Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

[ZB9]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

24 hour news cycles certainly don't help.

good point imo.

this country's media is one of the main problems that we have right now imo. They are out of control.

like the OP said, the media will raise up someone into celebrity status that really shouldnt be a celebrity and shove her down people's throats (no pun intended) until people get sick of her and then everyone will revel in watching the person fall. The media is mainly to blame for this crap. priorities are getting all screwed up.

[jmood88]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

here is a post from someone that has worked in law enforcement:

"I'm not sure what the situation is now, but blowing a .08 (the very edge of the limit), there is a pretty good chance, at least when I did this program with Long Beach, that they'd have just dismissed it if she were a regular defendant who hired a decent private attorney and looked like she was going to fight because it wasn't worth the trouble. That or let her plead out to something so low, it would have involved a relatively tiny fine and she's done. That's not for charity reasons, but because it's pretty hard to get a conviction against good DUI defense attorneys with a .08 unless she's vomiting on the LAPD winshield in front of the video camera lens. I'm guessing the City Attorneys weren't going to give anything less than a wet reckless to Paris, if not just not to show celebrity favoritism, and Paris' team just took the wet reckless with the probation to avoid the publicity and chance of any jailtime.

As mentioned above, per the former LA City attorney I know, 45 days is pretty high for the violation given her circumstances. Not outrageously high, but higher than he'd seen in that kind of a situation.

As mentioned above, the real shocker (not given the case, but if it weren't a celebrity) was Sauer reversing the LASD re-assignment. Because of extreme LASD overcrowding, most women prisoners with misdemeanors and under 90 day sentences that also qualify as "low risk" get reassigned right after they walk into some kind of program, including electronic monitoring. Especially if they raise any issues at all. A lot actually just get booked and released. The City Attorney OSC and Sauer's world record LA county employee speed of reversal (I think maybe even without the med report) was extremely odd, to put it mildly.

In reality, were Paris not a (hated) celebrity, there's a good chance she'd have had her .08 DUI dismissed, or plead down to just a small fine offense (not a wet reckless). Even with a wet reckless probation violation, under those particular circumstances, she'd have probably gotten a 0-10 day or so sentence and then not spent 5 minutes in jail. Worst case there, 1 day in jail and a few days electronic monitoring. Best case, book and release 5 minutes after showing up, or a little community service sub."

they are doing this because of the media attention. The judge wanted the circus to continue. So now we get constant media attention on the menace to society Paris freakin Hilton, instead of covering important things. and it takes a lot of resources for LA county to accommodate all of the attention this is recieving. It's ridiculous.

The other thread was closed for a reason.

[ObiWanJenkins]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

People love this BS circus. I guess the judge acted like he did (overriding the sherriff's department, etc.) because of the public outcry and he wants to see the circus continue. I would say there are obviously far more important things for the LA county sherriff's department, for that judge, and for the media to put so much time and resources into.

This country and it's "system" is getting messed up. As has been stated, politics and money drive our courts (and the justice of it). LA will probably have to let out a couple of violent repeat criminals to free up space to satisfy the public over Paris freakin Hilton.

It's the sheriff's job to uphold the judge's decision, not go against. Your argument is so flawed, it's not even an argument. The judge has every right to "override the sheriff's department." He is the one who convicts and sentences, not the sheriff.

I applaud the judge for his actions. You have continued to ignore the fact the Paris Hilton was made aware that she would serve 45 days in jail if she violated her probation. The judge informed her of the penalty in her first court appearance.

It's the media that is using this to portray more gloom and doom. The masses of mindless morons need to feel better about themselves, so the media allows them to "disapprove" of the way the government handles issues. That way they can pump themselves up thinking they could do a better job.

It's easy to see that you just want to be contrary. Any sensible person would understand that Paris Hilton is being held accountable for her violation of probation, not her original DUI arrest. She spit in the face of the court by blatantly defying the judge's order, but you state that her actions are correct and she is being made an example of. Most sentences are harsher for offenders that show this kind of disregard for the court system.

[X*Cell]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

plus it wasn't just a DUI...

she got caught twice and her license was suspended.

