Wednesday, March 09, 2005
What if? Watergate.
Here is a neat example of minor things changing the course of history.
J.
RIGHTWING STRATEGIST Craig Shirley tells an interesting story about how the Watergate burglars almost succeeded. It is close to what we have reported in the past, although not quite.
Shirley writes that on the night of the Watergate break-in a uniformed police officer abandoned his patrol area, which included the Watergate Complex, in favor of several cocktails at a local bar. When the call came in for him to investigate suspicious behavior at the Watergate, he deferred the call to back-up in order to avoid repercussions for his drinking while on duty. As it tuned out, the back-up officers dispatched to the Watergate Complex that night were dressed in plain clothes and were driving an unmarked vehicle. They were able to enter the complex undetected by the look-outs for the burglars. Had the uniformed police offer not been drinking on duty and was able to respond to the call in his patrol car, the look-outs that night [in the motel across the street] would have had time to alert the burglars of the policeman entering the complex and the Watergate scandal would have never happened.
Now our version from police sources: on the morning of the break-in, the commander of the police district in which the Watergate is located had bawled out the plain clothes squad for failing to make enough arrests. It was warned to do better or it would be back on the street in uniform. That evening the patrol car was "cooping," a cop term for goofing off in hiding while on duty. When the call came, the plains clothes squad leaped to respond, which the coopers were glad to let it do.
In either version, one thing is clear. If the uniformed cops hadn't been goofing off, Watergate might never have happened.
J.
RIGHTWING STRATEGIST Craig Shirley tells an interesting story about how the Watergate burglars almost succeeded. It is close to what we have reported in the past, although not quite.
Shirley writes that on the night of the Watergate break-in a uniformed police officer abandoned his patrol area, which included the Watergate Complex, in favor of several cocktails at a local bar. When the call came in for him to investigate suspicious behavior at the Watergate, he deferred the call to back-up in order to avoid repercussions for his drinking while on duty. As it tuned out, the back-up officers dispatched to the Watergate Complex that night were dressed in plain clothes and were driving an unmarked vehicle. They were able to enter the complex undetected by the look-outs for the burglars. Had the uniformed police offer not been drinking on duty and was able to respond to the call in his patrol car, the look-outs that night [in the motel across the street] would have had time to alert the burglars of the policeman entering the complex and the Watergate scandal would have never happened.
Now our version from police sources: on the morning of the break-in, the commander of the police district in which the Watergate is located had bawled out the plain clothes squad for failing to make enough arrests. It was warned to do better or it would be back on the street in uniform. That evening the patrol car was "cooping," a cop term for goofing off in hiding while on duty. When the call came, the plains clothes squad leaped to respond, which the coopers were glad to let it do.
In either version, one thing is clear. If the uniformed cops hadn't been goofing off, Watergate might never have happened.
