Dear Editor,
There was an interesting article in the paper yesterday concerning the observation by the police that “people are more violent than normal” since the storm and somehow this is surprising. This was followed up with some psycho-babble from the police psychologist who attributes all this to some mysterious transformation that occurs in the event of stress or disaster.
Really? Is it all that complicated and mysterious? I don’t think so. You fundamentally have two groups of people in this world. There are those that believe in the rule of law and decency and those that don’t. There is nothing you can do about those that don’t except, perhaps tie cement blocks to their feet and drop them in the ocean.
For the rest of us we have the police and the judicial system to rely on for our safety. So what happens when the police and judicial system abdicate their responsibility to protect the law-abiding and responsible citizen? Then the citizen is charged with the simple responsibility to protect themselves using any and all means possible.
If a person is drowning and the lifeguard if off having drinks with his girlfriend does the person just say, “Oh well, I guess that’s it” and just drown? No, they fight for their life. And with all due respect to the police and their psychologist, that’s what people are doing now. They are fighting for their lives, often with no support or response from police or anyone in authority.
An example, if I may. Several weeks ago I had occasion to have several young punk looters trying to gain entry to my property. The dogs held them at bay but in the meantime I called 911. In a nutshell I described the situation as one of imminent danger to the operator. She said police were “just up the street.” No one ever responded even after a second and third call. Fortunately, a neighbor came home and changed the odds and the thieves fled, but hung around for a long time at some distance and still there was no police response.
So what does that lead me to believe? Simple. It tells me in no uncertain terms that I and thousands like me are on our own and that the next time they show up I won’t waste any time calling 911. I will respond myself with all available force no matter how badly off that leaves the looters. There will be no mercy or measured response. If they come again then they come at their own risk.
And that, Ms. Veltman, is not some deep and mysterious psychological change that takes over people and makes them more aggressive. It is a simple proactive self-defense mechanism that people adopt that keeps them from becoming victims when the law fails to protect them.
Do I think the police are doing a bad job? Good question. All I have are my observations before, during and after the storm. How many police uniforms did I see when I watched 1,000 people loot the Great Bay Hotel for days until there was nothing left? None. It wasn’t until well after all the damage was done weeks later that the first officers showed up and chased people away ... for 10 minutes.
The first officers I actually saw doing police work were road controls checking for tinted windows ... a well-known and critically important function after a natural disaster and resulting humanitarian crisis.
During the LA riots some years ago there was lots of TV footage of whole city blocks of looted and burned buildings. Interestingly there were small groups of properties left untouched. Why? Because the owners of those properties (primarily Vietnamese immigrants) had stood guard with shotguns and M-16s and the looters knew that going there would be a very very bad idea. And they were right.
Ms. Veltman, I suggest to you that it is not the citizens that need a psychological makeover but more likely those charged with the responsibility to protect them. Those who were supposed to run towards the gunfire because that was their job instead of heading in the other direction with their eyes closed.
Steven Johnson
