mycatharsis.com

A profoundly naive Republican State Senator in Utah wants to make sure NO ONE will ever know.

Actually, the police chief of these officers deserves kudos, if his actions match his words, at least.  He recognized this as an abomination immediately and said anything short of dismissal would be ‘inappropriate’.   Frankly, I can’t imagine any other reaction, but his quick repudiation is still heartening.  But there also should be no doubt,  as well, that the glaring light of public scrutiny helped ensure these four disgraces to the uniform were immediately suspended.  The kind of scrutiny this nutjob Senator wants to prevent.   It really is profoundly scary someone would even propose this.

In the aftermath of a recent horrific accident that’s left a Madison police officer fighting for his life, with heroin from the police evidence locker found in his car, the Capital Times reports that Madison police and firefighters are not subjected to random drug tests.  The Dane County Sheriff explains the lack of testing …

He attributed the lack of testing to a “philosophical belief” that “there is an expectation that they’re never under the influence of drugs obtained illegally or under the influence of alcohol when coming to work.

Good for them.  Seriously, I’m not being sarcastic. They don’t buy the line too many people are eager to accept that ‘if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about.’  They understand the importance of their civil rights and they shouldn’t just give up those rights willy nilly.  They understand not to simply give up their civil rights, even IF they are given by our society special capacities as part of their job. Such as the power to arrest people, the power to carry otherwise illegal weapons with them whereever they go, and the power to store pounds upon pounds of illegal drugs.

Of course, it does make you wonder.  If they believe a ‘philosophical belief in coming to work sober’ is enough; why is it not enough for someone who sits at a computer all day, or for the guy ringing up my change in the drive-thru lane?  I’ve yet to work a job where there wasn’t at least a philosophical belief in coming to work sober,  so shouldn’t that be sufficient for the rest of us as well?