All Americans are strongly urged to carry their firearms in the days surrounding September 11, 2011 in defense of their country and its citizens.

This Sunday marks the ten-year anniversary of the tragic events that we now simply refer to as 9-11 in the United States.

Ten years ago, on September 11, 2001, nineteen terrorists hijacked and crashed four commercial airplanes killing nearly three thousand people; two planes hit the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and ultimately brought them down. Another plane was flown into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia and the last plane crashed into a field in the vicinity of Shanksville, Pennsylvanian after several brave passengers attempted to retake control of UA Flight 93.

I write this article today not as a reminder or a history lesson, but as an important wake up call and, most importantly- a call to arms!

According to recent FBI reports, al-Qaeda has expressed interest in striking us again and that they may be planning a “Mumbai-style” attack in American cities. If history and memory serves correctly, al-Qaeda has always favored the symbolism of attacking again on or around the anniversary of prior successes.

A “Mumbai-style attack” is an attack tactic of multiple, coordinated attacks, carried out simultaneously by a handful of actors using small-arms fire and explosives named after the November 26, 2008, Islamist terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India that lasted three days killing 164 people and wounding at least 308.

Security experts agree that an armed Indian public could have presented a sizable counter-force capable of quickly disrupting the terrorist operation and keeping the Islamists off balance long enough for military and law enforcement responders to subdue the attackers completely.

On July 22, 2011, lone gunman, Anders Behring Breivik, killed 69 unarmed and helpless citizens attending a summer camp on an island in Norway. Norwegians can own firearms with a permit however a permit would not be issued for self-defense. Furthermore, even though many Norwegians own firearms, the police do not routinely carry handguns. Sadly, it is unlikely that such a benign law enforcement response could have made much of a difference.

It is entirely likely that both of these attacks could have been thwarted or the number of innocent deaths dramatically reduced by an armed and watchful public!

Again, I strongly urge all Americans who are legally able to carry a firearm to arm themselves in defense of their country, its citizens and the very fabric of our society. This is not kowtowing to terror, this is taking a stand against it.

I am armed today because I refuse to be a victim. How about you?

You can make a difference in the event an attack is initiated in the coming weeks by being prepared and vigilant. You are an American Patriot; this is your call to arms! Exercise your Second Amendment freedom… “for eternal vigilance is the price of freedom.”

Pass this message on! Share this article! Re-post it! Tell every one of your like-minded friends!

“Let’s Roll.”

About the author: L. Scott Harrell is a gun-toting American Patriot. In his spare time he is the Editor-in-Chief of Pursuit Magazine, an online private investigator magazine, and a private investigation agency owner in Pensacola, Florida.

Through PIeducation.com, the market leader in state-approved private investigator continuing education (CE), we’ve arranged a very special offer being shared with our fans, subscribers and followers:

THREE DAYS ONLY – AUGUST 5 -7, 2011

You can order our online skip tracing course, “Investigations in the Land of the Lost: The Art of Skip Tracing and Missing Persons Investigations” (by far our most popular course) usually valued at $89.95…

FOR ONLY $22.49

Here are the details:

1. You must use the following link, which will only be available for 3 days, 8/5/2011 – 8/7/2011:

http://pieducation.com/PM-Subscriber-Thanks.htm

2. Our courses are PERFECT for anyone learning new skills or improving professional abilities but if you take the course for continuing education credit, you can only choose the “digital certificate delivery” option, meaning that we will not mail a hard-copy certificates for clients who take advantage of this special offer.

You can learn more about the course by clicking the following link, but you MUST use the link provided in this post or email to order.

http://pieducation.com/catalog/about-skip-tracing.shtml

Thank you for helping us make Pursuit Magazine the most widely read publication, online or in print, for private investigators in the world!

Warmest Regards,

L. Scott Harrell
CompassPoint Investigations
Pensacola, FL * Mobile, AL

http://compasspointpi.com

http://PursuitMag.com
The Journal of Professional Excellence for Investigators
Subscribe and read past articles and issues, all for FREE!

http://PIEducation.com
Online Continuing Education for Private Investigators and Process Servers
Accepted in TN, AZ, IA, OK, KS, OR, SC, LA, NM, NC and KY.

FL PI Lic# A 2500251

In fact, ISPLA is not really a traditional association at all. Why? ISPLA’s primary functions include reviewing proposed federal and state laws and regulations in order to identify critical issues; developing policy statements; preparing “white papers;” implementing action plans; serving as a resource to the profession, government and the media; providing testimony before hearings, boards and study groups; identifying third-party stakeholders with mutual interests and acting as their liaison to government; serving as an advocate for or against specific bills affecting investigative and security professionals; engaging state and federal lawmakers to influence legislation beneficial to the investigative and security professions; and creating and administering a federal political action committee.

ISPLA members have direct access to a daily live state- and federal- tracking system in real time, an un-moderated web blog (a forum for open, uncensored debate and discussion within the investigative and security professions), timely bulletins on proposed state and federal legislation and regulations, and opportunities for professional development on policy advocacy and training relevant to legislative and regulatory processes. On a daily basis, ISPLA state association members have access to new bills; some have taken advantage of ISPLA’s advocacy program, Educate to Legislate.

