I hate racist liberals!!!

Greetings from Occupied Territory... Here's another thing to add to the reasons why I hate Portland: racism!!! Yes it's true, liberals are as racist as the KKK!!! Hard to believe, but it's true! Since I've been in Oregon, I've experienced racism in a most horrible way! How? Simple, people here have preconceived opinions about how Latinos are supposed to be. Like how we're supposed to be brown, have a Spanish surname, and have Spanish accented English. Sorry, but I refuse to fit into your mold!!! I don't have a Spanish surname, and I sure as hell don't speak with Spanish accented English!!! My father is white, and my mother is Mexican; what's the problem?!?! The problem here is that people don't get out much! Where I'm from, California, whites and Mexicans often mix. The end result of this mix is often a family, and children! This is common in California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas. How is it that people in Oregon haven't figured this out? And, another thing, Latin America is as diverse as the U.S.... How is this? You ever see a black Latino? If you watch MLB baseball, you've seen plenty of Latinos play, even black Latinos! Remember Sammy Sousa? He's Dominican! In Latin America, Latinos come in all shapes and colours! There are white Latinos (Ever been to Spain?), black Latinos, Mestizo Latinos (the brown ones!!!), and even Asian Latinos! If you've been to Peru, there are lots of Chinese and Japanese Latinos! One of the former Prime Ministers of Peru, Alberto Fujimorii, is of Japanese ancestry! But, he's also Latino!!! Hey, Portland... it's time to get a clue!!! Latinos do not, and will not fit into your preconceived mold!!! If they won't, why should I?!?! Sorry, but I'm from a mixed race family, and I refuse to conform to your preconceived opinions!!!

Portlanders are too thin-skinned!

Greetings from Occupied Metro Portland...

My 2 year anniversary is fast approaching, and it's not something I'm not looking forward to. I have discovered that I really hate Portland. I have never seen so many closed-minded people in one place, and at one time!!! The people here pride themselves on being "progressive minded..." I have to constantly remind them that there is no "progress" in socialism, only regress! They hate that, hate it with a passion!!! In fact, they try to correct me, saying that they're doing this for the good of mankind... spare me!!! I tell them, that if they realise their dreams, they're only going to be brushed aside by communists, treated as useful idiots. When I tell them they're useful idiots, they also get mad, saying they're not idiots! I tell them, this is what the communist Lenin called "progressives;" progressives do all the work, and the communists simply steal it out from under them. I have history on my side. Anyway, enough of those fucktards, they're useless!

I finally married my High School sweetheart Toni on 22 December 2011. I left my ex Elena for Toni; my life hasn't been the same since. I found out that I had ADHD, and through Toni's mom, I've been receiving care for it. Now, I've gotten better, but I'm still having issues with it. At least now, I'm getting meds for it, but I think that I might have to seek counselling. But, we shall see. Toni has been the best thing that has happened to me; I am so madly in love with her! Toni loves me, and I love her; no one is going to stop that! Though, in the beginning of our second time around, there were those here in Portland that were on the side of Toni's ex Bob. Bob, had started some major shit with his friends, and it caused us issues. I was able to contain a lot of the damage, and change opinions about us. So, we've survived this, and even Bob accepted us. We're on good terms with him now, and even sometimes help him if he asks.

Anyway, back to Portland. I recently started working at Providence Portland Hospital. Normally, I'm very bombastic, and very outgoing. I was working on a UPS install in the ICU, and had to wait for the drivers to install. I moved from under the counter, and was achy due to several broken bones. Anyway, I came up, and I was moaning as I came up. A nurse asked me if I was ok, and I told her that I was. She asked me how it happened, so I told her. Granted, it took about 5 minutes to tell her, but she didn't say that she wasn't interested. The only thing I did wrong, was that I was a bit loud (if you've known me for any length of time, you'll know that I'm usually loud, but I can be very quiet!). Wow, what a whiny bitch... I'm just so tired of Portland! I'm interested in moving away from here, but I don't have the money to move away!!!
Toni says that we can move away, but I told her that I need my certs!

