase it.  If another person wants less expensive insurance that does not cover those things they should be allowed to choose that.  If someone else prefers to pay out of pocket for medical care instead of buying insurance they should be able to do that.
  7. Do not force law abiding citizens to buy guns.  Likewise, do not prohibit them from buying guns.
  8. If someone wants to do a job for $8 per hour, do not prohibit them from doing so and force them out of a job.  Let people decide for themselves what wage to accept.
  9. Do not force people who are against murdering babies to pay for the murder of babies.  Do not use taxpayer money for Planned Parenthood.
  10. Refrain from banning or restricting us from using certain products like incandescent light bulbs, straws, grocery bags, soda, and shower heads with good water pressure.

These are all things that Democrats have tried to dictate in the past.  If they truly want unity this list would be a solid first step.  Instead of using tyrannical power to control those of us who disagree with them, try going back to our founding vision of liberty.  It’s the least they can do after Republicans did it for them the last four years.