If you don’t like The legacy corporate media, do it yourself!

Los Angeles—You’re there as the joys or horrors of history unfolds before your eyes.  You must tell the story before the truth is lost forever.  By default you are the reporter! 

I saw another amazing movie last night on STARZ, Marie Colvin, the late war correspondent’s biopic.  The star was none other than my next wife in my next life, Rosamond Pike.  

Marie Colvin was a woman driven to place herself in harms way to cover the cruelty and suffering of war. Her life and story was an inspiration to the cast of that current blockbuster film, Civil War.

Colvin was an award wining but tortured soul, who was wounded and later killed covering the Mideast wars.   She was a chain smoker that self-medicated her PTSD with copious amounts of alcohol.  

War is Hell and war correspondents are needed but,  today’s news people have been too often repositioned as influencers and political propaganda peddlers.  

I only hope that the citizens of the world begin to learn learn proper writing, video photography and editing.  We all have the most amazing tool in our pockets to do this, our smartphones.  Use it to eliminate the middlemen or women and post YOUR stories directly for all to see.  You are the witness, you don’t need others to filter what you see and experience. Your smartphone is mightier than any sword.  The images you capture are forever.  Please roll with the technology. 

Guns, your family needs for self-defense.

Chicago, IL— I don’t care where you live in the world, sooner or later your town is going to experience war or a serious uprising.  Today, there’s no dispute that the police are simply unable to respond in time to stop any major crime in progress.

A gun or guns does not make you smarter, taller or braver.  Your weapons only give you a fighting chance to survive. There are no guarantees.  

Like it or not you are the first responder when violence visits you and your loved ones.  Unfortunately, most Americans are totally unprepared to face any significant threat.  

Every family member of suitable age and discretion should be trained in the use of various firearms.  Having plenty of guns but little ammunition is a losing proposition.  Professional training is by far the best.  When it comes to safety and conflict avoidance, everyone should become anal retentive.  You should avoid purchasing cheap guns unless you cannot afford anything else. 

Now, just what guns should a family own?   First of all, everyone should have a suitable handgun, preferably semi automatic.  They should very from 9 mm, .45 caliber and .40 caliber.  Because of ammunition availability issues mixing the handgun calibers simply makes sense.  A quality holster is a must.  

Shoulder fired weapons are definitely required.  Let me begin America’s favorite rifle, the AR-15 in 5.56 MM.  For the elderly and the handicapped this platform rifle is much easier to use than any handgun.  Secondly, I suggest a semi-automatic .12 gauge Law enforcement style shotgun that can accept 3 inch magnum shells.  The third weapon should be a decent .308 rifle with at least a four power scope.  The fourth weapon I recommend is a semi automatic 22 rifle such as the Ruger 1022.  .22 caliber ammunition is substantially less expensive.  

If these weapons are owned by a properly trained family of four They can put up a formidable defense for homes and small businesses.  

Today’s criminals run in packs unlike days of the past, when you would face only one or two criminals now you may face as many as a dozen.   

You must always be aware that if you shoot at attackers from your home you may find that they set your house on fire.  Always try to find a nearby position of cover or concealment to return fire.  

Aside from firearms, you need some solid trauma, first aid training.  You will need a trauma kit that contains tourniquets, combat style pressure dressings, hemostatic agents and plenty of gauze for packing wounds.   In times of war or unrest is going to be difficult or impossible to have an ambulance or paramedics respond to your injuries. 

Additionally, I hope that you are reasonably stocked with water and non-perishable food because those shortages always happen during the most difficult times.  

Please stay safe and prepared, and hopefully you can coordinate with trusted neighbors, friends, and relatives.  

My review of the 2024 movie, Civil War.

Washington DC—We are a very divided nation and according to world history we must have unavoidable periodic wars since the beginning of time. We never learned from our mistakes and politicians never quit trying to become tyrants.

I thought this movie was going to come with political views, and then it would be easy to choose a side to support.  That however, was not the case.   But we did have two separate groups intent  on killing each other

This film is from the points of view of two unlikely female combat print photographers played by Kristen Dunst along with her unintended, young, novice sidekick, played by Cailee Spaeny.  Essentially the film shows constant danger, the inability to determine the good combatants from the bad ones.  In other words, you didn’t know who was going to kill you.  One of the things that happens during war is prisoners are somehow brought out of every prison and they of course, commit their atrocities without fear of reprisal.

They did not show any shortage of food or clean water.  This of course was not realistic.  This film had no shortage of gratuitous violence and was very intense.   There were plenty of psychopathic characters .  

The special effects were very realistic.  The ensemble cast was excellent in their delivery.  I think this is a realistic view of what happens during war, and it is certainly incredibly cruel.  

I’m going to suggest that you see the film in a theater with a wide screen.   I absolutely got my money’s worth for the $10 ticket.  

Civil Rights, Or Civil Wrongs? The Fixed Ghetto Lottery Robs Taxpayers.

