Trent Ruble's Blog: The Other Way It Is , page 4

What Comes Around Goes Around

Many of us in America feel that our once proud culture, including our world-dominating English language, is being threatened by immigration, particularly illegal immigration from Spanish-speaking countries such as Mexico. Because of this legitimate threat, many people and organizations have overreacted. One example occured on May 14, 2013 when Officer Jessinia Guzman, of the New York Police Department (NYPD), was reprimanded for speaking a single sentence in Spanish while at work (see The New York Daily News). She spoke the sentence to a co-worker who, along with Guzman and approximately 1/3 of all NYPD officers, speaks Spanish (see The Observer). Having many years of experience in law enforcement, I can say with certainty that having an officer who is fluent in Spanish is an asset to the police department and the community as a whole. For that reason alone, bilingual officers should be encouraged rather than reprimanded. But, I think there's another reason that may be even more important.


According to New America Media, the United States could become the world's largest Spanish-speaking country by as soon as 2050. If this were to happen, who do you think will be elected to the various leadership positions around the country? And, what language do you think could be "outlawed" then? I think the way in which we handle the inevitable transition will greatly impact how those who speak our traditional English language will be treated.

Many in our English speaking culture are offended by the incursion of those who, rather than assimilate, bring their own culture with them. They are especially offended when our Minority Rule society accuses them of "intolerance" for not accepting the newcomers and their foreign ways. Even though, in the countries from which these newcomers originated, it would never be acceptable to practice the ways of our culture. However, because of our government's refusal to seal the borders to illegal immigtration, the change is coming regardless of our feelings or wishes. I suggest we prepare for it.

Of course, once we all speak Spanish, the Chinese will be coming.

Is He Me?

Sometimes, when I tell people about the books I wrote, they will say that, of course I wrote about police officers because I am a police officer. The implication is that the world of law enforcement is what I care most about. It is true that an author's first few books are generally autobiographies, even if they aren't intended to be. I suppose that's true for me as well. My mother recognized it immediately. But, I didn't write about police officers because they're all that interest me. I chose to make my protagonists officers because they're people I know about. I didn't have to research my characters in the same way I would have if they had been doctors, or reporters, etc... In fact, in order to do it justice, I will probably wait until I'm completely retired from work before I write about something out of my area of expertise. It would be a full-time job researching such a story.






So, because I can "speak the language," the protagonists in Harrison Davis: Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt and Gunar Hamilton: Vigilante on the Lam are both police officers. Harrison is a veteran detective while Gunar is a shift Sergeant. I've held both positions and, though they are very different, I liked doing both and each offers many opportunities for a story. I hope you find these two interesting.

Go Out and Play: A Story about Growing Up in America

It's difficult to get kids to play outside these days. They seem to enjoy more being inside where they can play fast paced video games or watch television shows. Even when we're successful in getting them out the door, they complain that none of their friends are outside, which is because their friends are inside watching television or playing video games. Unfortunately, they're missing out on a great part of being a kid.

Anyone around my age or older remembers that, when we were young, there weren't any video games and television was for rainy days. And, even then, there was nothing on daytime TV for kids to watch anyway. Instead we played outside all day nearly everyday. We knew all the kids in the neighborhood and we nearly always found someone willing to play.

In my 1970s Indiana neighborhood, which included my Orchard Lane home and the surrounding area, there seemed never to be a time when we could find nothing to do. We played games such as "Home Run Derby" in the cul-de-sac between Kevin Paul and Carol Rugg's houses, "Slips" in the inner circle behind Jeff and Jay Kyle's house, football at Dave Ellis' house (in spite of the tree in the middle of the playing field), basketball behind Mark and Julie Conkle's house and even "Spoons" at Jo Anne Haines' house. But, our favorite thing was to swim in Mr. Collier's pool.

