Should President Trump use the Insurrection Act to send federal troops into Minnesota? I think not.
Better to use US Marshals. The oldest civil law enforcement in the US, successfully used in many such cases, where the local authorities don't want to bend to federal law. Like Lyndon Johnston used them to break Jim Crow.
The US Marshals are a better fit. They are civil law enforcement, and you don't run into Posse Comitatus.
I saw this meme earlier and didn't believe it. It was too inane, too fantasy-driven, too problematic to be anywhere close to the truth. Turns out, it is probably true. As it turns out, the first words scrammed by the passenger in the vehicle of the woman shot by ICE, screamed, "Why did you have real bullets?"
Did she think that this was some play-action fantasy?
The problem with these folks is that they cannot differentiate between Instagram reels, TikTok shorts, and the real world. In the fantasy of holding ICE accountable, everyone goes home safe. In the fantasy of video gaming, there is a reset button.
This gal who was killed is not some "white chick George Floyd", as I've seen her described. She is not a martyr to a cause. She is just the latest example of a lethal force encounter going very bad, very quickly.
For my entire police career, as I was getting ready for my shift, I'd look in the mirror and ask myself if I were willing to take a human life that day. We do a job in the real world with real consequences. Thankfully, I never had to take a life. I drew my weapon only four times in the line of duty. I never had to fire. For that I am thankful.
Today's "protestors" don't seem to understand lethal force. That is unfortunate, because the cops understand it very well. There is no reset button. It is forever.
I see that the news is awash with the tragic tale of a gal in Minnesota who was recently killed in an altercation with federal ICE officers in Minneapolis.
It's tragic. The death of anyone is tragic.
In 37 years behind the badge, I was regularly trained on Use of Force during my yearly training. It has become stenciled on my brain. Louisiana law mirrors the law in much of the country. Let's take a look at the law, shall we? Louisiana Revised Statute 14:20 says in part:
A. A homicide is justifiable:
(1) When committed in self-defense by one who reasonably believes that he is in imminent danger of losing his life or receiving great bodily harm and that the killing is necessary to save himself from that danger.
There is nothing there that talks about the intent of the deceased. We cannot know what she was thinking, nor the state of her mind at the time of the incident. All that is necessary is the perception of the officer that he was in danger of great bodily harm or death.
Her death is tragic, no doubt. We will never know what might have happened if the officer did not use deadly force. It is a question we need not ask. You might note that in Louisiana, at least, there is no difference in the law between a sworn officer and a common citizen. The justification is there for anyone to use.
I'm just saying.
When I built this shop back in the winter of 201-2018, one of the things I built of scrap lumber was a temporary table that we could use as a cook prep area and to use as a serving table. Built from scrap 2x4s and plywood, it was never meant to become a permanent fixture, but it is so damned useful that it keeps being used even today.
Have y'all been watching the crap going on in Iran over the past couple of days? It's hearting up and it looks like the people might overthrow the mullahs.
I'm sure that the violent spasms are not over yet, but it seems that the Iranian people might get their country back.
Let Freedom Ring
We went to Shreveport this morning to pick up Belle's daughter at the airport. She's going with them on the cruise.
We stopped in Natchitoches for a bit of history and a bite for lunch. Belle's favorite restaurant is closed this week for a thorough cleaning and remodeling. We went around the corner to another restaurant and ate po'boys.
Bourbon has a number of criteria that must be met before it can be called bourbon. At least 51% corn, distilled in the US, aged in new oak barrels, barreled at no more than 125 proof. Straight bourbon is two years old.
Many of you know my fondness for Evan Willians Bottled in Bond. It's my bouse whiskey, aged at least four years, bottled at 100 proof. It's good hooch.
I also like Buffalo Trace. One of the products of that distillery is Benchmark. It's a bottom-shelf, straight bourbon whiskey. Over the years, I have consumed my share. I was in the liquor store today and found a bottle that they call Full Proof. Bottled at 125 proof, this hooch is not watered down.
For $25 out the door, not a bad deal. I brought a bottle home and we'll try it on in a little bit. If nothing else, it should be a good mixer for cocktails.