Chicago, IL— When a thug kills anyone at all and no matter how cruel or depraved the crime, usually there’s no civil suit by the victim’s families.  Thugs are almost never insured nor indemnified by a business or government agency.  No tort or civil rights lawyer will touch that case because they’d only obtain a worthless and uncollectible judgment.  The victim’s families get absolutely nothing. 

Should this be a sketchy case of a cop justifiably and necessarily killing a street thug, the cop is indemnified by the government.  That makes any judgments easily collectible.  When a police shooting happens, suddenly the shyster “civil rights” lawyers come out from under their rocks and sign the dead thug’s family up for representation.  Then the lawyers run out and immediately stir up all the media generated cop hate they can.  

Of course the family of a dead thug must agree to their lawyer’s demands for 40% of the settlement or winnings.The lawyer’s don’t care one bit if the facts and evidence of the case would never win sympathy or a dime from a jury because these cases NEVER go to a jury!  The cases are always settled without trials for huge amounts of tax dollars. 

The corrupt lawyers file their exaggerated civil complaints in the local court and begin “negotiations” with the local government agency that employs the cops involved.  However behind the scenes they are promising campaign contributions or outright bribes to the elected officials that have the power to hand over a fortune in a settlement (think George Floyd).  

This scheme works in every major US city because they are all controlled by one-party Democrat rule.  That folks is how these so called civil rights cases are handled.  Even the corrupt lawyers call it what it is, The Ghetto Lottery.

That Apple River Stabbing Trial went terribly wrong.

Hudson, WI—This was a justifiable homicide, and the other moves made by the defendant, Nicolae Miu were totally lawful and necessary.  Make no mistake the witnesses that testified against the accused man provably lied under oath.  However, the accused defendant,  Nicolae Miu lied to the police.  Lying to the police is not a crime here but perjury under oath is a felony.  The jury chose to punish the defendant and they had no power over any possible perjury charges for the states witnesses.  

The Defense Lawyer here, obviously never prepared Nicolae Miu for his testimony.  He should have made sure the jury was aware that a man in this medical condition does not have to fight fairly defending himself.  Even if he is facing one of these clowns, separately, he may sill use deadly force to terminate the attack.  There is a serious degree of ineffective assistance of counsel here but I doubt if that alone will cause a new trial.  

The evidence showed that a bunch of drunken punks surrounded Nicolae Miu and began pushing, shoving choking him despite the fact that he was older and recovering of a quadruple bypass open-heart surgery.  There is a huge disparity of force here and the use of deadly force by Nicolae Miu was absolutely lawful and necessary. 

At the end of the trial, the judge approved a state motion to give the jury “lesser” charges to consider.  Things like second-degree murder, manslaughter reckless homicide were suddenly on the table for the jury.  The catch here is that the jury is told to disregard any sympathy or potential sentence that the accused may face.  The idea here is to give the jury a compromise verdict, but the problem is for this 55-year-old man with a serious history of heart problems either way will still wind up with a life sentence.  The jurors falsely believed that Nicolae Miu would essentially be eligible for probation.  

Once the jury learns that the sentence is going to be just as severe and that there was no compromise after all, they’re going to be pissed off, but there’s nothing that they can do about it.  The guilty verdict will stand like a brick wall. 

I will offer up my own sarcastic motto “that I have subscribed to for the last 35 years, “if justice ever happens it’s usually by accident and for all the wrong reasons.”

Certainly justice didn’t happen here and even if Nicolae Miu could get an appellate court to grind out an order a new trial years will have passed while he is locked up in a prison.  Our criminal justice system is a train wreck primarily since prosecutors redundantly go to lawmakers and the get anything they want in the way of making criminal trials unfair.  It’s always in the name of “public safety“ but all that does is give lazy prosecutors ability to convict more than 80% of the people who stand trial. 

Is the Walking Tall, Buford Pusser Legend a Hoax?

McNary County, Tennessee—Hollywood made four films about the heroic Tennessee sheriff, Buford Pusser.  A museum was built in his memory.  He shot and killed at least one woman who allegedly tried to murder him in connection with his investigations of gambling, moonshine, drugs and prostitution.

Buford’s wife, Pauline was apparently shot to death in August 1967. Buford also suffered a gunshot wound.  Buford claimed that he was ambushed while responding to a call.  He said that he brought his wife along in his patrol car as he responded.  I think most cops, like me would frown at the idea of bringing your wife or girlfriend on a call for police service.

Let me make it clear that I was never involved in any investigation of Sheriff Pusser’s various events. 

I met their daughter, Dwana when she was 25.  She was selling quite handsome and expensive Colt Python revolvers that commemorated her father and his Walking Tall legend.  Dwana told me she thought I looked just like the man who played her daddy in Walking Tall part two. That was the late actor, Brian Dennehy. 

The initial Pusser ambush investigation apparently was pretty slipshod since they did not even conduct an autopsy of Pauline‘s remains.  No suspects were ever located nor any arrests made.  