Anyway, enough from me, I'm done!

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest...

Life has gotten better! It's been rough, but things have gotten better! My credit has gotten better; in fact, it's improved by 100 points! I've been working on getting my ADHD under control, but it has been difficult. I still don't have medical insurance, so I still use the County Public Health clinic for my primary care. Luckily, the majority of my medications cost less than $4 a month. My Adderall, that's a different story. It used to cost me $138 a month for the 25mg extended release capsule. I've had my doctor change it over to the 15mg immediate release. Now, I take 30mg a day, but 2x daily. My biggest problem now, is learning how to control my impulsive behaviour! Now, don't get me wrong, some of my impulsive behaviour is part of who I am, and I don't want to change all of that. Just the parts where I tend to shout out things that I shouldn't, or do the things that I shouldn't. I'm tired of regretting saying or doing things that I shouldn't!

I have filed for divorce... Well, actually, I filed back in April. I was unable to pay to serve Elena because I was out of work. Now, I have paid to have her served, and it's been 30 days since she was properly served. Now, I have moved for a default judgement of dissolution of my marriage. Luckily, we have no assets, so the dissolution will be easier. So now, I have to wait 3 more weeks to see if the judge will waive the 90 day period, and move for dissolution. Elena never responded (well, she has no way to get up here... Ian is too much of a cheap ass to take her...), and now we're at this point. I have to figure out a child support payment from up here, so I can take it with me to Sacramento on 18 November. The support order should be issued from up here, because I live up here. If I can get Julian to move up here, I won't have to pay so much. The problem with that, is that that he's under the influence of his mother. He says that she doesn't say anything about me, but I know Elena better than they do!

My children, sadly, are under the influence of my ex, and unless I'm down there to counter her influence, I've lost them. When I am around them, I can affect their minds, influence them! I don't want to control their thoughts like Elena does, I'd rather they use their own minds, and see what she has done. When I start to make better money, they're going to see that I had to take time to recover from all of her economic sabotage.
Then, I can be in a better position to assist them. I already told them that if they want me to help them to go to college, either they're going to have to come up here, or go to Stanford. Those are the only options that I told them I would pay for...

But, before I can pay for college, I have to wait to complete my certification program. It's been difficult, but I'm working to persevere, to finish the course. Right now, I've been laid off from my courier job, and it stems from the impulse control caused by the ADHD. With the Adderall, I can focus, but the impulse control is a different matter. If I can't get that under control, I may apply for SSI; it's not something that I want to do, but I need to do something!!! At least I'll be able to qualify for medical insurance issued by the state, and I'd be able to pay for my meds. I don't want to live like this!!! I HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO CONTROL MY IMPULSES, OR ELSE I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO HOLD DOWN A JOB!!!

This has always been a problem for me! It got me into trouble when I was in the service. It got me into trouble when I was in school, and gets me into trouble at work. My mother says it's my mouth that gets me into trouble. I wish that were the case, but there's more to it than such a simplistic thing. It stems back to impulse control, or rather my lack of it. Since moving up here, I have gotten better at learning to control it. The biggest pitfall, is being able to interpret people. I can read people, but sometimes, I misinterpret people.
What do I mean; simple, I have a tendency to treat everyone the same, even people that I don't know. Instead of getting to know people, I tend to open up too soon, and buddy up to people. People misinterpret this, and think I'm weird because of it. I need to learn how to be aloof again, learn to keep people at a distance until they get to know me. I don't have a problem meeting people, quite the contrary... I'm very approachable, and likeable. But, I tend to polarise people as well. You either like me, or you don't; no middle ground with me.

Enough about me... I've said what I wanted, now I'm done...

My family...

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest...