Mel Collier lived in a nice yellow ranch within sight of my house. He made his swimming pool available to the neighborhood kids by raising a blue "welcome" flag on his back yard flag pole. On hot days we would run covert bike patrols checking for the flag. The missions had to be clandestine because we didn't want Mr. Collier to see us hovering around his property. When it was my turn to check for the flag, I would make it appear that I was visiting one of the homes on the other side of Mr. Collier's house (the Kaiser's, Young's or Crawford's). Once one of us noticed that the flag was up, word spread quickly throughout the neighborhood and soon all the kids were there having a great time.

Another of our favorite activities was racing our bikes. Part of our street was a circle which lent itself well to racing. We would race our BMX bikes and ten-speeds around the circle as fast as we could, sometimes crashing in the corners (my apologies to the late Jeff "June Bug" Davis). One day Jeff Kyle was proudly showing us his new Schwinn Apple Krate, which came with a stick shift and speedometer. My brother, Stacy, asked to ride the bike and was soon speeding around the circle as fast as he could, all the while looking straight down at the speedometer. Unfortunately, he didn't see the Volkswagen Squareback parked directly in front of him. The crash left a dent in the car and damaged the brand new bike as well. I think Stacy's knees still bother him as a result. Jeff was more than a little upset with Stacy over the incident, although I think he's over it now.

Schwinn Apple Krate

Of course, there are many, many other memories, including the time Dave Ellis was bitten by Carol Rugg's Afghan Hound; Rashid, after saying we shouldn't be afraid of him; my failed attempt at singing in Stacy and Denny Scher's rock band; and the time I crashed my car nearly into the Crawford's house (see They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To (and it's a good thing). Many of the kids in our neighborhood are still my friends today. We don't see each other often but we all share the grand memories that our own kids simply will not have. Their loss.

Security vs. Privacy

With the recent revelation of the American government's extensive surveillance program, I thought about the trade-off between the search for terrorists and our right to privacy. The president once said, "...no more illegal wire-tapping of American citizens. No more national security letters to spy on citizens who are not suspected of a crime. No more tracking citizens who do nothing more than protest a misguided war. No more ignoring the law when it is inconvenient. That is not who we are. And it is not what is necessary to defeat the terrorists… We will again set an example for the world that the law is not subject to the whims of stubborn rulers, and that justice is not arbitrary" (President Barack Obama, 2007 ). However, he also said, "It's important to understand that you can't have 100 percent security and then have 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience -- we're going to have to make some choices as a society" (President Barack Obama, 2013).



My initial reaction to this situation was, "One would only object to being monitored if he or she had something to hide." But, then I thought about all the types of calls being made and e-mails being sent and who it is that is monitoring them. It would certainly be OK with me for the government, with a judge's approval, to monitor someone they suspected of terrorism or any other crime for that matter. Beyond that, monitoring all of us might be OK if the ones monitoring didn't know who they were monitoring. But, when a human being listens to our most intimate calls and reads our most private e-mails, and knows who it is that they're listening to, that is unacceptable. People are too susceptible to voyeuristic curiosity and reckless dissemination to be trusted with such a task. While I'm all for finding terrorists, I don't trust that someone isn't going to say about my phone call, "You gotta hear this one!" Worse would be if he followed with, "It's Trent Ruble!"

"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety" (Pennsylvania Assemblyman Benjamin Franklin, November 1755). Since the government has decided against this advice and is taking some of our freedoms in the name of security, why don't they start with some common-sense profiling (see You CAN Judge a Book by Its Cover) and, by all means, seal the borders.

Are You Listening to Me?

Everybody wants to be heard, but few really listen. In fact, I've found that people sometimes don't want to hear what I have to say (please, act surprised). As I write this, I may even be inflicting my opinion on you against your will. I'm being facetious, of course, but I have noticed that in certain situations, people have a hard time listening.



