innocent Until Proven Guilty? No Such Luck for Landlords

   Imagine: you can shut down a home for methamphetamine without even knowing if it is there. You can condemn it for being a meth lab without even testing to see if it is. Property owners are charged $10,000 to clean up a mess that might not even exist.

   In Salt Lake County, it take two out of three things sot shut a home down. If the meth crystals, themselves, are found, that's one. If paraphernalia is found, that's two. If an occupant of the residence confesses to using the drug on the site, that's three. You need just two of the three.

   But, no testing of the walls is required. The whole home can be condemned simply if someone came into the home with a pipe of meth in his pocket and the police happened to raid the place while he was there. 

   When meth makers and meth users are caught, they must be proven guilty before they are punished. Not so with their landlords. He has no day in court. He has no public hearing. The police do not have to show proof it is a meth house. Yes, they have to have evidence. Two out of those three things does constitute evidence. But, not proof.

   Innocent until proven guilty? No such luck for landlords.

It Is not Right to Punish the Landlords for the Crimes of Their Renters

    Some years ago, Utah became a hotbed for methamphetamine. Our police agencies and lawmakers, in an effort to rein in the abuse, chose to go after the property owners when meth was found. I would guess most meth users and makers are renters, but it is their landlords who are bearing the brunt of the punishment.

   When a drug raid results in the property being condemned (shut down), the drug users can simply move to a new apartment and take up where they left off. Yes, they might be given a ticket if any drug paraphernalia is found on them or in the apartment they were renting. And penalties might be even stiffer if methamphetamine, itself, is actually found. 

   But, it is their landlords who face the stiffer financial loses. Renters are more inclined to move from one place to another than landlords, so they do not acquire as many personal items. Also, the furniture is sometimes provided by the landlord, so when all those things are hauled off the the dump in the cleanup, it is the landowner who suffers most.

   Then there is the matter of the $10,000 to clear the methamphetamine out of the home. It is solely the property owner who bears that charge -- not the renters who were using the meth. 

   It is not right when you punish the innocent to spite the criminal, nor does it work. Our laws should be framed to go after the criminal, not the property owners who are caught in the crossfire. 

The Russians are Cheering

   Even as news broke that Moscow is spending hundreds of millions of dollars in effort to undermine the democratic systems in foreign countries, word comes that Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson has been swept out.

   Hours after she had entered office.

  Sweden is divided by eight political parties, so it takes a coalition of them to make decisions. With some of the lesser parties gaining more influence, that division has only heightened. Most notably has been the rise of the Sweden Democrats, which rose up out of the neo-Nazi groups on the 1990s. 

   As it became evident that the parliament would be so divided, yet opposed to Anderson, she chose to step down -- vowing to come back.  

   The news story on Russia's covert operations said Albania, Montenegro, Madagascar and, potentially, Ecudor have been identified as targets of Russia's efforts to bring the fall of democracies. But, we would be foolish to believe they are not operating in other countries, as well. Divide and conquer has always been a maxim worth listening too.

  We can only be sure of a few things: (1) Russia's social media and other efforts do seek the destruction of democracies. (2) Sweden is in the same part of the world as Russia, and Russia is not likely to overlook that nation. (3) U.S. Intelligence Community reports have long told us Russia seeks to divide, playing one side against another. 

   Even if the Russians are not behind the fracturing of Sweden's government, you know they are cheering.

Could Two Suns Be Setting at the Same Time?

    Could two suns be setting at the same time? A legal expert says it should be game over at Mar-a-Lago, meaning there is enough evidence to convict him. And, in Russia, word is that high officials in the government are calling for Putin to resign. "Game over" for him, too?

   I don't think so, in either case. Even if Trump is convicted, he will not quit fighting, even if it means rallying his supporters to more insurrection. Putin? It could push him to pushing the button on a nuclear war. 

   So, then, is there possibility both suns might set, only to rise again, Trump waging war against America, and Putin waging war against the world.   

We Need an Attitude Adjustment

   The love factor for ex-cons often is zero. Why would we befriend someone who has committed crimes? Why would we feel any sympathy for them? They are getting what they deserve. If they come looking for a job, send them away. If they come looking for housing, tell them you're full.  

  Be succinct and clear; tell them, "You've made your bed, now sleep in it."

  These things are not right. We need an attitude adjustment.  

Take Corrections a Little Further

    Perhaps no other segment of society -- other than children -- needs as much TLC as the prisoners and ex-convicts. Most of the nation's crime is committed by individuals who have committed other crimes in their pasts. If you could correct them, if you could reform them, crime rates would go down.

  I speak the obvious, don't I. While they are in prison, you can train them. When they leave prison, they continue to be under supervision; train them. Have classes/discussions with them on how to love their families, how to treat their neighbors, and how to greet strangers passing them on the streets.

   Develop their job skills. Teach them all the trades: air conditioning, bricklaying, roofing, welding, being a mechanic, etc. Teach them office skills.

   Teach them American history and science, mathematics and grammar.

   When all is said and done, we would have fewer criminals if we put more effort into training them. 

is Mike Lee Really a Backer of the Constitution?

 

   Senator Mike Lee has a reputation of being a supporter of  the U.S. Constitution, but is he. Look at the record to see if he has stood behind it. 

   (1.) Lee said it was not necessary to have a Constitutional amendment so that children born in the U.S. of foreign parents would no longer be considered naturalized citizens. Simple legislation cannot override the Constitution, and to suggest that it can is not standing behind the Constitution.

   (2.) The Constitution says bribery is not cause for impeachment. Lee, however, said Trump did nothing that was impeachable. Says the Constitution: "The President . . . shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for . . . Bribery."

   (3.) The Constitution provides a process by which the election shall be certified. Lee took issue with that process and did not stand up for doing it in accordance with the Constitution.

   (4.) The Constitution does not limit how many Supreme Court justices there will be. We might not like court-packing, but to read the Constitution is to admit the Preisdent can appoint however many he wants. The Constitution does not limit how many justices there are. But it does give him the authority to appoint them, leaving it open that he can appoint however many he wishes. This is a matter of which our nation clearly should fix. You can only do that with a Constitutional amendment limiting the Court to just nine justices, or however many.