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From: Arild Jensen (no email)
Date: Fri Feb 27 2004 - 00:04:05 EST
Greg Daley wrote:
>Anti - Coast Guard comments on this list are insensitive, unpatriotic and
>pathetic.
>(snip)
Stan Gardner rebutted:
I have personally seen the CG in action saving lives, so I respect them for
their life-saving role, and respect the people who would put themselves in
that position. I absolutely hope they'll be there if I ever need them.
That said, I think it's perfectly acceptable to disagree with their new
mission. I have seen them taking their job way to seriously keeping us
away from a ship loading munitions, for example. <<< snip>>>
I think their mere presence (and the presence of the rest of us who are
also watching for unusual activity) is a strong deterrent to terrorism. I
think the CG should treat us as allies instead of suspects.
REPLY
Hey folks, lighten up! To many list readers who are not American, this CG
bashing is very strange sounding to say the least.
In the second place, why indulge in a knee jerk reaction of shooting the
messenger so to speak?
The Coast Guard; any nation's coast Guard, is an employee of the national
government and charged with carrying out a duty as prescribed in national
legislation and enacted as law.
If you have a beef with that, take it up with your member of congress, or
whomever passes the laws.
We all know Norm's attitude concerning his home ( boat ) being his castle and
thus being inviolate.
That is his privilege and he is entitled to his world view and opinion. You
are not obliged to agree.
I'm sure we all have similar pet peeves concerning some public employee or
other carrying out their jobs. (parking meter cops etc)
And I am equally sure that these same critics would denounce any public employee
who refused to carry out their duty and instead used their personal prejudice
to decide on a course of action.
The most vocal critics of so called stupid authority figures denounce rigid
adherence to regulations and ask why can't they use common sense?
However when the rules do allow some common sense and a small measure of
discretion to make a judgment call these same critics now denounce them as
exceeding their authority.
In reality this probably means they disagreed with the decision made. If the
shoe had been on the other foot and the exercise of judgment was in their
favor, you can be that they would talk about the intelligent young men in the
CG instead of those power mad bigots.
The USCG and other Coast Guard forces have volunteered to server their country
in some maritime capacity.
Their pay is certainly not as great as a comparable maritime civilian job. So
what drives them?
I just spent four days buried in the engine room and auxiliary spaces of a Coast
Guard boat working side by side with a bunch of guys who know as much about
boats as anyone I ever associated with. They were regular guys with the same
sense of humor or lack thereof.
Some were regular sticklers for regulations while others were more interested in
getting the job done as soon as possible and getting it right the first time.
In other words they were just like the guys I work with in civilian life but
they wore blue and had to salute certain persons and salute the flag at the
stern when coming aboard etc.
Every morning I was stopped by an earnest young man who asked to see my identity
card and state my business.
Never mind the fact he had done the same thing the previous day and seen me
enter with the senior station Commander and other officers.
He apologized for the inconvenience but said this was his job and he was
required to check identity papers of everyone, including visiting officers from
Washington DC. Had he decided to ignore the rules and simply let me wander in
the gate he would have been derelict in his job.
And no this was not a silly rule thing.
That particular station had been subjected to a bombing attempt only a few
months previously by someone who looked just as innocent as I.
So how the heck can these young men determine who are allies and who has some
warped idea of causing harm?
They have to follow the rules formulated by their senior offices who presumably
have more experience.
USCG did not demand the job of Homeland security. It was handed to them by the
civilian government leaders who decide matters of policy.
And regardless of their personal opinions and belief they carry out the job as
best they can.
If they encounter someone afloat with an attitude and a chip on the shoulder
they are more likely to apply the regulations strictly in accordance with the
wording of the law. If they encounter a courteous and civil response from the
boaters they stop and talk to, they respond in kind.
If they encounter a surly, hard nosed attitude, they are more likely to be less
friendly and more officious.
Regards
Arild
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