Year: 2008

Another Taser death

A good man I know only from the comments section of blogs (I really need to get a life… but I likewriting about this things), send me this link. He’s right, I don’t like Tasers. He notes: “Firstly, we don’t call it non-lethal but less lethal. Second, the cops asked him to stop and he…
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Fan mail

A friend and former student of mine (and mid-to-high-ranking officer in the NYPD) wrote me this: I picked up your book at Barnes and Noble on W. 18th Street last Wednesday. Congratulations! Just started reading and it is enjoyable already. You’re the best author I know (and only author I know, we cops are not…
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Amsterdam police station

Here’s one of the least intimidating police stations you may ever see. In Osdorp, Amsterdam.

“Bad” part of town

In Amsterdam, it can take a somewhat trained eye to even know you’re in the “bad” part of town. First, there’s the immigrant issue. Actually the issue is more with the children (the male children) of immigrants. Immigrants, and not just illegal immigrants, are considered a problem here and in most of Western Europe. Citizens…
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These drug dealers aren’t so bad

In the Netherlands, you can walk into any “coffee shop” and legally buy or smoke marijuana or hashish. It’s a sight so common, you barely notice it. So here, in a “bad” part of town, are the drug dealers. They don’t shoot each other. They pay taxes–albeit not on the sale, which is technically only…
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No joint smoking

It’s my Spring Break and I’m in Amsterdam doing police research (and visiting friends). Biking with my brother today, I passed this sign. This is what you can do if you regulate drugs. This sign was put up because it’s an “area deserving special attention” (or something like that). In Amsterdam, this is considered a…
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Hate mail (2.1)

Here’s another. Once again, I can’t take criticism too seriously from people who haven’t read my book. I haven’t yet heard anything bad from anybody who has actually read my book. But I’m sure that will come, too. In the meantime: While I have not read your book, and don’t intend to I have a…
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Hate mail (1)

I’m amazed that the mere thought of my book would get people so riled up that they would write me. It’s hard to take criticism of my book seriously from people who haven’t read my book. But here’s the first email: Mr. Moskos, three years. Count them (3) years!! Wow! How in the world did…
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It’s all about the numbers

There’s a quota system in place for attorneys working in the office of U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O’Brien in Los Angeles. As reported in an articlein the L.A. Times, O’Brien says: “This office does not and never will have quotas for its criminal prosecutors…. To suggest that any attorney in this office must charge a…
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First Amazon reader review

A round of applause for Generic Guy. I’m glad you liked my book. Thank you.