— Musings —11.24.2014 10:29 PM
Ferguson, right now
Spotted by Michael Bolen. Remind you of anything?
— Musings —11.24.2014 10:29 PM
Spotted by Michael Bolen. Remind you of anything?
Yeah, I’m watching it on a couple fo tv channels now…pics of looters at a liquor store…crowd chanting ‘Don’t shoot’ over and over…cnn seems to have a lot of coverage, lots of reporters and cameras..not clear to me why the canisters of gas were used in the first place…
not clear to me why the canisters of gas were used in the first place…
Perhaps this was why? –
pics of looters at a liquor store
I thought the looting happened after the canister use…but, perhaps I was not following closely enough.
This street protest and looting never happens when cops shoot to death a white kid.
Tank Man, Tiananmen Square, Beijing, June 5, 1989
I understand the anger and sympathize with the cause. What I don’t get is anyone who actually uses the chaos to LOOT their own neighbourhood stores. Those responsible for looting their own commerces (which have as much to do with the shooting as you and I) are THUGS. Those idiots take away from the cause and are nothing but opportunists.
Well sure, but don’t make the mistake of lumping the thugs in with the protesters. I don’t see the opportunists as taking away from the cause. They are just people who relish chaos for their own ends. Or to be a little more generous, they’re people who perceive that the system is and forever will be against them, and thus they’ve decided to show contempt for the system whenever they can. It’s not clearheaded thinking, but angry mobs have a tendency to let anger overwhelm reason.
Just like there are thugs on the fringes of the protesters who enjoy violence and chaos, there are some among the police and National Guard who also relish the opportunity to kick ass or maybe play with their military toys to an inappropriate degree. The greater the number of people thrown together in the two groups, the greater the probability that a critical mass of overly violent people will emerge and make the news. When chaos is unleashed for whatever reason, it ultimately cannot be controlled, that’s what chaos is. And yes, the picture is similar to Tienanmen square, the West shouldn’t be lecturing anyone.
They do take away from the cause in the sense that the headlines now include “looting” which drives a large segment of the population to focus on that aspect of it, rather than the justified protests. That means less sympathy from the general population, which means there will be less pressure for radical change needed to root out this kind of Police racism.
Tiananmen Square.
We are all victims now of the corporatocracy.
Oh, but by all means use all the tools provided by some of today’s biggest corporatocracies such as cell phones, search engines with insidious algorithms and “social” media.
To choose is to vote.
I didn’t realize Tank Man was a looter.
I’m surprised anyone would even try to make this comparison. – it does a disservice to the memory of that man and that day 25 years ago.
You can tell that person is a looter from that picture? Why do we need a court system when we’ve got Judge Dunkley at the bench
Based on the timing and location of the photo, rioter at a minimum. How do you know he’s not a looter?
The fact that he’s not carrying anything would seem to suggest he’s not looting. Even rioting is a stretch, since he’s just standing there.
Yeah, but he’s very likely an African-American and – for many – that’s all that is probative to condemn him, in spite of evidence to the contrary.
It’s an interesting Rorschach test.
I’m guessing you see a noble justice warrior, making a poignant social gesture, along the lines of Tiananmen. I struggle with this interpretation for no other reason than we would have seen this picture and person all over the news today. Maybe that still happens and I would gladly admit the error in my interpretation.
VC just assumes the person is a black male then strangely makes some vague racism accusations. Seems projective.
From your response I am very happy you write cheerleading pieces for oil rather than having any influence on the legal system
For that we are all truly fortunate that Judge Dunkley carries as much weight as Judge Reinhold
Aren’t you a smart, little google stalker? Do you pine for your ex-boyfriends on facebook too?
What does the comment section of an opinion blog have to do with the legal system? There’s no presumption of innocence – it’s why people here opine on Ghomeshi without him ever being charged with anything.
Ooh thin skinned and homophobic all from a simple Google search. If that’s stalking in the court of Judge Dunkley then lock me up.
Nice attempt to shift the goalposts and collectively blame everyone because you decided to make a racist assumption. And Ghomeshi? Is that justifying your assumption? Okay. Good luck with that.
My apologies – I always assumed you were a woman.
Don’t apologize, just stop assuming things
This cop claimed he was punched twice and that a third blow could be fatal ,bullshit of course, as not a scratch on his face.
No cop, like an arm-chair cop.
And, no doubt, based upon your years of experience in the field of arm-chair policing.
ALL the news programs, Scot? EVERY one?
Ohhhh……..except the part that YOU claim is “bullshit”……….”of course”. Convenient, that.
NONE of “us” here?
Ah, I get it; you’re so special that you get to speak for everyone. Except where you opine where my “sympathies” lie. There, you have absolutely no fucking clue.
IMO, this is a very powerful image. I am not sure when it happened or why, but I no longer feel like a citizen so I cannot image how a community that has been historically marginalized must feel. I am a “taxpayer” and without sounding like a paranoid nut, I feel that my government (all levels) does not serve me or care to protect my interests as a member of society and a citizen of the country/province/city. Governments are the policy arm of many huge corporations.
I have long maintained that inequities (not just money; the right to education, justice, etc) will do us in and sadly, we seem to be quite far down the path toward a world that does not care for so many of its citizens. The 1% is dangerous to the 99% and fear breeds horrible things. Heaven help us all.
Just a little reminder on how to recognize a looter..
http://0.tqn.com/d/politicalhumor/1/0/F/g/katrina_looting_vs_finding.jpg
Suggest everyone have a read, starting at page 195…
http://digg.com/2014/darren-wilson-testimony-transcript?utm_source=digg&utm_medium=email
I’m not sure why the testimony of accused is a good place to start, if you want an objective understanding.
Where would you start, then, to obtain an “objective understanding”, if not a first hand account of what happened?
Did you read the transcript? You know, the testimony upon which the grand jury…which had been assembled before any of this entire affair ever happened…at least in part, based their decision? Or is that irrelevant?
Please explain.
You start with the 3rd party witnesses, then move on to the forensic evidence, and then you can compare that with testimony of the accused.
Why, according to you, does using that as starting point mean it would be other than objective? His testimony would have mattered at SOME point anyway, right? RIGHT??
The accused is more likely the lie. I suspect Al only read Wilson’s testimony in detail and didn’t review the other evidence an thoroughly and expected others to do that same.
“His testimony would have mattered at SOME point anyway, right? RIGHT??”
I understand that in the majority of serious criminal trials, the accused chooses not to testify.
Awesome!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5f0mVn0HH6U
No this is awesome!
http://www.salon.com/2014/02/27/i_lost_my_dad_to_fox_news_how_a_generation_was_captured_by_thrashing_hysteria/
Did someone interview you at Salon Al?
It’s obvious the prosecutor McCullough and his staff didn’t want to destroy the police officer’s life and job over the killing of a wayward Black 290lb teen who was being apprehended for theft from a convenience store regardless of the circumstances. A police officer is worth more than a threatening Black teen who was killed in the line of duty, inadvertently or intentionally. That’s American justice in action and will remain so.
Except he had no idea that had even been a robbery.
Warren,
I pretty well fall in Scott’s camp but am hesitant to be as categorical. I think police and peace officers were long ago given special status in our legislation as opposed to an ordinary member of the general public.
That sends a not too subtle message to juries. In my view, that makes it much more difficult for prosecutors to obtain a conviction. The benefit of the doubt is a powerful thing to overcome in judicial systems.