It's been awhile since I posted, but I haven't had much to say. What I have been saying has been said on Facebook. It cost me some friends, but oh well!!! I had to say what I had to say, and no one is going to stop me from saying it. So, let me tell you a little bit about my family...

I was born in Oakland, CA in 1968 to David and Magdalena Freeman. But, unfortunately for me, both of my parents were (and still are...) selfish, a part of the so called "me" generation. Living for the moment, not caring about tomorrow, free love, etc. According to my mother, my dad was bisexual, and according to my father, my mother was (still is...) a bitch. They married in 1968, and divorced in 1972. My dad didn't remarry until 1984, and my mom remarried in 1972 after her divorce was finalised.

She married some loser from Southern CA named Neil S. Moore. He was in the Army at the time, stationed out at Ft. Hood. He ended up stealing a car in Texas, was arrested, and sent to prison for 3 years; TDC didn't notify the Army, and upon release from TDC, he was taken into custody, court-martialed, confined for 6 months more, and discharged with a Bad Conduct Discharge from the Army. Oh well! He came home to my mom, and she took him back. Anyway, while he was readjusting to civilian life, he made me lunch one day. I wouldn't eat it (it tasted nasty!!! Sorry, I won't eat shit!!!), and I got my ass beaten for it. I had been beaten so bad, I had to go to the hospital for treatment (he left bad bruises...). My mom tossed him out on his ass (as far as I knew...), and I went to stay with my grandmother.

Whilst with my grandmother, I would be further tormented by my aunt (whom I love deeply, and I'm very angry with her at the moment for siding with my mother!!!), and my uncles. My aunt Z has 2 kids, but at the time, Adrian was little, and wasn't up and around. I was 5 years old, and an ADHD child. Back then, I don't think they had a name for it; but I was tortured for being born with it. I was talkative, hyperactive, impulsive, and inattentive. I didn't listen too well to anyone, and as a result, I would receive endless ass beatings. At the time, I had annoyed the hell out of my aunt and uncle so much, they had bound my hands together with masking tape, and taped my mouth shut. I was then put into the broom closet, and let out periodically if I was quiet. That didn't last long. This would go on for several weeks whilst I was in kindergarten. And my mother wonders why I hate her.

Fast forward to 1977... I had to go stay with my Aunt Z and her husband at Mather AFB in Rancho Cordova, CA for the summer. My cousin Adrian, by now, had turned into a malicious child. He would get into all kinds of mischief, and I would get the blame. And of course, I would receive the always present, but never wanted, ass beating. But, with my uncle Ron, I would receive more than my fair share; in fact, I would get my ass beaten everyday by my uncle just because. And, he'd do it with a whiffle ball bat! Finally, after being beaten repeatedly, I had decided that I had had enough. My uncle was an avid model builder, and would hang the completed project from the ceiling, or place it on a bookshelf. I had decided that I would be destructive, and I would take out all my anger on his models. I seem to recall that there were at least 20 finished projects around the house. I took his whiffle ball bat, and proceeded to smash all of the models, both hanging and on the bookshelf! Did I care about the consequences? No! I had figured that since I got my ass beaten everyday anyway, what difference did it make? My aunt, apparently, hasn't forgiven me.

Back to my mother... It turns out, that my mother is somewhat of a promiscuous woman. She went through men back then faster than I could change my shorts. It was not uncommon for her to have at least 2 boyfriends a year when I was younger. But, there were several she had that I did like. Like Wayne, and Bob, and Steve, and Jimmy, and Randy, and finally, Don. Ah Don! Why did you have to go and die?!?! Oh, she had her share of losers as well; the biggest one I remember was this dickhead named Al. He managed an apartment complex on Church Ave. in Sacramento. I only lived there with my mother for the summer; and I hated it! Al, made no attempt to hide the fact that he didn't like me. I can have that affect on people; you either like me, or you don't like me... There's no middle ground there. Anyway, I spent the summer of 1978 locked away in my room. It was a nice room, but a cage is still a cage, no matter how guilded the bars are. Al would send me outside for hours, and I'd take advantage of that. I wouldn't come home until dark. My mother asked me recently if I had something to do with Al getting robbed; Mom, I was only 10 years old!!! How the fuck am I going to have something to do with that?!?! Whatever...

