Lots of interesting news today

benXJ said:
Still not sure how 'freedom' and 'be glad I don't live in 'fuchthatistan' are relevant to the news article about how the current people in charge have made NC a worse place to live?

Wanting my tax dollars to be used for safety and security is anti-freedom? If you're not gonna do your job and keep me 'safe' and provide the services you agreed to, I want my money back and the 'freedom' to take care of things how I see fit.

I'm very much pro freedom and don't hate it.

Sure, take away the LEO. Fine with me. But I want the freedom to protect myself and my family and my property and my way of life.
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burning question? Are you pro active in the community that you perceive is limiting your freedom? Are you pro active in your support of the Leo? Are you part of any organization greater then your self? And by active I mean openly serving and bettering other?

If the answer is unanimously no then you haven't a leg to stand on. The reason we ended up with so many programs ran and funded by tax dollars is largely because exactly nobody is willing to do the work.

Bitch all you want but the finger your pointing isn't hitting the mark that matters.
 
YJJPWrangler said:
Tangent to Raleigh PD.... good friend of mine has been with them for 8+years now. There are more nights where he is the only one patrolling his area than not....
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Is that because of intentionally not hiring.. .funding limits etc... or because of hiring difficulties?
Around here 100% of the police staffing shortages are due to recruitment problems. Its not that they aren't trying to hire more officers, but they can't get halfway decent recruits. thats not their management's fault.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Is that because of intentionally not hiring.. .funding limits etc... or because of hiring difficulties?
Around here 100% of the police staffing shortages are due to recruitment problems. Its not that they aren't trying to hire more officers, but they can't get halfway decent recruits. thats not their management's fault.
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But it is. People get/got into all first responder jobs as a life long career. We can move place to place like the rest of the country does now a days. We have to stay in the same place for any upward mobility. Normally rookies start on the bottom of the totem pole (top?) as far as shifts and opportunities go. You start working nights and/or weekends and get better opportunities from there. If you switch agencies you start back at the bottom. Doesn’t matter how many years of service you have. (This is starting to change a little because of the massive shortage). The thing that keeps us in it for the long haul is health care at retirement. Shorter retirement requirements (not by much either). And generous employer funded retirement programs. But alas those are being gutted. Therefore no incentive to stay doing what we do long term.

A paramedics average career span currently is 7 years. And that’s with 2.5 years worth of brutal education.

5 years ago I was “stuck” in my job as I could not make the money I’m making now in any other field. Not so much anymore, my pay and benefits have not kept up.

I wonder why they are having such a hard time staffing.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Is that because of intentionally not hiring.. .funding limits etc... or because of hiring difficulties?
Around here 100% of the police staffing shortages are due to recruitment problems. Its not that they aren't trying to hire more officers, but they can't get halfway decent recruits. thats not their management's fault.
Click to expand...

Probably a mix of both. I know the last few chiefs that Raleigh has had have had issues with officer loyalty/morale issues and appeasing protestors etc.

And the fact they get paid peanuts for what they do + not a whole lot of public support etc.

Just don't be surprised if you need them and they have nobody to respond.
 
WARRIORWELDING said:
burning question? Are you pro active in the community that you perceive is limiting your freedom? Are you pro active in your support of the Leo? Are you part of any organization greater then your self? And by active I mean openly serving and bettering other?

If the answer is unanimously no then you haven't a leg to stand on. The reason we ended up with so many programs ran and funded by tax dollars is largely because exactly nobody is willing to do the work.

Bitch all you want but the finger your pointing isn't hitting the mark that matters.
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So...what should I do? I vote for non-idiots the best I can. I try my best to obey the rules and laws. I keep to myself. I pay all taxes, most which have little or no benefit to me. I stay out of others way. I try my darndest to practice the golden rule. I don't bother others. I don't steal. I don't park 3 wide in my front yard. I keep my yard neat and clean. I pick up litter on my exercise route. I get up and go to work everyday. I don't drive like an idiot. I stay out of the hammer lane. I throw change in donation jars. I buy guns legally. I keep them locked up.

