Protest March

We guess this was a big deal. All the news channels and papers were covering it. Anyone actually there? How big was it? Media reports run from 75,000 to 300,000.

Channel 2, Channel 5, Channel 7, Trib, Times

Shake Out Time

We're going to take a short break here today to gather and process information. There was a Unit Rep meeting yesterday and what with the Superintendent's press conference and Bobby Rush's outrageous statements and other irons in the fire, there is a lot of dust in the air that needs clearing.

We're especially interested in the sealed Federal indictments that someone brought up in a comments section. We posted that these existed in our List of Current Rumors thread way back on 02 March, scooping everyone in the media and large portions of the political establishment. If they've got the some VERY BIG names in the training division of the Cook County Sheriff Police Department, what are they waiting for? The Primary is right around the corner and this could very well sink Stroger.

Faster please Mr. Fitzgerald. We don't want another Scott Lassar out there holding onto the George Ryan investigation so Ryan could be elected governor and completely destroy the state political infrastructure. We want Stroger gone.

UPDATE: Here comes the end game - Daley: Cop Street Names a Dead-End Idea. Looks like Aldercreature Tom Allen's idea is going to be the winner - no more honorary street signs. We're still taking a short break until this evening. Keep your ears open people. This might be ending very shortly (the situation, not the blogging).

A Break from our Rantings

Don't think that we've forgotten politics in general, the world at large and the sarcasm and silliness that makes us so very lovable. We're working on a few things that we'll slip in when appropriate. We just think that the street naming issue ought to be kept at the front of everyone's minds.

In the meantime, a salute to one of our own: Sun Times, Tribune, Channel 5 and 7 reporting on an off duty cop helping to foil a bank robbery. Good job.

Now We're Getting Somewhere

Bobby Rush is throwing the race card out there as baldly and as blatantly as we have ever seen it played in recent years. Channel 2 actually has video of him suggesting Superintendent Cline is a racist who ought to "sit down, do his work as a police officer and let the City Council do its work." He also states "If [Cline]'s biased and prejudiced and racist against African Americans, then he should not be the superintendent of police and resign."

The Superintendent may be a lot of things, but we doubt biased, prejudiced and racist are among them. Given the socio-economic and ethnic diversity of this city, no one is going to get far with skeletons like that in their closet.

We would suggest Bobby Rush (D-bigot) follow his own advice. Rush is not a City Council member. Rush is a US Congressman. But this shows people that Rush is openly manipulating his pet aldercreatures in the City Council to do his bidding. Is anyone surprised? And better yet, he's coming out AGAINST honoring police officers. No better way to expose him for what he is than to let him keep talking.

Stay the course boys and girls. Keep writing to aldercreatures. Keep contacting your friends on your mailing lists. Keep letting the media know. We're getting comments from Feds and NYPD visitors. We are getting letters at our e-mail account expressing support. Keep on going.

And Another Thing Ms. Mitchell

When you said Officers Gilhooly and Rappaport were killed by hooligans who just happened to be Black Panthers, would you also say that Ricky Byrdsong was killed by a "hooligan" who happened to be a white supremacist?

And do you further believe that Matthew Hale, who spoke openly about killing Blacks and Jews in a race war bears no responsibility for the death of Mr. Byrdsong? It's almost a mirror image of Fred Hampton shouting "kill the pigs," isn't it? We'd call it identical.

Seriously Mary, we've got to know, how do you reconcile these two nearly identical situations in your mind without your brain exploding?

Welcome to the Party Sir

Well, finally. A few words. A proposal. A gesture. And it means exactly .... nothing. Nothing at all. Meaningless words, a meaningless proposal, a meaningless gesture. And it's all just so much background noise. What we asked for was a show from the exempts, ANY exempt, SOMEONE to say, "This is wrong. To honor someone who advocated the KILLING of police officers is just, plain and simple, wrong." Is that too much to ask?

Evidently, it was. We get a couple of paragraphs from Sneed, A GOSSIP COLUMNIST for crying out loud, saying that the Superintendent is going to propose having 500 honorary streets signs for all the officers killed in the line of duty. Wow.

This isn't leadership. This is kicking a can down the road so some other poor schlub has to deal with it later, or might not have to deal with it at all. Do you know what this reminds us of?