As you can see, legislation is all we do. Political times are too volatile to have important time and funding focused on other “typical” association related activities.

Other national associations such as NCISS, ASIS, NASCO, NAPBS, NAPPS, USAPI, ACFE, WAD, CII and INTELLENET offer a wide range of member services including conventions and trade shows, newsletters, email listservs, membership directories, referral services, and the presentation of awards. ISPLA’s mission, which is singularly focused full-time on lobbying and PAC activities, does not involve these other programs. ISPLA does not view these professional associations as “competing organizations,” but rather as potential allies and stakeholders working together for a common cause for the benefit of all investigative and security professionals.

People have asked us, “What is the difference between ISPLA and NCISS?” We are not naive to the fact that there is discussion about this among the professions. This is a good question and one that should be answered.

Legislation is but one aspect of the mission of NCISS and is run by a five- member legislative committee with the assistance of a part-time paid lobbyist.  NCISS does not allow for policy discussion among its members relative to legislation and provides no opportunity for its members to search current state and federal bills. Such information is controlled solely by its lobbyist and legislative chairman.

NCISS is under the mistaken impression that it is the only voice in Washinton thatrepresents private investigators and contract security companies.  This is a myth. ISPLA together with ASIS, NASCO, NAPBS and NAPPS are doing the same work, each with its own retained lobbyist, and each having different points of view and possessing special areas of expertise.  Industry opposition is led by dozens of privacy advocacy groups and labor unions. NCISS, with competing interests within its organization, does not have the resources to provide effective opposition alone.

To make your voice really count in Washington, consider joining Investigative & Security Professionals for Legislative Action. Annual dues from the date of joining are just $99. All of our funds raised are used exclusively for lobbying and addressing regulatory and legislative matters affecting the investigative and security profession. Presently, we are all volunteers and pay our own travel expenses.

However, we do need funds to maintain our legislative tracking system and handle mandatory regulatory and legal filings.  We appreciate the many ISPLA professional association members that have given us annual donations ranging from $100 to $5,000.  And, we certainly would like the support of every professional association!

In the two short years of our existence, the average contribution from ISPLA member investigative firm contributors towards our government affairs and PAC services has been $500. From contract security firm contributors, it has been $1,000.  We will also gratefully accept individual contributions in any amount.

To join or contribute to the work of ISPLA on line, please visit www.ISPLA.org. Donations may also be mailed to the address below.  Thank you.

Bruce Hulme
ISPLA Director of Government Affairs
Investigative & Security Professionals for Legislative Action
235 N. Pine Street
Lansing, Michigan 48933

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Brendan Davis joins CompassPoint Investigations as Director of Communications

GULF BREEZE, FL. – August 2, 2011 – CompassPoint Investigations has named Brendan Davis as their new Director of Communications.

Mr. Davis, who previously held the position of Associate Editor at The Vanguard, will be in charge of expanding and maintaining CompassPoint Investigations’ online presence and social marketing ventures, as well as developing content for their numerous online properties such as Pursuit Magazine and PIeducation.com

L. Scott Harrell, the owner of CompassPoint Investigations and Pensacola private investigator, announced the news. “We are excited to welcome Brendan Davis into the CompassPoint family. Brendan’s passion for developing quality content in many different media formats is endless and he has a history of staying on the bleeding edge where information meets new channels of distribution,” Harrell said. “I am excited about our opportunity to leverage his background in journalism in an impactful way across the diverse facets of our entire operation.”

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to join such a dynamic, creative and vibrant company,” Davis said. “There are so many exciting things happening at CompassPoint, and they are refreshingly enthusiastic about using new media and technologies. It’s a perfect fit, and I’m looking forward to working with CompassPoint and expanding its lead as the most innovative preeminent private investigation firm in the industry.”

Mr. Davis earned his BA in Communications from the University of South Alabama in 2009, and currently resides in Foley, Alabama.

CompassPoint Investigations provides private investigation services, service of process, private investigator training and continuing education, and business consulting programs throughout the Gulf Coast and Southeast United States, including Florida, Mississippi, and Alabama.

###

Contact:
CompassPoint Investigations
4657 Gulf Breeze Pkwy, Suite D
Gulf Breeze, FL 32563
Ofc (850) 637-8096
Fax (877) 761-8264

http://compasspointpi.com

FLPI # A 2500251

Smartphone users can easily switch between the mobile view and the regular computer-based browser format with the touch of a button.  This version of Pursuit is lite on graphics but has the same great articles you’ve come to expect from the #1 online investigation portal and e-zine on the Internet.

Give it a try and stay current with Pursuit Magazine while on the go!

It is important to note that We are still trying to find a way to bring a more mobile friendly version of our online private investigator magazine to internet capable mobile phone users not using touch-enabled web browsers listed above.  A .mobi version of the site is not too far away.

Interested in reading Pursuit Magazine on your Kindle or other e-book reader?  Drop us a line in the comments section and let us know!

This article was written by L. Scott Harrell and is posted courtesy IRBseach, LLC.

