by jjsqueeze » Mon Dec 22, 2014 10:31 am
Fontana- I think we probably do agree on a host of things. The responsibility of people in government leadership over an individual's actions just isn't one of them.
Dugoutdad-
If we blame leaders for the atrocities that happen by individuals under their watch then we are attributing far too much power to them and we are removing the individual's responsibility for their own actions. These are two things I refuse to accept. I do not believe that the individual is that powerless in their actions. Everyone makes up their mind on what to do. The fact that they found some sort of justification in something that a leader says is moot. They would have found other justification on another day, for another reason to commit the act that grew in their heart over a lifetime. If we accept this line of reasoning then we have to make it go "both ways blue" to bring this back to softball, and blame some very good residents for some very bad things that happened on their watch and may or may not have been prompted by their rhetoric.
It is a tough issue to be sure, I grew up in LA, I am white but I saw what happens to black people as far as cops go. There is a running joke that the only time we would see a black guy in Beverly Hills was when he was being pulled over by a cop. I know for a fact that black people were treated far differently than white people I saw it with my own eyes.
BUT- at the same time- There are no Santa Monica Crips full of white boys gunning each other down. So the cops come on to the force, and pretty soon realize that regardless of the cause, south central LA is a hell of a lot more dangerous and full of crime than Marina Del Rey. So they have to develop judgment in order to make the decisions about how to best enforce the law and protect the citizenry on a daily basis. Part of this judgment is that if you are a young black male dressed a certain way then you have a FAR GREATER LIKELIHOOD OF POSING A THREAT TO AN OFFICER OR A LAW ABIDING CITIZEN. I do not think this is racist, it is just being human. For the same reason that I have no problem with racial profiling at an airport (please talk to the middle eastern looking folks but go ahead and let the white grandma keep her shoes on).
BUT-Because of the realities of their job and the need to make some quick decisions, I do think that when they get it wrong it is usually a minority on the other side of the mistake. I do not think it is racism per se, meaning that I do not think the cops are running around thinking that minorities are somehow inferior or not deserving of protection, I just think they get programmed by reality to have to make judgment calls and if you have pick out the criminal, The homie in the hoody has a higher likelihood of criminal behavior than the white boy in the Abercrombie sweatshirt.
The other night I was driving home from a party with my family and we were pulled over My daughters had never been pulled over before and they asked if we were going to be arrested. I said "girls, we are a middle class white family in a new Subaru, we won't even get a ticket"...the cop told me I had a taillight out, asked me to fix it and we told each other to have a good evening. I do not think that minorities have the same confidence that I have that the cops would be fair with them.
My point is that I have the utmost belief that police officers are there to assist and protect me and my family, but because of reality, cops have to make quick assessments, crime is higher in poor areas, minorities tend to be lower on the economic ladder so they tend to commit more crime, so cops tend to make more mistakes with them and when a cop shoots someone it is usually a young black male. Then the black community responds to this with outrage, to a large extent very justifiable, I mean if it was your kid wouldn't you be pissed? I know I would.
But reality is reality and if I were a black man I would be teaching my kids the following-
DONT YOU EVER UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES GIVE A POLICE OFFICER ANY REASON TO BELIEVE THAT YOU ARE ANYTHING BUT A COOPERATIVE CITIZEN-THEY FACE DANGER EVERY MINUTE OF EVERY DAY SO UNTIL YOU CAN PROVE YOU ARE NOT A THREAT YOU ARE IN A VERY DANGEROUS PLACE.
The three stories in the news are all tragic, but in all three instances the men were not doing their best to put the officer at ease. One was walking around acting like he was shooting a gun, the other was physically confrontational and the third was verbally confrontational. I think in all three cases the cops did over react and no one needed to die in any of the situations, but the people also did not do what they could to put the officers at ease either.
Come to think of it, when I was pulled over, my first thought was to put my hands on my steering wheel not move them and be fully cooperative. But then again this was the first time I had been pulled over in 10 years-if it was the 50th time I had been pulled over, maybe I would get sick of it too and start mouthing off.
It's complicated, but there are two sides so I try to refrain from taking any, I just try to look at the problem itself.