Officer shown the door at SE Portland cafe

This type of news makes me grateful to live in "Podunk." Because of where I worked before, I had a lot of contact with police officers, and to me they're just people doing a tough job. Where I work now I have police and sheriffs as customers, and they're just like everyone else pretty much, as far as I can tell.

I will admit to getting a bit nervous when there's a cop behind me on the highway, but when I see one in a restaurant or coffee shop in uniform I just feel a little safer.

But I suppose that might be because I'm basically an ordinary law-abiding citizen and haven't done anything wrong (recently).

In all my 50+ years I've never had a really negative experience with a "cop." Sure, I've gotten a couple of tickets but I deserved them, and I've even been arrested and booked once .. I was scared to death at the time but they were actually very polite and kind while I went through the process, even making sure that I was kept separated from the real creepy characters going through the process the same time I was. Cops are just people doing a job. If you respect them and are courteous and honest with them, they'll respect you and treat you very nicely.

My personal opinion and experience, of course.

reply to post by projectvxn

Your comparison quotation is so far out of context it hurts. Remember that it was secret police and other authorities that came for the communists, Jews and many, many others.

First of all, I'd like to know who you were addressing your reply to.

Second, I'd like to ask a question: Are you comparing the Portland Police Department to the Nazi thugs in the WWII era? I can't tell until you answer question one.

reply to post by Silver Shadow


So the taxpayers do not get equal treatment for the law and order they pay taxes for because of their freedom of opinion - if that is the case then as taxpayers we should be allowed to pay for what service our taxes we pay go for!

I.E. Why should gay and childless people pay for the breeders hobbies (their children) schools, free meals after school clubs etc.

Anti War Protesters who scream "Not In My Name" should not have to pay for the war so let them cut their taxes, which in Berkeley is exactly what many did during the Viet Nam War. I have been out of States now for 26 years don't know if that practice has carried on in Berkeley!

When the establishment decides who to protect based of petty prejudices then I like to see other minorities rights to do the same! The list is much longer that the above two examples but they illustrate my point which is almost the same as Silver Shadow only I carried it on to include all Americans not just the Rich Mans Army!!!!

If we were allowed to make the same choices as Silver Shadow suggested the Rich Man Army can make then I wonder what tax fund organizations would be left in the US.

In outside sales, when I was new to the job, was a minority in the community where I was calling on small corner shops. I was wearing a suit and my boss who was the same colour as myself was dressed in the same manner were asked to leave the store by the owner. I came back the next day dressed only in slacks, shirt and tie - no sport coat I asked the store owner why he had asked us to leave the day before. He said that I should have known better as I was making his customers nervous could I not see that they were leaving? I did but didn't think twice of it. He further said that when someone of our colour wearing a suit coat on a hot day like this only mean one thing, we were hiding guns and badges. I never had to wear a suit or sport jacket in my territory again and that was over 30 years ago. LEOs reputations are now less in the community than it was then.

Originally posted by K J Gunderson

Originally posted by Xtrozero
Ok... so give me a good reason why he should be told to leave?

The OWNER of the PRIVATE BUSINESS wanted him to leave.

Free enterprise!

No I agree that he has the right, but that doesn't make it right does it? I live near Portland so what was the name of the establishment so I can have the right not to support it.

Not the best business sense on the part of the owner. If the cops like your coffee shop and frequent often not only would your profit go up (police LOVE their coffee...or tea) but you wouldn't have to worry about any suspicion being raised by the police on your other customers.

It all comes down to for cops of why end a good thing by hassling people at the place you get good coffee?? Of course, that excludes any blatant violation of any laws.

[edit on 6/5/2010 by mistafaz]

reply to post by Xtrozero

If you have to ask then you never have - makes your point rather pointless!

To Mistafaz I must say in the 8 years of working in outside sales in San Francisco visiting corner shops that were also delis I can tell you never once did I ever witness a LEO paying for what they had consumed. That is not good business giving free products away. Deli sandwiches as well as coffee were never offered payment for by LEOs which would give a shop owner the choice of refusing or accepting payment. Surely there are laws against extortion...

Edited to cover Mistafaz post made whilst writing this response to Xtrozero!

