POLICE APPRECIATION

I have just finished reading twice your front-page article in Sunday's
paper headlined "School raid raises questions about drug war" credited to
seven of your people.

They and you did a tremendous job of blaming the horrible police. Not one
of them even acknowledged that all the officers went home safely to their
families the night of the so-called raid. They failed to mention that the
officers do not create the laws but only enforce them. It is our honorable
legislatures that create the laws.

They wrote about the officer body slamming the poor little students to the
ground. There was only one arrogant student who refused a perfectly legal
order to get on the ground, so the officer put him there. This is the same
order that they can and do give to drivers they have stopped and are
concerned about, all over these United States. It is a legal order. I think
the officer had good cause to arrest him for disobeying a legal order.

I'll venture to say I watched the tape of the raid at least 20 times and
never ever saw an officer point a weapon at any student during the entire
process. They were ready to defend themselves in case some doped-up student
lost his cool over the fact that he thought he was about to lose his stash
of drugs and shoot at or stab one of the officers. I have been in groups of
police officers of 50 or more who had just finished firing on the range.
They all had their weapons in their hands, and I couldn't have been in a
safer area.

As to handcuffing, it was for the safety of the person handcuffed as well
as the officer's safety. The conduct and attitude of the subject generally
decide this action. If while they are on the floor they are screaming
obscenities and fighting, they will be handcuffed to keep them under
control and the officers safe. Every police department that I know of has a
policy of handcuffing everyone arrested.

This so-called raid has been called racist. Isn't everything? Watching this
now-famous tape, you saw black officers participating. I would be ashamed
to have written your article, for there was not one single word of credit
or understanding of what our officers have to endure to protect and to
serve us. Oh, we want good police officers to risk their lives and to take
our abuse. I often wonder why anyone wants to be a police officer when you
have to put on body armor to go to work every day and take the public
slurs. Thank you for doing such a great job.

EDWARD "MOOSE" REMINGTON

Johns Island