ELIAN

[Bill Peterson]

Thank you for your article
----- Original Message -----
From: Robert Goodale <rrg@nevada.edu>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 26, 2000 2:14 PM
Subject: Re: ELIAN


> > Re: ELIAN
>
> A few factors to consider before we revert to the topic of pianos...
>
> 1.  Reno is the attorney General NOT a federal judge.  Order of seizure is
> beyond her legal authority.
>
> 2.  No federal court warrant was ever issued by any judge to turn over the
> boy.
>
> 3.  The protesters were of the "friendly" variety with no history of
rioting,
> show of weapons, or threats.  Their activities were limited to slowing
traffic
>
>      around the airport and chanting disapproval.  Their leaders vowed to
> nonviolence demonstrations.
>
> 4.  Serious and legitimate legal procedures were already underway to
resolve
> the situation thus further action was not warranted at the time.
>
> 5. Proper legal procedure would have been:
>     A. Obtain a court order for a warrant take custody of the boy.  (A
judge
> had already denied such an order pending a hearing).  Such an order is
also
>          carried out by a knock at the door, NOT breaking it down.  That
type
> of action involves a search warrant.
>     B. If the boy's relatives had refused to turn over the boy the next
step
> would have been to issue an arrest warrant, (via a judge), for the boy's
> relatives
>          for contempt to cooperate with a court order.
>     C. The proper and ethical procedure would have been to take custody of
the
> boy during daylight hours via immigration agents dressed in business
attire
>          accompanied by law enforcement officials.  On the contrary agents
> stormed the home during the night dressed in combat gear toting automatic
>          weapons and pepper spray.  The exude was that they feared there
> "might have been guns in the house".  This contradicts the report that the
FBI
> issued
>          saying they had found no weapons in the home during two
inspections
> on Friday.  The press was forcefully restrained from entering and taking
>          photographs of the seizure.  The photographs publicly released
exist
> only because a reporter managed to jump through a window.  This of course
>          was the LAST thing the Reno/Clinton administration wanted since
it
> illustrated the details of the raid.  (How about that for a poster
supporting
>          the second amendment).
>     D, The agent who grabbed the boy was reported as saying, "Don't worry,
we
> aren't going to take you back to Cuba".  This does not appear to be the
>          intention of the Clinton administration, thus the brain washing
> process begins.
>
> You may believe that Elian should be deported back to Cuba.  You may
believe
> he should stay.  Regardless of your opinion the actions taken were not
only
> improper but also illegal. You may recall similar procedures were used in
> Waco.  Reno is still under fire for that matter which is far from closed.
Is
> there a pattern here?  These actions were the sole doing of Reno.  No so
> called "right wing conspiracy" excuses here.  The American public has a
habit
> of forgetting events in a very short time and "forgiving" government
officials
> saying "oh, they just made a mistake, they really are good people most of
the
> time".  If you believe that I have a piece of ocean front property in
Arizona
> I'd love to sell you.
>
> Flame me if you must but I have wonder...  is there nothing wrong with
what is
> happening or do Americans simply not want to believe what is happening?
The
> constitution is being chipped away a little bit at a time and few stand
back
> to see how much of it is now missing. Perhaps on day the constitution will
be
> declared unconstitutional.
>
>
> "This has been an editorial of the PTNA (Piano Technicians News
Association).
> We now return you to the pianos again".
>
>
> Rob Goodale, RPT
> Las Vegas, NV
>