June,1979. Almost three months on the job as a new police officer in a quiet Milwaukee suburb. I was waiting to meet another officer in the Municipal pool lot when the radio chirped, “Stop the blue taxi southbound on Santa Monica!” I answered, “What do you have?” No response. Then I see the blue taxi pass my location, pull out and stop the vehicle. The taxi driver bolts out of the car, I draw my weapon and hear him shouting, “She’s got a gun and is shooting herself.” I hear three gunshots and slowly approach the vehicle and find a female in the back of the taxi that had just shot herself twice in the chest and once in the head. Later, I find out that the woman had fled the scene of a murder where she had shot and killed her mother over a custody dispute involving her son. Further investigation revealed that the woman suffered from mental illness, but was out on the street since it was determined that she was not a danger to herself or others and had refused to voluntarily agree to treatment.
Mental health law in the United States was forever changed when the 1974 Wisconsin case, SCHMIDT v. LESSARD, 414 US 473 determined that the Wisconsin involuntary mental health commitment statute was unlawful. New standards were put into place to make it more difficult to place the mentally ill into in-patient facilities in order to protect their civil rights. The “must be a danger to themselves or others” doctrine was born and thereby incorporated into the law of the land. Every person’s civil rights must be protected, and thus, more and more of the mentally ill remain in mainstream society. The homeless that wander the streets of cities are not there simply because they have no home, the majority of them are homeless because they are mentally ill and cannot be forced into a treatment program unless they voluntarily agree.
The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut is difficult to understand. Any time children are placed in harm’s way, our parental instincts are awakened. We lash out in an effort to place blame and search for a way to prevent our precious children from ever becoming targets again. Some use events such as this as an opportunity to gain a political advantage. Gun control legislation is proposed as a way to prevent needless tragedies. Eliminate assault style rifles and large capacity magazines, they proclaim. These will never be solutions. They will only placate a small minority of those who want to infringe upon other’s constitutional rights. There is a reason that the 2nd Amendment is the only Amendment that states that it “shall not be infringed”. That means that no law shall prohibit any United States citizen from purchasing and owning firearms, period!
One only needs to look at the mental health of just some of the mass shooters in the United States since Columbine, on April 20th, 1999 to ascertain the root cause of these tragedies.
Columbine, Colorado, 1999 - Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, two troubled youth, outcasts in their school, apparent victims of bullying, avid gamers with DOOM being the predominant game, both were prescribed anti-depressants and both showed an anger against society. Obviously, their mental health was questionable.
Virginia Tech, 2007 – Seung-Hui Chung, diagnosed with a severe anxiety disorder and posted rambling and threatening videos on YouTube. He refused recommended mental health treatment and was allowed to remain on the street.
Fort Hood, Texas, 2009 – Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist who exhibited bizarre behavior and shared an email correspondence with a known militant Islamic cleric. Political correctness apparently kept him from being reported and evaluated. Even though this event was declared a workplace violence incident, it is obvious that a mentally ill man, influenced by radical Islam, committed an act of terrorism. Needless to say, the military prohibited weapons within the Fort Hood base, a fact that greatly influenced the casualty count, since no one could properly defend themselves.
Tucson, Arizona, 2011 - Jared Loughner, a paranoid-schizophrenic who, according to friends, never appeared violent.
Aurora, Colorado Theatre, 2012 – James Holmes, due to on-going court proceedings, little is known about Holmes mental health, although his plea is not guilty due to mental disease or defect.
Oak Creek, Wisconsin Sikh Temple, 2012 – Wade Michael Page, a white supremacist, who was given a general discharge from the Army, also evidenced unusual behavior that was reported by neighbors after the incident.
Brookfield, Wisconsin, 2012 – Radcliffe Haughton, involved with a number of reports of erratic behavior at his home in Brown Deer, Wisconsin. He was not arrested after it was determined that he was not a threat to himself or to others.
Let’s not kid ourselves into thinking that we somehow, can close Pandora’s Box, and make this all go away by eliminating or restricting gun ownership. The root cause to almost all of these tragedies is the system in place to address the mentally ill. As a police officer, I transported numerous individuals to the Milwaukee Mental Health Facility on involuntary mental health commitments, only to have them released before I had completed all of my police reports. Unfortunately for some, guns themselves do not kill, but some that are mentally ill do possess the ability and mindset to commit these grave acts of violence. The only way to truly help minimize our exposure to future senseless acts of violence like these is to make certain that the mentally ill are treated for their own good and for the good of society.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Monday, December 24, 2012
A Must Read
This message was shared with me via email.