Then, there were my many cousins. First off, there's Adrian and Dusty...my Aunt Z's kids. As I said earlier, Adrian was malicious! If I wasn't there, he'd get the brunt of the ass beatings. And, when his brother got older, they both got them; at least until Aunt Z moved away from Ron... Next, there's Pancho and Pete. Pancho was always the troublemaker. Pete on the other hand, was the one that had a hard time in school, but did the best he could. I got along fairly well with Pancho, until he'd get us into trouble. Then, the ass beatings would happen. As well as the beatings, I would end up fighting Pancho's battles. After a couple of years of that, I got tired of that, and communicated with his adversaries that I want no part of his actions. They agreed, and ambushed Pancho. He got his just dessert, and he ran home to tattle on me. Of course, I got my ass beaten for not helping Pancho. Even after explaining why I did what I did, the excuse was that he was family, and we don't abandon family. Fast forward to 1985-1986...Pete moves in with my mom and I. I was an only child, and wasn't used to this. I gave him hell, and that wasn't fair of me. Luckily, he graduated, joined the Army, and hasn't looked back. He's doing well now, living in San Diego. Pancho, hates his brother.

Since we're still in 1985, I think I've told the story of what happened between Toni and I. We had each other for such a short time; but, we loved one another passionately in the time we had. We never had sex back then, but we were close! Again, I hate my mother for breaking us up...bitch!!! If we had been allowed to stay together and grow, I think things would have been different. My life wouldn't have been so difficult.

Now, fast forward to 1989. I've returned from the Far East, and I'm sowing my wild oats; fucking women every chance I get! I was still hurting over losing Toni (yes, it happened in '85, but pain like that lasts a long time; it also inspires poets to write love poems!!!), and my mother then introduced me to Elena. My mother said that this should make up for her breaking Toni and I up, and to stop whining about it. At first, Elena was attractive. But, as time went on, I saw the inner her. And, from what I saw, I really didn't like what I saw. She was incredibly selfish, self-centered, narcissistic, and petty. I wasn't allowed to have female friends whilst I was around Elena. She was so insecure, that she would assume that I was having sex with my female friends (well, I did have a few friends with benefits, but that wasn't until later...). In July of 1991, right before Ian was born, Elena and I were at Birdcage Theatre. We were waiting to go into the theatre, when I saw Toni again, for the first time since High School. She called my name 3 times, and finally shouted "Hey, dumbass!!!" I immediately turned, and saw her. She was pushing a stroller towards me, as Elena returned to me. Elena looked over, and saw Toni...Toni stopped, stared at me with sad eyes, and just stood there. I looked at her, and wondered what she was doing. Elena meanwhile, wraps her arm around my waist, and makes sure that Toni sees this. Elena then asks me who that bitch was; I told her, promptly...she isn't a bitch, that's Toni! Elena replied, oh, really? She's cute; I guess you do have good taste in women after all... After that, whenever Elena and I would argue (which was constant...), Elena would bring up the fact that I was still pining away for Toni, or that I was a loser for still thinking about Toni, or how I should just grow up and forget about her. And the one that would piss me off the most...so, how's the search for Toni going? Little did she know, I knew where Toni lived...but, I operated under the assumption that Toni hated me for dumping her. Little did I know, that she was still in love with me! Oh, if only I could go back into time, and change our past!!!

