What of our Sheriff?

| April 5, 2021 12:42 PM

I do not write this to call out the Shoshone County Sheriff for any wrongdoing or to gripe about his performance. I’ll leave that to somebody else as I have none. This is simply an attempt to get clarification. As far as I am concerned, the Sheriffs of the hundreds of counties nationwide are possibly the most important elected official for individuals within their respective counties followed closely by the state legislatures.

I am sure that it is of no surprise to those who read these columns that I am an Individualist. I believe wholly in voluntary cooperation as opposed to the statist idea of legislated compulsory cooperation. I am for the reduction of the state’s power over the individual to it’s absolute minimum. As one might guess, that means that I am against most laws that can be described as being a law by virtue of statute. This makes certain actions immoral simply because they are illegal rather than illegal because they are immoral. As an example, this ideology means that I am completely against the Sixteenth and the later rescinded Eighteenth Amendments. I am constantly asking: If I do something that can land me in jail, then why can the government do it legally through legislation?

Currently, Congress and POTUS have been very militant in regard to civil rights of certain collective groups they don’t like. It’s for our own well-being, of course. Unfortunately, we can’t all just be Americans, but a part of some group for political purposes. Parts or our constitution, the ones that ensure our individuality, are being attacked wholesale. As one of many examples, entering a home and confiscating firearms without a warrant where it is deemed “reasonable” (which can mean whatever they want) is being argued and pushed by the Biden administration. Cutting up the Fourth Amendment is going to be used to eliminate the Second. Once the cutting begins, it’s doubtful there will be an end until the entire document of “unalienable rights” ceases to exist. Again, let’s not forget that legislated slavery and oppression has always been done in the name of the “general welfare” of citizens.

What does this have to do with our Sheriff? Kootenai County Sheriff Robert Norris has issued signed documents in which he has stated he will not enforce those laws which can be described and argued as unconstitutional. As far as I can tell, unless I missed it, our Sheriff has been silent on issues pertaining to our individual liberties as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. I’m not going to try to make any guess as to why that might be because the why doesn’t really matter; however, I do believe that, being a public office, it is of public concern to know where the Sheriff of a respective county stands on issues that directly impact the liberties of that Sheriff’s constituents.