[Escapee]

I would like to take this opportunity to put a few matters straight, If you dont want to read this post I suggest you go elsewhere instead of complaining about it.

I have been annoyed a few times on this site by people who come across all high and mighty and appear to judge people just because their views differ.
The Thread about "Seperate Rules for Police" is a prime example of this, I made some comments that someone decided to look at in a certain way and I was then accused of having a cheap shot at the police, or being an ignorant person. I find it very difficult to understand how someone can comment on another persons ignorance when they know nothing about them.
I have felt that I have been judged by a few who probably think that I am a right thug/criminal just because I do not go along with their Christian views, I am not anti-police but can only comment on the effectiveness of the police force in my area.
I would not wish anyone to experience the same trouble that my parents have had in recent times, but if any of the do-gooders were in a similar situation they would certainly not be singing the polices praises. Many will say that the police need more money but the root problem is the amount of time that they waste chasing criminals that are let of by some silly out of touch judge. I attended court as a witness a few years ago and was amazed when the solicitor said "see that guy there, he has a record as long as his arm but has just been let off with a caution because the court has lost his records" When actually he was in line for a good stretch in prison. That just about sums up the situation I wonder how often that sort of thing happens.
If I threw a stone through someones window because I was in a temper over something, the outcome would depend very much on my actions. ie: If I admitted it, it would be straight to court, if I denied it the police would probably not bother to persue the matter and would tell the owner to claim off their insurance. The police in this area have an attitude of apathy, and to be fair it's probably because they are fed up with rounding up the same criminals only to see them let off again.

My parents live or should I say lived, in a very nice area with some large houses. They have lived in the same street for over 35 years, but within the last few years two of the large houses have been converted to flats. Two of these flats, one house and another house in an adjacent street are now occupied by drug dealers. They even get drugs delivered in the morning by the milkman, and these people seem to get busted occassionally but there always seems to be a problem finding the stuff because so many houses, people and hiding places are being used. The police on the beat will tell you that it's a waste of time, your average copper in our area will tell you that the people higher up the ladder are only interested in statistics and if they get a conviction the judge will let them off with a light sentence or a smack on the wrist anyway. The crime in the area has increased tenfold in the past few years and unless you are experiencing similar circumstances it's very hard to comment. The problems range from very minor issues like a dealer leaving his car across the driveway of an old couples house that stopped them using their car for a fortnight. They said nothing to the police because they were worried about what would happen if the police removed the car. At the other end of the scale it has resulted in robbery and criminal damage, like a patio table thrown through my parents bay windows.
The person was identified but the police "suprise suprise" did not take any action, there has been constant atacks on the people that have their say and on the other hand the frightened, spineless do-gooders get off a bit more lightly because they just appear to get robbed now and again.

I only have one conviction against my name and it was for criminal damage, I always tell companies in interviews about it, and too be honest they usually have a good laugh about it. I received a fine and had to pay compensation because I was silly and admitted what I had done, but on the other hand it was worth every penny because the problems stopped immediatly. I had big trouble living in a street with double yellow lines, and we were the only detatched property and the only one with a driveway. I regulary had problems with vehicles being parked in my driveway and had problems in the past when I was "On-Call" and not able to attend a callout because someone decided that they could just park in my drive. Signs made no difference because many people just dont give a s**t about anyone else. The events that led to me being in court involved my driveway and a solicitors wifes car, he was actually the duty solicitor that night at the police station. Fortunately I knew all about him and expected problems when his wifes name was mentioned, this solicitor was your average upstanding example that had been struck off and was re-instated to work under another solicitors guidance, infact at least one of his partners went to prison over their actions. This fine upstanding solicitor has again been struck off and I understand has now been recently declared bankrupt. I understand from people who have dealings that many wills, property deeds etc are lost, and balifs are appearing at his house regulary. Anyway this solicitor tried to get me convicted for far more serious crimes than I actually committed, the court said it was a civil matter and they told me I was a naughty boy and said the vehicle should not of been left on private property without permission. The court needed to see the estimate for damage and then it was a civil matter, suprise suprise though the policeman involved in the case suddenly lost the paperwork and I was told that I would have to appear again "if that was OK" to see to this formality. I did appear again and this time the solicitor had managed to get me in the big court for a more severe seeing too.

I have no regrets over the incident because at the end of the day the problem stopped overnight, I stood up in court and told them that I would be doing exactly the same thing next time I had similar problems but would deny it to make things more difficult.
It was worth every penny, no more problems and no more wasting police time. It definately proved that the people using my drive to park in knew exactly what they were doing but just didn't care less.

I would just like to suggest that people who are not experiencing these sort of problems in their area will not appreciate the difficulties, and they should remember that no matter how nice their neighbourhood is, it can change very rapidly if the wrong type move in. Incompetence, scandal and bending the rules happen in all walks of life and just because someone is a policeman, fireman, solicitor etc they are still human at the end of the day. The world is made up of a mixture of good and bad people and inevitably some bad ones become policemen although I think they are the minority.

Off my soapbox now, perhaps in my next post now I feel better about it, I will explain what a disgusting and sick thing was said to me by a practicing christian. I think it would turn everyones stomaches, and was the main reason that I have been a bit quiet lately.