Then, there are my kids... Ian, Julian, and Brianna. Ian, was born in 1991 in Sacramento. He's a good kid, but he's made some dumb choices. His mother has only exacerbated this by pandering to him. At one point, he was enrolled in Options for Youth; an independent study program that met weekly. He didn't want to do the work; Elena did it for him! So, it was discovered that all the course work that Ian had submitted was reviewed, and discarded! He was subsequently dismissed from this program because he had committed academic fraud! He still hasn't graduated from HS. Julian well, he's doing well (at least that's what they tell me...). He got into Del Campo HS (Ian had tried to get in, but due to poor attendance, they refused to admit him...) without too much trouble. It didn't hurt that he had went to Will Rogers Middle School, a feeder school of DC. Since he's the middle child, he doesn't get enough attention from Elena. Elena pays attention mostly to Ian or Brianna, leaving Julian to fend for himself. When I was there, I would hang out with Julian. I tried to anyway. Finally, there's my daughter, Brianna. I love her, but she's an ADHD child, just like her father...I have tried to tell Elena that Brianna needs to get the evaluation done, but Elena balks at the idea. Elena also balks at the idea that she has undiagnosed mental health issues. Brianna is a smart kid, but she has a hard time getting along with other kids. This is a source of contention for her; I hated seeing her always upset because she didn't really have friends. I'm not there anymore, so I really don't have any influence on the situation.

Well, there you have it...mi familia loca!!! Now you understand why I am the way I am...at least on some level...

My current employment is tenuous at best...

Greetings from the wet Pacific Northwest...

Toni and I returned from Sacramento on Sunday, after staying the night in Grant's Pass, OR. I really hate driving straight through from or to Sacramento from here. It's a long drive (about 10 hours of a long drive...), and I hate making that drive! It's not that I can't make the drive, it's just that Toni hates driving in the mountains. So, I choose to drive the whole way...anyway, we went to Sacramento for a 1203.4/1203.5 PC hearing. What is this, you ask? Well, in CA, after a period of time has elapsed, a person with a conviction, can apply for an early release from probation, and a dismissal of a conviction. Now, your conviction is still on your record, and can be used against you again should you fuck up, but it goes down on your record as "set aside..." After that, you don't have to disclose that you were convicted of anything, unless you're applying for a government job (which I have no desire of ever applying for!!!)

Anyway, I had a hearing date of 17 September, at 1:35 PM in Department 61 of Sacramento Superior Court. Unfortunately, my court date was changed on me, and the court didn't have the common decency to notify me either by mail or by phone...assholes!!! We made the trip for nothing!!! I had said prayers, asking for The Lord on High to give the people in charge His wisdom in deciding to release me, and to give me the strength to keep going. What I got was help from places that I had least expected! I had called Sacramento Co Probation Dept. to see what they had on me...they of course had nothing on me, because I wasn't being supervised by them. The Probation Officer had asked me why I called, and I had told him. He then started suggesting that I show that I had proof of potential employment, and this could be proved by showing emails from potential employers. This was something that I was not expecting; help from a government agency!!! The Probation Officer, had hoped that I was successful in my endeavour, and had also wished me luck! How about that...I had not have expected that in a million years!!!

I had gone to the courthouse, and I had found out that the court date had been changed, and that my appearance was not mandatory...I had been informed when I had set the court date, that the appearance was mandatory. I was informed by the clerk in Room 102 that the rules had changed in July; why was I not informed of the change of appearance? My attorney, said something about my appearance wasn't necessary, but rather, was optional. He did say that my appearance would actually bolster my case, because it shows to the judge that you're remorseful of your dastardly deeds, and you have no desire to repeat them. True enough, I really don't want to go back to jail...fuck that!!! I wasted enough of the taxpayers' money being confined!!! So, now I have to wait until 22 October for this nightmare to finally end!!!