[edit on 6/5/2010 by IceHappy]

The attitude displayed by the manager is unfortunate, but as a person who has lived among his type for years, I can tell you it's not exactly unfounded. I've always told the alternative set their biggest mistake is making this distrust of authority so obvious. It creates an "us vs. them" attitude. It is likely the store will see harassment from police because of his actions.

Originally posted by Oldtimer2
This doesn't suprise me,the people in oregon have a arrogance,why I have no idea,if you are from Calif,be ready to be berated like"don't californicate Oregon" or we can't be giving all of our gas to Californians,goofy bunch,must be all the rain

Though I love the city of Portland it's attitude is really screwed up. Origon as a whole is not a very good state. I moved to Vancouver WA because of it.

Schools have poor ratings, 11% flat tax, high property tax, no sales tax but gas is still the same price as Washington. They are deep in debt and getting worse, but hey great beer and food. Washington on the other hand have very high rated schools no state tax, less than 1% property tax… and are not your typical antiestablishment A holes hehe

Well, I watched the video and I was disgusted at how blatantly biased it seemed. This sort of thing makes me glad I don't watch CNN.

I live in SE Portland. My area is a different sort of area, a bit funky. People dress in totally bizarre ways, and ride weird bicycles and walk on stilts. I don't even blink anymore when I see a drag queen buying groceries or waiting at a bus stop. We have a lot of hippies and people with dreads who wear hemp clothes and buy organic. Just a little bit of info on the vibe of this neighborhood.

The fact of the matter is, we don't know exactly what made the manager decide to ask the cop to leave. It sounds like the cop had been in there before, and by his own admission, he was not there just to enjoy a cup of coffee. Maybe he was purposefully intimidating the patrons? Maybe he had been in there before and acted like a puffed up jerk? We don't know. Maybe one of the patrons had asked the manager to take action, when made uncomfortable by the cop on a previous visit? Or maybe the manager is just a really paranoid guy? Who knows. But kicking out a cop who is on duty from a coffee shop is different than asking him to leave when he is visiting as a private citizen.

Keep in mind that Portland has had some really bad problems with police violence lately. Several months ago, someone I know witnessed a sixteen year old girl get punched in the face by a Portland officer, after she littered. This is just an anecdote, as the worst of the problems concern shootings. We've just gotten a new police commissioner, so maybe things will change. But I don't blame some people for being nervous around our city police.

I'm not nervous around police, but I've never personally witnessed or been party to any kind of police violence. I'm just saying, for those who have, it isn't unreasonable for them to be afraid.

reply to post by mishigas

Originally posted by projectvxn

I'm not saying that cops are the bad guys, I'm saying that the quote was historically out of context and inaccurate.

Secondly, It does not matter what the officer did and didn't do. Most coffee shops and bars have a sign that says "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason". Was it right? To polite society perhaps not. That is not my point.

[edit on 5-6-2010 by projectvxn]

I agree, but what we have is a case where someone is denied service based on nothing more than what they represent without any behavior on the cop’s part to actually provide a reasonable reason to be discrimminated against in this way.

We have people cheer it, but the owner could have used that same situation to say hey I don't want black people or fat people in my establishment. The only difference is one is legal and the other is illegal, but are quite similar in attitude of the owner.

[edit on 5-6-2010 by Xtrozero]

reply to post by Xtrozero


Wait, you don't have an evidence other than that the guy was kicked out. We don't know how he was acting in the shop. We don't know if he had been there before. We just don't know.

I think it's a little presumptuous to think the manger was somehow in the wrong considering we weren't there to see or hear anything that went down.

reply to post by AmethystSD


Thank you for your well-reasoned and informative post!

I ask this question more as an "academic curiosity" than anything else, but by your reasoning all African Americans are justified in fearing and hating White people because of the behavior of a very few. All White people are justified in fearing and hating African Americans because of the behavior of a very few. All non-Muslims are justified in hating and fearing Muslims because of the behavior of a very few.

You would support such generalized reactionary hatred and fear?