What 'work' is my responsibility? I didnt enact policies that encourage govt dependance. I dont glorify gang and fatherless culture. I don't support sanctuary states. I didn't vote for the 300th safety net program. We can literally point to the problems. It's not hard. But it might be 'racist'. I'm all in the 'being stupid should hurt' camp. How am I supposed to be pro active towards LEO? I stay out of their way, don't bother them, yet pay my taxes.

Where are the parents? That's my burning question.

Us taxpayers gave the LEO certain jobs. It's not my responsibility to go to pro police rallies or put a thin blue line sticker on my car.

If the don't want to do it, can't do it...then give me more FREEDOM and cut my taxes and I'll do it.
 
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benXJ said:
So...what should I do? I vote for non-idiots the best I can. I try my best to obey the rules and laws. I keep to myself. I pay all taxes, most which have little or no benefit to me. I stay out of others way. I try my darndest to practice the golden rule. I don't bother others. I don't steal. I don't park 3 wide in my front yard. I keep my yard neat and clean. I pick up litter on my exercise route. I get up and go to work everyday. I don't drive like an idiot. I stay out of the hammer lane. I throw change in donation jars. I buy guns legally. I keep them locked up.

What 'work' is my responsibility? I didnt enact policies that encourage govt dependance. I dont glorify gang and fatherless culture. I don't support sanctuary states. I didn't vote for the 300th safety net program. We can literally point to the problems. It's not hard. But it might be 'racist'. I'm all in the 'being stupid should hurt' camp. How am I supposed to be pro active towards LEO? I stay out of their way, don't bother them, yet pay my taxes.

Where are the parents? That's my burning question.
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See the shift in the bottom line from all other statements? Now your less of a scatter gun and doing less overall harm in your openness to the frustration. And to answer what more? It depends. Largely on if you believe the situation is hopeless or the greater responsibility of those most endowed with an ability to affect change. Folks like ourselves are in fact those with the most ability to do so. How we do it is another matter. Just being the "good" person for yourself is mute. It doesn't advance the idea. People have to be taught, often led by a halter so to speak. Like you said parents and the dynamic present of no parents pushes that role onto the greater more prepared community. Guess who that is?
It want fix itself. And it want change until it is bad enough that folks effected proactively become a better affect.


Hope I used those terms correctly, lol!

At the very least seek out organizations that are in the communities and donate time and talents directly to them. Not through a political party, face, or ambition. Currently most all votes are cancelled by private interest well beyond the community they "represent".
 
benXJ said:
So...what should I do? I vote for non-idiots the best I can. I try my best to obey the rules and laws. I keep to myself. I pay all taxes, most which have little or no benefit to me. I stay out of others way. I try my darndest to practice the golden rule. I don't bother others. I don't steal. I don't park 3 wide in my front yard. I keep my yard neat and clean. I pick up litter on my exercise route. I get up and go to work everyday. I don't drive like an idiot. I stay out of the hammer lane. I throw change in donation jars. I buy guns legally. I keep them locked up.

What 'work' is my responsibility? I didnt enact policies that encourage govt dependance. I dont glorify gang and fatherless culture. I don't support sanctuary states. I didn't vote for the 300th safety net program. We can literally point to the problems. It's not hard. But it might be 'racist'. I'm all in the 'being stupid should hurt' camp. How am I supposed to be pro active towards LEO? I stay out of their way, don't bother them, yet pay my taxes.

Where are the parents? That's my burning question.

Us taxpayers gave the LEO certain jobs. It's not my responsibility to go to pro police rallies or put a thin blue line sticker on my car.

