Thanks, Rotty and others. I always welcome reasoned discussion and like to read here if only to learn more about the actual experiences of OC'ers.
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Brass, I apologize, I honestly thought that all of your questions were rhetorical. If you're wanting answers to your 1, 2, 3 list:
1. Yes.
2. N/A
3. I know a lot of people who actually lived in East Germany, in and near Berlin, before the wall came down, (including one my wives and her family). I've spent a fair amount of time there and studied/discussed the era to which you refer. I believe that he problem wasn't the state/police knowing who you were, it was what they actually had laws against (free speech, etc). So, while your question is obviously silly, you should re-read it and remember that we are a LONG way off from "East Berlin circa 1965".
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On the plane today, I thought more about the issue of Potential Escalation that is bothering some of you. I think a big part of my concern is that Police Officers are constantly bombarded with training in regard to "Officer Safety". They get very little training in the latest legal issues.
The fundamental obligation to respect an individual's rights is always trumped by an interest in self preservation (by common sense and by doctrine). When Martin Luther King and Ghandi passively resisted in protest of civil rights violations, they weren't strapping Glocks. That changes the nature of the game pretty significantly and escalates the situation, if you ask me.
If you want to parade around the town square in plaid shorts and pink slippers until the police ask for your ID and then refuse, I'll back your legal issue AND respect the act. BUT, when you don't cooperate with the police when they are concerned about you being armed and possibly dangerous, I think you are being foolish.
-RJP