As far as work is concerned, 2 weeks ago, I had to pick up a wedding party in Chahalis, WA by 5:30 PM. No problem, I could do this...the problem was, that I had a bad address, a church with no name, and to make matters worse, no cell service!!! When I arrived at the address on my run tag, I didn't see a church...what I saw was absolutely nothing!!! Nothing but trees, trees, and more trees!!! I had to go back into Chahalis to call the customer, and call the boss for a better address. What I got from the customer was a line of bullshit so thick, the Mohave Desert would be blooming in the wintertime!!! And, I got my ass chewed by my boss as well!!! He wanted to know where the fuck I was...I told him, I was at the address that he gave me...when I had called the customer, she had told me that they weren't in Chahalis, but rather, they were in a small town called Pe Ell, WA...I asked her where they were specifically, and I was told by her that she didn't know the name of the church they were at, but that it was off of WA-6 in Pe Ell!!!

There are 3 churches in Pe Ell, a Catholic, a Methodist, and a Nazerine...how do I know this? I went to all three!!! None of the above mentioned churches had weddings that day, and none of the churches had any mention of this on the fronts of their churches. So, how am I to know this? Isn't this the job of my boss and the customer? Aren't I supposed to have accurate address information to make the pickup? I know that I had accurate map information, because I had just updated the software in my GPS, and I had mapped out the info on Google maps...add to that, a Motor Carriers' Road Atlas; I should have a pretty good idea of where I'm going, right? But, no, my boss doesn't think so. I even went out of my way to find this church...I drove 15 miles into Pacific Co. WA to find them. Finally, after 2 hours of trying to find this party, I gave up in frustration!!! I had though about going to the drop off point to see if they had arrived at the destination, and try to smooth things out. But, if I had done that, my boss would have been livid! I would have made him look stupid, and we can't have that now, can we? Even though, this is all on him, he would have fired my ass on the spot...so instead, I have to wait to find out what he plans on doing.

If I lose this job, I'm not going to cry over it. It was fun while it lasted, but it wasn't frequent enough for me; it was too part-time... Now, I was given a job opportunity as a truck driver; I have to renew my Medical certificate, and that's proving to be a pain in the ass!!! I have to get medical information on my Diabetes, or else I can't get the physical done. Per FMCSR, I have to have a current Medical Card on file with the DMV. With Diabetes, I can't be on insulin...FMCSA feels that a driver on insulin can't effectively perform the duties as a driver, because injecting insulin requires too much attention as far as they're concerned. Not that I care, because I'm not on insulin, and I hope to never be on insulin. I've received information from the study I'm involved in, and I hope that's enough. If it is, then I should be able to drive...I hope!!! I wanna make my girl proud of me...she was before, and I want to make her again!!!

Civil Servants making over 100k a year?!?!

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest...

It's 72 degrees in Milwaukie, and whilst I was working yesterday, I found out that cops in Happy Valley, OR are getting paid over $150k a year...what?!?! How is this possible? How can a cop in the Metro Portland, OR area make over $100k a year, and a Cisco CCIE can't make over $80k? A cop up here doesn't face the same level of danger as a cop in CA, but yet, they're making over $100k. This is proof positive that the unions have too much power here, and the public sector unions have the most power!!! There is no way a cop in OR should be making that kinda money. I wonder if they're familiar with Bell, CA? Recently, Bell, CA city managers were making over $600k. That caused a firestorm in CA. CA is in economic dire straights, and here they are paying exorbitant amounts of money for someone that doesn't deserve it. Did they go to college, earn a degree, and put it into practice? In government? I doubt it...

Oregon is willing to pay out exorbitant amounts of money for it's Law Enforcement, but yet, they're not willing to pay IT professionals chump change. An IT professional (such as myself...), has gone to college, gotten a degree, gotten advanced training and schooling, and as a result, deserves to make the big bucks. But, whenever there's a shortage of IT professionals, companies scream bloody murder about there not being enough qualified American IT professionals. The problem is that there are enough qualified professionals, but rather, the real problem is that there are too many companies out there that aren't willing to pay us what we're really worth. They'd rather pay for an H-1B import worker, and pay that worker what the same wages they get paid in the home country. I've had enough of those firms outsourcing our IT jobs. There's nothing worse than an a qualified American IT professional being sold out so a company can save a buck.

