Don't romanticize motorcycle gangs
 

Redwitch is correct that the outlaw bikers are considered to be Organized Crime. They engage in a wide variety of illegal activities, including murder, drug smuggling, firearms smuggling and other criminal acts.

Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club (MC) is one of the earliest of the outlaw gangs. They generally do not operate in Florida. The Florida club that dominates the "turf" is the Outlaw MC. You may have heard about the recent shootout in Waco, Texas, between the Bandido MC and the Cossacks MC. This event, which left nine dead, was a turf war. The Bandidos have traditionally considered the state of Texas as their territory.

Ironically, since someone mentioned motorcycle clubs at Toys for Tots events, a precursor to the shootout was the beating of a Cossack member at a Toys for Tots event by Bandidos last December.

The term 1 percenter refers to the outlaw cyclists' philosophy that there is 1 percent of the general population that has no respect for the law or normally accepted behavior, and that members of outlaw clubs are comprised of that 1 percent.

"Patches" are a big deal to motorcycle gangs. Many gangs wear patches on their backs, but not all have the "rocker" across the bottom. The rocker denotes a claim on a certain territory. Part of the dispute in the Texas shootout was that the Bandidos did not want Cossacks to wear a Texas rocker on their back.

Several years ago in New Orleans a group of Bandidos came from Texas to New Orleans during Mardi Gras to pass counterfeit $20. Our Secret Service office arrested some of them.

More recently, in Tampa when I was back at the Sheriff's Office we conducted a major investigation of the Outlaw MC and put several of them in prison. I worked directly with an insider informant and covered many meetings between our undercover people and the suspects.

There used to be a restaurant just south of The Villages which I believe was called the Butter Bean. Barbara and I were in there eating lunch one day when about 30 members of a motorcycle club came in to eat. I was wearing a shirt with the Secret Service Star on it. However, it was obvious with my age and having to use a walker that I was not active. Several of those who passed my table nodded and smiled. When I went to leave, using my walker, one of the club members held the door for me.

However, don't romanticize about the outlaw motorcycle clubs. They can be vicious.


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The Warlocks
 

Incidentally, the investigation that we conducted on the Outlaws MC headed off an incipient gang war between them and the Warlocks MC which also made some claims on Florida at the time.

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Faith Riders
 

Not all motorcycle clubs are outlaw clubs.

Persona means mask. Masks are worn so that others cannot see the true person. As mentioned, not everyone joined HA because they were gangsters looking for an outlet .... I'm sure the reasons were varied. This is not meant to whitewash any crimes against society the gang got involved in. Usually a few leaders can lead the more reticent into areas they otherwise would never have dared enter. We all know this...and we have all worn masks...like the Beatles Eleanor Rigby. I long ago gave up painting everyone in a group with the same brush.

Above...got the wrong quote...was the one with persona in it.

Similar feelings about KKK, Neo Nazis, Skin Heads. If you wear the patches, jackets ,helmets of the HA , you obviously want recognition as member of the group and don't mind be associated with their acts. Leaders are not responsible for those that stray, The strayers choose thei own path.

You CAN judge a book by its cover.
 

That's a nice, Liberal, sentiment. However, here in Florida we have one of the Big Four outlaw motorcycle gangs ..... the Outlaw MC. If you encounter a Fully Patched member you can be assured that he moved from Probationer to Member by performing a rite of passage that included criminal activity, most likely a crime of violence.

Here in Tampa several years ago two deputy sheriffs went to the motorcycle club clubhouse to serve a warrant and one of the deputies was shot. The next time we (I was back with the Sheriff's Office by then) went to serve a warrant we used an armored vehicle to knock down the fence and breach the front door, threw in flash-bang grenades, and swarmed the place with SWAT team members.

The national leader of the Outlaws was put on the FBI Ten Most Wanted List and after conviction was sentenced to Life in prison. You might find the newspaper article interesting. Tampabay: Motorcycle gang leader gets life

I have no opinion, they do not bother me and I do not matter enough for them to be bothered by me. Live and let live.

I lived in Las Vegas when a couple of large brawls between different clubs broke out on the strip, and in downtown LV. Bystanders were injured and there was lots of property damage. And then there was a large gunfight in a Laughlin NV casino. Many killed and injured. If you happen to be around when something like this occurs, it isn't a question of live and let live, and it won't matter if you bother them or not.

Carl: Thank you for this information. I don't know why people want to romanticize gangsters but they do. Gangsters come in a wide variety from pirates to stagecoach robbers from bootleggers to members of organized crime and yes even greedy politicians but they all have one thing in common their needs are more important than others even if it cost someone's life. Hollywood does it for profit and it clearly demonstrates their hypocrisy

Personal Best Regards:

I don't think the comment was justifying or romantisizing gangsters but said it would not whitewash crimes against society and the fallacy of classifying everyone in a group, any group, as being all the same. We are not. Look what some say about The Villages. Are we all the same? It was a matter of fleshing out the argument.

Don't over-generalize
 

As I observed, that is a nice Liberal position, but when you say "any group" you have gone too far. As previously noted, there are outlaw motorcycle clubs that require a probate to demonstrate the commission of a crime, witnessed by other members, before he can be Fully Patched. Accordingly, all Fully Patched members of the club are criminals and can be classified as criminals.

At the high school I attended there was a "non-virgins" club, with obvious qualifications for membership. I think there are certain assumptions that can be made about all the members.

Some of the Angels I knew could be very nice. Some were very intelligent and could be interesting to talk to away from the gang. Many of them could and did kind, decent things when it suited them. Even so, ALL of them were in fact criminals to one degree or another. They ALL were willing to be violent when deemed necessary or expedient. Doing nice things such as giving to charities, doing Toys for Tots runs, helping a motorist in distress does not mean you can't be vicious, dangerous and downright cruel the rest of the time. The reality is that outlaw gang members really and truly are bad guys and you'd be very unwise to think otherwise.