The Tip of the Spear By Chris Dates

“It is impossible to introduce into society a greater change and a greater evil than this: the conversion of the law into an instrument of plunder.”

~ Frederic Bastiat

I had business to attend to all week in Richmond, VA. I live west of Fredericksburg, just past the Wilderness Battlefield. Ironically, I live off of the Constitution Highway. Those who read my work might find that a bit funny. I take mostly back roads that wind me through the Old Dominion, until I eventually get dumped out on to I95. Any Virginian knows in the morning, I95 is jammed packed from DC to Richmond, there is just no way around it.

While sitting in traffic just outside of the old Confederate Capitol I saw something very disturbing. A Virginia State trooper had backed his vehicle out of the way of an on-ramp where commuters were trying to merge onto the busy Interstate. The going was slow on the merge, and cars were at a complete stand still. There, this Trooper was standing at the end of the on-ramp checking license plate registration, Virginia State safety inspection, and personal property tax stickers. The congestion on I95 was quite heavy this particular morning so I had the opportunity to witness this fascist spectacle for probably five minutes.

Virginia State requires that the safety inspection sticker, and the county tax sticker be installed in the lower middle section of the windshield, and the vehicle registration stickers are attached to the license plates. As vehicles were trying to merge, this Trooper would inspect the license plate and then snap his head up to look at the windshield. The whole situation was surreal; he seemed to be more machine than man. His movements seemed robotic, the movement of his head seemed almost hydraulic; up, down, up, down; compliant, non-compliant. I think that is probably what he was “thinking”. The only thing missing here was robo-cop. His face was emotionless; when a vehicle approached that was not in compliance, he would snap his arm out to his side and point the vehicle over. His motions were crisp, almost like they were programmed into him.

There were a thousand thoughts going through my head at this point. The first, what an incredible racket! This law enforcement officer who collects his check from the State was forcefully extracting money for his employer all morning long. Faceless Bureaucrats scribble some kind of fund raising scheme down on paper, and *poof* it’s law. From here the armed minions of the State take over and hit the streets on a mission to find as many subjects “breaking the law” as they possibly can. Somehow these men think that when they put on their uniforms, and get behind their badges, they are relieved of their moral obligations to their fellow men. Those of us who actually exercise some kind of reasoned thought on a daily basis know better. For the brief time I was stuck there he had successfully gotten two subjects to pull over, perhaps interrupting otherwise productive people, who actually might be on the way to produce some good or service. My second thought; is this what this man dreamed his job would be when he was a little boy? Is it really the dream of those who wish to keep the peace to make sure their fellow men have the correct stickers on their cars!? Should we rename the innocent children’s game of cops and robbers to compliance officers and subjects? My third thought was, why in the hell do we have a human doing this? I mean, can we at least bring the tyranny into the 21st century? Couldn’t a robot, or some kind of scanning camera do this job? Lets make George Orwell proud, and just get on with it, at least this officer could join the ranks with the rest of the citizen subjects. These highway men know where their bread is buttered. Bring the spoils back to the King, and he’ll cut you out some, right peace officers? I wonder if this man ever sat down and thought critically about what he was actually doing. If he did, and he was a man of honor, he would not return to work the next day. Or at least refuse to be a thief and go investigate a crime with a real victim.

About two years ago I was on the way to work in the morning, and I got pulled over about a half mile from my shop. The officer stopped me for not having a valid county sticker on my vehicle. This means that I was late in paying the perpetual tax on my vehicle, so my tax sticker was not up to date. Needless to say, I was shocked when he told me why he pulled me over, I thought I had been speeding or in violation of some other arbitrary vehicle infraction. Nope, I got pulled over for not paying my property tax. I had to bite my tongue most of the time while I was on the side of the road, but I did ask him one question. I said, “so, you pulled me over for not paying my taxes?” He said, “No, I pulled you over for an invalid county sticker.” The only way to receive a valid county sticker is to pay the property tax on my vehicle. This man was either too stupid to put it together, or he was ashamed to admit it to himself, let alone say it aloud.

He then gave me a ticket and told me that the judge would dismiss it if I showed proof that I paid my property tax on the court date. This man was trying to charge me a fine on unpaid taxes. Are any of you still buying this land of the free crap? These situations make me wonder how these men live with themselves. I am an auto mechanic, as most of you know some folks think we are dishonest. When I catch a mechanic trying to sell work a customer does not need, they are gone. We will not have it where I work. It is up to the honest mechanics to try and salvage the profession, and police the ranks. To the law enforcement that read this; do any of you stop to think about what you are doing? Do any of you realize you are taking hard working peoples money at the barrel of a gun? AND, do you realize the other profession that does this? I don’t think I need to say it.

Law Enforcement, you are the tip of the spear. Your spear could go either way at this juncture in history. You could choose what other “law enforcement” have chosen to do throughout history, defy, and then defile your own people. Or you can turn that spear around and once again take up your moral obligations to your fellow men, and truly be the protectors of peace. The choice is yours and yours only. Not your superior officers, not your partners, not your buddies, yours. Whatever decision is made as we stand on the abyss of total moral, and societal collapse, you will own it. Whether you like the decision that was made or not, it will be yours. You cannot hide from your own conscious. If you find it necessary to think twice about whether something is right or wrong, it might be necessary to think twice about kicking that door in.

“When you think of the long and gloomy history of man, you will find more hideous crimes have been committed in the name of obedience than have ever been committed in the name of rebellion.”

~ C.P. Snow