When I'm ordering at a fast-food restaurant, I don't need for the cashier to interrupt me to ask if I want to "make it a meal." If they would listen until I'm finished talking, they would know exactly what I want. And, if packaging it as a meal will save me money, then they should do it. They don't need my permission for that. This week my wife and I ate in a neighborhood restaurant on "date night." The waitress seemed nice enough but, evidently, made an assumption about what we wanted and then couldn't hear what we asked for because she'd already decided in her mind what it would be. In these situations, when I'm the customer, I would appreciate their full attention.

But, in a kind of reversal of the previous examples, I am sometimes the "employee" speaking to the "customer." As a police officer I must occasionally interview complainants, witnesses and suspects after an incident's been reported. There are certain things I must learn in order to determine the next step. But, as I attempt to get this information, a person's emotions will sometimes interfere with their ability to listen. Sometimes it's even malicious in that they will attempt to manipulate my decision by playing on my emotions. Either way, it's difficult to sift through their rants.

I think, in most of these situations, the people do not intentionally set out to be rude. Instead, they suffer from poor training and lack of respect. I think parents, teachers and, later, employers should spend more time training their children, students and employees to listen.

Misplaced Aggression

This year, President Obama and his administration have suffered through one scandal after another, it seems. First there was the botched response to the lethal Benghazi attack, and then the revelation that the Internal Revenue Service was targeting conservative groups for additional scrutiny. However, just as with the Fast and Furious gunwalking scandal of 2011, these scandals were downplayed by the liberal mainstream media until pressure from the public necessitated wider coverage. But, the next scandal affected the media directly and their response was instantaneous.



On May 13, 2013, it became known that the Justice Department issued subpoenas allowing the government to inspect personal e-mails of Associated Press reporters. The covert inspections were an effort to locate the source of a confidential information leak (The Telegraph). Frankly, illegal as it may have been, it seems that searching for the source of a classified information leak is a much more noble cause than anything the administration did in the previous scandalous incidents. But, because the media was the victim in this most recent wrongdoing, the response was very different as they demanded the administration answer the accusation. The "unbiased" media revealed their true colors. They weren't concerned about the news most important to us but, instead, wanted us to be concerned about them.

This should serve to convince everyone of the media's ability and willingness to manipulate the news. If not, then they have more power than I imagined.

Escape from the Past

When someone goes out of their way to help someone else, does it seem appropriate to reveal the helper's scarred past? We all have something in our past we don't want everyone to know about. I know I do. But, should that disqualify us from doing the right thing from then on? That's what our news media seems to be insinuating.



On May 6th, in Cleveland, Amanda Berry was attempting to escape the captivity that she, her daughter and two other women had been suffering through for the last decade. Charles Ramsey saw her struggling to escape and went to her aid which eventually led to freedom for all four (ABC News). Charles went out of his way to help a stranger and, for that, is a hero.

However, within days, we were being unnecessarily and inappropriately told all about Mr. Ramsey's past arrests and convictions for domestic violence (The Smoking Gun). Do I need to know about that? If he were about to marry my daughter it might be important. But, if my daughter were trying to escape from an evil, sadistic madman, I'd want someone nearby who, regardless of his past, would run to help her. Someone like Charles Ramsey.

Unfortunately, this isn't the only instance in which the news media has tried to discredit our heroes. One of the local newspapers here in Fort Wayne; The Journal Gazette, has a practice of listing the names of officers involved in police action shootings, including any previous suspensions or other disciplinary action to which they may have been subject. In all occasions, these officers were protecting their lives or the lives of innocent citizens when it became necessary for them to act. It seems so very easy for reporters to discredit officers from the safety of their desks while that very safety is being provided by the same officers whom they discredit. Shameful.

Do we really want our heroes to consider what is going to be revealed to the public should they act to help others? I certainly don't want that thought even entering their minds when they're making a split-second decision about saving my family. I'm not saying we should forget the past evil deeds of predators and the like. But, our heroes must come from us; the fallen. We should recognize that we're all human and leave our dirty secrets covered unless they're relative to the conversation.