Does anyone know how much a street sign costs to make? And they don't usually make just one for a block, they need two. How about how much is costs to get a city crew to hang it? And how long it'll take them to hang 1,000 signs? And the mayor selling everything in sight to fill budget gaps he can't possibly cover without massive tax increases. Are you beginning to see what we see? That this is a proposal to make the policemen and women shut up and think about other things and forget the fact that NO ONE said anything about it being WRONG to honor a scumbag. And if you think this announcement wasn't timed for the Unit Rep meeting today where the Unit Reps were going to take up the entire issue, then you're smoking crack.

Follow Up to Our Letter

We've been monitoring the comments regarding to our Open Letter to the Superintendent and there are a couple of points that we like to make and an entry by a reader we'll comment on:

• First of all, this wasn't written off the cuff. It took three days, adding some things, removing others, toning down language and sarcasm. We wanted it to be taken seriously by whoever read it - PO's, bosses, politicians, media - and judging by your reactions, we think we succeeded.
  
• This wasn't written as a rip job on the Superintendent. It was written to remind all those people that there are dead men out there who never went home, who sacrificed everything, for the citizens of this city. They lie in graves, minimally adorned, mostly forgotten, and we march once a year in their honor.

From the comments section:

• ... several upper level exempt were having a discussion that I was present for, this is not hearsay, during an exempt meeting the brass was informed that they will not have nor will they express any opinion regarding the sign matter until the little Irish man has come up with an opinion. Only then will the brass be informed of his opinion which will become the opinion of the brass. Certain attending members i.e. the guy in charge of patrol, had to be constrained that he was not allowed to have an opinion yet aldercreatures were. None the less, the message between the lines is if you value your job you will do as I say.

Whoever wrote this comment, if true, we salute you. This provides a huge spotlight into the inner mind of this department. It's something we all suspected and whispered about at times, but it's almost never spoken aloud. We have but this response to any boss who might read this blog:

• Speak up. Speak up, damnit. You expect your troops to swallow all the bullshit that flows through this city, smile the whole time, and tell you it's tasty? Respect is a two way street gentlemen and ladies. SPEAK UP! Or speak up and then resign your exempt spot. Most of you will still be lieutenants or captains in the best goddamn police department in the world. You want your guys and gals to follow you and make you look good? SPEAK THE HELL UP!

We personally guarantee this: if you speak up and you lose your spot and you go back to a watch? You will have the BEST goddamn watch in the City of Chicago. These coppers will make you look so goddamn good, the department will be begging you to take an exempt spot again in a few years. And you can smile and tell them, "No, because I have the best cops in the City working for me now and I couldn't fit them all in a cubicle downtown." You would be a legend.

If we've written a ten-ton brick on our career, so be it. Too many people, too many bosses, are more worried about where their next promotion is coming from rather than the people who work for them and those we've buried. They don't understand that there are things worth fighting for, marching for, even dying for. And as the memories of Gilhooly and Rappaport fade into the distant past, only the St. Jude March and the Memorial Park will go on. And allowing this street sign to go forward without a word from a boss - A SINGLE GODDAMN WORD - would be such a fucking shame.

Dear Superintendent Cline

An Open Letter:

This is a missive we would rather not have had to write, but it has been 8 days now with no word from you, your staff, or your representatives and we feel the need to bring this up.

No one gets to the position you hold without making certain compromises. You may agree to toe a party line on things. You may agree to certain practices or policies that you disagree with but that are politically expedient for the moment. You may have to hold your tongue during certain situations (as you did so well during Rev. Meeks' racial profiling non-incident). We don't begrudge you your choices. Ability only gets you so far in this city -- we all know that -- and your choices seem to have served you well. When the lights go out, you are the one who has to sleep with the choices made, not us.

We have been under the impression that first and foremost, the well being of police officers is your #1 concern. The increased training, the modernization, the emphasis on safety all point in that direction. And no one in recent memory can hold a candle to your efforts on behalf of the Police Memorial Foundation. However, for a Superintendent who has been so "hands on" in the creation and realization of the Memorial Park, why has no one -- you or someone from your office -- uttered anything, ANYTHING! a whisper of a hint of an objection at the attempt to honor a man who advocated the ambush and slaughter of police officers? Someone who not only shouted "off the pigs!" but openly declared he was "at war with the pigs"?

