Talking dogs: Sheepdogs and The Oath ™

Bloviating Zeppelin is bloviating about “the Oath” (TM) and it’s magical transformative properties in the human soul.  Bless his heart.  His heart is in the right place.  For the most part, his philosophy lesson is harmless.  I could just walk on and let this one go and no one would care. But it is a slow blog day.

Background info:  Sheepdogs.

More background info:  The OATH (TM)

Bottom line up front:  There is no reason at all for any local or state police to swear an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the USA.  If they are county employees, they work for the people of that county, doing their bidding, as directed by the county government.  Likewise for state employees executing the will of the people of the state as directed by the state government.  This is what federalism looks like.  The local sheriff is NOT a federal government employee.  If he is swearing an oth like the one military officers take, it only proves that his employers needed an oath and were too unimaginative to come up with one of their own.

The Oath (TM) is a meaningless drivel, that is not binding under law and cannot even be observed if it is working or not.   Now let’s look at the supporting “sheepdog’s oath” (an oath to an oath).

10 Orders Oath Keepers Swear to Disobey

1. We will not obey any order to disarm the American people. FALSE.  Police officers do this thousands of times a day every day in the USA as a normal part of their duties.  Every time a criminal citizen in arrested, he is disarmed against his will and threatened with instant painful death if he does not comply.
2. We will not obey any order to conduct warrantless searches of the American people, their homes, vehicles, papers, or effects—such as warrantless house-to-house searches for weapons or persons. FALSE.  This is another common practice that the police engage in all over the country and justify their behavior as “doing what it takes to get the bad guys off the streets”.  How can you be a LEO and not know just how easy it is to get a warrant?  Were you not paying attention for the past 50 years?  There are special IRS courts just to issue tax warrants.  There are special FISA judges just to issue warrants to serve intelligence gathering. 
3. We will not obey any order to detain American citizens as “unlawful enemy combatants” or to subject them to trial by military tribunals. Good thing you won’t ever be asked to do this.  Instead, any really good dictator will just send you out to serve a warrant for unspecified weapons violations, Murder, drugs, terrorism, or some other crime that will get your blood pumping to be the first to break down the perp’s door.
4. We will not obey orders to impose martial law or a “state of emergency” on a state, or to enter with force into a state, without the express consent and invitation of that state’s legislature and governor.   Again.  Not something that will ever come up.  Martial law does not exist in the USA.  If you ever see it, it is called anarchy and no one will care about your badge or gun.  States of emergency are conditions provided for under law and statutes in every state describe the legal limitations that apply under those laws.  For example, in Virginia, the governor can issue a state of emergency and that allows the state police to issue a fine to gas stations who overcharge for gasoline.  Martial Law (or the lack of it) really is something they should teach LEO’s.  It would be a short lesson.  There isn’t any.  Stop being afraid of stuff that doesn’t exist.
5. We will not obey orders to invade and subjugate any state that asserts its sovereignty and declares the national government to be in violation of the compact by which that state entered the Union.  Good thing getting government to issue “invitations” is easy.  If that is all it takes to salve your sturdy conscience then your road to hell must be paved to interstate quality.  And if you really believed this, then stay the F&*K home the next time Police week comes around.  Virginia and our citizens did NOT invite you.
6. We will not obey any order to blockade American cities, thus turning them into giant concentration camps.  Not going to happen.  If you think this is even a small possibility, you are ignorant about just how big cities are. 
7. We will not obey any order to force American citizens into any form of detention camps under any pretext.  BULLPUCKY.  Police do this every day.  It is why they have the power to arrest and they use it. Once man’s concentration camp is another man’s “cell block 3”. 
8. We will not obey orders to assist or support the use of any foreign troops on U.S. soil against the American people to “keep the peace” or to “maintain control” during any emergency, or under any other pretext. We will consider such use of foreign troops against our people to be an invasion and an act of war.  Another pointless protest.  LEOs have no authority in the USA to either defend against war, international enemies, or to assist foreign devils.  They work for the counties they live in. If the blue-turbaned Sihk brigade comes to your town and asks you to maintain order, direct traffic, and suppress crime, do it.  It’s your job.  Then do what you always do and go have another free doughnut at the coffee shop.
9. We will not obey any orders to confiscate the property of the American people, including food and other essential supplies, under any emergency pretext.  BULLSHIT!!  You do this all the time.  You do it for asset forfeiture.  You do this when you tow cars for parking violations. You do this when you help local bureaucrats take away people’s children.
10. We will not obey any orders which infringe on the right of the people to free speech, to peaceably assemble, and to petition their government for a redress of grievances.  So much blathering.  Most LEOs would recognize petitioning government for redress if it hit them on the head with a protest sign.  And for the record, I am OK with that.  I prefer my local and state police to keep order by removing “peaceful assemblies” from the streets.  If you want to redress your grievances, Write a letter.  Stay off the streets. I am trying to use them to get to work.  LEOS, stop investigating every traffic accident like it’s an episode of CSI: Miami.  There’s a thousand car pileup waiting for you to reach your obvious conclusion and restore order. And by “restore order” I mean scrape those broken cars out of the traffic lanes and let everyone else go.

 

(breath deeply)

OK.  I’m back.  Like I said, this is another pointless oath to a pointless oath, by an organization that prides itself on it’s ability to uphold an oath that no one has ever asked them to uphold in any observable way.  They are free to hold their secret meetings and wear special patches on their jackets and signal their virtue in other ways that seem good to them.  It doesn’t harm me in the least bit.  There are plenty of other people out there stirring up shit to harm me.  None of the bad things on that list above are ever going to happen to a town near you and if it does, the Oathkeepers will be doing what they have always done, Following orders.