Getting Down to Busyness

May has always been a busy month for us. In addition to Memorial Day weekend, which we commemorate with the entire nation, three of our immediate family members have May birthdays. We also celebrate "Gotcha Day" this month, which marks the day four years ago when we met Roselyn, our youngest daughter, in the Philippines and brought her home and into our family. And, because the school year ends in May (the beginning of June this year), my wife, Tami, a first grade teacher, is busy getting everything wrapped up in the classroom. Because of all the May excitement, we're glad that Todd and Ashley chose to have all four of our grandchildren outside the month of May!

However, this May (the month from May 3rd through June 2nd, which I'll call "May") is the busiest month of my life as the celebrations are on overload. It's even worse for Tami as she's doing most of the prep work. In addition to the annual busyness, our son, Taylor, married his wonderful fiance', Kara, (see The Ever Expanding Family, December 30, 2012), in an out-of-town wedding yesterday, which henceforth brings an anniversary. And, our other son, Aaron, is graduating from high school with his graduation party the previous day.

We love all these milestones, but we'll love them even more when the commotion settles and we can look back with a sense of accomplishment. Note to Taylor and Kara - please follow Todd and Ashley's lead reference any additional grandchildren.

Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Hearts of Men?

The Shadow knows! (The Shadow radio program, 1937) God knows, too. We should also know, considering the long list of evil we've witnessed in our lives. Ariel Castro, who was arrested this month after having kidnapped and repeatedly raped three Cleveland women for more than a decade, reminds us that evil is always in our midst. The overwhelming majority of us are not to be feared in this way, but Castro's crimes, as well as those of Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy and many others serve to keep us alert, because their kind is not "out there" somewhere; they are here, among us.

Evil men have always existed. Some were so terrible that their very name became synonymous with evil, such as Adolph Hitler. But, many were not powerful rulers like Hitler, Saddam Hussein, or Muammar Gaddafi, but became infamous only because of their crimes, such as the "Son of Sam," whose crimes in 1976 and 1977 paralyzed New York City.

But, many, many more are not well known at all. We must understand that evil lurks in every part of the world. It lurks in the narcissistic, sociopathic minds of the unknown killers, rapists, wife beaters, and child molesters in our own cities. In fact, sociopaths represent between one and four percent of the population (Jeremy Sherman in Psychology Today, June 08, 2011). That sounds small, but it equals between 3.15 and 12.6 million people in the United States. That means there could be as many as 10,000 sociopaths in my own city of Fort Wayne. Not all of them are serial killers, but all of them have little or no conscience and are a threat to our families. These are the people God has given over to "their own stubborn heart" (Psalm 81:12b, NKJV). We police officers call them "job security." They are constantly in trouble because they care only about themselves.



"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8, NIV).

Why Do They Hate Us?

It's become quite obvious that Muslim terrorists harbor more hatred for the Western World, and the United States in particular, than any other group. But, why? One reason they won't admit to is "envy." Instead, they will say it's because of our foreign policy. And, when they say "foreign policy," they mean our association and support of their enemy; Israel. Of course, who our allies are is none of their business. As a sovereign nation, we choose for ourselves whom we support. But, I think there is yet another reason and, in this, they have a valid point.



I disagree with much of Islam, but one thing they know better than us is how to keep their society pure, at least on the surface. They infringe on human rights in the process, certainly, but theirs remains a society without exposed decadence. The West, on the other hand, has for years been exporting filth around the world in our books, movies and television shows. And, it's not just pornography. Even our TV programs and PG-13 movies display a society obsessed with foul language, sex, especially homosexual sex, and not a hint of religion, unless it's for ridicule. It's no accident, either. The Western media intentionally portrays these things as normal in a effort to desensitize us.

It's no wonder Islam calls us the Great Satan. They want none of this stuff. We shouldn't either. The damage it's done to our own society is immeasurable, as I've seen first-hand. It's probably irreversible, too, short of God's intervention. Christianity also teaches against these things, but our worship of the "god" of free speech somehow trumps our worship of the one true God. Let's pray that the real God will once again bless America with a lifestyle worthy of being the envy of the world.