What distresses us most of all about this entire incident is what can only be called "The Silence of the Bosses." For years we have sat through classes, roll calls, award ceremonies, promotion events, retirement parties, and far too many funerals, hearing the praise heaped upon our men and women being the best and bravest the city has to offer; of being the backbone of the city; of how important it is just to show up and do the job day in and day out. But when it really counts -- when we need real support over pointless platitudes -- who speaks up for the dead?

For all the videos we sat through at roll calls; for all the t-shirts, pins and other memorabilia we were "encouraged" to buy; for the payroll deductions we were "urged" to make or switch from other worthy charities; was it all only a front? a sham? a compromise?

No more compromises Sir. Either you are with us or you are with those who would honor a common criminal reminiscent of Al Capone, passing bread with one hand and consolidating criminal power with the other. Hoover and Bradley attempted to hide behind the guise of "front" organizations to further their criminal empires. Now, backed by politician's lies, media complicity, and a disinterested public, a dead criminal may gain honor at the expense of dead police officers. Your legacy should be one of honoring and supporting our dead, not holding your tongue while certain people defile their memories. Please, speak up.

Hollywood Vapidity

"Bueller? Bueller?" A throw away bit in a cheesy teenage movie made this guy a household name. Then he had a little gameshow on Comedy Central called "Win Ben Stein's Money" and a sidekick named Jimmy Kimmel (we wonder whatever happened to Jimmy?). Contestants played for a shot a measly $5,000, but the back and forth between Ben and Jimmy was priceless and Jimmy kept hammering Ben for having worked for Nixon.

Stein is now an author and a writer for a number of conservative leaning publications and wrote an article this past weekend about the Oscars that covers a glaring omission - the US Military at war on foreign soil was not mentioned even a single time. Not in support of and (stunningly) not in ridicule either. It was like they didn't even exist.

• ...not one word of tribute, not one breath, to our fighting men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan or to their families or their widows or orphans. There were pitifully dishonest calls for peace -- as if the people we are fighting were interested in any peace for us but the peace of the grave. But not one word for the hundreds of thousands who have served and are serving, not one prayer or moment of silence for the dead and maimed.

Go read the whole thing. An excellent essay.

UPDATE: Finishing touches going on another broadside to be launched this evening. Thanks for the compliments on the previous blasting. Stand by as we reload.

Jumping in With Both Feet

Suffice it to say that Mary Mitchell's column from Tuesday is one of the most racist, bigoted and error filled pieces of garbage that has graced the Sun Times pages over the past few years. And that's saying something for a paper that regularly hosts Jesse Jackson and Andrew Greeley op-ed pieces.

Let's spend some time together marveling at her antics, shall we?

• most white people will never understand what Black Panther leader Fred Hampton's life and death meant to black people. Mary? Most black people will never understand what Hampton's life meant either. Most black people we meet don't run around saying "off the pigs!" and say they're at war with "the man." They're too busy with jobs, families, mortgages, etc. If you're talking about the tiny sliver of the black population that lives on the west side, they won't know either because they don't care.
  
