[wetibbe]

This is a California thing, and I'm not one. But maybe I can offer some outside perspective from someone who does not have a dog in this fight without sounding like a referee.

Infighting has definitely split up several good groups in my region. Going way back, years, to Farmingville, Long Island. The group leader invited Chris Simcox to speak. About 1/2 were in favor and 1/2 had a thing about Simcox and objected so strenuously that they "walked" splitting the group. It was downhill from there and not long after that the whole organization folded and closed their website.

I met Simcox later at another group meeting in New Jersey and I had an uneasy feeling. Although he wasn't implicated two New Jersey groups came to loggerheads and relations cooled to the frigid. In that case a new group, in a different town, was supposed to be a satellite , subordinate, to the main group. Things fell apart when the new group began soliciting donations for themselves. The groups split.

Same thing in Connecticut. A group of activists in Darien, in the South, organized and coupled with a group up North in Danbury. The Darien leader performed surveillance of all McDonald's restaurants in Connecticut then printed his report. The Northern group didn't like some aspects and decided to split, which they did. Relations and cooperation cooled to the point on non-cooperation and communication.

Of course everyone knows the history of the Simcox Minuteman breakup and demise.

On the matter of police and politician attitudes, we here have the Nations champion scofflaw, sanctuary city Mayor. I would like to say that generally police and Mayoral attitudes nationwide follow party lines, Democrats liberal, Republicans conservative. However, this one is variously a Democrat, then a Republican then an Independent, depending on which window of opportunity is open and which path offers the least resistance.

Rodney King said: "Can't we all just get along" ? And the answer is no - not on your life. It just isn't the nature of the beast. It's one of Murphy's Laws. If they can find something to argue about and be disagreeable - they will.