I have issues with my fiance's soon to be Ex husband, Bob. But, like me, he's an IT professional. The difference between him and I is that he doesn't have an IT degree, and he doesn't have industry certs. What he does have is experience, and a certificate of completion of a training program. He, originally, worked for Nike's IT department in-house. Unfortunately for him, Nike outsourced the IT department, and he lost his job. Luckily for him, the outsource firm hired the whole department. Later on, the outsourcing firm decided to sell that contract to another firm, and they lost their jobs. Another firm said they'd be rehired, but it didn't happen. Finally, he got picked up by the firm he's working with now. But he's been out of work for over 2 years. He's worked off and on during that 2 year period, but it wasn't enough for Toni. She insisted that he find work somewhere else; they had bills that needed to be paid, and unemployment didn't cover it... He simply refused to find work elsewhere. Me? I've worked all over Northern CA, and I'm not afraid to commute to work. Anyway, Toni got tired of being tired, and she had enough of him. Bob, should have gotten certified, but he didn't. At least, he would have kept working continuously.

Maybe, after the divorce, he'll understand where he screwed up, and try to make up for those shortcomings, but I highly doubt it...

Boycott the Red and Black Cafe?!?!? Why? Because they told a cop to leave?

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest,

Recently, a coffee shop in the Northeast part of Portland, Oregon asked a police officer to leave their establishment. This has caused a shitstorm from the conservatives here in Portland. I for one, think that this coffee shop did the right thing by asking this cop to leave. I don't necessarily agree with the reasons why this cafe did what it did. But, what ever happened to businesses having the right to refuse service to anyone? I, am not a big fan of Law Enforcement in Oregon or in California, but unfortunately, they're a necessary evil.

What does need to happen though, is that California POST Commission, and Oregon's DPSST need to a favour for their communities by setting even higher standards for peace officer training. Take for example, it should be mandatory that law enforcement candidates should be veterans of the Armed Forces. Why? Because, the military has a tendency to temper even the most arrogant of men or women. Humility should be high within the law enforcement community. I say this because I was at one time, a reserve Sheriff's Deputy with the San Bernardino Co Sheriff's Department 20 years ago. It taught me a lot about how petty men and women in law enforcement can be. How they have the tendency to ignore their oath of office, and focus upon selfish needs.

My friend, Dave Blaylock, will hate me for saying this, but I feel that most cops (the military veterans can be forgiven...) are in it for the wrong reasons. Most are in it for the job stability. For the most part, a cop is nothing more than a civil servant with a gun. He/she has the authority granted to them by the state to enforce the law. But, for some, that power can go their head, and start to affect them. That's why the agencies that hire screen candidates with Pschy evaluations. Unfortunately, they aren't always effective at catching those that eventually go bad.

I think that Robert Heinlein had a good idea back when he wrote the book "Starship Troopers," making all civil servant jobs only available to veterans. I say this because the majority of cops today have no idea what it means to actually place their lives on the line for their country. I don't consider driving around in a car for 8 to 10 hours a day, walking around every so often to check things out, and maybe arresting someone to be that dangerous. Sure, you can get injured on the job, but let's not forget those that put on the uniform of this great nation. How many people have been killed in the recent wars fought to safeguard this nation? And, how many cops died while protecting our communities? Not that many, when you compare how many died in combat, or even in peacetime.

I get tired of people equating what a cop does to what I did while I served my country. First off, that cop doesn't have any idea (unless s/he's a veteran...) what it's like to be far away from home during the holidays. S/he has no idea what it's like to experience combat first hand (sure, they may get shot at, but that's not the same thing...), and s/he has no idea what it's like to see someone get blown up. I would like to see the cops on the street of Portland spend a week on duty on the mean streets of Bagdad or Fallujah...maybe, it might change them for the better...