I agree that the media is out of control though.

[jmood88]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

It's the sheriff's job to uphold the judge's decision, not go against. Your argument is so flawed, it's not even an argument. The judge has every right to "override the sheriff's department." He is the one who convicts and sentences, not the sheriff.

I applaud the judge for his actions. You have continued to ignore the fact the Paris Hilton was made aware that she would serve 45 days in jail if she violated her probation. The judge informed her of the penalty in her first court appearance.

It's the media that is using this to portray more gloom and doom. The masses of mindless morons need to feel better about themselves, so the media allows them to "disapprove" of the way the government handles issues. That way they can pump themselves up thinking they could do a better job.

It's easy to see that you just want to be contrary. Any sensible person would understand that Paris Hilton is being held accountable for her violation of probation, not her original DUI arrest. She spit in the face of the court by blatantly defying the judge's order, but you state that her actions are correct and she is being made an example of. Most sentences are harsher for offenders that show this kind of disregard for the court system.

He's going to ignore every good point you make and keep repeating the same thing over and over again. It's his MO in any discussion.

[kapo]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

It's the sheriff's job to uphold the judge's decision, not go against. Your argument is so flawed, it's not even an argument. The judge has every right to "override the sheriff's department." He is the one who convicts and sentences, not the sheriff.

I applaud the judge for his actions. You have continued to ignore the fact the Paris Hilton was made aware that she would serve 45 days in jail if she violated her probation. The judge informed her of the penalty in her first court appearance.

It's the media that is using this to portray more gloom and doom. The masses of mindless morons need to feel better about themselves, so the media allows them to "disapprove" of the way the government handles issues. That way they can pump themselves up thinking they could do a better job.

It's easy to see that you just want to be contrary. Any sensible person would understand that Paris Hilton is being held accountable for her violation of probation, not her original DUI arrest. She spit in the face of the court by blatantly defying the judge's order, but you state that her actions are correct and she is being made an example of. Most sentences are harsher for offenders that show this kind of disregard for the court system.

Agreed 100%.

This sheriff took it upon himself to change her sentence to something HE liked better, and offer a BS reason for it in the process.

Most people don't get the time Paris did for this offense in California thats true, but when you thumb your nose at the law and show a complete and utterly lack of respect for it ignoring it at every turn, you get what you have coming. She will learn a lesson from this.

[MassNole]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

Agreed 100%.

This sheriff took it upon himself to change her sentence to something HE liked better, and offer a BS reason for it in the process.

Most people don't get the time Paris did for this offense in California thats true, but when you thumb your nose at the law and show a complete and utterly lack of respect for it ignoring it at every turn, you get what you have coming. She will learn a lesson from this.

Hopefully the sheriff will too, he is an embarrassment to law enforcement.

[cliburn]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

It's sad, because "the people" wanna hear how the gov't screwed up 24/7...

and I'm the one who would like to hear that comparitive score... Soldiers killed vs. Terrorists killed... GO SOLDIERS!!!

I cheer for the good of my teams, my nation, and my well-being.

It's not that simple, X*Cell. A running scoreboard of Enemy Combatants Killed versus US Soldiers killed is not indicative of what is going on over there. Besides, if we had killed 3,500,000 to their killing of 3,500, it wouldn't make any of us feel any better. The majority opinion of America is that we are in a war based on (if not outright lies) at least monumental mistakes, and those mistakes have caused the deaths of 3,500 US soldiers.

You call the enemy combatants terrorists, but we are the ones in their country. We are the ones who bombed their cities. We are the ones who staged a military coup. It's all about perspective. I promise you that we have killed a lot of enemy combatants in Iraq, but it doesn't deserve any mention because it's not what tells the story of the war. I'd be willing to bet that more VC died in Vietnam than US soldiers, but it doesn't matter. The fact of the matter is that we are better trained, better equipped, and better armed and yet they STILL have undeniable advantages and recruit a hell of a lot better than we do. You have to understand that the people who simply point at how many "terrorists" we've killed are assuming that there is a finite number of terrorists and that we can eventually exterminate them like cockroaches in the kitchen. That's nowhere near complex enough to explain all the subtleties of the situation.

