Michael Berish says:

In regards to your comments on Affirmative Action: Unfortunately, doing away with any type of entrance exam at all, to become a police officer, is starting to become wide spread.

NBC CHICAGO, in an article by Steve Bryant on 1/6/10, reported that the City of Chicago is also "...seriously considering scrapping the police entrance exam." In addition, the article said, "...the exam could be scrapped to open the process to as many people as possible."

However, experts seem to disagree, as the article went on to say: "...expects contend that the exam is integral to eliminating unqualified applicants."

The article further stated, "Thank God that Chicagoans will be able to own guns soon. They will need them to protect themselves from the thugs that will be given badges."

Below are some of the comments from people who wrote in:

"Why would you want to hire someone for an LEO position who can't even pass an entrance exam?"

"What a joke; cops who have done they're thankless job silently over the years without notice should be rolling in their graves to see what the job has turned into. Those alive are embarrassed."

It is this and other topics which I have tried to write about in my book. Thanks for noticing and appreciating it.

Lt. Michael Berish #0362
Retired - Miami Police Department
Award-Winning Author of "Reflections From the Pit"
The REAL Miami Vice
www.realmiamivice.com

January 14th, 2010 at 5:37 PM

Michael Berish says:

To Moore2,

Thank you for your insight. Your point, in regards to Michael Moore, is duly noted.

Myself, I wasn't specifically talking about him, but about the direction our government is taking in regards to greed, power, and corruption.

Michael Berish
Award-Winning Author of "REFLECTIONS FROM THE PIT"
www.realmiamivice.com

October 14th, 2009 at 10:06 AM

Glock says:

Are You More Likely to Be Shot Because You Own a Gun?

Yet another flawed study attempts to make the case for keeping citizens defenseless.
This new study, to be published in the November issue of American Journal of Public Health, claims that Philadelphians in possession of guns were 4.5 times more likely to be shot than Philadelphians who didn’t have a gun. Correlation: check. Therefore, “suggestions to the contrary, especially for urban residents who may see gun possession as a defense against a dangerous environment, should be discussed and thoughtfully reconsidered.”

What’s the direction of causality here? Are you more likely to be shot because you own a gun? Does anyone seriously believe that buying a gun attracts criminal attackers? Or do people buy guns because they perceive that they are in danger of being attacked? If it is the latter, they guessed correctly. Someone shot them.

Now, it is possible that some of these Philadelphians bought guns and a criminal shot them because they resisted a criminal attack using that gun. But if so, this would be a powerful piece of evidence that guns are dangerous to victims. It does not appear that the study checked to see if the victims had tried to defend themselves. This study was based on 677 individual victims; how hard would it have been to find out if the victims had tried to use their guns in self-defense?

If you know much about Philadelphia, you already have seen the other problem with this study: a lot of the victims of violent crime in big cities are gang members shooting other gang members. It may well be that gang members buy guns with the expectation that members of a rival gang are going to try and shoot them — and they would be completely correct about that. Wouldn’t it have been so much more interesting and useful if this study had checked the criminal histories of the 677 victims and compared them to the criminal histories of the control group? In Milwaukee, for example, not only did 86% of those arrested for homicide have previous arrests, but so had 75% of the victims (see p. 4 of the report). Of course, that might have exposed the real risk factor: being a gang member dramatically increases your risk of being shot.

The news today that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to Chicago's ban on handguns has invigorated gun-rights activists across the country.

Groups like the NRA and the Second Amendment Foundation say they hope the high court's decision to consider what's known as the incorporation issue in McDonald vs. Chicago could imperil state and local gun-control ordinances, which they say violate the "right to keep and bear arms" guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment.

October 13th, 2009 at 9:49 PM

Michael Brish says:

I just saw the opening of Michael Moore's new film, "Capitalism: A Love Story," today (10/2/09).

This is a MUST SEE movie if you are interested in what's becoming, or rather has become, of our country.

It’s about how the wealthy & powerful control this country. How you, the citizenry, haven't any rights. How neither your vote, nor your desires, have any bearing on what this country does. How the President & Congress don't run this country, but rather, the banks and Wall Street - though their greed, power and corruption (and with the aid of lobbyists) - decide what is best for them, not you; and they (the banks, Wall Street, and the members of Congress) determine what laws are passed (or abolished), according to what is in their best interests. How corporations like General Motors (I worked for them when I first got out of college) were making record profits, while firing its workers and trying to dissolve the union; then, G.M. went into bankruptcy and we, the people, had to bail them out, along with the banks, which control us.

Granted, Michael Moore can be a bit of a showman; but, whether or not you agree or disagree with his social, cultural, or political views, he does make some cogent observations in this movie.

In this day and age of bankruptcy; foreclosures; unemployment; the dismantling of unions; the loss of jobs, medical, vacation, and pension benefits; bailouts of financial institutions and corporations, this is an apropos movie to watch.

I live in a quiet, beachside community in Florida and this was a weekday matinee (with a rather small group of people in attendance), yet they stood up and clapped at the end of the movie.

This movie might stun and amaze you. I felt, years ago, that we were headed in this direction and I even mention all this in the last chapter ("Once More with Feeling") in my book ("Reflections from the Pit").

I'm sure Michael Moore meant this as a wake-up call for the American people; I fear that it is too late for that.

Michael Berish
Award-Winning Author of REFLECTIONS FROM THE PIT.
www.realmiamivice.com

October 2nd, 2009 at 6:34 PM