So in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Maricopa County, Arizona, they send in a tank and the SWAT team to bust a guy — a guy with no history of owning weapons — for cockfighting. A scared neighbor said, “When the tank came in and pushed the wall over and you see what’s in there, and all it is, is a bunch of chickens.” The birds needed to be saved. So we killed them. 115 birds were “euthanized on the spot.” Isn’t that what we used to do in Vietnam?
“We’re going to err on the side of caution. We’re going to make sure that we have the appropriate amount of force in case we do run into anything like [an armed suspect],” said Sgt. Jesse Spurgin. Wow. What a man. It’s amazing he can even take a leak without sh*tting his pants in fear.
But such use of force has become standard operating procedure in policing much of our free republic (especially the parts where blacks and hispanics live).
So what’s the icing on cake? The cherry on the sundae? The kicker? Guess who is riding in the tank (which I will christen the M.V. Chicken Killer)?
None other than actor Steven Seagal. For real.
"The Sheriff’s Department has entered into a contract with Seagal and part of that contract gives Seagal carte blanche to go along with the sheriff as he arrests people." It might make you suspect that Arpaio is more interested in media coverage and publicity than in effective law enforcement.
"We're going to err on the side of caution. We're going to make sure that we have the appropriate amount of force in case we do run into anything like [an armed suspect]," said Sgt. Jesse Spurgin. Wow. What a man. It's amazing he can even take a leak without sh*tting his pants in fear.
You hit the nail on the head, Peter. These twits need to ride in on a tank in order to feel safe from the citizenry. The suspect had a Spanish surname, which I don't think was a coincidence. This mentality also explains the overuse of tasers quite well. "oh my god, he might fight, he's giving me a dirty look, JOLT, oh thank god, now I don't have to fight. Or keep myself in good fighting condition. Or work on de-escaltion skills. I just point that little red dot on those bastards and pull the trigger."
Officer safety first, civil liberties and community policing last. That is what is wrong with policing in the U.S. And don't get me started about bringing Seagal into this. Arpaio is such a publicity whore it is ridiculous.
Dave H- IL
There has to be justification for these expensive units and their equipment. A need has to be manufactured.
Well, you know, chickens can bite. And these were trained chickens!
— sglover
hehehe, I live here in Mesa, this was right down the sreet from my house.. it's hilarious. People hate Joe, I don't think this helped his rep much. Then you find out it was for chickens and one mexican dude and its just pretty funny. BUT steven segal can run my wall over with a tank anytime he wants… 😉
Pete,
You said, "But such use of force has become standard operating procedure in policing much of our free republic"
Really? Your using Sheriff Joe as an example of a national standard operating procedure for tactical units? Using Joe as an example of what the law enforcement community is doing is like using Charlie Sheen as an example for what the Hollywood community is doing. They are both crazy.
If you want to rail on police search warrant tactics, you should use something better than Joe. I've been to plenty of search warrants, and never had the need to push a wall over.
Very good point, Brett. Joe may not be typical. But the militarization of police has been increasing for a long time. Overly-aggressive raids and warrants are all too common.