You say that the news is pandering to those who just want to hear about how our government screws up, but what do you want? There are nations where the media does nothing but tell the nation how great their government is and those nations are generally not that great as a result. You need this type of criticism and dissent to sustain a great nation. As a citizen and as a soldier I WANT to hear about all this so that A) I know why I am doing what I'm doing and B) we as a nation can make the necessary changes to prevent it from happening again.

[ODogg]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

You say that the news is pandering to those who just want to hear about how our government screws up, but what do you want? There are nations where the media does nothing but tell the nation how great their government is and those nations are generally not that great as a result. You need this type of criticism and dissent to sustain a great nation. As a citizen and as a soldier I WANT to hear about all this so that A) I know why I am doing what I'm doing and B) we as a nation can make the necessary changes to prevent it from
happening again.

All of the news being negative is what he is saying does cause criticism and dissent and in the process makes winning any war quite difficult if not downright impossible. Now the press wants to turn every war the U.S. is involved with into Vietnam. X*cell isn't saying to make it all positive, just give both sides, and that is what most people want to hear, not just one side. If the media and politicians continues to address any conflict that we have like this into making a statement about the folly of war and why it's wrong then for all of America's military strength we will never be able to win another war. It's nothing to be proud of, it's disgraceful the way all of this has been politicized IMO.

But alas, I don't think we can continue to debate this because no politics allowed here so I think we should just agree to disagree.

Getting back to Paris - someone said they had a friend in law enforcement and if a 'regular' defendant blew what she did on her DUI they may have dropped it if the defendant was going to fight it. That's completely his opinion of course but since when does the law mean .08 is a "maybe" DUI? If the law is .08 for a DUI and you blow a .08 when you are stopped then it's pretty simple, you've got a DUI. And don't you guys think if an attorney could have fought this they would have considering the Hilton's money?

I think that law enforcement officer just doesn't view Paris as a real threat to society (I mean look at her, she does LOOK quite harmless, she's a social butterfly for God's sake) and considers this a fiasco (media circus as the post says) because of who she is. It is a fiasco because of who she is but that is not because justice is being applied, it's because of who she is...... Justice shouldn't give her extra slack or be extra tough on her just because of who she is and in this case the penal system has treated her like anyone else, it's the press and public who has treated her so differently. So please keep that aspect straight. And if you doubt it then you probably don't have friends who have DUI and violations like Paris has to know that is true, like I and others have.

[born_bad]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

Tool Vicarious Lyrics
Eye on the TV
Cause tragedy thrills me
Whatever flavor
It happens to be

Like:
"Killed by the husband"
"Drowned by the ocean"
"Shot by his own son"
"She used a poison in his tea
and kissed him goodbye"
That's my kind of story.
It's no fun 'til someone dies

Don't look at me like
I am a monster
Frown out your one face
But with the other
Stare like a junkie
Into the TV
Stare like a zombie
While the mother holds up her child,
Watches him die

Hands to the sky crying,
"Why, oh why?!"

Cause I need to watch things die
From a distance
Vicariously, I
Live while the whole world dies
You all need it too - don't lie.

Why can't we just admit it?
Why can't we just admit,
We won't give pause until the blood is flowin'
Neither the brave nor bold
Will write as the stories told
We won't give pause until the blood is flowin'
[Vicarious lyrics on http://www.metrolyrics.com]


I need to watch things die
From a good safe distance
Vicariously, I
Live while the whole world dies
You all feel the same so
Why can't we

Just admit it

Blood like rain, come down
Drum on grave and ground

Part vampire
Part warrior
Carnivore and voyeur
Stare at the transmitter
Synched to the death rattle...

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la-lie (x4)

Credulous at best your desire to believe in
Angels in the hearts of men
Pull your head on out
Your head believes it give a listen
Shouldn't have to say it all again

The universe is hostile
So impersonal
Devour to survive
So it is, so it's always been ...

We all feed on tragedy
It's like blood to a vampire

Vicariously, I
Live while the whole world dies
Much better you than I.

[aholbert32]

Re: Sorry...but I feel like this must be said!

Political talk...locked