COLUMBINE STUDENT'S FATHER 12 YEARS LATER !!
Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.
They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness.. The following is a portion of the transcript:
"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.
"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.
"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent.
I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.
Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!
"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.
"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone!
My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!" - Darrell Scott Do what the media did not - - let the nation hear this man's speech. Please send this out to everyone you can. God Bless
COLUMBINE STUDENT'S FATHER 12 YEARS LATER !!
Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.
They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness.. The following is a portion of the transcript:
"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.
"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.
"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent.
I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.
Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!
"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.
"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone!
My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!" - Darrell Scott Do what the media did not - - let the nation hear this man's speech. Please send this out to everyone you can. God Bless
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Thank You!
The following was reprinted, with a few corrections, from an email that circulated after the recall election in Wisconsin. Enjoy!
To all leftists, occupiers, unionistas and malcontents,
Thank you! What an election! We couldn't have done it without you. Without your tantrums, outbursts and boorish behavior we might have stayed home for this election. Without your filthy, pot smoking hemp -headed minions occupying and violating the Capitol we might have been complacent. Without your obnoxious protests, boycotts and other actions from your union playbook, we might have sat this one out.
But you couldn't hold back. You couldn't restrain yourselves and behave like adults. You couldn't accept the 2010 election results. We sat and watched as you erupted in a juvenile hissy fit that embarrassed Wisconsin. The spectacle you created is what motivated us. And thanks to your ill-mannered behavior, we won. We turned out. Big time! And now we are organized and energized. Committed. "All in". And we aren't going away. We now have our own organizations (no dues required), an army of volunteers and the means to communicate. We now have countless new sources of funding, including a donor base from all 50 states. And we have "iverifythe recall" to ferret out your infiltrators in our future local elections.
So thank you Mike Tate, Graeme Zielinski, Fred "Loonie" Levenhagen, Ismael Ozanne, Maryanne Sumi, Noble Ray, Charles Tubbs, Joanne Kloppenberg, Segway Boy, John Chisolm, public employee union members, UW TA's, WEAC, SEIU, MTI, AFSCME Council 24 in Union Grove and WI prison guards,. Thanks for the death threats, the intimidation, the bullying, belligerence, thuggery and goonish behavior. Thanks for showing the world the left’s lack of ethics and their failure to enforce rules and laws. Thank you for putting your selfish, greedy motives on display for all taxpayers to see. Your antics might have made you feel good but they didn't make you look good. They sickened the rest of us.
Thank you, Shirley Abrahamson and Ann Walsh Bradley. Your petty politics woke us up. Thank you, Miles Kristan for dumping the beer on Robin Vos' head. Thank you, University doctors for writing the phony excuses; Madison teachers for calling in sick or dragging your students to the protests without permission. Thank you, Katherine Windels for making death threats against the Governor. Thank you to the noontime capitol singers who taunted Sheboygan high school students. Thank you WEA Trust for raping Wisconsin taxpayers. Thank you, Gwen Moore for your embarrassing minstrel show. And thanks to all of you for harassing the Walker family at their private home.
You have all been exposed. Your tactics have been rejected. Your bad behavior has been forever captured on YouTube. Thank you, Peter Barca and fellow demorat Assembly members for donning your foolish orange T-shirts and screaming "shame" at legislators that we doing their jobs, unlike you. Thank you, Mark Miller and all 14 demorat senators for fleeing the state and making fools of yourselves in the process. Illinois needs a few more village idiots. Thanks for showing us what democracy doesn't look like.
And Mayor Barrett. How grateful we are that you chose one low road after another in your issue-less campaign against the Governor. This was your strike three. You are out. Take a seat on the bench and stay there. I have a hunch this was your final at-bat.