IRBsearch offers The Most information, The Best data sources, and The Fastest delivery for locating people, businesses, and their assets. With one click you can search billions of records in just a fraction of a second.

He tells the rancher, “I need to search your ranch for a bail jumper I believe is hiding on your property.”

The rancher says, “Okay, but do not go in that field over there.” as he points out the location.

The fugitive recovery agent verbally explodes saying, “Mister, I have the authority of the Supreme Court and Taylor v Taintor with me.”

Reaching into his rear pants pocket, he removes his badge and shoves it into the rancher’s face.

“See this badge?  This badge means I am allowed to go wherever I wish… On any land. and in any state where my fugitive may be hiding.  No questions asked or answers given.  Have I made myself clear?  Do you understand? “

The rancher nods politely, apologizes, and goes about his chores.

A short time later, the old rancher hears loud screams and sees the bounty hunter running for his life chased by the rancher’s big Santa Gertrudis bull……

With every step the bull is gaining ground on the bail agent, and it seems likely that he’ll get gored to death before he reaches safety.  The agent is clearly terrified. The rancher throws down his tools, runs to the fence and yells at the top of his lungs…..

“Your badge.  Show him your BADGE!“

.

Editor’s note: Yes, there is a moral to this otherwise humorous story.

.

We would all like to believe that our clients (or their friends, enemies or… opposing counsel) would not change a report… but how many of us still believe in the Easter Bunny?

Next, you should consider compatibility. We convert our documents into a .pdf file. Adobe Reader is installed on greater than 99% of all computers purchased and solves the compatibility issue of the many competing file types… .doc, .docx, .rdf, .txt, .wps, .xml, .htm, .html, .jpg, .gif, .png, etc. etc. ad nauseum. Even if your client can open a document, it does not mean that he or she is seeing it exactly the way you intended because their software settings, viewing and layout, are probably different than yours. If you take pride in your work and take your time about the aesthetics of your presentation, .pdf’s ensure that what you see, is what the recipients of your documents are going to see.

Lastly, we convert documents into a .pdf due to “portability.” If you are going to send your report to the client via email or upload them to your website for download, then you should consider file size; .pdf’s are generally smaller in size than Word documents and, if you use Adobe Acrobat, there are options to reduce the file size even further.

If you don’t have the several hundred dollars laying around to pick up the latest version of Adobe Acrobat, our favorite FREE .pdf creation tool is “Primo .pdf.” http://www.primopdf.com/

One last thought on the subject of file size: optimize your photos! If you are including digital photo’s as exhibits in your document, then you should reduce not only the dimensions of your photos to fit the page but also the resolution; 96dpi is perfect for a standard report. Compress the image for even further reduction in file size. Work with copies of your digital photos and not the original files.

Here is a video demonstration of me reducing the file size of a sample report from 128MB to 2.75MB by compressing the included photographs:

Christmas: The time when everyone gets “Santamental,” so I’d like to leave you with a few thoughts:

Question: What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
Answer: Frostbite.

Question: Why was Santa’s little helper depressed?
Answer: Because he had low elf esteem.

Question: What do you get when you cross an archer with a gift-wrapper?
Answer: Ribbon hood.

Question: What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?
Answer: Claustrophobic.

Question: What do snowmen eat for breakfast?
Answer: Snowflakes.

Question: What do you call Santa’s Helpers?
Answer: Subordinate Clauses.

Question: Why is Christmas just like a day at the office ?
Aanswer: You do all the work and the fat guy with the suit gets all the credit.

I know…  I know…

I know that people say “It’s the thought that counts, not the gift”, but couldn’t people think a little bigger!

Whether you were naughty or nice this year, we hope that you get everything you want!

We wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas.  Thank you for allowing us into your lives, now THAT is a very special gift!

Warmest Regards,

L. Scott Harrell, Executive Editor
Stephanie Mitchell, Managing Editor

Pursuit Magazine

http://www.PursuitMag.com

The Journal of Professional Excellence for Investigators

We join the rest of our blessed nation on this Veterans Day in remembering the sacrifices and bravery of America’s 25 million veterans. We honor you now and always and thank you for your incredible sacrifice of selflessness, loyalty and devotion to this country.

Stephanie Mitchell's Brother and Father

The economy is so bad… I ordered a burger at McDonald’s and the kid behind the counter asked, “Can you afford fries with that?”

The economy is so bad… that CEO’s are now playing miniature golf.

The economy is so bad… if the bank returns your check marked “Insufficient Funds,” you call them and ask if they meant you or them.

The economy is so bad… Hot Wheels and Matchbox stocks are trading higher than GM.

The economy is so bad… McDonalds is selling the 1/4 ouncer.

The economy is so bad… parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children’s names.

The economy is so bad… a truckload of Americans was caught sneaking into Mexico .

The economy is so bad… Dick Cheney took his stockbroker hunting.

The economy is so bad… people in Africa are donating money to Americans.

The economy is so bad… Motel Six won’t leave the light on anymore.

The economy is so bad… the Mafia is laying off judges.

The economy is so bad… Exxon-Mobil laid off 25 Congressmen.