spun's Journal: You've been served

So I served a guy a restraining order today. He'd beat up my friend a couple times, gave him a concussion the last time. So my friend got a restraining order, but he's a waiter and this is the dead time of year for that in Santa Fe, and he doesn't have the money to pay the sheriff to serve the papers. So I volunteered. This guy is a punk ass gangster wannabe who hangs out with a crowd of (snicker) Santa Fe toughs. But they kicked the shit out of my friend in public a couple times, and they are cracked out of their heads a lot of the time, so yeah, I was a little scared. But it was the right thing to do, and the fact that you have to pay someone to serve a restraining order sucks balls, so I had to do it. I had to track the fucker down, too, because he didn't show up for work tonight. He was off at some bar with his friends. I walked right up to him, made sure it was him (I've never met the guy), handed him the papers and walked out, calm as you please.

My hands are shaking a little bit now, though.

Heh

[Captain Splendid]

My first couple of services, to a very hostile guy, had me a little nervous too. After a while though, it's like Gandolfini says in True Romance: "After a while, you just do it to watch the expression on their face change."

Same goes for firing people, come to think of it.

Re:

[spun]

I knew I couldn't be the only guy here to have to do this. It WAS kind of fun. We have this innate drive towards justice. We feel it, or it's lack. Justice just feels good. The reason we feel it is because we are the only ones who can create it. Not the police or government (though we do hire them to help us create it) but all of us.

Justice is better for the survival of the human genome, so the feeling is selected for, IMHO.

As I understand what you're relaying:

[drachenstern]

Way to be a good friend. Very decent of you.

Re:

[spun]

Thanks. It's a matter of rights and responsibilities. We're all the police. We may hire some folks to do it full time, but if we want the right to be free from violence and harassment, we each have the responsibility to protect each other. I'm not advocating a 'take the law into your own hands' style vigilantism, but we can do things like step in to stop a fight in progress, or serve some asshole a restraining order, if that's what it takes.

Mostly though, I was just shaky last night after driving home and n

Re:

[drachenstern]

Thanks. It's a matter of rights and responsibilities. We're all the police. We may hire some folks to do it full time, but if we want the right to be free from violence and harassment, we each have the responsibility to protect each other. I'm not advocating a 'take the law into your own hands' style vigilantism, but we can do things like step in to stop a fight in progress, or serve some asshole a restraining order, if that's what it takes.

So I take it you're more of a Jeffersonian than a Hamiltonian? Preferences towards small gov't and small business, but let each compete fairly and equally. I think as a country we've gone too far in the direction of reliance on the government to get things done, and I applaud you standing up and reclaiming some of that. In the past I've opted for Volunteer Firefighter (but fortunately my diligence was never required while I lived in that community, just a few small brush fires). Oh how I wish we could wake

Re:

[spun]

Yes, in my heart I am more Jeffersonian than Hamiltonian, but with more emphasis on 'small business' than 'small government.' As government is at least in theory in the hands of all citizens, it's power is held in check more than that of our modern multinational corporations, which are barely accountable to their own stock holders, let alone anyone else.

So, unlike the Libertarians I love to argue with, I don't see a way of achieving small government first. It is the only check on the power of large business

political discussion ;)

[drachenstern]

As for 'small government', isn't it funny how we say that too often to mean 'small centralized governments at all layers'. But I agree with you, we should all be our own government, but not a-la Anarchy.

As for Libertarianism, I tend to think of myself as a Libertarian, but I agree with everything you espouse above. The few friends I have who have the sense to declare their political views more-so than "that's how everyone votes" (like my sister-in-laws who didn't realize there were more than Republicans an

Re:

[spun]

For your edification, you may want to read a bit about the Mondragon Cooperative in Spain, it is a great example of the type of 'socialist anarchy' government we're talking about. The philosophy proved itself effective: in just over fifty years, this region of Basque Spain went from a poor farming community to an international industrial powerhouse, mostly thanks to the work of a single lefty Catholic priest.

Re:

[drachenstern]

Thanks, added to my short list of things to learn about

Nice

[nizo]

Good to know there are decent people like you who live around here :-)

Good job

[grub]

I've only served to people who owe money, not toughie-wannabees.

Heh.

[SatanicPuppy]

Way to be a stand up friend. That's not quite "Helped hide the bodies" level, but it's a couple of steps above "Donated blood/stem cells."