All of you helped turn Wisconsin permanently red. Your Governor, Scott Walker, will not just complete his first term, he is all but assured as many future terms as he seeks. He will be your governor for a long, long time. Get used to it. And his national "rock star" status just might lead him to be your President someday. Just think, it couldn't have happened without you! So to all of you blue fisters, thank you from the bottom of my happy, red heart. Sincerely,
A Wisconsin taxpayer
To all leftists, occupiers, unionistas and malcontents,
Thank you! What an election! We couldn't have done it without you. Without your tantrums, outbursts and boorish behavior we might have stayed home for this election. Without your filthy, pot smoking hemp -headed minions occupying and violating the Capitol we might have been complacent. Without your obnoxious protests, boycotts and other actions from your union playbook, we might have sat this one out.
But you couldn't hold back. You couldn't restrain yourselves and behave like adults. You couldn't accept the 2010 election results. We sat and watched as you erupted in a juvenile hissy fit that embarrassed Wisconsin. The spectacle you created is what motivated us. And thanks to your ill-mannered behavior, we won. We turned out. Big time! And now we are organized and energized. Committed. "All in". And we aren't going away. We now have our own organizations (no dues required), an army of volunteers and the means to communicate. We now have countless new sources of funding, including a donor base from all 50 states. And we have "iverifythe recall" to ferret out your infiltrators in our future local elections.
So thank you Mike Tate, Graeme Zielinski, Fred "Loonie" Levenhagen, Ismael Ozanne, Maryanne Sumi, Noble Ray, Charles Tubbs, Joanne Kloppenberg, Segway Boy, John Chisolm, public employee union members, UW TA's, WEAC, SEIU, MTI, AFSCME Council 24 in Union Grove and WI prison guards,. Thanks for the death threats, the intimidation, the bullying, belligerence, thuggery and goonish behavior. Thanks for showing the world the left’s lack of ethics and their failure to enforce rules and laws. Thank you for putting your selfish, greedy motives on display for all taxpayers to see. Your antics might have made you feel good but they didn't make you look good. They sickened the rest of us.
Thank you, Shirley Abrahamson and Ann Walsh Bradley. Your petty politics woke us up. Thank you, Miles Kristan for dumping the beer on Robin Vos' head. Thank you, University doctors for writing the phony excuses; Madison teachers for calling in sick or dragging your students to the protests without permission. Thank you, Katherine Windels for making death threats against the Governor. Thank you to the noontime capitol singers who taunted Sheboygan high school students. Thank you WEA Trust for raping Wisconsin taxpayers. Thank you, Gwen Moore for your embarrassing minstrel show. And thanks to all of you for harassing the Walker family at their private home.
You have all been exposed. Your tactics have been rejected. Your bad behavior has been forever captured on YouTube. Thank you, Peter Barca and fellow demorat Assembly members for donning your foolish orange T-shirts and screaming "shame" at legislators that we doing their jobs, unlike you. Thank you, Mark Miller and all 14 demorat senators for fleeing the state and making fools of yourselves in the process. Illinois needs a few more village idiots. Thanks for showing us what democracy doesn't look like.
And Mayor Barrett. How grateful we are that you chose one low road after another in your issue-less campaign against the Governor. This was your strike three. You are out. Take a seat on the bench and stay there. I have a hunch this was your final at-bat.
All of you helped turn Wisconsin permanently red. Your Governor, Scott Walker, will not just complete his first term, he is all but assured as many future terms as he seeks. He will be your governor for a long, long time. Get used to it. And his national "rock star" status just might lead him to be your President someday. Just think, it couldn't have happened without you! So to all of you blue fisters, thank you from the bottom of my happy, red heart. Sincerely,
A Wisconsin taxpayer
Saturday, May 26, 2012
By Any Means Necessary
If you give them what they want, you WILL get what you deserve. If you sit this election out, comfortable in the polling numbers, thinking this will be a cakewalk for Governor Walker, then the union thugs will be successful in their attempt to overturn a legal election in the State of Wisconsin. While the recall is legitimate as to the letter of the law, it fails to honor the spirit in which it was written. Governor Walker was not engaged in any wrongdoing. Governor Walker was not embroiled in any personal scandal. Governor Walker simply did what he said he would do when running for the office of Governor. And this got two Republican State Senators thrown out of office last year and has three more on the hot seat. The democrat State Senators that fled Wisconsin in an attempt to create a stalemate in order to keep Act 10 from passing, in fact refusing to do their job as they were elected to do, are looked upon as heroes by the liberally biased media. Government workers, primarily public school teachers, that enjoyed lavish benefits, paid for entirely by taxpayers, are now required to pay a portion of the costs for their generous pensions and pay toward their health insurance. And those costs are far less than those in the private sector that are required to pay taxes in order to provide those benefits to those government workers.
