Notable & Quotable: A Proud Enemy of Rick's

"Manuel A.Tellechea, another blogger who declares himself an 'enemy' of Rick (it’s a Cuban thing), is convinced that Rick was an actual cop. But I am not so convinced. Perhaps he was a civilian employee working within a law enforcement agency, his salary still funded by tax payers." — Carlos Miller, "Snuck Off the Palmetto," Photography Is Not a Crime blog, December 17, 2007

The word "enemy" does not need to be translated. In "Cuban" or English it means the same thing. Acknowledging that fact is called being honest. I hope that there are also honest Americans.

I should hope that at his age Rick has advanced through the ranks, if not on merit then by the Peter Principle, to a more exalted position in the department than "cop." Regardless, he must be held to the same standard as a street cop. In 2006, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department fired a 23-year veteran for playing the bagpipes when he should have been on patrol. Rick's job, even if it only entailed shuffling papers, did not carry a license to steal from the taxpayer. Rick did not "choose responsibility over ego (i.e. blogging)." He chose to stop stealing. Which I suppose is as commendable in a cop as it is in a crook.

BTW, "Snuck Off the Palmetto" is the best headline so far to describe Rick's abrupt departure. Alesh and I could only come up with "Stuck on the Palmetto Is Dead." I had already exhausted my creative powers on "Stopped On the Palmetto."

http://carlosmiller.wordpress.com/2007/12/17/snuck-off-the-palmetto/