Hell in a Handbasket

One of the common complaints voiced by American self defense advocates such as myself is that politicians are out of touch. They insist on passing laws which restrict the ability of law abiding people to protect themselves, while they enjoy armed protection by trained law enforcement agents.

Not all of them do, of course. Most people who are elected to city councils don't have armed guards, for example. But if they manage to become the mayor of even a moderately sized city, then they and their family will most likely live under 24 hour protection by people who carry guns. Guns the politicians want to keep from our hands even though we are more vulnerable than they are.

The Home Secretary is England's top cop, similar to the Attorney General in the United States. Jacqui Smith currently holds that position, and she started a real storm of criticism by admitting that it simply is not safe to walk the streets in England after dark.

This would be bad enough, the top cop saying that they are a failure at their job. But her office screwed the pooch when they said that it wasn't entirely accurate that the streets were unsafe. After all, Ms. Smith recently visited a gyro restaurant to satisfy some hunger pangs. It goes without saying that she wasn't worried because she was escorted by her security detail.

The article doesn't mention if she bought a round of kabobs for the bobbies keeping her safe. Probably not. People in her position very soon come to think that they deserve the perks of their office as a right.

Go ahead and click on that last link. It is fascinating to read how she just keeps digging her hole deeper.

(Hat tip to Theo.)