Milwaukee's OK Corral

Went to the Milwaukee County courthouse the other day--had a half-hour to spare and had to obtain a certified copy of a birth certificate for child # 7's passport application.

Didn't get into the courthouse. On my keyring is a Dangerous Weapon--a 2" bladed nail-file/knife combo, about $8.00 retail at Gander Mountain. Sorry--with a weapon like that you're not going into the building, and if you give it to the building security folks, you don't get it back.

I wrote a nastygram to the Sheriff, David Clarke (R) and suggested that the rules were 'silly.'

In his 1.5 page response he mentioned "9/11" three times--'the world has changed since 9/11, 9/11 changed all that, yada yada yada.' In short, since 9/11 the Courthouse will be a fortress of safety for Courthouse employees (and presumably Courthouse visitors.)

Two observations: 1) the 'fortress mentality' evident with Sheriff Clarke will not help him in the least as he pursues higher office in the State. This mentality is by no means characteristic of Clarke alone--it is becoming almost de rigeur for public officials as a group. 2) It's ironic in the extreme that Sheriff Clarke (and sometimes Paul Bucher) don't think that ordinary law-abiding citizens deserve the ability to protect themselves--they both have opposed CCW in Wisconsin, and maybe Bucher still does. Yet they both defend to the death the creation of "safe houses" for themselves, in their Courthouses.

Who are they trying to kid? The "9/11" mantra is now spurring (and 'justifying') exchange of 00-loaded shotguns for AR-15/night-sight/flash-suppressed/full-auto/muzzle compensated weapons to be carried in a police car. Heavy weapons for the locals, who most often watch them rust as they issue speeding-with-no-seat-belt-tix.

I will not easily forget the sight of three City of Brookfield (my home town) LEO's approaching a vehicle stopped on the side of Capitol Drive with AR's at the ready--in broad daylight, with heavy traffic in both directions. Turned out the kid had the wrong kind of car--no more. Not even speeding.

AR's? When I was in the military, we were taught to REALLY respect the M-16 for its deadliness. Not a weapon that one waves around in heavy traffic, unless it's the enemy...

One wants to like the neighborhood cops--but even according to LEO's I know personally, the LEO's don't really want to like the citizens.

This has to stop.