Posted on 02/15/2003 9:56:20 PM PST by Drewman626
THIS IS LONG BUT A VERY GOOD ANALOGY FOR THE SITUATION. PLEASE TAKE THREE MINUTES TO READ THIS.
You live in a neighborhood. You're not the oldest tenant of the neighborhood, but you are the richest. You have the nicest house, the best kids, the fancy car, but most importantly, you treat your neighbors with kindness and respect. You offer your help when needed, you invite people over often, you say hi to everyone you see and you're quick with the random gifts of kindness. When other neighbors have a dispute, you are eager to offer your mediation services in hopes that things don't get out of control.
There are always those neighbors that like you, those that tolerate you, those that envy you, those that take advantage of you, and those that just plain despise you.
There's one neighbor a few streets over that no one likes. He runs a business in town that many people patron. His business is in competition with a few other neighbors who run similar businesses, but he's buy far not the biggest competitor among them.
Some neighbors are boycotting his business because of the things he's done, said, and threatened to do. This guy killed one of his kids... gassed him to death in the basement. He killed his son-in-law on the front lawn while his own daughter watched. Many "friends" of his have died mysterious deaths after arguing with him. He even invaded his next-door-neighbor's house once and claimed it as his own... a neighbor that was in competition with his business. He's thrown grenades at his neighbors across the street, killing one of their kids. It’s also rumored that he gives money, supplies, and even food and a place to sleep to local gangs…. The same gangs that ran a truck into your garage killing one of YOUR kids.
Everyone knows that this guy has machine guns, grenades, and stun guns... pretty much the same weapons that everyone else has too. But he's also known to have tear gas, ricin, napalm, and even anthrax.... weapons that only a few neighbors also have. It's been rumored for a long time that he's been trying to build a bomb that could blow up half a house. It's also rumored that he talks to members of that local gang frequently... but no one knows about what.
The Neighborhood Committee, consisting of all the members of the neighborhood, including you, and him, has voted 17 times since the he tried taking over his neighbor's house, that this guy must hand-over all his vicious weapons and stop trying to build a bomb. All 17 times, he's agreed. But even after he agreed to the decision of the Neighborhood Committee, he's never handed anything over. He's made a hundred promises but never followed through on any of them. He says now he doesn't have anything TO hand over, but rumors come in daily that he's been trying to buy pieces for a bomb from local gangs and other rogue neighbors. Other neighbors and yourself have snuck up on his house before and peered into the windows and have seen pieces of equipment that could be used to make all the kinds of weapons that he agreed to get rid of. He agreed to let you stand on his front lawn to see anything you can see from that distance, but everytime you do, he shoots a shotgun at you. His phone's been tapped and it's been heard that he's trying to hide stuff from the Neighborhood Committee staff that was assigned to go into his house and view all the weapons he agreed to trash or destroy. Using the money from his very lucrative business, he's built tunnels under his house that go down for miles. No one but him really knows where the entrances to the tunnels are, where they go, and most importantly, what's happening inside of them. He claims they don't exist, but all the rumors and spying on him proves that they do. He's designed his house with hidden passageways and trap doors that can be hidden at a moment's notice whenever the inspection staff shows up.
Now something else to be said is that this guy hates you in particular. He’s still extremely angry with you, not just because you’re the richest guy in the neighborhood, but because you were the one that kicked him out of his neighbors house when he tried to invade it and claim it as his own. He wants revenge on you and your whole family. It’s thought that this revenge is his primary motivation for stocking up on weapons and building that bomb!
So now what happens from here? It's known that he loathes you and would love to see you and your kids die a slow, horrible death. Him and his kids danced and sang and laughed when that truck ran into your garage killing your kid. It's well known that this guy wants to take over his competitors' businesses. He'd gladly and willingly lob a few grenades at their houses again. He's attacked his neighbors before... PRE-EMPTIVELY... with no provocation.
