Hilham, TN --(Ammoland.com)- This letter, from a Saratoga County, New York, Deputy Sheriff speaks of honor, commitment, and respecting any Oath you take.
It was sent to Glenn Maine, one of our State leaders.
It is placed here with the author’s permission. What would you say to your children about how to live?
I think Deputy David Jones said some important things to his children.
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Glen,
I am not one who seeks or intentionally brings attention to myself. I am one who participates, but does so from the rear of the crowd. My articulation skills are lacking, and in a crowd, I will often pronounce a word with error or stutter through a phrase. I have known the Sheriff of Fulton County for some time now. I call Tom Lorey a friend. I understand and agree with his philosophy and I’m motivated by his passion. I, if allowed, would like to stand next to Sheriff Lorey and do whatever I can to assist in the completion of this mission.
I will stand in the shadows no more.
I am an Army veteran and have been a police officer for nearly 24 years. I have taken all my oaths freely and accepted the responsibility of an oath as a promise to those that I serve. In today’s society, it seems that an oath is now nothing more than a ceremony of useless words and phrases which no longer are binding to those who have repeated them. Our Government was formed as a representative government for the people and by the people. Our elected representatives should mirror the beliefs and morality of the people they served. If a representative wanders from those beliefs, they feared the vote of the people. Now it seems the government no longer fears the people. Our government has become a government by the government and for the government. Special interest, and money, bribes if you will, tell many of representatives how they will vote and the will of the people are ignored.
Elected politicians and appointed government figures have been knowingly and intentionally violating law whenever it suits them to push a political agenda. Never let a good crisis go to waste, even when they are told by a majority of the people they represent that their agenda is not wanted. Yet, they will call one of our citizens, who have committed no crime on Tuesday, who is compliance with the laws and openly accepts personal responsibility, a criminal on Wednesday for being in compliance with Tuesday’s law, only because someone rewrote the definition of a term. Now that the executive branch of our federal government has made the Congress powerless through Executive Order and they believe that there is no need for any type of a spending plan to exist, is there any possible way to hold these politicians accountable since those in Congress appear to be in no hurry or have little to provide except wonderful sounding press releases that never have an action attached to them.
I have been thinking about this for some time and from my recent experiences I believe that I must start with our young citizens. Recently I attended a function at the local High School. My daughter was being inducted into the National Honor Society. The auditorium was full of families and school officials. At the beginning of the ceremony everyone was asked to stand for the National Anthem. I stood, clicked my heels and placed my hand over my heart. I was in horror to see the number of adults who stood but considered it a hassle and did nothing else. I looked up and onto the stage and saw my daughter standing with her hand over her heart and smiling while looking at our Nation’s flag. While some students also had their hand over their heart, I was amazed by the number of students who were standing, but talking to the student next to them, chewing gum or fidgeting around. The High School Principal, who is the leader of the school and the primary role model for these students, was standing front and center of the stage and had her hands behind her back. For a moment I said to myself, “What is wrong with me, I am the one who is out of touch, doesn’t this matter anymore and what has happened to our children?” If I had acted the way some of these young adults were acting when I was their age, I would have been punished by my parents for embarrassing them in public. Citizenship is no longer taught properly in our homes or our schools if it is taught at all. It has become the responsibility of those who still believe that this is the greatest country in the world and it is because of an old piece of paper written a long time ago that makes it that way, to teach this to our young people. I am dedicating myself at this time to help teach our young people the true meanings of our forefathers; I just don’t know how to accomplish this.
Both of my boys as well as I, are Eagle Scouts. I have taught citizenship, national history and flag etiquette to scouts for many years. This is great, except scouting only reaches a small percentage of our male youth. Part of an Eagle Scout ceremony is called the “Challenge”. It is given to a new Eagle Scout by an Eagle Scout and I had the pleasure, honor and responsibility to challenge my sons. I told them that as of this day, they are marked men to everyone who knows them. That minimal effort and turning away from a situation is not acceptable and to never compromise on their personal beliefs and morals. I then led my sons and every Eagle Scout in that room in the Eagle Scout Oath. This Oath as well as many others ends with, “On my sacred honor.” Meaningless words? I think not.
My wife and I have tried, and believe we have accomplished, to teach our children their National heritage and what the meaning of our forefather’s written words actually mean. We have taught our children not to lie. We have taught our children not to steal or cheat or associate with those who do. We have taught our children that morality counts and that there is right and wrong as well as good and evil. The saying in our home is, “Do what you know to be right”, when our children leave our home unaccompanied by an adult. We are all hypocrites in one way or another but we have taught and shown our children that after we are gone, we will only be remembered for our character.
Our country is changing at a rapid pace; it seems to be out of control. I do not know how much longer my law enforcement career will last, as I will not violate my oaths because some elected or appointed official does not possess the courage, morality, integrity or guts to say “no” to laws and directives that violate the Constitution of the United States of America. I am asking all of you who read these words not to stand at the rear of the crowd anymore. Let’s all stand together at the front of the crowd with Sheriff Tom Lorey.
Respectfully submitted,
David P. Jones
Deputy Sheriff Saratoga County
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Note from Elias Alias, editor: The letter above, written by Deputy Jones, stands as an individual example of the character and honor held by the Deputies of Saratoga County, New York. That Sheriff’s Department has written its own statement opposing New York’s Redcoat Governor Cuomo’s S.A.F.E. Act, which was hastily rushed through the State legislature and forged into law in a very despicable skirting of normal legislative processes. Please also read the official Sheriff’s Department letter of condemnation:
http://oathkeepers.org/oath/2013/02/04/saratoga-county-sheriffs-association-stands-against-ny-safe-act/
Oath Keepers salutes the whole Sheriff’s Department of Saratoga County, New York for honoring their Oath to the Constitutions of the United States of America and the State of New York.
About:Oath Keepers is a non-partisan association of currently serving military, reserves, National Guard, veterans, Peace Officers, and Fire Fighters who will fulfill the Oath we swore, with the support of like minded citizens who take an Oath to stand with us, to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, so help us God. Our Oath is to the Constitution. Visit: www.oathkeepers.org
Read more at Ammoland.com: http://www.ammoland.com/2013/02/new-york-peace-officer-on-commitment-and-oath/#ixzz2LMKGZAyx
By Chris Avena 