Carpundit

Police Union Extortion

In Everett and Revere, police union protestors (read: cops with guns and menacing looks) shut down state construction projects yesterday, according to the Boston Globe. My feelings about police unions and police details are well documented in the blog archives here, but this is a new extreme.

I believe the police protestors in those towns should be investigated by the state for possible extortion, or threats. Facing a picket line is one thing, but facing an armed picket line that has the power to arrest you, or shoot you, is another. The cops know that. They know they were intimidating the work crews and threatening the state.

I hope the Governor won't be intimidated. He should stop all state funding for the Revere and Everett police departments, and he should send in the State Police -as only he can do- to guard state work crews in those cities.

Those protesting cops are no better than criminals. And I don't say that lightly.

Weekend Roundup

Supposedly, the original General Lee sold for almost ten million on eBay.  I'm skeptical.

Paris Hilton was sent off to jail.  I think it's good thing when the super-rich untouchables learn they're touchable after all.  It's America's version of the palace coup.  No one goes up against the wall, but points are made.

A convict is whining about his impending execution, aided by uncritical reporters who let him get away with a non-apology apology.  Being "sorry that a police officer died" just isn't the same as "I'm sorry I killed that police officer."  Or even, "I'm sorry I committed a violent crime that led directly to the death of a police officer."  And why is it that reporters will publish the name of the convict but not the name of the murder victim?  (Lieutenant Ronald Oliver.)

Over at Rennlist, the dogs are calming down, but the Coral Gables Collection still hasn't done the right thing with their customer's Porsche - the one they wrecked.  The summary is shorter on this guy's blog, but the list post is a good read - if just for laughs.

Massachusetts State Police and DNA

The new state police DNA plan is the first slip down a treacherous slope toward a society where everyone is known to the state and there's no privacy except in the darkest corners.

Or maybe it's just a new crime-fighting technique.  I'm on the fence, really.

Self-Defense in Cambridge

I've covered this before, but there's news today.  The state's highest court ruled that Alexander Pring-Wilson is entitled to a new trial, one in which he'll be allowed to introduce evidence of his alleged-victim's violent past in support of his self-defense claim.  Pring-Wilson is the former Harvard graduate student sent to prison for killing one of the two convicted felons who attacked him four years ago.

I had hoped Gerry Leone wouldn't pursue this case the way Martha Coakley did, but I guess he's protecting his political future too.  Middlesex DA is a launching post for political careers.

Combine that with the utterly irrational knee-jerk liberalism of Cambridge and you've got a real good reason not to go there.

Random Friday Evening Blogging

Random thoughts:

1. Why is that I am now more interested in reading Cook's than Autoweek?  Please note, I still grab SCM, Roundel, and Panorama before Cook's.  In that sense, I am more like my father these days.  It used to frustrate me that he only likes what he likes, and never spends time on the other stuff.  Is this a natural consequence of aging, spending time on only the things you know you like?  I have no patience for another article about another Japanese coupe or American sedan.  I just don't care, and you can't make me.

2. It is ridiculously easy to speed in a 996 Carrera.  I can't imagine what a 997 Turbo is like.

3. My never-before-used, been-sitting-in-its-box-unopened-for-five-years, Valentine One seems to work fine.  I decided to break it out tonight on the way to the Cape, because my usual ticket-avoidance method -eyeballs- doesn't work as well at night.  Crossing into one of the small towns along the route, I learned the V1 works when it warned me of a cruiser well before I saw it.  I wasn't actually speeding at that point, but I might have been.  A permanent install is on my modifications list.

4. Tomorrow we lift off the hardtop from the Carrera for spring.  Let's see how creased that back window is.

5. AG AG is really hanging on.  He's moved from lying denial to lying forgetfulness.  The next step is confession.  Then resignation.  Could we move it along, please?  The guy is in so far over his head, it's amazing he can breathe.  Being GWB's friend has really paid off over the past six years.  I'm sick of the whole crowd, myself.

Fires On the Balcony

Another tragic fire involving B.U. students?  This time, we can say clearly, "How about some common sense, people?"

BTW, an open fire (which includes a charcoal grill) within 30' of a building appears to violate the city fire code (see section 15.01).  Gas grills on balconies and roof decks are prohibited, if memory serves, though I can't find the cite right now.  Maybe it's because I'm old.

Massachusetts Judge Opines On Law Enforcement - Oh, the Irony

U.S. District Judge William Young is a pretty serious guy; he takes his job and his rulings seriously and examines issues the way a judge should, logically and disinterestedly.  So his criticism of the U.S. Marshals Service is worth thinking about.  But if Young was prompted by the expected nomination of Reed Hillman to the post in Massachusetts, he doesn't know what he's talking about.

Hillman is a career professional law enforcement officer who rose through the ranks of the State Police to the top job: Colonel/Superintendent.  When that was over, he went to the state legislature and made issues of crime and punishment his top projects.  He would have done a great job as Lieutenant Governor and he will do a great job as Marshal.

Sure, you have to be political to get the appointment, but that doesn't make you unqualified.  Or does it, Judge Young?

International Graffiti Ring

They flew here from Europe to despoil our city.  It's not art; it's vandalism.

They've been arrested and charged.  Let's have a trial and a deportation, along with a nice long ban on their entering the United States.  Anyone opposed?

Paid Police Details Need To Go

Every year or so, the papers print the ridiculous salary figures earned by police officers from paid private details, and there comes a chorus of complaint and calls for reform - but nothing ever happens.  The police unions are entrenched, the corrupt system long-established and the Commonwealth itself resistant to any change.  But I'll say it again.  Paid police details are mostly a waste of money - your money.

Boston cops making $200,000?  Troopers making over $150,000?  Look, I know that police officers' base salaries are pretty low.  (Although an economist might say they aren't low enough, because there are far more applicants than new hires.)  And I know that many officers have come to rely on their detail money to support their lifestyle.  It wouldn't be fair to switch it off overnight.  But I advocate a gradual roll-back, to the point where details are rare.  Once details are used only where needed rather than at every small pothole on every shoulder, we should increase police salaries on 5-10 thousand a year on average.

The cop who was making $65K base pay and $75K more from details won't be happy, but he isn't a very good cop anyway - he's too tired all the time.  The current system is a rip-off, and it's your money they're taking.

My earlier posts here, here and here.

A Self-Defense Shooting and Another Victim Charged

When I saw the headline, "Cabdriver charged with shooting alleged robber," I thought it must be Cambridge, but I was wrong.  It's Lawrence, in Essex County, where they've just charged the victim of a violent crime with a felony.