Will he ever use the weapons everyone knows he already has? Will he ever build that bomb? What will he do with that bomb when it’s built? Will he ever get into cahoots with the local gang and hire them to use his weapons against you?
What do you do from here? Can you reason with the guy? Can you convince him and trust him never to try to kill you or your family?
One option would be to go about your daily life and ignore him. After all, you've never actually SEEN the bomb with your own eyes... you've only heard rumors and hearsay. He’s already claimed to have gotten rid of those other weapons he once had… even though no one can find the remains of them. You can wake up every morning and go to work, pay your taxes on time, and raise your kids that are still alive. You can watch reruns of The Brady Bunch and cheer on your favorite baseball team and just go about your life as if everything's fine. Sure you might lock your doors and pull your curtains closed now... that will surely be enough to protect you from any harm. You might always be looking over your shoulder or sweating everytime you turn your car on, but really? What can happen? The last thing you want it to anger this guy more and have him kill another one of your kids. I'm sure if you just leave him alone, he'll eventually calm down and leave you alone too. Why's he building that bomb? Who knows? Maybe it's just a hobby of his...
Another option might be for the Neighborhood Committee to keep sending inspectors into his house… the same house that he’s built for the specific intent TO BE inspected! He’ll never show them the trap doors or hidden tunnels. But the inspectors will find them eventually, won’t they? How long is “eventually” anyway? How much work could he get done on that bomb in the meantime?
Another option might be to just bomb HIS house… killing him, his kids, the tunnels and all the weapons in there. Not very "clean", but it would solve the problem once and for all.
Another option might be to send a SWAT team of 1000 fully armed men to raid his house. If this is done, a huge team of fully armed, fully trained personnel could detain him and his employees, and protect his kids, while they tear up the walls, drop grenades into the toilets, set fire to the backyard and pour cement into any tunnels they find. This would most surely destroy any of the weapons he has hidden there. But it will ruin his house. And what if he shoots at the SWAT team? They’ll probably have to shoot back. Well…. If he gets shot, then he’s no longer a threat… A SWAT team guy might get shot in the process….. of course, they know the risks… they’ve been trained and volunteered to be on the SWAT team. Well in this scenario, you could always donate money to rebuild his house and get Social Services to watch over the kids. They’d probably be better off with Social Services than with him anyway.
If a SWAT team goes in, he might lob some grenades at you while he has time. That local gang that supports him and his cause might also try to hurt you. Of course, if you get there in time, then it'll only be a gunshot or a grenade... it won't be the big bomb.
So if you sit by and do nothing... he builds the bomb, and then what? It's almost certain that him and that local gang are going to try something again... no matter what you do... or don't do. So do you act now so they don't have bigger and better weapons? Or do you wait hoping nothing will happen? What's the lesser of two evils?
What option would you choose?
What other option is there?
In some remaining rational jurisdictions, such as Texas, "He needed killin'" is considered a valid defense. God bless 'em!
Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
Visit the Palace Of Reason:
http://palaceofreason.com
An analogy but how good is an analogy if it is an incomplete analogy.
Everyone knows that this guy has machine guns, grenades, and stun guns... pretty much the same weapons that everyone else has too.
Same weapons as everyone else seems natural.
But he's also known to have tear gas, ricin, napalm, and even anthrax.... weapons that only a few neighbors also have.
Who was the good neighbor who provided these weapons?
One option would be to go about your daily life and ignore him
When has he ever been ignored? Didn't you support him at one time? Has he ever been ignored since then?
killing him, his kids, the tunnels, and all the weapons in there. Not very "clean", but it would solve the problem once and for all.
How does it solve the problem once and for all?
If he gets shot, then he’s no longer a threat
Agreed
Neighborhood Committee to keep sending inspectors into his house
But the inspectors will find them eventually, won’t they?
How long is “eventually” anyway?
How much work could he get done on that bomb in the meantime?
How much work could he accomplish while being inspected?
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