As van upon van, filled with voters casting votes for democrats and against our duly elected Governor, Scott Walker, our democracy is in danger of falling to the tactics of an organization that intends to bolster its own power at the expense of you, the taxpayer. Mayor Tom Barrett, the democrat opponent in this recall election has created a "van parking only" space in front of City Hall to facilitate those democrat vans filled with who knows who, from who knows where, attempting to disenfranchise the true voters of Wisconsin. City Hall remains open for early voting until 7PM, including on weekends and now on Memorial Day. Democrat canvassers appear at the doors of Wisconsin residents in an effort to identify potential opportunities to fraudulently cast votes in the names of those away at college, deceased, or not planning to cast their votes. Those of you that have become complacent and will choose to not take the time and effort to cast your vote will get what you deserve. No one will ever again mess with the unions and they, not you, will determine how the State of Wisconsin, and likely how this country is to be run in the future.
If we, as conservatives, do not vote, we will not marginalize the liberal fringe that is taking over our country. If we, as conservatives, do not vote, the minority that is liberal will continue to usurp more and more authority and will succeed in its’ quest to fundamentally transform America. Those true believers that embrace the liberal viewpoint comprise less than 20 per cent of the population of this country, yet they continue to elect democrats at a pace that equals conservatives. Since over 40 per cent of our population is considered conservative and with another 20 per cent plus as moderates or independents that lean conservative, this makes no sense and does not truly represent the will of the people.
This is not only the most important vote in the history of the State of Wisconsin, it will have a far reaching impact throughout the United States of America. If a duly elected Governor is thrown out of office in what will be no more than a bloodless coup, nothing will be the same. If you think the protests at the Capitol were bad last year, just wait until you experience an emboldened left. You may as well just open your checkbook and hand it over to the democrats. If too many conservatives sit this one out, you may as well start looking for a new place to live because it is not going to be pretty. If you are committed to voting to retain Governor Walker, it is up to you to make certain that everyone, yes everyone that you know, goes to the polls, either by early voting or on election day June 5th. We will have no one to blame but ourselves if we let this one get away!
As van upon van, filled with voters casting votes for democrats and against our duly elected Governor, Scott Walker, our democracy is in danger of falling to the tactics of an organization that intends to bolster its own power at the expense of you, the taxpayer. Mayor Tom Barrett, the democrat opponent in this recall election has created a "van parking only" space in front of City Hall to facilitate those democrat vans filled with who knows who, from who knows where, attempting to disenfranchise the true voters of Wisconsin. City Hall remains open for early voting until 7PM, including on weekends and now on Memorial Day. Democrat canvassers appear at the doors of Wisconsin residents in an effort to identify potential opportunities to fraudulently cast votes in the names of those away at college, deceased, or not planning to cast their votes. Those of you that have become complacent and will choose to not take the time and effort to cast your vote will get what you deserve. No one will ever again mess with the unions and they, not you, will determine how the State of Wisconsin, and likely how this country is to be run in the future.
If we, as conservatives, do not vote, we will not marginalize the liberal fringe that is taking over our country. If we, as conservatives, do not vote, the minority that is liberal will continue to usurp more and more authority and will succeed in its’ quest to fundamentally transform America. Those true believers that embrace the liberal viewpoint comprise less than 20 per cent of the population of this country, yet they continue to elect democrats at a pace that equals conservatives. Since over 40 per cent of our population is considered conservative and with another 20 per cent plus as moderates or independents that lean conservative, this makes no sense and does not truly represent the will of the people.
This is not only the most important vote in the history of the State of Wisconsin, it will have a far reaching impact throughout the United States of America. If a duly elected Governor is thrown out of office in what will be no more than a bloodless coup, nothing will be the same. If you think the protests at the Capitol were bad last year, just wait until you experience an emboldened left. You may as well just open your checkbook and hand it over to the democrats. If too many conservatives sit this one out, you may as well start looking for a new place to live because it is not going to be pretty. If you are committed to voting to retain Governor Walker, it is up to you to make certain that everyone, yes everyone that you know, goes to the polls, either by early voting or on election day June 5th. We will have no one to blame but ourselves if we let this one get away!
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