The Tennessee Bureau of investigation has very recently reopened this case, exhumed, Pauline Pusser’s body some six decades later.  Only now, are the forensic pathologists and toxicologist looking at those remains.  

Buford and Pauline‘s neighbor Diane Vance told others what happened just before the alleged ambush.  Allegedly, DianeVance heard the Pussers having a violent fight complete with a gunshot.  Diane said she was so frightened she hid under a bed.  She claimed to see Buford carry Pauline to his patrol car putting her into it.

Supposedly, Buford changed his story at least twice to a friendly audience of investigating cops that accepted Buford’s claims.  

My suspicion, if Diane Vance’s supposed story was true, this may have been a failed murder/suicide.  It looks like Buford changed his mind after he shot himself and was still conscious.  Or Buford may have been incapable of shooting himself a second time due to his initial gunshot wound.  

Today the involved car or Pauline’s and Buford’s clothing cannot be examined, and today’s autopsy may be hampered by severe decomposition of Pauline’s remains.  We can’t now guess where Buford’s service revolver is today.  He could have easily replaced it.  It’s also difficult to guess just yet if any spent bullets remain in the exhumed body.  .357 magnum bullets often exit human bodies and are often never recovered. 

The Walking Tall legend turned out to be quite a money machine and perhaps that is why we never heard denials from Dwana.  Fortune and fame along perhaps with a terrible memory may well have triggered a reason why Dwana later used a gun to kill herself.  When I met Dwana, in Phoenix, Arizona at a NRA annual gun show, I found her to be a delightful young lady with an incredibly pronounced hillbilly accent.

Buford’s Pusser was killed in a one car accident August of 1974.  He was in his Chevrolet Corvette traveling at high speed on the highway.. Apparently he lost control of his vehicle for reasons that never made sense.  His daughter Dwana’ told me that they spent a lot of money on private investigators and accident re-constructionists trying to learn if the crash was related to a criminal attack.   No such evidenced surfaced.  

I don’t know that the current investigation will change anything at all .  But you must wonder what will happen should this reopened investigation implicate Buford Pusser in his wife’s murder.  Was this all a colossal hoax?

How I met Jimmy Hoffa

Chicago, IL—It was late in 1967.  I was just nineteen years-old.  I lied about my age and was hired by the Cook County Sheriffs Police when the background investigator failed do the math for my birth year.  After training, I was assigned to the prisoner, transportation and fugitive warrants division.  Captain James “Packy” Walsh was the boss.  

For some reason on that day, I had no partner and was the odd man out.  I was sitting in the squad room wondering what I’m going to do that day. It was a general policy that prisoners were simply not transported by a single officer.  

Sergeant Conway approached me and said that they need me to transport a prisoner as a courtesy to the United States Marshall’s Office.  They had nobody available to transport a prisoner from the federal tier of the Cook county Jail to the Dirksen Federal building for a court appearance.  The Metropolitan Federal Correctional facility had not yet been built.  

I brought my Ford econoline prisoner van to the receiving room of the old County Jail.  There I left my weapon with a jail guard for safe keeping and entered the secure area.  My prisoner was sitting in a bull pen cell with other prisoners, they gave me a mittimus document and had me sign a receipt for the prisoner.  I was also given a wrapped baloney sandwich for my prisoner.  

The prisoner was none other than Teamsters President, Jimmy Hoffa!  They brought him out to me, and as was the custom and requirement then I handcuffed him with his hands in front.  We did not use leg irons.  I walked Hoffa outside and I retrieved my weapon.  I walked Hoffa to my van opened the door and locked him inside.  in those days, there were no seatbelts and he sat on a bench at the front of the van.  

Hoffa was a gentleman in every respect.  He was in a jovial mood and we talked as I drove him to the Dirksen Federal Building.   Hoffa was concerned about the time and was hoping we’d arrive before noon.  

When I arrived at the federal building, I drove down the ramp to the lock up area and I was greeted by a deputy federal Marshall .  I handed him the mittimus paper and I opened the door to let Hoffa out of the van.  Hoffa and deputy Marshall greeted each other with warm platitudes.  They knew each other from previous court appearances.  I handed him the mittimus and I took the handcuffs off Hoffa.

I learned that Hoffa had ordered a catered lunch for all the Deputy Marshalls!  I was invited to stay for lunch.  I picked a delightful tunafish sandwich from the assortment and ate with the Marshalls and Hoffa.  Afterwards, I left returning to my squad room with quite a memory.  

It was several months later when I was drafted into the army, Captain Walsh found out I was not 21 years old as required by the law .  Normally, they could’ve gotten me out of the draft, but since I was under age they had no choice, but to reduce me to a civilian working in the civil process division until I reported to the Army.  

After two years in the army upon discharge, in June of 1970 I was immediately returned to the sworn position.  They put me back in my old unit working with the same guys that were there when I left.  

Later, I joined the Chicago Police Department.