Protests

a reply to: Onslaught2996

I don't need to understand the protesters, just understand what they are protesting. In the Ferguson case, I believe they are wrong. The kid robbed a store, attacked a cop and went for his gun. I don't see the excessive force issue in play.

I have an idea and a possible solution. Let the peaceful protesters set up a hotline. Let the police take a 100% across the board sick day. All calls will go to the protesters to handle. No body will get shot (at least by the protesters) and no choke holds.

We always focus with laser accuracy to that last second. Mike Brown was not shot because he was "Jay Walking" and Eric Garner did not die because he was selling loose cigarettes. Both men chose to enter into physical confrontations with armed law enforcement officials. Long story short. You do not get to tell the Police what you are not going to do. You do not have an option to be arrested. You do not touch a Police Officer.

I have been arrested numerous times. When they said "you are under arrest" and I said "OK you got me", I got a ride to third precinct, a sandwich/coke, a couple hours of sleep, and a bond hearing within a few days. When I said "kiss my ass Pig I'm not going a damn place" I got stitches, maybe a ride maybe not (left in an alley a few times), a boot party for sure, no food/coke, lost paperwork, lots more hassle. Tried them both a few times honestly.

I say let the cops walk. Let Holder, Sharpton, President Obama, and all the protesters hold down the fort for a week or so. Just give those security details a little vacation time while they do it.


+EDIT - Just to be clear I am not trying to support/condone/justify what happened to Mr. Garner. I do believe his death was a homicide and the police involved should have been tried accordingly. Not for the reasons the media (and some posters want to portray it), but because it turning into an us/them situation on the streets more and more every day. Dr. King said it far better than I can "We must learn to live together as Brothers, or we will perish together as fools." We aren't learning a damn thing people.......

a reply to: stirling I believe Reverend M.L King was the man that had the last peaceful protest in Washington DC. Then thugs like Al, Louis, and Jessie took control of protesting claiming to be leaders. Now we have thugs running around destroying the very places they live and work. They have NO COMMON SENSE, or morals.

a reply to: Onslaught2996

originally posted by: stirling
I don't suppose there are any constructive ways of protest are there?
Naw.....

originally posted by: Onslaught2996

By the way..why do some white people assume they can speak for the African American race or any minority and their protests? What gives them such great insight?

Because...some "white people" have experienced discrimination too...and they want to let their African American friends and neighbors in life know that they are standing strong with them...against the injustice that has happened. Because some "white people" really do care and want to help and bring about right changes in humanity.

originally posted by: Ceeker63
a reply to: stirling I believe Reverend M.L King was the man that had the last peaceful protest in Washington DC. Then thugs like Al, Louis, and Jessie took control of protesting claiming to be leaders. Now we have thugs running around destroying the very places they live and work. They have NO COMMON SENSE, or morals.

Perhaps you are not old enough to remember the civil rights era and how many of the protests of those days turned violent. Not that Dr. King approved it, but it happened all the same and was devastating. The one most vivid in my memory is Cairo, IL. The results of that can be still be seen today. Cairo never recovered.
www.visualnews.com...

It only takes a handful of bad actors and usually they are not members of the community. This same lame excuse was used during the civil rights protest era to take attention from the problems and divide folks. It is just beyond sad that the same tired excuses still work today. Those who would keep us divided and fighting amongst ourselves must be very happy.

originally posted by: 200Plus
I have an idea and a possible solution. Let the peaceful protesters set up a hotline. Let the police take a 100% across the board sick day. All calls will go to the protesters to handle. No body will get shot (at least by the protesters) and no choke holds.

We always focus with laser accuracy to that last second. Mike Brown was not shot because he was "Jay Walking" and Eric Garner did not die because he was selling loose cigarettes. Both men chose to enter into physical confrontations with armed law enforcement officials. Long story short. You do not get to tell the Police what you are not going to do. You do not have an option to be arrested. You do not touch a Police Officer.

I have been arrested numerous times. When they said "you are under arrest" and I said "OK you got me", I got a ride to third precinct, a sandwich/coke, a couple hours of sleep, and a bond hearing within a few days. When I said "kiss my ass Pig I'm not going a damn place" I got stitches, maybe a ride maybe not (left in an alley a few times), a boot party for sure, no food/coke, lost paperwork, lots more hassle. Tried them both a few times honestly.

I say let the cops walk. Let Holder, Sharpton, President Obama, and all the protesters hold down the fort for a week or so. Just give those security details a little vacation time while they do it.


+EDIT - Just to be clear I am not trying to support/condone/justify what happened to Mr. Garner. I do believe his death was a homicide and the police involved should have been tried accordingly. Not for the reasons the media (and some posters want to portray it), but because it turning into an us/them situation on the streets more and more every day. Dr. King said it far better than I can "We must learn to live together as Brothers, or we will perish together as fools." We aren't learning a damn thing people.......

You certainly do seem by your words to be supporting violence by police toward citizens. You seem to think that because you were beaten it is okay for others to suffer the same fate. Your words are simply ridiculous to anyone with any compassion for fellow humans.
The few bad actors that cause problems by looting and burning do NOT represent the majority of the people who are out there trying to wake people up to the problems that have existed for decades. If you cannot see that, you need to turn off the TV and get out more.

originally posted by: Onslaught2996
Why is it when people get to together to protest, the racist don't even attempt to talk about the reason of the protests but concentrate on the bad apples that all protests always bring.

They attempt to deflect the concerns of the peaceful protests and use the bad apples to demonize the entire black protesters.

By the way..why do some white people assume they can speak for the African American race or any minority and their protests? What gives them such great insight?