• They did not live with the brutality that most black people endured at the hands of police in the late 1960s. Newsflash - "most" black people didn't suffer at the hands of Chicago police. In fact, it probably wasn't even a "majority." We'd bet more black people have suffered at the hands of Fred Hampton's successors in the gangster disciples, the vice lords, the mickey cobras, etc than ever came near suffering the indignity of a parking ticket.
• It doesn't matter that an African-American male is the face of the Fraternal Order of Police on this matter. He's just doing his job. Wow. Why not just come out and say that Sid Davis is a no good Uncle Tom doing the bidding of the white man? Little information for you - Sid Davis is about the most conscientious guy working at FOP for ALL POLICE OFFICERS. Talk to any of our 7,000 retirees lately. Sid is the guy they go through. Sid remembers everyone and shakes everyone's hand and served most of his street time in the 011th District if we aren't mistaken. We know Sid Davis and lady, you ain't no Sid Davis.
• We live in a city where two unarmed black residents were killed during traffic stops in the late 1990s. We also live in a city where last week, a 14-year-old black girl was shot to death by a stray bullet -- allegedly fired by armed gang-members -- as she stood at her window... Since you're dividing everything into racial lines, we'll continue your pointless argument. Both of those unarmed black citizens were the victims of mistakes. Both were killed by black cops. What that has to do with anything, we don't know, but you keep bringing up the racial angles for some reason, so we thought we'd bring it full circle. And the child killed last week? We're surprised you didn't point a finger at roving bands of Irishmen and Jews, but we'll bet money the shooters were (wait for it) black.
• His language was violent; his demeanor was threatening. Still, there's no evidence that Hampton attacked a single police officer. And there was no evidence that Osama ever flew a plane into a building, but we'll bet the Green Berets won't really care when they find him. (Or that Saddam cut off a head. Or Mao starved a farmer. Or Hitler mixed a dose of Zylon. Would you argue they should get off?)
• The deaths of the two police officers had little to do with the Black Panther Party. Gilhooly and Rappaport were killed by hooligans who happened to be members of the Black Panthers. So, following your twisted, liberal, racist logic, when the Klan lynched innocent blacks, those were just hooligans who happened to be Klan members? It wasn't part of an organized racist endeavor to intimidate black voters and "uppity" negros who didn't know their place? Wow. Just out of curiosity, how do you keep your head from exploding?
  
• Still, black people aren't asking white people to honor their heroes. They're just asking them to get out of their business. See, that's where white people run into problems. They don't see how the black community can embrace people like Hampton who attacked the very things that make a community function. It boggles the mind.

By our count, we touched on maybe 40% of the bullshit Ms. Mitchell put in her column today. We could go on quite a bit more, but why bother? Keep criticism civil and on topic please. The above thread is a prime example of how to do it.

Good Cops, Bad Fireman

013 District officers pull 6 people out of a burning building this morning. No one is credited by name, but we like to see stories like this just because of the positive image it portrays. Good job people.

And a peripheral figure in the Hired Truck drama, the fire lieutenant brother of John "Quarters" Boyle sentenced to 6 years in prison for a string of 8 arsons from 1998 to 2005. Channel 2, Channel 5 and the Sun Times coverage.

Has Anyone Heard Anything

... from downtown or anywhere else for that matter regarding the sign controversy? NYPD Rant has a couple threads going and a letter writing campaign is underway. No responses have been reported from any letter recipients so far. Any coppers down at 35th Street have a feel for what's going on down there? How about the FOP Board meeting?

UPDATE: We're working on something and we'd like any info ASAP.

Interesting Link

From one of our regular readers who attempted to post it as a link in the comments section. Edward Jay Epstein's article from 1971 debunks most of the fictions spread over the years regarding targeted killings of Black Panther members. The numbers regularly bandied about by Rush and his ilk are roundly discredited over 34 years ago by Epstein. Go read the entire thing as it has a play-by-play account of the killings of Gilhooly and Rappaport. We hadn't realized that SEVEN OTHER officers were wounded by Panthers during the shootout that left two of our own dead. Sounds more like the Panthers were the ones doing the "targeted killings" than the police, doesn't it?

Ramping up to War

A huge shipment of IEDs (improvised explosive devices) has been intercepted in Iraq. The origin of the shipment? Iran. ABCNews, Captain's Quarters, Confederate Yankee are all following the story. If true, all the democrats who've been saying George Bush went after the wrong regime in the Middle East may shortly get their wish when we start bombing Iran.

How About a Quick Hits?

Just killing time here, waiting to see if any bosses step forward after the long weekend to defend a pair of dead cops. Sad to say, we're betting none do.

• The Wisconsin Innocence Project is distancing itself from a person it helped free from prison (via DNA) after the individual is implicated in the brutal rape, torture and murder of a photographer. They free a guy with a history of sex assaults from one that he evidently didn't commit and he goes out and starts over. Hmm.
• George Ryan endgame continues. Closing arguments are expected to take most of this week. If you can't sum up this case in an afternoon, you run the risk of boring the jurors. Don't drop this case please. Channel 2, 5, 7, Times
• Officers catch two bank robbers up in 020. Good job guys. Someone even got to use a TASER!
• Chicago native and Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett dies after a massive stroke. Channel 2
  
• CTA bus drivers vote on a possible strike. They'll probably force the city to give them whatever they want. Too bad we can't blackmail the city with the threat of a strike or a job action or a blue flu or pretty much anything.
• Suicide attempt on the Red Line. Correct us if we're wrong, but aren't those tracks like in the middle of the Dan Ryan? About 7 feet off the pavement? Why didn't this guy go to the Blue Line over the Ike at Rush Presbyterian - that's at least 40 feet high.