Some one said the cop is a human being too. Seems all the reason necessary to not want an armed person hanging around. Believe it or not there are plenty of people in Portland who have had really bad run in's with these "people". People who committed no crimes and were not charged have been beaten up, threatened and abused. It is US vs THEM and some of us a re sick and tired of it.
I am a fifty something moderate conservative and I agree with the shop owner not wanting Portland Metro hanging around. That said the reason he did not want the cop in his shop will become the reason he will regret talking the action he did.
N.

Originally posted by richierich
The owner has every right to get rid of anyone he does not like, and cops are for sure a magnet for all others....cops are notoriously cheap, tip awfully, and always expect a FREE FEED or drink because of their exalted status!! Bunch of bums.

Wow...you simply could not be more ignorant or wrong. The only thing in this thread that are cheap are your ridiculous arguments.

You some across as what you likely are...a 14 year old troubled kid who has made some bad choices and had some run ins with the law. So the easier thing to do is blame the "system" or the cop or TPTB than to take responsibility for simply being a dumbass.

reply to post by Xtrozero


I understand your post. But this isn't about discrimnation. No one is kicking him out because he's a man or white or black or gay or whatever, it's because he's a cop. Some people don't like cops, there's nothing we can do about it except voice our displeasure. In the grand scheme of things it's really a non-issue.

Originally posted by IceHappy

If you have to ask then you never have makes your point rather pointless!

What? I do not understand what you just wrote here....help me out a little...hehe

Originally posted by Marked One
Okay. The lady in the video says "He's not just a police officer. He's a human being." And I know what some people on here are thinking.

"What about the many many innocent people nazi thug police brutalize every day in the police-state we live in, called 'Amerika'. They're human beings too."

Well I got something to tell you...

"THEY CAME FIRST for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

THEN THEY CAME for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

THEN THEY CAME for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

THEN THEY CAME for me and by that time no one was left to speak up." -Pastor Martin Niemöller. (1892–1984)

Okay. If they can kick a cop out of a coffee shop. And nobody says anything. Well then another coffee shop down the street is going to do the same thing. And in addition they're also going to kick out Tea-Partiers because first of all it's a coffee shop that serves coffee and not tea. And secondly because the owner of the shop is African-American. And we all know that all tea-party activists are nothing but a bunch of racist rednecks who hate on the main man because he's a brother.

If I was this cop and saw the owner of the coffee shop getting robbed while it's just him and his employees in there before closing time? I'd want to park my patrol-car across the street from the shop while I'm drinking coffee I bought from an Exxon and be listening to Lady Gaga on the radio while I watch the dude get his butt robbed. And when the owner comes out and asks me "Why didn't you save me from being robbed?" I'd pass the empty coffee-cup to the owner and say "Here, throw this away for me please. And **** off." And just drive away. BUT WOULD I REALLY DO THIS?! As much as I want to? NO I WOULD NOT. But I'd still tell the coffee-shop owner to go screw himself after he thanks me for saving his butt.

I've always predicted for a long time that something like this would happen one day. And look? It did.

Was the owner of the coffee shop lawfully in the right for what he did? YES! Because it's his shop and he can run it however he wants as long as he doesn't discriminate customers on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion ONLY. Not "race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or professional occupation."

It's a sad and messed up world we live in. Isn't it?

www.cnn.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 6/4/10 by Marked One]

I have two words for you...

Private Property.

Originally posted by antonia
Wait, you don't have an evidence other than that the guy was kicked out. We don't know how he was acting in the shop. We don't know if he had been there before. We just don't know.

I think it's a little presumptuous to think the manger was somehow in the wrong considering we weren't there to see or hear anything that went down.

Yes, I agree with you on this point, but we have a bunch of thumbs up replies here all based on the idea that he was kicked out for being a cop, so I guess that is what I'm counter posting against. If the factual situation has in it any part of where the cop was doing actions directed towards the owner’s patrons then I say hell ya kick him out, but that does not seem to be the thought process with many of these posts.

reply to post by Xtrozero


I will try again. Iif you have to ask name or location of the establishment so that you won't darken their doorstep with your custom means that there was no custom from you in the first place ergo it is a pointless statement that you will not visit the coffee shop. It would be pointed if you had said that is my favourite coffee house I will not be going back. Hence a lost of business.... thus having a point to your statement.