If the don't want to do it, can't do it...then give me more FREEDOM and cut my taxes and I'll do it.
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so what I don't hear in any of this is "I'm volunteering to do X for Y nonprofit to help make better citizens. I'm running for the board of commission. I'm joining my town council. I'm on the PTA. I'm going out of my way to...."
Anybody can bitch.
The people whos bitching matters are those who's actions back it up.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Is that because of intentionally not hiring.. .funding limits etc... or because of hiring difficulties?
Around here 100% of the police staffing shortages are due to recruitment problems. Its not that they aren't trying to hire more officers, but they can't get halfway decent recruits. thats not their management's fault.
Click to expand...




I get REALLY tired of hearing, 'We can't find anyone who wants to do the job'. Maybe it is because you are paying shit.
 
RatLabGuy said:
so what I don't hear in any of this is "I'm volunteering to do X for Y nonprofit to help make better citizens. I'm running for the board of commission. I'm joining my town council. I'm on the PTA. I'm going out of my way to...."
Anybody can bitch.
The people whos bitching matters are those who's actions back it up.
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F off. Welcome to the internet. :flipoff2:
 
jeepinmatt said:
F off. Welcome to the internet. :flipoff2:
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Ha! What I'm not hearing is someone in charge having the balls to call out the clear, definable, provable cause of our issues.

And yea, I have a clear 10 step plan for when I run for governor, but unless you are a hard worker and beleive in smaller gov't.....you probably won't like it. So I probably won't get elected.

I'm not bitching per se, just posting an article for those that may not have seen it....to help show others the deflection and victim blaming and incompetence that their tax dollars are being wasted on.

Hopefully we can do better next voting period.
 
YJJPWrangler said:
Tangent to Raleigh PD.... good friend of mine has been with them for 8+years now. There are more nights where he is the only one patrolling his area than not....
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Charlotte is over 300 short. My friends that are still on force tell me how short they are most nights. A district should have 8 or 9 working, and they only have 4 maybe 5.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Is that because of intentionally not hiring.. .funding limits etc... or because of hiring difficulties?
Around here 100% of the police staffing shortages are due to recruitment problems. Its not that they aren't trying to hire more officers, but they can't get halfway decent recruits. thats not their management's fault.
Click to expand...
And they have even lowered the standards here trying to get recruits.
 
Salary is the biggest issue. I know someone who went thru the Raleigh Police Academy. She was one of the top prospects there. She finally decided to not take the job because the base was $38K and she figured that for $38K it wasn't worth the BS.
 
cranbiz said:
Salary is the biggest issue. I know someone who went thru the Raleigh Police Academy. She was one of the top prospects there. She finally decided to not take the job because the base was $38K and she figured that for $38K it wasn't worth the BS.
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How did she not make that determination before wasting both of their time?
 
benXJ said:
Doesn't sound too bright.
Could be a good thing they didn't end up being in charge of my safety.
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You're in charge of your own safety, they just show up to document it.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Chief and PD don't the set the salary range right? Isn't that a negotiation with the city's executive office?
If so you're pinning that blame on the wrong person.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Chief and PD don't the set the salary range right? Isn't that a negotiation with the city's executive office?
If so you're pinning that blame on the wrong person.
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Maybe. But it could also be a case of “look how much money I’m saving, pay me more. (Let me keep my job)” as it was with my previous director.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Chief and PD don't the set the salary range right? Isn't that a negotiation with the city's executive office?
If so you're pinning that blame on the wrong person.
Click to expand...


Recently went through this with our new sheriff. He kept claiming 1.) that we are short a huge number of cops (we are short 2 beat cops and some corrections staff) and 2) that he could fix it by raising pay. He doesnt set the pay, the commissioners do. I didnt vote for him for several reasons, but that was a big one.
 
(1) How does this just suddenly pop up? Maybe I'm missing something but algebra will tell you the timeline.
(2) get ready for more gridlock and fighting. Hell maybe we'll have another shutdown.
(3) get ready for a wild stock market week.
(4) happy Friday!
www.foxbusiness.com

Yellen warns that US will hit debt limit next week

The U.S. government will reach its statutory debt limit next Thursday, according to a letter from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen notifying Congress.
www.foxbusiness.com www.foxbusiness.com
 
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