1 MILLION Page Views

Hear ye, Hear ye. Let it be known that on today's date, during the 37th minute of the 21st hour, we hit 1,000,000 page views. You humble us, ladies and gentlemen, with your continued patronage of our meager offerings of sarcasm and silliness, not to mention our political musings and pointed commentary.

Thank you.

We Have the Power?

We've been told in a one of the recent comment sections that we (SCC) have the power to stop this Hampton controversy, that we can mobilize the cops across the city, that we ought to be leading the fight, be it a march, an informational picket line or a job action (which we remind everyone, the advocating of such action is grounds for termination).

You flatter us, but all we have is a little website that gets 1,300 visits a day by about 600 people, mostly Chicago Police Officers. Occasionally, we get the media bigwig (or their people) dropping us a line, usually about some nonsense they want background on, but in reality we are a tiny fish in a large ocean. We feel we have been giving it our all, linking to articles and other websites that are of the same opinion as we are. But we have no ability to organize a bus trip or protest downtown. That would be the arena of our union. We see they have addressed the controversy, but no word on what they intend to do about it. We assume that would be on the agenda at the Board of Directors meeting tomorrow or the General Meeting 21 March. Both dates provide plenty of time for us to get the word out - which is our main function.

Again, keep writing to your aldercreatures. Keep phoning or e-mailing the media. Let's get a little heft behind this effort. We're doing it, here and in the open. Crimefile is actually threatening to fly into town in support of us and we for one would welcome a visit. Has anyone reached out to the Nevada CPD chapter? Gotta be some vets out there who remember Gilhooly and Rappaport.

Screams from the Left

In a unanimous decision sure to provoke leftists everywhere into new fits of insanity, the US Supreme Court said colleges and universities that accept Federal money must follow Federal law - to wit, they must allow military recruiters on campus even if the college disagrees with the "don't ask, don't tell" currently in effect.

Even the liberal wing of the Supreme Court voted for the decision, which probably means Rove has finally gotten into their drinking water - or the universities were just plain wrong.

Tribune and Yahoo/AP coverage.

Any Bets?

Anyone want to guess on how soon Hampton Jr, Haithcock or someone else compares the "Fred Hampton Street Name" controversy to a "Crash" moment? We give it a day, tops.

Another Word on Hampton Avenue

If Aldercreature Madeline Haithcock is so set on honoring people for the good work they do (and ignoring everything else about them), we've got a nomination for her. How about this little organization we located? Their founding charter begins as follows:

• First: To protect the weak, the innocent, and the defenseless from the indignities, wrongs and outrages of the lawless, the violent and the brutal; to relieve the injured and oppressed; to succor the suffering and unfortunate, and especially the widows and orphans of the [...] soldiers.
• Second: To protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
• Third: To aid and assist in the execution of all constitutional laws, and to protect the people from unlawful seizure, and from trial except by their peers in conformity with the laws of the land.

Sounds pretty straight forward, doesn't it? Who can be against protecting the weak, innocent and defenseless? Protect and defend the Constitution? Sounds like a typical loyalty oath, doesn't it? We all took a similar pledge when we became police officers.

Trouble is, this charter is the opening Prescript of the Klan. So under aldercreature Haithcock's "rules" for nomination, we ought to have a "KKK Way" or a "Nathan Bedford Forrest Avenue" or any other dozens of permutations of some truly heinous persons and organizations (i.e. nazi's, mafia, etc.) because they "did some good works."

Now we realize that tossing this up on the blog is going to light up the comments section. We're sure we're going to be deleting a bunch of crap over the next few hours. And if it gets too hairy, we'll shut down the thread. We'll just close out with our regular admonition that the public reads this board, bosses read this board, reporters read this board, and we'll bet someone can direct even aldercreatures to read this board. We can't prove ANYONE on here is a Chicago cop (aside from ourselves) so take everything you see here with the appropriate grains of salt.