Unless you deal with racism on a daily basis....maybe you should shut it.

For that matter, why do people assume that Al Sharpton, a tax cheat to the tune of 4.5 million dollars, speaks for all poor black people or all black people for that matter? Why assume that whites have never experienced racism? Why assume that a poor white person has less insight on poor black people than a rich black person?

Too many blanket assumptions in your identity politics.

originally posted by: stirling
Perhaps the protestors could use different tactics than wonton looting and mayhem.....This is getting to be a tactic as old as the police response tactics they use........
I don't suppose there are any constructive ways of protest are there?
Naw.....

Hang on, you don't know who is responsible for what.

Anyone watching what was happening in Ferguson knows that the KKK threatened violence too, that the "Oath Keepers" were there, armed and threatening. We also know that there is a long history of Police brutality too. But regardless of all of this, it's instantly assumed that a burning building is burning because an "unknown black person" did it.

Can you not see the racism in this basic assumption?

I have no doubt that there are people there taking advantage of the situation and looting, but isn't it just a little strange that people who believe in conspiracies, and people who are pretty aware of the propaganda and agitators police and governments use, conveniently ignore that obvious opportunity and advantage in this instance?

Lets look at who benefits from burning businesses down in the sight of national news cameras.

originally posted by: mugger
a reply to: Onslaught2996

I don't need to understand the protesters, just understand what they are protesting. In the Ferguson case, I believe they are wrong. The kid robbed a store, attacked a cop and went for his gun. I don't see the excessive force issue in play.

And everything you have stated there is the assertion of a police force with a history of racism and brutality, with proven links to the KKK.

I find it remarkable that anyone can trust anything these cops say, especially when you read the information, the statements and see the obvious fundamental flaws in this case.

The fact that the investigator didn't do his job when he arrived and excused this by saying "it was obvious what happened" is enough to call for a full trial of this case. There were massive failings in this investigation, from start to finish. This was not justice regardless of whether you believe in taking the side of the police or not.

There are far too many things about this case that scream cover-up, and to ignore that is an injustice regardless of witness statements - and lets not forget that witness 10 LIED UNDER OATH, stating to begin with that they were 100 yards away, then changing that in front of the jury to 50-75 yards, without anyone questioning this sudden discrepancy, while rejecting other witnesses for far smaller discrepancies.

a reply to: diggindirt

I fully support three things:

1 - taking responsibility for your actions
2 - not breaking the law
3 - putting your money where your mouth is

which of these are you against?

originally posted by: 200Plus
a reply to: diggindirt

I fully support three things:

1 - taking responsibility for your actions
2 - not breaking the law
3 - putting your money where your mouth is

which of these are you against?

Nope, I won't play your either/or games. You clearly have no suggestions for solutions to the problems so you imagine you are very clever to set up "a possible solution" in your post above. But it is simply ridiculous and seeks to put all protesters in one big basket.
I'm sorry you wear such narrow blinders that you are not able to see what is obvious to anyone who has done any reading about the situation in Ferguson. It is quite clear that this incident with Mike Brown was simply what set off a community that has suffered institutional racism for a very long time. You can't seem to get beyond the fact that there were bad actors in this situation and a few bad people can cause massive problems for those who are doing nothing other than making their grievances known.
You seem really proud of the fact that you have been arrested numerous times and yet you claim you support "not breaking the law." You claim to have been beaten and left in an alley and that's okay because it was cops that did the beating because you resisted. I think perhaps one of those booty parties may have delivered one too many kicks to your head.
I believe it is wrong to commit violence on any of the Creator's creations. I don't think a badge and gun gives anyone the right to threaten or intimidate. Because I believe that on the occasions that I've experienced that sort of behavior from LEOs, I've written out complaints against the officers involved. But you see, I'm a mostly white lady, a life-long activist known for my activism in my community and known for having my ducks in a row before filing complaints. Not everyone has that kind of advantage. I've had many, many young people tell me that they wish they could file complaints but are afraid to do because they've been threatened by police. I know this happens because one tried it on me saying, "Now, don't forget that I'll be watching you." He was a bit taken aback when my reply to that was, "Yes sir, and I'll be watching you and I'll be reporting this harassment to your boss."
This attitude of law enforcement that you deserve to be beaten or die because you broke a law has to be changed but it will never change if people like you accept that they can bully because they carry a gun and badge. I watched the live-stream of events in Ferguson back in August and saw those cops threatening to shoot people for no reason while doing nothing to prevent the bad actors from doing their bad deeds. That was wrong and they should be held accountable but I have yet to see any accountability on their part. Had any armed civilian shouted, "I'm going to shoot you dead" in someone's face that person would have been charged with terroristic threatening in my state. I don't know what the statutes are in MO but making threats against one's life is illegal in most states I believe.

I have no solution. You have no solution.

People are known by the company they keep, are they not?

I grew up a certain way. Not proud of it, not ashamed of it. It simply is what it is.

I have read of Ferguson (both sides not just the one that confirms my bias), however I live in Detroit. I have witnessed racism of various flavors for over 40 years (individual as well as institutional). Nobody has a corner on that market. If you believe that, then you are the one that needs to take of the blinders and stop watching the TV.

Your very mentality breeds one thing in my environment: victims. But that's ok because you aren't in my environment. You are most likely somewhere much safer talking about something you watched or read and think you understand but never lived.

What you can't seem to grasp is police cannot coddle populations that lack a proper upbringing. You want Andy Griffith Police forces to patrol Escape from New York. All that leads to is dead cops. Hamstring the cops and they walk off the job. Then, people blame the cops for leaving them exposed to the criminals they failed to raise properly. It half joke and half epic fail.