The Arpaio publicity machine long ago fashioned the disarming "Sheriff Joe" moniker as a crafty way to subliminally and successfully insinuate a huckster into our lives. The "Joe" part particularly induces misplaced comfort and familiarity. He has become the Sheriff Joe teddy bear - clever product marketing which conjures up the false impression of one who is benevolent, approachable, trustworthy and our very own. In fact, Mr. Arpaio is a self-created (with our taxes) celebrity, lacking the overriding concerns for Constitutional rights and due process which define a true lawman. He shares nothing with police chiefs who are appointed and retained based on their professional merits, not elected on the base appeal of outrageous, headline-grabbing stunts and TV commercials.
It's time to end the "aw shucks it's just Sheriff Joe being Sheriff Joe" tolerance for his never-ending stream of mismanagement, incompetence and mean-spirited retaliation. Pull aside the screen which conceals this Wizard of Oz and see revealed an egocentric but very mediocre opportunist who is fully occupied with pushing everyone's buttons in order to ensure daily media coverage. The added revelations of his abdication of the sheriff's lawful public responsibilities to abusive, unrestrained cronies of whom only personal loyalty was demanded requires us to say: enough already!
Eric Landau, Fountain Hills
Dale Whiting posted at 7:22 am on Wed, May 4, 2011.
After investigating the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, Pinal County Sheriff Babeau could not have said it better. Paraphrasing Sheriff Babeau's statement issued yesterday, Joseph Arpaio's administration has been ethically bankruptcy and has been sailing along without any moral guidance or oversight from the top since its inception. Mr. Arpaio's appology tendered yesterday hardly makes up for his malfeasance while in office since 1993. Shame on you, Mr. Arpaio, and shame on this electorate for keeping you in office for so long. The honorable thing to do now is resign!
Leon Ceniceros posted at 7:26 am on Wed, May 4, 2011.
More ........."Shaft the Sheriif".....blather....from the....Fountain Hills crowd.
Look back on Sheriff Joe's biography...........he earned every acolade and award that was presented to him.
2/3rds of the American People ....."love"...........what Sheriff Joe and his Deputies are doing to .............'Protect our Border with Mexico.........while our..........Democrat President and his Administration are more concerned with the .........."rights of Mexican Illegal Aliens"............than doing what the ........Constitution of the United States demands that they do.
Arizona......love it...........or leave it.
As John Wayne said ...."either ride for the brand or move out"......maybe Fountain Hills could seceed from Arizona and become a............California town...if so many of it's citizens ....Hate Arizona ???
Dale Whiting posted at 9:18 am on Wed, May 4, 2011.
But not according to Sheriff Babeau whose investigation of Mr. Arpaio found Joe to have been disconnected from his office. Mr. Arpaio was so disdraught that he issued an appology late yesterday in effect promising to do better in the future. Good by Sheriff Joe. Perhaps they need a sheriff in Knottingham, England?
Accuracy posted at 9:52 am on Wed, May 4, 2011.
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is a conservative super-hero, the staunchest defender of Arizona's tough anti-illegal immigration law.
DemocraticDad posted at 3:34 pm on Wed, May 4, 2011.
Leon, thank you for liberally accepting Rich's advice the other day and not writing this comment in ALL CAPS!
Leon Ceniceros posted at 8:12 am on Thu, May 5, 2011.
DemocraticDad,
sorry to disillusion you.
it was the editor of this newspaper who refused to print one of my "letters to the editor" because i used.........all caps....rather than bring up something as trivial as the 1st amendement to the united states constitution....i told him it was his paper and he could do with it whatever he wanted to.
i wouldn't take rich's advise on ........how to wipe my...........................................................................glasses.
[beam][beam][beam][beam]
samkat posted at 9:35 pm on Thu, May 5, 2011.
Tell "em" Leon. :-)
Dale: You probably would have nothing but praise for Mary Rose Wilcox.
DemocraticDad posted at 10:36 pm on Thu, May 5, 2011.
If you say so Leon, but I find the coincidence of the timing remarkable!