The incredible corruption I have witnessed the last few years (e.g., Jefferson County, Amanda Knox case) has caused me to look at things differently. Recently I saw the NOVA program on the Lindbergh kidnapping. It wasn’t great and it didn’t offer anything really new factually, but it spurred me to look into the whole thing. Call it an American Experience. From the PBS website:
Program Description
In the aftermath of his 1927 solo transatlantic flight, Colonel Charles Augustus Lindbergh–the Lone Eagle–became the most famous human being on earth. And when he and his lovely wife Anne produced an adorable baby son, Charlie, an eager press quickly dubbed him Little Lindy or sometimes just the Eaglet. But on the evening of March 1, 1932 Lucky Lindy’s luck ran out. Bold kidnappers snatched his baby from the family home near Hopewell, New Jersey, while everyone in the house was awake. Negotiations with the kidnappers stretched out for weeks. But Little Charlie never came back. His body was discovered not five miles from Hopewell. Now, NOVA is reopening one of the most intriguing, grisly, and confounding crime mysteries of all time as a team of expert investigators employ state-of-the-art forensic and behavioral science techniques in an effort to determine what really happened to Lindbergh’s baby and why.
The comments here are amazing, e.g.,
Cops in general have serious psychological problems, ones that can be do more harm to the public than good. In fact, most cops are in it to boost their ego because they have to prove to themselves that they are not the losers. They are hungry for power and authority. Most of them have no college degree because they cannot compete with the smart ones. So they join “the force” to impose their stupidity on those who are smarter than them, cowardly hiding behind the badge. Most cops are corrupt or corruptible. They’ve committed extortion and other crimes at the blessing of a failed justice system.
Good photos from the UK.
Does this look like a grey pick-up truck?
The opus on Ted Mink and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s department begins here. It is a work in progress.
In-person harassment by Ted Mink (deputies coming to my home):
Calling/e-mailing:
An e-mail to Ted Mink last year asking that this harassment stop was ignored. Numerous other e-mails asking about failure to respond to reported crimes were also ignored.
I have dozens of e-mails and voice-mails as evidence.
This list will grow as I continue to pour through my notes.
It is very clear to me that the Jefferson County Sheriff’s department has a policy of threatening and attempting to intimidate citizens who report crimes. Per Colorado law it is the “duty” for citizens to report crime.
I strongly believe, at least in my extended case over eight years, this is malice (i.e., not subject to qualified immunity).
Internal investigations simply are not conducted and reported. (I believe associated data in the sheriff’s annual report are falsified.)
There really isn’t any point in writing this down but I suppose that is what I do. That is one way I learn about customer satisfaction.
I had this money market fund at Vanguard that I thought I closed over five years ago. I transferred what I thought was the balance electronically through a website transaction. Vanguard did not give me the entire balance. Two days ago I discovered a check for $203 sent by Vanguard on the date of this transaction with additional (dividend) proceeds. The check says “Please cash this check within six months.”
So I called, and virtually right away I could tell these were people who I wouldn’t get anywhere with. The first woman put me on hold and then inexplicably transferred me; the next woman told me the money had been escheated to the state. She told me to call some other Vanguard department which didn’t answer their phone. I called the second person’s boss (Chris Lohman, 800/896-7309, x47870) in “Resolution Services”–I probably spoke with him five times that day and got absolutely nowhere. Oh, and the third woman–someone from the unmanned department called back–she told me to call the state of Oregon; a person at the state of Colorado, where I live, had no record of the escheatment. Her boss has not returned my call.
It starts with the bizarre circumstance that this would even happen in the first place. (This is a company in the business of building large mutual fund accounts. I have another okay-sized holding there.). They didn’t give me my money! Just to be clear, I did not ask for, expect, or want a subsequent check… Plus, they have held it all this time without paying interest, and did not inform me of it!
The second story, or for me finding, is the incorrigible nature of Vanguard customer service. No one would do anything–they are their only to obfuscate and waste time. They all seem like first level customer service reps with no authority or responsibility. I called the main Vanguard headquarters line (610/648-6000) and asked for Bill McNabb, the president. The receptionist asked me a lot of identifying questions and then, without my consent, transferred me to another low-level csr supervisor in North Carolina. Again, Nada.
Here’s the thing, Mr. McNabb: either you take me call, designate someone to take my call, or you have the personnel and management structure to resolve such situations some other way. Who’s responsibe for my particular problem? For lack of other input, either Bill McNabb is responsible or no one is responsible.
I spent an entire day on it and got nowhere. Mr. Lohman, the manager of resolution services would not even provide me with an e-mail address to write to. My conclusion is, no responsibility… broken. No way I am going through another day of that again. And my money, and trust, is better placed elsewhere.
Something I wrote in 2004:
“I became intrigued when a police sergeant I was supposedly working with refused to give me his e-mail address. He said I sould use the U.S. Postal Service if I wanted to contact the department or the sheriff. I noticed the sheriff also would not provide an e-mail address or direct telephone line.”
The results of the last week, Whew! My best summary is that it is a combination of corruption and incompetence.
People, not offices or organizations, are responsible.
Ted Mink is wasting money and he is, at least partially, responsible for the stagnation of an entire region. He is responsible for the personnel, budget, and all day-to-day operations.
He is a patrol deputy and it is way over his head.
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But the thing is you cannot impune an entire organization, and that is his defense. There are people who want to do the right thing. There are others who don’t really care and just want a paycheck. There are some who want to get ahead, others who don’t have a clue anyway you slice it, and yet others who are in it for every single wrong reason you can think of.
But by law the sheriff is responsible for everything. By law he also has qualified immunity. This is the classic example of customer satisfaction vs. not giving a shit. It then has to become an example of character: what does this individual stand for, the right thing or cover-ups, justice or flagrancy, competence or stupidity?
I found your firm when doing some research on trespassing in Colordo. I have a neighbor who insists on “claiming” my backyard. He regularly lights it, shines lights at my home, and shines lights into my bedroom. I have written him four times and have personally asked him to stop. The houses are maybe 250 yards apart and about four-fifths of the property is mine. Today I am planning on seeking an injunction per neighborhood covenants. Yesterday I began staking on my side of the property line for a possible privacy fence; my neighbor stole my ladder, sledge hammer, and two posts from my property. It is a fairly long story but the sheriff’s department will not do anything.