Police in need of crime\nI'm starting an IU chapter of the mafia, baby. We'll be the "Cokin-Criminals" and spend every weekend murdering, vandalizing and taking down scores at various IU Credit Union branches. It's not that I want crime, but it's about time the Bloomington police had something better to do than harass college students on Friday and Saturday nights.\nLast Friday I stood at the corner of 19th and Washington looking for a house party, while my buddy Dave stopped to chat with an ex-roommate of his. A few drunk guys made their way toward us exchanging words and threatening punches, so a small crowd of people at the corner began to watch. All of a sudden a cop car rushed to the curb. Cop gets out and screams loudly, "Get off the street, now!" Dumbfounded, I turned, and then couldn't help but let out a little laugh at how utterly obnoxious this guy looked yelling at the virtually, under control crowd of students.\nI still, however, made my way to the sidewalk two feet away while the rest of the crowd apparently dispersed in a hurry. The cop didn't like my response to his commanding entrance and called me over to ask for my ID. Carefully remembering which was my fake and which was real, I handed him my license and watched as he took it back to his car. Now I was in trouble. Having had one beer about two hours earlier, I grew nervous watching him sift through his car while holding what I assumed was a Breathalyzer box under his arm; my life as a felon flashed before my eyes. Finally, he walked back and told me that he was out of breath tubes. Then he reminded me about respect and told me to treat others how I want to be treated. \nWhat really happened here is that there's a power trippin' cop on the force with nowhere to exert it, and when he tried it on me I didn't bend over. If I didn't show him respect, it was only a reflection of the lack of respect he showed me, and his failure to address the real situation at the time -- two drunk guys about to duke it out in his streets. What are the cops trying to accomplish anyway? Fill the jails? If that's all, then maybe the University can work out a deal where students rotate staying in jail for one night, and on weekends the cops can actually focus their attention on keeping the peace. NWA said it best (in so many words): the police need to keep their eye on the ball. \nDaniel Mark -Sophomore
Police getting out of hand, confronting students without cause\nI just wanted to add my daughter's experience with the BPD to the growing list. On Sept. 2, her very first day of classes at IU, my daughter was pulled over by a BPD officer and given a $28 ticket for not wearing her seat belt when she truly had it on the whole time. The officer said because her car sits low, she didn't see the fastened seat belt and therefore did not believe her and gave her the ticket. She also accused her driver's license of being a fake ID. It is not. Who would buy a fake that says you are 18?\nNeedless to say, her memories of her first day at IU are not pleasant.\nMolly Arnold -Anderson, Ind.
Columnists can't get facts straight\nI feel very strongly that multiple sides should be represented on controversial issues in the IDS, but I also feel very strongly that each side should be well represented. Several of the IDS columnists, both liberal and conservative, do a major disservice to their respective views. \nOne such columnist who strikes me as extraordinarily ignorant is Cherry Blattert. I have read her columns these past few weeks, and I find that she cannot get her facts straight. She writes extremely irresponsibly and consequently tarnishes the ideals of others who share similar views. While she and I do not have ideals in common, I can respect other people's opinions. But it is much more difficult to appreciate these opinions if they exploit misleading, exaggerated or outright false information. Therefore, I would like to request that Cherry Blattert resign from her position at the IDS. There must be others who would enjoy such a visible position on the school newspaper who have much more ability to represent these views responsibly.\nAndy Boland -Sophomore
